We have an amazing opportunity coming for Real Estate Investors - that provides:

• Immediate Cash Flow
• Guaranteed Tenants
• Guaranteed Return on Investment
• Guaranteed Appreciation 
  

Sound too good to be true?  It's not.  We will be introducing this program within the next 7-14 days to our current investor client base.  If you are not a current investor client, please connect with us so you can participate in this program. 

This opportunity is specific to the Kootenai County rental real estate market.  We do not sell or market other areas of the country.  If you are not interested in owning investment rental real estate in Kootenai County, this opportunity is not for you. 

Strong opener - but you have to admit, it's a pretty stupid reason to pick an agent and frankly all too common. 

One of our past clients decided they wanted to sell their home.  Great.  We'll help you with that.  Based upon comparable sales within your home's community, neighborhood competition and current market conditions, your home should be listed at XXX and sell for as low as 98% of list price.

"But wait, the comparables in this particular neighborhood show that my home will be the least expensive home in the neighborhood if I price it 6% over what you advise."  says the client

"Yes, that is true, except that in this particular neighborhood, only 1 home per month is selling and there are 19 homes available.  Plus, this neighborhood is a direct competitor of two other much busier neighborhoods.  You need to price your home competitive with those neighborhoods or your home will not sell.  It didn't sell last year priced too high, we don't want it to sit this year as well." say I

Found out today that said client decided to go with another agent in our brokerage (she's a full-time agent and works hard.  At least client has that in their favor).  Client listed the home for 7% over what I advised.  Believe me, it will not sell, period.  If it does, I'll get back on here and let people know that I made a mistake.  I'm so certain it will not sell at that price I'd be willing to place a substantial bet on it.  Client is going to sit there and eat months of mortgage because while it's for sale, it's also sitting vacant without a tenant.  Client is not pricing it right and we are less than a month away from the fall deflate - in other words, if a home doesn't have an offer on it by mid-August, get it off the market or reduce the price.  Fall and winter are notoriously slower and a much harder sell.

Why this agent took an over-priced listing is beyond me.  That's another problem I have an issue with.  If agents would keep reality in front of them and stop taking listings just to have listings, there wouldn't be the ridiculous saturation of listings on the market, 95% of them stupidly over-priced. 

Sellers who do not want to listen to solid, truthful advice are only shooting themselves in the foot.  We have lived in the community for almost 40 years and worked in real estate for over 2 decades.  We know this market, we build our livelihood by knowing this market. Not only do we help hundreds (yes hundreds) of people every single year buy and sell real estate in Kootenai County, we buy and sell multiple properties every single year.  Real Estate truly is our livelihood.

Owners - stop picking a REALTOR(R) because they are willing to 'over-price' your listing.  Don't make the mistake of thinking you know more about your home's value than a reputable local REALTOR(R).  I guess I just have to shake my head at some owners.  No matter how much we truly try to help them, they just don't really want the best help they can get.

The Landings at Waterford Sales April 1, 2007 through June 30th, 2007

There are currently 44 homes for sale in The Landings at Waterford, with an absorption rate of 4.4 months. Absorption rate means that if no other homes became available for sale in The Landings at Waterford, it would take 4.4 months to sell the 44 that are currently for sale.  Please note, The Landings at Waterford is still producing a lot of brand new construction homes, most of which are not 'officially' listed for sale but are included in closed sales numbers.  This means that the absorption rate is most likely between 6-8 months for resale homes.  The Landings at Waterford has just begun another phase and construction is anticipated to continue for at least another 3-5 years before this sub-division is fully built.

Current homes for sale range in price from $195,000 to $399,900. Days on market range from 11 to 423.  The anomoly in this situation is the home that has been available for 423 days.  The next closest home has been listed for 203 days, much more realistic.  Here's the problem.  The home for 423 days is grossly over priced, even at it's current price reduction. It is not my intention to provide what the true price should be, but consider this home over priced by at least 21% and it started out over priced at 33%.

15 of these homes are on the 'price reduction' track. In other words, they started out with prices too high for the market and are now reducing them, a little behind the market. If you want your home in The Landings at Waterford to sell in 3 months or less, you must price it lower than any other comparable within The Landings at Waterford including new construction, and price it in the bottom 1% of prices for surrounding comparables.

Homes that have sold and closed are averaging $128.54 per square foot with an average of 124 days on the market. Current homes for sale are listed for an average of $128.79 per square foot with an average of 118 days on the market as of today.   Just looking at the numbers and stats, it appears that The Landings at Waterford is in a pretty balanced market right now.  This means that it's a win/win for both buyers and sellers.  Because of the amount of building still to come, sellers are not willing to reduce prices and don't really have to, the builder is setting the values.  For buyers, because each phase the builder does becomes a price increase, buyers find they are building equity consistently and steadily within this community.

Our advise for owners – hold/buy/sell. Because of the balanced market, do what you want or need to do.  It's a good market for everyone.

Are there other sub-divisions within Kootenai County you would like to see a market report about? Please let me know and I will be more than happy to keep you updated on your preferred sub-division.

(Square footage pricing is important the more square footage you have.  The less square footage you have, the less value is place on this factor (fully custom and luxury homes are often excluded from this square foot price factor). Why?  Because there is an 'entry' price in each sub-division.  After your 'entry level homes' are priced at 'entry', other homes move up from there, but not at the same 'per square foot value'.  Instead, the competition/comparison gets wider taking in more than just the sub-division the home is in.)

(Information deemed reliable but not guaranteed. Properties listed and sold by various MLS participants. Sale Price adjusted for any seller contributions. DOM = Days on Market)

With special thanks to John Novak, Las Vegas for table coding and formatting.

It's a funny thing.  Americans tend to 'get down to business' when eating a meal.  It's about shoveling it in and getting it done and going on to the next activity (believe me, I'm a big culprit).

It's completely different in Italy.  In Italy, every meal is an event.  Of course they have multiple courses, but each course can be 30-60 minutes long.  It's not about the food in Italy, it's about the relationships.  Meals are a time to sit back, relax and get in the groove with your friends and family. 

What about on Active Rain?  Are you an American or an Italian?  Do you make a comment, quick and to the point and then type in the little verification word and go on to the next blog post?  Or, do you make an engaging comment and then check the little box that says "notify me of new comments" before typing in your verification?

I have to say, I've converted from a 'get it done' to an italian style commentor.  Neither method is wrong or right, but the benefits of blogging Italian style are incredible!  Blogging Italian style opens up a whole other world called "relationships".  

Yep, that's right, by blogging Italian style you engage the OP (original poster) in a conversation.  A conversation that builds relationships.  As we all know, relationships are tres tres importante (yes, I speak French, not Italian!) in the real estate world.

Guess what else it does?  As I've said before, engaging feeds your mind.  Gets the creative juices flowing.  So, start blogging Italian style! 

Yes, we took pictures of ourselves eating all over Italy :D 

Mary Warren asked a question in a recent post on her blog.  She wondered if she was 'unbalanced' because she had more comments made than comments received.  Of course not say I (and many others).  It is good 'netiquette' to comment liberally throughout the rain and blogosphere.  Common reasons why are to help you establish your own readership base and help your SEO.

I have another reason.  I comment on at least 10-15 blogs every day (except Sunday), more whenever I can.  As I said in my comment to Mary's post - it feeds my mind.  Commenting provides me the food to nibble on which often results in more creative thinking, which results in more posts of my own.

I 'hear' so often people wondering what to blog about.  Well, I'm here to say that reading other blogs and commenting on other blogs puts your creative juices in motion.  Do you know how many 'comments' have become posts?  Thousands.  Hundreds of thousands.

So get thee out there commenting! 

As we all know, it's not easy being a REALTOR®. Most people outside of the industry think it is easy and heck, a monkey could do it. Based upon what I'm hearing other REALTORS® do and say, unfortunately I'm leaning on the side of believing most REALTORS® are monkeys. Then, I'm brought back to reality, by my very own clients and realize if REALTORS® are monkey’s I’m a monkey, on serious steroids.

I am constantly getting phone calls and emails from past clients. Clients asking about the market, seeking advice on what they should do, etc. Many (though not all) of these calls are instigated when they receive some flyer or propaganda from another REALTOR® telling them that they have to sell NOW, blah blah blah. You know, the same tired old marketing tricks to try and get a homeowner to give you a listing. Pathetic attempts to scare an owner into selling, instead of giving the owner truthful advice about the market.

As I said, I talk to past clients every single day. I keep everyone up-to-date on the market in Kootenai County because I feel it is a very important and a vital piece to their networth decision making process.

When I get these calls, my ultimate piece of advice is if you do not have a compelling 'must' or 'have' to sell reason, don't. If you do not have to move, or liquidate, don't sell. You are not going to lose your shirt in our market. It's not going to happen.

Owners are getting so many scare tactics marketing pieces because there are more REALTORS® in Kootenai County than any other area of the country! Amazing, but true. Nationwide the average is 1:224. Statewide the average is 1:96. County wide? 1:84. We have 1500 REALTORS® in Kootenai County and over 40% of them have not had a single sale in the past 24 months. 40%!

I am a listing agent. We make our money when home owners want to sell using our services. Why in the world would I advise a home owner not to sell right now? Because it's not in their best interest. In order to sell right now, because of the over saturation of listings on the market, you would have to price your own below market value for it to even have a chance at selling. There is simply too much competition, most of which is happening because there are a lot of hungry agents putting too many listings on the market, listings owned by people who don't need to sell. People testing the market. I'm sorry, real estate is not a 'test', it's a final. If you do not, 100% need to sell your property, get out of the game.

Why is it important that we give true advice and not just 'take your listing?' Again, because it's in your best interest. We have been in the business for several decades. We are long time residents of Kootenai County, nigh on natives. Real Estate is our business, not our passtime. We want long term relationships with our clients, not just enough to get a sale. It's that important to us. YOU are that important to us.

So, next time you get a marketing piece in the mail that says you HAVE to sell because you won't be able to sell later - consider the source. No, I'm not really advising my way out of business, but I am advising clients to the best of my knowledge and ability and that supercedes my desire to 'get the next sale'.

For Immediate Release 

Contact: Christina Ethridge

Local REALTOR e-PRO^® Agent Utilizing Technology

To Provide Consumers With State-of-the-Art Services

(July 2007) – As more and more consumers begin their search for real estate-related information on the Internet, it is critical that real estate professionals are well educated in the use of technology to the benefit of both the consumer and the agent and/or broker.

Realizing the importance of technology training, the National Association of REALTORS^® (NAR) now offers its members the e-PRO certification course -- the only technology certification program offered by NAR. The program is designed to prepare real estate professionals to make the most of Internet technology and to identify, evaluate, and implement new Internet business models. The elite group of course graduates represents only one percent of all REALTORS in the country including Christina Ethridge of Coeur d'Alene, Idaho.

“The real estate industry has undergone a fundamental change over the past five years,” Christina Ethridge said. “Today, more than 70% of all buyers and sellers begin their search online. As an e-PRO certified agent, I have knowledge and tools needed to provide my clients with the information they need and the customer service they demand. It’s both hi-tech and hi-touch.”

The REALTOR e-PRO certification course is an educational program unlike any other professional certification or designation course available, comprehensive and interactive. It is specifically designed to provide real estate professionals with the technology tools needed to assist consumers in the purchase or sale of a home.

The exclusive REALTOR e-PRO certification course is presented entirely online and certifies real estate agents and brokers as Internet professionals. The course is designed to help REALTORS stay at the leading edge of technology and identify, evaluate and implement new Internet business models.

Once completed, the e-PRO certified real estate professional joins the ranks of a special community of highly skilled and continuously trained professionals who provide high quality and innovative online-based real estate services.  Consumers can identify the e-PRO through the exclusive e-PRO Internet Professional logo.

Both the content and the delivery platform were created by San Diego-based technology company InternetCrusade^®. Graduates use the skills they've acquired to provide clients information on properties for sale, local communities, and the local real estate market.

For more information, e-mail Christina Ethridge or call 208-769-9464

Multi-Family (Duplexes) in Kootenai County: Coeur d'Alene, Post Falls, Hayden, Rathdrum - Sales April 1, 2007 through June 30th, 2007

There are currently 59 Duplexes for sale in Coeur d'Alene, Post Falls, Hayden and Rathdrum, with an absorption rate of 10 months. Absorption rate means that if no other duplexes became available for sale in Coeur d'Alene, Post Falls, Hayden and Rathdrum, it would take 10 months to sell the 59 that are currently for sale.

Current duplexes for sale range in price from $159,000 to $595,000. Days on market range from 9 to 451. Comparing duplexes is not as simple as comparing homes within the same neighborhood.  Some duplexes are older, smaller, require much updating and fixing up, get higher rents because of their location, get lower rents because the current owners simply haven't kept up on market rents, etc.  For the most part, duplexes priced over the $280,000 price point are over-priced.

18 of these duplexes are on the 'price reduction' track. In other words, they started out with prices too high for the market and are now reducing them, a little behind the market. If you want your duplex in Coeur d'Alene, Post Falls, Hayden or Rathdrum to sell in 3 months or less, you must price it lower than any other comparable within these areas and price it in the bottom 1% of prices for surrounding comparables.

Duplexes that have sold and closed are averaging $96.76 per square foot with an average of 113 days on the market. Current duplexes for sale are listed for an average of $114.93 per square foot with an average of 118 days on the market as of today.  This is a pretty much a text book case of over-pricing.  Most duplexes are priced too high for the market and coupled with currently fairly low rents, creates a negative cash-flow situation for investors.  

Our advise for owners – hold and buy. Because of how long some of these properties have been on the market and the multiple price reductions, now is a good time to buy multi-family (duplex) properties.  Now is not a good time to sell these same properties as buyers are looking for a bargain.

Are there other sub-divisions within Kootenai County you would like to see a market report about? Please let me know and I will be more than happy to keep you updated on your preferred sub-division.

(Information deemed reliable but not guaranteed. Properties listed and sold by various MLS participants. Sale Price adjusted for any seller contributions. DOM = Days on Market)

With special thanks to John Novak, Las Vegas for table coding and formatting.

Hayden View Estates Sales April 1, 2007 through June 30th, 2007

There are currently 11 homes for sale in Hayden View Estates, with an absorption rate of 11 months. Absorption rate means that if no other homes became available for sale in Hayden View Estates, it would take 11 months to sell the 11 that are currently for sale.

Current homes for sale range in price from $379,000 to $825,000. Days on market range from 5 to 175. Prices are all over the place for this community.  Most homes that have been selling are in the low $400 price range so the higher priced homes are not as likely to sell quickly in the current market.

4 of these homes are on the 'price reduction' track. In other words, they started out with prices too high for the market and are now reducing them, a little behind the market. If you want your home in Hayden View Estates to sell in 3 months or less, you must price it lower than any other comparable within Hayden View Estates and price it in the bottom 1% of prices for surrounding comparables.

Homes that have sold and closed are averaging $132.48 per square foot with an average of 113 days on the market. Current homes for sale are listed for an average of $145.06 per square foot with an average of 70 days on the market as of today. Currently active homes are priced significantly higher than actual sales.  It's a strong probability that currently listed homes will languish on the market for long periods with multiple price reductions.

Our advise for owners – hold. Unless there is a true need to sell, we strongly recommend holding in this community.

Are there other sub-divisions within Kootenai County you would like to see a market report about? Please let me know and I will be more than happy to keep you updated on your preferred sub-division.

(Information deemed reliable but not guaranteed. Properties listed and sold by various MLS participants. Sale Price adjusted for any seller contributions. DOM = Days on Market)

With special thanks to John Novak, Las Vegas for table coding and formatting.

In my efforts to show you the diversity of business in North Idaho, I bring you Oxyfresh.

Oxyfresh has been honored by the August 2007 issue of Esquire Magazine for men for their Power Rinse product.  Cool!! 

Oxyfresh is located in Coeur d'Alene Idaho and provides premium health and wellness products.

"For more than 20 years we've provided our loyal customers with premium health and wellness products. These exclusive products are formulated with safe, active, natural and patented ingredients developed to enhance your health, your pet’s health and your family’s well-being."