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CALIFORNIA EDITION

Playing the REAL ESTATE MATCHMAKER Top Agent Tips and Questions for CHOOSING YOUR LISTING AGENT A POWERFUL MARKETING TOOL —Defer Taxes When Selling a Residence

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STEPHANIE WEDGE-BONDE

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STEPHANIE STEPHANIE WEDGE-BONDE WEDGE-BONDE

CONTENTS 4) PLAYING THE REAL ESTATE MATCHMAKER

13) A POWERFUL MARKETING TOOL—DEFER TAXES WHEN SELLING A RESIDENCE

21) TOP AGENT TIPS AND QUESTIONS FOR CHOOSING YOUR LISTING AGENT

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Playing the Real Estate Matchmaker –

Follow These 8 Dating Rules to Ensure You Match Your Client with the Perfect Home for Them When you think a bit more about it, the ultimate goal of a real estate agent serving a client is really to match them up with the perfect house for them, almost the way a matchmaker tries to find two people that will fit well together as a couple. When people are looking for a house, they often treat the process as a quest for “the one” house that will fulfill their dreams of living in the house of their dreams. Don’t be fooled. It is always a search for “the one”, at least when it comes to helping a couple or family find a home.

When you look at your client’s search for a home in this manner, then you might begin to notice some pretty obvious similarities 4

between shopping for a home today and online dating. In this day and age most people live a substantial part entire lives online. People socialize with their friends on Facebook, they meet potential friends in forums and online communities, and we now even search for our perfect mate online. Shopping for a home also happens to usually start online. When they begin this search, make no mistake; they are looking for the “one.” These people then turn to you, the REALTOR® to play matchmaker for them. It is your job to wade through the pool of eligible homes (bachelors) and sort through all the ones that are too expensive, too nerdy, not cute enough, not smart enough, etc. until you find the “one.”

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It makes sense then to consult the tried and true practices in matchmaking that help those professionals find the right people for each other, and see if any of them could also apply for matching your clients with their dream home. You’ll find that these 8 dating rules may just show you the secret to matching your clients with the perfect home.

back to the store if you’re not happy with your new home. It’s best to first help your client get prequalified. This is a tangible step that shows they are ready to move on to a new home. You want to make sure they are completely over their love affair with their previous home. You can even ask them for a sign or proof that they’re ready to move on.

Who Is In and Not In Your Client’s League? Know Your Client’s Price Range:

Be Genuine, Not Superficial

When a person is looking for a mate, it is a waste of time for them to even consider those potential mates that are clearly out of their league. These people won’t even stop to give them the time of day.

In the world of real estate the idea is the same. There is no point showing your clients houses that they can’t afford and will simply lust after without having any real chance of purchasing the house. It is your job to keep your client ground in reality, and help them be realistic in terms of price when choosing their next home.

Never Let Your Client’s First Impression of a Home Rule Their Decisions

Make Sure Your Client is Ready to Move On From Their Last Dream Home You’re job is also to make sure that your client is truly ready to move on from their previous home. This is a long term commitment, and they need to be absolutely sure they actually want to buy a new house. You can’t simply take the receipt Top Agent Magazine

When trying to manage the many pitfalls of online dating, on inevitably goes on a date where the other person looks nothing like their picture online. That can be just as big of a problem when looking for a house. When clients show you a particular house they want to visit, ask them to name something about the house that they like other than the aesthetics. This way you can see if they are simply infatuated with the way the house looks in those pictures, or if there is a deeper interest in the home that could become a deeper connection between your client and the house.

When your client first sees a house they have already been lusting after in their mind, they’re often so excited to finally be looking at it, especially if it does in fact look as good as it did in the pictures.

Make sure to encourage them to take some time before making such a big com-

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mitment, and don’t let their excitement push them into making a rash decision. It is your job to keep them grounded in reality. Push for your clients to do an inspection to make sure the house isn’t hiding any dark secrets. Sometimes the most charming facade can hide tons of slime and deadly mold.

Follow Your Heart (or Gut) People often laugh at and ridicule the idea of love at first sight, but when it comes to homes, the phenomenon can certainly happen. Your client may just find their perfect dream home at the very first place you take them. If you have a client that does insist this is the case, then you don’t want to try and rationalize with them or talk them out of their decision. You do, however, want to make sure you are watching out for their interest and make sure your clients take all the necessary precautions before they jump in headfirst.

See What Other People See in The Home – Do They See What Your Client Sees?

Have you come to the conclusion that your clients are being blinded by all of the twinkling windows and crystal clear water glistening in the backyard pool, and can’t see that the house they’ve fallen in love with is really just a dirty animal (maybe a pig) dressed up in nice clothes and lipstick. Ask your client if they would be willing to look at the house again with 6

their close friends, family, and anyone else they trust for a second opinion there to see it with them. If the house really is a dud, they’ll be able to see past any personal bias your client might have to the truth. They will be able to help your client see through the shining facade

Celebrate the Happy Union!

When a couple gets married they tend to throw a big party and celebrate their union. The same goes for the closing.

Your clients have just essentially married the house of their dreams, and now it’s time to rejoice. Congratulate them on their new union. Show your support for their new homeowner status by going to their housewarming party.

Help Your Clients Maintain Their Dream Home & Ensure a Lifetime of Happiness You can’t just disappear after the transaction is finished. Become their realtor for life by showing your clients how to maintain their dream home. Act as their resource for other professionals they may need to maintain the house such as handymen, plumbers, electricians, etc. Show them how to keep up with home maintenance so they don’t ignore problems that surface and end up with a much larger issue than they started with. Help them make sure their dream home lasts so they can live happily ever after in their home for a lifetime.

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STEPHANIE WEDGE-BONDE

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“Interacting with my clients, helping them make a successful real estate transaction, and seeing them happy are among the most rewarding aspects of my work.”

STEPHANIE WEDGE-BONDE With Real Estate sales of more than $500 million over the course of her career, Stephanie Wedge-Bonde continues to flourish in one of the country’s most competitive markets: Silicon Valley and the East Bay. With twenty-five years of real estate experience, and clients from all parts of the real estate spectrum, Stephanie pioneered her success story from her early days as a future law student to the commanding professional she is today. With an 80% rate of returning and referral clients, Stephanie has built a systematic yet people centric approach that keeps her clients coming back.

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Stephanie’s first exposure to the real estate industry began by touring rentals with clients from Silicon Valley powerhouses like Apple and IBM while she was a college student with a real estate license. Her keen eye, design sense and knowledge of construction enabled Stephanie to turn rental listings into sales in short order. Over two decades later, Stephanie has developed a fruitful real estate business, aided only by a coordinator and part-time assistant. To provide her listings with the exposure needed to stand out in a covetable market, Stephanie employs customized marketing strategies for each property, identifies key publications for distinct listings, makes use of the internet’s far-reach, and keeps all communication both thorough and personal.

“When my clients call, I’m the one to pick Top Agent Magazine

with my clients every step of the way—walking them through the process, through all the paperwork, and answering any questions that may arise.” What’s more, Stephanie makes use of professional photographers and stagers to ensure that each listing she’s responsible for always puts its best foot forward.

As both a listing and a selling agent, Stephanie has long mastered the art of communication, finding ways to connect personally with each client she serves. She holds a bachelor’s degree in Communication Studies, from Top Agent Magazine

San Jose State University. Of course, her impressive rate of referral, at 80%, is a clear indicator of her knack for cultivating lasting professional relationships. “My clients know that they’re in good hands,” Stephanie says, “and I work hard to make the entire process easy, so that they don’t have to endure any extra difficulty or stress along the way.” Perhaps one of the key reasons that Stephanie is able to nurture trust in her agent-client relationships is the time she takes to educate those she works with. “I make it my business to go above and beyond by packaging Copyright Top Agent Magazine

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“I make it my business to go above and beyond—packaging contracts cleanly, going over bidding processes and marketing analyses and working with trusted lenders.” and beyond by packaging contracts cleanly, going over bidding processes and marketing analyses, and working with trusted lenders among other methods,” Stephanie recounts.

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“Clients know they can trust me because I show them results. I’ve had clients tell me, ‘We’ve done everything you’ve suggested, and it made the process very easy.’”

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Though her years in the real estate business have earned Stephanie a wealth of knowledge achieved only through hard-won experience, it’s her one-on-one work with the people behind the property deals that makes her transactions successful. “Interacting with my clients, helping them make a successful real estate transaction, and seeing them happy are among the most rewarding aspects of my work,” she says. “It also doesn’t hurt when I make the frequent follow-up call to report that clients have been able to make money on their home investment.”

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In her coveted free-time, she’s a regular attendee at her son’s basketball and football games. Stephanie also lends many hours to civic work as both a member of the Board of Directors for the Museum on Main and as a Chairperson for the Civic Arts Commission. Stephanie owns two Thoroughbred racehorses, and enjoys attending their races. Her husband, Jeff Bonde, is a worldrenowned Thoroughbred race horse trainer. When she does find time to vacation, she is something of a real estate hobbyist as she enjoys exploring housing Copyright Top Agent Magazine 11

markets in the warm locales she favors visiting. As for the future, Stephanie has plans to continue to grow her business and client base by fostering more of the relationships she so highly values.

With an impressive track record already under her belt, the future is bright for Stephanie Wedge-Bonde.

“This work is fun, it keeps me busy and keeps me going,” she reflects. “I wake up each morning looking forward to what the day may bring.”

To learn more about Stephanie Wedge-Bonde BRE# 01210398 | 408-438-0038 Cell stephaniebondehomes@gmail.com www.stephaniewedge.com Altas Realty 12Copyright Top Agent Magazine

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A Powerful Marketing Tool Defer Taxes When Selling A Residence

By David Fisher

Winston Churchill once said, “There is no such thing as a good tax.” Of course, he also said, “I like pigs. Dogs look up to us. Cats look down on us.

Pigs treat us as equals” so Winston was a pretty sharp guy. For purposes of this article, however I will focus more on taxes and less on pigs although there are probably more similarities than differences between the two. Pork is more than just the other white meat.

I don’t mind paying my fair share of taxes but I want my taxes to go to things like fixing infrastructure, educating poor kids or feeding the hungry.

However, it seems that much of our tax dollars go to pork projects to help members of Congress get reelected so that’s why I have become more focused over the years in my practice in helping my clients defer taxes when selling real estate and other highly appreciated assets.

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Most of us are familiar with what is called a 1031 exchange. A 1031 exchange is a great opportunity to defer capital gains taxes,state taxes and depreciation recapture when selling an investment property and by following IRC 1031, the seller can purchase another investment property of equal or greater value and defer the previous mentioned taxes to some point in the future. It’s a great opportunity for the seller and it’s a great opportunity for the real estate broker to buy additional property for their clients. It’s a win-win.

But what if the property being sold is a primary residence or a property that does not qualify for a 1031 exchange. We all know that a primary residence might be the largest investment that many will make and hopefully the primary residence will appreciate in value over the years. Even though there are various exemptions and exclusions for capital gains when selling a primary residence,it’s quite possible that there could be a sizable capital gains and state tax liability once the residence is sold. For example, I worked with someone recently who bought a home wisely and now, a couple of decades later, is selling the property and after crunching the numbers is facing a $4 million capital gain.

The property is in Texas so the seller is looking at a capital gains tax of $800,000 (4 million x 20%), no state income tax in Texas but add that in for the 43 states that have a state tax and also the CPA said that there might also be the alternative minimum tax as well but he wouldn’t be sure until crunching all of the numbers. If so, that’s additional income tax due. So if the property sold was in California, you can add about another $400,000 in state taxes. If the property was in Colorado, you could add an additional $200,000 in state taxes and so on.

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We all know that a primary residence might be the largest investment that many will make and hopefully the primary residence will appreciate in value over the years.

But take the taxes due to the next level. Let’s say that this individual paid $1 million in taxes, he is 60 years of age and will live for another 20 years. If he could defer that $1 million in taxes and invest that amount wisely, that could be $3 million or more that could be passed on to his heirs at his passing.

Remember that this is only the taxes deferred and not the rest of the sales proceeds. So the question is this... Can a property owner defer taxes when selling a high end residence or luxury property that does not qualify for IRC 1031. The answer is YES. It is absolutely possible. Having said that, there are a number of moving parts to accomplish this tax deferral strategy and the seller’s CPA and /or attorney would have to be involved but yes, it’s possible.

Imagine if you will the day you started selling real estate and you decided to work as hard as you could and put as much money away into your retirement plan as is possible. You would make whatever sacrifices needed in order to make as large a contribution to your retirement plan as allowed and when you had $3 million in your account, you were going to retire and do all the things that you choose not to do until you retired and had enough money to enjoy life.

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You opened your monthly statement and you couldn’t believe your eyes. There it was... $3 million in your account. You made it.

So you worked more hours than anyone in the office. You talked to potential clients that no one would talk to. You kept your car a couple of extra years before buying another one and you took shorter vacations rather than longer more expensive ones so you could make larger contributions into your retirement plan. Sound familiar? And this went on for 3 decades until one day, it happened!

You opened your monthly statement and you couldn’t believe your eyes.

There it was... $3 million in your account. You made it. You could now retire and do all the things you put off until now. You could not contain your excitement as you dialed your CPA with the great news. Your CPA was thrilled at your good fortune and mentioned to you that he had a tax form you needed to sign and then you could begin your well deserved retirement.

So he says to you...I need you to sign and date the form and then write a check made payable to the US Treasury for $900,000.00 and as soon as the check clears, you retirement can begin.

You feel like you were just hit by a truck. You try to speak but nothing is coming out of your mouth. Your CPA explains that a couple of years ago, Congress passed a tax law that said that before a taxpayer can retire, they must pay a 30% tax on the lump sum amount in their retirement plan. So you realize that you actually have $2.1 million in your account and probably need another 10 years of working to net the $3 million you want to retire.

You’re devastated.

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“Have you considered the potential capital gains tax liability you will have when you sell.”

Well, there’s good news and there’s bad news. The good news is that there isn’t a 30% tax on retirement plans for now. I made that up. The bad news is that your sellers could be facing as much as that 30% tax on the capital gains they have earned when you sell their property. You don’t want to pay that tax so why would you let your clients pay that tax now that you know it might be able to be deferred indefinitely.

But imagine the powerful tool you now have in your briefcase. You’re talking to a prospect who is selling a high end property in LA, Aspen, Miami, New York, Chicago or any other location in the country and you want to list that great high end residence. The problem is that as good as you are, there are 3 other talented brokers that are also competing for the listing. Those 3 make outstanding listing presentations and the prospect is absolutely impressed with all of them.

Now it’s your turn to hit the ball out of the park and you make Babe Ruth proud. As you’re finishing, you ask the prospect one final question. “Have Top Agent Magazine

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Again, this tax deferral strategy may not be for everyone but if it helps you make 1 sale a year, that’s a great opportunity for all involved. you considered the potential capital gains tax liability you will have when you sell.” The prospect responds that his CPA informed him that there will be a rather large tax bill to pay and he just has to take a deep breath and pay it. You then smile and ask him if he knew that he might be able to defer those taxes. He looks at you a bit stunned and asks you to explain and you do. Even if he decides to pay the tax, you have set yourself apart from the others and I can tell you that we have a number of success stories where the agent took the time to show concern for the prospect after the commission check would be paid and got the listing.

Again, this tax deferral strategy may not be for everyone but if it helps you make 1 sale a year, that’s a great opportunity for all involved. As I mentioned earlier, there are a number of moving parts to this strategy but a short phone conversation probably could give us insight to the viability of this strategy in a specific set of circumstances..

Now go sell a great property, defer the capital gains and state taxes and invite me to dinner. But please don’t serve pork. Churchill probably wouldn’t approve. Best wishes until the next time we visit.

Copyright©, 2015 David Fisher. All rights reserved.

David Fisher is the founding partner at Creative Real Estate Strategies. His firm specializes in helping brokers all over the country buy and sell real estate for their clients in a tax efficient manner. He can be reached at david@cresknowsrealestate.com. His cell is 713-702-6401 and there is more information at www.cresknowsrealestate.com 18

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Top Agent Tips and Questions for Choosing Your Listing Agent Now that you’ve decided to sell, it’s time to select the professional to help you market your property. Before meeting with agents, however, consider Top Agent Magazine’s tips for preparing yourself. Frist, ask yourself what kind of relationship you’d like to have with your listing agent. Are you seeking a casual, personable relationship and the latest marketing tools or are you interested in a more formal, traditional relationship and approach to marketing techniques? Next, populate your list of agents by attending open houses and asking for recommendations from recent buyers and sellers.

Finally, schedule your meetings at your home, where you’ll be able to gauge the chemistry between you and each agent.

During your meetings, expect any Top Agent to ask you several questions, but also consider discussing the following: Top Agent Magazine

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Will you please describe your sales experience and local network?

Ask your Top Agent to describe recent listings and sales of homes comparable to your own. Ask about the sellers’ priorities, the original list price, market time and number of offers. Top Agents will also describe how well they are connected with other REALTORS® in the region as well as their contacts with relocation companies, local corporations and chambers of commerce.

Be sure to ask about each agent’s knowledge of how your market has changed over time and what has influenced change.

You’ll learn a lot by listening to agents’ opinions.

How will you market the property? Each

Top Agent has a unique set of online or local marketing tools at his or her disposal. Some use lead-generation applications and nearly ever luxury agent take advantage of video. Even video marketing tools vary from agent-to-agent, however.

You’ll get to decide if you prefer an agent with higher-end video production and 3D Matterport tours or an agent with more intimate techniques featuring walk-and-talk style video tours.

What factors influence your list-price recommendation? Before an-

swering this question, most Top Agents will have several questions for you, including whether you’re more focused on a faster sale or a higher list price.

They’ll also educate you on how best to balance both market time and list price relative to sales histories your area.

Now that you’ve seen the home, what repairs or improvements do you recommend before listing? You’ll learn a lot by listening to agents’

opinions on your home’s sale potential with or without some improvements.

Most Top Agents will also recommend a full professional inspection prior to listing to avoid surprises during buyer inspection.

How will you help with staging? Some Top Agents will pay for part or

all of the staging costs. At a minimum, however, a Top Agent will have a staging professional or two in their partner network. While they’re at it, they may provide referrals for carpet cleaning, painting, gardening and other minor finishing touches.

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What attributes of the property will you want to highlight? Each Top

Agent will have a somewhat different answer to this question, but that’s a good thing! Even if you have your own ideas about your home’s greatest attributes, you’ll glean insight into the current market by considering different agents’ opinions. In learning their views, you may even change your mind about your home’s most marketable features!

What is your approach to Open Houses? How many agent-only Open

Houses will your Top Agent want to host? How many truly Open Houses?

Some Top Agents may even reveal a “swankier” approach to the Open House – such as an evening cocktail party or by-invitation “open” hours to which buyers visit along with the agent representing them.

Who will be our primary point(s) of contact from your office? This

important question will help you understand the scope of your agent’s practice. You’ll get to see if your agent runs a robust team with many hands on deck or if he or she works by close, one-on-one contact with each client.

Either approach is wonderful; you get to decide what suits you.

Now, let’s list!

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