Local Real Estate Comments and Ramblings

We get that question all time. I got asked again today and I have to say our market here in Powder Springs, Marietta, West Cobb county is pretty good.  I know it's good compared to other areas of the country.  Yes, our inventory has grown from last year.  It's up about 20% to an 8 month supply of homes. 

So now is not the time to try to push the envelope on market price.  But we have buyers, we have seller, and nice homes that are priced fairly, marketed effectively, and show well, will sell. 

All in all it's nothing like what you hear on the news.

In the world of real estate prices the Atlanta area is like the tortoise and not the hare.  Some years are better than others but mostly just steady and sure.  Some years appreciation may be only 1-2% some years it may be up 5-7%  but no big roller coasters like some areas.  Most importantly we never realy have a deflation of prices.  I read in the paper a week or so ago that prices in Atlanta are up 4% from last year.

From my standpoint as an agent.... we have buyers and we have sellers and at the end of the day that's a good thing.

I was pretty excited today and wanted to share and say Thanks!

There is a very nice, nearby neighborhood, Echo Mill, in Powder Springs, that I have been "farming". So tonight I was playing around on Google and typed in several different searches. "Echo Mill", "Echo Mill Homes", "Echo Mill Powder Springs" and some others.  My stuff came up all ove the place!  I was on page 1 more than once on every search.  Sometimes it was from v-flyer or backpage.com. Some of it was from individual property websites, like 1608FloweringDogood.com . Since FLowering Dogwood is is sold I just have that domain point to my neighborhood site www.EchoMill.info .  

Several of the "hits were from AR blogs!

Some of the "hits" didn't have my name on them but they led to my listings or web sites.

No doubt that Ar has been helpful.  This is a great community and I really appreciate the sharing nature of the members. 

Thank You! 

I just got this email from the Powder Springs Business Association.

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Dr. Stephanie T. Mahle is extending out an invitation to come out and join the Back to School Open House.

Where: Brownsville Crossing Shopping Center, Corner of Brownsville and Hwy 92

When: Saturday, August 4, 2007 10:00 to 2:00pm

If your are interested in bringing flyers, raffle items, promotional items, plese let Dr. Stephanie know by Wednesday August 1, 2007. She can be reached at:

Dr. Stephanie T. Mahle

105 Brownsville Road, Suite 1

Powder Springs, GA 30127

678-391-8900

www.PeaceThroughBalance.com

Dancing by the Zig Zag Dance Center, Snacks, Raffles, and much more...

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Come on out and enjoy the fun or call Dr Stephanie about promoting your business at the event.

This is for all homes with Powder Springs addresses including both Cobb and Paulding county.

There are currently ( as of July 26) 1020 homes for sale, contingent, or contingent with kick-out.  Highest price is $10,500,000(yes the commas are in the right place)  Lowest price is for a "handy man delight" priced at $45,000

In June 97 homes sold.  Highest sold price was $682,600  Lowest sold price was $67,000 with the average price for all sales being $205,315

I don't do many open open houses but when I do it's because the house needs to be seen!

5422 Amity Dr is located in the award winning West Cobb Subdivison of Echo Mill.

Open house hours are :

Sat July 28 from 1-3 PM.

http://boso976.topproducerwebsite.com/5422amity.asp

You can also visit my Echo Mill Website at www.EchoMill.info

Ok the cost can range from free to maybe $100 per year.

Here is what you need

1. A good camera.  At this price you will be taking the pics yourself.  The good thing is that you can take as many as you want and then pick the good ones.

2. Microsoft photostory. If you have recent version of windows you probably already have it. It is easy to use.

3. A website that will allow you to upload the wmv file you created on photostory. If your current website won't do it then you can buy a website tonight from godaddy. I would suggest that you get the 10 page deluxe or unlimited pages.  There is a lot more storage and bandwidth.  Plus there other things you can do with the extra pages.

Once you have it uploaded go to a page on your website and create a link to the upload.  You do this the same way you link to a website.  Just specify link to file upload.

Publish the web page and then go to the link.  Scroll your mouse over it and right click then copy shortcut. That shortcut is the entire web address for your tour.  Paste it anywhere you want to link your tour. 

4. You might want to get a domain name to use creating 3rd level domains to "point" to your tours.  You may also be able to do this with a domain name that you already have. Some MLS are pretty picky about self promotion so you don't want to use a domain name that promotes you.  I create a 3rd level domain that masks and points to the tour.

Update 12-29-08: As pointed out in some of the comments below, the wmv file created may not be compatible with with some computers.  Before uploading the wmv file to your website it can be converted to a flash video file.  This can be done by using a free software download from VideoSoft free studio. Then upload the flash file to your website and create link to that. :-)

The Powder Springs Business Association is sponsoring their 1st annual golf tournament Oct 11, 2007 at Dogwood Country Club. Proceeds will go to the Bullock Hope House and Powder Springs Police Department.

The Bullock Hope House is a home a away from homefor cancer patients and their caregivers being treated through the Wellstar cancer program.

The Powder Springs police department keeps our town safe every day. Part of the funds raised will be used for their community programs.

The cost is $80 per person and includes lunch and a goody bag. There will be a ton of prizes and lots of fun to be had.

Registration deadline is Sept 28 and there are also sponsorship opputunities available.

For information on entry or sponsorship fell free to call me at 770-726-9375.

You can also call Don cox at 404-394-8229 or Emily Lyles at 678-860-1294

For more information about the Powder Springs Business Association visit their website www.PowderSpringsBusinessAssociation.com

http://activerain.com/blogsview/152010/Neighbors-of-mine-went

After all of the dust settled from neighbors "offer" they decided they didn't want to deal with it anymore.  I got the email to call them to day to come list the house.

Since I was the one who was actually trying to help them sell the house fsbo, there were no other choices when they decided to list. There really is no downside to helping people.  I don't let myself get drug in to doing a lot work to sell the house.  I'll just help with general advice,offer to guide them throught the contracts when they get an offer, have a lender (my wife) prequalify buyers, etc. If they did find a buyer on their own maybe i can get some good referrals out of it or maybe generate some mortgage business out of it.

I wanted to let you know about this event. Free book bags and school suplies while they last!  Free food, music, and fun activities for the whole family.

South Cobb area (Powder Springs,Austell,Mableton) youth and families are invited to participate in the 6th Annual Back2SchoolBash hosted by the Powder Springs Community Task force, Cobb Community Collaborative, Drug Free Communities Support Program and The Center for Family resources.

This event will take place on Saturday, August 4, 2007, from 1-3 pm, at the Ron Anderson Community Center, 3820 Macedonia road, Powder Springs, Ga.  During this event youth will receive free book bags and school supplies as long as supplies last.  So plan to get their early.

If they run out of book bags and supplies then don't forget about the free food, fun activities, music and community resource information for the entire family.

I wanted to take a moment pass along some information on the e-PRO certification course that might be of interest to you. I personally have found the online course to be one of the best moves I've made in my career.

e-PRO is the National Association of REALTORS' fastest-growing certification course and has provided me with all the tools I need to grow my business and provide the service that today's Internet savvy consumers demand. With more than 75% of all buyers beginning their search on the Web, the information contained in the e-PRO course is invaluable.

Take a look at some of the reasons why I decided to take the course. In addition, you can see what other e-PRO certified agents are saying, including many with a technology background prior to starting their real estate career. e-PRO is perfect for new real estate agents who want to jump start their career.

Feel free to contact me if you need any additional information.

E-pro does have a referral program right now, so you can sign up at the following link and I can make some lunch money.

https://www.internetcrusade.com/epro/secureorderepro.asp?EproHostID=47249

You can also sign up directly through epro, The training is excellent and I would highly recommend it.

Whether I am talking with a FSBO, expired listing, or a new listing prospect I always make this same point.  There are only 3 reasons that a home does or does not sell.  If these 3 things are in line your home will sell.

• One of these things you control to some extent any way.
• One of these things i control
• One of these things we work on together.

1. Condition.  This one is up to the seller.  In todays buyers market a home has to really stand out to sell.  I will always recommend any needed repairs and always recommend that the home is staged.  But it is up to the seller to keep the house clean and maintained. If you just want to offer a small carpet/repair allowance be prepared to wait a long time for a good offer.  There are a ton of other homes out there that are ready to move in and the sellers might just as motivated (maybe more) than you
2. Price.  We work on this together together.  We both want you to sell for as much as possible but the price needs to be realistic.  In our area the final sales price averages within 2% of the list price so there really is not a lot of negotiation. If the house is overpriced buyers won't just make an offer to see what happens.  They can make an offer on any house on the market. They will make their offer on the home that is the best price to start that meets their needs and tastes.
3. Marketing. Buyers and buyers agents need to know about your house. This one is up to me (unless you're selling by owner). When I started investing 25 years ago the only way to sell a home was either list it and the agent put it in the mls or put an ad in the paper. All buyers knew to either call an agent or look in the paper.  Now it is all internet.  Newspapers ads are a total waste of $$$.  Agent listings go all over the internet.  This is one area of internet growth that has worked against sellers.  It is great for buyers because they know all the listings are on the 'net. Since I am an Epro, I use a broad base of internet outlets to promote my listings.  When I list a home it literally appears on Thousands of websites.

The FSBO challenge. In the old days I could advertise in 1 place -the local paper and sell a house. I always sold by owner.  This was well before I was licensed. Now the 1 place is the internet.  The challenge is that the internet is not 1 place.  It is many thousands of individual places ( websites ) . Some of the FSBO services charge hundreds or thousands of $$$ up front and then you are in 1 place( their website). The problem is that it is just 1 place out of many thousands of places and your exposure is still limited.