Twin Cities Real Estate

Appreciation

 

Appreciation is the growing in value or worth.  Last night I had a dinner for my past clients to tell them how much I appreciate their business and referrals.  Each year my clients grown in value to me as I more and more thank them for selecting me as their Realtor.  With thousands of Realtors in the Twin Cities, Jane Paulus was the one they elected to use to buy or sell a house with.  That is an awesome feeling.

 

I can never take those people for granted.  As Realtors I do think there are times we take them for granted and forget to tell them how much they are appreciated.  It is a business transaction, but more than that it is a relationship building.  They are trusting me with helping them with this large economic and emotional investment.  I see year after year their families grow, pets change, and learn of improvements they are making to their property.  I take extreme pride in knowing I had a part in making their dream come true.

 

We should never take people for granted.  My role as a Realtor should never be taken for granted.  I can be removed from the lives of my clients very suddenly by another Realtor getting in their face.  I want to work hard to have my clients know my value after the transaction has closed.  I appreciate them and if I did my job right their property is appreciating.

Cloud Watching

 

It has been a tough past week.  Being in real estate and trying to help people manage their finances, I am so aware of how tough this week has been.

This is the start of a new week and here are my suggestions for today.

 

1) Don't read the paper except for the comics.  The ads will depress you as that is more money you don't have to spend and the sports page will only get your blood pressure up.

2) Only watch or listen to the Vikings if they are winning.  Be a fair weather fan and go do something else with your time if they are going to spoil your day by playing poorly.

3) Make a meal from scratch and give your body a break for all that other kind of food you eat.

4) Send a note or card to a friend.  Do not email them.  Think how special it will be when they go to their mail and get a real piece of mail and not junk mail or a bill.  Tell them they make you feel good and you will make them feel good.

5) Listen to the outdoors and take the I pod out of your ears.  Silence and natural noises give your ears a break.

6) Take your dog for a walk.  If you don't have a dog take yourself for a walk.  You will be amazed how much tension goes out of your body doing this.
7) Lay on your back and study the clouds.  Find shapes in the clouds and make stories out of them.  Your imagination is more powerful than any movie or t.v show you can watch.

 

I think you are ready to face the next week.  I know I will be.

Oil and Opens

 

This afternoon and tomorrow I will be sitting open houses.  One of the topics that comes us as the buyer walks through the house is the area in which the house is located.  I am not talking about coffee houses being near by, a desirable area, no I am talking about how close the property is to where they work.  They no longer are talking about bus transportation but peddling on their bikes.  Perhaps they are going to get a moped and be very Italian.

 

Though in recent days we have seen the price per gallon of gas drop about a dime, say $3.59, it is still costly to drive our vehicles.  Many of us have trucks, SUV's and not the gas efficient small vehicles.  The economy is pushing many of us to move towards where we work.  Forget about living on the outskirts of town so you can get to your cabin faster on a Friday night, forget about the acre for your dog to run, and forget about getting far from the maddening crowd.  The pull of the city is real as fuel goes up in price. 

 

The small problem is that the person who lives further out needs to sell his piece of real estate to buy in the city.  Not that many buyers want to buy out there for the same reason he wants to move into town.  This is forcing down the price of his property as more listings appear further out.  The city seller is saying will some body please buy my house.  Do you sense a log jam taking place?  I do.  The market will open up when these parties can get together.  It is one of the issues out there like many other issues.  Unfortunately, I do not have the answer people want to hear.  The answer is for prices to come down at both ends, and they will meet.

How Many Days on the Market

 

Market times needs to be looked at from both sides.  Sellers will often say they don't care how long their house has to stay on the market they will hang in there until they get the price they want.  The first question out of a buyer's mouth is, "how long has this house been on the market?" I am not certain market time means anything.

 

The reason why I say that is that the market time can be manipulated by the listing agent.  The MLS, Multiple Listing System, records the most recent listing contract and not accumulative days.  A house that has gone on and off the market for the last 6 months might only show 24 days at present.  A trace can be done but often the public is not aware of the total days.  The buyer wants to know the number of days as they feel the longer the house has been on the market the better their chances at offering a lower price. 

 

A seller often does not feel that market time has anything to do with value.  If the average market time is 75 days and they have an above average house (doesn't every buyer have one of those) than it might take longer.  If their market time is 125 days so be it.  To them value is not based on market time.

 

Ask me and I say, "There is so much that goes into the price of the property and days on the market is just one of them."  Here is an example, what if a seller has been on for 100 days and on day 100 decided they were over-priced and reduced their property by $50,000.  At that new price does it mean to bring in an offer even lower?   Maybe now the price is right and full price is warranted. 

 

I am careful with my buyers and sellers how days on the market is used.  It is all the perspective of the person reading market time.

Radon

 

As I work with buyers I attempt to educate them on radon and why I think it is important for them to have a radon inspection at the time they have the house they purchase inspected.  One, if the buyer is going to use the basement as living space, they need to know if radon is present. Two, when they go to resale the property the next buyer might test for radon and if radon is found then they might have to pay to have it mitigated.

 

Many Realtors do not discuss radon.  I am not one of them.  I talk about radon as it is more common in the Twin Cities then one would guess.  If you put the state of Minnesota on a chart with all  50 states, you would find Minnesota ranks up there as a radon state.  It has to do with our rocks.  Don't laugh, but radon is found in the rock that the house sits on.  It comes from the natural breakdown of uranium in soil, rock, and water and gets into the air we breathe it and it is the second leading cause of lung cancer. 

 

Don't run scared.  Radon is easily taken care at a price not as hefty as you might imagine.  I have found that a typical house costs around $1200-1600 to put in a system that moves the air out of the house and thus removes the radon.  It is done in a corner of the unfinished basement and one hardly notices it once the system is installed. 

 

Radon is tested by a house inspector or a radon company.  An electric machine monitors the air in the lowest part of the home for 48 hours and gives readings and averages.  The Environmental Protection Agency recommends that a reading should be below 4.0.  Most sellers are surprised to learn they have radon higher than this and they usually will work with the buyer to mitigate prior to closing. 

 

Radon is not something to be frightened by ,but it is not something to be treated lightly.  I want to educate my buyers and then they can move forward from there. 

Hardwood Floors . . . In or Out?

Martha Washington had pine floors in her home and since the Colonial period hardwood floors were polished to shine.  Builders did not have plywood as a sub flooring until after World War II, so hardwood is typically found as flooring until the late 1950's.  Why did it go out of fashion?

 

It became a statement in the 50's and 60's that one could afford wall to wall carpet.  It became practical as carpet at the time was easier to care for than the hardwood floors.  I remember my mom polishing the hardwood floors and then as kids we would slide on them in our stocking feet.  They could be slick and dangerous after a recent coat.  Too many coats made them look dull and the wax would need to be stripped.  I imagine it was a miserable process of keeping those floors looking nice.  So--------carpet became the trend.  It was so in fashion that we even went shag with it and put it in the kitchens and bathrooms.  Note sure what the public health department thought of that.  By the 80's buyers were demanding to see the hardwood floors and carpet became on the first floor not as fashionable.  The poly coating made the floors easy to maintain.

 

Microfiber dust mopping has made the daily care of hardwood floors easy.  The mops pick up dust and small particles.  This system takes away the sand and dirt that scratches the surface over time.  The floors are left looking shining as if they had ben polished. 

 

Wood floors are in and they are seen as green.  I think the price difference between wood and laminate is so small that you should always go with wood in our area.  In other regions of the United States due to insects laminate is the best flooring.  Watch the use of wood flooring in the basement.  It is too humid and the floors can buckle.  Laminate can be a good alternative for lower levels or where boots come into the house.

 

If it was good enough for homeowners in the 1700's, then I think we can say it has staid the test of time. 

Frozen, Scared, Unmotivated

 

Yesterday I held a new listing of mine open for four hours.  I really tried to read the buyers coming through to get a better idea of what buyers are like right now.  Here is what I saw.

 

Frozen- A group of them were frozen and were stuck in place and did not know how to get out.  They were getting information from all directions telling them the world is impossible.  They had too much information and did not know how to filter it,.  No wonder  people sit in front of the TV watching a reality show and escaping their world.

 

Scared-The next group were scared.  They are different from the frozen group as they are reacting and getting information.  The result is the same, they are doing nothing.  They have a fear of the economy getting worse, of house prices going down, and of interest rates getting lower.  What if they bought now and in 6 months saw they could have done better?

 

Unmotivated-This group could buy and have no fear of buying ,but they just don't have the energy to do so now.  Again, we see the same result, they do nothing.  The unmotivated buyer separates the information and knows they can buy. They are waiting for the house to jump out at them and tell them "buy me."  Here is news to them, houses do not talk!

 

The media, people in banking, and Realtors need to help all three of these groups to see the positive side about buying now.  Prices are down, interest rates are down, and buyers are not competing for the same house.  It reminds me of the few that had cash during the depression.  They bought real estate ,held it, and made a fortune.  We need buyers to come forth and buy.  It is not risky and they will benefit by being a home owner and not a renter. The US economy will benefit as so goes the real estate market so goes the economy.  The trickle down effect is easily measured.  A new home owner buys things for the new house.

 

Buyers chill out, take a deep breath, and with competent resources you can buy successfully.

 

Discussing Foreclosures

 

have a first time buyer that does not want to purchase a property that is in foreclosure.  She is getting very frustrated as many of the houses I show her are in foreclosure and the listing agent does not disclose that information.  She asked me if that was right.

 

The Multiple Listing Service does have a box a listing agent can check to tell the public it is in foreclosure, or they can check nothing.  It is not a requirement.  It might seem unfair to the consumer, but that agent might have been instructed by their seller not to disclose.

 

There are ways a showing agent can get information about the listed property.

1) Court records would indicate if a sheriff's sale has taken place

2) On the MLS in agent remarks it might state being sold in as is condition or certain forms are necessary

3) There are certain listing companies or Realtors that work only with foreclosures

4) There are certain phrases used by Realtors in their comments that subtlety say "foreclosure

 

Once I knew my buyer did not want a house in "as is condition" or wait 6 weeks to several months to see if her purchase agreement was accepted, I was able to guide her away from foreclosed properties.

Code of Ethics

 

Last week I got a call from a person I did not know.  She said she saw my for sale signs often and figured I 'd be a good person to call.  I asked her how I could help her.  She told me she was trying to buy a house through a certain Realtor and he was suggesting something that did not feel good to her.  She wanted to know what was ethical in real estate.  I went on to talk to her about our mandatory Code of Ethics and how every 2 years we need to take classes regarding ethics.  She was surprised this was a requirement as the Realtor she was working with sure did not act like he took his class.

 

There is one thing about sitting through a class and another about living out what you have heard.  It is much like going to church and hearing a sermon and feel like you took care of that for the week and now you can act any way you want to.  Walking the talk is always tough.  We can talk about doing unto others, but for some reason there are people who think this one time it is okay to act one way.  Do they think they won't get caught?

 

Here is my take on it.  Mpls and St. Paul are the smallest biggest cities I have ever known.  You might think you will never see that Realtor again so you figure it is okay to work him over.  But I tell you, you can bet your last nickel you will see him before you know it.  If it does not feel right, then it is not right.  I doubt you need to see it in writing to know it is wrong to take fruit from a fruit stand. Yet, people do it thinking the grower won't miss one pear.  A Realtor who thinks he can tell a buyer at an open house,"Work with me.  I can get you a better deal on this house than if you used your Realtor." is taking a pear without paying.  It is wrong and unethical.  As Realtors we are to treat one another the same as family. Then again ,I don't know how they treat family.

 

All Realtors need to be held accountable.  There is never a time when it is okay for us to bend the rules.  We earn the trust of the public and for that reason alone we must have standards that are beyond doubting.

How about Parents House Hunting with Kids?

 

A parent that wants to come along with their "kid" to help them select a house can be good and it can make the process difficult.  A parent that is familiar with the geographic area the kid wants to buy in will be accepting of the prices and types of properties being viewed.  I once had a mom and dad come in from Minot, N.D. They lived in a 1972 rambler with new steel siding and vinyl windows.  They saw our first house which was built in  1915 with original siding, windows, and the floors did slant.  Charm was everywhere from leaded windows to oak buffet.  The kids loved it.  The dad pulled me aside and wanted to know what kind of Realtor I was trying to sell his son this crap at $350,000. 

 

I took some buyers house hunting and their engineer father joined us.  Dad took about 30 mins. in each house checking out the plumbing and elec.  The buyers were trying to see if they liked the floor plan, neighborhood, and general feel of the house.  After he flushed the 10th toilet, I suggested he might want to wait to do his "inspection" on the house the kids decided to buy.  We sure wasted a lot of water that morning.

 

I had a mom who the minute we walked into a house needed to know how long the house had been on the market, when was the last price change, and what did I think the house was worth.  I suggested we walk through the property first and see what was up with it.  She was irritated and set her jaw.  I did not want to make her angry, but I saw little reason to analysis a house that her kids might not even like.

 

Last weekend I had a dad come along.  He sat in the back seat and was pleasant.  He would go through the house and ask open ended questions of the two buyers.  He would affirm the position the kids took.  If he had a concern he would quietly ask me.  He told me the kids were buying this on their own and he was along really just to have a good time with them.  He wanted them to feel good about the house they selected, but he wanted it to be their decision.

 

A parent who encourages their child to be a good decision maker and helps that child stand by their decision is helpful.  The parent who undermines the decision is not helpful  In many cases these buyers have important jobs where they make decisions on a daily basis without their parents.  Why not let that same child make another decision on their own?

 

Parents can be supportive and parents can be such a pain to the kid that the kid tells the parent they cannot come again.  I just want the buyers to be happy and not end up in tears because "daddy said it was a stupid house."