Kopa Real Estate Blog - eric peterson

Realtor Commission Settlement One Year Later

It’s been a year since the Realtor commission settlement was announced and 7 months since it went into effect. So, what’s changed?

From a buyer standpoint, buyers and their agent should have some type of written agreement prior to viewing homes. It’s important to note that buyers can always visit our Open Houses or contact us about any of our listings without signing any agreement.

One intention of the settlement was for buyers and their agent to have a compensation agreement regardless of who is going to pay for that compensation. In my opinion that makes sense. From there the only question is who is going to pay, buyer or seller.

From a seller or listing agent side things get more complicated because in Texas we still have two ways to handle…

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NAR Commission Settlement

What It Means And What It Doesn’t Mean

By now I’m sure you’ve heard that the National Association of Realtors announced a proposed settlement to address the broker compensation lawsuits that have popped up across the country. The settlement has generated a lot of media attention and unfortunately a lot of what has been reported is misleading so I wanted to give an explanation of what has happened.

Before I even start, this is a proposed settlement that still needs court approval and none of the changes will go into effect until July at the earliest. However, I do expect it will be approved whether in this format or something similar and we are already putting systems into place to guide our clients through any possible changes and give you the…

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It's Not As Spooky As You Think

Almost every day I get calls or have people attend our seminars thinking they can’t sell their house because of what they are hearing in the news. I assure you we are still helping people like you sell their homes and If what you are hearing has stopped you from making a move contact us to talk about your plans. Many people have benefited this year from scheduling a buying power and home improvement audit. I’ve found that even if what I tell them isn’t what they want to hear it allows them to make better decisions and move forward with their life. I’m not saying it’s easy but in the end our clients always say it’s worth it to move on to a better place.

Who Is Moving Right Now?

One of our recent clients were the original owner of their home. They…

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Why The Market Is Like A Microwaved Frozen Burrito

Lance Lambert, real estate editor at Fortune Magazine, called Austin the most interesting real estate market in America.

Prices went up like a rocket and came back to earth, but still up 43% since March 2020. Some people can’t get over missing out on timing the market. The truth is few people did because even those who sold at the top had to buy in the same market at the top.

If I told you in March 2020 your home would be worth 43% more in 3 years you would have been over the moon happy about that. If you’ve allowed yourself to get stuck because you missed out on the peak perhaps a change in perspective to thinking about how much better off you are than 3 years ago will help you get unstuck. Otherwise using 2021 and early 2022 as your baseline…

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How To Transfer Your Over 65 Exemption

Does the school tax ceiling transfer when a person who is age 65 or older or is disabled or is the surviving spouse (age 55 or older) of the individual moves to another home?

A percentage of the school district tax ceiling may be transferred.

The ceiling on the new residence homestead would be calculated to give you the same percentage of tax paid as the ceiling on the original residence homestead. For example, if you currently have a tax ceiling of $100, but would pay $400 without the ceiling, the percentage of tax paid is 25 percent. If you move to another home and the taxes on the new residence homestead would normally be $1,000 in the first year, the new tax ceiling would be $250, or 25 percent of $1,000.

To transfer the school district…

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Selling Your Home This Summer? Start Now!

It’s hard to believe, but summer is already around the corner. Here in the Austin area, our home-selling “season” kicks off in spring and reaches its peak in the summer. It’s our busiest time of year, although this year things will be a little different.

With interest rates up, demand has slowed compared to last year. Prices remain high and sellers still have the upper hand, but buyers have a bit more leverage and homes are taking longer to sell on average. This season, homes that are attractive to buyers and marketed aggressively will sell fast and high. Here are the strategies we’re using to position our summer sellers for the best result possible.

I have to give myself a little grace here because I haven’t gotten much sleep lately and I’ve…

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When Will The Market Be Good Again?

After 497 people told me they were going to wait to move until the market is good again, I realized I wasn’t doing a good job. 

You see, I am a “Professional Mind Maker Upper” and people count on me to consult with them so they can make the best decisions for their lives and their families. There’s a saying “Garbage in and garbage out” meaning if you don’t use accurate information, you won’t make good decisions. I was letting people use bad information without taking the time to ask more questions and explain some of the data that’s available about the real estate market. 

I have to give myself a little grace here because I haven’t gotten much sleep lately and I’ve changed a lot of diapers over the last few months so it’s possible I simply…

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4 Mistakes Home Buyers Are Making

I'm primarily a listing agent so I'm seeing buyers every weekend at our open houses. I'm also talking to agents and I'm seeing the offers that they put in every day. These are the four mistakes that I'm seeing buyers make in March of 2023.

Making Bad Offers

The first mistake I'm seeing is putting in “bad offers”. What I mean by that is a lot of buyers are out there and they're thinking they're going to make low offers. And you know what? A lot of sellers are actually negotiable right now.

Sellers are willing to come down on their price if they see that it's a good deal and you're a solid buyer. However, I've noticed that many buyers are submitting offers at a low price with unfavorable terms that are unrealistic to both myself as a listing…

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Things Are Getting A Little Spooky...Should You Be Scared?

The other day I saw someone describe the real estate market as being scary.

We are heading towards something nobody has ever been through. There’s never been a time with so many events happening all at once. We have both headwinds and tailwinds for the economy so in near future things are murky. It’s understandable some people will think it’s spooky out there in the real estate market.

Perhaps that’s true in the short term. In the long run the thing I know is people will always be buying, selling or renting real estate.

Part of the reason things seem spooky is with social media there are so many people trying to make a name for themselves or trying to get clicks by promoting that we are approaching doomsday.

Here are some of the things the…

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3 Important Things You Should Know About Mortgage Interest Rates Today

If you have been shopping for a home there are 3 important things you should know about mortgage interest rates today.

Fed Raised Rates And Mortgage Rates Went Down

You probably heard the Federal Reserve raised interest rates .75% in July. The Federal Reserve does not control mortgage interest rates. It seems counterintuitive, but when the Fed raised their rates mortgage interest rates actually went down. Mortgage interest rates had been over 6% back in June. As of August 2nd, we were seeing quotes for 30 Year Conventional rates near 5%.

Jumbo Rates Are Lower Than Conventional Rates

In the Austin area the loan limit for Conventional mortgages is $647,200. If you are borrowing more than that you would be getting a “Jumbo” mortgage.…

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