Remarkable Marketing

This property at 5946 Llano Ave. in Dallas was just listed by an Edwin Dolatkhah with Plugin Realty. It's priced at $209,000, which is pretty good for the area. It's also listed as a "short sale." But how about those photos, huh? I mean, nothing says "Welcome Home" more than scary pitch black photos. Amiright?

But seriously, how in the hell can any reasonably intelligent person upload those photos, knowing they will be distributed to all major real estate websites, and not think to themselves, "You know....These photos are a little on the dark side. I wonder if I should retake them?"

And then there is the person who snapped these photos. Did you even think to try a light switch or maybe open the blinds? You didn't? Okay. No. That's fine. No, no, no. Really. You did a great job. :/

Two More Reasons Why I Have Little Respect For Real Estate Agents

#1 - Commenting on offers before presenting them to your clients

When I receive offers on my listings - even very low offers - my standard response is, "Thank you very much for your offer. I will present it to my clients and get back with you as soon as I can." Unfortunately many agents feel the need to interject their personal opinion on the matter before we ever start negotiating. For example, recently I made an offer on behalf of my buyer clients and it went something like this:

My client offered $275,000 on a home listed at $300,000 in hopes of meeting somewhere in the middle. This is pretty much standard practice, depending on various other factors, but for the most part this happens frequently. The listing agent called my cell and said, "Jeff, your client's offer is VERY low. I don't think we're going to be able to get this to work." I asked if he had presented the offer to his clients yet and he said, "Well, no. But I think they're going to be offended." He thinks. He doesn't know. He thinks! So in his mind, before even presenting the offer to his clients, he thinks we have no chance of making this work. The best part of this true story is that they accepted $275,000.

#2 - "Agent is owner"

If you don't know how I feel about agent-to-meet showings then you can catch up by reading this post. Yesterday I scheduled about 10 appointments for homes priced at or just under $300K and I gave the homeowners more than 24 hours notice. Under 99.999% of circumstances homes under $300K should never be agent-to-meet appointments. One listing tried to reschedule our showing by an hour because the agent had to meet us at the home to let us in. When you're looking at 10 homes in a 10 mile radius it's too much hassle to go back to view one home. I cancelled the showing. There is simply too much inventory to look at. The scary part about this story is that the home is owned by a licensed realtor. She should know better than to a) reschedule a showing with 24-hour notice, and b) require that she meet us at the home to let us in.

Happy Friday, indeed.

Buyer Incentives Are Pointless

But perhaps one of the most ridiculous incentives I've seen recently is a $1,000 buyer's agent bonus for this home listed at $800,000...wow. $1,000 extra bucks. Great idea Ms. Listing Agent.

P.S. You're an idiot.

Marketing 101: How NOT to Photoshop Pictures of Your Listings

I admit that from time to time I will photoshop some pictures of my listings. You know, get rid of a few brown spots on the lawn, enhance the colors of the landscaping and grass. But the above photo is just embarrassing. Did this agent have his 6-year-old photoshop this for him?

That being said, the house in under contract. Let's just hope for the seller's sake this agent's negotiating skills are better than his/her photoshop skills.

Short Sale Hell: Another Reason Why Banks Are Killing Our Economy

I'm currently negotiating a short sale with Bank of America. It's a joke. I also need to point out I've been involved in 10 successful short sales, so I know how these things work. Unfortunately, how each bank handles short sales is exactly why people are choosing to walk away from their homes and accept foreclosure - because it's less of a headache than talking to some $8.00/hour bank employee who could care less about your financial hardships.

This is good article explaining how banks are killing real estate values by not being able to work out short sales in lieu of foreclosing on the home. Here are some key points of the article.

[Short sales are] also a better option for banks: According to one analysis, short sales resulted in loan losses of only 19 percent, compared with an average loss of 40 percent on homes sold after foreclosure.

According to research firm Campbell Communications, only 23 percent of short sale transactions are actually completed. "Three out of four potential short sale transactions fail, principally because the mortgage servicer takes too long to respond to the offer," said Tom Popik, author of a February survey of real estate agents. "When these same properties are later sold it further depresses real estate prices."

Having spoken with these banks on behalf of my clients over the years I can tell you they are in no hurry to help anyone out of a tough spot. If your home is about to go into foreclosure and there is an offer on the table, they will not move faster to make the short sale happen.

Example, instead of the bank accepting $300,000 for a short sale, they take too long negotiating the offer and the home goes into foreclosure. The home sits vacant without utilities (or appliances) for months and deteriorates quickly. The home goes on the market as a foreclosure 3 to 6 months later and sells for $250,000 or less, which doesn't include the tens of thousands of dollars in attorney and processing fees paid by the bank. Smart financial decision on the bank's part, right?

And these "smart" bank folks are who we, US taxpayers, bailed out? *Scratches head*

Gambler Loses $127M Then Blames Casino...Seriously

This isn't exactly related to Dallas real estate but I couldn't resist posting it since you know how I love me some stupidity. This is just another example of how our society continues to avoid taking responsibility for our own actions. Remember the McDonald's coffee lawsuit? Lord and Baby Jesus help us if this man wins this lawsuit.

(Thanks, Mark, for the link!)

Stupid Realtor Comment of the Day: Virtual Tour vs. Multiple Photos Edition

A real estate agent posted the following comment on this post - anonymously of course - saying that virtual tours are a must and that I am a fool for thinking otherwise and need to consult with the Almighty Google to reinforce my foolishness. (My comments are in italics.)

THIS IS INSANE

A prospect has pictures in the MLS to view anyway. Really!?!?!?!?

Adding a virtual tour gives them the sense of being there. Kay....

The Real Question to ask is: If you found a house you thought you really wanted to see, that truly caught your interest, and that exact same house had two viewing options one had pictures only and the other had pictures and a virtual tour would you pass up the virtual tour? The answer would be emphatically NO! This is your question. Not mine. This is also a stupid example.

The virtual tour connects all the dots. What dots are you referring to?

Sure it takes more time then looking through A dozen pictures and less convenient...IF YOU'RE NOT INTERESTED IN THOSE HOMES. But when you find the one you want. You take that virtual tour and call your husband and email your kids and let your friends see it to get their opinion, not 15 pictures. Not sure where to begin with this one...

I know, because that's exactly what my buyer and seller clients have told me. What do seller's have to do with virtual tours?

Virtual tours are priceless, just ask Google you fool. Ouch. *crying*

Look Anonymous, if that is your real name, before you go around calling people "fools" you should brush up on your reading comprehension and pay more attention to the logic behind your argument.

As I said in my post, the purpose of online photos and virtual tours are to attract potential buyers and to make them want to view the property in person with their agent. The "real question", as you so eloquently put it, isn't whether or not people will view a virtual tour of a home they are interested in. That's a stupid question. OF COURSE A POTENTIAL BUYER WILL VIEW A VIRTUAL TOUR OF A HOME THEY LIKE BECAUSE THEY LIKED THE 15 PICTURES THEY CLICKED ON SECONDS BEFORE!

Please do the real estate profession a favor and send your license back your local and state associations.

Love,

Jeff Duffey

Florida Homeowners Sue Habitat for Humanity

A tip o' the hat to my good friend Mark for sending this link my way. Homeowners in a Florida neighborhood are suing Habitat for Humanity for building them a house they say is substandard and contains mold and other harmful substances. They are also upset because the development was built upon an old rubbish heap.

After I read the article my take away is that some people probably haven't maintained their homes properly and therefore, it is deteriorating. So instead of paying for proper maintenance they would rather sue and try and get more free stuff.

When will America learn? People are ungrateful and don't deserve free stuff because they don't know how to take care of what they're given. Sound familiar, Extreme Home Makeover?

"Property features plenty of natural light"

Seriously? This house obviously has electricity since the breakfast room chandelier is on. How hard is it to flip a switch before taking a picture?

Someone puh-LEEZE tell me how these people's clients can possibly be happy with this type of service.

More Proof That Free Handouts Don't Work

The above home was built for a family on ABC's "Extreme Makeover". Now they have let it go into foreclosure because they used their "equity" on a botched business deal. I've heard that roughly 80% of people who win the lottery eventually have to claim bankruptcy. I've also heard that the winners of HGTV's Dream Home giveaway eventually have to sell the home or end up getting foreclosed on. The moral of the story is that people don't appreciate, or have the wherewithall, to use free handouts (bailouts) appropriately and better their lives. People in general are stupid and I've always maintained this stance. And this story is no exception. Our society keep bailing people out, like in the current mortgage crisis, and people will continue to squander the money away and end up in worse situations than where they began.

Bottom line is this, if you don't have blood, sweat or flesh in the game, then you won't appreciate what you're given. Learning lessons the hard way is the only way to prevent future stupid decisions.

Not to get all HGTV on your asses, but...

I totally giggled when I read this line from my "gal" the Real Estalker. She just gave me a fun, unoriginal and childish phrase that I am totally going to steal and over use.

Acclaimed "30 Under 30" Realtor Faces Mortgage Fraud Charges

Realtor Magazine releases it's choices for the best 30 Realtors under 30 each year. So says the home page,

"These bright young professionals, chosen from more than 600 applicants, showed they have what it takes to open doors in any market."

And from the sounds of it Eve Mazzarella (pictured) of Las Vegas was opening plenty of doors for people. But it's just that she may have been making millions doing so fraudulently, according to the Feds. Among the allegations,

The government alleges Mazzarella and Grimm bought more than 200 properties at inflated values using limited liability companies and more than 400 straw buyers to make purchase offers.

The couple allegedly controlled transactions worth more than $100 million."

Geez. No wonder she made the list. And no wonder Realtors have such a bad rep.

Gives a New Meaning to "House Porn"

Old news but still gross. I doubt this is what Candy over at Dallas Dirt had in mind.

Yet Another Reason Realtors Have a Bad Reputation

This is an absolutely awful story about a real estate agent with Remax out of Milwaukee who conspired with her seller not to sell or show the home to a buyer because she is African-American. The Department of Justice handed down a $35,000 fine to both seller and her broker but chose to allow the agent to continue selling real estate in her market.

Author, Blanche Evans, brings up a good point. What the hell does a Realtor have to do to lose their license? If a Realtor learns one thing in real estate class I can attest to the fact they will leave understanding the concept of Fair Housing Laws quite well. It should be a no brainer that this agent never handle another real estate transaction for the rest of her life. So how does something like this happen?

Another Example of a Poor Business Decision

This home in Preston Hollow sold in February 2006 for $815K. It was vintage early 90's and desperately needed updating, but otherwise a solid home. The new owners did a nice job renovating the home and it looks like it shows great. But why the heck-fire would they be trying to sell - and expect to make $200,000- after owning the home for just 2 years? That's $100K a year people!

Are they flippers? Are they sellers just looking to move up, down or sideways? Do they have to sell or do they just want to sell? Are they being relocated?

I just don't get it. They have already reduced their asking price to $1,025,000 down from $1,070,000 and been on the market for over 4 months. Considering there are 173 homes for sale between $900K and $2 million in Preston Hollow it just doesn't make good business sense to be selling their home right now unless they are willing to get a little bit more realistic with their price. But this is exactly why there are so many homes on the market because no one lives in their home long enough to earn any equity and they expect the buyers to be ignorant of the fact that they bought the home for $815K 2 years ago. Seriously folks, you need to start paying attention.

Lakewood Whole Foods Caves to Handful of Naysayers

While the majority of residents remain clueless and will never know what was to be. Read other blogs posts about the matter here and here. Whole Foods had designed a gorgeous building that would have been attractive from all corners of Richmond, Gaston and Abrams. But as of 2/14/08 they have decided to renovate the old Minyard building whose backside has been a disgrace to the neighborhood for many years. But I guess the crotchety Lakewood residents who killed this deal before it ever left the ground know better than the reknowned architects WF chose to design this wonderful building. To put it plainly, this was Lakewood's one and only shot at having a true crown jewel. And I live within walking distance of the site so I certainly have a strong opinion on the matter.

One day I hope to get permission to reveal the actual plans they drew up for the space. They are simply stunning and would have spruced up Lakewood exponentially. Now I know why people scoot over to the Park Cities or Preston Hollow once they can afford it.

This reminds me of when I was in graduate school at UNT in 2001. This was the year the football team went 0-5 then turned the season around and ended up in a bowl game for the first time in 45 years (or something like that). During the 0-5 time the student body voted AGAINST raising tuition to support a new football stadium. I taught some Kinesiology classes and asked the students what they thought of this. UNT is known for their musical prowess so many weren't surprised, but one student spoke out against the raise in tuition and our conversation went something like this.

Me: "Aren't you on a full music scholarship?"

Her: "Yes"

Me: "So then what do you care about a tuition raise to benefit a new football stadium if you're not technically paying for it?"

Her: "????????"

So what's my point? Stupidity wins over logic and practicality more often than not. And Lakewood has a few stupid residents like my former student and is a loser because of this stupidity.

Generation "U"

You might have seen this article yesterday but there is a couple out of San Diego, CA suing their real estate agent because they feel they were misled and paid too much for their house. They got a couple flyers for 2 homes that sold just down the street from them for more than $100K less than what they paid for their home. So now they're suing.

Please note their Realtor was also their mortgage broker. Hello? Anyone NOT see a problem with that arrangement? I'm not saying he did anything wrong but if anyone's in a position to make sure an appraisal comes in higher than it needs to, it's your mortgage broker. Also, California is taking a huge hit and it's not uncommon for many people that bought a year ago to have negative equity.

I want to know whatever happened to "buyer beware" and doing your own due diligence in looking closely at the sales statistics? Surely they asked their Realtor to show them a CMA of the neighborhood. They should also still have a copy of it. If they can prove he left out lower sales then that should be pretty telling. If they blindly signed a contract without doing any of this then that's their own fault and now they are just bitter.

It started with someone suing McDonald's for having hot coffee and for being fat and now this? Generations X & Y are classified using age but I think the whole world is in Generation U. The unaccountable generation. We no longer take responsibility for our own actions or mistakes. No longer does the home owner have to claim a short sale loss on his or her income. Free get out of jail cards are given to stupid people across the nation so I guess we shouldn't be surprised.

And then there's this which is yet another example of how Generation U will go down in history and the stupidest and laziest generation, ever.

Stupid seller makes $6,000 mistake

True story that happened a few days ago. Some past clients and good friends of mine called me because they wanted to purchase an investment property in their neighborhood that had just been listed with this discount brokerage. They asked if I would simply draw up the paperwork for them to make sure the contract was written correctly but not to ask for a commission so that the offer will look more attractive to the seller (they would virtually save 3%). Being good friends and past clients I had no problem doing this so I typed up the contract for them and they submitted the offer. My client’s informed me a day or so later the sellers accepted an offer from a builder who was requesting a commission at the same exact price my clients had offered! Then I received this email correspondence in which my clients are explaining to the seller they really just accepted a lower offer. Painful.

Buyer/my clients: “Well congrats on selling your home so quickly. I did want to mention that even though I had a broker draw up the offer contract, if you take a look at the broker section of the contract, our broker was not seeking commission from the $217K offer.”

Seller: “ouch! double ouch! i did look through the contract but didn't notice that part of it -- i guess i just cued on what you and i had discussed and assumed he would want the commission. i thought i was making the best business decision... but perhaps it was not.”

Yeah. A $6,000 bad decision. The seller’s REALTOR® probably never even saw the contract although I can’t blame the REALTOR® completely. This seller wanted to save some money on their commission so they exercised their right to hire a REALTOR® of their choosing whose website states, “We have saved our "smartsellers" over SEVEN MILLION DOLLARS in needless real estate fees.” I’d be more interested in how much money they have LOST for their “smartsellers”.

What's behind door number three? A dead body

There are so many things wrong with this story I don't even know where to begin. Ok I'll give it a shot:

A Janesville [Wisconsin] real estate agent can't believe she didn't realize that a form on the bed at a house she showed Monday night was a woman who apparently had been dead for two weeks."I've smelled death. I know what death smells like," she said. "I can't believe my sinuses were that bad."

What??? Who says that??? Then the agent had to be coerced to "call someone" so naturally she calls - no not the police - but the listing agent. Wait. It gets better. The Realtor's client was the one who eventually called the police hours after spotting the corpse. So did they make an offer or what?