Westport, Connecticut Moves

If you asked most people for a quick description of what REALTORS® do, they would probably say, show homes and put in offers, for buyers  and list homes, and present offers, for sellers.  Of course, we know there's a lot more to managing real estate transactions.                        
                                                                              

As REALTORS®, our responsibilities to our buyers include:        

Searching for appropriate properties, that fit their needs - "We don't want a large house, but in addition to the bedrooms, we want space for a home gym and we each need a separate office.  A media room would be nice, too"

Arranging appointments to see those homes - We don't want to kill our weekend, so do you think the homeowners would mind if we saw the house at 9A.M.?

Researching the history of the listing - "We didn't realize that this is the 3rd listing number for that house, in the past 2 years.  We thought it was a new listing."

Negotiating the offer - "We know our offer is low, but we'd also like a $10,000 credit towards painting, because their colors don't match our furniture."

In addition, the REALTORS® manage all the details of the transaction, from filing the correct paperwork, to making sure deadlines are met for inspections and mortgage contingencies and generally making sure all the steps proceed smoothly. 

For our sellers, our responsibilities include preparing Comparative Market Analyses (CMA's), to help determine the correct listing price, providing advice for staging the home, creating marketing materials and marketing plans to publicize the listings, arranging for the public and real estate community to see the listings, presenting and negotiating offers and also making sure paper work, deadlines, and contingencies are met.  

BUT...this isn't about what REALTORS® do, to guarantee smooth RE transactions.  It's about the value the real estate professional brings to their client base, when they aren't working on a specific deal. REALTORS® are continuously learning.  At a minimum, they are required to take a specified number of continuing education credits, to maintain their licenses.  Those classes are supplemented with Broker training sessions, designation courses and involvement in forums, such as AR.  Many make a concerted effort to stay on top of changing building codes, regulations and legislation that impact real estate, within their particular communities.

To that end, in a few weeks, REALTORS® from across the state of Connecticut,, are preparing to meet in Hartford, at the 24th REALTORS® at the Capitol event.  Attendees will be briefed on upcoming bills, coming before the legislature, that impact the state's real estate markets.  They will also have an opportunity to meet with their community's State Senators and Representatives, and express their opinions and ask questions.

This year's agenda is especially critical.  In 2003, to ease a budget deficit, CT put in place a temporary increase to the municipal conveyance tax.  The increase doubled the tax, in most towns and tripled it, in 18 others.  The tax was meant to expire, at the end of the year.  As with anyone who has gotten used to having more money to spend, the municipalities didn't want to lose the additional revenue and in 2004 the "Sunset Tax" was extended for another year.  Since then two more extensions have been enacted, the latest due to end, this June.  If the tax is not allowed to "Sunset", this year, it will become permanent.

In a year, when many homeowners are being forced to sell their homes, the added burden of a larger conveyance tax seems especially burdensome.  It will be  REALTORS®, fighting for these home sellers. 

My husband and I are boaters.  When we first started cruising, some thirty years ago, we were equipped with a compass, a watch, a chart and binoculars.  We went buoy to buoy and managed to find our destinations.  With each successive year, we added equipment, occasionally also changing boats.  Eventually, we had radar, autopilot and GPS, the latter two, interactive.  We could key in the buoys, make it out to our starting mark and let the equipment take over for the next few hours, until we reached our desired port.  The temptation to forget the basics, was definitely there.  But, early on, as we added new technology to our boat, a friend of ours, who was not only a fellow boater, but also an airline pilot, drilled an important lesson, home.  He said, what if an hour out, when all you could see, in any direction, is water, your equipment fails.   If you haven't charted your course, if you don't know what your compass headings should be, if you've simply relied on technology, how will you know where you are?

Don't get me wrong.  I'm not knocking technology.  I love my computer(s) - I'm addicted to the Internet - my digital camera is terrific - my cell phone is permanently attached to me.  It's great, how every day seems to provide a new advancement to make our jobs easier.  But, as my boating buddy taught me years ago, while we embrace technological advances, we have to guard against taking the easy way out, while forgetting the basics.

It's great that I can sit in my pajamas, late at night, in front of my computer and scour the MLS, looking for listings that meet my buyers' needs.  But, does looking at a dozen pictures take the place of previewing the appropriate properties?  I can go online and between listing information, photos and virtual tours, produce a CMA, without ever leaving the house.  Is that the same as driving past the comps and noting the influence of the surrounding houses or condition of the location?  A couple of clicks and I'm in town hall records.  Does that take the place of pulling a field card or checking the recorded deed? 

In addition, with much of the technology also available to the public, there are agents who opt to let their clients peruse the listings, and then they deign to unlock the doors of those listings, the buyers want to see.  If they successfully negotiate the sale, at least, I still believe, most agents show up for inspections.  After that, in Fairfield County, CT., attorneys take over.  They prepare the contract and the closing statement and conduct the closing, to which many agents don't find it necessary to attend.  Is it any wonder that some question whether REALTORS® are worth their commissions?

The bottom line is, keep the technological advances coming.  Embrace them. Use them. Let them enhance what we do, not replace it.  If we want to be recognized for the value we bring to the real estate transaction, we can't just phone it in, because technology makes that possible.  We still have to earn it.

I recently came across a web article, or more correctly a sales pitch, for a new company that has developed a support system for the unrepresented seller (I choose not to call them by their cutesy name.)  The dateline was Westport, CT. and the piece started with a reference to a Wall Street Journal assertion that home sales were down 25%, over a year ago.  It went on to say that REALTORS®  had claimed it was the worst market in 17 years.

I haven't taken the time to confirm the veracity of the WSJ figures, but I'll assume they are accurate, nationwide.  However, in my market, which happens to be Westport, CT, the number of homes sold in 2007 was actually up 2%, compared with 2006, and the median sales price rose 8%.

The piece went on to point out how, in these bad times, there is a soaring popularity, up to 20%, of homeowners trying to sell their homes, on their own.  It correctly reported that most of these homeowners eventually end up calling upon the skills of a real estate agent.  Of course, it goes on to say, these homeowners could now sign up for this new system, which would teach them the skills they need to sell on their own and thus save the REALTOR® commissions.

The public reads these articles and buyers wonder why we encourage them to make a realistic offer, if they really want to purchase the home or why we don't show them the homes at the bargain basement prices.  Sellers question whether they really need to pay a full service commission.  After all, they could quickly learn how to price, stage, market, negotiate and close the sale, on their own.

It is reporting and advertisements, such as this one, that make it all the more important for us to know our own self worth and believe in it, so we can convey our value to the home buying and selling process.  It is also incumbent on us to know our local market statistics, so that we can dispel the false impressions that nationwide averages often create.

Just spent an interesting weekend, showing homes.  Last week's storm came down in a granular form that was more ice than snow.  The days of frigid temperatures, that followed, kept the ice solid, with the sun just managing to glaze the top to a realllllly smooth surface.

This being school vacation week, many homeowners were not around, this weekend, to clear their driveways and walkways.  Did they leave, hoping the sun would come out to do their job.  Ditto, for the vacant homes.  Where were their REALTORS?  Someone needed to arrange to chop a path to the front door.

I spent Saturday with a transferee, who needed to find a place, before his wife and children arrive.  He was game to skate across the frozen lawns with me.  Sunday's couple were relos, on a home finding trip.  After sliding across two properties, the wife announced that she was too scared of getting hurt and eliminated every other home that didn't have a clear path to the door.

I had logged in, or made appointments to see all these homes.  Someone knew I was coming.  If there was no one to chop the ice, some sand or salt would have done the trick.  Did they think their homes/listings were so enticing that we would chance breaking our necks to see them.

Funny way to get a house sold.

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http://mkatz.realtownblogs.com/

Want to know what's happening in Westport?  Visit my blog.  You'll find the new season's schedule for the Levitt Pavilion, where to buy buttons for First Night, what show is opening at the Playhouse and so much more.

Need to know what's happening in Real Estate?  Check out the quarterly market statistics reports.  You'll find number of single family homes and condominiums sold, in Westport, and their average selling prices.

Update:  You can find it all here, on my AR blog.