Kary L. Krismer's Discussions

You cannot tell what a property is like over the Internet. You need to see the property in person.In addition, assuming you're a buyer without an agent, open houses are perfect for you. It gives you an easy way to get into the property! So if anything, open houses are more important now than before.

I think the state would be more useful that the city level. Most issues are state-wide. And in addition, I think it would be more difficult to get a critical mass of posters at the city level (I think it will be tough enough at the state level).

BTW, are those city discussions part of this area? I can't seem to find how to get to them directly.

Just a word of caution for other agents. Someone in my office went to a seminar where the teacher suggested "claiming" properties on Zillow that were for sale as a way of attracting buyers. I looked into it, and checked with our local MLS, and they consider that to be a rules violation if you don't get the permission of the agent listing the property. The fines they dish out can be pretty steep (probably $1,000 to $2,500), so if you do claim a listed property get the listing agent's permission.Also, in the Zillow EZ-Ads, keep in mind whatever limitations or requirements there are for advertising. I know a lot of agents locally totally ignore these issues in ads, but in Washington at least that's an issue where you'll be dealing with the Department of Licensing rather than your MLS, and putting yourself in a situation where you'll be dealing with them is not a good idea.

That's the other problem. If you claim a property, you have to monitor it.It may be free, but that doesn't mean it's easy, or a good idea.

Yes, given the inaccuracies in the Zesitmates, it's a bit tough when they're off. But in such cases we have our clients detail the changes to the property.BTW, sometimes they are off the other way. For example I saw a property where the basement was listed as partially finished by the county, but it's not.

Try to find out the equity situation of each seller. If they have no equity, they might not be able to negotiate and you'll just be wasting your time making an offer.Conversely, if they have equity and are in foreclosure, or perhaps have bought another house and are making two payments, they'd be more likely to negotiate.Information on the sellers is the key.

In Washington it's mainly lawyers, and lawyers are authorized to complete basic forms without it being considered the unauthorized practice of law.

Jim wrote: "I cannot tell you why your townhouse hasn't sold whereas 4 other homes in the neighborhood have. It could be any number of reasons. It could be as simple as the other homes had granite countertops and you didn't. Believe it or not, it's little things that make a buyer choose one property over another."For a short time I was dealing with a family apartment house (49 units) and there was one unit that just wouldn't rent. I think it was empty about 4 months. Other virtually identical units went before it did, for no apparent reason.

The OP wrote: "3. Your property will not be shown to interested buyers being represented by a certain type of individual who doesn?t like the fact that you don?t want to sign a listing contract and pay ridiculous amounts of your hard-earned money in commissions."I'm not sure what this is about. If you're expecting an agent to bring buyers to your home without paying them a commission, that's not going to happen. But some agents don't like dealing with FSBOs because it's too much work dealing with them on the paperwork, entry to the property, etc. Also, a lot of FSBO properties are overpriced, so there'd be no need to bring a client to see the property.