Ted Underhill's Page

Here are some thoughts from a recent major real-estate conference on where the industry and economy are headed:

1. No expert or economist who spoke was willing to make any prediction of where we will be in three years.

2. Development is dead for all real estate for at least three years.

3. Recovery will be slow. GDP in 3Q was over-inflated due to cash for clunkers and other stimulus. The first part of 2010 will be 1 percent to 2 percent GDP growth.

4. All real-estate values are down by at le… Continue

GAINESVILLE, Fla. — With the state's high jobless rate, Florida's real estate outlook is plagued by the most dangerous condition to delay an economic recovery: uncertainty, according to the latest University of Florida survey.

"Most economists think the recession is over, but people are afraid to spend money as unemployment keeps going up, which creates problems for every sector of the real estate market," said Timothy Becker, director of UF's Bergstrom Center for Real Estate Studies, which con… Continue

Blogging? I think that starting a blog is one of the best ways for an agent today to show off their personality — but also their knowledge of the local market. Both are important in real estate. I’m also a big believer in creating a niche for yourself. So starting a blog about goings on of the neighborhood you sell is a great way to get started. Market data is available everywhere now and something you should provide. But it’s the stories about the neighborhood; who’s moving in, why this house s… Continue

After every bear market on Wall Street, some investors are reluctant to buy because they believe many other investors will be anxious to sell into any rebound, swamping the market and stunting any recovery.

And yet, bull markets get going anyway.

Now the same issue is dogging the housing market.

A new Zillow.com survey of 1,266 homeowners nationwide asks, "If you saw signs of a real estate market turnaround in the next 12 months, how likely would you be to put your home up for sale?"

Twelve… Continue

Sotheby’s agent Andrea Geller has written an interesting article for consumers that appears on the Chicago77 Web site with the provocative title, “Telltale signs your listing broker is a dinosaur.” Geller makes the point that the extent of knowledge many agents have of technology is being able to say, “your listing is on Realtor.com and the company Web site.” Geller warns sellers that if the listing presentation they hear doesn’t include the words “syndication,” “SEO” and “SOCIAL NETWORKIN… Continue