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Name: Jon Ribary
Nickname: Jon
Member since: 2005-12-13 07:17:34
Website URL: http://www.ltdhomes.com
About me:
Name: Jon Ribary
Nickname: Jon
Member since: 2005-12-13 07:17:34
Website URL: http://www.ltdhomes.com
About me:
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- Rhonda Porter: you must be so excit
- Jerry Gropp Architect AIA: Hi Rhonda- Good to s
- Chris Cliff: I am glad to see the
- Leanne Finlay: Tim, eventually I'll
- ARDELL: Craig, Proof of t
A New Way To View Condos
April 17th, 2008 at 1:13 pmGalen-
YOU ARE SO right on. We had MLSMAPSONLINE.com and we were forced to take it down… but we could have aggregated the same info and used the name. It does not make a whole bunch of sense, but I do know if they do not loosen up soon, the flexibility of companies like Trulia will continue to dominate
A New Way To View Condos
April 16th, 2008 at 4:10 pmKary-
Galen is the owner of Estately, so when i said Galen’s site I meant Estately
A New Way To View Condos
April 16th, 2008 at 2:16 pmArdell-
Dang, the ONE time I don’t have you edit my post, there is a problem… It says Condo Compare uses the same MLS feed as anyone else, so what do you mean?
To Whom it May Concern :)
March 11th, 2008 at 8:40 amGod point… http://www.keepthesonicsinseattle.com/Default.aspx
Board votes 6-3 to landmark Ballard Denny’s building
February 21st, 2008 at 3:28 pmdoug in seattle-
I agree with you and I think it is funny that prior to the same people who wanting Denny’s to be a Landmark voted in favor of the monorail. So if it works in your favor vote YES, but if a developer is going to make money improving an area, the answer is NO.
If anyone is THAT against future development, stop buying the townhomes. There is NO QUICKER way to stop future development than to stop buying the product.
To Whom it May Concern :)
December 22nd, 2007 at 9:19 amJillayne-
I wonder how many people know that oil trucks cannot go through tunnels. That would mean for shipping containers to go from the Port Sout to Ballard North would have to take I5 and back through lake union… where we now have the S.L.U.T. slowing down traffic… not to mention the new Amazon HQ.
Maybe instead of being a land developer I should be a city developer… JOKING…
What will a market slow down do to discount brokers?
November 2nd, 2007 at 5:37 pmTo All:
I would like to echo what Greg said above. The value an agent brings to the table knowing the price difference of the first house in a subdivision or on a busy street is worth its weight in gold.
My point in this post was NOT to devalue an agent. There are many agents out there that can MORE than show their value. The unfortunate REAL problem here is how do you quantify that value. As a builder, I am on the phone with Eileen (RCG contributor) daily asking her her generic questions where any one answer could essentially pay for a full commission. For example, a partner of mine was SOLD on using solid interior doors. The cost was STEEP, but he insisted. So I called Eileen and she said you would not see the return with solid at this price level.
That was one phone call that saved me over $6,000. Thanks Eileen!
My point in the post was not to say agents are not worth their value. My point was agents are not worth a straight 3%.
I should have left the post with this question. Any agent who can answer this question is worth EVERY penny you pay them.
If my house is worth 750k and my neighbors house, built the same time and basically looks the same but doesn’t have the same upgrades and is worth 150k less. ON AVERAGE (assuming it sells in about the same time) is REALLY worth an extra $4,500 in commission?
What will a market slow down do to discount brokers?
November 1st, 2007 at 11:35 amMarlow-
I agree with your arguement too, I just don’t feel it is that much more difficult to sell a house today as it was 10 years ago (MINUS NEW LEGAL PROBLEMS). With that being said, although realtors have proven their value in many cases (remember I am a broker so I am not trying to shoot myself in the foot), but on average real estate agents are the highest paid non graduate level req profession out there.
It is just like the the FULL service gas stations. I can barely remember those, but at a time one of the most profitable businesses to be in was stations. The need for gas and for auto repair is and always will be there, but the bells and whistles of full service just are not as appealing.
What will a market slow down do to discount brokers?
November 1st, 2007 at 11:28 amSandy-
Supply ALWAYS equals demand. There will always be buyers who shop at Wal-Mart and Nordstrom. It is now up to the agent to show their worth. FOR ME, I would much rather pay a bit extra to have more work done for me.
I am not saying agents are not worth every bit they can charge… I am saying it will be more difficult to charge the fees without answering Randy’s question above. “…it’s just not clear what that broker actually does, and I can’t find one who can describe in concrete terms how they deliver $60k worth of additional services.”
What will a market slow down do to discount brokers?
November 1st, 2007 at 10:39 amRandy-
Two things, one you read my post in the wrong way. Two, you explained my point EXACTLY! I DO NOT feel A: the % commission model is correct and B: an agent should receive 90k for what could be using their license to buy a home.
With so much information available over the Internet, a full service agent does not have the same proprietary resources they had say 10 years ago. I believe agents earn their money by ONE: negotiating the sale and TWO(and this is a big two): processing the paperwork for the transaction. If you are buying a home, a great mortgage broker will have a great handle on this too.
So to answer your question, 60k in value is very difficult to quantify and/or qualify in value. That is why I am saying the shift will come where FULL SERVICE agents will get rid of the non quantifiable commission structure and implement more of a fee for service.
Jon
John L. Scott Real Estate Launches “Neighborhood Wizard(sm)”
June 7th, 2007 at 10:01 pmThe Tim-
I am always excited about new technolgoy
RCG Skeptic-
JLS has actually been ahead of the curve for years. They were actually the first (large) company to use Virtual Earth, long before Redfin launched their search with Virtual Earth.
Making the jump from Chicago to Seattle
May 20th, 2007 at 12:39 pmKaren-
Welcome to the RCG team and the PNW. You are coming out here at the best time… nothing beats the NW July – October.
Also, please bring Portillos with you
Redfin's First Year
February 27th, 2007 at 4:57 pmJim Frey-
Great point. Something I believe we all loose track on is just like what Expedia did to travel, maybe Redfin will be the same to real estate. Some people will still want the interaction and personal touch of a circle R realtor.
I know for a fact if I was buying a home, say here in Maui, where I know nothing about locations, I would need a realtor to tell me what seperates the different areas… and therefore justification for full commission… but if I know the house I want to buy and it is more or less paperwork… then 3% is in fact a steep price to pay.
Jon
Redfin's First Year
February 27th, 2007 at 3:41 pmGlen-
Before Amazon, who would have thought loosing money isn’t the new key to success
Did I say 90… I mean .9… I made the change on the post. If you could find 90% advantage, maybe you would start charging more
Redfin's First Year
February 27th, 2007 at 3:40 pmMark-
There is a product for every buyer. If thier product niche is ‘newbies’ and ‘techies’ they have a pretty large population. I don’t know if I would their stats are unbelievable as much as I would ask for additional info.
One point I should have pointed out more in my post was the heavy weight investors and the fact Seattle’s own king of the Monopoly board (Vulcan) is enough for me to believe knows what they are doing.
What the Viaduct Vote means (even to those outside of Seattle)
February 21st, 2007 at 5:21 pmJim-
An intereting piece of informatioin. A friend of mine sits on the chamber and tells me that the a tunnel would limit oil, gas, etc tankers to travel via this route. Therefore making them use I-5.
I heard my father in law talking about an idea to add a NEW freeway from Tumwater/Olympia to N Everett. I doubt that will ever happen, but wouldn’t that be interesting!
Chris-
Maybe pay for a new route by developing that vacated land? I know a stretch, but think of the value of that land.
As far as the similarity to the Big Dig… there really is no other comparison except the fact it is a tunnel and the gross overerages. I was using it as an example of an estimate gone wrong.
Shane-
Residence and ROI… what a great point and future topic. It takes money to make money. I agree 100% and again great support for a toll.
Think about the increase of clothing because of the cost of theft. Although no one directly can see what that cost is, if there was no theft… therefore no security guards, systems, etc… the general publics costs would be much lower. If everyone could actually see these expenses if you will… do you think there would be more social security guards???
In the same way, maybe if everyone could see the direct cost it would be for a city to take an actioin, maybe the fight would be black and white???
GREAT IDEA!!!
What the Viaduct Vote means (even to those outside of Seattle)
February 21st, 2007 at 5:08 pmRhonda-
I am all for a toll… and I use 99 daily.
Mark (& everyone about the danger of the viaduct)-
I agree… the problem needs to be addressed. This post was almost as much as WHAT IS RIGHT than what should we do with the viaduct.
Craig-
I am surrpised how much the viaduct has been in the news compared to how little the biggest problem; 520 floating bridge.
Allen-
Your comment is very interesting and I believe makes my point. Those who would use the bridge a majority (My dad lives in Gig Harbor) voted no for the toll, because that would be a fee they would pay… where the non users who would be stuck with the tax voted FOR the toll. A perfect example of the vast majority saying pass that fee on to the users of whatever that may be.
Housing sales fall in 40 states; but not in Northwest
February 16th, 2007 at 4:55 pmArdell-
You have my full authorization (hopefully this isn’t legally binding
) to answer on my behalf (especially while I am gone)
YOU GO GIRL!!!
New-home sales plunged... blah blah blah... largest amount since 1990... blah blah blah
February 12th, 2007 at 10:11 amShane & EconE
Thanks for your detailed comments. It will be very interesting to see what happens. If China DID make a law to pull out of the US, besides the tension that would cause to the US Government, it (in my opinion) would cause a major slowdown/correction if you will… much like Greenspan saying “irrational exuberance”
New-home sales plunged... blah blah blah... largest amount since 1990... blah blah blah
February 11th, 2007 at 12:51 pmWanderer-
First off you are making my example no fun by punching holes in it… It is much easier if you just accept it
Joking… I understand YouTube’s purchase price does not represent a summation of assets, much like the value of a home (see a detailed blog I wrote of Google/YouTube deal here http://www.incublog.com/blog/default.aspx?id=16&t=Inside-the-GoogleYouTube-deal)
Unlike buying a company at a multiple of earnings (or with YouTube lack of earnings, so either market share and name recognition or earnings potential) when you purchase a home you are buying for the current value. But much like a company, a house appreciates (as a company increases revenue and grows). So in my looooooooose comparison of the two, appreciation can been seen as earnings growth… but in homes you do not pay a multiple.
Comparing the purchase price of a home to the present value of the anticipated cash flows if it was rented out is great, but does not bring in to account market factors most notably geography. Either way, I believe we are on the same page… I am just not as eloquent as you and am not using the best words… then again I was an econ major not English.
New-home sales plunged... blah blah blah... largest amount since 1990... blah blah blah
February 11th, 2007 at 8:20 amEconE-
I am sorry for not posting this earlier, but here is a blog I wrote about the creation of money (kind of like our M4 conversation) after the Google/YouTube announcement
http://www.incublog.com/blog/default.aspx?id=12&t=VC-funding-nears-2001-mark
Calling All Patches Pals
February 10th, 2007 at 10:25 amI just ran (literally, I was the one with the Chow Lab Mix… OSH) by the Red Door and saw all the huge crowd… but I didn’t see you Rhonda… maybe because we haven’t met yet
My brother grew up with JP and I can kind of remember him… LONG LIVE JP!
New-home sales plunged... blah blah blah... largest amount since 1990... blah blah blah
February 9th, 2007 at 7:54 pmWanderer-
No you read the statement correct. I understand they (whichever company) sees future revenue worth the purchase price, that is not the statement. The comment was that they paid that price and the company did not change in value a bit.
They are purchasing the company on what they feel it will bring in the future. Like any company, it costs money to make money. So if it costs 1.67 to buy future cash flows, that should deplete the value of the company by some amount… not increase the value.
That would be like me buying a home that is worth 600k today and paying 1 million (assuming a 5 year future value)… Then the bank paying the full purchase price but only asking me to finance the current 600k. Makes sense it will be there at some future date, but not today.
Jon
Jon
New-home sales plunged... blah blah blah... largest amount since 1990... blah blah blah
February 9th, 2007 at 3:56 pmEconE-
I am glad badgerbadger was able to bring us back together
Next time I am in LA we will have to get in touch and talk M4 numbers 
(couldn’t help the double emoticon).
All in all, as republican as I am biliruben has a point… lets pop the Halliburton bubble!
New-home sales plunged... blah blah blah... largest amount since 1990... blah blah blah
February 9th, 2007 at 1:57 pmEconE-
Easy, this is a blog post, not a personal attack! If you would like to hear my personal views in more detail than a blog comment (not even a post), please shoot me an email and we can talk.
Maybe I am reading your comment wrong again, so forgive me if I am, but you talked about me knowing the relevance of what you mentioned… more relevant… If you were an econ major too (sorry a BS in econ) you should see that comment was addressing the fact that the 1.67 billion purchase price has to come from somewhere, in fact the stock has only apprectiated since that purchase, not adjusted for a 1.67 billion dollar purchase. It seems that something is created out of nothing… in other words, where are these dollars coming from?
You may want to reread what I wrote though, I said Google was an example… not the law. I was on your side there, not against you.
On another note, great video. If you REALLY want to end your Friday right… http://www.badgerbadgerbadger.com/
Jon