Another cold and gray day in May just came and went, and to think it’s already the 21st, and already looking like a repeat of last year’s weather with the cold and excess moisture. And to think more of our world is drying out while in areas like ours, the water is all the more plentiful.
I’m not sure if you’ve done any reading on what’s happening with Australia’s weather these last several years, but they’re having a very big problem with the rising temperatures along with receiving markedly less rainfall. It’s sounding like the interior of that continent is slowly turning into a desolate expanse where only insects, lizards and snakes are able to survive. I hope it’s not another Sahara desert in the making.
One of my calls today was from a senior couple whom I showed Prairie Place on 1st to some months ago. I had a good chat with them, and it’s looking more like they’re getting closer to pulling the trigger on buying one of the units still available. With them calling again, I’d say there’s now a strong possibility of having three more of those units sold. After sharing with me some of the horror stories of where they’re now living, I’d be out of there more sooner than later. It amazes me how much more the seniors around the country are being taken advantage of when it comes to housing, and I’m afraid it’s going to get worse due to our country’s growing housing shortage.
Of course with it raining, I didn’t venture out of the office any more than I had to, other than do a pre-listing inspection of a home that I should have listed by next week. As always, the longer an owner has lived in a home, the more stuff that has to be disposed of. Yes, nearly all of us are hoarders to one extent or another which means it’s always best to step back and review those things we believe to be truly necessary in our lives.
Another appointment I have on Friday, is to give a market valuation on a home that’s been in a family for a great number of years, and when visiting with one of the owners today, I quickly realized I’ll to have to make absolutely sure I do as much research before placing a number on a sheet of paper. Every time I’m called to provide a value on a home with multiple owners, there always seems to be at least one who’s right there to challenge. Hopefully their attorney will be able to get them on the same page without pulling me back into the fray.
There was another home I noticed having sold this week which gave me another jaw-drop when seeing what it actually sold for. It seems there are all the more of those “mindless” buyers in our midst who don’t do comparative shopping. I’m beginning to wonder what some of those selling agents are telling buyers regarding what future re-sale will look like on the homes they’re looking at purchasing.
I was happy to hear that many of those punitive tariffs have been lifted on Mexico, and especially Canada where much of our building materials are coming from. Hopefully the cost of new construction will drop once those prices go back down and see more new homes started, which will get this market bottle-neck opened.
Late yesterday a home inspection was emailed to me by an agent who sold one of my listings. I was very impressed by how that buyer’s inspector didn’t look at every sliver of peeling paint, or make mention of all those other clearly visible blemishes the buyer would’ve seen when viewing it before making his offer. I’ll have to keep that company’s name for future reference because he was very good about focusing on the big items like, wiring, plumbing, heating, cooling, roof, windows, and so on.
When you step back an look at the whole picture, I think it best to always remind the buyers that they’re not purchasing brand spanking new homes, and as long as the big ticket items are good, it’s best to take care of those lesser problems as they come along. Believe it or not, I’ve sold a great number of homes over the years to a particular family, and they’ve never called for inspections after coming to terms on price because they’d already done their own deep digging before making offers, which I believe it’s best for everyone involved. Even today, I tell buyers that if there’s something they have a big concern over with a home they’re looking at buying, is to just get it inspected by a professional before moving forward.
Tomorrow is going to be a half-day for me because I have a continuing education class to attend which will once again set me back on my course of getting all my required hours clocked in for my next license renewal.
Tonight’s one-liner is: Naughty monkey adults are horrible troublemakers that continue to act like attention-seeking adolescent children who get their dark jollies out of screaming, “Me, me, look at me!”
