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“Closing” — the mere thought of the word in regards to a real estate transaction can make even the most seasoned agent or investor cringe. There are a lot of things that can create a glitch in the closing process. These glitches can range from simple annoyances to something serious enough to cancel the transaction.

Successfully closing a real estate transaction requires the effort of many people, such as:
A Buyer
A Seller
A Buyer’s Agent
A Seller’s Agent
A Loan Officer
A Loan Underwriter
A Title Company
An Appraiser
A Home Inspector
A County Recorder’s Office

And probably a few more I can’t think of right now.

That’s a lot of people. And all it takes is one of them to foul something up.
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Is it hot or what?

Noticed that we’ve been under an “extreme heat warning” the past couple of days.

What does that mean? Do I really need the weather service to tell me I should stay inside? Today’s high was 116 degrees. I don’t need anyone telling me that it’s hot outside.

The other day it got up to 113. We didn’t have an “extreme heat warning” that day. So I guess 113 isn’t “extreme” but 116 is. 3 degrees doesn’t really seem to make all that much difference. I thought it was kinda toasty at 113 too….

The water in my pool is up to 93 degrees. A few more days of this 115+ stuff and I’ll have a big giant hot tub in my back yard.

I can hardly wait.

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For those that haven’t read the previous post, or who don’t know what “FSBO” stands for… it’s For Sale By Owner. You know, when someone decides to sell their home themself, rather than utilize the services of a real estate agent.

In a market like us Phoenicians are currently in, it seems like it’d be easy to sell a home yourself. Heck, you could probably sell a cardboard box or a tin shed if you just plant a sign in front of it.

Well….. maybe not. I do see quite a few FSBOs moving fairly quickly, but I also see some sitting forever. And selling your home yourself may not mean squat, regardless of how much money you “save”.

Here’s a recent true story:

I was in my real estate office a couple of weeks ago, and this really nice young couple walks in. Turns out they are thinking about selling their condo in northwest Mesa. We chatted for awhile, and I told them I’d be happy to do a “CMA” (Comparative Market Analysis) for them that would tell them what they could list their condo for. I also told them I’d be glad to do a cost estimate so they could see exactly what they would net from the sale of there condo after paying all those fees and that horrible real estate commission.
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OK, this has NOTHING to do with real estate. It just *really* makes me ANGRY!!!!

About a month ago, I posted here saying:

(Tragically, there are people–usually kids–that die every year when they are left in cars in the summer.)

And sure enough, it happened today….

The high today was 114 or 115, depending on the news source. Either way, that is insanely hot. If you’ve never experienced 115 degree heat, you can’t understand how hot it gets inside a car. It’s unbearable. And it gets hot enough to kill…

Toddler dies after being left in hot car; aunt arrested
(from KFYI.com)

A 22-month-old girl died after being left in a car for about five hours on Tuesday morning. Phoenix police say the girl’s aunt drove the girl’s mother to work about 7 a.m., and put little Sara DeLaCruz in the back seat in a child car seat. Upon returning to her apartment near 34th Street and McDowell, 26-year-old Blanca Nuñez apparently forgot her niece was in the car, and didn’t realize it until shortly after noon. She brought the toddler into the apartment and called 911, but the little girl was pronounced dead on arrival at a nearby hospital. Nuñez was arrested for negligent homicide.

How in the good Lord’s name can someone “forget” they have a baby in the car, and leave them there for five hours to roast???

Someone really ought to consider putting Ms. Nuñez in a car, and leaving her there until she’s well done. The stupidity of people never ceases to amaze. What a tragedy, and it will no doubt be repeated again this summer.

It makes me want to vomit.

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For Sale By Owner, also know as “FSBO”. The idea here is you can sell your house yourself, thereby saving all that commission money you pay a REALTOR®.

Granted, I am a REALTOR®, so I am a bit biased in what I am going to say here…. “Why in the world would you want to put the sale of the most valuable asset you own into non-professional hands?”

I am NOT saying that people out there are non-professional. What I am saying is that unless you sell real estate for a living, you are NOT a real estate sales professional. And maybe your home isn’t your most valuable asset, but the odds are pretty overwhelming that it is.

There is plenty of data out there that says the average FSBO home sells for 5 – 10% below market value. And that’s just the sales price folks; it doesn’t include the marketing, time and frustration costs of selling your home. Given that the “typical” commission rate for a home sale is 6%, is a FSBO really saving money if they get 5 – 10% less on the sale? That’s not advanced math. You may be saying to yourself, “Self, even if I sell it 5% below market, I save 1% on commission!” Please go back and re-read that part about NOT including marketing costs, the cost of your time, and the cost of the frustration involved.
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