Selecting the Right Realtor….

There is a Realtor for everyone, but how do you pick the right Realtor for you? Much will depend on what you are trying to accomplish.

Are you selling a vacation condo; your primary residence; your ocean front property that you haven’t been to in over a year? Is selling urgent or are you testing the waters to see if you can get the price you want?

Are you a buyer relocating to Maui permanently or an investor who wants a vacation rentable condo that you can come to several times a year? Are you planning a permanent move in the future but buying now while prices are low?

The answers to these questions and many others should help you decide the right choice of Realtor for you to partner with to help you attain your real estate goals. You will want to know how the Realtor will: communicate with you; market your property or search for properties, if you are buying, as well as in his/her experience level. Having confidence in your Realtor that he/she is competent, has the experience to represent you properly, and will put your best interests first AND also have a good rapport with is the ideal way to attain your real estate goal.

That might all seem very obvious, but taking the time to interview for the “right Realtor for you” is worth the effort. I believe that both you and the Realtor you ultimately select will have a better overall experience. Any real estate transaction can be very stressful, but it doesn’t have to be. It isn’t a given that there will be problems. But if there are problems, you will want to know that the person representing you will maneuver through those issues with your best interests in mind, will communicate with you and help guide you to make the best decision for your circumstance.

If you are a buyer visiting, I would still suggest this as well. It is easy to bounce from open house to open house and talk to Realtors and sign up on their email list. But do you really know which Realtor is going to work for you once you go back home? All Realtors have access to the same listings through the MLS. You could be giving your trust and confidence in the Realtor that finds the home you like first; with out any consideration about whether they are really competent. In my opinion, you would have a more successful and pleasant experience committing to one Realtor. That Realtor will in turn commit to you and work with you for however long it takes to find you a property.

As a seller, in addition to the obvious questions of experience and references and whether you have a rapport with the person sitting in front of you, I would also find out what kind of marketing will be done for your property. Buyers come and go, and look with the intent to buy, then change their mind and don’t. Buyers will start looking online months before they are planning to buy and the process can take years before they ultimately buy. You will want to make sure the Realtor you select has a good Internet presence. Not just a website, but the ability to get your home visible to anyone who is trying to find it by getting it on all the major search engines that buyers use to search for homes.

Another quality that you will want in the Realtor is the ability and willingness to communicate with you in the manner that you want. Do you want someone who will call, email or text you, or all three? How often do you want to be contacted, after every showing or once a week, or only when there is an offer on the table? Do you want a Realtor who is going to tell you what you want to hear, or one who will be objective and tell you the potentially hard reality that the price you want to sell your home for is not realistic? Do you want a Realtor to help you stage your home even if it means you have to pack up all your tchotchkes that you love so much?

This is an important piece in selecting the right Realtor. If you are not being communicated with how you expect, this can be a source of frustration for everyone. Having a great Internet savvy Realtor is important and the combination of both of these characteristics is crucial. No matter what marketing the Realtor does, the one thing we can’t control is when that buyer who wants to buy your home will show up. However, we can control how often we communicate with you and to do it in the manner you prefer.

If you are not being kept up to date about your property, regardless of how much your Realtor may be marketing your home and working for you, if you don’t know it, then you may feel it isn’t happening, which is likely not accurate. So don’t forget about this characteristic when you select your Realtor.

Our entire world has completely opened up to all of us via the web. But, real estate is still a relationship business. While over 80% of buyers use the Internet to start their home search to preview homes and narrow their search, over 90% still partner with a Realtor to represent them throughout the home purchase process. Most sellers employ a Realtor to assist in selling their properties as well. Open communication with each other and making sure that you have the rapport with your Realtor to have a good working relationship with them is critical.

If you employ these guidelines when interviewing your Realtor candidates, and don’t forget about communication styles and your expectations, you should be able to select a Realtor that you have confidence in to adequately market your property; represent you throughout negotiations; and who will communicate with you throughout the process, and thus will have selected “the right Realtor” for you.
 

For awhile I was enamored with the sea turtles...I still am, but now that the whales are back in town I am really in to them. Kayaking on my pink kayak and having come  within a few hundred yards, is VERY exciting. Going on a whale watch and seeing baby learn to breach or check out the boat with spy hops...very cute. Then big mama whale breaches and shows her baby how it is done. Just can't get tired of watching the whales.

Way too cool!!

Sylvia

The whales have come home!! It is so great to be able to see them breaching off of my lanai with the naked eye. Add a set of high powered binoculars and the show is spectacular. Whale watches are in full swing!

Mothers and calves are seen swimming with the calves learned to breach and doing little hops. Competition pods of 6 males have been seen trying to woo those females!

I have not yet been on my kayak and seen a whale in the ocean with me. Though a fellow kayaker has told me she has seen them swim under her and feel the vibration in her kayak and her husband has had one breach close enough to rock his kayak. I am very excited and scared at the same time to be in the ocean with these wonderful creatures.

I have had sea turtles bump into my kayak or swim under...but they aren't big enough to knock my kayak over or cause any physical injury to my lest I stick my finger out and they bite it off. So I am very excited to be in the ocean with a mother whale and her calf, but a little afraid too!

I hope to get myself in there in the next week a couple of times. More later, if any experience worthy of sharing happens.

Aloha!

Sylvia

Maui has so much to offer anyone who enjoys the sun, sea, world-class cuisine and a variety of activities for any skill level. No wonder so many people enjoy visiting Maui on a regular basis. And now with home prices at a low and interest rates being the best they have been in years, it is a great time to buy your piece of paradise. Whether that is a single family home on ½ an acre with gorgeous ocean views, an ocean front Hawaiian style home, or a condo in the vacation rental program that you can use and also get income from vacationers, there is something for everyone.

That is also true of Maui’s gay and lesbian community, which is mellow and low key, but is quite active in sponsoring fund-raising and social events where visitors are always welcome. There are monthly social dining events, whale watching tours, weekly dives for the certified diver, Sunday night dancing and Happy Hour, nature based excursions for the alternative traveler, Maui’s unofficial nude beach: “Little Beach” at Makena, where both gay and straight nude sun worshippers can be found.

Other activities that aren’t specifically gay or lesbian operated but do provide plenty to do include parasailing, zip lining, Catamaran or Raft Trips to Molokini, Lanai, secluded coves, snorkeling, jet skiing, sailing the America II, shopping, wine tasting, horseback riding, scuba and snuba, shows, art galleries and craft fairs, hiking Haleakala or a sunrise or sunset visit to Haleakala, visiting the Alii Kula Lavender Farm, Hang Gliding, ATVing, surfing, kite boarding, paddle boarding, sampling Goat cheese or taking a tour of the Surfing Goat Dairy and so much more.

You can even plan your wedding with Hawaiianwedding.com, a gay owned wedding company that has been performing weddings for gay and lesbian couples for the past 16 years.

Maui’s Sunseeker Resort is the largest and most known gay resort. As a boutique hotel for adults only it is a beautiful 17-room gay-owned and operated resort hotel located across the street from the ocean and beach in Kihei. The suites are spacious, many with their own kitchens; there’s a clothing-optional rooftop area complete with hot tub and massage services. You also get free Internet access, which is always a bonus!

The local website: http://www.mauigayinfo.com or www.gayhawaii.com for more general info for all the islands can keep you up to date of the activities that are happening specifically for the gay and lesbian community.

For those who love to eat there are many fabulous restaurants from the Oceanfront high end to the local shave ice shack. There are just too many good places to list, but you can check them out on my website at www.alohasylvia.com. Some of my favorites are Mama’s Fish House, Sansei, Stella Blues, Paia Flatbread Company….and so many others. ( I like to eat!)

Living on Maui is fantastic! With the weather always being a wonderful 85 degrees, or so, there is no excuse not to be outside on the beach’s in the ocean snorkeling and checking out my buddies, the sea turtle and tropical fish; kayaking and looking for whales or turtles; hiking up Haleakala or the trails at Kapalua; or one of the many other outdoor activities that are available. Maui is truly a great place to visit and an even better place to live, or own property, so you can visit whenever you want.

So if you are ready to dive in and look for your piece of paradise on Maui, I am happy to help you find it. I am Sylvia Burton and a Realtor Broker in Maui. I work with Coldwell Banker Island Properties. I have been a Broker for 15 years and am also the Broker-Owner of Realty World Bay Area Properties in San Jose, California. While I live in Maui, I continue to help my clients in the San Francisco Bay Area as well.

I love living on Maui. When I am not working or showing property to you, I enjoy kayaking and looking for sea turtle and other ocean life. My best kayaking day ever brought me sea turtles, Manta Rays and a pod of Dolphins within 3 feet of my kayak…all in one day. It was truly a magical day. If I am not on my kayak, I could be found laying in the ocean on my float, or boogie boarding and catching some waves, or laying on the beach, catching some rays. I also enjoy spending time in my yard and making my garden a tropical oasis, or tending to my banana trees. Then of course there is watching the amazing sunset that occurs every night. There is never a bad sunset and something that I never tire of.

So if you are looking for your own piece of this tropical paradise and would like me to assist you in finding it and buying it, please call on me. I would be happy to help and enjoy showing you the great homes that Maui has to offer.
 

I have always wanted to go kayaking in Maui. Often I have seen kayakers almost to Molokini during whale season with a whale breaching nearby. That could be a little scary, but definately something I wanted to do. But, I have been a little intimadated about it all.

Finally, I had some friends come visit who kayak in the ocean all the time. I was convinced that it was a beautiful day to go and that I should come with them. I did and what an AMAZING day. It was the BEST kayaking day ever!!

We rented our kayaks, got a lesson on how to put in to the ocean and get in the kayak. Also a lesson on what not to do when you returned so you didn't get caught by a wave breaking on the shore and flipped over.

Anyway, I got a little help getting in by a gracious man standing in the ocean, (he held my kayak steady while I hiked myself into the kayak). It can be a little tricky being short like I am standing chest deep in water and trying to just "sit" in the kayak. Heigth definately has an advantage here.

So we are all in our kayaks are start paddling out around the reef. The water was so calm it was almost flat. Paddling was easy with no wind giving any resistance. We were out past the Kihei boat ramp and I saw something jump out of the water. It caught me off guard and I wasn't sure what I saw, but I thought it was a baby Manta Ray. My friends chided me, but I was pretty sure.

Then I saw the first or our 6 sea turtles we would see that day. Then another, very large Manta Ray was seen...just gliding right under the water. THEN, there they were.....a pod of about 25 dolphins, just feet from out kayaks....swimming along without a care in the world. They came within 3 feet of Ellie's kayak. It was quite an adventure to be out on a first kayak trip and to see 6 sea turtle, 3 Manta Rays, and a pod of dolphins all in one day.

Needless to say I was hooked. I knew that this is something that I would be doing as much as possible. I promptly went out and bought my hot pink kayak. Not only do I like pink but Ocean Kayak donates some of the proceeds to Breast Cancer Research. Plus, I will definately be seen in the ocean. I think Sea Turtles are drawn to it. Every time I go out, we see no less than 3 Sea Turtles swimming nearby.

I love kayaking!! If you see a hot pink kayak out at Makena Landing or Keawakapu Beach...it could be me~~

Oh Yeah, the real estate part....if you want to do this on Maui whenever you want, you could buy a home here and go kayaking with me!

Sylvia