Would you consider emailing all the dentists in your area promoting the fact that you are going to be offering root canals at a discounted price (because you do not have any education or experience doing this), so if they happen to have any clients that need this service and don’t want to pay for the expertise of dentist to please send them your way?  Better yet, try emailing all of the car dealers in town about how you will be selling your car on your own, but if they should happen to meet a car buyer who might be interested in your car instead of selling one off their own lot to please direct them your way? 

I don’t know whoever thought it would be a good idea to email all of the realtors in town about the house that you are trying to sell on your own, but apparently some FSBO (For Sale By Owner) folks are trying this “strategy.”

Now, let me point out the major flaws in this idea.

First, when someone decides to sell his home on his own, he is immediately insulting everyone in the real estate profession.  He obviously doesn’t understand or value all of things that a realtor does and doesn’t appreciate how a realtor’s education, knowledge, experience, and expertise can save him from making costly mistakes in the home sale process.

Secondly, he does not understand all of the pitfalls that can occur during a home sale and does not have the knowledge, skills, or contacts to be able to handle these problems and keep the sale on track.

Thirdly, he does not understand whom real estate agents represent and our fiduciary responsibilities to our clients.  If a FSBO seller is asking me to bring a buyer, I represent the buyer and being highly knowledgeable about all aspects of my profession, I will do everything that I can to make the price, terms, and conditions advantageous to the buyer.  Think of it like this: You are in a court of law to settle a dispute involving $500,000.  You do not have an attorney representing you.  The opposing side has hired a lawyer to represent him.  Do you really want to go up against a professional who goes to court everyday with his clients, and knows the law and courtroom strategy like the back of his own hand when you have so much at stake?

Lastly, if a realtor does decide to contact the FSBO seller, it is only to try to market his services in hopes that when the house doesn’t sell, the FSBO seller will call him to list the house.

Honestly, I really don’t understand the psyche of the FSBO seller.  When you are selling the largest investment that most people make in their lifetimes, wouldn’t you want somebody who knows what they are doing, does this everyday of their lives, and has the knowledge, experience and expertise to help you get it done the right way?

All I know is this… if something of value or major importance is at stake, I’m going to hire a professional to guide me.  I’m not going to cheap out and try to “Harry-Homeowner” it.

So Mr. and Mrs. FSBO, if you decide to email and call us about the house that you are trying to sell on your own, be prepared to swallow a huge loss because rest assured, our buyer is going to come out on top.

Wishing you sunshine everyday and the home of your dreams,
Jeri

Buying a home can be an exciting yet stressful process, but keeping these 5 things in mind when house hunting can make the decision about which house to purchase a little easier.

1. Understand exactly what you can comfortably afford by getting pre-qualified with a reputable lender before you go house hunting.  Knowing how much money you can spend on a home will help you focus your search and eliminate time spent looking at homes that are out of your price range.
2. Become familiar with the homebuying process.  Knowing the steps to buying a home takes the mystery out of the process, and therefore, makes it less stressful.  One way to do this is to attend a Homebuying Seminar like the ones that we hold at various local banks.  Our seminars are free, take only one hour of your time, and you are under no obligation to work with us – and after one hour, you will know exactly what happens and when it happens during the homebuying process.
3. Know the difference between your “wants” and your “needs.”  You might want granite counters and stainless steel appliances in a kitchen, but you might need 3 bedrooms for you and your children, so that 2 bedroom townhome with the fabulous kitchen might not be a home that you should keep on your short list.
4. Decide what you are willing to sacrifice to get a home.  Unless you have a limitless budget, you will probably have to give up something to get the right home for you.  Will you sacrifice location to get a bigger home, or will you sacrifice square footage to get the location you want?
5. Be ready to make an offer on a home when you find the one that is right for you.  Too many times, people feel that they must keep looking at homes even after they have found the home of their dreams because they are afraid that something better might be out there.  Homes come on the market all the time, so there is no way that you will ever be able to see everything before making an offer.  In the meantime, there are other buyers out there who will like the home that you like and will make an offer.  So, don’t lose out on the home of your dreams because you are afraid to make a decision.

If you are thinking about buying a home this year, attend one of our Homebuying Seminars and learn the homebuying process.

Looking for a deal in this market, check our picks for this week’s Best Buys.

Wishing you sunshine everyday and the home of your dreams,
Jeri

It’s probably not surprising that more than 98% of people looking to buy a home use the internet as their primary source for their home search.  After all, you can go to a site, enter an address or search criteria, click on an exterior photo of a home and have links to interior photos, details about the house, and information regarding schools, the community, crime rates – virtually everything you would want to know about a property.

By using the powerful resources of the internet, buyers can easily weed out homes that don’t interest them and locate homes that they would like to see in person.  This kind of research makes the entire home search process much easier for buyers because each time they run a search, they learn more about exactly what they want and exactly what they are willing to sacrifice – and generally speaking, this makes the house hunting process much shorter because the home visits are more focused than ever before.

The only problem with most property search tools is that they only give a buyer access to currently active listings.  Now I’m sure you’re wondering why a buyer would want to have access to under contract or recently sold properties.  Well, access to that information can help a buyer to understand what properties in a certain area are selling for as compared to their list prices, how much money most sellers are willing to contribute toward the buyer’s closing costs, and how many days most homes are on the market before the house gets a contract, or sellers reduce their list prices.

Wouldn’t you find this kind of information helpful if you were a buyer?  Well, that’s why Jesse and I decided to purchase a brand spanking new, state-of-the-art property search tool for all of our customers, clients, and visitors to our website.  This tool is called Listingbook and it gives you unrestricted access to the MLS, so you can search for properties just like realtors do!  You can sign up for a FREE Account (we promise not to bombard you with email or bother you) and try it out.

With Listingbook you can easily:

• Find any home in the Multiple Listing Service- just like we do!

• Make an informed decision and find your dream home quickly.

• Receive automatic notification of price reductions and new listings.

Our clients have raved about its power and we are very proud to be able to offer it to you.

If you are thinking about purchasing a home in 2010, we invite you to attend one of our FREE upcoming Homebuying Seminars.  It is one hour packed with important information about the homebuying process, the federal tax credit, writing an offer, short sales and foreclosures – and so far, we’ve had a tremendous response.  Check out our schedule and sign up – no pressure, no obligation, just education.

Wishing you sunshine everyday and the home of your dreams,
Jeri

 

I guess there's a first time for everything and I certainly experienced a new situation when showing a house in Howard County last Sunday afternoon.

I had five properties lined up to show my client and when we arrived to the third house, we were running exactly 6 minutes ahead of my 2:00 p.m. appointment.  When we pulled up to the house, I saw that there was a car in the driveway and that one of the garage doors was open, so we slowly walked up to the front door and I knocked on the door (not sure if the sellers were leaving the house for the showing or if they had planned to stay there).  Since no one answered the door, I accessed the key from the lockbox and started to unlock the door.  Just then the seller opened the door, screamed at me, "You're early!  We get 10 more minutes!" and slammed the door shut right in my face.

Needless to say, I was shocked by this behavior and so was my client who suggested that we just skip this one since the lady was clearly having a bad day.  I tried to smooth things over by offering that since this house is a potential short sale the lady is probably under a lot of pressure.  We decided to drive to the end of the road, wait a few minutes and then return.  We went back to the house at 2:08 p.m., the lady was now in the driveway putting a child in the car.  My client walked up to her and said that she did not have to leave the house for him to look at it when she began screaming at him.

We reluctantly went into the house (which was very nice with an open floor plan and pleasant views).

At the end of our day, I asked my client which house he liked best and guess what?  He liked the house where the woman was rude to us.  However, he also shared that he would be reluctant to get into a contract with her due to the behavior she exhibited.  So, we're back out house hunting - and we will find another home for him.  There's a lot of inventory in his price range!

It's probably important to mention that when realtors show properties to clients, we usually line up several for them to see during one outing and schedule times according to the route that makes the most sense.  Our appointment times are approximate.  We have no way of knowing if our client will breeze through a property or linger for a while, and we do our very best to keep to our appointment times, but sometimes we might run a few minutes early or a few minutes late. 

So, what should a seller do if a realtor arrives early with her buyer and you are not quite ready for them?  Just open the door and say, "Hi.  Thanks for showing my home today.  I'm not quite ready for you.  Could you please wait about 10 minutes?"  That response will make a much nicer impression on the buyer and a more pleasant experience for everyone.

What should you do if an agent makes an appointment to show your home on short notice?  Take a look at our Quick Notice Showing Tips or request our FREE brochure, Pricing and Preparing Your Home to Sell for Top Dollar.

Wishing you sunshine everyday and the home of your dreams,
Jeri