Peek Dont Speak

Imagine yourself touring a home with your real estate agent and gather in the living area or foyer to discuss the property. You begin to state what you like, what you don't like, personal comments, and strategy on price & terms of a potential offer.

STOP IMMEDIATELY! 🤐

Anytime I show homes I always advise my clients to hold all comments until we've exited the property or are in the car. Why? Two words, IN-HOME SURVEILLANCE.

Surveillance cameras in the home have gained popularity for parents to check on nannies but are increasingly used by homeowners to keep an eye on buyers touring their property. Many owners may be trying to capture incidents of theft or damage but they also are able to hear/see what buyers think of their home.

Video shots on hidden cameras are often legal in all 50 states. In the state of Texas capturing the audio portion of the video is also legal since they require only one-party consent to record audio.

When you are ready to start shopping for a home be cautious that all comments you make while viewing a home -even body language- could be captured on camera and used by homeowners to gain an edge during negotiations. Just imagine the counteroffer the seller would make if they heard how much you loved the property and would be willing to offer more than asking.

Thanks for reading this month's post. Remember you can reach me on social media at the links below. Don't forget to use the hashtag #RealtyMeDallas

    

Happy New Year - 2016

We are 12 days into the year and I hope you are just as excited as I am. Yay! 😃

Before I continue let me first say, WELCOME! Welcome to the first post of my journal blog "#RealtyMeDallas". It was my intention to publish my first post a long time ago but somehow life's moments distracted me. Let's claim no more distractions in 2016. Okay? 

I'm so excited to start the year off right. I brought in the year at church with good friends. And spent all New Years Day in prayer. Typically at 8AM the morning of New Years Day, I hit the annual sale at Dillard's. This is one of my favorite events to attend each year because I love to shop and I definitely love some of the lines they sell. In case you're not a shopping fanatic like me let me explain further. Every year on New Years Day Dillard's has their "Annual Sale". Almost everything in the store is marked down to nearly 75% off (I know crazy right?). Needless to say I didn't make it out this year. Instead one of my best friends and sister in Christ (DLes) spent the day with me reflecting on 2015 and what to be prayerful for this year. Crazy enough we both had power and authority in mind for 2016. 

So now I'm curious. What is your devotional or New Year resolution for 2016? If you know of anyone who's New Year resolution is to buy or sell a home I'm here to help.  Please have them call/text at 972-584-SALE or email me at charissewilliams@kw.com. (Small plug 😉)

Who or what will hold you accountable in 2016? I'm lucky enough to have 3 best friends/sisters that I've known for years who help keep me accountable, pray for me, and encourage me through the rough patches. 

My focus this year is prospecting buyers. Not to say that I wouldn't work with anyone else but, I know there are many people who intended to buy last year and for whatever reason got discouraged. Whether it was due to a competitive market, finances, or credit, it is my hope that I can turn that bad feeling around, so people will know their buying power in this market. 

Speaking of turning things around, I will actually be hosting a buyer seminar next month. (Saturday February 6th at 11AM in Dallas, TX.) I encourage you to get your tickets online at Eventbrite  and join me even if you are not considering buying a home today. There will be a credit repair specialist and a loan officer there. Get pre-qualified for a home loan and a free credit analysis on site! Rental rates are getting crazy high and there are so many benefits to home ownership. I often wonder why more people are not buying right now. Especially with home loan rates being so low right now. I recently worked with a buyer who closed at a rate of 3.875%. Now that's Amazing! 

Hmmmm..... So now that's got me thinking. If you are currently renting, what is keeping you from buying right now? 🤔 Comment below. I would love to hear your thoughts. 

And that pretty much concludes my first blog. See it wasn’t so bad after all and I promise twelve days of being busy wont keep me from the next post. 

You can also reach me on social media at the links below. Don’t forget to use the hashtag #RealtyMeDallas

Until next time....