Here’s the real estate news you may have missed – October style

 

Are solar-equipped homes worth more?

Since solar power in homes is becoming more prevalent, listing agents working on CMAs should be able to answer this burning question about the real estate housing market. We helped you come up with an answer back in June with Do Solar Panels Increase the Value of a Home?

Another question we see frequently, however, is whether it’s worth it for a new homeowner to install solar – and we’re betting you get those questions too.

Rather than a blank stare, respond to them with a URL: google.com/get/sunroof. Powered by Google, your clients will be walked through a series of questions about their homes, get a power-savings estimate and – you guessed it – the name of a solar contractor in the area (a Google referral partner, no doubt).

This new tool only provides information helpful for the homeowner who doesn’t plan on moving. It won’t tell him or her whether the home is located in an area where solar power adds value to the home.

Not that you really need it, right?

Not too long ago, we at EAP offered up some tips for how real estate agents can handle the massive stressors in their daily business.

While we think we did a bang-up job rounding up stress-busters, we also know that sometimes stress snowballs until we find ourselves almost paralyzed.

If that describes you, maybe you need to talk to someone. Like a professional someone.

“There’s no shame in needing a doctor when you’re physically sick, but sometimes people think that mental illness should be hidden,” according to Dawn Brotherton, staff writer at TheAmericanGenius.com.

In a brilliant article, titled “Inexpensive Mental Health Resources for Real Estate Pros,” she lists some resources that may not have occurred to professionals in the real estate housing market. Your ACA insurance, for instance, most likely offers counselling benefits.

From locating low-cost services in your community to dealing with a bout of depression with self-help or motivational books, the article is worth a look.

Do I really need to tell you who wrote this story trashing the real estate housing market?

If you follow EAP’s monthly real estate news (and who doesn’t?) you’ll be able to answer that question.

The negative tone of the title for a recent article at MSNBC.com offers a hint of who wrote it: “Confidence matters more than mortgage rates in housing, and confidence just took a hit.”

If you guessed Diana Olick, you’re the winner.

She got it only half right, however. It turns out that her title reflects the opinion of Jeff Mezger, CEO of KB Homes.

There are two key drivers to the real estate housing market and, yes, one is consumer confidence. The other is mortgage rates and some may argue that the latter drives the former.

At any rate, one is certainly not more important than the other, despite what Olick claims.

But does it really matter when her entire premise is erroneous? Confidence overall took a hit, according to the University of Michigan’s August consumer confidence poll.

Consumer confidence in the real estate housing market, however, is all-time highs, according to Fannie Mae’s latest Home Purchasing Sentiment Index. Here’s the proof:

 

Other doomsayers quote new-home construction trends to justify their claims that people aren’t buying homes. “U.S. homebuilding fell for a third straight month in July,” leads Reuters.com’s Lucia Mutikani under a headline that claims the real estate market is “mired in weakness.”

She goes on to claim that declining mortgage rates haven’t “stimulated the housing market,” a statement that is just flat-out inaccurate.

Pending home sales are beating market expectations. And, last time I checked, pending sales are a leading indicator of the health of the housing market.

The point is, your potential buyers and sellers are susceptible to this gloom and doom reporting. Despite low interest rates, despite an increase in pending sales, they believe what they read.

So, we decided to help you out a little here. Check your EAP blogs because very soon you’ll be able to post what we hope will counteract the falsehoods and negativity about the real estate market being promulgated across the internet.

Keep an eye out for “Here’s what you need to know about the current real estate housing market” and localize it to fit your market’s conditions. Then share it – far and wide.

You’re welcome.

If real estate marketing ideas are evading you at the moment, we’ve got you covered. Here are 200 ways to get more leads this month.

 

Ready to put a fall spin on your website? Here’s how you get a great looking website in 5 minutes: