The San Diego Home Blog

It is no secret that, among blogs, our San Diego Home Blog (SDHB) has a more local bent. Our readers run the gamut from industry compadre to industry combatant to consumer in search of local real estate information, simple amusement or a fight.

When compared to some of the more prominent, heralded real estate-related blogging efforts, we are somewhat (although not entirely) unique. We are not independent Brokers, but just Broker Associates affiliated with a big-name real estate company. We are not industry service providers, we are not full-time blogging for fun-and-profit people, but just agents in the trenches. We make our living selling homes, and our blog is simply a side-show intended to complement our business and to inform and amuse (both others and ourselves). Consequently, when duty calls, the “duty” associated with serving clients and paying the utility bills, our blog will necessarily take the subordinate role.

Case in point: A couple of weeks ago I was interviewed by Inman News for a story they were doing on the real estate blogging phenomenon in which they discussed the national industry blogs that readers follow. SDHB was honored to be mentioned in good company with some real heavy weights (such as St. Paul Real Estate Blog, miOaklandCounty, Bloodhound, and Matrix to name a few). I was quoted extensively, yet Inman being a subscription service, I didn’t bother to mention it here. Two days ago, I received an email from Matt Carter at Inman giving me the one-day link to the article that could be viewed by all. While most of my fellow honorees posted the link, I was out selling a home. My 15-minutes went down the tubes. So, for all of you non-subscribers, trust me when I tell you I was insightful, eloquent and hugely entertaining in my comments. Trust me.

This little, missed chest-thumping opportunity reminded me that, for those of you who rarely venture beyond the tiny confines of the SDHB, you may not be aware that we have our hands in all sorts of cookie jars. As a contributor to the Bloodhound, I do writing double-duty. I make a concerted effort to post the more global, wax-philosophical pieces there and the more local interest stuff here. Sometimes, the decision as to where an article goes is difficult, and most times I fear the Bloodhound benefits from my best “stuff”.

So, just in case you missed it or care, here is a quick look (link) back.

• I challenged Broker hiring practices in The ABC’s of Agent Hiring - Oops, They Did it Again, for which the Real Estate Zebra, this week’s host of the Carnival of Real Estate, graciously gave us top dog honors.
• Just today, I was on a rant on the subject of Buyer-Broker Agreements.
• In Make Your Mark, I told some not-so-secret secrets about effective versus just plain dumb agent marketing activities.
• Earlier this month, I railed on agents who profess selflessness in the name of self-promotion (a piece Steve railed on me for not posting here).
• Finally, in January, I compared agent selection to Plastic Pigs (you will have to read to figure out the connection). This earned us another Carnival “virtual” trophy.

This is only a sampling of my contributions, and there are many other, thought-provoking and sometimes controversial but always entertaining opinions being tossed about by the twelve contributors that comprise the Bloodhound Blog. When you are in the mood to “go out”, I encourage you to stop in.

Another fabulous and immensely popular development in Scripps Ranch Villages is Miro & Ravel by Brookfield Homes. Built concurrently in the early 2000’s, these two communities are perched on a hill next to Miramar Lake. With an attractive and stylish Mediterranean architecture, all units feature a balcony and/or private patio or yard area.

Having direct access (via an adjacent trail) to the lake has proven to be a wonderful amenity for both Ravel and Miro. The development also has on-site amenities such as a pool, spa and a play area along with several strategically located small pocket parks to sit and relax. The Miramar Overlook Park, with its scenic and commanding views, also contains a great picnic area and children’s playground just one block to the east of the entrance to Miro and Ravel.

Miro
Built in 2002, Miro, is one of the higher end multi-family communities in Scripps Ranch. It is a traditional condominium project consisting of three floor plans (all square footage is approximate):

• Plan 1 - 1-story (upper level) 2BR / 2BA, with 1,134 sq. ft., including a 1-car garage, plus one additional reserved space;
• Plan 2 - 2-story townhome including 3BR / 2.5BA, with 1,462 sq. ft., 2-car garage;
• Plan 3 - 2-story townhome including 3BR / 2.5BA, with 1,753 sq. ft., 2-car garage.

Ravel

Ravel consists of single-family detached condominiums where the front yards are maintained by the HOA and the back yards are exclusive use areas maintained by the owners. Many of the Ravel homes offer panoramic views to the coast. It has three floor plans:

• Plan 1 - 3BR+Loft / 2.5BA, with 1,970 sq. ft., 2-car garage;
• Plan 2 - 4BR+Loft / 2.5BA, with 2,068 sq. ft., 2-car garage;
• Plan 3 - 4BR+loft / 2.5 BA, with 2,255 sq. ft., 2-car garage (This model also features one bedroom downstairs).

The HOA fees for Miro are approximately $200 per month and for Ravel, approximately $120 per month. As with most developments in Scripps Ranch Villages, both of these projects also include a Mello Roos fee. In 2006, the lowest and highest sale price for Miro was $416,500 and $595,000, respectively. Ravel had a low sale price of $665,000 and a high sale price of $797,000. Neighborhood listings and sales activity, updated weekly, can be found here. Miro and Ravel are located within the boundaries of San Diego Unified School District.

This morning has been an exciting one. John Denver apparently enjoys the functionality of my website!

Our Search for Homes feature, like all other similar features you find on the thousands of real estate websites, is provided courtesy (for $$$) of an IDX provider. It notifies me when someone has signed up to perform a search. Now, I have commented before, that I have always taken a steadfast contrarian approach to this information; I ignore it. My position has always been that people searching for homes on-line are doing it on-line, in large part, for the anonymity they enjoy. Call it fear of commitment, or perhaps they are already “married” to another agent, but I have assumed that if they wanted to “speak” to me, they would hit the “contact” button or (gasp) pick up the phone.

John Denver’s arrival at our site was somewhat timely. Just this week I took a call from a representative of the IDX service, and a 45-minute conversation ensued about how I wasn’t harnessing the power of my site. He was simply stunned, to say the least, that I had turned off all of the auto-email features (”No one has ever done this before!”) and yet still had hundreds of active visitors signed up for searches. “Just think what you could accomplish with a little direct contact!”, he remarked. “Some people may have questions and may be too shy to make the first move”.

Or maybe, most people don’t want to be courted, at least not at this point. Now, I admit, I am in a bit of a quandry. The fact is that I am not a not-for-profit business (not intentionally, anyway). The website, while there for anyone to enjoy, is not, strickly speaking, a public service announcement. It is there to promote our listings and, I will readily admit, promote ourselves. So, why then do I have such a difficult time taking a little more self-promotional, proactive approach and directly contacting my visitors?

John Denver, for the record, is not the victim of mistaken identity. His phone number was given at 555-5555. I hope he lives in a very big house, because he apparently has a lot of roommates! Not so coincidentally, the following other visitors to my site also share this phone number: Ben Dover, A A, B B, Mickey Mouse, and Joe Shmo, to name a few. Many of these friends of John sign in and never return, but many more return often to perform new searches, all the while signing in under their stage names. They clearly don’t want me to contact them with helpful real estate information; I suspect there are many more honest people who have entered legitimate names who feel the same way.

Until I figure out the right way to help those that need or want it without affronting the “just looking” crowd, rest assured that hitting the contact button will never result in my appearing at your front door unannounced packing my marketing package and client testimonials. Questions? Call, email, or hit the Ask the Brokers button here, and we will respond swiftly and professionally, and just once. Unless, of course, you are ready to make a commitment. First comes love, then comes marraige, then comes… the Buyer Broker Agreement?

I have always resisted the Buyer Broker Agreement as well. If we need a prenup, then maybe we haven’t established enough trust and mutual respect to enter a relationship at all. More on that one later this week.

Cordially,

Mary Me

Built in the 1996-97 by Cornerstone Communities, Aspire and Encore take on a unique design best described as a “cluster” concept, with groupings of 2-story Mediterranean style, single-family detached homes built around and sharing common motor courts. Also unique (at least at that time point in time) is the “detached condominium” concept. These are also commonly called “patio” homes. In a condominium, the owner has individual title to the inside space of his unit and enjoys an undivided interest in the ownership of the common elements (land including common areas), which are owned jointly with other owners. Each home has its own patio and/or yard area which, although owned in common, is an “exclusive use area” maintained by the individual owner.

Aspire includes four floor plans (all square footage is approximate):

• Plan 1 - 2 BR / 2.5 BA / 965 sq. ft.
• Plan 2 - 3 BR / 2.5 BA / 1,090 sq. ft.
• Plan 3 - 3BR / 2.5 BA, / 1,160 sq. ft.
• Plan 4 - 3-4 BR / 2.5 BA / 1,320 -1,440 sq. ft. (4^th BR or loft was a builder option)

Encore also includes four floor plans, each somewhat larger than Aspire:

• Plan 1 - 3BR / 2.5 BA / 1,115 sq. ft.
• Plan 2 - 3BR / 2.5BA / 1,225 sq. ft.
• Plan 3 - 3BR or 4BR / 3BA / 1,320-1,485 sq. ft. (this plan includes a builder option for a 4^th BR downstairs)
• Plan 4 - 4BR / 2.5BA / 1,625 sq. ft.

The cluster concept has been well accepted by the market as these two developments have been and remain enormously popular with a combination of owners, including first time and move up buyers, as well as investors. Some of these homes also have fabulous views. There are three small parks which include play stations/equipment for children strategically located within the project. Buyers should note that the second space in some of the 2-car garages is actually a “compact” size (very compact), but there are an adequate number of additional parking spaces for residents and guests well located throughout the project.

Ideally located in the master planned Scripps Ranch Villages, Aspire and Encore are adjacent to a community park (with basketball and sand volleyball courts, as well as picnic tables) and little league baseball fields. A full service community retail center anchored by a Vons, CVS, and with many convenient retail services and restaurants is also very close by. There is even a path from Encore that leads to the baseball fields and to Dingeman Elementary School.

For 2006, there were 24 closed escrows in Aspire and Encore with sale prices ranging from $430,000 - $615,000. You can find listing and sales activity, updated weekly, here. Homeowners fees are approximately $85.00 per month and there is a Mello Roos assessment in both Encore and Aspire. Aspire/Encore is within the boundaries of the San Diego Unified School District. As of this writing, children attend Dingeman Elementary School, Marshall Middle School and Scripps Ranch High School. Of course, those interested in schools should always contact the school district directly for definitive assignments, as boundaries and assignments are subject to change (and they do).

Last night was Pizza Night at Chez Berg. That may be the last pizza we ever get.

My life is rich and full. As a real estate agent that eats and breathes the stuff, I am constantly multi-tasking and generally trying to accomplish too much during any given day. Yesterday was no different. Between adding pages to our website, taking the marketing for two new listings “live”, managing escrows, updating market statistics (more on that tomorrow, I promise!) and the like, I had this great idea for a marketing piece which required a photo of trash-solicitations at a front door. I will let you speculate just why I needed this photo.

So, off we go. No stock photos for me! No, siree. I am a staging professional! I summarily gathered up all of the “marketing” pieces we routinely retrieve from our bushes (which, of course, I have saved in a file marked “marketing pieces we have retrieved from our bushes”) and arranged them at my front door. Such an eye for detail I have that I even placed a snail, who, technically speaking, had passed on, atop one of the flyers.

I snapped the photo with Steve’s help, and we giggled all the way to the USB cable to view our handiwork. Multi-tasking has its pitfalls; namely, I immediately forgot about the trash at my door. Now, one of the “advantages” of this business is that we can accomplish a lot of our work from our home office. Yesterday was a relegated-to-my-cave work day. Had it not been for my foray into the world of photojournalism, I wouldn’t have been able to state with certainty that we enjoyed some hours of daylight.

Enter Pizza Man. When we opened the door to receive our delivery, we were greeted by a very puzzled looking (scared?) man staring at our Pile ‘O Trash in amazement. Steve gets flustered and, making excuses, hastily starts gathering up the mess. “Watch out for the snail!”, I scream. Crack, squish. Too late. The damage is done. Next time, we will just pick up dinner.

Okay! My mind is officially boggled now. On the same day Kris is recognized by the prestigious online Inman News Service, the Inman Blog posts an article on the newest of the real estate business models - Pet Realty. As if there wasn’t enough competition out there already, we now have to contend with the agents who are in tune with and sensitive to the ”pet-friendly” home. Oy!

This pet needs a home!

By way of a little background, it can be argued that Kris is the one who brought Pet Realty to the national stage by mentioning it to Matt from the Inman News during her interview for their article discussing our San Diego Home Blog as well as other prominent local and national real estate blogs. The genesis is this: Kris is at the office the other day and checks our mail slot. Among the items, she finds a mass mailer card from Pet Realty advising her that there is now a company devoted to assisting buyers in finding, yes, you guessed it, pet friendly homes. Most, if not all of the other agents in our office apparently throw this away along with most of the other junk we find daily in our mail slots (free termite inspections, no interest loans, “how to build your business” seminars, lose 20 pounds in one week, etc.). But Kris, being Kris, brings the Pet Realty card home and decides that this will make a good blog subject.  

In her usual sarcastic style, she pretty much does a number on the Pet Realty Model. It was a clever and funny post, not intended to be serious. But THEN…Rhona from Pet Realty apparently took Kris’ post seriously and personally (and literally) and posts a scathing comment in rebuttal, seriously defending their new model. Kris, somewhat shellshocked from the verbal lashing tries to make nice-nice, but Rhona creams her again in another comment. Enter Steve (that would be me). I comment that there are suspicious cars and vans driving by our home (this is true) and I’m wondering if the RSPCA or PETA is closing in. THEN, Matt from Inman News comes along and, during the course of his interview of Kris, is made aware of the “humorous” exchange we have been having with Rhona from Pet Realty. He puts an anecdotal summary in the sidebar of his article and next thing we know, POOF, Pet Realty gets a feature nod in the Inman Blog, a national stage. What’s the saying? Sometimes life is just not fair…

Okay Rhona, you have now had your 15 minutes. You owe us big time. Call off the unmarked cars (please) and send me a free box of doggy treats (for Simon) and kitty treats (for Fluffy) and we’ll call it even.  

From Kris’ mail slot at work to the Inman News in 48 hours. That’s the power of a blog.

In case anyone was wondering, “Why no blog posts from Steve lately?”, I have an admission to make. I think I am the father of Anna Nicole Smith’s baby daughter. It has been quite distracting (for me, not Kris).

Okay, now that I have the attention of at least one (or two) of you out there…The point is - many make the claim, but few actually perform. I’m talking about real estate agents, of course. There has been a lot of dialogue recently on this and other Blog’s regarding the different real estate business models. Many comments about lousy agents taking advantage of their clients and spirited arguments about which are the better models; old traditional vs. the myriad of new-wave. The sheer number of recent variations to the traditional model is mind-boggling.

There are brokers who will:

1. Place your home for sale in the MLS for a nominal fee and walk away. The seller is completely on their own from there;
2. Provide you with a “menu” of fees. If you want an open house held by an agent, that’s an extra fee. If you want the agent to help in negotiations, it’s for an extra fee. If you want your home advertised anywhere, beyond the sign in your front yard, you guessed it, you pay; and,
3. Rebate you a portion of their commission but, of course, you are responsible for first finding the home and determining an offer price. 

Now add all of this empowerment provided by the internet, where you have access to almost as much raw data as any agent has, and what’s a buyer or seller to do? 

Over the past few years there has been an explosion of new ideas and new resources to enable people to do many things that they could not, until now, even attempt. You can go on-line to self-diagnose a health condition or you can find the Blue Book value of your 10-year old family car (retail and wholesale). You can control your entire investment portfolio of stocks and make trades for pennies on the dollar compared to using a traditional stock broker. The internet has driven up productivity and forced efficiencies into business and the people who conduct business. It’s free enterprise at its best.

So why should real estate be different? Well, from the examples I provided earlier (right after the paternal announcement), in many ways it’s not. The act of purchasing or selling real estate is evolving into many different forms. But each of these forms remain fundamental variations of the two primary methods that have been around since the first cave was sold to Fred Flintstone - You may hire an agent or you may do it yourself.  In selecting the traditional model you, in theory, gain the advantage of experienced representation in every aspect of the process and the transaction. The new post-internet empowerment choices are many, but they all sprout from the same seed - the “For Sale By Owner” type individual. This person does not feel the need for full, or maybe any, representation and therefore does not want to pay for it. They have access to all the information they need. On Amazon.com, alone, if you search for “How to Sell Real Estate?”, you will get about 425 results.

So, why wouldn’t most people just buy a book or do their own research on-line and represent themselves in a transaction? Better yet, why wouldn’t they select a brokerage whose agents offers to do some, but not necessarily all of the work and pay a reduced fee or get a rebate? You are now empowered to confidently and competently buy and sell your own cars, you can trade your own stocks, so why not save that commission or get a rebate for the purchase or sale of a home?

The Difference

It’s simple, really. The problem has been too many distractions resulting from the almost endless marketing of “better mousetraps”. We are bombarded almost non-stop by ads on TV, in the newspaper, on the internet, on radio, in the mail. There is nothing wrong with better mousetraps (or the original mousetrap, for that matter). It’s free enterprise at its best, IF it delivers results. The problem is that it doesn’t, at least consistently. And it is not necessarily the business model that’s breaking down. Remember, in the old days, a handshake was often enough to seal the deal between two trusting people (like when Fred sold Barney his cave in Bedrock). But absent the old fashioned way of doing things, it now generally takes three to tango. The buyer, the seller and, yes, the agent. Nothing against selling stocks on-line yourself at a discount, but real estate is different than any commodity out there. The stakes are generally much higher. The asset (your home) is generally much less liquid, not to mention the fact that you run little risk of getting sued during or after your stock trade. And, maybe of greatest importance, it is your shelter, one of the primary needs of we humans. And we have evolved. The agent has an enormous responsibility to ensure that many things go right and that your best interests are protected. After the purchase is complete, it’s not an easy thing to undo. In California it has been said that people move, on average, about every four years to six years. Unlike a stock, it’s not easily traded.

So how does a “consumer” protect themselves? Well, it’s not necessarily the business model. We have had too many SOS (Save Our Sale) calls recently to know this. Sources of the SOS calls are client refugees from just about every business model; traditional, discount, rebate, you name it. The difference is the agent. We have heard ‘em all: “My brother is a mortgage broker and he was selling it for no commission.” Well, the results were commensurate with the fee. Or, “I felt obligated to use our neighbor”. Same result. Failure and a waste of time. While they failed to sell, the market declined. How much did they lose in value during the six months they were uselessly on the market? It’s okay to try to save selling costs. That’s why commissions are negotiable. So, too are mortgage fees, escrow fees and title fees. It’s a very competitive business. A good agent will assist their clients with all of these.

While there is all of this conflict among the competing models and the many clients trying to dial in the very best bang for the buck, the one most important ingredient to a successful transaction gets lost in the shuffle…the experienced and professional agent. I’m tired of hearing complaints about failed transactions due to sloppy agents, regardless of who they work for. If a buyer or seller took just 10% of the time that many spend scouring the internet to determine the right price at which to buy or sell and how much they can possibly save on comissions and, instead did their due diligence properly when selecting their representation, everyone would be a lot better off (except, of course, the bad agents). We just went through a grueling interview process conducted by a very nice couple who wasted eight months trying to sell their home with the help of an agent who was a “friend”. Now they are taking responsibility, interviewing several top agents and asking many tough questions. We respect that. It is the difference between success and failure.