The John Gorrie — A Condominium

The former John Gorrie Junior High School presides over the intersection of College and Stockton Streets, and represents a winning acheivment in adaptive reuse. The former school, Named after Dr. John Gorrie who has blessed us all in Florida with the invention of the air conditioner, has been expertly and lovingly converted into a 68 residence condominium project. The property had languished unused at the aforementioned intersection, surrounded by a chain link fence for over ten years until Wayne and Delores Weaver (majority owners of the Jacksonville Jaguars NFL team) purchased it in 2009.

What followed was a complete renovation and restoration which resulted in 68 unique residences consisting of studios, and one and two bedroom condo homes, of which no two are exactly alike. All of the important defining historic characteristics have been dutifully preserved including large palladian windows, original flooring where possible, exposed brick, and vaulted, soaring ceilings. The staircases even maintain the small knobs on the handrails which in their day, prevented rambunctious students from sliding down.

Despite the definite historic attributes, the properties also feature modern conveniences and luxuries including Stainless Steel GE appliances, Cesarstone countertops, and gourmet kitchens. Natural light floods into the well proportioned rooms from the large expansive windows. Amenities also include a fitness center, private gated parking, resident reading room, and an original and private courtyard.

The residences must be seen to be fully appreciated, so call me today to arrange a showing. In order to secure representation from me and to obtain the benfit of working with a professional looking out for your interests, you must contact me prior to visiting the property. Otherwise, you will not be able to benefit from my negotiation and coordination services and will unfortunately, not end up saving any money in the process! Why pay the same for less?

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

Is It Possible To Receive Multiple Offers In This Market?

Yes! I see it every week. There is so much talk these days about buyer’s market this, and buyer’s market that – while there is some truth to this, I also say that it really depends on your perspective. Usually twice weekly, I encounter a house for sale that receives multiple offers within hours of being listed, and when it does sell, does so for over list – sometimes way over list! How can this be?

Well, it is interesting, but when houses are priced aggressively low in this market, it generates something that this market sorely lacks, and that is excitement. Buyers get excited and investors get excited, and excitement sells houses! Wouldn’t it be great to have people fighting over your house in this market? You can! If you price it and market it right, you can have your cake and eat it too.

It could be argued that this is perhaps the fastest way to arrive at a sale of your home for the full value that the market will support. I have seen houses sell in less than three days this way. It really works!

I Will Sell Your Home In 90 Days Or Less…Guaranteed.

Yes, I am offering a guarantee to sell any listing that I take within 90 days. So, if your home has been languishing on the market as a for sale by owner, it is time to take action and to move on with your life. Turn the proverbial page, so to speak.

I will prepare a detailed marketing plan outlining area sales activity, listing activity, and expired activity, and will take this information and pinpoint a price that will represent a strategic positioning in the marketplace. I will also consult you on staging your home, and on maximizing curb appeal. I will also recommend any repairs if needed. Finally, I will build a unique and specific marketing plan for your home which will include my highly successful “debut open house.” Contact me for further details concerning the specifics of my marketing approach to selling your home as this is proprietary information.

If my professional advice is followed, and if you as the seller cooperate fully with my marketing plan, your house will sell within 90 days…period. If it does not, I will pay you up to $1,000 at closing. That’s my guarantee.

Don’t Forget to look At The Big Picture

There is a couple that I have been in touch with over the past year that have had their house for sale by owner for at least that amount of time if not longer. I can respect their desire to try to sell their house themselves, and I am sure that they have their own personal reasons for wanting to do this, I just hope that the reason isn’t to save money on a commission – because that would simply be silly.

Think about it – if their house sold for $350,000, their commission would be about $21,000 at 6%.  Now some people might look at that and think to themselves “wow, that is a lot of money!” I would argue that such thoughts are the result of people not looking at the big picture. Lets take a look shall we?

Okay, the first issue is a simple one. With the limited exposure and inadequate marketing that characterizes most for sale by owner efforts, there is a much smaller pool of buyers to choose from when you choose to sell by owner. This results in fewer showings and lower offers, if you get any offers at all. When buyers approach for sale by owner houses, they are often in the mind-set of getting a significant discount as many times, buyers expect a discount to reflect the missing commission. The end result is simple; statistics from the National Association of REALTORS show that houses that do sell by owner typically sell for over 15% less than those listed and marketed by professional sales agents. In other words, agents typically pay for their own commission in the form of securing a higher sales price. That $350,000 house might only sell for $297,500 as a for sale by owner effort. So the owner might have saved $21,000 on a commission, but instead spent $52,000 as the result of a lower sales price. Doesn’t sound like too good of a deal does it? The truth is the vast majority of for sale by owner efforts never results in a sale at all! By far most of them eventually end up listing with a professional after wasting valuable time.

Speaking of time, this is the other very important issue. While the for sale by owner that I referred to at the beginning of this post has been trying to sell for over a year, they have still been paying a mortgage on a house that they no longer want. If they are paying $1,700 per month, they have spent $20,400 over the course of a year! How much are they really saving by not paying a commission when they are sitting in the house and paying the mortgage for months longer and probably eventually selling for thousands less? In the meanwhile, I have sold over 25 houses in that year! I don’t even list most houses for longer than 90 days as I expect to have all of my listings sold within that amount of time. This is a guarantee that I offer actually – to sell your home within 90 days. Sometimes, when people want to sell their homes, they just have to get out of their own way.

Sometimes though, the final thought of the commission is still objectionable. Again, “Wow, $21,000 is a lot of money! What a greedy agent!” It is important to keep in mind that this dollar amount is whittled down and that only a portion of this will go to your agent. If another agent is involved in the sale (90% of the time), then the other agent gets half of the commission. Of that half, the agents must further split this commission with the brokage, and then pay transaction fees and in some cases insurance fees. Finally of course, taxes need to be paid out of what remains. So, after it is all said and done, your agent may get somewhere around $5,200 in actual spendable income from such a transaction.

Get Ready To Take Advantage of Increased Buyer Activity!

As we head into the new year, 2009 is winding down. People will soon start taking down holiday decorations and start making new years resolutions. Another thing that will happen shortly is a definite and measurable increase in buyer activity. Yes, that’s right – after the new year,  more buyers will make the decision to enter the market. This activity will increase even more as people start to get their tax returns, and this is a great time to put your home on the market so that you can take advantage of this increased ativity.

Timing is a big and important part of the overall marketing effort as you attempt to sell your home. This is really one of the best times of year to sell. Contact me for further information about tips for staging, pricing, and presenting your home for sale, or simply visit my website which is loaded with all sorts of  free tools and resources. Don’t delay – time is ticking! (904) 382-7695. www.homesforjacksonville.com

And so it begins…

A new blog is born…..a blog for Jacksonville and Northeast Florida property sellers. No, make that Sellers with a capital “S.” Why? Well, because sellers hold the power in this market, even though you may hear daily on the news about the “fact” that we are in the midst of a buyers market.

You see, many buyers are a fickle and frightened bunch, and it takes a knowledgable seller to really master the art of buyer pursuasion and negotiation. How the heck does a seller become knowledgable? Well, by hiring the right real estate agent of course!

Sure, there are those who would sell their homes themselves and then “save” on the commission. Of course, if they are successful, oftentimes any money that they were able to spare on commission gets eaten up by a longer time on the market, lower sales price, and costly transaction mistakes. Think about how much money you are saving when you are paying an extra 2 or 3 mortgage payments than you otherwise might have to. Selling a home is a very complicated transaction with many, many intricacies. Do you know how to properly qualify a buyer? Do you know what your legal responsibilities are if you had a roof leak in the past, or if you have ever had a termite infestation? What recourse do you have if your home is appraised for less than the sales price? What happens if you refuse to complete buyer requested repairs? Do you know what loan seasoning is? What if the buyer  is only able to put a $200 binder down – do you accept it? Do you know what a binder is?  The list goes on and on.

Have no fear, Thomas Love is most decidedly here. Stay tuned for some mind churning, earth shaking real estate info for Jacksonville area sellers!

If you have any questions in the meanwhile, feel free to email me at tlove@homesforjacksonville.net or call me at 904-382-7695. Visit me on the web at www.homesforjacksonville.net