Archive for the 'For Agents' Category
What Everybody Ought to Know About Their Credit and FICO Score
November 25th, 2009 categories: Buying Your House, For Agents, Talking Real Estate
We’ve all been reading the headlines shouting about the mortgage crisis, sub-prime loans and that home buyers can’t get loans to buy their dream home. I can’t say for Nevada or Florida, but in Fairfield County, those headlines are a load of bunk! I’m still selling real estate in Ridgefield and other towns where buyers are financing 95% of their purchase!
How?… you wonder… it’s their credit score. A good credit score is the key that unlocks the door to low down payments. opening that door becomes much easier when you understand exactly what determines your FICO score.
The company that created FICO, Fair Isaac, has a FREE eBook you must read so you can really understand what a 785 means or how opening a Macy’s charge will affect your score. Download and read Understanding Your FICO Score to learn all you need to know about your credit score.
Then, check out AnnualCreditReport.com to get you free credit report from the big 3 reporting agencies.
Brad and I keep relationships with the best mortgage providers in Connecticut. We’ll help get you the financing you need to buy your perfect home. We are always available to help in any way we can. Contact us anytime.
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Ridgefield, CT Real Estate Market Report: Home Sales April 2008
April 7th, 2008 categories: Buying Your House, For Agents, Market Data & Statistics, Ridgefield, Selling Your House, Talking Real Estate
Ridgefield Real Estate Market Commentary
March is always a transitional month in Ridgefield. As the spring weather arrives in Connecticut, so do the home buyers. Contrary to the doom and gloom news reports, Brad and I have been working with buyers that are actually making reasonable offers and buying homes. In the past few weeks, several Ridgefield homes went under agreement within days of listing. No doubt that it’s a challenging market but this tells us that the good houses listed at realistic prices have no problems getting sold… quickly. Although buyers maintain a power position in the market, they are making buying decisions and will continue to do so.
Even with the current lull in transaction volume, the Ridgefield real estate market is certainly not on life support. Demand will always remain relatively strong here for several reasons: great schools, affordable homes, proximity to lower Fairfield County, Westchester County and NYC and an overall quality of life that people really, really enjoy. If you already live her, you know what I’m talking about.
Market Stats for Ridgefield CT Real Estate
The numbers say that Ridgefield real estate is still tracking behind last year. Inventories are a little higher (6%) and the number of single family home closings are down by 27% compared to March 2007. Over the next 8 weeks, we’ll see inventory climb (normal for this time of year). We never sell through all of these homes. This spring it will be the owners with realistic expectations that are going to be the most successful. For buyers, this market brings together three major factors in their favor: historically low interest rates, a great selection of homes to choose from and prices that are the most reasonable in recent memory.
We are always available to help you understand what’s going on in today’s real estate market and what it means to you. We know the market numbers better than anyone and always make certain that our clients are armed with the most important market data and the best real estate advice to get the best deal possible. Contact us anytime to talk about your situation.
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How Some Officially Reported Data is Misleading and Why You Need to Know the Truth
March 24th, 2008 categories: Buying Your House, For Agents, Market Data & Statistics, Ridgefield, Selling Your House, Talking Real Estate
I am about to share with you one of most important, yet most elusive, real estate market statistic: Days-On-Market (DOM).
No one can miss the media hype about crashing real estate markets, the sub-prime lending mess, and foreclosures. What we’ve seen here in the current Ridgefield, CT real estate market, however, doesn’t really match any one of these headlines.
The Ridgefield real estate market has not crashed, in fact we conducted 3.7% more sales in 2007 than in 2006 with just a minor softening of prices. The sub-prime mortgage situation has only indirectly effected our business in that lenders now require more documentation from borrowers. And we’ve only seen a handful of foreclosure sales, nothing extraordinary.
So what has changed? It can’t be business as usual, can it?
The biggest change I’ve seen in the current Ridgefield real estate market is that it’s taking longer for homes to sell. How much longer? Well most agents can’t really tell you.
Anyone can share with you what’s reported in the MLS. On this measure, though, the MLS-reported DOM is misleading, absolutely useless. Let me explain.
- The MLS calculates DOM based on each particular listing.
- The MLS “resets the DOMO meter” when the seller change agents.
- Many Agents game the system by re-listing the same property multiple times thereby constantly resetting the DOM meter.
As far as I know, we are the only real estate office in Ridgefield that calculates the True DOM. It takes a lot of effort and skill but we do it because it is such an important market indicator. We want to be certain that you (buyers and sellers) have the most important, most up-to-date and most accurate market data available on which to base your real estate decisions.
[table "0" not found /]The real story shows a market time much longer than “officially reported”. Sellers need to use the real numbers to set expectations and adjust listing prices. Buyers must be aware of a property’s entire listing history not just the current listing and what is reported on the MLS listing sheet.
The Kimmelman-Gutman Group believes that we must be real estate market masters for our clients. Dig deep into the data, understand it, be the local real estate economist. Only then can we provide you the best service and value. Contact us if you’d like to learn more.
Related Posts:
- Grab your Pick Ax Now! Why You Need to Mine Nuggets From Ridgefield’s Mountain of MLS Data
- How Is The Ridgefield, CT Real Estate Market?
- Why 2007 Was A Great Year for Ridgefield, CT Real Estate
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How a “Family Reunion” Makes Us Better Realtors
February 15th, 2008 categories: For Agents, Talking Real Estate
We just spent 4 days working with the top minds in real estate. The successful agents in Ridgefield’s changing real estate market are the ones committed to “best practices” including pricing, client service, negotiation and more. Rob and I reaffirmed that commitment at KW’s Family Reunion.
Family Reunion is our annual real estate conference where KW brings together the absolute “best of the best” in real estate. Over 8000 North American agents converged on Atlanta’s Georgia World Congress Center to attend educational seminars, presentations and workshops.
Topics ranged from deciphering the changing real estate market to maintaining a positive outlook. We are now equipped to be the best Realtors and business owners we can be. It was truly inspirational.
We joined the Keller Williams Ridgefield office in October 2007, after attending KW’s Mega Agent Camp (another KW professional development conference). At Mega Agent, we learned that there is an entire international company of like-minded people who share our outlook and approach. We firmly believe that if you go to work every day with the intent to truly serve your clients with the best service imaginable and the highest level of integrity, your business has no choice but to thrive.
Rob and I formed The Kimmelman-Gutman Group when we joined forces almost 2 years ago. We decided to merge our resources because we share a common philosophy in our approach to our work and what it means to run a customer service real estate business. We believe that the business is not about us, but about and for our customers and clients.
It is our constant goal to help our clients and give back to our community as real estate economists and service professionals. We are back, re-focused, re-energized and determined to make 2008 a great year for all who we come in contact with. We are very lucky to be a part of such a great team, office, and network of Keller Williams real estate agents who are as devoted to excellence as we are.
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