REAL Trends puts RE/MAX number #1 in sales again, in 2008!

RE/MAX  ‐Still a leader in the market!

 KW claims:

Sales up 26%.........KW  sales  dropped  14.2%  from  413,521  in  2007  to  354,889  in  2008.

Agent  count  is  up  52%.".......Agent  count  dropped 5.8%  from  2007  to  2008.  

                                                                         Source:  REAL  Trends

RE/MAX  continues  to  be  the  leader  in  real  estate  in  several  categories.

‐RE/MAX  has  the  most  productive  sales  force  in  real  estate.

‐RE/MAX  Associates  average  more  sales  than  other  real  estate  agents.

‐RE/MAX  Associates  lead  the  industry  in  professional  designations.

‐RE/MAX  University  educates  its  agents  with  the  industry's  only  broadcast  satellite  network.

‐RE/MAX  dominated  national  TV  advertising  in  2008,  reaching  as  many  viewers  as  ALL  other  real  

estate  brands  combined.

‐RE/MAX  is  in  over  70  countries,  more  than  any  of  its  competitors.

Nobody  in  the  world  sells  more  real  estate  than  RE/MAX!

Notes and Facts:   ‐Source  for  countries,  commissions  and  franchise  sales  figures  come  from  the  respective  companies.    ‐Source  for  all  other  figures  are  taken  from  reports  made  by  each  company  to  REAL  Trends.‐Figures  for  Agents,  Offices,  Transactions,  and  Transactions  Per  Agent  are  for  the  U.S.  only.‐Average  Commissions  are  for  US  and  Canada;  2008  for  RE/MAX  and  a  combined  average  of  2006,  2007,  2008  for  Keller   Williams.‐Franchise  sales  are  system‐wide  totals.

One of the things I have always loved about Real Estate is it's a people business. Helping families and wonderful people with housing needs. But the want-a-be "Mega REO Agents" are turning our business into a joke! Lets keep in-line with professional ethics and serve the public well.

They insult most of us with the non-personal way of doing business. You can only talk to a voice-mail and email or fax any questions or offers to them. They only call you back a week later, should your offer get review by some Assistant working with them.  But on Saturday I called an agent to check on availability and her voice message was " Due to the large number of calls received on this number I can not answer your call, go to our website for information...". My message to her was, "Last time I checked this is a people business". Thankfully she did call me back with-in 5 minutes. Her property was available and I thanked her. We talked about her message and she agreed it needed to be changed!

My other problem is the "The Forcing of your client to use their Lender"(Wells Fargo is the main one). This can not be done! I understand nobody wants to work with unqualified buyers, and all agents should make sure the Buyers are qualified with a excellent lender. RESPA and "Banking and Finance" governmental agencies should be notified about these tactics. Buyers can choose their own lenders.

Then we have the "Multiple Offers". Out of the blue you find out now their are multiple offers on the property, funny the property has been on the market over 6 months!  I tell my agents do not allow the Asset Managers for these banks put your license in jeopardy, with fraud.

Oh, and one more, NET Commissions, Net listings are not LEGAL in GEORGIA!!! If they net your commission then that is a Net Listing (i.e. Agent gets paid on net of sell). How do you know what the banks net is! These banks work in all states, some states allow net sells, but NOT GEORGIA. Take a stand I have many times for my agents, we work very hard. I promise they will pay you the full amount or they can lose their license.

I am a Broker/Agent that has over 40 REO Listings, and we don't do business this way. We are working on a Task Force Team to make sure these agents remember you have a Georgia Real Estate License and the Rules of your license must be followed or you can lose it! Also we have a Code Of Ethics that should be held to the highest, during these tough times.

So, I am calling ALL Professional Agents to not allow deterioration of our business, speak up to these "Mega Agents", Report them to the Real Estate Commission, call MLS and FMLS and make them take this kind of wording out of the listing verbiage.

I will keep you posted on the task force. Happy Selling!!

Not all real estate is local. Pummeling housing prices in your nabe is the same thing that's hurting them around the country: the credit crisis.

You know how it works - banks' troubles have made it harder for many home buyers to get mortgages, and those who do qualify have to pay more. A borrower with good credit and a

20% down payment recently got an interest rate of 6.7%, on average, according to HSH Associates.

This rate is not historically high (rates often surpassed 9% in the early 1990's). But it's more than the 6.2% that the same borrower would have paid at the beginning of 2008, and you thought rates where going down!

The fact that mortgage rates have remained stubbornly elevated despite the government takeover of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac leads some experts to believe that those rates are not headed down.

A fact that 18.6 million homes in this country are now sitting vacant, more than at any other time since the Census Bureau began tracking that figure in the 1960s. And that 2.8% of U.S. mortgage loans are now at least three months late, up from 1.4% a year ago. That rate is projected to be up in early 2009.

Sorry friends, addsl to another lousy year for real estate.

Home prices are down 20% nationwide since their peak in July 2006, according to the S&P/Case-Shiller home price index. Economist Nouriel Roubini of New York University, who accurately predicted the housing slide and credit crisis, expects another 20% decline in home prices next year. Patrick Newport of economic forecasting firm Global Insight projects a 15% drop. They predict the market turning until late 2009,

" The wild card: How much home values fall early in the year

With values droping investors can start renting out homes for enough to cover their mortgage payments, we could see a wave of people snapping up bargain houses in 2009 - which could push prices higher by the time the next 12 months draw to a close.

Lawrence Yun, chief economist of the perpetually optimistic National Association of Realtors, says he expects prices to rise 2.8% in 2009.

Action plan if you're selling:

• Wait it out In 2010, real estate should be stronger, with fewer homes clogging the market. So if you can wait until then to sell, do it. "
• Make your place shine In many markets, sellers will face the toughest competition not from fellow homeowners but from banks and builders. Both will be willing to cut prices dramatically to sell a foreclosed or new home. To convince buyers that your house is worth paying up for, make sure that it's in move-in condition (foreclosures almost certainly won't be). Point out unusual qualities like wide-plank floors or stained glass that cookie-cutter new construction lacks.
• Price it below market Go to Zillow.com to see how much nearby homes fetched recently. Once you've figured out what a buyer might pay, price your house 5% below that.

No more pricing to see "what happens", Price it right the First Day! That's becaus lower prices attract more buyers.

If you're buying: eLook for homes that have been sitting around, Hire a ABR agent

In many areas of the country, such as Phoenix, San Diego and Washington, D.C., it's common for perfectly good homes to linger on the market for nine months or more. So start your search by looking for properties that have been up for sale for at least four months: At that point most sellers will be willing to deal. Drive a hard bargain when you find a house you're interested in. Sellers know you have a lot to choose from. They also know that if they wait they will probably get less. So offer less now.

• Improve your credit score More than ever, that three-digit number could cost you. Lenders have begun imposing fees for everyone who doesn't fall into the top tier of credit - and that's a whole lot of people. "Let's say 680 got you the best rate on a mortgage 24 months ago," says John Ulzheimer, a credit expert with Credit.com. "Today you need to shoot for 780 to 820 to get the best deal." Boosting your credit score from 660 to just 740 can lower your mortgage rate by a quarter of a point. To improve your score, focus on paying down debt, which will bring your crucial debt-to-credit ratio down.

For more details Call LeAnne Long, 770-851-0380. Fast Facts from Money.com and NAR

Daily Real Estate News  |  October 8, 2008  |   <script type="text/javascript"></script> Share <script type="text/javascript" src="http://s7.addthis.com/js/152/addthis_widget.js"></script> First-Time Buyer Tax Credit: A Reason to Buy Now

The homeownership tax credit that the federal government created earlier this year is a hard-won tool at your disposal to encourage your customers to jump off the fence and get into the home buying market.

When you combine the tax credit with today's continuing low interest rates, large selection of for-sale inventory, and low home prices, many of the pieces are in place for your customers to buy now.

How the Tax Credit Works

The First-time Home Buyer Tax Credit was passed this year as part of the Housing and Economic Recovery Act (H.R. 3221) on July 30 and targets any individual or household that hasn't owned a home for at least three years. Taxpayers can take the credit on their 2008 tax return if they bought their house this year after April 9.

It's worth up to $7,500 and can be taken in a single tax year. Authorization for the credit ends July 1, 2009, so if your customers wait to buy in the first half of 2009 they can take the credit on their 2009 tax return.

The actual credit amount is set as a percentage of the home purchase amount. That percentage amount is 10 percent, so your customers can get 10 percent of the home price credited against their tax liability, up to a maximum $7,500.

Income limits are $75,000 for individuals and $150,000 for households. Individuals whose income exceeds the $75,000 limit but isn't more than $95,000 can still take the credit but on a reduced basis. The same thing applies to households earning up to $170,000.

Any house is eligible as long as it's a primary residence and is in the United States.

Buyers Have 15 Years to Pay Back

To help keep the program cost effective for taxpayers, the federal government requires the tax credit to be paid back in small, 6.67-percent increments over 15 years. For that reason, some analysts have likened the credit to a 15-year, interest-free loan to help make home buying affordable.

There's one restriction on the type of financing that your customers can use if they plan to take the credit. That restriction is on tax-exempt mortgage financing. That only applies if your clients are using below-market interest-rate financing from a public agency or nonprofit that's funding the loan using proceeds from a tax-exempt mortgage-revenue bond issue. For most buyers, this won't be an issue. It's mainly an issue for low-income buyers using special mortgage financing.

Be a Resource for Clients

NAR Government Affairs has created two helpful documents that you can share with your clients to help them learn more about how the tax credit works. The documents are on downloadable and printable PDFs:

• First-time home buyer tax credit chart
• First-time homebuyer tax credit FAQ

The IRS Web site also offers tax-credit guidance in an article that provides answers to many frequently asked questions.

And don't forget about REALTOR.org, which is a great source for more information on all aspects of the Economic Stimulus Bill passed July 30.