Greetings Friends
Representation With Heart: Meet Stephanie Walker
At times our world can feel pretty heartless. That’s why I prize empathy so highly in my personal and business relationships and my associate and friend, Stephanie Walker has it in spades. As a 2nd generation realtor, Stephanie knows how stressful a home search can be. As an award-winning playwright, she understands the toll stress exacts on all of us. As a result, she is invested above all else in the care and well-being of her clients.
You can meet her in the short video below and if you’re considering the northwest suburbs of Chicago, I’d enjoy making an introduction.
Turning Data into Insights: Turning Insights into Winning
In 2024, one thing you can say with certainty is that we are not suffering from a lack of data. In fact, at times the sheer amount of data is overwhelming. Take for instance the below chart which tracks the speed of a sale by highlighting its median days on market.
Over the past 13 years, it's rather startling to see the dramatic reduction in the amount of time between when a listing hits the open market and when an offer is accepted: from 100 days in December 2011 to 22 days in June 2024.
Why has this happened?
Certainly, the MLS and 3rd party aggregators like Zillow and Redfin have democratized the home search, accelerating buyer exposure exponentially. Additionally, home sellers have become more sophisticated, understanding the steps they need to take to make their home move-in ready.
But, there's more. Let's overlay some additional context.
Even with interest rates spiking over the past two years, eliminating a great percentage of prospective buyers, the average number of offers received on any given listing has grown, indicating that buyers are hungry, inclined to bid decisively, and better prepared to deal with adversity.
So, what does all this portend for you?
For Sellers: Think like a buyer and refresh your home before listing it. Many buyers are looking for a reason to say no; perhaps it’s the dated countertops or the listless landscaping or the mismatched furniture. In any case, our job is to eliminate those reasons.
When it comes to pricing, because of our ability to quickly reach a mass audience digitally, we know that your likely buyer will be aware of the home within its first 10 days on market. As a result, if it’s not priced for multiple bids during that initial time period, you might lose their attention forever.
For Buyers: Do the prep work. Get pre-approved (underwritten even better) by a lender who is committed to your winning, not their firm’s risk adversity. Rely on your agent’s expertise. Move beyond simple specs and features and focus on how a home will enhance your lifestyle.
And finally, trust the process. Be prepared to bid aggressively and then let go emotionally. Your offer may not always win. The secret to success is to not let a bump in the road derail your seach. Because, the win, whenever it happens, is going to feel so damn good.
Scene in LA
One of the realities of living in Los Angeles is finding yourself walking or driving through a neighborhood that looks familiar and then realizing its familiarity is because it was also a film location. As a realtor, when I'm watching a film I'm always wondering if it's a real home, and if so, where is it located.
This month I'm featuring two homes in Manhattan Beach – one just off the Strand, the other in the Tree Section that might seem familiar to you.
I'm curious. Have you ever been contacted by a location manager interested in filming in your home?
Jake's House in Against All Odds
Watch the Scene
Dorothy's House in Jerry Maguire
Watch the Scene
A More Effective Home Search
How do you search for a home? Zillow. Redfin. Homes dot Com. Did you know there’s a more effective way.
A COMPASS Collection is an uncluttered visual workspace where I collaborate privately with my clients as we assess the market in real time.
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No ads, offers or distractions to pull you away from your purpose
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Access exclusive off-market inventory across all your devices
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Research property values and compare home features
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Collaborate and share the collection with the VIPs in your home search
Now if those two film locations above got you excited about Manhattan Beach, then perhaps you’ll want to take a look at what’s currently available in our little seaside town.
And feel free to reach out if you’d like a personalized Collection for a neighborhood you’re interested in exploring.
Featured Listing
19321 Wells Drive Tarzana, CA 91356
6BD|7BA offered at $4,499,000
Contemporary Hamptons-inspired Estate located south of the blvd in Tarzana.
List Agent: Zeev Perez
818.445.6909|DRE: 01932490
(Click through for property details)
