Humboldt County Real Estate Blog

I just received an offer on a building I had listed for about a year. The tenant was supposed to buy it during this time but failed to consumate the deal.

Well, during this time he shacks up with the owners daughter, she owns the business inside the building and they get into an altercation. She allegedly shoots him in the arm and then fires two more shots at him. Of course he says there is no police report and the hospital didn't call in the authorities...allegedly.

So, here is my dilema, now that we have a bona fide offer from a very strong buyer, he has now threatened to file a Lis Pendens, he is looking to sue the owners of the building, the daughter's parents, for something she has done. By the way, she is almost 50 years old!

Where in the world as a Realtor do we draw the line? I thought only attorrneys can file a lis pendens in California. am I wrong in this assumption? I don't want to over step my license, and I don't want to go "ghetto" on him! By the way, please sign my guestbook...I would love to see where some of you are in the US!

There has been much talk about what could happen if you switched offices in times like this for "greener" pastures. Well, allow me to school you on the intricacies of change so it won't affect your business too much. I am definitely talking from experience. I just changed offices 3 months ago and I don't have any lapses in my business. Matter of fact, I think it's safe to say, my business doubled!

First, I totally disagree that your clients came to you because they liked your company. Most of us know that real estate is a people and relationship business. If we don;t have the ability to enhance those relationships, then we don;t have much of a business now do we?

Fisrt thing you have to do when you know what office you are moving to is "don't tell anyone!"

If word gets out that you are leaving, your broker can change the locks and not let you get your clients info so you can let them know you've changed. I would wait at least one week before giving notice of your departure.

Here is how I handled my move...

I went thru every transaction and made sure the info was up to date. I added to my database all of the transactions I was personally involved in whether I was the buyers agent or the sellers agent. 

I had some current listings that I spent marketing and asked all of them why did they choose our particular office to sell their home? They chose this company because of me. It had nothing to do with the national branding and nothing to do with the local reputation. They trusted me to sell their home in a timely fashion. Out of the 11 listings I had at the time, only one said they wanted to stay with the company. ( I am so glad he decided that!) 

When negotiating with my new company, they volunteered to buy my business cards and signs and to co-advertise with them until I get my selling legs back again. I would never make such a move unless I knew there was room for growth and I wasn't making a lateral move. Always aim higher than where you were.

I was the #2 agent in our office of 65 and in the top 20 of our county of 430 agents. I was also with my last company for almost 5 years. It wasn't an easy decision to leave.

 as soon as I made my move, I contacted all of my clients via phone calls and updated newsletter. As a result, my business has vastly improved, I am busier than ever and it was a great excuse to contact my prior clients!

So, change is good if you slow down and think it through before making the leap to "greener pastures"

i know I have been harping on some people in my area about updating their picture so it doesn't look like their high school prom picture, but of course no one listens to me. I'm just the new kid on the block who knows nothing!

I was at a local Kiwanis event and the same topic came up between our members. Why don't people update their pictures? Are they afraid of people notcing their gray hair or lack there of? Is it because of the weight gain? i know some of these folks will be running to the local mall to update their pohots if they only lost 5 pounds!

I was told recently that I look much younger than my picture. nice compliment! I have a standing appointment with my photographer to take new pictures every year. Belive it or not, you will notice a difference!

another reason to update your photos is when you meet clients for the first time. I have heard stories of clients getting surprised at different the agent looks in their advertising. Not to mention their websites. By the way, if you are now with C21 and you still have a Re/Max link on your site, you may have to update that too.

But that would be a whole new post...

Many people are wondering, why does it matter that the stock market has jumped up another 260+ points? I don't dabble in the stock market and i don't have any mutual funds. What gives?

I noticed when the market goes up and there is all kinds of hype in the media about it, the buyers tend to come out of hiding and start getting active in the home search again. I believe it's called "perception".

The media has a lot to do with the mental state of most Americans. If we hear and read about the doom and gloom of the economy, the mood changes toward the negative. Today, we hear the market has bounced back and the fed has agreed to pump $200B into the financial markets!

Holy smoke! the phones start ringing again, we start making appointments to show homes and investment properties and we cancel our commission advances!

Just further proof that most of us are relying too much on the media to tell us how to feel. Although we can't do anything about other people, we most certainley can help ourselves. Try to keep a positive outlook every day. I mean, be realistic.

Make that one extra phone call to a past client. Never end a phone call on a negative note. Before going to bed tonight, think about all the positive things you have done today. You never know, you may have a positive affect on someone who secretly admires you and your work habits. Could be a good thing!

ok folks, I usually don't post things like this or even post  twice in one day! But I got so ecxcited about this program for SEO, I just had to share it! Click on the link below and you'll see what I mean!

http://johnford.qassia.com/

I noticed a pretty nice spike in my website and I guess in turn, it should raise your rankings in the search engines! check it out! 

remember back in junior high school when the teacher led this game called "The Telephone?"

It's where teacher would say a phrase to one person, then it would go on down the line from person to person until the story is so diluted and totally different. Well, we live in such a small town, this happens all the time!

I received a call recently from a buyer who is interested in one of my listings. We spoke for a few minutes and she said something that really got my attention. She said she heard that I left a larger company because I didn't like the way the agents were being treated (half true), I wanted to get away from all of the gossip and negativity (true) and I am now with one of the most reputable companies in our county! (very true). she also went on to say that she heard I was one of Chuck Norris's co-stars in several of his movies, I was a leading spokesmodel for AT&T and Shell Motor Oil! At first, I was wondering, where in the world was she getting this information? I got a really good laugh and i explained to her that not all of it was true.

Well, word got out that I indeed have been in several commercials and used to be an extra in the Nash Bridges Series with Don Johnson and Cheech Marin.

So, be careful what you tell people especially when you live in a small town!

It seems more and more agnets are getting part time jobs that are totally unrelated to real estate. I spoke to an agent today who is going to work for a pizza parlor as a part time custodian. she doesn't want to be on the front counter because she doesn't want anyone to know she is working an extra job. I would think most clients would understand you have to do what you can to make sure your family is taken care of. It's no secret the market has changed. For some, the market has come to a total stand still. In our county, our prices have actually gone up 3.7% over last year and we have about 7 months of inventory.

Then, why are agents looking for extra work?

Because they have not kept in contact with current and past clients and developed a meaningful relationship. It's that simple! what about the clients you sold a house to 4 years ago? Do you still contact them? You bet! There is no time like now to get a newsletter sent to them and/or calling them and saying hi!

If YOU are looking for some extra work, part time or full time, pull up the list of homes you have sold over the last 4-5 years and start sending them some sort of correspondence. Either a newletter or just call them. That should keep you busy for a while. I truly belive just this one simple act will keep your pipeline from drying up and keep you out of that drive thru window at McDonalds!

One of these days I will put on a webinar and go over some key points on how to develop great relationships qith even your past clients! Anyone interested?

I noticed when i started getting offers on my listings that agents are adding some very obnoxious items in the addendum lines.

One agent it seems, she is hurting for money when she added, "listing agent to refund buyers agent $13.00 for county property profile at close of escrow"

another offer I got just recently, the agent added " escrow to be 60 days due to the fact the seller is incarcerated"

why in the world would you put that in a contract that the lender will see? sorry folks, i just had to vent....

That's why I love "The Rain!"

I feel better now...

Most of the time it is really hard for us to tell our clients the totally honest truth about their home. You walk into a listing appointment and they are gushing about their purple walls and hot pink carpet. In the mean time, you are walking behind them trying not to gag! Different strokes for different folks!  You are then trying not to ask them if they are color blind and/or if they just balled up a piece of cloth, dipped it in paint and hurled it at the walls!

The remedy? Thought you would never ask!

Tell them the truth! WOW! What a concept! I made the fatal mistake of just agreeing w8th their choices during a walk thru prior to the actual listing presentation that I lost the listing to a competitor.  If I would have just said, "you know, you have some amazing talent for color matching and staging, you are so unique, there isn't anyone else I know who would be able to replicate what you have done here!" I would then guide them in the best ways to appeal to a larger audience and create that "wow' factor.

Since losing the one and only listing I have ever competed for, I have learned my lesson to be as honest and up front as possible. I have followed many agents where they have told the sellers to keep everything where it is, don't de-clutter and don't bother wiping down the walls because nobody will notice anyway.

By the time I walk out of that house, they have about two sheets of things to do before we have our first open house. If you are consistent in this practice, your listings will sell faster, and get the highest amounts.

look at the homes that have sold in the last couple of months. What was it about them that have stood out among all of the choices the buyers now have. Even in this market, it is possible to get a home sold within the first 60 days. I've done it. You can do it too. No matter what your market is like.