House inventory has dramatically increased in Northern Virginia. Buyers have more options. Real Estate Agents & Sellers alike… You need to watch this video blog for tips and tricks to help sell the home. Want to talk about your property in specific? Call Scott MacDonald (703) 652-5777 or email scottmacdonald@remax.net read more… https://scottymacsblog.com/
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Scott’s Market Minute: Spring Real Estate Market Is Warming Up
Residential inventory of houses for sale in Northern Virginia is beginning to pick up and the Washington Wizards kicked off the playoffs with their first win! Get all the stats here and everything you need to know to set yourself up for success! Are you buying or selling? Contact Scott MacDonald (703) 652-5777 scottmacdonald@remax.net to find out the best strategies to put yourself ahead in this housing market.
Scott MacDonald
RE/MAX Gateway
Northern Virginia Homes For Sale – The Inventory Is Climbing!
The inventory of homes for sale in Northern Virginia is growing quickly. You need to know how to set yourself up for success in this Spring real estate market! Are you buying or selling? Contact Scott MacDonald (703) 652-5777 or email scottmacdonald@remax.net for information and strategies to put yourself ahead in this housing market.
Scott MacDonald
RE/MAX Gateway
Scotts Market Minute Prelude to Summer Real Estate Market in Northern Virginia
Scott’s Market Minute May 20, 2013
Scott MacDonald offers current market stats and information in his Market Minute for Northern Virginia. Inventory has increased slightly offering buyers a little more to look at. Home Buyers and Sellers will want to keep in mind that by closing before July 1, 2013 Grantor’s Tax increase you will save money. There’s still time to get your home listed for sale and sold! Call Scott MacDonald (703) 652-5777
Coast to Coast “Buzz” – Market Rebound!
As we enter the 4thquarter of the year, we continue to see strong sales in real estate, low inventory levels of existing homes on the market and phenomenally low interest rates. I just got back from the RE/MAX California-Hawaii Regional meetings and all the buzz was how the market is on the rebound and how there has never been a better time to buy a home.
It was funny, as I was headed to the airport back home yesterday, the taxi driver overheard my phone conversations. When I was finally off the phone, he asked if I was in real estate. When I confirmed his suspicion, even he commented – unsolicited – that more people should be buying a home today. He had no real estate experience and he couldn’t understand why people were paying more in rent than if they were to buy under the current conditions. He even made the comment that workers at 7-11 could really buy a house today because they could actually qualify for a mortgage -not like wat was happening in the past.
West Coast to East Coast – the “Buzz” is Market Rebound!
We are at historically high affordability rates for home ownership which makes today a great time to be a home owner or investor. From the investor’s side of the equation, there are many people who cannot buy because of past history, some are only relocating temporarily to the area, and some are just plain old gun shy to buy because of the negative housing market over the last 5 years. Therefore, with prices down from the all-time highs but making their way up the ladder, a good renter pool, great financing options for investors – now is the time to get in the game! Home ownership is a long term investment strategy that can pay big dividends later. To learn more about becoming an investor, call us today. We would be happy to speak with you about your financial goals and objectives.
It’s going to be a long and busy summer!
As we head into the dog days of summer, I thought you may be interested in reading about the Northern Virginia real estate market as well as some national real estate news as well. Let’s dive right in! The Fox Gate development at the doorsteps of Loudoun County received its’ approval to begin development. Fox Gate is located between Pleasant Valley Road and Tall Cedars Parkway, encompasses 27 acres which will offer 1.2 million square feet of office, retail, hotel and civic space along with 110 residential units.
Apparently Bechtel, the country’s largest contractor – the contractor building the Silver Line – is secretly looking for up to 300,000 square feet in Loudoun County. Obviously, this is a huge home run for the area as Loudoun boasts a 26% vacancy rate on commercial properties and Fairfax County has 16% in the areas where they are searching. Forbes ranks Bechtel as the third largest privately held company with just under $28 Billion in revenue with 52,700 employees – not too shabby! Here is a great opportunity if you know of anyone who works there to do some relocation business.
Also, locally our market is seeing the same market we were in last year as far as numbers are concerned. For the first week of July, active resales were 7,379 this year versus 7,534 last year. We have a 2.3 month’s supply of houses for properties that went under contract the previous 30 days both this year and last. The rental market is virtually the same with a one month supply this year and a 1.2 month supply from last year. I have to say it to remain consistent. If you aren’t working with investors, holding investment seminars or obtaining a designation to help investors, you are missing out on a huge opportunity. We will discuss more reasons why later. Houses that settled the last 30 days have a 2.7 month’s supply of houses – last year it was a 2.5 month’s supply, a difference of 300+/- houses. I think the difference here is short sales and the changes in the bank’s stance in regards to their handling of them. We are seeing the banks counter the prices way above what is realistic based upon market conditions, asking for interest free loans and even the requirement for sellers to bring cash to the table. Agents need to set the expectations for our sellers so they know that these options are serious possibilities and keep these deals together. Obviously the pricing piece can’t be overcome easily but the other two options can be discussed upfront to help keep deals together. Additionally, Chase recently announced that they are not in the short sale business, they are in the foreclosure business so be on top of your Chase owned loans. Distressed properties make up 15.5% of the active inventory this year versus 19.9% this year. Foreclosures are down this year versus last year as the foreclosure process is taking longer and inventory continues to be slow to get on the market. Buyers continue to be price sensitive and are looking for the “perfect” house so continue to encourage proper pricing, staging and even prelisting inspections to get your listings in the best light for potential buyers otherwise, they will sit on the market. Pricing properly is even more important in the outer counties and localities as new home prices are attractive in areas closer to the beltway. Therefore, new home sales continue to post strong numbers as their pricing is competitive today and the buyers get to select how they want their houses to be decorated. Our friends from Van Metre will share their success with us shortly.
There have been several good articles posted recently to help buyers realize now is a good time to buy along with the Housing Secretary Shaun Donavan stating it is unlikely housing prices will drop further and a noted now was a good time to buy. He also mentioned officials must find ways to provide access to home ownership without requiring a 20% down payment. Additionally, Warren Buffet posted his Five Real Estate Tips which include: 1) Housing prices increase in value over time especially as the dollar becomes worth less. 2) Buy low, prices are down due to the housing bubble and appear to be at the bottom and you can never time a market. Also, remember, you make money when you buy – not when you sell. 3) Don’t wait too long to take advantage of low prices – if you wait for the robins, spring will be over. 4) Smart home ownership has 3 elements – fixed rate mortgage, affordable payments and a long term hold. 5) Buying a dream home can be a nightmare – don’t let your eyes be bigger than your wallet – go with the fundamentals previously discussed. And lastly, pending home sales rose strongly in May which was the first time contract activity was up over the previous year since April of 2010 and we all know the reason for that was the expiration of the tax credits. Let’s continue this trend into the second half of the year!
The things to look out for to carry us into the second half of the year are number one, jobs. If jobs don’t get created then consumer confidence will stay low and housing sales will suffer. Number 2 is underwriting guidelines for mortgages cannot get stricter, they need to be relaxed as the pendulum has swung a little too far. In 2009, 23.5% of loans were rejected, in 2010, 26.8% of loans were rejected which is not a good trend. If underwriting continues to become more difficult home sellers and buyers will be hurt and the ones who will benefit will be investors. Investors typically pay cash plus, if buyers can’t get loans, they become renters and the rental market becomes stronger. Remember, you need to be working with investors. Number 3 is distressed property numbers need to remain low which may be difficult. CoreLogic estimates that 10.9 million or 22.7% of home owners with a mortgage are underwater at the end of the first quarter – 2.4 million home owners have less than 5% equity so this puts a total of 27% of the nation’s mortgage holders at risk. The foreclosure process is now taking an average of 400 days which is twice as long as it took in 2007 so distressed properties will be in our market for the foreseeable future. Number 4 is rates need to remain low allowing more buyers to be able to afford homes – Leslie Wish knows all too well how an increase of 1% in rates can knock down the potential number of buyers in the buyer pool. And lastly, number 5 you! You have to be active in the business, speaking with people – not just emailing, blogging, texting and attending trainings – you must physically speak with people on the phone, at networking events, open houses, at the pool, at your kids or grandkids sporting events anywhere you can get belly to belly with people. You need to make it happen by spreading the word about how market is different from what they read in the papers or see on TV. Get busy getting busy!
Now, quickly some fun stuff. Zip Realty is no longer offering buyer rebates. They have closed offices in 12 markets and have shed 700 agents. They will continue to offer sellers a 1% listing credit in the 23 markets they are staying in but after posting losses of $12.9 million in ’09 and $15.5 million in ’10 they are finding it increasingly difficult to remain profitable – duh! In addition to these losses, they will experience even more as their transactions are down 12.2% this year versus last…who could be next?? Perhaps it could be Redfin – we shall see!
Take this information and share it with your clients and demonstrate to them you are the expert in the business. Get it? Got it? Good!
Now, go sell something!
Our donation dollars at work!
There are times in your life when you feel fortunate and humbled at the same time. Our visit to The National Children’s Hospital in Washington, DC was one of those occasions. We are fortunate that our children are healthy and not undergoing treatments that many of the children at the hospital have to endure. We are fortunate to have experienced the hospital as visitors and not as parents or friends of a patient staying at the hospital. As a result of our contributions to the Children’s Miracle Network we were able to have a VIP tour of the hospital. It is an amazing facility that provides unbelievable care to children for any reason regardless if they have insurance or not.
What immediately struck me was the kindness of the staff from the valet parker to our tour guide Milton to our liaison, Kimberly Lane. They all truly appear to love their job. Next was the color scheme and design features of the floors we visited. The design feature input was made by the families and children who had to have a stay at the hospital. Bright colors, balloons, and vibrantly colored floors and walls highlighted each floor and gave the appearance of no other hospital.
The art room is another aspect that helped bring a new appreciation of what the children who stay at the hospital have to endure make this facility a special one. The children can do art projects to help them escape their current situation and help aid them in their healing process. In addition to the art room are the playrooms they make available to the children so they can seek solace and “get away” from the hospital staff in a fun environment.
The hospital rooms offer as much privacy as possible and are designed with three separate sections – medical, patient and family areas. They are designed to make the stay more comfortable for all involved. There are also separate “family” areas as well as laundry facilities available so parents can remain close to their children while allowing them to get some time out of the hospital room.
The wall of encouragement is what had the biggest impact on me. The wall features photos of former patients that told their story, what impacted them most about their stay at the hospital, what the current patients can do stay positive and lastly, who is their inspiration and why. It was a very moving experience to read how these children coped with their conditions and made their stay a success to help the others become success stories as well.
All in all, it was a great experience and one that I am proud to be a part of by contributing a portion of each sale to CMN and encouraging our agents to do the same. We highly encourage doing all that you can by helping support us in this cause – one visit to the hospital will get you hooked. As discussed at our Quarterly Meeting in December, all of our Chili Cook-off donations will go to support CMN as well. As we expand offices, we will be doing soup cook-offs, barbeque cook-offs and other cooking competitions to support this cause so please let us know your thoughts on how we can make these events even better and well attended. Get it? Got it? Good!
Now, go sell something – so you can make a contribution!
You’ve got to do more to get more!
Sales is a tough job, no doubt about it, especially today in real estate. You hear, read and talk about with others that in the real estate business, it is a numbers game. If you want more results, you have to do more activities, talk with more people, hold more open houses, make more calls, and basically, just do more to get more business. While this is true, it is only partially true.
You need to have quality contacts to truly have an impact on your bottom line. You need to provide value to those you speak with and earn the business or else your bottom line won’t change. You must engage others buy asking about them, their families, their business, etc. and take an interest in them before you talk about you – basic relationship building.
In addition, it is not just enough to say you are in real estate and business is unbelievable, you need to have an “elevator speech” about the services you provide, the information you share, and how you are different than others in the business. If you don’t, why would your business increase? Holding more open houses, knocking on doors, calling more FSBO’s or expired listings won’t get it done – you need to build relationships. You need to add value to those you speak with to earn their trust and in turn, you will get the opportunity to grow your business through referrals.
You need to know what is impacting our business and how that is impacting both buyers and sellers today. Yes, today because the real estate market changes virtually daily. How are property values and why is now a good time to buy and conversely, why it is a good time to sell. How do the low rates effect payments at loan amounts of $250,000, $300,000 or $500,000 and what is the difference if rates go up 1%? What are house values in your neighborhood, your town, and county for all categories of houses – condos, townhouses, and single family homes? How many properties are for sale? What are the month’s supply of houses and what does this mean? Is it a buyer’s or seller’s market? What price ranges are hot, who is buying in those price ranges and why? How is the rental market locally? How are their prices? What is their month’s supply? If you had the answers to these questions, do you believe you would be perceived as an expert by those you encountered and hence, obtain more business?
You have to know the real estate business, the numbers and the trends. Where is the market headed and why? Give your opinion and be able to back it up with facts. Watch videos, read blogs, read newsletters, network with others in our industry and absorb what they are saying and develop your conversation strategy based upon what you have learned to earn more business.
As previously mentioned, you need to increase your activities but you also need to improve the quality of your conversations. You need to become an expert in the business. If you only increase your activities or only gain knowledge and don’t share it with others, you won’t have the same business building results if you do them in concert with each other. Get it? Got it? Good!
Now, go sell something!
Control your destiny or someone else will!
You are in control of yourself, your life and all that you do in it. How do you move past the current situation you are in today? Get educated – learn all you can about your industry or one you want be a part of and become the expert. It doesn’t take much. Read for one hour per day in the field you wish to learn. One hour per day turns into one book per week. One book per week becomes 52 in one year. You tell me if you read 52 books on one subject and can’t become an expert, I will tell you, you are wrong. Most people don’t read one book in a year. Learn what you have read and apply it to the real world situations you encounter.
Those who know and do more than others in any walk of life earn more respect, get more recognition and go further in their careers. And, guess what? They earn more money. If you want to change where you are in life, you need to change your attitude and regain control of your thoughts, desires and where you want to be. As the saying goes, “if it is to be, it is up to me”. So become positive and optimistic. There are so many negative people in the world and there is so much negative press on the television, in newspapers, etc. and they all want company. My advice is to avoid these people. Look at every opportunity as a learning experience and as an opportunity. Not a problem. Become solution oriented and you will get results and become even more optimistic and positive. If you smile more – this too will help you so start with this simple task! Hang around positive forward thinking people and learn how they handle situations and remain optimistic. It is a learned skill – teach it to yourself.
Stop blaming others, the economy, the industry you are in, the government or any other excuse. You determine where you end up in life. There are countless numbers of people whom have come from every walk in life with every opportunity presented to them and it is the ones who take advantage of what is presented and makes the most of the experiences that gains the most from them.
Other people get tired of hearing negative responses to everything said or about everything that happens around them. Take the time to figure it out for yourself. Do something about your current situation. Don’t be a victim and become a success story and share your story with others. Life is a contact sport, become a part of it and direct yourself to where you want to go and reap the rewards.
Again, you control your destiny. Make the most of your time – do what makes you the most productive, consistently and you will get results. Get it? Got it? Good!
Now, go sell something!
Scott's Motivation and Real Estate Market Updates 
