Pat Kennedy - Your Washington, DC Real Estate Connection

Sunday, I held an adorable listing open.  It's a Georgetown townhouse with a pretty garden and parking for two (count 'em, two) parking spaces. 

The first people who walked in looked a little sour dour, and I heard one of them say, "Ick!  Cats!".

Ok, there are kids, but no cats.  No pets of any kind, and the kids don't smell like cats. 

Then I did a little sniff, sniff thing and sure enough.  There was a whiff of something that smelled like that little kitty aphrodisiac that male cats use to attract the ladies.  Well, not human ladies.  We are repelled by this particular scent.  But lady cats seem to love the stuff!

Then I looked out the front door and realized.  It's the boxwood hedge in the front yard!  It's totally beautiful and totally stinky shrub! 

And I was about to plant a couple in my front garden!

Two weeks from today, I'll be walking down the Champs Elysees in my reasonably chic comfortable shoes! And this vacation is going to be different!

So, I've been getting together my to do list, which includes what I'm bringing with me and what needs to get done before I take off.

And I have to say, my list of stuff to pack does include a lot of small electronic gear that can help me stay in touch with clients.  That would be my I-Phone and my tiny little MacBook. 

But wait!  This is a vacation! 

It's a time to get away, see and do new things and revive my spirit!  And this realization spurred a phone call to accomplish something else hastily added to my list - to work out coverage with a trusted colleague while I am away! 

On my first trip to Cape Cod, I ratified two offers, and one of the other agents involved was in Ocean City and the second on in San Francisco.  And I had to wonder, why bother to take a vacation?  I was running on adrenolin for the entire time!

I can see taking a few minutes out of each day to check email, but like many in our profession, I have trouble letting go of potential business! It's hard to put the computer down!

There is a real estate company in suburban Maryland where they take your cell phone away when you take time off.  When it rings, the covering agent answers the call and handles whatever it is.  And no cheating!  While that sounds like a fabulous idea in theory, I am not quite that evolved!  And I'm way too Type-A besides.

Before leaving, I will change the contact information on my listings, and my clients will know where I am, when I'll be back, and that they need to call my buddy Ed if they get an unstoppable urge to make a move before then.  And when I'm looking over the wonderful Paris vista from the Eiffel Tower with my digital camera taking fabulous photos for my blog, I will thank my lucky stars that I have a colleague who will ably handle things until I get back!

This week, I've been previewing a bunch of upscale condos.  And one was a stand out for not all the right reasons.

The building, near Whole Foods and Logan Circle, has been a work in progress since about 2005, when it was planned as a super-posh mecca for the chic and trendy Urban dwellers.

The first model apartment was a knock out.  But like a bump on the head with a kitchen cabinet door! 

The powder room had, um, carnivorous wallpaper.  In the kitchen, the tile didn't make it in time for the back-splash, and the decorator painted it a bright red-orange - I needed to put drops in my eyes after I looked at it. 

One of the larger units had a king sized bed in a small master bedroom.  It did show you could squeeze in a king, but it also made the room look small.  That same unit had a six-seater round table in a small dining alcove - again, I suspect it was to show that you could seat six for dinner.  Except what I really noticed was that I kept bumping into the chairs.

And it really illustrated the difference between what a professional stager would do and what a decorator would do. 

The stagers has just enough to suggest possibilities for how to use the space.  The decorator wants to make a statement - the bolder the better.

And maybe it's got something to do with ego.  There was a lot of it present in those condo units.

Today I left for an Open House hungry.  Really hungry.  Big mistake!

I had half an hour to grab food, wolf it down, shove signs in the ground and show up smiling at the front door.  So it was fast food for me.

Normally, I'm pretty careful about what I eat.  And it's mostly health, organic, lowish fat and mostly veggies.  Well, being really hungry can help you make very bad food decisions.  And I made one today.

I went through the drive-through at a big fast food chain.  I ordered a chicken sandwich, rings and a chocolate shake.  And I inhaled it!  It tasted fabulous.  And then about half an hour into the Open, I crashed! 

I had no energy.  None!  Forget the fun and schmoozing with all of the people who came through.  I just wanted a nap!  Head on a pillow snooze!

Even though a lot of people came through, it felt like a wasted afternoon.  While there were some folks who like the place, I didn't connect with a single person!   That's not like me!

So I've learned my lesson!  Next time I do an Open, I am going to eat a big salad with maybe a little salmon and a light vinegrette dressing. 

They say you are what you eat.  Geeze, I hope not!

These are certainly tough economic times for a lot of people, and there are some major manufacturers and retailers who want to help you!

Tide, for example, has a new premium detergent that, like the old Tide, is supposed to get your clothes clean.  But the premium Tide costs a bunch more because it helps your clothes last longer, so you won't have to spend more money on new stuff.

So while Tide is trying to keep you out of a department stores, one large chain is suggesting that buying their new cappuccino maker is going to save you big bucks by keeping you out of Stabucks. 

OK, now I'm asking myself, "How can Realtors® use this approach to help get our bloated listing inventory sold?  We've tried a few things already, like

• Buy a house so you don't have to pay rent to a greedy landlord.
• Save money on gasoline by buying a house closer to your office.
• Downsize to a smaller house or condo with lower mortgage payments and maintenance costs.

But what about

• Buy a new house with a fabulous kitchen so you'll cook at home and save a bundle on restaurants and take out.
• Save on health club membership by purchasing a condo with a gym in the complex.
• Buy a beautiful new home to boost your self-esteem and eliminate the need to pay your shrink for a weekly visit.

Well, people aren't stupid.  I'm not sure the new premium Tide would change my shopping habits.  I'd just be giving nicer looking old stuff to the Good Will every year that I cleaned out my closet.  And I might buy a cappuccino machine and find it way too complicated to use  - and I'd still be in line for my Starbucks' latte!  Still, you have to give these guys credit for trying. 

And I'm sitting here wracking my little brain trying to think of something that just might resonate with all of those buyers sitting on all those fences!  So if you've got any bright ideas, let's hear them!

I eat meat.  I eat red meat.  At least I did.

Yesterday, I stopped by the Uptown Cathay, my favorite, Chinese take out place for their "Crispy Beef".  It is delicious.  A little sesame, a little beef, a little magic!  I don't know how they do it, but it tastes just great.

And when I walked in, I couldn't do it.  I walked out with chicken. 

Once  you cut out beef, you're on a slippery slope.  Next thing, no chicken or lamb or ham.  Then no catfish or salmon - or crabs!  Then it's cut out dairy and eggs. 

And suddenly, you're one of those annoying vegans!  People won't want to invite you to their dinner parties because you're a pain in the ass to cook for!

So what triggered all this?  Reading Andrea Swiedler's blog.  In particular, reading about Baby Ook, her new baby bull.  And standing at the Uptown Cathay ready to order Crispy Beef, I felt just a little bit too close to the food chain.

Back in the 1990's, when the DC real estate market was pretty bad, I helped a favorite client buy his first place.  It was a condo overlooking Rock Creek in my favorite building in Georgetown. 

Then, after he got married and became a dad, I helped him sell his wonderful bachelor pad and buy the family's first little house - also in Georgetown.   At that time, the local market was white hot, with bidding wars on every house that came on the market.  He did really well on the sale of his condo.  But on the buying end, he and his bride made a lot of offers on houses before they finally got one accepted. 

Now it's time to move once again, as they welcomed a baby son into their Georgetown dollhouse.  So it's listed for a more than they paid for it, and they are trying to figure out what to do about a new place.

Here in DC, we are finally having to admit we're in another buyers' market.  Prices are beginning to decline, and bidding wars happen, but they are pretty rare.  Typically, a buyer can go in and negotiate with the seller for a lower price and favorable (to the buyer) terms.  And this couple is on the fence, not about selling, but about buying a new house.  They are really on the fence!

In any kind of market, you never know what the prices will be in another year or two.  And somehow, in a crazy sellers' market, nobody seems to care.  But this couple is being very, very cautious about the next move, and I think they are pretty typical of today's pool of homebuyers.

Why?

• Price run ups occur when people feel optimistic about their own futures and the future of the community where they want to live.  In buyer's market, just the opposite is true.  While my couple are both bright and highly marketable career wise, they are in a "Ya never know" frame of mind.  
• In a hot sellers' market, buyers don't tend to think about the likelihood that their homes could be worth less in a year or two, or at least they don't seem to be bothered by this possibility.  During a period when prices are going down, the idea that their home will lose value may cause paralysis and they stay on the proverbial fence.
• In both types of markets, you have that old Greek chorus in the background - the media.  They can help fan the flames in a hot market, and in a buyer's market (right now) we are seeing a barrage of worst case possibility stories every time we turn on the TV or read the paper.  When prices are high, it's like buyers are afraid of missing out and do crazy things (for reporters to write about).  When prices are going down, people buy into the scary media stories instead of buying new homes.

So, my cute couple are thinking about selling their small house and renting a larger one for a while. If they were reasonably certain their next house would be the "forever house", it would totally make sense to buy now.  Even if prices go down further, it's not likely that they'll stay down for long.  But if they think they may be in a state of professional or geographic flux, the equation changes.

Now, they are the boss of me.  If they say "Find us a place to buy," that's what I do.  And if they say, "Find us a place to rent," that'll be my job.  They are not only favorite clients, they are both really smart people, and I totally respect and support whatever decision they make. 

And even if its not buy low, or buy lower than it would have been a couple of years ago - or maybe lower than next year? 

Who knows!

Dear Mr. Home Inspector:

When they passed out the brains, you thought they said "trains", and you took one!

You were hired to do a "for information only" home inspection on a listing of mine that is being sold in "as is" condition.  And before you came through the door, that condition was pretty darned good.

First of all, you tested the alarm system.  What????????  In 25 years in this business, I've never known an inspector to test an alarm system.  Well, guess what?  It worked perfectly!  It went off!  And you didn't have the code to give the alarm company when they called the house, did you?  It's lucky that the buyer broker was able to track me down and that I was able to locate the sellers as they were about to head into the local Cineplex!

Not only did you almost cause a false alarm to go out to the fire and police departments, but you did something that screwed up the sellers' Comcast, including cable, internet access and telephone while you were trying to turn the thing off!

Now, your report did not cite a whole lot wrong with the house, so you then truned your attention to the whirlpool tub in the master bath.  You couldn't figure out how to turn it on, so you said it was broken and the motor might need to be replaced.

Now, we're talking big bucks on that one!  Maybe enough to justify your fee.  In fact, if you had filled it up to the little gold "fill it up to here before you turn it on" button, it would have worked like a charm.  It was so incredibly easy that even I was able to figure it out.  If you don't know how to operate a piece of equipment or an appliance, don't say it's broke so fix it!  Do what the good home inspectors do and say you can't figure out how to turn it on.  Suggest the buyer should consult with the sellers on how to turn it on and ascertain that it will, in fact, turn on.

Geeze Louise!  I know a squirrel out on the west coast who does a better home inspection than you do!

Sincerely (yes, this is truly a sincere rant)

Pat Kennedy

My company's main competitor here in Washington has come up with an interesting approach to capture business.

Our marketing plans include innovative ways to maximize out listings' exposure to the market place. 

The Other Company is telling sellers what they need is a "Private Exclusive", where they do not put the listing into the Multiple Listing Service.  Instead, they keep it "in house".  One of their own wonderful agents will sell your house, and you don't have to have all of those agents from the tacky companies tracking people through your beautiful home.

One of the things I've learned over many years of marketing homes is that you never know who will show up with the buyers.  There are several firms here that do a superb job with the high end market.  Sometimes the selling agent for my listing is someone I know who does lots of work in the upper brackets.  Other times, it's an agent from some outfit I've never heard of who has an office in Burtonsville. 

And I gotta say, I haven't met many colleagues from any companies who are into recreational home showing.  Before they take on clients, they have them pre-approved and tend to show them properties they might be able to afford to buy.

And without a marketing effort that reaches agents all over the area - um, that would include MRIS and a fabulos virtual tour - we'd miss a lot of buyers.

If an "exclusive" brokerage firm offers you a "private exclusive", consider the following:

• You'll have about 75 out of many hundred agents in the city who sell high end homes who will even know that yours is on the market.
• Your home will be listed with a company that has adopted a practice that annoys a lot of colleagues, and it's inconsistent with the spirit of cooperation among Realtors®.
  
• "Exclusive" is fine if it's about a great country club.  When you're listing your house, "exclusive" is not your friend.

In Washington, as in most large urban areas, there are several firms that share in the high end market.  And when you list your home, it is crucial that agents from all of these companies have access to your property.  And it's also important that even agents from firms that only sell a few each year also have access to your property.

Today, I received three emails from someone I don't know who is one of my friends on Facebook.  He's a real estate agent with a nice smile and web site in a far away city, and that could come in handy if a favorite client ever decides to relocate there.  But here's the rub.

The email, probably sent to every friend he has on Facebook, was all about what he charges to sell a house. Oops!

This would be a perfectly lovely topic for an email to anybody who was not licensed to sell real estate in any of the 50 states.  But my understanding of the anti-trust laws is that this is an inappropriate communication for any of us to have with a colleague who works in a different brokerage than we do - anywhere in the country!  And my guess is that I am not the only Realtor® on this email list.

Using social media to drum up business is a great thing.  But it's important to remember that the state and local laws that govern our behavior as real estate professionals do apply to on-line venues! 

Maybe living here in Washington and having clients who prosecute this stuff at the Department of Justice has made me overly cautious.  Or maybe just hyper aware!

So watch it, y'all!  They won't let you blog at the slammer!