Long Beach Real Estate MLS Blunders

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Long Beach Real Estate MLS Blunders

Ever wonder why your Long Beach home or condo isn’t getting showings?

As many of my regular readers know, the Long Beach Real Estate Home Blog produces a lot of Long Beach Real Estate Neighborhood Market Reports and statistics.  These reports are a very handy tool for buyers and sellers of Long Beach homes, condos and income properties.  The information on these reports often comes directly from the MLS and is provided free to our readers. 

These market reports require more analysis than just copying numbers from the MLS.  Today I thought I would provide you with an overall Long Beach Real Estate Market report but instead decided to entertain you with the type of MLS faux pas (blunders) that not only get in the way of providing clear and accurate information, but also keep your homes, condos and income properties from actually being shown and selling.

My choices for todays entertainment:

A rare 4 bedroom 2 bath Long Beach condo; 1100 sq ft with no garage; listed for a very desirable $289,000; HOA $1 per month; 173 days on market. (all information is as represented in the MLS)

 

Agent Remarks (direct from the MLS):  Great comdominio 4bedrooms 2baths Two levels New water pipes. This is a Regular sale owner in process of buying another property Ass is very low Just $ 13500 a month

 

 

Makes you want to just jump up and race to see it huh?

 

Hey if you cant spell condominium how are you going to sell it?

 

Is it any wonder that this condo has been on the market for 173 days?  After indicating an HOA of just $1.00 the agent remarks state Ass is very low Just $13500 a month.   Well I have seen a few low ass’s myself, but this condo ain’t gettin shown with that kind of liability!  There is no description of the property and of course – only 2 pictures of a strip of garages and parking spaces – you did note that the MLS description states “no garage”.  173 days on market and this agent hasn’t had time to actually describe the condo on the MLS and take and post a few decent pictures of the actual condo?  It is common knowledge that pictures sell homes! 

 

Agents representing Long Beach buyers will likely pass on this one just to save themselves and their buyers from having to deal with this level of dumb!  NEXT…

 

 

 

Our next contender is a listing in the same Long Beach condo/townhouse complex as above:

 

Another rare 4 bedroom, 2 bath, 1102 sq ft condo; listing price $350,000; HOA for this unit is a mere $45 (guess the other unit must be carrying the heavy financial load), with 1 garage.  This condo/townhouse has been on the market for a short 5 days and yep, NO pictures at all! (all information is as represented in the MLS)

 

Agent Remarks (direct from the MLS): property needs TLC. Two storey condominium unit with one bedroom downstairs and 1/2 bathroom. Needs new carpet and paint. close to schools, church and easy freeway access.

 

This Long Beach condo is being sold as a short sale.  Lets think about this for a minute.  The other condo in this complex is listed at $289,000 for what appears to be a conventional sale, it has been on the market for 173 days and has not sold.  Does anybody else agree that it was a stroke of genius to price this one (needing TLC) $61,000 higher at $350,000 – as a short sale – in todays real estate market? 

 

Another Long Beach condo that isn’t going to be shown or sold!  NEXT…

 

 

 

Next choice for todays entertainment:

An unheard of 16 bedroom, 2 bath, 824 square foot Long Beach condo, on the Eastside, in the Circle Area; HOA $216 per month.  Are you laughing yet?  Allowing a mere 300 sq ft for the kitchen and 2 baths that would make each of the bedrooms …….. ..what?……..standing room only for 1?  Maybe that would work for vampire storage but it doesn’t work for humans. Yep, you guessed it another listing with no description of the condo and once again, NO pictures.  (all information is as represented in the MLS)

 

 

 

 

Agent Remarks (direct from the MLS): Beautiful 2 Bed / 2 Ba. Brand new construction. your clients will love it.

 

 

Ahhhhhhh, so it is a 2 bedroom!

 

When an agent is searching the MLS on behalf of a buyer we enter search parameters in order to narrow down the search to that which our buyer is interested in.  This is another Long Beach condo that just isn’t going to be shown, because it’s not going to be found. 

 

Did you notice the agent remarks above?  Brand new construction – your clients will love it – no description – no pictures!  Heck of a job representing your seller!  Nobody is coming to see it, they cant find it and if they do, you don’t have any pictures!  NEXT…

 

 

 

Attention Sellers:

 

Are you thinking about selling your Long Beach Home, Condo or Income Property?  Make certain that you get a copy of the MLS and see how your property is being presented to the agents bringing buyers to the table.  The MLS pushes this information out to many internet sites where buyers will see it and decide if your property is one they would like to view. If your Long Beach properties are not being shown they are not going to sell. 

 

When you interview agents, get a clear view of how your property is going to be marketed and make a wise decision.  In todays real estate market your property needs to be on the internet in front of Long Beach buyers eyes and needs to be presented in a desirable and professional manner.  

 

Keep in mind that the longer you sit on the market the less you are going to make on your home.  If you make a bad choice when you choose your 1st agent, it is going to be a long time before your contract runs out and you can replace them with the right Realtor. There are some sellers in Long Beach who are currently being represented by their 3rd agent.  

 

 

 

Why Hire an Internet Savvy Long Beach Realtor?

 

Over 80% of all home searches
start on the internet. Your Long Beach homes need to be online, and findable, when buyers begin their
search. Have the Realtors you interview show you their ability to market your
Long Beach properties on the internet. Step back;
pick keywords that should bring that item to the front page of
Google; keywords like Long Beach Real Estate. Are any of the sites that
your Realtor is using to promote your property coming up at the top of the
engines? No? Keep shopping. Better yet, call the Long Beach Realtors on the front
page of Google, they already know how to get there and you can cut right
through the unlikely candidates.

Over 25% of all Home Buyers
FIRST saw the home they purchased on
the internet. If
your Long Beach homes are not heavily marketed on the internet, you are missing
thousands of potential buyers.

 

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Long Beach Real Estate MLS Blunders

Duh!

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Yesterday I had to make a trip to the Long Beach satellite office of the Pacific West Board of Realtors®.  It is a very large room with 2 work stations manned by 2 very knowledgable and helpful staff members. 

 

While both of them were busy helping myself and another Realtor® another agent wandered in and started looking around.  She pondered the above pictured signs for awhile then asked “Do you have a Bank Owned sign?”  and pointed at the “Bank Repo” sign and asked: 

 

“Is that the same thing? Does it mean the same?”

I just sat there with my head in my hands!

Duh!

 

 

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Duh!

Words that Sell Homes – Long Beach Real Estate

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Sticks and stone will break my bones but words will never hurt me!

Really?  Are you certain?  OK, let’s re-think that for a moment. 

 

Has your Long Beach home been sitting on the market for a while?  Not getting a good response to your advertising?  Maybe it needs a little punch. Ann Brenoff of the Los Angeles Times put together an article a while back which may come in handy. 

 

If you use the words “Motivated Seller” your home will take 15% longer to sell and will net 4% less: “Good Value” will net 5% less. 

 

Homes described as “Beautiful” sell 15% faster and net 5% more in price than the norm.  “Handyman Special” sold in half the average time. 

 

However, if you use words that indicate “Curb Appeal” or indicate that the home is attractive the days on market are decreased; speaking of “Value” or “Price” will increase the days on market. 

 

These discoveries were made by Canadian professor, Paul Anglin who teaches real-estate and housing trends at the University of Guelph in Ontario, Canada, during a study of sales patterns while utilizing the wording of over 20,000 Canadian home listings. 

 

Professor Anglin further discovered that buyers place style over substance. 

Words that help sell a home:		Words that hurt:
Handyman special		Motivated seller
Curb appeal		Good value
Move-in condition		As-is
Landscaping		Clean
Granite		Quiet
Gourmet		New paint
Golf

When the “Landscaping” of a listing was presented homes sold 20% faster.  “Move In Condition” resulted in 12% shorter stay on the market, but had no effect on the sale price.

Use of terms “Foreclosure”, “As-is”, and “Handyman Special” netted much lower sale prices.  While use of “Granite”, “Maple” and “Gourmet” all netted higher sales prices. 

Professor Rutherford, finance and real-estate professor of the University of Texas found, in a 2000 study that “What you say needs to be extavagant, or the signal that is received by buyers is that it’s not worth talking about.”  He further said that sellers would be best served by just stating the facts. 

 

 

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Words that Sell Homes – Long Beach Real Estate

Do You Want to be Published?

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We are going to try something new here at the Long Beach Real Estate Home site.  We are opening up the site for article contribution to the residents, home owners and business owners of Long Beach.  We would like to give you an opportunity to talk about your neighborhood, the schools, stores, local issues, your experiences, offer some unique gardening or decorating tips, etc…  

 

We are also interested in constructive articles related to your home buying, selling, staging, remodeling experiences. etc…  That does not mean that we are opening ourselves up as a place to vent.  If you have a constructive article, we will post it.  We will not allow slams on people or entertain anything hateful.  Was your moving company exceptional?  Did you have a great experience with a contractor?  etc…

 

Just because we are opening it up doesn’t mean that we are going to accept all articles that are submitted.  We are looking for interesting and helpful information to share with the rest of the Long Beach community. We are reserving editorial rights, will not accept any article that we deem to be inapproriate and are not interested in articles that advertise your business or are too self serving.

 

This is a top rated blog site, we enjoy top search engine placement and reach well over 5,000 viewers a day.  Do you have something to say and nowhere to say it?  Do you want to be published?

 

(Offer is available on the left sidebar of the site.)

Contribute to this site:

• Have you always wanted to try your hand at writing? 
• Do you love Long Beach?
• Do you have an upcoming event that you would like some publicity for?
• Is your business doing something so interesting that all of Long Beach should know about it?
  Long Beach residents, home and business owners are now welcome to contribute interesting Long Beach related articles and/or photos to this site for publication. 
• Some restrictions will apply.
• We reserve the right to reject any article that we deem inappropriate or too self serving.

Contact Laurie for details.

(562) 212-5420

 

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Long Beach Homes & Condos-7 Steps to Pre-Home Purchase Preparedness

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Long Beach Real Estate & Home Loans

Long Beach Homes & Condos

7 Steps to Pre-Home Purchase Preparedness

1 – Choose a Lender

No it is not smart to just gift your business to a friend or family member, lender or Realtor. It is time to shop for the right lender for the job. My suggestion is to shop for a direct lender/loan originator. Removing the middle man from the transaction reduces your home loan costs. Direct lenders generally have a larger array of product available to them to shop from on your behalf and have built trust relationships with the wholesale lenders which you will benefit from greatly. Discuss your long range plan with your lender, have them explain the benefits of the loan programs available and decide which suit you best. Lenders have been closing up shop and discontinuing loan programs often recently; inquire if your lender plans on double app-ing your loan for your safety, a good one will.

2 – Checking Credit Scores Prior to Starting the Purchase

Your lender can pull your credit report for you. Many credit reports contain errors which can be costly to you. Finding and correcting these errors, prior to searching for your new home will reduce your stress levels.  This will grant you the time to repair the problems which would otherwise result in higher interest payments due to the higher risk you would appear to pose. You may find that you have been the victim of identity theft and decide to put your purchase on hold temporarily until you can clean it up.

3 – Be  Pre-approved Prior to Searching

What a shame it would be to find your Long Beach dream home only to discover that your credit is tarnished and will require several months of repair, or that you qualify for less than you need to purchase it. How are you going to submit an offer without a pre-approval in todays market? What Long Beach seller would consider that offer? How do you even know what loan amount you will qualify for? Why spin your wheels? Be smart, get pre-approved prior to searching.

4 – Have A Solid Financial Plan

Smart buyers start their search knowing how long they plan on owning the property. Armed with this information it is time to shop for a home loan that fits your plan. If you use this approach you will find more opportunities for lower cost home loans will present themselves. For instance, if you plan on owning your Long Beach home or condo for about 5 years (a smart plan in todays market) a really good lender may suggest a less expensive interest only ARM (adjustable rate mortgage) for 7 years, payments fixed for a term long enough to sustain your plan. With so many advising to purchase fixed loans these days, it is smart to educate yourself as to other viable options. Why pay a higher interest rate for a shorter term investment if you dont have to?

5 – *Insist on a Lock-In Letter

Demanding a Lock in letter assures the BUYER that there will be no surprises when signing Loan Documents, the interest rate promised to them will be the same they sign for at the end of the escrow.

6 – *Demand a Loan Commitment

Assures the BUYER the home loan they were promised will be the home loan they will receive; the terms will be as promised.

*LONG BEACH BUYERS BEWARE: If your lender hesitates in providing a Lock In Letter and a Loan Commitment, this usually means they have not secured the home loan as promised, and are likely still shopping the loan with the hope of finding one close to what was promised you.  There is no guarantee the lender will be successful in this endeavor.  A reputable lender should be able to provide you with both within 2 to 3 days of your request at no additional cost.  If your lender dances, find a new lender immediately.

7 – Waiting to Sell Your Home

With so many properties on the market and so few buyers, there is no guarantee that YOUR home will sell, or will sell in a timely enough fashion to meet the terms of any contract you write. This is true on todays market even if you price your home below market and it is in impeccable condition. It is true that you can acquire a bridge loan or use your equity line of credit to purchase, but what if your home does not sell?  Could you handle the payments?  Could you rent it and cover the elevated expenses?  Todays buyers are taking their time and are not settling for anything less than exactly what they want. Few sellers will risk removing their Long Beach Homes from the market to wait for your contingent sale, even in todays market. If you need to move, put your home on the market, price it right and sell it. Then shop.

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Long Beach Homes & Condos-7 Steps to Pre-Home Purchase Preparedness