Harrisburg, PA

You know the old saying, “Under Promise and Over Deliver”! One of our biggest pet peeves in our dealings in the real estate world (and I can say: our buyers’ pet peeve) is when listings over-promise and under-deliver! I can’t tell you how many times buyers go into a property and are sorely disappointed because the listing reads one way but the home shows in a very different way.

What are some “over-promises”?

• It says: remodeled kitchen
• What you get: older kitchen cabinets that are simply painted

• It says: half-bath
• What you get: a toilet in an open area (like a laundry room)

• It says: 4-car garage
• What you get: a deep 2-car garage (tandem)

• It says: 4 bedrooms
  
• What you get: a bedroom in a basement or a captive (walk-thru) BR

• It says: family room
  
• What you get: a small sitting area

• It says: finished basement
• What you get: a basement with painted walls & carpet thrown down

The bottom line is this: If the listing says anything that the house is not, you will almost always have upset, angry or at the least, disappointed buyers. You may think you will get more buyers to look at your house, but actually what you get is buyers that feel like you’ve wasted their time! Don’t be vague and try to entice with “false” advertising. Instead, err on the safe side of not saying too much! It is better for buyers to leave your home pleasantly surprised, rather than disappointed!

Well it's been a while, and what have I been up to? Busy summer and even busier early fall! But I'll get to that in a minute...Let me tell you why I called you all here:

It's time to take a look at your business plan. (he says to the moans and groans in the room...) What business plan some of you may even ask. Well in these types of market environments I think it's even more important than ever to revisit 'square 1' and review or even re-invent (or even do for the first time) your business plan.

It's really not as hard as you think, it just takes a little concentrated effort. Let's start with this -

If you have been in business more than a year, look back and count the sources of all your deals. Let's say they mostly (75%) came from initial Open House visitors you turned into buyer clients, and one or two of them had a house to sell. Ok then your business should be about Open Houses. Sounds simple doesn't it? Yes, but we haven't done the math yet...Now let's say you were disappointed with last years production and want a little more this year. Ok, our business model generates 75% of it's business from Open Houses, so how many did we do last year? 28. That's about two days a month plus maybe two days a month to get the visitors plugged into your fantastic follow-up machine. So if we did one more Open House a month we could create 33% more business next year. So take last years figures and ad on a 33% increase...feeling better about business planning now?

Follow along and I'll take you through these steps and walk you through the process...you aren't alone out there. Which brings me to my "what I did this summer" story.

My wife decided to go back into Real Estate practice and I decided to give up my Managing position so we could launch our practice again. We had a very successful Husband and Wife practice in Virginia a few years ago, but left it behind when we moved to PA to return to my hometown. So now I still recruit and coach new agents, but I also am out there with you listing and selling homes and helping 'Dreams Come True.'

So long for now, I'm off to the dentist...

Jim

I had the opportunity to visit the National Civil War Museum in Harrisburg Pennsylvania yesterday - it's located in Reservoir Park, just off of Route 83. I was impressed by the size of the place - I understand that the collection and museum came largely from Harrisburg Mayor Stephen Reed's efforts during the 1990's.

We toured the museum's displays, which were decent but a bit hard to follow. The layout was largely a timeline from the end of antebellum times to the westward expansion of the 1880's. The museum's marketing pieces claim that it's the only museum dedicated to the entire Civil War in the country. Quote:

"The only museum in The United States that portrays the entire story of the American Civil War. Equally balanced presentations are humanistic in nature without bias to Union or Confederate causes."

Here's a couple of interior photos - flash was not allowed (which I thought a bit funny, considering that we had just been to the National Gallery in Washington DC, where it was allowed with priceless paintings everywhere you look...).

It took about 2 hours to work through the whole museum, which is an acceptable time. Admission was $9.00 for adults and $7.00 for kids over 5 years old. Overall I thought the experience was worth it - once. I would recommend the new visitor's center at Gettysburg National Battlefield if you're looking for something very similar. In fact, I was struck by the similarities in the presentation and look/feel of the two museums.

As we were leaving town I thought it would be neat to grab a photo of our state's capital dome:

We also drove by Three Mile Island Nuclear Plant on the way home to East Petersburg - yep, it was still there.

Another day in Southeastern Pennsylvania...

PRICE AND SALES SHOW STRENGTH AMID DECREASES
Sales decrease at slower pace; Median price remains strong, says local Realtor association...

HARRISBURG (July 10, 2009) – The median home-sale price in the South Central Pennsylvania area decreased slightly in the second quarter of 2009. According to statistics from the Central Penn Multi-List, Inc., the median home-sale price in the second quarter was $164,767 – a 1.9 percent decrease from the $168,000 median home-sale price in the second quarter of 2008.

“Once again, our area median price is holding steady,” says Frederick L. Briggs, president of the Greater Harrisburg Association of REALTORS®. “While we continue to see substantial drops in price in other areas of the county, South Central Pennsylvania homes are maintaining their value.”

The number of residential housing units sold in the second quarter of 2009 was 1,952 units, down 6.9 percent from the 2,097 units sold in the second quarter of 2008.

“In the preceding six quarters, sales had decreased by double-digit percentages,” Briggs says. “I am pleased to see a slower rate of sales decrease this past quarter, and our market may be starting to turn around in terms of sales.”

Listings stayed on the market an average of 86 days in the second quarter of 2009 – up from an average of 74 days in the second quarter of 2008.

The number of active listings in the second quarter rose to 4,279, compared to 4,072 active listings at the end of the first quarter of 2009.

Across the country, existing-home sales increased in both April and May. According to statistics from the National Association of REALTORS® (NAR), sales increased 2.9 percent from March to April, but total sales in April 2009 are 3.5 percent below April 2008. NAR reported that sales also increased 2.4 percent in May from April, but remain 3.6 percent below sales in May 2008. The national median existing-home price was $170,200 in April and $173,000 in May. Both months’ median prices are down from median existing-home prices in April 2008 (15.4 percent decrease) and May 2008 (16.8 percent decrease).

“The South Central Pennsylvania market continues to be a buyers market,” Briggs says. “Strong prices, coupled with the increased inventory, make it a great time to buy in our area.”

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