What can you buy in the $300,000s?
This home listed for $335,000.
See more at https://VirtuOpen.com
Videos
Vegas Airport Trick
If you fly on airlines at all, you’ll want to check out today’s video to learn a fantastic trick to avoid the hassle of layovers and connecting flights. You might even have some extra fun along the way!
Video TranscriptPrescott Lakes (Brookside) Home Sold for $730,000
What can you buy in the $700,000s?
This home sold for $730,000.
See more at https://VirtuOpen.com
U-Box
One of our clients tipped us off to a great program for movers with smaller quantities of stuff – U-Box! Tune in today to find out why it might be better than a traditional mover and whether it’s right for you.
Video TranscriptPrescott by the Numbers – April 2024
Some seasonal action is driving prices and inventory higher, a bit faster than last year… so good news for both buyers and sellers!
Click Here –> Free Access to the Pickle Page
To get the Full Home Value Report,
the Latest Home Comps, and
Top 100 Subdivision Snapshots,
Click Here –> Get Latest Pickle Reports
Dead Bodies
Arizona laws regarding the disclosure of deaths or other unpleasant past events in a home’s history can differ from those of other states. Check out today’s video for a rundown of what’s required, what’s not, and how to handle it as either a buyer or a seller.
Video TranscriptEvent Calendar – May 2024
Prescott Lakes (Pinnacle I & II) Home Sold for $1,075,000
What can you buy in the $1,000,000s?
This home sold for $1,075,000.
See more at https://VirtuOpen.com
Super Scams
Scammers are getting more and more clever – it’s no longer enough to ignore emails from Nigerian princes. Folks in the process of buying or selling a home are particularly susceptible to some of the latest scams. Tune in today to learn our best tips on how to avoid becoming a victim!
Video TranscriptPrescott (Stone Haven Townhomes) Home Sold for $385,000
What can you buy in the $300,000s?
This home sold for $385,000.
See more at https://VirtuOpen.com
Boudoir Photos
We’ve talked about depersonalizing your home when getting ready to sell. Today we tackle one of the most – ahem – personal types of art, and what to do with it when getting your home ready for buyers to tour.
Video TranscriptPrescott (Yavapai Hills) Home Sold for $780,000
What can you buy in the $700,000s?
This home sold for $780,000.
See more at https://VirtuOpen.com
Real Estate Lawsuit #2
As promised last week, we’re going over what the National Association of Realtors’ lawsuit settlement means for sellers, both short-term and long-term. It’s pretty simple… but also very important to know!
Video TranscriptPrescott by the Numbers – March 2024
More inventory, flat prices.
Click Here –> Free Access to the Pickle Page
To get the Full Home Value Report,
the Latest Home Comps, and
Top 100 Subdivision Snapshots,
Click Here –> Get Latest Pickle Reports
Real Estate Lawsuit #1
You may have heard about the upcoming lawsuit settlement that’s been touted in the national news as a major upset to the home-buying process. Tune in today to find out what the changes really mean, and how they will affect you.
Video TranscriptDiana Randall bro that’s us we want to
say hello to our many friendly and happy
and we love them preset pickle peeps
that’s right we love you guys if you’re
not a preset pickle peep hopefully you
will be soon yeah we hope so spring of
sprung spring of sprung I’m wearing my
spring clothes I have my new little
speaker by yeah yeah we had a couple of
comments that uh sound could be better
so we’re working on that so this is for
you yeah so uh we are here today I’m
sure a lot of you have heard in the
national news about the fabulous n
lawsuit yeah yeah love it love it love
it so the lawsuit’s been bacing for a
while now and then out of the blue n
which is the National Association of
Realtors that’s right they uh proposed a
settlement which looks like it’s going
to be approved and will go into effect
in July that’s right and so we wanted to
talk about what means what that means to
buyers what that means to sellers before
we go into that though just saying you
said the national media you know you you
see well that’s true that is that is the
key Point National media don’t get
hysterical folks yeah you know you see
you you see news stories and most news
stories you’re reading the news because
you don’t know about the topic uh but
every now and then you know a lot about
a topic and it’s in the news and you get
to see firsthand how bad the news is
excuse sked oh just skewed and
completely over the top and inaccuracies
and speculations provided as fact and ju
just horrible so uh just a warning uh
even even outside of real estate uh our
our national media is really broken so
just so you know that so if you’ve read
anything that’s particularly scary
chances are you you’ve been the victim
of our national media that’s right we’re
not Running Scared as a realtor yeah we
are not we are fine we are calm cool and
Collective yeah yeah things will be
addressed and changed and yeah so uh
some of what we’re going to say is our
speculation as well and I want to say
this is fact this is where we think
things are going the facts are in the
settlement uh number one is that buyers
will have to sign a buyer agent
agreement with their Realtors employment
agreement employment agreement so for
you coming in in July
get ready you will have no choice it
won’t be us making the rule it won’t be
the State of Arizona it will be a
national it’ll be a national thing we
cannot open a door for you unless we
have a written contract and that will be
true of all real estate agents no one
will be able to open the door unless
they’re under contract with you so uh
just be you know a lot of times people
come in they’re really anxious about
signing things we will share in advance
every everything you need to all the
forms you need to know and what they
what they mean why do you have to sign
them before you come in uh because we
don’t like people to sign things that
they don’t know they don’t know what it
means uh but just be aware that everyone
all agents will force you to do that
change is a foot change is a foot change
is a foot and this is unfortunately
something we don’t have any control over
or any other agent yes it will be
required by law yes so so honestly don’t
shoot the messenger don’t shoot the
messenger honestly from our point of
view this is a good thing uh because
people can come in and say I don’t want
to sign anything then we spend days and
days and months and months helping them
find the home and then once they find
the home that they like they can just
reach out to the listing agent and say
oh I don’t have any representation so
I’m cheaper so you know I’m going to
come at a lower price now that has that
has not happened very many times to us
maybe a couple of times uh but it is out
there uh I know other agents in other
areas of the country uh get that a lot
and if you try to get people to sign a
contract so they can’t do that to you
well this other agent’s not making me
sign so I don’t want to sign yours
either well now all the agents have to
sign that’s good it makes it a more even
playing field we all will be in the same
position and we all will require that
from any incoming buyers yes so if you
are a buyer coming in town don’t wig out
don’t get nervous don’t be like what
does this mean it will simply be like
you will sign that you will agree to
work with us and there will be a certain
commission rate discussed and don’t
Don’t Panic it’s it’s standard well part
of the reason why this was driven by the
doj is just they want people talking
about commissions and negotiating
commissions more than they have been uh
and they have a point I guess there were
some Shenanigans in Arkansas which is
where this lawsuit started of course
there are a lot of sellers who really
had no gripes but they’re raising their
money in the class action suit for free
money uh the big winners are of course
the plane of attorneys who will walk
home with hundreds of millions of
dollars uh the the sellers and Arkansas
probably got maybe a grand or two each
sure all of this driven by that the
other thing is uh in MLS you can no
longer advertise a commission for the
buyer agent which to me I think is funny
because it used to be all that has to be
revealed you better reveal that it
better be in there and now suddenly you
can’t say anything say anything I’m like
okay I’ll do whatever you tell me to do
yes we’ll do whatever the rules say so
that is not to say that sellers don’t
can’t pay uh the buyer agent commission
they just can’t advertise it as such now
what they can do is they can say we will
offer two and a
half% uh towards buyer closing cost at
Clos of escrow which is basically the
same thing so there’s a huge loophole
there in some here here’s my take on
what that’s going to mean in across the
country in presat it’s not going to mean
much here’s why if I put a sign outside
uh for sale sign in front of a home in a
city like Phoenix I’m going to get
people calling me I’m gonna get agents
calling me I’m going to get buyers
calling me I will have plenty of buyers
just off the sign just having it in MLS
buyers will contact me that doesn’t
happen in presc the number of sign calls
I have received I could count on one
hand that’s right and that’s because
three three that’s it in the whole time
we’ve been doing maybe three calls uh
that doesn’t happen here because the
vast majority of buyers are coming from
out of town so Buyer Agents have to go
out and find these people and talk them
into moving to preset and then find the
subdivision because they don’t know the
city at all right then they got to find
the Home you know so Buyer Agents do a
lot of work here and if the only thing
the Buyer Agents do here and some this
is all they do they bring the buyer if
that’s all they do that’s value added
for our sellers so I don’t think things
are going to change very much in presc
just because and our commission rates
have recently gone down with price
appreciation uh was going through the
roof commission rates did go down so
they were responding to Market forces I
really don’t think they’re
overpriced um I really don’t think it’s
going to affect us much now in areas
where buyers are a dime a dozen and
they’re you know you know thousands of
we call nephews you know uh uh agents
who essentially do sales for the one or
two houses one or two houses for in
house to help their family help their
family or whatever and they generally
don’t know what they’re doing you know
yes yeah those people have always been
overpaid and they’ve been benefiting
because of the system they will probably
get drummed out uh at least in the
markets yeah we shall see where the
where the uh buyers are easy to find but
you’re dedicated buyers agents like we
are
um we really for us it’s not just
opening a door and showing you a house
we like to build a relationship with you
as the buyer yeah uh usually we become
good friends long after the fact um we
like to be so present for our buyers
we’re not just doing a house tour and
then I never talk to you again yeah I’ve
got people who call me can you recommend
a good trust attorney can you recommend
a good handyman can you help me I need
to sell something uh what are some good
doctors we we are so full service it’s
um yeah and we it’s almost exhausting
yeah yeah and we also get involved with
our buyers very early on in the game
it’s not like we wait until someone’s
ready to buy and then we talk to them we
will take you on a buyer tour long
before you’ve made up your mind you’re
coming to presc it and we will stay in
contact with you until you buy and then
after you buy we get calls from past
clients all the time asking us about
this or that of the other thing we have
a lot of yeah we have a lot of buyers it
takes them a year a year and a half to
finally pull the trigger oh yeah um and
we are happy to hang in there with you
because it is a huge decision yeah it’s
a lot of moving parts and we just try to
really help you along we try to remember
how we felt when we moved here from
Texas so we get it we get it and we want
to hold your hand the entire way yeah
it’s not just showing you three houses
or giving you a map and saying oh drive
by and let me know what you think now
we’re with you together till the end my
friends together till the end so when
you hear about all this and um don’t get
rattled don’t be like what does this
mean for me it really doesn’t mean a
whole lot we’re gonna we’re gonna work
this out you may be thinking yeah we’ll
work this out you may be thinking oh now
they can’t they can’t promote uh they
can’t advertise the commission so now
I’m going to get stuck paying the
commission a lot of potential buyers are
thinking that yes well the the short
answer is you always were paying the
commission because the commission was
coming out of the purchase price and the
purchase price had that built into it
had been adjusted correct so in the past
the seller always paid both sides seller
and buyer now it’s going to be like well
the buyer will pay for the listing agent
but the buyer’s agent will have to will
have to negotiate that with the buyer
yeah and like he said the price that was
always all commission for both sides was
always built in yes long ago built in
into the price of the the selling price
so this is nothing new it just it just
felt different yes so you you know that
instead of the price being fully loaded
including all commissions the
commissions may or may not be part of
that number you just got to do the
arithmetic but I really don’t you’re
talking a shell game in the end there’s
correct there’s only so many dollars
involved and I I really don’t think that
number is going to change very much
particularly for markets like ours where
Buyer Agents have to earn their keep
yeah we work hard we work hard yes we do
so please don’t get rattled if I see you
in the summertime and I say hey we got
to have you sign this it’s not me it’s
the law um understand why and how that
started and where this is coming from um
it’s nothing we’ve done we’ve always had
people sign the last year and a half
we’ve always had people sign employee
agreements and everybody’s pretty chill
with it we’ve been kind of doing that
anyway we’ve been doing that anyway so
nothing’s really changing except for
that now it’s going to be law so that’s
the way it rolles so don’t get rattled
uh we’re still here for you we’re still
here to give you full full service as a
buyer agent uh educate you on what our
town is about educate you on different
neighborhoods what they all have to
offer HOAs taxes Etc that’s right we’re
here for you absolutely we’re here for
you so anyway just want to give you a
little heads up in case you’ve been
hearing about this in the national news
uh God knows we’ve been hearing about it
everybody’s calling us so we thought
time to make a video and let you know
this this will be negotiated and worked
out yes and life will continue on As We
Know It This is not earth shattering
despite with the national despite with
the national
news it’s all going to be good folks
it’s all going to be good you’re still
going to get excellent representation on
the seller and buyer side um we just
have to readjust how it’s going to be
approached absolutely and uh our next
video next week we’re going to talk
about how this is going to impact
sellers there you go yeah chances are if
you’re buying you’re also selling so you
might want to look for that one coming
yeah so today was just talking about the
buyer side of it um there will be
different approaches taken absolutely
and concessions made that will still
address uh the buyer uh commission but
in a way that will still be fair and
yeah and Equitable uh but just a little
different than how it was done in the
past yes so don’t freak absolutely don’t
freak I’m not freaking we’re not
freaking I’m not freaking we’re not
freaking at all we love our people we
love to give our best that we can to all
of you and that will never change and
that will continue forward regardless
absolutely so anyway so that is our
little info for the day check us out
next week to hear about the lawsuit and
seller side that’s right so uh anyway we
enjoyed sharing this little info with
you and can’t wait to see you we’ve got
a couple people coming in yep y can’t
wait let’s make it happen spring has
sprung the buying season’s on let’s go
people now’s your time get out here and
get a fabulous house while you while
it’s still out there yeah right
absolutely because uh volume’s a little
low yeah the good ones are getting
snatched up inventory is low so yeah
inventory is low things are getting
snatched up like that so all right we
hope to see you soon here in our lovely
Town love to show you around check us
out at pickle 411.com that’s our free
information site whether you’re a buyer
or seller somewhere in between there is
something that will Amaze astound and
inform you so don’t miss it and
hopefully just make you laugh and make
you laugh that’s what it’s all about
mostly make you laugh we just want to
have a good time absolutely all right
see you later and hope you have a
fabulous day bye
bye
Event Calendar – April 2024
Prescott Valley (Granville) Home Sold for $450,000
What can you buy in the $400,000s?
This home sold for $450,000.
See more at https://VirtuOpen.com
Planetarium
Have you ever noticed that giant golf ball over at Embry-Riddle and wondered what it was?
Tune in today to find out what’s inside, and what it can teach you about the Prescott night sky.
Video TranscriptPrescott (Ponderosa Park) Home Sold for $480,000
What can you buy in the $400,000s?
This home sold for $480,000.
See more at https://VirtuOpen.com
The Local
Whenever a new restaurant opens, we try to be among the first to make it in to try it out. We have been dreadfully slow this time, but let me tell you…it was worth the wait!
Check out today’s video to get the scoop on the food, the furnishings, and the al fresco at The Local.
Video Transcript