WEST WORDS JULY 2020
I AM
I AM PARKER WEINTHAL I AM INNOVATIVE I AM CREATIVE I AM DILIGENT I AM EDUCATIONAL I AM FOCUSED I AM WEST USA
HIGHLY RECOMMENDED
WHAT PEOPLE ARE SAYING We really appreciate what Parker was able to do for us. He was put in sort of a tight situation because of how the house was listed. He was able to help us navigate some tricky issues and did it with great grace. We were grateful for his help in getting a home bought for my in-laws!
Parker knows his stuff! He listened to what we were looking for, adjusted recommendations based on our changing preferences and was diligent about answering our questions and addressing our concerns. He found us the most amazing vacation home and took care of every little needed detail to make closing a breeze. We highly recommend Parker!
Parker was very helpful in showing me viable home options in the Phoenix area based on my parameters. Since I was remote, Parker provided virtual tours and provided honest feedback on the pros and cons. Parker negotiation skills aligned well with my expectations. Well done Parker.
CLAY FOUTS
LEGACY OF FAMILY & BUSINESS RESPONSIBILITY I have been working for Clay and West USA for about 31 years, through good times and some bad times. I recall about 2008 as the market was slowing way down, I suggested to Clay at lunch one day, that maybe now is a good time to sell West USA. He said he had certainly thought about it, but one very important item to him that he could not overlook was HE HAD OVER 100 EMPLOYEES THAT HAVE A JOB AT WEST USA, TO SERVE THE AGENTS, AND THERE WAS NO WAY THAT HE WOULD ABANDON THAT RESPONSIBILITY!!!! And now comes a time that the world is hit with COVID-19 which was unheard of in the world by most people until about 2020 and still going on ALL of this year. The President of the United States and hence the Governors ordered that people should stay at home except for necessities. However, West USA has kept all of their staff working even as we “shelter in place!� Many agents from other companies have signed on with West USA. They have kept on working, listing, selling and renting properties with a very strong commercial representation of agents. Land and Business Opportunities are a big part of West USA, also. Of course, the Clay Fouts culture of business is a legend in Arizona and agents want that experience, therefore our growth continues. A very large number of agents have been here for many years and even some as long as I have been employed here. I started with him in the 28th Dr. office and have expanded with him to what has become 8 offices around the valley. The staff that makes everything work properly to serve the agents are amazing people and we do not really have much turnover of great folks to work with. One very notable observation I make here, is the very diverse mixture of agents that have come to West USA, with many backgrounds prior to real estate. I enjoy speaking to them about their previous careers and am fascinated by their reasons for deciding to make real estate their career. I am so happy they have become a part of our great Clay Fouts legacy and culture at West USA Realty! BOB STEPHENS 5-26-2020
BROKER
BLOG WITH BOB STEVENS
Experts: Spring’s Missing Home Sales Will be Added to Coming Years By Skylar Olsen When coronavirus turned the economy upside down, anxiety and uncertainty about the future initially kept many homebuyers and sellers at bay. Inventory and sales have picked up over the past month, though, and a panel of housing experts and economists say the U.S. housing market hasn’t lost those missing springtime transactions for good. The Zillow Home Price Expectations Survey, sponsored by Zillow and conducted quarterly by Pulsenomics LLC, asks more than 100 economists, investment strategists and real estate experts for their predictions about the U.S. housing market. The Q2 survey focused on the impact of coronavirus on the market and expected recovery patterns, and also asked for predictions on how the pandemic will shape homebuying decisions in the future. Coronavirus and subsequent stay-at-home orders resulted in lower-than-expected transaction volume during what was primed to be a busy spring home shopping season. While it was thought the spring buying season could shift to the fall, the pandemic effects are poised to continue into summer and only 10% of the survey panelists said they believe those transactions will materialize later in 2020. More than twice as many experts (22%) said they expect a “double up” during next spring’s shopping season, and the vast majority predicted that recovery will be spread out over the next several years.
This prediction is in line with how the experts expect the U.S. economy to recover overall. Forty-one percent said they think economic recovery will follow a ‘U’ shape, and 33% say it will be a bumpy, multi-year return back to trend growth. Both patterns are characterized first by a sharp decline and then match how experts see transaction volume recovering, with the consensus generally being a more gradual journey back to normal. Zillow’s own forecast calls for a 1.8% drop in home prices by October 2020, expecting home prices to return to Q4 2019 levels by the Q3 2021. While predictions on home prices continue to steepen, the outlook on pending home sales continues to become more optimistic. Zillow now shows sales hit bottom in April with a 44% drop, and are on their way back up, compared to the original forecast of a 60% dip. Even with lower sales volumes compared to 2019, the U.S. housing market has shown resilience during the pandemic and has already begun to rebound. Pending sales are up 40.8% in the past month, and new home sales in April were up 0.6% from March. Get the full report on economists’ predictions for recovery at zillow.com/research/zhpe-missing-home-sales-27209.
TODD MENARD’S
REAL ESTATE MARKET STATS
MARCI COX If you would like to nominate an agent that is doing great things in the community or making a difference, please fill out the nomination form on the Mywestusa.com website under the downloads tab and the Cares button.
Marci Cox is our Agent in Action for the month of July 2020. She is out of the Arrowhead Office and is out doing amazing things to give back to the Cancer surviving communities. Marci is a Cancer Survivor after being first diagnosed in November 2018. For the past 2 years she has been giving her time and passion to the Cancer Support Community of Arizona and the Provision Project. Through the Cancer Support Community of Arizona, she helps with the support groups, volunteers at informational booths, fundraises and helps with the annual Free Prom they put on for children to go Prom. She wants to be able to pay it forward and encourage wherever she is needed. If you are interested in more information on Cancer Support Community of Arizona, please visit their website at https://cscaz.org/. Thank you, Marci, for everything you do for our communities!
EMPLOYEE OF THE
MONTH
Congratulations to Nicole McGrath West USA Realty’s July Employee of the Month. Nicole is our Director of Transaction Services, Nicole and her small but mighty department manage many transactions at a time for our West USA Agents. Managing transactions from beginning to end, Nicole and the Transaction Services team allow our agents to focus on what they love to do and leave the paperwork to us! Thank you Nicole for your tireless effort to keep our agents transactions moving forward seamlessly!
NICOLE MCGRATH
For more info on the Transaction Service Dept, please email transactionservices@westusa.com
M O N DAY
T U E S DAY
W E D N E S DAY
JULY 2020
T H U R S DAY
01
F R I DAY
02
Virtual Kierland Office Meeting 10:00am - 11:30am @ Via Zoom Meeting
06 West USA Weekly Webinar 9:00am - 10:00am @ Live Webinar West USA Agent Orientation 10:30am - 12:30pm @ Via Live Webinar
07
03 ALL OFFICES CLOSED- Independence Day (Observed)
08
Wise Agent Contact Management as part of REACT Training 1:00pm 2:00pm @ Via LIVE Webinar
09
10
Virtual Arrowhead Office Meeting 1:00pm - 2:00pm @ Via Zoom Meeting
Dont Do Dat with Broker Bob Stephens 1:00pm - 1:30pm @ Via Live Webinar
13 ProStart Training Session 1 9:00am - 4:00pm @ Via Zoom Meeting
14 ProStart Training Session 1 9:00am - 4:00pm @ Via Zoom Meeting
15 ProStart Training Session 1 9:00am - 4:00pm @ Via Zoom Meeting Chandler Office Meeting 10:00am 11:30am @ West USA Chandler
West USA Weekly Webinar 9:00am - 10:00am @ Live Webinar
16
17
Virtual Broker Round Table 10:00am - 11:00am @ Via Zoom Meeting
Dont Do Dat with Broker Bob Stephens 1:00pm - 1:30pm @ Via Live Webinar
20 Graduate Realtor Institute (6 CE Agency Law) 9:00am - 4:00pm
21
22
ProStart Training Session 2 9:00am - 4:00pm @ Via Zoom Meeting
23
24
ARMLS Training 10:00am - 11:30am @ Surprise Office
Wise Agent CRM Overview and Demo as part of REACT Training 1:00pm - 2:00pm @ Via LIVE Webinar
27 ProStart Training Session 3 9:00am - 4:00pm @ Via Zoom Meeting
28
29
ProStart Training Session 3 9:00am - 4:00pm @ Via Zoom Meeting
30
31
Graduate Realtor Institute (6 CE Agency Law) 9:00am - 4:00pm
West USA Weekly Webinar 9:00am - 10:00am @ Live Webinar Dont Do Dat with Broker Bob Stephens 1:00pm - 1:30pm @ Via Live Webinar
• CE- Continuing Education Renewal Training • Luxury Division Event
• Commercial Division Event • Office Meetings
SPONSORS
• Education Events • REACT
• Holiday Hours • Social Mixers / Events