Twin Cities Real Estate

Small Square Footage in Houses

Last week I was contacted by a writer at a national magazine to discuss with them if there is a trend for buyers to purchase smaller houses.  I had a yes/no answer.

I do find that buyers 50+ are interested in buying smaller and houses with more quality. Perhaps they have lived in the larger property and no longer have an interest in big.  They like cozy and comfortable and are okay with sharing space.  The need for  large entertaining space is gone.

My younger buyers have specific needs and want space.  They insist on 2 baths and are hopeful to get a 2 car garage.  They need closest, office space, and a big kitchen.  The kitchen needs to have a dishwasher.  I point out quality items to them as they can be impressed by current paint colors and stainless steel.

Less sq. it is very workable if the house has the following aspects to it:

*tall ceilings

*light colors

*open floor plan

*floor coverings that are the same

*large windows with natural lighting

Smaller homes are easier to maintain, cost less to heat and cool, are less costly to decorate and furnish, and in many cases sell easier as they appeal to a broader range of buyers.  In the end it all comes down to individual needs. 

House sales Up

The media yesterday had stories about housing sales in the past month being up.  This is true, but read on.  The sales they are referring to once again were bank owned properties.  We continue to see sales when properties have below market pricing on them.

I am carrying listings ,and I know my sellers get confused when they hear stories such as this with sales up  Their  house is not selling and they want to know why.  The reason is that their  house is not in foreclosure and not down and dirty in pricing.  I drive neighborhoods and see for sale signs go down and sellers stay put.  They are doing so because they do not need to sell and refuse to drop the price to the point where the market will bear it.

Sellers must remember that we make our money when we buy and not when we sell.  If you take a hit when you sell in this market you will make it up when you go onto buy.  If you don't purchase another property, then it is a killer.  Interest rates are at a market low, prices are down, and there is lots of inventory.  We should see a rush at houses.  There has been a fear instilled in us that has us frozen like the lakes in our countryside.  People should realize that if we all bought a house we would have this economy growing in no time.  You buy a house, you buy paint, appliances, bushes for the yard, drapes, have a plumber out, put a loan officer to work, buy insurance, and the list goes on. There are answers to our problems we just don't like to try them to take the cure.

Why Realtors are so Low on the Professional List

I just read an article in which Realtors were ranked with other professionals.  As a profession we came in dead last.  I can tell you why we do.

1)Brokers want large numbers of sales people and they will take almost anyone into their sales' force.

2)In Minnesota it does take some time and money to get licensed but it is nothing like other professions.

3)Brokers do not watch dog their sales force.  They wait for a complaint and then take action.

4)There really is not a probation period when you join a real estate firm.  Once you are licensed you can hold an open house, take buyers around, list a house, and carry on your business as your desire.

5)The test you take for the state has little to do with selling  a house.  There is not one question on the test as to styles of houses, how long a roof lasts, how to measure a room, or how much is appropriate earnest money.

6)There are part time agents that do not work that often in the field of real estate.

7)Brokers are more interested in hiring an agent based on who they know and not what they know.

A person who is a fast talker with lots of personality is often told to go into sales.  If that were to be true as to how successful they would be then, a person who likes to cut meat and wear a white mask would make a good surgeon.  I just don't understand how you can determine who will be good in real estate by just having them sit across your desk.  I feel a broker should see the agent out in the field before they take them into their office.  I feel managers should review the listings we take as to if we are doing a correct job of representing the house.  Training an agent one on one would mean you have a sales force that meets a standard. Oh, I forgot Realtors are independent contractors and therefore brokers should let them do their own thing.

Parents are very selective of the teachers for their children, but those same parents will let their son's basketball coach lest their largest financial investment, their house, because he is a nice guy. Then the parents get unhappy with the coach/Realtor and say all Realtors are bad.  There is a reason why this career is on the bottom.  That means the career is there and not all of us.  I pride myself on being a very good Realtor.

The Winter Thaw

It's back!  Those of us who have lived for years in Minnesota forget about the January thaw.  We get a few days of 30 degrees, and we start believing winter is over.  My dog this morning ran to the door and then put on his brakes.  He looked at me as to say, "You are not serious about me going out in that." After all, it is the Pond Hockey Tournament and the Winter Carnival in St. Paul.  Carved in a block of ice somewhere are the words "winter freeze."

About ten years ago I had a family relocating from Virginia.  It was the first week of October and I met them at the airport.  They stood there in Sorrell boots, parkas, and chopper gloves.  I laughed so hard.  "Where do you think you are moving to?" I asked. It was 70 some degrees that day.  They learned to laugh at themselves.  That January she called me and said,"Hey Jane, you were right. Winter is not so bad here.  We have had below zero, but now it is 30 so I guess spring will be here soon."  I did not have the heart to tell her she was experiencing our winter thaw.  It is best to let new comers experience our weather as it comes and not try to prepare them for what we really get.  After all, this is what makes us hardy

A Firm Hand Shake

A hand shake.  It is a simple act of reaching out to someone and welcoming then into your space.  It is also a closure to our time together.  Men have been shaking hands for years. Men for centuries have shook hands to close a business deal.  From a hand shake men could tell if a man was honest, weak, or a good businessman.

Men usually never shook hands with women.  Up until the 1060's if a man was introduced to a woman she would be acknowledged by a nod and a smile.  In earlier years men of statue would gently hold the woman's hand and even kiss the top of the hand.  Women entered the world of business, and the female gender started extending their hands.

I always shake hands with people I meet and when they leave.  I want them to know I welcome them to me, and I want them to know my name.  I can tell when people don't want me in their space as they back away as I extend my hand.  At an open house the "casual" shopper is shy to shake hands and exchange names.  I don't care what their level of interest is, I still feel they should get a firm hand shake and hear my name.

That limp hand shake is the worst.  You almost think the person is not healthy.  Often I will take my other hand and clasp our hands together to give them support.  I want people to feel good about our time together and hope they will leave with a smile.  A good feeling spreads with a smile and warm greeting.

Try it this weekend.  Shake the hands of those you meet, tell them clearly your name, and smile at them.  I know if you come to my opens this weekend, I will be doing that to you.

Being a Good Real Estate Negotiator

Yesterday Edina Realty, my broker, had an Expo for all the Realtors and employees of Edina Realty.  It is a meeting sharing where the market has been and where we are going.  We are given skills to position ourselves in the market so as Realtors we can perform better and so can our properties.

At this meeting I heard a national speaker by the name of Rich Castro.  He is out of Las Vegas and has years of experience in real estate.  He said something that gave me new insight into being a good real estate negotiator.  He gave new definitions to personality types.

System- This person is always right, is very structured, organized, demands order.

Relationship- This person likes to make things happen.  They like people.

Concept- This person is the creative type.  We might call them spacey. They see the big picture but little details they ignore.

When I am being a negotiator, I need to know the personality types of the people evolved in the transaction.  A relationship seller wants to know a family will move into his house and they will like it as much as he has.  That family caring for his property can mean as much to him as how much money he will get for the house.  The system seller could care less about the people buying his house, but he wants to be certain all the t's are crossed on the legal documents and that the financing will go through.  How I present the offer to the agent and his seller can mean the offer is fairly looked at or ignored. 

When I am being interviewed to be a listing agent and help sellers sell their property, or being interviewed by buyers to help them purchase real estate, I am surprised that I am not asked about my skills to negotiate.  It seems to me that if it is important to get the most dollar for their house as a seller, or if they want to buy the house for as little as possible as a buyer,  they would want a Realtor with the best skills in negotiating.  I continue to improve my negotiating skills and feel it is one of my strengths.

A New Beginning

A NEW BEGINNING

New Beginnings seems to lift all of us up. I think that is why we like the first of the year. We get a new calendar and it is like we get to start all over. A birthday means a new year and new opportunities for us. Babies are seen as new life and perhaps the baby will be that person who changes the world for us. Puppies are cute and offer to us new love and relationships. Dating a new person means we get to redfine a rela;tionship and make it better this time.

I think some people buy new houses so they get a "do-over." It is new,They buy different furniture, they get a fresh start. The new surroundings give them an opportunity to define a new way of living. Some empty nesters move into a condo downtown to have such a different life style where they don't miss the kids or all the pets that once filled their lives. A family might move to a hobby farm so they can experience a freedom that they could not have in the city. A person suffering the loss of someone close to them might buy that cabin on the lake to find their center once again. Change ins where we live can for some bring happiness.

Today we have a change in our government leadership as a new President is sworn in. People from all different mind sets and all parts of the world have great hope in this man. It is not only the man but the change that brings hope to us all. Change is good but it also brings discomfort to us. It means things are done diferently and we are not familiar with these changes. It will be a positive new beginning if we all give change a chance.

Martin Luther King and Real Estate

Martin Luther King and Real touches my life every day.  This man along with the legislation that took place while President Johnson was in office, changed to whom real estate can be sold.

Federal laws specifically state that Realtors cannot red line or direct where people can or cannot live.  There are testers in the community checking regularly to make certain Realtors do not practive discrimination.  Federal laws state that a person can buy real estate wherever they want and cannot be descriminated against by the race, color, creed, sexual preference, or physical limitations.

About 12 years ago I was helping a couple buy a single family home in West Bloomington.  He was from Africa and wrote music.  She was from Mississippi and was a urologist at the University of Minnesota.  They had a bright 12 year old son and wanted to make sure he got into a school district that would meet his educational needs.  I saw them as a family.  I was surprised when they found a house they wanted to buy ,and they had a concern the neighborhood would not like them because of their race.  I was heart broken for them.  She told me that being raised in Mississippi, she could not think any other way.  I took them with me one Saturday morning and rang the door bells of the houses around the neighborhood.  I introduced them as a family interested in buying into the neighborhood and asked the homeowners to talk to the buyers about the community.  It was a positive morning and this family has lived happily in this neighborhood since.

We can create laws to attempt to remove prejudices, but it is the people that live daily in our communities that practive those theories.  Happy Birthday to a man who had the strength to say with a quite voice, we shall over come

Where do Open House Buyers Come From?

It is Sunday, so naturally my mind goes to open houses. I don't know what many of you do between noon and five on Sundays, but I sit in my listings and meet prospective buyers.

 

I always ask buyers how they found the house.  I do not advertize in newspapers, so that choice is out.  The greatest majority of buyers today do not get a paper.  They read the paper on line or at work.  The highest per cent of buyers tell me they come from the open house postings on line.  The second choice is open house signs that I post.  I put out many signs as it helps direct people from all directions.  Traffic will be slow if you only put a sign at the end of the street.  The third and smallest category is that their Realtor told them about the open. 

 

I don't care how people come to my open I just want them to come.  Yet, knowing how traffic is driven helps me drive the traffic.

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