Innovative Realty Group, Damon Crelia & Malisa Spivey at The Executive Real Estate Center were Awarded The Prestigious 'Real Estate Online Marketing A

Waco, TX, September 4, 2009, Nationally renowned real estate marketing and technology speaker and REALTOR.com® Vice President, Max Pigman, has presented to Damon Crelia & Malisa Spivey of the Innovative Realty Group the prestigious “Real Estate Online Marketing Award of Excellence.” The Award of Excellence recognizes a very select group of top real estate agents who consistently provide outstanding marketing services on behalf of their buyers and sellers.Maximizing marketing exposure for a seller is critical in today’s market: the combination of the Damon Crelia & Malisa Spivey’s outstanding customer service, and the Highly-Touted Seller Marketing System, and premium REALTOR.com® marketing services such as Showcase Listing, are just a few of the many ways the Innovative Realty Group is leveraging recent trends in home buyer online behavior to his clients’ benefit.“There are but a select number of real estate agents who distinguish themselves from other agents by doing more for their sellers and buyers – and Damon Crelia & Malisa Spivey are two of them. In particular, when the Innovative Realty Group lists a home, they market it on well trafficked sites such as the #1 ranked real estate site REALTOR.com®, plus other high-trafficked Internet sites

including Trulia.com, Zillow.com, Yahoo! Real Estate, MSN.com and many others. Even simple efforts like having more photos displayed, crafting better property and area descriptions, or adding a full motion video, can make a home stand out from competing properties,” says Max Pigman, Vice President of REALTOR.com® - and Damon & Malisa go the extra mile in marketing their properties.The marketing excellence award was presented to Damon Crelia & Malisa Spivey at a recent real estate marketing and technology seminar that demonstrated cutting edge techniques for leveraging the Internet and technology in real estate marketing.Malisa says, “Our clients appreciate how we bring more attention to the unique selling attributes of their home and ultimately help attract more qualified buyers. Buyers are also appreciative of a well presented home that has a better description, and more photos, which allows them more ways to learn about the property before arranging an appointment. We feel it is important to be the source of information. While it’s certainly an honor to receive this award, we believe it is a disservice not to make an aggressive Internet marketing part of the standard home marketing plan.”“The extra steps agents like Damon Crelia & Malisa Spivey are taking on behalf of their clients is the reason we thought it worthwhile to call out the effort we have seen these agents make online and to recognize them for providing these added value services,” says Mr. Pigman.To find out more about the Innovative Realty Groups award-winning marketing system, contact Damon or Malisa at (254) 638-0898 or via email at team@MoveWithIRG.com, or visit their website @ http://www.movewithirg.com/

Overpriced Listings - Stagnant Properties

Have you ever wondered why there are so many properties on the market that have been listed forever? Have you ever thought, I know it is because they want to much for that property?

Did you know that we as Realtors have a code of ethics and standards of practice and within those we have duties to the public and other Realtors? Probably not.

I know this is a controversial subject but that is alright, we take our profession serious and wouldn't hold anyone to a standard that we ourselves wouldn't practice.

Today I want to talk about overpriced listings. Yes, we have all seen them and I am sure at times when we first started in the business we might have taken one unknowingly. Overpriced listings hurt our market, increase our days on market, and give the perception of a bad market. There are many reasons that a house may be overpriced, (ex. the owner needs to pay off bills, they want money for their next purchase, they bought too high, they financed all of their closing costs and have lived in the home for a short time, it's their house and they feel it is worth it) but the fact is, when your house is overpriced it becomes stagnant on the market and people begin to wonder what is wrong with it.

Really people should wonder what is wrong with the Realtor for listing that house. We are the professionals and as professionals we should know what the house is worth. Again, several reasons why a Realtor may have listed that house, but a big one is, self promotion and sign calls. Yes we know your house is overpriced but that is ok, we will get calls off of the sign and refer these ready willing and able buyers to another home that isn't, or we will let you suffer for a while and then get you to drop the price. My question is....if we are professionals who do this for a living day in and day out what sense does it make to take an overpriced listing? Wouldn't it make much more sense to have properties priced right on the market that sell quicker with less hageling because the general public can trust that we as Realtors have priced the property in line with what the market is doing? If not,the owner is only going to dislike you after months of it not selling, you decrease your credibility as a professional, you spend money on advertising something you know isn't going to sell (or do you advertise it), and above all those you have just violated

Article 1 - Duties to Clients and Customers - SOP 1-3

When representing a buyer, seller, landlord, tenant, or other client as an agent, REALTORS® pledge themselves to protect and promote the interests of their client. This obligation to the client is primary, but it does not relieve REALTORS® of their obligation to treat all parties honestly. When serving a buyer, seller, landlord, tenant or other party in a non-agency capacity, REALTORS® remain obligated to treat all parties honestly. (Amended 1/01)

Standard of Practice 1-3
REALTORS®, in attempting to secure a listing, shall not deliberately mislead the owner as to market value.

I know you are saying "I am not deliberatley miselading the owner", and I am sure your not. All I am saying is that if our duty is to the client, why would we mislead them in thinking that they can get something for their house that you yourself know they can't. Think this is crazy? Look at some houses that have been on the market for a long period of time and look at the price reductions or expired listings.

Example - Waco Association of Realtors MLS - *This information is deemed reliable but not guaranteed. (these numbers are strictly residential)

as of 4/29/2009 -

Active Listings 1384
Sold Year to Date 515 (divided by 4 months = 137 per month)
Months of Inventory 10.10
(this means if we listed nothing else from this day forward it would take us 10 months to sell the inventory we have based on the average numbers of homes sold per month from 1/1/09 to today)
Average Days on Market 157

How many properties have been on the market past the average? 515 listed for more than 160 days (3 days more than what the average days on market is)

If we take the number of properties listed over 160 days (our average number of days to sale) out of the active listings (1384 - 515) that would decrease our Months of Inventory to 6.34 months.

Who really is in control of our market? Is your sign in that yard helping the client? Remember we have duties to the public and other Realtors.