Karen Parsons-Fiddler Broker/Realtor

I'm a Southern California Native! I'm biased....but I do think that Southern California has a unique quality of life and that is appealing. I'm not trying to detract from all the other wonderful places to live in this country.....I enjoy the sharp mountains of Wyoming, the red rocks of Sedona, the wide open fields of the Midwest, the lush green of Virginia...but you really can't beat our weather and the ocean. (I know that's going to draw comments). As a result of this, we are in a Multiple Offer Market.

The fact that there is only so much real estate in Southern California lends itself to a healthy market. Quietly we have entered a market where there are multiple offers on most homes. Certainly the bank-owned homes are moving quickly. Last fall, the banks priced the homes based on their internal appraisals and moved slowly to lower the price....recently the strategy has changed. They have realized that pricing the home artificially low and then getting multiple offers is a much better model. As a result, properties are selling the very first day. This has also affected the list prices of short sales and equity sales. We now see them drastically lower than the sales price. The bidding has begun.

This is very frustrating to the buyer. I have buyers who listen to the media talk about the "buyer's market" and offer under asking price, sometimes by 10% and expect to have the seller gratefully throw in the family car. This is no longer happening. They are also surprised to find that the home they saw on Saturday as a new listing is gone on Monday when they decide to write the offer. Unfortunately this is a learning curve many buyers are going through. And it's difficult for the agent...when we try and gently educate them in advance, we sound like used-car salesmen.

Does all this mean that buyers are now at the mercy of the market? That the Buyer's Market is over? That we have to pay over listing to get our home?

NO!

It means that we have to work differently, harder, and more intelligently.

In a Multiple Offer Market...remember?....it becomes very important to have a good buyer's agent working on the buyer's behalf. This agent must go the extra mile and make contact with the listing agent. Listing agents are human...they want to work with someone they like, and who presents themselves as someone who will hold up their part of the transaction. The buyer's agent's real work begins after the escrow is open, yet this is often when they disappear.

When I talk with the listing agent, I take some time...I laugh and chat about their day. Does this really take that much longer? NO! Is it schmoozing? YES! Is it fake? NO! I genuinely like to talk with people and feel a good rapport with the listing agent is going to get my clients further in the transaction. That's my job!

Next...in multiple offer situation, make sure that you have a complete and fair offer prepared. It is not the job of the listing agent to try and piece together my offer. I need to have the pre-qual letter, deposit check, documentation, and solid offer ready all at once. I know that when I get an offer without at least a pre-qual with a phone number, that offer is not seen as a very "real" offer. In this market we also need to go back to a cover letter, a phone call and perhaps comparable properties. A full package! And make it easy for the listing agent to see how solid your buyer is. Even if you are going in with an FHA loan...which can seem more risky...why not get DU (underwriting approval)? Explain to the buyers that this is almost as good as cash.

This does a couple of things for us. First, it's complete and the listing agent knows it has been offered. Second, it shows the professionalism of the buyer's agent. Even if we are priced lower, we can show that we are prepared and serious. This market also has many escrows falling through....so a serious, patient buyer is also a plus...especially in a short sale. This is often more important to the listing agent and seller than price...in a short sale the seller is not going to get any proceeds, they are less concerned with the purchase price as they are the quality of the buyer.

Finally....FOLLOW-UP and then FOLLOW-UP! Call the agent, not to annoy....but to help! "What can I do to make it easier for you to accept my offer"? or "I have great buyers who are really excited....is there anything else you need from us"? Advocate for your buyer!!! We are their only face of the transaction. It's important that we do it right.

I have been very successful with this approach...and often we are not the lowest price. The listing agent and sellers have rightly discerned that a quality buyer who will wait through the process is better than a slightly higher price without a face or a voice.

Prepare and Present!

Nothing particularly grand in the Tea Party in Mission Viejo. We didn't have 10s of 1000s of people and celebrities. But we did have our citizens...moms and dads and children and teens and grandparents and homeowners and store owners. While Ted Nugent was at the Alamo, we did get our local "Diamond Tom" who sang combinations of patriotic songs and Jimmy Buffet....what? :)

My son is on the right!

My son and his friend...

This couple has tea bags all over!

This tea is from the same company who provided the tea to those early Patriots which ended up in the Harbor. The company is still in business today.

This one lonely guy.....trying to tell us to "Pay our Share". I overheard him telling a woman that no one should be allowed to make more than $100,000/year until everyone can pay their bills and feed their children. Ok....so I asked him if he was willing to do all it takes to get a real estate license so that once we have all sold enough homes this year to hit $100,000 he could sell the next home?

"What"? was the response.

I asked him what he did for a living. He's a plumber and having a tough time since construction isn't happening very much. I told him I was sorry he was having a tough time, but in this economy perhaps he should only handle one job a month until everyone was fed.

"That's not the same thing"

I think it is....until all plumbers can feed their families....you should not take more jobs than you absolutely need to feed yours.

I did take his card....I'm happy to have another plumber to use. I also told him that I do pay my taxes, and apparently I pay his too.

What does this mean? A Realtor

Just announced this week by the California Association of REALTORSis a new Mortgage Protection Program. This program will be administered by the California Association of REALTORS Housing Affordability Fund (CARHAF) and will pay the mortgage payment up to $1500/month if a home buyer loses their job or accidental disability or death. There is also a one-time accidental death benefit of $10,000.

This is offered at no cost to the home buyer and the application is handled by the REALTOR as part of the transaction. To be eligible you must:

1) Be a first-time home buyer who hasn't owned a home in the last three years

2) Open escrow after 4/2/09 and close before 12/31/09

3) Property must be a primary residence in California

4) Be represented by a California REALTOR

5) Be a W-2 employee (Self-employed, sole proprietor, partner, etc will not qualify)

There are no income requirements or limits. Coverage takes effect 6 months after the close of escrow and is subject to a one month wait period after unemployment.

To get full information on this program...please contact me at info@great-western-realty.com

I have had such a busy week! I'm so fortunate to be working in a field I love.I've been a real estate junkie most of my life. I grew up in Mission Viejo and moved there in 1966 (when I was 5). I have watched all the neighborhoods develop around us. When I moved in, Mission Viejo had a sign with the population...it was 1320. I have the picture..somewhere.

As the new homes were built, my mother and I took Sunday afternoons and went through the model homes. I remember as they built ones with sunken living rooms, with wood paneling, and lakes and streams. All the different fads of housing. I loved it.

When I was in high school....we would head down after school and watch them fill the lake. Yep...sounds really boring. But we were so excited about the idea of a beach and lake around the corner. I rode my bike on almost all these streets and the ones I didn't ride on my bike, I drove in my car.

I wish our Orange Groves had survived....but the mountains I can see from my backyard are the same. I'm grateful to be raising a 3rd generation of Mission Viejo residents. It's a great place to call home.