You have just earned your real estate license and now you are looking for a broker and company to work with. Here are 10 questions to ask
1) How long have you been in the business? (The person, not the company)
2) Why are you still in the business?
3) Why did you choose to work for this office and this company?
4) What do you do to help a new agent get started?
5) Thinking of your last 5 new agents that you’ve hired:
a) How many are still at the office?
b) How much did each of them earn so far?
c) What did they do to become successful?
d) May I talk with two of your new agents?
6) Thinking of the agents you have:
a) How many agents are in your office
b) How many do you want?
c) How many have left in the past year?
d) Why did they leave?
e) May I talk with 2 of your experienced agents?
7) What is your business model? How much does it cost me and what do I receive in return?
8) What makes you different from your competition?
9) What do you look for in an agent? What are your expectations of me?
10) When I have a problem or a challenge how do I get your attention? How do I get guidance from you? Evenings, weekends?
The answers to these questions will help you decide whether or not you want to work with this broker. Don’t forget….while they are interviewing you…..you are interviewing them. You want to make the right decision, the first time.
Now that you have your real estate license.
You have your real estate license……..now what???
In the state of Washington a new licensee must place their license with a Broker in order to practice real estate. This can be a daunting decision. How do you choose a broker or company to work with, what do you look for, how do you choose?
Imagine you want to go swimming. You have found a group of indoor pools. You need to figure out which pool you want to jump into. You don’t want just any pool, you want one that is clean, warm, not too crowded, one that has dry towels and nice showers. Sounds easy right……now you have to choose by looking in the windows you can’t actually go in. If you are lucky you might be able to ask some of the swimmers who are leaving the pool. You ask questions to try to get an idea what its like at that pool. You know that once you make the decision you are going to be jumping into the deep end, so you want to make sure you make the right decision, the first time.
Trying to figure out an office to join can be the same way. If you take the time it can be a little easier in that you will want to interview the manager. You will want to talk with several agents who are working for that office. Talk with a couple of long time agents as well as a couple of new ones.
This is not a time for quick decisions, even though the broker may be pushing you to join. I’ve had agents ask me if it is hard to get a job once you have a license. The challenge is not getting a job offer (many brokers will hire you on the first meeting because they just want to put another license on their wall) the challenge is trying to decide why you might want to work for a broker that is so willing to hire you after only one brief meeting.
Click here for a list of books that I recommend to agents just starting the business.
In the state of Washington a new licensee must place their license with a Broker in order to practice real estate. This can be a daunting decision. How do you choose a broker or company to work with, what do you look for, how do you choose?
Imagine you want to go swimming. You have found a group of indoor pools. You need to figure out which pool you want to jump into. You don’t want just any pool, you want one that is clean, warm, not too crowded, one that has dry towels and nice showers. Sounds easy right……now you have to choose by looking in the windows you can’t actually go in. If you are lucky you might be able to ask some of the swimmers who are leaving the pool. You ask questions to try to get an idea what its like at that pool. You know that once you make the decision you are going to be jumping into the deep end, so you want to make sure you make the right decision, the first time.
Trying to figure out an office to join can be the same way. If you take the time it can be a little easier in that you will want to interview the manager. You will want to talk with several agents who are working for that office. Talk with a couple of long time agents as well as a couple of new ones.
This is not a time for quick decisions, even though the broker may be pushing you to join. I’ve had agents ask me if it is hard to get a job once you have a license. The challenge is not getting a job offer (many brokers will hire you on the first meeting because they just want to put another license on their wall) the challenge is trying to decide why you might want to work for a broker that is so willing to hire you after only one brief meeting.
Click here for a list of books that I recommend to agents just starting the business.
Housing Stats for 10/9/2005
Watching stats like these will help you determine what kind of a market you are in.
For Kitsap County Washington as of 10/09/2005
917 Active Listings
50 Homes went Pending last week
50 Average Days on Market
$271,515 Average List Price
$271,198 Average Sale Price
100-% List price to sale price ratio
18.34 weeks of inventory
Learn more about Defining Your Market.
For Kitsap County Washington as of 10/09/2005
917 Active Listings
50 Homes went Pending last week
50 Average Days on Market
$271,515 Average List Price
$271,198 Average Sale Price
100-% List price to sale price ratio
18.34 weeks of inventory
Learn more about Defining Your Market.
A Tool For Real Estate Investors
The process of purchasing an investment property can at times seem overwhelming. Especially if it is something you've not done before or only once or twice a year. On the face of it, isn't it just like buying any other house?............No!
You actually use a different side of the brain to process the purchase of an investment property than you do when buying your own home. The motivations, concerns and thought processes are different. In fact there is a whole new language involved. Annual Operating income, Cap Rate, Gross Operating Income, and Cash on Cash are some of the words and concepts that you need to understand to make a sound investment decision. After all you could put your money in a CD, Stocks, Bonds or Mutual Funds. When considering a real estate investment you are asking yourself "Why should I put my money here? Will I do better than if I invest it in something else?"
One way to answer this question is to sit down with a potential investment and break out a piece of paper and a pencil. The upside to this method is that it takes no batteries, electricity or computer (though a calculator would be handy).
A much easier way in my opinion, is to use a software program that you load onto your computer, especially helpful if you are going to compare several properties or investments to each other.
I've come across an excellent program that does just that. It is called Star Analyzer from a company by the name of Wondering Star http://www.wanderingstar.com/
Just like any new program it does takes a few minutes to get used to the layout and the information it needs. However once you input your first potential investment it quickly becomes apparent how useful this tool is. It will allow you to input multiple potential real estate investments. It will then compare these to each other, as well as to other financial investments. It is wonderful to input once then use often. You can also play "what if" scenarios. What if I put more down. What if I charge more rent. It will also carry your investment and its returns out into the future so that you can see how much you are making in lets say ten years.
Star Analysis even comes with its own mini investment course as well as a trial period to get you settled in. I highly recommend that you check it out at http://www.wanderintstar.com/. I use it as I help investors as well as for myself.
See a demenstration: http://www.wanderingstar.com
California Home Prices May Be Moderating (October 6, 2005)
If the CALIFORNIA ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS ®' 2006 forecast proves accurate, home prices in the state will rise at less than half the rate they've gone up during each of the past four years. And that would be good news for homebuyers struggling to attain ownership there.
Only 16 percent of households could afford the median-priced home, which was $540,900 in July, according to CAR. A year ago, the median price was $461,740. In nearly a half dozen regions, only one in 10 households or fewer can afford the median-priced home, CAR says.
But based on the forecast, not all areas of the state will continue to experience the unprecedented double-digit median price increases of the past five years, says CAR Vice President and Chief Economist Leslie Appleton-Young. Some high-cost areas, especially those in the more costly coastal regions, face a potential leveling off of median price gains compared with the 10 percent gain we expect for the state as a whole."
That predicted 10 percent gain caps out at $575,500.The Golden State's perpetual supply-demand imbalance pushed home prices up 25.16 percent in the year ending in the second quarter of 2005, and 109.7 percent in the last five years, according to the Office of Federal Housing Enterprise Oversight.
In California, each year ends with an approximate 50,000 shortfall in housing units, based on the number of new households (250,000) and the number of new housing units constructed (an estimated 200,000 this year), CAR says. CAR economists say the supply-demand imbalance will continue to drive the market, but at a much moderated pace next year.
The association's annual forecast also calls for sales to fall by 2 percent. That's a switch, too. In July, sales were up 1.3 percent compared with July 2004.California's high-cost areas, including the Los Angeles, San Diego, and San Francisco Bay Area markets, could see even higher rates of constrained sales, and home price appreciation less than 10 percent, says Appleton-Young.
By Broderick Perkins for REALTOR Magazine Online
I receive this type of information from The National Association of Realtors about real estate all over the United States. I'll pass it on to you as appropriate.
Only 16 percent of households could afford the median-priced home, which was $540,900 in July, according to CAR. A year ago, the median price was $461,740. In nearly a half dozen regions, only one in 10 households or fewer can afford the median-priced home, CAR says.
But based on the forecast, not all areas of the state will continue to experience the unprecedented double-digit median price increases of the past five years, says CAR Vice President and Chief Economist Leslie Appleton-Young. Some high-cost areas, especially those in the more costly coastal regions, face a potential leveling off of median price gains compared with the 10 percent gain we expect for the state as a whole."
That predicted 10 percent gain caps out at $575,500.The Golden State's perpetual supply-demand imbalance pushed home prices up 25.16 percent in the year ending in the second quarter of 2005, and 109.7 percent in the last five years, according to the Office of Federal Housing Enterprise Oversight.
In California, each year ends with an approximate 50,000 shortfall in housing units, based on the number of new households (250,000) and the number of new housing units constructed (an estimated 200,000 this year), CAR says. CAR economists say the supply-demand imbalance will continue to drive the market, but at a much moderated pace next year.
The association's annual forecast also calls for sales to fall by 2 percent. That's a switch, too. In July, sales were up 1.3 percent compared with July 2004.California's high-cost areas, including the Los Angeles, San Diego, and San Francisco Bay Area markets, could see even higher rates of constrained sales, and home price appreciation less than 10 percent, says Appleton-Young.
By Broderick Perkins for REALTOR Magazine Online
I receive this type of information from The National Association of Realtors about real estate all over the United States. I'll pass it on to you as appropriate.
Housing Stats 10/2/2005
Watching stats like these will help you determine what kind of a market you are in.
For Kitsap County Washington as of 10/02/2005
893 Active Listings
64 Homes went Pending last week
50 Average Days on Market
$271,363 Average List Price
$270,973Average Sale Price
100+% List price to sale price ratio
13.4 weeks of inventory
Learn more about Defining Your Market.
For Kitsap County Washington as of 10/02/2005
893 Active Listings
64 Homes went Pending last week
50 Average Days on Market
$271,363 Average List Price
$270,973Average Sale Price
100+% List price to sale price ratio
13.4 weeks of inventory
Learn more about Defining Your Market.
Determining a Value for Your Home
Determining a Value for Your Home
From time to time it is important to come up with a value for your home. You might be checking your insurance coverage, thinking about remodeling, taking out a home equity loan, questioning your last tax assessment or getting ready to put your home on the market.
Despite what internet marketers would have you believe it is not as easy as point and click. You need to have a real live person look at your home, look at homes currently on the market or have sold, look at current market conditions and actually put pen to paper to come up with a value. In that light there are two options; a licensed real estate appraiser or a licensed real estate agent. Each is different in what they look at and how the information can be used.
A licensed real estate appraiser will look at your home and then compare it to homes similar to yours that have sold and closed. They typically look for homes that are geographically close to yours, are similar in structure both in style/layout as well as size. The appraiser will then make adjustments to the comparables to bring them in line with the subject property to mathematically arrive at a value for your home. They do take into account current market conditions but are looking at value based on today at this moment, and back 3 months. Though you may be told differently appraisals have some flexibility based on the purpose of the appraisal. Appraisals done on your home so that you may take out a home equity loan will typically be more generous than an appraisal done as part of the sales process. A simple explanation would be that the bank is loaning money to you based on your credit and good standing and taking the equity in your home as secondary. During a home sale the value would be more primary.
I have been involved with sellers who have asked me to sell their home and have been disappointed when I’ve shared with them that their homes value is lower than the value of an appraisal that they had recently received for a home equity line of credit. There is a good article in September 2005 Consumer Reports outlining this issue.
A licensed real estate agent would be able to provide a value, or price range through a comparative market analysis (CMA) also know in some areas as a Broker Price Opinion (BPO). Though real estate agents take into account many of the things that an appraiser does they are looking at it from a little different angle. Not only is an agent looking at what happened in the past, but they are also trying to look into the future so that they can help you as the seller come up with a price that will sell your home, given the current market conditions. Real estate agents look at homes that have sold, homes that are pending as well as homes that are currently active in the market. They also take into account current inventory, absorption rates, competition in your price range, stratification of the market, list price to sale price ratio as well as interest rates.
A typical house sale or purchase will require a CMA/BPO to help you price or make an offer on your home as well as an appraisal so that a loan can be issued. Some legal situations require an appraisal instead of a CMA. Real estate agents work closely with appraisers so should you need one just give your agent a call.
Updating you on the current value of your home is one of the many services your real estate agent can provide.
From time to time it is important to come up with a value for your home. You might be checking your insurance coverage, thinking about remodeling, taking out a home equity loan, questioning your last tax assessment or getting ready to put your home on the market.
Despite what internet marketers would have you believe it is not as easy as point and click. You need to have a real live person look at your home, look at homes currently on the market or have sold, look at current market conditions and actually put pen to paper to come up with a value. In that light there are two options; a licensed real estate appraiser or a licensed real estate agent. Each is different in what they look at and how the information can be used.
A licensed real estate appraiser will look at your home and then compare it to homes similar to yours that have sold and closed. They typically look for homes that are geographically close to yours, are similar in structure both in style/layout as well as size. The appraiser will then make adjustments to the comparables to bring them in line with the subject property to mathematically arrive at a value for your home. They do take into account current market conditions but are looking at value based on today at this moment, and back 3 months. Though you may be told differently appraisals have some flexibility based on the purpose of the appraisal. Appraisals done on your home so that you may take out a home equity loan will typically be more generous than an appraisal done as part of the sales process. A simple explanation would be that the bank is loaning money to you based on your credit and good standing and taking the equity in your home as secondary. During a home sale the value would be more primary.
I have been involved with sellers who have asked me to sell their home and have been disappointed when I’ve shared with them that their homes value is lower than the value of an appraisal that they had recently received for a home equity line of credit. There is a good article in September 2005 Consumer Reports outlining this issue.
A licensed real estate agent would be able to provide a value, or price range through a comparative market analysis (CMA) also know in some areas as a Broker Price Opinion (BPO). Though real estate agents take into account many of the things that an appraiser does they are looking at it from a little different angle. Not only is an agent looking at what happened in the past, but they are also trying to look into the future so that they can help you as the seller come up with a price that will sell your home, given the current market conditions. Real estate agents look at homes that have sold, homes that are pending as well as homes that are currently active in the market. They also take into account current inventory, absorption rates, competition in your price range, stratification of the market, list price to sale price ratio as well as interest rates.
A typical house sale or purchase will require a CMA/BPO to help you price or make an offer on your home as well as an appraisal so that a loan can be issued. Some legal situations require an appraisal instead of a CMA. Real estate agents work closely with appraisers so should you need one just give your agent a call.
Updating you on the current value of your home is one of the many services your real estate agent can provide.
Housing Stats 9/26/2005
Watching stats like these will help you determine what kind of a market you are in.
For Kitsap County Washington as of 9/26/2005
873 Active Listings
69 Homes went Pending last week
50 Average Days on Market
$270,637 Average List Price
$269,978 Average Sale Price
100% List price to sale price ratio
12.6 weeks of inventory
Learn more about Defining Your Market.
For Kitsap County Washington as of 9/26/2005
873 Active Listings
69 Homes went Pending last week
50 Average Days on Market
$270,637 Average List Price
$269,978 Average Sale Price
100% List price to sale price ratio
12.6 weeks of inventory
Learn more about Defining Your Market.
Real Estate Agent Designations…. Alphabet soup or substance?
http://www.realtor.org/runivers.nsf/pages/designation?OpenDocument
Fix it before you List it!
Thinking about listing your home for sale? Do a walk through with your agent a week or two before the list date. We spend a lot of time talking about “Staging” your home for sale, but what about repairs?
Generate a list of things in your house that need fixed, repaired or replaced before you put it on the market, here’s why:
The goal is not to try to hide anything, rather to address items that are likely to be brought into question and may jeopardize a good offer or at least slow down the closing.
Regarding disclosure, you are typically better off to disclose any issues up front. Buyers will typically feel short changed or taken advantage of if they learn of a pre-existing problem late in the transaction. Most states have a property disclosure statement that needs to be provided by the seller. Filling one out fully and honestly will protect you as the seller by reducing legal issues down the road with the buyer. Talk with your agent or your real estate attorney for specifics in your area.
Blogroll Me!
Generate a list of things in your house that need fixed, repaired or replaced before you put it on the market, here’s why:
- Potential buyers will guess high for the repair, usually 3 times higher than actual cost. They will then try to reduce the price by that inflated amount.
- When the home is inspected it will show up on the inspection report which here again calls into question cost of repair plus one more task that you as the seller may have to accomplish prior to closing.
- When the appraiser comes out the needed repair will only call for closer scrutiny. Example: moss on the roof. A perfectly good roof may be called into question only because the moss on it drew the appraiser’s attention to it, thus forcing him to call for an additional roof inspection.
The goal is not to try to hide anything, rather to address items that are likely to be brought into question and may jeopardize a good offer or at least slow down the closing.
Regarding disclosure, you are typically better off to disclose any issues up front. Buyers will typically feel short changed or taken advantage of if they learn of a pre-existing problem late in the transaction. Most states have a property disclosure statement that needs to be provided by the seller. Filling one out fully and honestly will protect you as the seller by reducing legal issues down the road with the buyer. Talk with your agent or your real estate attorney for specifics in your area.
Blogroll Me!
Tomorrows Generation of Home Buyers are Here Today!!
Who are they? They are the Echo Boomers or X Gen. They were born between 1982 and 1995. They are between the ages of 10 and 23. They are the children of the Baby Boom crowd.
This group of 80 million have never known a time without a computer. They are more tech savvy then any previous generation. Much of their lives revolve around what their parents would consider gadgets, and doodads their grandparents never would have dreamed of. (Fortunately a few did or we would not have them today.)
This group will affect what a house looks like, how it functions, how we build them and how we sell them. In order to serve the Echos a typically older crowd of real estate professionals will have to change how they work, how they meet and how they communicate with their new buyers.
Wired houses....video, audio, security, networking and of course high speed internet.
Speaking of high speed, this generation wants quick and constant input. Prompt returned e-mails, updated photos, daily updates on their transactions. Their consumer pressure and improved electronic communication will decrease the time it takes to buy a home. What is now a 4 to 6 week process will become condensed into a 1 to 3 week transaction.
They are more likely to find and choose their Realtor from a web page, because their friend sent them an IM or through a Blog.
The home they choose will have been viewed from every angle without having even visited the house. They will have viewed virtual tours, a photo walk thru and downloaded pictures from space. They will know who bought it, when and for how much via information available on the internet.
Their offer will jump from electron to electron over miles of wire as it makes its way between buyer, seller, agents, lenders, appraisers, title and escrow....and these buyers would have it no other way.
This group of 80 million have never known a time without a computer. They are more tech savvy then any previous generation. Much of their lives revolve around what their parents would consider gadgets, and doodads their grandparents never would have dreamed of. (Fortunately a few did or we would not have them today.)
This group will affect what a house looks like, how it functions, how we build them and how we sell them. In order to serve the Echos a typically older crowd of real estate professionals will have to change how they work, how they meet and how they communicate with their new buyers.
Wired houses....video, audio, security, networking and of course high speed internet.
Speaking of high speed, this generation wants quick and constant input. Prompt returned e-mails, updated photos, daily updates on their transactions. Their consumer pressure and improved electronic communication will decrease the time it takes to buy a home. What is now a 4 to 6 week process will become condensed into a 1 to 3 week transaction.
They are more likely to find and choose their Realtor from a web page, because their friend sent them an IM or through a Blog.
The home they choose will have been viewed from every angle without having even visited the house. They will have viewed virtual tours, a photo walk thru and downloaded pictures from space. They will know who bought it, when and for how much via information available on the internet.
Their offer will jump from electron to electron over miles of wire as it makes its way between buyer, seller, agents, lenders, appraisers, title and escrow....and these buyers would have it no other way.
Real Estate Statistics for Kitsap County Washington
Watching stats like these will help you determine what kind of a market you are in.
For Kitsap County Washington as of 9/11/2005
812 Active Listings
79 Homes went Pending last week
51 Average Days on Market
$266,052 Average List Price
$265,489 Average Sale Price
100% List price to sale price ratio
Learn more about Defining Your Market.
For Kitsap County Washington as of 9/11/2005
812 Active Listings
79 Homes went Pending last week
51 Average Days on Market
$266,052 Average List Price
$265,489 Average Sale Price
100% List price to sale price ratio
Learn more about Defining Your Market.
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