Flooring

My floors are done. They look great. There didn't have to be the crazy amount of drama that ensued but apparently some vendors just can't get it together the way they should without a nudge or a threat to the Registrar of Contractors. The number of Mrs. Sunshine calls I got today ("Mrs. Sunshine, I am just checking to see if everything met your satisfaction...") was five. Lowe's stepped up big-time. For that, I'm pleased. 

Would I recommend Lowe's for future flooring? The price was good, the work is warrantied, but the drama was beyond stupid. Honestly, I am not sure. Next week, when everything isn't so fresh in my head and my house is put back together I might say yes. Maybe. I have a low threshold for BS and lame excuses, so I also might say no. 

The flooring was important to me. It meant we have moved past the bankruptcy. It is proof that we are rebuilding our lives. 

Upheaval

Our flooring is half done. And... the crew that was supposed to put in the carpeting today walked out before they even showed up. 

In anticipation of them coming today, we cleaned out the six rooms they were carpeting. When I say "clean out," I mean we pulled most everything out of those rooms, including furniture, knick-knacks, electronics, etc. My office is spotless for the first time in 17 years, only because it is empty. All our worldly possessions are in the garage, front room, kitchen or on the back porch. 

Last night, Marty slept on my recliner chair in our bedroom (the bed was disassembled) and I slept on Buckaroo's spare mattress in the front room while Luna took over half of it. Unfortunately, she took the middle half, leaving me 1/8 on the remaining four sides. 

Marty did not work today--we had no Internet. I didn't work either. I was busy having big-syllable words with those carpet folks who picked up their phones. Those who didn't answer, got vague threats on their voice mails. Then there was a sweet scheduler in Clackamas Oregon that I might have upset. I really do feel bad about that. Maybe she shouldn't have told me it might be a couple weeks before they can get to me. Maybe I could have been slightly more understanding. But I wasn't. 

Our internet is back up. Our mattresses are down in our respective rooms. We have one working shower, as the other bathrooms are filled with furniture we didn't want to haul up and down stairs. Our clothes are still in drawers in the front room. The garage is a hoarder's paradise, with boxes and bookshelves scattered willy-nilly. 

Luna is loving all the extra attention. Finn is beside himself and is letting us all know how much he disapproves of this upheaval. Maybe I should've let him talk to the carpet people instead. 

Yesterday's Meeting

Yesterday afternoon, amid the three whirling table saws, electric sanders, a needy dog and wonderful texts from a friend I miss so much, I sat through this month's market data meeting. To be honest, my heart wasn't in the meeting. But there were a few takeaways: 

Historically, interest rates and home prices do not change significantly during a presidential election year--or even immediately afterwards. 

This is my fourth presidential election as a real estate agent. I have often heard folks on the fence, stating they were afraid of whatever the next administration might do. Therefore they don't want to make a move "right now." No worries. According to the folks in the meeting yesterday, it doesn't matter. 

Currently there are 3.85 buyers for every seller. 

There is no inventory. We aren't in a bubble because there aren't extra vacant homes out there. Essentially: supply is exceeding demand. Does that mean there will be a real estate slowdown at some point? Sure. 

But we need the folks from California to go elsewhere first. 

I Worked Last Week

I got a call from Evie last week. A few years ago I sold her a home. She now wants to sell that home and build. Could I help her? 

With nothing but a clear schedule in front of me, I met her last Friday at her hobby farm in the FAR Southeast Valley. Also, at Evie's request, I took a peek at her parent's home. They want to sell too. However they weren't there. Selling Evie's house will be much simpler than selling her parents--if I get the listing. 

Evie isn't doing anything about selling her home for at least a month. Her parents? Not sure how long that will be. 

After all that, I swung by Client-Steve's new-build to check on the progress. He is currently out of town, so I sent him a few pictures. As always, Steve was incredibly gracious and generous with his gratitude. I adore this dude. He is such a delight to work with. He said he will be in town this weekend with his pal, Patti. I am hoping for a chance to visit with them. 

However, as I write this, we are on day three of a major remodel project. Yesterday Umburto, the head of the remodel, gave me the news: they would be going on this all weekend. I could tell he wasn't any more excited to say that than I was to hear it. So I am not sure seeing Steve this weekend is in the cards. 

To give you an idea of "major remodel," yesterday I picked up chicken for lunch. Then Marty, Buckaroo  and I had a picnic on Polly's bed, using washcloths from the linen closet as napkins. Then we took our trash out the front door and around to the back yard to throw it away. We also brought the dog with us outside, so she could leave my bedroom and take care of business. The soiled washcloths were put in Polly's laundry. She wasn't home, as she has an aversion to jackhammers. And she was even less thrilled when she found out chicken was served on her pillow. I promised her we would change it up. Today's lunch would be served on Buck's pillow. Eventually we will have a kitchen/downstairs bathroom and possibly laundry facilities (the stove and washer/dryer are in the garage right now). But for now we are living a hoarder's dream as two floors of the home are fulling inoperable and all of our worldly possessions are either in the garage or shoved into the master bedroom (along with the dog and cat) or Buck's bedroom. 

Going Forth

This morning I sat through the Arizona Association of Realtor's classroom monitor training. It's a thing! 

In case you are paying attention, I was already doing this for the local association--where they pretty much just threw me into the fray and said "Go forth and monitor!" The state level association actually provides some training that boils down to, "Go forth and monitor." 

Anyway, I am now trained to monitor a class sponsored by the AAR in person or via video conferencing, where I tell the participants if they are late, don't have their butts in the seats, or are distracting they won't receive credit for the class. I would say that normally adults should be able handle such trivial instructions, but then again there are classroom monitors for a reason. 

Last Week's Realtor Consultation

Saturday morning, on his way to what is the equivalent of a 1920's speakeasy for stereo parts, my little brother swung by. My brother is an eccentric sort and he has eccentric friends--including a dude who makes his pals sign a non-disclose when it comes to where to purchase stereo merchandise. I was guessing the place is in some sort of abandoned missile silo in the middle of Box Canyon, just East of the Valley. But I am not sure, as my brother was sworn to secrecy. But, I digress. 

Anyway, Little Bro asked how my appointment with John went. Honestly, I wasn't sure how to answer. What I considered strange might not be what everyone else considers strange. And what y'all might find peculiar might be mainstream for me. To be fair, I was raised by political conspiracy theorists and there might be an ongoing drinking game my sibs and I play when a certain parent of mine says, "Trilateral Commission." 

Back to my appointment with John. 

John's mother passed away some time ago. John has been in the process (for the past three years) of cleaning out the property and getting it ready to put on the market. He is hoping to do so in the next week. Call me skeptical, but if it has taken three years to get this far, I am pretty sure shoveling out the place isn't going to happen in the next seven days. 

John also has a bit of analysis paralysis. He wants to bling-out the place. I tried to gently explain: just remove Mama's worldly belongings and clean the place (PLEASE!) and let's get a sign in the yard. That's all! Given none of those were a priority, I am not sure I got through on this point. I guess I will find out. 

But that's not all. John regaled me with stories about his own conspiracy theories, providing me with Web sites, ideas and--if I had an alcoholic beverage available--a fabulous drinking game. John is quite passionate about his opinion of the current state of world affairs and I am only sorry a certain parent of mine wasn't there to argue with him. That alone, would have been worth that lost hour of my life. 

For the majority of the time I spent with him, John didn't let me get a word in edgewise. I needed him to sign my agency form, so I waited politely while he talked about all of the above. And then, out of the blue and in mid-sentence, he just stopped talking. He suddenly reached for a pen, signed the form, unceremoniously escorted me out of the house and wished me well. 

I don't know if I will get this listing. I'd really like to help out John. He is a pretty nice guy. He is also a great friend to my brother. And frankly, I kind of get what John has been going through when it comes to dealing with his mother's passing. I understand the grief of losing parent (or in my case, a Bonus Mom). His conspiracy theories are interesting and don't really bother me. (Yet.) Perhaps if he is ready to list next week, he will call back. Or, perhaps when he escorted me from his home and slammed the door, that was it. I could see this going either way.  

 

It was a $500 Trip Charge

I think one of the big reasons I am burned out on the whole real estate thing is because of stories I just read on the AZ Realtor Forum--the super-secret Facebook site where agents can get together and work through issues. Here's the latest: 

This past Sunday (Labor Day weekend, mind you,) Mary went to show her vacant listing only to find out her seller's AC is on the fritz. The seller is out of state. Mary called her sellers to let them know this will need to be remedied. 

Now then, pop quiz time: who owns the house? The sellers. 

Who owns the AC? The sellers. 

Whose responsibility is it to get the AC fixed? The sellers. Even if they are out of town. 

However, Mary, who feels it is always right to go the extra mile, said she can be available on Tuesday to meet AC guy at the house, let the dude in and he can fix the problem. Of course, the sellers have to pay for this. 

But that wasn't good enough. Nope. The sellers demanded Mary meet the AC guy at the house Sunday  night of a holiday weekend--the earliest he could come is after 9 p.m., let in this stranger to a dark and vacant home where he will miraculously fix whatever is wrong and go on his merry way. 

Mary, who is night blind and lives miles away, asked if perhaps a friend or family member could do this. Otherwise, as she mentioned prior, Tuesday would work when she could meet the AC guy at a reasonable hour. The seller said no. She didn't want to "inconvenience" the neighbors or friends. The seller would rather pay the weekend charge and inconvenience her agent instead. 

Mary asked if she could put a combination key box on the property so the AC guy could let himself in. Nope. That was not an option. As far as the sellers were concerned, Mary was to babysit the AC guy in a vacant home late on a Sunday night. 

Here's where I get cranky. My attorney doesn't cook my food. My doctor doesn't fix my car. My AC guy doesn't cut my hair. They have boundaries. Most reasonable folks wouldn't think of asking the above to do any other tasks other than what they are paid to do. But clients expect real estate agents to be indentured servants. 

IT ISN'T MARY'S JOB TO SIT AT A VACANT HOME ON A SUNDAY NIGHT AT 9 P.M. TO WAIT FOR SOME STRANGER TO SHOW UP. And frankly, Mary should have set that expectation from the beginning. She is making it hard for the rest of us to look professional when she is willing to whore herself out. Pardon me, I'm annoyed. 

There are times I will do extra for my clients (remember Ruby the passive-aggressive standard poodle?). I've let in my fair share of vendors, at reasonable hours around my schedule, mind you. But I let my clients know it isn't part of my scope of service.

As agents, if we wish to be taken seriously, we need to stop trying to solve other people's problems and focus on what we are being paid to do. I understand this ruffles feathers of clients and agents alike, but it doesn't change the fact we have responsibilities and need to set boundaries.  

Gratuitous Blog Fodder

My youngest brother is an unusual sort of soul. Granted, he has sired one of my most favorite humans. Let's not forget that. And though I would rather tell you how wonderful my nephew is, this post isn't about the greatest seven year old to walk the planet. 

Actually this post it isn't about my brother either--other than he keeps interesting company. Case in point: when he and I were living together when I was in my early 20s, he had a friend who had "dreams" of serial killers using swords to cut off their intended's head. Friend shared with me his graphic dreams, smiling a drippy kind of creepy smile the entire time. Then he told me about how one serial killer in question has to jump dimensions to escape the authorities. But, no fear! This guy knows where he is hiding and intends to blackmail him. It was at that point, I sweetly asked Little Bro, not to have this wackjob friend back over to our house. 

Anyway, jumping ahead 30+ years, Little Bro has another friend, John, who I have only heard about for the past quarter of a century. I have suspected on a few occasions that Little Bro has purposely kept us apart, for fear of me initiating an intervention. 

Until now. 

And I might still initiate an intervention. 

Tomorrow morning, I have a real estate consultation with John. Though he seems perfectly nice and I (no longer) question my brother's taste in humans, there are still some major warnings about what kind of client John might turn out to be. I spoke to John on the phone for quite a long time yesterday. I can see that if I actually get to list this house, it will be a multi-step process complete with a drain on my sanity. Consider yourself warned. 

27 Books Since March

I Highly Recommend this Book

Here's the latest market data: there are currently 4,643 single family three or more bedroom homes for sale in Maricopa and Pinal County. Are you looking for a bargain? The deals of the week can be found in Kearny or Gila Bend where you can find gems (GEMS I tell you!) for under $100,000. By the way, they aren't the same bargains as last week. Somebody already scooped up those nuggets. 

Here's the least expensive home for sale in the City of Phoenix at $110,000. Great news! The house has a gas stove!  

Lesson Learned

Two interesting and probably related events happened last month in my world of (not) teaching real estate. First, because I was busy babysitting my nephew 8 to 10 hours a day, I did not audition to teach at the local realtor association. Honestly, I didn't want to handle the 15 minute audition through a zoom conference. Plus, watching/homeschooling a 7 year old is a lot of work and a lot more fun. 

My boss, Beth, is on the committee. I am too, but I didn't make the meeting for the same reason I didn't audition: Nephew. The next day, unsolicited, Beth sent me the following random text: 

"You are going to wish you auditioned yesterday. We had 2 auditions on Tuesday and they only had to do 15 minutes. Going forward all have to do the full three hours for an audition."

Let me just say, I don't see the committee sitting through many three hour auditions for potential teachers. And if they are willing to, the more power to them. I won't be sitting thought that or auditioning under those circumstances either. 

However, that brings up the second event: there has not been an invitation from Beth to teach this month or next. Honestly, that's ok too. 

Bloom Where You Are Planted

So as of today (Tuesday) there are 4,686 homes for sale in the Phoenix "metro" area. I wish to be really clear on that "metro" thing, because if you are looking for a bargain, plan on commuting from Kearny or Arizona City. 

In Maricopa County, there are 4,238 houses for sale (of the aforementioned 4,686 properties). Of those, only one is under $100,000 and that's in Gila Bend. Mind you, a balanced buyer-seller market is around 35,000 homes for sale at once. 

Lately, my advice for anyone who is itching to make a move is simply, don't. Stay put. And this is, my three friends, is why I am not working right now.