houses for sale

What was I thinking in 2011?

by John Rice

Every once in a while, I like to look through old blog post drafts that never got published.  Well, today was one of those days.  I wrote what is below on 12/29/2011.  The day after my anniversary.  Now, I have no specific recollection of either day in 2011, but I have been married long enough to know that it makes your wife feel good when you can reference your anniversary date…..so that was for you babe!

A lot has changed in nearly 6 years.  All of today’s first time buyers would be amazed that they could have picked from 50-100 houses in their price range back then.  Today, they may have 4 listings on their preferred side of Lexington in their price range.  I remember spending many full days where I never left Masterson Station because there were soooo many houses for sale.  Buyer’s would get confused.  They couldn’t remember one house from another.  I would say stuff like “This is the same floor plan as the 2nd, 5th and 9th house we saw earlier, only this plan is reversed and the vinyl floor in the kitchen is blue instead of brown.”

I had to laugh when I read the draft below because now I have people looking for deals and there just really aren’t any these days.  Also, today the challenge is finding ANY house for a buyer whereas back then it was about helping people pick the needle in the haystack.  Selling listings today is like shooting fish in a barrel.  In 2011, getting a call from a potential seller made your palms sweat because you weren’t sure it would sell.

Here is what I was thinking about late December in 2011:

 

When I was a kid, that Kenny Roger’s song was popular.  You know, the one that said “You gotta know when to hold ’em.  Know when to fold ’em.  Know when to walk away.  Know when to run.”  It was about gambling, but it could just as well be about being a realtor.

Each deal is different.  The people are different.  The house prices are different.  To get the best deal for a client, you have to be able to analyze a bunch of different factors and figure out how something is likely to go down, then take action.

Several months ago, I wrote an offer for a bank owned property.  It was rather unique. They countered our offer, but it was still way too far outside of anything remotely realistic.  We politely said no thanks.  My investor client and I both thought that the time of year, the market, and the ability of other investors to borrow money meant that there really wasn’t much of a market for this property other than him.  We also suspected that the bank would soon want it off their books.  We knew when to “Hold ’em” basically.

Not too long ago, the bank came back and agreed to our original terms.  We’re still working out details, but I’m pretty pumped that my buyer is about to practically steal this property.  Think I’ll buy that song on iTunes and listen to it on the way to the closing…….or that Tom Petty one that says “The waiting is the hardest part.”

LEXpert flashback: When I was a volleyball star

by John Rice

DSC_1307

 

I listed this little cabin in the woods last week.  I normally don’t go this far out of Lexington, but it was for a past client.

Then I got to thinking that this client, who has used me before, came from another past client, who came from another past client, who was referred from my cousin….so THANK YOU Ashton!  This cabin will be the 11th sale from one referral.

I love it when people refer their friends and family to me.  See, I was never good at sports or anything.  I was always the last or second to last person picked in gym class.  It was either me or a guy named Brian who had an equal amount of sports aptitude…..unless the game was volleyball.

Everybody wanted me on their team for volleyball.  Not that I had any talent in spiking the ball, or even hitting it really.  My special talent was serving.  I could serve the ball and every time I did, we scored a point.

I was always scared to death that they would realize my secret.  I would have all these anxious soundtracks playing in my head like Kevin from “Wonder Years.”

“Will they realize my secret?”

“What will happen if they do?”

“I don’t want to be picked last again!”

Since I probably won’t be playing volleyball competitively again, would you like to know my secret?

I’m left handed.

About the only place in school being a Leftie paid off was playing volleyball.  All those right handed people would serve and the ball would go to the same place.  The opposing teams just got use to the ball being served there.  When I served, it would not go diagonally, but straight, and usually to the back row where the players were least prepared.  I am just glad I was with a bunch of middle school kids who were too preoccupied with pimples, staring at Tonya Jones, or perfecting their moon walk…..because nobody ever figured out that my serve went somewhere differently.  Not once did anybody realize this for all 3 years.

It sure was nice to be the top pick every once in a while back then.  It is even nicer to be the top pick for returning clients and for those who have been referred to me.

 

Old house/New house & my latest car

by John Rice

M3 S2

Cars and houses.

Those are my two things.  I can’t talk about too much else.  I don’t keep up with politics, pop culture or sports.  Get me on either of these two items though, and I am hard to shut up.

I recently added another car to my collection…..if you want to call a bunch of cars that aren’t old enough to be classics a collection.  Junk yard or used car lot is probably a more accurate term.

Sure, I’ve got a new car I use for work.  It looks good.  Is fast.  Gets lots of compliments.  But to me, it is sterile and generic.  It isn’t anything special because you can go to the dealership and buy one just like it.  I don’t feel anything but comfortable when driving it.

What gets my blood circulating is older BMWs.  I love the way they handle.  I love the way they look.  To me, the 90s-early 2000 BMWs were the high point for the brand.  An era I want to celebrate.

They don’t build them like they use to.

That is a phrase you often hear about older houses too.  Just like some people are into older cars verses new ones, some people also prefer an older house to a new one.  Old house people think all new houses are build poorly and lack any character.  The people who like new houses don’t want old house problems or floor plans that don’t work as well for today’s lifestyle.

Whether it is cars or houses, it is cool to like whatever you want.

As a realtor, the task at hand is getting in the mindset of your client and figuring out which they want.  When I buy a car, it is about what I want.  When I am trying to make a real estate love connection for a client, it is all about what they want.  Sometimes they don’t know yet and you need to help them figure it out.

After 12 years of doing this, I can pretty much tell if a client is really wanting to build a brand new house.  If you show them perfectly good move in ready houses and they don’t like any of them, they probably want to build even if they don’t realize it yet.   Another obvious sign is if their previous houses were brand new.  You would be amazed at how many people build a brand new house with each move.

The old house people will sometimes look at new houses, but they don’t like that the trees are small, or comment about the lack of character or perceived quality.  They walk in a perfectly good new house and don’t have any reaction at all.  It is just a structure with 4 walls to them.  Take them in an older house and they light up.

What do I like?  Both really.  In my dream world, I have an old house in a cool part of Lexington.  In that same dream world I have a super modern beach house.  The kind that is mostly glass.  In the garages of each place, I have a couple of older BMWs and also a new car because sometimes it is really nice to hop in a new car with really good air conditioning, comfortable seats and an awesome stereo with bluetooth.

 

How my 4 houses helps me understand move-up buyers

by John Rice

My first house.

7 Ky Street

 

I loved everything about it.  It looked cute.  The mortgage was cheap.  It had two original fireplace mantles.  It didn’t bother me that it didn’t even have a driveway, or that there were some houses nearby that had been converted into cheap apartments.  It was my first home.  The threshold was low and I was happy.

 

My next house.

New outside

 

It was really a dump when we bought it, but I was so happy to have a garage, a master bathroom and to be the trashiest house on a nice street verses the best house on a trashy street.  I quickly grew to hate the trek from upstairs to the garage when I would take my kids to school, and the awkwardness of the split foyer design when people would come over.  The threshold for happiness was still low since having more space, that garage and my own bathroom were enough to get me excited.  It was better than the first house and that was enough.

 

My next house.

1217621_01

 

This is the one where we started getting more picky.  Doing things like wanting to know if any houses around it were rentals, checking out the pantry and school districts.  The first house was better than renting a house.  The second house was better than the first.  That type of thinking wasn’t going to cut it on this move.  I loved living here, although there was no storage or anything.  Also, I was told that my lot was the gravel pit for the neighborhood, which is why the grass never looked good in the front yard.

 

The current house.

1210113_01

 

We weren’t going to settle as much this time.  We looked and looked and looked at many houses.  The yard had to be flat.  There had to be more storage space.  The kitchen had to have a better pantry and more counter space.  The previous houses were more about finding a house we liked.  This one had to be in a certain part of town.  We didn’t have to move.  We wanted to move……which gets me to the point of this post.

And that point is that buyers who have owned several house and are now looking for their pinnacle house, the one they will live in before they start downsizing, are pretty picky.  And that is okay.

These buyers have lived in enough places to know what they want and more importantly, what they don’t want.  They know what they can compromise on and what they can’t.  The gray area that was okay for previous houses is gone.  There is no “Well, maybe that won’t bother me as much as I think it will.”

 

My next house??

640_1david_eichler_architectural_photography_1-1024x682

Maybe something like this.  I love windows.  I love looking out and seeing leaves blowing in the wind, and clouds, and birds in the air.  I want to feel like I am outside even when I am inside.  I want it bright.  I want a view.  Of something.  Trees, water, anything other than the back of my neighbor’s house.  I want to feel inspired by the architecture of my next house.

And the next house will probably be at the center of many posts about downsizing and empty nest buyers.

 

Why NOW is the scariest market ever

by John Rice

I think right now is the scariest real estate market we have seen in a long time, for buyer’s at least.

I know, it seems crazy when prices are going up and there is a frenzy to buy any house as soon as it comes on the market……but that is what makes it scary.

When the market was so bad years ago, a buyer had their pick of dozens of houses.  They were able to make a good choice.  If the market dropped even further, you knew it would eventually come up.  You don’t have that luxury when you are at the top of the market.  You just hope it continues to go up more and more and more.  You never know where the peak is until it starts going down the other side of the hill.

I cut my teeth in real estate in the bad market.  Many people who did not use me as their buyer’s agent contacted me to sell their homes when times were tough.  Many of them had bought in the early 2000s when the market was hot.  They would tell me how they had lost several houses and they didn’t want to lose again so they bought the house they now wanted me to sell.  They’d say the market was booming so they didn’t think they could go wrong with a full price offer because that was the only way to get a house.  They were thankful to have even gotten their house.  The very house that at the time they were saying all this, had become a noose around their neck, preventing them from relocating for a better job, dividing families because one spouse had to start a new job while the other stayed behind praying the house would eventually sell.

The market they bought in was just like it is today.

While I don’t think we will ever see the market crash again any time soon, you know the market will go back and forth from being a seller’s market to a buyer’s market.

That is why I think being a buyer in today’s market must really make a wise decision.

Many buyers today, again, feel lucky to have gotten their house that backs to a business, is on a busy road, has a terrible lot.  They just feel lucky to have even gotten a house.  Period.  Many of them will call me when it isn’t as easy to sell because the agent that sold them the house is no longer in real estate.

I wish they’d call me now instead of using their uncle’s neighbor’s cousin’s babysitter who just got into real estate last month.

Here is what I would tell them:

“This market is tough.  There is no easy way to get a good house.  Yes, you will pay top dollar.  Yes, you may lose some houses.  Yes, you may even have to find temporary housing while we wait for a house that will be a good investment.  This market will cost you something-you can be burdened now and end up with a great house, or you can be burdened when you go to sell.  Whatever house you buy should set you up for your next bigger and better house.  You want to build equity to use as your next down payment.  You don’t want to have this house ruin your life should you have to sell in a buyer’s market.  So, let’s pick a winner that you will enjoy and that will be a solid investment for your future.  It isn’t going to be easy, but I am committed to making this happen for you.”