Housing Bubble? Your thoughts, predictions (Portland, Scarborough: real estate market, apartments, renting)

[WhoFanMe]

I'm sorry it hasn't gone better for you; the first 14 days are the most crucial in the marketing of your home. If it's not priced right initially and marketed to those buyers who have already been looking and ready to make an offer, then you are back at square one with buyers who are just coming into the market and not ready to make offers. Often times a home that's initial list price is too high will sell for less than the lower price that you might have started with, it's a long and painful lesson that we're seeing all too often these days.

You have been through an awful lot with this agency and if the house doesn't sell before it expires, I would interview 3 new agencies. I'm rooting for you!

[Boomerang]

Originally Posted by Elcarim

So what do you do when your agent is marketing online and locally in the newspapers, sign is in the yard, listed on MLS and still no showings in 8 weeks? Only 4 showings in 3 months! The house is supposedly priced right, according to comps. So what next?

Hi Elcarim,

Well, I'm not happy to say this, but my guess is, you'll need to drop the price.
Granted the Thanksgiving-to-Christmas period is slow, and that has to be taken into consideration. But only 4 showings in 3 months tells me that your realtor should have suggested a price reduction way before now, regardless of what the comps are saying. The buyers, not the comps, determine your market value.

I was in your situation with the first realtor I hired. Reading your words gives me deja-vu chills. She was a nice person, but there were no showings after the first few, no offers, no strategizing, nothing. So I took the house off the market and thought hard.

Then I switched to a pro-active realtor, and WOW, did she ever shake things up! Lots of showings, lots of networking with other realtors to bring in prospective buyers, and yes, there were periods of despair in-between while enduring the "oooh, your house is so pretty" but no offer thing. What worked? Setting the price competitively and continuing to drop it until the right buyer came along. I did reject a number of offers that were ridiculously low, but accepted the one that was fairest based on plunging market value, and the buyer's ability to close quickly and with no fuss.

It's a tough battle nowadays, considering you also lose a big chunk of profit to commission - but if your goal is to get out of that house SOON to start your new life, you just might want to consider switching realtors, or prodding the one you have into some useful action.

Fingers crossed for you!

[Boomerang]

Originally Posted by Elcarim

The other thing I feel has been a significant hindrance is that we are now on our 3rd representing agent since listing the end of September, due to turnover in the office there. They also went through several weeks of change when they switched from Keller Williams to Exit Realty. I don't even know with the first agent, who was on our case for about 4 weeks, if we were ever in the newspaper. The second agent who was assigned lasted 3 weeks before taking another job with a salaried agency. Now, the owner of the agency is our listing agent. It's been a rediculous mess, and I'm afraid we're suffering because of the turmoil. I just can't prove that. Our contract ends in March, and we will not list with them again.

I've just caught up with all the new posts that came up while I was having eggnog El, you may seriously want to consider telling this agent you want to stop working with them (stop the contract) due to lack of showings, take a breather for a couple weeks, then choose a new realtor who is performing.
It's unpleasant I know, but it may be a way out for you. Under the circumstances, I don't see how your agency can complain about this. If they're not bringing prospective buyers, they're not performing. Just MHO!

[Boomerang]

Originally Posted by WhoFanMe

Welcome to the forum Boomerang and well said. Houses are still selling every day in this market, but it takes a team approach from the owner and the REALTOR. The REALTOR brings the prospective buyer to the curb and then the home takes over. Marketing (particularly online) has never been more important and there is a difference in what different agencies do to market homes. Prospective sellers need to take the time to evaluate what each office can offer. Congratulations on your sale!

Thank you, and thank you for the kind words of welcome.
I'm so thrilled to be finally finished with the selling end of things, and look forward to finding my new perfect house

[WhoFanMe]

I'm glad you wrote, you reminded me to get my craigslist ad up for Sunday's Open House in Gorham.

[dramamama6685]

Originally Posted by Elcarim

Thank you, DM! That's so sweet!! You're just the kind of friend I'm headed to Maine for. I'll be glad when you make it too! Yaya!

Aww shucks. The feeling is mutual, El! BTW, Just noticed your location (not sure when you changed it) and almost spit my coffee on the monitor!

[Elcarim]

I have asked to be let out of the contract and take the house off the market to give it a breather before going back on. I figured showing up as a new listing with a lower price would look better than being on for 4-6 months with no offers. Our agent said she was taking over our listing herself and would just work on more marketing. That was it. At the time, I didnt' have time to press it, getting ready for the holidays. Within the next two weeks, we're going to sit down with her and come up with an amicable solution.

Do we HAVE to leave the house on the market just because they don't want to cancel our contract? I've read something about "if it sells during the original contract period, we still have to pay the contracted agent". I do not want to take it off until the end of March. The season here usually picks up mid-late February.

[Boomerang]

Originally Posted by Elcarim

come up with an amicable solution.
Do we HAVE to leave the house on the market just because they don't want to cancel our contract? I've read something about "if it sells during the original contract period, we still have to pay the contracted agent". I do not want to take it off until the end of March. The season here usually picks up mid-late February.

Perhaps WhoFanMe will clarify, or you may have to check your contract, but I'm fairly certain the answer will be NO, you are not obligated to leave your house on the market. I know of clauses where you still have to pay the contracted agent if the house sells to someone (within a certain amount of time after the contract stopped) who worked with the contracted agent to view the house --- in your case, that's not a lot of people to worry about!
It sounds like your agent is avoiding addressing the real issue here. I really feel for your situation. Hang in there!

[WhoFanMe]

Every state has its own Real Estate Commission and laws and your agency may have additional clauses, so you'll have to read your contract, but I'm sure that you can remove your home from local MLS at your discretion - there are circumstances like divorce, illness (or worse) or job transfer falling through which are part of life. In our agency's case, the house remains listed with us until the contracted end date, and if a buyer wants to write an offer (unlikely, but possible) we will present it to the owner of the home. Boom mentions the window after the contract ends where a fee is owed to the agency if a buyer that was introduced to the home during the contract period does in fact buy the home. This window is closed if the seller hires a different agency to list their home, then all bets are off.

[Elcarim]

As I said, I did talk to our agent about removing it from the market until spring and then coming back on fresh with new enthusiasm and perspective. Of course, she didn't advise doing that!

In our market, the agents we've spoken to say 7-12 months to sell is average. They may be right about it being a waste of effort to remove it and relist. I just know how the clock ticks away and things get stale. It didn't help my feelings any that the last agent who showed the house nearly two months after it went on the market told me she had shown the house across the street numerous times and never even "noticed" that our house was listed also. I guess she just missed the big red sign in the yard! She said she would have been showing ours too while she was in the neighborhood, because the size is close to the one across the street, though they aren't in the same class.

What do you all think? Should we take a short breather and relist end of February?