Over on the Redfin Forum there is an ongoing discussion called "Rebate MESS!" that has become a huge frustration to the homebuyer. It has become increasingly "the norm" for All Commissions to be Negotiable between a Real Estate Agent and their client. Still...many agents seem to believe that only applies when "the Client" is a seller of a home and not when "the Client" is a buyer of a home.

To me, that suggests that the agents involved do not consider the Buyer and Seller as equal, and with equal rights to negotiate their commission with their agent.

I don't really care about the money of it. In fact, "negotiation" does not mean that the agent gets more or less money. It means that there is a meaningful and BINDING discussion between a Principal and their Client. Of course it is the Agent for the Buyer's job to know that they can perform as to the agreement they have with their Buyer Client, and there are limitations that will impact their ability to deliver what was promised. Consequently the old "don't OVER-Promise" applies and agents have to become more familiar with the laws and rules that govern their abiltiy to deliver what they have promised...before they promise it.

I am writing this post to urge agents to keep an open mind with regard to facilitating, within legal limits, the agreements between a buyer and his/her agent. In the linked case, the Agent for the Seller (and seller) are apparently refusing to reduce the price to allow for the credit, even though the net return to the Seller would not be impacted.

Being stubborn based on the principle? I don't know. But I do know this:

It's almost 2012.

If you ave been one of those agents who thinks that the buyer of a home has NO SAY in what their agent is paid.

If you are one of those agents who thinks the services a buyer receives from THEIR agent is "FREE".

I urge you to reconsider your stance...because...it's 2012 (almost) for Pete's Sake!

Start with YES...and only move to no if there is no possible way to facilitate that yes. But...know in advance...that there is a way.

Maybe it's time for NAR to add the HOW of that to the "Accredited Buyer Representative" Designation Course? I think so!

If you truly believe that the Buyer is your CLIENT...then you need to learn HOW to negotiate and enact commission charges with YOUR client.

It's as simple as that. Let it be so.

Just a quick update on 2011 Home Prices in Redmond 98052 Year to Date and the 3rd Quarter Sold Prices. 

Home prices are stable comparing 3rd Quarter with year to date. That may change in the 4th Quarter. Asking prices of homes for sale are a little on the high side, except for newer 4 bedroom homes. 

Single Family Homes selling between $399,000 and $660,000 as the median price, depending on age and style of home. 

Highest sale this year: 

Lowest sale this year (with at least 3 bedrooms)

Two Story Homes built in 2000 or later with at least 4 bedrooms and 2,300+ square feet.

46 for sale - median asking price $650,000

75 sold Year to Date - median sold price $660,000

44 sold in the 3rd Quarter - at a median price of $650,000. 

Pretty consistent as to price, but volume way down in the 3rd quarter. Likely because the builders are moving out with very few lots left to build on . They are going up to 98053 and over to Sammamish.

Switching to 3 bedrooms, same parameters as to year built and home style.

Only 4 sold in the 3rd quarter. Only 9 sold this year to date. Only 7 for sale. Not a market for it.

Looking at built before 2000, 2300 sf or more, any style of home Redmond 98052

41 for sale - median asking price $600,000

107 sold Year to Date - medain sold price $545,000

38 sold in the 3rd Quarter - median sold price $550,000

Homes of any age smaller than 2300 sf with at least 3 bedrooms (not including townhomes)

59 for sale - median asking price $430,000

167 sold Year to Date - median sold price $385,000

62 sold in the 3rd Quarter - median sold price $390,000

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Statistics are not compiled, verified or published by The Northwest Multiple Listing Service.

There are several posts floating around ActiveRain recently, pondering whether or not your personal life is any of your clients' business.

Should we ONLY and EVER blog about "the professional services we provide", and how we conduct ourselves as "professionals", but never about the "Who We ARE" in our personal life and life choices?

The truth of the matter is...WHY should anyone TRUST someone who will NOT reveal the "Who They ARE", outside of the scope of their professional dealings?

The #1 reason people hire THIS Real Estate Agent

vs THAT Real Estate Agent

is that they choose the one they TRUST most

with the well being of their family as to home choices

and the financial impact of those choices on their family. 

Knowing that...how can you even THINK, for one moment, that the REAL YOU is of "no-nevermind" to your clients? 

It doesn't really matter what you think really...as you are not the one who gets to decide how people choose their Real Estate Agent. It's already a proven fact that it is the one they TRUST the most. 

Read this story...and then decide for yourself what matters...and what does not matter.

Once upon a time...I knew an agent very well "online" in his business dealings. He clearly "Talked the Talk". In fact I idolized his "message" and he has clearly influenced the way I do business...as I chose to "walk" his "talk".

Much of his "talk"

had to do with how "ethical" he was

in his business dealings.

Then I finally met him, in person, at a NAR Convention. Now you be the judge. He was targeting married women at the convention who were there without their husbands. He was primarily at the convention to seduce married women, by his own admission, because they never bothered him when he went home from the convention. 

That was that...as far as I was concerned. I never again believed that this person was actually "ethical" in their business dealings.

Was I wrong?

Can someone who is so obviously unethical

in their personal dealings with people...

turn that "ethical" switch on and off when "doing business" with people

vs their personal choices of how they interact with people?

As I said earlier...it really doesn't matter WHAT you think about how someone SHOULD choose their Real Estate "Professional". People will do as they choose, and the will choose as they "trust", or don't "trust" you.

But the next time you see someone arguing...to the point of RANTING...about why their personal life is NOT their client's business

...ask yourself WHY they feel so STRONGLY about that.

I fully understand that there are many Agents around the Country who just want to SELL A FREAKIN' HOUSE!!!

That's OK. It really is. As long as you are completely honest with your clients about YOUR ulitmate objective, which may be in conflict with THEIR ultimate objective.

THE NUMBER ONE QUESTION YOUR AGENT DOES NOT WANT YOU TO ASK THEM 

The Question IS: "Would you show the same house to more than one of your "Buyer Clients"? If yes, how do you disclose that to your clients?

Do you do something every day to help the real estate market improve?

It's an odd question given most agents are just waiting for good things to happen. But I'm offering this small challenge.

Spend just FIVE MINUTES every day doing something that will help the market.

A small thing.

You are in the mls looking at new listings and you see a tilted house. You know we all see them most every day! 

Take that photo, straighten it out and send it to the listing agent all fixed up.

DEMONSTRATION

Below is a good example of a tilted house, albeit one that is supposed to be tilted for some odd reason. :)

I saved it....

I straghtened it...and cleaned it up a bit with a little cropping. Took me less than 5 minutes. Probably more like two minutes.

Unfortnately many agents will laugh at the tilted photo and wonder why the seller hired THAT agent.

Let's assume the BEST and know that the seller had a good reason to hire them that has nothing to do with their photo taking or editing skills.

Whether I know the agent or not, I email them the "fixed" photo. They thank me and replace their tilted photo with the straightened version.

HOW SIMPLE IS THAT!?!? Consider it your "good deed for the day" and Be part of the solution...vs part of the problem. 

Sometimes the agent calls and asks me how I fixed the photo...well then I have the opportunity to Teach them to Fish! How GREAT is that!?

IF YOU HAPPEN TO BE AN AGENT WHO DOESN'T KNOW HOW TO DO WHAT I DID ABOVE IN 2 MINUTES OR LESS...SHOOT ME AN EMAIL. BAD PHOTOS ARE RAMPANT IN THE MLS...LET'S HELP IMPROVE THAT.

And to BROKERS of COMPANIES...take the time to look at ALL the ACTIVE listings of your agents today...and help your agents with better photos of their listings. It's the LEAST you can do...and yet so many Brokers and Office Managers do not even take the time to LOOK at the photos of their listings. Help your agents and help yourself at the same time. It's a poor reflection on your Company to have Bad MLS Photos.

Fix that today. It may be a spit in the bucket, but it's something and it's good and it's easy peasy one, two, threesie!

What a bunch of CRAP! Piled on top of another load of CRAP!

Do y'all think this is the first time this same old, same old, story has been "told"? If you do...you just fell off the turnip truck.

Some day it "may" be true...not much lasts FOREVER.

.

BUT don't let it be because somebody tossed a stink bomb into the office on their way out, and YOU were too Chicken-Sh*t to stand UP and stand BEHIND the people you claimed to support...the day BEFORE! 

Seriously! What has changed for YOU? This is NOT the first time this has happened at Active Rain. I can't say more because I know all at once too much and too little. But really. WHAT has changed for you?

I didn't start blogging here on AR. I have other loyalties to the places where I started blogging. 

BUT I'll tell you this. If BOB STEWART said: "ARDELL, I need you to write on Active Rain EVERY FREAKING DAY to help keep my (HIS) head afloat", I WOULD DO IT! ...and I don't have as much reason to as most of you here! Don't let this CRAP become "a self-fulfilling prophesy!"

Bob himself said it best:

To Jorgen in the comments on his "Eulogy" post:

"I'm a little surprised you decided to go out like this Jorgen. I suppose you were destined for a career of working for yourself, but you've pretty much ensured that now.

Obviously your dealings with the 'corporate overlords' didnt go very well and your loyalty to Jon is quite impressive. I have a family to provide for and a community here that I truly love so I have to take a slightly different route with my approach. At the first sign that I see that the corporate overlords are running this place into the ground, I'll be out of here. Probably with less fan fare because I will rely on this industry and my reputation long after ActiveRain is in my past.

I will say that I believe Nikesh when he says that the technical stability of ActiveRain is his first priority. I wish you were on board to make that a reality. Since you are not, I wish you well in whatever you have going on next.

I have no question you'll be successful but wish you would have thought about the people and families of the 25 of us who are still here when you decided to try to light a match to things on your way out the door."

My Social Media Guru is Andrea Revenant of 3rd Street Tattoo in Hermosa Beach, California.

She is also my youngest daughter. Gen Y at its FINEST!  I learn so much by her example!

The Kid is a Natural!

Dustin Luther was my Numero Uno "blog-rules" guy for many years...but let's face it. He's getting old! Time for some new blood!

If your Social Media Guru is OVER 30...well as Jack Weinberg said it best "Don't Trust Anyone over 30!"

Dustin taught me all about not deleting anything, once it's up it's "carved in stone" and you lose credibility if you delete what you don't like and only leave up what you do like.

Well...apparently NOT SO!

My Andrea will delete me so fast I hardly remember I posted something on her facebook page. She's a "MOM ZAPPER" AND an awesome example of protecting one's Brand and Image!

My stuff is deleted so fast from her facebook page it leaves my head spinning.

She must have a VERY SMART PHONE (which I bought for her of course). Because she knows within one freakin' second if Mom posted something on her facebook or Heaven Forbid...TAGGED her on facebook...and BOOM...GONE...I swear in less than 5 seconds.

She probably won't like this "Poster" I made of her either...but Mom knows a few tricks too.

She can't ZAP me over here in "MyPlace".

This is a picture of my granddaughter during one of her many visits to “Nana’s House” in Kirkland, Washington. A short walk to...Downtown Kirkland on the Lake, with a pedestrian friendly and walkable area of quaint shops that come right up to the lake...and the ducks. Your know it is a "short walk to..." when a little 3 year old can walk it. :) 

Home Prices often hinge more on what is nearby the house, than on the house itself. I'm often asked what is the biggest mistake a family can make when choosing a home to buy. Most often the answer is spending too much time on the WHAT and not enough time on the WHERE.

If you are a busy person, and seriously who isn’t?, you will understand that there are days when you can spare an hour or so, but not take a whole DAY off to go DO something.

Doesn’t that describe most everyone these days? Here in the Seattle Area we really can't plan too far ahead either. Lots of rain. We need to live close enough to something fun and interesting that is outdoors, as we all know bad weather can be here in a flash! That makes it even more important to be able to head out with the kids as soon as the weather breaks, and close enough to head back if our fair weather starts to turn sour on us.

So many times I am asked to help a family move to the right WHERE. They bought a great house...in the wrong place. They just weren't happy there.

These days, when selling your home for at least what you paid for it is easier said than done, more people are taking the time to find the right where, and Kirkland WA near Downtown has it all. Great Schools, easy access to freeways, close to work for many and a quaint Downtown Area of shops right by Lake Washington.

They say “A Picture Speaks 1,000 Words”. This picture screams

1) Buy a house in a place you LOVE to Come Home to. 

2) Buy a house where “Getting Away From It All” can happen every single day, and anytime you have only a short time to spare.

3) Buy a house that is: 

“A short walk to ??? Whatever may Feed Your Soul...and do your heart good.

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If you've ever walked into a house with those nasty "odorous" commercial plug-in room fresheners, you know what I'm talking about.

Sometimes the stench is so overpowering you have to rush outside for some fresh air between floors!

I've been in this business over 20 years and have tried it all. 

1) Baked cookies during the Open House, only to burn them when someone comes in and I start talking and forget about them. Burnt cookie smell...not good.

2) Boiled apples and cinnamon before the Open House, but find myself running in and out of the rooms trying to get the sweet smelling steam to go futher than the kitchen.

3) Lighting candles works well, but once in awhile I wake up at 2 a.m. in a cold sweat wondering if I blew the candles out before I left.

4) Diffusers. I really do like these, but they are prone to mishaps if someone knocks it over and the oil in the bottle spills all over the place.

Well I've finally found something I think is wonderful and worth sharing!

It's a "do it yourself" plug in that you can use over and over and fill with all kinds of wonderful food oriented scents, or others that are much more natural and appealing than the standard commercial brands.

The Product is called "Scent Ball Aromatherapy" and is sold by Green Feet, The Planet's Home Store.

It's a simple plug in with a felt oblong square that you saturate with your oil of choice!

I'm using Fragrance Oils from Zenith Supplies that come in all kinds of natural scents.

I'm using Coffee, Hazlenut and Pumpkin Cream...all smell yummy!

Who complains when you open a door and it smells like fresh brewed coffee? No one in Seattle, for sure! ;)

Earl Grey Tea was lovely, but a bit pricier. Same with Fresh Linen, but I bet that's nice up in the Master Bedroom.

I don't recommend mixing too many scents in one house, of course. But Coffee in the Kitchen and Fresh Linen on the 2nd floor shouldn't "clash". Not sure what I would use in a baement. I'm still experimenting.

If you have used these and have a favorite scent, let us know. So far I am liking them MUCH better than the standard "plug-ins" that make you want to run outside!

I just got an email from someone whom I did not choose to have as a client about a year ago. He found another agent (maybe you) who "helped him" for a year. He just emailed me, a year later, to tell me he had given up his home search and decided to rent a house for a year. 

I knew within 5 minutes of speaking with him a year ago, that he was going to do that.

That is why I never feel sorry for agents who whine about clients who "wasted their time".

In reality, someone wasted this client's time.

IT IS SIMPLY NOT GOOD ENOUGH FOR YOU TO BE A REAL ESTATE "PROFESSIONAL".

YOU NEED TO BE A REAL ESTATE "EXPERT", who acts in a professional manner.

It really all boils down to how good you are at THIS:

You may have learned "PROBE, EVALUATE, CLOSE" somewhere along the way, as I did, BUT some think that CLOSE means "to get the business". In reality "CLOSE" means "END OF DISCUSSION".

If you are AN EXPERT instead of MERELY "a Professional", you will "CLOSE" properly.

IT IS OUR "JOB" TO KNOW MORE ABOUT REAL ESTATE THAN OUR CLIENTS DO! Let me shout that again.

IT IS OUR "JOB" TO KNOW MORE ABOUT REAL ESTATE THAN OUR CLIENTS DO!

Your "job" does not END when you CONVINCE someone that you are AN expert. The "job" of BEING The Expert...never ends. Never. If you are not "A Student of The Market" in an ongoing way, you can not be today's Real Estate Expert about much of anything.

It's called a Real Estate "MARKET" because it changes. "Markets" are never STATIONARY. They "move". Part of your job is to determine that movement, Past, Present and Future. It is not your Broker's Job. It is not NAR's Economist's job. Because Real Estate can be very Hyper-Local with regard to the Present, Past and Future value of THIS particular property.

EXAMPLES OF PROBE, EVALUATE, CLOSE.

EXAMPLE #1) - Buyer comes to you and wants to buy a house no more than 5 years old in X School District with at least an acre of land.

PROBE:

Go to the County Records and Search that. NOT the MLS! The County Records.

Because if it was NEVER BUILT, then no one can be SELLING IT, today or tomorrow, "in the mls"!

EVALUATE:

We are "the experts" because we have the tools needed to be an expert. If you don't use the tools properly, you may be wasting your time and your client's time.

By evaluating the stated criteria, you find out that ZERO homes were ever built with those paramenters. 

OR...you find 5 all with a Tax Assessed Value of $1,000,000 or more, and this Client's price range is $450,000 to $550,000. It may "exist", but NOT in their price range. You shouldn't have to go looking for it to find out it is not "there" for a WHOLE YEAR, if it was never built in the first place in that price range!

CLOSE:

Sorry, I can't help you with that because I don't believe it exists. But if you choose to hire someone else to help you with that, please email me if I am incorrect and you do in fact "find" it. 

As you can see from the start of this post, I "closed" correctly in that the person gave up after a year, very frustrated about that I might add, and decided to rent a house (that does not meet those parameters) instead of buying a house. 

EXAMPLE #2) Seller wants to sell, but NEEDS $450,000 to pay off all liens and break even without bringing money to closing AND to get $25,000 to leave with. 

PROBE: Looking at all SOLD (not "For Sale") properties, most likely sold price is $350,000. Highest potential SOLD price is $375,000 based on "the comps".

EVALUATE: Highest possible asking price is $399,950. More likely $350,000 or $375,000. Possible strategy is to list for no more than 60 days at $399,950, then reduce to $375,000 for no more than 60 more days and then drop to $350,000.

CLOSE: Sorry, it is not remotely possible for you to leave with $25,000 net proceeds. I will be happy to assist you in getting the property to look as best it can possibly look and list it at $399,950, which is still a long shot, but may be possible as long as you are willing to accept a price of $375,000ish. If you choose to list it for $450,000 or more, here are the names of two people who might believe in that price and help you do that.

Did this last year with a Client. He had it on market empty for 6 months and then decided to rent it instead of selling it.

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IF YOU CLOSE PROPERLY, you will know it because you will look back and what you predicted would happen, will have happened.

Don't EVER complain that a client wasted YOUR time.

Give youself 40 lashes for wasting your client's time.

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AskArdell.com

Ardell's Seattle Area Real Estate Blog