Moved: www.blogeauclaire.com

I have moved the blog to consolidate 3 different blogs I am writing to one place.

www.blogeauclaire.com

That will be the permanent home of my consumer blog. You can get any information you need from there including the new RSS feed.

This website will be up forever but I will not be updating it anymore.

Watch the Competition !! Quick Tip #2

Ask your agent if they will keep an eye on the competition! (Also if you can keep an eye as well)
I think comparing the home in question to similar homes in the same area or neighborhood is often overlooked. I think agents often spend the time to do a CMA to get the price ok but then aren't actively comparing this to what is going on in the market in that particular area. When I take a listing and the seller uses email I ask them if they would like to take part in watching the market in the area. I set the MLS search to basically run in reverse and watch as houses are sold and what is coming onto the market in that area. It works great and it lets the seller be a part of selling their house. When as an agent it is time to lower the price the seller might be more likely to agree if they have been seeing what you see!

The Open House of the Century

With all the new technologies: I-Whatchagizmos®, Netbooks http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Netbook, and internet every-which-way you go, the open house of today can be dramatically different than the open house ten years ago. In the same way ten years from now we will all probably have a chuckle at the “old” stuff we thought was so neat today. But has it changed in our area? Are agents in Eau Claire Wisconsin bringing technology to you at the open house?
I myself recently purchased a small notebook computer to bring with me to open houses. I thought it could help me in several ways. First of all I was hoping to be able to have access to internet. This can be difficult but thanks to my Smartphone (oh yeah another new technology) I can have internet access and actually hook up my laptop through my phone! Don’t think this is dialup either because it’s much faster than that AO_ (you know you used to love the free minutes) you used to know. The notebook has other uses of course. I like to use it to play music. I think music can set the tone for the open house and create a mood or atmosphere that is pleasing to guests. I want to create an environment that everyone can enjoy. The other use I have found is prominently displaying my website and blogs. I want people to know that I can access listings and help them at any moment. A lot of first time buyers come to open houses and want help or direction. By bringing the search to them I can help them with their needs.
What other neat toys or tools have you seen at open houses in the area that you have found useful?

Sites and Sounds: Websites of Real Estate Interest

What online real estate websites are people in the Eau Claire/Chippewa Valley area using for information (non real estate company owned)? What impact could localism have on our area (www.localism.com)? Are people aware of this site? If information was put together for people in our area could it work for your needs? Would you contribute? Let’s make a list of sites that work for our area.
As soon as this site goes online I would like to see what it has to offer for us, the people living in the Chippewa Valley. Let me know what you think and if you have questions on how you can contribute please feel free to ask!
Thanks.

Quick Tip #1

Instead of long articles every day I will offer quick tips as often as possible and then use these tips as supplements to longer posts later in the week or month. My first priority is actively selling real estate. Let me know what you think of course!

Quick tip: Low balling in any market is a bad idea. Why? It sets a poor tone for the offer and can sour their opinion of you and your offer. Do you really want the seller in a bad mood after reading your offer? Think about their impression of you as you write it. Not every offer goes back and forth with counter offers and starting off extremely low does not mean you are going to meet in the middle! The closer you come to what they are asking the greater chance they will accept your offer outright. There are many strategies to this and you should talk with your agent first.

What to do to avoid singing…The First Time Home Buyer’s Blues

As you pick up the newspaper scanning the open houses, take a moment to find out what you can do to learn how to go about buying a home for the first time. Maybe it’s just been a while and you feel a bit rusty or out of tune with the market. Follow along; and soon you will be singing a different tune!
Ok then let’s get started. Where do we begin?
1. Go to your bank.
Have you been to the bank? Do you know what price range you will be approved for? Many people start the process with looking for a home and then find out that the home they want is out of their price range. This can be disappointing, but avoided, if you start with the bank first.
2. Talk with a professional.
Contact a local real estate office. They know the area and are familiar with the local inventory. Find someone you are comfortable working with and the process is a breeze.
3. Get your search in tune!
Now your search will be more focused thanks to an experienced agent who can guide you through the buying process. Start narrowing down your choices. Take a look at a few homes and write down what features you liked best. Sometimes knowing what you don’t want can be the best place to start. As you continue to search, let your agent know what you are thinking. Good communication with your agent is key and that’s why it’s so important to find one that works for you.

This article is locally written. Stay tuned: more to come. Post your comments, questions, and suggestions at www.BloggingtheCV.Blogspot.com!

Home For Sale: Your First Business

Many of you have never owned your own business. Maybe you have no business training whatsoever. You might not even realize that when you are selling your home you are basically turning your home into a business. You are transforming your front yard into a store front and the product is your home! The moment you realize this is the moment you have gained a competitive advantage over your competition. YES you have competition! And lots of it! The trick is recognizing this and taking a marketing approach. Make sure that your agent sees selling your home in this way as well because it is a proven approach.

So now you have a product and there are a lot of stores with similar products for sale in your area. What can you do to ensure that yours is the one customers see and want to buy? Well that is the million dollar question. Ask any business owner and I am sure they would love to know as well. I have the answer and it has never been a secret! Many business owners are already doing it and they don’t even know it! It’s a simple approach really and it’s why they haven’t gone out of business. Here are some parts of it:

1. Have long hours. Stay open on weekends. Stay open nights. Translation to home owner? Make your home available so that no matter what time of day it is (within reason) your home is clean and ready to show. If an agent has potential buyers and they are only in town for the weekend and want to buy a home in 2 days (YES this happens and happens OFTEN) if you say "no I can't show it today we are busy this weekend" then you know where to point the finger when your house takes longer to sell.

2. Make your business inviting. Translation? Clean, Clean, and Clean. It’s the 3 C's. I can never stress this enough. Ever been turned off by a store with dirty bathrooms? It’s the same with selling your house!

3. Market your business. Translation? We probably can't afford TV ads specifically designed for your home, few business owners can. We don’t have the marketing budget of those big name, stick on the tip of your tongue companies. Sure it is your agent's job to market the sale of your home but that doesn’t mean you can’t! Tell everyone you know you are selling your home. Think of the organizations you are a part of. Make everyone you know aware of this fact. You probably know hundreds of people and they know hundreds of people! The 6 degrees rule can be true and before long everyone knows about your home. It should be the start of every conversation you have and the more you talk about it the more others will talk about it. You probably know someone who would buy your house you just don’t know it!

This list is by no means finished. More to come of course!

Buyer's Market Dare Not Beware

We have all heard it. Everyone’s talking about it here in Eau Claire. "It’s a buyer’s market." But what does it all mean for us here in the CV and what can we do to about? First of all let's focus on what this really means. Sure there is an inventory of houses for sale in our area. But houses are selling and some are selling fast. This does not mean you won't be able to sell your home or that it has to languish in the hot summer sun and then freeze all winter long with no traffic. No one wants this and it doesn’t help anyone. We don’t want to give your house away and we don’t want your house to sit on the market month after month collecting proverbial dust. What we do want is to get your house to stick out (in a good way) from the rest of the homes in your price range. How can we do that? Drop the price of course! No, no that’s too simple. Of course that can work and in many cases after all else has failed and you must sell your home quickly then this can be the best solution. If this isn’t an option I suggest doing things differently. Think differently. Take an active role in selling your home. You have a lot of power in selling your home. Your agent can do a lot but we can’t paint that fence no matter how many times you ask us! That’s your job. So stop putting it off and pointing fingers. Just go do it!

You can sway potential buyers to your home. Spruce it up. "Curb appeal" is another one of those catch phrases you can't help but to hear. But truisms are what they are and no matter how many times you hear it many people are just not doing it! Take a drive around your block. Is your home the nicest home? (I don’t mean the most expensive or the most expensively landscaped.) Would you buy your home? What would you do differently? Asking these questions can lead you on the "Active Seller" path. Sitting back with the cruise control set watching the days on market tick higher and higher doesn’t help. We can’t "roll back" the days.

Dare to make your home stick out. Make it attractive and appealing to potential buyers. From the moment they pull up to your home to the moment they first turn that handle to open the front door, make your home their home and they won't want to leave. Have them fall in love with your home just like you did when you first bought it.

"Cheap" Tricks

Many people are aware that there are things you can do to your house to increase equity in your home with little or no money. "Sweat equity" as it has become known involves sweat and lots of it. It also involves great risks in many of the projects that are suggested. Without the consultation of a professional you could become involved in a project that quickly gets out of control. If the project is not done in a professional looking manner not only are you out the cost of materials but time and energy as well. Plus not only have you not increased the value of your home you may have actually hurt the salability.

What can you do to avoid this dilemma?

Get help! Assess your own abilities first. Don't start a project that you think is too hard. If you think it's hard it probably is. Some things look easy when professionals do them. They have had years of practice. Ever heard the saying you can’t make an omelet without breaking eggs? You don't want your house to be full of broken eggs. Consult a professional.

Presentation is the key. Imagine you are buying your own home. Step out of your own shoes and try on a different pair. Walk through your front door for the first time as someone else and really take a good look around. Bring a notepad with you and take notes. Are your windows dirty? Cobwebs? Bring a white glove (white hand towel will do) and rub it on all the surfaces in your house. If you see any dirt you know where to start. This isn't going to raise the selling price of your home but it can increase the potential to sell your home. Appearance is everything and a dirty home can’t be covered up. Just because it doesn't bother you doesn't mean it won’t matter to someone else. If two homes are identical in price, design, etc this could be the deciding factor. Someone who is motivated enough to clean their house to this degree is a nod in the direction of potential buyers signaling that you are probably motivated in other ways.

Best part of a clean house is you get to enjoy it as well. You will thank yourself after its done and your agent will thank you as well.

P.S.

Don't be afraid to get your kids involved!

Chippewa Valley Real Estate and Beyond

The intent of this blog is to create a simple environment so that I can share my real estate experiences and expertise with the people closest to me here in Eau Claire and the entire Chippewa Valley. After spending some time looking around I see there is a huge void between real estate professionals and the clients and customers they rely on. I think it is time we give back to the community which has provided for our growth. I want this to be the place where we can share our common experiences and grow together. I will use this blog to share valuable information that relates to everyone in the area.



I have done extensive research on real estate matters and it is my conclusion that most sources provide information about market areas that have little to do with Wisconsin or the Chippewa Valley in particular. The national media has done an excellent job in finding as much doom and gloom in relation to the recent housing market "collapse", but how is this affecting us? I intend to use this blog to answer this question and others as they arise.



To show my sincerity I wish to make a pledge to the people of the Chippewa Valley.

I pledge:



1. To make this blog a place where everyone has a voice.

2. To keep this blog local and stick to local content.

3. To keep an open ear to the community so that I may hear your concerns.

4. To continue my own education with real estate matters so that you will consider me the premier source for real estate in the Chippewa Valley.

5. To talk about a variety of topics so that we cover every aspect of perhaps the greatest investment you will make in your lifetime; your home.

6. To interview other professionals familiar with real estate matters in the area to get their opinions on local topics.

7. To keep this blog up to date with fresh content and quick responses from me.

8. To continually update my pledge to you so that I am always meeting your needs.

Thank you and welcome to my blog.