Housing Trends & Contract Failures
According to a recent report on National Housing Trends put out by the National Association of REALTORS (NAR), purchase contract cancellations caused the slip in residential home sales reported in June. Lawrence Yun, NAR chief economist, said, "Home sales had been trending up without a tax stimulus, but a variety of issues are weighing on the market including an unusual spike in contract cancellations in the past month." Yun further explained, it is unclear all the reasons why for the contract cancellations, but "problems including tight credit and low appraisals" are contributing factors. (REALTOR.org. Washington, DC, July 20, 2011).
While I agree with Mr. Yun, the other less apparent reason for purchase contract cancellations is the uneducated participants involved in the transaction. Now, more than ever, it is vital that you work with a REALTOR who is educated on the market in which they represent. The best way to find that REALTOR, is to look for the REALTOR with the highest sales volume. Experience goes along with high sales volume. Nationally, the average REALTOR sells only 7 properties per year.
Here’s a thought for you………… If you’re told that you need surgery, would you choose a surgeon who has performed the surgery 7 times or one who has performed the surgery hundreds of times? I know that I’d choose the latter.
When you’re interviewing a REALTOR to represent you, ask how many properties they have sold in the last 5 years. Then ask them to show you the sales. I can almost guarantee you, by selecting the REALTOR with the largest sales volume, your transaction will make it to the closing table and it WILL close.
