SHARED THOUGHTS

Since it's mid-month let's look at the sales track. If your home isn't listed for sale and you don't intend listing it, these figures are only for entertainment value. Remember these are only single family homes listed on the Sierra North Valley MLS. Greater Chico, total listed homes, 564, sales month to date (MTD), 19, last year 34. Paradise/Magalia total listed, 414, sales MTD, 12, last year 17. Glenn County total listed, 171, sales MTD, 2, last year 5. Our offices have seen an uptick in sales activity which won't be reflected until next month, but a good thing just the same. Some criticism comes my way for reciting figures which don't provide a rosy glow, as if by not mentioning less than flattering data it will somehow morph into good news. There are enough official real estate organizations feeding puff pieces into the media already, so with the belief that knowledge empowers, I'll give you the local news unfiltered. There is an old sales mantra that says, "Every Day in Every Way, Things Are Getting Better and Better and Better". I think there are better ways to develop the mind set necessary to making them better. One of my advertising reps told me that when he asks his real estate clients how things are going they first tell him how tough things are, then provide some of that upbeat nonsense, at which point he asks them if it would be possible for them to pay their bill. On advertising. A man named John Wanamaker, regarded as the first to open a department store in this country in the late 1800's has the attribution for the following, "Half the money I spend on advertising is wasted; the trouble is I don't know which half". Wanamaker is actually a pioneer in marketing. Before his momentous decision to put price tags, (fixed prices) on merchandise, customers and clerks engaged in bartering and haggling in a flexible pricing market. Customers were unhappy to discover that someone else bought identical goods for a lower price, time was wasted, so he figured a fair mark-up, priced the goods, and advertised honestly. He became famous and we are beneficiaries today, as we go shopping with the knowledge that we will be treated fairly without haggling. If you suspect I'm creeping up on a comparison to our real estate business, you're right. Nothing justifies a % fee for selling a home in the first place, and surely there is no reason for the client to feel the need to 'negotiate" whether the fee will be 3%, 4%, 5%, or higher. We don't have any money invested in the inventory to mark it up, we're simply providing a service, and it's fairly simple to calculate the costs of providing that service and charging accordingly. We charge $4995 to list and sell a home. For that fee you get the same peace of mind and assurance of value as with any other office, franchise or otherwise, and get to keep a whole lot more of your equity when your escrow closes. My apologies for the sales pitch, but I like the Wanamakers of the world, and the Schwabs and the Costcos. We certainly don't equal them in stature, but our motivation is the same; high quality, great service, fair prices.
As usual,
thanks for visiting.