dc real estate: Speechless Sunday: It Used To Be Beautiful - 02/28/10 09:09 PM
Rosalinda Morgan, this post is for you! Just a few short weeks ago, this was bright and white and fluffy. It looked sort of like the snow in the beautiful photo you posted today! And now it's piled really, really high and melting really, really slowly and getting really, really dirty!
I took this with my I-Phone on the way home tonight.
© 2009 Patricia Kennedy. Unless otherwise noted, the content, both written and in pictures, is the property of Patricia Kennedy . If you would like to use this image, please email me (housepat@mac.com) with your request. I'll almost … (33 comments)
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dc real estate: Washington, DC Luxury Homes: Top 10 Sales For January, 2010 - 02/01/10 04:11 PM
Washington, DC Luxury Homes: Top 10 Sales For January, 2010
January was another interesting month for the luxury home market here in Washington. If, for example, you look at the ten highest priced homes for sale in the District, you will find prices ranging from a low of $8,500,000 to a high of $39,500,000 (and that one debuted on the market for $49,000,000 over a year ago). But the highest priced homes that actually sold were showing much lower numbers.
The homes that sold often had to reduce the original asking prices to attract an offer. All of the sellers had … (25 comments)
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dc real estate: Wordless Wednesday: Jack's Boats in Georgetown - 08/12/09 10:15 AM
Jack's Boats: rent a kayak in Georgetown!
© 2009 Patricia Kennedy. Unless otherwise noted, the content, both written and in pictures, is the property of Patricia Kennedy . If you would like to use this image, please email me (housepat@mac.com) with your request. I'll almost certianly say yes, and ask only that you provide a link back to my original content as well as an acknowledgment. The same thing applies to any other material you see posted here on Active Rain or on any of my other blogs.
And of course, if you are thinking of buying or selling … (10 comments)
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dc real estate: How Many Reporters Does It Take To Cover A Political Convention? - 08/25/08 11:39 PM
Sunday, driving home from my Open House, there was a news item on NPR that there were going to be 15,000 journalists covering the Democratic National Convention in Denver this week.
Can that be right, I asked myself? That's a medium sized town in Kansas! Where are they going to put them all? Where are they going to sleep? The delegates are taking up all the hotel rooms. And why do they need so many?
This year, there are not likely to be many surprises. We already know who the Presidential and Vice-Presidential candidates are going to be. Do they think … (23 comments)
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dc real estate: Housitosis? - 06/24/08 09:15 PM
Today on tour, we stopped by a pretty house an a thickly wooded lot backing up to Rock Creek Park. So far, a wow!But wait! We walked in the door and, sniff sniff, we realized this house had bad breath. Really bad breath! It had three damp drooling big dogs bad breath! It had occasional turf marking on the oriental rug breath.As the agent began pointing out the features of this fine home, my colleague blurted out, “Geez! Smell the dogs!”And without missing a beat, the listing agent ignored the comment and showed is into a renovated kitchen.Now housitosis is just … (16 comments)
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dc real estate: My Solemn Promise To All You DC Metro Area Listing Agents - 06/22/08 09:44 PM
If you have a listing with an armed alarm system, I hereby promise you, cross my heart and hope to die, stick a needle in my eye, that if I show it, I will set that alarm off.I did that today showing a cute house in Shepherd Park, a lovely DC neighborhood.While there was no warning on MLS, the agent did include detailed, very clear instructions were on a little piece of blue paper stuffed inside the lockbox. I saw it. I read it.Alarm code to enter, it said, was 01101. I am a little dyslexic. I punched in 1001 oops! … (26 comments)
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dc real estate: Do You Answer Your Phone When It Rings? - 06/08/08 11:28 AM
A bunch of years ago, I did a Joe Stumpf "By Referral Only" seminar. And I was totally blown away by a lot of what he said. But one of the legs of his program was not answering your phone. No, never under any circumstances! There was a very long winded message he recommended we record for our voicemail. It would change every day and give the caller a couple of windows during which you'd return phone calls. Oh, yes! And I totally love your referrals!
He didn't care if you were busy or playing some mindless computer game. When that … (89 comments)
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dc real estate: Why Do We "Qualify" Buyers, Anyway? - 06/07/08 10:43 AM
The main reason to qualifying our buyers is to be as sure as I can be that they will, in fact, buy a house before I let them warm up the soft leather seats of my Lexus, right? Once I'm totally, absolutely certain they won't waste a second of my valuable time, I'll give them the thumbs up and the privilege of having the Great One as their buyer broker.
And I guess that's one approach to the buyer interview. But in all honesty, that's never worked for me, so my approach is a little different.
First, I want to know … (16 comments)
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dc real estate: What's Wrong With This House? - 04/22/08 10:47 PM
I saw a really pretty house today. It had fabulous curb appeal, and a location in one of DC's favorite neighborhoods on a tree-lined street. The kitchen had been expensively renovated, the hardwood floors gleamed, and the bathrooms were even nicer than mine. The staging was perfect, because it didn't look staged - you'd think these people were great housekeepers with fabulous taste. And the price was up there, but certainly not too high to put off a buyer - maybe more than one.
But - yes there was a "but".
No. There were butts! Cigarette butts. They weren't out in … (34 comments)
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dc real estate: OK, All You Buyers! It’s Your Turn! - 04/10/08 05:26 PM
Are you one of the buyers who got scared off when you stuck your toe in the water of the DC real estate market a couple of years ago? You thought it was just nuts, right? You’d find a place you liked, then your agent would explain that, in order to get it, you’d have to bid a gazillion dollars over the asking price, forget a home inspection or any of the basic buyer protections in the boilerplate contract. Get out the pen and straight edge and ex those little suckers right out!But even if you were willing to pay way … (10 comments)
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dc real estate: So Here's One Good Reason To List With An Agent Who Lives Nearby! - 04/01/08 07:27 PM
Once many years ago, I called a listing agent on my cell phone, a tiny bit huffy because the freakin door to her listing wouldn't open. She came over immediately, took the key from me, put it in the lock, turned it and the door flew open.
Huh? I had struggled for fifteen minutes. This was embarrassing, and in front of clients, too.
So, tonight, karma caught up with me!
A favorite colleague called from one of my listings insisting that the top lock must be locked, and the key for it wasn't in the lockbox. I explained that the … (23 comments)
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dc real estate: Your Name, Address, Email Address and Phone Number Are Worth Big Bucks! Don't Give Them Away Casually! - 02/18/08 06:13 PM
There are lots of web sites out there promising you all kinds of help you might not need if you are buying or selling a house or condo. It might be access to a gazillion lenders or real estate agents who will cut interest rates or commissions for a crack at your business. It might be the ability to get access to listing information without speaking to some pesky real estate sales person. It might be a free estimate of your home's value.
So you push "Continue". Then a little screen comes up asking for your basics - your name, where … (19 comments)
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dc real estate: Is Marty Ummel Doing Real Estate Agents A Favor? I Think So. - 02/07/08 01:39 PM
When I first decided to work as a buyer broker in about 1990, it was hard to find a lot of good information about how to do it. Most of the books and case law I found came from California, where selling agents represented the buyer as the normal practice – even back then. Now, almost thirty years later, buyers have their own agents in most of the transactions around the country. And it seems we may be getting some important lessons about our obligations to our buyer-clients from, guess where? California!Earlier today, I stumbled across Margaret Hokkanen’s post about the … (14 comments)
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dc real estate: Is Photoshop For Virtual Tours Cheating? - 02/02/08 10:37 AM
In my office we have a professional photographer on staff, and he is the God of Photoshop. I get a new listing, finish up with the staging, then our guy goes in and takes the photos – and he is really, really good. He has a fabulous camera and lens as well as good lighting equipment. And he knows how to use them like a virtuoso musician plays a fine instrument.When he returns to the office, he downloads them onto his computer and begins to work his magic. And he does it with integrity.Once he removed a delivery van double-parked in … (35 comments)
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