What makes it fun and tasty is the self-creation bar.(at least that is what I call it.) You sit down in a booth or at a table, ( I prefer the booth) and are quickly greeted by a snappy dressed server, who asks if you want the self-service or order off the menu. Menu is big but I like the thought of selecting exactly what I want in my mean. Choices are large or small; beef, chicken or fish; what kind of noodles and what to drink and you are off after they deliver silver bowls for the goodies. I meander up to the ‘salad bar’, and that is really what it looks like with everything from spinach to mushrooms and from water chestnuts to celery and you pile it high. I mean high! I look to see where I can put and olive or a radish so that I don’t leave any open space. Then I select the cooking sauce. If you are allergic to peanuts, I don’t suggest the peanut oil! I like to mix a few including the teriyaki, garlic, and whatever else looks good and then you take it over to the woks. The chefs doing the cooking are experienced in handling the flames that rise up and surround the woks. In goes the oil and then the meat or fish or whatever is selected and then the noodles and they pour in the mixture and cook it all together. Finish on the rice or noodles and serve.

It is a lot of fun to watch and the kids’ faces (yes a lot of kids like it too) not to mention their parent’s faces are smiling as they walk back to their tables with a little sweat on their brows from the heat and a smile.

I have never met anyone who did not like it there.

Looking for a different dining experience? Try Stir Crazy in the Boca Town Center Mall just west of I95 on Glades Rd.

From stable to on the way up.

If my customers walk away, which they are seriously considering, the bank will not receive any offers close to theirs since the market value is still decreasing. As their Realtors, we are doing our best to keep them informed as best we can, but banks won’t talk with the Realtors working with the buyers only the sellers. We, therefore have to rely on the communication from the listing side. Sometimes, it is not as coming as we and our customers would like. Again, it would seem to me that a bank would want to work with all parties involved in the transaction so they could get it closed earlier.

It is almost like the banking industry and the real estate industry are in adversarial positions. There has been a history of that since about 5 or so years ago, the Realtor call was to “Keep Banking out of Real Estate”. But instead of being in this position, it would seem that the two fields should be working closely together. The banks finance the properties that the Realtors help their customers find. It would seem logical that the two professions would work much more closely together. Despite all of the derivatives talk and the huge amount of money the banks received from and then lost because of the derivatives market based on real estate loans, the two professions need to really look harder at how their symbiotic relationship deteriorated and how it can be fixed.

I know that there is a company in Canada that is working on a software program that banks can use to keep track of where are their loans are in the process. My question to them was “why would you not integrate a Realtor part in that system”. Just like the real estate community needs the banks, the banks need the real estate community. They are now looking into it and both sides of the transaction will have access to the information. Call me Pollyanna but maybe, just maybe, there might be some light at the end of this dark short sale nightmare!

First, let me address the general market trends. Everyone asks “Are prices still going down? Maybe I should wait to put my property on the market. What do you think?”

We think that if you want to sell, put your property on the market. The market trends are almost daily rather than monthly. One week we think we have bottomed out and prices look like they are going to stabilize and then the next week, they start to drop again. The financial institutions have hinted that they have a lot of foreclosed property that they will be putting on the market in or around June. Again, because of supply and demand, prices might drop slightly.

If you are going to have to put your property on the market as a short sale, and have been keeping up with the headlines, you may think that your home will qualify for a quick response short sale. In many cases, that will not be correct. The amount of red tape is amazing. Just remember that in order to qualify for this new program, the seller must have applied for and been rejected for a loan modification. I addition, there is a very low limit on the amount that a second can receive on a short sale. The lender will be receiving money from the Gvt. to accept a short sale however in many cases; they are determining that it is not worth it for them. And as you can tell with the very low numbers of loans that have been modified with the Gvt. new guidelines from the nightly news, you can see that there is very little chance that they will work with the sellers on this either.

In addition to all of this challenging news comes the Fed which stated that they will be holding rates for another few months but not until the end of the year and all targets point to a possible rate increase in the summer or 4th quarter.

So again, is this a good time to put your property on the market? Again, we say yes! It doesn’t look like the pricing will go much higher in several years and throughout that time, you will be competing with financially challenged properties.

A seller, therefore has to figure the carrying costs, such as maintenance, taxes, and insurance, and that total adds up quickly while keeping the property off the market. We have had several sellers who rejected market driven offers with hopes of getting an offer of higher price, and in doing so, they have spent much more than the difference in the amount offered than if they took the original offer.

Now that there has been a decision to put the property on the market, there are a few things we need to stress. (Picture me on my knees for a second please.) Please listen to your Realtor when he goes over the current market activity and what properties are selling for. Remember that every seller, including those owned by financers, think that their property is something special. They all have added those little touches. Most have already done upgrades and to a buyer, the fact that your raised your children in the house doesn’t mean anything. Buyers read certain headlines just as sellers read selective headlines.

Buyers are looking at the bottom priced group of homes in a general area. They are offering whatever they want and are hoping the a seller will take it. Sellers need to understand that this is going to happen and not get upset over it. It is a major part of today’s game. Now it the time when the good Realtors go into action. It is the time when our training in negotiation is beneficial. Negotiation does not mean that a seller gets what they want or a buyer gets what they want, it means that there is a lot of discussion goes on before a deal is either made or not. Don’t give up hope so soon. But, both buyers and sellers must be coming from a reasonable stance.

One of the other challenging points that I must bring up is that of the appraisal. We have been talking for a while that it is to the benefit of the seller to get an appraisal done on the house before it is put on the market. That $400 (est.) will be well spent to get a fair and honest price for the house. A little bit about current appraisals. Appraisers are given instructions to only go back 90 for their comparative sales so that in a depressed market, those are the only comparatives that are realistic as to what the current market value should be. Given the fact that so many are short sales and REOs, the appraiser has to take those into consideration. A lending institution doesn’t care why a property sold for what it did just that should they have to take the property back, what would they get for it. And in a depressed market, there would be even be an automatic reduction in value due to estimated trends for the next 180 days.

This is making it really difficult for any market to stabilize or even start to grow if they are told to devalue a property by a certain amount. Even cash sellers are getting appraisals, which are really adding an additional challenge to getting the market to stabilize or increase.

One more word to sellers: make sure that the property is uncluttered, looks good and is kept clean. We have been talking about the details for the past year but they are more important now than ever. With all of the choices that buyers have, you have the need and opportunity to make yours the best looking.

There are lots of buyers out there. A correctly priced property and a good Realtor, like one from D&J Realtor’s group, will help a qualified buyer find the right property. Here in the State of Florida, the assumed relationship between a buyer or seller and their customer is what is call a Transaction Broker. They work for the transaction making sure that all parties are dealt with honestly and fairly. There are other specifics but a discussion with your Realtor will clarify their responsibilities. We bring this up because there needs to be an understanding on the role of a Realtor. They are not parties to the contract. Their job is to help but a qualified buyer and willing seller together so that a smooth transaction will happen. Their job is not to help a buyer ‘steal a property’ nor is it to hide any defects in the property so that the buyer is not aware of what they are buying. Their job is like a counselor for the both the buyer and the seller. A counselor on pricing, neighborhoods, market trends, styles of property and negotiating. D&J Realtors are part of the Gold Jacket history of professionalism and quality service. Customers select us because of reputation and our international connections. We encourage our buyers and sellers to have honest discussions with us and take serious consideration to the information we provide.

Selling your home in any market doesn’t have to be an overwhelming experience. You can count us to make sure everything goes smoothly, whether you’re looking to relocate, move up to your next home or even downsize—we have the answers you need.

There are a couple of options that he can take. The first one that I would recommend is for him to put in an offer on the unit he likes with the contract being contingent on his property selling. The closing date on the new property would be the same day as the closing on his property. What we call a simultaneous closing. With the entire market place being slower, a seller might now consider this option because they would at least have a contract on their property. In most cases, the seller would require some contingencies of their own. There is a very good likelihood that they would want a special clause in the contract that allows the property to be shown. Should another contract come in, the first buyer would have a certain amount of time to remove the selling contingency or release the contract so they could have a guaranteed closing date.

The first thing he should do is put his property on the market. I have preached the virtues of a full service Real Estate company before but today, it is even more important. The communication between a seller and his agent is imperative. And for the umpteenth time, price is NOT THE ONLY selling factor. Consider paying some closing costs or paying some maintenance or something to entice a buyer to your property. A full service agent will be more likely to discuss and create these options for you.

Back to my friend. He puts his home on the market; he offers an attractive incentive; he and his agent negotiate a contract on the new property. Now we just wait and see what happens. WRONG! Now is the time to have everyone communicating. The new property owner needs to be kept in the loop on what is happening with his property. If they become part of the sales circle for the old unit, when more time is needed they are more likely to grant the extra time.

Another option would be to negotiate a contact and rent the property to help with the expenses on the current property until it sells. He will need to discuss this with his mortgage rep. They will probably need a copy of a signed lease before they will approve the mortgage.

There is also the Lease-Purchase option. This allows a buyer to do the ‘credit clean up stuff’ that some need to do to get the better rate. In this scenario, a contact is negotiated however the closing will be delayed for a period of time such as 6 months. During that time, the buyer will become a tenant and pay rent for the property with closing on the property at the end of the lease period. This is not an option program. The contract is solid just the closing date is pushed back. The seller may even credit part of the rent back to the purchase price of the property. Check with your mortgage rep, but my understanding is that they cannot credit the entire amount back. They can only credit back over the amount of an average rental for a similar property.

Again, another creative program that your REALTOR® can help you with. Have a great week!

When you think about glamorous, exciting remodeling projects, the garage is probably not the first space in your home that leaps to mind. But garage remodeling has become the new frontier for homeowners looking to organize and reclaim space in their homes, and to do it with flair. Depending on your tastes, time and budget, it’s not difficult to create a garage space that’s not only the envy of the neighborhood.

As opposed to the typical approach to a garage, which is to put up a shelf or a cabinet whenever and wherever the need arises, today’s complete garage makeover includes several elements that all come together to form a clean, coordinated, and remarkably organized space. Wall systems, modular storage, floor covering and even garage appliances all combine to make your garage work harder than you ever thought possible.

There are even companies that will come in and design the perfect garage for you. Tim Allen of Tool Time, eat your heart out. At the heart of most complete garage makeovers is the wall system. Modeled after the slotted panels seen on the walls of many retail stores that allow for quick and attractive changes in merchandising displays, garage wall storage systems incorporate designs and materials that are specifically intended to handle the dirt, dust, chemicals and temperature extremes that are most often found in garage environments.

This brings to mind another renovation consideration. The addition of insulation would do wonders for not only the temperature in the garage but help with the dust too. If you are putting in new AC in the house, don’t forget a small duct in the garage too, especially if you are going to use it for a workshop or laundry room in addition to keeping your car cool.

Clean, lightweight wall panels are attached to the wall studs and stacked up to cover all or part of the wall, and are easily cut to size for a custom fit. Matching trim is available to finish off the installation at the corners, and around electrical outlets.

With the panels in place, organizing the garage is as simple as slipping any of the various shelves, drawers, cabinets, bins, boxes, hooks and other storage components into the slots in the panels. Arrange the layout in any manner that suits your storage needs. Best of all, as those needs change it’s a matter of only minutes to rearrange the storage wall layout into a new customized configuration.

Now, how about adding some matching garage appliances. You can keep the drinks cold or store extra food that won’t fit in the kitchen in a refrigerator/freezer that’s specifically designed for the temperature and humidity extremes of the garage environment. And then help clean up the space with a tough, matching trash compactor. Both the compactor and the refrigerator are on heavy-duty casters to make reorganization of the space a breeze.

And finally, there’s the floor. Add a rugged, nonporous, water- and chemical-resistant flooring that cleans up that old concrete and protects the floor from further staining.

It is interesting that whenever we show a home one party is very interested in the kitchen and baths while the other is interested in seeing the garage. For years, REALTORS have been saying that if you are going to do any work on your home to make it sell, make sure the kitchen and baths are in first rate condition. Now we should add the garage. In today’s market, it would be a selling point to one of the buyers even more than a fancy kitchen.

1. When you forward an e-mail, DELETE all of the other addresses that appear in the body of the message (at the top). That’s right, DELETE them. Highlight them and delete them, backspace them, cut them, whatever it is you know how to do. It only takes a second. To do this, you MUST click the “Forward” button first and then you will have full editing capabilities against the body and headers of the message. If you don’t click on “Forward” first, you won’t be able to edit the message at all.
   
2. Whenever you send an email to more than one person, do NOT use the To: or Cc: fields for adding email addresses. Always use the BCC: (blind carbon copy) field for listing the email addresses.
   
3. This is the way the people you send to will only see their own e-mail address. If you don’t see your BCC: option, click on where it says To: and your address list will appear. Highlight the address and choose BCC: and that’s it, it’s that easy. When you send to BCC: your message will automatically say “Undisclosed Recipients” in the “TO:” field of the people who receive it.
   
4. Remove any “FW :” in the subject line. You can re-name the subject if you wish or even fix spelling.
   
5. ALWAYS hit your Forward button from the actual email you are reading. Ever get those emails that you have to open 10 pages to read the one page with the information on it? By forwarding from the actual page you wish someone to view, you stop them from having to open many emails just to see what you sent.
   
6. Have you ever gotten an email that is a petition? It states a position and asks you to add your name and address and to forward it to 10 or 15 people or your entire address book. The email can be forwarded on and on and can collect thousands of names and email addresses. A FACT: The completed petition is actually worth a couple of bucks to a professional spammer because of the wealth of valid names and email addresses contained therein. If you want to support the petition, send it as your own personal letter to the intended recipient. Your position may carry more weight as a personal letter than a laundry list of names and email address on a petition.
   
7. Emails with lottery promises are trash and you should treat them as such by deleting them at once.
   
8. Before you forward an Amber Alert, or a Virus Alert, or some of the other ones floating around nowadays, check them out closely.
   

   This is something that SHOULD be forwarded.
   

    
    

There is so much talk on the air ways about transparency, how about a little in our industry?

I understand that sometime in April, institutions will be mandated to reply within 10 days of an offer presented. I know that they will find some way to get around it like they do for everything. And why did anyone pass and sign a regulation that takes so long to enforce. As Realtors, I believe that we have an ethical obligation to help the transaction come to fruition, so we need to be better communicating what little we know.

I guess, I am just frustrated since I know that the financial institutions have no desire to actually help get us out of the troubles we are in and seem to put us as many barriers as possible, we have to count on each other to help our customers.