Ron Rogers

Meg,

I think that price probably is your primary factor but if you miss one showing because they were sold on another house over yours, it could be a lost sale for you. There are really only 2 reasons a home does not sell and those are price and promotion. Lack of promotion (including reltor fees and incentives) were prospective buyers and agents will see and notice it may cost you in price.
If what everyone is saying is true then real estate agents would not worry about getting paid at all. Ethically we should show all homes for sale because it is in the best interest of our buyer client even FSBO's regardless of them willing to pay a fee. This is not the case, we done have to show everything though within reason most of us do. I do think you need to look at the whole picture and think about what you think you are saving because really you haven't saved anything yet because your home has not sold yet. You are kind of putting the cart before the horse here.
If you are truely motivated offer ever incentive you can because you have to sell your home three times before you get paid, first to the buyer's agent, then to the buyer and finally to the appraisor. If any one of those people do not believe your home is worth what you are asking the chances of selling go way down. - Mon Jun 23 2008, 01:26

II haven't heard of that at allbut if that were to happen then the market will go right along with the 6% and we will probably see a great increase of lawsuits. Instead of paying 6% you can an attorney and lawsuits. Redfin still can't come in still won't be able to share commissions.

"It is 2008 RON"
2008 IS NOT OVER CASEY so you can't hardly get an annual appriciation for the year until it is and right now it is not looking that bad. - Mon Jun 2 2008, 12:24

Making money off the backs of the ones choosing to stay out of the game not the less fortunate but the ignorant.

I have already suggested what I believe is on the horizon for my area and generally in the housing market. The people that are actually in the "know" will be buying up real estate.

The media is sending out the "gloom and Doom" and you are right it depends on your perspective. I do not deny that prices are adjusting some in some areas but not any were near what everyone is thinking. In my area for 2007 our stats actually showed a 1.5% increase in the average and median home sale.

As I said RMLS is a tool for our clients. You are obviously not a client. Yes you cannot joint our association without having a license, so you can't have access to the listing data either.

So that's what's up Jack! - Fri May 30 2008, 15:38

You can believe whatever statistics you want, but while you are loosing money by waiting and believing the gloom and doom that sells papers my clients are makeing money on your backs. Which is great for them.
Realtors are not any different than any other profession, contractors, teachers, politicians, business owners, BLOGGERS, your profession included. There are a few bad apples in every bunch, there just happens to be fewer than most. The RMLS is not for realtors it is for clients. It is a tool to find property first and statistics second. Case Shiller is a different type of tool used for economics using secondary information instead of direct information from actual sales data as the RMLS does. This data is put out to make someone money in the stock market and is slanted to meet the needs of the industry. Believe whatever stats you want. The fewer people that realize that they are missing the boat the better for my clients that are seeing what is on the horrizon. - Wed May 28 2008, 13:18

PDX,

I did not make the same generalization in my last e-mail about the agents not adding unfinished sq footage. I agree with you that this is wrong and should be reported because it is not living space. I can't see your pics so I don't know what you are looking at. What I am saying is that is as been my experience in my area that this does not happen and I don't want to be included in your generalization.

Apples and oranges are both fruit just both grow on trees. I will accept that analogy. Stocks, bonds, and real estate are all different and should be treated different but you still buy low sell high. If you are paying cash next year might be a little better but if you are getting a loan now is as good as it is going to get.
Real estate also does not decline like the stock market and 8% is not much. and the overall trend for the last 24 months in my area, I don't know about PDX, has been flat, so by your statement a few years is up we should be turning around any day now. I agree that the market has declined in the last 6 months and I think 8% is fair but you won't know were the bottom is until it was and then it will be too late.
I commend you for doing your own research as everyone should. You should take responsibility for your actions. If you miss out on an opportunity it is no one's fault but your own. If your predictions are correct then you get to take most or all of the credit for that as well.
I know some great agents in Portland and they don't do what you generalize. When you have 5,000 agents or more in one city it takes more to find the good ones.
I will also agree with you that housing is over priced in Portland but I truly don't think it will be going that much lower. We have about 6 months before people are going to be making long term dicisions about their finances for the next 4 to 8 years based on who is running this country. At best best or worst, depending on your perspective, we have 6 months, of wait and see, maybe 9 before things get to rolling again. Investors can make money regardless of who it is but they change directions, shift gears, and change stategies to do it. Once they know who it is, things will start happening and money will start moving. - Thu May 22 2008, 13:11

PDX,

I am sorry but you are wrong. To make a generalization that the assessors' records are correct is about as far off base as to say that we are in a seller's market. I have listing now that are listed lower than their so called Real Market Value (RMV) and they still are not selling. The records are in accurate because people do not want to report improved square footage. All you have to do is think about it and this makes sense. If it is enclosed and heated with a finished wall it should be included in the square footage. The assessor's office does not know it is finished and if you have not been in the house niether do you. If it is reported to the tax office your property taxes go up.

Buyers I would advise to take the outsider's information with a grain of salt because it sounds like he might be misinformed. Now is the best time to buy in several years. This is just logic again PDX. It is the same as the stock market, buy low sell high. The inventory is high so buyers can negotiate a great deal and interest rate are still very low. The market in Oregon is not declining much and it likely will not. Most people jump into something after it has happened and it will be the same with this market as welljust like the last upswing a couple of years ago if people keep holding back. - Thu May 22 2008, 11:09

PDX,

Realtors cannot inflate square footage, at least not without consiquence. We are liable for mis representing a property. If basements are finished without being reported to the assessor then it is the assessor that is wrong. Garages arfe not counted as living spaces unless they have been converted to living space and if that is done without reporting it to the assessor then again it is the assessor that is incorrect. If The Realtors are reporting an inflated square footage then you are talking to the wrong Realtors.
The assessors office is incorrect more often because people do not want to report improvements because they don't want their taxes to go up. It is an incorrect assumption that the assessor's records are more accurate. The heat maps are calculated from the MLS information gathered by Trulia which is the most accurate source we have.

Good Luck,

Ron Rogers, CRS, GRI, ABR
541-891-4875
Ron@KlamathHome.com - Thu May 22 2008, 03:14

yiyi,
Most of the previous answers have a lot of value but none of them really tell you the right way to make the decision. Generally speaking personal property does not make a good rental property because typically it is to high in value to make financial sense. You need to way what the equity you have in the home would do in another investment compared to if you rented your home out.
If you put your home on the market for $300K and you feel that is reasonable value to ask then in order to make it a reasonable investment you would need to be be able to rent it for about $2,500 per month. If you have a $200K mortgage then you would have a $1200 per month mortgage leaving about $1,300 to cover vacancy (5%-10% annually ....$250/month), mantenance (5% annually $175/month), and other expenses and utilities. You would be doing well to walk away with about $500 and that is if there are no problems and you can actually rent it for that amount. So now you need to determine if you think your $100K equity could make more money in another investment.
If you want to be a land lord and this property will give you a good return on the investment then yes you should keep it. If you are considering renting the property hopeing to get more for it next year and especially if the rent is not covering the exenses then I will tell you that you can get more for your money by cutting your loses and selling out. It make no sense to through more money into a property that is not making sense just so that the rent will cover the payment.
I do think you need to gather all of the information: what will the property sell for, how much equity would you have if it did, will that money give you a better return somewere else, what could you rent it for, what would the expenses be, and there are probably more. Landlording long distance can be very difficult and expensive if you are not prepared for it.
The last question that I would have you answer is if you are trying to get an certain amount for the home and it would not sell for that by not selling youare esentially buying the property yourself to make it a rental that does not make sense income wise when no one else was willing to buy it, so why would you over pay for a property that no one else would buy?
I do agree that if you can rent it and it does make sense then do it, don't sell if you don't have to. But don't hold onto the property hoping the maket will give you abetter return in the next year or two because the long term average appriciation, which we will likely be below for the next few years, is not agood rate of return. Appriciation should almost never be considered in whether a property should or should not be kept unless you are into risky speculation, it is the icing on the cake.
I am not in the Portland market but I would be happy to give you some unbias answers if you would like to give me a call. I can also refer you to an agent in the Portland area that understands this question as most agents really don't.

Good Luck,

Ron Rogers - Mon Jun 2 2008, 00:45

Timisha,

There are only 2 factors, price and exposure. The factors that Michel refers to may contribute to adding value but price and exposure are the only 2 things that sell a house. If it were a dump you could always sell it at some price. The price will likely be low but it will sell. Bill is correct but you really should reduce before the activity drops off. If you wait it might be too late and you may end up chasing the market value down in your efforts to get ahead of the decline.

Good Luck,

Ron Rogers, CRS, GRI, ABR
541-891-4875
Ron@KlamathHome.com - Thu May 22 2008, 11:19

Timisha,

there are only 2 reasons a property does not sell, price and exposure. Regardless of location, condition or anything else, a property will sell at some price. If it is exposed to more people it will sell for more and sooner to a point. it can only be exposed to all of the buyers and if it still doesn't sell it has to be price. Sure you can fix it up, clean it up and that will help you get a better price, but ultimately if a buyer finds another house that fits their needs better or at a better price then you end up getting the second looks but not the offers. You are likely close to the right price if you are getting second and third showings and no offers.

Good Luck,

Ron Rogers, CRS, GRI, ABR
541-891-4875
Ron@KlamathHome.com - Thu May 22 2008, 02:57

Ailynne,

I would suggest only using a Certified Residential Specialist (CRS) agent. These agents typically have better marketing and negotiating skills and they make up about 4% of all realtors and do about 28% of the business. Chhose the agent based on their seervice and experience not their office or the price they tell you your home is worth if you are selling. If you are buying go through the local home magazine, go to open houses and look for the CRS. Iterview several agents. If you want I can refer you to a few qualified agents in the area.

Good Luck,

Ron Rogers, CRS, GRI, ABR
541-891-4875
Ron@KlamathHome.com - Thu May 22 2008, 03:26