How Social Media Helps Sell Off-Market Deals

Contributed by Mitchell McCarthy – Principal Broker of Gotham Commercial

In today’s market, we are noticing that most sellers prefer to keep their listings “off-market” and would rather entertain offers from individuals that do not locate the property on the MLS.

A number of reasons for this include:

1.)  They do not want to sign exclusive listings with individual agencies

a.    Since most owners get multiple cold calls per week from all different agencies, they would rather let multiple brokers find buyers/investors to bring forth the best offer.

b.    With current inventory levels low, many brokers do not have the leverage to obtain exclusives and are therefore willing to shop around properties without a contrac

                i.      This allows sellers to tell many brokers they are interested in selling and will entertain offers only at a certain price.

c.     This creates problems for many brokers as they want to shop the property around, but at the same time do not have a contract in place to protect themselves.

Solutions: If a seller is adamant about not signing an exclusive listing, then we recommend you get a Single Party Compensation Agreement, stating that if your agency submits an offer that is accepted by the Seller, then the Seller is obligated to pay the procuring Broker a commission stated in the agreement.

2.)   Many sellers are afraid of putting their property on the MLS because if it is priced high and sits there too long many buyers believe the deal is stale and not worthwhile.

If you notice your agency has knowledge of a lot of “off-market” deals, we have found that social media is a very effective avenue to find buyers.

LinkedIn and Facebook: Join real estate groups and post that your company has off-market deals and to contact you directly for more information. Sit back and watch the emails come in. Once you find interested parties, provide them with the financial information and the rent-roll along with a   vague description of the area to determine if they are realistic buyers.

If they are interested and request the address, we recommend you have them sign a Non-disclosure agreement to ensure that they do not circumvent you after all the time and effort put in. Again, if the purchaser wants to submit an offer, make sure you have a single party compensation agreement in place with the seller.

Our goal as agents is to source exclusive listings so here are a few suggestions of what to tell a seller resistant to signing an exclusive contract:

1.)  Exclusive listings allow me to open up the property to my entire network of investors

2.)  MLS creates a bidding environment on your property, which can drive the price up

3.)  Cooperating brokers know what commission they will get if they bring a buyer, encouraging them to help find buyers

4.)  Exclusive listings allow us as an agency to spend money on marketing materials to properly display your listing

Real Estate Predictions: Multifamily will drive nationwide growth

Growth in California’s housing sector over the coming years is likely to be fueled by demand for multifamily from millennial buyers and renters. A report from UCLA’s Anderson School predicts a complete housing rebound in 2014, forecasting a 112% increase for housing starts from 2011 to 2014.

For full report: http://www.multifamilyexecutive.com/economic-conditions/housing-to–return-to-normal–in-2014–ucla-s-anderson-school-says.aspx

Add Value to Your Home

From a lick of paint to a complete home extension – here are 12 ways to add value to your home. The Gotham Construction team can assist you in all of these remodels and more. We may even be able to provide you with financing up front that can be repaid once your home is sold with our Construction on Credit program. We welcome all inquiries and look forward to serving you!

Rentals Riddle: How many hours do you have to work to afford a 2 bedroom in California?

California is the second-most expensive state for rentals, coming in right after Hawaii. According to recent reports, a worker must make $25.78 an hour to spend less than 30% of earned income to afford a two-bedroom home. Nationally, renters needed to earn $18.79 per hour.

For full story: http://www.latimes.com/classified/realestate/la-fi-mo-california-second-most-expensive-rent-20130311,0,1112423.story

Curbed University Cheat Sheet “How much house can you really afford?”

Curbed University has provided buyers everywhere with very insightful information to help you gauge how much house you can really afford. Here are our highlights:

• You can’t start the purchasing process with most sellers or real estate brokerages without loan pre-approval, so be prepared. You can get a quick pre-approval form your bank or credit union OR you can be thorough and go directly to your lender. Either way, you’ll need to fill out a loan application and submit supporting documents to prove work history, credit history, total debt, down payment, assets & investments, and residence history. Curbed has provided you with a full list.

• Once pre-approved don’t make any major changes to your credit, debt, or assets before you secure the loan. Tip: Lenders typically re-check your credit within five days of your home purchase closing.

• Two figures to consider: how much you can put down and how much you’re willing to pay a month.

• Standard loans generally require you to put 20% of the purchase as down payment. The less you put down, the more you’ll have to pay monthly with interest.

• Use a mortgage calculator to figure out how much you can responsibly pay each month to help determine your upper limit. Tip: Make sure your mortgage calculator includes down payment, mortgage rate, homeowners insurance mortgage insurance, and property tax.

• Calculate your own tax rate, MLS may be outdated if the house has not been listed in many years.

• Remember, the listing price is not the final price. The low inventory of available housing has been spawning bidding wars that drive up costs. Also keep in mind that an affordable house may need renovations, so these additional costs need to be considered.

The one tip that Curbed forgot to mention is the importance of finding a knowledgeable agent that will guide you through the process of financing, finding and falling in love with your dream home. That’s what our team of property experts do here at Gotham every day. Let us know how we can help you – Info@gothamproperties.net

Still have more questions? Ask away – ask.gotham@gmail.com

For the full article: http://la.curbed.com/archives/2013/03/curbed_university_how_much_house_can_you_really_afford.php

Gotham is a Proud Sponsor of Short Sale Expo 2013

The Short Sale Expo 2013 is coming to the JW Marriott in Palm Desert, California. The expo will provide education and networking opportunities to all real estate professionals through various educational courses and the most up to date short sale certification course available today. This expo will be attended by more than 1,000 agents, brokers, and servicers in the short sale industry.

Dates: May 3-4, 2013
Keynote Speaker: Josh Altman

REGISTER NOW AND SAVE $100!
For more information go to ShortSaleExpo.net

Just Leased: 8300 Grand View Drive

Congratulations to Dmitry Litvishkov on leasing this great property!

FOR LEASE: 4bd 9499 Cherokee Lane, Beverly Hills

3bd + 3.5ba remodeled home for rent unfurnished in lower bhpo with a 4th bd off the garage. Light and bright with numerous glass doors leading out to a grassy backyard. Updated kitchen with stainless appliances, living room with fireplace, master vaulted ceilings, spa tub, and walk in closet. Two separate garages allow an amazing amount of storage space. Great school district. Easy to show.

$7,500
Active
4 Bedrooms
4.00 Bathrooms
MLS Number: 13-647847
Presented By: Dmitry Litvishkov
310-709-4920
Email: dmitry.gotham@gmail.com

ROOMS:
Dressing area

EQUIPMENT:
Dryer, refrigerator, washer

DIRECTIONS:
1 block east of Coldwater Cyn or Sunset Blvd to Doheny Rd to Loma Vista Dr to Cherokee Ln.

1920’s Beverly Hills Building sells for over $1,000/SF

The 85-year-old Marian Building erected in Beverly Hills by Jack Warner in 1928 has just sold for $11.75 Million. The 2-story structure located at the corner of Little Santa Monica and Beverly Drive was originally built by Warner in the Golden Age of Hollywood glamour to house the Beverly Hill’s Chamber of Commerce. Now, the 11,000 square-foot building is in the hands of local Beverly Hill’s businessman, Behruz “Bruce” Gabbaia and a “well-known” restaurant will soon call the building home. Have any ideas what it might be?

FOR SALE: 20 unit Multifamily Investment Property Near Downtown

401 Witmer Street is a multifamily property consisting of 11 single units and eight 1+1 units. This superb downtown-adjacent location is minutes from L.A. Live, Nokia Theatre, Staples Center, and numerous shopping and dining venues. The latest developments in this area are adding to the already dense population of downtown in a very strong rental market. This property’s location is also very close to the Financial District, Koreatown, and Echo Park neighborhoods.

Property Features:
· Great condition with no deferred maintenance
· New copper plumbing
· New roof
· New gas line
· New water heater
· New, double-paned windows on some units
· Individually metered gas and electric

For more information, contact Mitchell McCarthy at (949)413-1998 or mitchell@gothamcommercial.com

For full listing: guests.themls.com/Details/CA/LOS-ANGELES/401-WITMER-ST/90017/13-653287.aspx