He says (actually, it was his very intelligent wife whom he quoted with full admiration and attribution), “Why feel urgency to borrow now, when we are clearly told that rates are going nowhere, and prices are feeble.”

Hard to argue with.  So, the Fed has drained urgency out of the housing market; the National Association of REALTORS® and REALTOR® members support that effort, and then in a disconnect, they work themselves into a lather with educational sessions and programs and seminars to learn how to “Create Buyer Urgency!”  Well, I have been hearing for 5 years that rates are going to go up.  And the Fed tells me I will likely hear it for a couple more years, as we witness ongoing record low mortgage rates.

And I am supposed to look like a goon and twist arms to “Create Buyer Urgency” because rates will go up?
Nope.  Not me.  If you are ready to buy a house, give me a call.  If not, think your way through it, and I will be around when you ARE ready.  No pressure.  No hassle.

Maybe instead of another silly 1st time buyers boondoggle, the Fed should just give us a road map plotting how and when rates will escalate.  It just might shake some money loose and get it into circulation.

“The FOMC left its benchmark interest rate in a range of zero to 0.25 percent, where it’s been since December 2008 and reiterated language from its August meeting that the rate is likely to stay very low through at least mid-2013.”

From Bloomberg By Scott Lanman and Craig Torres – Oct 13, 2011 12:00 AM ET

Do Open Houses “work” in Cary?
I think many work well to expose the home to the market, to generate a little buzz, to get people in to visit.

“They are only for agents to get new Buyer Clients.”
No, I hold Open Houses to generate business for that listing. 

“Only a low percentage of Open Houses result in a Buyer.”
I like to say, as a listing agent, holding an Open House is better than napping at home in front of the TV, and moaning that the real estate market is dead.

So, Yes, I am holding an Open House Sunday, 10/23.  See me from 2-4PM at 501 Midenhall Way, Cary NC, 27513

The Price of Poor Real Estate Photography

I was looking at visitor statistics on my No Hassle Home Search
this morning, and one detail jumped out at me.

With over 20,000 page views so far this month, 25%, over 5,000 of those views were in Photo Galleries. I.e., consumers routinely look at the property photos when surfing the internet to search for homes. And I am sure that other agents generate more traffic than I do.
It is not unusual for potential buyers to email me and inquire if more photos are available for someone else’s listing they have found on my IDX. Then I have to explain the nature of IDX services. And, sometimes I find that the Listing agent has used the tax rolls photo, which is NEVER complimentary to the property. Ouch! for that Home Seller.

Which do you think presents that home better to Buyers and Buyer Agents? I’m picking the top one, the one I shot. And when you multiply those page views I see by the number of agent IDX sites and scraper sites, the impact of poor real estate photos is exponentially increased. Like having a bad product and going international to purposefully gain more bad press on it. Why? Poor photography going viral to diminish property interest? How is that good for home sellers?
Lack of photos, poor photos, etc, actually can be one of the worst marketing investments home sellers can make.











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QR Codes in Real Estate

QR Codes in real estate are a hot item right now.  Using QR Codes in real estate marketing is in its infancy, but beginning to gain serious traction.
QR Codes can be used to convey great amounts of information to smartphone users who scan them.

I like the use of QR Codes for offering GPS coordinates, and since most smartphones have GPS capability, that seems like an efficient use.
But one can also use QR Codes to offer purely real estate data and information.  A listing agent can connect buyers to photos, flyers, documents, and make it easy for buyers and buyers agents to gather data they need to write an offer on a listing.

So, I am seeing more QR Codes on real estate listings in Cary.

One criticism of QR Codes is their industrial/utilitarian appearance.  Some folks call them "ugly."  There is little doubt that, with some care, a real estate agent can present an appealing QR Code.  They may never be confused with seascapes by Monet, but QR Codes can look better. The video runs nearly two minutes, but “60 Seconds” just didn’t seem adequate: 

Buyers and Dealbreakers

Buyers will often cite a "dealbreaker" when considering a home.  In Cary, NC, some of those items are steep driveways, proximity to large powerlines, proximity to busy thorofares, railroad tracks, or excessive airplane traffic.

Some buyers are willing to work with a home that has only a single negative feature, but when they add up, those buyers often lose interest.
A few years ago, I listed and sold a home with a steep driveway, powerlines and a railroad behind it.  How can that be overcome?
We have a saying in real estate, that "Price fixes all deficiencies."  In other words, when a home's price recognizes the diminished value created by excessive incurable deficiencies, and there is an affordable home with otherwise great features, there will be a buyer.

Smart home sellers and their listing agents in Cary will take negative items they cannot change into account when pricing the home for sale.

30 days of Real Estate Closing in Cary, as of August 17, 2011

Numbers are pretty stable in Cary real estate.  As of today, we closed 123 residential sales in the last 30 days.

Days on Market were 93 for those 123 listings.

Cumulative Days on Market, meaning that the property was listed more than once, were 115.

On July 17, those numbers were 87 and 114.

I pulled out three of the highest DOM properties, and the remaining 120 homes showed 86 Days on Market,
and 102 Cumulative Days on Market.
Fun with numbers…

Average selling price was 0.962 of final listing price.

How many cars can you fit into a 2 car garage?

What makes a garage a 2 car garage?  Or a 3 car garage?
How can you tell?

The big door in front won't tell you.  You can get a pretty big door on a pretty small garage.

We see Cary listing agents marketing 2 car garages, or 3 car garages, for their seller.  But, some garages are so tight, it is difficult to imagine parking two cars and being able to open their doors.

Or, as often done in Cary, the water heater is placed in the garage, in the parking space.  Or the builder adds a flight of stairs from the garage to the living area, and that flight of stairs encroaches into a parking space.

Et cetera…

So, when working as a buyers agent, I take a very close look at the garage layout, the dimensions, and other factors that can impact the utility of the space.  And sometimes I will tell my home buyers, "Well, heck.  That's a 4 car garage.  If you own 4 Smart cars."  In other words, you will work hard to park 2 cars in that garage.

APR, Annual Percentage Rate Calculator

What is the real cost of your Home Loan?  You have to consider more than just the interest rate you were quoted.  Consider all the fees and charges to get the money for your new home, and you will see that the actual Annual Percentage Rate is nearly always higher than the interest rate you were quoted. 

Even better, when we find that new home in Cary, let me connect you with a great mortgage professional who will explain APR in detail for you, and deliver that affordable home loan package than best fits your needs.

Until then, Calcmoolator gave me a nice free calculator to help you make an educated guess at your APR:

Termites?  In Cary NC?  Well…. Yes.

One home inspection that home buyers always have performed on a Cary home is to have a licensed pest firm check for termites.  Termites are very common in the Cary area and a smart buyers agent will press the home buyer hard to have the property checked out during the due diligence period of the contract.

It is also common for a home owner to carry a termite protection contract, which usually includes a repair policy for any termite damage.  If the home seller has carried such a plan, the seller should let the listing agent know, and that becomes a selling point in the listing.  If the plan is transferable, it is even more affordable and valuable to the home buyer.

Some folks confuse a termite plan with quarterly pest service.  Those are two very different services, even though they are offered by nearly all pest and termite control firms in the Triangle area.

Selling Your Home?  De-Clutter Your Attic!

Many home sellers in Cary have embraced some degree of staging their home for sale.  Listing agents are seeing more interest in home staging, de-cluttering, and generally making the home show better.
And then we get to the attic, basement, or garage.  Those areas are all too often overlooked in the staging process.  Large spaces show well when they are open, and the home buyer and their buyers agent are impressed with spaciousness in storage.

My advice?  De-Clutter the auxiliary spaces and storage areas for better showings!