Who do For Sale by Owners (FSBO) want?

For Sale by Owners don't want real estate agents --- in fact no sellers really want real estate agents - so the FSBO and the Represented sellers have that in common.

What they both really want is a BUYER and having a real estate agent and putting the home on the MLS is just a means to an end - and everyone is happy - the sellers sell, the buyers get there home and the real estate agent eats for the next month.

Top 5 Cities Where Americans Pay Most to Live

According to Forbes here the are:

Top 5 Cities Where Americans Pay Most to Live

1. San Jose, Calif.
San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, Calif. Metropolitan Statistical Area
Median Monthly Housing Costs: $1,828

2. Bridgeport, Conn.
Bridgeport-Stamford-Norwalk, Ct. Metropolitan Statistical Area
Median Monthly Housing Costs: $1,793

3. Oxnard, Calif.
Oxnard-Thousand Oaks-Ventura, Calf. Metropolitan Statistical Area
Median Monthly Housing Costs: $1,780

4. Washington, D.C.
Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, D.C.-Va.-Md.-W.V. Metropolitan Statistical AreaMedian Monthly Housing Costs: $1,706

5. San Francisco, Calif.
San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, Calif. Metropolitan Statistical Area
Median Monthly Housing Costs: $1,660

Should you have an Open House?

Should you have an Open House? Will it sell your home?


Consumer sentiment about open houses has waxed and waned over the years, along with the ups and downs of the real estate market. In 1995, 41% of buyers surveyed relied on open houses to sell their home, according to data from the NAR. By 2000, it had dropped to 28%. Beginning in 2003, however, as the market started to heat up again, that number began rising. By 2005, the last year for which data is available, 51% of all sellers were using open houses, though not all agreed they were effective. Some 45% of sellers found open houses only "somewhat useful" and another 12% didn't consider them useful at all, according to the NAR.

One of the BENEFITS OF AN OPEN HOUSE an open house can be a valuable opportunity to get feedback about what is and isn’t attractive about a house.

WHO WILL COME?

• Nosy neighbors – they just want to see what your home looks like – they migh:
  • know someone who might be interested in your home
  • they could be thinking of selling and checking us out
• Bored Shoppers – looking to do something on a Sunday Afternoon, especially if it is raining
• Current Sellers – listed with another agent. We encourage you to check out the competition, so we expect that a percentage of our visitors are doing just that
• Recent Home Buyers – checking out the market to reassure themselves that they got a good deal
• Folks looking for decorating ideas – you never know, they might walk in and fall in love and decide to sell what they have and buy your home
• Buyers ready to purchase a home!
• 
  
• So you never know - it just takes one!
  
  

The real estate market may be tough, but Lauralei Properties, llc in St. Louis is trying to help homeowners who have already seen some of their equity disappear from the recent market downturn. The addition of the popular Flat Fee MLS service to the already successful Discount Marketing Programs is just another reason to trust the sale of your home to this experienced company.

Flat Fee MLS can help sellers save many thousands of dollars in real estate commissions and is the most flexible marketing plan for sellers as it allows For Sale By Owners as well as traditional sellers to place their home in the Realtors Multiple Listing Service for $195 instead of a high listing commission later.

The Multiple Listing Service is what most Real Estate agents belong to and where they typically search for home to show their buyers. The listing is also placed on the popular web site Realtor.com and other top real estate web sites including having the homes listing appear the web sites of local real estate agencies.

If the homeowner finds their own buyer without the assistance of a real estate agent, no additional fee is due. Lauralei Properties, llc has lots of experience offering discount commission programs. While there are other companies offering flat fee mls service, few offer such a wide range of discount services as well as being a local "full service" broker. Some are just Internet based companies who farm out the listing to another agency.

For Sale By Owners tend to gravitate towards Flat Fee MLS. Many feel they don't need the full range of real estate services most brokers offer. They see this service as a way to gain the massive exposure of the MLS and major web sites, while still retaining the ability to sell on their own, and not pay a selling agent commission. Should the buyer end up coming from a real estate agent, the seller is only obligated to pay the selling agency portion of the commission. They save the listing commission or approx. 50% of what most sellers pay. The small upfront Flat Fee of $195 is a bargain for the exposure offered when you consider how much newspaper ads and other services cost.

While For Sale By Owners, commonly referred to as FSBO's, are the main users of Flat Fee MLS services, it really makes sense for most sellers. Any serious seller can save thousands of dollars compared to selling through a higher commission broker. While an agent is not there to hold your hand every day throught the process, everything you really need to get your home sold is included.
Visit our web site http://www.lauralei.net for more details and the latest information.

I sold my Home!

I sold my home! And the best part i s that the person who is buying my house is as excited as I am - he seems to really love the house and is nervous that I will change my mind.

Even tho, I am a realtor, I am selling without any other realtor involved and YEAHHHH I don't have to pay any commissions!

No more pulling weeds - I don't have to worry about shoveling snow - or having a vacant house that might be vandalized - oh what a relief it is!

Virtual Staging a vacant home for sale

Now this is a new one to me - Virtual Staging a vacant home for sale - they take the actual photo of a vacant room and superimpose furniture into it - Have you ever noticed that pictures of vacant homes all look alike with neutral walls and sometimes unidentifiable rooms?

This seems like a good idea to me - wonder how hard it would be for the average real estate agent to do - home staging without ever leaving home!

Will my house ever sell?

Will my house ever sell? I had to go by one of our city houses and yank on weeds and tree bushes....

I am so TIRED of doing that - I did not even begin to do the inside cleaning - tons of cobwebs and the toilet is dirty - How does the toilet get dirty in a vacant house???

Some water spots came through on the paint job - OLD water spots - that i put kilz on - and now i have to touch these up because it will look like the roof leaks, even tho it doesn't anymore.

Oh yeah and someone poked a hole in the wall!!!!

After I left the house, I immediately came home and dropped the price by $5000 - someone buy this house!!

St louis in top 10 cities

Wow.....Here are the top 10 cities where Forbes magazine says this is the economic reality now and the conditions are likely to get even better as health care, technology, and energy draw more employees into their ranks:

1. Dallas
2. Houston
3. Minneapolis
4. Austin, Texas
5. Washington, D.C.
6. St. Louis
7. Seattle
8. Atlanta
9. Kansas City, Mo.
10. Denver


What great news for St. Louis - too many times we are in the bottom in the good things and rated top in the bad things.
Source: Forbes, Francesca Levy (09/03/2009)

Renting down - Homes Sales up

Just read in Realtor magazine that renting is on the down swing and first time home buyer saless is on the rise ----- no suprise here.




Even though this comes as no surprise, it is sure great to hear good news for
a change. For years we have heard nothing but doom and gloom about the
economy and the housing market, which just seemed to make things worse. Even tho everyone in my circle of friends seem to be doing the same financially, there is the feeling that you need to tighten up and not spend so much, etc.

First time in 5 years - home sales rise

For the first time in five years, existing-home sales have increased for four months in a row, according to the National Association of Realtors®..... so it is true - things are picking up! Existing homes sales rose 7.2 percent.

And new home sales are crazy too - i have 95 homes listed with Builder Realty Services here in St. Louis - and I have a hard time keeping track of the homes going under contract - 90% of them are not home sale contingent either.

The monthly sales gain was the largest on record for the total existing-home sales series dating back to 1999. ... Makes you want to list your home, doesn't it?

Sales on the rise

Everyone I have talked to in the last few weeks is more positive about the economy and real estate sales. I have personally seen the rise in sales - the number of people viewing the properties and the number of contracts in is encouraging --- we have even had multiple contracts on the same property..... been along time since that has happened.

Homes sales on the rise?

Are homes sales on the rise? From the business we have with our two companies - the answer would appear to be yes - 2 accepted contracts in with lauralei properties and about 10 with builder realty services in the past week or so.

On some days over this past summer, I would twiddle my thumbs and wonder what to do next - but this week (and last actually) I have been under a mound of paperwork.... and faxes.... and emails.

I am not complaining, however. We still have the 3 homes of our own to sell - the one is rented already and should stay that way thru the winter months.

To rent or not to rent

To rent or not to rent..... the answer is getting closer and closer to rent for all four properties.

In fact, we just last night signed a rental agreement to rent out the three bedroom ranch in the city - the new renters are so happy and were busy cleaning as we left - the only thing we have to fix for the occupancy permit with the city is to spruce up the back yard - a small tree had fallen over ---- and the new tenants are going to take care of that too!

The remaining 3 homes are still listed for sale.........

Maintenance on the 4 homes

One of the hardest aspects is keeping up with the yard work in the summer for the 4 homes (5 if you include the primary residence).... sure you can pay a company or individual to cut the grass, etc., but you still have the problem with newspapers, flyers, leaves, and general yard waste.

90 + degree days sure don't add to my motivation...

Calls on our homes

We have been getting a few calls on our homes for sale - I got one today on the city bungalow - they drove down the street and saw the sign - they are looking for foreclosures - wonder what that says about that house :0 - maybe it's time to spruce it up just a bit.



Surprisingly the most calls come from the river house - in Cedar Hill on the Big River - I wouldn't think that house would get that much drive by traffic. It is a cute home and would be great for the first time homebuyer or the river lover, ie fisherman.

The one with the fewest calls is in Maplewood.....

Renting

So it seems that we are going to rent the 3 bedroom in the city - one of the neighbors who was renting needs a house - I really wonder if this will happen to all of the houses -
i was doing the math and if you rent a home ($130k) for $600 for 18 years you will have your money :)

Of course you still have to pay taxes, insurance, water, sewer and upkeep on the home.

I guess the goal is to rent the house for awhile and wait for the market to get better and then sell. It would be nice if at least one of the homes sold..... the saga continues

Our 4 homes - selling or not?

Our 4 houses:
1- 2 story maplewood house
2- small city shot gun house
3- 3 bedroom ranch city house
4- cedar hill river house

Sunday afternoon and we are not having any open houses - last week we had one at the maplewood location and had no one came till the last 30 minutes and then 2 couples came thru - they didn't look in the basement - so there you have it - if they don't open any cabinets or look in the basement, things aren't looking good - no closet lookers!

The smaller city house did have a looker yesterday morning with an agent - we keep saying "it only takes one." This is the one I was hoping someone would latch on to because of the tax credit of up to $8,000 for first time-home buyers.

(The specs: The tax credit is equivalent to 10 percent of the purchase price of the home--which must be a principal residence--but is capped at $8,000. It applies only to first-time home buyers, who are defined as buyers that haven't owned principal residences for three years before making the purchase. The credit only applies to those who buy a home on or after Jan. 1 and before Dec. 1, 2009.)

My homes for sale in St. Louis

For the first time since i have be a real estate agent/broker - i have homes of my own to sell .... and it is an eyeopener for me. So my plan is to jot down how things progress from the seller side - more for me than anyone else - but maybe someone else will find it interesing too.

2 of the houses are in south st louis, in the city by Carondelet park - they have been on the market for about 4 weeks and the smaller, cheaper one (around $70k) has had 14 showings and over 200 client hits on the mls (buyers who have opened up the listing on the internet) - the 3 bedroom, 60's ranch ($130k) has had only 2 showings and about 30 client hits on the mls.

How to Calculate Gain In real estate

When you sell a stock, you owe taxes on your gain — the difference between what you paid for the stock and what you sold it for. The same holds true when selling a home (or a second home), but there are some special considerations.

How to Calculate Gain in real estate, capital gains are based not on what you paid for the home, but on its adjusted cost basis. To calculate, follow these steps:

1. Purchase price: _______________________

The purchase price of the home is the sale price, not the amount of money you actually contributed at closing.

2. Total adjustments: _______________________

To calculate this, add the following:
Cost of the purchase — including transfer fees, attorney fees, and inspections, but not points you paid on your mortgage.
Cost of sale — including inspections, attorney fees, real estate commission, and money you spent to fix up your home just prior to sale.
Cost of improvements — including room additions, deck, etc. Note here that improvements do not include repairing or replacing something already there, such as putting on a new roof or buying a new furnace.

3. Your home’s adjusted cost basis: _______________________

The total of your purchase price and adjustments is the adjusted cost basis of your home.

4. Your capital gain: _______________________Subtract the adjusted cost basis from the amount your home sells for to get your capital gain.

A Special Real Estate Exemption for Capital GainsSince 1997, up to $250,000 in capital gains ($500,000 for a married couple) on the sale of a home is exempt from taxation if you meet the following criteria:
You have lived in the home as your principal residence for two out of the last five years.
You have not sold or exchanged another home during the two years preceding the sale.
You meet what the IRS calls “unforeseen circumstances,” such as job loss, divorce, or family medical emergency.

Top 100 in Real Estate

St. Louis is sometimes in the top rankings - but not always on a possitive note - so I have been doing some research....

According to City-Data .. St. Charles County, MO is ranked #100 in "Top 101 counties with the largest number of people moving in compared to moving out ".

Moscow Mills, MO is ranked #100 in "Top 101 cities with the largest percentage of mobile homes " - no comment on whether this is good or bad :)

Jefferson County, MO is ranked #69 in "Top 101 counties with the lowest percentage of residents relocating to foreign countries in 2006".

Hear's a good one - Town And County, MO is ranked #11 in "Top 101 cities with the largest percentage of elementary and middle school students in private schools ", while Des Peres is ranked #19, Crestwood #26, Creve Coeur #37, Oakville #44, Affton #64, Webster Groves #73, Mehlville #77, and Washington #87.... wow - this could be looked at as good - people can afford private schools... or maybe the public schools are just that bad!! High School stats are up there too - with Town and Country being #5, etc....

Jennings was the one city in the St. Louis area under "Top 101 cities with the largest percentage of divorced people age 25+ " and ranked near the bottom at #95.

Here's a funny one - Clayton is #34 in "Top 101 zip codes with the most offices of lawyers in 2005", while Creve Coeur is #19 for most Doctor offices, Chesterfield is #31 for most beauty salons, and Clayton #76 for most museums.

$$$ Ladue ranks #45 in income, while Farmington is ranked #82 for the number of people in mental institutions.

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I started out just browsing to see where St. Louis ranked in housing, and ended up with something else - in some ways more interesting.

What is the Real Estate Sales forecast for 2009?

Some say that 2009 will be the "year of the thaw" and that home prices will continue to fall -- in my company I have noticed that things are starting to get busy - the phone is ringing - agents are showing our properties - seems like most other years.



Buyers are starting to realize that NOW is the time to buy. Here is a press release:



Press Release 2/3/09 - National Association of Realtors


2009 Real Estate Forecast Shows a Gain in both the Pending and Home Sales Arena!
Pending home sales show healthy gain. Pending increased as more buyers took advantage of improved affordability conditions, according to the National Association of Realtors®. Big gains in the South and Midwest offset modest declines in other regions.


The Pending Home Sales Index,1 a forward-looking indicator based on contracts signed in December, rose 6.3 percent to 87.7 from an upwardly revised reading of 82.5 in November, and is 2.1 percent higher than December 2007 when it was 85.9.

I think that the less I listen to the news and the more I listen to the phone ringing, the better I feel about the market!