COULDA, SHOULDA, WOULDA

COULDA, SHOULDA, WOULDA

Okay, so I just HAD to use this title!

I am leaving - hasta la vista, baby!  My husband and I are taking a really long cruise, but it's okay to tell because we'll have a house full of people while we're gone.  We have been invited to go on this cruise with a group of people and my momma.  

We leave Wednesday and don't get back until the 28th of October..... that's like 18 days, and I've never been away for that long.  So naturally I have this list of things to do before I leave.

1. Write Halloween Blog

2. Do Market Stat Reports for Oct contest

3. Office Calendar for November

4. Write elevator speech

Well, you get the idea.  I can tell you that so far, at least two of these will not get accomplished.  Why, you ask?  Because we've had walk-ins into the office, we've had new Realtors join our company and I've been up to my eyeballs just with interruptions and the list of excuses goes on!  (And really, I haven't even started to pack yet!)

But it reminds me that we all have those things we just mean to do that never get accomplished.  Why? Because we let others and stuff mess up our schedules. Maybe you all don't have deadlines like I do right now, and yet we procrastinate and don't stand firm to get our own goals accomplished.

So, while I'm away, I hope you guys will take this reminder to heart and stick to your guns!  And while you're at it, you can miss me a little, if you want.  I know you'll be waiting with baited breath for my return!  LOL

Warmest Regards,
Linda K. Mayer,
Realtor, Office Manager  
License # 01767321
A Realtor you can Trust!
(626) 824-8927 Cell
(909) 670-2711 Direct
LindaKMayer@live.com
Linda's Website

HIGHS AND LOWS - SAN DIMAS, CA - OCTOBER 10, 2011

HIGHS AND LOWS - SAN DIMAS, CA - OCTOBER 10, 2011


Okay, so here is today's report for the San Dimas, CA real estate market.


SINGLE FAMILY RESIDENCE


Lowest Priced Home     $     169,900
Highest Priced Home    $   2,250,000
Average                         $      425,000
Active Listings                          127
Sold This Week                         3

WHAT THIS MEANS TO YOU:  You now have more information about what's happening with the SAN DIMAS REAL ESTATE MARKET so you can make an informed decision on whether this city is right for you and if the prices fit into your budget.  

The other thing you can learn from this information is the saturation rate of the existing active real estate listings.  The saturation rate is determined by the amount of sales in a week and the number of listings available for sale.  So in this case, there are 127 homes being actively marketed by Realtors for sale.  If you divide those 127 by the number of homes sold this week, in this case three, you have your saturation rate.  This means that if you placed your home on the market to sell you can expect it to take a little over  42 weeks to complete the sale of your home.  That is if no other listings come into the real estate marketplace during that time.  And we all know how likely that is, now don't we...

HOW THIS AFFECTS YOU:  If your price is competitive and your home is in relatively decent shape you can have it sold in as little as one day or as much or more than the 42 weeks.  It also depends on the agent you are using.  The more aggressive your agent's marketing plan is for your home, the more exposure your home gets and you can see that would have a great impact.  On the other hand, if you use someone who merely puts your home on the MLS and does nothing more, it will most likely take a little more time to sell.  

If you are a buyer, this means you have a bigger selection to choose from and you have a better chance right now of getting an offer accepted.  And in the past month or so, the inventory is increasing in size, so the statement that you have more choices is getting bigger by the week.   

CONDOS AND TOWNHOMES


Lowest                       $ 165,000
Highest                      $ 369,000
Average                     $ 274,000
Active Listings                   25
Condos Sold This Week    5

So if the same holds true for CONDOS, then it would take approximately 5 weeks to sell your condo or townhome.  And a buyer only has 25 to choose from right now.  It seems that during these trying economic times, people are really not doing much in the way of buying or selling condos. It appears that here in SAN DIMAS more condos and townhomes are moving than in the surrounding cities.

And, as always, if you have real estate questions or need to buy or sell a home, please feel free to call me, a local expert.  I will be honored to assist you.

Warmest Regards,
Linda K. Mayer,
Realtor, Office Manager  
License # 01767321
A Realtor you can Trust!
(626) 824-8927 Cell
(909) 670-2711 Direct
LindaKMayer@live.com
Linda's Website

HIGHS AND LOWS - LA VERNE, CA - OCTOBER 10, 2011

HIGHS AND LOWS - LA VERNE, CA - OCTOBER 10, 2011


Okay, so here is today's report for the La Verne, CA real estate market.


SINGLE FAMILY RESIDENCE


Lowest Priced Home     $     189,000
Highest Priced Home    $  3,500,000
Average                         $     465,000
Active Listings                         141
Sold This Week                        8

WHAT THIS MEANS TO YOU:  You now have more information about what's happeing with the LA VERNE REAL ESTATE MARKET so you can make an informed decision on whether this city is right for you and if the prices fit into your budget.  

The other thing you can learn from this information is the saturation rate of the existing active real estate listings.  The saturation rate is determined by the amount of sales in a week and the number of listings available for sale.  So in this case, there are 141 homes being actively marketed by Realtors for sale.  If you divide those 141 by the number of homes sold this week, in this case eight, you have your saturation rate.  This means that if you placed your home on the market to sell you can expect it to take a little over  17 weeks to complete the sale of your home.  That is if no other listings come into the real estate marketplace during that time.  And we all know how likely that is, now don't we...

HOW THIS AFFECTS YOU:  If your price is competitive and your home is in relatively decent shape you can have it sold in as little as one day or as much or more than the 17 weeks.  It also depends on the agent you are using.  The more aggressive your agent's marketing plan is for your home, the more exposure your home gets and you can see that would have a great impact.  On the other hand, if you use someone who merely puts your home on the MLS and does nothing more, it will most likely take a little more time to sell.  

If you are a buyer, this means you have a bigger selection to choose from and you have a better chance right now of getting an offer accepted.  And in the past month or so, the inventory is increasing in size, so the statement that you have more choices is getting bigger by the week.   


CONDOS AND TOWNHOMES


Lowes                           $   73,000
Highest                         $ 349,900
Average                        $ 155,000
Active Listings                     18
Condos Sold This Week      0

So if the same holds true for CONDOS, then it would take approximately 18 weeks to sell your condo or townhome.  And a buyer only has 18 to choose from right now.  It seems that during these trying economic times, people are really not doing much in the way of buying or selling condos.

And, as always, if you have real estate questions or need to buy or sell a home, please feel free to call me, a local expert.  I will be honored to assist you.


**All information is taken from the IMRMLS.


LA VERNE LIVING!

Warmest Regards,
Linda K. Mayer,
Realtor, Office Manager  
License # 01767321
A Realtor you can Trust!
(626) 824-8927 Cell
(909) 670-2711 Direct
LindaKMayer@live.com
Linda's Website

HIGHS AND LOWS - CLAREMONT, CA - OCTOBER 10, 2011

HIGHS AND LOWS - CLAREMONT, CA - OCTOBER 10, 2011

SINGLE FAMILY RESIDENCE

Lowest Priced Home  $159,500

Highest Priced Home $4,000,000

Average $499,000

Active Listings  141

Sold This Week  6

WHAT THIS MEANS TO YOU:  You now have more information about what's happening with the CLAREMONT REAL ESTATE MARKET so you can make an informed decision on whether this city is right for you and if the prices fit into your budget.  

The other thing you can learn from this information is the saturation rate of the existing active real estate listings.  The saturation rate is determined by the amount of sales in a week and the number of listings available for sale.  So in this case, there are 141 homes being actively marketed by Realtors for sale.  If you divide those 141 by the number of homes sold this week, in this case eight, you have your saturation rate.  This means that if you placed your home on the market to sell you can expect it to take a little over  23 weeks to complete the sale of your home.  That is if no other listings come into the real estate marketplace during that time.  And we all know how likely that is, now don't we...

HOW THIS AFFECTS YOU:  If your price is competitive and your home is in relatively decent shape you can have it sold in as little as one day or as much or more than the 23 weeks.  It also depends on the agent you are using.  The more aggressive your agent's marketing plan is for your home, the more exposure your home gets and you can see that would have a great impact.  On the other hand, if you use someone who merely puts your home on the MLS and does nothing more, it will most likely take a little more time to sell.  

If you are a buyer, this means you have a bigger selection to choose from and you have a better chance right now of getting an offer accepted.  And in the past month or so, the inventory is increasing in size, so the statement that you have more choices is getting bigger by the week. 

CONDOS AND TOWNHOMES   

Lowest    $ 158,000

Highest   $ 702,688

Average  $ 309,000

Active Listings  17

Condos Sold This Week 1

So if the same holds true for CONDOS, then it would take approximately 17 weeks to sell your condo or townhome.  And a buyer only has 17 to choose from right now.  It seems that during these trying economic times, people are really not doing much in the way of buying or selling condos.

And, as always, if you have real estate questions or need to buy or sell a home, please feel free to call me, a local expert.  I will be honored to assist you.
**All information is taken from the IMRMLS.


CLAREMONT LIVING!

Warmest Regards,
Linda K. Mayer,
Realtor, Office Manager  
License # 01767321
A Realtor you can Trust!
(626) 824-8927 Cell
(909) 670-2711 Direct
LindaKMayer@live.com
Linda's Website

AGENTS - ARE WE ALL AS ETHICAL AS WE'RE SUPPOSED TO BE?

AGENTS - ARE WE ALL AS ETHICAL AS WE'RE SUPPOSED TO BE?

Okay so as a Realtor we have a code of ethics that we are supposed to follow or risk losing our license or possibly worse consequences than that!  So when I came uponthis article in the LOS ANGELES TIMES, I couldn't help but be surprised.  I guess I shouldn't have been, what with the current economic state, but I really was shocked.


The title got me right away - Real Estate agent Squats in Laguna Beach Home, client  alleges.  Really, an agent who is squatting in his client's home and using it for an office?  And the client further claims that this particular agent forged signatures on documents during the escrow which she was contractually obligated to go forward with in spite of her misgivings.  Wow, no wonder Realtors have a bad name!


It reminded me of a blog I wrote in February called, "Squatters: When Is Enough Enough?"  In this blog, the agents were going around from house to house, not necessarily their own listings.  





These are two examples of when a client should trust their own instincts and run away screaming get out of the deals they have going.  If you don't trust your agent, you should go find another that you can trust.




This is a very good reason my tag line is "A Realtor You Can Trust".  I strive to do everything on the up and up, and really, you won't find me squatting in your house, that's for sure!

If you are interested in buying or selling or simply have questions about real estate, please feel free to contact me.  I will be more than happy to assist you!

Warmest Regards,
Linda K. Mayer,
Realtor, Office Manager  
License # 01767321
A Realtor you can Trust!
(626) 824-8927 Cell
(909) 670-2711 Direct
LindaKMayer@live.com
Linda's Website

A Communication Lesson From Gizmo

A Communication Lesson From Gizmo

Okay, so the other day I was watching our new Guinea Pig, Gizmo.  (Ya, our son named him.)  He was an absolute mystery to me when we first got him. We out him in the family room because we are always in there and he gets a lot of face-time with the family.  At first, he was jumpy and scared, but now he's simply one of us.  

 My sons looked up information on guniea's when he started making noises and we couldn't figure it out. They do things like that, look up things for much more detail than I care about.

Gizmo apparently whistles when he is excited to see someone he loves.  He whistles at my dog Belle and he whistles at me.  (I truly think he only whistles at me because then I bring him his favorite - carrots.) And he chatters all the time now.  But we also learned that he makes almost the same type of noise when he's scared or doesn't like something. And he jumps - nearly scared Belle to death the first time he did it.  (HILARIOUS!)

He communicates!  Have you ever had a buyer or seller that didn't say what he/she was thinking and it backfired?  No, we don't want that house seems pretty easy to me.  We decided the bedrooms are too small, is relatively simple.  Gizmo would yell and hide.  Some buyers simply hide and don't answer emails or phone calls.  We never find out what actually happened. And if you are an agent, don't be a hidden agent.  Call you owners/buyers at least once a week to check in even if there is no news.  It stops them from thinking you have dropped the ball!

Have you ever noticed that in some parts of the country the smallest courtesy of saying hello has all but vanished?  It's like that a lot here in the Greater Los Angeles Area.  You say hello and people look at you like you want something from them.  Gizmo runs to the gateway of his cage everytime one of the family comes home - his way of saying hello... he's so excited.

When you do something Gizmo especially likes he jumps.  He jumps at Belle all the time, and when you give him a treat, he jumps - his way of saying thank you.  What happened to our common courtesy of saying thank you or writing a thank you note, whether it be email or snail mail. Or if you are a client, write your Realtor a recommendation if they did a good job for you!

Just think, all those lessons from a simple house pet.  It's built into their persona and it should be in ours as well.  How well do you shape up next to Gizmo?

Warmest Regards,
Linda K. Mayer,
Realtor, Office Manager  
License # 01767321
A Realtor you can Trust!
(626) 824-8927 Cell
(909) 670-2711 Direct
LindaKMayer@live.com
Linda's Website