Pat Kennedy - Your Washington, DC Real Estate Connection

1628 Roxanna Road: A Fabulous Value in Washington, DC

2008-10-11T23:26:35Z

If you're looking for a large classic brick colonial on a huge lot in Washington, DC, this could be your lucky day!

1628 Roxanna Road, NW is in Colonial Village, a neighborhood just inside the DC line, and very close to Metro, I-95 and a fast drive downtown. It's also near the section of Rock Creek Park that gets closed down on weekends for cyclists, runners and dogs.

The house is nicely renovated and has lots of room to grow beyond it's current 4-bedroom, 2 1/2 bath size.

It sits on a double lot, creating so many possibilities for additions, a pool, or a very serious garden.

It's also very close to one of my favorite neighborhood eateries, The Parkway Deli - it's as close as you're going to get to New York in Washington.

The price has been reduced to $745,000, and it will be Open tomorrow between 1:30 and 3:30 pm.

To get there, take 16th Street to Roxanna and go west to 1628. It's just below the DC/Maryland line.

Dear Active Rain Gods, Thank You For Giving Us Back Our "Blog" Button!

2008-10-11T21:41:44Z

After a really bad computer day, I got taken out to a wonderful dinner with some old friends.

I really needed a night out! It's been one of those days!

First, I tried to upload a virtual tour onto MRIS, and realized the new picture uploaders in Keystone do not like Macs! Grrrr! So I went into the office to use the PC's there and realized I forgot my freakin' Safemls gizmo! Grrrrr again!

Then I showed a big old house that my buyer hated, dropped off fact sheets at my new listing, and went back home to try to upload the photos with my new little windows based computer. But it was really, really slow!

How did Bill Gates get so rich when his operating system is so inelegant. I was going to say sucky. That's how I really feel.

It took an hour and a half to get the huge file emailed to the PC, then I had to figure out how to save them in a file I could upload. Then I had to download something else that made Keystone work on that machine.

While I was waiting for stuff to load on the little machine, I turned to the Big Mac to read a few blogs and write a few comments, but wait! Where'd the blogs go?

So I just got home from a great time with my friends, and sat down to my little Mac and there is was! My day is having a much better ending that beginning and middle!

I hope the good stuff lasts through my Open House tomorrow!

2211 Oak Court North: Come By Sunday Afternoon For A Look!

2008-10-11T21:04:56Z

omorrow afternoon between 1 and 4, I'm introducing my new listing in Arlington, Virginia to the market. It's a pretty townhouse with an amazing view of the Potomac River, looking toward Georgetown University and Key Bridge. If you travel a lot, you're a few blocks to the Roslyn Metro, which will whisk you off the National Airport.

The house has many upgrades.

Main Level: Living room with river views, fireplace, built-in bookcases and French doors leading to a large deck. A few steps up, there is a powder room, formal dining room, family room with fireplace, and eat-in kitchen with granite counters.

Second Level: master bedroom with river views, fireplace and built-in bookcases. The master bath has travertine tiles, large whirlpool tub, seperate shower and water closet. There is a second bedroom.

Third Level: third bedroom with hardwood floors, fireplace and full marble bath. There is ample storage space on this level.

Lower Level: rec room with French doors leading to large deck and hot tub overlooking the River and Georgetown. There is a wine chiller, fireplace and closet with room for a full bath.

Count up the fireplaces. There are five of them!

And just imagine waking up, rubbing the sleep out of your eyes, and looking out your master bedroom window at the Potomac River floating toward the Chesapeake Bay!

If your'e in the market for a stunning home where you will be proud to live and entertain your friends.

The asking price is $1,199,000

Great Views - My New Niche!

2008-10-10T20:42:54Z

I have two listings that have absolutely amazing views!

One is Rosedale Cottage (back on the market), with it's view of the spires of the National Cathedral. Last Sunday when I held it open, there was a carillon concert that could be heard all over the neighborhood.

The second is a new listing in Palisades Park, a group of high end townhouses overlooking the Potomac River and Georgetown. From the hot tub, you can see the Fletcher Boat House, Key Bridge, and Georgetown University. It's pretty cool.

I've always been sort of a sucker for views. Hope there will buyers out there who share my enthusiam!

How to Wow Them With Your Negotiating Skills

2008-10-10T19:51:37Z

In this market, we all have to hone our negotiating skills. I've noticed that many of the agents in the DC area are very strong in this area. But otters are totally clueless.

So what does a good negotiator look like?

In a past life, I served as an representative on a series of trade talks over aviation treaties that the United States was re-negotiating with many European and South and Central American countries. In most cases, there were things we wanted from the other countries - usually the ability of our airlines to fly in and out of their airports with minimal restrictions on how many flights and how low the fares could go. And the other countries wanted more access to US cities and in many cases were not real enthusiastic about low fares.

So, I got to sit in the (then) smoke filled rooms, watching the professionals from our Department of State work it out with negotiators from Holland, Italy, France, Germany, and Mexico. Our guys were no slouches, and some of the foreign governments had teams that were quite formidable.

So what did I learn that I apply to real estate transactions? If these State Department pros were real estate agents, here's what they'd do.

First, they'd know their stuff. If you're negotiating an offer on a house, you have to be on top of just what is going on in the neighborhood. You have to know the details of each recent sale - price, concessions, property conditions, seller's motivations, and anything else that helped to determine the comparable prices.

Second, they would communicate things clearly, and diplomatically. If the house you're selling is a dump compared to the one down the street, you must carefully weigh your words when discussing the differences with the sellers or their agent.

Third, they would identify and figure out how to minimize differences between the two parties. I always start off with a chart with what the sellers want and what the buyers are offering. It includes

Price
Concessions
Settlement time frame
Items that do or do not convey
Contingencies for inspections, financing, appraisals and what not.
Possession issues - pre or post settlement occupancy requests

There are bound to be some issues where the parties are in agreement. I start with these.

Next come the meaty stuff. Where are easier compromises likely? Those come next, as you whittle away at the differences.

Then you get to the big stuff. Often this is a price difference. And if you can get both sides in motion, you get closer and closer and then it's a deal! And everybody wins.

Finally, they listen to the other side with incredible attention to what they say, how they say it, body language, facial expressions - I mean they really know how to get into the other side's brain! (I added this after reading comments from Philadelphia!)

Now here is what clueless agents add to the pot:

Whining! They think if they whine long enough you'll get sick of listening and give in. Not a good strategy!
Snit fits! Not real attractive to anyone involved. This is guaranteed to cause the other side to do a serious novena to St. Anthony to either find the sellers new buyers or the buyers a new house, depending on who you represent.
Cussing. A form of a snit fit that does not reflect well on the cusser.

You're doing the negotiating with both the other agent (as the go-between) and both of your clients. If the other agent is a good negotiator, your job won't be hard. But what if you get a whining-snitty-cusser?

Get over it. You can't control the other agent or what he does. You can only control your reaction to what he does.

If you must, take 100 per cent of the responsibility for getting the deal done. And never, ever ever bad mouth the pain in the butt colleague to your clients. Wait til you get home, and vent to your doggy!

What I Learned At My Annual Physical!

2008-10-09T21:49:00Z

My health care plan is Kaiser Permanente, and I chose my primary care physician from their staff, Dr. Jeffrey Wetstone. I really like and respect the guy.

Except for really crappy knees and some extra pounds, I'm amazingly healthy. And the knees are getting to be a huge pain in the, well, knees! For those of you who believe sincerely in "intelligent design", I gotta say that my knees are a huge argument against it. They are the the universe's little joke on me.

My market area is full fo four-level Victorian townhouses. And I've reached the point where I can run up steps, but when I'm coming down, it's pretty difficult.

So Doctor Wetstone and I had a serious talk about my knees. And while I'm knee replacement waiting to happen, the orthopedic guys don't want to do it until they have to. The current replacement knees have a life expectancy that is a lot shorter than mine, and they don't want to have to repeat things when I'm really old. And he explained that he could inject some magic juice into my knees as an interim measure to significantly ease the pain while we're waiting for the great new knee breakthrough.

Yikes! Ouch! When my cousins (crappy knees run throughout my extended family) had it done, they said it was awful. Horrible, in fact!

Dr. Wetstone really listened to my concerns. Then he explained that it could be awful, but he figured out a way to minimize the pain. And he outlined his plan to help me live with my awful knees until they had a more permanent and sure fix.

He asked me to trust him.

This is not unlike what I do with my clients, trying to help them buy or sell a house or condo. I listen. I really listen. I make a plan to address their concerns and ask them to trust me.

When Dr. Wetstone put the goop into the syringe and then into my knees, it was not awful. He had me totally distracted talking about, you guessed it! Real estate and what I love about it. I felt the stick, but it was hardly the excruciating ordeal that my football and hockey playing cousins described. This guy was really good at what he did!

And if Dr. Wetstone and his wife ever decide to move again, I hope I will be able to return the favor by doing my job as well as he did his job this afternoon!

Thriving In A Tricky Market

2008-10-08T23:30:29Z

On Tuesday morning, the agents at Evers & Company assemble for our weekly business meeting. Our very wise broker, Donna Evers, talked about the DC area market. Compared to 2005, 2008 sucks. That was the bad news. And at some point, I realized that Donna wasn't talking about us.

One of the things that makes this office work is that we have a lot of agents who've been around for a bunch of decades. We've seen the market change and change back again. Changing strategies for a changing market has become second nature.

Here on Active Rain, there's been a lot written about the need to adapt.

But what does that look like - really?

In a shrinking market, where fewer homes are sold and they sell at lower prices, an agent must increase her market share of the business that's being done. That means working harder, smarter and better. But I think it's mostly smarter and better.

Smarter means really understanding how effective your marketing money is working. Like many of you, I'm putting a lot more emphasis on Internet marketing and a lot less on classifieds, mailings and other things that cost money - for me and for my broker. Smarter is having your finger on where your clients are coming from (referrals, Open Houses, blogging), and focusing efforts in those areas.

You need listings in any market, but in a buyers' market, smarter means knowing how to use them to find buyers. And when you find a buyer, you have to know what to do with them!

Better means knowing about aerobic listening to understand what your buyers need. It means knowing more about your market than other agents so you know what to show them. It also means having strong negotiating skills, and knowing which situations lend themselves to lower prices and which ones don't.

To be the best, you have to tap into your imagination, lying awake nights thinking up great ways to out perform your colleagues. The best isn't necessarily the one who sells the most houses. Being the best is a different paradigm where it's about service quality not transaction quantity - although I've found that quantity does follow quality.

These are going to be challenging times. But all markets are challenging in one way or another.

In 2005, it was great being the listing agent, but I hated writing offers for buyer clients who were one of 30 in a bloody bidding war. I hated counseling buyers to offer far more than an already exorbitant listing price. For me, a white hot market was a lot harder than this one!

So it's time for us to learn how to look, act, feel and be fabulous professionals.

How To Run Off Buyers!

2008-10-08T22:51:34Z

Every once in a while, I hear an agent ranting and whining about a buyer who dumped them. And it's pretty safe to say that all of us have done something to some poor buyer - probably unintentional and maybe unconscious. But there are also a lot of obvious things agents do to scare off clients. Here are some of my favorites:

Wearing strong perfume. Even not strong perfume is a bad idea when you're driving buyers around. Many won't like it. Some will be allergic to it.
Wearing clothes that smell like smoke. Even if your buyers are smokers, they won't like the smell on you.
Driving like a lunatic. Your clients are precious cargo. I became someones second agent because they were afraid to get back into the car with the first guy who showed them some places.
Driving a car that is delapidated and dirty. You need a nice car. You need a clean car. It needn't be new, but it should be nice.
Running off at the mouth. They don't want to hear all of your funny little real estate stories. Well, one or two maybe if they're really funny - but it's more important to let them talk and you listen very, very carefully for hints about what dream house will look like.
"Always Be Closing". If you're in a house they hate and you're running a hard sell, they'll be annoyed. If you do it over and over again, they'll run for the hills.
Giving your opinion of a house before you listen to theirs. If you start to verbally trash what turns into Dream House for them, this is not a good thing. This doesn't mean you can't help them evaluate the place. Just choose your words carefully.
Bragging about your real estate prowess. They don't care if you're your office's top producer or the state's top producer. All they are about is how you are helping them at any given time.

There are more, I'm sure. And I invite you to add your own pet peeves to my list!

Great Staging Helped My Clients Fall In Love With The Perfect House!

2008-10-07T09:59:51Z

Saturday, I showed a fabulous house with a slight funk factor that wouldn't be that hard to deal with. But the good thing was, it didn't look funky.

Sure, the kitchen was dated, and the bath on the third floor belongs in a museum. But the location was perfect for my buyers, and the house had the space, character and charm they were looking for. Especially the space.

Joe Himali, the broker of Best Address here in DC, made my job easier. He counseled his sellers to whip the place into total move in condition. The funk factor was mostly in the garage, a corrogated shack that is falling down in the back yard. The house, on the other hand, looks pretty well maintained - except for the third floor bath. And by the time it went on the market, it was freshly painted and nicely staged. We walked in the front door, my clients fell in love, and by the time we made out way back to the somewhat inadequate kitchen, they were renovating it in their minds.

And at the price point, they could afford a new kitchen. So I wrote up the perfect offer. And they got it.

This is going to be a great transaction. I have great clients matched up with a really good house. And there is a highly professional listing agent.

My buyers are newlyweds. And I can see them living in this place for a long time, filling it with children and having fun. And helping people like them buy their first place is what is so much fun about this profession.

Wow!

It's Not About Your Market. It's About Your Conversation About Your Market

2008-10-07T08:07:15Z

It doesn't matter whether the market in your area is stone cold. People will still be buying houses. The question is who will they buy them from?

You?

Or will it be some other lucky agent?

So here in the Washington metropolitan area, my market is not sluggish or cold or crappy or anything else. My conversation is that it's a buyer's market. I love working with buyers! I love this market!

And sure, it has it's challenges. But I'm up for them. Without challenges it would be like working as a budget analyst at some federal regulatory agency - although I'm sure that job has it's challenges as well.

In this real estate market, it's about knowing how to negotiate and how to sometimes put together complicated transactions and making them work. This market takes smarts and skill! I'm smart and skilled! This is my kind of market.

That's my story and I'm sticking to it!

OK, This Is Getting Stranger And Stranger!

2008-10-04T23:24:44Z

Ever since Sarah Palin was selected as John McCain's running mate, there have been remarks about the close resemblance between Palin and Actress Tina Fey. The resemblance is pretty amazing! One of these is Governor Palin at Thursday night's vice presidential debates, and the other is a photo of Ms. Fey at the Saturday Night Live vice presidential debates - tonight.

Oh, and I apologize for the poor photo quality - I took these right off of one of those television sets that will no longer work after some date in the not too distant future.

Anyway, back to the topic! On tonight's SNL opening, Ms. Fey did something that may have convinced me that she and Alaska's governor are, indeed, identical twins separated at birth.

Tina played the flute! YES!

As you may remember, Governor Palin's talent when she was the runner up in the Miss Alaska contest was, ya gest it! Playin the flute! And I gotta say, Tina has a perfect hand position and embouchure, and I'm pretty sure she wasn't lip synking tonight's performance.

There is one thing we can be sure of. If Governor Palin ever does become president, Tina Fey will certainly be fully employed, either by SNL or the Secret Service, for the duration!

Deep Pockets

2008-10-04T18:18:39Z

When I'm out showing houses, I'm often carrying a lot of small tools of the trade with me.

The Blackberry
My Supra key pad
My key ring with car, house and office keys on it
A little digital camera
A small bag that they don't all quite fit into

Then, after I've opened the lockbox and removed the keys, I'm always dropping stuff trying to get the door open.

This afternoon, I did something differently. I wore a light weight jacket with two deep pockets. One held the Blackberry. One held my key pad and keys. I left the little camera and small bag under the front seat of my car.

Now, I know this sounds really stupid and obvious, but deep pockets just make life easier, in many ways.

My New Macs Have A Little Extra Something!

2008-10-03T21:34:33Z

On Monday, some creepy bad guys burgled my house, swiping my computers. Yesterday, my State Farm adjuster told me to go ahead and replace my computers at the Apple Store. If Apple employees were on commission, it would have been Mac salesman's lucky day.

And, I bought something else. Lo/Jack! If those stupid jerks come back to my house, assuming they get past the fierce Willie the Hyperactive Labradoodle Puppy, who learned to growl viciously at strangers at his last stint at boot camp and the new ear shattering alarm system, they'll get another surprise. When they turn either of them on, they'll turn on something else!

Lo/Jack! It will lead Officer Friendly right to their little den of theives! That'll show them!

Are Other Agents Your Competition or Your Colleagues? Father Knew Best!

2008-10-02T22:37:15Z

OK. Let's admit it. Real estate is, by and large, a profession with more than its share of Type-A compulsive workahaulics. And many of us are very competitive, at least on some levels. I mean, look at what we do here on Active Rain - and that's just for points! And you never want to play a game of Monopoly with me!

When I was a senior in high school, I really wanted to plant mt bottom into the first flute chair of the Topeka Youth Symphony, which meant climbing over two other people who had first and second finnies on it. I spent about four hours a day in a practice room for the entire summer between my junior and senior years, and it became about beating out my little friends.

At one point, my parents might have noticed that I was getting a little obsessed with flute playing, and also obsesssed with winning the prize. My father took me aside and explained that in life, I would be a happier person if I focused on being, not competitive, but competent. And I could see his point. Super competent is a whole lot more attractive that super competitive. At the audition is September, I nailed it. I played beautifully and won the first chair. But I did it without losing the friendship of my young colleagues.

After a short time in real estate, I realized that my dad's words of wisdom applied to most life domains, including real estate. I learned early on that I needed the respect and good will of the other agents in the real estate community. I'm as competitive as the next person, and I like being the best. I try to get the listing by wowing the seller with my listing presentation. When I'm working wth buyers, I want to know their needs and the market so well that I can easily make a great match.

So competence works. My father knew best!

Lexus Has Customer Service Nailed!

2008-10-01T22:19:35Z

My all time favorite vehicle went to the car spa for a couple of days for it's 60,000 mile check up. In car years, I think my Lexus is the equivalent of my age - almost!

It's a 2002 car, and while it has some scratches and mini dings and the bumpers (I use the Braille method parking) it runs just beautifully. And one reason is that Lexus makes it very easy for busy real estate professionals to maintain their cars properly.

I had an appointment for yesterday with my dealer in suburban Maryland, about 15 miles from my house. They drove to my house to pick the car up and to drop off a 2008 for me to drive while they had mine. Mid morning, one of the service representatives called to discuss the work they were recommending. Most, but not all, was covered by warranty, and he gave me an estimate. A few hours later, they called to explain there was a part they needed from another dealership, and would I mind terribly (test) driving the new car until this morning.

Du-uh!

Then at noon they called to arrange a car swap, and oh! They overestimated the cost of repairing my brakes.

I love these guys! More important, what can they teach me about providing truly amazing service to my own clientws? Well, for starters -

Do more than the other guys, and do it better
Try to have any surprises be good ones
Give out really good free samples

They only have one little problem My six year old car drives like a dream - and it's paid for! It'll be a while before I need a new one. But guess where the search will begin?

Right Now! Stop Blogging and Back Up Your Computers!

2008-09-29T20:49:14Z

"CSI Washington" just left my house. It was full of hunky guys in blue uniforms fingerprinting doorknobs and looking for clues.

Some idiot broke into my house this afternoon, apparently right before I came home. He (don't know why I'm assuming it's a he, coulda been a lady burglar) took my Big Mac, my MacBook and my MacBook Air. And they were backed up to one another, but noplace else.

Stupid! Stupid! Stupid!

And where was Willie the Hyperactive Labrodoodle puppy during all this? He's staying at my sister's this week. Bet her place won't get broken into!

Anyway, blogging will be a challenge for the next few days, though I'm sure I'll manage somehow. Meanwhile, all of my contact files, appointment records, tax stuff - including a carefully kept milage log, are on all three of the machines, but not on a CD.

The worst part, I had some wonderful photos of my father taken when he was still at home. I meant to back them up, along with some great photos I took at the Cape, in Barbados and my various parties.

Oh, and my "home inventory" that would come in really handy right now is, guess where? On the Big Mac. Grrrrr!

The desktop is so old, it never occurred to me that some idiot would steal it.

Yikes!

So back up your computers! Do it now!

And please say a prayer to St. Anthony (the patron saint of stuff that's lost) that maybe the police find the jerk who did it - and my computers!

If You're Using Listing Spam, Please Make It Useful!

2008-09-29T09:05:45Z

Every morning now, I get my coffee, head for my computer and check email. And along with the overnight Active Rain comments, I find a bunch of stuff from area agents who are spamming colleagues with the latest information on listings, Open Houses and what not. While I'm usually pretty fast with the "Delete" button, once in a while there will be something to peak my interest.

One such message landed in my box this morning. It was about a new construction project in Virginia, complete with floor plan and location information. The plans looked fabulous, and I looked in the message for the price point. Um. Nothing. Nada. So was it free? Doubtful.

There was a link to the project's web site with a few more floor plans, pictures, architects renderings and other stuff, but no price point. Call for that.

Now, if you are spamming buyers, this strategy might generate a few calls or emails that would enable the spammer to "capture" email addresses or phone numbers. But if you are targeting your colleagues, you really need to make it easier for us.

Otherwise, "Delete"!

Some agents use this strategy wisely. They include address, photos, and, yes, price! If I have a client looking in the neighborhod and price range, I'll make a note and check it out on MRIS.

And remember, this little missive, this email that goes out with your name on it, will annoy many of your colleagues who resent getting spammed so early in the morning!

Yes, to you it's inexpensive marketing! To me, it could be something else.

Paul Newman: What a Legacy!

2008-09-27T22:42:42Z

Back in the 1970's, I dated a mild mannered guy who was an economist by weekday and a race car driver by weekend. And one of the highlights of this relationship was a weekend of at the track at Lime Rock, Connecticut, where Dick was racing his cute little Mazda in the showroom stock category, and I helped out in the pit crew. It was over that weekend that I bumped into two of my heros, who were up there with their race cars - Walter Cronkite and Paul Newman.

Paul Newman had an amazing life. He was not only a great actor and decent race car driver, but he was also a great humanitarian. His Newman's Own made yummy cookies, tasty salad dressing, and lately his own wine. And the profits went to good causes. One of these is Hole in the Wall, a summer camp for very sick children.

And his marriage to Joanne Woodward was a love story that defied the Hollywood stereotype.

I was saddened to hear of his death today. The Webster Street Cocktail Club will be planning a Paul Newman Film Festival over the next couple of months. He left some great stuff behind!

Got a New Boyfriend!

2008-09-27T21:39:26Z

I spent today kicking Igor in that place where guys don't like to be kicked. And I found a new sweetie with a nice, sweet little bird on his shoulder that whispers positive "it'll be fabulous" messages in his ear. And he, in turn whispers them in my ear.

And, don't ya think, he's so much cuter than Igor!

All joking aside, we all have empowering influences, and in times like this, it's important to stay in touch with the people who make up feel like we walk on water. And for the last 24 hours, I've been doing that.

And I've been getting down to the basics that I tend to ignore when things are going very well. I"m updating my front burner list, making calls and organizing my files. And I'm reminding myself that people buy houses in every market - including this one.

Battling Demons!

2008-09-27T01:01:01Z

During my first year in real estate, I had frequent panic attacks. They took the form of a nasty little guy whispering in my ear, "You will never sell another house! You will never sell another house!"

"Oh, no! Get outa here! Will so!"

"Will not!"

So over the years, this little nasty fellow has gotten quieter. But guess what? He's back this week! With a vengence!

When the market shifted from hot to normal, I welcomed the change. A buyers' market - yippee! I love working with buyers! And I've been having a great yeat.

But this week, a series of events made it really hard for me to stay optimistic. In a transaction involving one of my listings, the buyer lost a high paying job at a law firm. I think this one will bite the dust. I'll have to sell it again. Ugh! And if Washington lawyers can be affected by this screwy economy, anybody can.

Yikes! Washington may not be so recession-proof after all!

And Igor hopped back on my shoulder, whispering in my ear! And I'm fighting off panic attacks that are the worst I've had since 9/11, when we were waiting for some idiot to plant a dirty bomb in Georgetown. It didn't happen. The market came back. And I did sell another house - a bunch of them.

I think I'll give myself another twelve or so hours to wallow in this. I'll watch the debates tonight with my friends at our weekly meeting of the Webster Street Cocktail Club. I'll drink enough wine so nothing these guys say will bother me.

And tomorrow, I'm dumping Igor and gettin' me a new boyfriend!

Octoberfest in Georgetown's Rose Park!

2008-09-26T23:33:13Z

Next weekend, Mt. Zion United Methodist Church invites you to their annual Octoberfest celebration in Georgetown's Rose Park. This historic church is on the corner of P and 26th Streets, and they'll take over the park on Saturday, October 4th between 10:00 AM and 5:30 PM.

This is a fun afternoon both for the festival and for the chance to see this church. It was founded in 1816 and is the oldest African American church in the District of Columbia. I'm planning to drop in between showings!

Does It Make (Dollars and) Cents To Renovate?

2008-09-25T22:55:11Z

Last week, I previewed a house on the brokers' tour that I thought was really, really overpriced. It was a largish brick center-hall colonial that was a sort of Washington, DC cliche house, resembling the one in the photo. And it was what I call a "granny house". The kitchen was state of the art for about 1958. And the bathrooms were the originals, although they must have been a builder's upgrade. The fixtures and tiles were great shades of pink, turquoise and purple.

Yesterday on tour, I ran into a buddy (in another overpriced house) who was talking about how goofy pricing has gotten here in DC. And then he told me that overpriced house from last week was under contract!

Huh?

What?

And get this. There were multiple offers!

Huh?

What?

I know there are a lot of improvements that people can make on a house that won't pay for themselves. But we're talking a house that needed help with everything from kitchens to baths (unless you really love pink, purple and turquoise) and the basic systems - the wiring, plumbing and central air were more dated than the kitchen. And it's in a neighborhood where nicely renovated homes with two story additions sell for what this home reportedly brought.

Go figure!

Talking Back To Washington: How To Make Your Voice Heard

2008-09-25T08:35:19Z

Matt Heaton is pissed. It's about the bailouts. And Matt's written a series of great posts explaining what's going on and why he's opposed to them. So, instead of my reblogging his posts, just click the link and read them. Then come back here if you want to do something about it.

I agree with Matt, but living in Washington, DC I do not have a Senator or Congressman to contact to say "Whoa, Nelly!"

The rest of you do. And this would be an excellent time to voice your opinion to your representatives here in our nation's Capital.

First, you'll want to find out who they are. You'll have two Senators and one Congressman. If you don't know who they are, you can click on this link, type in your address and find out. This site gives their names, phone numbers and email and snail mail addresses.

When mail and calls start to come into congressional offices, the staff starts a running tally. And the communications are weighted:

Some lobbying organizations send out letters or cards for their members to sign and send mail in. Or they email their members with a message to cut and paste. When the staff sees hundreds or thousands of communications that are identical, they will carry less weight.
When you call, you may not get your congressional member, but again, the call and your opinion are tallied.
Emails and letters that sound like the rants of crazed lunatics will probably be forwarded to the Secret Service.
Emails and letters that are sent in your own words, and that clearly and rationally express your opinion, are the best.
Never underestimate the impact of snail mail. A well written letter to your Senators and Congressman is probably the most effective way to make yourself heard. Of course, you can always try all three - calls, emails and letters. Keep 'em coming!

This week has been a little scary for me. And rather than point fingers and accuse other arms of government and wall street of sloth and greed, I'd like to see it fixed. And I don't have all the answers. Right now, I don't think anyone does. But if Wall Street needs a little help from it's friends in Washington, these are some of the elements that I'm concerned about:

I don't want to give them a blank check, which is what the Administration proposal seems to do. It could be, probably will be, more than $1 trillion - nobody knows because nobody has a clue to the actual bottom line here.
Are there ways to minimize the risks to the taxpayers? Are these going to be built into any proposal? What will they look like? Some bail outs in the past have actually earned money that went back to the Treasury.
Is it a gift? Or is it a loan with a pretty high interest rate? It better not be a gift - which is what "bailout" implies. The IRS charges taxpayers who have to work out a payment plan about 18% a year. I hope the corporations will have to pay it back with something substantial in the way of interest.
Will any safeguards they put into place actually keep the high fliers from reinventing the kind of stuff that got us into this trouble?
Finally, I'd like to think that the members of congress who vote on this stuff actually understand what they are passing. A lot of them don't. This stuff gets extremely complicated. They rely on staffers old enough to be my grandchildren, and the kids don't always get it either.

So, when you watch the news about this stuff, you can't talk back to your television set. But you can talk back to your Senators and Representatives, many of whom will face the voters in just a few weeks.

If I did have two Senators and a Congressman, I think I'd tell them to please, please be careful!

The Bailouts: Am I The Only One Freaking Out With All Those Zeros?

2008-09-24T15:59:37Z

OK. I'll admit it. I avoid bad news like the plague. I just don't want to read or hear it. Not in the Washington Post or Wall Street Journal or CNBC. I even skip most of the bad news blogs here on Active Rain.

Yes, so I am a Pollyanna! I admit it!

Even so, I'm sorta kinda aware that the economy is going down the beautiful new water saving Toto toilet in my remodeled bathroom, and I know just enough to understand most of what I do read and hear. Still, I try not to let it interfere with my work of helping my clients to buy and sell homes.

Then yesterday I had a conversation with my favorite guy. He's an economist with not only street smarts, but also a string of degrees from several of the country's finest universities, and he's the smartest person I know. He gets paid really big bucks to explain the quirks of the economy, mostly to oil company folks. But he really understands the housing market as well, and I get the benefit of his knowledge for free.

And he pointed out something yesterday that stopped me in my tracks:

The total amount of the bailouts to our financial institutions now exceeds $1trillion dollars when you add it all up.

Then I started to wonder how much is out there in mortgage loans. If you added up every mortgage balance for every home in the US, how many trillions would that be? So I checked some web sites and finally called the National Association of Mortgage Brokers. When nobody there had a clue, I got a little nervous. If they don't know, who does?

Couldn't find it on any of the government web sites either. Hmmm. Troubling. Very troubling.

Anybody out there have the answer?

Last night on The Daily Show, there was a clip of one of the news channels many talking heads trying to explain the numbers to idiots could understand. As she put it, the bailout involves the amount of money that it would take to buy 2,000 McDonald's apple pies for each man, woman and child in the country. I got a little sick to my stomach thinking about eating just one of the things.

So there are all of these numbers being thrown out there. And I, for one, am finding them way too big to get my arms around.

Oh, yes, and then my very friend went a bit of a rant about how they are running the printing presses at the mint overtime to pay for it - and I got a very scary explanation of what is likely to happen to our currency as a result.

Ignorance was bliss - at least for a while.

Works of Art

2008-09-23T22:59:43Z

Four times, I've been interviewed by artists who wanted to sell their homes, and I was reminded of these experiences at a house I looked at today.

The first was a well known area painter who had paintings all over the walls, and they were not hanging there. There were murals all over the place. My big mistake was suggesting that we summon Mr. Carroll, my favorite painter, to hit the place with a few cans of Benjamin Moore - a nice neutral tone! I got shown the door. This seller was convinced that the murals would make the house sell for a bunch more money than I thought it would fetch. Maybe it did. They were pretty cool murals.

Next time, I was much more diplomatic and got the listing. It was a big old funky "as is" house and the buyers made a point of telling the sweet elderly gentleman artist who lived there how much they loved the mural in the dining room. Then they summoned the guy with Benjamin Moore and lost the mural.

The third and fourth times, most of the art work was hanging on the walls, and a lot of it was pretty fabulous. Both of these artists sold a lot of their work. Still, I'm convinced that these houses took longer than usual to sell because of the quantity of stuff on the walls - and the sculptures in each room of one of the homes. It was all pretty amazing stuff that people paid lots of money to own, but it distracted buyers who came to see the place.

When artists list their homes, it's harder for them to go through the de-personalization process than it is for most of us. And it's harder for agents, at least this agent, to get the message across that the artist in residence can't overdo it. Some of the stuff (or if it's a little odd, most of it) needs to go into storage.

One of the fun parts about having artists as clients, is that I've wound up with some amazing stuff on my living room walls!