The Eye of the Hurricane?

It is hurricane season…are we in the eye of a hurricane or did we just come through the backlash of the latest storm? A financial storm that is!

Wow, what a month September has been in the financial world. First it was the government takeover of Freddie and Fannie, next it was Merrill Lynch and the buyout by Bank of America, and finally it was the bankruptcy of Lehman Brothers and Federal bailout of AIG. Where does this leave us in the real estate business? So far, the impact was positive on the rate front. We saw a decline in mortgage rates – woo hoo! We have broken through the label of “declining market” in Northern Virginia with conventional financing (loans less than $417,000). Price points below $300,000 continue to solicit more and more offers brining up the values in lower price homes signally a potential bottoming out of prices in our market. We are beginning to see banks willing to work with sellers in short sale situations. This makes these types of sales viable today as the sale is more likely to happen now than in previous months. So far, I call that positive.

We may be experiencing the “Perfect Storm” in Northern Virginia real estate…low prices, low rates, and perhaps the bottom of the market. We shall see. Hopefully, we are through it and not in the eye as I may end up on my ass looking at our market from the ground up. As I once heard when making predictions, don’t give a date if you give a number. Don’t give a number if you give a date. And finally, if you get it right, don’t look surprised. Let’s see where I end up and how I look next month!

Coming soon to the VAR Update Magazine!

We have approached our business in a more business - like manner this year. Each contact we make with clients is less casual and more intentional. We encourage our agents to be more informed about the market through trainings, blogs and in mastermind groups so they can give their clients the right information to make informed decisions whether buying, selling or deciding to enter the market as an investor. We also have encouraged our agents to increase activity and touch points with clients to have more impact and hopefully this will result in more referrals and sales.

As far as gas prices go, we are more efficient with our daily efforts. When looking for one client, stop by and see a past one who is nearby. It encourages contacts as well as promotes better time management.

If approached with the your eyes and ears open, looking for opportunities, giving good solid advice and increasing your sphere on a daily basis, you will propel yourself into the next boom market. There are always opportunities in every market. Agents who find and help clients take advantage of the right opportunites will succeed, especially in the market we are experiencing. It is any easy market to say things aren't going well when, in fact, many agents are thriving in today's environment. We continually remind our agents to keep an open mind and listen to what the market is telling them. You can't keep doing business the way we did it in the past. If you do, you are more than likely setting yourself up for failure.

For a long time we avoided short sales in our market. Agents and banks alike didn't know how to approach them and as a result, they were extremely frustrating. Our agents and buyers were at their wits end when trying to deal with the situation they put themselves in by trying to work with homes in short sale situations. But, as I mentioned earlier, there are opportunities in every market. We are now educating our agents on how to work with sellers and banks to get better and quicker responses to get more sales through as listing agents. We have learned which companies are facilitators and which ones don't get results. When working as buyer agents, we look at the history of other listing agent and the success they have had in getting sort sales closed. No results, no contracts from our agents. Education is the key.

Three things are: Increase your education and knowledge of our market. Knowledge and use of knowledge is power. Become an expert.
Get out there - don't just sit there and wait for it to happen because it won't. Make yourself visible to those you know and more importantly, those you don't. Your sphere of influence is your best bet for referrals and business. Let them know what you know.
Get involved. Its not all about business. Give back to your community by being part of your hoa, coaching kids, becoming part of a charitable endeavor, or PTA. The more you give, the more you get!

Who knows? You can only make an educated guess. If we continue to "flush" out the foreclosures and short sales as we have recently in our market and jobs continue to come to northern Virginia. We will see prices begin to turn around. The pace of sales are good but prices in some areas continue to fall. Until the leverage situation turns around, prices will remain low and our move up market will be affected. Until we see more owner to owner sales, we will stay in the market we are in for some time. It could be another 18 months of what we see is what we get. Therefore you, as an agent, need to get busy.

Where'd the Summer go?

Wow, how the summer has flown by. The real estate market has seen a lot of changes during the summer that has caught our attention. The government passed the housing stimulus bill which should help jump start our business going into the fall.

Foreclosures and short sales continue to “dominate” the real estate landscape affecting values in all price ranges. We have seen the number of active homes in Northern Virginia drop from 16,902 in June to 13,738 the first week of September. This has made it tougher for buyers to purchase homes as we have seen some areas and price points attracting multiple contracts. Those areas incorporate houses under $300,000 in NOVA and those over $1,000,000 in select locations throughout area. We have seen a strong rental market get stronger. With the value of properties declining, many opportunities have been made available to investors. Also, as a result of the drop in inventory, homes priced right, staged right and in the right condition are selling quickly as the demand for housing is making a comeback.

Other areas of interest are the loss of Down Payment Assistant Programs such as Neimiah, Ameridream, and other nonprofit seller funded programs as a result of their high default rates. We have seen loan programs such as 100% financing go by the wayside, loan amounts on FHA rise to $729,750 and stricter guidelines being implemented.

All this being said, it is a great time to be involved in residential real estate as a buyer, seller or investor. Don’t be swayed by the negative media and their comments.

Are you ready for some football?!

I ran into a friend this morning at the bagel shop on the way to the office and he asked me about our beloved Redskins. He said his interest was waning in the Skins (a diehard?) and how could they be so bad? It seemed pretty evident as a Monday Morning Quarterback that it was play calling, personnel, the defense not able to convert, clock management, and coaching. Pretty simple when you look back or while you are watching from a distance and difficult to see while you are in the middle of it coaching or playing the game.

It is evident to all involved in the real estate game that the game has changed. Gone are the days of easy money. You are no longer able to make it as an order taker. The concept of just showing up and making it happen is no longer here. You have to work – block and tackle- to be successful in today’s market. To that end, a few things come to mind…

First, the question has to be asked, have you reviewed your game film lately? How is your play calling (your game plan or action plan)? How creative is it? Are you getting the results you want? If not, you may want to have a mid-game adjustment.

How are your personnel? Do you have the right team members in place doing the right things to help your team advance? Have you had reviews with your team members to see if they need to play a different role on your team? Do they need a little more encouragement? Do they need more playing time – open houses, networking opportunities or leads? Make the right adjustments to help them score a touchdown.

Are you converting on all of your opportunities? Sign calls? Open house opportunities? Training? Seminars? Networking? Touch points with your sphere? Get out in front of people or consider getting out of the game.

Are you making the most of your time? How much time are you spending prospecting? Learning the business? Meeting new people? Talking with the ones you know? Learning from those you don’t? There are a limited number of hours/minutes/opportunities in a day…are you taking advantage of them or not?

Are you leading the team in the right direction? Are you motivating and inspiring? Are you setting the right example by walking the walk? Are you creating opportunities for your team? Providing leadership? Keeping the team optimistic and headed for the end zone? Every play matters – don’t miss out.

The last thought about our conversation this morning is, are you a diehard? Are you a diehard real estate agent? If not, sit yourself on the bench and look for other endeavors! It is ok to drop back and punt and to look for other opportunities. If yes, make the adjustments to help you and your team win the game of real estate! There are options and choices to help everyone succeed. It is early in the season – too early to throw in the towel. Review, respond and get rewarded!

Riders on the Storm?

In light of the two hurricanes this past week, it has made me think about our agents and our market and I wonder, are you riding the storm out?

The winds are blowing pretty strong, the waves are getting higher, the rain is coming down faster and the question is, what are you doing about it?

Are you inside watching? Are you outside dancing in the storm? Or are you wearing the appropriate attire and moving forward to your destination? We all have choices. Are you inside waiting for the storm to end? Are you having fun being reckless in the stormy weather? Or, are you braving the elements equipped with the right tools, attitude, persistence, perseverance, education, and language?
Our market is stormy right now. Some of you are inside, some outside, some are taking the storm head on, finding opportunities and forging ahead. In every market, whether up or down, there are opportunities.

If you are inside, get the hell out! The market we are in is going to be with us for another 18 to 24 months. You can’t survive waiting for the phone to ring, waiting for people to visit your website, waiting to get an email from a past client to buy or sell. You have to get up and get out!

If you are outside playing, get focused on your activities. Find a niche. Do what other successful people are doing in today’s market. Research what they are doing and see if it will work for you. Reach out to learn how you can weather this storm.

If you are moving ahead, having success in today’s market , make sure to take the time to reflect on what you’ve done, how you’ve done it, see if it can be improved on and move ahead.
We are all challenged by slack agents, more negotiations, more details, more obstacles – stay on top of your business and you will reap rewards.

Again, get out and speak with successful agents, brokers, lenders, title companies and learn. Attend seminars, and conferences out of town. Invest in your business if you want it to grow. Spend money when you don’t have it. Our top 10 agents this year have done just that. Look at where their business is this year – their commission is up 15% over last year’s top ten. It is more of a challenge and more rewarding when you find the opportunities in down markets than up markets. Virtually anybody can be successful in strong markets as we saw recently. Many experienced and new agents became order takers, rested upon their success and didn’t continue pursuing different avenues to success. Don’t be like everyone else – differentiate and reinvent yourself.