Short Sales" href="http://eastvalleyteam.com/coffee-talk-stress-free-living-in-phoenix-and-east-valley" target="_blank">Phoenix may be one of the ten least stressful places to live in the United States, but that may not be the case if you are a real estate agent.

We had some buyers who were interested in a Fannie Mae house. They put in an offer and the bank countered back at $170k and our buyers accepted. Then before the bank sent over the addendums they changed their mind. Now they say they want $177k instead of the $170k. When my clients asked me what I thought I told them the truth, I thought it was complete BS!

When you are watching the news and see those nightly national real estate stats, remember they are not relevant to you and your real estate market at all. When you hear only 31% of homes sold last month were distressed short sale or foreclosures, that doesn’t mean anything to you in Tempe and the East Valley where that number is closer to 62%.

In the Tempe and Phoenix market the gap on price per square foot between foreclosures and short sales is narrowing and getting much closer. While a foreclosure still is, and probably always will be more expensive than a short sale, the numbers are getting closer. This may be one reason that banks are asking for more sellers to come to the table with money.

1) Can SMS Real Estate Marketing Attract more Home Buyers? – There will be more text messages sent this year than phone calls made. Why fight it any longer. People like to communicate that way, make it easy for them and place a rider on every sign you have.

2) Gifts from the Bank of Mom and Dad – Part 2: Conventional Financing – In only a way Rhonda can do she takes a boring subject and makes it easy to understand and enjoyable.

3) February 2010 : 4 States Account For More Than 50% Of Foreclosure Activity – What is really amazing about this list is no sign of Nevada or Arizona? The have dominated this list in the last 18 months.

4) How To Succeed in Anything in Life – Don’t Do This And You’ll Fail… Every Time! – OK tell me you are not going to read that one with that title. I did, and it was worth it. Nothing earth shattering, but a good reminder of what we should be doing.

5) Listing Icons: Is Adopting Abandoned Buyers Stealing or Smart? – Now this is an idea  I admit I never heard of. But I love it!

6) The Purpose Of Real Estate Photography… – Want to learn something? Read this post! You will never think of photos for a house the same again.

7) The Source of Confusion – What do you get when take one of the top thinkers in the business dissecting the work of another top thinker? You get something that makes you question the very work model which you love.

8) Top 5 Tips for Securing an Accurate Appraisal – Be prepared if the appraisal comes back and you know it is bad.

9) “Gearing Up Your Web Presence” Seminar – I dont agree with those who believe you need to be successful online to be a successful agent, but if you are making it part of your business plan, are you doing it right.?

10) Top 10 Tips for !st Time Homebuyers in Northern Virginia – There are a lot of Top 10 lists out there for home buyers and sellers, This list is as good as any of them.

Here is today’s list of top real estate posts of the day.

1) Brokers: embrace difference, love the eccentric – Marc Davison of 1000watt Consulting talks about what he would do if he was a broker, right down to the restroom in his office. The key, being different.

2) What’s wrong with Private Transfer Fees? – While all the comments on this post agree with the author, I differ. Private transfer fees are annoying and should be done away with. Add the fee into the cost of the house and that is real disclosure.

3) The Art of Negotiating – Don’t let principle get in the way.

4) Higher Foreclosure Sales Expected By 2012 – Oh goodie-goodie, foreclosures will continue for another two years!

5) Revisit Your Circle of Influence and Revive Your Real Estate Business – Great advice for new agents and seasoned veterans, get to work on that sphere.

6) The Foreclosure Epidemic – A Discussion with Alex Charfen – Ok I am going to put aside my feelings on the CDPE program and Alex Charfen for a minute (and no John, there are better programs out there) but I love his look at foreclosures in this video. He explains why it appears foreclosures may be slowing down right now, but they are really not. 1-in-6 mortgages in this country are late. Just let that number sink in.

7) Do We Believe in the Millenials? – People currently between 18-30 are Millenials, how will they effect the future or real estate?

8) The Good Side of Loan Modification’s Failure, A Buoyant Foreclosure Market – Now here is someone reaching for a silver lining. Interesting take on the good side of loan mod failures.

9) Are Real Estate Stats Where It’s At? – Short term results, but interesting perspective on adding stats to your site.

10) Blog Carnival of Real Estate – My First Time to Host! Winners Announcement – The Canival is back in town.

1) Success Simplified – The FIX or Fire It Method – Not sure which part is my favorite, the great advice to real estate agents in the bottom half of this post or the fire your bank image at the top.

2) The Internet is Broken – This is the best response to social media does not work for real estate agents I have ever seen.

3) What kind of exposure should you expect for your listing? – Advice for home sellers, almost every agent will tell you your property is going to appear on the Internet, but how above and beyond does your agent go?

4) Sharing ideas in Real Estate – This is a subject we were recently discussing around here. Doesn’t it seem that the RE.net agents are always sharing ideas and talking to each other about what they are doing, while many other agents like to think of everyone as competition and not share?

5) Predatory Short Sale Negotiators – Sounds like someone needs to loose their license. Buyers and sellers of short sales need to be aware of this. It is one thing for an agent to charge a small fee for staff, it is another thing to completely gouge.

6) Should Realtors Get “Awards”? – I am an agent who believes almost all of those e-Pro, CDPE, Million Dollar Producer designations are a waste of time, space and money. There are very few that. I agree with the offer, but I would take it one or two steps further in my dislike for designations and rewards. What would I do different? Instead of having agents pay for the designations, why not teach them what they need to know in school BEFORE we give them a license.

7) Listings: How Photos Can Make or Break Your Sale! – I talk about the importance of good pictures often, in this video Josh does a great job explaining to agents and home sellers why pictures are vital.

8) Where Have All The Houses Gone? Can we Fix the Growing Shadow Inventory Problem? – I like this post because I see every day how fast the foreclosure properties are going in the Tempe and Phoenix area. I believe the market could handle most of the influx in homes the banks are hiding on their books. Let’s just rip that band-aide off quick.

9) I Have Some Bad News – Elizabeth is one of the best writers you are not reading. She brings you places in her blog that only full-time agents in the field all the time can relate to and does it often with comedy.

10) What is an Absorption Rate? – Basic real estate 101, what is absorption rate and how does it effect your home buying and selling?

1) The Ten Day Close: Why Other Lenders Whine About It – This one is getting annoying. We have 2 lenders here in Phoenix who can get loans closed (even in today’s market) in ten days or less. One of them even guarantees it. It is amazing to see other lenders, who work for shops that have a hard time getting a loan closed in 30-45 days, say it is bs. It is NOT bs as I have yet to see them not meet the 10-day close timeframe.

2) My Loan Officer Won’t Provide Me a Good Faith Estimate – When with the federal government stop over-regulating and making things worse. The have tried what, about 10 things in real estate over the last year to help consumers or to help the housing market? And pretty much everyone has been a disaster.

3) Cut foreclosures by slicing real estate fees – The foreclosure crisis is now the fault of the agent who charges too much commission. Al Lewis, excuse my French, but you are moron! The buyer deserves representation in the market and both the buyer and seller deserve full time professionals who can go to bat for them. Are you also out there also wanting to dictate how much a doctor can make for a procedure or how much a columnist receives for a poorly thought out article? There is nothing secret or hidden about our commissions, they are all in our contracts and on the HUD-1s.

4) Outdated Sales Tactics Remain the Norm – Some people (many that is) get caught up in what they have always done and hate change.

5) Don’t Hate Me ‘Cause I’m NAR – Good to see some members of NAR out there interacting with agents and listening to them.

6) Can I submit an offer on a short sale property while I keep looking? – This is a great question that all agents need to answer and one of the reasons on my short sale listings I require a deposit with the accepted offer.

7) Loan Originators: Stop Your Crying…Let’s Love the Good Faith Estimate – How good is Rhonda when it comes to the new GFE? She makes the top 10 list twice for the same subject in the same day. But she has a point here, we can all hate it, but it is here and we need to deal with it.

8) Don’t Get Short With Short Sales – Look Harder – Lesley and I must have been sharing the same brain wave yesterday as I did my blog post on which is a better day short sale or foreclosure. We both come to the same conclusion, if you have a time frame to be in your house then a short sale is not probably your best option, but if you have time to wait big deals can be had.

9) 35 Questions and Suggestions to help you sell your home faster – Some good advice for sellers on what can help their house sell quicker.

10) Knuckleheads beware: Real estate is changing – Is there anyone in the business that really makes you think more than the guys at 1000watt blog? Let me help you, no there is not.

1) Cloud CMA and the downfall of crappy real estate software – I have been excited to try this since I first heard the early rave reviews. Problem… if you are not in California you are out of luck.

2) Video: Price Differences Between Foreclosures and Non-Foreclosures – According to this Zillow video it appears even thought foreclosures control the market in many areas there is still a discount for them.

3) Obama’s State of the Union – Housing Gets Three Lines in 70 Minutes – This struck me too. The housing market is not going to recover until it is easy for someone to become more mobile and easily change jobs across the country. With three lines I wonder if either A) they do not understand the problem is as large as it is or B) They really drink their own juice and believe what they are doing is helping. Either way someone needs to talk to his teleprompter and get them it in line.

4) 10 Commercial Real Estate Blogs to Watch in 2010 – I get emails every now and then asking for more commercial real estate news. Here are some sites that could bring more content.

5) Tough Time For Listing Agents – Good subject, what are the duties of a listing agent, to market your house to other agents and people searching or to actually bring bodies through the door.

6) Marketing for Leads on a $100 Monthly Budget – A few inexpensive ways to get more buyers and sellers calling you.

7) What Is A Strategic Default – There has been a lot of talk recently about strategic defaults, here is a good post that explains them a little more.

8) Why Realtors are Like Rocket Scientists – Did you know we are like rocket scientists? I think you can compare real estate to many jobs because I often tell my friends that it is a lot like my former career of political consulting and running campaigns.

9) Loan Modifications Are They Worth It – An Overview In Simple English – Here is a long post that can be summed up with “depends.” But if you are considering a loan mod it is worth a read.

10) What Exactly Is A Short Sale? – We should all know by now, but if you are wondering what exactly a short sale is, here is a good explanation.

1) Should you do a Short-Sale or just keep paying and wait? – Interesting look at the situation form a math point of view, but I disagree with the notion it is just a math problem.

2) The Top Five Signs of More Real Estate Pain to Come – Well when you put it that way…. a look at 5 troubling aspects of the economy and housing market.

3) Welcome to Acronym Week! RESPA, HUD, and the GFE – Oh My! – Great job by Kelly on talking about some relevant acronyms and not some useless 3-4 letter designations agents like to throw around.

4) Listen to Trulia’s Real Estate of the Union Industry Call – A good listen, but who could have possibly given Obama an A over the last year on how he has handled the housing situation?

5) Dual agency: Why Would You Allow it to Happen to You? – I agree with his notion that the buyer and seller should each have their own agent in most cases, but I believe it is possible for them to use the same brokerage, but still have the agent representing and fighting for them to the hilt.

6) Uh Oh, Bank of America Forecloses on a House They Don’t Have a Mortgage On…AGAIN – This is just mind-blowing.

7) dsIDXPress: Search Engine Friendly IDX – This new plugin could be a game changer if you have Diverse Solutions. If you are not blown away by this, you need to have someone who understands it explain it to you.

8) Why Do Agents Suggest That Sellers Price Their Home “At The Market”? – Great advice for home sellers and for agents looking to explain pricing better to their clients.

9) The Secret Recipe for Email Success – If you think about this one in depth, there is really some good marketing advice here for agents.

10) Electronic Signatures and Records: What’s the Current Law? – This is a MUST for all tech savvy agents. Know the law.

1) Loan Modifications With Principal Cuts Attract Lenders Attention – Lenders are starting to look at loan modifications with a principle balance reduction as realistic alternatives, and they need to if they expect them to work. I personally predict that some form of principle reduction with a home equity fractional interest where the buyer needs to repay a portion of the reduction upon sale is most likely coming.

2) Foreclosures: Challenges FHA Buyers Face When Making Offers – It is true that FHA home buyers have a hard time competing with cash and conventional offers, but who can blame the seller? Much less likely a conventional or cash deal will fall through.

3) Conquering Your Fear When The Phone Rings – While this post is done from the point of view of an investor, it is relevant to anyone who is new to a business like real estate.

4) One Simple Strategy You Can Implement Immediately for More Referrals – The advice in this post is so true. When I first put up my site I had so much junk on there like everything about local schools and parks etc. Then my analytics showed me no one was going to those things.

5) 10 Cities For Home Bargains – Is your city among the best for bargains for home shopping? (Good blog material if so).

6) The People Have Spoken!… but are we listening? – People want more from agents, who is going to give it to them?

7) Is Your House Over-Priced? The Rule of Tens – A couple of basic rules for home sellers on figuring out if your house is overpriced.

8) Short Sale “Twists and Tail Spins”: Be Aware ! – I question this practice greatly! The bank is not a party to the real estate transaction and should be a RESPA violation for dictating terms. All they should be allowed to do is approve or deny the final transaction based on the HUD-1 number.

9) Here Come The 1099-Cs Turning YOUR Short Sale Into A Big Headache – Get ready for that 1099-c. I actually did a video with a local law firm on the short sale and 1099 issue yesterday.

10) FHA Cracks Down on Dubious Lenders – I heard about this yesterday while at lunch with a lender, they actually had a friend who got visited. Fun times!