okREblog - It’s All REALative

Yes, it’s an age-old question, and one that’s debated often.  I like to just throw out the facts on certain situations and let you decide for yourself.

Case in point: Seller calls me a few months ago and asks me to provide them with a CMA (comparative market analysis).  I do so, and meet with them to go over my findings.  I showed them the analysis to back up my knowledge that their home will sell for around $230,600.  I can’t guarantee that number, but my track record backs up the fact that I’m usually within $1,000 of being correct.

So, a few months go by, and they sell their home FSBO for $221,500.  Sounds like they came out pretty well, right?  They sold the house for about 96% of what I could have/would have sold it for.

Now, consider this; they paid 3% to the agent who brought the buyer.  So, in essence, they got 99% of the amount they would have fared with my services.  They did all the work and took on all the expenses of marketing, phone calls, showings, etc, and likely paid more in fees than they would have with me, because of the volume I do.

So, the question is, did they come out ahead?  What do you think?

There’s one topic that always seems to be hot in the minds of anyone looking to move to Oklahoma.  Maybe it starts when we’re kids, watching the classic ‘Wizard of Oz‘ or maybe it’s the images on the news, and the unknown that fosters the fear.  Whatever the cause, it seems that almost every buyer I’ve ever worked with, who’s relocating here from out of state, has had a very healthy fear of tornadoes.

It’s actually the second thing out of their mouths many times.  “How are the schools here” is often followed with “Does this house have a tornado shelter?”  I can’t say I blame them.  It’s probably the same apprehension I’d be feeling if I were moving to LA, after seeing earthquakes and riots on the news for all these years.

Truth is though, tornadoes aren’t nearly as frequent here in Oklahoma as it may seem from the outside looking in.  Sure, every spring is ‘Tornado Season’ and we get the buzzing watches and warnings on the screen about every day or two, but more times than not, we get false warnings, or alerts from out in the sticks.  Let me put it this way; I’ve lived in the metro area my entire life.  Of that 29 years (OK, I lied, it’s 36 years), I’ve been in the crouching position during a tornado twice.  One other time, I got in the car and headed South, far from the path of the impending twister.

See, that’s the beauty of the whole thing.  While Oklahoma is known for severe weather, which includes tornadoes of course, our warning systems are the most advanced in the world.  Did you know that the National Weather Service is actually headquartered in Norman, Oklahoma?  This state is actually the crème de la crème when it comes to meteorologist work.  The weather guy you watch on TV each night probably dreams each night about landing the BIG job in Oklahoma.  Anyway, because of that, we have the best meteorologists, and the best actual tornado detection systems in the world, so we have plenty of warning almost every time.  From what I’ve seen, the more fatal twisters are usually in areas that have poor detection systems, so nobody has time to prepare.

So, here’s the deal; I’m not saying you shouldn’t fear tornadoes, and I’m in no way a weather expert of any kind, but based on my experience, I can tell you that if you live out of state, you probably have it built up much worse in your mind than it is in reality.  A healthy fear is good, but don’t let it scare you too much.

So, on to the fun part.  I love wikiHows.  I learn a lot from keeping up with them, and I stumbled across one today about how to prepare for a tornado.  I thought this would be a valuable thing to share with you, my readers, just in case you’re ever caught in one.  I hope you find it useful, but never actually have to use it, and I hope I’ve helped calm at least a few of your fears of twisters.

Consistently improving on your home is one of the best investments you can make.  Nothing makes your home more appealing to buyers than shiny new things.  Pretty surfaces, modern technology, and up-to-date decor will bring out the checkbooks every time.

Sometimes these improvements can really get expensive though, so when it’s an option, consider the DIY way.  Personally, I enjoy do-it-yourself projects.  They allow my creative side to come out and demolition is a great way to take out some frustration!  The real benefit in the DIY approach though, is the savings.  It’s estimated that about 70% of all home improvement expenses are the cost of labor, so if you have the time and the abilities, why not save that 70% and increase your ROI even more?!

Here’s an informative wikiHow on installing kitchen cabinets.  I hope this helps, and you’ll find that I post a lot of this kind of information, so subscribe to the blog or the newsletter and before you know it you’ll be remodelling your entire house…  What a great way to spend your weekends!