By: Judy Huntsman
GREATER SPRINGFIELD BOARD OF REALTORS®
My year as Multilist President is winding down, but we still have some hot topics to work through together as a board. Effective November l, 2009, we will be an all BROKER LOAD board!! For many of this it is very exciting, as we see what a great advantage it is for us to offer instant information online for our sellers as their listing comes to the marketplace.
From a buyers standpoint it will also be advantageous, as you can be visiting over a week-end and that “just right listing” may crop up on a Saturday afternoon. Many of you brokers and agents are fearful that you’ll make a mistake .. you probably will and so will I, but we will make a pact to conscientiously remind one another when we’ve entered something in error.
For those of you who were NOT advocates of this new program, please bear with us– as you’ll find you’re going to like it and the freedom and flexibility it gives you to offer instant services to your clients!
SHORT SALES ARE A DILEMMA!! We are having a “Broker Only” meeting at the Board office on November 5th @ 8:30 AM. It seems the lenders have taken over how we report these sales (or the lack of adequate reporting) and buyers are stacked up on several homes – some buyers may or may not know that there are other offers being considered.
A personal experience of mine last week was in showing two “short sales” in a fairly new subdivision. The buyers were limited on time and we had tried to reach the agent before showing. Once we were inside the two homes and liked both of them, we were able to reach the agent only to find out that two separate offers had been signed by the seller (subject to lender approval), and they were “probably” both sold. It was an hour and a half out of my day, but more importantly my customer’s day.
The real losers in this situation are the buyers (multiple buyers on any given home), who are all in hopes of “winning the home.” Since we have as of this past Tuesday, l0/27/09 a l0.2 month inventory of homes, it seems to me we can, as a group of brokers, figure out a way of reporting these short sales UC or UCC so that the ‘extra buyers’ could then move on to another one of the hundreds of homes available. BROKERS, please try to attend the meeting on November 5th @ 8:30 AM.
The board staff will be more than happy to assist you in the introduction of Broker Load. If you have questions call the board office, and if you have complaints call me.
Judy Huntsman, MLS President
417-887-6664
jhuntsman@coldwellbanker.com