Home Ownership 411

When I first entered the world of business there was no Internet, no email, and no text messaging. When we needed to communicate with someone, we picked-up the phone or met face-to-face. Deals were closed by looking each other in the eye and shaking hands.  We got to know one another and develop business relationships, and even friendships based on a foundation of common courtesy and respect.

OK, so I age myself.  But I’m experiencing a new level of disrespect and lack of courtesy that I’m having a difficult time dealing with as a professional – and I blame much of it on the Internet and the technology we all take for granted.  Don’t get me wrong, I embrace technology and can’t imagine how I did business in the pre www era.  However, I believe the very nature of a real-time, worldwide marketplace is removing the obligation to at least be courteous and respectful of people’s time and efforts.

I’m a Realtor and mortgage broker and receive my leads both through referrals and Internet marketing.  For example, I used to receive mortgage leads from Lending Tree…you know, “When banks compete, you win.”   What most borrowers don’t understand is that we’re paid nothing, unless we close your loan by working hard and finding the loan that is right for you. The professional courtesy I expect in exchange for the work I’m fronting is for a borrower to be honest with me and tell me if they are getting other quotes and where I fall in the competition for their business.  Recently, I had a borrower, unbeknownst to me, still getting quotes from others while I had her loan locked, appraisal completed and ready for approval!   I thought she was committed to working with me, but largely I believe because of having such a broad, anonymous marketplace, she was still shopping the loan to other brokers!  Because we had never met, or had an opportunity to shake hands, I feel it was easier for her to go behind my back.  Again, some common courtesy and respect for my time and efforts is all I ask.

Real estate also has its share of discourtesies based on access to a very broad marketplace.  Because anyone can search for properties online, some buyers think they are experts and that my services as a buyer’s agent aren’t really that complicated. They email me with pages of foreclosure listings, and wonder why I’m not showing them these properties.  Those of you in the industry are nodding your heads and sighing.  Many buyers again don’t understand the countless hours of research that goes into helping a buyer find the right property.  The courtesy I expect is to trust me as a professional.  I’m happy to evaluate the listings a buyer might send to me that they found on the Internet….but trust me, most are inappropriate for a variety of reasons and just a waste of my time, and their time.  If the property had met the buyer’s search parameters, I would have found it.  Just trust me and let me do my job and please have respect for my time.

My final gripe has to do with email.  Do you remember what a business letter used to look like?  I remember learning the very distinct formats and acceptable salutations that helped provide a professional framework for discussion.  Now, I’m not advocating that emails resemble a snail mail letter from the early ‘80s, but the casual nature of salutations, “Hi Bob,” the use of abbreviations, lack of punctuation, use of all lower case letters and general lack of any niceties, such as inquiring about someone’s family, demonstrates a lack of respect for the recipient.  And don’t even get me started on text messages.

Do I believe that the Internet and associated technologies are changing our business relationships?  Absolutely.  But I think that the change can be good.  I love the fact that because of the Internet and email I can do business all over the country and meet people I would have otherwise never encountered. I have never met 95% of my mortgage clients face-to-face, and yet I count many of them as my friends and look forward to their Christmas cards each year. I just hope we all remember that there is a live human being with thoughts, feelings, and a need to feel respected behind the website, or at the other end of the email before we hit send.

Would love to hear your thoughts.

We’ve all seen the statistics every night on the evening news; foreclosures continue to rise and lenders are scrambling to dump inventory.  In the last year, many in the real estate industry have refocused their businesses on selling REO (real estate owned, bank owned) properties, but just how good a job are they doing?

My company offers both mortgage and real estate services, and on the real estate side, I currently work primarily as a buyer’s agent.  What I’ve encountered in showing over 100 foreclosure properties in the last 3 months is downright pathetic.  Many of the listings are with real estate firms that might have over 100 REO properties.  While some agents do a good job, for the majority there is no marketing, and really nothing but a bare bones MLS listing with a few bad photos at best.  I can’t tell you how many times I’ve tried to show one of these listings and can’t even get into the property due to incorrect or lack of information: No access code to gated communities; incorrect combinations provided for lock boxes; and even keys that don’t work!  And if I do get into the property with my buyer the home is often in shambles:  ripped-up carpet, dirty toilets and just plain filth…and that’s the least of it….not to mention dead rats and things I don’t even want to mention.  No wonder these Listings are glutting our market!

What are these agents really doing to deserve a commission?  I know that in many cases they have to deal with an eviction and that is never an easy process, but in many cases they simply have to list and market the property.  Technically speaking, most asset management companies want to have their properties at least cleaned and debris removed, but that doesn’t seem to be happening.

My opinion is that the lenders and asset management companies holding all of this inventory should spread it out and not overload any one company to the point that they can’t effectively market the property.  It might be easiest to simply contact the same company and give them the listing, but if that listing sits on the market for 6 months due to lack of effective marketing, how smart is that?

So what does a buyer expect when viewing a foreclosure property?  Unless they are a seasoned buyer, we have to remember that they might not have a lot of imagination and perhaps won’t see past some of the larger obstacles.  The goal should be to remove enough distractions so that the buyer can actually get a sense of what the home offers.

• Cut down weeds and remove any debris in the front and back yard
• Remove any interior debris
• Clean the house, including appliances.  Even if the carpet is stained, the walls need painting and appliances should be replaced, clean goes a long way to helping a buyer imagine what the home might look like.

Marketing should, as mentioned earlier include something more than an MLS listing, but let’s start there.  How difficult is it to provide complete, accurate information and enough photos to spike interest?  Have the home cleaned and then take enough photos to show it to its best advantage.  Other standard real estate marketing should be provided for REO properties including holding an open house and email flyer campaigns.

If you are an asset management company and tired of having your listings sit on the market for months and months, please contact me and we’ll discuss an aggressive strategy to get your properties sold now.