“Welcome Aboard. I’m Captain Mike. Both myself, and my co-pilot, Captain Hook, are first-time pilots. BUT, not to worry, we’ve read the books and passed our tests.”

Now that’s a flight I want to be on!

Would you trust your life to inexperienced pilots? Why would you entrust the sale of your most significant financial asset to someone who just read a book and passed a test?

I’ve noticed a scarcity of homes for sale by owners these days. In fact, I haven’t seen a FSBO sign in a yard for several months. I’m sure there are some out there.

At today’s local Realtors Marketing Association meeting in San Ramon, our usual market-in-a-minute update turned into market in 15 minutes or Market Update of 1000 Questions.

If you’re just arriving back on planet earth from the Mars expedition – the housing industry and the mortgage/lending industry are in total upheaval. Veteran Realtors and rookie real estate agents are all being challenged by the daily chaos to get deals closed.

I can’t imagine a home seller trying to go it alone in this market, unless they have a relative with cash that wants to buy.

If you’re thinking of going the “For Sale by Owner” route, you may want to pick up a copy of this book.

It covers the basics of what you need to do to sell your home with out an agent. Of course, the advice given is for a normal market and today’s market is anything but normal.

In fact, there has never been a real estate market like the current one.

This isn’t just a down market or an adjusting market. This is a never-been-seen before market that is being impacted by the consequences of banks and brokerage houses treating their customers like prey.

As the subprime meltdown has evolved into a total financial sector meltdown, home owners who need to sell are getting squeezed into financial jeopardy.

In this real estate market, the logical choice is to work with an experienced Realtor (or team of experienced agents).

For those wanting to go it alone, the book above is on the shelf right next to this one!

The National Association of Realtors for years has reported that the number one point of client dissatisfaction with their real estate agent is communication.

Clients' dissatisfaction with communication is usually lack of communication or communication that is not timely.

Realtors often feel caught between a rock and a hard place when it comes to communication. More and more people expect an immediate call back. Some Realtors set specific hours for call back so they aren’t always interrupting other things that need to get done to answer the phone.

Many people think Realtors spend too much time on the phone. A difficult thing to get away from when clients, like so many people today seem addicted to incessant cell phone activity.

But, these days communication isn’t just about the phone. It’s about text messaging, instant messaging and email as well. More and more clients buying and selling real estate are communication multi-taskers who expect their agents to communicate via their communication channel of choice – an expectation that creates difficulties for some technologically challenged Realtors.

This is one of the strengths of working the real estate business with a team. Each of us can rely on our other team members to fill an immediate communication need if we are busy.

Keeping the communication flowing is not only important, it is a necessity these days with all of the challenges in getting transaction through the escrow process. The escrow process, which use to be a fairly smooth process, is now fraught with daily hiccups due to all the changes happening in the mortgage and real estate industries.

Great communication is one of our primary goals and continual challenges.

Selling Real Estate Takes more than a Sign, MLS, or Trulia

Don’t get me wrong. These three are important elements, but many agents ignore the value of the local Realtor marketing associations meetings and the networking that goes on there.

The other critical element that is often overlooked is – BUZZZZZZZZZZZZ.

There is a lot of real estate for sell these days in the TriValley area. Inventory in most local markets like Danville and San Ramon continues to climb. Walnut Creek is taking a bit of a dip and Dublin – well, Dublin CA continues to amaze me this year.

We have a new listing in Concord CA on Treat Blvd. This is an exceptional house, but the challenge is that the house is priced at the high end of the Concord real estate market. No matter what community or neighborhood you explore, you can find “the highest priced” home in the area. This is only logical – some house has to represent the highest price point in the area.

The trick to selling the highest priced home in any area is –the cream of the crop better be just that. And this house at 3661 Treat Boulevard in Concord is.

I say that with no reservation. This house was built according to standards that only an owner would implement. No builder is going to construct these days with 2×6 studs, and beef up the joists and subfloor to the degree this home has. And the walls were constructed in a factory to make sure they were all true. You should see the pictures of the trucks, wall panels and cranes putting the structure together.

In addition to the construction, the limestone, the woodwork, all of the details just blow you away.. So how do you create buzz on a house like this?

Well, I called my friend Holly Beck at the Balloonman and told her I needed two balloon bouquets – one plain vanilla and one spectacular. The point I wanted to make in my presentation to Contra Costa Realtors in Motion was that this house at 3661 Treat is to other Concord million dollar homes like the wow balloons are to the plain ones. You have to come see this house to believe it.

It must have worked, we have an interested party taking a serious look.

Now, I’m not crediting the balloons or my presentation – I’m really crediting the value of Realtors networking with Realtors and it’s sad to say that the vast majority of real estate agents in the 680 Corridor don’t seem to find value in the marketing meetings.

In this challenging market, if I was a seller, I wouldn’t deal with an agent that wasn’t covering all of the bases.

BTW, the postcard invitations for the Wine & Cheese tour on Thursday are in the mail to a targeted list of over 200 qualified move up buyers in the Concord area. I’m talking – all the bases.

There are a lot of hungry real estate agents in Danville and San Ramon – and – I’m not talking about the competition for real estate business in the TriValley area.

Real Estate agents eat, too – and not just at the Realtors Marketing Association meeting on Thursdays in San Ramon which includes breakfast.

Katy’s Korner at 2550 San Ramon Valley Blvd. in San Ramon is an establishment popular with local Realtors. Me? I like Katy’s because I like poached eggs and they know how to poach egg right. They also serve you three for breakfast which is enough to almost get a real estate agent through their afternoon open house.

I was having the Santa Fe Benedict when Ernie DeCoite from Financial Mortgage Bankers walked in with a group of guys. I guess Katy’s is popular with the lending crowd also.

Seems like if you need a home and breakfast, you could accomplish everything with one stop at Katy’s Korner. Give them a try.

It was a great turn out for this week's meeting of the Realtors® Marketing Association at the San Ramon, CA Community Center. The RMA is comprised of Realtors, real estate agents and other professionas associated with the real estate industry in Alamo, Danville and San Ramon, CA.

Roy Dronkers, seen here, president of the Valley Marketing Association serving Pleasanton and Dublin showed up today. If you look closely, you can see that he is not napping, but taking notes to help him improve his game!

Given the increase in real estate listings this week, I am expecting to see a jump in the MLS active listings stats that I will be posting tomorrow here.

Today's new listings included:

• 3358 Deer Hollow Drive, Blackhawk
• 130 Cottage Lane, Walnut Creek
• 767 Pradera Way, San Ramon
• 7036 York Drive, Dublin
• 133 Kingswood Circle, Blackhawk
• 101 Vagabond Way, Alamo
• 1258 Danville Boulevard, Alamo
• 6160 Yardley Lane, San Ramon
• 20, 30, & 40 Sarah Court, Danville
• 7233 Briza Loop, San Ramon
• 4228 Dubhe Court, Concord
• 329 Red Maple Drive, Blackhawk
• 287 Mountain Laurel Lane, Shannon Valley Ranch, Los Gatos
• 114 Cortona Drive, San Ramon
• 1963 Alameda Diablo, Diablo
• 205 Ashley Circle, Danville
• 305 Shadow Ridge Court, Vallejo
• 14 Woodranch Circle, Danville
• 102 Sonora Avenue, Danville
• 33 Primrose Way, San Ramon
• 2029 Echo Place, San Ramon
• 249 Belaire Court, Danville
• 18875 Bollinger Canyon Road, San Ramon
• 1021 Pebble Beach Drive, Clayton

The Harper Team can assist you with the purchase of these or any other properties in the East Bay. Request our FREE Market Details Reports.