First ever Schertz Cibolo Universal City ISD Education Foundation golf tournament is set for March 27, 2009. All proceeds go to the teachers and students of Schertz Cibolo Universal City ISD. This great event will be at the Olympia Hills Golf Club. It will be limited to the first 144 golfers so don't delay!!!!
Here is a list of the days events:
11:30 am Registration opens 12-12:45 pm Lunch and pratice time 1:00 pm Start Time on Tees (Scramble Shotgun Start) 5:30 pm Awards and Prize Drawings with Tournament Dinner
This is a great opportunity to help the members of the community. If you are interested in participating you can email the foundation for a registration form and pricing details at: <a href="mailto:events@scucisdfoundation.org">events@scucisdfoundation.org</a>
If you don't get a chance to participate, check out our blog later for an update!
All that we hear every day is how bad the economy and the housing market is. This is true but there are some positives out there that we must look at. The housing market is by far a buyer's market right now. What does that mean for the public. NOW is a great time to buy a home. There are lots of homes out there to choose from. The biggest plus is that interest rates are LOW. If you can qualify for a loan why wouldn't you want to buy? Here is my thought. If you look back on history...interest rates have been low before but what happens after the economy recovers? The interest rates will go back up. It is a fact, interest rates WILL go back up. If your a first time homebuyer, you even have the $8000 tax credit on your side. If you are even considering making a purchase this year, give The Claus Team a call and let us help you make the right choice.
Are you military and relocating to San Antonio? Ft. Sam Houston, Randolph AFB, Lackland, BAMC?
The Claus Team is here for you. We have been working with military members for over 18 years. Our team members have been military spouses, children, or just worked with many military families. We understand the stressfulness and craziness that can come with a move. Our knowledge and experience with the PCS process gives us the ability to make sure your move goes smoothly.
We would love the opportunity to speak with you about how we can help you and why we are your best choice. If you are thinking of using the USAA program, give us a call first-we have a military program too. Our advantage is again, our military affiliations.
We do offer free relocation packages as well. Send us an email or give us a call and we will be happy to get one into the mail today.
We have the information you need:
Buy vs Rent Information for first time home buyers tax credit 2009 Local schools Churches Area preschools Up to date statistics on the housing market Local youth sports and much more
We were also the #1 Keller Williams Team in San Antonio for 2008.
Last week I blogged about gimmicks in real estate. I specifically spoke about the whole "guaranteed" home selling tactic. I received some good comments from folks. One person in particular encouraged me to take off the sugar coating and to just call it what it is - lying, deception! This person had some strong and accurate remarks about all the nuances of the "guarantee" program.
Well, a very interesting thing happened later that day. Please keep in mind that I wrote that blog because this topic was on my mind for no other reason than I do not see a value in the gimmick approach to getting listings. I see that it is effective, but not of value.
Anyway, I stopped by our main office in order to show a fellow worker around who had never seen the 22,000 sf building that was just finished. It's gorgeous. She and I passed the Assistant Team Leaders office during our tour. I was very surprised to see 2 agents sitting in the ATL's office who work for an agent here in San Antonio that adores gimmicks, among other unorthodox and questionable methods of marketing. The 2 agents also saw me. We exchanged pleasantries for a moment and then parted ways. These 2 agents were on a tour of our company and its new building. Hmm!
Of course my curiosity was sparked. Wouldn't yours be? At this point I called a friend who I knew would know exactly what is going on. I was informed that this "mega" agent had offered the 90 day guarantee, exchanged some e-mail correspondence about doing so, lapsed on the 90 days, and renegged on the, um, "guarantee(?)." The client got an attorney and is now suing. To make a long story short, this agent is in a great deal of trouble. The other agents within his group see this and are jumping ship. I don't blame them.
I found it ironic that less than 6 hours after I wrote the blog about this particular methodology I was given a real life example of what can happen. Now, am I saying that this is the norm? No! I can't prove that. I am merely pointing out irony.
Again, what would happen to the real estate industry were we to get back to the basics of sales, marketing, and client service? It's a question worth consideration, in my opinion.
Jumbo 30yr VA ARM FHA/VA30yr ________________________________________________ 6.750% 0+1 6.00% 1+1 6.1250% 0+1 7.000% 0+0 3/1 ARM 6.500% 0+0 _____________________________________________________ Texas Vet Rate: Entry date prior to 1977 = 4.80%
Entry date after 1976 = 5.96% _____________________________________________________ * 6.75% 30 yr fixed with NO mortgage closing cost _____________________________________________________ Effective Immediately Texas Vet Loans increased to $325,000
No one will ever forget the date - 9/11. The date is spoken of, not as a date anymore, but as an event - a tragedy - that will forever lives on the minds of Americans, indeed, the world, from now on. And our country pulled together as they never have before. Since that time the country has continued to pull together. It hasn't stopped. Our support of each other, and our countries troops, has been consistent.
There is an organization that gives absolutely unbelievable amounts of support to the troops and their families. They put together events, keep everyone updated on what is happening across the country (and world), solicit financial (and otherwise) support for the families of our soldiers who have passed from this earth or are overseas, and do many, many other things that go unnoticed by a great many people. The organization is called Operation Home Front. Please go to their website to see what you may be able to do.
Jeanine Claus, of The Claus Team, has been a consistent supporter of this organization. One of the events that Operation Home Front does, the Freedom Walk, just took place. Jeanine was there on the front line doing a 2.5 mile walk in support, and as a reminder.
What an awesome event! It was held at Brackenridge Park, in San Antonio, Texas. It was like half of the city showed up to show their loyalty, love, and honor. Incredible!
Let's not forget about our troops, whether local or abroad. Support them. Remember them. And remember their families. There's always something that we can do to help. It may seem trivial to you, but it may be lifechanging for them.
Caveat - This is a hot and debated topic amongst real estate agents. It is not my desire to stir up strife. I desire nothing more than an honest look at things. Thus, we have this blog.
Have you ever seen an Internet ad, a billboard, or heard a commercial on the TV or radio that resembles this:
We Will Sell Your Home in 90 Days - GUARANTEEDOr We Will Buy It
Or, maybe it looked/sounded something like this:
YOUR HOME SOLDGUARANTEEDor I WILL BUY IT MYSELF AT AN ACCEPTABLE PRICE
This method of getting listings is extremely popular. It was made popular by a very well known motivational speaker and business coach. I personally know quite a few real estate agents who employ this method of advertising/marketing. Some agents swear by it, while others feel it is dishonest and gimmicky.
Feelings, ultimately, do not matter. What matters is the fine print involved...AND the statistics of success. Ok, so what is the fine print involved? I mean, isn't the phrase "acceptable price" extremely ambiguous. Acceptable to whom? The truth is that the "acceptable price" will be determined by the real estate agent, it will be based upon an appraisal done by an appraiser chosen by the agent, and it will be a price that is below market value. If you do not agree to the "acceptable price" then you do not qualify for the guaranteed program. Now, if you are a seller, would you be comfortable with this? I would not.
But this isn't all, in most cases. There are more stipulations to the guaranteed program, in most cases, that must be met in order to qualify. For instance, in most cases, you must agree to purchase your next home with this particular agent, you must purchase a home listed by the agent guaranteeing your home sale, and the home that you are selling must be listed below the average top sale in the area in order to guarantee a qualified buyer. Wow!
If you are a potential seller then you may be saying, "Um, yeah right!" If you are an agent who employs these methods then you may be saying, "Who cares about all of that. It works!" Does it? Let's look at some stats:
Agent 1 who uses the guaranteed program had 181 solds in one year, 183 listings expired (this means that the home did not sale), and 159 listings cancelled (the agent was fired). This is a success rate of 34.6%
Agent 2 who uses the guaranteed program had 132 listings sold in one year, 112 listings expired, and 225 listings cancelled. This is a success rate of 28.1%
Agent 3 who does not use the guaranteed program had less than 20 solds in one year, less than 5 listings expired, and less than 5 listings cancelled. This is a success rate of over 72%
So, does this methodology work? It depends on how you define work. If you define work as such: Work. adj; a methodology of marketing for listings that gets a real estate agent more listings than the average agent who does not employ this methodology, then yes, this system works. But if you define work as such: Work. adj; a methodology of marketing for listings that gets a real estate agent more listings than the average agent who does not employ this methodology AND has been proven to be more effective in getting listings SOLD for near or at market value, then no, this does not work.
I'll use Jeanine Claus as a real life example. Jeanine Claus is the owner and lead agent of The Claus Team of Keller Williams Realty. In 2006 Jeanine took approximately 101 listings. She had 15 sellers expire. There were 5 withdrawn listings. There were 81 solds. This is a sucess rate of 80.19%. She does not use the methodology described above. Her method of getting listings is niche marketing with a brand that is so well recognized that she gets stopped at the grocery store and is asked, "Are you the santa hat lady?" Her brand is everywhere - and I mean, everywhere!
There are a few other groups within the real estate world that I could name (but won't) who do not use the method spoken of within this blog and they do extreeeemely well. In fact, one of the top groups at Keller Williams who sold over 35 Million last year do not use any such methods of getting listings other than niche marketing and referrals based upon good, strong, proven business. Does this mean that another agent within the same company who uses the "guaranteed" method will not be as successful as far as volume is concerned? Of course not! But again, it depends upon how you define "success," and for whom?
Many agents who approve of the "guaranteed" method feel that the agents who disapprove of the "guaranteed" method are - 1. Not keeping up with the times, 2. Scared to put their money where there mouth is, or 3. Aren't technically savvy enough. All 3 of these presuppositions are subjective and extremely general. Novelty does not equal correctness. Disapproval of a trend does not equal fear. A refusal to follow a trend does not equal a lack of knowledge. It could just be that many agents feel that the "guaranteed" method does a disservice to the client, ultimately.
At the end of the day there are going to be agents who do whatever they want to do. You can't teach integrity, regardless of methodology. You can't teach authenticity. Someone is either going to watch out for the clients best interest, or they are not. I know this though - real estate agents do not need to nurture a "car salesman" persona. We already have a bad enough name because there are so many dishonest and ignorant agents out there. We all know that any John Doe can run out and get a license. It behooves us to do what we can to cultivate a persona of sincere professionalism.
Pets - what can you say? These furry little fun machines cost money, tear stuff up, leave hair all over the house, pee and poo in odd places, and always seem to need something at the most inconvenient of times. However, despite all of this we will go to the ends of the earth to give them what they want. I know that I do.
I have a Boxer named Bella. She's almost 2 years old. She is, I believe, the cutest dog that has ever existed. Want to see a picture of her? Ok, get ready. I'm serious. She is beyond adorable. Here she is:
Ok, really, isn't that the cutest dog that you have ever seen? When you pull out a camera, she actually poses. My wife and I have a daughter that does nothing but waste 100 AA batteries a month taking pictures of this dog. I can't get mad - just look at her!
Ok, enough about my fantastically cute and wonderful dog. My point in bringing all of this up is that we are SO happy that we got Bella. We love this dog! Our lives have been full of laughter and adventure since we got this dog. Not that we didn't have those things before, you understand, but it's at a higher level than it was before. Pets are just that way. Well, I found a website that has a "Pet Finder" feature.
The website is called Petfinder.Com. It's awesome! Let's say that you wanted to find a pet in Schertz, Texas that was up for adoption. You could do so by simply putting in a basic criteria of what you are looking for, hit search, and "voila," you have a list of pets to choose from - with pictures. Now the only problem is not getting more pets than you need. Don't start a farm! Another cool feature on PetFinder.Com are the videos. You can watch videos of the pets you are interested in. Check this one out. It's really funny --
A website like this is great if you already live in Schertz or if you are relocating to Schertz and are thinking about getting a pet. In fact, this website is great regardless of where you live or are relocating. Its database is HUGE! Have fun search.
It seems as though the city of Schertz is gaining a lot of attention. I wrote last week about how Congressman Henry Cuellar is about to recognize Schertz, Texas as one of the greatest places to live in the US. And for those of you who haven't seen the CNNMoney article on Schertz, it was voted #40 on the top 100 places to live.
It is true, Schertz is gorgeous. It is a community. It is a small home town kind of a place, and yet it is 5 minutes from San Antonio, 10 minutes from New Braunfels, and about 50 minutes from Austin. You are close to everything but you get to have that sense of seclusion from hussle and bussle. It's really unique.
So, what do you if you are possibly relocating to Schertz and you want info? Call us. 210-566-6355. Or you can visit us at our website, The Claus Team. We can send you a relocation package out the same day that we talk to you.
Information, information, information - about what, you ask? Everything! Although a lot of what is written will be about the Schertz/Cibolo area, the scope will be nation wide.
Disclaimer: ActiveRain Corp. does not necessarily endorse the real estate agents, loan officers and brokers listed on this site. These real estate profiles, blogs and blog entries are provided here as a courtesy to our visitors to help them make an informed decision when buying or selling a house. ActiveRain Corp. takes no responsibility for the content in these profiles, that are written by the members of this community.
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