It is just a stark raving fallacy that there are real estate agents who can sell any listing at any price.  The inference is that some sales people can control and seriously influence what their clients buy.            I have never known that to be true no matter who the agent is.  Those who handle the most transactions are frequently those who know a lot of people, or whose husbands or wives can influence people to retain the real estate services of their spouse.  How the finances of the sale turns out for their client is frequently the real story that needs microscopic examination.            For the heck of it, I pulled the Metrotex Multiple Listing Service's listings that expired on a recent day, and I compared the listing prices with the values the Dallas Central Apprai... 10/01/2007

Some years ago, there was a sole practitioner in Houston who sold a lot of real estate.  His name was Ken Jacobson.  He was a blond-haired guy with a big smile, a resonant voice and a gift for gab.  He made tons of money, drove a new paid-for Mercedes 560-SE, that, when he was home, was parked on the brick-paver circular driveway in front of his expensive and paid for home.And most of the people he called from his Rolodex every morning -- his client base --  felt that they were his good friends,  Interestingly, most had never met him. They had probably not knowingly seen him across the room at a restaurant or a party.Ken didn't have a logo and he didn't run ads.  His office was a desk and phone and two chairs, all stuck in less than 100 square feet.  He had his college diploma on the wa... 09/27/2007

As radio broadcasting goes, its rich history in Dallas dates back to August 1921 when the City of Dallas put WRR on the air.   It was not only the first station in Texas to get an FCC license, but was one of the nation's first five to go on the airWRR had a weird beginning, actually.  The city formed and licensed it so that the latest news about fires in Dallas could be broadcast.  In fact, the station was first housed at the fire department.  So when the firemen had nothing to talk about on the air about fires, they played music, told jokes and gossiped to fill up the air time.  Dallasites began buying crystal radios to hear the antics for entertainment.By the early 1930s the station had been moved to the Adolpus Hotel, and it was a serious commercial venture, although still owned by t... 09/26/2007

            Home sales have, in reality, been falling for several months. But statisticians friendly to home builders and real estate agents, until recently, have been able to tinker with the figures and thus disguise the breadth of the problem.  Time's up!            Most of you as well as the statisticians will now agree that the cat is out of the bag.  Home sales have fallen dramatically.  Lowering the interest rates will help to cushion the fall, but the fall will continue for a while, nevertheless.            As this is beginning, I am trying to count how many of these cycles I've endured during my many years as a Realtor.  Suffice it to say, it's been more than five or six.             Agents who came into the business without sufficient tools and who did not continue their formal... 09/25/2007

            "What's Important Is Who Plays the Part of Arthur Fonzarelli," will be the title of my talk this Tuesday, September 25th at the noon meeting of the Rowlett Rotary Club.            Rowlette is a wonderful community on Lake Ray Hubbard near Dallas.  The Rotary meeting is at noon at the Kayota Japanese Steakhouse, 9900 Lakeview.            Rotarians from other clubs and their guests are welcome to attend, too.            For more than thirty years, I have written and talked about the real people who have come through my life and who, with their moral character, have overcome adversities and taught me life's lessons.            "What's Important Is Who Plays the Part of Arthur Fonzarelli" was first reported in my weekly column about fifteen years ago.  It was so overwhelmingly p... 09/23/2007

                   When I first went into the real estate business in 1964, it was as a young man who had a real estate broker's license.  I bought historic homes in Galveston and Houston, and then adaptively renovated them.  At the same time, I was a commercial lending officer for a savings and loan association that served most of Texas.            Combining the information I got from those two interests dramatically helped me to sniff out good potential investments, to hone a skill at negotiating their purchase and sale, and to discover creative ways to buy and finance those investments.            But there was one great lesson I reasoned out and taught myself.  I want to share it with you.            You can't have a valid auction when you are both the seller and the buyer.         ... 09/23/2007

The U.S. House of Representatives today overwhelmingly passed the "Expanding American Homeownership Act of 2007," Here's what's in store if it passes the Senate:Allow FHA to make zero or lower down payment loans for borrowers that can afford mortgage payments, but who lack the cash for a substantial down payment.Double the current funding level for housing counseling for sub-prime home buyers and borrowers late on mortgage loan payments.Direct FHA to provide mortgage loans to borrowers at higher risk, but who are still qualified using prudent lending standards.Expand and improve the FHA reverse mortgage loan program by raising loan limits, removing the loan cap to avoid program shutdowns, and by reducing the maximum fee lenders can charge for these loans.Real estate professionals and th... 09/21/2007

     Champ Did His Experiment at the State Theater and in the Name of The Enforcer                                         By Dallas Realtor-Broker Bill CherryThere was a period where the use of the name Nelson was often meant to bring respect and fear. At least there was one Nelson, Charles was his name, whom everyone seemed to know was harmless. He sold cosmetics at Central Drugstore downtown. Most of the other Nelson boys, though, had the reputation among us teenagers for being The Enforcers.So the trick was to convince everyone that at least one boy named Nelson was your friend; that you were very close. If they believed you, you didn't have to worry about being bullied. It was their dress and demeanor that did more to bring the Nelsons respect than their actions. In case you didn't... 09/20/2007

The hardest thing to do when you move to a new town is to separate the "wonderful" from the "not so wonderful."  Although Patty had lived in Dallas for most of her life, when we married, she moved to Galveston where I was hometown stock.  Ten years later, when we moved here permanently, many of her old stand-bys had closed, moved elsewhere, changed hands, and so forth.  Progress it's called.  So we basically had to start over looking for vendors and service people who were of the quality we were used to.I want to tell you about several of them.CALAME is a fine jewelry store in the Highland Park Shopping Village.  We needed a trustworthy jeweler with fine craftsmen to do some repairs and appraisals.  I called our "new" church, Saint Michael and All Angels and asked for a recommendation. ... 09/19/2007

Recently Tiffany revealed their totally remodeled and refixtured store in the NorthPark Shopping Center here in Dallas.I've been studying retail design and fixturing for many years...more as an observer than a participant.  This design ranks among the top 5 I've seen throughout the United States.Interestingly, the former store was tired, dated and usually had long periods throughout the day when there were no customers inside at all.  I was confident that the store was not meeting its maximum expectations in sales.Well, now the store totally vibrates with activity, and the sales people are busy and smiling.I commend this to those of you who share an interest in store design and fixturing.  It is really a job well done.  You must go see it.  It's just outside of the door from Neiman-Marc... 09/17/2007

           DALLAS HIGHLAND PARK SALES REPORT       Prepared and Reported by Bill Cherry, Realtors                 JUNE 1, 2006 THROUGH JULY 13, 2007Number Sold                                 Price Range1                                                 $4,000,000 to $5,000,0003                                                 $3,000,000 to $3,999,9992                                                  $2,000,000 to $2,999,9997                                                  $1,000,000 to $1,999,9993                                                  $ 900,000 to $ 999,9993                                                  $ 800,000 to $ 899,9992                                                  $ 700,000 to $ 799,9995                                                  $ 600,000 to $ 699,999Repo... 07/13/2007

                                                                                20 elements, 2005, Joel Shapiro, Nordstrom Court Dallas' famous NorthPark shopping center is the largest indoor mall in Texas and it's no less than the fifth largest in the United States.It was built on leased land and opened in 1965, and that might not have happened had Raymond Nasher, an apartment developer with no experience whatsoever with developing shopping malls, not convinced Stanley Marcus and the Marcus family to relocate their Neiman-Marcus satellite store there.    {=====Raymond Nasher, Developer of Dallas' NorthParkOver the years, I've searched and found my heroes.  Raymond Nasher and his wife Patsy, now both deceased, were two of them.  Although we never met, Mr. Nasher and I did exchange lette... 06/12/2007

                                                                       MEET ME ON THE WEB AT WWW.BILLCHERRYBROKER.COM                  Our boutique real estate firm has always specialized in quietly negotiating the listing and sale of estates and one-of-a-kind homes.  For us, it should be a gentele transaction, not one of flags, banners, big signs and mail-outs to everyone in site, qualified or not.                   We are please to report the following sales for the month of May, as accumulated and verified by the Metrotex Multiple Listing Service.                    In Dallas, exclusive of Highland Park, during the month of May, thirty-one homes sold where the price paid was in excess of $1 million.  The least expensive was $1,025,000 and the most expensive was $3,100,540.           ... 06/06/2007

                                                                             Say you live in Dallas.  You're undoubtedly either an up and coming exec or you arrived at that status a long time ago.  This is Texas afterall, the land of the REAL opportunities.  Home to big medical practices and larger than life attorneys negotiating big settlements.  And there are all of you tech wizards.  And don't forget the huge charitable foundations you trust people are running.  And you're one of those who is making it all happen.Let me let you in on a secret.  Your friends and clients are wondering why you aren't living in a home that has at least a value of a million dollars.  Everyone, including you, knows you can afford it and that you deserve it.  So they expect you to live like you should.After... 06/05/2007

 Meet me on the web at www.billcherrybroker.comWhen Raymond Nasher and his wife conceived the idea of the now famous Dallas enclosed mall, NorthPark, there were only three similar to it in the United States.  And we're talking about the late 1950s.  NorthPark opened in 1965.Mr. Nasher passed away a few weeks ago in his mid-80s.  Within the next couple of days, I'm going to tell you the story of Mr. Nasher and his NorthPark.  Prior to that, this would be the perfect time for Dallasites -- especially those who are commercial real estate brokers and investors -- to take a day and go through that mall -- explore the whole thing.Look at how the stores are clusteredNotice the sculptures and hanging art throughout the mall's common areasTake time to examine and ponder how the windows are dress... 05/26/2007

By Bill Cherry, RealtorSince 1964I'll bet at least once a week Patty and I would get a postcard or letter from her, with her picture and all, telling us what a spectacular job she had done selling other expensive homes in the  beautiful community we loved and lived in near Houston.   The color photo of her with the toothy grin showed her to be an attractive woman about forty.  We didn't know her.She wanted us to be her next clients, that is (in very small print) if we didn't already have our home listed with someone else.  And then she added that she was way up on top in sales, nationwide, with one of the big real estate franchises.  If memory serves me, one of the top five producers.  In fact, she said she sold more than $20,000,000 every year.  (No, I didn't put too many zeroes in) No... 05/16/2007

                                                                                                                                          BILL CHERRY, REALTORS                                                                    Our 43rd Year Serving Texans                                                                                 Dallas, Texas                                                                                972 380-7347                                         Meet me on the web at www.billcherrybroker.comHere's the report of current listings and sales for the first fifteen days of May 2007 in the 75205 Zip Code, which is primarily the City of Highland Park, an exclusive area of Dallas, Texas.There are 107 homes actively for sale with a listed price of $1 Million Dollar... 05/14/2007