The agents at Tomson Burnham, llc are happy to share their opinions about everything related to real estate in our local area. We are agents that cover Marion and Polk county, and we are full-time real estate agents.
Now I know that some of you think a buyer’s agent is there to help you assess whether or not a home is the right one for you, but really…you need to watch this video to see what top notch buyer agents do for their clients. Forget permits, flood plains, and zoning issues…nothing beats this…
Crummy real estate agents. You may have had one, or you know someone that did. US News & World Report wrote an article about how to tell if your agent is a crummy agent. There wasn’t anything particularly new about the information, but I am surprised at how many people hire crummy agents. 1) Communication-if…
I read a blog today by Frank Llosa who coined the term CRA- Comparative Realtor Analysis. Most people know about CMA’s-those Comparative/Competitive Market Analysis that we do for clients. I liked the term because I have done what he was talking about in his blog before. What Frank talks about is looking at how an…
I was reading the Inman News today and was struck by an article. The article talked about a survey that was completed by VHT Inc., which provides marketing services to real estate professionals. I was interested in the results not because of the obvious correlation they found but because of one of the outcomes of…
First of all you need to know that I really dislike puffing. Agents know the term puffing: it’s what some agents do when describing a property. Stunning views! (yes the mountains are great, but what about 50 junky cars that my neighbor has on their property right below that view) or handyman’s dream (ie please…
Real estate is easy…just work 20 hours a week and you’ll make millions! Seriously. Just make sure to hit up your mother’s sister’s cousin’s best friends and you have it made. You see those houses on the lake? You can HAVE one of those, just sell real estate. The road to real estate is easy…
I’m hearing this on a lot of forums lately by consumers. “How do I fire my agent?” “Can I change Realtors?” “Agents suck.” (okay no one really said this one, but that is what the poster really meant) The fact is that you are paying someone a lot of money to provide you a service.…
Karen Webster recently wrote about the agent responsibility act that is going to be effective in Michigan starting July 1, 2008. What this law does is require people to check a box indicating they understand what services they are not receiving. This law came about due to the concerns that consumers really did not understand…
Recently on a forum , a consumer posted this question: Our realtor broke her end of the contract, so now should we? She went on to talk about the situation. When I picked our realtor back in August, I felt she was the best woman for the job because everywhere you go, you see…
Like many honest agents, I lose some business to other agents that make outlandish promises. “I can sell it for $1,000,000 more than any other agent.” “I’ll have multiple offers for you within 24 hours.” “I will hold an open house for you every weekend.” I always wonder why sellers often choose Pinocchio over a…