We are living in and experiencing times unlike any before. With all the changes in the financial market and with companies like Merrill Lynch gone, the media continues to capitalize on and propagate fear.

Every day the public hears more irrelevant/erroneous statistics about foreclosures and the media is enjoying the sensational results of comparing these figures to those during the 1930’s depression.

I’d like to set the record straight for those not interested in the hype.

A Few Facts

There are no statistics about the percentage of homes that were foreclosed during the great depression. The government does not track foreclosures or REO properties. The census refers foreclosure inquiries to the Mortgage Bankers Association, which only reports foreclosures back to 1990.

So why are these so-called “experts” parading all over the media proclaiming numbers and making comparisons? Sensationalism sells. It’s that simple.

Local Trends: Slower, Not Stagnant

When we talk about foreclosures we need to look at the figures region by region. Yes, some parts of the country have been hit pretty hard, especially California, Florida and Nevada. The Capital Region isn’t in Florida or Nevada. No, we are in Upstate NY, in the area we like to call Tech Valley.

Lets face it, our market has slowed down a bit — but prices remain steady and the number of foreclosures is not as big as people imagine.

One For You, Two For Me

We need to be careful how much “to heart” we take reports (from the media) saying the number of “people behind on mortgage payments” has increased.

I would assert that many people experiencing difficulty making their mortgage may well have both a first and a second mortgage. If someone can’t afford their first mortgage, they most certainly will not be paying that second mortgage (or home equity loan) either.

My conclusion is that some of the foreclosure reports have been artificially inflated by counting the two mortgages on a single property as two separate defaults, rather than a single property with two loans. This, in essence, would double the reported “foreclosure” rates on these properties, skewing the statistics and offering the media more fear-fodder.

The Greater Capital Association of Realtors (GCAR) is planning to implement a centralized showing system for the entire board. As a Realtor, this means I will no longer need to chase agents and wait for confirmations from those agents. I’ll also be able to provide buyers with the stats they want. Now, we only know which houses are selling — and 2 to 3 months later we find out the selling price of the property.

When the new system is implemented, we will be able to tell how many buyer appointments are set for a particular price range, location, and type of house. This will allow us to present sellers with a true picture of the market now, not several months ago.

With all this said, I was surprised when I got a call from a reporter yesterday asking me about the system. After I explained to him what the system was all about, the reporter told me some agents were unhappy with this direction.

Today I got a call from a second reporter on the same story. He stated that maybe when times are tough, it is not the time to start something new.

I say, it takes money to make money.

The second reporter also stated that according to the National Association of Realtors, most buyers start their search on the Internet, so the need for an agent is not that great. I agreed that the search often starts online, and asked… “Where are people going to search for homes?” The answer, of course, is to a Realtor website.

Back in 1994, when the Internet first started to come on full force, I remember agents also resisting this change and commenting that the “thing” (the Internet) was going to replace us and we would become obsolete. Instead of replacing us, the Internet made us more efficient and changed the way that we do business.

I would encourage every “nay-sayer” to look at the facts and then make a decision base on reality and not perception.

Change is great. It shows that we are aware of our surroundings. Many agents forget that this is a consumer-driven business and not an agent-driven business.

Agents and brokers have to get ready for the future, before the future passes them by. Let’s be leaders and not followers. I believe that’s the correct path and that’s the way I run my company.

I was recently interviewed by WRGB CBS 6 on the topic of foreclosures (Local Albany NY Foreclosures: Advice for Buyers)  and the topic of “flipping” houses: Flipping properties: Easy income?

After watching those, if you are still interested in finding out more about foreclosures in your area, I’d like to introduce you to the Google maps tool that does just that… http://maps.google.com/ once there, click on the “My Maps” tab in the upper left hand corner and select the “real estate” radio button.

Select “foreclosures” from the type of listing and add the location you wish to search. This will result in flags or “map pins” for every foreclosure sale within the area you are searching.

Happy hunting!

A few years ago it took 60-90 days to sell a house. That WAS the norm. Then in the early 2000’s, it got so crazy that having a house on the market for a matter of hours was not uncommon.

We had such a run on real estate in this area that houses were routinely selling for more than the asking price.

I hate to break it to you, but those days are over. And… that’s ok.

We are now back to a traditional real estate model. Those agents who have been in the business for many years, may recognize it. And those companies who can offer the right type of support to their agents, will continue to flourish. The mass-marketing models for selling real estate don’t use a business model that is kind to their agents. Thus, the “big boys” are losing their most valuable assets — excellent agents.

You can’t change during the middle of a crisis… that’s stupid. And this is exactly what they are trying to do. Right now, why make the changes?

Now is the time to hold steady and not only continue to offer the best services to your clients… now is the time to improve your internal offerings to the best agents in the business. And that is what we do here at TechValley homes. It is what we have done. It is what we will continue to do.

I believe we are finally shifting back to a normal market…

What I mean is quite simple — the market conditions are such that we have neither a buyers market nor a sellers market. Now buyers can take their time to make informed decisions instead of rushing to make offers. Sellers can quit the panic mode and settle into the market as it is now.

Want to know why I think this a good thing? Because deals will close. That sounds simple, but it’s been challenging lately. Now, buyers will not sign a contract and then decide later if they actually want to buy the house. The current market will allow us, as Realtors, to do provide the best possible service.

By doing our homework thoroughly, we can ensure all the necessary details (many of them new requirements) are handled so the financing will go through. We can encourage potential buyers to weigh options and be sure that they really want the house before starting the process and involving the seller and the mortgage company. Most importantly, we can help sellers and buyers by helping to remedy and overcome any issues the buyer might have.

As a seller you need to do your own homework. The days of putting a sign outside and sitting back to take orders (contracts) are over. As a seller, you need to make sure you hire an excellent real estate professional to help guide you on what needs to be done to make the home sell. This is not a job for your next-door neighbor that sells real estate part time.

Before signing on with an agent, you should ask the hard questions and check references. One of the big question sellers focus on is the commission. Honestly, that is the not as important now. Focus on the performance potential of the agent and their track record and satisfied clients. After all, if the agent can’t produce a contract, there’s no commission base. There’s also no sale.

I would strongly suggest to ask the agent the following:

• Have you ever been through a changing market?
• What is your response time for potential buyers?
• What kind of advertising will your company do for my property?
• What kind of Internet presence do you have?
• Is the decision maker for the company available?

Remember that agents usually don’t have the authority make decisions for the company, make sure you call the office and speak to the owner directly.

Ask the agent to show you a copy of one of their current listing fact sheets. Remember when a buyer comes through they will spend on an average 30 minutes on the house, so the fact sheet they take with them may make the difference between choosing your house over another.

The last test you should perform is to determine how quickly the agent will respond to your emails. Many agents do not respond on a timely basis.

Again we are in a normal market and you need the best possible service, so be sure to find out who has the tools to get the job done for you.

Jill Birdsall, the branch manager of TechValley Homes Real Estate, was awarded the coveted CRB (Certified Real Estate Brokerage Manager) designation conferred by the Council of Real Estate Brokerage Managers (CRB) yesterday.

The Council of Real Estate Brokerage Managers (CRB), an affiliate of the National Association of REALTORS®, is the leading professional organization for brokerage management. The Council is dedicated to providing quality professional development programs, products and services that continually enhance the management productivity and profitability of its more than 7,000 members.

The CRB Designation is recognized industry-wide ad the highest level of professional achievement. It is a symbol of excellence in brokerage management. The most successful brokerages are owned or managed by professionals having the coveted CRB designation.

The Council awards the CRB designation to those individuals who successfully complete the requirements and demonstrate excellence in real estate brokerage management. Candidates must complete academic and professional courses covering such topics as finance, marketing, training, recruiting, and strategic planning.

Personally, I’m extremely pleased with Jill’s achievement. Agents like Jill are central to the growth and health of TechValley Homes Real Estate. We continue to be the “forward thinking company” and strive to maintain excellence in the real estate industry. As the market changes, we continue to have the best prepared management in the industry. What broker could ask for more?

All we hear right now is how horrible the housing market is performing. I don’t see that here in our area. I think the media sales rise when the news is bad, and slack off when the news is good.

This is my attempt to help the media sales slump — while giving you the real story about housing markets in Albany, Rensselaer, Saratoga, Schenectady and the entire Capital Region Multiple Listing Service (CRMLS) area.

Want to know more about stats and see more graphs? Read on…

Read the rest of this entry »

In New York’s Capital region (and Tech Valley), there is a difference of opinion about the current status of home values. Some “experts” are alarmists and enjoy claiming the headline limelights by saying home values are slipping and that the market continues to decline. I know better, and I’ll share the facts with you today!

In reality, home values aren’t going down as much as you may have heard. Home values in our region are stable and should continue to be stable.

What’s happening? People who have been in business less than five years don’t really know what defines a “normal” market. During their time in business, we have experienced an overly inflated market with multiple offers, houses on the market for less than a day, etc. It’s been a crazy-wonderful time in this industry, but a return to normalcy should not be construed as a depressed market.

The national news leads our locals to assume that the same things is happening here that’s being reported elsewhere. That is simply not the case.

If we were actually in a buyers market, more homes would be in the local inventory. In reality, there are fewer. For the first three months of last year, there were 3,090 new listings. This year, there have been 2,952 new listings.

The average price for the first three months of 2007 was $242,533.00, but for the same period of this year, there has only been a slight dip to $241,697.00 and the average time on the market in ‘07 was 72 days, whereas this year the average time is 76 days.

These figures show that our market isn’t in distress. There may be a few less houses selling. After all, there are fewer homes on the market this year (as compared to the same time last year), but the values are holding the line.

So, if you are worried about the value of your home, rest easy. And, if you would like to have a professional Realtor come out to help you determine your current home’s value, feel free to give me a call: 518-435-9944. One of my agents would love to meet with you!

I was recently interviewed on our local TV station CBS6. View it here.