Vikki, Week 6 blog 3, 5/22/13

I can't believe this is my last blog but I am so relieved. These past 6 weeks have gone by so fast and thankfully I'm completely done with both my presentation and my paper. Today is mostly an organization day. I am helping Emily mainly finish her website and get all the clients transferred over to the new site. She wants to get this done by tomorrow because I am only here until tomorrow. Its hard for her to balance the organization of her website with all the other work she has to do. Today wil be pretty easy and stress free because the stuff she needs me to do I already know how to do really well. The phones have been ringing off the hook about my neighbors house, and every time after they talk for a while I always ask whoever the agent is for the buyers if they are nice. So far I have a favorite family they have 2 kids one is 3 and the other is 1 and they have a dog this would be a perfect match. I am doing a lot of filing in the Top Producer website because a family we were having trouble with is now buying a home since their old house finally sold. This is probably my least favorite task because its hard to get everything perfect since I'm not the agent or the main person on this listing. Hopefully I am doing everything right because in the real estate world or at least for my supervisor everything needs to be perfect.

Vikki Gonser, Week 6 blog 2, 5/21/13

So today I was really busy but that was good! I started my day off completing these listing binders and getting everything perfect. I also organized the listing folder for my neighbors since their house is going live on the MLS website tonight. Then I went to my neighbors with Emily to take pictures and measure all the rooms. This took a while since there are a lot of rooms that we needed to take care of. The measuring was a little bit tedious because there was just so much to measure and it had to be perfect. It was really weird doing this in my neighbors house because it was basically like measuring my own house, since I practically grew up there. It was sad to see all their stuff out of the house I just hope a nice new family moves in. It was also caravan Tuesday but today I didn't get to view the houses I got to give the tour of the two houses we had on the caravan list. After my neighbors I went to Cha Cha la Mer to pick up sammy's and desserts then I had to drive up to Wenham for the second open house. This house is kinda out of the way so not a ton of people showed up. I then came back to the office to finish up the folders for Emily. Now that all this stuff is done its getting hard to find tasks that I can do. Thankfully for the next two days she has some little things for me to do.

Vikki, week 6 blog 1, 5/20/13

Yesterday I actually worked which I didn't mind. I had to go to an open house then a home inspection. The open house was a listing of Emily's so that was pretty cool. After that I went to the inspection which took about 2 hours which is good some homes take more than 4. After that I got to tour the house it was a little deceiving because the outside of the house looked pretty big but the inside was tiny it only had two bedrooms and one bathroom! Its good though for the couple who is buying it because they are newly married and don't have any kids. The previous owners had 4 kids! All under the age of 10 I can't even imagine living in a 2 bedroom one bathroom home with 6 people. Thankfully the previous owners found a nice big house that they can move into. Today my advisor is out showing houses to a women all day till about 5 tonight. So she isn't here. I have a lot of tasks I have to do for her though. In a little bit I will be going to Beverly Farms to pick up a plant for her clients and place a catering order at Cha Cha La Mer for tomorrow's broker open house. After that I have to go to North Beverly and go to Shaws to pick up stuff for tomorrow. Then I have to go to staples and get Emily some binders for her four new listings. Then I have to travel into Wenham to deliver the plant and pick up sign riders. Then I have to go to Magnolia to pick up sign riders as well. After all of that I can finally come back to the office and put together the binders for her new listings. Today is going to be very busy but I like it that way.

Vikki, Week 5 blog 3, 5/16/13

Yesterday was a very productive day. I did a lot of work for Emily and there wasn't much free time. I started the morning off by doing my presentation which I completely finished. That felt really good because now all I have to do is review my paper once more and practice the presentation. After I finished that I began to make a checklist for Emily and for me. The checklist was a new listing checklist. So basically when we have a new listing come on in the next week I can do it myself and not ask any questions. The checklist was very helpful because it allowed me in detail to describe everything I had to do. After I finished the checklist I got to work a little more on my neighbors file and get them all organized. Their house goes live on Tuesday so we are really trying to get everything done by then. I get to go measure the rooms of their house and take pictures which which will be pretty cool. I got out early yesterday at about 1 because Emily needed me to go into Wenham to a listing to hand up an open house rider, and stick an open house sign at the beginning of the road. I really had to follow my directions because this house was down a long back road...kind of creepy. Today I get to leave early as well because I am going to be attending an open house for her client on Sunday which will take 2 hours out of my day, therefore I can leave two hours early today. I'm excited for this open house because I have only ben to other realtors open houses not my own advisors.

Vikki, Week 5 blog 2, 5/15/13

Yesterday I had a really eventful day which was awesome because things have been pretty slow around here recently. Yesterday was Caravan Tuesday so again we wet out and looked at all the new houses on the market as well as attending 3 open houses. I visited about 6 new homes yesterday some in Magnolia, Ipswich, Hamilton, and Danvers. All the houses I viewed where close to a million or over a million. I only viewed one that was under a million and saw three houses that where in the 3 million dollar range. This was really fun because these houses where amazing. I wanted to move into all of them. It was such a pretty day yesterday so it was even better. When we go to these caravans we usually just tour the house and Emily and I talk about if we think the pricing fits the home or is to high or to low. It helps me to talk to her about this because then I get a good grasp on what the values of housing is in 2013. Most of these big homes the price hasn't had to drop due to the economy but a lot of small homes the price has had to drop. She talked to me yesterday that huge houses really don't have as much as a demand as they used to have because a lot of people are wanting to down size. The best part of yesterday was the food as the houses got bigger the lucnches they had to offer got better. We got lunch from panera, and cha cha la mer. It was the perfect day big houses and good food.

Vikki Gonser, Week 5 blog 1, 5/13/13

Today I began my morning by starting my presentation. I have a really good idea for it so I'm pretty excited. I got about 2 hours to work on that so I got to brainstorm a lot and start putting it together. My Advisor arrived at 11 and she put me right to work. I had to go through all the files of homes that are closed and organize them. I basically had to throw away duplicates and anything that we really didn't need. This was kind of hard because I really didn't know what needed to be thrown away and what didn't its hard for me because even though I am beginning to know a lot I still don't know as much as her. After I finished that I had to create a new listing through Top Producer, which is the site that houses for sale go on. This listing is actually my neighbors which is pretty cool because I know the house really well. I had to make a folder for them then I had to add their house to the site. In a way this was easier because I don't have to look as much stuff up. After I did theirs I had to organize all the calendar events and make sure whatever was incomplete was completed then I had to check it off so the site would know. I had to make a bunch of copies of paperwork that has been signed so that I can create a brand new organized folder for my neighbors house.

Rough Draft. Vikki Gonser

Real Estate’s vital role in the United States economy

Victoria Gonser

SCORE Research Paper

J Barrett & Company Real Estate

Supervisor: Emily Mcpherson

Advisor: Mr. Wallimann

May 24, 2013

Real Estate’s vital role in the United States economy

Throughout the past six years the United States economy has faced one of the hardest financial crises ever. In 2008 when the economy crashed everything took a hard hitting. One of the main market’s that received the biggest blow was the Real Estate Market. For years the Real Estate market has been a leader in contributing a fundamental amount of money to the economy. Real Estate and the New Economy states that “real estate encompasses the main sectors of retail, and industrial offices, and residential areas”[11]. New homes and commercial space are the biggest purchases an individual makes in their life.The United States has an immense desire to consume basically anything they can get their hands on. Real Estate is a huge contributor in people’s lives. The real estate industry’s involvement with the economy is greatly overlooked. Everyone forgets how much one home being sold effects the economy. Whenever a family, or a couple, or a business purchase some sort of real estate, they put a large amount of money into the economy. When a house is bought people purchase individuals have to have a fresh start. This fresh start consists of buying new furniture, appliances, lighting, landscaping, flooring, and much more. Everything an individual purchases once they buy a home goes back into the economy. One of the greatest ways of showing off wealth is by having a house that reflects one’s achievements. A home is a necessity in life and in order to run a business a space is needed to do so. Almost every business now a days that is not only online has to have a starting point and that point is a space that allows the company to grow. The recession has caused a lot of business’s and families to struggle, making it harder and harder for the Real Estate market to flourish. When people do not have the money to spend on daily necessities the last thing in their mind in buying a home, or space for a business. As the economy suffers the real estate market does the same, since real estate is such a big part of the economic flow. 

As the economy changes the real estate business goes through many changes as well. Not all these changes are for the good but now in 2013 the market is reviving itself and going back to the way it used to be. In 2006 the real estate business contributed as much as $1.195 trillion to the United States, this contribution was a staggering 8.9% of the American economy. The book Essentials of Real Estate Economics explains that real estate plays a huge part in the economy. When a house is sold, land, labor, capital, and business is bought. Different industries supply goods and services that go to these properties [25]. Although this may not seem like a large percentage, there are so many industries out there that help the economy, and being at almost ten percent is a great thing. This amount was at its peak when the economy was in a good place making a generous profit and providing many with jobs. When a house is for sale it takes so many people to close the deal. When houses are selling contractors, electricians, plumbers and even more individuals are put to work and able to make money. In 2011, a few years after the economy crashed the real estate business contributed about 5% of their profits to the United States economy, which is measured by the gross domestic product. The gross domestic product of the U.S. is measured by the total market value of all goods and services  generated in the U.S. When the economy declined so did the real estate market causing profit to be loss as well as jobs. In 2011 the GDP was at 15 trillion dollars, of that 15 trillion dollars the Real Estate industry contributed 5% which is 750 billion dollars. This is a huge amount of money, but nearly not as large as the amount contributed when the market was at its peak. Over 70% of the United States economy is based on personal consumption, housing being one of the main consumer products on the market to this day. A house to many people is one of the most important things in life. It provides them with stability and safety. The real estate market allows for this to happen. When thinking about the bigger picture of things on a larger scale, the real estate market affects almost every business in the world. When more houses are lived in and built so many companies benefit from it. Such as water companies, oil companies, electrical companies, contractors, landscapers, etc. Without homes and commercial buildings the United States economy would not make any. The basis of all great business’s is a great area, and space. The real estate market is basically where everything branches from. The real estate industry has been a huge part in helping the U.S. get out of this recession. Now in 2013 the U.S. economy as grown at a rate of 2.5%. An article on bipartisan policy.org states that “If the housing industry reflected its historical average the current rate of economic growth could double” that just goes to show the impact this industry helps the growing economy [4]. The real estate industry has created about 2.9 million direct jobs, which helps not only the economy, but allows people to get back on their feet. National Association of Home Builders Chairman, Barry Ruttenberg, revealed that, “Builders across the country are reporting some of the best sales conditions they’ve seen in more than five years, with more serious buyers coming forward, and a shrinking number of vacant and foreclosed properties on the market” [7]. This is a huge accomplishment since in 2012 housing prices went up by 6.3% which was one of the largest pricing increases since 2006. The problem with high prices and a bad economy is that people don’t have enough money to afford a home, thus resulting in many foreclosures. So many business’s crashed during the recession but many people mainly focused on the real estate industry, this is because this industry supplies so many with jobs. Homes are a necessity and when the economy crashed “the construction market lost 2.3 million jobs” this is an absurd amount of jobs, which is why it is so important that this industry is recovered [34]. This rise in need for homes and commercial spaces has definitely taken construction companies by storm. They went from having nothing to an overwhelming amount of projects to do. Its incredible to see how one industry can affect the economy and other industries so greatly. 

Commercial Real Estate is one of the largest contributors to the United States Economy that is involved with real estate. The book Other people’s money:Inside the Housing Crisis and the Demise of the Greatest Real Estate Deal Ever Made explains the metropolitan side of real estate and what it is like to live and sell real estate in the city. Living in the city can be very lavish and in the 1900‘s “ the metropolitan announced it was willing to invest $100 million in housing” [2]. One of the biggest fears for anyone involved in commercial real estate business in the recession. When the economy crashed the commercial real estate business got hit the hardest because of their large investments in so many different companies.  Commercial real estate drives the economy in three different ways, through office property, industrial property, and retail property. These three properties also need three ways in order to get themselves out there in order to start a business. These three things being pre-construction, construction, and post construction. Pre- construction in 2011 brought in 941,000 jobs through architects, engineers, excavators, lawyers, and leasing brokers. Thus bringing in a revenue of 124 billion dollars. Construction in 2011 brought in 1,050,000 jobs through contractors, managers, laborers, landscapers, and utilities. This amount resulted in 138 billion dollars. Post- construction in 2011 brought in 15,600 jobs through building engineers, interior designers, and property managers. This contributed two billion dollars to the economy. This industry brought 264 billion dollars to the Gross Domestic Product of the nation and created 2.4 million jobs across the country. The commercial real estate industry rung in a higher GDP than the food and beverage manufacturing business, the truck transportation business, and the coal and petroleum production business. In 2011 when the economy was picking back up239 million new square feet of land was obtained which allowed 610,000 individuals to become employed. The commercial real estate development association stated that “even through economic highs and lows commercial real estate development contributes to the national economy” [16].  A recent article put out by TD bank economics reviled that the nations economy will increase by 1.9% in 2013 and by 2014 will increase to 2.8% [19]. This means that since the economy is growing more people can be hired. Over the span of the next two years an expected 4.8 million jobs will be created. So how does this help the commercial real estate market? With 4.8 new people employed there will be a large demand for commercial real estate. Commercial real estate relies so heavily on economic conditions that it it is necessary that the interest rates of the U.S. continue to grow and the economy continues to recover due to the crash of the economy. Southern states like Florida, and Georgia are presumed to have the largest commercial growth, as well as places that have had less government cut backs. During the next few years to come the nation’s economic rates will continue to grow and the real estate industry, mainly commercial real estate will flourish and bounce back to historical levels. The bottom line is that the commercial real estate industry is coming back and will be better than ever.

Home ownership if one of the biggest accomplishments in some individuals lives. Residential real estate was hit extremely hard during the recession and it has been a real struggle to sell and buy a home. The problem is “There are too many potential buyers and too few sellers”   everyone wants to buy a home but not enough people have the money to do so [26]. Houses that where on the market for months have now been on the market for only a few days or so. In a way this is good, but many of these houses are not selling for the price point they should be sold at. An upside is that now in 2013 individuals have the money to buy homes, which will help the economy and even more so the residential real estate industry. Housing is the main way that the lower class, middle class, and upper class spend their earnings. The reasoning behind this is because everyone needs somewhere to live that is what makes the residential real estate industry so prominent. The lower class spends about 29.2% of their 15,000-19,999 dollar income on housing. The middle class spends about 26.7% of their 50,000-69,999 income on housing, and the upper class spends about 27.5% of their 15,000 income on housing. Right now sales are sky rocketing. Individuals now have enough money to put their homes back on the market and buy their dream homes. This is exactly what the real estate industry has been waiting for. Even though sale prices are still low they are excepted to rise by 3.3% every year up until the year 2018, this will be a large increase but it is much needed [33]. In larger cities there is still a scarcity for homes, because of the high demand. Many small towns are needing to raise their taxes which is forcing people out of their homes and moving them into even smaller towns. Hamilton Massachusetts for example has raised their taxes so high in order to pay for the school that multiple families are needing to move into Manchester Massachusetts where the taxes remain the same. Right now the economy is gaining strength and is making a comeback. The biggest problem right now is that the banks made a huge mistake when the economy crashed, now in 2013 its hard for people to trust their banks and make significant purchases. A common trend today is that the new generation is not able to bring themselves to purchase their own home. The reasoning behind this being that they saw their parents go through a tremendous loss of money and they are paying off huge amounts of college loans. There is a plethora of homes available to purchase but mortgage rates are just to high and most people are unable to even qualify for one. Banks are the main reason for this fear of purchasing a new home. Banks right now will not lend out a large loan because if a house goes into foreclosure it will most likely fall back onto the bank. There is one major loan that most people get this loan is known as the FHA loan or the federal housing administration mortgage loan. This loan allows an individual to take out as much money as they need then pay it back as time goes on. The problem with this loan now is that it cannot be a substantial amount of money. The reasoning behind this is because banks are to afraid to give out a large amount of money and not get it back. This issue is forcing people to move into condo’s, multi family homes, and apartments. A trend that is starting back up now in 2013. In 2012 the rental rates began to increase greatly. This is because there are more jobs being created which adds a demand for rental space. Apartment rentals and condo rentals are expected to go up since there are so many rentals that are going on the market. This is because many people cannot afford the mortgage on owning a home and the amount of money spent that goes along with obtaining it. Home ownership is excepted to drop by 65% by the end of 2013, making the want for rental homes very high [36]. These rental homes cost less to keep up with which makes people more apt to buy them. This spark in in purchasing a new home and and leasing an apartment is greatly effecting the building industry.

Mainly due to the Real Estate industry the building industry has gained momentum at an insane rate this year. Because America overbuilt homes from the years of 2000 to about 2007 the building industry had to lay off so many people. Construction jobs have went up by 3.1%, seeing as though they dropped more than 40% during the recession. The reason for this spike is the jump in real estate sales. It is forecasted that by the end of 2013 the construction of homes and apartments will contribute as much as 40% to the construction industry. It is almost like a backwards domino affect. All the dominos are being picked back up and lined up again because the real estate industry is coming back. Once construction is at its highest, the water industry, electrical industry, plumbing industry, and many more will begin to grow as well. The growth of these industries with result in a mass creation of new jobs. Construction workers and companies are benefiting from the need to upgrade many homes and make them livable to individuals in this generation. Many homes that went into foreclosure and are now ready to be sold again need a lot of work done. Home investors have had to hire landscapers, painters, and other companies to make outdated houses look like they can be lived in again. They need to tend to the larger market of buyers and in order to do this the construction industry will become heavily employed. In 2006 the construction industry was at its peak brining in billions of dollars into the United State economy. This was because so  many people where spending and they where not paying attention to how much they where spending. Now in 2013 business is picking up because people are making more money and getting jobs. An article on about.com described how the construction industry will be picking up. Single family homes will be improving by 10%, and multifamily homes will improve by 18%. Commercial buildings will improve by 8% but the places seeing the greatest improvements will be warehouses and hotels (construction.about.com). This is good news for the construction industry because they will have many more jobs to apply themselves to. The construction industry has a direct correlation with the housing market because when people want homes the building industry gains business. In 2013 the home construction industry is expected to improve which is very good news for the economy. 

Although the real estate industry plays a key role in the United States economy, the real estate industry is also heavily dependent on the economy. The real estate industry is one big roller coaster, when the economy is doing well so is the real estate industry and when the economy is suffering, the real estate is suffering at the same time. The book Essentials of Real Estate Economics explains that real estate deals with two types of economies. The first being a command economy which means that the government regulates supply and pricing. This economy system is a mix of socialism. The other economy described in the book is a market economy which consists of mixed capitalism and pure capitalism, meaning all decisions are made by the people [25]. The economy has been at a stand still since the crash in 2007. Everything has been put on hold, and many spending cuts have had to be done. The biggest industry affected by these cuts was the real estate industry. Commercial real estate analysis states that “economists often depict the typical real estate supply function as being kinked, not continuous and corner like” this is the roller coaster that the real estate industry rides on every year [28]. Mortgage rates are low and the inventory for housing is very low. This causes a situation for sellers and buyers across America. If there is nothing to be purchased then this puts the real estate industry out of business for a certain amount of time. An article on RIS media states that “ when the latest real estate boom first got its toehold, it was right after 9/11” this was because people where scared about what was going to happen with the economy, so they wanted to buy buy buy while the market was hot [10]. Money supply is a huge issue when buying a home. Right now especially money is extremely hard to borrow and the banks are not giving out large bank loans. When money is scarce and hard to borrow housing sales do not occur. If money is to easy to get and banks are giving out a numerous amount of money then housing prices will go up. Right now the main issue in the purchasing of homes is that banks are not lending out loans, and making it harder and harder for people to obtain a good mortgage. The economy has a long vigorous cycle, that can tear down any business within minutes. Specifically this industry was hit the hardest because it relies so much on what people have in their bank accounts. When people can’t afford to even put food on the table the least of their worries is purchasing a new home or even trying to pay off their mortgage.  In the December 2011 issue of Real Estate it is thought that within the next few years housing rates with improve “ even though the market has delayed many from moving ahead with plans to sell the family home, baby boomers are a red hot market for investment properties” the new generation is hopefully going to help pick up sales [31]. In 2013 the the local economy is supposed to pick up which will spark an increase of real estate transactions, and real estate values. Unfortunately the East Coast markets will be seeing a slow market since prices are so high because of the high taxed, high cost of living and the slow economy. Places like Texas, California, and Florida are prime for real estate because of the low cost of living and the low taxes. Real Estate is rebounding and so is the economy. Realty 411 states that the housing segment of the nations economy represents approximately 41.5% of the real estate industry If this keeps up at the pace it is going now, than the last 5 years will be in the dust [17].

Through all the economic fall outs and issues the nation has faced in the past decade, the real estate industry some how seems to always make a comeback. This day and age especially the September 2011 issue of Real Estate reviles that “technology has evolved to meet todays consumer demands” which will make it easier for sellers and agents to meet their customers demands at a faster pace [31]. It is especially important that in this day and age technology is used to gain business. The real estate industry helps to build up practically every industry. America is making strides and in the next few years the economy will be back and better than ever. The real estate industry will reach historical highs, because people are ready to get a move on and purchase and sell new homes. Now in 2013 since people have more money they housing rates and commercial real estate rates are going to sky rocket. It is so important that the real estate industry continues to thrive, because when its thriving so are industries like construction and commercial offices.  In the early 2000’s real estate was one of the greatest contributors to the nations economy by making over a trillion dollars. Real estate is where almost every good industry or company starts and helps the economy to flow at great rates. Without this industry America would not nearly be as economically high up in the world. Real estate is one industry that the United States cannot live without.  

Vikki Gonser. Week 4, blog 3, 5/9/13

Today I am mainly focusing on finishing up the contacts then some other little work she needs me to do. Next week I am going to start my interviews with different people for my paper. I am a little nervous about this because I am going to be interviewing the head honchos husband. Her husband is one of the top realtors in new England and the first time I met him I could tell he was important. He has been doing real estate for a really long time in both the commercial part and the residential part. I have to do an over the phone interview which I am really nervous about because I get really giggly when I talk on the phone even if I'm just ordering takeout. After his interview I will be interviewing my supervisor and another women who works in the office, Mimi. Mimi is the vice president and she has been here for a super long time so it will be great to get some of her insight. I feel more comfortable with her because her granddaughter is one of my good friends. Emily my supervisor has been in the business for forever she is one of the best real estate agents I think just because she knows so much and she is so good with her clients. When I first got this internship I really didn't know how much work these people have to do, but jeez they have a lot on their schedules. Honestly some of these women come in at 8 and don't leave till 6 at night because of all the things they need to do. I have earned a new respect for people in the industry and how much work they do everyday.

Vikki Gonser. Week 4 blog 2. 5.8.2013

Today I left off in the same place as I did yesterday. I am still correcting the unorganized contacts which is taking honestly forever. I am just getting started with the D's and I have been working at it since yesterday. When you are a good real estate agent you have multiple contacts so she has like a million. Or at least it seems like a million. Its really important that I get this done because she needs these organized in order to start up the new software. Today the listing that fell through got an offer which was great because I thought it was gonna just go off the market completely. The only bad thing about this offer was that it was giving a lot under the asking price and the only way the women will buy it is if she sell her current house first. This never happens so the situation kind of sucks because if her house doesn't sell in the amount of time given than she won't buy the new house. Today Emily is at a closing and bunch of other appointments I wish I could have gone but I have to do all this work. Its cool that this house is closing today because I actually got to go through the process of getting it to that point. The next few days I will get to start the process of listing a new house on the market. That will be awesome because I will get to actually go through the whole process from start to finish.

Vikki Gonser, Week 4, Blog 1, 5.7.2013

Yesterday I was super busy so I didn't get a chance to blog. Yesterday I finally finished my paper which was such a relief. Emily wants to make sure I get it done in time so she has been pushing me to do it so that it gets done. This was awesome for me because if I didn't have her pushing me in the right direction then I probably wouldn't have even started it yet. She wanted me to finish it by today so I wouldn't have to be stressed out about it. Yesterday it took me mostly all day to finish the paper, but that was awesome. After I finished my paper Emily and I finally figured out how to sync contacts from the site she uses called Top Producer to her adress book on her mac. That took us a while I spent about 2 hours in the morning trying to figure ut out then she spent about the same amount of time. After we finally figured it out now came the grueling and repetitive part of it which I will start today and tomorrow and probably the rest of this week into next week. Since Emily switched over to a new software my job for the next week or so is to organize all her contacts and put them unto one place. I have to delete duplicates and make sure they are all transferred correctly. She feels bad that I have to do this but I don't mind, who doesn't want to transfer 250 contacts into a computer.

Vikki Gonser, Week 3 blog 3, 5.3.2013

Today I have a lot of work to do because my main task for the next two weeks is to organize all her information that is in her computer. I had to sport through all her contacts today and figure out why they where duplicating. There where 250 contacts out of her thousands that I had to go through. Thankfully I figured out what the issue was after I got through 10 clients. Since I figured out what the issue was I have to go through each contact and edit them and delete the duplicated contact. This is going to take a very long time and it will probably be really repetitive but I don't mind because it takes up time. A listing fell through today because no one had bought it and they needed an extension in order to keep it on the market. I got to see the personal side of this transaction because I needed to know how people reacted when things like this come up. It was hard for this couple because this is such a long process. When something goes wrong when your trying to sell your house I have learned how emotional it is. I am very excited because next week I will get to begin to list and work on the selling process of someone who I know really well. This will be fun because I will get to work with a family that is basically like my second family and help them sell their home.

Vikki Gonser, Week 3, Blog 2, May 2, 2013

Yesterday was a pretty good day, we started the morning off at 8:30 at a closing meeting in Danvers. Basically this means that we met with the buyer, her broker, the seller, her broker, and an attorney. I was on the seller side which was a lot less work. This meeting lasted about 45 minutes and I got to listen into a bunch of negotiations and all that fun stuff. There was a lot of signing of papers, and a lot of rules that we had to go over. It was cool to have the buyer and the seller in the same room because I got to see how they act around each other. It was a weird situation where the buyer was actually buying her old home back, which rarely ever happens. I got to see how much work both the brokers have to do as well as the attorney. Everyone was so nice and welcoming to me and I didn't feel awkward or uncomfortable at all. After the metting I went back to the office and worked on the piles she has left me to do. Today I sat in on an office meeting, I thought it was going to be boring but it was actually pretty entertaining. All the women have different opinions on everything so there where some little arguments. They talked this morning about how the economy is getting a lot better and house sales are going way up. Which is awesome. The morning meeting actually taught me a lot and I will use some of the information in my essay.

Vikki Gonser, Week 3 Blog 1 4.29.2013

Today was a very exciting day for me because it was Caravan day. Basically Caravan day is the day that all the new listing come out onto the market for other agents to go see. Its like DVD releases or CD releases every Tuesday there is a new listing. Today I started my morning in Beverly at a really nice house down a very pretty street. Then we made our way back to Manchester to see a condo it was pretty cool. Inside of the condo was huge and the walls had really old fashioned wall paper. After the condo listing we went to a really really nice house on Blossom Lane in Manchester, right by the beach. It was the first actual mansion I have been in. I honestly couldn't even count all the bedrooms. It was pretty cool to see how they check out the houses all the agents take pictures and go through every room, while a different person measures everything. After the Manchester listings we went to a site where condo's where being built and we got to see those. After our Caravan trek we got lunch at this really good sandwich place called grassyroots. Now I am back in the office filling activity reports so that all the work that went into the listing can be easily reviewed. It's actually pretty hard work because I don't really know a lot of the stuff its asking for. I didn't think it was this hard in this industry but i'm realizing now that it really is. This is super hard work so I can now see how much they really do.

Vikki Gonser, Week 2 blog 3, 4.26.2013

So today Emily is at meetings all day today and yesterday so she left me random stuff to do. Yesterday I went into Magnolia and hung up signs at her listings, and after that I came back to the office and did a lot of work. I had to make a brand new closing plan for our own buyers. Basically this means I have to type up about 100 activities that we have to do during the process of listing and closing a house. I had to mark when these things where due and any important details about the activity. It was pretty repetitive but took up a good 2 hours of my day. I'm really getting the hang of the computer programs so everything is getting a lot easier. I had to put up two new listings onto the website that every broker, seller, and buyer on the internet sees. So i couldn't mess up. I honestly had so many things to keep track of it makes me feel like im actually working in the real world. Today I had to go to Wenham to put a sign up at one of the houses she just sold. I took Caroline with me so I wouldn't get lost. Some pf the places she sends me are pretty tricky to find. Since I finished all the paper work I just get to work on my essay and help around the office. I'm actually am so excited that I get to keep working here this was a great choice.

Vikki Gonser, Week 2 blog 2, 4.24.2013

So I started my day off today at the listing in Magnolia. As you can see I have been talking about this listing for a while now. It takes so long to close a listing and its awesome that I have been able to see every end of it. This morning we met with this super nice man from the Gloucester Fire Department. The test was pretty easy all he had to do was test about three alarms and a carbon minoxide detector. The only bad side about the testing was how loud it was. Emily has an open house on Sunday and I am going to help her set up for it which will be fun. Next time we need to do a fire alarm inspection she is going to let me go do it by myself so I gain some independence during my internship. Emily just got back from Kenya the other day so she is still catching up on her previous work so its been nice for me so I can do some of my paper. Right now I am "selling" my own house. This is cool because I get to go through all the steps and activities in order to put a listing on the market. I honestly cannot believe how long it takes and how much stuff you have to do to get things finished, no wonder my parents don't want to sell our house. Now since I completed my fake selling and closing I get to do a real one which is nerve racking but awesome.

Vikki Gonser, Week 2 blog 1, 4.23.2013

Today was a pretty calm day at work. I mostly just did some paper work and watched some tutorials on how to use this Real Estate website. This website allows me to communicate with practically anyone involved in the business which is pretty cool. Emily and I went to a listing this morning in Magnolia. We had to meet with the banker so we could make sure that we can sell the house for the price we want and nothing less. Unfortunately since the house had some issues in the basement as well as issues with the house lowering into the ground, the price went to a lot. It was cool though to see how this guy did his job. First he took pictures of every room in the house then after he drew up a floor plan. We had to explain to him how much land the property has and any renovations that had been done. After we went to this listing we came back and had a meeting. Emily and I talked about what we would do next. She is hoping that a new listing will come on to the market so that I can see how the process starts from the beginning to the end. Its honestly such a long process that they have to go through in order to sell a house. I learned so much today in just 1 hour of talking about the selling end of the market. Tomorrow we have a meeting with the fire department at this listing in order to sell the house they need to make sure that all the detectors pass inspection.

Vikki Gonser week 1 blog 3 - 4.10.2013

So today has kind of been a slow day. I have been doing paperwork and watching webinars all day. Its kind of interesting because I am learning how to work with the website and how to get into the back end of it. I have had to take a lot of notes because understanding all this stuff is pretty tricky. Its kind of nice because my desk is right next to the window and since J Barrett is right in the middle of town I get to see everything that is going on. My supervisor Emily is not in today because she is packing for her trip to Kenya which is pretty cool. Yesterday I learned that every Tuesday we get to tour all the new listings around Cape Ann which is awesome. It will be good to have a day full of looking at houses once every week. I'm really excited to go to the open houses though I think that will be my favorite part. Most every Sunday Emily has open houses so I will get to go to those will her. Its really fun to be working in Manchester because all of the amazing houses. I have always wanted to go into them and now I can. When I do paperwork its ridiculous to see the costs of some of these houses and the minimum and maximum prices people are willing to spend. I have seen ranges of $100,000 to $15,000,000. I have to enter these people into a new data system which allows them to see every property that is available in their price range, and living criteria. I cannot wait to see more houses.

Vikki Gonser Blog 2 week 1- 4.9.2013

Today was my second day of score and I got to learn a lot more about the dirty work of Real Estate. First we took a trip back to the Magnolia listing and we met with the buyer, another agent, and a man who would be fixing the house's structure. We learned that even though this house was so nice it had a lot of issues and work that needed to be done. The house's foundation had sunk about 3 inches into the ground. In order to add on to the house they need to add a pipe that will hold the house up. For 8 of these pipes the total cost of this work would be $12,000 which is crazy. After our work at that house we went back to the office and did some filing. At around 11:30 I followed my supervisor Emily to Salem. Living in Manchester I never see the bad parts of some cities but we where in the bad parts of Salem. We had to look it this pretty run down 3 family home that this man was looking to redo. The home was so old and it smelled of smoke from the man on the first floor. I couldn't get the taste of cigaretts out of my mouth for probably 10 minutes. I felt pretty bad seeing this house because it was just so run down and it made me lucky to live where I do. I would have to say it was exciting to see this part but also kind of scary. After the showing I drove home and got super lost in Salem and almost ended up in Lynn thank god I called my Dad and figured out how to get home. My Iphone failed me. All in all I am having a really good time with score I'm so happy I got this internship and I can't wait to continue it.

Vikki Gonser Blog 1- 4.8.2013

Today being the first day of SCORE I thought that I wouldn't be doing very much... I was wrong. So far I have read almost all of the rules and guidelines about the Real Estate business. I have learned how they prepare for a listing and how they get ready to sell a house. I feel like such a business women here I have my own desk and everything. I am so happy I chose to do my SCORE at J Barrett because I have already learned a lot. About an hour or so ago my supervisor Emily and I went to one of her listings in Magnolia. The house was right on the water and honestly was so amazing. The house was the perfect beach home and the inside was stunning. The great thing about this internship is that I will be able to go and see all these amazing houses around Cape Ann. When we went to the house we were picking up the Radon check with her co lister for this home, Katie. Basically a Radon check consists of putting these small black gas tank looking things in one room of the house. Radon is a radioactive gas that arises from pavement and can cause cancer so it is very important that Realtors clear the home for this chemical. My supervisor prepared a lot of papers and information for me about my topic which is going to be so helpful. Thankfully I have found about 15 sources already and I already have interviews scheduled. I could not be more happy that I am doing my SCORE here.

Gonser's Outline

Victoria Gonser

S.C.O.R.E Research paper outline

March 15, 2013

SCORE Thesis & Outline

Thesis: The real estate market serves as a fundamental part of the United States economy. Residential real estate provides homes for many in the country while Commercial real estate provides work and an income for many as well. Since this business relies so much on the economy, when the economy drops the real estate market takes a hard hitting as well. 

P1-  As the economy changes the real estate business goes through many changes as well. 

• In 2006 the real estate business contributed as much as $1.195 trillion to the United States which had a staggering percentage of 8.9. 

- This amount was at its peak when the economy was in a good place making a generous    profit and providing many with jobs.

• In 2011 the real estate business contributed about 5% of their profits to the United States economy, which is measured by the gross domestic product.

- When the economy declined so did the real estate market causing profit to be loss as    well as jobs. 

• Over 70% of the United States economy is based on personal consumption, housing being one of the main consumer products on the market so to say. 

• A house to many people is one of the most important things in life. It provides them with stability and safety. 

P2- Commercial Real Estate, creates jobs for many and is one of the largest contributors to the United States Economy. 

• Commercial Real Estates biggest fear is the recession. 

-When the economy crashed so did the Real Estate business, but Commercial got hit the   hardest, because of their large investment in companies. 

*Commercial real estate includes; apartments, creating the space needed for retail industries, and creating places to put jobs and manufacturing needs. 

-The downfall of the economy has been a big part in the contribution to the   unemployment rate, causing these markets to fall as well. 

• Now in 2013 the Commercial real estate market is improving slowly but surely. 

-People are wanting to get a kick start with business’s

• The new generation is starting to open up more businesses that need the help of the   commercial real estate business. 

P3- Residential real estate provides a roof over families heads, and is often times a personal accomplishment for individuals. Once you have purchased your first house a whole new world of opportunities opens for you

• Housing supplies other industries such as the oil, water, and plumbing business’ with a large amount of profits. 

- The bigger the house, the bigger the family the greater the bills will be. Thus giving   more money back to the economy, all because the purchase of a home. 

*Housing is the biggest way that the poor, middle class, and rich spend their money.

• The poor making $15,000-$19,999 spend 29.2% of their income on housing
• The middle class making $50,000-69,999 spend 26.7% of their income on housing
• The Rich making more than $150,000 spend 27.5% of their income on housing 

• The poor spend a larger amount of money on their homes, and food where as the rich put most of their money towards cars, education, and more materialistic objects. 

• When the economy fails the poor are not able to keep their homes, and also unable to purchase new houses

-When the economy crashed people who needed to sell their homes because they financially couldn’t support a large house any more could not because no one had the money to buy a house at the same time. 

Works Cited 

"4 Key Factors That Drive The Real Estate Market." 4 Key Factors That Drive The Real Estate Market. N.p., 18 Feb. 2011. Web. 14 Mar. 2013.  ( I will use this to identify how the real estate market thrives, and struggles when the economy is good or bad)

Amadeo, Kimberly. "How Does Real Estate Affect the U.S. Economy?" About.com US Economy. About.com/guide, 2013. Web. 14 Mar. 2013. ( I will use this is developing my research topic question and thesis, as well as body paragraph 1)

"Bipartisan Policy Center." Housing's Impact on the Economy. RCLCO, n.d. Web. 14 Mar. 2013.

Cekerevac, Sasha. "How Will the Housing Market Affect the U.S. Economy in 2013?" How Will the Housing Market Affect the U.S. Economy in 2013? Investment Contrarians, 21 Dec. 2012. Web. 14 Mar. 2013. ( I will use this when explaining how residential real estate impacts the economy in paragraph 3 )

Conerly, Bill. "Commercial Real Estate Forecast Update: 2013-2014." Forbes. Forbes Magazine, 21 Feb. 2013. Web. 14 Mar. 2013. ( I will use this when I determine how the economy now is affecting the market)

Goldstein, Jacob, and Lam Vo. "How The Poor, The Middle Class And The Rich Spend Their Money." NPR. NPR, 1 Aug. 2012. Web. 14 Mar. 2013. ( I will use this when I talk about how the different classes affect the market in paragraph 3)

Guerra, Tony. "How Does the Economy Affect the Housing Market?" Home Guides. Demand, Media, 2013. Web. 14 Mar. 2013. (I will use this is developing my research topic question and thesis, as well as body paragraph 1)

Hatzius, Jan, and Allison Nathan. "2013 Global Economic Forecast." Goldman Sachs. Goldman Sachs, 2013. Web. 14 Mar. 2013. (I will use this when I determine how the economy now is affecting the market)

"News  ." Commercial Real Estate's Economic Contributions to the Economy. N.p., 29 Nov. 2012. Web. 14 Mar. 2013. (I will use this is developing my research topic question and thesis, as well as body paragraph 1)

"Real Estate Recession Hits Nation." National Real Estate Recession Hits. N.p., n.d. Web. 14 Mar. 2013. ( I will use this when I am talking about how the market gets hit very badly during the economic crisis)

Riley, Meghan. "How Does the Housing Market Affect Economic Growth?" - The Cameron Team Real Estate. The Cameron Team, 14 Mar. 2013. Web. 14 Mar. 2013. (I will use this is developing my research topic question and thesis, as well as body paragraph 1)