I remember the conversation like it was yesterday, even though it was 1997 or 1998. The typically sweet, warm and cordial client and I were discussing our next move on a purchase offer, and I was advising them against what struck me as making a rash response. “Well if you don’t agree, Phil,” she said “Maybe we should just call the listing agent and deal with him directly.” It was out of character for this person, over the top, out of the blue, and hostile. And it was also very temporary. Everything worked out fine, but it made me appreciate that the stress of a real estate transaction can bring out some serious passions in people. That’s just how it has always been.

Stress can make a person cross-eyed crazy. 

That was 14 or 15 years ago in a healthy economy at lower prices. 

Now…add the shadow of foreclosure to the mix, a recession, and a terribly depressed housing market and you’ve got yourself a real party. Now we are talking 3-ring circus, half a bottle of vodka won’t calm me down stress. 

My job as a broker is to diffuse the stress and be the voice of reason. That’s not always easy. Take the lady in my example back in the 1990’s. If she were buying a short sale and dealing with stressed out homeowners facing foreclosure and financial crisis, it would be like throwing gas on an already roaring fire. 

The thing that all buyers should understand is that what might, in the fog of stress and emotion, look like manipulation or game playing on the part of a distressed seller is actually just normal people trying to cope. For example: I have had situations where buyers have been eager to get the seller to sign the contract. However, there have been delays on the seller’s part due in large part to their circumstances. A signature might be delayed because a divorced spouse is out of state or working funny hours at a second job to make ends meet. Or a financially distressed seller can’t make a repair until after they squirrel up some extra money. 

And yet the buyers sometimes don’t see that. They see delay. Games being played. Shenanigans. That’s what it seems like to them. 

What the buyer often doesn’t understand is that their sensibilities are innaccurate because they are stressed and on edge in a situation that occurs in life but a handful of times. The seller isn’t playing them. They are just dealing with hardship. It is all in how you interpret through your mental filter. The best thing for the principals to do in a sale- especially a distress sale- is to practice deep breathing and not trust their physical impulses. Suspicion of the unknown may have helped our ancestors survive with sabre-toothed tigers, but it doesn’t help negotiate real estate. 

That’s what brokers are for. 

I have a conference all day in Manhattan tomorrow, so my Sunday was even busier than usual. At 9am I was at a kitchen table, discussing the next move for a new client. I seldom need “extra” motivation to get the job done for folks- I have 4 kids and a company to run. But sometimes, inspiration does find me. This little sweet thing was going to be put in another room, but I asked that she stay with us. I have had two yellow labs in my life, and adored them both. She looks- and acts- just like my Bella, whom we lost in 2008. 

So yes, I am going to help her daddy sell the house and find a new home that is pet friendly. It isn’t just the paycheck; I am about a roof over your head, home and hearth, and yes, a friendly space for the furry family member. 

I’ll be the first person to admit that I do a crummy job of leveraging my database of past clients. We don’t have any regular communications like newsletters or emails, and that is a lost opportunity. The company will be 7 years old this June, and by that time I will have a good system in place to reach out to our past clientele with some regularity.

That said, in the past few months I have noticed a nice trend: we are getting more referrals from past clients. It makes sense; with almost 300 closed transactions since 2005, somebody was bound to refer us a friend or relative. And they are. 

When I started the firm, I actually hadn’t sold a house in 5 years. I kept my license up and qualified as a broker because of my active career as an agent from 1996-2000 in Rochester, NY. But that was 300 miles away, and I had no referral base in Westchester. I started the company from zero, literally, earning every client through prospecting. Nothing was easy, and no one looked me up at the behest of a friend or relative. It was all my beating the bushes. 

Three months after the firm was founded, my brother Paul passed away very suddenly. Two years in, the Sub Prime Meltdown hit. The following year the Financial Crisis hit. Two and three year old companies seldom have much of a referral base of past clients to draw from. We sure didn’t. But we weathered the storm, and as 2012 begins, I can point to half a dozen active files that are sourced from past business and not from marketing. Each year, the percentage has grown, and I have to say that among the most rewarding feelings in the world is a past client entrusting their loved ones to my care. 

As I said, among my plans in 2012 is to do a better job of being in touch with past clientele. It isn’t just about soliciting referrals, but also to be a resource to those that trusted me in the past. However, it is smart business too, and no matter if people think of me because we’re in touch or they just recall a good job, I have to say that the more referrals we get the more I love them. It may sound a tad corny, but it really does inspire me. 

I am a huge fan of the Lake Superior State University Banished Words list. It is an annual survey of overused words and perusing past lists gives some insight into the pop culture of the time. Things like this really scratch that BA in English itch I get sometimes! 

What can you buy in Yonkers for $350,000? So glad you asked. I happen to have a fresh example of just such a home that closed earlier today for $350,000 right in Yonkers a stone’s throw from Bronxville. The property is a charming Tudor with loads of awesome, pre-war appointments like leaded glass windows, classic molding, pretty hardwood floors, and awesome curb appeal that. 

The home has 3 bedrooms, a full basement, a detatched garage, a rear patio, a walk up attic, formal dining room, first floor den, and a woodburning fireplace. The location is also wonderful, literally minutes from the Bronxville train station.

J. Philip Real Estate listed the property and brought the buyer as well- we wish both our seller client and buyer customer nothing but the best in their new surroundings. Total time on market from listing to closing: 86 days. This one went fast with multiple offers. But we have more- just log onto WestchesterDreamHome.com to find one of your very own. 

My pals at the Lucky Strikers Social Media Club will be putting on the 2012 edition of Real Estate BarCamp this Monday, January 9th from 9am to 5 (ish) at Simple Studios at 134 w 29th St in Manhattan. If you are a licensee and have never been to a BarCamp, you should check it out. If you’ve been to one, you’ll know what I mean. The incredible amount of cutting edge learning and peer to peer exchange of information at these events, to say nothing of FUN, is unparralleled.

Admission is $30 and that is the best deal on 8 solid hours of learning you’ll ever see. 

For those of you reading this who are consumers, you need to knwo that there are industry professionals who attend these events not to get continuing education credit or get out of the house for a day, but to give you better results and service. A commitment to learning, a need to be current and a desire to be ahead of the curve is paramount to selling real estate for happy clients in the 21st Century. 

For more information, log onto ReBarCampNY.com. If you are in the NY area or can get here, make plans! 

This past Memorial Day I wrote a post entitled Memorial Day 2011: Giving Back To a Veteran in Need. In it, I announced that my company would sell a home for a US service veteran facing hardship for zero commission. My father was a veteran of World War II and Korea, and I asked for the community to let me now if anyone knew of a veteran who could benefit from this. I have not yet, so, being loud mouth I am, I have decided to raise my voice. 

As I stated this past May:

There is one thing I am going to do in my little corner of the world to make a difference to a veteran in the next 12 months. I will list and sell one veteran’s house in the next year pro bono. They have to have a special need of some sort (it can be financial) because it is a waste to do it for a vet who is flush with cash or in a short sale, but so long as there is a DD-214 and the possibility of an equity advantage I’ll get it done for this veteran gratis as my way of giving back. I can do this for one veteran (or their survivors), and it can be in any of the following counties: Westchester, Rockland, Putnam, Dutchess, Fairfield (CT), Bronx, Queens, or Orange. There is minimal small print to the offer, because I can’t guarantee that a buyer brokerage will be cool with forgoing their end, but there will be no listing commission. 

If you know of a veteran who needs to sell and a pro bono arrangement would make a difference between hardship or not, please let me know via phone or email. 

If you are a fellow broker-owner, you feel like following suit and such an arrangement would not be an undue burden to the sustainability to your business, I encourage you to join me.

I have started a Facebook group for like-minded brokerages who feel that this would be a worthy endeavor. If you’d like to join me, please log onto Real Estate Brokers For Veterans group and add your name to the list of brokers- this way, we can have a list of colleagues in the different markets to whom we can refer veterans when the opportunity arises. The late Joe Ferrara often said that real estate licensees should have pro bono obligations just as attorneys. We don’t, so this is strictly voluntary. 

If you are a broker and feel this is a worthy cause, please join me. Given the opportunity cost of working a file for no fee when you could be on a paying file, please only do so if you can absorb the work- it is not a suicide pact. Only give if you can. But if you can, please do log on and join. 

And if you know of a US service veteran who may benefit from this in the Metropilitan New York City area, please email me. 

Update: The Fisher House is an excellent alternative for your contributions, large or small. If this works for you, join us on Facebook! http://www.facebook.com/groups/realestatebrokersforveterans/

Another year has come and gone, and the real estate industry continues to plug along under the malaise of the housing downturn that has yet to hear the word “recovery” since the 2007 Sub Prime domino was the first to fall. Our firm was only 2 at that time, and we are still standing. Actually, we’re doing a bit better than standing. Here’s how we did in 2011: 

Out of 872 MLS member firms, our company was ranked 53rd in closed sales. This puts us in the top 6% of brokerages in our Multiple Listing System, which is run by the second largest association in the State of New York. 

Of the $17 million in sales volume we closed, over a full 3rd was from our growing team, a huge increase in percentages over previous years. This was among my most important goals from last year at this time- to grow our family of producers. I expect that the trend will continue. I predict that I will be less than half of the dollar volume in 2012, and that my own personal production will still be higher. 

Regarding my own personal production: I was ranked 29th out of over 6500 agents for closed sales in 2011. This actually constitutes a “down” year for me personally, as I was previously in the top 10 from 2007-2010. However, this was by design. I sent far more business to my team, the production was distributed among our associates, and we’ll parlay that experience into a stronger 2012. Dozens of inquiries a week are given to our team to follow up with, and given the caution of the public, our conversion rate is encouraging. 

Regarding the team: there are 25 licensees associated with the company with several more waiting in the wings. In a climate that has seen some firms close or merge with others, I am proud that the brand we are building is growing. As happy as I am with the talent and hard work of our agents, prouder still am I of their integrity and scruples. If you work with a member of this firm, you can expect that they’ll be fierce, ethical advocates for your best interests. When my caller ID is the number of one of my agents, the typical conversation is not how to just make the sale alone; it is almost always how to take the best care of the client. We don’t hire just anyone here. You can’t teach honor. I am humbled to have these guys with me. 

I was recently re-elected to my 3rd term as MLS Vice President, and I was on the committee which oversaw the merger of three local associations into the new Hudson Gateway Association of Realtors, which now covers 4 counties of New York City’s northern suburbs. The name is pending, but the merger is in full effect in January. I was humbled to be included in this endeavor. 

That which is not growing is dead. The plans for 2012 include a cutting edge revamping of the company website, an overall increase in our web marketing, and to put every listing the company carries to be on page 1 of Google for the most common consumer local search terms. We will add more quality agents and brokers. They will also have better tools with which to serve their clients and build their practices.  

Behind the numbers are some awesome clients, all of whom have a story. We helped some short sale clients leave their situations with dignity. We helped some first time home buyers build that first nest. We wiped our share of tears, we gave our share of happy hugs, and the firm got some new friends who will refer future buisness because we took care of them. I am greatful to everyone who chose us as their broker in 2011. 

Men can’t give birth. Next to my family, this brokerage is my baby. It is my name, my reputation, and my passion. Anyone who knows me knows this- I love building my brand, and the goals for 2012 are aligned with that purpose. 

I seldom reblog, but Doug’s post speaks to the nationwide crisis of confidence that the american consumer is experiencing. Doug is in Alexandria, Louisiana, about as different fom Westchester County as you’ll find. I lived in Louisiana in 1993-94 and it was a different world from New York, and indeed, much of the south as well. But that’s the point- all real estate is local, and what is occuring in Miami and Las Vegas does not translate to White Plains or Yorktown Heights. 

My comment was as follows, and it is worth repeating here: 

I think the operative word for buyers hese days is “caution.” More time to decide, seeing more homes, bringing more relatives on 2nd and 3rd visits, bringing their contractor friend through, checking title, and then more speculatively lower offers. It is a sign of the low ebb in consumer confidence. 

It is also a sign that the media does a poor job of reporting local data. Some people in Louisiana or New York read about the issues in the sunbelt or southwest and assume the issues are local- they aren’t.