Ken's Blog

You Want To Sell Your House. How Do You Choose A Broker? Logic or Luck?

Ken Brand (Prudential Gary Greene, Realtors) — Wed, 09 Dec 2009 10:35:12 -0600

Choosing A Broker To Sell Your House Can Be Tricky?

Should you choose a friend? Should you use the agent who sold you the house. Should you ask a trusted friend for a recommendation? Spin the bottle or throw a dart? Go with the lowest commission?

Start by defining what your goal is. For most sellers, the goal would be, “When I sell my house and I sign the closing documents, I want the escrow agent to hand me the biggest check possible!”

Or, let’s hope not, but it happens, depending upon your market, if you’re upside-down you want to write the tiniest check possible.

Is this your goal?

Selling For Top Dollar

This isn’t some lame sales pitch, spewing hot air, smoke and mirrors. It’s simple. Everyone you interview is going to tell you they are great and famous. We do this and we do that! In fact, you might think you’re listening to a chorus, all the agents singing the same tune.

How Can You Tell If A Broker’s Marketing Play Will Achieve Your Goal – Netting More Money At The Closing Table?

This is the hard part made simple. Everyone talks a good story, but, if someone is REALLY doing a better job, there should be a way to document it. Guess what. There is. Take a look at the Broker’s “Original List Price To Sales Price %”. The higher the percentage, the more net proceeds for the seller.

For example, in The Woodlands TX, the average Sold Price for November of 2009 was $332, 094. The difference between one broker at 93.2% and the leading broker (us:-) at 96.8% = $11,955.38

$11,955.38 would be huge, right? And what if the Broker who had the highest Original List Price To Sold Price % also had a Guarantee in writing — “Anytime you want, if you’re unhappy, you can terminate on the spot?

The Logical Choice

Everything a broker commits to doing is designed to net the seller the most money. Evaluating the Original List Price To Sold Price % is a way to determine if what you’re being told will help you achieve your goal — which is to sell for top dollar and net more money. The no hassle, terminate at any time, guarantee is assurance that you’re not taken for ride.

In our market, The Woodlands TX, here’s a comparison average from January to November 2009. My eyes are old so this graph is a bit difficult to read, if I click on the image it blows up to a readable size.

If you’d like to look at more market data – check this out.

What Next?

So. If you’re gonna sell your house and you’re goal is have the escrow agent hand you the biggest possible check at closing, then we might be able help you. Give me a call if you have any questions: Ken Brand 832-797-1779

Cheers.

A Social Media Hullabaloo - Realtors, Right, Wrong and ROI.

Ken Brand (Prudential Gary Greene, Realtors) — Tue, 01 Dec 2009 08:31:38 -0600

Is Social Media A Time Suck Sink Hole?

Seven days ago, Ines Hegedus-Garcia, posted an article titled, Social Media Is A Sink Hole For Real Estate Agents – Seriously? on AgentGenius.com

Ines shares her counter-point to a blog post by Mike Parker, which appeared on the RisMedia.com blog. Mike basically shares his belief that Social Media for real estate agents is lame and ineffective. The tile of his blog post is, Social Media Can be a Sinkhole for Real Estate.

Ines’s counter-point post generated over 300 ReTweets and 65 comments. Regrettably, Parker’s blog post doesn’t provide an opportunity for comments, which is a bummer, there would have been some red hot comments to be sure.

A snippet from Ines:

I think most of you will agree that it is crucial for someone that will post an opinion on Social Media tactics to understand the dynamics, intricacies and social behaviors of the medium before they start coming up with conclusions. If you understand the basics of SM being about permission based marketing as opposed to interruption marketing then you would see that statement as absolutely ludicrous…

I’m sure Mike is great at what he does, but I’m also convinced that he doesn’t quite get SM, maybe some of our readers can enlighten him.

A snippet from Mike:

Don’t be stampeded into feeling like you are disconnected
One of the oldest techniques in the world to promote a cure is to create a sickness. Lacking an interest or skills in social networking will not affect your selling real estate. Lacking an Internet presence will greatly affect that ability and having one will bring you success you can’t now imagine.

Well, as I have been telling you for three years now, that is hogwash. Social media is a sinkhole that absorbs time, effort and money that could better be spent on finding listings and selling houses. Social media is the new blogging. It too will peak, then decline with one very large exception: affinity group business communication.

If you’re a real estate agent startling the social media fence, I recommend you read Mike’s article first, thenInes’s article. Check out comments too, interesting stuff.

The flurry of comments led to fellow AgentGenius writer, Brandie Young to post this: Why The Visceral Reaction To Questioning Social Media?

In her blog post, Brandi, a bonafide marketing expert/consultant, asks why all hoopla from those who do and those who don’t? She also poses the question, is Social Media ROI verifiable. Brandie’s blog post generated another 76 comments and 194 ReTweets. Obviously, people are passionate about the subject. Take a break,read her post and peruse the comments.

A snippet from Brandie:

They didn’t call your baby ugly. There were several fantastic responses, and some interesting reactions where folks seemed put off that someone dared to call BS on SM activities and predicting it will die out as a fad. To the point of questioning the intelligence of the person with the opinion.

For now, I’m neutral. Since there does not yet exist any absolute hard data that proves to me that it’s a highly impactful tool for agents. Before you kill the messenger with that statement, continue reading.

As for me, I’m a Social Media believer. After reading Ines, Mike and Brandie…

I posted this comment to Brandie’s post:

Ken Brand

November 24, 2009 at 8:01 am |

Shhhh, let the unbelievers sleepwalk. Without statistical, verifiable, clinical, empirical, dead-bang data, it really is a waste of time. Until they have reams of analytics, it’s wise to continue building trust, communicating and conversing as per old-school usual – mail some post cards, run ads in the paper and magazines, bump into people randomly at the grocery store or the gym, try to reach someone on the phone and hope and pray for connection and conversation.

Seriously, the problem with gathering all the ROI data, etc. is that if the people you’re analyzing don’t know what they are doing, it’ll look lame. It’s the same if you analyze the ROI of Holding Open House, Direct Mail, FSBO, Expireds, geographical farming, eLead follow-up, etc. It all depends on who the chef is.

I preach SM till the cows come home, the 82 agent icons in my office are complain that their ears are bleeding, I preach on. Using SM correctly is no different that old fashioned networking, it’s simply done on-line, for free and conveniently. Team members in the office can specifically attribute SM efforts to individual closed sales and current active listings. As a sales manger, I don’t list and sell anymore, but this year, I’ve referred 6 leads that came directly from Facebook, my blog and Twitter.

When used well, SM is a money maker and a time saver. Like other marketing mediums and methods, when the agent is passionate, trustworthy, likable and remarkable, their success with SM is greater. When they are less attractive, the results wain of never blossom. If unbelievers doubt, no worries, more for us.

PS. Next week my blog post is about revisiting The Long Tail Theory. Social Media was a rumor back when the book was written (1996).

Cheers Brandie:-)

To which Brandie replied (because she’s cool and engaged):

Brandie Young
Facebook | Linked-in | Twitter

November 25, 2009 at 12:29 pm |

Ken,

It’s always an honor to hear from you.

Question: Why is one an unbeliever if they want data? And, for some people I know, that old school way is making them seven figures – today. Should they change their ways? The big question is could they make more, or would they make less by incorporating SM?

Question: If you had someone on payroll for $50 per hour, 40 hours a week purely to engage in SM, would that adjust the way you measure its success?

I can’t wait to read your post!

Which prompted this:

Ken Brand
Flickr | Facebook | Linked-in | Twitter

November 25, 2009 at 4:17 pm |

Good questions Brandie:-)

I’m not saying, “if someone wants data” they are an unbeliever, what I think is. it’s impossible to specifically quantify the ROI.

Here’s why. The expertise, personality, social skills and selling skills will all impact the ROI. Sorta like trying to figure out if car is a beater of a race car by how fast it goes around the race track. It would depend on the skill of the driver. The skill spectrum in the real estate industry goes from your front porch to Pluto.

IMO, Social Media doesn’t really attract strangers (new business) as much as it creates Top of Mind Awareness, which leads to an agent having more of her sphere call when buying or selling or just as profitable, refer their friends. Social Media is just one in a dozen of connection/Top of Mind Awareness tools. A successful agent uses many new and old school others. Who’s to say which touch-tool worked? They all did, the combination of touches made it happen. It wasn’t the entrée or wine the makes the meal, it the whole experience and you’re dinning with.

Good question about the 7figures old school Icon. Should they change? I think not. Rather, not much, but a little. I think they should evaluate what they do, eliminate what seems to not work as well (think print ads) and begin adding new tools, like Facebook for example. Facebook, when used properly is a 1000watt conversation, communication, relationship and Top of Mind Awareness tool. I am certain they would attract more business and profit if Social Media touch-tools were used. Because, I’ve seen it with my own eyes…as long as they choose and pointed the touch-tools correctly.

A paid Social Media person? I believe SM is personal. I think an overwhelming percentage people (clients), choose an agent they know and trust themselves or who have been referred by a trusted friend (studies show this). When it comes to real estate, I think most people don’t have a relationship with the company per se. The relationship it’s with one of their agents, trust and confidence are placed with both. When a company has a positive brand image, it benefits the agent like wearing a fine suit would. It makes the agent look more attractive, but their clients are buying the agent, not the suit specifically, although the suit helps.

I wouldn’t recommend paying someone to engage my sphere, any more than I would pay someone to go to all my social functions on my behalf (actually I don’t go to many social functions, so in reality, nobody goes to mine;-). I would recommend hiring a whipper-snapper-smart someone, to help teach which tools to use, how to effectively customize them, best practices, etc.

If I was a broker, I’d hire a Social Media person to teach me everything, so I could build velcro like relationships with my team members and to help me recruit and build relationships with talented people who were working for the wrong broker. I’d also turn this whipper-snapper S&Mer toward my agents, not for a beating, but to teach them best practices. Then, instead of having 1 S&M queen, I’d have a army of social media empowered agents, sharing and talking and broadcasting and prospecting across the inter webs. In this case, the way I would measure ROI would be to listen to my agents and ask lots of questions.

Here’s the important part for the broker, because they (the broker/leader) are also empowered, they would know what success and connections and conversations their agents were having with their spheres, because the Broker is not part of the conversation and connected too. When listened to and asked, the agents will tell you when Social Media created a new transaction. The problem is, as I described earlier, It’s difficult to nail it down, due to variables; the tool, the personality, the talent, the ability to close, the willingness to follow up, etc.

Selling success is part science and hugely art. How do you calculate the art part ROI? You can’t.

So there’s my 2cents. Don’t know if it’s very helpful.

Thanks for listening and the compliment.

Cheers Brandie and Happy Thanksgiving to you and yours:-)

So Why Am I Sharing All This With You?

If you’re stratling the social media fence, I thought you’d find this spectrum of views interesting and helpful. I’m a big believer in Social Media. Ines, Mike and Brandie’s perspective inspired me to write this AgentGenius blog post:

Are You Wagging Your Tail? Begin Now. Here’s How.

Are you familiar with Chris Anderson’s theory?

If you’re unfamiliar, or need to re-up, here’s my take:

The Long Tail Theory centers around the impact of Google style indexing, searching and filtering all things on-line and humankind’s ability to find today’s hottest and urgent, as well as yesterday’s and yesteryear’s relevant and important.

Here’s a few plain-english definitions from Chris Anderson’s blog:

Best Definitions:

“The Long Tail is the realization that the sum of many small markets is worth as much, if not more, than a few large markets.” –Jason Foster

“The Long Tail is the 80% of stuff that didn’t used to be worth selling.”–Greg

“The Long Tail is the story of how products that were once considered fringe, underground or independent now collectively make up a market that rivals the bestsellers and blockbusters.” –Bob Baker

The question is…

Is The Long Tail Theory Relevant To Real Estate Agents?

When the book was written in 1995, “blogging” was a baby, “Twitter” was a hatchling, “Facebook” was a pimply punk kid and smart phones were dumb. Our on-line opportunities were small and our tails, if we had one, were minnow sized too. Today, these 4 factors make the Long Tail Theory worth revisiting.

R e a d T h e R e s t

Thanks for reading. Hope all this has been helpful. If you’re not engaged on-line, I hope you will. If you are, rock on!

Cheers.

PS. Still thirsty. Here’s more from Benn Rosales – ROI in Social Media Marketing for Real Estate

How To Plow Deep While Sluggards Sleep. 9 Questions You Must Answer Perfectly + 8 Step Action Plan.

Ken Brand (Prudential Gary Greene, Realtors) — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 10:31:16 -0600

How To Plough Deep While Sluggards Sleep*

By Ken Brand on November 16, 2009

23♻ G-Tweet

Flecked spit, sharp words and universal-truth exploded from Drill Sergeant Myrick’s military mouth, ”Private Brand…

Piss-Poor-Preparation Leads To Piss-Poor-Performance!”

Drill Sergeant Myrick’s teachings were as true then as they are now….especially true in 2010. Here’s why. Using The S.W.A.G. Method, I predict…

Real Estate Buying and Selling Will ROCKet In The 1st Half Of 2010.

Not for everyone. The prepared will plough deep and win big. The unprepared will lose.

Here’s 3 Reasons Business Will Heave Forward In 2010

Mortgage rates will stay low through the first half of 2010, then ratchet up. This will spur buying frenzy - Read The Article
$8,000 First Time Homebuyer Tax Credit Extended + $6,500 For Qualified Homeowners – Read The Details
Some believe that home prices have bottomed – Read The Article

There are other reasons business will be brisk. But, I’m not Gomer Pyle, of course, opportunities may vary depending upon unseen events and regional market conditions. But, whether you’re Pollyanna, Eeyore or in between, it’s important we proceed…

R E A D T H E R E S T HERE:-)

National Association Announces 2010 Buyer MLS Registration System. Are YOU In?

Ken Brand (Prudential Gary Greene, Realtors) — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 06:40:52 -0600

National Association Announces 2010 Buyer MLS Registration System

By Ken Brand on November 2, 2009 |

An UNtrue Story. Effective January 15, 2010

Official “Buyer Search-MLS” Announced

In an ever evolving quest to provide it’s members withinnovative tools and systems, the National Association announced the nation wide roll out of their mandatory Buyer Search-Multiple Listing Service.

The new system will provide buyers and buyers agents all the same protections, conveniences and broadcast benefits that property sellers and listing agents have enjoyed for decades.

The rules of engagement for Buyers Search-MLS will require members to adhere to the same strict Code of Conduct currently in force. Per policy and procedures with Active Listings, when working with buyers, all members must have an executed Exclusive Agency Buyers Representation Agreement and submit the Buyer Profile Data to their BS-MLS within 5 days.

Powered By Your Local Association and GWHIZ

The National Association, in concert with State and Local Associations, also announced sketchy details of their lifetime service contract with Google.

This shiny new service will be dubbed GWHIZ – Google Worldwide Home Information Zenith.

Google will provide a suite of borg like powerhouse services, including these innovative tools:

Google Wave
Google Docs
Google Voice
Google Maps/Earth
Gmail
Google Android
Youtube
Google Search
Google Chat
All Google tools will integrate seamlessly with Twitter, Facebook, Youtube and Wordpress.

Everyone Wins.

Like the Homes-For-Sale MLS allows prospective buyers to browse, dream, research, collaboratively locate and buy real estate, GWHIZ will allow sellers to browse and collaboratively contact registered buyers.

Service benefits include:

R E A D T H E R E S T O F T H E A R T I C L E

How To Stop People From Secretly Thinking You're Full Of Crap.

Ken Brand (Prudential Gary Greene, Realtors) — Mon, 19 Oct 2009 14:32:52 -0500

By Ken Brand on October 19, 2009

Their Problem = Who To Trust?

Civilians secretly think Real Estate Agents are full of crapola. The civilian perception is:

Real estate agents follow-up and follow-through like Donald Trump combs over, spectacularly irresponsible.
Real estate agents behave and screech, “It’s ALL about ME”. ”I’m famous.” ”I’m NUMBER ONE.” ”Dig ME, Dig MY awards, Dig MY bill boards.” ”I exceed your expectations (for egoism and poor performance.)!” Etc.
Real estate agents spend more money on their Personal Promotion than property promotion.
Real estate agents charge too much and do too little. List it > plant scratched, crooked, rusty framed For Sale sign > shoot lame photos > deliver William (I have no professional training) Hung service > ignore empty Take-One flyer box > run a print ad > lay low till it sells > collect a commission check.

Let’s face it. Civilians think most sales people are full of crap. Who can blame them. We have a ton to overcome. Let’s get started…

Our Problem = Lack Of Trust

Here’s How Untrustworthy Is Created, Reinforced and Forwarded:

Read The REST OF THIS POST ON How To Build True-Blue Trust - Click HERE.

Seasonal Comfort and Invisibility or 13 Simple Steps To Omnipresence and 2010 Success?

Ken Brand (Prudential Gary Greene, Realtors) — Mon, 05 Oct 2009 07:00:03 -0500

2009 Completely Sucked. It’s Not OVER. Don’t Fret.

Did your business grow up or shrivel in 2009? Did you earn more or less? Were sales easier to close or harder? Were people stressed or blissful?

You made it this far anyway, right? Congrats! You made it through the first 9 months of the worst year EVER.

You and I are apparently survivors – Yea!

What’s 2010 Next?

If you’ve been around awhile, you know seasonality in the real estate business will shrink the opportunity pie through January 2010. Doesn’t mean there’s NO business for you and I, just a smaller pie.

Some will decide to bask in the seductive glow of the Holiday Season.

We Have Some Choices..

Most will slow to smell the pine-cones and sip eggnog. The cozy-comfort crowd will hibernate till January 7th, then Spring forward, blah, blah? That’s what most will do. Because it’s the easy thing to do. It’s a cozy-comfort zone and common.

Can I ask You A Semi-Personal Question?

How’d you work your way from bloody-back-there to hopeful here? How did you scratch, bite, claw and hard-work-navigate through the Wall Street Melt Down, the Rip-Snort-Recession and Housing-Bubble-Blow-Up? By doing what’s easy and comfortable?

Hell NO! I didn’t think so.

What’s Next?

Here’s what might happen…

Job losses begin slowing – less people lose their houses, more people can afford stuff, the economy turns.
Corporations begin reporting profits – people feel confident, companies hire more people, people spend more money.
Retirement portfolios are slowly re-inflating – people feel safer.
Interest rates will most likely remain low the 1st half of 2010; but talking bobble heads warn double digit interest rates loom – this creates a sense of urgency and fear of loss (loss of flea sized interest rates).
Case Schiller reports home prices are on the rise – previously cautious buyers begin to feel homes have bottomed. 6 month and 1 year leases begin to expire; the flood of families who chose to rent consider taking advantage of supremely low rates and bottomed home prices.
People who have the ability to up-size, downsize, rightsize, etc., have postponed needs and desires; this is called pent up demand. Desire and need doesn’t go away, it smolders and sparks to eventual satisfaction. When it’s safe, these able buyers and sellers will leap. This is called pent-up demand and a screaming opportunity for the prepared (you and me).
Instead of my Pollyanna perspective, imagine your worst nightmare scenario unfolding in FUBAR slow-motion.

Pick your recovery mode; V, U, W or FUBAR; relaxing into the Holiday Season will kill your chances to explode into the 2010 New Year.

Knowing the “slow season” will seduce most into a cozy-comfort zone of inactivity and invisibility, you can choose the same and hope for the best in 2010 or you can choose…

Hyper Visibility and 2010 Majesty.

READ THE REST HERE

Do You Know Someone Who Feels Their Sales Couldn't Feed A Flea? Help'm Out. Send Them This.

Ken Brand (Prudential Gary Greene, Realtors) — Mon, 21 Sep 2009 07:26:24 -0500

The Only 3 Reasons Sales Sag and What You Can DO About It.
21sep
2009

by: Ken Brand on September 21, 2009

Flea Food

A Short Story – By Simpleton Ken Brand

Shoulders Slumped, Blue Eyes Castdown, She Leaned In, Whispering…

“My sales couldn’t feed a flea.”

I Thought…

Ugggg. Man, this business can be brutal.

Steven Rand’s words flit by, ”You’re doing all the business you’ll ever do based on the people who are aware of you now.”, trailed by Marilyn Eiland’s, “It takes contacts to make contracts.” and “You’re raise is effective as soon as you are.”

It’s fixable.

I think in quotes an cliché’. Sigh.

I said…

“The solution is a simple as 1, 2, 3. Sorta. It’s simple, but it ain’t easy.

People list and buy real estate in your market everyday. There are only three reasons they didn’t choose you.”

Reason 1: THEY Didn’t Think Of YOU

How do your friends, past clients, friends of friends and strangers choose a real estate agent?

They ask someone they know for the name of a trusted real estate agent. Or, they contact the 1st person they think of, sometimes the first 2 people. Either way, if you’re not the 1st or 2nd person they think of, you’re screwed.

In this case, you have some sweaty Top Of Mind Awareness to work on. I pointed her to AgentGenius.com and said, “Read UP, you’ll find bushels of bright ideas. Pick a few and ACT now.” I sent her HERE too.

“There’s a 2nd Reason your fleas aren’t fed”, I said.

You Can Read Reasons 2 and 3 at AgentGenius.com - Click HERE

What BIZ Are WE Really IN? Are You Sure?

Ken Brand (Prudential Gary Greene, Realtors) — Mon, 14 Sep 2009 09:59:33 -0500

Sizzling Steak and Magic

I love dinner. I love eating out. I love to eat dinner at Flemings Steak House.

I live in Houston Texas. Steak Houses are everywhere. They all cook Steak and serve cocktails.

What’s the real business of a Steak House? Is it to cook steak and sling drinks?

NO.

Their real business, if they crave raving fans, Yelps and profits, is to serve “Emotionally Evocative Experiences”, “Visual Delights”, “Tongue Tease” and “Feel Good”. It’s not ALL about cooking steak, it’s about the entire dining experience.

What Business Are We In?

[FYI: This share was inspired by content and comments contained in twos posts authored by Erion and Lani. Check'm out: E = ONE and L = TWO.]

I hear, ” I sell houses”. I say, “WRONG”.

Selling a house is the result of what WE DO. A myopic focus on selling houses leads to survival, short term success and finally, Burn-Out. Want to open a can of Break-Out Thrival? Read on.

We live, work and play in a Trust (Consistent, Accurate, Timely, Honest, Safe), Experience (Evocative and Engaging) and Entertainment (Fun, Interesting, Unique, Provocative) society.

Serving true Trust, emotionally evocative Experiences and Entertainment leads to loyal fans, perpetual referral recommendations, closed sales, big-bank and Break-Out Thrival.

IMHO, Our Real Business Is Communication. Presentation. Solutions. Inspiration and Leadership.

Communication: How we broadcast and share.

If you're UP for it, you can READ the rest of the post HERE.

Listing and Written Sales Real Estate Market Report for The Woodlands TX - August/September 2009

Ken Brand (Prudential Gary Greene, Realtors) — Thu, 03 Sep 2009 21:34:42 -0500

Real Estate Market Report For The Woodlands TX - Listing Inventory and Written Sales / August-September 2009 - By Ken Brand from Ken Brand on Vimeo.

Hello Friends,

Wondering what's going on in The Woodlands TX real estate market?

It's been an "interesting" year. Year To Date there have been 1,501 Contracts Written (all brokers combined) compared to 1,848 in 08'. That's 18.7% less. No big deal really. We can all be thankful that our market is the opposite of all the market horror stories we hear about.

Sales prices have remained stable. Yea!

In August, according the HAR Multiple Listing Service, there were 173 Contracts Written. 7.4% fewer than August 08'.

For the first time in months, Listing Inventory fell below previous years inventory. Current For Sale listings = 863. Last year at this time = 880.

Average Days On Market for Active Listing Inventory = 106 Days.
Average Days On Market for Sold Listings in August = 71 Days.

What does all this mean?

Look at the trend lines. Seasonality is about to kick in. There will be fewer sales and fewer active listings through the end of the year.

Seller's - Consider adjusting your price. If you have merchandising/staging things that can be done to enhance the perceived value and your competitive position, act now. Re-examine your marketing. Now is the time to take action.

Buyer's - Selection is good. If you're a 1st Time Home Buyer, time is running out on the 8K Tax Credit, get a move on. Mortgage rates are still at historic rates, which means you can buy more house for your money. No doubt, as the economy improves rates will rise and most likely home prices too. Act now, or?

Real Estate Agents - There will be fewer listing and selling opportunities in the last quarter. If you'd like to keep your success steady, you'll want to increase your personal contacts, conversations and networking.

I'll be publishing more market data in the next few days. Till then, if you need anything or have questions, give me a call: Ken Brand - 832-797-1779.

Cheers.

Related Stuff: Should You Reduce Your Listing Price = http://www.brandcandid.com/2009/08/29/should-i-reduce-my-listing-price-how-much-what-should-i-do-first/

What's up with the $8,000 First Time Home Buyer Tax Credit: http://www.brandcandid.com/2009/08/10/when-does-the-8000-first-time-home-buyer-tax-credit-expire/

Is It Time To Reduce Your Listing Price. Maybe. Maybe Not - Watch The Vid 1st, Then Leap or Languish.

Ken Brand (Prudential Gary Greene, Realtors) — Tue, 01 Sep 2009 21:01:34 -0500

Should I Reduce My Listing Price? How Much? from Ken Brand on Vimeo. I prepared this video for my friends with Listing Inventory and unsold properties.

Summer Is Setting. Kids Are Back In School. Is The Pool Of Qualified Buyers Shrinking?

3 THINGS TO CONSIDER

Marketing / Promotion / Advertising
Merchandising / Staging / Emotional Appeal
The Price / The Price / The Price

5 MARKET FACTORS TO CONSIDER

Seasonality
Days On Market
Months Supply
Immediate Competition
How Much To Reduce

CONSIDER YOUR COMPETITION ReSale New Homes Amenities Price Per Square Foot Sales Velocity – Current Pending Qualified Buyer Behavior CONSIDER MONTHS SUPPLY OF INVENTORY CONSIDER SOLD PRICE TO LIST PRICE %

FACTOR EVERYTHING IN AND THEN MAKE YOUR DECISION.

If you have any questions, give me a call: Ken Brand 832-797-1779 If you'd like that 2 page checklist on preparing your property for sale: Kens411@Gmail.com I update the collection of market reports during the 1st week of every month. You can find them HERE.

Is Forming A Real Estate Team The Kiss Of Death or Brilliant?

Ken Brand (Prudential Gary Greene, Realtors) — Fri, 21 Aug 2009 07:00:40 -0500

When If Ever Should You Form A Real Estate Team

In this episode, Tim Harris, Brian Wilson and I talk about the pro's and con's of real estate teams. What is a Team? When should you form a Team? When is forming a Team a bad idea. What are the pitfalls? What are alternate ways to increase production without the hassel and expense of creating a team. The show's about an hour long. Click on the start arrow located in middle of the player below and the show will start. Then you can launch a new window, continue with your work and listen to it in the background. Let me know what you think? Cheers.

Is Facebook a Toad?

Ken Brand (Prudential Gary Greene, Realtors) — Thu, 20 Aug 2009 19:59:32 -0500

Is Facebook A Toad? from Ken Brand on Vimeo.

Is Facebook A Toad Or A Prince?

Everywhere I go, I hear earfuls of Facebook yadder. It’s a time suck. It’s a tool. It’s the future. It’s a fad. I don’t get it. Who cares. Get a life. I’m an addict. Don’t you work? Etc. You hear it too, right?

Here’s the deal.

In 2010 and beyond, Facebook will be the most important conversation channel, persona differentiator and relationship builder in the history of humans.
Facebook will also render the unimaginative as irrelevant and invisible.

I could be wrong, but I believe Facebook is…

The Most Important Tool Of Our Future

Here’s why:

Given a choice, people choose to engage/hire an agent they know, like and trust. Studies and experience confirm this.

People remember the names of people/agents they know, like and trust. Common sense and experience confirm this.

People recommend, refer and hire agents they remember. Observation and experience confirm this.

If 1, 2, and 3 are true, then creating Top Of Mind Awareness as a person who is liked, known and trusted and happens to be a kick-ass real estate agent, is the Golden Key to success.

It has always been so.

How do we create Top Of Mind Awareness you might ask?

Creating Top Of Mind Awareness requires 3 R things. Repetition, Relevance and Remarkability. Simple to grasp, harder to do.

Yesterday we muscled and monologued our Top Of Mind Awareness with direct mail, door knocking, billboarding, TV commercials, telephone calls, print ads and social butterflying at networked gathering like Chamber Of Commerce, Drunko, PTO, etc.. Most of flexing was rude, crude and demeaning.

Today, pointing Facebook properly engages, entertains, enlightens, informs, attracts and nurtures relationships — with permission.

When we comment and engage with FB friends about what they’re sharing, our relevant comments and conversation can be viewed by all their FB Friends. Exponential amplification is possible. Where else is this relevant and exponential engagement and conversation possible?

Of course if you give bad Facebook, it’ll detonate exponentially and turn your Facebook into a hot-mess Faceplant.

The Three R’s and Facebook

Repetition
In the real world, you can’t be everywhere all the time…duh. In the real world unless you’re physically talking to someone, you have no idea what’s going on in their life (exception = gossip).
On planet Facebook you can be in front of your friends/suspects/prospects wherever they are, at their convenience. We can engage with our Facebook tribe daily. Done properly, with respect and consideration, it’s not spam, awkward, inconvenient, random or demeaning. It’s permission based conversation.
I recommend to my friends that they review the status updates of their FB friends daily – comment, share, encourage, engage and click the “Like” link often. Update your status and share your stuff once or twice daily.

Let’s remember, nobody posts their updates to Facebook hoping that nobody will notice. Human nature screams for attention and an sense of significance. How are we satisfying our friends basic human needs? By commenting, sharing and conversing with others, not focusing on ourselves and sell, sell, selling.

Relevance
By engaging with my FB friends about things that are happening in their lives, everything we say or share is relevant to them specifically. Our engagement isn’t random it’s relevant and memorable.

Remarkability
According to TechCrunch.com, there are over 250,000,000 million active registered users of Facebook. How many of the 250,000,000 are Realtors? The opportunity to create Top Of Mind Awarness is monstrous. Commenting, sharing and engaging others, specifically about what’s going on their lives, will absolutely make you remarkable. Especially if you’re not shouting and foaming at the mouth about you! Instead, focus all your fizz on smartly smiling, liking, winking, laughing, sharing and hugging the most important person on the planet — them. This behavior is remarkable.

But, let’s beware, just like the real world, if you’re a knuckle-head , this digital mojo can backfire.

Avoid Facebook Faceplants

You can read the rest of this blog post @ AgentGenius.com

Here's the link: http://agentgenius.com/g-rants-insanity-more/real-estate/suckface-with-facebook-today-or-tomorrow-youll-just-plain-suck/

PS. Find me @ http://www.Facebook.com/KenBrand

Cheers.

Who Picks The Title Company That Will Issue The Owner’s Policy Of Title Insurance As Part Of The Closing Of A Real Estate Transaction?

Ken Brand (Prudential Gary Greene, Realtors) — Sun, 02 Aug 2009 08:32:04 -0500

Who Picks The Title Company That Will Issue The Owner’s Policy Of Title Insurance As Part Of The Closing Of A Real Estate Transaction?

by KEN BRAND on AUGUST 2, 2009

Occasionally, the listing agent and selling agent will clash over the Title Insurance Company selection.

Title Insurance is a commodity and a must have. In Texas, Title Policy forms are standardized and Title insurance premium rates are set by the Texas Department of Insurance (TDI) and are based on the property’s sale value using a sliding scale. You can use this Stewart Title Rate Calculator to figure out what Title Insurance costs.

The reason agents are particular about which title company to use is because of the service, knowledge and experience of the title company staff and closers. The right title team can make the escrow process smooth and trouble free, the wrong one can make the experience jangly stressful.

Here’s what the Texas Association of Realtors sez about who has the right to pick the Title Company - CLICK HERE

Strategy Spits In The Left-Eye of Superstition. 11 Times.

Ken Brand (Prudential Gary Greene, Realtors) — Mon, 20 Jul 2009 07:39:38 -0500

This is my Monday morning blog post for AgentGenius.com. To read the whole thing - CLICK HERE

Superstition

It has it’s place. It’s a comfort and a crutch.

Superstitions can twist entire careers into endless loops of Friday the 13th’s.

I’m not talking about the good ones, like burying St Joseph.

I’m talking about the Black Cat Bad ones.

Here’s how Wikipedia.org defines it:

Superstition (Latin superstitio, literally “standing over”; derived perhaps from standing in awe;^[1] used in Latin as an unreasonable or excessive belief in fear or magic, especially foreign or fantastical ideas, and thus came to mean a “cult” in the Roman empire)^[2]^[3] is a belief or notion, not based on reason or knowledge. It is also commonly applied to beliefs and practices surrounding luck, prophecy and spiritual beings, particularly the irrational belief that future events can be influenced or foretold by specific unrelated prior events.

Is This You or Someone You Know?

Yesterday I was chatting with one of our Top Performers. She’s busy as hell, has 3 salable listings, 4 sales in escrow and a brow raising track record. But, she’s feels her wheels spinning and she’s anxious about where the next surge of business will come from.

We talked about how she could create a sense of control, amplify her energies and streamline her efforts.

We talked about the origin of her business, where’d it come from? We discovered that 90% of it was referrals and recommendations from her sphere of 247.

We talked about which activities and actions created her referrals and recommendations. What activities, actions and marketing methods she’s embracing NOW. And we talked about what was feeling right, but wasn’t yielding right?

We figured out that she was feeling overly stressed because her plan was to be fluid, flexible and loosey-goosey, which is code for CHAOS. She was engaged in activities that blood-sucked her joy, time, cash and attention.

We concluded she was doing plenty right, but she was blunting her potential and essential structure with superstitious misdirections. I blurted, “Strategy is more important than superstition!”.

She said, “You should write that down and blog about it.” So I did.

But first, I thought the title “Strategy Is More Important Than Superstition” was as sexy as grandma’s underpants. So, I Go-Commando’d it and word played it a new title, “Strategery Spits In The Left-Eye Of Superstition. 11 Times”.

Here’s a polariod of our conversation.

READ THE REST. Thanks.

Wanna Wisely Price Your Property To Sell? Here's a simple truth.

Ken Brand (Prudential Gary Greene, Realtors) — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 13:57:46 -0500

Wanna Price Your House To Sell? Here's the simple truth. from Ken Brand on Vimeo.

Here's my story about Picking A Sales Price.

Qualified Home Buyers comparison shop. Typically, they will define a price range and an area or areas that they are interested in and they go shopping, looking at pre-owned homes and New Homes. After viewing all of the available homes that meet their criteria, a buyer will narrow their choices down to a short list of one or two homes. In this day and age of Buyer Representation, the buyer’s representative will prepare a Competitive Market Analysis (CMA) to assist the buyer in the decision making process and determining an offering price. At this point the buyer…having viewed all of the available homes (competition) will want to know what similar homes have actually SOLD for, average number of Days on Market, Price Per Square Foot and List Price to Sales Price ratio. This research is used to help determine their offering price and ultimately their own limits to what they feel a home should sell for relative to it’s competition. Armed with this market data and personal shopping experience, the buyer submits an offer. Once the Buyer and Seller agree on a price and the buyer’s mortgage is being processed, the lender will send an appraiser out and they conduct the same research. If the property appraises, everyone skips to closing and a happy ending. When we prepare our Market Analysis for a seller, we include research on homes that a buyer interested in viewing the subject property may also consider and data the appraiser will also look at. By reviewing this market data we can select a price that will position the property competitively in the market place and meet the sellers goals for timing and maximizing their property value. Hope this bit of information and insight is helpful. If there is anything else we can do for you, give me a call: Ken Brand - 832-797-1779

The Woodlands TX - Real Estate Market Report for June 2009

Ken Brand (Prudential Gary Greene, Realtors) — Mon, 06 Jul 2009 19:07:18 -0500

It's not real estate heaven, but the real estate market in The Woodlands TX is an oasis. Don’t take my word for it, study these statistics yourself and see if you go, ah-ha, ut-oh or um-hum.

There is a 3.8 months Supply Of For Sale Listing Inventory in The Woodlands. Real estate economist believe that 6 months of inventory represents a balanced market. 3.8 is excellent. But, before we get all giddy, let's remember that the Months Supply Of Inventory will vary dramatically by price range. By Wednesday, I'll have a blog post up that breaks it down by price range.

The Average Number Of Days On The Market for active listings is 95 Days. Keep in mind, this is the overall number for The Woodlands market. Real estate is hyper local in nature, the relevant number will most likely be different for your specific property, in your specific neighborhood, in your specific price range.

The Average Sold Price for closed sales in June 2009 was $343,129. In June 2007 it was $$347,674. The June 09′ Median Sold Price was $270,000. In June 07″ it was $257,100. Generally speaking home prices are stable. Included in the report below is a month-by-month, two year study of Average Sold Prices. Again, prices are stable, the number of sales is weaker than last years.

Average Days On The Market for Sold properties in June 2009 = 72 Days. In June 08′ it was 62 days. Remember, the Average Number Of Days On The Market for current active listings is 95 days. If you’re a seller and your home has been on the market for longer than 70 days, you might want to adjust something; the marketing, the merchandising or the price.

Average List Price To Sold Price % for the time period - April l 1st - July 5th = 94.7%. I’m proud to report that our Prudential Gary Greene agent icons achieved an Average List Price To Sold Price % of 97.9. That means our marketing generated an average of 3% more for our seller clients. At an average sold price of $343,129, that would be over $10,000. That’s a bid deal for sellers, right? Choose us, net more…sweet.

Here's a picture of what The Woodlands monthly active listing inventory and contracts written look like. What we are experiencing is positive. Listing Inventory is not growing wildly and the velocity of sales is improving month over month. We are supremely lucky to live in The Woodlands.

Foreclosures and Short Sales in The Woodlands? While the nation wide news about foreclosures remains grim, it's the opposite in The Woodlands. Out of the 973 Active Listings in our Multiple Listing Service, only 11 are Foreclosure, a scant 1%. Same thing with Short Sales, only 10. The last thing I want to leave you with, remember, Real Estate Market conditions are hyper-local in nature. These numbers are big-pie averages. What's happening in your specific neighborhood is what really matters. If you'd like specific information for your property and your neighborhood, give me a call: Ken Brand 832-797-1779 And now the last-last thing. If you're the person who likes to delve into the data, take a swan-dive into this collection of data.

Real Estate Market Reports For The Woodlands TX - June / July 2009, by Ken Brand

View more presentations from Ken Brand.

Thanks for reading, let me know if I can help you with anything real estate related:-)

A Cautionary Tale from a "Creative Avoidance" addict and "Shiny Object" junkie.

Ken Brand (Prudential Gary Greene, Realtors) — Mon, 29 Jun 2009 08:04:49 -0500

Maybe you know someone who wrestles with getting the right things done? it's easy to get distracted and run off the rails. This is my monday blog post at AgentGenius.com

Read about it H E R E

Here's a snippet:

Confessions From A “Creative Avoidance” Addict and “Shiny Object” Junkie

Step One

Hi. My name is Ken Brand and I’m a “Creative Avoidance” addict and “Shiny Object” junkie. Recovering.

Addiction runs in my family. I’ve been an addict for 30 years. It began innocently enough.

I passed the test. They mailed my license. My broker told me I was the “boss of myself”.

I was an Unconscious Incompetent and I floundered.

Being slow but not stupid, cogs clicked. Oh! You need to work hard. So I did. But, I didn’t work smart. I embraced ways to avoid personal engagement. I was distracted by shiny objects. I worked on the wrong things because I was afraid.

I Was Afraid Of The Unknown

Afraid of saying the wrong thing.
Afraid of looking stupid.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Thanks for reading.

Cast A Taller Shadow - Pre-Listing Appointment Positioning Package

Ken Brand (Prudential Gary Greene, Realtors) — Fri, 26 Jun 2009 14:38:43 -0500

Casting A Taller Shadow - Listing Agent Pre-Appointment Positioning Strategies from Ken Brand on Vimeo.

BAD things can happen between the time your firm listing appointment is set and time you show up to share.

To Cast A Larger Shadow, impress and position yourself as THE best person to list their property, listen to this video and take action.

In this video I quickly share the why's, what's, how's and when's of delivering a kick-butt pre-listing appointment preview package. It's simple stuff.

Your prospective seller(s) will love it. You'll win more listing appointments, create more referrals and recommendations, you'll even begin to shimmer and glitter when you walk.

Try it.

The Woodlands TX - May 2009 / Written Sales and Listing Inventory Report = What's UP With Home Prices?

Ken Brand (Prudential Gary Greene, Realtors) — Tue, 02 Jun 2009 10:55:43 -0500

REal Estate Sales Report / Monday Morning, June 2nd - The Woodlands TX from Ken Brand on Vimeo.

What's happening with Real Estate Activity in The Woodlands, TX?

According to MLS statistics*, in May 2009, there were 224 Listing Pended (under contract). In May 2008 there were 273. Listing Pended were down 17.94%.

The next logical question, are Sales Prices falling. Short answer - Nope.

The Average Sold Price for May 2009 was $354,439, in May 2008 it was $353,439. While the pace of sales is slower, prices remain stable. The MLS Average List Price To Sales Price % for properties Sold in May was 95.1%. I'm happy to report that our office achieved an average of 98.1%. That means that our team members achieved 3% more for our sellers. That's huge. Congrats to the team and our sellers.

in The Average Number of Days On Market for SOLD properties in May 2009 was just 65 Days. Our office average was just 34 Days. That means our team is selling properties for 3% more than average and and in almost half the time, which eliminates about half the hassle of showings, staging, etc. Yea Team!

On June 2nd @ 7:17 am there were a total of 920 Active Residential "For Sale" listings in The Woodlands, TX. Last year at this time there were 858, Listing Inventory is UP 7.22%. The Average List Price in The Woodlands is $548,029, the Median List Price is $350,000. Average Days On Market for Active Inventory is 96 Days. Keep in mind that properties that SOLD, sold in an average of 96 days.

I'll be publishing a full collection of market reports by Monday, June 8th. You'll find them at: http://www.BrandCandid.com

If we can do anything to help you let us know.

Cheers.

*MLS - Houston Association of REALTORS, Multiple Listing Service. Market Report includes Single Family, The Woodlands TX.

Are There Any Scream'n Steal Style Foreclosure Deals in The Woodlands TX?

Ken Brand (Prudential Gary Greene, Realtors) — Wed, 13 May 2009 13:37:48 -0500

Everybody loves a deal. We’d be fools to overpay for anything when it feels like everything is on sale. If you’re in the market to buy real estate, naturally you’re compelled to at least attempt to buy a property that is a screaming deal. The last thing you want is find out you were the rube who overpaid.

So. about those foreclosure steals in The Woodlands TX. Yes, there are fantastic properties at fair prices, but don’t pimp-slap the messenger, there are very few foreclosures. At 7:27 a.m. I ran a report using our Houston Association of Realtors Multiple Listing Service (MLS). Our MLS system allows us to search for properties in dozens of ways, one of them - search by: “Foreclosures and Short Sales”, which is what I’ve done.

CLick HERE for the back story and the gritty details.

Thanks for reading.

Is it a Buyer's or Seller's Market In The Woodlands TX? It Depends On The Price Range.

Ken Brand (Prudential Gary Greene, Realtors) — Tue, 12 May 2009 21:08:42 -0500

Statistics are tricky things, they can tell you allot and they can bamboozle you too. For example the Months Supply Of Inventory For the Woodlands TX is 6.2 months. Break it down by price range and the Months Supply Of Inventory ranges from less than 6 months to more that 20 months.

Check out the gritty details and what it all means, go to: http://budurl.com/TheWoodlandsREMSI

Thanks,

Ken Brand

Four Reasons Why Lovers and Others Leave.

Ken Brand (Prudential Gary Greene, Realtors) — Mon, 11 May 2009 21:08:18 -0500

My Monday blog post at AgentGenius.com.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Wonder Why Lovers and Others Leave?

Why prospects vanish? Why calls go unreturned, emails go unanswered and text messages are ignored. Why past clients list with another? Why buyers bolt? Why business is bleak?

People give other people the Heave-Ho for 4 Unfed Human Needs.

1. People Seek SIGNIFICANCE

2. People Crave CERTAINTY

2. People Desire an IMPROVED STATE OF BEING

4. You’re Peach-Keen, They’re KAPUT

These are must-have human needs. If we don’t feed our loved ones, clients, friends and fans with Gestures and Actions that enrich and nourish a Sense Of Significance, Certainty and an Improved State of Being, they’ll bolt, they’ll find it elsewhere.

Go HERE To Read About The 42 Gestures and Actions That Feed Human Needs. Go ahead - CLICK HERE

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Cheers and thanks for reading.

The Woodlands TX Real Estate Market Report - April / May 2009

Ken Brand (Prudential Gary Greene, Realtors) — Tue, 05 May 2009 14:22:37 -0500

The Woodlands Real Estate Market Report - April/May 2009

by KEN BRAND on MAY 6, 2009

Flea-sized mortgage rates have super sized buying power. Stock market rebound, thickened consumer confidence, positive TV reports are shoving activity forward.

We expect a strong summer. Here’s some factoid support.

The Median Sold Price for April 2009 was $251,000. In April of 2007 it was $235,000. The Median Sold Price is up 6.8%. Do you think it will go down? I don’t. Buy now.

The Average Sold Price for April 2009 was $320,556. In April of 2007 it was $292,244. The Average Sold Price is up 9.7%. Will prices drop? I don’t believe so.

On May 1st, 2009 the Months Supply Of ”For Sale” Listing Inventory for The Woodlands TX was a mere 3.9 months. Real Estate economists believe that 6 months of inventory represents balance. If 6 is balance, what is 3.9? It’s time to buy.

The Average Number of Days On Market for Active listings is only 97 Days. In January it was 109. Homes are selling faster.

The Average Number of Days on Market for Sold properties in April 2009 was only 73 days. That’s an awesome low number.

Year To Date - Number One Market Share in closed dollar volume, listings sold - Properties Over $250,000 = Prudential Gary Greene, Realtors

Year To Date - Number One Market Share in closed dollar volume, listings sold - Properties Over $5000,000 = Prudential Gary Greene, Realtors

Year To Date - Number One Market Share in closed dollar volume, listings sold - Properties Over $750,000 = Prudential Gary Greene, Realtors

If you’re the kinda person who likes to pour over the numbers, you can download the full collection here : The Woodlands Real Estate Market Report - April/May 2009

Any questions - give me a buzz: Ken Brand 832-797-1779

Real Estate Market Activity Report - The Woodlands TX, April/May 2009 / Prudential Gary Greene Realtors

Publish at Scribd or explore others: Real Estate Business & Law average days on mark real estate market r

77381 77382 77386 77384 77380

You Should QUIT! I Should QUIT! We should all call Bull S&%t on Quitting! Quitting is for WINNERS.

Ken Brand (Prudential Gary Greene, Realtors) — Fri, 24 Apr 2009 13:00:39 -0500

A Case For Quitting - Ken Brand from Ken Brand on Vimeo.

I call BS on the notion that quitting is for losers.

It's a paradoxical example of Addition By Subtraction.

You can read more about it on Monday, April 27th at http://agentgenius.com/

Cheers-Clink

Ken Brand

The Pinball Principle.

Ken Brand (Prudential Gary Greene, Realtors) — Wed, 22 Apr 2009 22:15:49 -0500

by KEN BRAND on APRIL 14, 2009

In A Hair-On-Fire Hurry? Read It Twitter Style.

Time For Details? Read ON.

Elton John Rocks The Pinball Wizard - CLICK to Play

Ever watch someone feed quarters to an electric Pin Ball Machine?

Colored lights strobing, sheet glass gleaming, scoreboard screaming cheez, bumpers live-wired blinking. Step smiling forward, drop a quarter.

Spring loaded, rubber tipped release. Silver sphere spins sparking, arcing into action. Lights blare-blink strobing, heartbeats bongo, thumbs snag warm glass, index fingers slide twitchy, finding flipper button function.

Ever seen it? Ever done it?

How do you score points in Pinball?

That’s right! Keep the sphere in play; careening, pinging, blinking, ricochet-rebounding, plink-zinging, kinetic- ka-chinging from bumper to bumper. When the silvered sphere slows to drop, finger your flippers and send the sphere crack-careening all over again. The more kinetic-contact, noise, flash and electric-bumper action the richer your spinning higher score.

What happens when there’s zero kinetic-contact bumper action? Nothing!

Read THE REST - CLICK HERE

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Thanks for visiting.