Now This is What I Call Service

I admit it. I have another career besides real estate. Yes I have been an airline pilot for 20 years. I have been in real estate for 6 years. This was a chance to combine the two and give incredible service to a client.

The night my clients were leaving for a two week vacation to England I received an offer on their home. Figures! They really wanted to enjoy their vacation and not endure the stress of constant emails, counteroffers, and the other joys of negotiating.

Instead I happened to be flying to London on a scheduled trip for the airline.

Contract in hand I boarded the "tube" (London subway), met my clients at their hotel, and proceeded to have dinner with them.

After finishing a wonderful Indian meal we pulled out the contracts and went to work.A couple of changes made, contracts signed, and I was on my way home.

I presented the contracts to the buyers agent upon my arrival home. It looked good

However...

My clients had made enough changes that the buyers changed their mind, terminated the contract, and started looking for other homes.

Next time I will ask Queen Elizabeth for her help...

I can honestly say one thing: You cannot offer better service then that!

Paint the Door

My wife does the marketing for The Wells Team. One of her "things" is to have the door painted on a home when we list it. I have to admit that I never thought it was a necessity in many cases but I have been proved wrong.

Our highest priced listing had a showing last week. This home has been upgraded inside and out and has captured a lot of serious inquiries.

However last week I received some feedback from a recent showing. The agent said that the door was in bad shape and appeared worn. It gave a bad initial impression and subsequently lost the interest of these potential buyers.

A small point but one that had big ramifications.

When buyers are looking at multiple homes in a day a good first impression is crucial.

Painting that door might help!

I Had to Stop the Bleeding

I have been "preaching" that at times you have to cut your losses and move on when it comes to real estate.

Unfortunately I had to listen to my own advice.

After meeting with my financial planner I decided that I had to take the hit and sell my condo in Florida. From an emotional standpoint it was very difficult, from a financial standpoint it was an even harder decision.

I will be going to closing with cash. That is a very tough pill to swallow.

However my financial planner showed me the situation from a different perspective. The condo would have to appreciate 6% a year just to cover the cost of running the property! That does not even include the property actually going up in value!

If you find yourself in a similar situation meet with a financial professional. Have them show you the numbers, and formulate a long term plan.

This is going to hurt in the short term but in three years I will be ahead of the game.

When Your Seller Tries to Sell Your Home

Quick True Story:The year was 1990, the location Southern New Jersey, I had to sell my home, and the real estate market was bad!

I received a call for a showing. I cleaned the home to the level of an operating room. I was ready. The agent showed with her buyers. They spent a little time walking around and were ready to leave. I met them out front of the home to give them my "sales pitch". I told them about the home and how the neighborhood was great for a family. My sales pitch was so good I could envision the offer.

The agent took me aside and made two comments: "Your home smells like Clorox and my clients do not have kids and are not interested in starting a family".

I was devastated. The next day the agent called me and bluntly asked me: "Do you want to sell your home. If so I can do it but I will do it my way". I mumbled yes ma'am, listed the home with her, and sold it a few months later for a slight loss.

That was 20 years ago.

My partner and I have been selling for 7 years now. We were #2 of 135 agents company wide for 2010. I can say with confidence that we know how to sell a home.

What I have learned from my clients about interaction with the actual sellers:

•Having the sellers in the home makes potential buyers very uncomfortable. They are hesitant to "dig" further into the home as they look. They spend less time because they feel that they are imposing.
•If the buyer wants to make an offer on a home they do not want to meet or see the seller. That adds personalities into the offer phase which makes buyers react differently.
•When a seller talks to the potential buyer at the end of looking at the home, the buyer again feels uncomfortable. Some tell me that the seller appears emotionally attached to the home and at times can appear desperate.
•The buyer has many homes to see that day. If the seller ties them up for an additional 30 minutes they fall behind schedule.
I realize that our sellers know everything about their home, the neighborhood, and the local area. However when The Wells Team list the home we also learn everything we can about the home also.

Our follow up with a potential buyers agent is always thorough. We take the time to point out the attributes to the buyers agent in order to foster interest.

Bottom Line: The home sells itself! If the potential buyer has interest then the agent will contact us. A "hard sell" from our sellers has not proved to be an advantage.

Home Warranties are Great but...

When other real estate companies need to cut back services because of the slow market, The Norton Agency is heading in the other direction.

One of the additional services we provide for our listing clients is a warranty from Old Republic Home Protection.

This warranty gives our home sellers a piece of mind during the listing period.

Barb and I usually negotiate a one year warranty when we assist in the purchase of a home for our clients.

We believe in them so much Barb and I have purchased ones for our own personal homes.

Recently I had to use my warranty when my hot water heater decided to move onto the next life. What I learned is that I need to thoroughly read my warranty before I use it. Ultimately I had to pay out of pocket cost for the installation of the hot water heater. This was a cost that I did not expect. If I had purchased an additional warranty coverage program I would not have had to pay the additional cost.

Bottom line: Warranties are good but...READ ALL OF THE TERMS OF YOUR WARRANTY BEFORE YOU USE IT!

This rule of thumb is for all warranties regardless of the company.

Barb, Sue, and I are The Wells Team of The Norton Agency. Our company is proud of our relationship with Old Republic Warranties and the service they provide for our listings.

If you are looking for property in the North Atlanta Metro area give us a call. You can see all of our listings at www.randywellsteam.com

Can I Cut My Losses?

Years ago I received some advice from my financial planner. He told me that it is human nature for investors to hesitate selling their stock when the price is going down. They want to wait for the stock to return to its original value and then sell for a profit. It is hard to part with a loser.

The same psychology also affects homeowners as they look at the declining value of their home.

They have equity in their home even though it has decreased. They look at the amount of time it would take to see their home price come back to its original price, reassess their time frame, and see if the smaller amount of current equity can be invested differently to recoup their investment.

For some they see that they have to sell their "loser" and move on.

It is a hard choice but a choice worth evaluating.

Have your clients ask themselves the following questions:

How long do they think it will take for the market to recover?
Can I recover my equity loss on my home faster by selling and investing the equity elsewhere?
Can I sell my home, take the loss, and buy a lesser expensive home?
Is there a better use for my money?
Do I have the patience, and the time, to watch my home start to increase again in value?
What is my personal "life" situation?


Our home is the biggest investment we will ever make. It is hard to see it lose value. It becomes a helpless feeling as this home market continues to decline. When will it end and what our my options?

Sometimes it is better to "cut our losses" and move on.

Atlanta Metro Area Market Update from The Wells Team

Our President Frank Norton Jr gave us a very informative presentation on the housing market at our monthly sales meeting. Barb and I pride ourselves on the knowledge we gain working for The Norton Agency. This knowledge allows us to better serve our clients.



Here are some of the highlights:



•· From 2000 to 2011 Real Estate outperformed the Dow, Nasdaq, and the S&P

•· Pending home sales declined after April 2010 because of the expiration of the first time homebuyer tax credit. However since October 2010 to the present pending home sales have been rising

•· The Norton Agency has seen an 8% increase in January-February sales over this time last year

•· Home price Expectation Survey shows that prices are anticipated to start upward later this year

•· Mortgage rate projections are predicted to increase this year

•· Consumer confidence has increased

•· Months of supply for housing in the Atlanta area are a direct result of housing prices. From a 7.5 month supply of homes under $120,000 to a 30.8 month supply for homes priced over $750,000

•· Average closing price of homes, including foreclosures were up slightly from 4Q 2009 to 4Q 2010

•· New Home construction continues to decline

•· The Atlanta area has an oversupply of vacant lots with no building planned

•· The Atlanta area is #5 in the country for resale home inventories available. South Florida is #1

•· We are #10 for new housing inventories in the country

•· The Atlanta area is #1 for vacant lots in the country!





What are Barb and I seeing?



We are seeing a lot of activity on the internet. Our listings, according to our weekly reports, receive a lot of interest. The interest is higher on our Cobb County and Atlanta listings compared to our Dawson County listings. That activity is directly related to amount of showings that we have had on all of our listings. Cobb County and Atlanta have had the most showings compared to our Dawson and Hall County properties. That being said a lot of showings have not produced any offers. The buyers appear to be very reluctant to place an offer, any offer, on a home. They still second guess themselves and are looking for the perfect home, at a price, that does not exist. As the home inventory available for sale continues to decrease these buyers need to be a little more realistic. They need to realize that they can buy homes at such a great price that they can see through some of the perceived imperfections that the house might have.



Mortgage rates were at 4.8% last week for a 30 year mortgage. In Dawson County you can get an FHA loan up to $349,000!!!!An FHA loan requires 3.5% down payment only!!! The money is available if you qualify. This will not last forever.



Foreclosures continue to appear and have an effect on our neighborhood Chestatee. We see another 4 or 5 advertised that will eventually appear on the market. Their effect is on the ability to get a fair price for your home listed with us. This effect will be with us at least through the end of 2011. Overall our listings are priced well. The trick is getting the buyers to realize what a great opportunity they have to live in a resort neighborhood at a low price!



If you are considering buying or listing your home let The Wells Team assist you. We are not just real estate agents but real estate counselors. We have dealt with short sales, foreclosures, and auctions. We have access to names of contractors and mortgage specialist. The Norton Agency also has an insurance division that represents over 28 companies. They can provide home, auto, boat, and other insurance for your family.



We also place a home warranty on your home during the listing period!!!



Thank you for your business.