Carnival of Real Estate

Carnival of Real Estate #2

July 24, 2006

Pick of the Week

You play the game well
you've got the knack
your hand in the till
and the knife in the back
head for the hills
leaving them flat
how come you treat everybody like that?
-Al Stewart Angel of Mercy

The Reality of Real Estate talks about how agency - or actually, abuse of agency - is ruining real estate, and makes an excellent suggestion on how to reform it on the seller's side. On the buyer's side, the solution is as simple as signing a non-exclusive agency agreement instead of an exclusive one. The fact is that the market in the past has made being a seller's agent more lucrative for the same amount of work, and so that's what most agents concentrate on, but to lose sight of the buyer's interest is no better than to lose track of the seller's.

National and International

Walkin' like a millionaire
smilin' like a king
he leaned his shopping cart against the wall
He said, "I been a lot of places
and I seen a lot of things
but sonny, I seen one thing beats them all
I was flying back from Lubbock,
I saw Jesus on the plane
...or maybe it was Elvis
you know, they kinda look the same
Don Henley, If Dirt Were Dollars

The Landlord Blog discusses how to profitably deal with the tenant from there. I believe we've all met the lady in question at some point or another.

Breaking rocks in the hot sun
I fought the law and the law won
I fought the law and the law won

I needed money cause I had None
I fought the law and the law won
I fought the law and the law won
-Bobby Fuller Four

Matrix tells us broker bashing is passe - and largely misplaced. Not to mention counterproductive. To quote John Ruskin, "There is scarcely anything in the world that some man cannot make a little worse, and sell a little more cheaply. The person who buys on price alone is this man's lawful prey."

Climb every mountain, search high and low
Follow every byway, every path you know.
Climb every mountain, ford every stream,
Follow every rainbow, till you find your dream!
-Rogers and Hammerstein, The Sound of Music

Bloodhound Blog talks about marketing and service, saying, "There is always room at the top!" I can only have one Pick of The Week, but this is a Recommended Article.

Who can say where the road goes
where the day flows
only time
-Enya, Only Time

Free the Drones has a good article on the basics of whether renovations are cost effective as an investment. For the sort of stuff most people want to do, probably not.

Monday Morning you looks so fine
Friday I got travelin' on my mind
First you love me, then you fade away
I can't go on believin' this way
-Fleetwood Mac, Monday Morning

Landlord Schmandlord with "How to minimize the risk of paying extraneous fees at closing". Pretty decent article, as far as it goes.

Something you've heard
somewhere you've seen
too real to ignore
you've chosen not to believe
from the black of their pain
to the white of their fear
in the dust they die
while eden lies near
-Berlin, Like Flames

The Future of Real Estate Marketing Talks about Yahoo! Answers in "Impart Your Wisdom With Answers." On one hard, a lot of people putting their collective expertise together to answer questions is good. On the other hand, in my experience people choosing the answer they want to believe is a real opportunity to fool themselves into something bad.

Don't leave false illusions behind
don't cry 'cause I ain't changing my mind
so find another fool like before
'cause I ain't gonna live anymore believing
some of the lies while all of the signs are deceiving,
-Alan Parsons Project, Eye In The Sky

Welcome to SpotLight talks about how unscrupulous agents "buy" listings by agreeing to initially list the property for more than it is worth, only to start pressuring the client to drop the price.

Don't know the reason,
Stayed here all season
With nothing to show but this brand new tattoo.
But it's a real beauty,
A Mexican cutie, how it got here
I haven't a clue.

This one's a two-fer. First we have Queercents talking about foreign real estate markets, and then we have Nubricks discussing the growing phenomenon of retiring abroad.

So you can get on with your search, baby, and I can
get on with mine
And maybe someday we will find , that it wasn't really
wasted time
The Eagles, Wasted Time

Your host reserves the end of the section for himself with, Deadlines in Real Estate Transactions. Get. It. Done. Now.

Local Stuff

I don't believe in first impressions
For just this once I hope that looks don't deceive
I ain't got time for true confessions
I've got to make the move right now
Got to meet that girl somehow
-Billy Joel, Get It Right The First Time

Real Estate Tomato tells of the state of his local market in and around Sacramento. The important nugget of information for everyone to pull out is price your property correctly to begin with - don't start high and reduce over time.

Well I'm not the world's most masculine man,
but I know what I am and that I'm a man,
so is Lola.
-The Kinks, Lola

Yo Chicago compares what Chicago's cameras, lit with a blue light, to the more famous sort - only this is with real estate prices. The nugget of information for everyone to pull out of this is that a buyer's perception is everything.

Can you hear me? Are you listening? Has your programme disappeared?
I can see you, I am watching you, I've been planning this for years
Chris de Burgh, The Devils' Eye

A little vicarious amusement from Zillow Blog, talking about Million Dollar ZIP Codes

Next week, the Carnival of Real Estate will be at Real Estate Marketing. For More Information on past and future hosts, check out the Carnival Of Real Estate Home Page.