Archive for April, 2008
What Dinner at the Chart House Says To Us About the State of the Annapolis Real Estate Market
April 30th, 2008 Categories: Buyers, Neighborhood Sales & Stats, Sellers
April Real Estate Market Sales Statistics for Anne Arundel County Will Be Released in 10 Days and We Will Publish the Numbers Here. Until Then, Here’s Our Almost Totally Unscientific Market Story and We’re Stickin’ To It
If the local dining scene is a somewhat reliable barometer of consumer optimism, then our dinner at the Chart House in Annapolis this past Friday would lead one to believe that all the talk of a sagging economy and a housing/mortgage meltdown is falling upon deaf ears.
Indeed, judging by the throngs of diners ordering up $35 steaks, succulent shrimp, good bottles of wine, and $9.00 chocolate lava cakes – our personal favorite - you’d have to say the mood was downright festive, that nobody’s much worrying about their wallets, and things are looking decidedly up.
Who knows? Maybe people are just getting a head-start on spending their tax rebate checks, and exercising their civic duty to stimulate the economy according to our President’s hopes.
Our Boots-on-the-Ground Perspective of the Annapolis Real Estate Market
Then again, maybe – just maybe – things really are starting to turn around. Word on the street - what we’re seeing and our industry colleagues are reporting – is that the local market ”feels” like things are beginning to turn around.
I say “feels” because we can’t really quantify it yet. But phones are starting to ring and showings are up. Gun-shy buyers are starting to pull the trigger and make solid offers. And sellers are getting real about listing price. Together, these factors are breathing life and hope into the local housing market.
But Could This be a Momentary Seasonal Upswing in the Annapolis Area Market?
Sure it could be. But it could also – as I heard one analyst put it on NPR the other day – be the inevitable beginning of the end of a down-turning real estate market. Read the rest of this entry »
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Confessions of an Un-Geeky Annapolis Real Estate Blogger
April 25th, 2008 Categories: Fun Fridays
If you’re a regular reader of this blog – and finally, I think there are a couple of you – then you know that Fridays are for fun. I didn’t invent the idea of fun blog Fridays; I stole it from fellow blogger Teresa Boardman. She hasn’t sent her lawyers after me yet, so for now I guess I’m okay.
People like confessions so I thought it would be fun today to tell you one of mine: I’m not a geek. That may come as a surprise to some of you, since I do have a blog, but my computer literacy is probably on par with that of your average Golden Retriever.
What knowledge I do have of blogging can be attributed directly to a neat group of actual geeks called The Real Estate Tomato. See that tomato icon in the upper left margin over there? It has the word “graduate” it in, but I can assure you that in my case the designation is applied ever so loosely. I was one of those students they graduated just to prevent a mutiny. I think I was the reason some of the staff left and opened bagel shops in Vermont.
The ”tomato guys” have a specialty: taking non-geek Realtors like myself and teaching us how to become bloggers. The training consisted of many once-weekly sessions where I would put on my headset and listen to someone half my age and twice as smart explain why Google would like me if I created something called back links, posted profiles of myself on social networking sites, and didn’t stuff by blog articles with too many key words, in which case Google would smite me and banish my blog to the equivalent of blog purgatory. Much remedial training ensued.
The most amazing thing about blogs and all this internet stuff is the way it all talks to one another - or is supposed to, if you’re doing it right. What you see here on the finished page, so to speak, is only a gazillioneth of what’s really going on. You may think you’re just reading an article about buying or selling a home, but the cyber world is positively abuzz about it. It’s like one of those ads you see on TV where they show you your kitchen counter-top, then zoom in and you see billions of germs crawling around just under the surface.
Zoom in, and you’d see Google is somehow calculating how much you like this blog, where you came from, what you’re reading, and what you ate for breakfast. They do this by means of a mathematical formula called an algorithm, invented by guys with brains the size of cantaloupes who haven’t seen the light of day for years. It’s one big online popularity contest, the results of which somehow infiltrate the entire cyber universe.
Frankly, if I had to worry about all this and how it works, I wouldn’t have a blog. I wouldn’t have the time: we’re in the business of helping people buy and sell homes, and that keeps us nice and busy, thank you. Writing a blog is fun, for someone who likes to write. But it’s primarily a tool, a way to deliver useful information to our constituency, get feedback from you, and build an online community that’s accessible to almost everyone.
Just don’t ask me how it all works. I haven’t a clue.
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Is Your Real Estate Agent Trustworthy?
April 23rd, 2008 Categories: Buyers, Sellers, The Realtor's Life
In a 2006 Poll Published by Harris Interactive, Real Estate Agents Really Took It On the Chin. Maybe We Can All Learn a Little Something From the Results.
The poll’s intent was to measure the trustworthiness of various professions; real estate agents came in near the bottom, right up there with lawyers, auto mechanics and stockbrokers.
Unfair? To those of us in the industry who put our hearts, heads and soul into this business, and work diligently for our clients – sure, it seems unfair.
But unexpected? Not really. The fact of the matter is, not all agents are created equal. Some set the professional bar extremely low and when they trip over it they make the whole industry look bad.
Marc Davison, a blogger at www.1000wattblog.com had some interesting thoughts on the subject and those things that set trusted and untrustworthy agents apart.
“Are agents untrustworthy? Some are, some aren’t. But most paint themselves with the brush of mistrust by adhering to modes of marketing, branding and verbiage that fail to set them apart and distinguish one from the other.
Untrustworthy agents hear what their clients say. Trustworthy agents listen.
Untrustworthy agents make deals happen. Trusted agents help people buy and sell homes.
Untrustworthy agents work hard and make a case for it. Trusted agents work smart. They perform magic and do it quietly, with grace.
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Meet The Moss Haedrich Team: The Raining Realtors of Keller Williams, Annapolis
April 18th, 2008 Categories: Fun Fridays
On The Surface, This Photo Would Appear to be Nothing More Than Six Foolish Keller Williams Real Estate Agents Standing in an Annapolis Rain. But There’s More Here Than Meets the Eye.
Fridays - you may know – are for fun on our blog, and this photo qualified nicely.
A little back story: For a couple of months now we’ve been talking about the idea of an official team photo for this, our new blog, something we can park permanently on our “About” page. Much discussion has ensued. Should we do this in a studio? Or outside, in front of our sign, for a more “natural” look? Do we color coordinate, or sort of do our own thing, dresswise? Ties or no ties?
These are not easy choices, especially when you are a business and you want to project a certain image. Image is important, as you know. Just look at what the presidential candidates are going through at the moment. Hillary Clinton is trying her darnedest to look like a regular Jane, knocking back whiskey with the boys. Obama has taken to bowling and cracking jokes on late night television, doing his best to show voters he’s non-elitist. It’s all about image.
Which is why I’m posting this photo without the consent of my team, knowing full well that the ladies on our team would not approve. To be sure, it is starting to rain; look at Jeremiah’s jacket, to the far right. We did not, by the way, wait for the rain to shoot this; it simply followed us to the appointed hour. Anyway, there we are seconds away from bolting for the door of our office, and doing our best not to look like it.
The ladies – Kathy, Bev, Carol and Nikki – would tell me the rain has ruined their
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Annapolis Area Homebuyers: Is Your Real Estate Agent Helping You Find the Shiny Pennies?
April 17th, 2008 Categories: Buyers, The Realtor's Life
We Try Not to Toot Our Own Horn Too Much – Nobody Likes a Braggart. But We Love It When Our Clients Do It For Us, When They Notice and Say Thanks for The Things We Do. Here’s One Such Story.
When we work with an Annapolis area homebuyer, the first step of the process is a meeting at our office that we call the “buyer consultation.”
It’s our opportunity to introduce ourselves, talk about how we work, and to listen. Listening is a big part of this business. My dad used to say that God gave us 2 ears and 1 mouth so we’d listen twice as much as we talk, and that’s a good thing for a Realtor to remember.
One of the things we ask our buyers is to describe, in detail, their dream home – number of bedrooms, bathrooms and all the other obvious stuff. But also the stuff of their dreams. White picket fence? Window seats? Arched doorways? If it means something to you, we want to know. Makes it easier to find you the perfect home.
If a buyer is urgent – and needs to find a home in short order – there’s a good chance they won’t have enough time to preview all the possibilities themselves. Or, the
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Scarey MLS Photos #4: A Shot in the Dark
April 16th, 2008 Categories: Scarey MLS Photos
Our Gallery of Actual Listing Photos by Colleagues Who Point and Shoot Themselves in the Foot
We all know that low light can be flattering in certain circumstances. I just can’t help but wonder if the photographer here nudged that concept over the line of good taste and straight off the cliff.
Is it possible that the agent’s intention was to pique our interest by shrouding the room in darkness, leaving us breathless to discover its charms for ourselves?
The Solution: Like baggy clothing, darkened rooms leave the unmistakeable impression that one is trying to hide something, such as residents who’ve nodded off in the bedroom. The TV left on only reinforces our suspicions. Wake everyone up, turn on some lights and try again.
On The Bright Side: A better photo should tell us whether those bars (?) on the window are functional or purely decorative.
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This Is Not a Video From The Closing We Had Yesterday, But It Almost Could Be
April 11th, 2008 Categories: Fun Fridays
Sometimes, Everything Just Goes Right on the Way to the Settlement Table. Yesterday Was One of Those Days Here in Annapolis
Fridays are for fun on our blog, and nothing is more fun in this business than a home sale that goes smoothly from start to finish. This was one of those times.
Our sellers had a ratified contract in 39 days – that was lots of fun for them, because protracted showings are decidedly NOT FUN. The home inspection went well, too. The buyers’ agents – whom we’ve worked with before – were a dream. It was just one big textbook example of the pefect closing. No meltdowns, no funds lost in cyberspace or suprises during the final walk-through, either.
We try not to call them closings, by the way. We like the word “celebration” because there’s a lot to celebrate and, if everyone has done their job well, this isn’t a closing so much as an opening, the starting point for what could be a lifelong relationship between a Realtor and a client.
Anyway, we have the best clients in the world. They’re so appreciative of the work we do on their behalf and this video sort of reminded me of some of the warm and fuzzy settlements we’ve had over the years, some of them unexpectedly so. Enjoy, and have a great weekend.
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In the Market for Annapolis Area Real Estate? Here’s an Easy Way to Get Your First Home for Free!
April 9th, 2008 Categories: Buyers
That Would Be YOUR FIRST HOME: The Proven Path to Home Ownership, a new book by Gary Keller – Visionary Co-Founder of Keller Williams Realty
Let’s face it: buying a home, especially your first one, has to be one of the most perplexing, exhausting, and exhilarating experiences you’ll ever have.
We know: we work with first time homebuyers on a daily basis and most of them start out perplexed, and end up exhausted and exhilarated. It almost can’t be helped. There’s a lot of money involved, financial commitments, not to mention the well-meaning and often contradictory advice of family, friends and colleagues.
Now throw in a market that’s as wild and crazy as the current one is, and buyers’ heads really start to spin.
What’s a first time homebuyer to do?
Go out at once and get a copy of YOUR FIRST HOME, by Gary Keller. It’s the perfect road-map for keeping a steady course in unfamiliar territory.
Nobody can deconstruct and then reassemble the subject of real estate as clearly as Gary Keller can. His is a calm, experienced voice that first time homebuyers will find reassuring.
He takes homebuyers by the hand and leads them through the 8 steps to home-ownership: deciding to buy; hiring your agent; securing financing; finding your home; making an offer; performing due diligence; closing; and protecting your investment. What could potentially be some pretty dry reading isn’t at all, thanks in large part to his engaging style and plenty of real-life anecdotes and informative sidebars.
Gary really wants you to take the leap to home ownership. “Owning a home,” he says, “will not only lay a solid foundation for your financial future but will also set the tone for your own personal lifestyle. It truly enables you to live the ultimate dream. And while it may quite possibly be the most expensive investment you’ve ever made, it will also be one of the smartest.”
Anyway, we’ve just received a case of these books in hardcover and we’re making
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Bad News for Annapolis Area Home Sellers: 5,000 People Won’t Be at Your Open House on Sunday
April 4th, 2008 Categories: Fun Fridays, Sellers
They’ll Be Hanging Out with Us at the 34th Annual Running of The Marlborough Hunt Races at Roedown, in Davidsonville. Maybe You Should Just Join Us.
It’s one of our favorite rites of spring: put on the boots, pack up the tailgate party, and head out to the rolling meadows of historic Roedown Farm for a spirited afternoon of steeple-chasing. (The name goes back some 300 years, the story goes, to when a couple of Irishmen set up a race between two church steeples.)
The big draw may be the races, but it’s the tailgate parties that set the festive tone for the day. Groups large and small fill the hillside flanking the race field, the aroma of barbecue and beans hanging over the assembled like a cloud. It’s awesome.
We – Bev and I – have the good fortune to belong to a select group of locals who judge the tailgate party food and award ribbons for the best in several categories. It’s a tough assignment, especially when the entrants stoop to bribery with double-strength mint juleps and choice wines when we show up. Rest assured, we are beyond reproach. Usually.
So try to make it if you can. The festivities don’t wind down until late in the afternoon, so tell your Realtor she can do an extra-long open house if she likes.
Meanwhile, here’s a classic clip from the annals of horse racing that I thought you’d enjoy. I look at this from time to time to get in touch with my inner 13-year old.
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This Guy is Way Smart, Eats Lazy Realtors for Breakfast, and Knows Precisely Why Your Home Isn’t Selling. He’s Happy to Tell You. Anybody Wanna’ Argue?
April 1st, 2008 Categories: Buyers, Faces In The Crowd, Sellers
Tony DiCello is the Vince Lombardi of Keller Williams. He’s Taught His Coaching Clients - Other Realtors - How to Sell Literally Billions of Dollars of Real Estate in Markets Just Like This One. Do I Have Your Attention?
You could do worse than to have Tony DiCello as your real estate agent. Not only has he earned the distinction as one of the top agents in the country, and one of the top 3 in the Denver area during the 90’s. He’s also coached some of the top producing agents in the country, one of whom sold just under $1,000,000,000 a year in real estate. Today, he’s the “head coach” for Keller Williams agents across the country.
After listening to him speak to a packed house of Keller Williams agents last week at the University of Maryland, it’s easy to see how he could have achieved legendary status. He’s forceful, articulate, and knows the real estate industry inside out. And he’s a straight shooter, straight as they come. Among other things, he’s fond of saying, “Always tell your clients the truth about price, no matter how uncomfortable.”
If Tony DiCello told you your home was not selling because it was overpriced, you would not argue. If you did, he’d probably thank you for your time and hand you a list of agents who’d be happy to take an overpriced listing. He says there are plenty out there.
The following is a collection of Tony DiCello-isms, culled from his recent talk, writings, and other seminars. Whether you’re a home seller, buyer, or agent, you should listen up:
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