These Six Words May Be Preventing You From Finding Your Next Austin Home: “But I Saw It On Zillow”…

These Six Words May Be Preventing You From Finding Your Next Austin Home: “But I Saw It On Zillow”…

As a professional, full time real estate broker with more than a decade of experience in two states, I can tell you that few statements irk me more than those that start with these 6 words: “But I Saw It On Zillow.” Why? Because they are almost always followed up with a statement that cannot be verified anywhere except on Zillow.  It’s almost like an alternate reality for real estate.

For example, when a buyer who is actively searching for her next Austin home with one of our agents calls and asks about a foreclosure on 2.5 acres right outside the city limits that she just saw for just $305,000 and wonders why we didn’t send it to her when we sent her properties to tour this weekend. I drop what I’m doing, concerned that perhaps we did miss this needle-in-a-haystack perfect home. But no, a quick check of Zillow and a through cross check with the Multiple Listing Service and county tax records shows that the home is not bank owned. It’s not on the market. It hasn’t been on the market for at least a decade. In fact, it’s had the same owner for over a decade.

So why would this home be displayed on Zillow as a foreclosure? Well, if a property owner misses even one mortgage payment, the bank reports that to the credit bureaus. Zillow purchases data like this and in the company’s infinite wisdom, it lists that house on its website as a pre-foreclosure. But that doesn’t mean the homeowner hasn’t already caught up on the missing payment, and it certainly doesn’t mean the homeowner is considering selling. And it REALLY doesn’t mean that the bank is able to negotiate a deal with a buyer who is ready to buy now.

Because buyers are scrambling to find good deals in today’s market with limited inventory, these longshots on Zillow seem attractive. I do understand that. But I have seen this enough times to know that shopping on Zillow can create a huge distraction from the REAL market, the REAL prices, and the homes that are available today – you know, the market that I as a professional real estate broker am working in to find my client her next Austin home.

Keep Austin Weird Homes

Theresa Bastian and Rodney Campbell run an Austin, TX real estate brokerage established with the intention of doing good business with good people.  As Austin real estate market experts, Theresa and Rodney can help you buy, sell, lease or invest in real estate in and around Austin, TX.

HOW CAN WE HELP YOU TODAY?

I want to sell my Austin, TX property

I’d like to Search for Austin Real Estate

I’d like to speak to someone from Keep Austin Weird Homes

 - By Theresa Bastian 

Starting Your Austin Home Search Online – Dos and Don’ts

Starting Your Austin Home Search Online – Dos and Don’ts

At Keep Austin Weird Homes, we work with a lot of home buyers. Heck, our owners even bought a home of their own recently. We know how much fun it is to look at homes online – you get to see the photos and prices without having to talk to a pesky Realtor who is going to talk your ear off or add you to their mailing list so they can spam you for the next couple of years. We get it!  Starting your Austin home search online makes sense.

Let’s take a moment to consider a popular website where you can start your Austin home search: Zillow.

Pros: This company has done a great job of making searching for properties easy. You can see lots of pictures, the list prices, even a ‘Zestimate’ of what the home should be valued at.

Cons: The data on Zillow isn’t necessarily up to date or accurate. There is no consequence for Zillow if they publish inaccurate data – no professional board of standards or anything like that. This is one reason the Austin Board of Realtors recently opted to stop syndication listing data to the website. Yes, that’s right. If you live in Austin, the Board of Realtors no longer automatically sends listings to Zillow, making it even less of a complete source for the most up to date information.

But what about when it’s time to get out of “shopping” mode and into “buying” mode?

Let’s say you’ve been looking at homes online for a while, and you see one that really interests you. You need to bear in mind that the Realtors listed on the side of Zillow’s website are simply displayed there because they are paying for ad space. Not because they know anything about the property, and not because they are good Realtors that Zillow has vetted. Nope, the only vetting Zillow does is making sure their credit card goes through each month for payment of their ad bill. To be sure you are talking to a professional, we advise you to interview agents BEFORE you fall in love with a property. That way you already have an established relationship with someone who will have your interest at heart, and with whom you feel comfortable. Not just an agent who had a few extra bucks to spend on advertising and room in their schedule for new clients this season.

Consider our “Ten Questions To Ask Your Realtor” and give us a call. We don’t buy business on Zillow-we earn it by building relationships with people whose goals we care about.

Keep Austin Weird Homes

Theresa Bastian and Rodney Campbell run an Austin, TX real estate brokerage established with the intention of doing good business with good people.  As Austin real estate market experts, Theresa and Rodney can help you buy, sell, lease or invest in real estate in and around Austin, TX.

HOW CAN WE HELP YOU TODAY?

I want to sell my Austin, TX property

I’d like to Search for Austin Real Estate

I’d like to speak to someone from Keep Austin Weird Homes

 - By Theresa Bastian 

Keep Austin Weird Homes Offers Austin Property Management Services

Keep Austin Weird Homes Offers Austin Property Management Services

Keep Austin Weird Homes, an Austin real estate brokerage, now offers Property Management Services.

Due to popular demand from satisfied clients who have purchased investment properties using our services, Keep Austin Weird Homes recently launched our property management division.

Here are some of the property management services we offer to landlords:

·          Tenant credit and background checks

·          Leasing

·          Make readies

·          Periodic property visits and evaluations

·          Utility transfers

·          Rent collection

·          Move-in and move-out condition checks

·          Property maintenance and repairs

·          Separate profit and loss statement for each property

View homes for lease in Austin

View condos for lease in Austin

Whether you are a landlord or a tenant, Keep Austin Weird Homes is here to help!  If you would like to discuss our Austin Property Management Services, please call Theresa at 512-593-2289.  If you are interested in getting some professional assistance in securing a home to rent in our tight rental market, contact our leasing specialist, Lauren Tindal, at 206-778-5924.  We know how hard it is to find a good place in Austin, especially on a budget, and we are prepared to go the extra mile for our clients.

Keep Austin Weird Homes

Theresa Bastian and Rodney Campbell run an Austin, TX real estate brokerage established with the intention of doing good business with good people.  As Austin real estate market experts, Theresa and Rodney can help you buy, sell, lease or invest in real estate in and around Austin, TX.

HOW CAN WE HELP YOU TODAY?

I want to sell my Austin, TX property

I’d like to Search for Austin Real Estate

I’d like to speak to someone from Keep Austin Weird Homes

 - By Theresa Bastian 

Keep Austin Weird Homes Sells a Home in Scenic Brook, a Southwest Austin Neighborhood

Keep Austin Weird Homes Sells a Home in Scenic Brook, a Southwest Austin Neighborhood

Keep Austin Weird Homes just sold another home in Scenic Brook, a Southwest Austin Neighborhood.  Keep Austin Weird Homes is excited to get another home sold in Scenic Brook.

Austin May 29, 2014 - Keep Austin Weird Homes

Keep Austin Weird Homes, an Austin real estate brokerage, has sold another house in Austin. This Austin home with a pool sold for just under $300,000.

The home is located in the Austin neighborhood of Scenic Brook. The home has 4 bedrooms, 2 baths, and approximately 2,420 square feet. The property has a large lot size of one-third of an acre and was built in 1969. Students who live at this house attend the Austin schools of Patton Elementary, Small MiddleSchool and Bowie High School.

This home is located in Austin's zip code of 78749. The number of active listings in this area of Austin decreased in April by 24.2% from the previous year and the number of sales in April was 34, a 10% increase from April 2013, which reflects the inventory shortage in the Austin market. The median number of days active properties have been listed for sale in this area of Southwest Austin is 36, which is shorter than the national average.

Keep Austin Weird Homes represented the buyer of this property, who will be doing a massive remodel on this Home in Scenic Brook, a Southwest Austin Neighborhood.

View other properties for sale right now in Scenic Brook:

All properties for sale in Scenic Brook

Keep Austin Weird Homes

Theresa Bastian and Rodney Campbell run an Austin, TX real estate brokerage established with the intention of doing good business with good people.  As Austin real estate market experts, Theresa and Rodney can help you buy, sell, lease or invest in real estate in and around Austin, TX.

HOW CAN WE HELP YOU TODAY?

I want to sell my Austin, TX property

I’d like to Search for Austin Real Estate

I’d like to speak to someone from Keep Austin Weird Homes

 - By Theresa Bastian 

Keep Austin Weird Homes Sells a Home in Olympic Heights, a South Austin Neighborhood

Keep Austin Weird Homes Sells a Home in Olympic Heights, a South Austin Neighborhood

Keep Austin Weird Homes just sold another home in Olympic Heights, a South Austin Neighborhood.  Keep Austin Weird Homes is excited to get another home sold in Olympic Heights.

Austin May 29, 2014 - Keep Austin Weird Homes

Keep Austin Weird Homes, an Austin real estate brokerage, has sold another house in Austin. This Austin home sold for just under $225,000.

The home is located in the Austin neighborhood of Olympic Heights. The home has 3 bedrooms, 2.5 baths, and approximately 2,073 square feet. The property has a lot size of .118 of an acre and was built in 2003. Students who live at this house attend the Austin schools of Baranoff Elementary, Bailey Middle School and Bowie High School.


This home is located in Austin's zip code of 78748. The number of active listings in this area of Austin increased in April by 10.2% from the previous year and the number of sales in April was 70, a 9% decrease from April 2013. The median number of days active properties have been listed for sale in this area of Southwest Austin is 43, which is shorter than the national average.

Keep Austin Weird Homes represented the sellers of this property, who selected Keep Austin Weird Homes to represent them because of the brokerage’s extensive marketing plan and experience in South Austin.

Click here to view the property that get sold.

View other properties for sale right now in Olympic Heights:

All properties for sale in Olympic Heights

Keep Austin Weird Homes

Theresa Bastian and Rodney Campbell run an Austin, TX real estate brokerage established with the intention of doing good business with good people.  As Austin real estate market experts, Theresa and Rodney can help you buy, sell, lease or invest in real estate in and around Austin, TX.

HOW CAN WE HELP YOU TODAY?

I want to sell my Austin, TX property

I’d like to Search for Austin Real Estate

I’d like to speak to someone from Keep Austin Weird Homes

 - By Theresa Bastian 

Keep Austin Weird Homes Sells Another East Austin Home

Keep Austin Weird Homes Sells Another East Austin Home

Keep Austin Weird Homes just sold another home in East Austin. Keep Austin Weird Homes is excited to get another East Austin home sold.

Austin May 29, 2014 - Keep Austin Weird Homes

Keep Austin Weird Homes, an Austin real estate brokerage, has sold another house in Austin. This Austin home sold for $100,000. This price reflects the value in the land, which is close to downtown Austin.

The manufactured home is located in the Austin neighborhood of Montopolis. The home has 3 bedrooms, 2 baths, and approximately 1,546 square feet. The property has a double lot size of .369 acres and was built in 1999. Students who live at this house attend the Austin schools of Allison, Martin and Eastside Memorial.

This home is located in Austin's zip code of 78741. The number of active listings in this area of Austin increased in April by 25% from the previous year and the number of sales in April was 24, a 4% increase from April 2013. The median number of days active properties have been listed for sale in this area of Southwest Austin is 42 which is shorter than the national average.

Keep Austin Weird Homes represented the seller of this property, who was happy to have had professional guidance on the sale. She had previously tried to sell by owner, but with no success and much frustration.

Click here to view the property that get sold.

Keep Austin Weird Homes

Theresa Bastian and Rodney Campbell run an Austin, TX real estate brokerage established with the intention of doing good business with good people.  As Austin real estate market experts, Theresa and Rodney can help you buy, sell, lease or invest in real estate in and around Austin, TX.

HOW CAN WE HELP YOU TODAY?

I want to sell my Austin, TX property

I’d like to Search for Austin Real Estate

I’d like to speak to someone from Keep Austin Weird Homes

- by Theresa Bastian

Keep Austin Weird Homes Sells Another Southwest Austin Home

Keep Austin Weird Homes Sells Another Southwest Austin Home

Keep Austin Weird Homes just sold another home in Southwest Austin. Keep Austin Weird Homes is excited to get another Southwest Austin home sold.

Austin May 29, 2014 - Keep Austin Weird Homes

Keep Austin Weird Homes, an Austin real estate brokerage, has sold another house in Austin. This Austin home sold for $369,500. This is almost $80,000 than the price the current owner bought it for in 2011.

The 2 story home is located in the Austin subdivision of Village of Western Oaks. The home has 2 beds, 3 ½ baths, and approximately 2,857 square feet. The property has a lot size of .179 acres and was built in 2000. Students who live at this school attend the Austin schools of Mills, Gorzycki and Bowie.

This home is located in Austin's zip code of 78749. The number of active listings in this area of Austin have decreased in April by 10% from the previous year and the number of sales in April was 49, a 33.8% drop from April 2013, reflecting the inventory shortage in Austin. The median number of days active properties have been listed for sale in this area of Southwest Austin is just 15. This is significantly shorter than the national average.

Keep Austin Weird Homes represented the buyers of this property, who were enthusiastic in finding this home before it went on the MLS. Due to her extensive knowledge of the Southwest Austin community, Theresa Bastian was able to negotiate with the listing agent to accept the buyer’s offer before the property hit the open market, which typically results in multiple offers.

Keep Austin Weird Homes

Theresa Bastian and Rodney Campbell run an Austin, TX real estate brokerage established with the intention of doing good business with good people.  As Austin real estate market experts, Theresa and Rodney can help you buy, sell, lease or invest in real estate in and around Austin, TX.

HOW CAN WE HELP YOU TODAY?

I want to sell my Austin, TX property

I’d like to Search for Austin Real Estate

I’d like to speak to someone from Keep Austin Weird Homes

- by Theresa Bastian