Looking Out From the Garage: March 2009

Spending a lot of time with buyers can teach an agent a few things that are useful when listing property...

So, here are the top 5 great ways for a seller to tell a buyer to move on and not consider their house.  In no particular order:

• Require 24 hours advance notice for showings.

Many times... the majority of the time, actually, buyers decide on the properties the night before looking at them.  Sometimes they have plenty of time to look, but there are always last minute additions to the list.  In some cases, they want to look at a house they run across WHILE searching.  In that case, the buyer's agent may not have a listing sheet for the property to even see that you have a required time to make an appointment. 

• Don't have a lockbox... or just have a combination box and an absent agent.

I have run into this one in the last few days... REO agent that works from 9 - 4 Monday through Friday.  We needed access to  a house on Saturday.  The office number is the only number she has listed, and she says in her message "calls recieved after 3:30pm on Friday will be returned on Monday."  On the same day, we had a house on the list with the lockbox inside the home... the seller sets it out for showings.  Even though I got in touch with them, they couldn't put the box out until the next day...  We moved on. 

• Hang out at the house during the showing.

It makes the buyers uncomfortable.  Instead of talking about the house, its strengths and weaknesses, they leave.  On many occassions, I have had buyers talk through 'challenges' they thought the home had upon first look.  After not seeing enough closet space, they have found solutions because they liked another feature of the house... but if they don't hang out in the house for more than a few minutes, they won't reach that point.

• Load your home with personal touches and memorobilia.

Buyers want to feel at home in your home.  They don't want to feel like visitors...  Having 200 pictures of your family in every possible view of the house does not lend itself to making the buyers feel a 'mental move-in'.  Having dead animals (deer trophies, fish trophies, etc.) might help some buyers... not so much with other buyers.  Stagers always suggest 'de-personalizing' homes.  It is good a solid advice. 

• Don't straighten up... keep the smells... and don't touch up paint and minor blemishes.

Buyers feel no joy walking into a house with laundry on the floor, smelling like dogs, cats, hamsters, birds, curry, peppers... you're getting the idea.  It is a bonus if there are nicks on the walls, dirty spots, stains on the carpet and decks covered in algae.  Remember, they want to feel like they can move in.  And even though most of us have some laundry 'in process', imperfect walls and floors and other things that we need to get to, it isn't inviting and homey.  And while many of us love spicy foods, we don't want to be inundated with those smells entering a home. 

There are plenty of other ways to get a buyer to turn around at the door and scratch your home from their list, but these are common and generally easy to fix.  And right now, what it comes down to is that there are a LOT of homes on the market.  It doesn't take much for a buyer to say "Next" and move on.

Ok, I talked about where to find themes, Footer Links to be wary of and the basic types of layouts for WordPress themes.  Now I want to talk about some of the details of themes...  Kind of a glossary of terms that one might run across while looking at themes for their self-hosted WordPress blog. 

Just a note here.  There are tthings to consider when looking at themes for WordPress.org.  This is the version where you load WordPress onto your own hosting account, not WordPress.com... the hosted type. 

Fixed Width - As the name implies, the width of the theme is fixed.  The good side of this is that the blog owner knows how the site will display... it is the same regardless of the viewers computer.  The bad side is that if they have a wide screen, it will be a band down the middle.  If they have a narrow screen, they might have to scroll to the side to see everything. 

Fluid Width - Instead of a fixed width, the theme expands or contracts to fit the monitor of the viewer.  On the good side, the display generally looks good... it fits where it sits.  But... that also means that different people will see different presentations.  Pictures may move around a bit.  Things might not fit the alloted area. 

Widget Ready - This means that the sidebars are able to be modified.  The blog owner can add widgets to their blog... Even if a theme isn't widget ready, it might be modifiable to accept widgets. 

Plug-ins Required (or not) - Some themes need other plug-ins to be installed in order to function.  Others don't.  I would select a theme based on that criteria... plug-ins are easy to deal with. 

Picture Menu - Instead of having a post represented with text, the posts are represented with an uploaded image.  I am working on one here.  Each post will have a descriptive picture.  Of course, I won't be posting every day...  These might also be called Graphic Menu or Image Posts... or a variation.

Mike is a good guy... and he is making a great offer.  He is going to help drag me into video...

This is an easy offer to take advantage of.  Do it.  You'll be better for it.

I have been beta testing a new CRM (Client relationship Manager) for SoftRealty, my IDX (Internet Data eXchange… the real estate search utility) supplier for GarageHomesUSA.  You can actually click on “Property Search” on the toolbar above and it will take you right there.  Basically, they are trying to amp up the quality of real estate search tools.

I have played with it and spent some time trying to figure out what the next step could be… and I have a few ideas… but what I really want is feedback from everyone else.

What would make the coolest search site ever?

Image via CrunchBase

Would you like to be able to share houses that you are thinking about with your friends through FaceBook or another social networking site?

Would you like to be able to log in at the same time as some of your family or friends and then surf together… like a conference call on the web.

Image via Wikipedia

We already have ‘mash-ups’ that combine mapping with the search… what other data would you like to be able to see at the same time to make a better search?  School rating data?  Demographics like income and lot or home sizes?

I can think of a lot of things, but I know that all of you can think of more…  and I want to deliver the best information to my friends at SoftRealty so that they can deliver the coolest search capability back to me… to give to you.

Feel Free…

Feel free to dive into the search at GarageHomesUSA to try it out.  Try out the search, try out the CRM.  Make yourself an account and see what you think.  I will probably be talking with them on Thursday or Friday.  You can email me your thoughts, catch me on chat on the site and let me know what you think or leave a comment.  Whatever is easiest for you works for me.

My goal is to deliver the best experience for all of my clients, and even for those that aren’t my clients, but utilize my site to search.  And I appreciate you being here and helping.

from LaneBailey.com

Note** The meeting is delayed a couple of weeks... so, there is still time to get in on it.  I have a couple of pages of notes, but would love to see what others think without me clouding it.

Where was this junk when I was a kid younger kid? 

Cracked.com had a great story on the amped up versions of the toys we had as kids.  And while I have a 4 year old and find myslef wandering through toy stores ("Dad, can I have a radio controlled car like that?" "Not yet Son... I mean I could get it, but you aren't old enough to play with it yet..." "Dad, can I play with my car now?" "I told you Son... you aren't big enough yet.  Give it a couple of years." "Years") I hadn't been paying enough attention to notice some of these... 

Kids just don't realize how COOL some of this stuff is...  When we were kids we played with sticks and thought they were fun.  Now kids have belt-fed nerf guns...

So, if you want to see some seriously worked over toys...  Take a look.  One warning... This isn't a read for your kids.  Language is NOT restrained.

Wandering through Lowe's I ran across their flagship Kobalt Tool Box. It has been out for a little while, but the local store hadn't been displaying it... and it is kind of cool.

I had two thoughts:

• Ok, this is cool.
• This is a bit gimmicky.

Basically, this is a 53" cabinet chest combo with a few added items. The added items are a fridge and a stereo (with iPod connectivity). No doubt, this is a big box. Aside from being 53" wide and 24" deep, it is also almost 70" tall. The fridge isn't that big, 1.6 cubic feet, but it is convenient to drop a 12 pack of your favorite beverage. There is also a power strip on the side with 4 outlets.

However, it is also a bit pricey at $1898. Although I see it listed online as being $1600. But, when compared to Snap-On, Mac or other professional boxes... even the Craftsman 56" box, it looks like a deal. The Craftsman 56" combo (cabinet and chest) comes in over $6500. The premium boxes are more... of course I will certainly concede that the Snap-On and Mac units are EXTREMELY well constructed.

I ran across this article... I think on Twitter...  and it got me thinking (always dangerous). 

Now, I am NOT thinking that I should charge for my content, and frankly, I'm not really concerned with what the newspapers choose to do on their website.  But, I think there is still an application. 

Registration...

Some agents require registration for consumers to view listings.  I don't, but there are some valid reasons to do so... and one giant reason NOT to have a registration required search.  Critics point out that only a small percentage of consumers will complete the registration, and a smaller percentage will complete that registration with real information.  But, in gross numbers, more registrations will happen with a forced registration site than will happen with an open site not requiring any registration. 

The big problem (or the flip side...) is that there are plenty of search options that don't require registration, so it will likely chase people off of the site.  So, unless you are offering a search that obviously blows the doors off of any other search site, it WILL chase away consumers. 

But...

The Unique Selling Proposition is what is called for.  In order to have a forced registration search, the search would need to be above and beyond other searches...  But what about content... specifically the other thing that consumers are looking for... the thing that there IS room for the average agent to build that is above and beyond the competition up the street? 

Market Reports...

I look at a lot of market reports, and there are some GREAT reports out there that folks put together.  There are also a LOT of market reports that just flat out suck.  There is no way around it...  They have a little template and the report fits into the template and unless one reads the last 15 months of them at one sitting and builds a spreadsheet, they have NO good information.  There are a load of reports out there that have no insight and no perspective.  They recite how many homes sold in the previous week or month, but not the week or month before or the same period a year before. 

So...

What if we built market reports that consumers WANTED to get?  And then what if we required registration to access those reports for the first month or two?  They would drop from behind the curtain after the first month, but for that first month only "members" would be able to access them.  Consumers could sample the reports for 'free'.. without registration, unless they wanted the most current info.  That would be a trade...

What do you think?

The technology would require a few upgrades... but it is workable.  Let's assume that implementation would not be an issue and focus on the idea... 

I'd love to hear from consumers, agents and anyone else with an opinion.

Lilburn had a nice website... it was fairly simple to navigate... better than most of the local municipalities.  But it has been over-hauled lately.  And it looks great. 

Whether you are looking for information about upcoming events, information about City of Lilburn services or you need to know something about one of the local departments, they new site is very easy to navigate, and quite complete. 

You can visit the new site at CityOfLilburn.com.

While you are there you might look into the history of Lilburn theough the photo essay.  You could go through news section or look through upcoming events.  Don't forget the information about city services like police, sanitation and courts... and planning, parks and street cleaning.  Basically, all of the information you could want about the city is well organized and available in one place. 

One of the programs outlined on the website is called Lilburn 101.  In a nutshell, it is a look inside each of the city departments.  It includes tours, activities and should be an interactive experience. 

It is just one of the cool events put on by the City of Lilburna dn outlined on their website.

I have kind of a unique perspective for the recently completed REtechSouth.  The presenters of the event were Brad Nix of Maxsell Realty and Matt Fagioli of Diamond Dwellings Realty.  Matt is my Broker.  Si, I had a lot of inside info, as well as access and early knowledge.  But at the same time, I was not really a volunteer for the event (except for the Implementation Session on Saturday).  So, I wasn't involved in the planning and didn't have a track on much of what was going on... 

That also meant that I attended sessions and interacted in the same manner as any other participant. 

First, let's talk about the Speaker's Dinner...  It was a blast.  At my table was the lovely and talented Susie Blackmon, Atlanta Real Estate Forum owner/editor and PR whiz Carol Flammer (I was certainly a thorn among roses...), Bobby and Brad Carroll... otherwise known as Dakno Marketing.  The conversation through dinner was excellent.  Of course, the pre-dinner conversation was also excellent.  I had the opportunity to meet Thom Abbott for the first time... despite several attempts to meet previously... as well as a score of others ranging from Missy Caulk to Rob Hahn (Notorious R.O.B.)... from David Carroll (Founder Dude of SoftRealty... his cards say that) to Pat Kitano.  

Is it obvious that I really enjoy the social aspects of these get togethers?  There were lots of other conversations and lots of other great people I got to talk with (and drive to the event... and haven't forgotten you). 

The main course was the Friday event.  And it was certainly an event.  Frankly, there is no way I can convey the information presented.  Aside from there being more going on that any person could do at once... or twice... the notes would make War & Peace look like a short story.  Instead, stay tuned to Brad Carroll and Dakno TV for video from the event.  They streamed a lot of it live, and I am sure that some archives will be posted.  Matt and Brad Nix are also working towards getting the speaker's presentation loaded at REtechSouth. 

For me, much of the event focused around the meetings outside the venues.  I overhead someone thinking there was an A|R points vortex when Jim Crawford and I spent a while talking in the hall.  I was able to visit with friends that I met at Inman SF Connect last year, as well as NAR Conventions in Orlando and Las Vegas.  There were literally dozens of wonderful people that I got to shake hants and chat with or give a hug. 

The meeting, greeting and learning went from arrival before 8:00 until I bailed from the Happy Hour at 6:15... and then after the Thrashers v Red Wings game (Thrashers lost 6-2) I was back at Marlow's for a little more socializing until 1:30am... 

The new and terribly un-promoted session at this year's event was called Saturday Morning Live.  I volunteered to help people implement the technologies that they learned the day before.  We had three 'students' and at least twice as many instructors.  We were led by Ricardo Bueno of the Real Estate Tomato.  It was a blast... as was lunch with Matt Wilkins and the trip down to Marta to drop Ricardo off for his ride to the airport.  It was also great to talk about the future of CRM and IDX with Matt, David Carroll and Brad Nix while Ricardo helped the students... I jogged up for about three minutes and built a WordPress blog on a spare domain of mine.  They were surprised that a self-hosted WordPress blog was THAT easy to make. 

Take a look around.  There have been plenty of posts written by folks that went or presented. 

And plan now to attend next year... maybe two days... I'm just sayin'...

The Virginia Association of Realtors Nation Blog Brawl has reached round 2.  It is going to be a tough round.  Matthew Rathbun is a VERY well known blogger in the real estate realm, and he has a great blog for real estate agents, TheAgentTrainer.  You should visit his blog... there are some great tips. 

But he is also my competition for this round.  And in order to advance, I have to win... 

In order to win, I need everyone's help.  Please visit the VARbuzz website and vote for LaneBailey.com in Zone 1B.  In order to register the vote, you can vote in each match-up.  There are eight contests for this Sweet Sixteen round.  There are some great blogs in the contest, and the last blog standing will be the National Blog Brawl Champion. 

Have I mentioned that the Blog Brawl Champion will also get to go to Inman Connect in SF? 

Hurry, voting closes at 8:59am on Tuesday, March 24th.  As soon as the results are up, I will post the results. 

And as always, thank you for your support.  (Did you think of Bartles and Jaymes?  I did.)