This week's "Foot" notes
Footnote April 25th, 2012
Read an interesting article about Travel Agents in the NY Times and and how they are making a comeback in an industry that is very Interweb dominated.
It got me thinking (yes, I'm deep that way).....
The same has been said about Realtor's, that we will be replaced by all sorts of interweb sites and that we will go the way of the dinosaur.....well to paraphrase Old Tom.."Report's of my demise are greatly exaggerated."
Here's why.
What the interwebs can never do is prepare you for on the ground realities that occur every single day in this Gig I call Real Estate. Every transaction has it's nuances and complications, sure every once in a while we get one that goes super smooth but the reality is that most do not and need problem solving right up to and sometimes even after closing.
There are so many little things that can arise in this Gig that the average Buyer/Seller could ever imagine and added up could cost thousand of dollars to remedy, oh and never mind all of the headaches and time lost due to not having the folks in place to solve these unforeseen problems.
BTW; Most Buyers/Sellers never see some of these problems because we have already anticipated and corrected them way before they would have come up.
Buying or Selling a home is not just looking at pretty pictures on line or trying to "time" a market (you never will), It's about knowing what to expect and how to resolve everything that could come up; that's what good agents do.
Oh and another reason why we won't go away...
I will soon not allow the interwebs to market my listings (more on this later), so Bye, Bye Zillow, Trulia and all the others...."No soup for you!"
Got Questions on Real Estate?
Give me a shout, I'm always around.
Jav
Footnote April 17th, 2012
Why don't folks listen?
I don't mean in general (that's how marriages last) but in Real estate?
I know everyone is now an expert in everything due to the interwebs (hell even I am a doctor based on my extensive medical knowledge thanks to WebMd.com) and thanks to Zillow, Trulia and all the other Real Estate sites we have spawned a whole new generation of "Donald Trumps" but kids.....unless you do this everyday for a living you don't know "Richard".
I don't mind folks reading up on Real Estate stuff (that is what this website is about) and educating themselves in the Buying/Selling process BUT when folks come in with "Interweb know it all attitude" and try to "educate" me on what some thing is worth, I just nod and with a smile say "how many homes have you sold/purchased this month?"
That usually puts an end to the conversation......So;
Buyers, please listen.
If you are looking for a home in Coconut Grove, Coral Gables, South Miami and you find one that is in a good location and priced well, prepare to compete. If you think you are going to "steal" it don't waste your time, those days have past.
"Jav but the news said that Miami Real Estate is in the tank."
Really, been looking at homes recently?
Sellers, please listen.
If you are considering selling in Coconut Grove, Coral Gables South Miami and are willing to price to market and allow showings, prepare to move. If you think that "testing the market" is back in fashion, don't waste your time, it's not.
"Jav but the news said that the inventory is drying up"
Buyers can buy anywhere and they are still buying value; which does not mean Cheap, it means homes that meet the market.
Agents, please listen.
Educate your clients, don't let some website set the standards for what we as agents should be doing.
Got questions on Real Estate?
Give me a shout, I'm always around.
Jav
Footnote Tuesday 4/3/2012
Here we go again...
I have written about this topic/word several times through out my stellar Real Estate career (HA) but once again it's coming back into conversation and I just don't get it.....
"Investment"
As I mentioned in Oct 10' when I wrote a series of posts discussing this topic, your home is where you live not where you are going to make your net worth.
Don't get me wrong, there is dough to be made in this GIG I call Real Estate but PLEASE, pretty please STOP looking at your private residence as a cash cow, ain't going to happen now nor later.
So as you search for your next home, just remember to stop and smell the neighbors, say Hi to the flowers, pet the pets and ask your Realtor...."Would you live here?"
Believe it or not, it's a great question to ask.
Got questions on Real Estate?
Give me a shout, I'm always around.
Jav
Footnote Thursday 3/22/2012
Shhh...
Quiet / Pocket listings have been around forever in Real Estate and for a Buyer it's one of the main reasons you are told to use someone local; we Realtors (believe it or not) know some things.
BUT the problem has always been that most Pocket listing are of the "Hey Listing Agent, get me X amount and I'll sell it" kind. Usually the asking price does not correlate to actual listing prices in the neighborhood (I get these calls all the time), so while a Buyer may feel special about seeing a property that is "Quiet" many times it's not priced correctly and there is not much motivation to actually sell.
In the last couple of week's I have sold three properties that never hit the market and while you could have considered them "Quiet" they really were homes that were going to come on market; we just beat the market to the punch. These were future Sellers that had real expectations of the market and were going to price the homes accordingly. Being local (and local is a lot bigger now), other agents reach out to me and ask if I had Buyers for their properties (I am known for Buyers) and if I wanted to see them prior to "hitting" the market.
We did and in each instance, we were able fit each home to a specific Buyer and at a reasonable price.
My point is that I am now seeing a lot more of this on both the Buying and Selling side.
I have my own Listings coming that are being shown "quiet" and as our market continues to tighten (we have written about it at nauseam), I really do think that this quiet thing will become more the norm, then the exception.
Sorry Zillow, Trulia and all the others, no more free listings to exploit for you....
Got questions on Real Estate?
Give me a shout, I'm always around.
Jav
Footnote Tuesday 4/17/2012
