Leona's Blog

More Listings and Chruch Commitments

Leona Greenlow-Turner (Keller Williams Realty) — Mon, 30 Jul 2007 15:52:00 -0500

What is a good strategy for increasing listings while having increasing church responsibilities?

I am very active in my church from Sunday school teacher, choir leader, intercessory prayer, and nursery worker. I haven't taken a lot of listings because of my minimal availablity for open houses on Sundays. I have two Sundays a month where I am not doing a church work outside of being a saint and I can have an open house in the afternoon. First service lets out at 11 am.

I want more listings but I also want to be fair to my seller. I have been working with buyers mostly. It is a better advantage to have listings because the Realtor is in control of any market.

Any advice?

One Million Dollars

Leona Greenlow-Turner (Keller Williams Realty) — Sat, 26 May 2007 00:58:16 -0500

I am contacting a client with a million dollar listing. This will be my first listing over one million dollars. Does anyone have any advice for me? I am in the SF Bay Area and a listing at that price is not uncommon. But it still my first.

Give Clients What They Ask For

Leona Greenlow-Turner (Keller Williams Realty) — Mon, 30 Apr 2007 00:49:33 -0500

I was out with clients over the weekend and they were found from this lead generation company. They mentioned to me they were starting their search for investment property. In their car there was a business card from another agent. That sparked my curiosity and I asked if they had worked with other agents. They said yes and were not statisfied because the agent gave them a lot of properties they had no interest in. What the buyers wanted was a single story, 4 bedrooms, and a specific city in a set price range. The agent gave them 5 -6 bedrooms, way over priced and two stories. We have MLS services that allow us to narrow down specifically what the client wants down to minute detail. I even searched for homes that were vacant - another request by the client.

I personally make it a practice to keep everything positive. But, how hard is it to give the client want they want?

Short Sales for Fun and Profit?

Leona Greenlow-Turner (Keller Williams Realty) — Tue, 24 Apr 2007 19:40:22 -0500

The definition of a short sale in real world terms would be: The seller has arrived in a situation where there is no equity in the property when they decide to sell. I am using a lot of license when I say "decide" to sell. If the seller has lost a job, recently divorced, or any of the many issues that could plague a seller, there is the realization that this house payment is something they cannot afford at the current time. With that said, the seller may owe more on the property than the property is worth. For example, Mr. and Mrs. Seller bought a home for $400,000 and five years later they owe $500,000 with interest. They must sell and the real estate market has changed course. Instead of homes increasing in value in their area, home values have fallen. Now their home is worth $430,000. The lender obviously wants $500,000 but if Mr. and Mrs. Seller can manage to find a buyer for their home then the lender will agree to take a loss on what is owed to them.

Lately the market has changed with the rise in interest rates, the foreclosure of homes that had adjustable rate mortgages and the reduction of jobs to off shore workers. These are all contributing factors to why Mr. and Mrs. Seller are in this position. Not inclusive of other personal circumstances they may be facing.

If the lender agrees to take less then the buyers and realtors can continue their livelihood of buying and selling; economics at its finest, right? Well, is this the best idea for the client if the realtor doesn't know all the facts?

Fact #1: What if the lender does not agree to the offer the buyers present for the short sale? For example, a buyer offers a lower price than the current short sale price.

Fact #2: When the lender pushes back on the buyer's offer price, where does that leave our client that may not be able afford the increased counteroffer?

Fact #3: Buyers have needs and timelines, too. The timing for a short sale escrow could be 45 days and beyond, what is the touch factor for the buyer? In other words, how many ways can you say "I am waiting for the lender to get back to me?"

It is not about commission anymore it about what is best for the buyer (client) we service.

Any thoughts?