Cheers!

Selling (in my opinion) is one of those words that conjures up negative thoughts of an overbearing, in your face, loud, obnoxious person who doesn’t have your best interest in mind at all.  I may not speak for the masses, but have had enough conversations with friends, colleagues and clients to know that there is a small contingent who feel the same way.

This is unfortunate…  Being in and around “selling” I have met countless caring, loving, giving individuals who are genuinely in business for the right reason.  Namely, to help others.

There’s a Bible verse in Proverbs that gives a name to those who are solely out to hear their own voice.  Kind of calls it like it is…

“Fools have no interest in understanding; they only want to air their own opinions.”
~Proverbs 18:2 NLT

That being said, selling should be something other than a sleek brochure accompanied by a good “pitch.”  Selling should be a good line of questioning.  Intended to discover what the other party is really looking for, interested in, trying to find…  Nothing more, nothing less.

Happy Easter!

That being said…  I’m currently working with a company who creates consumer MLS access through one’s business page on Facebook.  Basically, you could go to ERA Heavener Realty’s business page and view all properties for sale in our MLS (foreclosure, short sale, etc.).  Thought this would be a pretty cool place to have MLS access.  Sort of a one stop shop while you’re in Facebook.

Excited to see how the finished product turns out.  Will post again when it’s complete.
Cheers!

The value of a property is largely based on it’s convenience to local markets, shopping and amenities. So how do you go about picking the perfect location?

Since I’m very analytical, let’s look at a couple of ways to quantify what makes one location better than another.

1) Keeping up with the Joneses… In other words, do those in the community have wealth? Are they educated? Are they high wage earners? Zipskinny.com is a quick and easy way to determine that.

~www.zipskinny.com

2) Ok. Now that we’ve looked at what type of neighbors we’re going to have. Let’s take a look at how convenient the home is in relation to area amenities. Walkscore.com allows you to plug in an address and gives a score that reflects how “walkable” the property is to local hot spots.

~www.walkscore.com

3) Is the area safe for you and your family? JSO (Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office) has got you covered! With their Crime Stats mapping option, you can plug in an address and it will return the different type of crimes (if any) that have occurred within a .5 mile radius, in the previous six months.

~http://maps.coj.net/crimestatsdiscl.asp?sJAxGIS=Y

4) Ask a Realtor! We look at 100′s of houses in all different neighborhoods every year. The opinion of a good Realtor is certainly worth finding out.

Cheers!

1)  Make sure they have the proper license:

http://www.coj.net/Departments/Planning+and+Development/Building+Inspection/Contractor+License+and+Complaint+Search.htm

2)  Check to see if they’re pulling permits for other jobs:

https://buildinginspections.coj.net/bid_secure/default.aspx

3)  Get several bids.  Sounds obvious, but it truly does save to shop!

4)  Ask for a better deal…  Like my dad always said, “It never hurts to ask…”

5)  Don’t pay in full up front!  If you’re looking to “un-motivate” someone to do a job, pay before the work is finished.  I understand in certain situations (roofing, re-piping, etc.) that a contractor will need a portion of the payment to purchase materials.  But if someone starts asking for complete payment up front…  Run!!

Until next time…

First and foremost, learn from others mistakes!  Check with friends, family and work associates who have recently been through the process.  See who they used, and ask what they did and didn’t like about the way things went.

Second, ensure that the mortgage broker or financial institution you are dealing with is properly licensed in the state:

http://www.flofr.com/downloads/licensecheck.htm

Third, check average weekly mortgage rates to see if what you’ve been quoted lines up.  Freddie Mac provides a weekly survey that details what mortgage rates are in various regions across the country:

http://www.freddiemac.com/pmms/release.html?week=1&year=2011

Fourth, determine how you will quickly pay-off your mortgage so you’re debt free!

http://www.earlypayoffcalculator.com/

Fifth, Make sure you have a great real estate broker to negotiate the deal.  I’m happy to help
Cheers,

Jeff

I knew I lived in Jacksonville for a reason…

Over the next couple of weeks I’m going to pick out particular paragraphs/sentences in the purchase and sale agreement that are pertinent to home buyers and sellers.  To maybe point out some of the particulars of the contract that are often overlooked or ignored.

Today’s excerpt comes from Par. 15 Sec. C:

“SELLER, within ten (10) days after receiving BUYER’s written notice of requested repairs and replacements and BUYER’s loan approval, if applicable, will have repairs and replacements made in a workmanlike manner by an appropriately licensed person.”

The particular statement that I’d like to draw attention to is, “…and Buyer’s loan approval.”  This is often times missed or ignored by all parties.  Basically, per the contract, the seller can ask to see the buyer’s loan approval before moving forward on any repairs that the buyer has requested.  This would normally be about the time the buyer is jumping through multiple hoops thrown in their path by the lender.  If the seller waits for the buyers loan approval, then they run the risk of delaying the closing.  Food for thought…

Will be back this week.

This is the point I’ve been trying to make when considering selling in today’s environment…  Unless you have plenty of time to wait, today is still the best time to sell.