What Do Pro Athletes, Mutual Fund Managers and REALTORS All Have In Common?

This isn’t a trick question.  There are some obvious answers like a) nothing, b) nothing, and c) nothing.  But there’s one important answer often over looked – statistics – real estate agents, mutual fund managers and pro ball players have statistics in common.

Real estate is one of the few business that I’ve been in where it’s simple to gather performance information on competitor agents and other offices.  I worked for Fidelity Investments and later for T. Rowe Price where fund manager performance was measured and monitored by outside services like Morningstar.com.  Investors worry about annual, three-year and five-year returns and whether or not they are investing in the right mutual fund.   If you’re a NBA fan and you might visit Basketball-Reference.com for team and player statistics.  But if you wanted to find out my sales stats and business history there’s no public access website to check out just how well I’ve done over the last season or any other time in the past.

What got me to thinking about this was while browsing ActiveRain.com this morning, I was curious about my ranking among other AR participants who sell real estate in Maryland.  This lead me to doing a little bit more research on a couple of the real estate agents who are highly ranked in ActiveRain.com.  Which in turn lead me to visiting MRIS.com (our multiple listing system) and pulling the last 365 days of transactions for one of the agents who ranked ahead of me.  Once I found the agent’s MLS id, I pulled all the sales that agent had completed last year.  It was an interesting list. I learned some things about that agent that I didn’t know, like: a) they were selling in a similar price range to where I sell, and b) that they had done about the same number of transactions, maybe a few more, just in a different county.

You see, I’m quantitative versus qualitative.  I will admit that I am more interested in the numbers than in the feelings.  I can focus on price per square foot for that astounding Chesapeake Bay view more easily that soaking in the open and expansive South East view down the Bay.  I know the Annapolis Maryland real estate statistics almost by heart.  I know how many homes are on the market, how many have sold, in what price ranges, and most importantly what is the trend in the local Annapolis Maryland real estate market.

Whenever I go on a listing appointment, I always include the list of homes that I’ve sold in the last year and those that I’ve helped clients purchase.  It’s generally a pretty impressive list, several pages long, and is intended to show prospective sellers and buyers that I know what I’m doing and that I’m a full-time professional.  More important is that I can show that I achieve a pretty good list-to-sold price ratio for sellers I represent.  That translates into the price range that I tell them their home is going to sell in will be pretty close to the price range that I’ll take the listing in.

And whenever I’m helping a buyer with a contract, I’ll research the listing agent’s track record.  I’ll know just how many homes they’ve sold in the area, if this is the only listing they’ve got or if they’re handling dozens.  This is important when assessing the other agents skill set and is a way to determine if they have a lot riding on the successful outcome of this one transaction (if it’s their only listing) or if they specialize in this type of home (condo, townhome, luxury, waterfront, foreclosure, or short-sale).

I’m always very up front with prospective sellers and buyers about what I’ve done and what I haven’t done, whether they ask or not.  Sellers almost always ask, but, buyers don’t seem to inquire nearly as often.  Whether or not you are a buyer or a seller you should ask your Annapolis Maryland real estate agent if they’ve listed or sold a home in the areas your searching or in the price range you’re shopping.  Whether or not they have is just one aspect of a real estate agent’s reputation.  Business history is easy for agents to get and both sellers and buyers should ask their real estate professionals for a copy it.

So, if you’re thinking about buying or selling a home in Annapolis Maryland and you’d like my business history for the last 365 days, just e-mail or call me.  I’d be happy to share it with you.

What Do Pro Athletes, Mutual Fund Managers and REALTORS All Have In Common?

Home Prices Slip Everywhere Except Metropolitan Washington DC

According to an article published in The New York Times on February 22, 2011 title “Home Prices Slid in December in Most U.S. Cities, Index Shows“, the Standard & Poor’s/Case-Schiller Home Price Index fell most major cities, the expects were Washington DC with a 4.1% increase in last quarter and San Diego with a 1.7% increase in home prices at the end of the year.  Overall the National Home Price Index declined in the fourth quarter of 2010 by 3.9%.  Locally Metro Baltimore area home priced declined by 3.1% while Anne Arundel County increased by 4.2% at the end of 2010.

The real estate market may well be turning bullish in the Washington DC area with the spring real estate market just weeks away.  But metro Baltimore is lagging behind and is still a sleeping bear.  The metro Baltimore area encompasses homes for sale in Anne Arundel County, Baltimore City, Baltimore County, Carroll County, Harford County, and Howard County.  What will it take to awaken the bull in our real estate market.  When looking back, overall Washington DC has been bullish since October of 2009, while metropolitan Baltimore was bullish from June through October before going into hibernation in November and December.

Anne Arundel County Real Estate Steals and Deals

This morning (Valentines Day, February 14th, 2011) there were 3,169 active listings in the Multiple Listing Service (MLS).  That’s down from nearly 4,400 active listing at the peak of the buyer’s market in the summer of 2008.  With the average sold price around $430,606 in June of 2008, the average sold price was $376,390 in January of this year.  The average list price was $449,807 in June of 2008 and the average list price in January is $395,594.

As 2008 came to a close, we saw a slight improvement in the availability of mortgage money.  Lenders were easing credit, but, just slightly.  As we came to the end of 2009, the Home Buyer Tax Credit was driving many sales, as it did at the beginning of 2010.

The real estate market is never really in balance, it always favors either buyers or sellers, rarely both at the same time and if so, only for a short period of time.  If you recall the days leading up to the shift from a very strong seller’s marketing in the summer of 2006, to the sudden buyer’s market in the spring of 2007, there was only a short period of time (about 4 to 6 months) where the market might have favored neither seller nor buyer.

With 10 month of inventory of active listings as we come into the spring market, it’s likely that more homes will come to market.  Sellers list in the spring with the idea of moving in after school is out and before the start of the next school year.  So, it’s likely that inventory levels will increase as we move from winter into spring and then into early summer.

There were 238 active foreclosures on the market this morning.  Foreclosures can be real estate steals and deals.  With an average list price of $218,089, that’s just barely 58% of the average sold price, that is to say, a 40% discount off “retail” pricing.  What a steal when you consider that the average list price for homes sold in January was $429,130!!!

If you’re in the market for a new home this year and haven’t considered foreclosures, this might be a great time to find a real deal in real estate.  If you think that a bank-owned home could be for you, check out the list of Annapolis, Anne Arundel County, Maryland foreclosures by clicking here.  While REO’s (real estate owned by a bank) are not for everyone, many excellent choices are available.

Most people START, but few FINISH

I really enjoy reading Robert Pagliarini’s blog postings on The Other 8 Hours.  Several of his recent blog postings have captivated my attention and they might be of interest to you as well.  It all started with reading about why we don’t reach our goals, which lead to reading how to reach goals more quickly, and then finally to reading about how to radically change our lives.

Why You’re Not Reaching Your Goals (And What to Do About It)

In a recent blog post Robert Pagliarini writes about how to reach any goal using the simple formula: THINK + START + FINISH = ACHIEVEMENT.  While many of us often think about achieving something, few of us actually start towards that goal, but, it’s finishers that actually achieve something.

Reach Your Goals More Quickly: Use Incremental Change

Once you’ve started, you can reach your goals faster, sooner, quicker according to Robert Pagliarini if you add a little more “er” to the actions you are already taking.  Translations, do what you’re already doing but just longer, greater, faster, further, or farther.  If you want to be a finisher, take the time to consistently do what you’re already do, but, just a little bit more than you already have been.

The Quickest Way to Radically Improve Your Life: Use Radical Change

Break-through achievements sometimes call for radical change, like not buying any more cigarettes in order when you want to stop smoking or cutting your credit cards in half when you want to eliminate your debt. Those instant changes according to Robert Pagliarini are designed to produce short-term dramatic results.  While stopping smoking might not improve your health immediately, it will lead to long-term health benefits.  Nor will cutting your credit cards in half lead to instant debt relief, but, it will lead to long-term debt reduction (no new spending).  So, radical change is intended to produce dramatic results.

In Summary

Have you ever wonder why when you’re driving and you take you gaze off the road ahead of you that you suddenly find yourself having to swerve back into the lane you’ve been traveling in?  The answer is simple, your body (in this case your hands on the steering wheel) follow where you’re looking.  So, if you’ve been looking to the left, you’re likely to find that your car has suddenly and unexpectedly drifted into the left lane and maybe into on-coming traffic.  When it comes to accomplishing and achieving goals, by now (February) many New Year’s resolutions have already been broken, we may have already taken our eyes off the road ahead and while many people start, few actually finish.

Pet Friendly Rental Properties Around Annapolis Maryland

Finding a pet friendly rental property in the greater Annapolis area always seems to be a challenge.  Some owners will accept cats, others only dogs, and often it seems like nobody wants you or your animals.  While not all landlords are accepting of pets, their willingness to lease to pet owners is often based on their past experience with their own pets or the pets of prior tenants.  So one bad experience with a prior tenant and their pets can spoil it for anyone that follows.  While I know that my dog is the best behaved dog is the world, the landlord is saying to themselves “yeah right, I’ve heard that one before!”.

So, what do you do?  Once you’ve decided on which pet friendly rental you want to lease, its time to “package your pet”.  What I mean by that is you need to prepare a short (one page) information sheet on your pup, kitty, lizard, or bird.  Include a cute picture of the animal and share some of its background.  Say if your pet came from the local SPCA or animal shelter.  Tell the story about how you rescued your dog or cat from the grocery store parking lot on a sweltering summer day!  Also include some information about current pet challenges or behaviors (landlords hate surprises).  Don’t forget to say if they’re cage trained or dog walked during the day when you’re away.  You could also include any copies of veterinarian records and training certificates (puppy classes, obedience school).

If you have a service animal, you’ll likely be able to lease almost any property you can affort that is actively on the market irregarless of whether or not the landlord is willing to accept pets.  Maryland laws define service animals and the rights of animal owners and obligations of landlords.  Most landlords don’t encounter persons with disabilities who have service animals on a regular basis, therefore they may not know what their obligations are.  So, be understanding and willing to educate them.

If you’re looking for a current list of rental properties in Annapolis, Arnold, Crownsville, Riva, and Edgewater that accept pets or are willing to consider them on a case-by-case basis following the link below:

     Rental Properties Where Pets Are Accepted or Considered on a Case-by-case Basis

Our pets are part of our family.  And, most of us pet owners would never, never ever consider living somewhere where we couldn’t bring ALL the members of our family.  Not being able to have Max, Buddy, Molly or Maggie (from the list of top cat names) or having to leave behind Max, Buddy, Jake or Rocky (from the list of top dog names) would simply be heart-breaking.

Pre-settlement Walk-thru Problems and What To Do

The buyers were so excited.  They had been working for weeks to get everything done, inspections, loan application, waiting for the appraisal results and title work to come back.  It was the day of the closing, settlement day, and a Friday. The final walk-thru was scheduled for 3 p.m. and settlement at 4 p.m.

I thought this closing was going to be a breeze.  We’d walk through the property, admire the spaciousness of the empty home, the fresh paint, the new carpet, and the new appliances.  Then, we’d breeze on over to the settlement company’s offices nearby and have an “easy settlement”.  But it didn’t go that way!!!

I arrived at the property about ten minutes before the buyers got there.  I opened the key lock box, removed the keys, opened the door and entered the home.  At first I didn’t really think much about it, but it was cold – very, very (that’s right two “verys”) cold – in the house.  I walked upstairs expecting to find a door or window that had been left open letting in the winter cold.  But, that wasn’t the case.  I continued to walk around and everything seemed in order and we appeared ready for settlement.  I went back downstairs and stop at the thermostat to check the temperature and turn the heat up a bit to warm the place up.  The thermostat read 42 degrees and the setting was on 55 degrees.  Something was wrong.

By the time the buyers arrived, I’d examined the gas furnace and found that it was cycling on/off and failing to ignite.  I greeted the buyers with the bad news as they reached the front door.  I said “there’s no heat”, they said “what do we do now?”.  So, we fiddled with the thermostat and power switches for a while, we checked to make sure the gas was on, all the while standing around freezing.  I called the title company to let them know we were running late, and then called the listing agent to let him know there was a problem.  He assured me that he would get the heat fixed and suggested that we go ahead and go to settlement.  After standing around in the cold for a while, these first-time home buyers were gazing out one of the windows discussing what to do and I overhead him say to her “I’m am so over home ownership now!“.  I had to laugh, not at them, but with them!!!

So, just what do you do?  There were three options at this point:

1.  Settle – Go ahead, go to settlement, but then the problem would become the buyer’s problem.

2.  Don’t Settle – Hold settlement until the problem was corrected by the seller.

3.  Settle with Repair Escrow – Go ahead and go to settlement, but, hold back a repair escrow.

Every circumstance is different when something like this happens.  In this case the seller was Fannie Mae, a foreclosure, to be purchased as-is, so I recommended to the buyers that they not settle until the problem was corrected by the seller (aka the listing agent).  While foreclosures are sold “as-is”, in this case the seller had replaced the HVAC system and it was operational when they buyers did their home inspection several weeks earlier.  Fannie Mae has been rehabbing houses around our area – such as this one – and selling them at or close to market prices essentially “ready to move in”.  It didn’t make any sense for the buyers to accept the condition of the property (without heat) and it wouldn’t be easy or likely that they’d get it repaired anytime soon by Fannie Mae (or the listing agent) once they settled.  And trying to hold back a repair escrow at the settlement table wouldn’t be possible without the approvals of lots of people in other locations who had probably already left for the day!!!

Deciding not to settle could mean a delay of several days (loosing the weekend and may being able to settle on Tuesday) since the title company might be obligated to return the bank’s money and closing documents since settlement didn’t occur.  But it didn’t turn out that way.

We all gathered at the house at 9:00 a.m. on Saturday morning.  The buyers and myself waited patiently for the arrival of the HVAC repairman authorized by the listing agent to service the system.  The HVAC repairman was able to correct the problem easily (simply replacing the igniter) in about an hour.  Then with the help of both the local bank and the title company, the buyers now satisfied with the condition of the home, went to settlement around Noon on Saturday.

With the cooperation of a great local bank, it’s loan officer, and a fantastic local title company’s settlement officer willing to give a couple of hours out of her Saturday, these first-time home buyers had a great experience.  Maybe they know, maybe they don’t know how lucky they were to select David Baca at SunTrust Mortgage as their loan office and Karen Daley at Homeland Title & Escrow for settlement.  Without this great team the buyer’s would have been left out in the cold.

QR Codes on Listed Properties in Lothian Maryland 20711

The next time you’re driving down Ed Prout Road in Lothian Maryland watch for my Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage For Sale sign (assuming that this lot hasn’t yet sold!!!).  It’s got a sign rider on the bottom with a Quick Response Code (or QR Code) hanging below my name and phone number.  If you stop, you can scan the QR Code with your Smart Phone’s Camera and get property information.  Use any QR Code reader (I use the QR Code Reader from www.i-nigma.com) to capture the code, then follow the link to online property information supplied by www.RealBird.com.

In the photo to the left, you can see the custom sign rider I had made for the property.  It says “More Info? Scan Here” and points to the QR Code that uniquely points to the property information.

I just deployed this rider on this property and a few others last week.  This sign rider could easily do away with having to put “take one” boxes on properties.  Since take one boxes are notorious for being empty, anyone passing by who has a Smart Phone (and who doesn’t these days?) can stop, snap, click and be instantly linked to up-to-date information about the home (or in this case land).

The QR Code on the rider in the picture is for a 2.5 acre parcel of undeveloped land in Lothian, Maryland located at 5271 Rustic Way.  Below you’ll find the QR Code that’s on the sign rider.  You can use your Smart Phone to snap a picture of the QR Code right on the computer screen and find property information for this listing supplied by www.RealBird.com.  The RealBird® Listing Publisher provides all-in-one social media and mobile marketing services.  QR Codes are “mobile marketing services”.

So the next time your driving down the road (whether it’s Rt. 2 headed South to Solomons Island or North to Annapolis or on Ed Prout Road headed East or West) and you see a sign rider with the words “More Info? Scan Here”, you should stop, snap and click to get more information on the homes where the riders hang!!!

To learn more about Quick Response Codes, Mobile Tagging and what this is all about read my blog posting about the subject.

This Is Why I Live On The Water in Stevensville, Maryland

Wednesday the temperature broke and soared to nearly 60 degrees.  It came as a welcome relief from the bitter cold we had been experiencing.  The clouds came and went and the day wained.  As it came onto about 5:30 p.m. and I was still working and I almost missed it – a spectacular winter sunset on Sunset Harbour on Thompson Creek in Stevensville, Maryland.  Rocky and I literally ran down the road to the public landing to catch the very best view of the last rays in the final minutes of sunset.  Like I said, we almost missed it.

You can see the path a winter fisherman has broken through the ice after launching his boat from the public ramp.  For the looks of it the boat either went in bow first or the operator ran it in reverse until he reached deeper, ice free water.  There were two crab boats tied to the pier that had been moved in from the moorings out in the harbor.  A house boat and the fire rescue boat or just visible in the far distance.

This is why I live on the water.  This is why I call the Chesapeake Bay home.  And you can too.