I'm being technologically special lately. My wonderful hoo-hah phone (that I now realize has replaced my brain) crashed. AAAaaargh! Calm down, Carol Anne - just sync it and everything will be back. Nope. Nothing there. (Did you know that the license plate on my Jeep says "TURETS?" I earned it, mostly with episodes and epithets like yesterday's.) So now I've lost my schedule and hundreds of phone numbers that apparently I haven't stored anyplace else. Why would I put them anyplace else? I have a wonderful phone with a computer back-up. Wrong.

Then I borrowed Mike's Blazer to go to a Grievance Committee meeting in Phoenix. On the way home the "check engine" light came on. I pulled over and figured out to lift the hood and checked the engine. Yep - there's an engine, right there. Got back in and started it up and the "check engine" light is still lit up. "But I did! I checked the engine!" Momentary and muttered TURETS this time.
So Mike takes his Blazer to Brain The Car Doctor. Brain hooks it up to his voodoo instruments and they tell him that it misfired while going 93 MPH with the throttle at 80% and Mike comes home and shakes his finger at me and explains (again) the photo radar and that they'll mail me a felony speeding ticket. Yes, Dear.

Then Nick The Computer Doctor replaced the old Windows OS on my office computer with a Linux system. I'm sure that it's absolutely wonderful, but it's different - instead of clicking on the little spinning world now I click on the bird and my brain is not seeming to want to develop this new habit.

So I'm thrashing around feeling betrayed and snitched on and challenged and then finally realize that if these are the worst things that happen this week then I'm doing pretty darn well. I remember to count my blessings, and to pray for the billions of people out there that would trade problems with me in a New York heartbeat.

I know that this post is not so much about the business of real estate as it is about being grateful that I do have a phone and a car and a computer to cuss at. If you wanted real estate, give me a holler and I'll talk about it for as long as you want, but right now I'm just feeling happy to have a roof over my head and a family to share my life with and the technology to share these thoughts with you. Thank you for listening.

I just realized the coolest thing! I write a column for our REALTOR Association, and I have to be very careful what I say - after all, it is being published under the Sedona Verde Valley Association of REALTORS umbrella. In my last missive for them, I myself replaced "chicken****" with "chickencaca" and then they replaced that with "cowardly," as I guess they should have.

But guess what? In this forum I can say "chickencaca," and I'll bet that sooner or later I do.



So let's talk about what it means to be a REALTOR, a member of the National Association of REALTORs. A plain licensee can be just that - a person who is licensed to sell real estate - as opposed to, well, me. A licensee doesn't have a Code of Ethics. As a REALTOR, I do have that big book and years of training, and my clients have the protection that comes with working with a REALTOR. (As I said in the last post, I'm not yelling when I put REALTOR in all caps. Those are the rules.)



So what does all of this mean to a member of the public?

Let's pretend that you're working with a REALTOR and something happens that raises the hairs up on the back of your neck. What to do?
First, call that REALTOR's broker and explain what happened.
Second, go to www.realtor.org and get a copy of the Code.
Third, read it.
Fourth, talk to the REALTOR that you had a problem with.
If all is not resolved at that point,
Fourth, contact the Association of REALTORs in your state and ask for an ombudsman. (An ombudsman is a neutral third party, a REALTOR trained to informally try to resolve difficulties before they become full-blown complaints. Don't be cynical and think, "Yeah, right. A REALTOR helping me against another REALTOR? Ain't gonna happen!" It will happen. We hate hate hate it when a bad apple is out there destroying all of our hard work.)
If it's still not fixed, file a grievance with your state's Association of REALTORs.

As a member of the public who chooses to work with a REALTOR, you have rights, and the Code of Ethics and the REALTORs vigorously protect your rights.

Holler if you have any questions. Thanks!

REALTOR ETHICS.

I notice that a lot of the general public is unaware that REALTORs (I'm not yelling at you when I capitalize REALTOR - the National Association says that I must always put our name in caps.) have a stringent Code Of Ethics.
I've been extensively trained in our Code, so I feel comfortable talking about it to you. It's not secret, like the Masons. You can find your own copy, suitable for framing, at www.realtor.org.
Basically, the Code outlines the REALTOR's obligations to the public and to other REALTORs. We are required to always work in the best interests of our client. Within legal guidelines, we're required to tell you anything that we know about the property that might have a bearing on your decision to buy, or how much you pay. Our clients have to give us permission to work with both the seller and the buyer in the same deal. We have to be honest with everyone involved. We ae required to account for every penny.
That's just a taste - the REALTOR Code of Ethics goes on for days. I know - I've been on Arizona Association of REALTORs' Professional Standards or Greivance committees for almost 20 years, and I'm one of the comparatively few certified ethics instructors.
Do REALTORs sometimes make mistakes? Yes. Are there ever bad apples who just don't care about ethics? Yes, but they die on the vine pretty quickly. If a member of the public feels badly treated by a REALTOR, do they have any recourse? Absolutely - that's what we're here for.
Is this a subject that you want to hear more about? I live and breathe the Code of Ethics, but I realize that everybody might not share my enthusiasm. What do you think?

Where have all the Buyers gone?

I remember growing up in the '60s, listening to The Kingston Trio singing, "Where have all the flowers gone? Young girls picked them, every one. When will they ever learn? When will they ev-er learn?
Now I wander around my world singing, "Where have all the Buyers gone? The media scared them, every one. When will they ever learn? When will they ev-er learn?"
This real estate market is amazing. Here in Arizona's Sedona Verde Valley area, we have hundreds and hundreds of homes for sale, most of them at incredible prices. Interest rates are at a 40-year low, sellers are ridiculously negotiable, and yet very few buyers are coming out of the woodwork to take advantage of the situation. Amazing!
Why? I understand that the media has done a hatchet job - bad news sells better than good news. But why did people believe the bilge that got spewed? Why are they still believing it? Why have we allowed the short-sighted politics that caused this in the first place?
I know that 2 years down the road everybody is going to be kicking themselves for not grabbing a house now when the deals are so favorable to the buyers.
If you are somebody that thinks that they might want buy a house someday, please let me know what I'm missing. I promise that I won't jump on you wanting to strong-arm you into buying - I don't roll like that, anyway. I'm just confused and need enlightenment.