Mike's Cary Real Estate Blog

Speechless Sundays: Bamboo at the Zoo

Mike Jaquish Cary, NC, Real Estate (KELLER WILLIAMS® Realty) — Sun, 08 Nov 2009 08:01:28 -0600

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Mike Jaquish, REALTOR®

919-880-2769 www.MikeJaquish.com

My "No Hassle Home Search" lets you search Triangle Homes For Sale without ever registering.

Broker Associate, KELLER WILLIAMS® Realty, Cary, NC

House Passes Senate Bill

Mike Jaquish Cary, NC, Real Estate (KELLER WILLIAMS® Realty) — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 14:10:46 -0600

You saw it here first. Maybe.

It's off to President Obama. "It" being the extension and expansion of the First Time Buyers' Tax Credit.

Here is the House of Representatives vote

If nothing else, that should get the closing attornies a hectic December 2009, and June 2010.

Gratuitous Graphic

I forsee a lot of 70 day closings coming up in April 2010, as folks try to hit the contract deadline and max out the closing time period.

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Mike Jaquish, REALTOR®

919-880-2769 www.MikeJaquish.com

My "No Hassle Home Search" lets you search Triangle Homes For Sale without ever registering.

Broker Associate, KELLER WILLIAMS® Realty, Cary, NC

US Senate votes to extend and expand FTHB Tax Credit

Mike Jaquish Cary, NC, Real Estate (KELLER WILLIAMS® Realty) — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 22:08:56 -0600

As reported by the San Francisco Chronicle, the Senate voted 98-0 to pass the extension and expansion of the First Time Homebuyers Tax Credit.

As expected, $8,000 will be given to first timers, with an increase in income levels to define eligibility. And the move up buyer may also qualify for $6500 in credit.

Expected to pass in the House and quickly to be signed into law by President Obama?

Whoopee.

Wait until the moaning and groaning and gnashing of teeth starts in April, 2010, when it becomes clear that some folks have missed the boat.

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Mike Jaquish, REALTOR®

919-880-2769 www.MikeJaquish.com

My "No Hassle Home Search" lets you search Triangle Homes For Sale without ever registering.

Broker Associate, KELLER WILLIAMS® Realty, Cary, NC

Wordless Wordless Wednesday: Fall in Cary, NC

Mike Jaquish Cary, NC, Real Estate (KELLER WILLIAMS® Realty) — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 06:44:42 -0600

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Mike Jaquish, REALTOR®

919-880-2769 www.MikeJaquish.com

My "No Hassle Home Search" lets you search Triangle Homes For Sale without ever registering.

Broker Associate, KELLER WILLIAMS® Realty, Cary, NC

Snakeskin at front stoop as staging prop?

Mike Jaquish Cary, NC, Real Estate (KELLER WILLIAMS® Realty) — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 20:54:59 -0500

Is this a new organic staging approach that didn't get enough publicity? Is it a local Cary, NC, thing, or is it featured on "Divine Design?" Or some other HGTV show? "The Stagers," maybe?

Showed a home with multiple challenges today, and at the side of the front stoop was a skin shed from about a 30" snake.

Buyer pointed it out and laughed. A lot harder than Mrs. Buyer did, by the way.

We had a nice chat about copperheads, vs. rattlers, vs. water moccasins. What fun!

The things you remember from a day on the roadshow...

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Mike Jaquish, REALTOR®

919-880-2769 www.MikeJaquish.com

My "No Hassle Home Search" lets you search Triangle Homes For Sale without ever registering.

Broker Associate, KELLER WILLIAMS® Realty, Cary, NC

MLS Foreclosure Search? Maybe some day...

Mike Jaquish Cary, NC, Real Estate (KELLER WILLIAMS® Realty) — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 22:12:28 -0500

We get the calls routinely, "Can you help us find foreclosure listings?"

More often than not, the questioner means they would like to hear about homes upon which the lender has foreclosed, that are entered into the Triangle MLS when the bank is ready to sell them. They often are looking for foreclosures in hopes that they can gain more affordable housing around Cary, NC. Whether foreclosures make for more affordable homes is debatable, but one thing at a time........

I always want to say, "Yes," and I always catch myself and say, "Well, kinda... Sorta..."

See, there is no provision in our Triangle MLS rules that require a listing agent to identify a home as in the foreclosure process, or as a bank-owned foreclosure, "REO."

Some try. Some don't try. Some try to obscure the status so they can semi-pocket the listing and get the Buy side commission, I think.

Triangle MLS has taken a recent measure towards gaining clarity. A "Special Conditions" field will go live on the MLS on November 3, 2009. And in that "Special Conditions" field, it will be required to indicate if a home is a short sale. The field also offers listing agents the option to indicate if a home is in the foreclosure process, or if it is already bank-owned.

Frankly, I don't get it. I understand the Short Sale requirement. If the list price is inadequate to cover outstanding liens and pay costs of the transactions. That is a material fact that will impact the Seller's ability to convey title.

What I don't understand is: Who is served by providing confusion regarding "In Foreclosure Process," or that fact that a property is an "REO?" With these two options being, well Optional, we will be in the same circumstance. Unable to build a search for one of our hottest commodities currently: REO's.

The intrinsic value in an MLS is the data, and the integrity of the data. Providing opportunity to obscure data, and to corrupt the integrity of the data diminishes the value of the Listing Service. It makes that data unreliable.

I'm hoping that this is an incremental change that foreshadows a move by the Triangle MLS directors to at some point make these fields mandatory, so we can search by In Foreclosure Process and REO statuses and gain reliable information.

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Mike Jaquish, REALTOR®

919-880-2769 www.MikeJaquish.com

My "No Hassle Home Search" lets you search Triangle Homes For Sale without ever registering.

Broker Associate, KELLER WILLIAMS® Realty, Cary, NC

Tax Credit? No Tax Credit? I don't really care! I just want CLARITY!

Mike Jaquish Cary, NC, Real Estate (KELLER WILLIAMS® Realty) — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 09:21:06 -0500

I'm not reporting a "Done Deal," a la some to whom Lenn refers. I'm only striving to comprehend...

So... What will be the impermanent panacea of the moment in May, 2010? I mean, we are looking at a proposed, Senate-Approved, credit that ends in April. What's next?

These meddlers are fixin' to aggravate any normally functioning person. Thanks, WRAL-TV.

And, I think the politicos have tortured the nerves of a lot of people who are not real estate professionals. The tax credit cacaphony rattles around forever, it seems.

I think the last two credits have been bad policy, for what that is worth.

Regardless, the workings of our government vividly portray one of the weakest links in the USA: Short-term thinking without stability or predictability. Government by Twitter.

See you in May, 2010!

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Mike Jaquish, REALTOR®

919-880-2769 www.MikeJaquish.com

My "No Hassle Home Search" lets you search Triangle Homes For Sale without ever registering.

Broker Associate, KELLER WILLIAMS® Realty, Cary, NC

Affordable Home Initiatives in Cary and Wake County NC

Mike Jaquish Cary, NC, Real Estate (KELLER WILLIAMS® Realty) — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 09:01:12 -0500

Cary, NC, is well known as a town with expensive housing and some lack of affordable homes. This results from a very desirable location and a very high economic demographic. Advanced degrees are a common denominator in Cary.

Cary has an Affordable Housing Initiative in place to encourage offering of affordable homes to Cary residents.

It is noteworthy that many town employees and other service industry employees are commonly unable to afford a home in Cary.

On October 31, 2009, Cary residents are invited to sit in on a Wake County Affordable Housing Project design workshop, which will be held at the Page-Walker Arts and History Center, 119 Ambassador Loop, Cary, NC 27513.

It should be interesting, with graduate students from NC State's School of Architecture holding forth. Arguably, Town of Cary policies help to inflate the cost of residential construction in Cary. Can professional design overcome artificial pricing effects of policy?

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Mike Jaquish, REALTOR®

919-880-2769 www.MikeJaquish.com

My "No Hassle Home Search" lets you search Triangle Homes For Sale without ever registering.

Broker Associate, KELLER WILLIAMS® Realty, Cary, NC

Fall 2009, Cary, NC, Photos from today

Mike Jaquish Cary, NC, Real Estate (KELLER WILLIAMS® Realty) — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 19:27:00 -0500

Of course, being Wordless Wordless Wednesday, and all, I couldn't offer Susie Blackmon an explanation about the fact that my photo this morning was 2 years old.

So, I went out and shot one today, and uploaded it to WW Wednesday: Silverlake Today. And, no worries, Susie. It didn't hurt when I fell off the guardrail. Dang bushes have grown a couple of feet in the last two years, and I had to ELEVATE!

Then I got on a roll and shot about 113 photos of the fall season around Cary.

What fun!

Uploaded over 272 MB to Flickr, and listened to the internet grunt...

See, Susie, we DO have color changes in Cary!

A few free samples:

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Mike Jaquish, REALTOR®

919-880-2769 www.MikeJaquish.com

My "No Hassle Home Search" lets you search Triangle Homes For Sale without ever registering.

Broker Associate, KELLER WILLIAMS® Realty, Cary, NC

Wordless Wordless Wednesday: Silverlake today!

Mike Jaquish Cary, NC, Real Estate (KELLER WILLIAMS® Realty) — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 19:12:17 -0500

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Mike Jaquish, REALTOR®

919-880-2769 www.MikeJaquish.com

My "No Hassle Home Search" lets you search Triangle Homes For Sale without ever registering.

Broker Associate, KELLER WILLIAMS® Realty, Cary, NC

Wordless Wordless Wednesday: Silverlake in Cary

Mike Jaquish Cary, NC, Real Estate (KELLER WILLIAMS® Realty) — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 07:01:36 -0500

___________________________________________________________________________________________

Mike Jaquish, REALTOR®

919-880-2769 www.MikeJaquish.com

My "No Hassle Home Search" lets you search Triangle Homes For Sale without ever registering.

Broker Associate, KELLER WILLIAMS® Realty, Cary, NC

Haste makes Waste! The most expensive $8,000 you have ever received?

Mike Jaquish Cary, NC, Real Estate (KELLER WILLIAMS® Realty) — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 22:49:38 -0500

Are you looking for the most expensive $8000 you may ever receive? Are you willing to risk your financial security to pick up an "easy" $8,000?

That's how I feel right now about the rush by 1st time buyers and agents to get contracts signed by the end of the month so buyers can close by November 30. We are talkng about a deadline after a typically 4 day weekend, with tryptophan, Black Friday, the Detroit Lions being dismantled whilst we sleep off a load of turkey and trimmings, and in some areas, the first day of antlered deer season, itself a religious holiday for many hunters.

Talk about stress and duress! As the clock ticks down, will buyers fall into traps of closing with loose ends, just to get $8,000? Will repairs be complete? Will they be completed properly?

On December 1, a buyer under contract is still generally a buyer under contract, regardless of why closing was delayed. So, overnight, that $155,000 dream for a shoestring buyer turns to a $163,000 nightmare. And if the buyer firmly designated those funds to restock the savings, or to buy furniture, or to do some renovations, etc, etc? Ouch.

My favorite closing attorney told me he is scheduling NO first time buyers for November 30 closings. What if they can't record? What if they are en route to the courthouse at 4:30 and a tractor trailer flips and closes the highway? Or they have a flat tire? And the courthouse closes before they can record? Who is liable for the lost $8,000? And who is liable if they have 6 deeds to record in the car that doesn't get there? Who picks up the lost $48,000?

Haste makes Waste, Folks. And right now I am seeing a whole lot of Haste.

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Mike Jaquish, REALTOR®

919-880-2769 www.MikeJaquish.com

My "No Hassle Home Search" lets you search Triangle Homes For Sale without ever registering.

Broker Associate, KELLER WILLIAMS® Realty, Cary, NC

Favorite useful blog posts I have forwarded several times to clients and prospective clients

Mike Jaquish Cary, NC, Real Estate (KELLER WILLIAMS® Realty) — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 22:05:39 -0500

Bob Stewart asked us to relate ways we use our AR blogs for client and prospect relationship enhancement. He included a bribe an enticement to help us see how sincere he was in the request.

Well, I'm not one to ignore a bribe an enticement...

I don't have a detailed index of ActiveRain blog posts I use for relocation clients. But I do have several favorite posts that I have forwarded to clients and prospective clients to help them learn about the area, or about my services.

Several of these blog posts are duplicated on my personal website, and may have been sent to clients from there, but the facts remain the same. I have a small library of helpful posts that I can send to folks who need the information they contain.

I don't do a lot with Twitter, or Facebook, or other venues. I blog. I get inquiries and then disseminate relevant information via email. Someone makes a request for information, or mentions an interest in a topic, and I think, "Hey! I blogged about that!"

And I get into the archives, find the post, and send them a link.

Gratuitous Graphic

Property taxes and information on assessments are always hot topics. Along with over 17,000 clicks on AR, I have emailed a link to this post several times.

And some folks were curious about how to file an appeal on their 2008 reassessed valuations. This one even garnered me the opportunity to help some folks with CMA's in their neighborhoods, to see if their assessments were in line.

Lease-Option sales are becoming more popular, and I have a Lease-Option post on AR that is good reading for folks who are responding to bandit signs. This is another one I have sent out several times.

First-Time Buyers? Sure I remember buying our first home. A little sincere empathy goes a long ways.

I like writing about what I call "House Stuff." After many years around construction, I think offering a little evidence that I know more than "Granite-Stainless Steel-Pottery Barn" helps me offer added value to my clients. So I have written about roof stains, Underground Storage Tanks (UST's), furnace failure hazards, and any other "House Stuff" items that I think of.

Gratuitous Graphic

Foreclosures are Hot. A couple of years ago I wrote, "Foreclosures are for Rich People." And I have emailed a link to the post several times. I still believe that buyers are wise to consider the inventory across the entire market, rather than dwell on distressed properties, and still send out the link. A great many people have agreed with me.

Marketing and Sales Strategy? Always open to discussion.

The blog gives me a library, or many pages in a personal brochure. While I get most contacts from people who find it themselves, to be able to reach into my back pocket for my virtual brochures and hand out stories that address their concerns indicates that I am in tune with what the market, or their lender, or priest, or mother-in-law, is telling them.

Creative? I suppose not tremendously so.

Effective? I think so.

Win-Win? I do believe!

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Mike Jaquish, REALTOR®

919-880-2769 www.MikeJaquish.com

My "No Hassle Home Search" lets you search Triangle Homes For Sale without ever registering.

Broker Associate, KELLER WILLIAMS® Realty, Cary, NC

REBLOG: Using Your Blog To Enhance Existing Relationships

Mike Jaquish Cary, NC, Real Estate (KELLER WILLIAMS® Realty) — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 22:03:05 -0500

Well...

I'm going to have to get me some of this....

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Via Bob Stewart - ActiveRain (ActiveRain):

Alright folks, it's time again for me to bribe entice you with ridiculous amounts of points. The last few times it was me giving you lots of points to do a few things you should be doing anyway. This time I'm going to bribe you to help your fellow bloggers.

I have a hunch that not as many people are going to be able to participate because I get the sense that not as many people are doing this. Doing what? Glad you asked.

How are you using your blog to enhance your existing relationships with clients and prospects?

I had the pleasure a number of months ago to speak with one of our local ActiveRain members at the REBarCamp held in Seattle at the Zillow offices. One of the questions I asked him was how he was using his massive library of content to reach out to his existing prospects? This was a 200,000 point plus member and he must have had 300-400 posts in his archive at the time. I assumed he must be leveraging all that content with his existing database or sphere.

His answer? He wasn't. He was only thinking about his blog in terms of how it could help him find his next client or prospect. This was a little bit shocking to me (but obviously not shocking enough to do something about it then). It's come up a few times in the past week in conversations that I've had with other members as well. So I thought it was time we all put our heads together and we wrote about how each of us is using our blogs to reach out to existing prospects and clients.

Think about it for a minute. How many of you have people out there who are in some stage of looking? How many of you out there have leads (prospects) that have landed on your website and come back to look for houses every now and then? How many of you have former clients out there that you don't do a very good job of communicating with? Do you think you could use some of the content you have written to enhance those relationships? I think you can and I think you should. From what I have seen, people are so focused on using their blog to attract that next prospect, they forget how powerful it is as a tool to enhance their existing relationships.

The Challenge:

Write a post detailing how you have used the content of your blog to reach out to an existing prospect or client.(The key word is 'detailing'....we want examples, a play by play of how you utilize your library of content). This is going to be tough for some of you because you are not doing this. I don't think I'm going to audit you if you were to come up with an idea and write about that idea. That would be just fine. For those of you that don't have any idea.......you won't get the reward.....but your reward will be much larger. You will learn how to use your content to enhance relationships with your existing prospects and clients.

The Reward:

5000 points for every blog post that details how to use your blog to enhance relationships with existing prospects and clients. (limit one 5000 point reward per person). I am going to judge the posts. If I think you threw something together in an effort to get 5000 points, I may only give you 500. However, there will be no first, second and third. Every post is eligible to get 5000 points.

What would be some examples?

Did you complile a bunch of your posts together into a relocation packet? Do you send that relocation packet to every lead that registers on your webiste? If so, share with us what you put in the package. Share with us how you determine when is the right time to send that to them. Did they appreciate it?

Do you use your blog posts in a monthly newsletter that you send to your past clients? What kinds of posts are you including?

If you have someone you are working with ask you a question, do you use that opportunity to highlight their question in your blog and then send them the link instead of sending them an email response? Do you post the link on their facebook wall instead of emailing it so that their friends can see as well?

I don't know how you are using your past posts to enhance your relationships......and I'm not alone. We want answers!!

Leave a link to your post in the comment section of this blog. I would ask that you have them in by Friday of next week, October 30th at 11:59pm Central time.

(If you never got your points for the last series challenge, please do not bring it up in the comments here. You may never get them. There were quite a few people who couldn't follow the rules and it became a disaster to try to get all the points awarded. Please email me personally and I will get them awarded for you)
Do you care what I'm doing and thinking? (I can not for the life of me imagine why) If you do, you can find me on some of these places........but remember, if you are offended by anything you see or hear, I didn't force you to follow me!!:

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Mike Jaquish, REALTOR®

919-880-2769 www.MikeJaquish.com

My "No Hassle Home Search" lets you search Triangle Homes For Sale without ever registering.

Broker Associate, KELLER WILLIAMS® Realty, Cary, NC

Windows 7 has shipped.

Mike Jaquish Cary, NC, Real Estate (KELLER WILLIAMS® Realty) — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 10:33:29 -0500

I got a notice from NewEgg today including a surprise invoice for $299.97.

"What the heck?!" I couldn't recall a purchase, let alone for $300. Phishing? Scamming? ID theft?

So I went to my NewEgg account, and there it was. 3 upgrades to Windows 7 Professional.

Great! I will have them by the end of the week and will start planning my changeover from W7 Release Candidate to W7 "For Real." That will probably be a format and reload sometime over the Christmas-New Year's period.

W7 RC has been pretty good. The most interesting difficult items have been related more to Internet Explorer 8 functionality, with a few freezes and shutdowns. It seems that IE hates it when I click a moving mouse.

I wonder what changes I will see moving from Ultimate to Pro? I haven't used Windows Media Center, and that is the biggest difference, I think.

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Mike Jaquish, REALTOR®

919-880-2769 www.MikeJaquish.com

My "No Hassle Home Search" lets you search Triangle Homes For Sale without ever registering.

Broker Associate, KELLER WILLIAMS® Realty, Cary, NC

Wordless Wordless Wednesday: Mums!

Mike Jaquish Cary, NC, Real Estate (KELLER WILLIAMS® Realty) — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 06:37:23 -0500

___________________________________________________________________________________________

Mike Jaquish, REALTOR®

919-880-2769 www.MikeJaquish.com

My "No Hassle Home Search" lets you search Triangle Homes For Sale without ever registering.

Broker Associate, KELLER WILLIAMS® Realty, Cary, NC

Speechless Sundays: African Violet

Mike Jaquish Cary, NC, Real Estate (KELLER WILLIAMS® Realty) — Sun, 18 Oct 2009 07:40:19 -0500

___________________________________________________________________________________________

Mike Jaquish, REALTOR®

919-880-2769 www.MikeJaquish.com

My "No Hassle Home Search" lets you search Triangle Homes For Sale without ever registering.

Broker Associate, KELLER WILLIAMS® Realty, Cary, NC

What's on TV at your Open House?

Mike Jaquish Cary, NC, Real Estate (KELLER WILLIAMS® Realty) — Sat, 17 Oct 2009 22:03:21 -0500

I have this great home listed for sale. We planned a brokers' Open House this week, and a public Open House today. And last weekend I was wondering what the owners could show on the three flat screen televisions to bring value to the doings.

Of course, in the home theater, we played a Harry Potter movie. Showed off the dynamic range of the speaker system. But, the other two?

Well, Sunday, I had this brainwave. Probably from lack of oxygen? Anyway, I burned about 70 photos of the house to DVD, and the homeowner turned them into a slideshow with fades, and zooms, and pans. And we played them on flat screens in the family room and the master bedroom.

What fun, to watch visitors do a double take as they realized the photos were the house!

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Mike Jaquish, REALTOR®

919-880-2769 www.MikeJaquish.com

My "No Hassle Home Search" lets you search Triangle Homes For Sale without ever registering.

Broker Associate, KELLER WILLIAMS® Realty, Cary, NC

Welcome to Flickr!

Mike Jaquish Cary, NC, Real Estate (KELLER WILLIAMS® Realty) — Fri, 16 Oct 2009 22:32:39 -0500

GREAT video!

Notice the parallels between the video and on line photo thieves' rationalizations.

"It was just there for the taking."

"I didn't see anyone."

"It was calling my name."

Is this the era and the generation that will destroy the value of intellectual property rights?

Until more people are more concerned about intellectual theft, it may well be.

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Mike Jaquish, REALTOR®

919-880-2769 www.MikeJaquish.com

My "No Hassle Home Search" lets you search Triangle Homes For Sale without ever registering.

Broker Associate, KELLER WILLIAMS® Realty, Cary, NC

Heavy Trojan SPAM alert: A new settings file for the support@yourdomain.com mailbox

Mike Jaquish Cary, NC, Real Estate (KELLER WILLIAMS® Realty) — Thu, 15 Oct 2009 07:06:33 -0500

Don't click the link if you get it. I might have been a victim of this one. Yesterday I reloaded MS Outlook 2007 for my Microsoft Hosted Exchange account.

And this morning I booted up to find the message:

A new settings file for the support@yourdomain.com mailbox. Hmmmm. What have I done?

But then there was: A new settings file for the alert@mydomain.com has just been released

And there were myriad others. I see a total of 8 variations on the theme. That was the giveaway.

Since I had just reloaded Outlook, I may have been sucked in by one. But I Googled one of the lines, and came up with this site, which coolly claims, "An acquired tasted for viruses and spam." They tell me it is a link to a Trojan virus that will invade your machine!

I tried to vet the message via http://spamdb.com/, and it appears that they are taking a break.

Surf safely!

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Mike Jaquish, REALTOR®

919-880-2769 www.MikeJaquish.com

My "No Hassle Home Search" lets you search Triangle Homes For Sale without ever registering.

Broker Associate, KELLER WILLIAMS® Realty, Cary, NC

Wordless Wordless Wednesday: No gatekeeper here!

Mike Jaquish Cary, NC, Real Estate (KELLER WILLIAMS® Realty) — Wed, 14 Oct 2009 20:21:06 -0500

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Mike Jaquish, REALTOR®

919-880-2769 www.MikeJaquish.com

My "No Hassle Home Search" lets you search Triangle Homes For Sale without ever registering.

Broker Associate, KELLER WILLIAMS® Realty, Cary, NC

I had lunch with David Williams yesterday

Mike Jaquish Cary, NC, Real Estate (KELLER WILLIAMS® Realty) — Wed, 14 Oct 2009 20:05:00 -0500

What fun! I always enjoy bantering with David Williams, and lunch now and then sets the table for a great conversation.

Yesterday, sitting at the Hibernian in Cary, on the patio in 75 degree weather was no exception. They also make a great BLT at the Hibernian, and the coffee is rich and tasty, too.

So, yesterday we dropped names of people we both know. Of course, since I'm a carpetbagger and David is a lifelong Cary, NC, native, his Rolodex is much more impressive than mine. And it is fun to fling a rumor on David before he hears it through his network of friends and business contacts. But he is usually ahead of me on that sort of thing.

We theorized on the evolution of real estate markets, past present and future, local and national, means of generating good consumer contact, social media, NAR convention vs. the upcoming RE BarcampRDU, blogging vs. telemarketing vs. belly-to-belly trench work.

Another discussion was on intellectual property rights, copyright violation, rampant photo rights abuse on ActiveRain and elsewhere, and some of our experiences.

One of my favorite discussion topics with David is when we get into agency topics, fiduciary duties, ethics, and the scope of real estate law in North Carolina. We seem to excell at creating academic agency issues that would rival any mechanism Rube Goldberg could imagine. Getting pulled up short because one of us missed a twist is great fun.

Looking forward to doing it again. I think the Hibernian food was OK. David went after it with gusto, while I talked on and on.

Agency Question: How many dual agents can dance on the head of a pin?

Answer: No one knows. They are all trying to get both ends...

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Mike Jaquish, REALTOR®

919-880-2769 www.MikeJaquish.com

My "No Hassle Home Search" lets you search Triangle Homes For Sale without ever registering.

Broker Associate, KELLER WILLIAMS® Realty, Cary, NC

Search the MLS? Not on a Triangle REALTOR's® Website!

Mike Jaquish Cary, NC, Real Estate (KELLER WILLIAMS® Realty) — Mon, 12 Oct 2009 22:16:02 -0500

I got hooked up with IDX Broker last spring and went live with their great Triangle Real Estate IDX solution in April. In celebration, I added IDX links to all my Neighborhoods blogs. On my site, on AR, on Trulia. Lots of work, but kind of cool.

And I did not notice a rule change that took effect on May 20, 2009, as per this edited selection from the TMLS Summer, 2009, Newsletter:

"Does Your Website Offer to Let Consumers "Search the MLS"? (Hint: Mine USED to...)

A rule regarding the use of terms "MLS" and "Multiple Listing Service" was added to the Triangle MLS rules and regulations, effective May 20, 2009. Section 4.4 of the TMLS rules states, "Participants, subscribers and licensees affiliated with Participants shall not represent, suggest, or imply that consumers or others have direct access to MLS databases, or that consumers or others are able to search MLS databases available only to Participants and subscribers."

Terms such as "Search the MLS" or "Search MLS Listings" imply that consumers have direct access to the private Triangle MLS database. These links on your website actually direct consumers to search a database of listings that reside on your web vendor's server. It is not the Triangle MLS database. Accepted alternative phrases to title the links on your website include: "Home Search," "Search Properties," "Search Listings," "Search Area Listings," and "Find a Home." "

FINES? All I could think of was, "Just the Facts, Man," and "Awww, Don't let my Ma see the cuffs!"

And last weekend I tackled a few hundred blog posts, and links, and titles to links, and other references and cleaned out verboten verbage. Now when I Google and Bing "Search the MLS," I don't see myself except in cached pages. That work took many hours.

And I realized that the change in the Town of Cary's website killed several links I have to parks and other information. More work to do. Dead links on my site? Bleah....

But, anyway, now you can search for your new home or building lot, or rental complex on my site. I just don't want to imply that you have direct access to the Triangle MLS database.

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Mike Jaquish, REALTOR®

919-880-2769 www.MikeJaquish.com

My "No Hassle Home Search" lets you search Triangle Homes For Sale without ever registering.

Broker Associate, KELLER WILLIAMS® Realty, Cary, NC

Listing Agents: Get over "Feedback Frenzy." Do your job. Consult, and Sell Houses!

Mike Jaquish Cary, NC, Real Estate (KELLER WILLIAMS® Realty) — Mon, 12 Oct 2009 20:14:24 -0500

Last week I told prospective listing clients that the only feedback worth a bucket of spit is an offer. They agreed with me. That is what they hired me for. To bring them an OFFER, and negotiate it into a CONTRACT. So we can get to CLOSING. Nowhere in the listing agreement does it say I will maintain a library of feedback.

Since they hired ME to tell them about their property, the niceties from someone who has no skin in the game should be suspect or not worried about. And if another agent's input has more value or credibility than mine? They probably hired the wrong agent. That thought should be a little humbling.

If I don't get feedback after the 4 emails from CSS, then I have a Buyers' agent who is just not going to offer anything of value anyway. "Floorplan didn't work for my clients." OK. Fine. Does this nugget self-actualize my Sellers, or should I finally tell them that the mold in the shower is disgusting and somewhere between a deal-breaker and a Superfund site? Do I really need another agent to step up to the plate to do that for me?

Shucks, I had a Cary listing a couple of years ago that had 55 showings, with feedback on over 40 of them. My Sellers printed out that feedback and took it down to Harris Teeter to swap for vittles. No Go. They saw NO VALUE in the "Feedback." And it was truly archival quality stuff. "Don't like beige." There's a keeper. But when they got that closing disbursement check? Different story, fer sherr. Job performed!

Real Estate? Listings? It's all about creating OFFER/CONTRACT/CLOSING. It is not being a librarian.

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Mike Jaquish, REALTOR®

919-880-2769 www.MikeJaquish.com

My "No Hassle Home Search" lets you search Triangle Homes For Sale without ever registering.

Broker Associate, KELLER WILLIAMS® Realty, Cary, NC

REBLOG: Real Estate Negotiating 101 - You Can't Manufacture Leverage

Mike Jaquish Cary, NC, Real Estate (KELLER WILLIAMS® Realty) — Mon, 12 Oct 2009 06:43:54 -0500

Fundamentals revisited in such lucid fashion by Jason Crouch. He clearly states approaches that many agents have internalized, and too many agents have yet to embrace.

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Via Jason Crouch, Broker - Austin Texas Real Estate (512-796-7653) (Austin Texas Homes, LLC):

I had to spend a bit of time thinking about the subtitle of this post. I think this captures the essence of what I am about to cover here. These are by no means compreshensive lists, but I think they provide a good start. :)

Let me start by giving a few quick tips for listing agents:

If you have had a listing on the market for 6+ months, and you don't truly have an offer in your hand, don't try to convince me that you do.

Don't act shocked by my offer, or use phrases like "I had to use smelling salts on the seller" or "We were very surprised at the offer".  Please just present it to your client and then get back to me.

If you list a home at a crazy-high price, be prepared to defend it and/or to explain to your client why EVERY offer you receive seems to be a lowball.

If you get an offer in the first week or so, push for the full asking price. You'll probably get it.

And now, for you buyer's agents:

If you are making an offer in the first week that a place is on the market, make it strong, unless the place is clearly overpriced.

If you have an option period (as we do in Texas), make sure you get the inspection done and all repairs negotiated during that time - you will lose a lot of leverage after that.

When your client has identified a house, and you are about to submit an offer, don't tell the listing agent that you have no other options. In fact, make sure your client has a second choice. It gives you more true leverage if the seller is unreasonable.

Make the assumption that the deal will work out during your initial offer letter/email. You can say, "I look forward to working with you on this transaction." or something similar.

No matter which side you are working for:

Try to remember that you are representing someone else and it's their money on the line. Try not to act too excited or tip your hand about a specific property. Rather than saying, "This is the one!", try something like "They have a strong level of interest, but we're still talking."

Never underestimate the power of simple friendliness and rapport - I will readily admit that, all things being equal, I would rather work with an agent who seems nice.

I hope this stuff comes in handy for you - some of it is common sense, and some of it comes from 13 years in the field.

Have a great week - thanks for reading!

Photo above courtesy of jk5854 via Flickr.com.



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If you're looking for a home in the Austin area, you can visit my primary Austin real estate website at www.austintexashomes.com. Thanks!

___________________________________________________________________________________________

Mike Jaquish, REALTOR®

919-880-2769 www.MikeJaquish.com

My "No Hassle Home Search" lets you search Triangle Homes For Sale without ever registering.

Broker Associate, KELLER WILLIAMS® Realty, Cary, NC