Gearhart, OR

Gearhart Oregon On A Snowy February Morning

It's a rare occasion that we experience snow on the North Oregon Coast. We awoke this morning to a nice dusting of snow covering the ground. More is expected to visit today. This is a far cry from the "Snow Bomb" Portland area news commentators predicted. Nonetheless, we'll enjoy it while we have it! Just another day at the beach in beautiful Gearhart Oregon. Come to visit us soon!

Times are a changing in greater Gearhart! The new Gearhart Rural Fire Protection District substation located on Westlake Lane & US Highway 101 was completed recently. The substation will house three fire apparatus bays and a meeting/lounge area for the firemen, all of whom are dedicated volunteers. The new substation will serve the district's northern section which includes the area just to the North of the Gearhart City limits to the Pacific Grange Hall and from the beach to the Lewis & Clark area.

The new station is a fine example of small town synergies. A local family donated the land for the new station, a local Astoria contracting company executed the building & a local bank, Clatsop Community provided the financing for the project. Add local volunteers that provide the fire fighting services & you have a wonderful example of a community in action!

The City of Gearhart Fire Dept. has been proudly serving the community for over 100 years covering a service area of 28 miles.

City of Gearhart Fire Dept

Gearhart, the place that I lovingly call home! A small, quaint town with a New England flavor. A place where you still feel a calm sense of security far removed from the hustle of the big city. Building codes restrict the commercial development that threatens our small town charm! As such, it's small mom & pop ventures that cater to the needs of our visiting tourists. Pop's Ice Cream Parlor is a wonderful example of our small town enterprises enjoyed by both young & old. Another must see & do is to partake in our annual 4th. of July day town parade, which is a slice out of a Norman Rockwell painting. There you'll likely find children sporting bikes decked out in patriotic colors, parents pulling their children in wagons decorated to the nines or dogs sporting festive scarfs of red, white & blue. One year the Gearhart Short Leg Brigade march along with their Corgies! All culminates with free hot dogs at the local fire station, which is supported by a truly dedicated core of local volunteers with a singular mission, to serve & protect!

For all things Gearhart be sure to bookmark the following City of Gearhart website

I have been thinking about this topic lately and here is the conclusion I have come up with.

Lets start with what is not important in a listing agent.

1. They don't need 50 designations behind their name to make them a good listing agent

2. They don't need lots of experience listing. They need lots of experience getting their listings sold.

3. They don't have to work with a firm that has a Recognizable name.

In my opinion, here are the six most critical things you need to ask a listing agent if her or she does in their service to you.

1. The listing agent you hire needs to know how to do a CMA and adjust for every comparable that they use. Simply put, it is important to compare apples to apples. There are several adjustments to take into consideration. Size of home, condition of home, and age of home are just some of the things appraisers use in an appraisal. This is the only way to get an accurate value.

2. The listing agent you hire must be aware of whether sales are trending upward in your neighborhood or trending downward. As lenders will only use comparable properties that are four months or less in age, you will most likely have to adjust your price more than once during the listing period as the comps are going to change (possibly quite dramatically) during the listing period. Your agent needs to stay on top of this and recommend price adjustments accordingly.

3.Once you get an offer in, your agent should do another market anaylsis to make sure what has closed since the agent took the listing is going to justify the selling price.

4. Your agent must not only be good at math, here or she must be great with a camera. With the vast majority of buyers starting their search on the Internet these days and agents doing their hunting for the best homes to show their clients, your agent needs to sell the features and benefits of buying your home over any other for the same price. Ask for samples pictures of the homes that they have listed now or in the past and see what you think of their photographic capability.

5. They must be able to get your listing uploaded to every major directory on the Internet for maximum exposure.

6. I saved the most important point for last. It doesn't matter how many listings an agent has.

THE ONLY THING THAT MATTERS IS HOW MANY OF THE LISTINGS AN AGENT HAS TAKEN THAT HAVE ACTUALLY SOLD

I can proudly say that I have listed and sold 95% of the single family home listings that I have taken in my long career during the initial listing period, so I speak from experience.

Marianne Pittard of RE/MAX River & Sea has earned the prestigious Certified Distressed Property Expert (CDPE) designation, having completed extensive training in foreclosure avoidance and short sales. This is invaluable expertise to offer at a time when the area is ravaged by "distressed" homes in the foreclosure process.

Short sales allow the cash-strapped seller to repay the mortgage at the price that the home sells for, even though it is lower than what is owed on the property. With plummeting property values, this can save many people from foreclosure and even bankruptcy. More and more lenders are willing to consider short sales because they are much less costly than foreclosures.

In the Clatsop County area, many homes are in danger of foreclosing. It is happening in all price ranges. Local experts say that even high-priced homes are not immune.

"This CDPE designation has been invaluable as I work with sellers and lenders on complicated short sales," said Pittard. "It is so rewarding to be able to help sellers save their homes from foreclosure."

Alex Charfen, founder of the Distressed Property Institute in Boca Raton, Fla., said that Realtors® such as Marianne Pittard with the CDPE designation have valuable training in short sales that can offer the homeowner much better alternatives to foreclosure, which virtually destroys the credit rating. These experts also may better understand market conditions and can help sellers through the emotional experience, he said.

The Distressed Property Institute opened in January 2008 and provides training on-site and online. The CDPE is the premier designation for Realtors helping homeowners in distress and handling short sales.

"Our goal is to educate as many people as possible so we can help as many homeowners as possible," Charfen said.

For more information about CDPE designation or to find a certified distressed Realtor in your area, please call 1-800-482-0335.