Usually Come Home Shorn

It was certainly a cool one this morning, and when seeing the ground fog for the first time this season, became the harbinger of what’s ahead of us. I have no problem with the cool nights as long as we don’t get an early frost because most of our vegetable gardens had a late start this year.

After getting myself situated for the day, I drove over to 36 S. Illinois and grabbed my sold sign and lockbox, which was my last little “to do” before heading over to a bank for its closing. As far as I’m concerned, that home sold for at least 10K less than it should have, and what I believe kept it from selling for more, was the fact that it wasn’t tricked-out with cheap updates, just to get buyers duped into thinking they bought the best available. Oh well, the seller was satisfied with the price, and that’s all that mattered.

After getting some desk work completed, it was time for me to head to my closing, and while driving out there, I again noticed how poorly people are tending to their lawns, which has me scratching my head as to why. Because I remember the recent sales of homes around town, I’ve been paying special attention to those which have sold within these past 24 months and believe me, some of them are almost unrecognizable due to the amount of junk, weeds, tall grass and garbage bags there are littered about. One that gave me a jaw-drop today, was seeing a particular home which I sold months ago which I thought could be the cutest little two-story with its kitchen staircase. Well, as of today, the storm door is missing, cars parked in the front yard and crap everywhere. I hope all the neighbors realize I only had it listed, and no control over who purchased it. I guess I mis-understood the Realtor who sold it because I was led to believe they were going to fix it up and then flip it, instead of renting it out as it was. So sad.

My closing went well enough to the point where I walked away considering it another soft-landing. I did mention to the buyer my belief she got one heck of a buy considering what our market has be doing these last 30 days. I even went on to say another listing of mine which is much smaller than what she purchased, having recently sold for more, and it didn’t even have a decent-sized back yard. I even shared the address of it, just in case she wanted to compare.

I took the long way back to office, just to check on some work a tenant was supposed to have done on his yard, and wouldn’t you know, not a thing was touched, so when I arrived back at office, I placed a call. Without going into any detail, by the time the day was over, the yard was back to the way it was supposed to be. I’ve come to the point where it’s not worth getting angry over, but instead, I just get point-blank firm and not back down, and believe me, I can quickly turn a deaf ear to limp excuses. How many times I’ve heard the line, “Well I didn’t do anything with it because I thought they were flowers.” How could a six foot tall Giant Ragweed come even close to looking like flowers? Really?

I’m sure getting the interest in my Manly acreage, which comes as no surprise because of how rare it is to find a country home of its size and price. I’m really hoping the buyers I have salivating over it can get here from out of State to personally look at it before someone else grabs it. I was touched when the buyer told me on the phone today, “If we do get it bought, it’ll be our forever home.” The more I’ve visited with them, the more I’m convinced they’re the perfect fit because they’re physically capable, along with having done all their research on the costs of improvements. Those are definitely the type of buyers I enjoy working with because they’ve got their eyes and ears wide open.

Once I did my office finalizing on today’s sale, I busied myself with getting some additional work done on sale files which are closing this and next week. My how quickly the weeks of August are moving along. I can’t believe it’s already the 15th, which is why I absolutely must get on those contractors to get me bids for outside work I’m needing done before winter arrives. I’m hoping I’ll not be caught in any of those supply-chain traps we’ve been hearing about.

I’ve got a good half dozen people talking about listing their homes in the near future, and if they all get listed, I’ll be replenishing my bank of listings. I still can’t believe how low of an inventory we have in our MLS. Even the homes in the surrounding small towns are selling like hotcakes. There’s one “nameless” home which is listed by a competitor, and when I noticed that pile of “broken bones” having sold, there’s no question buyers are grabbing anything they can. I’m sure the for sale by owners are gloating over it, and likely snagging buyers who’ve been working steadily with Realtors, but when there’s a burning desire to get something bought, loyalties are out the window. I’m just glad I made it thru 2020 without tearing my hair out because of the impetuous purchasing and selling that was taking place without Realtors being involved. Those were over the charts months, which is why I’ve learned to counsel today’s buyers and sellers, and you can bet I give real-life examples of huge mistakes some have made, and only because they thought they knew more than a seasoned Realtor.

Every time I hear of someone jumping ship, I remember that clever little saying of my grandmother’s which went, “Just remember my dear, those who go out looking for wool, usually come home shorn.” Oh how many times I’ve seen it happen, and that’s all I ever say is, “They got what they bargained for, and now have to live with it.”

I stopped over to one of my past customers at Prairie Place today, just to drop off a very belated Christmas gift I had promised. Besides being well received, we had a great chat.

Tonight’s One-liner is: Nothing in fine print is ever good news.

Related Property:
36 S Illinois Mason City IA
Joe Chodur

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