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        <title>A New Option In Real Estate</title>
        <link>http://www.newoption.com/blog/</link>
        <description></description>
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            <guid>http://www.newoption.com/blog/who-has-time-to-sell-their-home.html</guid>
            <link>http://www.newoption.com/blog/who-has-time-to-sell-their-home.html</link>
            <author>tanthony@newoption.com (Tara Anthony)</author>
            <title>Who Has Time To Sell Their Home?</title>
            <description> <![CDATA[ 
You do.  Selling your home can be a daunting process and we understand that.  Incorporating showings, questions, and negotiations into your already busy schedule can seem overwhelming.  It can seem like such an overwhelming task that paying a large commission to a traditional Realtor would seem worthwhile.  The unfortunate assumption being that by saving money utilizing a Flat Fee Real Estate Company, service and support are sacrificed.  Not all Flat Fee Listing Services are the same though.  With the Complete Package from New Option Realty, receive the support of a traditional Real Estate Agent at a fraction of the cost.  What’s included?  Just about everything it takes to sell your home.  From advertising and signage to contracts and negotiations, New Option Realty will be the partner that gets you to sold.
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            <pubDate>Mon, 13 Feb 2012 17:33:24 -0600</pubDate>
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            <guid>http://www.newoption.com/blog/beyond-the-multiple-listing-service.html</guid>
            <link>http://www.newoption.com/blog/beyond-the-multiple-listing-service.html</link>
            <author>tanthony@newoption.com (Tara Anthony)</author>
            <title>Beyond the Multiple Listing Service</title>
            <description> <![CDATA[ 
Traditionally the Multiple Listing Service (MLS) is considered a directory of properties for Real Estate Agents to market properties for Sellers and locate properties for Buyers.  Being listed in the MLS is invaluable exposure for a property owner, enlisting an army of Real Estate Agents to get a property sold, but these days the MLS goes far beyond that.  An MLS listing provides the option of automatically syndicating advertisements to over 55 public websites.  Up to 90% of Buyers start their shopping online and visit these websites to find their next home.  A Flat Fee MLS Listing with New Option Realty provides far reaching exposure to Buyers.



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            <pubDate>Tue, 07 Feb 2012 15:52:22 -0600</pubDate>
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            <guid>http://www.newoption.com/blog/revolutionary-changes-for-consumers.html</guid>
            <link>http://www.newoption.com/blog/revolutionary-changes-for-consumers.html</link>
            <author>tanthony@newoption.com (Tara Anthony)</author>
            <title>Revolutionary Changes for Consumers</title>
            <description> <![CDATA[ 
Recently, we've seen JCPenney changing its pricing strategy, inspired by the intelligent and empowered consumer.  JCPenney CEO Ron Johnson commented on the new pricing by saying, "We want customers to shop on their terms, not ours. By setting our store monthly and maintaining our best prices for an entire month, we feel confident that customers will love shopping when it is convenient for them, rather than when it is expedient for us."


With the same nod to the consumer, New Option Realty acknowledges the importance of shopping on your own terms.   To set ourselves completely apart from the pack, New Option Realty offers up-front flat fee hourly services to Buyers.  We don't make our money off of commissions or even if you purchase a home. We actually rebate the entire Buyer commission to the Buyer that we represent. So take your time! Look at as many homes as you like! Offer whatever suits you!  If you are familiar with traditional ways of doing Real Estate you will recognize that this is truly a Real Estate Revolution.


Source:  http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/jcpenneys-transformation-plans-revealed-at-launch-event-in-new-york-city-138045223.html
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            <pubDate>Thu, 26 Jan 2012 14:01:23 -0600</pubDate>
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            <guid>http://www.newoption.com/blog/ten-things-i-could-have-done-with-that-money.html</guid>
            <link>http://www.newoption.com/blog/ten-things-i-could-have-done-with-that-money.html</link>
            <author>tanthony@newoption.com (Tara Anthony)</author>
            <title>Ten Things I Could Have Done with That Money</title>
            <description> <![CDATA[ 
I hate it when other people get a better deal than me!  After coming to the realization that I left money on the table after purchasing my home this past summer, I couldn’t help but think about what I could have done with that extra money. 


If I had been able to use a Real Estate Company like New Option Realty, I could have paid for only the time and assistance I needed to purchase my home, and received the entire commission that my Real Estate Agent got instead!


New Option Realty allows you to save money by paying for hourly services upfront.  I looked at 9 homes to find a keeper.  Let’s say ½ hour to view each home.  That’s 4.5 hours looking at homes.  I needed some assistance making the offer, about 2 hours, I’m fairly knowledgeable.  I’m looking at a total of 6.5 hours of time to purchase my home.  At $125 an hour, that’s around $800.


Typically a Buyer’s Realtor receives 3% commission.  In my situation, the commission equaled $1,935.


Let’s do the math $1935 - $800 = $1,135!


The following are Ten Things I Could Have Done with That Money:




Girls trip to Mexico!   Vamos ladies!


Almost 2 years of lawn service! 100 degrees, no thank you!


10 months of Mani/Pedis!


New hardwood flooring for my kitchen!


Save it!  Someday I would like to retire….


A massage a month for almost two years!  Heaven…


Gas for 4 months! Or a down payment on a hybrid…


Donate it to charity! My favorite animal shelter…


New refrigerator!  Mine has broken 3 times already…


Diamonds!  A girl can dream…




The list could go on and on....


How Much Could You Save?
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            <pubDate>Mon, 16 Jan 2012 15:51:54 -0600</pubDate>
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            <guid>http://www.newoption.com/blog/for-sale-by-owner-the-good-the-bad-and-the-ugly.html</guid>
            <link>http://www.newoption.com/blog/for-sale-by-owner-the-good-the-bad-and-the-ugly.html</link>
            <author>info@newoption.com (New Option Realty Admin)</author>
            <title>For Sale By Owner - The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly</title>
            <description> <![CDATA[ 
When ready to sell their home, many homeowners consider selling their house themselves to save on commissions. This is known as “For Sale By Owner,” or “FSBO” (pronounced fizzbo). As a real estate agency, you might expect that we would discourage this, but for some people this can be quite effective.


First, the good:


The Good #1 - Save on commissions.Saving commission costs. Real estate agents must earn a living somehow, and usually (not always) this is done by collecting a percentage commission when a house is sold. This rate is negotiatable, usually between 4%-7% and most commonly 6%. A portion of this comission goes to the agent representing the seller and the other portion goes to an agent that might be representing the buyer. For an item as expensive as a home, these commissions can be quite large. Selling your home without the use of a real estate agent means you avoid these commission. That's definitely good!


However, here are the bads:


The Bad #1 – Limited audience.


With the age of the internet, ideally there would be one single, marvelous website where all homes for sale were listed. Sadly, there is not. The largest list of homes for sale is the Multiple Listing Services (MLS) that are run indirectly, for and by, by real estate agents. Most internet sites pull from these listings, yielding the most wide-reaching marketing. For buyers that are using a real estate agent, their agent is also leveraging these listing services. So the worse part of FSBO can be summed up by having less access to buyers. If there are a thousand people that might be potentially purchase your home, only a fraction of them will even know it is on the market. This may result in a seller receiving less for their home than they otherwise could sell it for. Fortunately, firms such as New Option Realty, offer flat-fee listings, where you can have your home listed in the MLS, for a flat fee rather than commission.


The Bad #2 – Setting the asking price.


There is another key benefit that real estate agents have with the MLS. They have a record of sale prices for homes. Using this record, they can help sellers estimate the value of their home. This is called a Comparative Market Analysis (CMA). In our experience, online websites that give value estimates, such as Zillow, are grossly inaccurate and out of date. The good thing is that many real estate agencies will offer you a free CMA (including New Option Realty) so you can get an idea of what to ask for your home. With free CMAs and flat-fee listings, most of the “bad” of selling your own home can be removed. But there’s always…


The Bad #3 – The work.


Doing FSBO requires you to the all the work. You will still have to handle the phone calls, the negotiations and the closings all on your own. Even if you have an agent, you will still be involved in much of this anyway, so if you are experienced and know the process, you will likely be just fine. If you mitigate the first two “bads” by getting a CMS so you will know what price range to target and listed your home in the MLS to have a broad reach for potential buyers, you’ll probably be happy to negotiate the offers. New Option Realty does offer assistance for all the “other” tasks you may want help with and we charge a reasonable hourly rate for the work.


And...


The Ugly – Buyer’s agent commission.


For good or bad, a large number of buyers use a real estate agent to help them find and purchase a home. These agents generally earn a living based on commissions paid at the time of closing. When a house is listed in the MLS, a buyer’s agent commission can be set, which is how much the buyer’s agent will receive at closing (paid by the seller). Licensed agents are bound by a code of ethics to help their customers find the house that is best for them, and therefore, they should still let their buyer’s know about your property, even if you don’t pay a buyer’s agent commission. However, agents are people, they have families to support, etc. If there are dozens of homes to send over in a list to their client, they have no motivation to include yours in the list unless it better meets their customer’s needs. They have a good reason, no commission, for leaving it off the list. This quandary, as well as others, is why New Option Realty works on a fee basis rather than a commission. We want to do what’s best for the customer each and every time and have everything “above the board”. We recommend that all of our seller’s listing with us offer a buyer’s agent commission to help mitigate this last “bad”. That reduced your savings from selling your own home, but greatly increases your pool of potential buyers.


If you can think of any other pros or cons with FSBO, let us know. We love working with experienced home sellers so they can maximize what they get to keep when selling their home.
 ]]> </description>
            <pubDate>Wed, 07 Dec 2011 10:02:14 -0600</pubDate>
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            <guid>http://www.newoption.com/blog/fee-based-realty-can-save-savvy-home-buyers-and-sellers-thousands.html</guid>
            <link>http://www.newoption.com/blog/fee-based-realty-can-save-savvy-home-buyers-and-sellers-thousands.html</link>
            <author>info@newoption.com (New Option Realty Admin)</author>
            <title>Fee-based realty can save savvy home buyers and sellers thousands</title>
            <description> <![CDATA[ 
Today, New Option Realty opens for business. New Option was founded in an effort to help consumers save money when buying and selling real estate. We offer a new model for buying and selling real estate. The traditional model for real estate agents to earn money isn't very transparent, so let’s explain it briefly. If you've bought or sold many homes, and took the time to look at the numbers at closing, you're aware of how traditional real estate agents earn a living. A typical real estate transaction pays 3% commission to the seller's agent and another 3% commission to the buyer's agent. Go look at past closing documents you may have and you can see the actual amounts. In some cases, the amount a real estate agent earns is equitable to the amount of work they put into the transaction. Often however, the money earned equates to hundreds of dollars an hour, and can even be in excess of a thousand dollars an hour for work performed. The flipside of this is an agent may perform work for customers that never buy or sell real estate. This is time they spend while earning no income for the effort. The commission model spreads this out, with the individuals buying and selling real estate overpaying so that the agent can afford to spend time with those that do not. While this is a fine model that is acceptable to many people, there should be a better option for people that are confident they will be buying or selling property. Our fee based approach is just such a way. Like most other service providers, as we work for you, we bill you for the time we work; if you don’t require a lot of assistance, you won’t pay much. If you require a lot of help, you will pay more, but often still less than under a commission model. Being that the industry is built on the commission model, we still suggest if you are selling your home that you offer a commission to the buyer’s agent. If you are a buyer, when we represent you, we will receive the commission as the buyer’s agent and then pay you that amount.
 ]]> </description>
            <pubDate>Wed, 30 Nov 2011 12:51:01 -0600</pubDate>
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