Showing posts with label fsbo. Show all posts
Showing posts with label fsbo. Show all posts

Sunday, December 17, 2006

A Little of This - A Little of That!

Housing costs have risen substantially within the last couple of years. Have wages increased as much? We know the answer there. Now, I'm not going to get on my soapbox. But, we continually each day lock more and more people out of the housing market. Condos are costing in the 100K's; a nice relatively reasonable 3/2 single-family home will run approximately the mid 200's. Enough of that, but it is something that we do have to keep in mind. We should never forget, because that only leads to possibly losing the lesson.

Real Estate has returned to what it was normally. The market is very healthy. We are very lucky in the Greater Orlando area, because we are a destination city. We are also the #2 city in the nation for Conventions, even knocking Chicago out of that position. But, there is a lot of competition out there. There are over 21,000 MLS listings available.

This is going to be a difficult time for For Sale By Owners, unless they are willing to wait, what I would think would be, quite a while. I've even noticed what seems to be more homes going into pre-foreclosure. The summer of '05 is no longer. I'm not saying this for doom & gloom. But this is reality.

In regard to pre-foreclosures, people should speak to their lenders before it is way too late. And by too late, I mean, when they are already starting the papers. It takes several months before a homeowner is served with a pre-foreclosure notice. If you are late, there are some lenders that will allow you to tack on those payments to the end of your loan period. Granted, this will definitely cost you, but what will losing your home cost you? There are also other ways, but you must speak with your lender. You have to understand that the lender does not really wish to own your property. They are not making money on it. They make money from the payments that you send in each month.

Anyway, enough for now. Call me & I'll be more than happy to discuss this and any other topics with you.

Until next time....Marc It Sold!

Friday, October 20, 2006

FSBO’s – Where are They Now?

Last year, 13% of all homes sold went the For Sale By Owner (FSBO) route, according to the National Association of Realtor’s 2005 Profile of Home Buyers and Sellers (www.realtor.org/Research.nsf/files/2005HBSonlineHighlights.pdf/$FILE/2005HBSonlineHighlights.pdf) That figure will show a drastic decline when the 2006 figures are published. FSBO’s work great when we are in a seller’s market – but that was so last year.

Most FSBO’s go that route because they wish to save on the commission (nowadays I require a 7% commission). But I must admit that my marketing, as a realtor®, has also had to be altered. I have to offer a lot more to my clients. But that is for another story.

Studies have shown that you can get more in less time utilizing a Realtor®. A recent NAR Profile of Home Buyers & Sellers study showed that a realtor® can get 16% more for a typical For Sale By Owner home. Everything else being equal & you just do the math, why would anyone want to go the FSBO route, if you figure that they will average at least 9% (16 – 7) more utilizing a realtor®? I just don’t understand the logic; but then again, I think that too many people do not look at the whole picture & just one little aspect of it. So, who’s kidding whom?

Last year, you could put a sign in your yard & your home would sell within a reasonable amount of time. Nowadays, you need a proven marketing plan. And, utilizing a discount realtor®, who will typically just charge you a fee for putting your home in the local MLS (Multiple Listing Service) is not considered a ‘proven marketing plan’, nor should you expect your home to sell too quickly.

Presently in the Greater Orlando area, there are over 16K homes for sale and that’s just in two counties – Orange & Seminole. How can someone think that by just putting a sign in their yard that they are going to garner the attention necessary to sell their home with that much competition? And that does not even include a lot of the homes offered by new home builders that are not listed in the MLS.

A good marketing plan has many different aspects to it & includes advertising in different media. Even a realtor® who just puts a sign in the yard & places the listing in the MLS is not doing enough. You need to show Price & Value to sell a home these days. It’s not difficult, but you have to prove it & not just once. Because for a home to sell, it must first be sold to the selling realtor® before it can be sold to the buyer.

Leaving this all aside, there are still many reasons not to go the FSBO route.

Pricing your property to sell involves more than just comparing it with other houses that have recently sold. The uniqueness of each property and its own values are based on location, condition, financing, amenities and other market factors.¨

Advertising can be very expensive, especially if you continue for a sustained period of time. Additionally, your Realtor can market your home utilizing avenues that are not available to you; including, but not limited to, the Multiple Listing Service.

When prospects inquire about your property and you are tempted to enter into a purchase agreement, how can you protect yourself from non-productive involvement? A Realtor should pre-qualify prospects bringing you Qualified Buyers.

Are you willing to admit Strangers to your home? Accepting unescorted strangers can play havoc with your family life. A Realtor using an Electronic Lockbox can identify the realtor who brought prospects into your home and when.

Selling your home can be a time-consuming assignment. You are literally married to the property and the inconvenience can be overwhelming. You have stay close to the property or you may miss the one buyer you’re seeking.

Financing is very frequently the key to a successful housing transaction. Buyers without the right advice and information may not see their way clear to buy your home. Your Realtor is able to help your buyer structure the right financing to meet his objective and yours.

How do you solve prospect problems? Your best buyer may well be someone who already owns a home, and whose decision to buy another property is premised on selling their present one. Your Realtor can sometimes arrange interim financing or a guaranteed sales agreement executed on the existing property.

It is difficult to Negotiate your own position. A Realtor should be prepared to counsel both yourself and the potential buyer, so the differences can be bridged and a transaction successfully consummated.

Once you’ve agreed to sell, there’s the matter of clearing title, obtaining financing, arranging insurance, working with lawyers and other agencies. You can avoid costly mistakes by relying on professionals who control and safeguard your housing investment. Use a Realtor®.

Wednesday, July 5, 2006

Rates, FSBO's, Pre-foreclosure

It's been a while. There are several things that I wish to mention today. Firstly, I wish to apologize because we are still working on the links on our website. That problem will be remedied in the near future.

The Fed made another increase, as was expected. Of course, there are the concerns for inflation. Mortgage interests have been climbing. Presently, they are hovering around 7%. Yes, this is higher than we've been experiencing in the past several years. But, when you reflect upon it, you realize that this is not so bad. Eight years ago we were at this level and even 1% higher the previous year. And, who can forget the 80's. My Goodness!! So, when you put it into perspective, it's really a different story.

Now, granted, housing costs have risen substantially in that same period of time. Have wages increased as much? We know the answer there. Now, I'm not going to get on my soapbox. But, we continually each day lock more and more people out of the housing market. Condos are costing in the 100K's; a nice relatively reasonable 3/2 single-family home will run approximately the mid 200's.

Enough of that, but it is something that we do have to keep in mind. We should never forget, because that only leads to possibly losing the lesson.

Real Estate has returned to what it was normally. The market is very healthy. We are very lucky in the Greater Orlando area, because we are a destination city. We are also the #2 city in the nation for Conventions, even knocking Chicago out of that position.

But, there is a lot of competition out there. There are over 19,000 MLS listings available. This is going to be a difficult time for For Sale By Owners, unless they are willing to wait, what I would think would be, quite a while.

I’ve even noticed what seems to be more homes going into pre-foreclosure. The summer of ’05 is no longer. I’m not saying this for doom & gloom. But this is reality. In regard to pre-foreclosures, people should speak to their lenders before it is way too late. And by too late, I mean, when they are already starting the papers. It takes several months before a homeowner is served with a pre-foreclosure notice. If you are late with your payments, there are some lenders that will allow you to tack those onto the end of your loan period. Granted, this will definitely cost you, but what will losing your home cost you?

There are also other ways, but you must speak with your lender. You have to understand that the lender does not really wish to own your property. They are not making money on it. They make money from the payments that you send in each month. Anyway, enough for now.

Call me & I’ll be more than happy to discuss this and any other topics with you.

Until next time….Marc It Sold!