Home » Why You Should List With Jim

Category Archive: ‘Why You Should List With Jim’

More on Zillow Instant Offers

This might be the greatest sucker play in the history of housing. The I-news featured a story about the first five Zillow buys in Phoenix, and as you can see above, they are planning to lose money on all of them.

The reporter also interviewed one of the homeowners who sold. She said that her offer from Zillow was higher than the other ibuyers (Opendoor and Offerpad). What a great way to enter an already-competitive market. Make headlines about offering the most money, and don’t look like you’re gouging the homeowners – heck, they look like Robin Hood!

The publicity should fuel a surge of interest in homeowners wanting to sell to Zillow, and the story mentions that they are expanding their staff to 50 people in Phoenix to handle the ‘stronger-than-expected’ demand.

It could just be a ploy to load up their Premier Agents with listings, and/or to gain advantage over the other ibuyers.

Will they eventually resort to flat-out lying to people like all the rest of the real estate advertisers these days? Here’s an example, where they say they will pay ‘fair market value’ (how do you know if it never hits the open market), and no mention that their fees are 6% to 13% – but at least they tell you that they will hammer you for repairs once the deal is in play:

Posted by Jim the Realtor on Jun 14, 2018 in ibuyer, Jim's Take on the Market, Why You Should List With Jim, Zillow | 5 comments

NSDCC Disappearing Market: Under-$1M

The cheerleaders have been saying that the fewer sales this year are being caused by less inventory. Is that the case?

Looking at the detached-homes between La Jolla and Carlsbad, the number of houses being listed in 2018 looks about the same as in previous years. But those priced under a million are dropping like a rock.

NSDCC Detached-Homes Listed Between Jan 1 and May 31

Year	Total New Listings	Those Listed Under $1M
2013	2,312	1,044
2014	2,244	865
2015	2,332	822
2016	2,480	697
2017	2,283	590
2018	2,211	433

Questions:

How many realtors can improve their game and adjust to working the higher-end market, when that’s all that’s left?
How will discount brokerages (low cost, low service) succeed in an high-end environment with dozens or hundreds of competing homes for sale?
Will the ibuyers venture into the higher-end market? (companies who do a quick-purchase of your home for cash and resell for a profit)

Home sellers and buyers should take into account how adept their realtors and service providers are at handling different price points.

Posted by Jim the Realtor on Jun 13, 2018 in Jim's Take on the Market, Realtor, Why You Should Hire Jim as your Buyer's Agent, Why You Should List With Jim | 0 comments

NSDCC May Sales, Preliminary

Now that the market is simmering down, it is more critical than ever that sellers hire the right listing agent. A failed coming-soon campaign can burn up your initial urgency, and cause showings to die down quickly once the listing finally hits the MLS.

How soft is it?

The pricing statistics are still rising, but sales are stalling. The NSDCC April sales were down 3% YoY, and May is looking worse so far:

Year	# of May Sales	Avg. Cost-per-SF	Median SP	Median DOM
2013	362	$416/sf	$943,500	16
2014	269	$465/sf	$950,000	20
2015	297	$492/sf	$1,125,000	22
2016	334	$498/sf	$1,216,250	24
2017	343	$517/sf	$1,220,000	16
2018	264	$594/sf	$1,325,000	19

Even if I add ten percent more sales to last month’s total for late-reporters, we’re going to be -15% YoY…..during the selling season.

Here are the NSDCC closed sales for January through May:

2013: 1,337

2014: 1,108

2015: 1,213

2016: 1,212

2017: 1,226

2018: 1,106

(today’s count is -10% year-over-year, and it would still be -8% if we add the estimated number of late-reporters to May’s count)

Get Good Help!

Posted by Jim the Realtor on Jun 4, 2018 in Jim's Take on the Market, North County Coastal, Sales and Price Check, Why You Should List With Jim | 0 comments

Rules for Coming Soons

Last week I mentioned the problems with agents selling houses before inputting their listing onto the MLS (link here). Agents are so accustomed to doing it that there isn’t much hope it will change, at least not until an outsider puts an end to it (district attorney or disrupter).

The listings that are first exposed as ‘Coming Soon’ suffer a similar fate.

Zillow has legitimized the practice with their whole-hearted endorsement, yet the listings are vague and unclear, except for the On Market date. But even that doesn’t have any rules, and agents regularly ignore their own declaration and never put them on the open market at all (probably because they found a buyer from their Coming Soon campaign), or delay for a few extra days in hopes of a big pay off.

For these agents, the MLS-input is a last resort.

Rarely do the listing agents who offer a property as ‘coming-soon’ have a specific strategy, and they tend to be vague about showings and offers.

What can be done?

If the ‘Coming Soon’ had more parameters, it would help. Rather than just a future on-market date, let’s add two other questions:

1) Are you showing the home before the on-market date?
2) Are you entertaining offers before the on-market date?

Just those two questions would not only give buyers and their agents direction on what to expect, but also it would create some accountability. Because there are no rules currently, it’s anything goes, which isn’t good for buyers or sellers.

Are there clues for detecting the listing agents who do this stuff? The trail of evidence starts with their photos of the front exteriors of their listings – it is against the MLS rules to include a photo with your for-sale sign, so those who insist get their sign fuzzed out by the MLS police:

Obviously, the photo-taking happens before MLS-input, so if they already have the sign in the yard for their photo, you know they have been shopping for buyers for days, if not weeks, prior to MLS-input.

But most agents are happy to tell you that they will not only conduct a ‘Coming-Soon’ campaign, but they also have a their database of ready buyers, and an office full of productive agents who have their buyers too – all of which will be exhausted before they put your home on the MLS.

What is best for the sellers – and buyers too – is for everyone to engage at the same time, via the MLS, for maximum urgency.

Posted by Jim the Realtor on Jun 4, 2018 in Jim's Take on the Market, Listing Agent Practices, Realtor, Why You Should List With Jim, Zillow | 4 comments

Soft Market

The full-blown frenzy we enjoyed in 2013 has been cooling off ever since, and I think we can call today’s market a bit soft. Home buyers are gradually gaining more power and control of the outcomes, and as we saw yesterday in the Inventory Watch, the unsold homes are starting to pile up.

There are signs of a slowdown everywhere – even on the MDLNY. They squeezed some market truth in at the 1:25-minute mark here:

Though they were talking about swanky NYC property, we have seen our higher-end inventory growing constantly too (today there are 512 NSDCC houses for sale listed over $2,000,000, when there were just 430 two months ago).

But now the lower-end is starting to feel it too.

You won’t see it on the official days-on-market metric of sold properties because those are the listings that dodged the bullet. It will be the rising count of active (unsold) listings that reveal the struggle.

How do you know if a listing agent is feeling it too?

Signs That A Listing Agent Might Know the Market Is Soft:

They’ve Sold A Few Listings in 2018 – Listing agents who are actively engaged know that the market has changed, and that fewer inquiries/offers are the norm.
Their Listings Are Sharp – Listing agent who are aware of a softer market know they must include excellent professional photos and video in their listings, and the listing remarks make you want to go see the home.
Showings Available Immediately – The initial urgency of a new listing dissipates faster than ever, and a good listing agent wants to take advantage – they won’t make you wait days or weeks to see a house.
No Extra Hurdles – We see listings loaded up with extra demands like having to include special forms or procedures just to make an offer. In a soft market, listing agents should make it easy to buy the home.
Decent Commissions – A softer market is no time to be lowering the buyer’s agent commission – there are too many other homes to show and sell.
Pushing The Product – To keep the urgency higher, a good listing agent is implementing every possible marketing tactic available. If you see a listing where the agent isn’t making any effort, you know they didn’t get the memo that the market is soft.

Buyers have enough reasons to be concerned about the homebuying experience (higher mortgage rates, rampant fraud and deceit, and significantly higher prices), and they won’t tolerate an ignorant listing agent who doesn’t recognize a shift in market conditions. It is too easy to wait-and-see now.

Get Good Help!

We’ll explore this topic more in the coming days and weeks!

Posted by Jim the Realtor on May 22, 2018 in Interest Rates/Loan Limits, Jim's Take on the Market, Market Conditions, North County Coastal, Why You Should List With Jim | 4 comments

More on Home Staging

From Realtor Magazine:

Real estate shopping requires a buyer’s imagination. As a real estate professional, you want open-house guests to be able to picture the household as if they’ve already moved into the property. That’s why staging can make all the difference in the world, especially for an empty house, says Desare Kohn-Laski, broker-owner of Skye Louis Realty in Coconut Creek, Fla.

If you’re having a tough time convincing sellers that staging a vacant home is worth it, here are four compelling reasons that Kohn-Laski shares with her clients.

Staging plants the idea that a home could be theirs. Buyers will make a good offer at first sight if the mood of a property says, “This could be your next home.” Whether it’s a townhome, condo, or single-family property, Kohn-Laski says it’s worth it to present a home in the best, most inviting light possible.
Staging puts room dimensions into perspective. This point is important for both listing photos and for showings. “Without anything in it, a buyer will be clueless in differentiating the size of a room even if you give its area measurement,” Kohn-Laski says. “But with some furnishings in it, there will be reference points to at least give them an estimate that this room is actually larger than the other one.”
Staging emphasizes the positive aspects of a home. Imperfections in walls, floor bumps, missing details in built-in cabinets, and small closets tend to get more attention when there’s nothing else to look at in a vacant home. It’s tougher for buyers to imagine the view from the couch, the dinners at the dining room table, or the cookouts on the back deck.
Staging curbs negative presumptions. According to seller’s agents, Kohn-Laski says, an empty house typically gives an idea of financial crisis, divorce, and personal problems. Staging dissuades negative assumptions about the sellers, she adds.

Link to Article Bob Vila 10 Staging Tips

My thoughts:

Staging a home with attractive furniture and artwork helps buyers envision the possibilities, and give a boost to the online photos, which stimulates more interest. It’s one of the best things to ever happen to home sales:

Staging enables resale homes to imitate the model-home look.
For buyers who wanted new, a staged resale home might be close enough.
A staged home compares more favorably to a non-staged home, and can compete with new homes.
HGTV shows have trained buyers to expect staging.

For those who want to ensure a good first impression, staging is an ideal option.

Posted by Jim the Realtor on Apr 26, 2018 in Jim's Take on the Market, Staging, Tips, Advice & Links, Why You Should List With Jim | 1 comment

Robertson Wrap Up

It was almost four years to the day that the drone visited Robertson Ranch – before the development began. Here is a post from 4/17/2014 when I was still piloting the drone, and hit my peak elevation:

http://www.bubbleinfo.com/2014/04/17/drone-at-robertson-ranch/

They only have six houses left to sell, plus the models, which means they’ve sold nearly 300 houses at an average of about $1,100,000 (guessing) in the last 2-3 years – or about 100 million-dollar-houses per year:

I’ve sold multiple houses across the street from the R-Ranch for less than $200,000. Now that they can get 13x times that money on what was a strawberry field five years ago is mind-boggling.

Posted by Jim the Realtor on Apr 14, 2018 in Bubbleinfo TV, Builders, Carlsbad, North County Coastal, Sales and Price Check, Why You Should Hire Jim as your Buyer's Agent, Why You Should List With Jim | 0 comments

Redfin Estimates Based on List Price

It took a glaring mistake by a listing agent to expose it, but it makes what Redfin does all the more obvious.

This listing was inputted this morning with three extra zeros attached, and she didn’t notice for a couple of hours. Maybe because the listing agent hasn’t sold anything since 2016?

In the meantime, Redfin calibrated their estimate of value and 5-year history based not on a fancy algorithm or superior knowledge – nope, they just take the list price and bump it up or down a couple of points.

House Hunters is fake, zestimates are a joke, and ethics sound great until a realtor can double their pay by tilting the table.

The industry is just here to make money off you.

Get Good Help!!

Posted by Jim the Realtor on Apr 13, 2018 in Jim's Take on the Market, Why You Should Hire Jim as your Buyer's Agent, Why You Should List With Jim | 9 comments

My New Listing in West Carlsbad

My new listing in west Carlsbad has strong estimates of value:

I mention in the video that the house across the street just sold for $1,325,000, but it’s not on the MLS – it was an off-market sale. Will it help propel our sale? Maybe – as long as buyers and their agents know about it! P.S. The zestimate dropped $18,763 once the listing populated from the MLS to Zillow.

Link to my listing on Zillow

Open house 12-3pm this Saturday and Sunday!

Posted by Jim the Realtor on Apr 12, 2018 in Bubbleinfo TV, Jim's Take on the Market, Listing Agent Practices, Why You Should List With Jim | 0 comments

Zillow Says To List Now

Hat tip to SM for sending in Zillow’s latest version on the best dates to put your home on the market. San Diego is the only town in America that gets started this early – let’s go!

https://www.zillow.com/research/best-time-to-list-2018-19215/

Not only is now the best time to hit the market, their research shows it is ideal to sell early in the listing period:

According to earlier research, the largest number of home shoppers will see a given listing within its first week on the market, and it’s important to capture that early interest as quickly as possible in order to boost the chances of a quicker sale.