New National Ad from the Mother Ship

Home

Hold on, to me as we go
As we roll down this unfamiliar road
And although this wave is stringing us along
Just know you’re not alone
Cause I’m going to make this place your home

Settle down, it'll all be clear
Don't pay no mind to the demons
They fill you with fear
The trouble it might drag you down
If you get lost, you can always be found

Just know you’re not alone
Cause I’m going to make this place your home

Settle down, it'll all be clear
Don't pay no mind to the demons
They fill you with fear
The trouble it might drag you down
If you get lost, you can always be found

Just know you’re not alone
Cause I’m going to make this place your home
(Phillip Phillips)

Looks like the Mother Ship was able to use its mass collective to buy Phillips very catchy and popular tune, "Home".

It fits. I like the tune and approve of the message. I even feel a little bit of pride that our marketers at the national level had their wits about them enough to make that song our own. This song does work with a real estate link.

First time home buyers are lost. Whether they know it or not -- if you have never purchased a home: it is not like buying your new truck. Yes. It is about your ability to secure a loan but after that it is about how you see yourself living in your own house. How are you going to go from house to home? What makes these four walls "HOME"?

I like first timers.

"Hold on, to me as we go
As we roll down this unfamiliar road
And although this wave is stringing us along
Just know you’re not alone
Cause I’m going to make this place your home"

I like the idea that I have been chosen to be their guide to Home Buying 101. I lay out the project, step-by-step, brick-by-brick and I'm prepared to repeat it over and over and over and over again. I have a tried-and-true method to help you decide. The biggie? I always ask: "Can you see yourself living here?" I'm sure this is no secret question; I'm not freeing the feline from the burlap.

Home buyers have to deal with what they want verses what they can afford. Making it work for them. Any home buyer has to do this whether the budget is $30,000 or $300,000 or $3,000,000.

Everyone wants to get the most bang for the buck. No one wants to pay sticker price, everyone wants to know the lowest the seller will go, and everyone wants to sail smoothly to the closing table. My duty to my client is to find the lowest price that is mutually acceptable so everyone feels good about the deal -- I like everyone to have that win/win feeling. I want my buyers and the sellers to become friends! Stop snickering at my PolliAnna moment: This does happen with my clients. Closing day should be one of the happiest days of your life!

There is a lot of stress involved with finding a home. You should be excited and nervous. You should preview a lot of agents and you should pick on that makes you feel less stress. You are hiring me to help you find your new home. Just like sellers are doing with every listing presentation.

"Settle down, it'll all be clear
Don't pay no mind to the demons
They fill you with fear
The trouble it might drag you down
If you get lost, you can always be found..."

So...first time home sellers? Ohhhhh...very different story. By the time you're an owner and want to sell your house? Why, you have a whole different prospective -- some think they can do it all by themselves and reap huge savings. Okay...let's look at that: I've read the For Sale By Owner website. You have to pay to get some service there, now don't you? I, on the other hand, don't get paid until I do what I've contracted with you to do: Sell Your House. Something I know how to do. Something I do fulltime.

((Did you know about 70 percent of my commission stays in the local economy? Something to think about especially if you work at a job locally. As in, more money that stays local feeds an economy where your job is supported so you don't get a lay off notice.))

Like I said: I like to make everyone at the closing table feel like they are getting a good deal. I am serious about this win/win attitude. If I get a hint of an attitude from the seller like they are going to try to hide or "sucker" someone into buying their property? I walk. That's right. I fire them. Life is too short.

Sellers should be nervous, too. Sellers have a lot of legal required forms to fill out and fill out honestly  --  and they are required to fill them out and hand them over to buyers whether or not they are represented by a realtor. That's right. If a seller can't prove disclosures were presented? Well. Now. As they say: "Houston, we have a problem."

Sellers who are just DIY because they want to NOT pay commissions run the risk of doing it wrong without knowing they are doing it wrong. Heck. I run that risk, too. That's why I carry a type of malpractice insurance called, what??? Errors and Omissions. Leave something out because you didn't know you were required to do it? As the lawyers say: ignorance of the law is no excuse. Ta da...I have insurance for that. Omit something that you KNEW? Oh...well....as George Takei would say, "Oh myyyyyyyyyyyyy."

You might also want to view this transaction from a realtor's POV. I get the listing? It goes in the local MLS service (Egyptian Board of Realtors or EBOR) where helpful EBOR-angels offer mindful, gentle, soothingly worded hints to make changes if I've gotten anything wrong...on penalty of fines and sanctions from the board. Yowzers. That's right...I have the EBOR police to deal with because there are rules and laws about this stuff. ((Remember those disclosures? Remember that E&O insurance I carry? -- EBOR Police -- yep.)) Yowzers! Again: "Oh myyyyyyyyy."

Also once I get your listing, fill out all the proper paperwork, glide past the EBOR without penalty, then I have an admin/asst in the office who will chase me down for even more paperwork, initials and permissions so our paperwork is correct in the office in case the state comes in for an unannounced audit. Yep. The Great State of Illinois with its infinite power cares deeply about whether or not I have initialed page 4 of the Radon Awareness statement. I don't know about you....but I'd rather the state find my papers in order. Talk about "papers please" laws! Yowzers. And again: "Oh myyyyyyy."

"Just know you’re not alone
Cause I’m going to make this place your home"

Yes. I wholeheartedly agree with the Mother Ship's choice of "Home" as our theme song 2013. Everything to do with home buying and selling has gotten more stressful and complex. You shouldn't have to go through this alone. You shouldn't depend on grandpa, your Uncle Jake, your mom's friend from work, your cousin's hairdresser or on your own. You do need a professional who takes it all seriously; gives you all his/her attention, hears you when you speak, pays attention and respects your dream.

Because a good realtor can make your dream a reality. If you choose me, I'll make sure we have fun during the process. "Oh myyyyyyyyyy."