June Watson, Realtor®, NW Alabama

October 5, 2009

Dear Ms. Watson:

Thank you for your message. I welcome the opportunity to respond to my constituents about the issues that concern them most.

In your message, you expressed concern over the state of America's housing market. Specifically, you asked that the $8,000 tax credit be extended to help the market recover. You will be pleased to know that I am a cosponsor of H.R. 2801, the Home Ownership Moves the Economy (HOME) Act of 2009.

Like you I have seen the positive effects of the $8,000 tax credit. This bill would extend the $8,000 credit through 2010, and would allow all homebuyers purchasing a principal residence. I believe that this action is crucial to realizing a full recovery of the housing market.

Again, I thank you for your message. Please let me know if I can be of any further assistance. For more information on my activities in Washington I encourage you to visit my website at Griffith.house.gov and sign up for my e-newsletter.

Sincerely,

Parker Griffith
Member of Congress The office of Representative Parker Griffith of the 5th District of Alabama is not responsible for any electronic transmissions that are not sent from the dr.griffith@mail.house.gov email address.

______________________________________________________

Time is running out! Don't be left out of this great incentive!

The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 ("Recovery Act") was signed into law by President Obama on February 17, 2009. For more information, click HERE.

NOW is the time to buy a home! President Obama has included $8,000, or 10% of the home's value (whichever is less) first-time home buyer's tax credit in his $75 billion stimulus package. People that buy their first home this year and claim the $8,000 tax credit on their 2009 income tax will see the total amount even if the amount they paid into withholding during the year was less than than that amount!

This three-part plan that will give low-cost refinancing for about five million Americans, provide financial incentives to lenders and create a new insurance program to promote more mortgage modifications.

This is great news for first-time home buyers!

To make your home stand out and be the first one in your neighborhood to sell, visit open houses in your immediate area.

How can this possibly help you sell your home? You will have first-hand knowledge about your competition!

As you approach the open-house does the building and lawn positively or negatively stimulate you visually? Has care been taken to create a welcoming, pleasant first impression? Many times buyers will just have me keep driving and not even stop at a house if the outside is neglected.

When you walk into the open-house, is there an inviting atmosphere; or, are there so many personal momentos on the walls and displayed on tables and on shelves that you have a hard time seeing past it?

Regardless of the actual size, does it feel spacious or does the furniture make it feel cramped and awkward? If you are unsure how to arrange the furniture in the house you are selling, ask your realtor to arrange a meeting with a professional stager at your house.

Does the color pallette of the walls and curtains reflect the personal taste of the owners; or, is it a fresh, neutral canvas inviting visitors to visualize their own belongings in each room?

Is it clean? This may seem like an elementary question, but buyers will look at the window panes, in the shower stalls, under cabinets, inside closets, and examine the floors carefully. Dust, stains, and mold will banish many buyers.

How does your home compare to the open-houses you have viewed? Is it priced overpriced or priced competitively for your area?

To sell your house FAST, be the most visually pleasing house in the area and be extremely reasonable in your pricing. Remember negotiating for a house should create a win/win situation.

In the spring, when we set our clocks forward, it's always hard for my internal clock to adjust. I definitely wake up the next morning without enough sleep. BUT, in the fall we set our clocks back and it's a wonderful feeling to get that extra hour of sleep!

Make sure you set your clocks back before you go to bed so you won't miss early commitments on Sunday morning!

We all have our niche - where we fit in the best. When we stumble on our strong suit we need to stop and consider ways to expand on it.

My niche has always been to help the ones that seem to be the underdogs. It's never really mattered what folks were the underdogs in - I just wanted to do what I could to give them the proverbial leg-up.

When it comes to selling real estate, the definite underdogs are the unrepresented sellers (FSBOs). They don't have near the marketing tools I have at my disposal, they don't know the best spots to advertise, they are willing to keep their house ready to show to drop-ins, they invest all of their free time and even some of their work time into showing their house to lookie-loos (people who have the odd hobby of previewing homes for sale even though they have absolutely no inclination to buy one). Then there is the frustration of agreeing to show someone their house, making sure they are available and the house is clean, only to have no one show up and receiving no phone call to let them know that the potential buyer has changed their mind. These "underdogs" have the "can-do" spirit that built America!

Unfortunately....

Most people wear themselves out marketing and showing their home. They aren't able to relax 100% because of having to always be available whenever anyone calls. Most of the time, they don't even feel comfortable getting the names, addresses and phone numbers of people that call about their home or actually come to preview it. They don't want to appear pushy or come on too strong. Then, if they happen to get an offer, many people don't know about the intricacies of closing. What inspections are needed? Title Policies? Home Warranties? Deed Preparation? Proration? And on & on & on...

I LOVE UNREPRESENTED SELLERS! I honestly want them to succeed! I give them a *FREE place to advertise on the web and drop off helpful brochures to them on a regular basis. I encourage them to call me for any assistance they may need. These underdogs have the heart of lions!

Often these unrepresented sellers get so tired! Life doesn't stop when your house is on the market. Many times lives seems to get a second-wind and become even more demanding. When these courageous sellers decide they would rather spend their valuable time with their family without the stress of managing the sale of their house, and get tired of spending their hard earned money advertising without the desired results they know someone who sells real estate full-time and has the experience to step in and get the job done -- ME!

Have you found your niche? Expand on it! You can do it!

_____________

*FREE:
I ask the unrepresented sellers to let me know if:
- they sell their house so I can remove it from my site
- they list with another realtor
- they consider listing with ME if they decide to use a realtor!