L is For Loyalty - Hard To Find But It's There

I've been thinking a lot of about this topic lately. With the economy in turmoil and the new report released today showing the unemployment rate is at 7.6% it's never hit home more. Where is the loyalty? The loyalty from the companies toward the employees that have put in many years of service only to see their jobs shipped overseas the past few years or now to watch hundreds or thousands of jobs being cut. Meanwhile the executives and the board of directors often keep their 6 figure salaries. We call this the free market so does that mean loyalty counts for nothing?

The loyalty of hard working people that have invested hours, days or weeks into helping others yet find themselves in the unemployment line, behind in their mortgage payments, and their homes are now subject to short sales or worst they've already foreclosed.

Everyone has an opinion on what should be done. The stimulus package continues to increase and while I'm not going to pretend I know a lot about economics I do know that $500 or even $1000 back to every individual is a flat out joke. This part of the package needs to be steeper. Most people are so afraid of losing their jobs and their homes that they will simply take the money and save it or perhaps put it towards bills that they are already late on. The one thing almost everyone agrees on is that it's time for something to be done to not only create jobs but to save jobs and save homes. I know that the package has incentives there for these companies and I'm really hoping that it works.

Perhaps there needs to be major tax cuts to the point where thousands of dollars are going back to people to really make a difference? How about a nice hefty mortgage interest rate adjustment on all people in danger of losing their homes even if they don't have the equity there, which many people don't? We have received many calls about refinancing and since we are real estate agents and not mortgage lenders we usually refer people to a few local lenders we know.

In real estate loyalty is perhaps the hardest thing to find from clients nowadays. In the seller's case sometimes we are contacted to sell the home and so we meet with a client, listen to their situation and provide them with the best comparables possible. Often depending on a seller's situation with their equity and mortgage we say that now is not a great time to sell. Those are hard words to hear but it's better than sugar coating it and taking a home listing that is going to sit for months possibly causing more harm in the end as the seller and their agent chase the market. Sellers sometimes don't believe us and find another agent that will buy the listing (tell the sellers what they want to hear just to obtain the listing) and so the home sits price reduction after price reduction. It's the cause of such frustration for the homeowner and the agents that interviewed but lost the listing.

With buyers sometimes as agents we spend many hours doing research for clients, showing homes, explaining the process, negotiating the offers and more only to have them disappear without a trace. Perhaps it's cold feet on the buyer's part as it's the largest purchase usually made. Here's where a bit of honesty and talking things through could help all around. As agents we are dedicated and loyal to our clients. Our time spent with a client never ends, at least not for Tami and I. We are there for our clients not just as agents but also often as friends well beyond the completion of the home sale or purchase. Our #1 goal is to help and to protect people and so that's why it hits hard to see any client lose a home or simply to have them disappear.

Loyalty is what we ask for first and foremost. We provide excellent services and do our best to keep clients informed all around. Is it better to be honest even if that honesty is not what someone wants to hear? Absolutely 100% of the time. There are ways to work things through and with loyalty you can be sure that we would never give up on our clients and that we hope our clients would never give up on us.

Loyalty is hard to find nowadays and like trust or honesty it must be earned. We know people considering a purchase of a home today. They ask us is it really an ok time to purchase? When you look at the prices today of affordable homes (some cases under $120,000) coupled with low interest rates the answer is usually yes. However taking your time in making sure it's a purchase that's right for you, making sure that the monthly payment is right for you and that whomever you end up working with has your best interest at heart that's what's really important.

There are many options out there. There are also many gimmicks and/or scams to be cautious over. Sometimes people go from place to place looking for that best deal or that something "special" in the market place. To some loyalty is not important and in the end they may find themselves upside down or worst they may lose of a lot of their money in what they thought was a great deal. Whether you're looking for great deals on move-in ready foreclosed homes (we recently helped two of our clients find some of the best deals in all of Caldwell the past 6 months) or needing an agent to guide you throughout the process and beyond we are here. What we ask for in return if your loyalty.

We ask to be the agents that you consider when making that next purchase. Loyalty works both ways and we will work hard to earn your loyalty. Just know that you have ours from the start!