THE KENOSHA KOЯNER: October 2007

OK... So here's the scenario...

You have a home, or piece of real estate for sale. You KNOW that you want to use a real estate professional to help you with your sale, but you just aren't sure who to call. Being the responsible consumer that you are, you decide to follow Mom's advice and interview three agents before deciding who to list with.

AGENT A - Meets with you, and gives you his assessment of what it will take to sell your property. Based on the current slow market, he advises you that it may take 90-120 days to get an offer. He also tells you that in order to compete with the 500 other listings for properties JUST LIKE YOURS, you may need to have a lower price, ESPECIALLY if you need to sell your property more quickly. After a careful analysis, he comes up with a price of $350,000.  In your mind, this doesn't sound all that great, after all you were hoping for closer to $400,000. That's what the Jones' got for their house last year... right down the street.

AGENT B - Meets with you next - After a long discussion and a careful analysis on her part... the conclusion ends up being pretty much the same. "WOW - I guess our home just wasn't worth as much as we thought," you say to your spouse.

AGENT C - Comes to your home, takes a look around, and asks you how much you were looking to get for your home. When you tell him $400,000 he lights up with a smile. "That's just the number I was thinking." Finally! Someone who agrees with you. Your sense of want takes over, and suddenly both of the other two agents you interviewed fade from your memory. How is this guy going to market your property? What will he charge? Who cares? He told you what you WANTED to hear. The only question left is "WHERE DO I SIGN?"

 We all LIKE being told what we want to hear. Here are some things I would like to hear from the professionals I work with:

My CPA - Don't worry about the IRS, they never audit people anyway, and I can make sure you NEVER pay a dime of taxes on any of your income

My Attorney - Illegal Schmegal, Just do whatever is best for your own interests, and leave the legal questions to me

My Doctor - Don't worry... go ahead and smoke, drink and eat whatever you want, I can cure anything with this little blue pill.

My Financial Advisor - I can guarantee you 120% annual returns on your investments

My Realtor - Sure your house is worth $200,000 more than you paid for it last year

These all sound nice, but they are fantasies. We wouldn't accept these statements on face value from a CPA or a doctor, but our sense of greed always comes in to play when looking to sell our property. Why is that?

The fact is, we are in a tough market right now. Properties are selling for less that what they did just a few months ago in some cases. It requires a professional agent who know's what they are doing in order to get the most money for your property. OVER PRICED LISTINGS will hurt the bottom line for you, when you finally do come out of fantasy land and decide to lower your price, it may be too late. All the newness of your listing will be gone, and at the rate things are going, your property may be worth a little less in 90 days that it is worth today. When you return to Agent A, you will find he now thinks you need to start at $340,000 just to get enough attention.

These unprofessional agents are everywhere, they not only hurt their own clients, but the whole market, by keeping listings on for month after month that DO NOT SELL. I will be happy when these agents finally are no longer able to sustain themselves in the real estate industry, and find an alternative career path, as only then, will this market turn around.

I often get the question... Will I have to pay taxes on the amount the bank writes off on my short sale?

The answer is NOT a simple one, it depends on the situation. Legislation is currently being proposed that will further simplify the issue, but in the mean time, there are cases where you WILL NOT have a tax liability.

#1 - Not ALL lenders actually issue a 1099 to their borrowers.

#2 - There are rules regarding insolvency. Here is the response from my CPA on this issue:

According to IRS Publication 908, Bankruptcy Tax Guide, income from cancellation of debt can be excluded from income on an individual's tax return if the cancellation takes place when the individual is insolvent, but only by the amount of the insolvency.

Insolvency is when an individual's liabilities exceed the fair market value of their assets.  Determine your liabilities and the fair market value of your assets immediately before the cancellation of your debt to determine whether or not you are insolvent and the amount by which you are insolvent.

The amount excluded must be used to reduce certain tax attributes.  These don't apply to most people, but they are net operating loss, general business carryovers, minimum tax credit, capital losses, basis in other properties, passive activity losses.

Form 982 needs to be attached to the person's 1040.  This shows that the cancellation of debt income is being excluded.

 - This of course is intended for informational purposes ONLY and should not be used as a substitute for professional tax advice. You should contact your CPA if you need advice on how to handle your individual situation!

http://RalphNudi.com

I recently received the following email:

Hi Ralph,
I stumbled across your website as I was searching for information on Stealth Sites for Realtors, and Google brought me to you. Then, I started reading your blog, and I think its FANTASTIC!

We are a husband and wife team in the Twin Cities, and we are struggling in real estate right now. I will NOT count myself as the LAZY you mentioned when you said that many realtors just won't work the system. I just don't have a system!!!

I don't know if you give advice for getting a system, but I sure would LOVE it.

Plus, we watch Boston Legal, and I, too love William Shatner. I really like the idea of the Short Sale Negotiator and Name Your Home Price! How are you using that to attract clients?

Thanks!!!!
DeeDee

HERE WAS MY RESPONSE:

I have a pretty detailed system, everything from the 1^st letter sent out, to the final closing of the transaction. All of the letters come WITH my coaching service. I only have a limited number of coaching clients that I take on, as I am still actively engaged in selling real estate and managing my team. (Most industry "coaches" have never sold real estate) It is because of the limited time I have, that I carefully screen each potential coaching client to make sure you are motivated for the right reasons, have a true desire to help these clients, and that we are a fit for one another. This program entails a lot of work, time, and resources upfront to set up a successful system, but once your system is up and running, you should be able to be highly successful without being burned out. Money is nice, but quality of life is more important, and having an ethical, profitable business and a good name for the long term is most important.

My coaching services include:

Creating a custom strategy for Identifying and targeting clients in foreclosure in your market

• Implementing a campaign with 12 Letters designed to make the phone ring
• Outbound scripts for contacting potential clients
• The Pre-Foreclosure consultation presentation
• Tips on creating strategic partnerships with Bankruptcy attorneys and local financial institutions
• Listing agreement verbiage needed to be able to successfully sell short sales
• Client - short sale information package and checklist (needed for sending in to your seller's lender)
• Effective listing strategies
• Effective negotiation strategies and properly setting buyers'/buyers' agent expectations
• Short Sale negotiation services (for a flat fee) or tips on how to negotiate your own
• Closing and Post marketing
• Growing your team to a multi-million dollar powerhouse with a 40 hour work week within the first year

There is an initial consultation of 2 hours and weekly calls for the first 30 days, followed by a monthly mentoring call to make sure you stay on track. If you are interested in moving forward please let me know. I can have my assistant Ben arrange for a phone conference to discuss your goals and what's most important to you. If we both decide we are a fit for each other, I can go over pricing and set up a schedule to take your business to the next level.

I also spoke with the Armstrongs on the phone. I invited DeeDee to "The Rain" and strongly encouraged them to POST their first BLOG ENTRY today, and to look for all the FREE RESOURCES our community has to offer! 

www.RalphNudi.com

Does William Shatner make you laugh? Whether it's the cheesy Priceline commercials or an episode of "Boston Legal" there is something about him that I just find hysterical (in a funny... not a middle ages deadly.... way)

It's hard to say there is a "nice thing" about foreclosures... it's a sad business, working with people who are in such a bad place financially and sometimes even personally. That being said, for buyers, there can sometimes be some great deals to be had out there, especially when working with an agent who specializes in such properties.

A savvy buyer will get to "name his own price" on a property by making a bid, that in most cases it is in the sellers best interest to accept, no matter how low the price, subject to lender approval. (If the seller's lender accept's the bid, he/she is off the hook for the rest of the balance in most cases)

In my office... I have a full time short sale negotiator (like the priceline negotiator, but... not as funny... and better looking. In fact, cute enough that I would marry her in a heartbeat.... oh wait... I did marry her)

When these deals are properly negotiated, and when I effectively work with the agent conducting the BPO (or the appraiser in some cases) I have been able to help buyers get properties for over $100,000 UNDER the mortgage payoff, and easily $80,000 under what the buyer could immediately turn around and resell the property for.

This is not the case every time... but this year I have closed over 44 sides so far in Kenosha County alone... and most of them have been these type of real estate sales.

So... name YOUR OWN PRICE and get moving!

For more information on Foreclosures... visit my website at www.RalphNudi.com

Click HERE for the newest market update on the North Side of Kenosha for the NorthPointe Area:

http://www.topmarketer.net/RTMS/RTMSMain.aspx?cnsmr=0&reportId=465c5e5f-d2cb-4bc2-83f7-20d405d192ce

Ralph Nudi and Associates updates market reports for various communities in the Kenosha area on a regular basis.

Your next Market Snapshot report is scheduled for November 07, 2007 This report is generated directly from the most up to date data - the MLS real estate source. If you have any questions or need additional information, please contact me via e-mail at: ralph@ralphnudi.com 

Or see my website for your own MARKET SNAPSHOT on your own property. Fill out the Neighborhood Report request link!

Specializing in the Kenosha Real Estate Markets.

Ralph D. Nudi

Weichert, Realtors - Unum Properties

Kenosha, WI