"Sellers Are Motivated"

Sometimes I see these words written in the MLS listing for a property. Sometimes agents tell me this when I call to schedule showings or when I’m called to give showing feedback. “Sellers are motivated” gives me pause for a few reasons. First, and most importantly, if you’re the seller in this situation, I really hope you’ve given your agent written permission to say such things. If you have not given your agent written permission

Being the Bad Guy, or Maybe Not

December is usually a consultative month for me. Lots of people call to have me come over and take a look at their homes, as they’re thinking about selling in the spring. This December was no different in that respect, I received calls and went on my appointments. However, there was one major difference this year. I spent quite a bit of the time quietly feeling like a jerk. Usually when I went back to

Independent Events in Real Estate

If there’s one mantra that you’ll hear from the real estate community, it’s that “Real Estate is local.” We don’t want you looking at what’s going on in California and Arizona and extrapolating that the same behavior is happening in your market. Because most likely, it’s not. Each market reacts differently based on the local economy, housing stock, demographics, and a host of other factors. Unfortunately, I believe there is another equally important phenomenon that

I'm Thinking About Looking for a Tenant…

In today’s “difficult” market, sellers often consider renting their home if their property does not sell shortly after being listed. We’ve worked with a number of folks that have asked about, and even tried, the rental option, with a wide range of results. Each time the topic comes up we evaluate the unique factors in the situation rather than giving a standard one-size-fits-all answer. Sellers initially consider the rental option because they want to get

Staying Put

I make my living by helping people move. But at times, I have to advise them that it may make more sense to just stay put. Here’s a recent example… A few weeks ago, I met a nice, older couple at an open house. They have been thinking about moving from their house to a condo. Right now they have one floor living, a garage, and central air. They have around 1,100 square feet and