Old and interesting discoveries

Today, I decided to Google myself and see what I could find out there. I have been posting to the internet for several years in many different places and have realized that some of that stuff is still out there even though it may have been YEARS since my last up-date. One interesting find is a website I built on Geocities.com - I put a LOT of effort into this site. It was one of the first efforts to put Open Space Technology on the internet. Since then, Open Space has accumulated quite a web presence. I'm working on trying to figure out how to edit/up-date that site a bit to bring it more current. My ultimate goal is to get a grip on all of the pieces out there and assemble a single page that can be a "portal" for all of them.

An Open Space Friend of mine - Michael Herman - made the suggestion a few days ago to go to http://www.flickr.com/ and enter "OpenSpacetech" . . . and to create a slideshow of Open Space pictures to scroll through on the wall during a presentation. I did it yesterday - Click here to see the results. This INternet thingie is some kinda powerful. It was very cool to be opening space for @ 40 folks and glancing up at the wall occasionally to see a photo of a group of folks sitting in a circle somewhere on the other side of the world doing the same. This added a powerful enhancement to the whole thing . . . a deeper energy of sorts.

Then this morning, I woke up with a blog post inside my head literally SCREAMING to be released, so I dashed to the computer and typed as fast as I could. I'm not sure I captured it all but I made a good effort . . . HERE IT IS . . . It is all about the fact that it takes a Village.

All these pieces fit together. If we approach our global environment as a Village - That is - if we accept the fact that we are ALL in this thing (the planet) together, and that we are all equally/mutually responsible for the nurturing of each other and our environment, then we all suddenly discover that we are individually important. We can each choose to be significant in the lives of everyone we touch. We can BE Warriors, Teachers, Visionaries, and Healers, and there are MANY avenues for us to participate in the caring of our own personal village. If we choose not to "PLUG-IN" then we are choosing to deprive ourselves of living life to its fullest and we are depriving others in the world of the internal wisdom and beauty and compassion we have to share.

No one created rules for the posting of the Open Space pictures on Flickr, yet nearly 3000 images are there for the viewing . . . posted by many different people. There were no planning committees and sub-committees . . . The internet provided the space, and those folks with that passion stepped up.

The village concept is such that - Imagine a small village of 200 natives. Odds are good that all 200 of these inhabitants know each other intimately. Odds are also good that each of these people serves as a "support system" for others. They are all interdependent, and as each one finds success, so do the others . . . All boats rise with the tide. As the village grows and technology improves, the importance of this "village nurturing environment" does not decrease . . . in fact, it increases. We have FAR fewer racial and ethnic conflicts if we would all simply accept this notion that we are ALL in this together. Mutual respect and honor regardless of personal beliefs. Respect and honor includes NOT imposing our beliefs and culture on others . . . AND (I believe) not diluting our OWN beliefs and cultures to accommodate those people who choose to relocate into our environment. We are who we are, and we should be who we are wherever we are! SIMPLE!

When you live in a village, life is just simpler and kinder!

b
Barry Owen
http://www.theowengroup.net/
www.activerain.com/barryo
Simply living the fourfold way in Open Space!

Persistence and determination . . .

Each morning, I receive (Thanks to Lowes) an article from RIS Media . . . and every so often, the message folds perfectly into my current stream of thought. THIS POST hit home today. It begins with one of my favorite quotes:

"former U.S. President Calvin Coolidge said, “Nothing in the world can take the place of persistence. Talent will not; nothing is more common than unsuccessful men with talent. Genius will not; unrewarded genius is almost a proverb. Education will not; the world is full of educated derelicts. Persistence and determination alone are omnipotent.”

The remainder of the article has some great food for thought for ANYONE ANYWHERE! This is the stuff that keeps people moving forward through thick and thin. Do yourself a favor and read the whole thing and spend a few minutes contemplating.

How this relates to this blog space (a place where I focus on real estate related issues for CONSUMERS from the perspective of a Broker), I find myself always examining MOTIVATION and LOYALTY . . . especially in a "tough market" . . . If you are contemplating a move (and/or are suddenly faced with a "mandatory move"), the best advice I can give you is to take the points in this article and use them as a filter when selecting a REALTOR to represent you in your purchase or sale. This industry has found a level of complexity and uncertainty that makes it paramount for you to find a REALTOR who has what it takes persevere in the face of whatever happens.

Once you have found this REALTOR, STAY WITH THIS PERSON FOR THE LONG HAUL! You do NOT do yourself ANY favors by asking for a short listing period and/or "firing" your REALTOR if your property is not sold in the first month. You will get further than you can possibly imagine by building a MUTUALLY LOYAL RELATIONSHIP with your REALTOR so you both feel SAFE and comfortable. Your goal should be to find a "partner" in the purchase/sale of your home . . . rather than seeing this as an Employer/Employee relationship.

With this approach, you will most likely find a flow that will result in higher rewards and less stress than if you were to randomly select a REALTOR.

Another very pleasant aftertaste is that you and your REALTOR will have solidified a relationship that can actually survive for YEARS.

Best,

b
Barry Owen
Principal Broker and Productivity Coach
Keller Williams Realty - Nashville, TN - Green Hills
http://www.theowengroup.net/
REALTOR Blog www.activerain.com/barryo

Simply Living the FourFold Way in Open Space!

Rates have IMPROVED!

The Fed CUT THE RATES!
The FED CUT THE RATES!
THE FED CUT THE RATES!

. . . by a HALF Point!

What does this mean to you?

If you're a consumer cued up to buy something significant, this might be GREAT news. What this change does IMMEDIATELY is increase the "liquidity" of the companies in the business of lending money. Liquidity is what dried up in the mortgage company debacle of the past few months. Lack of liquidity was the cause of many of the mortgage company failures. Lack of liquidity was the foundational reason for the lender's sudden change in the loan products they were willing to offer.

This Fed rate change will not have the result of "everything is all better now" - instead, it will loosen things up just enough to allow the market to breathe. This is a breath of life into a market that seemed convinced to suffocate itself. There are certainly not going to be any instantaneous and miraculous results. Most people are still cautious about purchasing/borrowing because of the sheer volume of negativity blasted out by the press in the past few months. What it will do is stimulate the activity of the smart, well positioned folks who recognize this opportunity (and have the financial strength and acuity) to seize the day and make some lemonade out of these lemons. Clearly, this is a market in which Buyers can purchase more house for less money (in most areas) . . . and now those savvy Buyers can finance at better rates.

If you're well positioned to buy real estate, everything seems to be coming up roses. I say "Get while the gettin's good."

ABC news reported a story - HERE"S THE LINK - that put this whole thing in a nice and easy to understand perspective - Entitled "What the Fed Decision Means for You - How the Fed's Rate Decision Impacts Credit Cards, Mortgages and Student Loans" - I don't often laud mainstream media articles, but Deb sent this one to me - and I like it :-)

I also wrote a bit more on this on my other blog - HERE'S The LINK - I wrote that piece from a REALTOR's perspective for other REALTORS.

I think this market still has a LOOOONG way to go before full recovery - In fact, things will likely decline more before they improve . . . but every little morsel of good news is quite tasty.

Thank you FED!

b
Barry Owen
Principal Broker & Productivity Coach
Keller Williams Realty - Nashville Tennessee - Green Hills
http://www.theowengroup.net/
www.activerain.com/barryo
Simply Living the FourFold Way in Open Space!

The State of the Tennessee Real Estate Market

If you are curious about what is REALLY going on in the real estate industry, we invite you to a seminar we are hosting in our Green Hills office on THURSDAY SEPTEMBER 20 6:30 PM. On tap, we will have commentary from John Stephenson with Commerce Union Mortgage (Countrywide) followed by a statistical market overview and analysis including "in the trenches" observations about trends by Barry Owen (Principal Broker) and Debbie Guthery-Owen (Principal for The Owen Group). The commentary will be followed by a period of Q & A - The session will end when it is over - IE when the questions cease. We hope you will attend. Please call 615-425-3617 to let us know if you'll be there :-)

This past week-end, we celebrated our youngest daughter Allison's 6th birthday. As usual, we made it a multi-day event beginning Saturday with a trip to the Sommet Center (The Nashville Arena) to see one of the girl's FAVORITE shows on ice - High School Musical. The show was great, and we all learned some things. This is a good, clean show. The lesson for the kids really is along the lines of personal authenticity. The lead characters are a group of high school classmates - 2 of them are boyfriend/girlfriend (Jock and super-brain) - an unlikely pair to be on stage performing in the talent show. They face a series of challenges to their authenticity. In the 1st show, their friends initially make many efforts to pull them away from the performance and towards their "public talent" (basketball and intelligence contests) . . . In the end, they both "convert" their friends to support them and beat the odds stacked against them to beat the nemesis brother and sister duo that ALWAYS wins the show.

In the 2nd 1/2, the nemesis sister has decided to lure the "jock" with a slick job at the country club and the possibility of using her connections and social status to help him get into the college of his choice. At the beginning, he holds fast to his principles and requires that his friends also be hired, and as the show progresses, she presents him with a variety of perks to pull him away from his friends . . . In the end, he does the right thing . . . and the nemesis seems to learn the lesson and she too does the right thing.

That's a very brief and loose recap of the show - My point is:

What a SUPER thing to be teaching our young ones (and those older ones who haven't gotten the lesson yet). If we operate from personal authenticity and principle centered action, we live a life of purpose - The Universe and the people around us seem to magically conspire to help us reach our goals and aspirations - Our ambition leads to great things. It is when we waiver from this authenticity that we find rocky roads and trouble. Living with integrity - That is - Thinking about our actions and doing the right thing ALWAYS overcomes all obstacles. This (Integrity) is the "I" in Keller Williams Realty's WI4C2TS.

I appreciate Disney's message. This is refreshing in a world of mixed and confusing messages that our young people see every day.

Just BE AUTHENTIC - BE YOURSELF! One of the quotes in the script was along the lines of: "If you change who you appear to be just to get something you want, you might actually become that person and not be able to find your way back to you own REAL self" This is the "Starstruck Syndrome" . . . or as friends would say: "You're head is too big" "You've forgotten the people who brung ya here" "Get your head in the REAL game" "Get your feet back on the ground"

etc etc

Hoping you have a great and authentic day!

b
Barry Owen
Principal Broker and Productivity Coach
Keller Williams Realty - Nashville - Green Hills
http://www.theowengroup.net/
Other blog www.activerain.com/barryo

Simply Living the FourFold Way in Open Space!

Gaining Financial control . . .

A few nights ago, we had the TV on as we worked through our evening routine. It served mostly as "background noise" for most of the family (including me) until the Larry King Live show came on . . . and I heard the words "real estate". This pinged my reticular activator, and I tuned in for a few minutes. The guest was Suzi Orman (Click here for her website). I had heard of Suzi Orman in years past but had not paid much attention to her. After all, we have our own local Personal Financial Guru here in Nashville - Dave Ramsey with his Financial Peace University.

Suzi had some good advice that is relevant to anyone considering a home purchase. None of it blindingly brilliant - mostly common sense - ALL of very practical and useful. Following are just a few bits . . . I did not see the entire segment but got enough to know that what she was saying merits a look . . . so if you're in the mood for a move, I recommend that you visit the ideas of Suzi Orman and Dave Ramsey and any other financial advisor who can help you position yourself well in the market.

When you pay off a credit card, DO NOT CLOSE IT . . . Open, unused credit helps your score.
NEVER buy real estate with less than 10% of the purchase price down-payment.
NO PIGGY BACK LOANS . . . 80% 1st mortgage + 20% 2nd . . . The 2nd mortgages are usually HELOC open lines of credit that show as a credit hit because it is maxed out on the day it is established.
If you-re going to pay extra payments on your mortgage, do it by sending in additional "principal only payments" to the mortgage company. DO NOT participate in programs that encourage you to pay bi-weekly instead of monthly. Those programs do pay the mortgage down faster, but they are not free. The banks charge processing and enrollment fees.

Those are just a few of the ideas I picked up. I have had a wonderful experience with a client who bought a house from me 5 years ago. They are considering a move. I spoke with them about the financial side of things, and they told me with great pride that they had just (last month) mailed out their FINAL house payment - There is NO mortgage. WOW! I asked how this could be? Hmmm . . . more common sense . . . They lived frugally for 5 years and paid additional money EVERY month towards their mortgage. Their reward is that they now have the ability to sustain the same payment ritual and can literally DOUBLE their price range without having any change in their life-style . . . and the house they will buy will likely ALSO be paid off in less than 10 years.

THAT'S what I call "Playing the financial game the way it should be played". I hope you'll pause and consider your financial scenario and be "real" with it. What can you do to improve? Do you have "right" practices that provide stability and consistency? If not, I recommend that you find a financial mentor/guru who can help you get there. Some banks offer these services just for banking with them - Banks such as Pinnacle Financial Partners . . . OR you can watch for seminars/classes/programs like dave Ramsey's Financial Peace Program.

Get yourself right financially, and life just seems to cruise along a bit easier.

b
Barry Owen
Principal Broker & Productivity Coach
Keller Williams Realty - Nashville, TN - Green Hills
http://www.theowengroup.net/
simply Living the FourFold Way in Open Space

As promised - The kids

I had to take a little hiatus from the blog writing for a few days - Had to do some catch up, and the calendar was more full than I expected. At Keller Williams Realty Nashville Green Hills, we had SUPERB day of training yesterday. It all began with a presentation from an Insurance Company for a "roll-out" of a new Health Insurance Plan that Keller Williams Realty International has put together. This is nothing short of wonderful because Health Insurance is not an easy find for independent contractors like REALTORS, and generally it is MUCH more expensive because no one has seemed to be able to figure out how to put together a "group policy" for a gaggle of Independent Contractors . . . until NOW!

We then launched into a series of 3 very well attended "LAB" sessions led by 3 of our top associates. Aaron Armstrong began with "Working with For Sale By Owners" - Jane McCracken followed with "Expired Listings" - and Steve Myers ended the day with "Making, receiving, and negotiating offers." These classes were our first "run" of a new strategy for training in our market center. This strategy is more participative than simple "classroom instruction". The whole focus is on tapping into the collective wisdom of our membership. The leader of the session uses the appropriate Power Session from Keller Williams Realty's 4:4:3 - 4 Listings and 4 sales in the 3 months - program (an 18 session LAUNCH program designed for all agents new and old . . . This is a "back to the basics Marvel") The leader opens the session with an over view of the power session . . . then speaks from personal perspective . . . then opens the floor for discussion. All of this compliments the other on-going training, masterminds, and coaching we offer throughout each month consistently to sharpen the skills of our associates, so they can continue to transact business in this weird market . . . and it is WORKING . . . Our volume of sales is as strong as ever, and our profitability grows daily.

Here at Keller Williams Realty Green Hills, we ARE walking the talk of being a learning based organization.

OK - Back to my promise to those selling their homes. I advised you what to do with your pets . . . now for the children. The first and most important component is to have a family meeting during which the family as a whole comes to a complete understanding as to the importance of keeping the house as clean and tidy as possible at ALL times. This begins with a clear understanding of the benefit derived - "We get to move to a different house!" Do not exclude your children from your plan-making. The more you integrate them into the process as a whole, the more they will understand and support the effort. Leave them out of the loop, and they will likely rebel and look for avenues to sabotage. Bring EVERYONE in the family into the loop.

LEAD BY EXAMPLE! As you prepare the house for sale, consider EVERYTHING that is "out" on table-tops, in cabinets, closets, attic, basement, on the floors . . . and clear away ANYTHING that you do not expect to need for the next 6 months. Seize this opportunity to purge (throw away) any stuff that you can deem not worthy of moving to you next house. Ask your children to do as you are doing. Have them sort their OWN belongings and make conscious choices as to which things they want to keep out. Assure them that the toys they stow away will not be thrown away . . . only stored and can come back into regular use after the house sells.

Gently encourage the young people in your house to do at home as they do in school: "When you are finished with an activity, put everything in its place and clean the area before starting a new project." MODEL this behavior for them by being aware of any random piles (mail and papers) you might randomly leave about the house.

FOOD - The new rule is that food and drink NEVER leave the defined eating areas of the house.

One useful tip is to make a run to get several of those big, plastic, stackable storage containers . . . some for you and some for the kids . . . and a huge garbage can . . . and sort things as trash or keepers . . . then store the stackables in the attic, crawl space, or perhaps a rented storage unit or POD. The more STUFF you get out of the house, the easier it will be to keep things clean.

This strategy works for children of all ages. Even your very young children will participate if they understand the importance . . . your teen-agers might be a different story. You may have to resort to beating them. (Just kidding). Infants? Well,they may not reach understanding so it'll be up to you to get a handle on all of that. The best way to do this is to get all of the baby stuff into one, well-defined area of the house . . . and keep it there. The more spread out it is, the more impossible the task.

When you get notice that a REALTOR wants to show your house, your tension should be much lower knowing that all you will need to do is load the kids in the car and head to the park or go shopping for a while.

I hope these tips help. All of this is totally necessary in this market in which EVERY showing is GOLDEN . . . This is a "zero-tolerance" policy . . . Make your house as perfect as it can be for EVERY prospect that walks through.

Best,

b
Barry Owen
Principal Broker & Productivity Coach
Keller Williams Realty - Nashville - Green Hills
http://www.theowengroup.net/
Other blog: www.activerain.com/barryo

Simply Living the FourFold Way in Open Space!

What to do with Fido & Felix when you're selling your home . . .

A few years ago, I had what I call affectionately my "Rottweiler week". This week started when I received an order to do a BPO (Broker Price Opinion) of a house in Franklin. The house was beautiful with a large pond in the front yard. I parked on the street and walked into the property and around the pond, so i could get pictures of the sides and rear of the house. While I was focusing my camera for the final side shot, I saw in the lens of the camera the largest dog I had ever seen . . . walking towards me on his fists . . . apparently just awakened from a nap in the garage. A quick assessment of my position was not good news - I had to either swim across or run around the pond to reach safety (my car), and I was certain this beast could easily eat me before I got too far . . . so I decided to take my chances at being able to make a friend. Today, I am still alive and kicking, so apparently I did well. He ended up playing fetch with me for a few minutes. WHEW!

2 Days later, I was showing property in the village (Nashville). Things were going well. I was working with a 1st time home-buyer, and we were getting along swimmingly. We drove up to the cutest little house . . . Lots of "OOOHS" and "AAAAHS" . . . I opened the key-box and slid the key in the front door - The door opened smoothly (without having to fight with the lock) . . . and THEN - Totally silently and VERY suddenly, a VERY large animal head appeared out of nowhere and attempted to lunge through the door at me with a ferocious roar. If I had not been in good physical condition, I probably would have died of a heart attack right then and there. I had the presence of mind to pull the door closed as much as possible . . . 1/2 the Rottweiler was out and 1/2 in . . . Thank God, the owner was not far behind and saved the day.

Next day . . . Different client . . . I'm a bit more wary now . . . Showing another house - No signs of pets - I let my guard down - Client wants to see the wonderful, fenced back yard. We step off the deck and walk to the back, turn around to look at the rear of the house when we see sitting at attention - under the deck - a ROTTWEILER watching us. A quick survey of the situation was not good - 8 foot privacy fence all around, and the dog was between us and the deck. I closer look revealed a CHAIN . . . YES - He was chained to the deck and could not get to us - WHEW!

2 days later - I'm showing yet another client. We see a note on the front door that reads: "FOUR cats inside - DO NOT LET ANY OUTSIDE OR IN THE BASEMENT!" ALL 4 cats meet us at the front door. The house was beautiful, but we never got to see it because we were herding and entertaining the cats the whole time we were there . . . and the place SMELLED LIKE CAT!

Skip to present day . . . I was showing a house a few weeks ago . . . Things were going well. It was clear that my client was very interested. This a couple with a 6 month old daughter. The house is PERFECT for them. We head down to the finished basement and see a note on a closed door (that leads to @ 2/3 of the basement). The note says: "VERY FRIENDLY GERMAN SHEPHERD - BARKS BUT WILL NOT BITE!" The instant I opened that door, that dog lunged from his slumber and raced towards us with the hair bristled in a taught line on his back - barking very seriously.I put myself between the dog and my clients (mostly to protect the baby) and attempted to make friends. The dog did not bite but DID walk around us the whole time we were there - BARKING! This did not make for a peaceful showing.

The point of all these stories? If you are selling your house and REALLY want to sell it, you MUST find a way to remove your menagerie when showing the house . . . or at the very least, quarantine the animals into a cage or pen and give the REALTORS ADVANCE NOTICE. When people come to see your house, the LAST thing the REALTOR of client wants to do is to have to babysit the family pets during the showing. This is a complete distraction and is not the path to a fast sale. Additionally, I recommend that ALL pets be removed COMPLETELY from the house until it is sold. I love pets (especially dogs), but they do NOT enhance your odds of selling your house if there are scratch marks on the doors and walls . . . food/water bowls to accidentally step in . . . complex instructions as to how to handle the pets during showings . . . and animal smells that offend discerning noses. I have had many clients actually say: "I love the house but don't want the hassle of deodorizing (de-petting) the place."

Where can the pets go? How 'bout a friend's house? ANYWHERE but under the feet of the prospects and REALTORS there to see your house. These are offensive words for those REAL pet lovers out there. I understand that your pet is likely a "child" to you . . . another member of the family . . . The question is, though: "At what cost?" Are you OK with your house selling for less money than it could otherwise in a longer period of time? Perhaps the way to look at it is that you are sending your pet (child) off to camp for a little while.

Now that I've opened the next Pandora's Box . . . Perhaps the next post will be about your human children . . . Don't worry . . . I'm not going to recommend that you send them away while you sell your house, but I do have some tips.

G'day!

b
Barry Owen
Principal Broker & Productivity Coach
Keller Williams Realty - Nashville - Green Hills
http://www.theowengroup.net/
Coaching Blog: www.activerain.com/barryo
Simply Living the FourFold Way in Open Space!

Understanding your contract . . .

Contracts are NOT to be taken lightly. In the past @ 10 years, real estate sales have been strong in most areas of the country - Certainly here in Middle Tennessee each year has been better than the year before. Brisk sales often lead to sloppy paperwork. The general mood becomes one of simply getting the paper done because that's what the law requires and for all these years, it hasn't been disastrous if pesky details were inadvertently omitted . . . misunderstandings cleared up quickly because the Buyers were more motivated to stay in the deal . . . There wasn't much else on the market to consider. Times have changed.

In today's market, the Sellers are less inclined to let a Buyer out of a deal without a good fight. This is because there is an overabundance of inventory and a shortage of Buyers . . . If you've got one on the line, you don't want to lose them. I am seeing cases where, even when the contract termination is justifiable (Terminating the deal based on the home inspection), the Sellers are grasping for any little missed detail in the contract that can give them a toe-hold to keep the Buyer's earnest money and/or force the Buyer to close. This is a STRONG reason for ALL parties to a contract to literally comb through EVERY detail of the contract to be SURE that EVERY box they want to be checked is checked and that they have FULL understanding of their obligations. There is very little room for error even when the negotiation seems friendly enough. If your REALTOR is not explaining things, STOP the process until you understand fully.

Unfortunately, I am seeing many cases of unreasonableness (Is that a word?). I have heard many agents say: "These Sellers need to get REAL!" I understand the mindset and frustration of a Seller in this market. It is NOT fun to be a market where you have little to no control especially when you've had full range of motion for 10+ years. This is not comfortable, but it is what it is. The "getting real" part for me is that Sellers can make much better use of their time than to fight to keep a Buyer in a deal that the Buyer does not want to be in. I'm not talking about Buyers who are attempting to default - Those ones should have their feet held to the fire. I'm talking about the Buyers who have justifiable reasons for terminating. The truth is - Ultimately, the Buyer will find a way out if he/she wants out . . . and if the Seller wants to hold them in the deal, they can still refuse to close on the appointed date . . . enforcement is a laborious, expensive process and isn't generally worth the effort.

Why can't we just agree to disagree and move on?

All of this to say: "When you sign an agreement to purchase real estate (Or ANY contract), be CERTAIN that it says what you want it to say . . . and that every i is dotted and t crossed . . . There is NO room for error.

A Zero tolerance market is what we have here :-)

And most of all - have fun with the process - Celebrate all offers and contracts - Develop a positive mindset and KEEP IT - With a little less fighting and tension (struggling), my suspicion is this market will turn around. Positive energy always seems to beget positive results.

:-)

b
Barry Owen
Principal Broker and Productivity Coach
Keller Williams Realty - Nashville - Green Hills
http://www.theowengroup.net/
Other blog: www.activerain.com/barryo
Simply living the FourFold Way in Open Space!

If you're a Seller, are you "Participating?"

This is no market for unmotivated Sellers. An unmotivated Seller is a person who nonchalantly lists the family home on the market with no defined strategy and/or goal in mind other than to "cash out and move on." Generally, these homes are the ones sitting on the market for long periods of time - initially over-priced, perhaps never reduced (or not reduced enough to sell) . . . and usually there is a REALTOR working diligently to sell this unsellable property. The sign is up. The information is in the Multiple Listing System and ALL over the internet. REALTOR and public Open Houses happen regularly. REALTOR showings are happening frequently . . . but no offers.

When looking at the comparable sales in the immediate area (Which should be done at least every 2 weeks), the REALTOR sees that there are very few recent sales - and several new listings . . . The competition for the Buyer's attention is fierce. This is a market in which there is a vast difference between "good" and GREAT! The Buyers are spinning through the good listings (thus all the showings) to get a read on what a GREAT listing looks like. These Buyers are not in a hurry. They have time. They are watching and know when prices reduce. The typical Buyer will meander through the marketplace indifferently until they happen upon a GREAT listing, and then they will POUNCE with a very fair offer. Along the way, they may make offers on several different properties. These offers may be very low (below listing price), but the Buyer is not particularly attached to having THAT house but might buy it if they could get it for a bargain. This creates a roller coaster ride for many Sellers who entertain offers and see them come and go - Often reaching agreement only to have the deal killed by the Buyer based on the inspection a few days later - This is what happens when unmotivated Buyers meet unmotivated Sellers.

So what's the difference between good and GREAT? The GREAT listings are priced perfectly in line with the competition - no delusions of grandeur. These Sellers have done EVERYTHING they could do to have this house sparkling and ready for the new owners. They have attended to ALL of the "deferred maintenance" (those "Honey-do" things that have been on "the list" for months). Their mindset is TOTALLY and AUTHENTICALLY TUNED IN to the process. They are BOTH (If a couple) fully committed to their move. They know (and agree) WHY and WHERE they intend to move. They are entering this process in a purposeful way. These folks find a great REALTOR and ENGAGE IN THE PROCESS. These are people who make themselves infinitely available for the REALTOR. Yes, they are busy with their careers, but this home sale is IMPORTANT to them and is worthy of their time and attention when their REALTOR calls. These folks develop a healthy dialogue with the REALTOR throughout - always asking what THEY (The Sellers) can do to help with the selling of their house.

When a listing is great, it's almost as if there is a halo around it. There is a buzz of positive karmic energy that tends to attract the RIGHT, MOTIVATED Buyers. The mindset of everyone in the ensuing transaction is a mindset of WIN-WIN!

Does this sound Utopian and too good to be true? Well, it's NOT. It takes more than just a GREAT REALTOR to sell your home. Your participation and commitment leverage your REALTOR's talent and training. Your authentic motivation tends to smooth any rough waters that arise. EVERYONE on the "Selling Team" (Client and REALTOR) has a critical function in the process, and the surest way to a win-win conclusion is a great mindset and well-defined purpose

My opinion is that there is ONE barrier to the sale - The SELLER'S MOTIVATION TO SELL! If your house is on the market, and it is not selling, do NOT call your REALTOR and whine. COMMUNICATE with your REALTOR and ask why? LISTEN to the answer. UNDERSTAND your competition and be willing to do your part - WHATEVER IT TAKES. If your REALTOR will not be candid with you and tell you the truth ("You're price is too high") then find a REALTOR who WILL.

OK- Off my soap box . . . This rampage comes from the perspective of a Principal Broker in a market chock full of houses for sale . . . seeing more and more deals "fall out" resulting in bloody earnest money disputes . . . This process does NOT have to be this difficult. Simply enter the market with proper motivation, and your ride will be a smooth one :-)

Best,

b
Barry Owen
Principal Broker & Productivity Coach
Keller Williams Realty - Nashville, TN - Green Hills Market Center
http://www.theowengroup.net/
www.activerain.com/barryo
Simply Living the FourFold Way in Open Space!

How does the Mortgage Industry Shake-up affect YOU!

This morning, we had our monthly "team Meeting" at Keller Williams Realty Green Hills Market Center. These meetings generally cover a variety of topics from new training opportunities offered throughout the month . . . to market up-dates . . . to new opportunities such as our new opportunities for health insurance for our associates (always a difficult thing for independent contractors (such as REALTORS) to find). This meeting was chock full of great information and was very well attended.

One of my favorite parts of the meeting is the "Mortgage Up-date" from our in-house lending option. John Stephenson with Commerce Union Mortgage, a Joint Venture with Keller Williams Realty in Middle Tennessee . John didn't (initially) have a lot to say . . . until one very wise and inquisitive associate in the back of the room asked the "Pandora's box question:" "How has all of this mortgage industry mess affected our clients? What kind of loans can they get now?"

Well, this question got John going. His answer was very direct. John was absolutely prepared for this question. I'm not certain whether it was intentional or accidental, but it was a great and informative answer. I am going to paraphrase and "dumb down" his response a bit because he kinda got into some lender jargon. The deeper he got, the more esoteric he got. The bottom lines were:

Countrywide Mortgage (the parent of Commerce Union Mortgage) is alive and well and fully prepared to do home loans.

FHA and VA financing have been virtually unaffected - Va is a great way (probably one of the very few ONLY ways) to get 100% financing . . . FHA financing gets almost (97.25%) 100% financing . . . and both programs are alive and kicking.

Straight 100% conventional financing is all but gone - but he quoted a few interesting possibilities - a client with great credit could get 90% 1st Mortgage + 10% 2nd Mortgage + 10% Buyer's own money down payment would get a rate @ 6.5% for a 30 year fixed for a mortgage not exceeding $417,000 . . . Over $417,000 loan amount makes it a "jumbo loan" and the rate jumps 2 (TWO) points to 8.5% . . . The banks do NOT want to make jumbo loans - Too risky - but they will at this higher rate with good borrower credit scores. The best scenario for someone in the over $417,000 price range is to have cash enough to bring the balance in cash down payment ($600,000 purchase price - Bring $184,000 - Borrow $416,000 - Get the better 6.5% rate).

"No documentation" loans are pretty scarce but apparently possible. John did not talk about appraisals . . . I wish I had asked that question - I will ask that one and post his answer in a different post. I have heard plenty of nightmares about appraisals. Apparently when appraisers started being dragged to jail by the FBI for collusion in lending fraud schemes, suddenly they started doing "blind appraisals" (Doing the appraisal without having seen the purchase price) . . . this often results in them not meeting the purchase price which indubitably leads to a skirmish between the Seller and the Buyer. A worse scenario is when the appraiser meets the purchase price, and the underwriter (2 days before the closing date) runs an "AVR" (Automated Valuation Report) and determines (based on this broad stroke appraisal method that has NO clue about local values) that the property is worth significantly less than the purchase price and irrevocably kills the financing . . . This scenario invariably leads to a whole sequence of unnecessary domino effect bad days for many people. Thankfully, I have not seen a lot of this . . . but it IS happening.

The bottom line is that if you have great credit (over 700 scores) and a steady flow of income, you can still be financed (under $417,000) with a good rate . . . but you gotta have some cash to put into the deal. This isn't so bad though, is it? Like my friend Don Birdwell says: "You gotta have some skin in the game!" If you don't have any skin in the game, you're far more likely to take irresponsible risk.

Just think . . . if more people had skin in the game in the past 5 years, the mortgage industry probably wouldn't BE in this pickle . . . and perhaps the market would not have accelerated so quickly . . . and the greed factor would not have set in so firmly . . . and there would be far fewer foreclosures . . . and we would all be saving the tax dollars it takes to prosecute and house the folks who have landed on the wrong side of the law because of their greed.

If you're in a good, strong position to buy real estate, I cannot think of a better time to DO IT! This is a GREAT market for a strong Buyer . . . If your credit lacks . . . and/or your available cash is limited, this might not be your day . . . you might want to consider a pause til the waters calm a bit . . . and the experts say this calm is still a while from now - We still have to weather the storm of the 5 year ARMs hitting their "floats." . . . and that one might very well be the "perfect storm."

We REALTORS are in this game for the duration. Now's a great time to contact us and get the ball rolling with a real estate agent and lender you trust . . . You CAN do VERY well in this market.

Best,

b
Barry Owen
Principal Broker and Productivity Coach
Keller Williams Realty - Nashville - Green Hills
http://www.theowengroup.net/
Simply Living the FourFold Way in Open Space!

Pulling it all together . . .

The past several weeks have been all about change/transition. We have learned the inevitable truth that shifts happen very quickly on the local level and generally much slower on the national and international level. As this relates to real estate, we REALTORS are in a seemingly incessant push-me-pull-you with the impact of the media stories on the local real estate market.

Here in Nashville, sales continue to be strong -Houses and Condominiums ARE STILL SELLING at a very healthy pace in spite of the doom and gloom mortgage industry news. The consumers don't seem to care as much about it all as the professionals . . . and simply go out and purchase when ready and sell when ready . . . The only real change is that the Buyers and Seller who are taking action have MOTIVATION. Previously, we were never quite sure that the clients actually wanted to move . . . Through the "Good Years," the numbers of "tire kickers" were high - Money was easy to get - Motivation for seeing this whole thing as a PROCESS instead of an EVENT in which a person could (on a whim) finish breakfast and haphazardly decide to buy a house . . . Call a REALTOR, see the house - call a lender and secure financing (seemingly regardless of credit and income and close within 3 weeks). Those days are over.

Buying or selling a house is a PROCESS that should not be handled lightly. Many REALTORS will not survive this down-turn in the market because they do not see it this way and expect to continue to bounce from buying event to buying event. It is more important than EVER now for Buyers and Sellers to find and work with well-informed, learning based, SERIOUS, PROFESSIONAL REALTORS . . . and to pay them well. This type of professional undoubtedly will have in place a very well orchestrated SYSTEM for navigating this PROCESS . . . and the client will experience a series of "events" and feel very well informed throughout the process . . . There will be few surprises along the way . . . and the closing will happen as it should - SMOOTHLY!

I have been a Principal Broker for almost 4 years - and have been a high producing, practicing, full time REALTOR for @ 14 years . . . In all that time, I have never witnessed such a tangled mess of angry people (clients and agents) who have gotten themselves into deals they do not understand. Invariably, these messes happen because of the lack of a well defined process . . . ill (or un)-informed clients get very angry when things begin to go South unexpectedly . . . and suddenly, folks begin to develop a severe case of amnesia and an inability to read the contract they agreed to honor . . . all leading to a completely unnecessary flurry of calls and meetings and legal threats and Broker involvement etc.

When people are wary of the market, they become distrusting of the people who serve them (REALTORS) . . . The only way to gain this trust is to HAVE A PLAN and to communicate effectively throughout the process. Without sufficient systems and communication, seller may get to the end of a negotiating feeling like they "LOST" and might have been able to do better (Get more money) and at the same time, the Buyer also feels he/she might have been able to do better (Lost) . . . and so we have a "LOSE-LOSE" scenario - not good . . . This scenario often leads to horrendous inspection periods, dead deals, earnest money disputes, slicing and dicing of the contract . . . and ultimately the involvement of attorneys and courts.

How do we avoid this unpleasant by-product of a shifting market?

We do it with MINDSET. The Mantra of EVERYONE in the transaction MUST be: "I will invest my full, authentic self into this process and will strive for a WIN-WIN solution to any negotiation." THIS CAN BE DONE - EVERY TIME!" This process is NOT "Rocket Science," but it IS a process that requires your FULL attention AND the advice of a whole slew of "able" guides (REALTOR & LENDER) who can navigate through and around the pitfalls. As the client, you MUST engage yourself in the process and understand what's happening . . . If you don't understand, STOP THE PROCESS and ask your questions . . .Do NOT let things fester.

So, what are we (Real Estate Brokers) doing about all of this?

I can only speak for myself and for my firm - Keller Williams Realty - Nashville - Green Hills. We have COMPLETELY revamped ALL of our training. Some of this new training comes from Keller Williams University (Our international offices) . . . and the remainder from our own wealth of experienced associates within the office. ALL of this training is directed 100% at dealing with ALL of the issues above. Successful REALTORS MUST begin with establishing business rituals (Routines) that support this way of doing business - We must as a company support these agents by providing an environment that is supportive of this pursuit.

I personally have agreed to step away from working directly with Buyers and Sellers and am now implementing a COACHING PROGRAM for ONE-ON-ONE coaching with EVERY agent who wants to improve their business. We have re-formatted ALL of our training to take our associates OUT of the training center and into the field to lead them to success in their construction of their own unique Buyer and Seller processes based on the fundamental models and systems we prescribe. We are REQUIRING this Coaching for newly licensed agents, so thay can begin their real estate career with a WIn-WIN mindset . . .

Our focus is on:

- Honing the Lead Generation skills of our associates so that they can build each build a sphere of influence that will feed them appropriate business . . . and establish the ritual that they never run out of good and motivated leads . . . This keeps them sharp and motivated . . . Sharp and Motivated Professionals serve their clients impeccably.
- We train our models and systems . . . We teach them HOW to fish and serve their clients instead of throwing them leads from mass advertising
-We instill a strong CULTURE in them - our MVVBP - Mission, Vision, Values, Beliefs - WI4C2TS, and Perspective
- We provide the support systems they must have to be successful.

Armed with the right tools - Our associates are more prepared for the issues and opportunities the present market (Their business Environment) offers them . . . and even more important, they are better equipped to find win-win solutions to most every scenario.

I will occasionally blog here with more information about our coaching program (We believe EVERYONE should have a coach) . . . but will focus more on the "consumer side" so that folks thinking about Buying or selling real estate will have a resource for good tips on swimming smoothly through the process.

I think this post is rambling - but I think it says what I meant to say :-)

Not bad for an impromptu Saturday evening post.

Best,

b
Barry Owen
http://www.theowengroup.net/
www.activerain/barryo.com
Simply Living the FourFold Way in Open Space!