Tuesday, January 29, 2008

Working to Achieve Success for my Clients!

Well, here I am again; untimely as ever. Except, I have an excuse. Current real estate market conditions have kind of gotten in the way and necessitated that I spend my writing time, writing time previously devoted to writing in my blog, actively pursuing my real estate business. Despite all of the negative talk about the market, there are still sellers who have to sell and buyers who have to buy and they deserve the best representation available. But, everything has become harder, requiring more time and patience than ever before. Consequently, I have deliberately chosen to continue to provide the best representation and service that is humanly possible to my clients. On the other hand, such a commitment has left a visible void in my blog. Not to worry though. I have been able to respond to everyone who has contacted me personally about their real estate needs and questions. Once again, I’m extremely happy to report that that is a positive.

Although not attributed to anyone specifically, on my shelf there is a picture of a young person riding a bike through the woods with the words “To achieve, you must believe something and want something with all your might. Then, you must be willing to commit yourself to a course.” Those words and the picture are from an old page calendar providing different thoughts for each day. I recite that because, with so many negative things going on all around us, I see more and more people needing encouragement in their lives.

But if you think about those words, “To achieve, you must believe,” they really are true. One has to believe something is possible before one can attempt to work toward achieving it. On my file drawer I have the words, “Believe and Succeed” written. There is also a page with the words, “If you can’t believe it, you can’t achieve it.”

I suppose you could say that my thought for today is, this is the first and best day of the rest of your life. If there is something you have been dreaming about but have lacked the confidence or strength to commit to it, look at yourself in the mirror and repeat, “Today is the first and best day of the rest of my life. I can do and accomplish anything I commit all of my energy and attention to achieving. I can do it.”

Thanks again for stopping by and have a great and wonderful day. But always remember to

Do Good ….. BE GREAT ….. 110% …..

Thursday, January 10, 2008

Real Estate, Homes & Fixers

Although it has been several weeks since my last post, I’ve been constantly thinking and reviewing what information, beyond what is provided daily in the newspaper or other media, would be useful and meaningful. Quite honestly, I’ve actually been overwhelmed with all of the various alternatives.

To begin with, what is commonly referred to as “fixers”, I want to relate a conversation I had with a former builder who now purchases homes in poor condition and gives them a facelift. What this particular former builder told me was that he no longer had the insurance required to be a builder but, by buying “fixer” homes and giving them a ‘like new’ appearance, insurance wasn’t required. Obviously not all people engaging in “fixers” are former builders. Yet, when looking at a home that has been rehab’d, does anyone ever know the level of knowledge or skill the person had who completed the work? Were permits required? Was there electrical or plumbing work completed that is now hidden behind nicely textured and painted walls? The point here is not to belittle or defame “fixers” as bad. It’s simply to caution the public to take care in knowing what they are buying. Until the recent slowdown of appreciation, “fixers” supposedly made a lot of money for what seemed like little risk. Granted, they seemed to fill a need for housing that looked perfect and therefore became more appealing to home buyers who wanted a cute house which didn’t require any work. However, buyer beware, a superficial facelift doesn’t make a new home or condo. What happened to sweat equity?

Regarding credit scoring, which I believe was originally intended to make our society color blind, it is now being extended to real estate home loans. Of course it has always been applicable to real estate loans. Except now, home buyers with lower credit scores will pay an additional quarter percent, possibly more, than buyers with higher credit scores. Also I learned yesterday that private banking, in addition to dealing with high asset clients, is able to continue lending to high profile borrowers with larger than typical debt regardless of their credit score. I guess the point here is the public, especially the average people, needs to be more aware that greater opportunities will be available to those who are able to accumulate assets while retaining a higher credit score.

And that brings me to my next point. What is a home and why buy it? Obviously is home is somewhere to live and a lot more. This question has been a concern of mine for some time. Too many people seemed to be buying homes with the overriding expectation that prices would continue to rise at unprecedented rates forever. Plus many buyers were relying on 100 financing in order to complete the purchase. Of course when home prices stopped accelerating and a move or relocation was required, it isn’t too difficult to see what drama would occur with the home buyer who is now a seller. I hope that seller has deep pockets. Oh yes, there could maybe be a “Short Sale” in their future. But that’s an entirely different topic that will be considered another day.

Getting back to my point about a home, it would seem to me that a home is a place which offers security and protection to the home buyer. It is also a place where asset growth can occur. Short-term, no! Long-term, the answer has to be yes. Thirty-five years ago we counseled home buyers that, in order to break even on their home purchase, they needed to stay or keep a property at least 2-to-3 years. We’re likely at that point again. Yet the advantages of owning rather than buying are staggering. As a homeowner, if you don’t like the color of a room, you can change it without consulting with a rental management company or a landlord. If a faucet begins to leak, no problem, just go to Home Depot, get the parts and fix it yourself. If you want to remodel and add a room so you don’t have to move, do the work yourself or hire a contractor to assist you. Perhaps we need to be more concerned about the advantages of home ownership rather than whether prices are up or down on any particular day, month or year. Believe me, as a homeowner, despite period of slowdowns and low appreciation rates, the long-term prices of real estate has always grown. And it always will. You see, there is only so much land.

Anyway, I’ll try to be more diligent about writing to my blog and I won’t let things build up inside where I feel so overwhelmed. Thanks for reading and do have a great day. Speaking of having a great day, I sense that too few of us ever get the encouragement we need in order to fully have a great day. I hope that each of you will come to recognize the great potential that lies within you and decide to fully and completely use it to make your day great. In working toward your goal, please remember to:

Do Good ….. BE GREAT ….. And always give 110% in all that you do …..

Now, go out and have a “Great Day!”