My Reno Real Estate reality…

On most Saturdays I do something that has to do with selling homes.  This past Saturday was kind of the opposite and it was amazing.  I got to hang out with homeless people in downtown Reno.  My church decided to do something a little different for our annual church picnic.  We typically have a picnic in August in the park on Robb Drive across the street from our church.  This year we took it downtown and we invited guests.  Our guests were invited from a variety of agencies who do work with homeless folks.  We all brought our own picnics and plenty of extra for all of our guests to share.

I hope our guests had a nice time.  I know they were full when they left.  I know I was full when I left but in a different way.    Several little encounters filled my heart.  Sort of like what happened to the Grinch.

When I first arrived one of our guests approached me.  He was a sort of hunched over little man with the biggest smile I’ve ever seen.  As he walked up to me I stuck out my hand to shake his.  He ignored the hand and gave me a big bear hug.  I was ashamed that I wasn’t the giver of the hug.

Later I watched Jane Albright (UNR Women’s Basketball court) give a Wolf Pack t-shirt to a guy named “Wolf”.  He was moved beyond words as he stood up and removed the shirt he was wearing and replaced it with his new prized possession. 

A little boy walked to the park by himself.  He was invited as part of the Pathfinder’s group but his group wasn’t around yet.  After assuring him that lunch was free and that his friends would be there soon,  I watched him grab a balloon, get his face painted and get invited to sit and have lunch with a couple who let him sit in their lawn chair.

Another couple dressed in wedding attire wandered in and found a vacant blanket to enjoy their free lunches on and let me take their picture to celebrate the occasion.  A nearby group who were full from lunch and second lunches but were so excited when I broke out a big container of cut up watermelon to share.

Jane summed the day up best with a tweet she posted: “My friends @ river: Tum Tum, Wristband, Fright, Grapedrank, Justin, Thumper… Come on Reno. Real folks who r homeless NOT bums.  Let’s help!”

Yesterday as I rushed out for an appointment there was an owl staring at me from a low branch of a tree in my front yard.  I wanted to linger in the presence of this amazing beautiful creature but I was late.  My daughter captured the moment with her camera as I was driving away.  When I saw the pictures I somehow felt the wise old guy was mocking me for being in a hurry once again.  Summer in Reno kind of does that to a person.  So much to do…so little time…

I never understood what “cabin fever” meant until I lived here.  It’s what happens after winter.  People can’t wait to get outside and enjoy the summer with the 3 or so months that the weather is perfect.  I must admit that I’ve become one of them…packing in as much as I can during the summer.   Hiking, biking, time at the lake, Aces games, Hot August Nights, the Reno Tahoe Open, playing in the river, dining outside and all of the other things that compete for my attention.

Thankfully, I have a knack for working hard and playing hard and somehow manage to get everything done.  Last week, I shuffled things around so that I could attend a 2-day Global Leadership Summit and add a little wisdom to my summer.  The speakers were stellar and inspirational.   Ironically, Bill Hybels, who started the Leadership Summit in 1995, spoke on what is your current leadership challenge level at work.  He said that research has shown that there are 3 categories: under challenged, appropriately challenged and dangerously over challenged.  I was relieved to hear that the best place on the scale to be is just slightly into the over-challenged area.  That’s my happy place!

I’m still trying to process all of the things I heard at the summit and to make application to my real estate business and my life.  No small task with speakers the caliber of Seth Godin, Cory Booker, Michelle Rhee, Dr. Henry Cloud, Patrick Lencioni and others.  Then there was the small, still, voice reminding me of the importance of quieting things down.

Mama Maggie Gabran spoke.  She is kind of like the new Mother Theresa.  When she spoke you could have heard a pin drop.  Like the stare of the owl, her words penetrated my soul.  She said: silence your body to listen to your words; silence your tongue to listen to your thoughts; silence your thoughts to listen to your heart; silence your heart to listen to your spirit; silence your spirit to listen to God’s spirit.

An ex-sociology major, I have always been fascinated by the behavior of groups of people.  Although we are all very much individuals its curious how we tend to behave as a herd sometimes.  For example, why do people always seem to go to the check-out line at the grocery story at the same time? 

I’ve observed this in the Real Estate business for years.  Just think about the psychology that drove the real estate boom.  I was selling for a builder here in Reno at the time.  I had 100+ people on a waiting list who would show up every other week in hopes of getting one of the 3 released homesites.  This was happening in spite of an upward price spiral that could not logically be sustained.  Interest rates were just ok, prices were inflated and incomes were not changing to support the higher prices.  Large groups of people were behaving in a way that just didn’t make sense. 

The same kind of behavior is going on now but in the opposite direction.  Large groups of people in this market have become professional fence-sitters.  The prices in Reno have over-corrected and the interest rates have hit the lowest mark this week anyone in the business can remember.  They were as low as 4.125% for an FHA 30 year fixed loan at one point this week.

My people watching skills tell me that the tide may change soon.  I’ve seen some longtime fence-sitters get off the fence and make offers this week and I’m hearing the same from the lenders and title companies.  I had 2 buyers write offers this week, both ended up in multiple offer (3 and 5 respectively) situations.  It may just be another bounce in our seemingly never-ending bounce along the bottom…but maybe not.

Yesterday I celebrated one of those big milestone birthdays.  Actually, there was a party with friends, family, flowers and Mexican food a few days ago but yesterday was the actual day and so I spent it doing what I wanted.  The day at Sand Harbor – Lake Tahoe and dinner with my husband on the patio at Stone House Cafe in Reno.

We moved from Southern California to Reno 10 years ago; the day after my last big milestone birthday party. A lot has happened in that 10 years.  It’s interesting how one event can set off a chain of events in a person’s life.  I suppose there are many who can point to the 9/11 terrorist attacks as that catalyst.

That event happened very shortly after our move to Reno.  I hadn’t yet established myself in business (I didn’t even know anyone here) when that happened.  The Reno real estate market virtually came to a screeching halt for a while.  The opportunity for benefits and a regular paycheck presented itself and I decided to sell new homes for a builder for the first time in my career.  This was a whole new world for me.  The market boomed.

My new goal was towards management and so I went back to school and finished getting my business management degree.  Then in early 2005 I returned to what I really loved doing and went back into resale with RE/MAX.  The market busted but I love what I do and have had many successes throughout it all.

In hindsight, I wouldn’t trade the past 10 years for anything.  We have been blessed to live in Reno and we love this place!  My cup overflows with true friends, a great church, more hiking trails that I have yet to discover, Lake Tahoe, the river, great eats, awesome bike trails…and so much more. 

Here’s to the next milestone!

My birthday flowers

The short answer is, I don’t know. I am constantly being hit with questions from clients that I can’t answer.  What will my home be worth in two years from now?  Are prices going to be up by next year?  Are prices going to be down by next year? If I wait can I get a lower interest rate?

After over two decades of fielding these types of questions I’d like to formally announce to the world and to my clients that I do not have a crystal ball.  However, here is what I do know.  During my career there has never been a more favorable alignment of factors to support buying a home.  Specifically, it is highly unusual for home price and interest rates to be low at the same time.  It’s usually one or the other.

I just had a client close on a home in Reno with a 30-year fixed rate of under 4.4%.  His obsession with finding the lowest interest rate reminded me of someone doing the limbo.  You might get really low but at some point you just can’t go any lower.  If you are thinking of buying but need a little more convincing to get off of the fence take a look at this chart showing a 20 year history of 30-year mortgage interest rates.

Late last July my friend introduced me to Lake Alpine.  The hike we took was the most amazing display of wildflowers I have ever seen.  A couple of days ago we made the trip again with our husbands expecting the same carpet of flowers.  However, the very heavy and late snowfall this past winter has pushed the prime blooming season out several weeks if not months.  We couldn’t find the trail because of the snow still on the ground until we got up out of the treeline.  It was still an amazing hike but a completely different experience from last year.

Along the way, certain members of our party started singing selections from The Sound of Music.  “Climb Every Mountain” being the main theme.  This is the song where the nun is giving Maria a pep-talk about living the life you’re given.  There’s some great wisdom in that.

There are always challenges and difficulties in life.  I’ve heard more than my share in my business the past couple of years.  When people have lost income and are struggling to keep their homes it can only be sustained for so long.  At some point, they have to face the hand they’ve been dealt.  The best advise I can give is to explore your options sooner than later.

In the recent Nevada legislative session some new laws were passed that will potentially help folks in this situation.  There have been major changes in the deficiency laws among other things.  There are free credit counseling services available.  Also, Cassell von Baeyer is a local attorney who I would consider an expert in this area.

Yesterday I had the task of escorting my youngest daughter to the DMV to take her driving test.  She is now licensed to drive.  She’s sixteen.  Getting the license doesn’t make her a good driver.  It takes awhile.  Some people never get very good at it.

A few days ago we took a 14 year old girl from Greece to Sand Harbor for the afternoon. One of the topics of conversation was that you have to be 18 in Greece to drive.  This got me thinking about how funny it is that governments decide how old is old enough for a variety of things and how that age really has no correlation to how qualified the person is.

Take marriage for example.  You can get married at 16 in Nevada if your parents sign off on it.  Really?!!!  I know a lot of 16 year olds and I just can’t picture it.  You have to be 21 to drink…hmmmm.

 Just because someone is licensed doesn’t mean a lot.  I’m surprised at how many times I’ve met people who hire an agent because it’s their cousin’s girlfriend who just got her license and they want to help her out.  I appreciate this sort of dedication to your cousin but come on.  You are talking about the one of the biggest and most complicated transactions you will probably ever be involved in.  You should be asking some questions.  The National Association of Realtors has a great list to ask a real estate agent before you hire them.  What questions do you think you should ask?

Kayla driving

That’s been the question for the twenty-something years I’ve been in this business.  One of the first sales tools I learned out of real estate school was a complicated worksheet that took into account everything (including the tax write-off) to prove to a buyer that buying was superior to renting.  It wasn’t always easy to make these things pencil out.

Nowadays it’s pretty easy to make the case for buying.  With our over-corrected market on home prices and rising demand and prices for home rentals, I can usually make this pencil out even without accounting for the tax write off.

A few months ago I assisted a couple moving to Reno from Texas.  They initially thought they would rent but being retired and on a fixed income, they were legitimately concerned about the possibility of the rent going up.  Additionally, they had heard stories of landlords collecting rents but not making payments and letting the house go into foreclosure with the tenant living there.  I asked them to at least consider buying as an option.

They were eligible for a VA loan so we were able to structure a deal in which they had no down-payment and the seller paid a credit for the closing costs.  They were able to complete the purchase with no more than $500 out-of-pocket.  Better yet, their total house payment (principal, interest, tax, insurance and home owner’s association fees) came out to be around $300 less a month than what they would have paid for rent of a similar home in the same community. 

There were even more benefits.  The home was newer and in great condition. They didn’t have to pay a security deposit to move in and they have been able to make a few modifications to the home and the yard that suit them.

Not everyone is eligible for a VA loan but there are other zero down programs available (neighborhood specific) and 3.5%  down FHA loans are widely available.  Any renter should consider the benefits of buying before renewing their lease.  It just might make more sense.

Awhile back we hosted a French high school exchange student in our home for a couple of weeks.  Her English wasn’t great but we had a good time with her and conversed as best we could with her limited English vocabulary and our daughter’s limited French.  She made a statement over dinner one night that I will never forget.  We asked her what she liked most about the USA and she responded, “you have so many freedoms.”

Most of us take for granted the freedoms we enjoy in this country.  Usually we don’t think about the sacrifices that have been made and are still being made for those freedoms.  Particularly if we don’t come from a military family.  We rarely deal with anything in our day-to-day existence that causes us to think about it much.

I helped a buyer with a purchase last year that opened my eyes to the life and death realities that some families are living with.  The husband’s job, as a military contractor, kept him out of the country for several months at a time.  Not only was he out of the country but he was unreachable due to the high security nature of the work he was involved in.

Before leaving for his stint in the Middle East we made sure everything was in order with the Title Company and the paperwork required for his wife to be able to sign the loan documents as his power-of-attorney.  One thing that the escrow officer didn’t anticipate was the lender’s requirement of an “Alive and Well Certificate” prior to close.  This was unexpected by her because it wasn’t a VA loan and the buyer wasn’t actually military. I had never done a transaction with this requirement before so it was all new to me.

The lender would not fund or close the loan without verification that the client was indeed alive and well within 48 hours of our scheduled close.  This was tricky because he was a private contractor and did not have a commanding officer who could verify his status.  He had to call in from a secure phone (we couldn’t call him) and he could not disclose his location.  Ultimately we were able to verify that he was alive and proceed.

I gained a whole new appreciation for what his wife, and countless others, are dealing with every day while their loved ones conduct duties we have no comprehension of in order to secure our freedom.  Here’s to Independence Day and to those who have paid much to make it possible!

I just got back from a quick trip to visit friends in Oregon.  They live pretty close to Crater Lake so we made the drive up there one day and it was pretty amazing.  For anyone living in Reno, it’s totally worth the 6-hour drive.

Crater Lake is a mixed-bag for someone who is a little height-challenged like I am.  I couldn’t tell you the exact dimensions but when the volcano blew the top off of this mountain it created an enormous crater.  When you go to look at the lake you are standing on the rim and looking way, way, down to the lake in the bottom of the crater.  It’s enormous and has no shoreline.  Imagine an ant standing on the rim of a punch bowl that’s half full times a thousand and you get the idea.

There really aren’t words for the majesty of this place…you just have to see it.  However, I couldn’t stay for long.  There is something about standing on the top edge of something like that that gave me that (scared of heights) slipping away feeling…didn’t really want to linger there.

This is a questionable transition…but here goes… There are a lot of things in life that people fear and that cause that slipping away feeling.  One that I encounter lately in my business is people facing the possibility of foreclosure.  What I find interesting about my discussions with most of them is that the fear isn’t usually as much about losing the house as it is about other things.  People are afraid of the stigma of foreclosure and they don’t want to discuss it with their friends or family.

I talked to a lady last week who said she had been advised to walk away from her home but wanted to keep everything quiet.  Sometimes in these situations people wait too long to check out their options because they don’t want to talk to anyone.   Earlier this year Fannie Mae put out an online interactive helper for people like this.  It’s quite good and I would recommend it to anyone in this situation.  It allows you to interactively assume the role of one of several characters and it responds to your input.  It’s called “Know Your Options” and is worth a look even if you are just starting to be concerned about your situation.