I am surprised more often than not at the lack of marketing done by agents on homes that failed to sell in the Bend market. I grew up in South County (Proud to say La Pine) and for years La Pine has been the area I mainly focused on. But life has changed and I am now a Bend girl (also Proud to say). There is no place as special as Central Oregon is, the love we have for our area makes being a listing agent a lot of fun.

The average buyer in Central Oregon does not yet live here!  This means the internet marketing your agent does is vitally important to getting your home sold.

Think about it – what and where are you reading this right now?

Living The Dream!

We have all heard this common phrase with a little sarcastic tone added to it… but don’t you think we have the opportunity to live the dream every day? Central Oregon has a lot of awesome things to offer every age group, we are lucky to have been able to achieve the dream. When I talk to people on the phone, in person or by email and even on Facebook of Twitter more people than not want to live where we already have the privileged to live. I am always amazed at the number of people from near and far that their goal is to be able to live in Central Oregon. With all of that being said, I am saddened by the lack of photos, video and marketing done by many agents in Central Oregon. It’s not their fault though, they don’t know any better or they don’t know how to create some of the best online marketing available.

Where Do They Search?

We all know how powerful the web is and there are statistics all over that will tell you anywhere form 82% to 90% of all home buyers start their search online. This is no surprise is it? Even agents that have possibly failed their sellers know this, but they are unaware of how to get that property seen on the web. Putting a property on the MLS of Central Oregon (MLS = Multiple Listing Service) will push your property out to places like Trulia, Zillow, Realtor.com and other sites we refer to as VOWs (VOW= Virtual Office Websites).

This week I was searching for a mountain view property in Bend for a buyer, he had emailed me asking for assistance because every time he did a search the search would have the same list of homes but he could not see the views. Why? Because there were no photos of the view! It made me wonder if the seller and the listing agent knew that in ANY market a home with a view is worth more than one without a view. You can build the same house over and over, but only so many homes have a view, same holds true for riverfront home of course.

I was also surprised by the lack of video, oh there were a lot of virtual tours most of which were slide show with the same exact photos that the MLS had, which is also the same photos that Zillow, Truila and the likes have. Many times a buyer will be looking at a lot of these different sites so why would you not change things up to showcase different highlights on different sites attracting a wider pool of buyers?

I am Taking Listings!

If you are thinking of selling your Central Oregon home, I currently have room to take on a few new listings. Let’s get together and talk about what would help get your home sold!

Spring is often referred to as “Silly Season” because it is the time of year that many homes come on the Central Oregon Real Estate Market.  Pricing your home correctly in this market can be the life or death of your home sale.  Over priced homes sit on the market losing valuable time.

Many times a seller has a false impression of what their home will truly sell for.  They are comparing their home to others on the market – or possibly what they “want” for the sale to facilitate what their future plan is.  This is true in all of Central Oregon; Bend, La Pine, Three Rivers South it does not matter over priced homes sit end of story.

One of the most important things YOUR AGENT should do for you is to help you price your home according to the current market conditions.  As I look at listings in the Central Oregon MLS, I find many homes that have been on the market for years.  No kidding years.  Some of them have come off the market for a short period of time as to get a new listing number or start with fresh days on market.  This is one of those things Agents do to play tricks on the public, even I do it to give a listing a fresh start.  The funny thing about that is, those agents that have been active in the business remember those homes.  They remember the details the pricing and so on, so who are you really fooling?

Having your agent sugar coat your real situation in the market does nothing but delay the heart break, your home is not going to sell for the high price many sellers are hoping for.  By listing high, in hopes that someone will offer you something close you are limiting your options of buyers and drinking the Kool-Aid.  Yes, buyers are looking for a “steal of a deal.” But most buyers are more aware of the market then agents or sellers give them credit for.  Many of the buyers I have put into contract over the last year have been watching their price range for several months to even a year or more.

The bottom line on pricing your home correctly is not about the listing price of your neighbor’s home nor is it what your plan for the future is.  The bottom line is what have similar properties SOLD for.  Even if you get lucky and find an uneducated buyer that  may agree to your price and may write an offer for what you want for the property, unless the buyer is paying cash there will be an appraisal.  If the comparable homes in the area have sold for less the appraiser will have to appraise your property accordingly.  Gone are the days when an appraiser just automatically said the property is worth what the buyer is willing to pay.

The issue of over pricing homes is a national epidemic, several of the agents I know across the country and I have discussed this at great lengths;

Colleen Kulikowski of Buffalo New York has written about this same topic See how the Broadway Market and her trip to the Market is compared to Real Estate and the Buffalo Real Estate Market.

So quit drinking the Kool-Aid – it is an artificially flavored overly sweet product that does us nothing but make us feel good, and Trix are for kids!  Get real with your pricing and your home will sell and sell quickly.

Dena Stevens in Western Colorado says;

It is unlikely that a guidable cash buyer is going to come along and buy into the inflated price of your property. With the current supply and demand for properties buyers are more likely to skip a property that is priced incorrectly and move on to another priced at market value. If a seller thinks that real estate is a game of offer and counter offer that seller is chasing off or missing potential buyers who are willing and able to buy but not willing to work with an unreasonable , unrealistic seller.

Today Buyers and Sellers of Central Oregon homes are hearing these terms more and more which bring more questions than answers most of the time.  There are many misunderstandings of what these terms mean and what the process is or can be.  The current real estate market is one that even veterans of 40 plus years have never seen before.  Let’s explore what these mean here locally and have a glimpse of what they may mean in other areas.

The Short Sale – A seller is attempting to sell their home for less than they owe the bank.  That is the simple answer to what a short sale is.  As we tread on you will see that the answer is not all that simple.  How can the seller do this is one of the most common questions followed by how can I buy this home for less.  The seller of a short sale is usually behind at least one payment and can not keep up with the current mortgage.  The banks do not want to have to take the home (Foreclosure).  Some of the reasons are, banks are not in business to be home owners and the average cost to the bank for a foreclosure is in excess of $30,000 according to some experts.
Ashley Drake Gephart, Associate Broker, REALTOR® a good friend in Albuquerque explains in more detail what a short sale is

A short sale of a residential property is still owned by the owner, but the owner is usually behind in their payments and the price listed is short of what is needed to pay off the mortgage and closing costs. There is no guarantee that the bank will accept a short sale even if the owner offers the full list price, and the response time from a bank on an offer can take up to six months.

A Short Sale is always subject to the lender approval this process is far more complicated that it sounds.  Some homes currently listed as a short sale have a first and a second mortgage.  In these cases approval by both lenders is necessary.  Most short sales will be sold as is, with few if any warranties.  Everything about the contract depends on the bank agreeing to it.  A short sale can take weeks to months to get bank approval.

Joshua Jarvis REALTOR® in Georgia also explains short sales;

Pre-Foreclosures are also called Short Sales in some cases. Most of these will be listed as well.  Short sales can be a great deal and opportunity but do require patience and a easy living arrangement in case the deal falls through. Not all pre-foreclosures are short sales, but most will be.

The process is not as simple as it sounds.  There are specific documents the seller will need to provide sometimes multiple times, the listing agent will need to have extensive communication with multiple parties to keep the ball rolling and be familiar with the process and the specific situation.
As a buyer you can have the best agent out there and if the listing agent is un-aware of the process your offer can be a total waste of time.   Sellers if you are working with an agent and trying to short sale your home, make sure your agent knows the process.  More than one buyer can tell you that they had an offer with a short sale only to find that it went to foreclosure anyway.  Reasons for this can vary from the bank would not accept the offer to the listing agent did not ask for the sale date to be delayed while the offer was negotiated.
Some banks will not discuss a short sale or price until you have an offer, others will work with you on price and terms right from the start.  More often than not you will need an offer before the bank will talk about price and so on.  Part of the process of a short sale is that once that offer comes in – the bank will ask other brokers for their opinion of the value of the property, this is referred to as a BPO.
The Bank Owned Home, also called an REO or REPO – These are homes that have already been taken back by the bank.  These homes can be pristine or they can be real fixer up type properties.  Once the bank owns the home you are dealing with one person generally.  Although responses can be a little delayed because the decision maker is generally has a ton of files on their desk.  Acceptance of these properties generally only takes a couple days and things move a long much like a standard real estate transaction, if you agent knows what to expect that is.  There are a few quirky items that your agent needs to know to protect you.

Most buyers and sellers have no idea what title insurance covers and what to watch for in a preliminary title insurance.  Amerititle has a great site to explain Title services and insurance.  Below is what it covers, but do check out their site and see what other items you should be aware of.

• False representation of the true owner of the property
• Forged deeds, releases or wills
• Instruments executed under invalid or expired power of attorney
• Undisclosed or missing heirs
• Mistakes in recording legal documents
• Misinterpretation of wills
• Deeds by persons of unsound mind
• Deeds by minors
• Deeds by persons supposedly single but in fact married
• Liens for unpaid estate, inheritance, income or gift taxes
• Fraud

Obviously if you do not have a title company many of these issues may never be known unless you use a title company.  Central Oregon has several title companies, but you should always use a local title and escrow company.  A local company has access to the local records which are necessary to do the job efficiently.

In Oregon you do not have to use an escrow and title company to purchase or sell a property.  However, most agents will not work on a file without it going through an escrow and title company.

Many buyers and sellers are not aware that title and escrow are two entirely different things.

Escrow does the following (according to Amerititle)

To prepare for the closing of your transaction, your escrow agent

• Prepares escrow instructions as directed by the parties involved
• Obtains a preliminary title report or a commitment of title
• Orders a statement of identity (information) on the buyer and seller
• Orders loan payoffs at the client’s request
• Complies with the lender’s requirements specified in the lender’s instructions
• Receives bills from termite, roof, appliance inspection and home warranty companies
• Receives purchase funds from client
• Prepares or secures the deed or other documents
• Prorates taxes, interest, insurance and rents according to instructions
• Secures release of contingencies/conditions as imposed on particular escrow
• Records deeds and other documents as instructed
• Closes escrow when buyer and seller have met all criteria for the transaction
• Disburses funds as authorized by instructions, including charges for title insurance, recording fees, real estate commissions and loan payoffs
• Prepares final statements for the parties, accounting for the disposition of all funds deposited in escrow

Tomorrow we will discuss Title and what the title company does for you.