Seller came back to list 454 Grand Ave, Crescent City, CA 95531 for $169,000 - 08/29/11 08:37 PM
I am so glad that the seller took my advice and lowered the price on this wonderful little beach house just steps to Pebble Beach Drive and the Pacific Ocean up here in Crescent City, California.
We had been talking about price some time, and it was hard for the seller to make this decision. He felt that maybe he should just rent it and wait the market out. But after only a month he realized this:
IF YOU WANT TO SELL, DIG DEEP AND PUT A MARKETABLE PRICE ON THE PROPERTY.
We already have a couple of propective buyers looking … (6 comments)

Applications for plein air artists to enter the 2012 Carmel Art Festival - 08/28/11 11:10 PM
If you are a plein air artist and can paint TWO paintings in two days in and around Carmel, we invite you to apply to enter the 19th Annual Carmel Art Festival which will be held on May 17 to 20, 2011.
The Carmel Art Festival has been part of my life for the past twelve years, half of that time as a board member. We have some top contemporary California artists enter each year like Brian Blood and Kevin Courter. But artists come from all over, including Europe and Hawaii. Only 60 will be juried into the show, usually a … (2 comments)

How are you riding out Hurricane Irene? - 08/27/11 11:41 AM
If you are on AR anyway, maybe you'd like to tell us how you are handling your situation?
All we in the west can do is sit glued to the TV to see the progression of Hurricane Irene up the coast. We can just imagine what you are going through: stay or leave? Or maybe you are hunkered down right now waiting for it to be over.
Remember, our thoughts are with you and hope that you and yours are safe.
 
… (3 comments)

Feedback from your clients, "why did you choose me?" - 08/23/11 08:55 AM
Yesterday was a good very day. At the end of it I asked my client "why did you choose me?" He was one of those who came out of the ethernet and into my brokerage one fine day.
Here's what he said. He knew he needed to get his own representation in purchasing a piece of property and was looking for someone he could rely on. He did not want someone who specialized in residential real estate. He did not want someone who specializes in hardship or bank owned properties. He wanted someone who could help him with his commercial property purchase. … (24 comments)

Would you hold an open house if you knew the whole town would come? - 08/19/11 08:26 PM
Well, a big chunk of the town? This listing is an icon here in Crescent City. On the ocean, on a bluff, easy to drive to, easy to park and come in. Malibuesque where the house is pretty much on the street, but once you go inside, it's all about the ocean and its views. It's exterior is well maintained and solid as can be, built in 1965 pre-coastal commission. It's interior is definitely '60s but that is part of its charm. Only a few people have ever been inside.
There's a small island just offshore, but high and dry when the … (15 comments)

They talk to me as if they know me, no wonder, I am at least 45 pages on GOOGLE - 08/19/11 07:40 PM
I was just reading Gail Robinson's blog about lead generation and realized that I have an interesting phenomena when people call me. THEY TALK TO ME AS IF THEY KNOW ME.
When you think about it, with all the real estate websites that I have (about 30?), all the social media I've signed up for (can't even count them), several real estate oriented blogs including Activerain, plus commenting on others blogs...
...is it any wonder that the name HELLA ROTHWELL is solidly on 45 pages of GOOGLE and scattered around another 5 to 10 pages after that.
So when people call … (6 comments)

Ok, escrow is open, now change your marketing information? - 08/17/11 09:30 PM
Its a good feeling to have a contract signed and off to escrow, the deposit check is being walked in by the buyer, and now the race to closing begins.
But wait, there are a lot of other things to do regarding your listing:
1. MLS: change status from "active" to either "contingency sale" or "pending".
2. Agency Website: decide if you want to say "under contract" or just leave it as is.
3. Dedicated website: Take it down? How sure are you about those contingencies?
4. Activerain, Postlets and other listing submission websites: again, leave them up or take them down?
… (4 comments)

Neighbors who take advantage when the house next door is empty! - 08/16/11 06:21 PM
"Oh, but they are so nice, they asked me if I minded that they park their (18-wheeler, boat, trailer with stuff, etc. etc.) across the street in front of their house," says my seller after I point out that all that stuff does not help her sell her house. "All that stuff" included having living room furniture around the SIDEWALK BBQ, the wood for the BBQ stacked next to it, smoke swirling around the neighborhood. Then the many friends arrive, and the music from inside the house starts to blast outside and down the block. Can't have a BBQ without beer which makes the … (9 comments)

How did my Monday go? Where to start? - 08/15/11 10:14 PM
No, no, it was all good - just a lot of eye-opening twists and turns happened. Fortunately I am one of those real estate brokers who really likes to do her homework, and I did that: drafting various contracts last night, ready to have them signed today.
Things that came up that stopped the contracts from being signed today:
1. One buyer still wanted to see one of the units that had previously been occupied. Where the other unit was in excellent shape, this one had seemingly not had any work done since 1927 when it was built. Oh my. Had to get several different contractors out … (9 comments)

When Should I List My Property? - 08/14/11 10:52 PM
I was going to write a blog about this but saw Christopher and Stephanie Somers' blog about "When Should I list my property" which, in part, states the information that I wanted to convey.
It depends what you are pricing it at. Today I showed a buyer properties on a certain street that is very desirable. Two properties are priced so low, these should go first. And one of them is really a great bank owned one. So until these "underpriced" homes sell, you don't really have a chance so you might hold back selling yours.
Via Christopher and Stephanie Somers - Realtors … (3 comments)

Didn't get the listing because of my competing listing - 08/13/11 06:34 AM
That didn't make sense to me either, but the seller was adamant. He called me to a "listing appointment" only to tell me that he was listing with another agent. His reasoning?
That if MY listing was more than my prospective buyer could/would pay, I would sell his listing instead which would be priced slightly lower.  
He assured me that he liked me, had worked with me before, know I do incredible marketing especially out of the area. But by doing it this way, he was getting DOUBLE the marketing effort.
NOTHING I COULD DO OR SAY COULD CHANGE HIS MIND.
Interestingly, the agent … (13 comments)

Is the Realtor responsible for items listed as included in marketing material? - 08/12/11 10:06 PM
"I want everything the agent had listed on his flyers as part of the inventory."
An interesting comment from a buyer who had seen a whole bunch of real estate flyers as well as information on the MLS which listed items that were included in the sale. Part of the problem was that some of the flyers had different items on it than others. So the buyer suggested we write into the offer/contract that we hold the agent, what amounts to, responsible to include all those items in the flyers without making a list of them.
"No can do," I said. "We need to come … (6 comments)

I have nothing to say - 08/11/11 09:05 PM
Well, everything is relative, so "nothing" is probably overstated/understated? It's been a day where nothing much happened. But then that is a good thing in my case. I am waiting to hear back TOMORROW from two clients about which way they will jump, buy or not buy, sell or not sell. So this has been a "let's get through this day" kind of day.
Then, WHAM, two new clients on whom I had given up, emailed, one to look at homes this Sunday, another now ready to start searching with some specific search criteria.
And, OMIGOSH, both clients' criteria are the … (2 comments)

Six Deadly Mistakes Home Sellers Make - 08/11/11 06:56 PM
This is my first reblog ever but I felt I had something vital to add to Christine's blog so here goes. A client from out of town mentioned that he chose to look up an agency/agent because he saw that agency's signs everywhere. So to him, bigger was better. Or is it? I think in choosing an agent choose one who will give you the attention you need/want. If someone already has 30+ listings, how much individual attention are you getting?
And as to making that agent a "Realtor", that is a given or you can't be on the MLS!!!
 
… (3 comments)

Be happy when someone else is making a sale because... - 08/10/11 10:34 PM
Today I was very happy to see that a colleague is making a sale just a couple of houses away from my listing.
Why?
1. Because now I will get a comp for a listing whose sales price has been very hard to establish.
2. The house is owned by a friend of my client, and I know they have been commisserating together about their respective houses not selling in this market.
3. That friend has changed agents several times, each time changing the price DOWNWARD - while my client stayed with me through each downward shift in the market.
… (7 comments)

Your attitude might get the deal done. - 08/07/11 08:37 PM
Have you had offers come in, said, "this is way too low", told the opposing agent to take a hike. In fact, made no bones about the fact that you are very unhappy to even bother with it? Made the other agent cringe with your scathing return email of rejection?  And, by extension, made their client feel like "bottom feeders" with the result that they now wouldn't buy that house if it were the last house in the world?
Why not try another strategy and negotiate that low offer into a possible acceptable one? Now, if you get multiple offers on your listings, sell your … (2 comments)

Caravans, are they worth your time? - 08/05/11 10:58 AM
Yesterday, I went on a caravan here in Crescent City. We looked at 12 properties, one of them mine, the oceanfront home on a bluff at 1500 Pebble Beach Drive.
First let me say that none of the agents had seen this home for probably 10 years when it was last for sale. They were curious about the updates ie. "I'm so glad they changed out the orange carpet on the lower level". Others had not seen it at all. We had also done some major work on the front/outside of the house, and I had put up my great new STURDY … (4 comments)

The Pacific Ocean is tough on real estate signs - 08/03/11 07:22 PM
Your ordinary real estate "for sale" sign does not work at the ocean. Between the sun, wind, rain, fog, storms and salt spray, your sign takes a real beating. I did leave out frost, hail and snow because that is NOT the norm on Pebble Beach Drive along the Pacific Ocean here in Crescent City.
So today my trusty sign developer and I went to 1500 Pebble Beach Drive to put up a hella sign (pun intended) that was built to withstand the elements between now and when this oceanfront home sells. You only really only want to do this once!
First we cut … (3 comments)

When a seller withdraws his listing to refinance - 08/02/11 06:18 PM
This is happening more and more when the sellers who still have equity in the home, cannot sell it. They have moved already for some reason,or they need to get their money out to help them through this economy. And many lenders will not give him a loan when it is actively for sale! Even if you take it off, with some lenders the home is ineligble for a loan. But keep looking, some now will.
To help the seller, you, the (former) listing agent, need to make sure the listing is taken off the MLS and all other places you have listed it. A … (4 comments)

 
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Hella Rothwell 831-626-4000 CA & HI Broker/Owner/Realtor®

Carmel by the Sea, CA

More about me…

Calif. #01772851 & Hawaii #RB-21268

Address: Mailing:, P.O. Box 2144, Crescent City, CA, 95531

Cell Phone: (831) 626-4000

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