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Information and random comments from real estate agents around the world. Sometimes helpful. Sometimes funny. Sometimes both or neither!
In the Portland metro area we are fortunate to have a very powerful MLS system. It can really make an agent shine when used to its full extent.
One of my favorite features is the ability to set up automatic searches, "Prospecting Searches", which notify me immediately by email when homes are listed meeting specific criteria I have designated. Over 100 different search criteria can be set, including minimum sizes for specific rooms (e.g., dining room with at least XXX square feet), compass orientation of streets (N, S, E or W), accessibility features like no, or low stairs, flooring, roof, and siding materials, the levels on which certain rooms exist (e.g., laundry on the 2nd floor, or master bedroom on the main level).
So, for example, if I have a client who wants:
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3 level home
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2 car attached garage
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1 wood burning fireplace
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Family room with no less than 420 square feet
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Home facing west
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House must be "Green Certified"
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Hardwood floors in the kitchen
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1 bathroom on the main floor and 2 on the second level
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Vaulted ceiling in the master bedroom
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Intercom system
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With a view of a golf course
...and all in a specific area and price range. I can search for that right now, and get immediate notice via email if a house meeting that criteria gets listed!
And on the flip-side of "Prospecting Searches", we can perform "Reverse Prospecting", where I can search the saved prospecting searches of other agents, and notify them that I have a particular listing, or listings, which meet the criteria of their saved search.
Our MLS is open to new ideas, which begs the question(s):
Phil Anderson
Broker/Owner
http://www.newportlandhome.com/
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In Oregon, licensed real estate agents receive a monthly newsletter published by the Oregon Real Estate Agency (the agency which issues real estate licenses).
Along with other helpful information, the agency publishes the names of agents who are being reprimanded for failure to follow the state’s requirements for handling real estate transactions, and provides a brief on the illegal actions and penalties assessed. I think this is a very valuable practice, showing all of us the pratfalls of operating improperly, and educating us on some points on which we may have been unclear.
This month, I was amazed at a particular case… I’d love to publish the name the of agent, but since her license has been REVOKED (rather than suspended), I’m hoping I do not need to warn the public…. Here is a brief summary of her illegal actions:
- AGENT failed to properly complete a listing agreement by leaving blank the section specifying how forfeited earnest money would be disbursed;
- AGENT advertised property on the multiple listing service at a sale price lower than the listing price to which the sellers had agreed, and advertised a seller credit of $2,000 to be offered to a buyer without first obtaining the sellers’ written consent to do so;
- AGENT failed to promptly transmit the listing agreement to her principal broker for review until six weeks after it was signed;
- AGENT failed to promptly transmit a repair addendum to her principal broker for review for approximately two months;
- AGENT recommended an unlicensed contractor to the sellers in order to facilitate repairs even though the repairs in question required performance by a licensed contractor;
- AGENT executed an addendum stating that the seller would credit the buyer $2,000 for a carpet allowance, when the signature on the addendum purporting to be the buyer’s signature was not the buyer’s signature, and submitted the addendum to her principal broker for review;
- AGENT executed an addendum extending the closing date, when the signature on the addendum purporting to be the buyer’s signature was not the buyer’s signature, and submitted the addendum to her principal broker;
- AGENT submitted a broker demand instruction to escrow representing that the seller had agreed to pay a commission higher than the listing agreement stated;
- AGENT represented to her principal broker that a licensed contractor had completed a roof inspection prior to closing, had verbally told AGENT that the roof was okay, had mailed a copy of a roof inspection report to the buyer, and had told AGENT that the inspector could not comply with a request for an additional copy because his father was dying, when in fact none were true;
- AGENT executed a promissory note for earnest money without making the note payable within a stated time subsequent to the sellers’ acceptance;
- AGENT failed to transmit a copy of the entire inspection report, which included photographs, to the buyer, when AGENT received it from the inspector prior to closing;
- AGENT failed to give the buyer a copy of the executed sale agreement;
- AGENT failed to give the buyer an initial agency disclosure pamphlet at first contact with the buyer;
- AGENT failed to include the buyer’s request for a carpet allowance in the initial offer to purchase; and….
- AGENT temporarily transmitted to the sellers the original copy of the sale agreement so the sellers could review and sign the document, without keeping a copy for herself or the brokerage records.
I am sure she represents the tiniest of percentages of agents who can't do business by the rules. I don’t know her and don’t know how long she was a Realtor, but it’s a relief to be rid of her.
Let the buyer (and seller) beware. 
Phil Anderson
Owner/Broker
New Portland Home
a real estate services company
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Here's the full speech that Angie Adams, 2 posts below, used in her blog.
http://tinyurl.com/62nrwe
Perhaps she intended to give credit to Ulla Schmidt, the German Federal Minister of Health, but forgot. Earlier, I very kindly, pointed this out to Angie by commenting, but she deleted my comment and blocked her post from any further comments.
Most of you folks know me, I know.... I'm a stickler for crediting authors. It's the way that I would hope to be treated with any blogs I write. It's a lot of work to write, and this speech has been used by Ms. Schmidt for several years.
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My dear, fellow Realtors,
Does your local MLS have “non-branding” rules for your listings? For example, do they prohibit having a photo in the MLS on-line listing clearly showing the listing agent’s name and contact info; or, and even more egregious, do they prohibit the text of a listing (as viewable by the "public”) to contain anything similar to “only contact the listing agent for a showing of this property”?
On a few occasions, I have emailed my local MLS the on-line listings which clearly violate some of our rules (like those detailed above). Sometimes there are easily 100s of these found at one time in the Portland metro area. And I’ve asked several times in my emails, “What is the RMLS’s recourse with these offenders? Do you fine them?” I was told there were fines and wondered what they were.
But, I’ve never received a response addressing that question. So, today I called the RMLS and was told, no fines are levied, that the RMLS makes the correction themselves, and then contacts the listing agents to advise them that a change has been made.
I was thunderstruck… I asked under what circumstances would fines be levied, as some of the violators are repeat offenders, and the RMLS responded that they only have 2 workers to review such violations, and even if formal charges were made (must be made in writing on a listing by listing basis), the listing agents would be given 7 days to get their listing text in compliance and no actions would be taken against them.
How about some national feedback on this, please? I’m very interested in the subject and would like to be a part of correcting the situation with the Portland MLS to match other MLSs, if that is reasonable.
How would YOUR MLS handle such violations?
Phil Anderson
Owner/Broker
New Portland Home
a real estate services company for the Portland metro area
www.NewPortlandHome.com
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Recently I received an email from my local MLS organization:
Dear RMLS Participant,
In response to a lawsuit filed against Target Corp. regarding Target.com's accessibility for the seeing impaired, RMLS.com was recently updated to comply with accessibility standards. Attached you will find a technology brief prepared by our developers that describes how we brought RMLS.com into compliance. You and your technology staff may find this helpful if you are interested in bringing your own consumer website into compliance…
Now, I don’t pretend to be web-knowledgeable enough to fully understand the issues or changes which may need to be made to my website, www.NewPortlandHome.com, but I did find the topic interesting and it was news to me!
You can analyze your or other sites here:
http://wave.webaim.org/ *
(* If you are researching a LARGE site, Internet Explorer may give you an error message. But using Mozilla/Firefox as the browser, and downloading the Wave toolbar, made the review much more successful. You can download Mozilla/Firefox for free and use it when you wish. Just Google it.)
The current version of the w eb content accessibility guidelines can be viewed at this site: http://www.w3.org/TR/WCAG10/ **
(** My local MLS decided to be compliant with Priority I of III of the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 1.0 Specification from W3C(World Wide Web Consortium).)
And here's a "Checklist of Checkpoints for Web Content": http://www.w3.org/TR/WCAG10/full-checklist.html
Perhaps most of our sites are small enough to avoid any legal entanglements, but, I'm sure we all would like our websites to be as readily available and viewable to assist everyone, regardless of their disability situation.
Analyze your site and let us know what you think!
Phil Anderson
New Portland Home
Portland Metro Real Estate
http://www.newportlandhome.com/
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Yesterday, I had to stop by my auto dealership, as I had worn out the driver’s side floor mat (filthy from all the times I climbed in with soaking wet shoes; Portland, Oregon, ya’ know…PLUS my shoe heels always seem to wear right through the carpet of the mat after about a year and I usually lease for 2!).
Anyway, as I was paying for the FOUR mats ($80?! Why do they insist on selling you 4 when you really, or usually only need 1 or 2? Darn capitalists!), there was a $10 recipe book for sale at the cashier’s window. All the recipes were donated by different folks that worked at the local dealership, and the proceeds would be donated to a local kids’ charity. It was an annual thing they have been doing for 10 years.
So, I was wondering; That would make a pretty cool gift for my past clients…and cheap too…But, I’d like to personalize it a little…
If Realtors here sent their fav recipes to me, I’d volunteer to compile them using Word. Appetizers, salads, main courses, dessert, soup. No holds barred. Then I’d email them back out to anyone here that wanted a full copy. We each could then edit the “Cookbook” as each saw fit. Add photos, poems, or dirty jokes. (Kidding about the dirty jokes  .)
I think you can go to Kinko’s and have copies duplicated and bound on the cheap.
Anyway, if anyone is interested, send me your recipe, and I will in-turn send you all the recipes that are submitted.
Phil
New Portland Home
Real estate services for the Portland, Oregon, metro area
phil@newportlandhome.com
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This is a sequel to another thread, because I’d like to be able to moderate it:
Tim..my good friend.....”COS”... Some might say it was begging answers to the question of, "Completion of Sale". Some might not, of course. But, we just report the news…we don’t make it :)
Steve, you are certainly correct. And this is more like a "Chat Room". It always has been. Just guessing here (meaning that I have a HIGH probability of being wrong!), but maybe it's due to the relatively small size of the RELib population who actually "comment". And that gives them a certain amount of perceived, or acheived ownership in applauding well written threads and decrying those that are less, incorrect, or self-serving.
Unfortunately, I think (pronounced, “know”) there is a certain percentage of blog authors here that want to promote their properties or their services. Both are often met by negative comments, rightly or wrongly.
What baffles me most often is; when an author receives particularly negative responses to his/her thread; they would rather cry about it to the blog administrator than simply delete the offending comment. My opinion is they enjoy the abuse.
Hopefully, P2A will review all posters and decide which are habitually degenerating RELiberation as a whole, and begging negative comments and considerable moderation time by slinging arrows and by making shameless self-promotions, and address those issues with those authors by banning them. For the good of the community!
But as far as me, COS.
I am just about finished with RELiberation. If they help and change the environment here, I would like to remain.
Please, P2A. Help me, and others, stay.
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COS.
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Here in the Pacific Northwest, we are just 
beginning our 6 months of wet weather. Most who have lived here more than 2 years just ignore it and do mostly what they want outside; drive, shop, hike, golf, etc. And I don't see a slow down in home viewings, personally.
But, I am curious whether the weather affects the showing and sales of other agents?
Phil Anderson
Broker/Owner
New Portland Home
a real estate services company
www.NewPortlandHome.com
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Here's the situation: At just one listing which is 30 minutes from your office/home, you are meeting:
(a) a known client, or
(b) an unknown client
You are at the listing at the agreed upon time. They are not. They don't have a cellphone and are not answering their home phone and you don't know where they are or if they are coming.
How long do you wait before you leave?
If you do leave, and they catch you still in the car, 38 minutes later, are you more likely to:
(1) return to the far away listing,
(2) ask them to re-schedule another day, or
(3) tell them to find another agent?
Phil Anderson
Broker/Owner
New Portland Home
a real estate services company
www.NewPortlandHome.com
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I have a confession..... I am ALWAYS early... In college my friends knew, when inviting me to a party at 8pm, to tell me 9pm....
As an adult, the wives of my friends cringe as they answer the door at 6:00pm in a bathrobe, to see me standing there for an 8pm-ish dinner party... "Uh...honey...your friend Phil is here... No, it's fine, Phil...come on in...we were both just getting out of the shower and ready to start cooking...."
When you are meeting someone to show them a house or two, do you leave a little early so that IF there are traffic issues, you still arrive on time?
When I'm to meet someone on the other side of the Portland, Oregon, metro area, if it is during the work week, often they need to meet after work, which means both parties will be driving through the heart of rush hour. (*I'm doing this tonight and thought I'd ask others...)
For me, as a Realtor: I seem to arrive 15-30 minutes early 90% of the time. Better early than late, right?
For them, as my clients: They seem to arrive 10 minutes late 50% of the time.
I spend a lot of time waiting at the first house to be shown. Sometimes I have email I can catch up on on my Blackberry, or paperwork, or call a potential or previous client. Or even just take a breather from work; read the newspaper...
But that waiting time can really add up if you are working with several people a day....
Is it just me? Think it's just the cost of doing business?
Phil Anderson
Broker/Owner
New Portland Home
a real estate services company
www.NewPortlandHome.com
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As many of my friends here know, in addition to being a residential/commercial real estate broker/Realtor, I also supply real estate support services to private businesses and governmental entities as a consultant. This helps me give balance to my real estate business and supplement my slower business times with activities.
I realize this question may be very proprietary and personal, but I thought I'd give it a shot and ask if others had similar supplementations or ideas which they could share with the group without disclosing a specific source of their business.
Phil
Phil Anderson
Broker/Owner
New Portland Home
(503)789-8701
www.NewPortlandHome.com
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I've been having computer issues for the past few days...BRUTAL on a Realtor!
They seem to have cleared up this morning, magically, but perhaps it was caused by something (right) that I did yesterday. Just in case anyone has not tried this site, I've found it helpful of the past few years in diagnosing several different categories of my system, Internet connection speed and virus issues:
www.pcpitstop.com
It's free, and you don't have to register. Just follow the directions and give it a try...
Phil Anderson
Broker/Owner
www.NewPortlandHome.com
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Do any of you Realtors see the "Call to Action" that we often experience here in the northwest once school is about to begin? (*For us here in Portland, Oregon, most schools start next week!)
Or is the urgency to move/secure a new home over by then in your area of the country?
I often work with great clients that have waited, usually due to other issues, and now need to move quickly to get their children registered in the school(s) of the "new" neighborhood.
It's never too late!!!!
Comments from the Realtors abroad?
Phil
Phillip Anderson
Owner/Broker
New Portland Home
(503) 789-8701 Direct
www.NewPortlandHome.com
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A quick fix-it-up question....Has anyone ever tried painting OVER wallpaper? One of those fix-it TV shows tonight had a segment where Roger (that guy with the HUGE arms) painted over exiting wallpaper with a type of primer.
I'm wondering how viable that is. Does it last? Any known problems?
I have a dated listing with an owner that has limited resources and that might be a good fix, IF it works well!
Thanks!
Phil
Phillip Anderson
Owner/Broker
New Portland Home
(503) 789-8701 Direct
www.newportlandhome.com
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