Real Estate Update

Posts Tagged ‘Some’

With the current housing market making it much more difficult for owners to sell their property, some realtors have been creatively resetting the “days on market” meter for their clients on their local multiple listing service (MLS). Though many have done so out of good intentions, perhaps not realizing that this is a violation of many multiple listing services, buyers should beware and ask their realtor to take steps to ensure the home they are interested in is not a relisted property.
The targeted homes usually have sat on the market for several months, no longer attracting potential buyers. There are many reasons a home may sit on the market too long. Generally, the reason has nothing to do with the value of the home to a potential buyer. Here are just a few reasons:
• There are currently so many homes on the market across the nation. The competition and falling home prices are making it difficult to sell homes, regardless of price and value offered;
• Most realtors show clients the new listings first. That means that a truly good home will not get the same attention as it did when newly listed, making selling it even more difficult; and
• New listings can command higher prices. Once a home has been on the market for a while, many buyers and their realtors make lowball offers. Seldom do owners accept these too-low offers, leaving the home on the market even longer.
Some realtors, wishing to help their clients sell their homes, have come up with ways to manipulate their multiple listing service’s computerized tracking features. By pulling the home off the multiple listing service and immediately relisting it, these realtors do several things:
• They reset the “days on market” tracking to zero, obscuring how long it has been for sale;
• Realtors, who also zero out the property ID and tweak the address a bit, ensure that the database cannot track the home as a relisted property;
• Even if the days on market continue to track, many multiple listing services put newly listed (including relisted) properties on their “hot sheets”, making them appear new;
• They can disguise that the previous listing was at a higher price, alleviating the perceived sign of seller weakness by buyers and their realtors;
• Relisting means a seller may not need to lower their asking price, since new listings command higher selling prices; and
• The realtor is ensuring the seller gets another run at competing in the market on a level playing field, since new listings get higher prices and most of the attention of potential buyers.
All of these factors are in the best interest of the seller. Unfortunately, a false sales history puts the buyer on an unequal playing field.
The days on market alerts the buyer and his/her realtor to possible problems with the property. Though many reasons for market longevity have nothing to do with the property, some homes have flaws and issues that make them unattractive to potential buyers. It is easier for realtors to show newly listed homes than to research homes for problems that have been on the market for some time.
To protect yourself, ensure your realtor digs a little deeper when researching the newly listed homes. The agent should investigate the sales history of each home before showing it to you. A diligent and experienced realtor will know what to look for and can spot relisted homes.

To have or not to have a realtor license, that is the question. And the logical answer really depends on your situation, mainly:
1. Do I live in a market where homes are valued very highly (average sale price is $200,000 or greater)?
2. Do I intend to live in the same house for many years, or will I be moving often?
3. Do I have the need and/or the desire to obtain additional income?
4. Do I want to mess with the hassle, and how much trouble would it be to get a realtor license?
5. Does it cost an exorbitant amount of money to take the classes and pass the test?
Question #1 is probably the most important question to answer. With the typical realtor cost of 6% per sale of a home, a $200,000 house will cost you $12,000 just in realtor fees. Compared with the $1000-$2000 cost of obtaining a realtor license, logic says to take the classes and get licensed, even if just to sell your own home. But beyond the cost savings, what does a realtor really do you for you? Mainly they just list the house in the MLS, put a sign in the yard, and wait for the buyer to show up. Then they fill in the blanks on a simple promulgated real estate contract form, and collect their fee.
The answer to Question #2 has its roots in Question #1, cost savings. For the continual mover, it only makes to defray as much of the cost of selling real estate as possible. But if you are planning on selling just one more time, then staying in the new house for many years, it may not be worth the hassle to get a realtor license.
Question #3 is where the ambitious person lives. The desire to gain additional income and/or to get free of a job. If this is your goal, definitely consider getting a realtor license.
Question #4 is for the procrastinator. It really does not take that much to obtain a realtor license. One could do an online course in as little as a few weeks, take the exam, pay the fees, and become a realtor. So it really comes down to just taking action. If you want the cost savings of selling your own house, additional income or to be free from your job, getting a realtor license is a great start.
Question #5 is directed at the skeptic. The costs of getting a realtor license are not high, maybe $1000-$2000 or less in many states, and there are almost always online schools as well as instructor lead courses available. It is just simply a matter of wanting to go further in life, and taking steps to get there.
So unless you just want to sell your house once, buy another house, and live there until you drop dead, it makes sense to have a realtor license. Especially in the high housing cost areas like California, New York, Florida, Chicago, and others. Realtor licenses just aren’t that difficult to obtain, and really can make an amazing difference in your life.