Sellers waiting for the lucky sale deserve to know about the potential trip hazards along the way. Listing agents who use the Triple-P marketing plan (put lockbox on, put sign up, and pray) won’t see the foreclosures until it’s too late – hire good help!
Yes, JTR, you actually have a work ethic. My experience is that many realtors are lazy people. Thats one reason the career appeals to them, they can be lazy.
In order for you to give the seller options you actually have to do some leg work and analysis. It’s a lot easier to have a “list it and they will come” work ethic.
Previously I think sellers didn’t want to hear the truth (denial stage)….but now they are at the capitulation stage so they want all the information regarding pricing.
Let’s wait and see what that house lists for. I will bet it comes back higher than the trustee’s opening bid price. It’s not a comp or a problem for the other sellers until it’s listed.
The better indicator of the street being overpriced is the lack of sales at the current asking prices. Buyers’ agents are presumably diligently running their clients through the houses in this neighborhood and comparably priced neighborhoods. Offers are not being made in this neighborhood. If the listers called a few of those folks, they might find out buyers think there is better product out there at these prices.
1.5M on Lynwood doesn’t make sense giving what is going on just north up at Aryana. Crestview has no mello roos and the houses have much bigger and more estately lots.
AI,
Agreed, it wouldn’t surprise me to see the lender get greedy and list too high.
There are many buyers who are doing their own tracking of foreclosures, and they are going to know about these before the head-in-sand sellers and agents. It won’t be obvious until they list, but I’m guessing there won’t be any sales until they hit the open market – buyers will wait and see. The Lynwood property especially, because that is a premium product – the view and culdesac location will be very desirable.
I really like your new sales attitude Jim. You’re good, you’re knowledgable, and sometimes people need to be reminded how you get paid.
Thanks GameAgent.
It has become painfully obvious this year that many people consider this just another internet portal to get free information, and a place to crack on the author.
I am trying tactfully to bridge the gap from giving away free real estate info and using my services.
Gene told me yesterday that it used to be funnier here. Well, the market isn’t fun – it’s grinding up realtors left and right. But then add in the people who make it obvious to me that they have learned a lot here, but have no interest in me being their realtor. I have a tough time calibrating that. Then on top of those are the ones who learn a lot, don’t have me be their realtor, and then come back to rub my nose in it. I really don’t get those people. But somehow I have to resist getting bitter, and soldier on. I am committed to making it funnier though.
I remember back in 2001-2003 when the tech bubble was bursting and a veteran programmer was grateful for that time. He said this helps get rid of the bad programmers and the people that shouldn’t rally be doing this job.
At the peak there were over 400,000 licensed Realtors in CA, that’s about 1 Realtor for every 75 people in the state or 1 for about every 25 households. Hopefully the bad ones will continue to get weeded out of the market and we’ll be left with a group of hard working Realtors that are actually worth commission they make.
I think we’ll always have the dabblers, fraudsters, and the rich guys wife looking for something to keep them busy, because the barrier to entry is low, but we can hope that we end up with better Realtors in general. Hopefully the market will start rewarding the ones that know what they are doing rather than the friend of a friend who just got their license and is looking for a quick buck.
Jim,
As one of those who has learned a lot from your site, I would like to say a big thank you. The reason I am unlikely to be able to use your professional services is because I am extremely unlikely to relocate to the San Diego area from the Kansas City area. I bought my first 1400 sq ft home in 1997 for under $100K, and my second 2000 sq ft in the same neighborhood in 2003 for $150K. When I see the prices in SD, I wonder how anyone is able to afford a home in the region.
Jim,
Just to second Hal Duston, I live in the blackest of black holes, southeast Michigan (well, Ann Arbor, and it’s a great place to live, go blue!). I will never have the chance to use your realtor chops to move to San Diego, but I love your honesty and your clear committment to the buyer, and, oh yeah, your snarky humor.