There is a practice in our Association that has our MLS Committee and Chairperson really concerned.  Some agents are taking a property off the market and re-listing at a lower price before accepting a contract at the lower price, thus improving their list to sale price ratio.  This also improves their days on market data.  For example, a home has been on the market for 120 days at $200,000.  The listing agent has a buyer who has offered $180,000, 10% lower than the list price, and the seller has agreed to this offer.  The listing agent takes the home off the market and re-list it at $180,000.  The list to sale price ratio is now 100% versus 90% and the days on market for that listing is now 1 day instead of 121 days.  Is this a common practice in other MLS's?  Doesn't this skew the figu... 08/12/2009

Every month I do a sales report from our MLS for our office.  I report Current # of Listings, Average # of Sales/Month for the last 6 months, List Price to Sales Price %, Avg. DOM, and Absorption Rate.  This information is then given to any agents in the office who want to use it for their buyers and sellers.  The information lets us know how the market is doing and how it is changing.  I use this with my buyers to let them know that sellers are getting 95-97% of their list price.  It helps us formulate a good contract to present to the seller.  I use it with my sellers to help them see that in order to keep their homes from sitting on the market for months at a time we need to price their home right the first time.  It also lets them know what the competition is like.  It takes a litt... 08/03/2009

Alamogordo, New Mexico, located in the south central part of the great state of New Mexico, is a well-kept secret of vacationing magic.  Located just 2 hours from El Paso, TX, and 3 hours from Albuquerque, NM, Alamogordo is a great place for snow birds looking to escape the cold, bitter northern winters.  Just an hour away from the resort town of Ruidoso, NM, which offers winter sports activity, casinos and horse racing, Alamogordo has become the place of choice for a good time.  Home to the White Sands National Monument and the NM Museum of Space History, Alamogordo offers something for everyone in the family.  The Trinity Nuclear Site, where they tested the first atomic bomb, is a little over an hour away and tours are scheduled periodically by the local Chamber of Commerce.  If you ... 08/03/2009

These two just don't care about the housing market with all the amazing beauty surrounding them at White Sands!   07/31/2009

                                                        While shopping with my wife yesterday, one of the rare Saturdays I took off, my wife informed me that she just realized where the name "Mall" came from.  One day, a long, long time ago, a wife was going shopping in an area where there were many stores under one roof selling many a sundry items.  Here husband, always concerned about her spending and where to find her if he needed to, ask, "Which stores will you be visiting, my love?"  She responded, "I will be at 'themall'"!  Her husband, not understanding that there was a space between "them" and "all", assumed that there was a place called "the mall" that he had never heard of and did not want to know about.  After talking with his buddies, they too had heard of this mysterious an... 07/26/2009

We just got some good news from ERA corporate headquarters.  Last March at our International Business Conference in San Antonio, TX, they announced that we would not be having a convention next year due to the market and cost.  Our new CEO, Charlie Young, just announced that we would be having a convention, March 14-17, 2010, in Nashville, TN.  These conferences offer "tons" of education, training, information, and networking from around the world.  I am really looking forward to attending. The icing on the cake...I am originally from Alabama and my oldest daughter lives in Nashville! Thanks, Charlie! 07/22/2009

Just finished a great closing that cost me a lot of time, effort and stress, but was worth every minute of it for my client.  First of all, my seller was looking to upgrade into a larger home for their family of 5.  We looked at several homes until we found a home that was just right but they had to sell their home first.  The homeowner of the larger home was looking to down-size but his home had been on the market for over a year and had decided not to re-list.  I asked if he would be interested in swapping homes with my clients.  He said he would and the challenge was on.  I first took an exclusive, one-time listing with the homeowner and then wrote offers for both of my clients for each others homes. After much effort the deals finally closed and I am looking forward to funding tomor... 07/20/2009

I just finished a book by John Grisham that made me really think.  The book, "Innocent Man", was about a murder that happened in Ada, Oklahoma, in the '80's before DNA analysis.  The trial was a joke.  The judge was not attentive to the evidence, the prosecutor was out to get certain people and key evidence in the case was ignored or overlooked.  The point of this rant is that the victims in this case, the men who were accused and convicted of this crime, talked with the police willingly because they knew they were innocent and therefore had nothing to hide.  The police convinced them that they did not need a lawyer if they were innocent.  Now, I don't necessarily care for lawyers but if the police want to talk to me I think that from now on I will tell them right up front that they nee... 07/20/2009

Well, it is summer time in southern New Mexico. There are four things you have to have in order to survive here:  1) Sunscreen, 2) Sunglasses, 3) Water, and lots of it, 4) and a good attitude.  With temperatures in the 100's ( it will hit 103 today at 5pm) and the humidity low (9 percent) hot weather is something you have to love in order live and work in New Mexico.  The hot, dry weather can sometimes work on your mood, thus the good attitude is important.  When working with clients going in and out of homes that usually do not have refrigerated a/c, the nerves can get a little on edge.  We have to remember that this is an important decision our buyers are making and for some it is their first home and the first time they have compared homes.  We have seen these and many other homes be... 07/20/2009

Don't get me wrong.  I still LIKE weekends but I used to LOVE them.  Weekends used to mean time to relax or play golf or work around the house.  Now weekends usually mean helping another buyer find their dream home.  Most people are off on the weekend and that is when they want to look at houses.  I like working with buyers and I like helping people but I really miss weekends.  Sometimes my wife and I will take off during the week and pretend it is the weekend.  But it's not the same.  I was in a class last March in San Antonio, TX, and the instructor explained how he would only work 4 days a week, Monday thru Thursday and every weekend he spent with his family.  He clarified that by saying that was after he had established his business and had become very successful.  I am not there ye... 07/16/2009

I am finding more and more first-time home buyers with the misunderstanding that they can get buy a new home with no money!  I'm not talking about no money down loans. I am talking about buyers with no money for closing or inspections or anything.  We are getting more buyers asking the sellers to pay all the closing cost and then wanting to low-ball the list price.  Somewhere they are getting the idea that sellers are so desperate to sell that they will do anything to get rid of their homes.  That is just not the case in our market.  On average our sellers are getting 95-97% of their asking price.  Home prices have not dropped as much as some areas of the country.  All we need to do now is educate the buyers.  Sometimes when we explain these facts the buyers walk away with their bubble... 07/15/2009

If you are obsessed with Golf like I am, these are rules you are very familiar with: •  Don't buy a putter until you've had a chance to throw it.  •  Never try to keep more than 300 separate thoughts in your mind during your swing.  •  When your shot has to carry over a water hazard, you can either hit one more club or two more balls.  •  The less skilled the player, the more likely he is to share his ideas about the golf swing.  •  No matter how bad you are playing, it is always possible to play worse.  •  A golf match is a test of your skill against your opponents' luck.  •  Nonchalant putts count the same as chalant putts.  •  The shortest distance between any two points on a golf course is a straight line that passes directly through the center of a very large tree.  •  You can hit ... 07/15/2009

I recently read where NAR has established a new Federal Credit Union for Realtors.  Has anyone looked into this yet?  What are the benefits for Realtors?  I was involved in establishing a credit union once years ago when CU's were brand new.  It seemed like a good idea.  I am wondering though how this "virtual" credit union will benefit Realtors.  Will this be similar to the on-line banks that exist now where you can transfer money?  What are the terms for loans and such?  Will this CU take in to account the "sporadic" pay schedule of Realtors?  07/15/2009

                                       Can anyone explain this market to me?  I have a lovely home near the only Golf Course in town.  Only 3 years old, beautiful condition, ready to move into.  It has been on the market almost 18 months.  The price is comparable to other homes in the area.  There have been many lookers and it has been #2 on many peoples list but no offers!  Now, I have another home in the same vicinity that was on the market for 6 months or so. The day before my listing agreement was to expire I had 4, count them "4", offers come in!  We quickly got an extension and settled on the "best and final".  I try to explain to my sellers that the next buyer could walk through the door any minute now.  It is hard to explain to someone who really needs to sell their home why it ... 07/14/2009

When I first started in Real Estate, I called eveyone I knew and let them know how I could make their buying or selling dreams come true.  After calling my friends and family, I started making cold calls.  I found out right away I did not like this type of business.  The rejection was hard to take.  I was aware of all the statistics that state that you have to have 3 "no's" to every yes, but it seemed like I was getting 10 no's to every one yes.  Sometimes the yes turned out to be the client everyone else had rejected.  I read everything I could on how to work this business without making cold calls.  Now all I make are "warm" and "hot" calls.  Referrals are great, sphere of influence works, casual contacts sometimes generates business, but I think social networking is the cold call of ... 07/13/2009

We are having quite a controversy in our local board concerning the wording of a rule in our Association Rules and Regulations.  The present rule states that any picture posted in our MLS must be "solely" of the property.  That is all it says.  Some have questioned whether this can be interpreted to mean that your company sign can not be shown in the photo.  If the photo is taken after the sign is installed, is this a violation of this rule, as stated?  Is it ok to "photo-shop" a banner in the picture showing your company logo or your name, as long as the property is prominently displayed?  What about your email address, can it be placed somewhere in the photo?  Our Rules and Regulations committee has re-written the rule to state that no branding is allowed on any pictures posted on the... 07/12/2009

Space Museum in Alamogordo, NM.  A great place to spend a hot summer day! 07/12/2009

I have heard several stories about the Lady of the Mountains.  Any good ones out there that anyone would like to share? 07/12/2009

Ok, so I'm new to this blogging thing! I'm an agent in a small town where everybody knows everybody. I've come to learn that people are loyal to the agents they are familiar with. Let me give you an example. First of all, I have a business partner who's name is Tim and the customer's name, we'll call him Bob. Bob had called Tim several times to look at homes so we would open the homes for him to view. The last home was on the golf course and he was interested in it, then it came down to another house right around the corner that another office had listed. Bob commented that he wanted to view the one around the corner and that he would call that agent because they were friends and he didn't want to take away from her commission because they were old friends. Now, keep in mind they hadn't... 08/15/2008

My wife and I have been blessed with 5 beautiful grandchildren.  Two of them we do not get to see any more, but love them more and more each passing minute.   Our youngest grandchild lives only a half block from us and he just started kindergarden.  What a boy he is!  He is a bright young guy of five with autism.  His differences include sensitivity to loud noises, he's very analytical... thinks before he speaks, orderly (everything has to be in its place), etc.  Wow, most of that sounds like the ideal child!  Well, we think he is.  God dealt Nathan a different hand than many children.  We have learned that we have to adjust to his world and not the other way around.  Would I like for him to be "normal"?..., I am not sure what normal is any more.  He seems very normal to me and I feel h... 08/14/2008