Hawaii Randy's Real Estate Opinions: July 2008

Is that agent making their living selling real estate or is this something they do on the side?

This should be the first question you should ask an agent who is trying to get your business.  I am amazed how many folks will trust the most expensive purchase or sale in their life with someone who is doing this as a hobby.

If that person is not successful or dedicated enough to make a full time living at this, do you really want them handling your transaction?  If were a consumer, I would want the absolute best real estate agent and loan officer I could find.

Those part time agents, who are getting upset reading this, please step back and look at this from the eyes of a consumer.  I am sure you feel you are good at what you do and you have a great reason for doing this on the side.  The truth is there is no way you can do it as well as a top full time professional.  You have not made the investment of time, money, infrastructure and training as someone who does this as a career and a business.  I am not saying all full time agents are top professionals.  I am saying consumers should be looking for those who are.

In this changing market you need someone who is on the street and having success when most are crying and looking for work elsewhere.  If an agent had a fully developed business before the market changed they may have seen some slippage in volume and profit.  If they have a good business plan they will be picking up market share, while others are leaving to take jobs elsewhere.

Seeing the change in the market coming, I began investing in my business.  Improved services, increased marketing and regular education have been my formula.  That is correct, I began spending more time and resources seeing the change coming.  So far it has worked.  2008 is on track to be my best year.  I have been speaking to other top agents in the area and a few of them are also having big years.  Mos are easy to spot, they have designations after there names and they are the ones doing the most marketing of their properties and themselves.

Our industry has always been made up of many part time agents.  Since the change in the market, many full time agents have joined their ranks by taken on jobs in other areas while holding on to their license.

Here are some of the disadvantages to their clients, I am witnessing on a regular basis.

• Not available to return phone calls or show properties when needed.
• Cutting back on marketing to save money, including but not limited to:
  • Internet
  • Photos, (believe it our not)
  • News Ads
  • Open Houses
  • Virtual tours
  • Websites
  • Flyers
• Not taking regular training or attending REALTOR® meetings.
• They are not networking with the top producers in the area.
• Not keeping current with the lending industry.
• Cut corners during the transactions and blowing deadlines.

Can a part time agent do a good job for you?  Yes they can.  Can they do as good of a job as a full time profession?  It is theoretically possible, but rarely happens.

Rarely Available 3 bedroom Northbrook/ Melemanu Condo.  These units do not last long, 3 bedroom units under $300,000 are so hard to come by.  This one stands out from the crowd.  It is the closest to the pool and recreation area, has 3 lanais and 2 assigned parking stalls.

Convenient to shopping and transportation.  Schofield Barracks is just up the road.  Available for showing on short notice.

The Kaneohe communities (zip code of 96744 and some connecting neighborhoods) have seen changes in the real estate market. 

Single Family homes sales have softened. Average sales prices of single family homes year to date are down slightly, mostly as a result of a dip in June.  Sales volume continues to drop with more than 12 months worth of inventory.  Buyers will find sellers that may be a little more negotiable.

Condo and townhouse sale are a little rosier.  Units for sale have climbed to 10 months worth of inventory in the Kaneohe area.   Prices although year to date have been stable, did see a dip in June from the 2007 levels.

Currently Active for Sale (as of 7/26/08): 

• 195 Single Family Homes
• 129 Condos/ Townhouses

Currently in Escrow (as of 7/26/08): 

•    36 Single Family Homes
•    15 Condos/ Townhouses

*These numbers were taken from the Honolulu Board of Realtors MLS system and are deemed to be accurate, but not guaranteed.

You can find out more about real estate in Hawaii at: www.HawaiiRandy.com

Or at: www.localism.com

The June 2008 resales numbers are in.

Single Family Home Sales volume is down from the period last year, although median prices made a rebound in May they saw a dip in June.

Condominium Sales had a similar drop in volume while the median price which showed a modest increase in May saw a small dip in June.

With interest rates still holding, buyers should see it a good time to take advantage of the market conditions in most areas.

*These numbers were taken from the Honolulu Board of Realtors MLS system and Old Republic Title.  They are deemed to be accurate, but not guaranteed.

You can find out more about real estate in Hawaii at: www.HawaiiRandy.com

I know we are all watching to see the membership meter turn over the 100,000 mark.  It looks like today is the day!  When I saw Active Rain, I said to myself this will be powerful.  I never imagined how powerful and how fast.

The folks that created this wonderful forum, made something really special.  It took real vision to create this and to keep it improving and growing.  To think only a couple of years ago this was just an idea on a napkin.

Since joining I have made many new friends, both in person and online.  Several great clients have found me by reading my blog posts.  I have learned and grown thanks to the knowledge we share here.

I just want to say THANK YOU for everyone responsible for creating this tremendous forum and for all of the members who have made it what it is.

I am looking forward to the new improvements and the many new members who will continue to come.

Good luck for the rest of 2008!

We have all seen it.  The home listed as "Excellent Condition" and the termite holding hands are the only thing holding up the roof.  What are they thinking?  No buyer who has been brought there under false pretenses will buy that home.

I showed a home last week that was owned by the listing real estate agent.  The home was listed as a 3 bedroom/ 2 bath in Excellent Condition.  It had only one bath.  Excellent, well that was a stretch, but not as bad as thinking no one would notice the missing bathroom.

I wrote an article about red flags.  REALTORS® Point Out Red Flags, They Don't Give All The Answers   It was stimulated by this listing.  You can draw your own conclusions on why it was probably not in Excellent Condition.

If your listing has 1 bath, say it in the listing.  If it is a tear down, price it correctly and let the public know.  There are buyers looking for rehabs.  Those looking for a 2 bath and in Excellent Condition aren't who you are trying to attract anyway.

Take good pictures, buyers won't even look at homes without pictures in most cases.  If it is ugly tell them.  I know several buyers who think those are steak.

The bottom line is no one likes to be lied to.  Do the right thing, attract the right buyers and gain their trust up front.  If they don't trust you, they won't buy.

As a REALTOR® my primary job is to protect my client's interest.  It is not to practice law, give tax advice our give engineering opinions.  I am licensed to sell homes; I am not a Lawyer, a CPA, a Contractor or an Engineer of any type.  I can loose my license for practicing law and giving professional advice for something other than what I am licensed to do.

This is the hardest thing for many agents to remember.  I constantly hear agents make comments like this home has settling issues or you can knock out that wall and move it there.  I cringe when I hear agents make comments like that.  I have even heard them giving tax advice or legal advice.

Last week I showed a home that appeared to have possible settling issues.  Let me repeat the important part of that sentence: possible.  I saw cracking in walls and ceilings and windows that were out of square.  I also saw deck and stair cases pulling away from the walls.  If you asked me to make a bet, I would law a few bucks down on settling.  What did I tell my clients?  There may be a possible settling issue. (I also pointed to what I was looking at).  I then stated if they wish to purchase this home they should have it inspected by the appropriate professional to determine if it is a problem and if so what the needed remedies are.

Our job is to point out red flags and point them to the appropriate type of professional to get it properly addressed, not to give advice on the problem.  If a client has a tax issue or a potential tax issue, I recommend they speak to their tax professional.  If they need legal advice, you guessed it I recommend they speak to an appropriate attorney.  The big one, if they ask if they can knock out walls or make extensions, I recommend they get in touch with a licensed contractor to determine the feasibility and costs.

I know it is tempting for agents to give legal and tax advice, especially when they think they know the answer.  After all we all want to be loved by our clients and we want to be helpful.  I can only say one thing.  Don't Do It!

If you truly want to be helpful, point out the red flags, document it and recommend they seek professional advice.

Condominiums were invented in Hawaii.  I bet you didn't know that.  The term condominium not only refers to apartments and townhouses, it can also refer to single family homes that the land was divided under the Condominium Property Regime (CPR), formerly known as Horizontal Property Regime (HPR). 

There are many properties in Hawaii that had multiple homes on them and they wanted to sell them individually.  The problem is the property may not have qualified to subdivide for one of several reasons.  Here are a few of them:

1. One shared driveway.
2. Lot is too small according to zoning to create individual lots.
3. A shared water meter or septic system for multiple homes.
4. Common area like a playground or pool.

When buying homes in Hawaii it is important to always get a full disclosure.  If the property you are purchasing falls under a CPR, the condo association will provide a series of disclosure documents.  You will be provided the declaration documents when they created the CPR, the budget, the bylaws, a reserve study, insurance summary, financial statement, minutes from the board and annual meetings and the house rules.  It is important to carefully review these documents in the specified period of time.  In most purchase contracts there is a contingency for the buyer's acceptance of these disclosures.

If you are shopping on the internet and you are looking at single family homes an easy way to spot CPRs is that the address ends with an apartment number.  That is a requirement in Hawaii.

The safest bet is to use a top professional REALTOR® who knows the neighborhood well.  They can help you navigate through the buying process and ensure you know what you are buying and what you need to look out for.

Good luck and good house hunting.

The last month or two, I got so busy that I stopped going to the gym in the morning and took next to no free time for myself or family.  I was beginning to feel a little burned out and it finally hit me.  What am I doing?

If I do not take care of myself, I won't be able to keep up this pace.  If I am doing this for my family, why am I shorting them of my time?

A couple of weeks ago, I decided to restructure my life a little.  A minimum of once a week from now on I will take a couple of hours out of my day to go swimming or snorkeling in the ocean.  Three days a week I will be back in the gym at 5:30am to start the day right.  The last couple of weeks I began hitting the sun and surf with my oldest son Daniel.  This week I added back in the trips to the gym.  Boy am I sore, but loving it.  I already feel my energy levels rising and my attitude improving.

I have also made a point of turning off my computer for a couple of hours 2 or 3 evenings a week and spending more family time.  This was hard for me.  I have to admit, I am a work-aholic.  I actually feel guilty when I stop working.  My wife and I have seen a couple of movies together in the last couple of weeks.  Something we rarely did in the past.  I have even begun to play Wii with my sons.  I may be a bit too competitive, I made Professional on Golf, Bowling and Baseball and set the high scores.  My sons are now feeling the challenge to beat Dad.  My wife says it is a testosterone thing.

As part of every successful business plan you must include time to take care of you health and time with family.  Without your health your body will shut you down at some point.  The second is obvious; we all work to support our family and life style. 

Good luck in 2008 and remember to take time out for your family and yourself.

Roger Wilf is the home instructor I have used and trusted on majority of the transactions that I represented buyers.  Roger is extremely good at what he does.  A few of us call him inspector gadget.  His brief case has meters and probes that can check things most inspectors would miss or not know how to check.

Roger is a retired Army Warrant Officer.  After getting out of the Military he had a construction company servicing our area and built a nice business.  He built relationships with several area real estate companies.  The last few years he re-focused his business to just doing home inspections.  His knowledge of local construction gave him a great advantage in that arena.

Recently Roger and his wife Lynn decided they would be retiring and moving to Florida to be closer to family.  Roger's home that he rebuilt is now in escrow and there are getting ready to make the big move.

Roger will be a big loss to us and our community.  Even though there are several good home inspectors in the area; it will be hard to fill his shoes.

Aloha Roger, good luck in retired life!