Mama Liz's Blog

Mama Liz Says -- True Horror Story

Liz Loadholt- AgentOwned Realty- Covering SC — Sun, 22 Aug 2010 15:42:09 -0400

originally posted on Real Estate Brokerages

I have a friend who is going through the below dilemma right now.

We will call the friend, Sam. Sam bought a lot -- he did not get owner's title insurance. Later, Sam built a home on the lot. The lender required lender's title insurance, but Sam did not purchase owner's title insurance.

Sam knew when he got the lot that there was a dirt driveway at the edge of his lot that lead to a home (owned by we'll say Scott) behind his lot. What he did not know until this month is that there is a 50' easement across his lot. There had been 2 different title searches done by 2 different attorneys -- both missed this easement.

Please watch the video for full details.

Had Sam purchased owner's title insurance, he would be protected. But since he didn't, he is out in the cold. He will never be able to sell his house or certainly not ever get his value out of it.

I know I sound like a broker record, but every purchaser needs owner's title insurance.

Liz Loadholt

Broker, SC Certified Trainer, Relocation Director
Co-founder of AgentOwned Realty ]

Liz@AgentOwned.com

http://mamaliz.onlineaor.com

843-725-5007

The AgentOwned Realty serves your real estate needs for:

Charleston, Johns Island, James Island, Mt. Pleasant,
Isle of Palms, Sullivan's Island, Daniel Island, North Charleston,
Summerville,Goose Creek, Moncks Corner, Santee, Manning, Sumter, Florence, & Myrtle Beach, all in South Carolina

How to Get SC Real Estate License
How to Make More of Your Commissions
Interested in Money for Retirement?(Estate Plan)

Where are the AgentOwned Office Locations?

Interested in Training?
If interested, Who Should I talk to?
Interested in complete Freedom & Independence?
Email Mama Liz

Mama Liz Says --Another Reason for Owner's Title Insurance

Liz Loadholt- AgentOwned Realty- Covering SC — Wed, 18 Aug 2010 17:35:44 -0400

originally posted on Real Estate Brokerages

Another true story from Charleston, SC.

Sellers and Buyers were at the closing table to close on a transaction. The attorney asked the sellers and buyers for identification. The buyers provided driver's licenses and the male seller provided his and the female seller got up and walked out.

You see, she was not the seller's wife, but the girlfriend. Had that attorney not found that out before the closing and the real wife had come back later to claim her half of the property --- guess what?

If this buyer couple had closed and not gotten owner's title insurance, they would have been in a lot of trouble.

These 2 situations that I have told you about were prevented, so all was well.

My next story tomorrow did not turn out so nicely.

Owner's title insurance is a necessity.

Liz Loadholt

Broker, SC Certified Trainer, Relocation Director
Co-founder of AgentOwned Realty ]

Liz@AgentOwned.com

http://mamaliz.onlineaor.com

843-725-5007

The AgentOwned Realty serves your real estate needs for:

How to Get SC Real Estate License
How to Make More of Your Commissions
Interested in Money for Retirement?(Estate Plan)

Where are the AgentOwned Office Locations?

Interested in Training?
If interested, Who Should I talk to?
Interested in complete Freedom & Independence?
Email Mama Liz

Want To Test The Market? It Doesn't Work That Way - The Market Tests You!

Liz Loadholt- AgentOwned Realty- Covering SC — Mon, 16 Aug 2010 17:48:16 -0400

This is a great post --- great information for our public. Thanks, Pat.

Via Patricia Kennedy (Evers & Company Realtors):

All over the country, home sellers are telling real estate agents, "I don't care what your analysis says my house is worth! I just want to test the market at a good bit more than that."

The next thing we hear them say is, "Listen, it just takes one!"

OK, that's not how it works.

You need something more than a hunch or a crystal ball to come up with the magic number that will attract offers on your home. You need an analysis that will give you a well-focused snapshot of what is happening in your building or neighborhood - right now.

Tonight, I am preparing a market analysis for some sellers in one of Washington's premier buildings, and I was totally struck by some of the numbers that I saw.

I looked at the eight units that have sold since the first of the year. The average sold price was $614,375. And the average list price was $666,625, only about 8 percent higher that what these units sold for. But the original price where the sellers tested the market was a whopping $806,375. This means the units that sold went for an average of 24% less than the optimistic "test" price. And every single one of these sellers had to negotiate with buyers who wound up getting their units for less, sometimes much less, than the sellers were asking.

During the same time, 21 sellers took their units off the market altogether, and 11 of those had had no price reduction at the time they withdrew from the market.

The MRIS statistics do not, of course, tell the entire story. They don't show whether or not any of these sellers attracted offers that they declined to accept. They don't tell us whose idea the price was to begin with. It might have been sellers trying to test the market, or it might have been over optimistic listing agents.

Either way, I think it's important for sellers to expect a carefully prepared analysis of what is going on in the local market as part of coming up with that magic number - the one that will at least attract buyers who want to make offers on the house or apartment.

And remember -

You don't test the market

The market tests you!

And if you price your home too high to attract offers, the market will flunk you! Yep! A big ole "F".

When your market speaks to you, it could care less what you paid for the property, how much you improved it, or what you need to buy your next place.

Yeah, that old market can be just ruthless!
Subscribe in a reader

Mama Liz Says - Why Do You Need Owner's Title Insurance?

Liz Loadholt- AgentOwned Realty- Covering SC — Sun, 15 Aug 2010 16:42:18 -0400

originally posted on Real Estate Brokerages

The following is a true story that happened here in Charleston, SC --- if this can happen in Charleston, SC, it can happen anywhere:

There was a FSBO (for sale by Owner) sign on an ocean front lot on the Isle of Palms. Potential purchasers (we will call them, the Browns) called on the lot and discovered that they were only asking $500,000 when all other ocean front lots were going for pretty close to $1,000,000. The Browns got really excited- asked the "sellers" why it was being sold so low and the Browns were told that they had financial difficulty, so needed to dump the lot. The Browns wrote a cash offer to close quickly --- they did not want to miss the great opportunity.

The Browns selected an attorney to handle the closing for them. During the title search, a small red flag appeared and the title searcher sensed something wrong. The attorney had the police at the closing when the "sellers" walked in. The "sellers" were not the real owners of the lot. The actual owners of the lot lived out of town and knew nothing about this sale. By the way, the "sellers" had fake identification.

Now, had this attorney not sensed something wrong and had closed the deal, the buyers would have been out of $500,000. Also the buyers, if they had not purchased owner's title insurance, they would have been at a total loss. However, if they had purchased owner's title insurance, their investment would have been protected by the owner's title insurance.

As I have said, every purchaser needs owner's title insurance. If the purchasers are financing the property, the lender is going to require Lender's title insurance. I tell buyers all the time, "Hello!!! why do you think the lenders require title insurance?"

If the owner's title insurance is purchased at the same time as the lender's title insurance, there is a reduced fee for the purchaser (called a simultaneous issue)

For goodness sakes, all you Realtors® out there, be sure that your purchasers obtain owner's title insurance.

Will have another story for you tomorrow.

Liz Loadholt

Broker, SC Certified Trainer, Relocation Director
Co-founder of AgentOwned Realty ]

Liz@AgentOwned.com

http://mamaliz.onlineaor.com

843-725-5007

The AgentOwned Realty serves your real estate needs for:

How to Get SC Real Estate License
How to Make More of Your Commissions
Interested in Money for Retirement?(Estate Plan)

Where are the AgentOwned Office Locations?

Interested in Training?
If interested, Who Should I talk to?
Interested in complete Freedom & Independence?
Email Mama Liz

Mama Liz Says – What Do You Know About Title Insurance

Liz Loadholt- AgentOwned Realty- Covering SC — Fri, 13 Aug 2010 17:11:03 -0400

originally posted on Real Estate Brokerages

Liz Loadholt

Broker, SC Certified Trainer, Relocation Director
Co-founder of AgentOwned Realty ]

Liz@AgentOwned.com

http://mamaliz.onlineaor.com

843-725-5007

The AgentOwned Realty serves your real estate needs for:

How to Get SC Real Estate License
How to Make More of Your Commissions
Interested in Money for Retirement?(Estate Plan)

Where are the AgentOwned Office Locations?

Interested in Training?
If interested, Who Should I talk to?
Interested in complete Freedom & Independence?
Email Mama Liz

Mama Liz Says - Never Possession Prior to Closing

Liz Loadholt- AgentOwned Realty- Covering SC — Mon, 09 Aug 2010 17:34:42 -0400

originally posted on Real Estate Brokerages

Liz Loadholt

Broker, SC Certified Trainer, Relocation Director
Co-founder of AgentOwned Realty ]

Liz@AgentOwned.com

http://mamaliz.onlineaor.com

843-725-5007

The AgentOwned Realty serves your real estate needs for:

How to Get SC Real Estate License
How to Make More of Your Commissions
Interested in Money for Retirement?(Estate Plan)

Where are the AgentOwned Office Locations?

Interested in Training?
If interested, Who Should I talk to?
Interested in complete Freedom & Independence?
Email Mama Liz

Mama Liz Says - Stop Whining and Go To Work

Liz Loadholt- AgentOwned Realty- Covering SC — Mon, 02 Aug 2010 11:33:53 -0400

originally posted on Real Estate Brokerages

Liz Loadholt

Broker, SC Certified Trainer, Relocation Director
Co-founder of AgentOwned Realty ]

Liz@AgentOwned.com

http://mamaliz.onlineaor.com

843-725-5007

The AgentOwned Realty serves your real estate needs for:

How to Get SC Real Estate License
How to Make More of Your Commissions
Interested in Money for Retirement?(Estate Plan)

Where are the AgentOwned Office Locations?

Interested in Training?
If interested, Who Should I talk to?
Interested in complete Freedom & Independence?
Email Mama Liz

Mama Liz Says -- What Questions Are You Asking Your Sellers

Liz Loadholt- AgentOwned Realty- Covering SC — Tue, 27 Jul 2010 17:10:07 -0400

originally posted on Real Estate Brokerages

Liz Loadholt

Broker, SC Certified Trainer, Relocation Director
Co-founder of AgentOwned Realty ]

Liz@AgentOwned.com

http://mamaliz.onlineaor.com

843-725-5007

The AgentOwned Realty serves your real estate needs for:

How to Get SC Real Estate License
How to Make More of Your Commissions
Interested in Money for Retirement?(Estate Plan)

Where are the AgentOwned Office Locations?

Interested in Training?
If interested, Who Should I talk to?
Interested in complete Freedom & Independence?
Email Mama Liz

Mama Liz Says - Are You Managing Your Own Rental Properties

Liz Loadholt- AgentOwned Realty- Covering SC — Sun, 25 Jul 2010 14:41:16 -0400

originally posted on Real Estate Brokerages

Liz Loadholt

Broker, SC Certified Trainer, Relocation Director
Co-founder of AgentOwned Realty ]

Liz@AgentOwned.com

http://mamaliz.onlineaor.com

843-725-5007

The AgentOwned Realty serves your real estate needs for:

How to Get SC Real Estate License
How to Make More of Your Commissions
Interested in Money for Retirement?(Estate Plan)

Where are the AgentOwned Office Locations?

Interested in Training?
If interested, Who Should I talk to?
Interested in complete Freedom & Independence?
Email Mama Liz

Mama Liz Says -- Watch Out For Multiple Rental Applications

Liz Loadholt- AgentOwned Realty- Covering SC — Fri, 23 Jul 2010 17:28:51 -0400

originally posted on Real Estate Brokerages

Liz Loadholt

Broker, SC Certified Trainer, Relocation Director
Co-founder of AgentOwned Realty ]

Liz@AgentOwned.com

http://mamaliz.onlineaor.com

843-725-5007

The AgentOwned Realty serves your real estate needs for:

How to Get SC Real Estate License
How to Make More of Your Commissions
Interested in Money for Retirement?(Estate Plan)

Where are the AgentOwned Office Locations?

Interested in Training?
If interested, Who Should I talk to?
Interested in complete Freedom & Independence?
Email Mama Liz

Mama Liz Says --Short Sales are Scary In Many Ways

Liz Loadholt- AgentOwned Realty- Covering SC — Wed, 21 Jul 2010 17:19:15 -0400

originally posted on Real Estate Brokerages

Liz Loadholt

Broker, SC Certified Trainer, Relocation Director
Co-founder of AgentOwned Realty ]

Liz@AgentOwned.com

http://mamaliz.onlineaor.com

843-725-5007

The AgentOwned Realty serves your real estate needs for:

How to Get SC Real Estate License
How to Make More of Your Commissions
Interested in Money for Retirement?(Estate Plan)

Where are the AgentOwned Office Locations?

Interested in Training?
If interested, Who Should I talk to?
Interested in complete Freedom & Independence?
Email Mama Liz

Mama Liz Says -- What is an un-meeting?

Liz Loadholt- AgentOwned Realty- Covering SC — Tue, 20 Jul 2010 15:39:49 -0400

originally posted on Real Estate Brokerages

Liz Loadholt

Broker, SC Certified Trainer, Relocation Director
Co-founder of AgentOwned Realty ]

Liz@AgentOwned.com

http://mamaliz.onlineaor.com

843-725-5007

The AgentOwned Realty serves your real estate needs for:

How to Get SC Real Estate License
How to Make More of Your Commissions
Interested in Money for Retirement?(Estate Plan)

Where are the AgentOwned Office Locations?

Interested in Training?
If interested, Who Should I talk to?
Interested in complete Freedom & Independence?
Email Mama Liz

Mama Liz Says -- Let's Have More Un-Meetings

Liz Loadholt- AgentOwned Realty- Covering SC — Mon, 19 Jul 2010 17:26:49 -0400

originally posted on Real Estate Brokerages

Liz Loadholt

Broker, SC Certified Trainer, Relocation Director
Co-founder of AgentOwned Realty ]

Liz@AgentOwned.com

http://mamaliz.onlineaor.com

843-725-5007

The AgentOwned Realty serves your real estate needs for:

How to Get SC Real Estate License
How to Make More of Your Commissions
Interested in Money for Retirement?(Estate Plan)

Where are the AgentOwned Office Locations?

Interested in Training?
If interested, Who Should I talk to?
Interested in complete Freedom & Independence?
Email Mama Liz

Mama Liz Says --Use a Bill of Sale

Liz Loadholt- AgentOwned Realty- Covering SC — Mon, 19 Jul 2010 17:17:16 -0400

originally posted on Real Estate Brokerages

Liz Loadholt

Broker, SC Certified Trainer, Relocation Director
Co-founder of AgentOwned Realty ]

Liz@AgentOwned.com

http://mamaliz.onlineaor.com

843-725-5007

The AgentOwned Realty serves your real estate needs for:

How to Get SC Real Estate License
How to Make More of Your Commissions
Interested in Money for Retirement?(Estate Plan)

Where are the AgentOwned Office Locations?

Interested in Training?
If interested, Who Should I talk to?
Interested in complete Freedom & Independence?
Email Mama Liz

Social Media Development

Liz Loadholt- AgentOwned Realty- Covering SC — Sun, 11 Jul 2010 13:48:52 -0400

Social Media Development is recognized by AgentOwned Realty as most important in increasing their real estate business. This past week Jeremy Blanton of 210 Constulting was

brought to Mt Pleasant, SC to teach their agent-owners how to increase their real estate business by using Facebook correctly. Jeremy taught 2 classes on the subject -- had so much interest in the topic, we had to add another class in order to accommodate everyone.

There was much great information given by Jeremy as way to increase their social media development. After learning what the basics of Facebook are, the agent-owners began to get the picture.

Facebook is so much more than the games that so many people like to play.

Social media development is so much more than who just went to the grocery store or who just picked up their children from the pool. Facebook has 3 major sections -- personal profile, groups and pages.

Also, the important of using Lists was pointed out. With the use of Lists, one can be so much more pro-active.

Another factor to remember is when you set up your business page, do not set it up the same as your personal profile -- make sure that it is a separate page -- a business page. One should also remember that the personal page is just that --- one should not be trying to sell real estate on that page -- this is a social page, not a business page.

If one is interested in social media development, he/she should learn how to correctly use Facebook.

So, in a nutshell, remember your purpose for being on Facebook --- is it purely personal or do you want to use it for business purposes?

Jeremy Blanton has already agreed to make another trip to Mt Pleasant so that other agent-owners who are interested in social media development will have the same opportunity.

What do I think is critical to real estate agents in today's world? You guess it -- social media development.

843-725-5007 (direct)

843-608-8488 (google)

Liz@agentownedrealty.com

http://LizLoadholt.onlineaor.com

http://ownyourrealestateco.com http://activerain.com/blogs/lizloadholt

http://MamaLizaor.com

Contact Me Linkedin Facebook Flickr Twitter