Maria Morton's Discussions

I have spoken to a mortgage lender from Countrywide as well as several homeowners who tell me that Countrywide is being patient with people who are slow to pay here in Kansas City. These happen to be homeowners, not investors, who want to keep their homes. Each one had a different setback that caused them to be unable to make payments for several months. One individual told me she never even got a nasty letter from Countrywide. She called to explain her situation and was told not to worry, pay when she could. Nice.

Of the 6% commission, 1/2 goes to the listing broker and 1/2 goes to the selling broker; the agent's split is 50-90% of what the broker gets. The agent pays for advertising, signs, print media, mailings, MLS fees, license fees in both states, iBox fees, CSS, continuing education fees, business card fees, food for the Tuesday Agent Tour, flyers for the box, balloons, flyers, and treats for the Open House, photos & video tours, and other assundry costs of doing business. Health insurance and retirement plan, if there's anything left.

Actually, people who want to sell their home fast are paying 7 - 8% commission now; some are at 10%; some are offering bonuses to the selling agent. Why? Because these homeowners understand that realtors networking is what gets a home sold. Out of the 23,000 homes for sale and over 400,000 people, it takes a lot of networking to find "the buyer" for your house. Think about it: You want a house in Prairie Village but you absolutely have to have a two car garage and your budget is $165,000; that takes you down to about 5 houses and 2 have pending contracts, 1 is accepting backup offers, you don't like the one on the corner lot and the other one has foundation issues. How about the people shopping Brookside? They want to move closer in but they're used to more space for less money. It takes these people months to adjust their thinking enough to be able to pay over a quarter of a million dollars for a house that's smaller than what they now own just so they can be 20 minutes closer to work. The national news media has not helped by reporting '"real estate is down." What does that mean? It means that the median price of homes in the 150 metropolitan areas has decreased 2% over the last year. Kansas City is not one of the markets they look at. But their reports scare people. Buying a home is one of the biggest investments many people will make in their lifetime; they fear making a bad choice.

The selling side, representing the buyer, spends hours, days, weeks, months, years, keeping in touch with the buyer. Answering questions. Attending to their online account. Helping them apply for a mortgage, clean up their credit, get on a budget, figure out what they want in a house, what area, what style, what they can get that they want within their price range. Then, when that buyer is ready, the agent searches MLS for the right house. Previews in person. Makes the appointments to show the buyer the houses fitting their criteria. Then the real work of writing the contract begins. Helping the buyer understand why he can't make a low ball offer on this house if he really wants it because it's a good house and priced right. (or how overpriced it is for it's location and condition as evidenced by the comparable properties). Helping him/her work out terms that meet the needs of both parties so everyone gets a fair deal. Providing emotional support throughout the many ups and downs of the inspection and negotiating process.

As far as servicing a listing: I provide my clients with weekly updates and phone calls in between. This is after I have gone over the listing agreement with them, answered all their questions, helped them prepare the home for sale, taken care of the photos, placed the sign in the yard, written the copy for the ads, uploaded the info into MLS and my company website, sent out emails announcing the new listing, held the Agent Tour, etc. When another agent shows their house, I send emails and leave voicemails until I get feedback on what the buyer thought. Then I relay that to the sellers. When I show buyers around, I spend an hour or more filling out the feedback emails through Centralized Showing and making phone calls to the listing agents who have left me emails and voicemails while we're still out. I check the flyer boxes, keep track of close to 20 websites, talk, phone and email every agent who might know of a buyer and anything else I can think of to get their home sold. This is a very abbreviated explanation of what a Realtor does but hopefully will give you a little insight into how we earn every dime we make.

Here's a suggestion: Go to a few Open Houses in the area. Talk to the agents who are holding the houses open. See which agents you feel good talking to. Tell them you've been thinking about buying in the area; mention that house as one you're considering. Ask them to explain "Agency", "Exclusive Buyers Agency Agreement", "Exclusive Right To Sell", "Tansaction Broker", and "Dual Agency" to you. Each state has specific laws, in addition to federal laws, that apply to Dual Agency and Transaction Brokers. Listen to what they have to say.  Pick the one you feel most comfortable with and ask that one if they would sign an Exclusive Buyer Agency with you. If they will, then they cannot be representing the Seller. So, they could represent you and once they owe fiduciary obligation to you, they will be able to tell you, in their professional opinion, why that house is priced as it is and what they believe you could reasonably offer. If the comps in the area support your offering price, the Seller's Agent may be able to convince the Seller to accept your offer. If not, perhaps there is another house with the amenities you want at the price you want in that area.

If it were me, I would find a reputable, local lender that I could look in the eye while we discussed options.

I remember when congress passed the law allowing DRG's to dictate what care a patient could receive. Since that time, insurance companies have managed to change (for the worse) our health care system every year until it has finally broken.Now we have people who do not have a good understanding of what real estate agents and brokers actually do wanting to make changes that, in the long run, will probably hurt them more than they realize. At this point in time, it is still possible for most working people in our country to own their own home. Realtors are there for your benefit, to help you, not hurt you. Those of us who work full time are dedicated to promoting and protecting our client's best interests. This includes keeping your confidences, saving you time, saving you money, making sure the transaction is made lawfully, giving you the benefit of our knowledge and experience, etc. We actually enjoy helping people.Yes, we get paid. Very few people can do what they love without being paid. Less than 10% of the population, actually. And, should your dreams of eliminating realtors come true, I foresee that 10% being able to afford realtors when they enter into real estate transactions. Of course, real estate transactions have had agents to expedite the process for hundreds of years, it's doubtful that the need for agents will suddenly cease to exist. We have, and will continue to change the way we conduct business just as your business changes with technology, new laws and procedures, and societal evolution; but there will always be a need for agents to conduct transactions.

Why? Because the research shows that people remember the picture and are more likely to respond to an ad or card with a picture on it. If we don't do what works, we go broke/hungry/out on the street.

I posted two listings on Zillow. They were there for a while; now they are gone.Along with the comments from others about Zillow mislabeling listings and being way off on "Zestimates", it is beyond me what value people find here.No, I will not spend my time re-posting. The listings are on MLS and about 2 dozen other sites.Good luck to those who choose to wrestle with Zillow.MariaMorton@ReeceAndNichols.com