MYSTERY OF THE 184 THINGS YOUR LAS VEGAS REAL ESTATE AGENT DOES
As its name clearly implies, The 184 Things a Real Estate Agent Does for You is an exhaustive list of the actions a Las Vegas real estate agent is called upon to perform on behalf of a client. It is an authentic real estate Golden Oldie. Whenever someone wonders aloud what it is that Las Vegas real estate agents do to earn their commissions, many of we agents have the option of digging around in a drawer for a wrinkled printout of The 184 Things. If there were a Real Estate Hall of Fame, The 184 Things would be sure to have its own spotlighted exhibit…or even an interactive video display (so the kids could push colored buttons that would seem to make the list interactive). Since the list is 184 items long, it’s a good bet that, given the option, very few of our clients would have read the whole thing (if they had, they’d probably be so exhausted they might well reconsider selling their house at all). Actually, the truth is real estate agents don’t perform all 184 in the course of any single home buying or selling transaction. Some items refer to specific kinds of deals; some others aren’t always necessary. But they’re all authentic, and for most Las Vegas transactions, we really do execute on a lot more than half of them. To give you the flavor, they are actions like “Verify legal description,” “Confirm lot size via owner’s copy of certified survey, if available,” “Prepare detailed list of property’s ‘inclusions & conveyances’…,” and so on. Like so many other epochal historical events, the birth of The 184 Things seems shrouded in mystery. You might think that the reason is because it happened so long ago—but 2006 isn’t really that long ago. Perhaps the mists of time haven’t actually had a chance to fully enshroud the event…so maybe simple confusion is responsible. Most historical citations credit its origin to a 2006 House of Representatives Financial Services Sub-Committee hearing, during which the president-elect of the NAR presented the Things at the conclusion of her testimony. This could have happened after some House member made the innocent mistake of asking what real estate agents do to earn their commissions…but the actual exchange that provoked the list has been lost for all time. At any rate, despite the House hearing being often credited as the point of origin for The 184 Things, there are problems with that story. The House archives’ transcript of the hearing shows a written Attachment that has 180 Things—not 184! But that’s not the only mystery, because the Attachment has a footnote, which seems to credit the Orlando Regional Realtor Association. It’s only after you consult the ORRA’s web site that you come upon what may be the original list, with all 184. If they ever do build a Real Estate Hall of Fame, it could be a reason to put it in Florida… I don’t need to do each one of The 184 Things every time I set about helping a client buy or sell their Las Vegashome—but it’s certain I do an awful lot of them. My own list is simply one with all of the things that need to be done—and that turns out to be different for every client and every property. The first item is always the same, though—and it’s all yours: call me!
THINKING ABOUT LAS VEGAS HOMES FOR SALE IN AN ELECTION YEAR
This one was news to me. The Wall Street Journal had it buried in a ‘spread sheet’ section of their online Real Estate section: “Why It’s Harder to Sell Your Home in an Election Year.” If you are like me—never having had an inkling that Las Vegas homes for sale have rough sledding in an election year (like this one)—you’d have to read the details. “The uncertainty of a looming election can cause a dip in home sales,” it detailed, “especially if the race is close.” The article was illustrated by a cartoon showing a neighborhood street whose every lawn was graced by alternate “vote!” signs and homes for sale signs. The underlying thesis was that in close elections, house hunters are reluctant to buy if an uncertain political future makes them unsure about their own financial fortunes. This might sound reasonable from a logic perspective, but as you read further into the factual basis for the idea, you’re likely to start losing confidence. The whole basis for the article is a political science paper published in 2014. In the British Journal of Political Science. Based on housing sales back in 1999-2006. In 73 elections. Most of us would begin to worry about why this couldn’t make the grade in a United States journal of political science since it centered on U.S. elections. Perhaps a research quality issue? Then there’s the fact that those dates are 10-17 years old. There is also the puzzling notion that there have been 73 elections in the past couple of decades…but it turns out that they are dealing with gubernatorial elections from a select number of states. Perhaps our average house hunter checking out homes for sale in Las Vegas actually does hang their financial fortunes on who the next Governor is going to be…but I wouldn’t bet on it. As for Presidential elections, the article mentions a separate analysis that “uncovered a similar effect.” But, on closer reading, not really. This analysis was by someone who studied California sales only and determined that in the Golden State, home prices rose by an average of about 1% less during election years. But they still rose by 4.5% in those years. If that means they were “harder to sell,” you’d have to explain why… This is only a guess, but if you were trying to determine if it will be easier or harder to find buyers for Las Vegas homes for sale in Election Year 2016, it seems more logical to look for factors that directly affect the buyers—such as today’s historically low mortgage interest rates. When buyers do the arithmetic showing how low monthly payments have become, I’m willing to bet that overshadows errant thoughts about who the next Governor is going to be. If you are readying to buy or sell a Las Vegas home, you probably don’t really need to worry about who will occupy the Statehouse as much as who will be helping you navigate the market. I hope you’ll elect me for the job!
EXPECTATIONS FOR JOINING THE LAS VEGAS LISTINGS IN FEBRUARY
Especially this time of year—and even more especially when our Las Vegas’s weather turns grisly—common sense would seem to lead any homeowner planning to sell their Las Vegas home this year to hold off for the moment…at least, until Punxsutawney Phil’s forecast starts to come true (the venerable groundhog said that winter 2016 will be a short one). A quick peek at Las Vegas listings in most Februarys usually confirms the notion that most people decide to wait. As a rule, the ranks of the Las Vegas listings in February are a good deal thinner than will be the case a few months later. Delaying isn’t necessarily the most convenient answer for every homeowner—which gives rise to questioning whether that particular piece of common sense is always as sensible as it seems. At least one writer thinks not. Just over a year ago, Kenneth Harney authored an account describing some contrary evidence. Writing in The Washington Post, he reported on national sales results “that suggest it’s not necessarily the case” that spring or early summer are the most favorable times to launch listings. In fact, a winter launch (this year, from December 22 through March 20) can prove “surprisingly advantageous.” The most compelling evidence for that claim comes from an online brokerage firm whose two-year study of asking and selling prices led it to conclude that listings launched in December until March actually yielded the best chance of resulting in above-asking price sales: 17%! The evidence was similar for those hoping to sell quickly. Listings debuting in February turned out to be champs: an average 66% of February listings sold within 90 days, making it “historically the best month to list.” We might be led to believe that these are reasons enough to hurry up and rush to enter the Las Vegas listings immediately. Of course not all by itself—but for properties already in showable condition, it might be a reason to consider it. Logically, leaner Henderson listings mean less competition. Since it’s common for those whose homes did not move last summer to withdraw them until the spring, homeowners who list before then stand to get a jump on the market. And yes, since many corporations tend to transfer employees and hire new ones early in the year, some of those newcomers will have found their new Henderson homes before the spring real estate rush begins. Harney’s article does ultimately undermine the notion that correctly choosing a good listing month automatically guarantees a quick sale at a higher-than-asking price. The giveaway comes from one quoted source who mentions that owners of properties that hadn’t attracted serious offers during the warmer months “get more realistic at this time of year.” This, therefore, makes winter also a good time for “smart shoppers.” My experience with my own clients (all of whom are definitely smart shoppers) suggests they seldom are itching to make higher-than-asking offers—certainly not right off the bat. The inescapable truth is that, like most other factors, the results garnered by any Las Vegas listing depend on a whole galaxy of factors in addition to the season. If your own plans include listing or house hunting any time this year, I hope you’ll give me a call. I’ll be delighted to provide you with my totally confidential, no-obligation consultation, including an up-to-the-moment Las Vegas market situation report.
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