"60 Minutes" Worth of Real Estate Marketing Advice

Did anyone see the piece on CBS's 60 Minutes about buying and selling homes with discount internet brokers? Well just to let you know there has been a lot of resentment from the full-service brokerage industry, and from NAR, the National Association of Realtors, named in the piece. The following is an article taken from RealTrends.com, a real estate website providing information to industry professionals, which mentions some of the misinformation presented in the program:

"According to the National Association of REALTORS, CBS' show "60 Minutes" gave them "the empty chair treatment" in its May 13th segment that examined the impact of online brokerages on the real estate industry. The show featured interviews with a representative from the now-defunct eRealty and the president and CEO of Redfin, but no one from NAR, even though NAR twice offered and prepared association spokespersons for interviews with Leslie Stahl.

NAR is in communication with 60 Minutes and accuses the program of being unbalanced in its reporting and presentation of misinformation. NAR will be sending the CBS network a letter demanding an opportunity to correct any errors and misrepresentations.

Here are some examples of the misinformation that NAR notes:

Error: The six percent commission is "sacrosanct."
Fact: All commissions are negotiable. The average commission rate is not six percent, but 5.1 percent, according to REAL Trends.

Error: NAR is the industry's "governing body."
Fact: NAR is a trade association. It does not govern the industry.

Error: In 2003, NAR issued new rules of its own that threatened to block Internet discounters access to the MLS.
Fact: The Virtual Office Web site policy did not block access to MLSs for discounters or any other brokers who are members of the MLS.

Error: The MLS is the database that lists virtually every home for sale in the country.
Fact: There is no single national MLS. Rather, there are more than 900 local and regional multiple listing services. These are not simply "databases," but a private exchange of offers of cooperation and compensation between real estate brokers.

Error: Eight states have "minimum service laws" that require Realtors to provide a level of service many Internet discounters can't afford.
Fact: "Realtor" is a trademarked term and should never be used synonymously with "real estate agent." The intent of minimum service laws is to ensure consumers receive a minimal level of service from licensees.

Error: The brokerage industry has a powerful lobby. Eleven states flatly prohibit rebates.
Fact: The intent of anti-rebate laws is to prevent kickbacks in real estate transactions, not to limit brokers' incentives to attract customers. The brokerage industry does not lobby for anti-rebate laws.

NAR expressed disappointment that CBS made the decision it would rather interview opponents and let them make "unanswered - and inaccurate and unfair - accusations" about Realtors and NAR policies. (REALTOR Magazine Online)"

I, for one, am all for technology and tools that will assist buyers and sellers in achieving their real estate goals. However, computer marketing, virtual tours, GPS, and instant messaging will never replace the hands on, face to face, personal attention, that a full service real estate professional can provide a buyer or seller that is making one of the biggest financial decisions in their life.

Spring Market Update

Here's a brief summary of what's happening in the market right now.

For Morro Bay there are currently 69 single family homes listed for sale. The lowest was listed on May 2nd for $389,000 and is a 2 bedroom, 1 bath cottage with a peek of the ocean and approximately 676 sq.ft. The highest was listed on over a year ago for $3,000,000 is a 2 bedroom, 2 bath, 1450 sq. ft. fixer with views of the hills, but it sits on 20 acres of prime agricultural land. The average list price is $812,113 and the average recent sales price is $635,029. There are 17 homes in escrow right now and 51 homes have sold in the past six months. It is taking about 124 days for homes to sell in this market.

For Cayucos there are currently 48 single family homes actively for sale, 7 pending sale and 11 have sold in the past six months. The lowest was listed in April for $549,500 and is a 1 bedroom, 1 bath, remodeled 1950's cottage with ocean views and approximately 800 sq. ft. The highest was listed on May 1st for $4,950,000 and is a brand new 3 bedroom, 4 bath, 2450 sq.ft. oceanfront home. The average list price is $1,414,855 and the average recent sales price is $973,082. It is taking about 159 days for homes to sale in Cayucos.

What these statistics are telling us is that the market is looking good for the spring-summer season. Inventory is down a little bit and even though there have been several new listings, sales have been picking up with more buyers coming over to the area. And, average market time is decreasing which can be attributed to the fact that most sellers are finally being more realistic about how the market has changed and the importance of pricing their home right in this market so that it will sell. I am very optimistic that the market will be strong over the summer as more buyers make the decision to invest during this "favorable" period.

Coldwell Banker Open House Weekend and The Morro Bay Car Show

This weekend there's lots going on if you're coming to town. First of all, you may want to check out all of the open houses in the area. Coldwell Banker Liberty along with Coldwell Banker Premier, and Coldwell Banker Don Bricker are coming together to showcase listings in Cambria, Cayucos, Morro Bay, San Luis Obispo, Avila Beach, Shell Beach, Grover Beach, Arroyo Grande, Nipomo and Santa Maria this weekend and and throughout May. Visit participating open houses this month and enter to win two Aerosmith tickets and admission to the Mid-State fair in Paso Robles on July 25th. (certain rules apply) And, by the way, if you didn't already know, the Aerosmith tickets sold out in the first few hours they became available. The sample flyer to the left is being distributed through the San Luis Obispo Tribune. Also, Morro Bay has it's annual "Cruisin Morro Bay" car show, this Friday 6:00 to 8:00pm, Saturday 9:00am to 4:00pm and Sunday 9:00 to 11:30am. There'll be over 6000 cars to check out. It's fun and it's free!

Slump? What Slump?

Well, okay...we have been in a minor slump...if you can even call it that. But it was bound to happen eventually. It had to. Prices could not realistically keep appreciating as quickly as they did over the past few years without some kind of adjustment. But does our market truly mirror what is happening in the bigger cities like LA or the Bay area? What about the valley, like Fresno and Bakersfield since that's where many of our buyers come from? What about the rest of the country? Although we have many full-time residents in Cayucos and Morro Bay, the majority of homes in our market are vacation homes or second homes. Unfortunately, there aren't many families and young singles living full time here (at least not for very long) because of the scarcity of jobs and high cost of housing. This resort destination and retirement community is influenced by the "coastal lifestyle" and comprised of local activities, attractions and the coastal weather. For this reason, our real estate market is unique and it is doing much better than the market in other areas of the state and the country. Another factor affecting values are the thousands of Baby Boomers starting to retire and looking for the "coastal lifestyle".

So...buyers who continue to wait for beach property to "bottom out" just might be disappointed if they wait too long. In this light, today's market's lookin' pretty darn good.

Read an article from MSNBC.com regarding the record vacation home sales for 2006 at http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/18405318/from/ET/