Sandicor, the MLS for San Diego California is going to start forcing real estate agents with IDX feeds to display the names, and contact information, of the listing agents on their IDX websites. This is a huge step in the wrong direction when it comes to the world of internet marketing.

1) What is the incentive to create a website which is useful to potential home buyers?

For realtors who have created San Diego Real Estate websites, and have paid for IDX feeds to be placed on them, they have done so in hopes that home shoppers will call them up to ask questions.  They put the time and energy into their site so that they can receive the benefit.  That’s not selfish, it’s just business – create a product to receive revenue from it.

But now their incentive is lost because potential home buyers may never contact them.  They instead will contact the phone number which is required on every listing “This home is listed by so and so and such and such phone number.”

2) Do Listing Agents Really Have to Double Side Things?

One of the reasons why you go to a realtor to purchase a home is that you feel they are going to go to mat for you.

When a realtor has to side with both you and the seller, you have no idea if you are going to end up getting somebody who has your best interest in mind.

A listing agent should be satisfied with the fact that they have listed the home and they will get their commission for that (and in San Diego, that is frequently enough commission to live off of for a year, do they really need to double that?)

3) The Market Has Changed

This simply sounds like an attempt from lobbyists hired by old school listing agents to stay relevant in a market that is changing.  Because they are to stubborn to make useful websites themselves or understand technology, they have to force their names where it does not belong.

The market has moved to the online world.  This is not 1992 anymore, this is 2012.  If you can not take the time to understand the basics of advertising to your target audience (via creating a relevant website), then you don’t belong in it.  Listing brokers and agents do not need better exposure, they just need to keep listing homes.

Solution

Drop the listing agent information from the MLS listing.  It does not belong there.  Instead, if a listing agent wants to become a buyers agent have them learn how to advertise their own homes or hire somebody who can do it for them – but everybody else on the world wide web does not need to become their free advertiser.

via San Diego MLS Will Require Listing Agent Contact Info on IDX Feeds.

Active Rain recently did a survey of thousands of agents. They determined that rich agents, those who make more than $100,000 year make their focus and invest in online lead generation and IDX systems. Rich agents spend ten times more on marketing, including six times more on technology. They spend 2.75% more on internet marketing than do poor agents.

Data provided by ActiveRain.com. Join 215,590 Real Estate Agents on the world’s largest Real Estate Social Network.

The survey also found that real estate agents saw very little results from Facebook, Trulia, and Zillow.

Once again, if you want to be the best Charleston Real Estate agent, you have to know what people are going to ask real estate agents. Here is what a recent HouseLogic report recommends potential home buyers ask when selecting a Realtor.

Ask detailed questions about their experience and skills to help you find the right agent for your home sale.

1. How long have you been selling homes?

Mastering real estate requires on-the-job experience. The more experience agents have, the more likely they’ll be able to handle any curveballs thrown during your home sale.

2. What designations do you hold?

Designations like GRI (Graduate REALTOR® Institute) and CRS® (Certified Residential Specialist), which require that agents complete additional real estate training, show they’re constantly learning. Ask if agents have designations and, if not, why not?

3. How many homes did you sell last year?

Agents may tout their company’s success. An equally important question is how many homes they’ve personally sold in the past year; it’s an indicator of how active and aggressive they are.

4. How many days on average did it take you to sell homes?

Ask agents to show you this data along with stats from their local Multiple Listing Service (MLS) so you can see how many days, on average, their listings were on the market compared to the average for all properties in the MLS.

5. How close were the asking and sales prices of the homes you sold?

Sometimes sellers choose their agent because the agent’s suggested listing price is higher than those suggested by other agents. A better factor is the difference between listing prices and the amount homes actually sold for. That can help you judge agents’ skill at accurately pricing homes and marketing to the right buyers. It can also help you weed out agents trying to dazzle you with a lofty sales price just to get your listing.

6. How will you market my home?

The days of agents putting a For Sale sign in the yard and hoping for the best are long gone. Look for an agent who does aggressive and innovative marketing, especially on the Internet.

7. Will you represent me exclusively?

In most states, agents can represent the seller, the buyer, or both in a home sale. If your agent will also represent buyers, understand and consent to that dual representation.

8. How will you keep me informed?

If you want weekly updates by email, don’t choose an agent who plans to contact you only if there’s an offer.

9. Can you provide references?

Ask to talk to the last three customers the agent assisted. Call and ask if they’d work with the agent again and if the agent did anything that didn’t sit well with them.

10. Are you a REALTOR®?

Ask whether agents are REALTORS®, which means they’re members of the NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS® (NAR). NAR has been an advocate of agent professionalism and a champion of homeownership rights for more than a century.

Other web resources

More on choosing an agent

More on REALTOR® designations

G.M. Filisko is an attorney and award-winning writer who’s worked with many real estate agents in the past 20 years. A frequent contributor to many national publications including Bankrate.com, REALTOR® Magazine, and the American Bar Association Journal, she specializes in real estate, business, personal finance, and legal topics.

via HouseLogic | REALTOR® Content Resource | Find the Best Agent to Sell Your House.

As a real estate agent, it is very important that you know what potential home buyers and sellers are looking for in an agent, so you can be that kind of person.

Here is an article that goes over certain aspects that home buyers are looking for in an agent. If you can be this kind of agent, you are almost guaranteed consistent repeat and referral business:

1. Knows how to communicate. Communication is the key to a successful real estate transaction. Your agent needs to be available to communicate with you as well as other agents, lenders, and closing companies. Good agents almost always answer their phones, and respond to email and text messages almost immediately. A good Charleston Realtor not only needs to be readily available for communication, they also need to know how to share the message in an effective manner where all parties will understand what needs to be communicated.

2. Has experience. True real estate knowledge can only be understood through experience. Sometimes the only way to learn how to do things better is to fail. The last thing you want to happen during your transaction is have your real estate agent make a mistake that costs you money, or your dream home. Now, this doesn’t mean that its bad to use a new real estate agent. New Charleston real estate agents are often the hardest working agents. When you use a new agent, you do want to make sure that they have a strong support staff and experienced broker who will be working with them and helping them out along the way.

3. Understands negotiation and contracts. Lets be honest, real estate transactions are never cheap. For most people, they are the most expensive purchases one will ever make. Because so much money is involved, it is essential that your real estate agent is on top of things. They need to make sure that your real estate contract really protects you. Good experienced real estate agents also understand market conditions and other cues that can help you negotiate the best deal possible.

4. Is Honest and Will Work for YOU. Home buying and selling can be very arduous and stressful. Real estate agents make a good deal of money when transactions do go through. When selecting an agent you want to make sure that your Realtors interest really is to serve you, and to do what is in your best interest. The fact is that some real estate agents interest is getting the highest commission for the least amount of effort. There are also Charleston Realtors who really do have integrity. They want what’s best for you and realize that by providing excellent service, they will be rewarded in the long run.

via curhomes – See You Are Home! Finding the right home for you, and the information you need to know to get the best real estate in the best location..

If you’re considering a career in real estate, you can’t have a criminal history. However some real estate licensees abuse their magic key privileges for unlawful measures. Check out what this dork did:

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

via Real Estate Only » Open Houses Might Be Target For Burglars.

Real Estate agents need to have good legal knowledge and understanding of contract law. This is perhaps the most valuable service that real estate agents provide to their clients. Agents need to know how to not only understand the issues, and potential pitfalls, but they need to educate their clients and avoid catastrophies.

Here are a few scenarios real estate agents might encounter.

Verbal and Written Offers

A buyer brings verbally commits that they are going to bring in an offer, the seller verbally commits to accept it. Then, a second buyer brings in a better written offer, before the written offer actually is received. Who is under contract?

The second offer.

For a contract to be valid the offer must be signed, and communicated. As a real estate agent you need to make sure that the message has been received. The best way to go this is with a phone call.

Real Estate agents also need to make sure that their clients understand how the negotiation process works, and when properties are really under contract.

What Items are Included in the Real Estate Transaction

Are refrigerators included? How about ceiling fans, water shares, propane tanks, and water softeners.

It depends. Fridges are considered personal property. They can be taken or left behind. What matters is what it says in the real estate purchase contract.

Seller Required Repairs

What if repairs aren’t made by settlement as agreed in the purchase contract?

Then an escrow account is set up that will cover the unmade repairs. In the event  that these repairs are not made within a month, then the agreed upon  liquidated damages will be released to the buyer. In reality, this scenario may not work. Lenders often won’t allow escrow accounts, and much of the time the short sale sellers have no equity that can go in the escrow account anyways. When possible, it’s best to just move the closing back until after the repairs are really made.

Contract Cancellation – What happens to earnest money.

After the financing and appraisal deadline, if a buyer wants to cancel, what happens?

For Real Estate in Utah, the seller can either accept the earnest money as liquidated damages, or sue the buyer.

The earnest money should be sufficient to cover the damages. But this isn’t necessarily sufficient, if the buyer didn’t really do all they could to get their loan, the seller could still sue the buyer for damages rather than take the earnest money.

Th safe thing to do is have the financing deadline as close to possible to closing. If anything is going to cancel, do it before the deadline.

When buying real estate, there is an actual exchange of real property. It is very important for real estate career people to understand the basics of title and transfer. Different states have different laws regarding the exact details. California Real Estate uses the Judicial system more, while other states tend to like trust deeds.

Title and Transfer
I you don’t read your title report, it may have errors and you’ll be signing something that isn’t accurate, making the inaccuracies legal.  Utah real estate agents can actually be held liable for errors that result in the preliminary title report.

When title is transferred, the title company checks the chain of title to make sure that none of the former parties on record by either deed or patent, have a vested interest in the property.

The worse title problem you can have is with ownership. Ownership is not quantifiable. There is no set dollar amount for vested ownership. People can always refuse to have an ownership interest released. Judgements can be paid off.

Most Common Types of Ownership
Husband and Wife – Joint Tenancy
When one spouse dies, ownership is automatically passed on to the survivor. There must be an equal share of ownership.

If there is no Joint Tenancy, the ownership needs to be past on somewhere.

Tenants in Common
Default Ownership status in Utah. Ownership is common, but there is no right to survivorship. Under Death laws this interest will be passed to heirs.
Can be any. Number of people. The percentage of ownership doesn’t matter.

For things like the Death Tax, it really matters which type of ownership you have. He distribution on death differs.

Other ways to hold title:
Partnerships
Corporations – By laws determine who signs.
LLC’s – Manager Needs to Sign

Capacity to Sign
Divorce – if both parties are still on title, both parties still need to say. The divorce decree needs to legally “convey” the property to the spouse who is going to keep the property.

Death and Types of Ownership
Joint Tenants – if both spouses sign the listing agreement, and one dies before closing, you can’t complete the transaction without court an probate. You’ll probably want to extend the listing. This may take a little while.

If the ownership is Tenants in Common, and one spouse dies, the surviving heirs from the universal probate code have to sign for the sale o the house to be completed.

Trusts cannot take title to a property. Only trustees can.

A minor, or incompetent person can have title of a property as joint tenants, but that minor cannot sign. Their parent doesn’t necessarily have the right on their behalf to sign either. I minor can technically stop a real estate deal from happening, but the legal guardian must sign on their behalf.

Voluntary Transfer
The Normal transaction where buyers and sellers exchange properties.

Involuntary Transfers
Foreclosure – non Judicial Foreclosure, trustee Sales. At the time the property was purchased the buyer agreed to allow the mortgage company to have th trust deed, which is essentially the right to foreclose. There are four potential involuntary transfers. They are:

• Imminent Domain
• Tax Sales
• Divorce Sales
• Adverse Possession

Types of Deeds
Warranty Deed – Guarantees that you have title to the property.

Special Warranty Deed – reduction of the Warranty, only guarantee the deed over the period of ownership. The Warrant Deed guarantees the property forever.

Quit Claim Deed
This deed simply says, if I have ownership in the property, then I transfer it all to you. It’s typically used to solve problems. To clean up the interest.

There has been a lot of emphasis in the real estate world of technology and social media. There are new ways that people communicate today, that they never even thought about  just half a decade ago. Using these tools and mediums real estate agents and mortgage professionals can be more effective.

The big challenge is that not all real estate clients use these new mediums of communication. So what do you do about it?

The answer is really quite simple:

Ask your clients what they are using to search homes for sale, and what they do to communicate. Do they text? Do they facebook? How often do they check their emails?

If you know these things, you can better communicate and serve your clients. Some people are easiest to reach, and communicate best through facebook! For other text messaging is the way to go. If your client prefers a certain method of communication, use it.

If they don’t use these tools, then don’t scare them by trying to communicate with them in a way that is unfamiliar to them. Someone looking for Orange County Real Estate might be far more likely to use a high tech communication device than someone looking for Logan Utah Real Estate.

If you can communicate in a way that meets their needs, you are more likely to connect, and convert them to clients.

One of the reasons that it’s a good time to be a real estate agent is that there are far less Realtors than there were a few years ago. Now, not all real estate agents are Realtors, but most are, and usually all of the “producing” real estate agents are members of the National Association of Realtors.

According to Brian Buffini at the Wells Fargo Seminar I went to this morning, there are 40% less Realtors than there were at the peak of NAR membership. This represents an outstanding time to be in real estate, as there is far less competition. Among these registered Realtors, many of them do not make a livable salary. Only 16% of real estate agents have gross commissions of more than $100,000 a year.

It is also a good time to be in real estate because it is a great time to buy real estate. Home prices are down, and interest rates are low. Helping people get great deals in real estate brings lots of satisfaction.

But to be a good real estate agent, one needs leads. Real estate lead generation is a crucial aspect of real estate that all successful agents spend a great deal of time focusing on.

One of the less than fun things about being a real estate agent is taking CE credits. State law requires that real estate agents take a certain number of continuing education in order for a real estate agent to renew their real estate license. Utah Real Estate law requires its agents to take 18 CE credits every two years, and nine of them must be “CORE” classes, courses that the state deems to be fundamentally important.

Now I get the point. I get the reason the state does want agents to take continuing education. As the regulatory agency behind enforcing state laws and practices it is important that real estate agents know what they are doing. Real education is absolutely valuable. It’s for the public good. In reality though CE credits don’t actually provide much actual education, but are usually performed for the sole purpose of getting that credit needed to practice real estate. I guess it’s not that much different from the way that the overall American education system is set up.

There are usually times throughout the year when Title Companies, or various organizations sponsor FREE CE Classes in effort to provide some good will and free advertising. But most of the time, real estate licensees are required to “pay for these courses.”

Because most agents are slackers, and wait until the last moment to get things done, this often means taking CE classes online. I fit right in that classification. My real estate license expires at the end of the month, and I have spent the last week taking classes to fulfill the nine credits in which I was deficient.

The company Mckissock, was on top of things and sent me regular mailers reminding me to take courses before my license expires. So I did. The format was pretty simple, pay money, read content on their website, take some quizzes, get credit. If you got the questions wrong, which I did a few times, you can just retake the quiz as many times as it takes until you get the credits right.

The first class I took, on Foreclosures and Short Sales was actually very good. It was a Core class, and was needed. It talked about the different cycles of the economy, and explained a bit why the housing market is currently where it is.

I’m currently in the process of starting up a real estate brokerage, and there was an optional class about “Business Planning for Brokerages.” I thought it would be great, and provide me with some good things to think about that I wouldn’t have otherwise considered. I was way wrong. This class was horrible.

The first two chapters explained things in the way you would explain business formation to a second grader. The concepts were so basic it was embarrassing. Then, things flipped a complete 180. It was as if the next chapter was written by someone else. This chapter focused on “technology.” I have a technical background, and this information was way beyond anything a real estate brokerage would ever need. In addition, the information was completely outdated. Why would a real estate brokerage need to know about a wired local area network, when everything these days is done so simply and wirelessly? The contrast between the chapters was so different it was almost comical.

There might be some better online classes, and some better ways to really educate real estate agents. But I guess I got what I really wanted after all, credit hours I need so that I can renew my real estate license. I also got some good content I can use for my real estate blog.