SO... HOW ARE YOU?

WELCOME

Hello, hello! By the time y’all read this, I’ll have spoken at Inman in Nashville about the future of real estate. I’m excited for those of you who I saw in person, and I’m looking forward to those who I’ll see next time!

While it’s great to look forward to what’s next, today we’re going to concentrate on what’s happening right now, as we’re at a bit of a fork in the road and the direction isn’t entirely clear. If you’re struggling, know you’re not alone.

So let’s get into it.

THE REALITY OF REAL ESTATE

Rocket Mortgage Buys Redfin

So here’s what we know—digital mortgage lender Rocket Mortgage is acquiring Redfin, presumably with an eye toward offering customers a more integrated experience in buying homes and securing financing.

What does this potentially mean?

Well, for the consumer, it could lead to making the home-buying process more seamless. And it’s definitely going to expand Rocket/Redfin’s market reach while creating some synergies between the two entities.

This has the potential to drastically change the whole industry, as it vertically integrates the whole home-buying process. For them.

But how will this affect those of us who aren’t affiliated with Redfin?

That’s the real question.

The way it looks to me is this will allow Rocket Mortgage to get into the pocketbook of the agent. I imagine most of us have been working with a preferred lender since we got into business. As for me, I’ve never asked for any sort of referral fee from my lender or my attorney. Our relationship is very reciprocal. What I’m curious about is how this will impact those of you who’ve been referring to Rocket Mortgage. How many agents who freely give Rocket Mortgage their business will continue to do so if they’re now not on the receiving end of those referrals?

With this acquisition, I’m curious—are you going to continue to refer to them if they now have an affiliated agent that they’re working with? Will this lead to more competition for those of us who are traditional agents?

Or will it bring more collaboration?

Or is this a move that benefits stockholders most of all?

Hit me up on Instagram, because I would love to hear your thoughts.

glenndabaker

319K followers

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STORY TIME WITH GLENNDA

Predicting Unpredictability

Something is afoot.

Typically at this time of year, we head into the spring buying season and that has been almost as predictable as the tides, literally for decades. Yet I have to tell you, while I have a ton of houses coming on the market, I’m not seeing the results that I would normally expect. Like, the houses I anticipated having a ton of showings are hit or miss right now. I have one house that is priced so right that I’d have expected cars to be lining up around the block for it, yet I’ve had only a handful of showings.

This isn’t normal.

It’s been my experience (having sold real estate since Jesus was a baby) that during those first 100 days of a new administration, there’s a foundation laid and the the building blocks start to stack up. Within about three months, I’ll have some sense of direction because I get a feel for what direction we’re going to take. It’s always a little bit of chaos in the beginning and I planned for that, as this isn’t my first election.

But right now, there’s an awful lot of uncertainty because things are getting dismantled quickly and there’s no certainty or clarity as to what we’re building yet. That part feels new.

Let’s look at it like this—let’s say you’re going to implode an old building to make way for something new. Before you ever get the go-ahead to blow up that old building, you have to go through the city and the county with your plans for the new property. You have to get approvals before you can demo that old place. Something must be in place before moving forward. In my lifetime, I don’t recall ever seeing a dismantling of a government without having a solid blueprint of what’s next first.

Honestly, I can’t speak to whether this is good or bad… and I’ll be honest, if they’re looking to dismantle the IRS, let’s definitely do that before my taxes are due in April. (In fact, let’s make that a priority.) What we’re seeing is a lot of uncertainty when it comes to everything from VA loans to FHA loans to consumer protections. People are concerned as to what happens after it’s all dismantled. Plus, I think we all expected interest rates to come down and they really haven’t. We thought the same for inflation. We expected business to be stronger and because we all have such expectations of immediacy, the market is having trouble catching its breath, leaving us all a little starved for air.

I mean, I am of an age where I appreciate that change takes times. But I have a child who is 23 and he came up in a generation where everything is immediate. His generation isn’t even used to just waiting for something to arrive in the mail. (Heck, I’m not sure he knows how to use the mail.) So there’s a false expectation of an entire generation that change needs to occur overnight and that’s adding to the collective stress.

When everyone has expectations of immediate change and they don’t see it, that creates uncertainty. For example, we currently have the faction of those who expected prices to come down and they haven’t. And there’s another group who expected prices to stay strong, and they haven’t quite done that either. So we’re in a place of stalemate, which is literally limbo and the first level of hell, where buyers refuse to pay what the seller wants and the sellers refuse to lower the price.

For example, one of my sellers says to me, “Glennda, I have 300 saves on my listing. Does that mean anything?”

I told him, “It’s translated differently for different properties. If it’s a dream property, like a $10M home, you probably have 299 saves on vision boards and 1 potential buyer. But for a normal house, one that isn’t pinned to everyone’s Pinterest, that means that 300 people have your house saved to their cart and they’re waiting for you to reduce the price.” They’re literally waiting for it to go on sale.

What goes along with this is that if the price is reduced too slowly, people become numb to the price reduction.

I know that what would move the needle so hard right now is seeing an interest rate below 6%. If I could get my buyers to 5.99%, no lie, I would have 90% of my listings sold. So I have been working with my loan officer, because if I can’t reduce the price enough to incentivize them, then I need to work with the loan officer to figure out what my sellers have to pay to get that interest rate, as it’s easier and more cost-effective for my seller to buy down the rate.

So I’m not defeated so much as I am getting creative. I guess where I am right now is that everything feels a bit chaotic because there’s no clear indication of the solution yet, but I have to have the faith that it will happen.

And if the short-term solution is me searching death certificates and divorce filings? Let’s just say I am never too proud to think outside of the box.

Now if you are sitting on some listings, don’t forget this piece of advice…

glenndabaker

319K followers

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🚨 Y’all, This One’s a Must! LIVE on 3/19 🚨

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GLENNDA’S GURU

Meet Steve Shull

Hey, y’all! I am so excited to share the conversation I had with luxury real estate coach Steve Shull, where we talk about the missing key to selling real estate.

Oh, my stars and stripes, this man is a legend, and I can promise y’all this—if he’s going to do it, he’s going to do it right. He went from the NFL (and the Super Bowl!) to getting an MBA to closing 53 transactions his first year selling real estate. So put on your listening ears, because you will want to absorb everything he says!

Thank you, Steve!

Today’s Words of Wisdom

GLENNDA BAKER & ASSOCIATES

The House on the Hill

I am over the moon on this place! There’s is just so much going for this serene dream of a home, just steps from the Chattahoochee River, which is on a golf course in an upscale neighborhood. This home is spacious, open, and full of light, and includes every amenity. Plus the primary suite is an oasis with its own private sitting area, it’s the perfect spot to unwind after a long day!