I know you are reading alot of statistics here and there and everywhere about what the market is like. Depending on the delivery the stats are useful, or not. Be aware when you see statistics that the market is "up" with pending sales (as recently reported), be curious as to how that data was collected. In my opinion it had more to do that the inventory of available new home inventory has decreased, causing buyers to buy re-sale homes that are in the MLS; often new home sales are not reported in the MLS. So, yes buyers are out there, but are there more buyers, or just less homes? When you see sales increasing in an area, don't think that this means, as a seller, that you should start holding out for a higher price than market value. Let's remember that Market Value is where you get an offer - so if you have had an appraisal 5 months ago that told you a price, that doesn't mean this is where it is going to sell. If you see home sales increasing in your area, race...

You know how powerful the Network is, otherwise you wouldn't be on the Internet. The National Association of Realtors stated that over 80% of home buyers and sellers are on the Internet shopping for homes and finding out what is for sale. It also stands to reason that my biggest source of eyes for your property is my Network that I have with my fellow brokers. The answer is Yes, but if only I could get to them! My association that I belong to doesn't make available a down loadable updated list of email addresses for the membership for me to access. This prevents me from marketing your property to them in the form of announcements of open houses, broker open luncheons, special features and flyers that would make your property stand out in the crowd of over 5,000 listings. Unfortunately there is no easily accessible method to send out an email to everyone even in my own company at Coldwell Banker Legacy - at least not yet. I am lobbying to have this available. The co...

Yes, that's right! I work for free when your home is for sale and listed with me. I get paid when your home sale closes. Until then, I work for free; all the photos that I take, all of the virtual tours, the marketing, the open houses, the continuing education classes that I take during the time your home is on the market - I'm paying for that. All of my office expenses, my paid assistant, my gas bill and my car maintenance, I'm paying for that. While your home is for sale I'm networking with other brokers about your property, going on Realtor tours and learning about the market. I'm maintaining my websites and making sure that all of your property photos and marketing materials are up to date. I'm paying for that. During some markets, I work for free for a few weeks. During some markets I work for free for months, even years. I don't charge consulting fees, but I'm always here for your questions and concerns. When you pick up that phone or se...

Home sales are starting to move up and I'm seeing homes selling quicker! Especially NEW LISTINGS - fresh inventory is catching the eye of the buyers. Speaking of buyers, I noticed something while shopping; I'm an avid shopper and even tho I've been on withdrawals b/c of conserving $$'s, I still like to kill some time and destress by window shopping (the ever hopeful "wish board") I noticed today that both Costco and T.J. Maxx have ramped up the quality of the inventory - does this mean that maybe Albuquerque is moving up in the category of retail shops. I know that for a long time many of our national chains have not carried the same type of inventory as in other areas, and it has been because we aren't considered an "A" location. Maybe now the "A" can stand for more than Albuquerque - back to shopping!

southwestern beauty

Great buy in Four hills!

I spend a few minutes every day looking at what is selling - going through pending sales and compiling data for area, pricing, and days on the market . What I am finding consistently is this - when I see a DOM (days on the market) in three figures, I'm also finding the 'start' price being dropped by 10-20%. In the upper price ranges or challenging areas it usually hovers in the 20% range of a price reduction to procure an offer. What this means is - when you start out to price your home, price it under the market value to start out with. I consistently see these types of pricing strategies to produce very fast results for a sale. When you have a fast sale you have less maintenance cost to maintain the property, you pay off your loans on the property quicker and thus reduce your portfolio costs. No more utility bills, no more worries, and you can move to your next investment more quickly. Albuquerque's market is still suffering less than in other areas, but it still ...

There is a debate about whether we, as real estate professionals, should share SOLD and PENDING data so easily with the public. My view? Yes,and why not? We aren't the gate keepers of the data so that customers need us just for this info. We are consultants. Our knowledge and training goes far beyond just being gatekeepers. There are alot of real estate business models that only allow for putting data INTO the MLS system without any consulting and that business model never seems to really leap beyond the customers real needs. I am often taking over the listings of these business models. Why? The consumers are needing advice, they are needing guidance and professionalism. By sharing this data I believe we will begin having real transparency in the system. No longer will we experience listing brokers trying to cheat the data by changing addresses to hide the true market time statistics, we won't have constant re-lists in an attempt to hide from the public how long the propert...

Many times I hear this from customers who want to list their home. "...I just had an appraisal, and it was..." Why doesn't that make a difference about what the house is 'worth'? Because we don't know what your house is worth....what determines worth is what a buyer is willing to bring to the table after your home has been suitably exposed to the marketplace. This means that you must put the property into the MLS at a good comparative price based on an expert Realtor® opinion, make sure the MLS information is correct, and qualify each and every buyer that comes through the door. The Realtor® opinion is based on what experience and knowledge of the marketplace, what buyers are looking for and the current market mood and conditions. Even though it is a fact that appraisers will use the same data to come up with a value for the property, that value is based on an "intended user, intended use" theory. It means that most likely you had the appraisal ...

My Facebook connection - what a great way to share information, news and updates with your friends.

What the heck happened to gas prices in Albuquerque while I was at a real estate seminar? I leave at $1.49 a gallon and come back to $1.79 a gallon. Tell me there is a reason - good thing we work electronically so that driving isn't so essential.

I'm asked - How do I get my Albuquerque home sold? Simple - a few things that are very important. 1. Hire a great broker to represent you. This doesn't mean they have to have the BIGGEST numbers, but they have to be active in the market enough to know the most recent in's/out's...things to be careful of - for example a very big, long time inspection company just closed it's doors today. You need a broker that is on top of this kind of information to guide you through the process. They have to be busy enough in the market on a daily basis that they have the latest mortgage information, title information - and since we are in the information age - that means every day! It isn't just about putting the home into MLS and letting it sit. They have to help you through the decisions. 2. Stage your house so that there are no objections. We can't help it if you have a strange floorplan, it won't be strange at the right price for the right buyer, so if ...

Here's a brief overview of my Marketing Plan for getting your Albuquerque home sold - these are the basics of my Marketing strategy Get your own - Open publication

In these days of low funds and needed home repairs, I came across this today (On Christmas Day) and fixed my own dishwasher. I'm one to have expensive home appliances. I like my kitchen looking like those that you see on Food.tv and so my budget is usually spent on the appliance with nothing left over for repairs after the warranty runs out. Last night before the big dinner my dishwasher started smoking and quit. Phhht. I scheduled a service call, but couldn't get one until Monday. Today I found a website called www.applianceguru.com and paid $5.00 for the membership (lifetime) and asked the question on the forum. In 15 minutes I had a suggestion to open up the kick plate (easy it's on the front and lifts up) and look at the wiring. Shazaam, it had shorted out. Through two more easy instructions I was able to fix it myself with some things I had saved in the garage, some old 'end clips' for the wiring (never throw anything away that can be stored and reused la...

Just had to share this with you - a holiday message I just received from one of my great "Cyberstar" colleagues

I'm so excited about this, I just had to share - having a home in Chama, we are so proud of this new store and I'm so excited to get up there and shop! click this link to see the news story!

Good for Albuquerque real estate - energy savings and taking advantage of our wonderful sunshine!

Something occurred to me yesterday - do price reductions really work right now? We see pricing easing down in increments. I understand this - sellers are just relucant to give away the farm. It's an emotional decision. We always hear in business we can't put emotion into it, don't we? Isn't this a business decision at this point? Yesterday one of the brokers in my office sent out an on-line promo for a BIG price reduction - and I mean big. It was so big that it got my attention. Why did it get my attention? It was a large luxury home on 1 acre that had been reduced from 1.2M to 855K - wow! And...it's a gorgeous house, nothing wrong with it, but apparently the seller has better things to do than wait for the market to catch up with his price, maybe he wants to set the price to sell. When it got my attention - what did that mean? It meant that I talked about it! What does that mean? It means that the price reduction mattered! You need to give them somethin...