Jason Potrzeba

Will the increasing rates erode sales?

I think in the short term this can be easily avoided. The buyer's dollar will lose some of its buying power and their offers will start reflecting this. At the same time non distressed listing will begin to come off the market as these sellers will most likely wait to relist when the inventory has changed or the market favors stronger offers. What will remain on the market are a large amount of bank owned and short sale properties which are a perfect fit for this markets buyers who have seen their buying power dip about 10%. A perfect fit and a great bargain. Plus the market can get to getting rid of the oversupply of this type of listing and then maybe we can get into a more traditional market and supply with the listings.

Jason

Police nab pill bottle bandit in Barrington

East Providence woman would go to open houses and allegedly steal medication

By Josh Bickford

BARRINGTON - Police say they arrested a 50-year-old woman who spent the last two to three years going to real estate open houses in East Providence and Barrington and stealing medication - mostly painkillers - from bathroom cabinets.

Linda Grablink, of 214 Riverside Drive, faces three counts of larceny under $500 and one count of larceny over $500. She was charged on Sunday, June 7.

Police became aware of the situation in January, when a real estate agent in Barrington said a woman came to the open house she was hosting and spent an inordinate amount of time in the home's bathroom. The individual left the open house shortly thereafter. The agent said she checked the bathroom and could find nothing missing.

In the weeks that followed, more Realtors called the police to report a "suspicious woman" frequenting open houses and acting strangely, often times rifling through bathroom and kitchen cabinets.

Police caught a break when a real estate agent in Barrington wrote down the license plate number for the car the woman was seen driving away in. Barrington Police Sergeant Josh Birrell ran the information and later pulled a photo from the division of motor vehicles' computer system. He created a flyer that he sent around to local real estate offices, asking agents to keep an eye open for the suspect, Ms. Grablink.

The case heated up on Sunday when a Realtor with Residential Properties recognized Ms. Grablink at an open house on Karen Drive in Barrington. The agent reportedly saw Ms. Grablink take some pill bottles and confronted her when she tried to leave the home with the medication.

Ms. Grablink relinquished the pill bottles and then fled the home. The Realtor called the police, and Barrington and East Providence officers responded to Ms. Grablink's home, which is located in the Terrace neighborhood in Riverside.

Sgt. Birrell said police waited for a while for Ms. Grablink, and eventually East Providence officers had to leave. Sgt. Birrell was about to go when she arrived. He took her into custody and transported her to the police station. She was charged, processed and released.

A search of Ms. Grablink's vehicle reportedly turned up a road atlas, a newspaper page of open house listings for that weekend and a number of flyers from homes she had already visited.

The three counts of larceny under $500 were for medication she reportedly stole, while the larceny over $500 was for $4,000 worth of jewelry she allegedly took from a home earlier this year.

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Ok, I am putting on my Captain Obvious hat here with this one but this story illustrates how important it is to put out a visitor log and ask someone to sign in. I wonder if there should be a spot where a license plate is documented. I know we don't want to make people coming in feel like a criminal however this is just a small thing to ask and if someone is highly resistant to provide some basic information, for whatever reason, do you think this person is someone who is going to become one of your buyers?

Also, this might be incentive to partner up with a mortgage professional that is present at open houses with you. Another set of eyes to make sure things are going smoothly, help show the home, answer questions and maybe be the catalyst for more meaningful conversation and hopefully conversation driven towards grabbing an offer or at least a buyer :)

Jason

My crystal ball is still foggy but the trend is that the bond market is still headed upwards. Receiving emails throughout the day now from various lenders as they announce new rates because of deteriorating market conditions has become an all too familiar theme over the past week or so. Refinance files currently in the system are gasping for a breath of air as the rising rates slowly chokes the life out of these files. Perhaps we will see some relief later this week when the Federal Reserve will release its Beige Book. (This information details economic conditions throughout the U.S. by region.) Any indications of inflation could cause further upward pressure on rates. We can also interpret this as people are spending again.

On the purchase side of things, I think having the rates creep up isn't necessarily a bad thing. Even with the 8k first time home buyer tax credit on the table, some buyers may take themselves out of the market thus reducing any unwanted bidding competition for those house hunters who are remaining in the game. This in turn may eliminate any needs for an aggressive offer and with the rates spiking a bit, offers coming in may be a little lighter due to the borrowed dollar losing some of its ability to stretch further.

The market is great, rates are still good and I'm here if you need some financing!

Your trusted advisor,

Jason