Tri-County, MA Real Estate Blog: August 2009

Straight from my email Inbox

Q. “Mike, if I am in business (let’s just say I’m a real estate agent) do I set up a Facebook profile for my business or do I setup a Business Page?

A. Looking just at the Facebook Terms of Service (TOS) Section 3, Point 1:

3.  We do our best to keep Facebook safe, but we cannot guarantee it. We need your help in order to do that, which includes the following commitments:

1. You will not send or otherwise post unauthorized commercial communications to users (such as spam).

“Mike, that’s easy!  I NEVER send out Spam!  NEVER!”

Hold on there Buttercup…   Do you ever

• Update your FB status or post listings on your Wall?
• Have your Twitter Stream show up on your Wall.  Do you tweet links to listings?
• FriendFeed blog posts to your Wall or Notes?

My guess is you answered Yes to at least one of them (I even did).  Is your stream as clean of Commercial Communications as the pure driven snow?  (not sure what driven snow has to do with it).  Yeah, mine isn’t either.  In fact this very blog post which is commercial in nature will soon be tweeted, which will be FriendFeeded to my very own Facebook Wall.  Some grumpy old guy in across the country who haphazardly added me as a “friend” might just very well interpret that as spam.  I’m Guilty as Charged!

Technically speaking that’s a violation to Facebook TOS and your profile could be wiped away in a heart beat with no prior notice.  All your “Friends” gone!  Could it happen? Would it happen?  Maybe, maybe not – but then again, why risk it?

Breaking News:

Facebook Site Governance: Statement of Rights and Responsibilities (updated 8/11/09)

Section 4, Point 2 states “You will not use your personal profile for your own commercial gain.“

“But Mike, I see everyone else is doing it.  Facebook wouldn’t start deleteing profiles”.

While Facebook isn’t Flickr and isn’t Vimeo  (both are actively deleting accounts that have commercial content)

Ask Matt Stigliano about his Flickr Account.
See: http://www.rerockstar.com/2009/technology/an-answer-to-where-did-the-photos-and-slideshows-go/

and http://www.socialphototalk.com/flickr-permanently-deletes-yet-another-user-without-warning/

Ask Tim Ayers about his Vimeo Account.
See: http://642blog.ca/2008/07/08/vimeo-online-video-sharing-sucks-video/

There’s nothing stopping Facebook from doing the same thing in the future.

As a matter of fact - Meet Jim Calabrese who left this comment on my blog

 

Consider the alternative.  The Facebook Business Page.  It’s easy to start, free to setup.  And on Facebook’s site (http://www.facebook.com/advertising/?pages) they even encourage page owners to

STEP 4: MAKE IT RICH AND ENGAGING

The more rich content you add, the more ways users can interact with it and spread that connection to their friends. Post photos of products, employees, and customers. Add video clips of your bar or restaurant in action. ‘Behind the scenes’ content often works well. List an event for your grand opening or in-store sale. Write a note about upcoming promotions. The choices are yours and all these features are free and unlimited.

and

STEP 6: UPDATE REGULARLY

Updating your Page regularly with fresh photos, upcoming events, and thelatest promotions means your Page won’t just look like a profile, it will feel like one, and that will keep users coming back. Facebook users are used to getting information sorted by what happened most recently. If you keep your Page active, which you can do through mobile integrations and applications, you’ll find that your fans are more engaged and more interactive.

You can also send some or all of them messages by clicking “Send an Update to Fans” in the upper-left of your Page (under the profile picture). Updates are useful for sending out announcements like promotions, sales or events.

What’s the difference?

A Fan Page (Facebook Business Page) has Fans.  Those “Fans” have “authorized” you to send them commercial communications – a “Friend”  has not.  There’s so much more reason to have a Page than just this single legal technicality.  However it’s vital as Facebook, and doing business on Facebook grows that marketers understand what is legal and what is not.  So the real answer is that you need to start with a Profile. That profile should be for you, your true friends, and your family.  That Profile then can create a Business Page to promote you the “Professional” side of you.

PS: ActiveRain has it's own TOS - when was the last time you read that?

RELATED ARTICLES BY ZEMANTA

• Import Facebook Friends To Twitter (techie-buzz.com)
• 7 reasons you need a Facebook Business Page (AreWeConnected.com)
• Facebook Profile, Group or Page? (AreWeConnected.com)

 

 

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This post brought to you courtesy of Mike Mueller.
Feel free to ReBlog or ReTweet as you like as long as you credit the source (him).
Did you know?  He's for hire! He builds Blogs, Graphic Images and Widgets and Facebook Pages and besides… He knows lots of really cool stuff.

Hire Mike (925) 456-4567

1. Your photos are unimpressive. The vast majority of home buyers start their search for a home on the Internet, your house had better look great in print. Not just nice... downright fabulous.  Today we are considering internet views as a 'virtual showing'... if your house gets past that, then they might (just might) make an appointment to see it in person... We consider that your SECOND showing. Today's buyers are expecting good quality photos (and lots of them... just 1 shot from the street won't cut it!), a virtual tour, maybe even a floor plan, if applicable.

2. It's overpriced. You've got to view your own property as objectively as possible.  Look at the home like a "buyer"... if necessary, go out with your Realtor and view other homes that are priced comparably to yours.  Be objective.  Given the other options on the market (and yes, you DO have to include short sales and foreclosures on your list... your potential buyers are!), would YOU buy your home, over the others on the market?

If no, then you either have to "update" your home to meet or beat the competition... or lower your price to adjust for it.  if you can't afford to sell it for the price, that you KNOW it should sell for, you may want to consider just removing it from the market.

3. It shows poorly. This could mean almost anything... from the barky, barky dog, to the smell of the diaper pail.  Maybe the carpeting is a bit worn, or the woodwork shows a lot of wear.  All things that don't show up on the internet, but whoa.... once you get inside the house... they show up, like a cat-urine-smell on a 95 degree day in New Orleans!

4. You're invisible. Today's buyer comes from the internet, almost exclusively.  Have you (or your agent) simply plopped the property on the MLS, and started praying?  Are you on all the websites...(Trulia, Zillow, Craig's List, Google Base, etc...) all the places that buyers are searching?  If not, you want to be.

5. Your listing is tired and stale on the market. Okay... yes, you overpriced your home initially when you first came on the market 2 years ago.  But since then you have reduced your price almost monthly... constantly chasing the market down.... Now, finally you're truly priced where you should be... but your listing is tired and stale.  Everyone looking for your type of property (ie: 3br/1.1 bath) in your area has already seen it, sometimes twice... and they remember that there was "something" about it that they didn't like... but what they don't remember is... what they didn't like.... was the price.   Time to take the listing off market.  Let it cool off (3-6 months), and bring it back on fresh in the Spring.  Yeah, you'll have 6 mos. worth of holding-costs... but you'll more than make up for it in your purchase price.

btw... Resist the temptation to bring the house back on at a higher price, than when you left the market.  Just "don't do it"!

6. Your house won't appraise. The house looks great... you've finally gotten someone to bring you a bid on your slightly over-priced, but beautiful pied-a-terre.  But the bank appraiser says it's worth $20,000 less than what they've agreed to pay.  Heavy sigh... bite the bullet.... negotiate with them.   If you have to drop the price $20,000 to make it work.... "make it work"... chances are, anybody else trying to buy your house will run into the same problem.

 

Part 4 of the Series - Are You a First Time Home Seller? – What to Expect From Your Real Estate Agent

 

If you haven’t read the previous posts in this series, you may want to read those first.

Part 1 of this series. – Contacting a Real Estate Agent

Part 2 of this series – The Initial Visit

Part 3 of this series – The Comparative Market Analysis (CMA)

 

The CMA has been completed.  I’m going to call you and visit about the results.  If you’re ready for me to list your house for sale at the price that the CMA has indicated, it’s time to set up an appointment to do the paperwork. 

 

Hopefully you’ve already started taking care of the items on the list that needed to done to prepare the house for sale. Highly unlikely that it looked like the list on the left... but it might have!

 

Sometimes we wait to do the listing agreement until the house is ready to show. Sometimes we do the listing agreement and postpone marketing and showing until those items are complete. It depends upon your situation.

There are several forms that will need to be explained and signed when I list your property for sale in addition to the forms and pamphlets that I provided to you on our initial visit.

The forms that were provided when I visited your property were:

·  Transaction Broker Disclosure Form

·       Lead Based Paint Information Pamphlet and disclosure, if your house was built before 1978.

·       Information Pamphlet about selling and buying property in Oklahoma

·      Equal Housing Law Pamphlet

·       Property Condition Disclosure Form or Disclaimer, depending upon whether you have lived in the house or have reason to know its condition.

Today is Listing Day.  The forms that we will be going over and you will need to sign are:

·    The Listing Agreement

·      The Seller’s Estimate of Expenses

In addition, I will need the completed Property Condition Disclosure Form and Lead Based Paint Disclosure Form from you since I already have a signed Transaction Broker Disclosure Form for you.

 

 

In addition, we may look over together, the photos that were taken when we visited your property. 

 

This helps illustrate the need for the SUD list (Spruce Up and Declutter) and sometimes we’ll both decide, based upon these photos that other things need to be added to the SUD list.

After the SUD list has all been taken care of, it will be time for listing photos.

Let’s go over the kinds of items that you can expect to see on a SUD list:

·      Usually a home needs to be “de-personalized”.  Put away your personal photos and things that draw attention to you instead of to the house’s good points. 

You want buyers to see themselves living in the house, not you.

·    Usually when those personal photos etc have been put away, there will be small holes in the wall. These to be repaired.  If it’s drywall, this probably means paint also.

·     De-Clutter the home.  I know that you’ve probably heard this over and over.  There’s a reason that this is the most often given advice on preparing a home for sale.  The reason is that most of us have too much stuff in our home for our home to look it’s best and you want your home to look it’s best when buyers walk through.

·    Replace fixtures that you do not want to sell.  The mirror in your bathroom that you purchased at that antique store or maybe your grandmother left it to you and you absolutely do not want to sell it… replace it with another one if that spot needs a mirror. OR if you can’t part with the curtains or draperies for one reason or another, hang some different ones.

·       Often painting is on the list.  It’s a fairly inexpensive way to make a big difference.  

 

·     Minor repairs – leaky faucets, squeaky doors, doors that do not close properly, etc.. There will usually be some of these things on your SUD list.

 

 

·  Clean, Clean, Clean.  Make the house shine, including refrigerators, closets, ceiling fans, bathroom fixtures, grout, garages, anything and everything…. clean, clean, clean.

·   If new towels (to show off the bathrooms) or bedspreads (one of the major décor items in the bedroom) are needed, do it.

·   Get the lawn in tip top shape and the front walk way into your home.  Curb appeal brings them in and if they don’t come in. . .

·      Bring in the light.. make sure the windows are clean and bright light bulbs are in place. 

·      Rearrange the furniture if necessary, and remove items that make a room look too small and sometimes it could be a good idea to remove items that create confusion about the room’s purpose.

Also it can be a good idea to walk around with the original photos, while looking at the same area in your house.  Does it look better?  Hopefully it does.  Is there something else that needs to be done to that area?

Photo Shoot coming next.

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Some photos today are courtesy of Flickr.com

Life in Southeast Oklahoma is GREAT! If you're looking for a home or land in my part of the country, give me a call: Judi Barrett, broker, Integrity Real Estate Services, 580-212-5946

Or visit one of our websites:

Integrity Realty

Integrity Real Estate

Lake Raymond Gary Homes

Fort Towson Homes

Valliant Homes

McCurtain County

Choctaw County

Broken Bow Lake

Lake Raymond Gary

Raymond Gary Lake

Commercial Property List

===================================

Judi Barrett

Broker - Integrity Real Estate Services
Our Name Says It All.
Real Estate Services You Can Trust.
580-212-5946

 

 

 

If you haven’t read the first two posts in this series, you may want to read those first.

Part 1 of this series.

Part 2 of this series

 

 

The CMA or Comparative Market Analysis is done to provide an expected sale price for your property if given an adequate amount of time on the market with adequate exposure. 

 

After your initial phone call, my visit to your property, it’s time for me to sit down with all the information and do a comparative market analysis for you.

 

I will mainly be looking for 3 different types of properties:

 

·  Similar Properties near yours that have sold recently (properties that have the greatest influence on your value)

· Similar Properties near yours that are currently on the market (these are considered because they are you COMPETITON)

· Homes that have a sale contract  (What is currently selling)

 

In my area, the best source for sold comps is the County Clerk.  In some areas, it is the MLS. 

 

I pay a fee to be able to pull information up on my computer from the county records.  I’ve already brought you a data sheet from the county records for your property, along with other disclosures and information, when I came out to view the property.  

 

After having verified that data with you, I’m now looking for similar properties in your area that have sold recently.  Being a very rural area, close proximity to you may be as far away as 15 miles.  Comps can be very difficult in our area, ask any appraiser.  If your property is in town such as Idabel or Broken Bow, your comps will usually be within 2 miles and a strong possibility that they are in the same housing addition as your property.  Those are the best comps.

 

I use a form very similar to what an appraisal form.  The best 3 sold comparables are listed on this form with their information, such as square footage, site size, # of bedrooms, # of bathrooms, garage info, and other things that add value to a home such as fireplaces, etc.   Adjustments are then made for the differences in the properties such as the site size, etc.

 

Then I insert the best 3 “for sale” comparables to see how your property stacks up against the competition.

 

When I’ve evaluated all of this information and completed the calculations, I will call you and we’ll visit about it and set a time for the two of us to sit down and go over the CMA. 

 

Next in the series:  Getting the house ready to sell.

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Life in Southeast Oklahoma is GREAT! If you're looking for a home or land in my part of the country, give me a call: Judi Barrett, broker, Integrity Real Estate Services, 580-212-5946

Or visit one of our websites:

Integrity Realty

Integrity Real Estate

Lake Raymond Gary Homes

Fort Towson Homes

Valliant Homes

McCurtain County

Choctaw County

Broken Bow Lake

Lake Raymond Gary

Raymond Gary Lake

Commercial Property List

===================================

Judi Barrett

Broker - Integrity Real Estate Services
Our Name Says It All.
Real Estate Services You Can Trust.
580-212-5946

 

 

If you missed Part 1 of this series, you may want to read it before reading part 2.  

 

Note: This discussion assumes that your property is in Oklahoma.  If you live in a different state, some of this may not be applicable to you (abstracts of title, Oklahoma Transaction Broker Law, to name a couple).   

 

I am writing to “home selling newbies” but even if you’re not a newbie and you’ve sold a house before, hopefully you’ll find some helpful information in this series.

 You’ve decided it’s time to sell, you’ve called me (or another real estate agent) and set up an appointment for them to come and view your property and visit with you about listing it.

 

That appointment time has come.

 

 

 

During this initial visit to your house (not thinking in terms of your “home”  now because we are going to be objective and now you should be thinking “I have a house for sale” instead of “I own a home”):

 

Talk to me:

 

 

·       Tell me what you are trying to accomplish with this sale.

 

 

·       Tell me the time frame that you are operating in to get the property sold. 

 

 

 

 

 

·       Do you need me to help you find a new home in our area or help you find an agent in a different town that you are moving to?

 

 

·       Do you have a mortgage(s) on the property?  Who with and how much is owed?  I will need the name of the lender(s) and the account number(s) when/if we list the property. Are you current on the mortgage(s)? If not, what is the situation with it?  Are there any other encumbrances on the property?

·       Is the property subject to probate proceedings, foreclosure, divorce proceedings or the jurisdiction of any court?  If so, there are other people who have a say as to whether the property can be sold or not. 

·       Are you current on the property taxes?

·       Do you have an abstract for the property?  Is it a complete or supplemental? If there is one and you do not have it in your possession, where is it stored?  Has it ever had an attorney’s opinion done on it?

 

 

·       Has the property been surveyed?  If so, do you have a copy of the survey?  If not, who does?  Having this may save you some money.

·What type of utilities services the property?  If it is a well, where is it located, does it supply plenty of water, and has it been tested?  If it is a septic system, what size of tank is it, how many feet of lateral line are in the system.  If it is a different type of system, we will need the info on it.  

 

 

 

I will provide to you information about how we take care of our clients and listings:

·       Marketing strategies – internet, flyers, mail-outs, local newspapers, etc. When/if we list your property, we will go over a marketing plan specific for YOUR property.

·       Staying in touch with our clients via phone, email, text, etc.

·       How the current market is for your type of property and what that indicates in terms of time on the market etc.

 

During this visit, I WILL NOT:

 

·       Provide a list price range.  I will do a CMA (Comparative Market Analysis) after this visit and will get back with you on it, as to what the market indicates for pricing.

 

Other information that I will provide to you:

 

·       I will bring a Transaction Broker Disclosure Form with me, go over it with you and ask you to sign it. It explains the Oklahoma Transaction Broker Law and what you can expect from a Transaction Broker. By signing it, you are indicating that we did go over it and that you have been  provided a copy of the disclosure.

 

This does not obligate you to list your property with us. It is to make sure that you understand the way most Oklahoma real estate licensees operate.  They can also operate as a Single Party Broker and I will explain the difference between the two. If you and I decide that we want the Single Party Broker Relationship, then we will deal with that when/if our office lists your property.

 

·       I will bring with me the current information sheet from the county tax assessor to compare that with your information, such as legal description, size of property, size of house, date the house was built and any additions added on, names that are on the title, and amount of yearly taxes. I will leave a copy of this with you.  Having correct information helps me be more accurate when I do a Comparative Market Analysis.

 

·      I will go over a Property Condition Disclosure Form, explain it and leave it with you to be filled out. Whether you list with us or with someone else, you will need this form.

 

·       If your house was built before 1978, I will ask you about lead based paint and will provide you with a Pamphlet about Lead Based Paint.

 

·      I will provide to you a Pamphlet published by the State of Oklahoma covering various things involved in selling or buying property in Oklahoma. I will ask you to initial one copy of the pamphlet for my file so I know that I provided you with a copy.

·       I will provide to you a Pamphlet about Equal Housing Laws.

 

·      I will provide you a generic list of things to do to get your house ready to sell (de-clutter, clean, weed the flower beds, etc), but also as we walk through the property, I will be making a list of suggestions specific to your property about sale preparation and staging.  I will leave you a copy of this list.

 

·     I want to see the property, all of it, or as much as is reasonable. Sometimes on a very large acreage that is not possible but I would like to see as much as is possible.  I will be making notes and making a list (see above).  My husband and I work together.  He will be taking photos, LOTS of photos..

 

·       I want to know about it.  I want to know what you believe are the best parts and points of the property.

·      I want to know about the immediate area, why you’ve enjoyed living here and what you did not like about it, if anything.

·      I want you to tell me anything that you think I need to know that I did not ask about. 

 

I will then go away… and do my thing.  I will be working on the CMA for you.. which is next in this series. 

 

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Life in Southeast Oklahoma is GREAT! If you're looking for a home or land in my part of the country, give me a call: Judi Barrett, broker, Integrity Real Estate Services, 580-212-5946

Or visit one of our websites:

Integrity Realty

Integrity Real Estate

Lake Raymond Gary Homes

Fort Towson Homes

Valliant Homes

McCurtain County

Choctaw County

Broken Bow Lake

Lake Raymond Gary

Raymond Gary Lake

Commercial Property List

===================================

Judi Barrett

Broker - Integrity Real Estate Services
Our Name Says It All.
Real Estate Services You Can Trust.
580-212-5946