INDIANA
SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2018
Real Estate News Uniting and Growing Real Estate Professionals in Indiana
GREENWOOD HOMES REALTY OPENS DOORS The Lucas's celebrate their grand opening, pg 21
KNOW YOUR RULES: ALWAYS IN ATTENDANCE Learn about real estate rules and regulations, pg 6
RENTAL SCAMS ON THE RISE Know what to look for when looking for homes, pg 10
SPECTRA STUDENT LIVING New student housing community coming to Michigan, pg 15
INDIANA Real Estate News Editor in Chief Aaron Henze
Editors Aaron Henze Tera Moore Chris Zazzetti
Writers Aaron Henze Tera Moore
Photographers Chris Zazzetti Dustin Jenkins
Contact aaron@indiana-realestate-news.com
News Tips tera@indiana-realestate-news.com
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LETTER from the EDITOR Hello Readers! Welcome to the penultimate episode of Season 1 of Indiana Real Estate News: The Magazine. We hope you’ve been paying attention to all the characters and subplots so that we can set you up properly for next issue’s season finale. If you’re new to IREN, we are a multimedia organization dedicated to educating, uniting, and growing real estate professionals in all branches of the industry across the state by use of educational videos, informative articles, and networking opportunities that give back to the communities these professionals serve. And don’t worry, you can jump into this program at any time! The holidays are just around the corner, and we wanted to remind you that there was a very brief time known as fall with this issue spanning September and October. Our features include a return to the classroom for Know Your Rules, a cautionary tale about scams, growth from an Indiana company in Michigan, and some new friends south of Indianapolis. And we still had room for the lists and community calendar! We’re planning on growing drastically in the new year,
thanks in part to our newest partners, Travis and Tyler Cartmel and the AnnieMac Home Mortgage Cartmel Mortgage Team. We’d like to add your business to our list of sponsors as well, so feel free to reach out before the end of year festivities consume everyone’s time. We’re also planning a way for our readers to become more involved with additional benefits for a much smaller commitment, so stay tuned for that! And don’t forget about our website (Indiana-realestatenews.com), email (aaron@indiana-realestate-news.com), Facebook (Indiana Real Estate News), Twitter (@Indiana_RE_News), and tip line (Tera@indiana-realestate-news.com). And now: Enjoy the show!
Aaron Henze Editor in Chief
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Table Of
CONTENTS 6
KNOW YOUR RULES: ALWAYS IN ATTENDANCE
Learn the consequences of breaking real estate rules and regulations, featuring Juan Carrasquel.
SCAMS HAPPENING 10 RENTAL IN INDIANA The online world is becoming more dangerous with fake real estate agents targeting potential victims with homes for rent.
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TOP 150 INDEPENDENT LIST
See Realtors who made the list. (Accumulating from January 1, 2018 October 31, 2018).
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SPECTRA EXPANDS STUDENT HOUSING TO MI
Spectra Student Living breaks ground on a new community development right outside Ferris University.
150 18 TOP NATIONAL LIST See Realtors who made the list. (Accumulating from January 1, 2018 October 31, 2018).
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GREENWOOD HOMES REALTY OFFICE NOW OPEN Brokerage owners Aaron and Casey Lucas are excited about planting roots in Downtown Greenwood.
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COMMUNITY CALENDAR See what events are going on in Indiana ~ Featuring events from local groups and organizations.
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s a real estate agent, it is always best to show the full compassion and intent on helping your client either sell or buy their dream home. This means showing your support until the very end, right at the closing table. Not only does attending the closing show your most outright professionalism, it is also a requirement as a real estate agent. In the case of Juan Carrasquel, he was unaware of this rule of attending a closing with a client. Let’s begin his story with a timeline of events. In April of 2016, Juan began talking to “The Mitchells” about finding their dream home. Later, the couple would sign a buyers agreement with Juan. A company called Beacon Builders LLC would have a property for sale in Bloomington, IN. The listing agent, Tracee Lutes would represent the listing of the property in Bloomington. Soon after entering into the contract with Juan, “The Mitchells” would then find their dream home listed by Tracee in Bloomington. After sending the purchase agreement, Tracee was quick to accept “The Mitchells” offer. Tracee, “The Mitchells”, and Juan all agreed to a closing date in October of 2016. However when the time came to close, someone was missing. While Tracee and “The Mitchells” were in attendance, Juan failed to show. Tracee promptly filed a consumer complaint with 6
the Indiana Attorney General about Juan’s failure to show up to the closing table that day. Investigator Jaclyn Meza was assigned to Tracee’s consumer complaint. She sent a formal letter to Juan’s address in November of 2016. Unfortunately, Meza went many months without hearing from Juan and decided to try again. In March of 2017, Meza called Juan. He did not answer, so she left a voicemail urging him to give her a call back immediately to discuss the consumer complaint. The next day, Juan returned the investigator’s call. Juan told Meza that he never received her letter from November. Meza proceeded to forward him the letter via email. She received confirmation of its delivery. After reviewing the consumer complaint, Juan explained to Meza that Tracee deliberately scheduled the closing on a day that he would be out of town. Because Juan could not find another licensed real estate agent to stand in his place at the closing, he decided to attend via telephone instead. In October 2017, almost a year after the closing, Juan still had not responded in writing to the Indiana Attorney General about his actions toward the consumer complaint. Meza reached out to Juan during this time in an attempt for him to communicate to the Indiana
Attorney General via written response about the consumer complaint. Juan failed to respond.
send an associated broker or designate another broker to act on the broker’s behalf.”
She tried again in late November. Unfortunately, Juan did not respond to this attempt either.
Code 8-1-14 “Requires brokers who are the subject of an investigation by the Office of the Attorney General to cooperate with an investigation into possible violations of Ind. Code ch. 25-1-11.”
In March of 2018, the State of Indiana requested that the Title Company send documents of “The Mitchells” property closing. The Title Company complied, and forwarded the documents. After the State of Indiana received and reviewed these documents in early April, they noticed that Tracee’s signatures and “The Mitchells” signatures were present. Juan’s signatures were the only ones missing.
In late May, The State then requested that each party provide their whereabouts during the time of the closing. Both Tracee and “The Mitchells” proved that they were present for the closing that day, and agreed that each other were present as well. They both also stated that Juan was not present that day. With enough evidence, the Indiana Attorney General and the State of Indiana were able to prove that Juan had violated codes 8-2-4(a) and 8-1-14.
As seen through the timeline of events, Juan failed to show up at his designated closing. He also failed to have another person present when he was not available. To make matters worse, he did not cooperate with investigators from the Indiana Attorney General. The State of Indiana decided to charge Juan with
paying all of the court costs incurred with this case and release any commissions made off of the sale of “The Mitchells” property in Bloomington. What agents can learn from Juan’s experience is to always be prepared for your closings with your clients. Either plan ahead for your closing date, change the date if necessary, or hire another agent to take your place at the closing. To avoid similar problems, always be in attendance at your own closing.
Code 8-2-4(a) by definition states: “Except as provided for in subsections (b) through (d), the listing and selling broker shall attend all closings. Instead of attending, the listing and selling broker both may 7
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Don't Don't Fall Fall
For For These These Rental Rental Scams Scams
With easy accessibility and fast pace communication, scammers are able to target and exploit victims better than ever. Find out how you can avoid a potential scam on a home for rent.
Photo contributed by Teresa Stephens
The Better Business Bureau of Central Indiana has been dealing with complaints of rental scammers throughout Indiana. The BBB issued a warning early this year about potential scammers using social media to get “rental deposit” money from people wanting to find a home for rent. These scammers pose as licensed realtors and ask for wired money to be sent or to meet in person at a public area to deliver cash, leaving the renter without seeing the property that they are paying for.
up at a specific location, to a computer remotely, or directly to a bank account. Once the “realtor” received McKinney’s payment, she notified McKinney that she would be giving her the keys soon. Unfortunately, that never happened. “I never got the keys. I’m waiting a few more days. She always had an excuse”, says McKinney.
Recently, The Indy Channel reported that Beverly McKinney fell victim to one of these scams. She was looking for a three bedroom home where she could reside comfortably with her great grand-daughters. She found the perfect home through a Facebook group that allows users to see available homes for sale and for rent. The home was located off of 36th street in Anderson, IN. When McKinney was able to reach out to the “realtor” who was representing the property, the “realtor” instructed McKinney to send her a rental deposit of $500 through an application called MoneyGram and fill out a contract. MoneyGram allows users to wire money to be picked
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Wagner suggests that “renters should always deliver a deposit in person”. He is also shocked since he has “heard of other types of scams, but not a real estate scam”. The “realtor” that McKinney was in contact with has now vanished into thin air. However, McKinney was able to get screenshots of the messages that were exchanged between the two. The messages show some definite warning signs of a scam that McKinney wants to show others so the same thing doesn’t happen to them. “I just don’t want anybody else to get burned. It’s terrible. I lost $500 and my dignity.”
It turns out that the home was not for rent after all. Rather, it was already owned by Steve Wagner. Wagner had already rented the home to someone else, and says he had nothing to do with the transaction that occurred with McKinney and didn’t even know that his property was being featured in this Facebook group.
The messages contain a lot of grammatical errors, several instances of urging consumers like McKinney to get more money than what was agreed upon, and the “realtor’s” Facebook account only having 1 or 2 friends. These are typical warning signs of a scammer using a fake account. McKinney has already filed a police report, and notified police of the “realtor” wanting the money to be sent to a local Walmart in Mishawaka, IN.
The BBB issued the following tips in order to avoid scams like this one: Always be wary of deals that seem “too good to be true”. These could be really cheap rent for a great home, amazing extra amenities, and great locations. Pricing will be a huge determiner for scams. If you find yourself looking at a rental in a great location for way cheaper than what is being offered in the area, chances are it’s a scam. Also another red flag to notice is if the same property is being offered on multiple sites with different prices. Don’t feel pressured or feel a sense of urgency. Scammers will pressure you to give them money now, as well as continue to ask for even more money than what was promised or agreed upon in the original contract or agreement. Also, if this “realtor” doesn’t offer to do a background check and gives you a leasing agreement, it’s a scam. Always see the property you are planning on renting in person. Rather than dropping off money at a public location, agree to meet at the property. If the “realtor refuses or makes excuses, it’s definitely a scam. If you can’t go visit the property yourself, find someone you trust to go in your place. Don’t believe any “out of state or out of the country” landlord excuses either. Scammers use this story to have victims send money to locations that are untraceable. When looking for a property to rent, it’s always in your best interest to find a reputable brokerage or property management group that you can visit in person. However, if you do find yourself looking on the internet to find a home, make sure to be cautious of red flags to make your home renting experience stress-free.
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TOP 150 Independent Brokerage Standings
Rank Name
12
Office
List
Sold
Total
Volume Total
Average Price
Independent Brokerage Standings January 1, 2018 - October 31, 2018
Rank Name
Office
List
Sold
Total
Volume Total
Average Price
13
TOP 150 Independent Brokerage Standings
Rank Name
14
Office
List
Sold
Total
Volume Total
Average Price
Breaks Ground in Big Rapids, Michigan
Photo Courtesy Of Justin Farris & Spectra Student Living
Indiana based company, Spectra Student Living, has now begun construction for off campus student housing/multifamily development in Big Rapids, Michigan, just outside Ferris University.
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Spectra Student Living was founded in 2017 by Justin Farris and is based out of New Castle, IN. Farris has always had a passion for student housing, even taking a job as a leasing agent in the student housing industry during his time at Ball State University. For the last 20 years, Farris has built up quite the portfolio, working with many developers and managers in the student housing/multifamily space industry. Alongside his partners, Farris has been able to successfully establish and expand student housing at Warren University’s campus in Lake Wales, FL, which included renovating Spencer Hall and adding a new residence hall for students. Now, Justin is working on completing his second student housing project in Michigan, which they call “Eight Thirty Water Tower”. City manager Mark Gifford is “thrilled” to see the new addition being built. “This new apartment community will provide Ferris State University and the City of Big Rapids with more options and will go a long way towards addressing the changing housing needs,” says Gifford. The community of Eight Thirty Water Tower will consist of over 120 units, featuring one, two, and four bedroom housing. The community will house a “state of the art” clubhouse, resident lounge equipped with televisions, a YouTube room, and much more. The estimated $17 million community is expected to be open and available for leasing in August of 2019. So why so many unique amenities in student housing? Farris has an answer for that. “Residents deserve living spaces as unique as they are and provide them with a space to be successful. We saw great need here at Ferris State University, as well as Big Rapids, to develop a community tailored to the needs of today’s residents. The new community is an intentional and innovative development that provides the resident with a more robust university experience while living near campus,” states Farris. So how does the perfect student living space get determined? Farris’ methodology is to “always put the student first” and stand out from other companies’ ways of traditional student housing. “We do this by performing focus groups in each market to truly understand what students are looking for in their home while at school,” Farris remarks,” We mix this with our knowledge of the industry to create a unique living experience. Most 16
other developers have canned, out-of-the-box developments that they try and fit into markets”. The secret behind finding the best spots to build innovative student housing? Well, Farris can’t (or won’t) tell. “I can’t give our secret sauce, but we focus on colleges/universities that are growing in enrollment and have a demand for housing whether on or off campus,” says Farris. Spectra has already made plans for the following years, and Farris is eager and ready to go “We plan on developing 2 to 3 communities per year. So yes, we have new locations picked out,” reveals Farris, “but I can’t give away our future developments at this time. We already have our 2019 groundbreaking pipeline established, and these communities will open in August of 2020. Although Spectra is an Indiana based company, no projects or plans have occurred here yet. However, Farris is always willing to find future places to develop in his home state. “We are always looking at opportunities in Indiana, but the college or university must meet our criteria Photo contributed by Dustin Jenkins [for student housing].” For more information about this or other future projects, Spectra’s website is https://www.spectrastudentliving.com/.
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TOP 150 National Brokerage Standings
Rank Name
18
Office
List
Sold
Total
Volume Total
Average Price
National Brokerage Standings January 1, 2018 - October 31, 2018 Rank Name
Office
List
Sold
Total
Volume Total
Average Price
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TOP 150 National Brokerage Standings
Rank Name
20
Office
List
Sold
Total
Volume Total
Average Price
A New Place T O C A L L H O M E
Photo courtesy of Chris Zazzetti Photo courtesy of Chris Zazzetti
Broker Owners Aaron & Casey Lucas have worked hard for many years, and now have a new office space for them and their agents to collaborate and have a space to call their own.
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Downtown Greenwood just got a new neighbor! Greenwood Homes Realty has established a working office building for the brokerage in the heart of Downtown Greenwood. The journey for this independent brokerage has been a long one, but the payoff has been exceptional for both owners Casey & Aaron Lucas, as well as their team. The Lucases started Greenwood Homes Realty in June of 2016, and have been expanding ever since. Aaron and Casey’s strong spirit and unmatched dedication has helped Greenwood Homes Realty become the “go to” real estate agency for all of Greenwood.
Being the backbone real getting to be a part of
i h t e m o s
“We are able to offer the local residents of Greenwood a premier service coupled with an unparalleled concern and care for the community,” Aaron remarks, “Most places can do one or the other, but not both”. While Greenwood Homes Realty was still operating as a fully functioning independent real estate brokerage with over 10+ staff members and agents, they were always on the go with no place to really “call home”. So for owners Aaron and Casey Lucas, they knew that starting out small would eventually flourish into something amazing. “We were driven to be an independent brokerage by the fact that there were too many ‘big box’ names that were trying to handle business everywhere. And then on the other side of things, the people that were focusing on local real estate were your typical ‘mom and pop’ brokerages that weren’t professional. We wanted to combine that ‘mom and pop’ love of a community with the organizational structure of being ran as a true business,” says Aaron.When it came time for Greenwood Homes Realty to finally “plant roots” for their real estate brokerage to grow, Broker Owners Aaron and Casey Lucas knew the perfect spot. “We decided to put our home office in the heart of the downtown district in Greenwood because all of the exciting changes happening down there,” says Aaron, “Also with us being the go to Greenwood real estate brokerage, it only made sense to be in the heart of everything”.
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Photo courtesy of Chris Zazzetti
The couple purchased a cozy and historic downtown building in Greenwood, right on Madison Ave. While purchasing the building may have been easy, it was a long road until renovations were complete. Through the many steps of deciding layout for rooms and offices,
estate brokerage of the community, we are
ing special.
-Aaron Lucas, Broker Owner as well as design style choices, the Lucases had a new office space to call home in just under 9 months, and to Aaron, it was all worth the wait.“We were excited to finally open up the Greenwood Homes Realty office because Greenwood needed a company that was going to represent them and the changing environment,” Aaron affirms, “and we feel like we have become the name of Greenwood real estate”. So far, Greenwood Homes Realty has helped over 200 clients buy and sell homes all over Greenwood and the surrounding areas. However, Aaron and Casey see this number multiplying in the next year. “Real Estate is a powerful tool to implement change and I feel that us being the backbone real estate brokerage of the community, we are getting to be a part of something special”, says Aaron. We can’t wait to see more future success from Greenwood Homes Realty!
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COMMUNITY CALENDAR N O V E M B E R & D E C E M B E R NOV 9TH - Hooded or Being Black DEC 2ND for Dummies Indy Convergence A timely examination of growing up black in America by rising-star African American playwright, Tearrance Arvelle Chisholm. Marquis, a book smart prep-schooler from the suburbs, meets Tru, a street savvy Baltimorean. Tru thinks Marquis has lost his “blackness” and decides to write a manual: Being Black for Dummies. No one including Marquis' white friends will ever be the same! It's laugh out loud funny with a serious message.
nov 16th Tonic Ball 2018 Fountain Square, Indianapolis, IN
Radio Radio, White Rabbit Cabaret, Fountain Square Theatre, The Hi-Fi, and Pioneer celebrate the music of Pearl Jam, ABBA, Johnny Cash, Elton John, and Beyonce--to benefit Second Helpings.
NOV 17th - A Christmas DEC 26th Carol
nov 22nd Drumstick Dash Broad Ripple, Indianapolis, IN
One of the largest running/walking events in Indiana to benefit Wheeler Mission.
nov 30th - IPL Yuletide dec 23rd Celebration Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra The Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra and Jack Everly are joined by two former hosts of Yuletide for our 33rd Celebration — Josh Kaufman and Angela Brown! Broadway's best singers and dancers will bring the Yuletide magic and music to life on the Hilbert Circle Theatre stage. Enjoy the traditions of "'Twas the Night Before Christmas," the famous tap-dancing Santas, and "All I Want for Christmas Is You." This year also features "Holly Jolly Dollies," "Jingle Belles and Beaux," and Angela's transcendent performance of "Mary Had a Baby." And you won't want to miss a new 2018 edition of the North Pole reality singing competition, "Santa's Choice!"
IRT, Indianapolis, IN
Presented by Eli Lilly and Company: As the weather turns cold, warm your heart with Ebenezer Scrooge, Tiny Tim and spirits of the past, present and future. Filled with laughter and tears, A Christmas Carol celebrates the power of kindness and love in this uplifting tale of one man’s journey to redemption.
Have any events you want featured? Email tera@indiana-realestatenews.com!
Why Choose Us? Exclusivity Your company will be the only one in your industry to advertise with us.
Exposure Every MIBOR Realtor will receive a copy and more industry offices will receive a copy across more mediums.
Education In addition to the articles in our magazine, we also produce educational videos and blog posts.
Community Oriented We reward industry professionals for their community involvement and customer service.
Inclusivity We feature the top 150 national realtors and the top 150 independent realtors.
ADVERTISE WITH US! Contact Aaron Henze at aaron@indiana-realestate-news.com