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Ten Bright Spots In A Down Market

Ten Bright Spots in a Down Market

1. The seller, who last year hated your guts because you negotiated  a low offer on his house now thinks you’re a genius
2. The Buyer who you just completed negotiations on a house for and were able to get the house for 50,000 less than asking, also thinks you’re a genius.
3. If you had more than one closing this month, your broker knows your name and is offering to take you to lunch.
4. It is easier to ask for a price reduction than ever before.
5. There are fewer phone calls that you have to return.
6. Now with the price of gas over $4.00 a gallon you have less driving to do.
7. It is easier to schedule vacation time (provided you have the money for a vacation).
8. You now recognize all the agents who attend your open houses since they are the only ones left in the business.
9. You have your pick of uptime (floortime). 
10. You can finally write that novel you’ve always wanted to write.

Appraisals

In this market, appraisals are king. They rule. And need to be respected. Case in point: I went on a Market Evaluation for a potential seller. Based on my analysis, I suggested they list their property at $429,000. At that time a comparable property had just been reduced to $425,000 after being on the market at a higher price. My client thought their property had more value (with less square ft) and wanted to price it $479,000. I talked them down to $449,000 and lectured them on the possibility that if they find a buyer at that price and the comparable property sells at their asking price, there is going to be an issue with the appraisal. That sale will have a negative impact on the appraisal and will have a negative impact on the transaction. Whenever I’ve had this discussion, the reaction is the same, ‘Let’s deal with that when the time comes.” Well, the time came. The comparable property sold below asking and we put a deal together on their property near the asking price. The appraisal came in well below our accepted offer. Ultimately, our selling price had to be adjusted downward to fall in line with the appraisal. I had to remind my client’s of our prior discussion because sellers’ tend to hold the agent irrationally responsible for issues and market forces not in their control. No one was happy but the Buyer. And everyone had to work very hard to keep the deal from falling apart. As I said, appraisals are King and need to be respected.

Miles Traveled

This blog should have been written last April. As an Independent Contractor, I am able to write off my mileage as a business expense. So every year I log my miles. I usually don’t pay much attention to miles traveled in the pursuit of my clients’ satisfaction but with gas prices this high I didn’t have much of a choice. There is was glaring at me: 24,000 some odd miles traveled. Where? Where did I go? Did I drive to California and back? I never left the area. This is tweentyfourthousandmiles traveled showing people houses. This is insane. In this age of internet this and internet that tell me there isn’t a better way of putting together a home buyer with a house instead of traveling from house to house to house to house---I must have shown over a thousand houses last year. This is my own fault. I tell my buyer clients that the only way you can really tell if the house is for you is to go and walk in and experience the space. Each house breathes differently, feels different. So until we can create a full 3D total interactive experience, it’s going to be more miles on my car before we find our way home.

Writers' Block

I have started this blog 138 times so far in the past month.  My intention when beginning my blogging adventure was to write at least three times a week. I didn’t think it would be that hard. I compiled a list of over two hundred topics so I wouldn’t run out of ideas and wham, here I am two months without an entry. Writer’s block is a bitch. It’s not that I don’t have anything to write about or the time. I would have the fantasy of writing. I knew what I was going to write about but every time I sat down to write….a dizzy sick feeling in the pit of my stomach. And yet everyday, the same thought, “Oh, that should go in my blog.” Could it be the state of the market that is making me so anxious? Or just insecurity? Ultimately it doesn’t matter. The only way to dissolve a writer’s block is to write. So here I am writing. Again. Sorry for the long absence.