News in Jacksonville – Outstanding Real Estate Service

I am so proud of our agents who are awarded Five Star Service Awards –
This award is very meaningful because it is awarded by customers who voted for these agents – and

The client research effort is survey based sent to 13,000 surveys sent to homebuyers in the Jacksonville areas and 250 mortgage and title company offices. Five of our Magnolia agents received this prestigious award.

Each respondeant was asked to evaluate not only the real estate agents they knew through their own experience but were asked to evaluate agents they had contact with regarding integrity, market knowledge, negotiation, communication and overall service. Only original surveys were considered and accepted as valid. Safeguards were built in to this process to ensure accuracy and validity.

I am very proud of these agents. This honor represents less than 7% of all actively licensed real estate agents in the Jacksonville area and five of these agents are with our office. Something for our entire company to be proud of.

Sandra Holdren

Madelyn Rubin

Dwight Cenac

Windy Keene

You have made us all proud of your work in our profession. The last few years, real estate agents have not always enjoyed the best of reputations –as much due to anxiety and stress as our economy as suffered. Those that have worked through the tough times have helped maintain our profession and its core values. Thank you and God Bless.

While there is talk of Obama backing an extension of a tax credit… lets all hope so. Actually I hope he does not extend it…but waits a few months and issues a new tax credit. I would like to see a tax credit beginning January 1, 2010 – a New Years gift to all of us in real estate – say a 15,000 tax credit to all home buyers that purchase in 2010. Not just first time home buyers’ – but all home buyers – wouldn’t that stimulate all aspects of our economy – real estate – mortgages – building – development – home goods – filtering down to employment, jobs, employee benefits, clothing, the list goes on and on…just the shot in the arm we all need.

I also think that just extending the credit we have right now might bring on a few fall throughs in the current sales – meaning that some buyers might start to have second thoughts on the contracts they have written – wondering if they made decisions too quickly.

I would love to know what you think. Would you lose some homebuyers if the current deadline was extended? What do you think of the new year’s credit offering and how do you think it would affect the economy as a whole?

How many contracts did you write because of the tax credit that you would not have written without the credit?

I would love to know.

Jacksonville Florida News and Reminders - little things become big things

Another day in the life of a broker and the some of the thoughts that come to mind today that I would like t share today are:

Please help your fellow agent, be respectful of setting appointments and time frames for their sellers, the agents time schedules and your buyers. I got a call from one of my agents today who was very frustrated. One of our own agents had scheduled a showing on property that required advanced notice and the listing agent.

The listing agent was showing property on Saturday when she got a call from the agent with the appointment for Sunday wanting to move the appoint to shortly that same afternoon. The showing agent wanted the listing agent to come and let her in even though she was with customers…- inappropriate for both the customers the listing agent had in her car at the moment and for the sellers of the listing. When this was explained, it was accepted that the appointment would remain for the next day as originally scheduled and the day continued ….until the next day. Just prior to the showing appointment, a call came moving the appointment until a little later. Then again a little later. By the end of the afternoon, the appointment was cancelled all together.

Well, the listing agent spent the entire afternoon “on call”. The seller spent the entire afternoon away from the home after cleaning it for a much anticipated showing. The agent that was supposed to show it, apparently changed plans on the potential buyer as well.

No one felt good about the day, the plans or the respect anyone had for their efforts for their day. Now, I happen to know the agent involved very well. I am sure that there was a very good reason for the discrepancy and I am sure a true crisis was involved. But, I also know, that everyone would have felt a lot better that, instead of trying to pull it off, she honestly presented the issue and the probability that she couldnot make the appointment and even asked if the listing agent could “cover “ for her, and not make it but that the showing happened as planned for all the others or re scheduled for another day.

Rather than biting off more than we can chew, perhaps admitting out limitations and asking for help is the best answer….for everyone….not a weakness or a deficiency.

A good reminder for all of us and each of us. Sometimes we need help…or sometimes we have to say we canit do it then…or just say we are “blowing it”…

Well,…on to another day….

Real estate Trends in Jacksonville Florida and around the State:

A new real estate “buzz word” for the year has entered our professional and is becoming to become commonplace and well understood:

“Strategic defaults”

Strategic Defaults is joining the ranks of Short Sale (who heard of the term short sale five years ago or even three years ago) pre-foreclosure sale, and the other terms that have not only defined and described our current real estate market but have become the “sale and pepper” to almost every adult cocktail party conversation in the last 18 months.

Now you will hear the term “strategically defaulting”.. almost like a new fad, like a financial planning of sorts. Homeowners are planning their default on their mortgage, like part of their financial preservation plan, and incorporating a path of traditionally paying their mortgage payments on time and in full to just not paying another payment. These homeowners have determined that continuing their path of financial obligation and responsibility does not make financial sense in a negatively impacted housing market that seems a long way of any kind of recovery. Most of these homeowners historically have great credit scores but also have pretty big balances. There seems to be question as to whether staying a few hundred thousand in the hole or ruining their credit for a few years makes financial sense and some seem to have made the decision that recovering from the credit score is less painful than the financial hole they have found themselves in.

What challenging times! I am almost afraid to see what our next “fad” will be…. Maybe the droopy pants with boxer shorts hanging out isnt so bad after all!

News for Real Estate Agents in the Jacksonville Florida area…

On a Monday morning in October , October 5, 2009

This is the second time a problem has come to my attention in the last couple of weeks – as if finding a buyer willing to buy a condo wasn’t difficult enough, and finding financing for that condo and getting it to appraise…

The newest problem is obtaining documents that are part of the “required” documentation that we are supposed to provide for our customers from either the listing agents or the associations. It appears that there seems to be the thought that just by avoiding providing the information and stating that they are not available .

Ronda Densford, one of our Fellow Magnolias (in the truest Mississippi sense of the word, Girlfriends!) has been handling this latest issue beautifully….even quoting the Florida Statutes in her kind request or genteel reminder (Fl Statute 718.111(12) (C), too I might add……

One more challenge to add to the mix these days….another “character building” experience as my mother says…

Well, I always said that we Realtors are a bunch of “characters”…but I guess it will have a whole new meaning as we navigate 09’s real estate market through the end of the year! I am proud of you Ronda!

You were professional, impressive, even forceful…all the while keeping that Southern Charm!.

NORTHEAST FLORIDA NEWS

Realtor Alert!

According to the statistics quoted from the Internal Revenue Service, 1.4 million people have taken advantage of the generous first time homebuyer tax credit of $8,000. But now is the time to be very very cautious!

In order for this tax credit to be utilized by these buyers any purchase must be “completed by December 1”. So the expression “time is of the essence” is of ultimate importance. Anything sold or placed under contract at this time may not….likely not…make that deadline. This is a very important fact that must be disclosed and I would advise….disclosed in writing…to your customers if they are first time homebuyers!!!

Of course, there is lots of conversation about extensions, even increases…in the tax credit. But, and the BUT is really big…nothing is done until it is done…nothing concrete, no promises, no dates….

Nothing but talk.

Do everyone a favor including yourself….make sure that any first time homebuyers you are working with right now that want to go to contract understand that this tax credit is probably not going to work for them as long as all rules remain as they are. But you might also remind them, that in the coming months…that same house they may be able to buy today could be gone, more expensive, rates could be higher, – $8,000 may not be enough money to keep them from having their dream home if they find it.

From the desk of Eileen Blocker…

Did you know that you might be in a new flood zone? Flood Maps are changing, oh yes they are!

You can always check the flood maps on www.mappingtherisk.com (and I haven’t checked it out yet myself) but it is in our wonderful Nefar News this month. These maps do not come into effect until 2010. There is also a number to call for info 630-CITY during the week to answer questions.

As Nefar News says: “Every home and commercial building in Jacksonville has some risk of flooding – but the risk varies, sometimes even in the same neighborhood….”

But remember to share with your customers that if they don’t have flood insurance, whether or not they are in a flood zone, if there is flood damage they are not covered under regular homeowner’s policies!

From the desk of Eileen Blocker…

I think that maybe, just maybe..there is a hint of fall in the air! I love the change of season (even though our change is pretty subtle) and as usual, it kind of freshens my outlook as well. Does it yours? Maybe just a little less humidity and a few less degrees in heat….brings an attitude adjustment –a t least for me.

Something I was thinking about this morning is crisis management. “CRISIS Management” is probably a better way to express it in writing – or at least for me, most of the time. In this current market where every sale is so precious and a lot of work to come by, one of our agents, Steve Preis had to manage an interesting crisis yesterday. Manage it he did and very well I might add. He sold a new construction to be built in a popular community (as popular as a new community can be in our market) and his customer was making the selections for her new home. He got a frantic call from this customer because she found out that the exterior color of her home was “to be Seafoam”…Now, she did not pick Seafoam, she doesn’t like Seafoam, the house isn’t built, the contract said one of 30 preselected colors (not that it would be picked for her from the set of 30 colors) and she was blindsided. Her dream home was to be SEAFOAM!

Steve called the site agent – she called her sales manager…and guess what?… yup…the house had to be green or the buyer could ‘GET HER MONEY BACK!!!!!” No discussion. Interesting approach from a builder in this market –don’t ya think?…but true nonetheless. Steve quickly went to the color center, picked her up and took her to see several Seafoam homes (beautifully landscaped too I am sure) just to be sure – not to talk her into anything, just to see the color on something larger than a little swatch – just in case……and guess what, she loves her soon to be green house.

GO STEVE! Surely Win-Win. On to the next one!

We are one of the largest independent real estate brokerage in
Northeast Florida and proudly serve the real estate needs of our customers from Jacksonville, Jacksonville beach, Atlantic Beach, Ponte Vedra Beach, Julington Creek, Switzerland, Fruit Cove, St Augustine…from riverfront to oceanfront and everything in between.

The third largest office in Northeast Florida and all experienced
with areas of specialty from coastal building restrictions, land,
land development, single and multi family (including investment and
foreclosure specialists).

Magnolia Properties was established in 1996. For the last several
years we have been chosen as one of the fastest growing companies in
Northeast Florida and for good reason. Our agents are among the top
in their fields. We have also received many humanitarian awards for
our community service and our charity, AngelWorks.

We are proud of our beautiful City and the people that live here.
Every transaction is given the utmost attention and is a company
effort to maximize the investment opportunities real estate affords
each of our customers. We also offer mortgage and title/closing
services. Our broker is Eileen Blocker, with 25 years in the industry
including building, new home construction, development, investment
and single family residential experience. We support one another with
our experience and expertise. You work with any of us and you work
with all of us.

We are thankful for each and every transaction from the first time
homebuyer to the commercial developer. We fully appreciate the trust
placed in our hands and understand fully that the opportunity you
give us to provide you the best solution to your goals is the means
by which we take care of our families. You will never be taken for
granted. Our goal the first time we work with you is to ensure that
you will never choose another company in the future.

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