Success With Sonya

There is a new go kart track in Edenville!  The track is an 1/8th mile dirt oval and races every other Sunday afternoon.  Gates open at 12:00, qualifying is at 1:30 and racing at 2:00 pm.  It is free for spectators and there is ample parking and bleachers to sit in.  If you want to check out the action in the pit area admission is $7.00.  The Mills Township Little League holds a concession each week as a fundraiser for new equipment.  There are several classes of kart racing ranging from the youngsters racing in the purple plate karts all the way up to the senior class, including the ladies class!  If you want to see some great racing action and enjoy the beautiful summer weather check out the Coyote Hole Raceway on M30 in Edenville behind Rumors Restaurant.  The tracks website it:  www.coyoteholeraceway.com and the next race is this Sunday, July 27th!  Hope to see you there!  If you do stop by say hello to the Green Gator Racing Team, its the number 15 kart driven by my son Chandler Grove!

Did you know that opinions are formed about people and things in the first 30 seconds of seeing or meeting them?  Wow!! And 87% of the opinion when meeting people is based on non-verbal cues.  So, you have smiled, shook the clients hand(or other form of culturally accepted greeting) and establised some rapport as the local real estate expert but how do you provide exceptional customer service to your clients so that remain your clients for life?  Well, I happen to pride myself on exceptional customer service and while working in some version of customer service for the last 18 years I have developed a list of 17 things that you can do to succeed!

 1.  Communicate Everything!

2.  Listen Actively!

3.  Follow Up, Follow Up, Follow Up!

4.  Return Communication Timely

5.  Respect your Customers Needs

6.  Go the Extra Mile!

7.  Be Honest!!!!!!!!

8.  Be Educated

9.  Be Depdendable

10.  Be Enthusiastic

11.  Promise to Perservere

12.  Have Compassion for your Customers Situation!!

13.  Make Intentions Actions or They Don’t Count!

14.  Keep a Positive Attitude!

15.  Have Drive and Desire for What You Do!

16.  Learn From Your Experiences!

17.  Have Humility, Admit Mistakes and Don’t Be Egotistical!

Share some of your receipes for success and lets all provide the best service we can!

Condition is not staging.  Staging is a marketing tool and part of preparing your home for sale.  It is a process that helps you communicate your best possible message.  Staging is not decorating; it turns your home into a house into a product that can be bought  When you decorate your personalize and when you stage you depersonalize.  Staging doesn’t have to cost a lot of money but may require an investment in your largest asset (your house!).  The seven C’s of successful home staging are:

Clean - Inside & Out.  The inside should be q-tip clean!

Clutter Free - Deaccessorize, decide what to pack up and what furniture will stay.  Clutter will eat equity!

Color - use colors as accents in fabrics, towels, etc.

Compromise

Creativity

Committment (to the process)

Communicate

The investment into staging your home to sell is typically cheaper than a price reduction.  You have nothing to lose…try it!

If you will be moving soon remember to:

1.  Give your fowarding address to the post office two to four weeks ahead of the move.

2.  Have utilities disconnected at your old home and connected at your new one.

3.  Notify your bank, creditors and magazines you subscribe to as well as friends, relatives and business colleagues.

4.  Have a “first open” box with the things you will need most - like toilet paper, soap, trash bags, scissors, hammer, screwdriver, pencils and paper, cups and plates, water, snacks and toothpaste.

 5.  Check insurance coverages for moved items.

6.  Cancel your newspaper delivery.

 7.  Remember this hectic moving time to shall pass and you’ll be settled into your new home soon!

You think you can sell your home yourself?  It will be no problem at all and you’ll save all kinds of cash in the process?  Not so….a Realtor can be the most valuable part of the transaction when it comes to selling your home.  They will help you:

Set Your Price - pricing your property is a balancing act.  You want the highest price possible but don’t want your home to sit on the market.  A Realtor knows what properties like yours have recently sold for.  The Realtor can tell whether your home - with its particular location, features and condition can get more or less than similar listings.  And a salesperson knows whether or not the market is heating up or cooling down.

Be Objective - Selling your homes can be an emotional experience.  A Realtor can help keep you focused and provide valuable feedback on changes or repairs that are necessary to help the home sell.  The Realtor will also act as a buffer during negotiations.

Qualify Buyers - A Realtor can determine whether buyers are serious by asking the right questions about the buyers motivation, purchasing power and mortgage pre-qualification.

Provide Extensive Marketing - Homes don’t sell themselves.  A Realtor will market your home to the widest audience possible through ads, websites, brochures, etc.  A Realtor will also place your home on the multiple listing service and from there Realtor.com.

Finalize the Deal - Selling a home is complicated.  It involves disclosure forms, inspection reports, deeds, mortgage documents and insurance policies.  A knowledgeable Realtor will help you avoid delays in closing and costly mistakes.

To get the most money for your home, the best marketing and qualified prospects looking at your home….use a Realtor!

And remember you can speed your sale by:

Pricing Your Home Right!

Being Flexible About Showings!

Being Ready For Offers!

Drop The Price if Necessary!

I sometimes wonder what sellers are thinking.  Almost every one I have an opportunity to speak with is aware of the challenging market and slow economy we are currently experiencing so it amazes me that so many sellers don’t have a grip on what it takes in this market to sell their home.  Sometimes these sellers leave me wondering if they think their house is the only one for sale.  Do they think the buyers will smell the scent of the roses on the rosebush and temporarily forget the competition?  Do they think that buyers will be willing to pay yesterdays prices in today’s market?  It is imperative for sellers to price their property to sell, but only if that seller is serious about selling.  To accomplish the sale sellers should price their home 10% below market in order to sell promptly and avoid being left in the long line of expired listings.  Overpricing is a double edged sword…if a property is receiving little activity, it is overpriced.  Or if a property is receiving adequate activity, but no offers, it is also overpriced.  Courageous, professional agents tell the truth to the sellers.  Cowardly agents take the listing even though its overpriced hoping the seller will later reduce the price.  Which agent would you prefer to work with….how serious are you about selling your home?

Realtor Continuing Education!!!!!

Free MSHDA & Rural Development Training Seminar

Lunch & Learn

Sponsored by Chemical Bank

Wednesday, May 28th, 11:30 - 2:00 pm

Mid Michigan Community College

Houghton Room

1375 S. Clare Ave, Harrison, MI

In this session you will learn…..

How MSHDA and RD loan programs allow you to serve many more purchasers

How your MSHDA and RD loan can close more quickly

How the many different financing options vary

To register by phone or email contact Kathi Calhoun 989-435-7721 or kathi.calhoun@chemicalbankmi.com

If you or your listing has fallen into foreclosure this is the time line that you can expect things to happen within.

Day 1 - The payment that was due on the first of the month was not received by the lender.

Day 16 - A late fee is assessed by the lender and the collections department will contact the borrower by letter or phone to find out what has happened.

Day 45-60 - A “demand” letter is sent to the borrower explaining that the terms of the mortgage have been violated and the borrower is in default.  The borrower will get 30 more days to restore the delinquent amount.

Day 90-105 - The foreclosure department will hire an attorney to initiate foreclosure proceedings.  The attorney will publish notices of foreclosure over four consecutive weeks in the local paper.  They may also file a formal notice of foreclosure at the local courthouse, attend any hearings on the case, and make appropriate court filings.

Day 150-415 - The house is auctioned and sold and county sheriff’s sale.  a sheriff’s deed is filed at the register of deeds office within 20 days of the sale and will later be recorded at the end of the redemption period.

Day 330 - If the borrower cannot redeem the property by paying the balance of the loan, plus fees and penalties within 6 or 12 months (depending on if there is 2.99 acres or more) following the sheriff’s sale the lender is now the legal owner.

A short sale is defined as the lender allowing the owner to pay off the loan for less than what is owed.  Owners who recognize they are going into default should request a short sale package as soon as possible.  Lenders usually will not work with a short sale if the borrowers are in good standing with payments.  The short sale package will include a form that allows the owners to explain any hardship they are experiencing and why they are currently in default.  It will also request assets and liabilities and last years 1040, current pay stubs.  Based on the information submitted the bank MAY decide to enter into short sale proceedings.  Your property will need to be listed with a Realtor as most banks will want to know that you are working with a professional to accomplish the short sale.  The Realtor may need to fill out a BPO and submit a HUD statement.  For a Realtor working with a client who has been approved for a short sale you should order title work with listing so as to avoid any delays in closing.  Time if of the essence in short sales!  Also, be sure to have good comps to support the listing price.    As the Realtor you need to price the property at its most saleable price regardless of what the owners owes but you must be prepared to back your findings.  Make sure the MLS notes clearly state that any offers are subject to short sale and lenders approval.  When an offers is received you need to begin to communicate with the bank immediately.  Most likely they bank will send out an appraiser to determine the value as well.  It may take weeks for the bank to respond but when they do be prepared to act immediately on their requests or proceed to closing.  In the next installment I will discuss the foreclosure timeline and what each stage entails.

In light of all of the foreclosure listings on the market and the opportunity for some sellers to utilize the “short sale” I thought these next couple blogs would be very helpful.  I will start with a short background of how we have ended up with so many of these types of homes on the market.  I will continue with definitions of the differents phases of the foreclosure procss and who is able to utilize a short sale and how it works.

Many borrowers who had less than perfect credit, who had difficulty obtaining (conventional) financing or who are purchasing a home that does not appraise at the needed amount utilized a sub-prime loan.  Most of these loans are adjustable rate mortgages.  These can be risky since the buyer qualifies for the loan based on the lower initial interest rate (not a future higher rate).  The theory is then that the equity will grow and allow the buyer to refinance the loan before the interest rate spikes.  If the market declines due to unforseen circumstances (like it has) such as a rise in unemployment, unstable economic conditions, etc. the homes value could be less than what is owed.  If this is the case the borrower cannot use the equity (because it does not exist) to refinance and they may not be able to financially adjust to the new monthly payments.  Now the borrower is in a bad position.  They are unable to refinance to a fixed rate conventional mortgage and they cannot handle the higher mortagage payments since the rate has adjusted.  Many borrowers find themselves missing payments and wondering how they can survive this mess.  When borrowers fall behind the first point of contact should be with the loss mitigation department of their bank.  These people have the information you need and usually the right advice and information.

In the next segment of my blog I will discuss short sales and in the following I will discuss the foreclosure process.