I was very excited to see the article in the Wall Street Journal titled, ‘How Green is My Realtor’. So were a lot of other people I know, seeing that 4 people e-mailed it to me and 3 copies were placed on my desk at Village Properties. I am so proud that the EcoBroker® program is getting press and more and more agents are signing up for it across the country.As a member of many green organizations here in Santa Barbara, (Green Building Alliance, USGBC C4 Chapter member, Architecture 2030 Challenge board member, Built Green at the Santa Barbara Contractor’s Association, The Plan Santa Barbara group, co-founder of SB’s Green Drinks and helper of the Sustainability Projects yearly adult ed courses) plus the first EcoBroker® in Santa Barbara, I feel that I am pretty green but like everyone else I can be a lot greener! I have several green built and or LEED certified listings hitting the market in the next few months…please stay tuned for details! It is great to see more and more people embracing this way of living. Of course in the current market, or at any time for that matter it is important to stand out. Having my EcoBroker® certification has really helped with that as has the fact that I obtained it well over a year ago and that I believe in and love what I choose to do for a living. Personally I am in the beginning stages of research for a remodel of a house here in Santa Barbara. I purchased ‘Green Remodeling For Dummies’ book written by Eric Corey Freed and have been learning more about the differences in insulation, water heaters and choices in paint, appliances and construction waste solutions. I highly recommend this book… Thank you for sending me this article and I look forward to seeing more front page coverage about this very important topic. Hopefully the phrase “green built” will be unnecessary one day in the not too distant future and all building will be done with sustainability in mind. To read the whole article, click here.

Last week we (Elizabeth Wagner & DeAnn Bauer) hosted another great Green Drinks event here in Santa Barbara. The location was the Pierre Lafond Bistro on State Street which was a perfect location and many thanks to Anne Marie Costura for setting up the event. Farmer’s Market customers and vendors were bustling by outside, a TV free zone inside with great lighting and art welcomed our 40+ guests throughout the evening. Plus the food was delicious, all organic and made by executive chef, Josh Keating formerly of the Clift Hotel in San Francisco. Since starting the Santa Barbara Chapter of Green Drinks we have had the pleasure of meeting so many wonderful, community involved, dedicated people. From professors at UCSB, to students looking for a job when they graduate, to small business owners, hair dressers interested in working for a green salon, to Realtors/EcoBrokers meeting the people that make this town tick. Contractors, architects, graphic designers, land use planners, TV producers…the more the merrier all having a drink after work and sharing ideas. Thank you all for making this monthly event so great. Next month will be hosted by Hayward’s on March 18th from 6-8pm. Come on down or e-mail santabarbara@greendrinks.org to get on the evite list.

I have worked with many property sellers and have found some common misperceptions about selling a home.  To help you get top dollar for your home and in the shortest time possible, I thought I would share these common real estate myths with you…

 I will save money by selling my home myself

It is tempting to attempt to sell your home yourself to save on Realtor fees.  However, what most “For Sale By Owners” quickly realize is that the majority of qualified buyers are working with Realtors and are not purchasing homes where there is no representation to protect their interests.  Moreover, those buyers who will buy directly from an owner often expect the owner to pass on any commission savings to them.  Because of reduced exposure and a more limited buyer pool, those owners that try to sell themselves are usually unsuccessful or end up selling at such a reduced price they end up netting less than they would have if they paid a full service Realtor commission.  In fact, a recent study by the National Association of Realtors estimated that the median selling price of homes sold by their owners is 16.00% less than those sold with the help of an agent.

 We can try this list price and if it doesn’t sell we can always reduce

While this statement is true, it implies that there is no harm in this strategy which is a false assumption.  The number one mistake that I see home owners make is to overprice their homes when they first come on the market.  Almost every buyer who looks at a home asks “how long has this home been on the market?”  Therefore, real estate listings are like day-old bread, they actually go down in value the longer they sit on the market.  To illustrate this, let’s consider two houses that are worth approximately $1 million.  Seller A decides to list his house at $1,050,000 hoping that someone will pay more than $1 million for it.  Seller B lists his house at $995,000.  Seller B is likely to receive a full price offer (or with multiple offers an over asking price offer) at great terms, and relatively quickly.  However, Seller A is likely to sit on the market as his house is perceived by buyers as being over priced. After, say, a month on the market Seller A decides to reduce his list price to $995,000. But now that he is listed where he should have started, he is no longer a “new listing” and he receives offers at $975,000 or lower.  In this example, “testing the waters” cost the seller $20,000 or more.  I have seen this happen countless times and in some cases it has cost the seller hundreds of thousands of dollars.  Remember that the houses that sell at or close to the list price are the ones that sell quickly. Because you only have one chance of being a “new listing” it is critical to list the property at the correct price from the very start.

 We are in no hurry to sell our house

This is usually a reason given to list a house at a high price.  Where it is always great to be in a position where you don’t have to sell your house, as the previous example illustrates, a house that sits on the market for a long time because it is overpriced ends up selling for less in the long run.  Buyers usually perceive that there is something wrong with a house that has been sitting on the market for a long time.

 Someone can always make us an offer

I often hear frustrated sellers of overpriced homes lament that they are having very few buyers look at their home and that no one is making them an offer, even a low one.  It is important for sellers to remember that prospective buyers are “comparison shopping” and they are viewing and making offers only on properties that they perceive are the best values for their needs. 

 I don’t want to make improvements that a buyer won’t like

Obviously the condition of a property affects its market value.  However, home owners often hesitate to make improvements to their home prior to selling it for fear that they will be wasting money.  I often hear “I want to let the buyers choose their own carpet.”  Yet new floor coverings and paint are usually two of the best investments a seller can make prior to putting their house on the market because they cover the most square footage and are visible in every room of the house. When a buyer sees out of date carpet and walls that need paint, they often have the impression that the entire house has been “let go.” Even a house that has out of date kitchens and bathrooms look a lot better with new flooring and paint.  It is not uncommon to see a seller receive $4-$5 back for every $1 spent on paint and floor coverings.

 I am going to list my house with the agent who tells me he can get the most money

When interviewing potential listing agents, it is human nature to like the one that suggests the highest list price the best.   I strongly recommend never selecting an agent based on their suggested list price.  Often times an agent will give you an overly optimistic recommendation just to secure a listing and then will later ask you to reduce your price. In fact, in the real estate industry we call this “buying a listing.”  When interviewing agents, focus on what they will do to market you property and ask them how they go about properly pricing a property.  Again, selecting the wrong listing price, even if it was recommended by an agent, can cost you a lot of money.

 All agents offer the same service, so I am going to choose the one that charges the least

By law, real estate commissions are negotiable and different agents offer different levels of service and have different commission rates.  The agent you select is responsible for creating the greatest demand for your property by implementing an aggressive marketing campaign designed to expose your property to the greatest number of potential buyers.  As the saying goes, you often “get what you paid for” and spending a little more money on the right agent may end up netting you more money from your sale through a significantly higher sales price. 

My name is Elizabeth Wagner and I want to congratulate you on your decision to build or remodel in a green way.  Thank you for taking the initiative and doing the research to make a difference in our community.  I attended the Green Homes Tour last year and was thrilled to see so many people exploring the selection of homes that the owners generously opened up to the public. 

As a Santa Barbara local who grew up on a ranch on Refugio Mountain, I have always been interested in environmentally friendly building practices.  Our ranch has its own well, a wildflower planted sod roof, Chinese chain rain collectors, recycled redwood decks, a wind generator and solar panels and many other green practices.  This way of life interests me so much that I have incorporated it into my business practice as well as my day-to-day living.

Professionally, I am a Realtor with Village Properties and I am proud to work for a locally owned company that contributes so much to our community.  I am Santa Barbara’s first EcoBroker®, which is a nationally recognized designation in the real estate industry.  This way of thinking and doing business demonstrates my lifelong commitment to the environment and to my clients by further educating myself about green practices and ideas.  Santa Barbara continues to be a front-runner of various green movements that community members initiated and took a pro-environmental stand years ago.   As a child of the baby boomer generation, many of whom are becoming first time buyers, I do my best to educate and influence buyers and sellers in their green home choices and projects.

There is very little new building in Santa Barbara and most of my clients purchase a house that fits most (or some) of their needs and then remodel.  Many homeowners, especially first time buyers or first time green remodelers have questions about how to redo aspects of their existing home and I have noticed throughout my career that the first people that they call are their friends for referrals and/or their Realtor for the inside track on what others have done and whether or not they were pleased with the work.

Please take a look at my website: www.SantaBarbaraEcoBroker.com to learn more the green real estate niche that I am developing.  I am currently revamping my site to incorporate more about being an Eco Broker and the benefits of green.  I appreciate your giving me the opportunity to prove that I love what I do, have a solid work ethic and am highly professional.  Please let me know if you have any questions.  I look forward to helping you with all of your future real estate needs.