Tempe Arts and Urban..

Our friend, Nate Hobley, joined Lori and I at the new Tempe Center for the Arts (TCA)last night for a preview of a new urban development at Mill and Ash called Mosaic. We were very impressed with the new arts center and with the plans for Mosaic which will be built above a Whole Foods Market. Along with previews of the TCA and tons of information about the new project, the evening was filled with good food, drinks, entertainment and a very enthusiastic message from Hugh Hallman .(Tempe's Mayor)

Several other politicians were present and I had the good fortune to run in to my old friend (former High School coach) Ben Arredondo who is a long time member of the Tempe City Council.

There was a lot of excitement, even for a "dreary" real estate market, concerning the future potential for creating an "urban" feel and life style in down town Tempe. This will be an interesting market to watch and to be a part of. We have started watching these properties very closely. If you should ever want or need any information.. "Just Call Nick!"

More Market Casualties

Apparently, Homes Illustrated Magazine is one of the latest casualties of the current market. In an email I received yesterday, they said; "This market has been hard on all of us, both you our customers and our industry as a whole."
I'm not 100% convinced that the market had as much to do with their decline as did "marketing" practices in our business. While they have a web site, the focus on an expensive print format was something that is not nearly effective today as it was many years ago. I had ad space in their publication for many years but decided, 5-6 years ago that web based advertising had a much better result for our clients. Just about any serious buyer begins their search on the web today. Our listings pages on sites like realtor.com and azcentral.com are able to reach a far better audience. Like magazines, many agents and mortgage companies are "folding" like crazy. In just about any industry, change is good. I promise to be around for a long time. :-) For help or advise.. "Just Call Nick!"

Free & Clear or Week to Week?

The real estate and mortgage businesses have been on a heck of a ride the past few years. Hopefully, many lessons have been learned during this time. I have heard and read a lot this past week about the coming changes in the FHA guidelines. My friend, Ricky Khamis, tells me that we can expect to see a lot more of the FHA loans in the very near future. (more "favorable" guidelines than many current loans)
While it is sad to hear that so many people are facing foreclosure, I tend to wonder how much of the "mess" was "self inflicted." Most of the loans were bought by huge companies with huge profits. A large percentage were given to "speculators" and people "keeping up with mr. and mrs. Jones."
On the other end of the spectrum, you have people like Robert Kiyosaki writing that "bad" markets can be beneficial in the current environment for prudent investors.
Some people strive to have their home "Free and Clear," while others choose to spend their money on other things while living "week to week." A good choice might just be somewhere in the middle. Getting caught up in market trends can be dangerous. I believe that real estate is a great, long term investment. Using your homes equity to pay bills, buy the fancy car that you can't really afford etc. might prove to be what really hurt many of the current people that face foreclosure.. Someone has to pay for all of the fun!
I hope that the vast majority of people that need help can get it through a new mortgage with better terms. I also believe that the market will correct itself and get back to "normal" before we know it. (not tomorrow)
People will always need a place to live and many studies have shown that home ownership can be more beneficial for many people. It will be interesting to see how this one plays out..

The Feedback Factor

As long as I can remember, feedback has been an important part of the home selling process. EVERY seller wants to know what people thought of their home after a showing occurs. While you would think that providing a listing agent would be a professional courtesy extended by showing agents, it is often difficult to get helpful information from them.
The most common way to obtain feedback over the years has been to try and call the potential buyer's agent to get their input. Often, I would hear things like:
"We looked at several properties, I don't remember that one."
"I'm busy at the moment, I'll have to call you back."
You kind of see a pattern here.
For the past several years, I have used a system that I feel has been more effective. I find it much easier to get a response to an email than a phone call. A copy of the mls sheet is emailed to every agent that shows one of my listings thanking them for showing our property and asking their opinion on pricing, condition and location. This helps with the; "I don't recall" response as my description of the home and several photos are included with the mls sheet. The; "I'm busy" is some what eliminated because they are normally able to push "reply" and take 2 seconds to let me know their thoughts.
Seller's appreciate the information and I am able to keep better track of our listings through the constant follow up.
Real estate is a smaller world than one might think. A high percentage of homes is sold by a small percentage of agents. This is more true as the market softens and many of the people that thought they would get in on the "easy ride," are leaving the business. Most of the better agents know that feedback is appreciated and will respond when they can.
Good communication skills are necessary in real estate. Phone calls, emails and follow up help immensely. As a buyer or a seller, all that YOU have to do is... "Just Call Nick!"

Always changing..

Every day, the paper and the national media have stories about the falling mortgage and real estate industry. With large and small banks going out of business and homes selling in months instead of days, the media loves it. Just like when the opposite was true, the loved it. Why, because it sells stories. The President's plan will try to help people re-finance their sub prime loans but it is too early to tell how much is going to be done under the current guidelines. People must have good credit, have made their payments on time and have equity in their home. Most of the people facing foreclosure seem to be the ones that bought at the top of the market, over paid on a zero down loan and had a "teaser" rate. With the correction in the market, the payment goes up, the value has decreased and they struggle to make the new payment. Talk about a double whammy..
As an interesting side note.. I saw an article in National Realty News that "The Donald" himself has recent knowledge of the mortgage crisis. Looks like he "licensed" his name to a mortgage company a couple of years ago but their projections of growth fell a bit short..
Our markets change constantly. Your area might be doing well while others struggle. For buyers, you NEED to make sure that you have a good mortgage, area and plan in place. Homes sell in every type of market.. For helpful advise... "Just Call Nick!"