Have you ever wished you could see through the “hype” that every real estate agent dresses themselves up in and hire the best real estate agent to help you in buying or selling a home? With the explosion of internet marketing in the real estate industry over the last 10 years, there is not one single agent who ever advertises themselves as anything less than the absolute “best” in the business !
Stephen Brobeck, who is the Executive Director of the Consumer Federation of America has recently said “when it comes to real estate agents, we don’t have the information that we have on other service professionals”.
However, there are things you can do to pull back the curtain and accurately assess an agent’s level of experience and, therefore, competence. These two aspects in any business go hand in hand!
Ask an agent to provide you with a list of their sales for the past year? Don’t be afraid to ask them what their average yearly sales are and for how long? Ask an agent if you can contact the last three people they sold a house to for some feedback on the agent’s performance. It is easy for an agent to produce some documentation supporting their numbers and also provide you with a list of “happy” clients. You want to get at their level of experience! It is critical.
Just as doctors and lawyers “specialize”, your better real estate agents will also. The agent that advertises as expert over vast areas of different communities/cities is not someone to seriously consider. It’s kind of like hiring a repairman to handle an important job who tells you he is the best at plumbing, electricity, drywall, flooring, a/c, painting and anything else you need. What you need is someone who is really really good at more specific jobs and someone who has lot’s of experience. It is a fact that the best real estate agents will have particular areas that they specialize in and will not hesitate to tell you that there are areas they are not familiar with.
Having honest, frank discussion with a prospective real estate agent is essential. It is far more telling to have an agent answering questions rather than telling you about themself . A valuable tool in assessing an agent’s experience and knowledge is to ask about a specific neighborhood or community? Ask about recent sales, average sale price, average price per square foot, days on the market , number of bedrooms/bathrooms in certain houses, square footages. Always remember this; the agent that can answer these questions “on the fly” without having to get back to you is a good real estate agent who has done their homework and stays busy, full time in the business. It is information that you are after and the agent who has this in their head has reached this level of competence by being experienced and successful.
30A real estate buyers beware when using Zillow Zestimates
Like everywhere, 30A real estate buyers start their search for the perfect home or condo on the internet. And with hundreds of real estate websites available, buyers need to understand that over half of the information delivered is incorrect. Zillow is the largest and most popular Real Estate information site available with close to 100 million visitors a month seeking detailed information concerning hundreds of thousands of listings throughout the United States. Using this service may supplement the information you need to properly establish a realistic price on a property but don’t make the mistake of assuming that this information is “the” true gauge of market value.
Shoppers using this service, along with sellers and buyers, will quote these “Zestimates” to real estate agents when trying to determine a fair price. Here are a few things to keep in mind when using a national service that attempts to determine price:
Though it’s not prominently featured on the website, at the bottom of Zillow’s home page in small type is the word “Zestimates”. In this section they include what they call the VALUATION ERROR RATE by state and county. As an example, in New York County (Manhattan) the median valuation error rate is 19.9% ! In rural areas of California, the rate is as high as 26.6, San Francisco 11.6%. There is a real estate agent in Virginia that followed 21 sales in his city that had “zestimates”. 17 of those sales were overestimated in value and 2 of those sales sold for 60% less than the “zestimate” values. There are many areas of the country where these “zestimate” figures are in error 95% of the time.
The most important thing to remember here is that it is impossible to determine a fair market value based on computer information alone. Include these “zestimates” as no more than a starting point when discussing price with a qualified, experienced real estate agent who lives in the immediate area and knows the intangibles that are important in determining a fair market price. There is a saying that “all real estate is local” and it really is… As real estate agents here on Highway 30A in South Walton County, Florida, we receive many calls from people from all parts of the country who will reference a property they have viewed on Zillow. Most of the time, the property they are inquiring about has a “zestimate” that is far below the actual value and do not take into consideration the many local market factors that a computer does not process. Always read the fine or not so obvious print that these national services use when putting a market price out there. It is much more realistic to consider this information as a general estimate with a price range variance of 10 to 20%. Disparities like these can sour a potential buyer or seller if they view these numbers as totally reliable and that makes for a bad start to what should be a productive and informative relationship with a local Realtor.
Karen Holder, Broker/Owner Homes On 30A
Zillow and Zestimates are trademarked by their respective owners.
Things to look for in the 2015 real estate market
“Has Florida found the secret to saving the economy?”. This May, 2014 Wall Street Journal headline shows how far the state has come since the real estate/economic collapse in 2007. The Florida Department of Economic Opportunity head Jesse Panuccio says “things have changed quite remarkably for our state. Over the past year, the private sector growth rate was 3.4% second only to Texas. Florida is now the 3rd most populous state in the country. We are bullish on the prospects for 2015 and here’s why. In the housing sector, the market has cooled from the jump in prices we saw in 2013 to more moderate levels. This brings stability to our
real estate market.”
For the first time in several years we are seeing new listings outpace sales. There is currently a 5 to 6 months supply of listings which, historically speaking, is a balanced market. Investor participation in our market is on the decline and we are seeing more family purchases. Here is a quick list of things to keep in mind as we head into 2015;
Sales growth has slowed but remains positive. The outlook for 2015 is a rate around 10%
New listings will outpace sales and bring the market back into balance.
Growth in home values has returned to historical levels. A rate of 3 to 5% yearly is sustainable.
Investor/hedge fund purchases will continue to decline.
New construction is back !
Shadow inventory continues to decline as we move further away from the property glut due to the crash in 2006/2007.
Interest rates will begin to creep up but remain historically low. Perhaps 5% by years end but some predict that they will remain below 5%.
Karen Holder, Broker
30A Real Estate Sales Professional
Homeson30A.com
30a Beach House Rental Market
Scenic 30a is a unique stretch of white sandy beaches with most homeowners living out of state. The 30A real estate market here is primarily second homes and investment properties, making this a huge beach house rental market. For many years the investors came in looking for properties that offer a 10-15% return on investment but today we are lucky to find 6-7% ROI due to the increase in sales prices. Even though we have an amazing strong rental market here, there are only so many weeks a year people come to the area. Being located in the Panhandle we do have real winters which brings quite a “slow down” to our area. Our peak rental times are all of March, 2 weeks in April, all of June, all of July and 2 weeks in August. Our better rental companies in the area are averaging around 26 weeks a year right now which is stronger than ever. Your planned communities like Watercolor, Seaside, Watersound and Rosemary Beach bring the strongest weekly rates due to their high demand and amenities. You Gulf front properties are always strong for obvious reasons. Most of our rental management companies charge anywhere from 20-35% for their services and have huge marketing reach around the United States. When the Northwest Florida Beaches International Airport opened a few years ago in Bay County, It was a huge boost in turning our real estate market around. Southwest and Delta are the 2 major airlines with direct flights from Houston, Baltimore, St Louis, Nashville, Atlanta and a few other areas. 2015 is going to bring some additional direct flights including Dallas, which is home to a huge part of our buyers in the area.
Christmas on 30A
Hard to believe that Christmas is already upon us. Can Spring break be far behind? It is scary how time flies. Here is a quick list highlighting some of the bigger events that people look forward to with Christams on 30A.
FRIDAY, NOV 28 FROM 6:00 TO 8:00
Old Town Tree Lighting at Rosemary Beach. Musical performances by The Charles Dickins Carolers and The Village Brass Band. Santa arrives, carriage rides through Rosemary Beach Township. Lots to eat and drink. Admission is free.
SATURDAY, NOV 29 FROM 4:00 TO 8:00
Seaside “Turn on the town” parade and festivities. Big event. Santa arrives as part of the South Walton Holiday Parade and the “big switch” is turned on lighting up Seaside. Parade begins at 4 in front of Seagrove Plaza and ends at the amphitheatre in Seaside. Festivities begin at 5:00. FUN..free
SATURDAY, NOV 29 FROM 5:00 TO 9:00
Old Florida Holiday & Winter Market at Watercolor
Another big event. Falling snow, horse drawn carriage, bonfires, arts and crafts, smores, lots of holiday eats and treats. Beverages for all… Visit with Santa. Admission is free.
The Seaside Rep is doing ‘Every Christmas Story Ever Told” throughout the Christmas season at the Rep in Seaside. Google SOWAL and check the times. Our Rep does a fantastic job !
SATURDAY, DEC 20 FROM 5:00 TO 8:00
Christmas Candlelight Tour and Open House at Eden Gardens. The decorations are beautiful. Each room done by a different group/business in South Walton. Refreshments served. Donations to The Friends of Eden Gardens are appreciated.
As I mentioned earlier, you can Google SOWAL and view a complete detailed list of all of the events taking place. Too much fun to list it all here. Have a safe and happy Christmas..
Watercolor Home backing to Nature Preserve
Watercolor Home at 372 Red Cedar Way
This Watercolor home is situated on a private street with a park in front and nature preserve behind. This 4 bedroom 4.5 bath 2800 square foot home was built by Monte Hewitt and is perfect for full time living or a vacation home. The first floor offers a guest bedroom with private bath, an office, a large gourmet kitchen with separate dining area and a half bath. The kitchen has a large island making family gatherings easy and cozy fireplace in the living area adds warmth. There are great built ins and lots of storage in this home. This great home is being offered fully furnished and rental ready.
MLS#715145 $1,395,000