by markjohnson | Nov 15, 2019 | JPAR, Keeping Current Matters, Real Estate
Many sellers believe spring is the best time to put their homes on the market because buyer demand traditionally increases at that time of year. What they don’t realize is if every homeowner believes the same thing, then that’s when they’ll have the most competition.
So, what’s the #1 reason to list your house in the winter? Less competition.
Housing supply traditionally shrinks at this time of year, so the choices buyers have will be limited. The chart below was created using the months supply of listings from the National Association of Realtors.
As you can see, the ‘sweet spot’ to list your house for the most exposure naturally occurs in the late fall and winter months (November – January).
Temperatures aren’t the only thing that heats up in the spring – so do listings!
In 2018, listings increased from December to May. Don’t wait for these listings and the competition that comes with them to come to the market before you decide to list your house.
Added Bonus: Serious Buyers Are Out in the Winter
At this time of year, purchasers who are serious about buying a home will be in the marketplace. You and your family will not be bothered and inconvenienced by mere ‘lookers.’ The lookers are at the mall or online doing their holiday shopping.
Bottom Line
If you’ve been debating whether or not to sell your house and are curious about market conditions in your area, let’s get together to determine the best time to list your house.
by markjohnson | Nov 14, 2019 | JPAR, JPAR News, Real Estate
In a recent announcement by the Dallas Morning News, JP and Associates REALTORS® was awarded the #6 spot out of 100 Dallas and Fort Worth best places to work. Additionally, this is also the company’s fourth year in a row to be recognized as a top 10 recipient. Having been recognized for a multitude of milestone achievements this year including its rapid growth, JPAR continues to provide an attractive culture for its staff and agents across the US.
“For the fourth year in a row, our company has been recognized as one of the top 10 most desirable places to work in the DFW-Metroplex,” said Giuseppe ‘JP’ Piccinini, Owner/Founder, JP & Associates REALTORS®. “That’s really saying something. I am humbled and honored to see our staff and associates recognize our culture, which we relentlessly focus on improving each year. Growth and expansion do not have to come at the expense of culture, and we are committed to a culture in all that we do.”
For the Dallas Morning News, it was the 11th anniversary of the award. Nominated in the Top Large Companies category, JP & Associates REALTORS® solidified their top 10 spots alongside other reputable businesses in the DFW area, such as Edward Jones, the Gaylord Texan Resort & Convention Center, and T-Mobile.
“Consistently growing year-over-year is not an easy task,” said Mark Johnson, CEO of JPAR’s company-owned stores. “However, by providing a culture in which our staff and agents enjoy and continue to prosper, we remain an ideal choice across multiple industries. Our team does not focus on merely exceeding the expectations of our customers and clients, but also, to one another.”
JP & Associates REALTORS® (JPAR) is known for their acclaimed culture revolving around productivity and service. It is no wonder JP & Associates REALTORS® has gone from the #1 independently and privately held brokerage in Texas to the fastest-growing 100% commission brokerage and franchise in the USA, as well as ranking as the 50th brokerage worldwide for home sales by REAL Trends. In 2018, JPAR trademarked the term “Exceeding Expectations™,” relentlessly going above and beyond for both their agents and clients. Now franchising across the USA, JPAR Franchising is set to take the USA by storm after entering 9 new states in its first six months.
JPAR operates multiple offices across Alabama, Texas, Louisiana, South Carolina, North Carolina, Georgia, Arizona, New Mexico, and Florida, is expanding nationwide, and offers franchising opportunities for entrepreneurial real estate professionals.
To learn more about becoming an agent or franchising visit http://www.jpar.com.
by markjohnson | Nov 13, 2019 | Best Practice, Goal Setting, JPAR, Mindset For Success, Real Estate, Success, Success From Scratch, Sucess Goals, Top Agent, Top Producer
In this episode of Success Superstars, Lacy Rushin shares how the organizational skills she learned while teaching proved to be practical in her transition of running a real estate practice.
Lacy explains how mastering emotional intelligence sets the tone for the client relationship and avoids unnecessary tensions. Lacy also lays out how her first year was all about self-empowerment and setting up “3 basics” for her business.
“My leadership approach is modeling and inviting my clients to have this experience with me. It’s all about the client experience. ~ Lacy Rushin, JP and Associates REALTORS®
Now available on the go: listen to inspirational stories on all podcast platforms including Apple Podcasts, Google Play, Spotify, just search ‘Success Superstars’ anywhere you listen to your favorite podcasts.
by markjohnson | Nov 11, 2019 | Freedom, Mindset For Success, Productivity, Real Estate, Service, Veterans Day
In today’s blog, we honor our veterans, those that have served us in preserving the freedoms we enjoy. President Franklin Roosevelt spoke about four freedoms: the freedom of speech & expression; the freedom of worship; the freedom from want and the freedom from fear. I’m reminded on this Veterans Day, that all the freedoms we enjoy don’t come without a cost.
What can learn from those that serve and how can we apply those learnings to our real estate practice? American Express, in their Open Forum, interviewed 18 veteran business owners who shared the lessons they learned in the military that has led to business success. They are summarized here:
1. The Power of Intense Focus
2. Teamwork
3. Adaptability
4. Superior Decision-Making Skills
5. Resourcefulness, Flexibility, and Persistence
6. The Ability to Harness Processes and Procedures
7. Extreme Discipline
Focus
The ability to silence distractions is a critical business skill that allows us to quickly assess situations and identify solutions that yield positive outcomes.
Teamwork
In order to achieve a mission, the military teaches that it takes a team watching each other’s backs while doing their individual best.
Adaptability
In the military, if something stays the same for too long, it starts to feel strange. You’re constantly moving to a new base, changing roles and deploying to different locations. In private business, change is also constant, especially in companies like ours that strive to be ‘innovative and growth-oriented’ and continuously look to improve.
Superior Decision-Making Skills
All leaders would love to make decisions with perfect information, but that never happens. In the military, you learn to trust your ability to make decisions under pressure using what information you have available. Then you adjust as the situation warrants. Situational awareness is a skill learned in military service.
Resourcefulness, Flexibility, and Persistence
Veterans learn to pivot on a moment’s notice from plans that aren’t working to plans that are. When you are faced with the challenge of getting a job done without access to the resources that would ideally be available, one of the greatest skills you gain is an uncanny and nearly unparalleled ability to independently solve complex tasks with little to no guidance.
The Ability to Harness Processes and Procedures
In the military, everything is built on the fundamentals with a process and a procedure. We would never be able to progress to conducting night live-fire exercises if we weren’t able to shoot, move and communicate during the day. You don’t just hop into a plane and take it off the ground. There are many checks and safety inspections that have to be done, and a responsible pilot has to be accountable for all of it.
Extreme Discipline
Starting and running your own business is the most all-consuming thing you can do. Running on little sleep, having a no-quit attitude and preserving until the end is all attributes I can trace back to the military culture and training.
There you have it, 7 key skills that we can learn from Veterans. Which ones can you apply today to #WinTheDay.
by markjohnson | Nov 8, 2019 | JPAR, Keeping Current Matters, Real Estate
No one knows for sure when the next recession will occur. What is known, however, is that the upcoming economic slowdown will not be caused by a housing market crash, as was the case in 2008. There are those who disagree and are comparing today’s real estate market to the market in 2005-2006, which preceded the crash. In many ways, however, the market is very different now. Here are three suppositions being put forward by some, and why they don’t hold up.
SUPPOSITION #1
A critical warning sign last time was the surging gap between the growth in home prices and household income. Today, home values have also outpaced wage gains. As in 2006, a lack of affordability will kill the market.
Counterpoint
The “gap” between wages and home price growth has existed since 2012. If that is a sign of a recession, why didn’t we have one sometime in the last seven years? Also, a buyer’s purchasing power is MUCH GREATER today than it was thirteen years ago. The equation to determine affordability has three elements: home prices, wages, AND MORTGAGE INTEREST RATES. Today, the mortgage rate is about 3.5% versus 6.41% in 2006.
SUPPOSITION #2
In 2018, as in 2005, housing-price growth began slowing, with significant price drops occurring in some major markets. Look at Manhattan where home prices are in a “near free-fall.”
Counterpoint
The only major market showing true depreciation is Seattle, and it looks like home values in that city are about to reverse and start appreciating again. CoreLogic is projecting home price appreciation to reaccelerate across the country over the next twelve months.
Regarding Manhattan, home prices are dropping because the city’s new “mansion tax” is sapping demand. Additionally, the new federal tax code that went into effect last year continues to impact the market, capping deductions for state and local taxes, known as SALT, at $10,000. That had the effect of making it more expensive to own homes in states like New York.
SUPPOSITION #3
Prices will crash because that is what happened during the last recession.
Counterpoint
It is true that home values sank by almost 20% during the 2008 recession. However, it is also true that in the four previous recessions, home values depreciated only once (by less than 2%). In the other three, residential real estate values increased by 3.5%, 6.1%, and 6.6%.
Price is determined by supply and demand. In 2008, there was an overabundance of housing inventory (a 9-month supply). Today, housing inventory is less than half of that (a 4-month supply).
Bottom Line
We need to realize that today’s real estate market is nothing like the 2008 market. Therefore, when a recession occurs, it won’t resemble the last one.
