Ken Haedrich

Talk to Annapolis area homebuyers these days and you'll often hear this: I don't want just a deal. I want a steal! Realtors expect this sort of brash talk from seasoned investors, but more and more we're hearing it from young couples, first time homebuyers, grandmothers and other nice people who often trip over the words, like they're reciting a script that's at odds with their deeper desires.

This inner conflict is understandable: after all, isn't the nightly news a regular smorgasbord of home sale nightmare stories? Aren't there steals now in every town in America?

Maybe - but that's not the point. Shopping only for steals - and overlooking the otherwise good deals - tends to create inner conflict, distort priorties and become a single-minded exercise in the absurd. I know agents who have shown 40, 50 or more homes to steal shoppers who simply can't pull the trigger on a home purchase because there might be a better deal hiding around the next bend. Buyers are now getting buyers' remorse just thinking about buying. It's driving both the buyers and their agents bonkers.

Better Judgement is Often The First Casualty of Steal Home Shopping

It reminds me of a young man I knew who used to be too frugal for his own good. He bought only the lowest priced shirts off the clearance rack - not because they were stylish, comfortable, fit well or otherwise served his needs, but because they were cheap. Consequently he ended up with a closet full of shirts that were so hideous they embarrased even my young children when I wore one to the dinner table, let alone in public. (The last of them went to Goodwill about 20 years ago - the shirts, not my kids.)

Homebuyers Risk Much When They Leave Better Judgement at the Front Door. A Home Should Be Many Things, and Well-Priced is Just One of Them

A home should be comfortable, pleasing to the eye, and well lit. It should have reliable mechanical systems, be convenient to work and play, if possible, and in an area where the new owner can easily imagine the next chapter of her life. It should have trees and bushes you love, enough lawn for that puppy you've wanted, a place to work on your ATVs and other toys, a picket fence or winding flagstone path, a great elevator, coffee shops within striking distance. In short, it should be what you want it to be.

Know what you want in a home and go find it. A good agent will make sure you get a great deal. Be willing to make some tradeoffs; most homebuyers will. But don't sell your homebuyer's soul for the sake of a steal: those few bucks you save on your monthly mortgage will be little recompense for your unrealized home dreams.

Trust me: if you're looking for a great deal in the Annapolis real estate market, we have plenty. Just email me at kenhaedrich@kw.com and tell me what you're looking for. I'll send you a list of everything that meets your needs, and we'll go from there.

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Anne Arundel County Saw 388 Homes Sold Last Month. That's Down 14% From Last September. But The Sky Isn't Really Falling Around Us...

I've been talking to a lot of you lately. Our entire team has. Each and every day, The Moss Haedrich Team calls 20, 30, 40 or more of you to see how you're feeling about the real estate market, calm your jittery nerves, and ask how we can help. Here's what we're hearing from you...

...nobody is buying anything....nobody can get a mortgage now...homes aren't selling...sellers are giving homes away...homes are taking forever to sell...and, in short, the sky is falling and we're all doomed.

Well, we understand the sentiments. The uncertain economy does have everyone on edge and listening to the evening news only amplifies our concerns. But if you look at the statistics you'll see that the current market - while sluggish - is anything but dead. It's not all gloom and doom.

Those 388 homes that sold in Anne Arundel County last month? True, that's less than last September's figure of 453 - but it's far from nothing. On average, those sold homes took 22 days longer to sell than they did last September - but 3 weeks is not the eternity you might suspect if you draw your conclusions from the national media reporting.

October sales for Anne Arundel County are looking okay: in the first 21 days of the month, 211 homes have sold.

Who's Buying Those Homes?

Note that 130 of those 211 homes sold for $350,000 or less. There's no way to prove this, but those numbers suggest that first time homebuyers and investors are busy shopping, as they should be: the smart money is out there right now finding great deals, bargaining, and doing very well, thank you. They know those great deals won't be around forever.

Which brings us to the subject of mortgages. Every lender we talk to says the same thing: despite what you're hearing, there are plenty of loan programs available for anyone with respectable credit. Expect to put some money down. Expect you'll be required to provide documentation for income and assets - the freewheelin' days of "no documentation loans" are a thing of the past.

Just don't expect the sky to fall anytime soon on the Annapolis real estate market.

If you're wondering if this is a good time to buy, or sell, just email me at kenhaedrich@kw.com and tell me about your circumstances. I'll call, or email back, and help you sort out your situation. Please: there's no reason to step into this market on your own when you can have the benefit of an experienced real estate team on your side.

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This entry was posted on Wednesday, October 22nd, 2008 at 8:34 am and is filed under Buyers, Neighborhood Sales & Stats, Sellers. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

Buyers Are Still Willing to Pay More, and Faster, for Something They Perceive to be Special. A Story...

This past summer we listed a home that was very nice indeed. Price: $1,200,000. It went under contract in 19 days, and sold a few weeks later for a price that the owners found quite acceptable.

Aside from our usual aggressive marketing, how can we account for such a good offer and fast sale? After all, the home did have a few quirks...some dated features...and wallpaper I wasn't crazy about.

But sell it did, and here's why: the home's uniqueness - its overriding special features. In addition to a very private and nicely landscaped yard, the property had its own tennis court, large in-ground pool, and deep water dock just 5 minutes by boat to the Severn River.

There were other highlights, but the point is this: because the home was a unique package, it could compete in the market on its unique features - features that the buyers knew, or rightly assumed, they'd have difficulty finding in another property. Whether you're selling real estate, art, or antique cast iron mechanical banks, uniqueness motivates buyers to act more quickly for fear of potential loss.

Contrast That With a Home Located in an Annapolis Subdivision...

...say 50 or 100 homes, perhaps 4 or 5 models to choose from, your usual upgrades. Ten or 12 percent of the subdivision is for sale. How will those homes compete with one another? On price. Absent starkly contrasting features or amenities, similar homes - in a market like the one we're in - will almost always compete on price. Fear of potential loss diminishes when buyers perceive that supply is more predictable.

Buyers for such homes are being very patient in this market, watching competing homes leapfrog one another into the best price position before snapping them up. (Word of caution to buyers: if you do fall in love, don't wait to make your play. There's a good chance someone else has fallen in love with it too.)

And if you're a subdivision seller? Your best hedge is to do everything you can to make your property stand out as unique among equals: be the cleanest, most freshly painted, best landscaped, least cluttered, and most inviting. And If you want to hear how we make all of our listings stand out as unique, email me at kenhaedrich@hotmail.com and I'll email back.

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This entry was posted on Wednesday, October 8th, 2008 at 4:06 pm and is filed under Buyers, One Minute Realtor, Sellers. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

Here's The Street Sign Annapolis Area Homebuyers Are Seeing Most Frequently Nowadays. Here's How to Deal With It

I read a blog post today that said Internet searches for the phrase "houses for sale" were at their highest point in 2 years. The author thought this an encouraging sign: investors, he speculated, are poised to step in at what looks like the bottom of the market, soon to be followed by everyone else who has been waiting for a signal that it's the right time to buy.

Is he right? Are we bottomed out and about to experience a pent up homebuying rush?

I'm not sure, and I'm not sure anyone else is sure. But since we are out here in the trenches with actual homebuyers, we ARE sure of this: homebuyers are confused, overwhelmed by the negative news of the housing market and Wall Street bailouts. More than anything, buyers need to turn off the TV and seek the counsel of local, experienced professionals who can move them from fear and confusion to a sound, fact-based strategy for purchasing a home.

Putting Together a Team is a Homebuyer's First Order of Business

If you're considering purchasing - or selling - a home, do not wing it. To fully understand the ramifications of a real estate transaction, and to afford yourself all due protections, you need a team. First, seek the advice of a financial planner, preferably one with a strong real estate background. (We can arrange for a free consultation if you don't have one.)

Second, establish a relationship with an experienced Realtor who will work his or her tail off for you and give you 5-star representation. (That would be us, or another Realtor who has earned your loyalty.) Your Realtor can be a key person in helping you put together your team.

Lastly, only work with an experienced, professional lender who comes highly recommended from a trusted source. Realtors know better than anyone which lenders are the real pros.

That's the core of your team: Realtor, financial planner, lender. If putting together a team sounds like work, well, it is. But especially in this market, you can't afford not to. We have a saying at Keller Williams: Nobody succeeds alone. Those cowboy days are long gone, pardner.

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At Keller Williams, We Are Encouraged to Think About Our Mission and Purpose in Life. It's Called Our Big Why, and Here's Why I Think It Matters

Several years back, on my first day in real estate, I sat down with the team leader of the Keller Williams office here in Annapolis. I signed some papers, had a stack of books and a training schedule handed to me, and then this:

So Ken - tell me about your Big Why.

Sorry? It sounded like she thought I owned a ranch in Montana, The Big Y.

Your Big Why. Why are you here? What's the one thing that gives meaning and purpose to your life more than any other?

Well, I hadn't really considered it. And truth be told, I thought the question was a bit lofty for someone who hadn't even learned to use the office copier yet, let alone sell a single house. But I was new, eager to make my mark, and vaguely recall mumbling something about the opportunity to help people and make a decent living in the process.

Read pages 72 and 73 in there, she said, pointing at one of the books she had just handed me. That will help you figure it out.

Gary Keller, on The Focusing Power of a Big Why

The book in question is one we at Keller Williams refer to as "the red book" - The Millionaire Real Estate Agent, written by our company's co-founder, Gary Keller.

Sure enough, right there on page 72 was this: "...we've discovered that the one thing that all high achievers have in common is they are working for a Big Why. The Big Why is about having a purpose, a mission, or a need, that in turn gives you focus. High achievers always have a Big Why powering their actions."

I was intrigued, and followed the exercise Gary outlined, writing down everything that motivated me. I was underwhelmed: to my eye, what I had written looked like a ragtag group of Little and Medium Whys. There wasn't a Big Why in sight. A life of insignificance loomed before me. I had better get digging for a Big Why, and fast, if I wanted to be a high achiever too.

The Power Behind Being the Best You Can Be

I didn't realize it at the time, but - as Gary went on to explain - there is nothing wrong with a collection of lesser whys: we all have to pay our mortgage or rent, fund retirement accounts, help put our kids through college.

But those - and all of our smaller whys, says Gary - will fall into place naturally if we simply put this one Big Why at the forefront of all others: to be the best we can possibly be. A powerful Big Why like this, he points out, gives foundational support to all of your other whys. It's like geese flying in formation: the lead goose expends all the energy, while the others draft behind with much less effort.

"Being your best" he goes on to say, "is actually a goal-less pursuit. You can never really reach a point where you can truthfully say, ‘I just can't grow anymore.' And what is so exciting about that is this kind of Big Why can create a life that literally explodes with limitless possibility and unlimited growth."

All Those Big Whys Help Build Stronger Communities

One of the things I love about Keller Williams is the large number of individuals we attract who have a Be the Best You Can Be mentality. That's not really surprising, given the fact that KW agents have - at their disposal - all of the tools and training necessary for achieving greatness.

All around us in this company we see agents harnessing the power of their Big Whys to strengthen their communities and do good.

Gary Keller himself recently donated $5,000,000 to Baylor University to fund a research center to study the agent/client relationship.

We have agents who have organized drives to provide shoes for needy children in poor countries; agents who've purchased and planted trees to re-green urban areas; others who've paid surgery bills to help families in their community; and some who have given thousands of dollars to support low-income housing projects. We - The Moss Haedrich Team - support the Fisher House with a $100 donation after every settlement.

How a Big Why Creates Value for Our Clients

We believe that on a daily basis, being the best we can be is the only way to run a successful and competitive real estate business.

It's the fuel that drives you to deliver the best possible customer service for your clients; to constantly improve your internal systems and marketing skills; to maintain regular and effective communication with your clients and constituency; and to build strong relationships with fellow agents and colleagues in the industry.

When you do these things, we believe you create real value for your clients. And they in turn create value for you, by telling others.

As for myself, I'm still tweaking my Whys, and like those geese, lining them up in proper formation. Unless and until I can come up with something that makes more sense, my Big Why - like Gary's - will be about being the best I can be: it's a good fit, even if the downside is that there are always days when you feel as if you might have done better.

But like Gary says, that's the whole idea.

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