Well it hasn’t been quite the beginning of the year I’d hoped for. Anyone who tells you making money in real estate is easy has probably been doing it long enough to have a very solid client base and steady stream of new business and referrals. Last year was my best year in the business. I won the Lincolnshire Sales Office’s Sales Achievement award for the second year in a row. Granted my 2007 was abysmal, and 2008 was more about gaining momentum and catching up with the pack. 2009 was stellar. I closed $3.68M and had more fun doing it than I can remember in all of my ten years so far. I met a lot of great people and was fortunate to have been prepared when opportunity presented itself.

The market has shifted slightly this year. Most notably has been a decline in the sense of urgency that first-time homebuyers had before November 30. The tax credit extension and enhancement haven’t had that much of an effect according to the sources I observe. What I’m seeing now is the result of the foreclosure sell-off of 2009, a slight increase in values, but conversely the “quality” factor of the homes in the first-time buyer range isn’t what you’d expect based on last year’s inventory. There are also a lot of homes for sale around Lincoln under $130,000 that should be selling but just aren’t for one reason or another. I’m seeing a lot of homes that have deferred maintenance, water problems, and the compounding effects of neglect and apathy. There are a lot of vacant homes on the market and this Winter has been especially hard on the inventory.

The good news about anyone wanting to list their home this year is that the competition is very well defined and it’s easy to tell someone where they stand with regards to price and condition. Homebuyers nowadays are very aware of the Cardinal Rules of buying a home: Condition, Location and Price. I can’t tell you how important it is to keep up with regular maintenance and not be afraid to do one or two projects per year that protect and increase the value of your home. Today’s market is very competitive and sellers can no longer get away with clean, neat and organized homes. Sellers today have to be up-to-date with fresh paint, floor coverings and kitchens and baths. Vinyl flooring from the 70’s and 80’s is a deal breaker for a lot of buyers, and since the home selection is improving, sellers without the means to update their homes will end up losing the price battle and paying more to sell their homes in the long run.

Lincoln is unique. If you’ve followed any of the National media concerning quality of life and best places to live and all that, then you’re aware that Lincoln scores high marks in a lot of the categories people look to when consideration a relocation for one reason or another. Lincoln is also unique because of the soil type and maintenance issues that are caused by Type III Soil, which is heavy in clay and causes buckling in foundation walls due to poor percolation and drainage. This time of year is when we find out how well our basement walls have held up to record snow falls over the Winter and surely to be followed by substantial rain. Since I have an older home, I’m very aware of foundation problems and the steps that need to be taken to keep my basement dry during this time of year.

Last year I had the unfortunate experience of a failed footing along the Southwest corner of my foundation. My neighbor to the South had excavated their driveway to pour a new slab. In doing so, the soil compaction around that side of my house was disturbed and the ground shifted. The result is a settling crack that’s as wide as 3/4″ in some places. I still haven’t decided how to fix the basement wall but the immediate solution to keeping the water out was to add soil around the foundation and improve the drainage. A couple wheel barrows of dirt was all it took to keep things dry the rest of the year. This year I hope to have the wall fixed before the rest of my door jambs and windows start to show signs of a failed footing. The minor drywall cracks have been spreading and the weak points in the structure are becoming clearly evident now that the house seems to have stopped settling. I’m lucky to say that none of the selling clients I represent have structural problems or latent defects. I just need their homes to sell so they can move forward with their next round of life changes.

2010 may not be starting out the way I wanted, but things could be worse. I could be unemployed or in jail or in foreclosure. I owe the IRS more money than I’d like to admit, but that only means I had a good year last year. And if things continue to improve the way they did last year than I’ll probably be just fine as the year progresses. Keep me in mind if you know anyone looking to buy or sell real estate.

 Posted byJohn Janovy