South Austin Texas Real Estate blog: July 2008

When saving a dollar isn't worth the risk.  I recently sold a house that was built in 1987 to a nice couple, the home looks nice, smells good and was a good price for the neighborhood.  So we talked about the importance of an inspection. 

The inspector will look for obvious things and the things he is trained to see.  JQ Public would have no idea about, plumbing, air conditioning vents, ducts, electrical things and so on... the usual inspection report is 24-28 pages of detailed information. 

In Texas we have the Texas Real Estate Commission that oversees many licensees.

So my nice couple have a friend who knows alot about houses, maybe he could do the inspection and they would save some money?  Ok, is friend a licensed and bonded and insured Texas home inspector? Well, no but he knows alot.   Ok my friends, this is not a good idea, if the inspector missed something what recourse do you have once you have closed on the house?

After a few minutes of consideration the couple decided to go with the licensed Inspector, I know the cost is great, most inspections run $300-400.. depending on the additional items .. but this is not the time to watch out for spending some worthwhile money. 

 Inspection is a valid and worthy cost.. don't skimp here.

If you would like to buy or sell real estate in the AUSTIN Texas area, please give me a call or a quick email, I will assist you with sound and practical advice.  Gail Tassey, Keller Williams Realty, Southwest Austin Texas, gailnttexas@gmail.com  512-217-9482 mobile,. 512-531-2926 office/voicemail.

It seems to be raining all over Active Rain.  Just this morning I was reading blogs and came across Jason Crouch's goodnews blog  ActiveRain has helped me to become a local expert! 3 Interesting contacts I received this week from my "hyperlocal" blogging  and I realized how widespread the RAIN is becoming.

Yesterday while at my desk my phone rang and it was an unknown number, as I wondered where have I seen this area code before I answered the phone.  A very nice gentleman introduced himself and started asking me about various investment properties in our area.  I asked where did you find me or were you referred to me? 

He stated he found me on the internet, he read my blogs. WOW... well I don't know at this point if we will do a "deal" start to finish but I was so jazzed, so excited, a natural high if you will.. because of Active Rain, im out there!  Thanks Active Rain!

I have spent countless dollars, like many others in this business and had very little return for those $.. now I am redoubling my activities online... here at Active Rain and an outside blog, Its FREE!

How much does free cost? NOTHING.  oh ok.. 30 minutes or an hour a day.... consistently..  I know I can squeeze that out of my day.  And people who buy or sell Real Estate are realizing that this is a powerful community of well informed professionals.

Im Gail Tassey with Keller Williams Realty, Southwest Market Center, Austin Texas and I can help you to buy or sell too!  Call me 512-217-9482, mobile or 512-531-2926 office/voicemail or email gailnttexas@gmail.com

Since fuel prices have gone up so much this year, that increase has been followed across the board by groceries, utilities, medication and everything else our dollar purchases.  SO how can a family keep up?

Clark Howard the radio show penny pincher has told us about a great way we can all save money by making our dollars stretch further. grocery store coupons ... brought to you by this great website..  www.couponmom.com  Oh did I say its free? Years ago (in the 1980's when interest was around 15% to buy a home) .. I used coupons every week while grocery shopping.

Some folks never gave up the coupons, alas, I did.. now its time to bring them back and organize myself and gain a few dollars when shopping. Now go enjoy the website, a great big thank you to Clark Howard and I'm off to printout some money saving coupons.

If you would like to buy some real estate in Austin Texas call me.. maybe I can save you money too! Call Gail Tassey, Keller Williams Realty, Southwest Market Center...512-217-9482 mobile or 512-531-2926 office/voicemail .. or email me.. gailnttexas@gmail.com

I am reminded daily about our obligation to buyers and sellers to provide the Information About Brokerage Service here in Texas.  The legal parties of TREC state we need to provide this at our first conversation about real estate to a potential client. 

Many of us use email, web blogs, and websites for our first substantial conversation, I found a good link that will provide the IABS... its easy to copy and paste on your website, webblog or in your email signature. 

Please take it and include it with your technogoly based business.

www.trec.state.tx.us/pdf/contracts/op-k.pdf
Texas Law requires all real estate licensees to give the above information
about brokerage services

Will you be there?  I think today I will spend an amount of my hard earned dollars to attend this year, It will be my first time to Mega Camp and I am excited.  I just made the decision today, get it now while its still a bargain.

I wasn't going to go because its my birthday, I usually take that day off and indulge myself in all the girly stuff, nails, hair, pedicure, movie with lots of buttered popcorn, so I am sacrificing this year, my day for something that should prove to be more valuable that I can predict.

MegaCamp, Austin Tx, will feature Gary Keller, Dave Jenks, Diane K, and many more super producing agents, I think I will sign up for the technology camp too... I know it will help me with my webdesign.

I hope to see you all there, look me up or call and lets do lunch,  Gail Tassey 512-217-9482.

Yes, I love this job, it has ups and downs and exciting times and joys unparelleled... and it has the great downtimes, the disappointing moments, the times you want to shake your head and wonder why are you here in this place at this time?

Last month I was lucky enough to see pure joy face to face, I had been helping a newly married (5 months) young couple search for a new home in our area, they were being relocated ...  so we searched and toured and previewed a number of homes and we saw a new development so we went to see it.. it was a nice new community with midrange priced homes.  Ultimately my young couple agreed to purchase one of the to be builts.

The builder was offering a huge incentive, $10,000 in upgrades, so my young Mrs was able to upgrade her kitchen and masterbath and other small items.  We picked out upgrades, paint colors and such, went thru the contract, paid the deposits and Viola...in a few months their new dream home will be ready.

We left the builders office, the smiles were as wide as the Texas sky, Mr and Mrs were ear to ear grins, I was very excited for them too, now here is the great part: on the sidewalk, outside the office, a beautiful spring day, Mrs started jumping up and down, like a 5 yr old at a circus, it was pure joy! I still smile ear to ear at the memory (like I am now while recalling this)... If only we had more moments of pure joy in our life.

Yesterday I went to see the much advertised MAMMA MIA!...  featuring Meryl Streep, Pierce Bronson, Christine Baranski and many other talented actors and actresses.   What a fun movie. 

My friend who went with me had seen it on Broadway and said the movie brought much to the story with the beautiful backgrounds of the ocean and island.

It was a totally enjoyable funny movie, it wasn't a creation to make you think about the world and its situation of poverty or greenhouse gases.  It was a musical about love and mistakes and hopes and dreams of a young girl meeting her father.

If your up for a musical with ABBA songs performed by Meryl Streep and cast, then you shouldn't miss this one.  Dancing Queen was the best for me, I almost fell out of my chair laughing.

Hooray!!!  Oh how I wish it were a real Hooray, gasoline prices dropped yesterday here locally, from $3.95 a gallon to $3.87 a gallon. It seems that was the first downward price movement in months.  We are all frustrated with the price climbing like a steady mountaineer .. trying to reach the top.. but where is the top?

Some speculators said $5.00 a gallon, some said $12.00 a gallon but that was probably a very off the cuff tongue in cheek retort to a shouted question?  I think $12.00 a gallon would collapse our way of life.

CNN has reported that prices are down nationwide but still national average above $4.00.  We have always been below the national average here in Austin Texas. 

So, while we have seen a tiny drop in prices at the pump we can only hope for more decline soon, as the crunch is trickling down thru our whole economy. 

Wow, this weekend was something. Not all days are stellar, 100% glorious shining examples of life... some days you just take it on the chin and say ok.. tomorrow will be better.

I lost a listing, a mutual agreement between me and the sellers, they want a faster sale at a higher price than the market demands so we agreed they could be better off with another realtor.. I don't have a magic wand to change things here so .. pfffft .. and its done, cancelled listing and back on the market with another realtor.

Not a bad thing really, saves me money every month on expenses and I really like the folks so I hope the new realtor does have a magic wand or can pull that bunny (buyer) out of a hat.

After I unloaded the prior listing house of all my staging artifacts, 4 trips with boxes up and down stairs, in and out of the heat of 100 degrees, I rushed to my office to get balloons for an open house I was scheduled to do across town.  Thinking if I'm lucky and the traffic isn't too bad I can be almost on time.

Wow, the balloon gods were smiling on me, the new Marketing Group in our office had left a whole big bunch of balloons ready to go with a "please take me sign"  oh yeah!!  thank you CHAD PEEVY GROUP! Wtth this pleasant turn of events I knew I had time to stop at the supermarket and grab some water and Ice for prospective clients and viewers to the Open House... remember its 100 degrees outside.

Back to the car with balloons in hand, I am again smiled on, traffic is light and I made it in great time, first sign up.. yippeee, I'm truly blessed today, another KW agent has a directional at the main intersection pointing just my way!!  I won't have to do that one... on to the next street, ok.. its short and I only had to place 4 signs today.

Open the house, its sparkling, but warm, turn down the AC, put the ice in the kitchen sink and the small bottles of water around in the ice to cool, (this is a great trick because the ice melts right down the drain) all the lights on, set up my chair. Catch my breath. 

First prospect enters an hour later, gees its been slow today.... this lady has a huge ball of fur in her arms, that I see is one big fat siamese cat.  I don't think I've ever had an  Open house visitor bring her cat I'm thinking, wow, well ok.   You know how your brain thinks in nanoseconds, fortunately that time my mouth didn't catchup with it... I said Hello.. she said.. who are you and what are you doing here?

HUH?  I have open house signs all over the front yard, the corner, the streets leading in to this house... but I said, I'm Gail with Keller Williams... she said... who sent you , I didn't know we were having an open house today, how did this happen.. the lady was quite flustered.  Then she says, Im the owner, ok.. that makes a bit more sense now. After a bit of discussion the owner of this home says, I need to put the cat in the laundry room for today.  I agreed, not knowing the cat had the lungs of a 2year old child throwing a tantrum.

Minutes later Mrs Seller comes back  into the house and tells me, oh we need to use the garage to do a brake job on our car here today.  HUH? so now the cat is caterwauling and the garage will be a mechanic stop? I said, well.. thanks but I think I should come back another day. After a few moments it was settled that the open house wouldnt be open, so what about tomorrow? Well, Mrs Seller said, our home we live in is on the market too and it will be held open tomorrow so we thought we would spend the day here. OK... not tomorrow either.  Thank you for letting me know Mrs Seller.

I went home and emailed the listing agent and explained no open house today and please cancel the one for tomorrow, and henceforth notify this particular seller if planning future open houses on their vacant homes.

BONUS TIME, I got a day off!!!!  Unexpected but totally enjoyed, I met with my sister, we had a leisurely brunch, shopped, and goofed off all day.. what a treat!  So even when things are rushed and hurried and the course of the day changes in midday..  roll with it.. something good could happen to you.