I was recently asked by Gail Shane, Realtor Liaison with Neal Communities, one of Sarasota's premier builders, to co-host her Saturday morning real estate show, Gail Shane & Friends. While I admit I was a little nervous, I was also very excited to be asked and really enjoyed the experience. I was asked to come up with my own 10 Questions and Answers. I spent quite a bit of time putting this together, so here it is.
1. What motivated you to get into the real estate business?
Well, I was fortunate to be able to attend college and my degrees are a B.S. in Marketing from Northern Illinois University and a Masters in Journalism from Northwestern University. I started out working in advertising and transitioned into sales. I was able to make a good living, but didn’t really find it very satisfying. I had grown up as the oldest of five children in a modest middle class home in the northern Chicago suburbs. Our home was important to us, as it is to every family and I felt I could use my marketing and sales background to transition into real estate sales. My father was an insurance salesman, so in a way I am following in his footsteps, just in another type of sales. I am a strong believer that home ownership is part of the American dream, and that everyone in this great country of ours should be able to pursue that dream.
2. You have been a successful real estate agent for going on 28 years. What keeps you motivated?
Throughout my real estate career I have worked with people from all walks of life. I have worked with a four star general, the manager of a major league baseball team, attorneys, doctors, clerks, government workers, auto repairmen, nurses, homemakers, you name it. I have worked with first time buyers, my favorite buyers, to seasoned buyers and sellers. It is the excitement of working with people I care about and helping them find the home that is just right for them. We all have share a common sense of humanity and family and wanting a place to call home. I know for many people this sounds cornball, but if I didn’t get that sense of satisfaction that comes within, I know I would have given up real estate and gone into doing something else years ago.
3. After living and working in the Orlando area for so many years, what attracted you to the Sarasota area?
In my opinion, there is no other place on earth like Sarasota. The climate is the best I could imagine. Unlike Central Florida, where I had lived and worked for 37 years, we have the gulf breezes which make such a difference. The landscape is so lush and colorful. How could you not be happy just being here? I live downtown and really enjoy it. I’ve lived in suburban areas and always had to drive everywhere. It’s great being able to walk to so many places. Sarasota has so much culture for a city its size; it’s unbelievable that this town has a symphony, ballet, opera and so many theaters, both professional and amateur. We just had the Sarasota Film Festival. The artist community is so active. There are so many galleries and artistic activities. The Sarasota Chalk Festival is in my neighborhood and is so unique. On top of all this we have the best beaches in the country, Siesta Key is Number One. And we have all the activities that come with the water. There is just so much to see and do it’s incredible.
4. What types of buyers do you enjoy working with the most?
I enjoy working with all types of buyers, and they are all unique. However, since I began in 1984 I have always gotten the most satisfaction working with first time buyers. First time buyers come in all age groups and income levels. Many times they have no idea how to go about even starting or how much home they can afford. However, many first time buyers now come armed with a lot more knowledge than they used to with the information they’ve gathered from the internet. The internet really has empowered both buyers and sellers with the knowledge. In many ways it makes my job easier. I have to spend less time on educating and we can spend more time finding the right property. Someone can be just starting out or well along on their life’s journey when they purchase their first home, but being the one who helps them achieve that dream brings me a very special sense of satisfaction.
5. How much of your business is referral business?
Well, in Central Florida it was a huge percent of my business, probably 70% or more. I would get referrals from previous customers, other agents, attorneys, mortgage brokers, home inspectors, you name it. Here in Sarasota, I’m really kind of a newbie in the area. I have the knowledge, but am still meeting people and networking. Right now most of my buyers are coming from the internet. The internet has genuinely transformed the real estate industry. I believe it’s now up to 90% of all buyers begin their search for real estate on the internet. However, it’s still a people business. Even though someone may begin a search for real estate on the internet, when they are ready to buy they contact a Realtor. Most times they are going to contact the Realtor who has been the first one there with the information they are looking for.
6. How do you help your buyers find the right home for them?
Listen. It’s almost that simple. Listen. When I was new in the business selling new homes, I would see so many agents come in with their buyers and spend the whole time telling their buyers what they wanted, what they should be looking for, what they should or shouldn’t like. I noticed that so few agents ever listened to what the buyer wanted or liked. I have found that with the right questions, and letting people talk, you can find out so much more. You have to know what someone’s hot buttons are to be able to help them. And you can’t find that out if you spend all your time talking and trying to impress with how knowledgeable you are. If you listen, people will let you know what they like and what they are looking for. In the end, it may not always be what they thought originally, but it is a learning process for both of you. And you may never find out if you don’t listen.
7. Aren’t a lot of buyers looking for short sales or foreclosures?
Oh yes, people have heard all kinds of things about the distressed market and have so many misconceptions. I find that you really have to educate people on the pitfalls of buying distressed properties. Most people have no idea what the short in short sale means. For example, they usually think it means a quick sale at a great price. They have to be educated that a short sale means the home is now worth less than what the mortgage on it is and that the bank has to agree to take less. It may never happen. There are so many caveats in buying either a bank-owned property or short sale it really is “buyer beware”!
8. What are some of the challenges in selling distressed properties?
Well, with a bank-owned property you really never know what you are getting. First of all so many of them are in very poor condition. Many of them are just plain worn, show a lack of maintenance and have been sitting vacant for long periods of time. Your buyer has a right to inspect and get their money back based on the inspection. However, an inspection can’t always tell you everything and the bank warrants “NOTHING”. Each bank is different, but all of them have lots of addendum's that tell you they “know nothing, see nothing and are responsible for nothing”. And then you have the title issues. They will typically only offer an Insured Title instead of a Marketable Title. That means if there is a title dispute you are only guaranteed your purchase price. If you have fixed up the property and invested funds to improve the property you could lose that. Due to securitization, in many cases the banks can’t even prove they own the notes when they foreclose. Someone else can come along down the road and claim ownership. It’s really a big mess no one with real authority wants to deal with.
With a short sale, you can spend months waiting on bank approval and find out the bank has refused to agree to the short sale. You have to start looking all over again. I had one buyer insist on purchasing a short sale, even when I had warned him about the pitfalls. He really liked the property and wanted to buy it. We went under contract, had our inspections and to my amazement the short sale was approved in a reasonable time. My buyer was paying cash that he was taking from a retirement account and had it wired to the title company, he flew down from Maryland for the closing. The day before closing at the final walk through we were informed that the seller would not close. On her attorney’s advice she was going to declare bankruptcy instead. What a disaster. I have great respect for any agent who wants to get involved with short sales, but in my opinion, life is too short. It’s a shame, too, because there are so many homeowners in distress and they really do need help.
9. What do you like about selling new homes?
It’s so refreshing to sell a new home. Many of the builders have re-adjusted their pricing for today’s market so that many of the new homes are in direct price competition with the foreclosures and short sales. When you walk into a new home model with a buyer it is like night and day compared to a typical foreclosure.
From my previous 15 years new home experience, I know that a good builder’s sales representative will have extensive knowledge of their product and will be very helpful to the buyer. They understand and can explain to the buyer the entire process from floor plan and home site selection to contract to options and color selection, the community and the financing process. The builder’s sales person and I can work as a team to help the buyer make a decision. New homes have so many advantages. First of all they are NEW! The buyers have a choice of floor plan and in many instances can customize the layout. Buyers can choose their own color palette for the home, their own options, and their own home site. The newer homes are much more energy efficient and usually have many green features that will save the buyer even more money and maintenance down the road. The builder’s sales representative will work hand in hand with me in follow-up with the buyer from time of contract through closing. The builder also offers a marketable title and stands behind their product, usually offering a builder’s warranty. Buying a new home does not guarantee that nothing will go wrong after moving in, but having a builder that stands behind the home is a great peace of mind. I love selling new homes!
10. How do you interpret the current real estate market, and what do you see for the future?
The real estate market is very strong right now, and I can see why. Prices have come down to a level not seen in many years and homes are more affordable than they have been in a long, long time. In addition we are seeing record low mortgage rates; we are down in the 4% range. I can’t believe it. They were 14.5% when I started in real estate!
Right now more people can afford to buy, and there is a great pent up demand. The Baby Boomer generation, and I am one, is just starting to retire or think about retiring and many will be looking to Florida now in the coming years. Sarasota is going to be especially appealing to many, many people.
I believe we are just beginning to see the market rebound and continue strong for many years. However, I don’t claim to have a crystal ball and I never have. Considering where we are right now, the future looks pretty good.
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