Blame Your Realtor®....who else can you Blame?

When the buyer gets a loan approval and then can't close because their loan program is no longer available.....blame your Realtor®
When the mortgage broker lies to your buyer and the loan falls through at the last minute...blame your Realtor®
When the appraisal comes in lower than the agreed purchase price....blame your Realtor®
When the buyer complains that you only showed them 100 homes and they still don't buy anything....blame your Realtor®
When the buyer closes on their new home and they find out that they paid the highest price in the neighborhood...blame your Realtor®
When the seller finds out that they sold their home for the lowest price...blame your Realtor®
When the sellers home is messy...dirty and cluttered and they refuse to clean it up or pay for staging....blame your Realtor®
When the sellers home is in need of major repairs but you refuse to make any of them....blame your Realtor®
When the inspector says you have $5,000 in repairs to make...blame your Realtor®
When you list your home too high and it has to be reduced 50 times and it still doesn't sell...blame your Realtor®
When your Realtor® spends all their time advertising and getting you all the exposure you ask for and busts their butt trying so hard to sell your home....blame your Realtor®
When 6 months go by and nobody calls to see your home...blame your Realtor®
When the title company finds a cloud on your title and you can't close...blame your Realtor®
When you buy a property with no money down and expect to sell it the next day and you have to go into foreclosure...blame your Realtor®
When you blow off your appointment with your Realtor® and don't call to cancel...blame your Realtor®
When the Real Estate market sucks...blame your Realtor®
When the market is great...blame your Realtor®
When your home doesn't sell...blame your Realtor®
When your car doesn't start in the morning and you're late to work...blame your Realtor®
When you have an argument with your spouse and you get divorced...blame your Realtor®
When you lose all your money in Vegas...blame your Realtor®
When you wake up with a hangover from drinking too much...blame your Realtor®
When you get electrocuted because you didn't turn the power off before you attached two wires together on your new ceiling fan...blame your Realtor®
When you order a $30 cowboy steak in an Italian restaurant and it's all fat....blame your Realtor®
When you wake up in the morning expecting it to be sunny and it's pouring out...blame your Realtor®
When you wake up and find one of those big red suckers(pimples) on your face...blame your Realtor®
Think about how many times you've blamed your Realtor® for something that was totally out of their control.

Who else can you blame.....your Realtor® of course!

For more information please contact Neal The Real Deal Bloom-CRS-Realtor® /Remax Hometown

2500 Weston Road ,Suite 103

Weston FL 33331

(954)608-5556

The Real Deal tells it Like it is in Real Estatecopyright © 2008-All rights reserved

I'm going to try to very careful how I talk about this situation because it could come back and haunt me later. This post is not intended to offend anyone working in the stagging industry.....I think stagers are important for sellers in need of other ways to promote their home to sell. They do a great job. But when a stager gets involved in something they shouldn't ....then I won't just sit back on this one.

Caleb Mardini wrote a very interesting post Talking Commissions=Serious Consequences. It may apply to your business so if you haven't read it you might want to......it's a very important and sensitive subject.

A while back, I received a call from a person who had interviewed me to list their home back in 2006. I was aware that they ended up listing it with another agent. The listing never sold and I kept looking to see whether or not they re-listed it or never sold because they just had a change of plans. It turned out that the listing expired and I tried to contact them by leaving them a message and mailing them an expired listing letter. They never responded and I just left it at that. I did keep an eye on it every few months just to see if anything might have changed. It didn't. Any way around the holidays the owner called me and asked me if I had remembered them. I said sure I do and I asked him what I could do for them. He said we had listed out home at the price you suggested but we used the agent who had previously listed it and figured he knew the home but they were not happy and the listing expired and they decided to stay.

They decided that they wanted to move out of the area near relatives and were wondering if I would be interested in coming by to talk to them about listing it. I said sure I would. The next day the husband called and told me that his spouse really didn't know if she wanted to move but asked me if I would still come by and he would talk to her about it later. I said sure. Later they told me they would let me know when they were ready and then contact me. They discussed my fee and how long the term would be. I kept following u with them but couldn't figure out what they really were going to do. They told me that their relative suggested that they stage the homes since it was in need of some work and presented better. I am sure that staging a home definitely could help with the sale of the property and this post isn't about whether staging works or not...it's about our fees being negotiated and talked about with the wrong parties.

They called me and asked if I knew anyone they could talk to. I told them that don't use stagers much if any but I agree that it couldn't hurt but that they should know that the staging company would be charging them a fee and if the property was in need of such things as new carpet and or paint that it was highly likely that they would have to pay for that as well. I told them I had no idea how much the fees were but I gave them the name of a company that was recommended by someone in my office. Anything to help them if I can.

A few weeks later I received another call from the owner and he told me he spoke to the stager and wanted to know how if I could call the stager and explain to them what I thought needed to be done. I asked them if the stager ever met with them in person to give them a consultation. They said no. I asked them if they had an idea how much the fee was. They said not exactly...they did tell me that that the stager mentioned how they could save money by having me reduce my fee and paying a certain % of that fee to them at closing. I asked them what they meant by that? They said that the stager told them that since my standard fee was X% that I could offer a point higher and then pay them from the difference.

Out of respect to them....I told them I can't...they also asked me if I could ask the stager if there was a way to incorporate their fee into my listing agreement. I told them that this is my fee and that my listing agreement has nothing to do with their separate agreement with the staging company and unless they were licensed Realtors®....then we can't pay them a fee...it's totally separate from the other agreement. At first I asked them what they thought they would do. They told me they were not willing to do any expensive renovations. They told me they needed a new paint job and the carpets were worn to the bone. But they weren't willing to spend money to replace those items. they mentioned those things to the stager yet never figured out that they would most certainly have to pay for it unless someone else was willing to. I was wondering whether they were going to have the stager just cover up those deficiencies and not disclose it to potential buyers until they went into contract. I didn't want to ask that question at this point.

I did tell them I would call the stager and ask them what I could do to help them determine what idea I had to spruce up the property. I was also a bit annoyed to know that this stager apparently was negotiating my fee and determined that all Realtors® fees were a standard X%. WRONG!...there is no such thing as a standard fee. Maybe a fee that is common to see in the market place but no such thing as a standard fee. I believe that no one has the right to discuss or negotiate my or any other agents fee and that fees are only to be discussed between the agent/broker and the owner/seller.

I did put a call into the stager and left a message but they never returned my call. My message was short and sweet...that I was asked to call them by the seller. After I left the message......a few days later I informed the seller and he basically said he was sorry to hear that I didn't get a return call and that their relative still was stuck on this staging thing which I said was fine....but that they were now going to talk to a few other agents who were both stagers/Realtors® before they made their decision on whether to list with me.

Unless I am missing something I find it interesting that someone would put that notion in someones head that they are going to be negotiating my fee without me being present. This situation also could have jeopardized my relationship with this seller. I don't have the proof other than the sellers word but if it is true.....do I hear the word manipulation? They have absolutely no authority to do so and should be ashamed.

Maybe I'm wrong but I totally disagree. Again....am I missing something? Maybe there is a special exemption for stagers.

For more information please contact Neal The Real Deal Bloom-Realtor® /Remax Hometown

2500 Weston Road ,Suite 103

Weston FL 33331

(954)608-5556

The Real Deal tells it Like it is in Real Estate-copyright © 2008-All rights reserved

I have been working pretty hard the last few weeks. The Weston Florida Real Estate market has picked up a bit lately. I woke up this morning feeling kind of sexy today....well ok maybe I didn't feel that way but my listings felt kind of sexy. Come on! We also closed on 3 deals last week...1 sale and 2 rentals so I can't complain...."can't someone compliment me on looking and feeling sexy as well?" It figures.....it's all about the money. I personally showed 3 of our listings at the last minute. It was Saturday and the start of the labor day weekend.....basically the last real 3 day weekend for a while and most people were enjoying themselves. The last thing they probably expected was to have people track through their homes. Believe it or not...all the properties were clean and ready for showing..."that's what I call a real sexy home."

The point I am trying to make is when you list a property for sale in this market you need your Realtor® to point you in the right direction when it comes to getting as much exposure as you can get for your property. It is not just about advertising but about the overall appearance as well. The biggest mistakes I see is when we notify the seller that there will be someone coming by to see the property and they get so excited and then the other party walks into a mess or the A/C is not on when it is 95 degrees out and then there is the never ending dust bowl.

It is true people have to live their lives and do not always have time to clean up or even stage the home. When I get calls asking me when the first showing will be I have to be on my toes so I can give them some sort of educated answer. But if the homeowner is not ready.... well then they have to go on with the show the way it is. You need to remember that when your home is on the market....it is also on stage waiting for the curtain to go up and then......You are on and you better hit your mark. And if you are not ready and do not know all your lines you might just be boo'd off the stage.

As your Realtor® it is my job to help you make sure the property is always ready to show. Don't forget that your critics are just waiting to see your performance. This market is very unpredictable and anything can happen.

For more information about Weston Florida Real Estate please check out the rest of the story at The Real Deal Tells it like it is in Real Estate

Neal "The Real Deal" Bloom

Weston Florida Realtor (954)608-5556 or nealb63@myacc.net

RE/MAX Hometown

2500 Weston Road ,Suite 103

Weston Florida 33331

Giving to someone who was in need during the Holidays.

I was talking to a friend of mine the other night as we spent a little time going out for some cocktails as we usually do right before the holidays.

We were talking about the subject of giving. He was telling me how he used to give a present to some unfortunate person he knew. The person was genuine and he felt bad for this person because they got along well and the person seemed honest and helpful as much as they could be towards him. Kind of like paying it forward. Well a light went off in my head and I started to tell him a story of a similar experience and I wanted to share it with others.

This was about 20 yrs ago in NY...seems like a lifetime but I still remember it. I was about 25 at the time and I wasn't really looking for a career in Real Estate. I was still in the food and restaurant industry. I had taken a job in a coffee shop and was working behind the counter as a cook/hash slinger. It was a rough job...always running and listening to people screaming for their food. While I was worried about getting everyones burger cooked to perfection...I stood about 5 feet away from our dishwasher. Not a machine but this was our dishwasher and his job was to take all the dirty dishes and wash them off and put them through some contraption that supposedly ran at 180 degrees and sanitized those dishes with a shine so bright that you could see yourself.

His name was Julio. A middle age man and he was a nice guy who was very quite and basically kept to himself. He rarely said much while he was working and he worked like a dog and never heard one person yell at him to move his butt. Julio knew how to work and did the job the way he was supposed to with no questions asked. He never complained about anything. Sometimes it was so busy he would finish a big pile and then sneak in the back for a quick break...but then I would watch the waitresses just dump another pile of new dishes on the sink for him to clean. But he would just be like the Eveready bunny and just keep on going.

Everyday that I was running around like a chicken without a head....serving people listening to them tell me to give them a pickle or telling me their burger needed more fire....Julio would just stand there and smile at me while watching me get abused and I would just stand there and take it. Julio didn't have to say anything...I knew what he was thinking. But he just kept working and then when they day was over he would just say"bye amigo...see you in the morning".. and leave just to come back do it all over again the next day.

I became friendly with him and but I never knew where he lived or what he did beyond work. He was kind and we laughed and talked about boxing a lot. I didn't even know his last name and we worked together for quite some time. I then heard some talk that he was living in his car. I found this out when someone asked him his address and he said something like HJ9SO7 which was apparently his license plate number.

But then I found out later he was renting a room above one of the store fronts nearby. It was during the holidays that I was talking with a friend of mine who worked there as well... about the two of us chipping in and buying Julio a TV for the holidays. We felt like we needed to do this. We weren't making a lot of money but between the two of us we purchased one for about $50 which at that time was a lot of money. We then hid it at the coffee shop and when he came in the next day we presented it to him after work.

I've got to tell you that back then I probably didn't appreciate it as much as I do now. You should have seen the surprise and the happiness in his eyes when we told him it was his to keep.

Years have gone by and I never saw Julio again after I left the business and I never found out where Julio went after they sold the coffee shop but I know if he is still around....he remembers the gift we gave him that year.

Neal Bloom/Remax Hometown
2500 Weston Road ,Suite 103
Weston FL 33331
(954)608-5556
The Real Deal tells it Like it is in Real Estate-copyright © 2007-All rights reserved

I've sold Real Estate for over 12 years. First in N.Y. and now here is Florida. I can remember back when I first started in this business and my broker was explaining the in's and out's and also showed me that there is more than just dealing with buyers...sellers and other Realtors®. She told me that when I call up for showing instructions that I need to speak slowly and clearly so the other agent can understand me. She also told me that when you need to leave a message that you should document your call so when the agent returns your call you will know which property they are calling you back for.

Since I started practicing my Real Estate career in Florida I noticed something that seems different here then in N.Y.. It's called courtesy..etiquette and also knowing what the heck you are doing. Well I keep finding out that there are still agents here that think they know what they are doing but really don't. This is simple...when you are making your list of properties to show.... you should be able to communicate back with the right information.

I was laughing because I started to think about Broker Bryant's post Please leave a message after the beep.....or NOT! It mentions simular things about getting phone calls and messages.

Today was just another day in the life of the listing agent listening to nonsense on the other end of a call. I was on the other line while an incoming call was coming in. I went to pick up the call but the call already wnet to my voice-mail. Within 5 minutes I began to listen to the message...now mind you I was on my cell phone at the time the call came in and sometimes calls get garbled and you just simply can't understand the call due to interference. But in this case the call was clear but the agent left me such a fast message and so unclear that there was no possibility to understand anything other then part of it that said showing instructions.

Luckily my phone saved the number on caller ID and I was able to call the agent back. Someone who picked up the phone asked me who I was calling for...I explained the situation about being unable to understand this caller other than figuring out from the low masculine voice that it probably was a mail voice. Well that surely narrowed down my choice by 50%. I finally got to the right person and when I told them I was returning the call...the agent could not remember which property they were calling me about. I even went as far to mention all the listings Ihad and the areas they were in just to stimulate his memory. After about 15 minutes with this guy on the phone he was like.....uh...uh ...um....uh ...I'm not sure I'll have to call you back.

Two hours go by and the agent calls me back to give me the property address and then starts asking my to map out directions for him to get there. First of all I don't mind helping people to a point but I'm not a tour guide like they have in Hollywood selling maps to the stars and besides...if the agent would look at the directions in the remarks section they would see how to get there very easily. I told him to try map-quest...uh ...oh....uh...I don't have a computer in front of me to look it up.

AHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!.....Here I am trying to get every agent into see all of my inventory so maybe we can sell something and I make all the effort to try to help this agent but to no avail...this is what I get back....nothing...no respect...NADA!

I think Realtors® that are representing both our industry and clients should really spend a bit more time doing their homework.

The Real Deal tells it Like it is in Real Estate-copyright © 2007-All rights reserved