Hi Everyone!
I just wanted to take a moment and give thanks to our men and women in the armed services. My son in law just got back today from Iraq. It seems lately we are hearing less and less about what is going on in Iraq. It's a shame the media doesn't cover the good things happening that every soldier I have spoken to about Iraq has mentioned.
My goal isn't to make a political statement. For those of you who know me, you know that I could write a book on the subject!
Please take a moment and reflect on the men and women over the past century or so that have fought for your freedom. You have the right to buy a home, sell a home, start a business, travel, and the list goes on and on. The reason is because of these brave young soldiers. Many have died for the cause of freedom and many have come back home with severe permanent injuries. I personally want to thank each and everyone of them for making the sacrifice they have made for my personal freedom. I also want to take a moment and thank the wives, husbands, mothers, fathers and children of these fine young adults.
If you see a soldier, even if you don't know him or her, walk up him or her and thank them for their service. In a day when politics gets in the way of our kids fighting the war they need to win we need to spend more time thanking them.
Have a wonderful weekend and don't forget the soldiers. Don't ever forget.
Mitch
Saturday, May 24, 2008
Sunday, May 18, 2008
It's been a while since we talked stats!
Hi Everyone!
It's been a while since I posted stats. Below are the stats from the first of year (Jan 1 2008) to today May 18, 2008. If you have any questions about these stats, please don't hesitate to contact me at mitch@mitchrealty.com.
Brevard County Resale Stats Single Family - Average Active Listings Per Month - 7127
January - 253 Sold
February - 340 Sold
March - 417 Sold
April - 451 Sold
May (Through May 17) - 157 Sold
Brevard County Resale Stats - Condo/Townhomes - Average Active Listings Per Month - 2585
January - 68 Sold
February - 104 Sold
March - 97 Sold
April - 111 Sold
May (Through May 17) - 50 Sold
Brevard County Resale Stats - Land - Average Active Listings Per Month - 3529
January - 36 Sold
February - 48 Sold
March - 71 Sold
April - 51 Sold
May (Through May 17) - 16 Sold
These are pretty amazing numbers don't ya think? I think so! What does it tells us? Not much actually except that sales are still very slow and if you are thinking about selling your home, you better be "in" the market versus "on" the market.
However if you are a buyer... let the fun begin! With so few homes selling, terms and prices are negotiable. It's a great time to buy for the first time home buyer, for relocations, and for investors. In fact, I played golf the other day with an investor friend of mine and he bought 8 homes in the past 2 weeks. He told me that he isn't going to wait for the media to tell him it's the right time to buy, just look at the numbers he says!
Yes, the numbers say that selling your home is a bad idea. It is truly a buyers market. This is great for all of our buyers who have been waiting to buy. It's very true that we never know when the market reaches the true bottom, because at that point, we are already on the way back up. Right now, according to most of the professionals that I speak with, we believe we are at the bottom. Does that mean that some homes are still over priced? Of course it does. Do you remember three years ago you couldn't buy a brand new home in Palm Bay for under $200k? I do, currently there are 92 Brand New Homes in Palm Bay under $200k. You heard me right, you can buy a brand new home in Palm Bay for under $200k. In fact, 22 of those brand new homes you can buy for under $150k. Yes, it's a great time to be a buyer.
So what's the key here? The key firstly is not to miss the boat. If you are going to wait until the media tells you it's a great time to buy, then chances are you will miss the boat. Let's look at the worst case scenario in my opinion. Worst case is the market comes down another 5%...let's even say 10% which I very much doubt. That means a $200k home will be valued at $180 when the market hits bottom. (Even the media is predicting some time next year). If you are buying a home to live in for the next 4 years or more, then this will not affect you. You will still retain your value and have a small increase in value over the next 4 years.
The one main factor we don't know about waiting to buy is the lenders. Right now they have tightened their belts. The guidelines to buy are a little tougher and with the exception of FHA, all loans start around 5% down or more. The interest rates are still right around 6%. Given all this info, we know what your home is going to cost you today. Fast forward a year or so and what do we know? Firstly, we don't know if the market is going to come down anymore...that's just speculation (which is why we are in this position in the first place) it may stay exactly where we are at. We also don't know what the interest rates and terms will be next year. Today we know these factors and these factors are telling us it's a great time to buy!
Hopefully I have answered some of your questions in this blog about our market. If you have any other questions, please don't hesitate to contact me as I am always here to help.
Have a great Sunday!
Mitch
It's been a while since I posted stats. Below are the stats from the first of year (Jan 1 2008) to today May 18, 2008. If you have any questions about these stats, please don't hesitate to contact me at mitch@mitchrealty.com.
Brevard County Resale Stats Single Family - Average Active Listings Per Month - 7127
January - 253 Sold
February - 340 Sold
March - 417 Sold
April - 451 Sold
May (Through May 17) - 157 Sold
Brevard County Resale Stats - Condo/Townhomes - Average Active Listings Per Month - 2585
January - 68 Sold
February - 104 Sold
March - 97 Sold
April - 111 Sold
May (Through May 17) - 50 Sold
Brevard County Resale Stats - Land - Average Active Listings Per Month - 3529
January - 36 Sold
February - 48 Sold
March - 71 Sold
April - 51 Sold
May (Through May 17) - 16 Sold
These are pretty amazing numbers don't ya think? I think so! What does it tells us? Not much actually except that sales are still very slow and if you are thinking about selling your home, you better be "in" the market versus "on" the market.
However if you are a buyer... let the fun begin! With so few homes selling, terms and prices are negotiable. It's a great time to buy for the first time home buyer, for relocations, and for investors. In fact, I played golf the other day with an investor friend of mine and he bought 8 homes in the past 2 weeks. He told me that he isn't going to wait for the media to tell him it's the right time to buy, just look at the numbers he says!
Yes, the numbers say that selling your home is a bad idea. It is truly a buyers market. This is great for all of our buyers who have been waiting to buy. It's very true that we never know when the market reaches the true bottom, because at that point, we are already on the way back up. Right now, according to most of the professionals that I speak with, we believe we are at the bottom. Does that mean that some homes are still over priced? Of course it does. Do you remember three years ago you couldn't buy a brand new home in Palm Bay for under $200k? I do, currently there are 92 Brand New Homes in Palm Bay under $200k. You heard me right, you can buy a brand new home in Palm Bay for under $200k. In fact, 22 of those brand new homes you can buy for under $150k. Yes, it's a great time to be a buyer.
So what's the key here? The key firstly is not to miss the boat. If you are going to wait until the media tells you it's a great time to buy, then chances are you will miss the boat. Let's look at the worst case scenario in my opinion. Worst case is the market comes down another 5%...let's even say 10% which I very much doubt. That means a $200k home will be valued at $180 when the market hits bottom. (Even the media is predicting some time next year). If you are buying a home to live in for the next 4 years or more, then this will not affect you. You will still retain your value and have a small increase in value over the next 4 years.
The one main factor we don't know about waiting to buy is the lenders. Right now they have tightened their belts. The guidelines to buy are a little tougher and with the exception of FHA, all loans start around 5% down or more. The interest rates are still right around 6%. Given all this info, we know what your home is going to cost you today. Fast forward a year or so and what do we know? Firstly, we don't know if the market is going to come down anymore...that's just speculation (which is why we are in this position in the first place) it may stay exactly where we are at. We also don't know what the interest rates and terms will be next year. Today we know these factors and these factors are telling us it's a great time to buy!
Hopefully I have answered some of your questions in this blog about our market. If you have any other questions, please don't hesitate to contact me as I am always here to help.
Have a great Sunday!
Mitch
Monday, May 12, 2008
Are we at the bottom?
Hi Everyone!
Are you thinking about buying?
So here we are, mid May 2008 and we are hearing rumblings saying that we are at the bottom! I think I'm starting to believe it too. To me one of the big signs that the market is starting to turn is the amount of offers on contracts. More and more these days we are seeing multiple offers on many properties. Ok, now those properties are listed below everyone else in the market, but they are selling and lots of buyers want them!
So what does it mean to you? I don't know! If you have been waiting for the bottom, this may be it. This may be the best possible time to ever buy a home again. I do know that Interest rates are still hovering around 6%. How do you know if you are buying at the bottom? You don't! Well you do actually, it's when the market is going back up. Yes, the only time you can be for sure that we are at the bottom, it will be to late because we will be on the way up. They say that you never really buy at the bottom. You either buy on the way down or on the way up.
Here is the reality. If you are looking to buy a home that you plan on living in for an extended time period (more than 5 years), then we are close enough to the bottom that it shouldn't matter. If you are looking for investment, there are tons of homes that are great prices and won't last long! Either way, this is a great time to buy a home and actually if you need to sell, price it right and it will sell!
Do you need to sell?
Right now there are only two aspects of selling a home. First and foremost is price. Second is exposure. If you are listings your home, price it right and make sure that your Agent (Hopefully a Tropical Realty Agent), is using the best tools available to market. If your Agent isn't using the Internet in a big way, you are not getting maximum exposure. A well marketed website is going to get your home exposed more than anything. We tell all our customers to price their home at least 5% lower than the competition. Of course many don't want to hear that, but then they can't really want to sell their homes.
I do want to spend a second talking about price. For each month that your home is on the market, it becomes more difficult to sell. Therefore if you price your home to high to begin with, it may not receive any traffic from potential buyers and you will waste valuable time. If your Realtor shows you comps that your home is worth $200k and you need to sell it, don't tell your Agent that it's worth $240k. It's not. In fact, if your Realtor says $200k, you should list for $190k. As I said, we suggest 5% below the market.
We are averaging less than 5% of the single family homes on the market selling per month and even less condos selling. The ones that sell are "IN" the market. The ones that don't are "ON" the market. If you are going to sell your home, it's imperative that you are "IN" the market. Don't fool yourself that your home is so much better than your neighbor who sold his house in 2005 for $295,000. That was then...this is now. I don't like being so blunt, but I have found that their really isn't any other way to be when talking with our customers. Fortunately I"m not a Broker that is willing to inflate the price to you so we can get your listing and then have it sit there without any action. Thirty to forty-five days later that Realtor is going to be asking you to reduce your price if you want to sell. That's the most important selling days you have just thrown away. Price it right to start and sell it quickly!
That's it for now. As always, if you need anything please let us know. Have a great week!
Mitch
Are you thinking about buying?
So here we are, mid May 2008 and we are hearing rumblings saying that we are at the bottom! I think I'm starting to believe it too. To me one of the big signs that the market is starting to turn is the amount of offers on contracts. More and more these days we are seeing multiple offers on many properties. Ok, now those properties are listed below everyone else in the market, but they are selling and lots of buyers want them!
So what does it mean to you? I don't know! If you have been waiting for the bottom, this may be it. This may be the best possible time to ever buy a home again. I do know that Interest rates are still hovering around 6%. How do you know if you are buying at the bottom? You don't! Well you do actually, it's when the market is going back up. Yes, the only time you can be for sure that we are at the bottom, it will be to late because we will be on the way up. They say that you never really buy at the bottom. You either buy on the way down or on the way up.
Here is the reality. If you are looking to buy a home that you plan on living in for an extended time period (more than 5 years), then we are close enough to the bottom that it shouldn't matter. If you are looking for investment, there are tons of homes that are great prices and won't last long! Either way, this is a great time to buy a home and actually if you need to sell, price it right and it will sell!
Do you need to sell?
Right now there are only two aspects of selling a home. First and foremost is price. Second is exposure. If you are listings your home, price it right and make sure that your Agent (Hopefully a Tropical Realty Agent), is using the best tools available to market. If your Agent isn't using the Internet in a big way, you are not getting maximum exposure. A well marketed website is going to get your home exposed more than anything. We tell all our customers to price their home at least 5% lower than the competition. Of course many don't want to hear that, but then they can't really want to sell their homes.
I do want to spend a second talking about price. For each month that your home is on the market, it becomes more difficult to sell. Therefore if you price your home to high to begin with, it may not receive any traffic from potential buyers and you will waste valuable time. If your Realtor shows you comps that your home is worth $200k and you need to sell it, don't tell your Agent that it's worth $240k. It's not. In fact, if your Realtor says $200k, you should list for $190k. As I said, we suggest 5% below the market.
We are averaging less than 5% of the single family homes on the market selling per month and even less condos selling. The ones that sell are "IN" the market. The ones that don't are "ON" the market. If you are going to sell your home, it's imperative that you are "IN" the market. Don't fool yourself that your home is so much better than your neighbor who sold his house in 2005 for $295,000. That was then...this is now. I don't like being so blunt, but I have found that their really isn't any other way to be when talking with our customers. Fortunately I"m not a Broker that is willing to inflate the price to you so we can get your listing and then have it sit there without any action. Thirty to forty-five days later that Realtor is going to be asking you to reduce your price if you want to sell. That's the most important selling days you have just thrown away. Price it right to start and sell it quickly!
That's it for now. As always, if you need anything please let us know. Have a great week!
Mitch
Monday, April 28, 2008
Another Successful Tropical Realty Charity Golf Tournament!
Hi Everyone!
Sorry I haven't been writing lately as things have been extremely busy at the office and in putting on our 4th annual Charity Golf Tournament. First the tournament:
Every year we seem to get a little better at running these tournaments. This year was very smooth and we had so much fun. We will have pictures on the site shortly from the tournament.
As you may or may not know, this year our tournament is supporting Sturge-Weber Syndrome (SWS). SWS is a very rare disease that can be noticed by the port wine stain on its victims. Unfortunately, my granddaughter, Lola, is one of its victims. In very rare cases, the stain gets into the brain and begins to calcify. At that point, the child will develop seizures (Lola has had two in her two years of life) and possibly learning disabilities, mental retardation, stroke and possibly death. The hardest part for my family is the fact that there is no diagnosis. There is no way to know what and when this will attack Lola.
We have been blessed that so far Lola's two seizures were not damaging at all. She is and will always be on anti seizure medicine twice a day, every day. We pray daily as do many of our friends that when she does have another seizure, it's not her last.
So the tournament this year is very personal to me. Lola is the light of my life and is always smiling and laughing. She is great! Our tournament this year had a record 112 players from all over the area and even my closest friend of 40 years from Boston. Everyone had a great time and everyone was very generous. We haven't figured out the totals yet but we are sure that we are around $11,000 in donations. My wife has also raised an additional $2,000 or so. Lola spent her day running around the golf course smiling and laughing and warming the hearts of everyone there. It's hard to believe when looking at her that there is anything wrong with her. She is the perfect two year old!
Business
Business has been great! Buyers are finally realizing that this IS the best time to buy a home. The prices are amazing. I just sold a home to one of my long time customers that would have been over $500k two years ago for $325k. It's an amazing house at an amazing price. There are so many opportunities for the buyer. Of course that is one of the downfalls for us too. There are so many great deals out there right that everyone is having a hard time making decisions on which great house to buy!
Are we at the bottom? I believe so, but you know that it's impossible to know until we start going up. At that point you have missed the bottom. That is why I tell everyone that if you wait to see where the bottom is, you will have missed the bottom. The only thing I know for sure is, right now you can buy a home with a 6% mortgage. If you wait until homes appear to be at the bottom, usually on the way up, we don't know what the mortgage rate is going to be.
If you have been on the fence, this is the time! If you have wanted to invest in real estate, this is the time! If you are thinking about buying your first home, this is the time! If you are moving to Florida to retire, this is the time! If you are looking for a vacation home, this is the time. Finally, if you are thinking about a condo, it's even better...this is the time!
From time to time I like to tell you a little about my thoughts in business. It is amazing to me that most Real Estate Brokers are not really business people. They were great at selling houses, but selling homes and running a company with employees, mass marketing and Agents is not the same. For that reason I will be starting a new company called eHomes Realty. Originally I was going to use this company to franchise my Real Estate company. After a lot of thinking and talking to advisers, I have decided to create a membership company that will allow independent Brokerages who are not affiliated with a franchise to reap some of the franchise benefits. So far the response from chatting with people has been great.
As with everything I do, by building this company will allow our customers to have a better opportunity to seek out Real Estate in different areas. Currently we have a good amount Brokerages to help our customers that would like to live out of the area. eHomes Realty will expand our network of reputable Agents that we would feel comfortable allowing our customers to use.
I'll keep you posted on the new business as I get closer to launch date. The beauty of it, is that it will be almost all online and can grow online. I will also be appointing one of my experienced Agents to be my team leader and assist me in managing the staff while I am out of town on my business travels. One thing for sure you can know is my Real Estate customers will always be my main priority and their success in finding or selling their home will be my first and foremost goal!
That's it for tonight. I'll try to write more but you know how life gets in the way!
Have a great day and take care!
Mitch
Sorry I haven't been writing lately as things have been extremely busy at the office and in putting on our 4th annual Charity Golf Tournament. First the tournament:
Every year we seem to get a little better at running these tournaments. This year was very smooth and we had so much fun. We will have pictures on the site shortly from the tournament.
As you may or may not know, this year our tournament is supporting Sturge-Weber Syndrome (SWS). SWS is a very rare disease that can be noticed by the port wine stain on its victims. Unfortunately, my granddaughter, Lola, is one of its victims. In very rare cases, the stain gets into the brain and begins to calcify. At that point, the child will develop seizures (Lola has had two in her two years of life) and possibly learning disabilities, mental retardation, stroke and possibly death. The hardest part for my family is the fact that there is no diagnosis. There is no way to know what and when this will attack Lola.
We have been blessed that so far Lola's two seizures were not damaging at all. She is and will always be on anti seizure medicine twice a day, every day. We pray daily as do many of our friends that when she does have another seizure, it's not her last.
So the tournament this year is very personal to me. Lola is the light of my life and is always smiling and laughing. She is great! Our tournament this year had a record 112 players from all over the area and even my closest friend of 40 years from Boston. Everyone had a great time and everyone was very generous. We haven't figured out the totals yet but we are sure that we are around $11,000 in donations. My wife has also raised an additional $2,000 or so. Lola spent her day running around the golf course smiling and laughing and warming the hearts of everyone there. It's hard to believe when looking at her that there is anything wrong with her. She is the perfect two year old!
Business
Business has been great! Buyers are finally realizing that this IS the best time to buy a home. The prices are amazing. I just sold a home to one of my long time customers that would have been over $500k two years ago for $325k. It's an amazing house at an amazing price. There are so many opportunities for the buyer. Of course that is one of the downfalls for us too. There are so many great deals out there right that everyone is having a hard time making decisions on which great house to buy!
Are we at the bottom? I believe so, but you know that it's impossible to know until we start going up. At that point you have missed the bottom. That is why I tell everyone that if you wait to see where the bottom is, you will have missed the bottom. The only thing I know for sure is, right now you can buy a home with a 6% mortgage. If you wait until homes appear to be at the bottom, usually on the way up, we don't know what the mortgage rate is going to be.
If you have been on the fence, this is the time! If you have wanted to invest in real estate, this is the time! If you are thinking about buying your first home, this is the time! If you are moving to Florida to retire, this is the time! If you are looking for a vacation home, this is the time. Finally, if you are thinking about a condo, it's even better...this is the time!
From time to time I like to tell you a little about my thoughts in business. It is amazing to me that most Real Estate Brokers are not really business people. They were great at selling houses, but selling homes and running a company with employees, mass marketing and Agents is not the same. For that reason I will be starting a new company called eHomes Realty. Originally I was going to use this company to franchise my Real Estate company. After a lot of thinking and talking to advisers, I have decided to create a membership company that will allow independent Brokerages who are not affiliated with a franchise to reap some of the franchise benefits. So far the response from chatting with people has been great.
As with everything I do, by building this company will allow our customers to have a better opportunity to seek out Real Estate in different areas. Currently we have a good amount Brokerages to help our customers that would like to live out of the area. eHomes Realty will expand our network of reputable Agents that we would feel comfortable allowing our customers to use.
I'll keep you posted on the new business as I get closer to launch date. The beauty of it, is that it will be almost all online and can grow online. I will also be appointing one of my experienced Agents to be my team leader and assist me in managing the staff while I am out of town on my business travels. One thing for sure you can know is my Real Estate customers will always be my main priority and their success in finding or selling their home will be my first and foremost goal!
That's it for tonight. I'll try to write more but you know how life gets in the way!
Have a great day and take care!
Mitch
Sunday, April 6, 2008
Golf Tournament and a Great Conversation I had with a customer
Hi Everyone!
We are a few weeks away from our Golf Tournament so if you are going to play please call Debbie at 321-749-7786. We are on pace to have our largest tournament yet and I can't thank all of you enough for signing up this year. My granddaughter will be at the tournament so you will be able to see why you are actually playing golf on April 26th.
So I had a great conversation the other day. One of the most frustrating part of being in Real Estate is the fact that some people think that we work as hard as we do just for fun. Don't get me wrong. We do have a lot of fun and probably more fun than most. If you remember in one of my past blogs, when I hire Agents one of my rules is they must be fun! However, this business is very hard and sometimes grueling. We shoulder most of the stress of the transaction so the consumer can have a smooth and painless transaction. If people actually knew how many times we saved their opportunity to buy a new home they would be amazed. As I was saying, one of the most frustrating things about being in Real Estate is that some consumers have no loyalty and don't think what we do is work. Let me say again, it's some of our customers. The majority of our customers are very respectful and loyal to us.
The other day I was talking with one of our customers. He is working with Charlie and he wanted to let me know that Charlie is doing a great job for him. He also let me know that he went to a builder that morning without Charlie. As soon as we hear that, our hearts usually sink. Many times our Realtors will show a customer multitudes of homes only to have the customer call us (sometimes they call) to let us know they either went to an open house, called a listing sign, stopped by a FSBO or dropped in on a builder and bought a home. This happens all the time and it's very tough on our Agent who has put so much work into helping the customer find and buy a home. All of the sudden, we are out of the transaction and our relationship ends. Of course the customer expects us to be very happy about this. We do put on the "that's great!" face but inside the Agent is struggling with what they may have done wrong do be so disrespected by the customer. If you put yourself in the Agents shoes, I'm sure you can appreciate the pain. Not to mention the cost it takes these days to drive people all around our county at $3.30 per gallon!
Ok, let's get back to the great conversation. Charlies customer went to a builder and before he even talked about buying their home, he let them know that he has a Realtor and he was not prepared to cut Charlie out of the deal. The builder was very happy to include Charlie which they all do. As with all builders, the Realtor commission or marketing fee as they may call it, is already built into the price. There are no special deals if you don't use a Realtor. In reality, most people who bypass their Realtor thinking they will get a better deal never do, they actually pay more for the home than if they were with their Realtor. Remember that the employee at the builder is legally bound to work in the Builders best interest and is legally not allowed to represent you at all in the transaction. There is nobody on your side when you don't use your Realtor. While talking to Charlies customer he told me how hard Charlie has worked for him and that they had been in touch for many months prior to them coming down to buy a home. He would have felt terrible having Charlie do all the work he has done and not get paid for all his efforts. It was very refreshing to hear. After all, when you cut your Realtor out of a the transaction they do not get paid for any of the job they had done for you. It's very disheartening when this happens. However, when I talk to people like Charlie's customer, it makes me feel good that someone respects and understands the amount of work we do for our customers. Can you imagine working 40 hours at your job and your boss decided to give your check to someone else?
In closing, our Realtors are going to give you 150% effort in buying or selling your home. We all work extremely long hours and are accessible to you any time and day of the week. All we ask from our customers is the same respect and loyalty that they expect from us.
As always, I'm here to help you in any way I can. If you live in Brevard County or are going to be in the area on April 26th, please give us a call about playing in the golf tournament. If you don't play, please pass the info along to someone you know that plays.
Take care and have a great night!
Mitch
We are a few weeks away from our Golf Tournament so if you are going to play please call Debbie at 321-749-7786. We are on pace to have our largest tournament yet and I can't thank all of you enough for signing up this year. My granddaughter will be at the tournament so you will be able to see why you are actually playing golf on April 26th.
So I had a great conversation the other day. One of the most frustrating part of being in Real Estate is the fact that some people think that we work as hard as we do just for fun. Don't get me wrong. We do have a lot of fun and probably more fun than most. If you remember in one of my past blogs, when I hire Agents one of my rules is they must be fun! However, this business is very hard and sometimes grueling. We shoulder most of the stress of the transaction so the consumer can have a smooth and painless transaction. If people actually knew how many times we saved their opportunity to buy a new home they would be amazed. As I was saying, one of the most frustrating things about being in Real Estate is that some consumers have no loyalty and don't think what we do is work. Let me say again, it's some of our customers. The majority of our customers are very respectful and loyal to us.
The other day I was talking with one of our customers. He is working with Charlie and he wanted to let me know that Charlie is doing a great job for him. He also let me know that he went to a builder that morning without Charlie. As soon as we hear that, our hearts usually sink. Many times our Realtors will show a customer multitudes of homes only to have the customer call us (sometimes they call) to let us know they either went to an open house, called a listing sign, stopped by a FSBO or dropped in on a builder and bought a home. This happens all the time and it's very tough on our Agent who has put so much work into helping the customer find and buy a home. All of the sudden, we are out of the transaction and our relationship ends. Of course the customer expects us to be very happy about this. We do put on the "that's great!" face but inside the Agent is struggling with what they may have done wrong do be so disrespected by the customer. If you put yourself in the Agents shoes, I'm sure you can appreciate the pain. Not to mention the cost it takes these days to drive people all around our county at $3.30 per gallon!
Ok, let's get back to the great conversation. Charlies customer went to a builder and before he even talked about buying their home, he let them know that he has a Realtor and he was not prepared to cut Charlie out of the deal. The builder was very happy to include Charlie which they all do. As with all builders, the Realtor commission or marketing fee as they may call it, is already built into the price. There are no special deals if you don't use a Realtor. In reality, most people who bypass their Realtor thinking they will get a better deal never do, they actually pay more for the home than if they were with their Realtor. Remember that the employee at the builder is legally bound to work in the Builders best interest and is legally not allowed to represent you at all in the transaction. There is nobody on your side when you don't use your Realtor. While talking to Charlies customer he told me how hard Charlie has worked for him and that they had been in touch for many months prior to them coming down to buy a home. He would have felt terrible having Charlie do all the work he has done and not get paid for all his efforts. It was very refreshing to hear. After all, when you cut your Realtor out of a the transaction they do not get paid for any of the job they had done for you. It's very disheartening when this happens. However, when I talk to people like Charlie's customer, it makes me feel good that someone respects and understands the amount of work we do for our customers. Can you imagine working 40 hours at your job and your boss decided to give your check to someone else?
In closing, our Realtors are going to give you 150% effort in buying or selling your home. We all work extremely long hours and are accessible to you any time and day of the week. All we ask from our customers is the same respect and loyalty that they expect from us.
As always, I'm here to help you in any way I can. If you live in Brevard County or are going to be in the area on April 26th, please give us a call about playing in the golf tournament. If you don't play, please pass the info along to someone you know that plays.
Take care and have a great night!
Mitch
Monday, March 17, 2008
It's that Time! Tropical Realty Annual Charity Golf Tournament
Hi Everyone!
So for all of you that know me, you know that I run my business on my sleeve. What do I mean by that? I'm a pretty emotional guy that likes to have fun and help people. If I accomplish both those things, then I feel that life is pretty good. It's basically my definition of success!
Every year we have had the pleasure of running our annual charity golf tournament. The response we get is always exceptional and the support of our sponsors is excellent. The past three years we have raised approximately $30,000 for MS.
This year we are supporting a charity that is very close to my heart. My two year old granddaughter has been diagnosed with a very rare disease called Sturge-Weber. The most notable sign of Sturge-Weber is a Port Wine stain on the child's head and face. In very rare cases, 1 out of 20,000, this stain results in Sturge-Weber.
Sturge-Weber can be devastating. In most cases it causes learning disabilities and a lifetime of seizures. In some cases it can cause mental retardation, paralysis and even death. The hardest part for the family is that there is no way to know what is going to happen in the future. We had thought after we got through Lola's first birthday that we had a good chance of dodging the bullet. Unfortunately a few days after her first birthday she had her first seizure. It was extremely tough to see. This past Christmas she had her second seizure while out with her mom and dad looking at Christmas lights. She is currently on anti-seizure medication, twice a day, and will be for life. Luckily neither seizure brought on any permanent damage. We are hoping, because her birthday is today, St. Patricks Day, she has a little luck of the Irish!
This year our tournament is on April 26th at Savannahs Golf Club in North Merritt Island. Our goal is to sell out at 144 players. Our average has been around 120 players so this year I'm looking to raise a little more cash. For more information, go to: http://melbournehomesearch.com/index.cfm/Charity_Golf_Tournament
All the proceeds will go for research on Sturge-Weber. The top researcher in the country, Dr. Comi, has been a great resource and we want to do all we can to help her efforts. She is the specialist we use for Lola and she is always there when we need her. As you can see, we love her!
Thank you as always for reading my blog. I really appreciate all the support our customers and friends have given both professionally and personally. You guys are great!
Have a great week!
Mitch
So for all of you that know me, you know that I run my business on my sleeve. What do I mean by that? I'm a pretty emotional guy that likes to have fun and help people. If I accomplish both those things, then I feel that life is pretty good. It's basically my definition of success!
Every year we have had the pleasure of running our annual charity golf tournament. The response we get is always exceptional and the support of our sponsors is excellent. The past three years we have raised approximately $30,000 for MS.
This year we are supporting a charity that is very close to my heart. My two year old granddaughter has been diagnosed with a very rare disease called Sturge-Weber. The most notable sign of Sturge-Weber is a Port Wine stain on the child's head and face. In very rare cases, 1 out of 20,000, this stain results in Sturge-Weber.
Sturge-Weber can be devastating. In most cases it causes learning disabilities and a lifetime of seizures. In some cases it can cause mental retardation, paralysis and even death. The hardest part for the family is that there is no way to know what is going to happen in the future. We had thought after we got through Lola's first birthday that we had a good chance of dodging the bullet. Unfortunately a few days after her first birthday she had her first seizure. It was extremely tough to see. This past Christmas she had her second seizure while out with her mom and dad looking at Christmas lights. She is currently on anti-seizure medication, twice a day, and will be for life. Luckily neither seizure brought on any permanent damage. We are hoping, because her birthday is today, St. Patricks Day, she has a little luck of the Irish!
This year our tournament is on April 26th at Savannahs Golf Club in North Merritt Island. Our goal is to sell out at 144 players. Our average has been around 120 players so this year I'm looking to raise a little more cash. For more information, go to: http://melbournehomesearch.com/index.cfm/Charity_Golf_Tournament
All the proceeds will go for research on Sturge-Weber. The top researcher in the country, Dr. Comi, has been a great resource and we want to do all we can to help her efforts. She is the specialist we use for Lola and she is always there when we need her. As you can see, we love her!
Thank you as always for reading my blog. I really appreciate all the support our customers and friends have given both professionally and personally. You guys are great!
Have a great week!
Mitch
Thursday, March 13, 2008
More on Short Sales!
Hi Everyone!
Well the short sale market is in session and there are a lot of buyers getting very frustrated. It seems no matter what I say, people are still listening to the media telling them to buy foreclosures or shortsales.
My goal is not to tell you to avoid shortsales like the plague, but to make sure you understand the negatives to the short sale.
First, based on last month sales, short sales are only about 3%-5% lower than regular sales. They are not really much of a bargain. Basically they are selling at market rate. Based on the amount of time involved and the frustration, that savings can quickly be lost.
So why am I so down on Short Sales. The biggest issue is that they are an unknown. I will point out the issues below:
1. In most cases the soonest you will hear if your offer was accepted is 45 days or more.
2. The listing price has nothing to do with the actual price that the bank will accept. The bank does not give Realtors a price that they will accept when the Realtor accepts the listing. The Bank will not give out a price until they have received offers.
3. Many people are offering the bank much lower than the listed price. The reality is, the bank will be selling that home at very close to market rate. They will do an appraisal on the property prior to accepting any offer.
4. While you are waiting for an answer on your offer, the listing remains active and the bank is usually receiving multiple offers.
5. When the bank finally does come back with an answer, there usually is no chance for a counter offer, they usually accept the best offer. (that is if any are acceptable at all)
6. The bank will usually turn down most offers that are asking them to pay anything toward closing costs.
7. The bank will usually not do any repairs on the property...they are mostly "as is" contracts.
8. The bank still may require the seller to sign a promissory note to pay the difference. So after all this time and even potentially at the closing table (read last months blog), the seller walked away from the deal and it fell apart after almost 6 months.
I don't know about you, but this is no way to buy a home!
Before I run off to a Real Estate Board of Directors meeting, I wanted to share a short sale experience from the selling side. An Agent in the office recently took a short sale listing. We talked with the bank and submitted all the sellers paperwork to the lender and then we waited. After a week and a half we finally got hold of someone at the bank and they told us it would be at least another month before it was assigned to a loan negotiator. Once assigned, it would most likely be another month or so before we are contacted by that loan negotiator. They also threw in that if we didn't answer the phone when they called, it could be another month before they got back to us. We are not allowed to contact the loan negotiator. By the way, this is just to see if the bank will accept the sellers request to do a short sale. Meanwhile, the property is listed and when we get offers, the buyers will be waiting several months to see if they will accept the seller doing a short sale, and then the buyers offer.
Point of this story. Short sales aren't just bad for buyers, they are also quite the pain for the seller. Ok, I have to run but please remember this information when you are out with your Realtor. Be prepared for the long haul if you want to buy a home through short sale. I have seen so many buyers get emotionally beat up over these things and I really feel bad, but there isn't anything I can do if you don't listen to me.
As always, if there is anything I can do for you, please don't hesitate to call or email me. My email is mitch@mitchrealty.com.
Have a great day!
Mitch
Well the short sale market is in session and there are a lot of buyers getting very frustrated. It seems no matter what I say, people are still listening to the media telling them to buy foreclosures or shortsales.
My goal is not to tell you to avoid shortsales like the plague, but to make sure you understand the negatives to the short sale.
First, based on last month sales, short sales are only about 3%-5% lower than regular sales. They are not really much of a bargain. Basically they are selling at market rate. Based on the amount of time involved and the frustration, that savings can quickly be lost.
So why am I so down on Short Sales. The biggest issue is that they are an unknown. I will point out the issues below:
1. In most cases the soonest you will hear if your offer was accepted is 45 days or more.
2. The listing price has nothing to do with the actual price that the bank will accept. The bank does not give Realtors a price that they will accept when the Realtor accepts the listing. The Bank will not give out a price until they have received offers.
3. Many people are offering the bank much lower than the listed price. The reality is, the bank will be selling that home at very close to market rate. They will do an appraisal on the property prior to accepting any offer.
4. While you are waiting for an answer on your offer, the listing remains active and the bank is usually receiving multiple offers.
5. When the bank finally does come back with an answer, there usually is no chance for a counter offer, they usually accept the best offer. (that is if any are acceptable at all)
6. The bank will usually turn down most offers that are asking them to pay anything toward closing costs.
7. The bank will usually not do any repairs on the property...they are mostly "as is" contracts.
8. The bank still may require the seller to sign a promissory note to pay the difference. So after all this time and even potentially at the closing table (read last months blog), the seller walked away from the deal and it fell apart after almost 6 months.
I don't know about you, but this is no way to buy a home!
Before I run off to a Real Estate Board of Directors meeting, I wanted to share a short sale experience from the selling side. An Agent in the office recently took a short sale listing. We talked with the bank and submitted all the sellers paperwork to the lender and then we waited. After a week and a half we finally got hold of someone at the bank and they told us it would be at least another month before it was assigned to a loan negotiator. Once assigned, it would most likely be another month or so before we are contacted by that loan negotiator. They also threw in that if we didn't answer the phone when they called, it could be another month before they got back to us. We are not allowed to contact the loan negotiator. By the way, this is just to see if the bank will accept the sellers request to do a short sale. Meanwhile, the property is listed and when we get offers, the buyers will be waiting several months to see if they will accept the seller doing a short sale, and then the buyers offer.
Point of this story. Short sales aren't just bad for buyers, they are also quite the pain for the seller. Ok, I have to run but please remember this information when you are out with your Realtor. Be prepared for the long haul if you want to buy a home through short sale. I have seen so many buyers get emotionally beat up over these things and I really feel bad, but there isn't anything I can do if you don't listen to me.
As always, if there is anything I can do for you, please don't hesitate to call or email me. My email is mitch@mitchrealty.com.
Have a great day!
Mitch
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