Today's Marketing Award

1435 N. Fairfax #18 (90046)
$399,000
1BR / 1BA
No sq ft listed

On Market: 288 Days

Fabulous DONE top floor gem off the Sunset Strip. Sunny, rear, quiet corner unit w/ outside entry. Totally redone w/ designer details. Bamboo floors. Newer kitchen w/ Caesar stone countertops & stainless steel appliances. Sleek bath w/ glass tile & countertop. Frosted glass doors, recessed lighting. Built-ins in the bedroom w/ lovely views of the hills. Sparkling pool & convenient to shops, cafes, & entertainment! Very clean & well maintained bldg w/ low HOD's. Listed 2007 for $489 -Such a deal!

Sold: 11/97 - $45,000

Sold: 2/98 - $51,500

Sold: 3/00 - $101,000 (Are we paying attention? This was less than 10 years ago. Plug your 5% appreciation onto this number ...)

Sold: 7/05 - $370,000 (a triple in 5 years, sounds about right ...)

Listed: 8/08 - $399,000 (no price change in 8 months ...)


Now, I don't get the sense that small 1BRs are necessarily appealing to the audience, but this listing caught my eye - and there are a number out there with a similar approach.

SERIOUSLY, now ... there has been a lot of comment discussion over at SMDM recently about Realtors (remember to emphasize the "real"!), most of it not very nice. I personally believe that there is a small, core group of agents who actually know the market, are ethical, and try to base their clients (whether buyers or sellers) in reality, depending on the market. Then there's the other 90% who passed their multiple choice exam during the bubble years, worked a few hours a week making some quick bucks, all the while answering "I'm not sure" to sellers' questions about a property, 'cause hey, who cared? You'd be getting multiple offers anyway - time to buy the Porsche.

The deflation of the bubble still has a long way to go, and when all is said and done, there will have been a natural weeding out of most of those types of agents (if not the bulk of the "agent" business in general). In the meantime, I guess we're going to have to live with the blind leading the blind in terms of listing techniques/tactics.

For the love of multiple offers ... do we really think that comparing the current listing price to a "2007 listing" has any relevance? (Although, in another "realtor favorite", there's a typo here ... if the property was actually listed for $489.00, even I couldn't have resisted ...)

I know your living is dependent on keeping up the illusion that "everything is OK", but your property has languished on the market for over 9 months. Do your clients a favor and tell them (and yourself) to GET REAL.