This may sound like a dumb question. However; a closing I had the other day made me realize the perception some people have of Realtors. Yes, our first priority is to locate homes for our buyer clients and take them out and show them homes that fit their needs, wants and budget. Then we educate the buyer of the current market sales and conditions in that area and help them to come up with a fair market price for the home and negotiate appropiately. Once an agreement is reached though is our job done?
I had a first time buyer that I went through all of the above steps with. They signed all the final papers agreeing to the sale price and other contingencies and said to me "well I guess your job is done now." But in reality that is only where our job begins. From there I gave her a list of three home inspectors to use. She called them and decided onw hich one was best for her. Scheduled an appointment to have the home inspection. I attended the home inspection with her and spent the three plus hours with her as the inspector told us the things he found wrong with the house. We then negotiated together a repair request. I coordinated in getting the necessary repairs finished and making sure they were done to satisfaction.
Then it was off to the mortgage professional to ensure that all the necessary paperwork was in house and moving along as scheduled. Contacted the attorney to schedule a close date, and made sure the appraiser was able to get in to the house for her.
After all that was done and the numbers looked like they were going to work it was off to the closing. But, certain, unforseen hiccups occurred which delayed the closing. The seller abruptly passed away three days before closing. Back to work to help facilaitate a clean close on her new home with probabte. After two months and more hours than I care to count; finally got a closing scheduled. Sat in the room with her and made sure she understood everyhting she was signing.
Contacted her a few days later to see how the home was going and to congratualte her again on her new home. A small issue popped up with a plumbing leak. Gave her a few recommendations on a plumber and she got the issue fixed. Checked to make sure everything went smooth and again told her she needed anything to let me know. She thanked me again for helping her with her first purchase and said I misunderstood all that you do to help me purchase a house. I now have a better understanding and appreciation for you and your profession.
So, when does a realtor job end? it really never does.......
Dave diCecco
Realtor/Broker
www.davedicecco.com
Wednesday, October 20, 2010
Tuesday, October 19, 2010
Is Your Realtor Educating You On The Market?
Today we all wish we had a crystal ball that will allow us to forsee what the near future holds for home prices and mortgage rates. However; the reality is that noone can predict what will happen or not in this market right now. For every article out there that says prices are goign to get worse there is one that says we have hti bottom and are climbing upwards. For all thsoe that said interest rates would never be this low; we have interest rates around 4% for a 30 year fixed rate right now. So, is your realtor educating you in regards to the current market out there?
We can not predict what the future will hold. But, we can tell you the current trend that is happening right now in regards to your community and area. For sellers, it may be letting them know this is what the comparable homes in the area have done in the past 30 days. This is what has sold and what has come off the market. These are the average days on the market. Here is how your home compares to the statistics from last month. Do you need to adjust your price?
Does the home need soem sprucing with the colder weather approaching? Without giving this information to our sellers they cannot make a sound reasonable descsion when they do receive an offer on a home.
What if you had your home on the market for 90 days. When you first put it on the market it was priced cometitively to the other homes in the area. However; the market all of sudden received more comparable homes like yours and the prices were lower. Now, your realtor does not tell you this and you receive what you feel is a low offer. Thus you are upset and refuse to negotiate witht eh buyer on the house. When in reality that number may have been the right number to start at for your house and you were slightly over priced for the market and the current trends. Are you making an educated descsion?
For buyers, it is easy as letting them know the trends that are occuring in regards to prices in a neighborhood they are considering putting an offer in. Average days on the market and price sold of comparable homes. The trend over the past few months. Is it going up or down? Stable? These are all factors that a buyer needs to know in regards to making a fair sound educated offer. but are we giving our buyers this information?
How are mortgage rates right now? Is there down payment assisitance availble for you to purchase that house? Is there an HOA? What restrictions does it have? What are the dues and what do you receive for those dues? All questions that need an answer for a buyer to make an educated descsion. Does this house qualify fro USDA 100% financing ro are you a veteran entitled to a VA loan? these are questions that a buyer may not know to ask.
If your Realtor is not educating you; then who is?
Dave diCecco
Realtor/Broker
www.davedicecco.com
We can not predict what the future will hold. But, we can tell you the current trend that is happening right now in regards to your community and area. For sellers, it may be letting them know this is what the comparable homes in the area have done in the past 30 days. This is what has sold and what has come off the market. These are the average days on the market. Here is how your home compares to the statistics from last month. Do you need to adjust your price?
Does the home need soem sprucing with the colder weather approaching? Without giving this information to our sellers they cannot make a sound reasonable descsion when they do receive an offer on a home.
What if you had your home on the market for 90 days. When you first put it on the market it was priced cometitively to the other homes in the area. However; the market all of sudden received more comparable homes like yours and the prices were lower. Now, your realtor does not tell you this and you receive what you feel is a low offer. Thus you are upset and refuse to negotiate witht eh buyer on the house. When in reality that number may have been the right number to start at for your house and you were slightly over priced for the market and the current trends. Are you making an educated descsion?
For buyers, it is easy as letting them know the trends that are occuring in regards to prices in a neighborhood they are considering putting an offer in. Average days on the market and price sold of comparable homes. The trend over the past few months. Is it going up or down? Stable? These are all factors that a buyer needs to know in regards to making a fair sound educated offer. but are we giving our buyers this information?
How are mortgage rates right now? Is there down payment assisitance availble for you to purchase that house? Is there an HOA? What restrictions does it have? What are the dues and what do you receive for those dues? All questions that need an answer for a buyer to make an educated descsion. Does this house qualify fro USDA 100% financing ro are you a veteran entitled to a VA loan? these are questions that a buyer may not know to ask.
If your Realtor is not educating you; then who is?
Dave diCecco
Realtor/Broker
www.davedicecco.com
Monday, October 18, 2010
What To Look For In A Realtor
Everyone has different degrees of needs and desires. the same is true when it comes to searching for that Realtor who is going to help you buy, sell or both. But what do you look for when you are looking for a Realtor?
About half the people who use a Realtor; chose that Realtor because of previous experince with that person, knew that person, or was referred to them by someone who had a great experince with that person. But what about the other half of the people out there that sell or buy a home. What are they looking for in a Realtor?
I deal with a lot of people who either had a bad expericne with their past Realtor or found ones they felt did not care or wanted to work for them. So, I ask what do you look for in a Realtor? Honesty, hard working, knowing you are looking out for their best interests were the top traits that people responded told me. They wanted a Realtor who would be honest with them all the way through the process. They wanted a honest answer to a question. Not a politically correct answer or one they may wanted to hear.
Hard working should be an understood premise with a Realtor. But, due to economic times a lot of Realtors have gone to getting part time work to supplement their income to support their family. I have been fortunate enough to not have to do that. Thus, I give 100% of my time and effort to each and every client regardless of the price point. That hard work and devotion to my clients has paid me well in these tough economic times. The bottom line is we do not get paid if your home does not sell or we cannot find you the right house.
They want to know you are truly working for them. it may seem a little odd of a thing to say. Because of course we are working for our clients. But, in reality they want to know you are really working for them and looking out for their best interest. It could be as simple as explaining to them the sale price of their home woudl net them X amount of dollars versus telling them this is the price you need to sell your home at. I have run into some cases where Realtors have given clients an under valued market anaylsis on a home to get a listing and a quick sale. Are we working for ourt clients in that case? is it not our job to get them the most amount of money in the shortest period of time? sometimes the number they tell them they need to sell at leaves them with nothing to down to buy their next home. They may need a certain amount of money out of their home to move.
On the purchase end it could be continuing to look for and show them homes that meet their needs even though they say this is the one they want to buy. I always insist that my buyers look at three to five homes before they make a descsion. Even if the first house seems to be the one they want. You never know what you will find out there unless you look at them.
The market has changed and home owners and home buyers are unsure now more than ever. It is our job as Realtors to educate them and make sure they are making the most informed best descsion for themselves and their families. the only way we can do that is by being honest with them every step of the process,
working hard for them to sell their home or find a new home, and truly being concnerned for them...
Dave dicecco
Realtor/Broker
www.davedicecco.com
About half the people who use a Realtor; chose that Realtor because of previous experince with that person, knew that person, or was referred to them by someone who had a great experince with that person. But what about the other half of the people out there that sell or buy a home. What are they looking for in a Realtor?
I deal with a lot of people who either had a bad expericne with their past Realtor or found ones they felt did not care or wanted to work for them. So, I ask what do you look for in a Realtor? Honesty, hard working, knowing you are looking out for their best interests were the top traits that people responded told me. They wanted a Realtor who would be honest with them all the way through the process. They wanted a honest answer to a question. Not a politically correct answer or one they may wanted to hear.
Hard working should be an understood premise with a Realtor. But, due to economic times a lot of Realtors have gone to getting part time work to supplement their income to support their family. I have been fortunate enough to not have to do that. Thus, I give 100% of my time and effort to each and every client regardless of the price point. That hard work and devotion to my clients has paid me well in these tough economic times. The bottom line is we do not get paid if your home does not sell or we cannot find you the right house.
They want to know you are truly working for them. it may seem a little odd of a thing to say. Because of course we are working for our clients. But, in reality they want to know you are really working for them and looking out for their best interest. It could be as simple as explaining to them the sale price of their home woudl net them X amount of dollars versus telling them this is the price you need to sell your home at. I have run into some cases where Realtors have given clients an under valued market anaylsis on a home to get a listing and a quick sale. Are we working for ourt clients in that case? is it not our job to get them the most amount of money in the shortest period of time? sometimes the number they tell them they need to sell at leaves them with nothing to down to buy their next home. They may need a certain amount of money out of their home to move.
On the purchase end it could be continuing to look for and show them homes that meet their needs even though they say this is the one they want to buy. I always insist that my buyers look at three to five homes before they make a descsion. Even if the first house seems to be the one they want. You never know what you will find out there unless you look at them.
The market has changed and home owners and home buyers are unsure now more than ever. It is our job as Realtors to educate them and make sure they are making the most informed best descsion for themselves and their families. the only way we can do that is by being honest with them every step of the process,
working hard for them to sell their home or find a new home, and truly being concnerned for them...
Dave dicecco
Realtor/Broker
www.davedicecco.com
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