Appreciate the Thanks

Here at Avery-Hess, we hold the value of word of mouth very highly. For most of us, the opinions of our friends, family and peers matter a great deal when we decide what products to buy or what services to choose.  When choosing a Realtor®, why should there be any difference?

We recently received a thank you letter from a pair of very satisfied customers. In this letter, the couple poured out their appreciation to realtor Patricia Mancini for her help in achieving their dream of owning a home. These first time homebuyers complimented Pattie’s preparedness and attention to detail.  They were also thankful that she created such a comfortable buying experience for them.

She kept telling us throughout the whole process that she was going to help us find the home of our dreams …Her actions always reinforced her words.

Pattie also genuinely cared about her homebuyers. She was able to form a bond with her customers and in turn, they were able to trust their realtor.

…she listened to us, digested our needs and wants and provided us with information that was reflective of discussions and decisions.

I’d like to encourage everyone to share their stories and experiences. Avery-Hess cares, our agents care, and there’s no reason to let good work go unnoticed.

Follow this link to see the complete letter.

Patricia Mancini has been working in the real estate industry since 1984 and is currently based in our Springfield, VA office. Find her online at patriciamancini.averyhess.com

Search for homes: www.averyhess.com

Warren County/Front Royal Market Report – 8/31/09

Here is a quick snapshot of the market wrap-up for Warren County/Front Royal:

This market follows closely to the Prince William and Manassas City market, however average prices are less.

• 115 New Listings
• 42 Sales
• $181,250 Avg sale price
• 174 Days on Market 

Little has changed between July 2008 and July 2009. Overall, 2008 to 2009 inventory has dropped 16% and there has been a 30% increase in sales The year to date average sale price is $153,000. There are 440 single family homes, town homes and condos on the market as of end of July data. 

Unless a large influx of inventory floods the market, this area may have seen the bottom of prices. Unemployment has seemed to peak and things are stabilizing. Front Royal makes a great place to buy to avoid the multiple offers and hard to find a home for sale, even with inventory being less than Prince William County. There are fewer buyers to compete with. Taxes are less than Prince William and cost of living including real estate are less than Prince William County, thus offsetting the commuting costs.

Homes in Warren county offer uniqueness. Older homes with great character acan be purchased at a fraction of the cost of old town Manassas and Warrenton. New homes tend to have more land and great views. The views can be trees, mountains, rolling hills and the Shenandoah river. I think prices will hold steady until more people realize this hidden gem.

Warren County/Front Royal Market Report compiled by Steve Mayes, Managing Broker, Avery-Hess, Realtors.

Search for homes in Warren County and Front Royal: www.averyhess.com

Prince William County Market Report – 8/31/09

Here is a quick snapshot of the market wrap-up for Prince William County:

• 963 New Listings
• 710 Sales closed
• $213,000 Average sale price
• 59 DOM (Average Days on Market)

New listings have decreased almost 34% from last year at this time. Pending sales have increased 3.5%, Days on market have decreased 30% and inventory has decreased by 75%.

Total inventory on the market including town homes, condos and single family homes are 1370, whereas 2008 that number was almost 5000 units!

WHY?

Inventory has been decreasing due to the moratorium on foreclosures and the increased efforts to work out loans for current owners. Pending sales are up due to the fact that short sales are taking a lot of effort and time to get to closing, if even at all. None the less, they are tied up as pending. (Less than 23% of short sales actually get to closing.)

Many short sales fall out due to the fact the buyer does not like to wait for the extended times banks take to authorize the short sale. Many of the listings or inventory that show up active are waiting response from a bank and have multiple offers. Technically they are ACTIVE, but in reality they are not. Most homes that are price properly receive multiple offers. Be prepared to offer more than asking price on properties that show well.

I think in the coming months, failed short sales will be foreclosures and banks will start releasing the foreclosures and inventory may start to increase a little at first.

There are many buyers and pent up demand will gobble up the new inventory, unless the inventory amounts are huge.

Prince William Market Report compiled by Steve Mayes, Managing Broker, Avery-Hess, Realtors.

Search for homes in Prince William County: www.averyhess.com

Avery-Hess Introduces new Social Media Editor

As we continue in our efforts to reach out and connect with consumers in new ways, we have recently created a new position in the company: Social Media Editor.

Given the proliferation of social media over the past few years through such venues as Blogs, Twitter, Facebook, Yelp, Flickr, YouTube, etc., by the consumer public, we feel it would be to our best advantage to not only participate in these mediums, but to attend to them in the best, most skilled manner possible.

Moreover, it has become well documented that the companies who embrace these networks are witnessing greater connection with their constituents. By conversing and connecting through this manner, these companies are able to better translate their inherent value proposition in new ways, building brand loyalty in a manner never before available. The impact this is having across all corporate and sales channels – from brand awareness to sales — is noteworthy.

It is therefore with this in mind that we are excited to introduce our new Social Media Editor, David Tra, who started with Avery-Hess on Monday, August 24.

David brings with him a background in social media and possesses significant writing and communication skills. David will begin compiling our interactive video content and will also manage all our social media outlets, which include:

• Twitter
• Vimeo
• YouTube
• Facebook
• Blog

Along with managing our company social media marketing, David will be embarking on an amitious project to provide rich community content about all of the local communities we serve via video.

You can learn more about David by friending him on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/davidtra

Search for homes, and get connected: www.averyhess.com

Provide Value to Consumers, Please.

Earlier today, I sat through a presentation from a gentleman selling magazines that real estate agents could utilize to “Brand” themselves.

How? 

By inserting a photo of themselves and a form letter on the inside front cover.

The content of the magazine ranged from spotlights on places to travel, to recipes and ads for luxury cars. As an added bonus, a meaningless catch phrase like “dreams in motion” or “make your vision a reality” could be thrown in at no additional cost. Best (or worst) of all, if you signed up TODAY, YOU could get all of this crap for a discounted activation fee (activation fee? for what? It’s a magazine…) and a low price of $299 per issue for up to 50 copies per issue.

The selling point from the vendor was “to allow you to stay in touch with your clients after you assist them with their home sale or purchase.”

What a load of garbage.

Let me put on my consumer hat now.

I just utilized Mrs. Agent to buy my home, and she did a terrific job. As an added value after the transaction, the suggestion from this gentleman was: to have Mrs. Agent send me a worthless magazine with:

• Recipes
• Commentary on wildlife
• Spotlights on communities (mostly vacation spots) that I have no interest in that are nowhere near where I live
• Information about Donuts
• A poorly disguised “Send me more business through your friends” card that could be ripped out and given to my friends with Mrs. Agent’s contact information and a recipe.

There have been numerous studies published that state that while an overwhelming majority of consumers are satisfied with their agent and the level of service provided, less than 40% actually use that same agent again. If the additional value you are providing to your clients consists of stories about donuts and commentary on wildlife, how can you be surprised at these numbers?

Perhaps a more effective way to provide added value to your satisfied clients could be:

• Provide a quarterly update to your client on how their neighborhood is doing relative to the overall market
• Provide a quarterly update to your client on the pricing trends of their neighborhood on a quarter vs. quarter basis and a year over year basis
• Every year, on the anniversary of the home purchase, provide your client with an updated CMA of their property, an estimate of what it is worth now, how it stacks up with other homes in the neighborhood
• Keep your client apprised of any global trends in the neighborhood (is everyone redoing their kitchens? new roofs? new bathrooms? Tile? Hardwoods? etc). so your clients can stay in the know with the state of homes in their neighborhood.

These are just a few things you can send to your past clients that actually add value well past the settlement date. Remember, these folks hired you for your Real Estate knowledge and expertise, so send them information that pertains to REAL ESTATE. Better yet, send your clients information that is personalized, specific and tailored to their individual Real Estate experience with you.

Search for homes in the DC Metro, VA and MD: www.averyhess.com

Avery-Hess, Realtors Unveils New Website

Avery-Hess, Realtors, an independent real estate brokerage based the Washington, DC Metro area has launched a next-generation real estate website featuring an enhanced version of their trademarked MyLife Home SearchTM platform offering users the ability to search for homes based on lifestyle, proximity to community amenities, and commute time.

The new site is located at www.averyhess.com

“Plenty of real estate sites offer home search, each containing essentially the same inventory, tools and content – we decided to go well beyond all of them,” explained Scott Avery, founding partner of Avery-Hess, Realtors. “That’s why we re-engineered our MyLife Home SearchTM to include alternative search options that provide users a deeper and more fulfilling experience that cannot be acquired on any other local real estate site.”

The Avery-Hess MyLife Home SearchTM attends to the most basic needs every user has when searching for homes, which regards answering the most basic question “Can I live here?” To create that search and find environment for the user, the new website includes:

• Search by Metro

• Search by amenities

• Search by community

• Foreclosure search

• Gas price calculation based on commute

• Estimated mortgage calculator based on listing price, down payment, interest rate, and term

“Creating a website this progressive requires considerable contribution both internally as well as externally,” said Amit Kulkarni, Director of Marketing & Technology for Avery-Hess. “Evolving our website is not a one time event so we wanted to make sure we built a site that is not only great for consumers today, but is very scalable for the future.”

Fitting in with their culture, the new website www.averyhess.com is now live and allows users to access every stitch of site content free with no obligation to sign up—distancing the brand further from the typical lead generation tactics found on the average real estate site. In their mind, the notion of answering the question “What will my life be like living here?” begins by answering the most important question, “What will my life be like searching for a place to live?”

In Avery-Hess’ world, the answer is the best possible experience a brokerage can create.

About Avery-Hess, Realtors

Avery-Hess, Realtors is an independent real estate brokerage that operates seven offices serving Maryland, Virginia, Metro DC and West Virginia. They are an affiliate of Leading Real Estate Companies of the World—a global real estate network consisting of the finest real estate brands, providing uncompromised marketing clout. They are devoted to providing consumers with the best technology, decision support and agents in their respective markets and have been doing that since 1992.

View the new site, and search for homes: www.averyhess.com