Jeff & Paulia Kennedy and Debi Jones

As I started my day off today, I ran across a great quote from the daily devotional .... "Live by Priorities instead of Demands", and thought how fitting for a Monday morning and a great quote to live by. I loved it so much, that I added it to my list of positive quotes that I look at each day posted on the face of my computer.

It seems that so often our daily lives are effected by the annoying quote "the Squeaky Wheel always get the Oil". Have you ever noticed that when you work in a position of customer service, you find yourself spending a greater amount of your time catering to that unreasonable customer just because that one is always "squeaking" and demanding your time and energy? Then you find yourself getting thrown off track from your scheduled to-do list and from focusing on your best clients and things that count.

Today is a good day to start living by priorities instead of demands! ... Paulia Kennedy

In today's market with inventory levels so high, it's so important to have your listings shine! While we believe it's so important to make the most of the first impression when our listings are getting shown, we normally try to go the extra step and prepare many of our vacant listings for the showing agent prior to their arrival. While there's a team of us with 3 full-time Realtors and an assistant, it does seem to help with this style of practice.

Today, this practice really seemed to pay off. This morning, our team received a two hour notice of a noon showing of one of our really nice waterfront condos. So 30 minutes prior to the showing agent's appointment, our team partner, Debi made a visit to the home and prepped the home as we often do. Debi turned all the lights on, opened all blinds to show off the lake view, swept the front porch, and made sure the home was all tidy.

Shortly after the showing agent and his clients made their visit, Debi called the agent to follow-up on feedback, and also let the agent know that she would be happy to close down the home so he didn't have to worry about it. The agent's first response was "Wow, I can't believe you did all that just for me and my clients!" He then shared a little more information about his other showings and the difference our prep work made with his clients. He mentioned that as he showed another condo in the same complex listed by another Realtor, he and his clients walked into a dark condo with all blinds closed and they were not impressed with the other condo. Then when he and his clients walked into ours, they couldn't believe the difference with the light & airy feel with a huge view of the lake that they immediately noticed the minute they walked in. He said they absolutely loved our condo and he then raved about all the details of the home.

This positive feedback made our day, and was a nice reminder that going the extra step really does pay off ... Now, let's keep our fingers crossed that our client is the one that receives the offer!

"There came a time when the risk to remain tight in the bud was more painful than the risk it took to blossom," a famous quote that hit home with our team as we began preparing our business plan for another challenging year in the real estate market.

Today marks our two month anniversary with First Choice Realty, and we are still so excited about this new venture. First Choice Realty was exactly what we were looking for!

With a business based primarily on referrals and repeat clients, our team felt that a "boutique-type" firm such as First Choice Realty would be the perfect fit for our style of business with its personalized style of practice. At First Choice Realty, we prefer to "Make a customer, not just a sale".

As the real estate industry has become very fragile over the last few years, we discovered that our clients were seeking more personalized service with their many different needs that came about from the changes in the industry. Buyers are now faced with many more challenges in obtaining loans - which in turn requires more hands-on guidance and help from their Realtor. Vacation property owners are seeking other options with property management services. Sellers need more direct attention and guidance with pricing strategies, staging, home improvements, and continuous information about the market conditions throughout the listing period. Clients want to know that the whole firm is working for them.

With the boutique-style firm at First Choice Realty, here's the difference you will see:

• A philosophy of "Your listings, your leads" which means that the leads that come into the office for your home will go directly to your listing agent instead of the floor duty agent. After all, your listing agent is the agent who is most knowledgeable about your home and will have the best chance at selling your home.
• An office filled with real practitioners in the real estate industry, who understand the needs of investors. Together, the 9 Realtors of First Choice Realty own over 125 investment properties of all types, i.e. residential single family homes, vacation condos, apartment buildings, commercial buildings, etc.
• Warm office environment with a serene and peaceful setting with a view of Lake Hamilton.
• In-house builder known for first-class architecture and construction.
• Property management services for our current clientele of vacation homeowners
• Leaders promoting "entrepreneurship" among the Agents of the firm, with a support and encouragement of advanced education in the industry as well as support and promotion of Independent Professionals.
• Close-knit group of top producers in the industry.
• Professionals with advanced knowledge and education in marketing skills and techniques.

First Choice Realty has established an unrivaled customer service experience. If you're in the area, we welcome you to drop by to see us anytime at 4915 Central Avenue, Hot Springs, Arkansas. Or feel free to give us a call at 501.655.6247 (Jeff) or 501.276.4446 (Debi) or visit us online at www.BestofHotSprings.com

While the real estate market has seen many changes over the last couple of years, it appears that the luxury market is facing even greater challenges. While it has become more difficult to sell a luxury property, it is still possible and we are able to get it done!

Here's the Bad News ... (As reported by the Luxury Home Marketing Institute) The luxury market is facing increasing pressure, aggravated by credit market difficulties in the jumbo mortgage market. As a result, The National Association of Realtors reported that the share of home sales above $750,000 has fallen from 4.4% of total home sales in 2007 to a projected 2.3% of total sales in 2009 (NAR Projection based on partial year statistics).

Limited loan availability, higher than usual interest rates for jumbo loans (from 150 to 200 basis points higher than conforming loan rates), and stringent loan qualifying requirements have slowed sales of luxury properties. This has caused the national inventory level of homes priced above $750,000 to rise from 18 months worth in 2007 to more than 40 months worth as of the second quarter of 2009.

The lack of refinancing opportunities, fewer qualified buyers for luxury homes, a growing inventory of unsold luxury homes, and an economy in recession are all creating the "perfect storm" for luxury homeowners who need to sell and can't. NAR also reported that as of October 2008, the foreclosure rate on jumbo loans was more than double the rate on conforming loans.

Here's the Good News ... While the above facts are creating greater challenges for us, as Realtors who consider the luxury home market our forte, we are steadily looking for options for our luxury home owners in selling their property.

In fact, we made a trip to the closing table today, representing the seller of a luxury waterfront home today, with a selling price of $1,100,000 here in Hot Springs, Arkansas.

One of the most critical bits of criteria for this home sale was the fact that this luxury home had all the basic necessities - meticulously maintained, in perfect condition, appraised for the selling price or better, and had a great location. Knowing that we had a great home that we believed would pass the inspection and appraisal process, along with the fact that we had an extremely savvy businessman as the seller, we began to look at options for him and his wife.

We knew that our seller's first interest was to sell the home outright and move on. However, in this difficult market, we realized the chances of that were getting slimmer based on the facts mentioned above. We began to discuss the "trade" option to our seller, as we believed that this would be an option for our savvy seller to reach his final goal more quickly, while he sold his large luxury home, and then scaled down to a smaller, more sellable property.

We then reviewed all the previous potential buyers who had expressed any interest in the home, and believed that we had one that would love to buy the home at a fair price, but he also needed to sell his waterfront condominium (valued around $400,000) at the same time. We approached this buyer's agent and began discussing a trade option, and to make a long story short ... it was a perfect match.

The trading of real estate property does take some creative matchmaking skills and extra work, and it can be done as long as we have the two major ingredients ... 1) Great property and 2) Savvy seller willing to consider options.

Debi Jones of the Kennedy Team volunteered as one of the auction items in a local fundraiser for the American Cancer Society sponsored by Reed Plumbing last week. While Debi was glad to help with a good cause, Debi knew that it would be an interesting evening when she agreed to be one of the Bachelorettes to be auctioned off to an unknown bidder. Jeff and I (Paulia) attended the big event and enjoyed the show of Bachelors & Bachelorettes as each paraded across the stage, anticipating who would be their next date. When it came Debi's turn on stage, Debi turned beat red as she stood and watched two nice gentlemen begin a bidding war for her. Glenn Wilkins wound up as the lucky winner with a date with Debi, and the American Cancer Society appreciated the generous donation he made.