I got an article in my email inbox this week titled “Meghan Markle’s Marital Home Before Meeting Prince Harry Might Surprise You.” The article went on to show pictures of a house we sold at 447 S Highland in January 2020. This house is actually the first house I ever sold, representing the buyer, when I got my brand new real estate license almost 15 years ago. Those same buyers were the owners who sold the house last year. It was purchased originally as an investment property and it was leased right from the time it was purchased to a production company. Meghan Markle’s boyfriend at the time worked for the production company and Meghan would stop by to visit her boyfriend at work. The bathrooms were remodeled in 2019 for the sale, after the production company stopped leasing the space. The house was definitely never Meghan Markle’s marital home. Lately I got several inquiries from people asking if facts they read in the media about houses we sold were true…and each time there were so many reported facts that were not true. It would be cool if I was asked both if it’s ok to share, and also if the information about to be reported is the truth. Obviously it makes most sense to respect people’s privacy and to ask before reporting, and if the information is not private, to make sure that everything reported is the truth. It’s not interesting for the public to read facts that aren’t even true.
I found out today that Timothy Enright, a fellow respected real estate agent, recently passed away. In his striking black Rolls Royce and starched white monogrammed shirts with cufflinks, Tim was a presence. Professionally, especially on the spectacular houses he flipped, Tim was a credit to our profession. Somehow Tim always managed to know every sales price and the details around every house that sold in the neighborhood – both on and off market – and he was generous about sharing his intel with others. Like me, I know that so many of our colleagues will truly miss Tim.
In the olden days before Covid, buyers would rarely ask to see a house by private appt and they would all spontaneously show up to tour either Sunday or Tuesday during the three hour open house window when the house was open anyway. Back then I thought it was because people wanted to stay anonymous and not to sign up and to get phone calls or communication for feedback after their showing. What I’m learning now from experiencing all showings by private appointment is how much more efficient it is to see houses during open house hours. Because there are no set open house hours now during Covid, when a buyer wants to see all the houses for sale at a price point, and we call the agents to schedule showings, every agent has a different day and time available to show the house they represent. So sometimes a buyer can be asked to see houses every day of the week at all different times if the houses are represented by agents with busy schedules. Having a system in place where every available house is absolutely open every Sunday and every Tuesday for 3 hours makes it easy for buyers to see every house and to schedule their time efficiently. Even now in Covid when we’re showing houses by appointment, it would make so much more sense for every agent to reserve the same 6 hours of the week to have a host at each available house – like we used to do pre Covid – so buyers can see all the houses consecutively by appointment without so much scheduling. We’re going to brainstorm to see if there’s a way to go back in that direction.
There are so many more buyers than houses available to buy right now. I think in the 90036 zip code, there are no houses for sale under 2 million dollars at the moment. Interest rates are still low and loan products are super attractive. For those who are still thinking to move, now might be a nice opportunity to cash out.
Have an awesome week!
Xoxoxo,
Sheri
