It’s time to help the original nice guy
Don’t you think Realtors have a bad reputation? We rate right up
there with used car salesmen and lawyers. You just don’t hear
Realtor jokes because we’re not funny.
I admit that before I became one, I never much thought about
Realtors at all. When I did, I had some vague impression that they
were highly competitive and that the industry had a lot of
back-stabbing going on.
It’s time to help the original nice guy
Don’t you think Realtors have a bad reputation? We rate right up there with used car salesmen and lawyers. You just don’t hear Realtor jokes because we’re not funny.
I admit that before I became one, I never much thought about Realtors at all. When I did, I had some vague impression that they were highly competitive and that the industry had a lot of back-stabbing going on.
Actually, nothing could be further from the truth. I’ve worked with other Realtors for over a decade and they are like any other pack of humans. Some are smart, some are slow. Some are nice, some are nasty. Some work hard, some are lazy. But they’re no different from my fellow workers in the worlds of architecture or education.
Like any other social group, we circle the wagons and help when one of us is hurt. And so I have a story to tell.
Many of you know Dave Baumgartner. If you don’t know him as a Realtor, you know him as a member of Rotary or Oriana Chorale or as the emcee at a Chamber of Commerce or San Benito Community Foundation event. His daughter, Lisa, grew up in Hollister, graduating from San Benito High School in 1984. She went on to Chico where she met Earl Mitchell. They fell in love, married in 1994 and moved to Reno, Nev. Their daughter, Morgan, was born in 1996, followed by Kendra in 1998.
Kendra was born with intestines that were not fused. By the time the problem was detected and corrected her liver was destroyed. She had a transplant that was successful. But then she was found to have an unrelated birth defect that required surgery again. She is now healthy.
But Earl had been experiencing headaches, one of which put him in the emergency room in April this year. Doctors found a large brain tumor. During surgery for removal the doctors found it was an aggressive form of glioblastoma multiform. The life span expectancy for Earl is somewhere between one year to five years.
Though the family remains optimistic that Earl will respond well to treatment and a cure will be found soon, he is currently unable to work. Medical bills from both Kendra and Earl continue to mount up. Earl is in good spirits and though he still has times of forgetfulness and confusion he is steadily receiving radiation and chemotherapy.
Whoa, doggies! Isn’t that a gut-wrenching story? How would you react if life dealt you that hand? Imagine your feelings if you were Earl, or Lisa, or one of the two lovely young girls. I don’t know about you, but it makes my heart hurt just to think about it.
David’s fellow Realtors are pitching in to help, and you can, too. There is a benefit golf tournament and dinner at San Juan Oaks Golf Club scheduled for Sept. 28. You can find all the information you need to know by calling Marcella, our executive director, at the board office at 636-4605. But all donations are gratefully accepted by the family at San Benito Bank, Account 0191265593, 300 Tres Pinos Road, Hollister, CA 95023 or 1-800-595-7100.
If you would like to follow along with Earl’s progress, or leave an encouraging message for the family, visit www.caringbridge.org/visit/earlmitchell.
Switching gears here, let’s look at this week’s activity in San Benito County. There were 19 new listings, and 31 listings were pulled from the market due to cancellation, expiration or withdrawal of the property. There were price reductions on 34 properties.
But the bad news is there was only one contract signed for the 453 homes on the market. Yoo-hoo! Buyers, where are you? This is the optimal time for you to buy. First time homebuyers and investors can benefit from this market.
Some potential buyers are sitting on their hands because they’re afraid to buy now. After all, the prices could continue to go down.
Let’s look at the reality. The only time you realize a gain or a loss on a piece of real estate is when you sell it, correct? So if you’re planning on holding on to a property for five years or so, you really don’t have to worry: Real estate is always cyclical. A few years ago buyers couldn’t find a home to buy. Multiple offers were the norm. No one could imagine a time when there was so much inventory. Now we are awash in beautiful homes, staged and packaged, ready to go with motivated sellers. If you don’t act now you’ll find yourself in conditions much less conducive to your financial benefit.
When changes happen in real estate, they seem to open overnight. It’s as if a magic signal is given, unheard by the masses, that causes the shift in perception and opens the floodgates. Then we’ll all be sitting around saying, “Who knew? I should have bought back in 2007.”
Talk with your Realtor. See what great opportunities exist for you in today’s market. And if you feel sorry for yourself in today’s market, remember Kendra and Earl and Lisa and Morgan. In fact, you might want to write a check for them right now.
And be kind to your Realtor!
