We saw a slow down over the second quarter but the third quarter has picked up significantly. We have sold most of our inventory in new construction, two subdivisions with two homes left. So I think this is good news for the overall market. Even though the news keeps saying negative things, alot of our sales come from out of state buyers, NY, NJ, CA, Fl, I have increased my marketing through this market because that is whay I think is important.
I have recently even had three leads come to me due to Active Rain and Point 2 marketing. So I am optimistic about the months ahead. The only thing that seems to be slowing things down a bit is the underwriters, several of my closings have been delayed due to underwriting. My recommendation is make sure you are working with lenders who are experienced and know their products, or at least have a back up plan. And stay in constant contact with your lender so that you now that your buyers have given them everything they need to move forward. Some programs will be fading out and although there will be some tax breaks through Fannie Mae, they might not be as helpful to some.
Although I don't usually do many print ADs I have through this market because I know that when things turn around I want someone to remember my name and my face and hopefully they saved the information. Its worth the investment!
You would be surprised but when asked most people don't really know what e-commerce is and its really just merely Business and Marketing online.
Over the years since the technology boom e-commerce has emerged as the leader in business and marketing mainly because everyone who has a business also has a website. And with the start of E-bay many years ago e-commerce became the wave of the future. If you look on E-bay today you can find anything and everything being sold. And now with the change in the Real Estate market it has become the biggest tool that Realtors have to sell their listings.
Craigs list has become a popular place to upload listings as well as websites like this. Who would have thought 20 years ago we would be selling homes over the internet, or cars. It used to be in the early 90's that it would be anything that could easily be drop shipped or put in a box and shipped UPS.
Along with the business side you must be able to Market your business and it doesn't mean you just pick any web design company and throw up some graphics and text. The average website visitor will make their decision in the first 30 seconds of a website visit whether or not a site is user friendly and if yours isn't, that visitor is likely to move one to the next. After all, we only have to put in a few search terms into google and viola' we have a number of choices. Most of us will choose the site with the best marketing and the one that is the most user friendly. Try it, search the internet and view webpages, when you find one that won't load quickly because there is too much Flash or one that is so confusing once you get there that you can't find what your looking for let me know how long it takes before you move on to the next. And when you find one you like and you find your self roaming the pages, pay attention to what you like about it, and try to emmulate that in your webpage.
Also google Robin Williams Web Design she has some great tips on placement and how your eye views webpages. SURFS UP!
What goes into being a Great Realtor? Well, in my opinion there is alot agents can do to help in assisting their customers in purchasing real estate:
Advertising - The agent must be focused and advertise not only to achieve a strong market penetration, but also be able to reach the most qualified readers for their advertisement.
Market and Product Knowledge - The agent must maintain a strong and thorough knowledge of their local real estate market. To this they must spend hours researching sales and listings, expired listings and withdrawn listings.
Honest and ethical - One trait I believe sets A GREAT REALTOR apart from other agents is their ability to be honest and hold their morals and ethics to the very highest of standards! Their dealings with not only their clients and customers must exemplify high moral and ethical behavior, but also their dealings with other real estate agents as well as supporting professionals such as Loan offices, builders, contractors etc.
Technology insight - Being able to not only understand the technology that exists today to assist a real estate agent in their business but also having the ability to apply that technology is a paramount consideration today.
As technology becomes a more important part of our daily lives, it also becomes a primary tool to provide additional services and assistance to real estate agents clients and customers.
The application of technology, aside from having a website is no easy task. After all, the expertise of real estate agent is selling real estate! However, the ability to utilize and implement effectively the available software and hardware in an agents business will allow that agent to be recognized as a leader in their market and industry.
These are but a few of the factors that go into producing a great Realtor
We as real estate agents must continue to strive to be the best we can be for our local market place. Otherwise the few "Bad Apples reflects on the whole Bushel"
OK SO WE KEEP HEARING ON THE NEWS ALL ABOUT THE BUYERS MARKET YES WE KNOW, WE IN FACT AFTER ALL ARE REALTORS, HOWEVER YOU CAN'T EXACTLY HAVE THE POWER TO BUY UNLESS OF COURSE YOU DO TWO THINGS FIRST. I HAVE HAD MANY BUYERS LATELY THAT WANT TO LOOK AT HOMES BECAUSE ITS A "BUYERS MARKET" UNFORTUNATELY WHEN I LEARN MORE ABOUT THE PROSPECT I FIND THAT THEY DO NOT HAVE THEIR CURRENT HOME LISTED AND THEY ARE NOT PRE-APPROVED.
ALTHOUGH WE ARE IN A GREAT BUYING MARKET THE FACT IS LENDERS ARE NOT IN A "GIVING MOOD" AND YOU MUST HAVE ALL YOUR DUCKS IN A ROW SO TO SPEAK OR WHEN YOU FIND THAT HOME THAT YOU "LOVE, LOVE, LOVE" YOU WON'T BE IN ANY POSITION TO BUY, BUY,BUY UNLESS YOU HAVE DONE TWO THINGS.
ITS GREAT TO DO YOUR HOMEWORK BUT THERE IS ALOT OF MISINFORMATION OUT THERE ABOUT BUYING AND SELLING HOMES AND OF COURSE WHERE THE MARKET IS. ONE THING I WOULD RECOMMEND IS THAT BEFORE YOU GO OUT SEARCHING HAVE YOUR HOME LISTED CONTINGENCIES ARE NOT IDEAL SITUATION AND UNLESS YOUR UNDER CONTRACT (AND EVEN THEN) YOU MIGHT NOT GET YOUR OFFER ACCEPTED. ALSO UNDERWRITERS ARE VERY CAUTIOUS AT THE MOMENT AND RIGHTLY SO...SO GET YOUR AFFAIRS IN ORDER WITH REGARDS TO LENDING AND GET PRE-APPROVED FIRST.
IF YOU HAVENT' DONE THESE TWO THINGS THEN YOU DON'T REALLY HAVE AS MUCH BUYING POWER AS YOU MAY THINK!
Curb Appeal One of the most important things in selling a home is first impressions and theres no better way to make a first impression than by making your home appealing from curbside.
Lanscaping Planting a few flowers or plants can do a lot to a front yard. Pull dead plants and trim overgrown ones. Water and Feed also Get rid of Brush leaves and junk Plant fresh flowers and keep watered. Now is a good time to have a yard sale, get rid of those items that you don't plan to take with you. Do this before you put your house on the market to greatly reduce the "cluttered look". Start packing away little things that you don't use everyday. Recycle magazines, newspapers, bottles, cans and old toys. A freshly cut lawn is very appealing and Lime is one of the best ways to green up a lawn. If you have vinyl siding pressure wash at least the front of the home. Paint the trim on the windows and clean the windows.
Inside make it fresh and new again!
Inside, everything should be spotless. Spending some money to have someone do heavy "spring cleaning" if needed can bring a return many times over in the sales price and time on the market. A fresh coat of light colored paint on the walls is always recommended. Painting only the trim and the doors will add a lot. Check to see that all doors open and close freely. Oil any squeaky doors. Replace any burned out light bulbs. Brighter lights enhance many rooms. Steam clean the carpets if new carpeting is not possible and to help eliminate any pet odors. Wash and wax linolium floors. Repair or replace damaged or missing tiles. Bathrooms should sparkle. Remove soap scum and mildew. Replace old looking toilet seats. Kitchens should be clean and bright. Clean oven and stove top. Exhaust fans should be free of grease and dust. Clear all unnecessary objects from the countertops. Keep curtains and blinds open and interior lights on for a bright warm cozy feeling. Store clutter in boxes or storage units or a relative until the closing. Buyers react most strongly to kitchens, and master bedrooms and baths so it pays to concentrate your efforts here. Shampoo Rugs or replace if need be. Try switching out to some new pillows and switch plates add a couple ceiling fans. Replacing new shower curtains and a few new throw rugs can always spruce up a room.
Preview the competition's open houses to see what you are up against in both pricing and condition. Potential buyers will be previewing these and more.
I always try to view a home as if I were going to buy it what would I want to see and how would I want to feel when I open the door and step in side.
I just had to talk about two Beautiful Properties in Chatham County. This area is growing very fast and I had the wonderful opportunity to visit these properties yesterday with a good Friend Andy May who is a lender in the Raleigh Area. he organized a Bus Tour of this area with luncheon and it was fabulous.
The first is The Hamptons a 182 acre community in Chatham County. Wow is all I can say what a beautiful piece of property being developed by Windjam lots are being sold in the 200K to 350K range and homes will start I believe at 900K to over 2Million. Rolling hills abound in Historic Pittsboro, NC. This property was owned in the 1800's by a doctor and still has the original property that he lived and worked in then with its original stone well that the house was built around it is gorgeous. If you have not had a chance to visit this its a must see. Also a great golf community is Chapel Ridge 31 different builders and great Golfing designed by Fred Couples.
Another great property we saw was Hasentree in Wake Forest Area which is a Premier Golf Community. Almost 1000 acres of European style homes with Endless Amenities and they just also hired an Activity Coordinator to keep your kids busy as well as give everyone something to do. There is a Fitness Club , Golf Walking ,trails etc. Resort style living 24/7 365 days a year is what you will get here at Hasentree. The Golf course was designed by Tom Fazio and is set back from the homes. We visited one of the homes for sale by one of the Builders which was priced at 4.4 Mil..it was breath taking with its Endless Pool and Waterfront View. Everything you could possibly want in a luxury home. I would recommend visiting either one of these properties and I would be happy to Take you there I enjoyed myself. What a nice area!
Karen Lorenzo
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