Home sellers are falling into the money pit trap left and right and it’s costing them more than money. I’m not talking about remodeling, renovation or upgrades. I’m talking about pricing it right from the “get go” when deciding to sell.

Once again, I find myself in a situation where good advice and experience have been sacrificed to hope and fantasy. The casualty in this affair will be my reputation as it is often difficult for the seller to own their part in the whole affair.

Which affair, you may ask? Let me give you the quick outline.

• Seller wants to sell and move up
• We tell them what is happening in the local real estate market and suggest a price in line with current market conditions.
• Seller believes their house is worth more based on the past market and the fact that they want more regardless of what is happening in the local real estate market.
• 6 weeks go by as traffic and interest dwindle, the local housing market continues to move downward and the whole loan industry goes into meltdown.
• The seller, having resisted numerous suggestions to reprice the house, agrees to lower the price.
• Instead of pricing the house at the price we suggest that is in line with current conditions, the seller prices it at the price we originally suggested 2 months ago.

You see where this is going?

The seller is following the market down despite our best attempts to get them in front of the market. The seller is losing money and unfortunately and worse for us is they think it is a lack of marketing, advertising or effort on our part.

They think this in spite of the fact that there were several “very interested” parties who thought the property was appealing, but was over priced and needed more upgrading.

More could be said to outline the whole affair, but the bottom line is – the biggest challenge in real estate is getting a property priced right.

AND the biggest hurdle to this is getting the seller to look at their house not through their eyes, but through the eyes of the buyer.

We had a similar situation about nine months ago, it didn’t work out for us (except in the reputation hit mentioned in the second paragraph above). The house eventually sold after we fought the pricing battle and lost the listing war. The agent that followed in our footsteps was able to lower the price significantly (to where we were trying to get it from the “get go”). He also lowered his already discounted commission to get the listing.

Now I’m not trying to be “Woe is me” and tell you a sad real estate agent tale. On the contrary, this is part of the business and despite our best efforts, we seem to get into this situation once or twice a year as we do our best to work with people. What I’m trying to accomplish here is to create some space for the seller to entertain the thought that “market trends and conditions” have a significant impact on what a house will sell for today – not yesterday, last week, last month, or last year.

If you are selling or planning to sell your house, grill your agent on real estate trends in your area. If they can’t pull out the data to show you what’s happening in your market – move on. If they can – listen up, they are probably trying to help you get the best deal possible in a changing world. This will save you money, time and lots of aggravation.

As the new school year settles in, the number of underage alcohol purchases usually takes a spike for the worst. During this past Wednesday’s sting operation by the San Ramon Police Department’s Youth Services Division, underage decoys were successfully able to purchase alcohol at five out of twenty local businesses.

They were sent into restaurants, grocery stores, bars, convenience stores and gas stations. At two locations, the decoys bought alcohol even after showing ID revealing that they were underage.

This incident brings to mind the plot to the latest box office smash, “Superbad,” where the characters desperately attempt to get hold of alcohol to supply for a house party. One of the more memorable characters — McLovin — attempts to purchase $90 worth of alcohol at a convenience store. He almost walks out of the store with the load of booze until a mugger pops out of nowhere and decks him to get all the store’s cash. The sequence of events that follows after that scene is quite hilarious and entertaining but that’s beside the point here.

The results of the sting operation are a poor reflection of local businesses either acting indifferently or shamelessly to whom they’re selling alcohol. I’m headed off to college in a few weeks and even my doctor warned me about the pressures of alcohol abuse in college. I’m bracing myself at the prospect of getting involved in my share of late night partying, where I will have to make choices that stem from these kinds of situations.

- Joseph Natividad

I want my Verizon back! A year ago I switched to Sprint after joining Craig and Tracey in their real estate business. Since we were going to leverage technology as much as possible, we decided to get Treos and stay with Sprint, C&T’s service instead of Verizon (my service).

The decision was based on monthly service fees. In the last year of using Sprint, I run into one reason after another to want to sprint back to Verizon.

Here are the Top 3 Reasons to Sprint back to Verizon:

• Customer Service – I’m only one customer, but in my dealings with the customer service departments of both companies – Verizon wins hands down. Verizon customer service reps seem to have some power to actually help the customer whereas Sprint has the old fashion customer service – here’s how it is and I can’t do anything about it – is there anything else we can’t help you with today?
• Coverage – The last time I saw a roaming signal on my Verizon phone, I was in the middle of the Nevada desert. Here, in the Bay Area with Sprint, the word spotty seems to apply to the Sprint network.
• Text Messaging – I was surprised to find $30 extra on my bill for last month. Tracking it down, I find Sprint was charging me $.15 for every text message I was sending (can you spell GOUGING). I had never used text messaging before, but a situation arose that had me sending 6 to 10 a day for a couple of weeks. In checking with Sprint for their monthly charge for unlimited text messaging I find it is $15 a month – a little pricey since everyone else I know seems to get it free or for $5 a month.

It’s just one person’s experience, but if you’re considering moving from Verizon to Sprint my suggestion is – SNAP OUT OF IT!

Related Post

Congressman Jerry McNerney from the 11th Congressional District addressed the weekly meeting of the Valley Marketing Association in Pleasanton today.

Congressman McNerney told the attendees that two of the major issues he is concerned with are the transportaion infrastructure in the TriValley area and education. He also sponsored legislation to prevent banks from extending their reach into real estate.

The Congresman asked the attendees what was foremost on the minds of real estate professionals these days. The response was almost single-minded – FHA reform. Governement loan programs need amending to open them up to California consumers who are being shut out of these programs due to the high cost of housing in the East Bay area.

When Mike Tacconi asked the group how many had an FHA transaction in the last year – not one hand was raised – point made! As the past president of the CAMB – California Association of Mortgage Brokers – Mike is well informed on what needs to be done to help the local real estate industry weather these challenging times and to assist consumers to buy, sell and remain in their homes.

The VMA represents agents and affiliates associated with the real estate industry in Pleasanton and Dublin, CA. The weekly meeting is held at Tommy T’s in Pleasanton.

There’s a great opportunity on Biddleford drive in San Ramon, CA for a handyman, a contractor or anyone who likes to improve a property. This unfinished remodel is a four bedroom, three bath house that needs the new master suite and kitchen finished. This is not so much a fixer-upper as it is a finisher-upper.

With the addition of the new master suite, the house now has two master suites. The landscaping in the back yard needs work and there is some finish work required on the exterior.

2876 Biddleford Drive represents potential instant equity for the right buyer. The cherry cabinets are in the garage waiting to be installed, as is the flooring and the fireplace mantle for the new master suite. It’s a great floor plan (1733 sq. f.) in a great neighborhood. Within walking distance to award-winning schools.

Get more information on 2876 Biddleford Dr.

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