real estate advice

Neutral or Character for Resale?

by John Rice

I had a chance to catch up with an old friend recently. This guy makes fine furniture and cabinets for a living. He was showing me all the things he has done to his house. It was pretty sweet. Not something you see everyday. Loads of character. Then he says to me that he doesn’t get this going neutral for resale thing. He just does what he likes. He then went on to say that the last house he had, he sold to the first person that saw it for top dollar. I’m usually the one saying go neutral and play it safe, but like so much in life, there are exceptions.

I think what my friend didn’t realize is that not everybody has such great taste. His house really rocked because all the work he did was so excellent and the house was full of hand-made furniture. Not everybody can pull that off……I know I couldn’t!

Most buyers are happy to have some common updates when they go looking for a house. It is safe to go neutral because that has the broadest appeal. But, I will say from experience that when a buyer walks into a house that has enough character to be remembered after they leave, they really like it or they really don’t. 

I sold a place recently that had a lot of character. Hardwood floors, unique lighting, a sunroom, a koi pond, a heavily landscaped backyard. Those sellers had great taste too. Their house really stood out as a winner. I’ve also seen several houses that the seller went with their own sense of style, and that is what made their house difficult to sell. 

So, if you are going to throw caution to the wind and go with something out of the ordinary, here is my advice: Make the whole house work together. Don’t do one room at a time without regard to how it relates to the rest of the house. No 4 different types of flooring or anything way random like that. The house will come across like you just went to Lowe’s and bought what was on clearance. Remember that a buyer is walking through your whole house and in their mind, they don’t separate the rooms mentally like we all do once we actually live in a house. 

Well, I hope I’m not contradicting myself too much here. I guess the bottom line is that playing it safe is fine….maybe a little boring, but fine. Character is a gamble. If you are planning on being in your current place for only a few years, go safe. If you want a house with character & will be there for a longer time, go for it. Chances are what you pick will be outdated/worn out by the time you sell, and you’ll get to enjoy it while you live there.

Happy 20th Realtor Anniversary to me!

by John Rice

This month marks my 20th year as a Realtor.

I had always wanted to be in real estate. I wanted to do it all. I wanted to be a Realtor, renovate houses, be a landlord and build houses. I have done all of those other than building a house. Guess there is still time.

When I was in high school, one of my favorite things to do was skip school and drive around neighborhoods all over town. I got to where I knew most every street. One day a friend of mine and I were talking about where something was and I started naming streets and talking about the area. He said I was quite “The LEXpert.” Thank you Bo List. I had no idea that one day I would trademark that name for my brokerage.

Many other realtors back then didn’t think I would make it. Why? I did not want to waste my time doing the old school versions of making Tiktok reels, which were mailing people stuff throughout the year like UK sports schedules, calendars and junk to remind them you are a realtor. I remember saying that if my clients didn’t remember me when it came time to buy or sell, or when their friends or family asked for a recommendation, then I didn’t deserve to be remembered. Guess it worked since I rarely have a client who hasn’t used me before or hasn’t been sent by somebody who has.

Those early years were fun. Everything was an adventure and new. I sure learned a lot about myself, others, houses, mortgages, title work and about everything else a good realtor needs to know about.

I’ve been told I should write a book someday about my adventures. Maybe I will. I could go on and on about many of them here but I’ll save you the time. I’ve been stuck in an elevator, opened doors in houses and found people asleep, I’ve chased pets that have escaped, I’ve been chased by pets, my car has been keyed while showing a house, and I once found a naked guy playing guitar in a house that was supposed to be vacant. Sound like a book you might buy?

I could not have gotten here without a whole lot of people. Clearly my parents are at the top of that list. My wife put up with me being gone many evenings over the years and always having to reply to calls/texts during every vacation we have ever been on since I got my real estate license. Many friends would watch my two sons when they were young so I could go show houses when my wife was at work….the Ponders, the Boyds, The Davises, The Jones, The Leahys, Amanda Brady. I have Kris Vanzant and the whole Vanzant family to thank for giving a loud and obnoxious guy in shorts and sandals a chance to work with them and learn from their real estate wisdom. I also have my best friend Shaun Ring to thank. He is the one who said back in about 2009 that I should do this new thing called blogging. He has also said I should have a podcast, but nah. He is a realtor who got into this about the same time I did so Happy 20th Anniversary to him as well. His first sale was my first listing. It has been a great 20 years with him. And then there is you. I reckon if you are reading this, you are a friend, client or just somebody who cares enough to get this far into this post.

I will be a very old man 20 years from now. I plan on still being here though to write a little about what the next 20 years holds for me.

But don’t we need wiggle room in our list price?

by John Rice

This is one of the questions I get asked a lot when I list a house. I think I probably always freak out my sellers when I tell them that they don’t need to price their house way over what we anticipate it will sell for.

I guess the biggest fear, and I can understand it, is that people will assume that there is wiggle room, and that they are going to have to sell for less…..and that just isn’t the case.

Sure, there may be people who come along and offer waaaay less than you are asking. But you know what? I don’t consider them to be real buyers. When I was a new Realtor, I had some people that would just go from listing to listing making crazy offers. Eventually I would see the writing on the wall and I’d let them keep perpetuating their hobby without me. I doubt any of them ended up actually buying a house. Why price your house based on nuts like that? Doesn’t it make more sense to price it where it will be attractive to the people who may actually buy your house?

Check this out. Back in about 1997 I had a lawn care business. I had grown it to the point where I needed a dedicated truck. I saw an ad for a 1993 Ford F-150 with 48,000 miles on it. The price was $5980. I knew that was a good price. Took it for a test drive. Wanted it. Sat in the little cubicle with the sales man and made him an offer. He blew his chance to remind me that was a fantastic price. What he did was make it a battle. Dude told me that they “Couldn’t sell that truck for one nickel less than that price!” I was floored. Other than during COVID, don’t you always haggle when buying a car? I left to see what else was available since I couldn’t go back there without feeling like I had lost to that guy. After looking at more trucks, I realized THAT truck was by far the best one and was at the best price anywhere in town that day. I just didn’t know what to do. Soooo, I called the wisest man I know…..my Dad. I told him that the truck was the best deal and that I wanted it, but just couldn’t go back there. Being the wise person that he is, he told me to go back and offer them a nickel less. Yep. Offer $5979.95.  I did and I got the best truck at the best price that was available that day anywhere in Lexington.

Guess what? Real buyers will recognize the value of your house. They are looking at every house in their price range just like I did with that truck. Sure, we are accustomed to wiggle room, but people don’t mind paying near or full asking price if the house is worth it. Even in today’s higher interest rate market, I frequently see houses going for over the list price. I once had one where they came back twice with lower offers. We just politely said “No thank you.  Take a look at the comps. We’ve priced this house for what it is worth.” They, like me with the truck, knew it was the best available house at the best price. Here’s the difference though, I didn’t get an attitude with the other agent like my salesman did with the nickel issue. We ended up selling the house for 99.2% of the asking price. We came down just a little so the buyer would feel like they won…..but in reality, we all won that day!

#1 thing I do not care about

by John Rice

There was a time in my career where this would have been a big deal. It is not now.

I got a letter in the mail recently from one of the bigger real estate brokerages in town. It was to congratulate me on being in the top 5% of all realtors in all of the Bluegrass in 2024. I think the intent was really to get me to consider coming over to their firm, which isn’t happening. Thank you for the letter though!

I had no idea I was in the top 5%. I used to track that kind of stuff a long time ago. Many years ago I was in the top 1.5%. I guess that was quite an achievement but I only have one memory of that year. I remember being on the edge of a nervous breakdown from working every hour I was awake for every day of the week for every week of that year. I definitely did not feel I was at my best nor did I feel my best. I remember making eye contact with myself in the mirror one day that year while I was shaving. I saw a robot who had figured out how to sell houses. I was just a machine. I remember trying to convince myself back then that this somehow was the fulfillment of my dreams. I have always been good at seeing through lies, even when I am telling them to myself.

So much has changed since I used to care about where I stood compared to other realtors in Central Kentucky. The biggest one I guess is that I am now back to where I started. Not in a sales production sense, but in my mindset.

When I started in real estate, my goal was just to be my best. I felt like if I was always trying to do my best for people, if I was always trying to learn something new from every experience, if I truly cared for my clients, that success would follow. I did not need to focus on trying to be successful. I often think of things in an agricultural sense. If you want the fruit of a plant, you focus on taking care of the plant. The plant takes care of producing the fruit in response to you taking care of the plant.

Here are some examples of what I now consider success:

A client who bought a house with me and then I sold their old one told me how great I was at communicating with them. They said every time they thought of a question, I would let them know the answer before they asked. They also said they appreciated my wisdom and experience in negotiating the sale and inspection repair lists for both houses.

Another client who is moving back to the area from out of state told me that they have worked with 3 other realtors over the past few years and I was by far the best one they have worked with.

There are other examples like this of course.

So now when I’m shaving and make eye contact with myself, I see a guy who is making things just a little bit better for those around me.

Things you hear when I am your realtor

by John Rice

1)  “Don’t buy a 2 bedroom house.” They are harder to sell when most every buyer and their realtor enters “3” for the minimum bedroom count on searches. A two bedroom listings is like playing Marco Polo alone. You’re shouting Marco, but there is nobody listening to reply with Polo.

2)  “If you buy a house that had been on the market for a long time and was realistically priced, you will have the same thing happen to you when you go to sell.” I find usually that means there is something odd about the house that most buyers don’t want, or else it would have sold sooner.

3)  “It is good to be in multiple offers when in a slow to balanced market.”  My experience tells me that when this happens in a slow to balanced market, you either have a fantastic house or one that is priced below market. When you go to sell you will either have a house that everybody wants or are buying it right, or maybe both!

4)  “If you have to use the word ‘Except’ when you describe your purchase, it was a bad one.”  “Except” means there is some major negative that will bite you on the bum if you need to sell in a slow market. “We got a great house…..EXCEPT for the tiny yard…..EXCEPT for backing to the loading docks of a grocery store…..EXCEPT for being on a busy road.”

5)  “Avoid a bad school district.” There are exceptions here, such as a condo complex that appeals mainly to empty nesters. However, if you have a house where the target buyer will likely have kids, it will be important to them even if it wasn’t to you. And notice what I did not say. I did not say to buy only in the best district. Why? Because most buyers with kids are okay with an average or better performing school, they just don’t want a poorly performing one.

6)  “A fixer upper isn’t always a bargain.”  I learned this one the hard way long before I got into real estate. If you buy a house for 80% of the potential market value, but must spend the 20% savings to make it just as good as any other house on the street, all you have gained is experience that will help you if you ever decide to become a realtor.

7)  “Buying the least house in the best neighborhood doesn’t always make sense.” This one runs contrary to what most people think. The reality is that the typical buyer for the nicer neighborhood is going to find your house plain or too small. I see it all the time where people will pick the better house in a lesser neighborhood over the lesser house in the better neighborhood for the same price.

So, follow these rules and you should be on a good start to not losing your shirt when you need to sell!