Mike On Real Estate

From the Washington Post,

“I have even begged them for a foreclosure,” delinquent mortgage-holder Charlotte Jensen said. When she realized she couldn’t save her Glen Allen home last year, she filed for bankruptcy, packed up her family and moved out. Nearly a year later, Bank of America has yet to take back the home.

I have seen homes staying on the delinquent list longer and longer.  So far I have had one client stay in their home for over a year with making a payment.  Some have gone ever further.  You can’t bet on how long it will take but it leads us to hope that banks are goign to be more flexible on their offers.

I always found this commercial to be funny.  ”It’s a sellers market.  It’s a buyer’s market.”

A couple of years ago an agent and I were laughing because his client asked him if he was showing him all of the listing.  “Of course, why would I not show you all of the listings?”, he replied.  Yes, indeed, why not?

When the market was hot this was even more common because inventory was low and it was hard to find a good house.  When I would show listings someone would ask why I didn’t show the house across the street.   I would reply that it didn’t fit their criteria or it was probably pending. They sometimes seemed unsure.  I actually upgraded my Realtor key so I could look up listings on the fly and show them I was right.  I didn’t want them questioning my integrity.

Though it wasn’t something I considered or did, I knew that there were some agents that wouldn’t show homes if the commission was too “little”.  Even an $8000 commission was deemed too little by one agent because it wasn’t the right percentage, though $8000 is much more than a typical percentage on an average price house, so I find that silly.  They are thinking they can find another house with a bigger commission.  I believe you find the best home for the client but I’m just crazy that way.

I never really gave it much thought until I pulled a batch of faxes and found this, which was faxed from a real estate company fax machine.

I was furious even though it wasn’t my listing.  I was furious for two reasons.  One because the agent sent it and thought that bullying anyone in the office was within their right but the real reason I was furious is because I am 99% sure that the agent hasn’t told their client that they don’t show homes below a certain commission point.

The first statement in the Realtor Code of Ethics says,

When representing a buyer, seller, landlord, tenant, or other client as an agent, Realtors^® pledge themselves to protect and promote the interests of their client.

This client and all of the other ones working with this agent have no idea that houses are being hidden from their search which I believe to be a breach of Realtor ethics and just common sense.

Some agents have a Buyer’s Service Contract which states that any home with a commission below X%, the buyer will make up the difference.  Other agents take what is given to them by the listing.  And then there are agents who won’t show homes with low commission.  I showed a home that had a $500 commission because it fit the client’s criteria. They didn’t buy it though.

For each agent, this is their personal business to run how they see fit within the rules and laws that govern us.  Even though 6% is thrown around a lot as the typical listing commission, some people charge 7% and more.  I don’t care if an agent won’t show a house because of the commission, the color of the house, or any of the other myriad of possible reasons as long as they disclose it.  They are being honest and upfront allowing the client to decide. But that’s the thing, they think they will lose the client and money.

It’s two weeks later and I am still pissed. Still pissed that clients are treated like that and they don’t know - and I can’t do anything about it but write in my blog.  I also imagine them reading this and laughing at my naivete.

I have always felt this is a service job, not a sales job.  If you have a sales job, you have to sell your client on you.  I provide service to my client trying to do the best for them.

I always hope that dishonest agents will be drummed out of the business but they always find more suckers.  The people who I thought would be out of this business are still here and there are plenty more that give Realtors a bad name by doing stuff like this.  Luckily I know some great Realtors and hope there are more of us than the others

Is your agent showing you all of the homes or just the ones they want?

I am going somewhere with this so give me a moment.

Safeway is one of the strangest company names I can think of. Does that name really lend itself to groceries? It does now.  If you had never heard of it, you could easily guess it had something to due with security or an actual safe.  Over time business names and brands create a new definition in your head. You don’t think how the words have changed and shouldn’t really make sense.  Next time you are out and about look at names that you never really questioned.

RE/MAX?  Really, that is the name they came up with?  Dave Liniger is a smart guy but that is just a horrible name.  I chose to work there in the past because of their name recognition, which is about the highest you can find.    The name was defined by what was seen everyday in yards across America.  Exit Realty, which isn’t as big, has just as an odd name.  As time goes on I won’t even think of the word itself, just the brand. 

Nike, which I would guess when it first came out, people had to be trained not to pronounce it like Mike.  I knew my mythology characters and never heard of Nike.  How about WalMart?  Though Paris Hilton is not very aware of the commoners and where they shop, she was right to guess that it had something to do with walls.  Kinko’s could really be something else besides a priniting company.  The Mayo Clinic seems to be an odd choice but well respected. 

Zillow.com and Trulia.com are odd names but once you go to the site, the site becomes the name.  If I ask if, “Do you know anyone named Wendy?”,  most people don’t - though everyone know Wendy’s restaurant.  The name becomes disconnected from the original meaning.  Which is sets up my point.

Renaming streets does not honor someone for longer than a year or so.  When someone says Martin Luther King Blvd, do you think of an amazing leader or see part of the street in your head?  Each time you drive down it do you think of him or where your are going?  How much of an honor is it when his name is reduced to MLK so news reporters can give quicker traffic reports?

If it is to be an honor, the signs should be a different style so as to stand out with an image of some sort put up every few blocks.  Otherwise, just like the names above, the name we meant to honor loses it’s original reverence on long streets that creates a different meaning.  Even JFK Airport lacks the reverence that I think they wanted.  It just has hurried travelers trying not to miss their planes and pay $5 for a McMuffin. 

So should they be renaming streets to honor someone?  Probably not.  Waste of money and waste of effort for their goal.  It should be limited to buildings and parks.  It should be places people go to by choice, not a route that is mindlessly driven to work or school. 

If you do think of everyone that has a street, building, or park named in their honor as you pass by or enter, I would like know that I am completely wrong.  I would be very happy if I was wrong actually. 

photo via  http://www.flickr.com/photos/mvjantzen/116196294/sizes/s/

Only 78 more homes went pending than in March and 146 more than April. I don’t expect a large jump for the rest of this Summer but Fall might be interesting.

If they don’t extend the $8000 tax credit, there could easily be a rush this Fall to get the credit before the dealine. The tax credit is still an abstract idea to a lot of people which is why most people contribute to their IRA in December. So let’s hope for an irregular Fall rush.

Eighty percent of success is showing up.
-Woody Allen.

I got a call yesterday on one of my short sale listings.  The potential buyer wanted to know if there were any other offers because if there was, she didn’t want to compete.  Too much trouble.

Most anyone who knows a little about short sales knows that banks can take a long time to answer. I think every agent warns their client that a short sale is a long process and to be prepared.  And like the excited kid going to the movie promising to be quiet, they get bored quickly and want to move on, no matter what they promised.

Last year  they were adamant that they would stick around for the 30 days the bank said it would take to respond. 15 days in the buyer walks. 15 more we get accpetance.  Because it was November, and then middle of the holidays and all of the bad financial news, we couldn’t find a new buyer and the home taken back by the bank.

Even if your offer is not the best you may win just because you stuck around.