It’s Friday, let’s sweep! | spring training insights

Well, I have baseball on my mind as I witness pictures on social media of folks visiting Peoria, AZ to witness our Mariners take the field for spring training! First pitch today! As with many things, I take insights from sport into our sport of real estate.

As I was reading a Seattle Times article on Thursday morning over morning coffee, “Mariners’ Ty France finally reveals the culprit behind last season’s second-half slump” I was a reminder of what broker Catherine Adams shared with my offices at our first meeting of the year – in baseball speak (not Catherine’s), to approach 2023 swinging at the right pitches…

“France blamed his struggles on swinging at bad pitches (not his injury) in an attempt to “chase hits.” – Larry Stone reported on within his article.

In real estate speak, swinging at the right pitches is making sure that we are working with clients ready for this market; aka, this season. We discover this thru fabulous discovery into why now – open ended questions, understanding motivations and educating on the real stories in the “now” market and practical (and successful) approaches. No one environment is perfect for every client, yet there is plenty of opportunity warming up in our spring training season.

I challenge everyone to take a quick glance at your roster of clients and see where your time should be spent, are there any gaps in understanding motivations and then, swing at the right pitches vs attempting to “chase hits.”

And, if you and your clients need some LIVE insights (including opportunity to ask questions), consider investing in an in-person Matthew Gardner client event to do so. Brokers, text me if you don’t have these details and are interested – 206.227.7133. A catered happy hour & conversation with Matthew Gardner March 9th. Last call as we are dialing in catering numbers…

Next topic as we sweep recap of this week – What is a 1099-S ? Good question. If you haven’t transacted personally in some time, you may have forgotten! We had a client ask a broker for a copy of their 1099-S recently, so we dug up more detail from CW’s Darlene Sozinho & Craig Ellis…

“A 1099-S is the IRS reporting form that escrow prepares to report the sellers net proceeds for the sale of their home to the IRS.  Our escrow teams send a copy of the 1099-S to the seller along with their settlement statement right after closing (via snail mail).  If your client has misplaced theirs, escrow can provide a new copy to them.   Your client will need this form when preparing their taxes.

Good News:  If they closed with CW, that form and their settlement statement will live in their Qualia Portal forever (or until portals become extinct like the floppy disk).” – Darlene & Craig

I’ll wrap this sweep of the week with a high 5 to our Windermere Foundation reps – those current & those previously that have served our offices. Last night I hosted reps from inside of my offices as a thank you. We raised a glass to celebrate the larger Windermere goal met last year. I didn’t want this moment to pass us by before we got further into this year. Yes, that was huge goal met, yet what the evening came to be for me was a reminder of the ethos within our brand. It is one thing to say you are philanthropic and involved in making communities better and it is another thing to be within a brand that is founded upon this concept. Our brand & people walk the walk and together we have achieved so much – incrementally, over time.

So, as I had the opportunity to do in my kitchen last night, please thank a Windermere Foundation rep next time you see one. Not only do they live our ethos, they are passionately looking for new ways to better it. I was again witness to this last night.

Cheers to collective generosity! It is in us. – Laura