One of my former corporate co-workers sends a bunch of us the funny videos he’s found … he’s retired.
He just sent the funniest video yet. I had to watch it a couple times because the first time through, I was laughing so hard I couldn’t see It through my tears. Apparently it takes place in a German furniture store.
The Murph got all excited trying to figure out what was wrong with Mom. He thought he surely must DO SOMETHING but wasn’t sure what.
Stores in the US could never pull this off, because people would sue. Geez, the lawyers have taken all the fun out of life!
The daughter of one of my daughter’s co-workers reportedly enjoys reading my blog. This co-worker family is a “dog-owned family” being owned by Springer Spaniels.
Recently the “Springer-family daughter” made a present for me - and The Murph - and gave it to my daughter to give to me. I finally received this special treat last night when we met for dinner. She made it out of clay and it’s The Murph resting on top of a Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup®. Isn’t that creative! And the candy portion looks almost real enough to eat.
I feel so honored that someone, who knows me only through my blog, would take the time and great effort to bother making me this special gift. It will be treasured and placed on the shelf with the other doggie momentos I’ve been given. Thank you, Aggie!.
Tomorrow is a day that many agents - mainly the female ones - actually get to take a day off work. I’m looking forward to it since I haven’t had a full day off since New Year’s. Even if we’re not meeting with clients on a given day, we’re still emailing, working on computer updates to our web sites and blogs, searching for homes for buyers, taking new photos of our listings, or doing all the other daily things that are part of the life of a Realtor®.
My family wanted to come over to help me with some outside work around my home. I managed to convince them that I REALLY just want to relax. Since both my daughters are also Mom’s, they can then spend the day doing what they enjoy rather than having to work some more at my house. They both work outside their home, so they could use some well-deserved relaxation time as well.
So we’re going out tonight for a casual dinner at a favorite local eatery, Claddagh’s, near the Polaris Mall. It’s an Irish pub with great fish ‘n’ chips. The last time we were there, my son-in-law ordered a corned beef sandwich. The waitress came back and said they were out of corned beef. How can an Irish restaurant be out of corned beef!
I’m thinking that tonight corned beef and cabbage sounds good. My Mom used to fix this dish, and maybe in honor of her, I’ll order it.
To all the MOM’s out there, enjoy your day. And if you can convince Dad to buy you a home for a present, give me a call … I’ll make an exception to my “day off”!
Here’s another update on the House Watch data published in The Dispatch’s Sunday paper. The number of homes for sale and the prices for these homes are increasing slowly this year.
More notable is the difference of this year vs last year’s data. There are 7.5% fewer homes for sale now but their asking price is 2.6% higher than last year. This is REALLY important news for Buyers who have been hesitant to act.
Number of homes for sale
4/3
4/10
4/17
4/24
5/1
2008 Homes for sale
16,345
16,531
16,726
16,947
16,877
2007 Homes for sale
17,312
17,667
17,863
18,095
18,240
% Chg ‘08 vs ‘07
-5.5%
-6.4%
-6.4%
-6.3%
-7.5%
Prices of homes for sale
4/3
4/10
4/17
4/24
5/1
2008 Avg Price
$223,609
$224,205
$224,894
$225,271
$225,968
2007 Avg Price
$217,846
$219,219
$219,657
$220,077
$220,231
% Chg ‘08 vs ‘07
+2.6%
+2.3%
+2.4%
+2.4%
+2.6%
This data comes from the Columbus Board of Realtors® and includes the counties of Franklin, Delaware, Madison, Morrow, Union, and some listings of Fairfield, Knox, Licking, Logan, Marion and Pickway.
Listing agents solicit feedback from buyer’s agents after they’ve shown a property. Most agents do this via their broker’s automatic email feedback form because it’s easier than playing phone tag to get the agent’s comments.
One of the sections on this form is “what did buyer think of the price?” Too high? Just right? Too low?
Now, I’ve yet to EVER have an agent check the “Too Low” box! DUH!!!
I’ve also learned that agents check the “Just right” box ONLY when the buyer isn’t interested in the home.
Therefore, the “Too high” box is checked 99% of the time.
Should the listing agent and the seller pay any attention to the “Too high” comment? Well, that depends because it can mean several things.
It can mean that the buyer is looking at homes that are higher priced than the buyer has been lender-approved to purchase. This type of buyer is hoping to buy according to THEIR budget without considering what the home is really worth. The buyer may only be approved for a mortgage no higher than $170K, but is viewing homes priced in the $180’s hoping to select a home where the seller may accept their planned low-ball offer. Thus, the home is priced “too high” for this buyer to buy. It doesn’t mean the price is “too high” versus comparable properties.
It can mean that the buyer is comparing the absolute price point of non-comparable homes. Perhaps, a buyer is wanting to locate in a given area, school district, or community. The buyer may view numerous homes that have a price range gap of $50K-$100K difference. I had a listing where the buyers typically viewed upscale homes within a $100K range. My listing had upgrades/location/size/amenities of homes priced $60K higher. But it’s absolute price was being compared to homes priced $50K less with none of the benefits of the size, location, amenities, or privacy. Had the buyer’s agent analyzed the comps, the buyer would have realized that the price/sq ft was competitive (or lower) with other similarly appointed homes. I feel sorry for these buyers because they are comparing prices of apples-oranges not oranges-oranges and as a result, they are very likely to miss out on a “good buy”.
It can mean that the buyer is interested in the home, but the agent wants to set the stage for contract negotiations to help the buyer buy the home at a lower-better price. Even if the buyer and agent think the home is “priced right“, the agent won’t reveal that in order to protect the buyer’s negotiating position. So the agent gives feedback that the price is “too high“, when in reality it isn’t.
It can also mean exactly what it says … that the home is priced “too high“ when price/sq ft is compared for comparably appointed homes. The listing agent knows when this is the case, and will use this information in their discussions with the seller.
As a buyer, what should you do?
First of all make sure you’re comparing apples-to-apples. Calculate the price/sq ft and consider the total finished living space of the home and extra features or upgrades that the home has versus others to get a feel for the range of similar homes. After you’ve done that, then consider the absolute price within the nearby area or community. It may have a good price/sq ft but if it’s absolute price is much higher than others, then you must consider whether you want to buy the most expensive property in the neighborhood. Always think about RESALE when you buy.
Examples from my showings this weekend …
I showed five homes to a buyer over the weekend that illustrates this “too high” price very well. All the homes were in close proximity to each other - same general neighborhood and similar amenities with some differences. Three had finished basements. The price range was $299 to $350K. Of the 5 homes, the one with the highest absolute price ($349,900) had the lowest price/sq ft ($110). The lowest priced home ($299,900) had a mid-range price/sq ft ($122). The home with the highest price/sq ft ($144) was priced at $309,900. The price/sq ft range of the three with finished basements was $118-$144. The absolute price range of those three was $299,900-$337,500.
Knowing the general pricing range now will allow the buyers to better consider the amenity differences each home offers and they can use that info in deciding what a fair price is for the home they liked best. The next step for ME will be to do this same analysis for them on recently sold homes. That way, they’ll have all the info they need to make a good buying decision.
Bottom line, before writing off a home as being “too high priced“, do your homework - and have your agent do theirs - then decide what a fair price would be for the home you like the best.
I spent a couple hours yesterday taking exterior photos of my listing east of Hoover Reservoir, near Galena, for the fourth time. This time was to capture some of the Spring flowers AND to take new GREEN photos (vs snow or gray skies) before the trees totally leaf out. Once they do, I won’t be able see the home.
The grass is now a very beautiful, lush green because the seller is an avid user of Scotts® products (good curb appeal). Many of the flowering trees were in bloom and some of the perennials. Many more plants around this exceptional home are yet to do their thing.
You can see the new, pretty outside photos in the slide show I did for the original post on this home. I’ve updated that slideshow with the new photos.
I love going there to do the photography since it’s such a pleasant, relaxing environment. I enjoy listening to and watching all the birds. During this last trip I decided to take some video so I could capture the sounds of nature. Actually, most of the sound comes from a bunch of cardinals that live around the home. Some squirrels were chattering at my intrusion on their territory, but they stayed out of view of the camera. It was a pretty breezy day, so I apologize for the wind noise over the camera’s microphone.
Another bird that frequents this home - per the seller - are pileated woodpeckers. They come in force to the suet feeders, but they didn’t visit while I was there. These woodpeckers are the Woody Woodpecker variety with the big red top.
So, if you’d like to hear some relaxing bird sounds and view some gorgeous landscape as well as a breath-taking home, click on the video below. Since WordPress doesn’t allow embedding, I had to upload to YouTube so the quality deteriorates quite a bit. (BUMMER) And if by chance, you want to BUY this home, give me a call.! ;-)
Every couple months I receive a magazine called “CityScene - Columbus arts, entertainment & style”. I’m not sure why I started receiving this magazine a year or so ago, but it’s a rather pleasant read. Lots of info on home and home builders, so I assume I get it because I’m a Realtor®.
Anyway, in the issue I received today, there is an article on page 64 about a new public art project that should prove to be fun … at least it will be fun for Columbus Ohio!
By October, there are to be 250 “uniquely decorated” 7-foot Brutus statues around town. Could it be that this project is to be completed just prior to THE GAME IN NOVEMBER?
If you don’t know who Brutus is or what THE GAME is, then you’re not from Central Ohio.
The money generated from the art project will go in part to renovating the William Oxley Thompson Memorial Library. Another small portion will go to a scholarship fund for OSU cheerleaders.
The article recounted some of the rules …
Artists who signed up to create a signature Brutus statue were given plenty of freedom, but couldn’t include designs that were se*ually explicit, corporate or regarding anything about “That Team Up North”.
So far there is a Christopher Columbus, an Elvis, and of course, Woody. We can visit www.BrutusOnParade.com for photos of the new ones as they are displayed around town. It’ll be interesting to see what the other notable 247 statues will represent.
Elaine Reese
Real Living HER Worthington Ohio
Assisting home sellers and buyers throughout Central Ohio in achieving their dreams.
614-825-8860◄Click to email me Click to get RSS feed for my updates.SUBSCRIBE to be notified of new articles on my blog
__________________________________
The daughter of one of my daughter’s co-workers reportedly enjoys reading my blog. This co-worker family is a “dog-owned family” being owned by Springer Spaniels.
Elaine Reese
Fantastic value priced 4BR with finished lower level in Stratford Woods. $179,900
