Residential Properties Ltd.

This weekend Residential Properties LTD will be taking part in NAR’s  Nationwide Open House Weekend. While technology has revolutionized the way people look for homes, there is still no better way to get feedback and to create interest for a listing than an open house.

According to the latest NAR “Profile of Home Buyers and Sellers” survey, while the majority of homebuyers are using the internet to obtain information about properties,  direct agent referrals, yard signs and open houses are still  the next most popular sources of information. In fact, agents who participated in our Condo Open House event last month saw increased activity and several sales have resulted already!

Today’s successful agent has to be  tech-savvy and be able to provide  high-touch service,  with market knowledge and the negotiation skills needed to complete deals today.  The basic premise of open houses hasn’t changed, but  today we promote our open houses on the internet and through print ads that drive people to our website.  The open house list is updated about noon every Thursday , then you can enter your  search criteria into  our open house  page,  select the properties you want to see and even print a map to create your own personal house tour!

For sellers opening their houses this week, think staging and curb appeal. It is crucial for your home to stand out from the many others on your prospective buyer’s list this weekend.

For buyers just getting into the market, it is often eye opening to see what you really like and need as opposed to what you think you need in a home.

This Weeks Real Estate Insight

If you are a seller,  this a great time to tour some of the similar properties  open in your neighborhood this weekend, then honestly compare your house’s  location, condition and price, so you know how you face up.  If your house hasn’t sold yet, now you might know why.

This Week’s Podcast:

Listen to Mike Bush from Homestar Mortgage and I discuss  spring market strategies here: 

This week Steve and I spoke with Nellie Gorbea, Executive Director of Housing Works RI. Housing Works RI is a coalition of 140 organizations whose goal is to ensure the state has enough affordable homes to meet the need. Last Thursday they issued their third annual foreclosure report that analyzed data on the foreclosure problem and its implications for the State. The study found that 6,740 residential foreclosure deeds were filed in Rhode Island from January 2009 through December 2011, with 2,009 residential foreclosure deeds filed in 2011 alone. Central Falls was the hardest hit community with close to 14 % of the city’s mortgaged housing stock having been foreclosed in the past three years. (13.66%) Warwick had the highest number of single-family foreclosures, (686) beating out Providence, but ranked 8th for foreclosures as percentage of mortgage housing stock. Providence had the highest number of multi-family foreclosures (1,048) which has had a tremendous impact on rentals in the state, Nearly one third of the residential foreclosure deeds filed from 2009 through 2011 were multi-family properties and HousingWorks RI estimates that over 6,300 apartments were lost due to the 2,178 multi-family foreclosures (2009-2011). This has put upward pressure on rents, so that one in four Rhode Islanders now have to spend more than 50% on their rent every month.

Listen to this week’s show here:

This Week’s Real Estate Insight: 

The last time we had Nellie on, we talked about how the 2006 $50million affordable housing bond generated $800 million in total economic activity and sparked more than half of all the new construction between 2007-2010. Today, Building Homes Rhode Island is helping revitalize blighted neighborhoods, $19 million bond dollars were used to create over 530 long-term affordable rentals and 40 ownership homes out of foreclosed units. We still need to develop consistent funding policy for long-term affordable homes to ensure the full-continuum of need is met (from permanent supportive housing to workforce housing) lawmakers must consider another $50 million housing bond.