Kelly Sibilsky

The Multiple Listing Service is designed to promote information sharing among real estate professionals in northern Illinois. Through the MLS, real estate brokers exchange offers to cooperate with one another in the sale of a property and arrange for the fee to be paid to the broker who procures the buyer of a property listed for sale by another broker.

Do the multiple listing services promote your home directly to the public? No, they do not.This is a common misconception. Another misconception is that all that is needed to sell a home is to place it in a multiple listing service. These misconceptions have resulted in sellers turning to fee for service companies who will place their home in the MLS for a relatively small fee. If the MLS is the only place where your home will be advertised, then how will it be advertised directly to the general public?

Unfortunately, MLS does not stand for Magic Listing Service. Trust me, if that's all it took to sell a home I would save thousands of dollars and a lot of time and effort on all that other marketing and advertising I do. In reality, it is simply a tool, one of several, that is used to promote your home.

The truth is, buyers find the home they will purchase through several different avenues: the internet, web sites, real estate agents, for sale signs, postcards, referrals from friends, publications and open houses, just to name a few. Don't forget blogs! The rule of thumb is: maximum exposure = maximum results. And only full service real estate agents can offer the kind of exposure your home needs to sell in today's market.

Don't be fooled by the smoke and mirrors. Hire a full service real estate agent like myself to handle all aspects of the promotion and sale of your home. You do want to move, don't you?

Those of you who read my most recent post know that I am going to be purchasing a puppy this year. It occurred to me while doing my research that the process of selecting a breeder is similar to the process of choosing a real estate agent. Here are the similarities:

• I asked people I know for recommendations
• I searched the internet and breeder websites for more information
• I looked for a breeder that provides service before, during and after the sale of the puppy
• I read references/testimonials from past puppy purchasers
• I have spoken with the breeder many times and asked tons of questions

Most buyers or sellers of real estate will go through a similar process:

• They will ask friends, neighbors or colleagues for recommendations
• They will search the internet and real estate websites for more information
• They will look for an agent who provides service before, during and after the sale
• They will read references/testimonials from past clients
• They will speak or meet with an agent in person and ask tons of questions

During my research, one thing became very clear. I would not, under any circumstances, purchase my puppy from a puppy mill. For those who don't know what a puppy mill is, it is defined as "a large scale dog breeding facility that operates under substandard breeding conditions." Dogs who are bred in puppy mills are usually "kept in overcrowded and unsanitary conditions and do not receive adequate food, water or veterinary care."

Puppies acquired from puppy mills tend to have issues not typically found in puppies acquired from reputable breeders, such as genetic health problems, behavior problems and socialization issues. In addition, the puppy may be sold as a purebred dog, when in fact it is not. You are paying a high price (have you seen the prices of puppies these days?) and not getting what you paid for. Finally, there are no guarantees...you buy the puppy and you never hear from the so-called breeder again.

In real estate, there are plenty of agents who deal either in very high volume and/or provide substandard service. Buyers and sellers who don't do the research or ask enough questions before they choose an agent run the risk of choosing someone who will not properly represent them. The agent or company may treat them like a number because they deal in volume; selling many properties each year. As a result, the client may not receive adequate service before, during or after the sale. In short, the client may not get what they paid for...a "healthy" transaction and quality representation.

Are high volume agents and discount real estate brokers the puppy mills of the real estate business? That's not for me to say. It is certainly possible to have a good experience with both high volume agents and discount real estate brokers just as it is possible to purchase a healthy puppy from a puppy mill.

Buying a puppy, and purchasing or selling a home, are very important decisions that you will have to live with for many years. Are you willing to take that risk?

I'm not a high volume agent and I'm not a discount broker. You can rely on me for quality, personal and professional representation before, during and after the sale...in Lake Zurich and throughout the Northwest Suburbs of Illinois.

With the Holiday Season upon us, I find myself reflecting upon this past year and on those who have helped to shape my business in the most significant way. So many people to thank, so little time!

Please know that I appreciate each and every one of you and value our relationship, and I look forward to working with you in the years to come.

Glitterfy.com - Glitter Graphics

I wish you a very happy Holiday Season and a New Year filled with peace and happiness!

I received an email from a potential seller in Lake Zurich today. He found me through a Google search which led him to my blog. I called him back and we arranged to meet early next week to discuss listing his home for sale. Yay!

This isn't the first time this has happened...and I'm pretty sure it won't be the last! I'd like to say "I told you so" to all the naysayers out there, but I really shouldn't...

Oh, to heck with it...

"I TOLD YOU SO!"

The bottom line is that if he found me through my blog, others will too. My blog gets me noticed, which is good for me - but more importantly, it is a benefit to my potential clients as well. Oh, I can think of other ways to get noticed, but putting my face on a shopping cart or billboard is simply not for me. I have nothing against those forms of advertising, but they are expensive, they are passive, and my teenage sons would probably disown me as well. But blogging, well, that I like to do. It is inexpensive, educational, interactive and it gets me noticed (and my teenagers don't mind a bit).

It's not very polite to say "I TOLD YOU SO!" but I just couldn't resist. Sorry about that.

On the other hand, maybe I should keep this a secret?

That was on the subject line of an email I received yesterday from Ray Cohen, of Revere Mortgage. Ray is one smart guy, someone I respect very much. He is actually the first mortgage broker that I worked with as a real estate agent...way back in 2003.

After I read Ray's email I really wanted to share it with others. I contacted Ray and asked him if I could post his email message to me here at Active Rain. I've also asked him to join the forum and hopefully he will! Here are Ray's words:

I AM FROM THE GOVERNMENT AND I AM HERE TO HELP YOU

"It is all about language. I am firm, but you are stubborn. I am organized, but you are anal. I need asistance with my mortgage, but I am not going to give you a bailout.

Today's pronouncement by the President and Treasury Secretary of the Mortgage Rescue Plan will allegedly help 1.2 million, but the readers of this almost certainly are not among them. The lawyer in me does not believe that the government can impair private contracts, which are the mortgages held not by the people who made them, but the investors. But the courts will adjudicate that. Assuming that it is held Constitutional, rates will be frozen for a very very very very select group of folks. To qualify to have your rate frozen for 5 years you would have to meet ALL of the following criteria:

Live in the property as your primary residence; and Have a start rate of "sub prime level", probably 7-8%; and Begin adjusting in 2008 or 2009; and Be no more than 60 days late on any mortgage pmt; and Have a credit score lower than when your loan started; and Not be able to qualify for a loan at the rate to which you would adjust.

Thus "A" borrowers need not apply. Nor fixed rate borrowers. Nor chronic delinquents. Nor people who have improved their credit. Nor people who could qualify and "afford" the adjustments.

Nice and simple isn't it."

I've seen many posts about this subject over the past week. I personally like the way that Ray breaks it down into a format that everyone can readily understand.

Thanks, Ray, for your insights and for allowing me to share this with my readers!

Ray Cohen can be reached at Revere Mortgage, 5 Revere Drive, Northbrook, Illinois 60062; (847)564-5201; raycohen@reveremortgage.com.