September 2017

It's not as easy as it looks on TV

• A real estate agent's job is to make sure everyone else involved in the transaction is doing their job.
• Agents have to continually shift gears to quickly adapt and respond to customer needs.

What does a real estate agent do? Oh, where to start. Trying to explain to the public how real estate agents spend their time is akin to explaining what a doctor or lawyer does all day. There’s a lot more that goes into “treating patients” or “handling legal matters” and the same goes for “helping people buy, sell or rent property.”

From a consumer’s first thought about making a real estate move to actually taking the leap (whether

Zillow Group report details affordability struggles as real estate demand overwhelms supply

• Inventory absorption and home prices are rising so fast that homebuyers -- particularly millennials -- are going over budget and turning to friends and relatives for down-payment help.
• Buyers are keeping their options open. Most first-timers and millennials simultaneously consider renting and buying.
• Buyers most value agents' help in guiding them through the overall buying process and leading contract negotiations.

The job market is at what economists consider full employment, home prices keep rising, and wages are showing signs of growth. Good news for real estate, right?

A lot of people think the best time to buy a house is during the Spring market.

And, it is…

…in the sense that more houses are listed for sale in the Spring. But, there’s also a heck of a lot more buyers trying to buy those listings.

The thing is, some of the houses listed back in the Spring don’t end up selling. (Usually just because they were overpriced.)

Now, it isn’t like new listings don’t happen in the Fall. There’s always new listings coming on the market. But it’s not like, just because it’s Fall and not Spring, prices are necessarily going to fall. In other words, new listings aren’t likely to list for a lot lower than you would have seen in the Spring.

However, the homeowners who did list back in the Spring, are much more

When buyers and sellers start going head-to-head, no one comes out a winner

• It’s reasonable to ask for roof and termite clearances and that the home’s primary systems work. It’s not reasonable to ask for upgrades, abatement or cosmetic changes.

In many parts of the country, real estate sales and continually increasing priceshave been on a six-year romp. With sellers firmly planted in the driver’s seat, a significant percent of homes have been sold “as-is” with little or no regard for repairs.

As we begin seeing shifts in some markets, however, requests for repairs are beginning to reappear like spring flowers after a long winter freeze.

Because many

People don’t know what they don’t know, and what they do know is enough to create false perceptions

Key Takeaways

•         Erroneous assumptions about the business can cause a ton of confusion for the public about how the real estate process works.

The real estate process makes everyone an armchair expert by default. The buyer, the seller, their friends, co-workers and neighbors all know how real estate works.

After all, the last time they bought or sold a home was 10 years ago, and in their view, not much has changed. Misbeliefs and bad information are a dangerous combination.

People don’t know what they don’t know, and what they do know is enough to create false perceptions of a profession that is often surrounded by damaging