Attention Shoppers...

Welcome back. This past weekend seemed to fly by as usual, it always seems to when there's a lot going on. My folks took off for the beach Saturday, so I spent Friday with Mom & the rest of the family. The rest of the weekend was spent showing houses and celebrating some friends' graduations. Congrats again to my friend Andres, good luck out west!

So my company has decided to get a kiosk over at Southpoint Mall. Of course I signed up at the first opportunity, I think I'm going to be there for some 3-6 afternoon sessions in the coming weeks. I'm not sure what to think of it, but I figure it's worth a try.

Just so I'm not next to the kiosk where they try and re-use that sand stone on your hands when you walk by. Otherwise I will be forced to voice my opinion on the sanitation issues related with their whole marketing strategy. The folks at the massage kiosk seem pretty dedicated to their craft. Maybe I'll be next to them.

I talked in the last blog about listings & having home owners wondering why in the world their place won't sell. Aside from the fact that showings are down, I feel many agents are actually expecting the same thing. Put the house in the MLS, let it show & sell. I don't feel there is ever a time for that, especially now.

You could sell real estate for 40 years and have trouble explaining exactly what sells a house. I was selling one home some folks came to see & passed. The owners put in new switch plates all over the house in the time being. When the buyers came back a couple weeks later they decided to make an offer, "because the recent upgrades looked great" their agent went on to say.

This is what makes selling homes such a challenge and each one unique. For the long list of strategies I use and all the different marketing I'll put out, you rarely know what exactly captures each buyer. This is one way I've been trying to separate myself from the competition. I'm using every tool I have to market my listings and reaching out to every buyer that walks through that door.

As for the Land Transfer Tax I urged you folks in Orange County to vote against, well the results are in and it was overwhelmingly rejected. Still shaking my head that the council spent $100k of our tax dollars promoting it. http://wral.com/news/local/politics/story/2830778/

Unfortunately I will be ending on a sad note. Our family dog Murphy passed away recently, she was a week shy of 15. We are all grateful she

lived such a long & happy life. She truly was a miracle dog that gave us a few good scares over the years but just kept on truckin'.
You'll be missed Murphy.

A Blog is Born

Well hello there. Here goes my first blog, even though I'm not quite sure what a "blog" is supposed to be. I know with the industry I work in it is highly encouraged, anything to get peoples attention I guess. Hey and if your reading this, I guess that's a good start.

I'll try to catch you up on my year so far. I've been living in a one bedroom cottage right in downtown Chapel Hill. It's the first time I've lived alone, and it's not as bad as I anticipated. I thought it may be a bit boring, but I think it actually forces me to get out a lot more. For example, last year I went to the gym maybe 3 times. So far this year I've been running & at the gym about about 3 times a week. Truth be told, my real motivation has been to hit a homerun in our co-ed softball league. Sadly, I don't think this is going to happen. Our record is 1-5, so I probably need to just try and get some base hits.

2008 started quite slow for a lot of Realtors. Our market has seen good numbers in 2007 while other markets tumbled, however 2008 has started with one of the worst first quarters in over a decade. Some way or another during this time I became busier than I have been in the past couple years. I have been listing homes here in Chapel Hill, but a large portion of buyers I have been working with are in the Wake County area. That trend along with a need for some change has led me to plan on a move to Raleigh. Don't get me wrong, I love Chapel Hill and anticipate a return in the not so distant future.

There is a phrase in real estate that "If you list you last". In my opinion, right now if you list what you have is a lot of sellers getting impatient and not a lot of answers. The inventory is growing, and the number of showings & closings is lower. Our area home prices are staying strong however, increasing in many areas of the Triangle. We have an increase in job growth here, and the interest rates are low, so why aren't homes selling?

In my opinion these other markets are the factor. You bought a house in Depreciationville, FL and you are dying to move to our area, you've heard so much about it. But wait, the house you paid $525,000 for is listed at $500,000, it's been on the market 5 months and you haven't received an offer. I could list many reasons, like the fact we'll be facing $4 a gallon this summer, but home sales outside our market play a big factor. So pat your local realtor on the back for pricing homes with some sense over the years, providing our market a long history of solid but steady appreciation.

You can vote early, so please do.
In Orange County, please Vote No on the Transfer Tax. http://www.newsobserver.com/news/orange/story/1048063.html This tax would force very few to pay for the benefits of so many. It has strongly been opposed, but the City Council has an agenda of it's own I guess. I bet the guy who steals my business cards off the table at Peak Fitness will vote yes, because he obviously isn't thinking clearly (don't let me catch you guy).

Should have a new entry every couple weeks, thanks for reading.