The housing market seems to be in turmoil, but is it really? In any kind of economic market, investors figure out how to get the most money back from their investment. They can invest in anything from cash to stocks to whatever.
It seems to me that the best market right now is residential housing. Interest rates are very, very low and housing prices have not been lower in years. This may not be the case for short term investing, but if you can live in your purchase or rent it out, you are in the driver's seat.
Whether you wait to buy or not, at some time in the future you are going to want to live in Southwest Florida. Especially in Naples or Bonita Springs. People always say that if they only bought back then. Well, this is then. If you wait maybe you lose the advantage of low interest rates, but what is a fact is that you will definitely lose the house that you really want. There is only one of those. In your heart of hearts you can feel it. Go for it . You won't regret it.
As a matter of fact, write down my address. You will probably want to send me a bottle of "Johnny Walker Blue Label" each year on the anniversary of your purchase.
I ran into a situation yesterday that I thought was interesting, also disturbing.
A person in my Keller Williams real estate office, that I shall call Spud, looked in the MLS and noticed that a listing that he previously had, was gotten by another agent, that I shall call Gladys, from another office, right after the listing had expired. This is annoying enough, especially after asking the seller to lower his price many times and he does it now with the new agent.
But lest I degress, Gladys used all of Spud's marketing pictures of the house with the new listing. Now, Spud was taken back, because at Keller Williams, we take new pictures of our new listings. Sometimes we take new pictures for a renewal of the listing and if we used another agent's pictures or verbiage, it would arouse an instant discussion.
Well,Spud called Gladys and after some preliminary chit-chat , Spud asked Gladys not to use his pictures.After hanging up, it seems that Gladys thought about it , and asked her boss and the company attorney, if she had done anything wrong. Supposedly, the answer was that if the pictures weren't copy write, Gladys could use the pictures. Cut and dry? Black and white? I don't think so.
This opens the door as to how far the less artistic, the less talented, and the lazy, can go to ride on the shoulders of the people who have pride in what they do and what they hope to accomplish by taking their own pictures, or whatever else they do to become successful in these challenging times.
After Spud calms done, he will do what he has always done. He will have a bourbon and water, he will be respected by his peers, he will carry on in his own fashion. Even if he is one of those dreaded Boston Red Sox fans.
Bonita Springs, Naples, Estero, Florida, United States
I am an optimistic person which is necessary, being in the real estate business in Southwest Florida. Fortunately, I am able to visit with my children in New Jersey and Long Island whenever I need pampering. My passions are eating good food, drinking good wine, and playing with my granddaughter, Isabel, when she lets me. It is a constant battle of wills and she always wins.She says she is five and she is not a baby.Life is grand.
Being a REALTOR® in South West Florida, especially in Naples or Bonita Springs will once again become its' own reward. I think we we became spoiled because of the wonderful market that we were in. Who thought it would ever end?Not anyone I knew. I thought I was a good sales person. We all were. A few years ago, if you told a buyer that the property was truly not worth the money, they would buy it rather than let someone else get it. They thought you might be holding it for a relative or you were hoping for a higher offer. This was not true, but this was the perception. In the long run, they were very appreciative because they got what they wanted and we got a commission. We were happy; We were giddy. Hooray for the good guys. For the past two years we have spent much more time with prospects. Probably treated them better, and gave them all the information they could possibly need, drove them around, bought them lunch, and bid them adios as they rode off into the sunset. They didn't feel bad. They thought we had money from the good old days. Hopefully, this will be a thing of the past and our lookers of last year will be our buyers of this year. In a perfect world, they will remember our input, our patience, our desire to help them, and not only offer to purchase a home at a fair price, but tell their friends and relatives of our devotion to their happiness. Amen and Happy New Year.
John A. Kaloostian, Realtor Keller Williams Elite Realty Bonita Springs, FL Http:// www.JohnKaloostian.com www.JohnKaloostian@KW.com Posted by John Kaloostian at 1:33 PM0 commentsSubscribe to: Posts (Atom) <script type="text/javascript" src="http://www.blogger.com/widgets/1980098066-widgets.js"></script> <script type="text/javascript"></script>
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I took a bike ride through Estero, Bonita Springs, and Naples last Sunday morning. The weather was beautiful. Sunny with a breeze coming from the Gulf of Mexico. 90 balmy degrees. It was extremely pleasant. I took some pictures of the houses I passed, some of which were for sale. What I noticed was that in each of the houses that were for sale, they were all very nicely landscaped and groomed. You could see the pride that the owners have in their property, even though they were moving on to another phase of their life. You could tell that for what ever reason the people were moving, they were leaving the next owner with a nice beginning to their new adventure.
It is great when a buyer sees the effort that was put in to the house to keep it pristine, and makes a reasonable offer. Reasonable being somewhere near a market price and that is close enough to negotiate.
I was talking to another realtor® in my office over a small glass of sherry, alright it was a bottle of beer. Anyway, the discussion was that it is very satisfying when everyone involved in a transaction is moving in the same direction. We not only earn our fee, but we get praise from both participants at the closing. In our Keller Williams office, this is what we strive for each and every time; A win-win situation. The reason I mention this is because whether the deal is a walkover or not we still perform about 180 separate tasks from the beginning of the transaction to the closing table and beyond. That's right. To properly take care of a client, this is the responsibility we take on. Most property sellers and buyers think we plant a sign in the ground and wait for our commission. Ah, if this were only so.
But, lest I digress, the bottom line is that we all have our job in this business, sellers keep their property spic and span, buyers look for value, and realtors put them together and it starts all over again. From my lips to the great real estate broker in the sky.
On my way to a listing appointment in Bonita Bay in Bonita Springs, I was noticing my surroundings. Every where I looked there was something nice to see. People riding bicycles, babies in strollers, or loads and loads of green foliage and every type of flower imaginable. And this is in the middle of a drought. Well, to be fair, all of this is done with recovered lake water, so there are no water restrictions.
Fortunately, this is mostly what I try to handle: clients that want to buy or sell by choice. My team also is very adept at handling everything from auction sales, foreclosures, and short sales but it is obviously not as enjoyable.
This is a good market to be able to show buyers the many options and they usually have the time to look and be sure of their choice. Sellers have been in a challenging market long enough to know what their market price is. This makes for a win-win situation for all parties. The mortgage market is also cooperating by having low interest rates and many different programs to suit your finances. Contact :
In my travels around Naples, Bonita Springs, and Estero happy hours, there is one that stands out. Bice´ in Coconut Point. Whoever makes up the marketing program is right on the money.
When I was living and playing in Manhattan, no matter where I roamed each evening, there was always a place that stood out as my refuge. Since I was not going to return to Boodle's Cafe, my own place on 77th street and 1st ave., I would go to Elaine's, which was only a short cab ride from my apartment. The attraction was the other patrons. Many of which were famous. But that is another story.
My point is that there is a reason why Bice´ is the happy hour to go to, and it is not only that the appetizers and drinks are ½ priced from 3 to 7.The employees are happy to give you the discount. In some bars, many customers feel that the discount is given begrudgingly by the help, and that this attitude comes from management. It is a very uncomfortable feeling, felt by all parties.
Usually the prices are part of marketing costs, and when done right it is very effective. Case in point.
If anyone wants to open or manage a restaurantI can find you a location, give the servers the right attitude, and show them how to make money for themselves and their employers.
When opening a restaurant you start at A and go to Z, and that is before you put in a penny. Or you can go broke.
I was at the beach on Easter and I was reminded of my going to the shore in New Jersey as a kid. My family would rent a place for the summer in Belmar. We stayed at an old, large house that was frequented by Armenian families. My grandmother knew everyone there. Many of the older people being from her village in Turkey.
Our family stayed in one large room with a bathroom shared by another family on the other side. We all ate in the same dining room at our designated table. We even had our own designated refrigerator. We did this every summer for years. Same house, same people.
As you got older, you realized that less and less of the older people were there as well as the older kids that had other interests. After Labor Day everyone went home and the following week end if you returned, you were practically alone. It was a very deserted type feeling. You felt like next summer would never come.
It was the same feeling I had at Barefoot Beach in Bonita Springs the week after Easter. The snow birds and the tourists were gone. Even though there were many people on the beach, there seemed to be an emptiness.
I know that in 6 months or less most of these same people will return, but once again it reminded me that you can't take anything for granted and to make the most out of every day.
I was riding around Naples and Bonita Springs yesterday and I was noticing how many businesses were closing their doors. The high season is over and if a business can't make it in season, why prolong the agony.
I was mostly interested in the restaurants that are gone, since that was my career in a past life. I owned and managed restaurants in New York city and northern New Jersey. I began to notice that the places that shut down had certain things in common, besides a lack of customers. Their menus were outdated. They were tired looking and shabby. Not necessarily dirty, but just old. But mostly they just weren't good enough.
Restaurants that focus on pizza, and comfort type food for instance, have to look at their new competition Everybody has their favorite style of pizza or tomato gravy . ZA-ZA, Capri, California Kitchens, are all places with good ideas, good food and brand new. People will try these places. If their old haunts are better they will return to them . Aldo's, Aurelios, Gatsby,s and Moravella's are these types of places. They are good enough. They are excellent neighborhood restaurants. I don't have the time or gas money to travel across the county to get to these places, but if I even go near one of them, I need a pizza fix and my car goes on auto pilot right into the driveway.
Of course some restaurnt owners just get old and tired, like me , or they lose the drive needed to sustain a first class operation. You have to be very good and stay that way if you want to be a contender.
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