the bay area team

The Bay Area Team – East Bay Real Estate’s #1 Team!

(PRLEAP.COM)  Jim Walberg and Ann Marie Nugent,  owners of the Bay Area Team, were again honored as the Top Realtor Team for 2009 at the Keller Williams Realty – Danville Market Center from over 160 Realtors. They were also ranked #1 in the East Bay, and in the Top 10 in the entire Northern California and Hawaii Region.

When asked what contributed to their success, in the midst of such challenging economic times, Nugent-Walberg said, “The Keller Williams business systems, on-going education, networking with 77,000+ fellow Realtors within the company, and just plain hard work were the keys to the extraordinary results achieved for our clients in 2009.” In addition, they have created a global marketing network through their exclusive memberships in Who’s Who In Luxury Real Estate, and The International Real Estate Federation – FIABCI. Their award winning internet marketing strategies were also acknowledged by LuxuryRealEstate.com with the 2009 Global Networking Award selected from over 120,000 Realtor members. Read more

the bay area team

East Bay Real Estate: Fall 2009 Is The Best Time To Buy Or Sell A Home!

How many of you believe that the best time in 2009 to buy and sell real estate was the Summer?  Well, you picked the wrong season.  During my 35+ years in real estate in the East Bay,  the best time to buy and sell real estate is the Fall and the Spring!  Out of all my years in real estate over half of the 4^th quarters have been our largest sales months of the year?  Surprised?  The next busiest home sales months have been in the Spring.  Here are the reasons why the Fall is the most active;  lack of inventory;  wanting to get into your next home before the Holidays;  people moving into the area who need to purchase a home so they are able to enroll their kids into school for the second school semester;  and, a Buyer’s need to close escrow on their home before the end of the year because of the tax benefits. Read more

the bay area team

FIABCI-USA: James Wray, Jr. Memorial Marketing Award Presented To Jim Walberg!

The Ritz Carlton in Denver, Colorado  was the venue of FIABCI – USA’s 2009 Annual Conference.  FIABCI – The International Real Estate Federation,  has been serving the real estate needs of the world for almost 60 years.  It is the special consultant to the Economic and Social Council of the United Nations Organisation (ECOSOC).  With five official languages and real estate practitioners representing all of the professions ( e.g. appraisal, brokerage, counseling, financing, property management, and development),  it is a business association with members in 65 countries giving access to more than 2 million real estate related contacts around the world.  Jim Walberg and The Bay Area Team  were invited into membership in July 2009. Read more

the bay area team

2009 Who’s Who In Luxury Real Estate Fall Conference – Jim Walberg’s Reflections!

For the past fourteen years Luxury Real Estate, and John Brian Losh – President and CEO, have produced an opportunity in the Fall for member-Brokers to gather in various luxury locations throughout the United States to share best practices and to expand relationships with the elite Realtors from around the world.  This year’s Fall Conference was held in Bachelor Gulch, Colorado at the Ritz Carlton  with the entire Luxury Real Estate staff creating an unforgettable experience for the attendees.  Jim Walberg has participated in the last five Luxury Real Estate conferences and has found them to be an invaluable contribution to the growth of his real estate companies. Read more

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Perry & Company – A Denver Tradition, Welcomes Jim Walberg!

 Jon Larrance, one of the partners of Perry & Company  in Denver, Colorado – a top luxury real estate Brokerage, invited Jim Walberg  to stop by for an hour or so today to share with his Realtors some of the winning blogging strategies Jim has been using to expand his real estate companies.   Jim and Jon’s firms are members of Who’s Who In Luxury Real Estate  and will be attending their annual Fall Conference which is being held this year at the Four Seasons Resort in Batechlor Gulch near Vail.  Since Jim was flying into the Denver anyway, Jon snagged him for a couple of hours.  Perry & Company is a learning organization realizing that their Realtors need to be on the cutting edge technology and how technology can be one of the key tools used to serve their clients at the highest levels possible for each transaction.

For over 30 years, clients of Perry & Co. have become friends and family. Over 85% of all of their business comes from former clients, friends and referrals from satisfied clients.  Their mission is to bringing integrity and expertise to the doorsteps of their clients.  They their team of professionals works together each day to make Perry & Co. the premiere real estate company in Denver.  Read more

the bay area team

2009 Realtor MasterMind & Cultural Summit – Austin, Texas!

Keller Williams Realty just finished gathering together their top Realtors in Austin, Texas to share their best ideas.  And, once a year their honor 60 Realtors for Service Above Self to their community.  Jim Walberg  was at both of these remarkable events.

Each quarter Keller Williams Realty  invites the top Realtors from their North American offices to Austin, Texas for serveral days of sharing their best ideas for growing a real estate practice – MasterMind.  And, once a year they have their Cultural Summit, which is a celebration of honoring two Realtors from each of their 30 North American regions for their extraordinary contribution to community service. Read more

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2009 Luxury Real Estate Spring Conference – Las Vegas

The Four Seasons  was the venue where Jim Walberg  participated in the 7th Annual Luxury Real Estate Spring Conference  as a panel member of Effective Social Networking & Blogging Tools For Realtors.

Imagine being with some of the brightest and best minds in real estate for three days!  Well, that is what the Luxury Real Estate’s Spring conference was like this past week.  The sharing of best practices with such a high caliber of professionals and business owners is an enviable experience for any Realtor.  I was not only privileged to be a delegate at this conference, I also gathered some incredible business ideas that will continue to improve the customer experience for our clients, and grow our business in this shifting markets.

The featured presentation was the panel on how to use internet tools to dramatically expand your real estate business by increasing your lead generation results – the Strategies & Tactics of Top Real Estate Professionals regarding social networking, blogging, Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn.  Victor Lund  from the WAV Group was the moderator.  Jon Larrance  from Perry & Company, Bruce Hiatt  from Luxury Realty Group and me from The Bay Area Team, were the panelist.  The interaction with the audience demonstrated that it was THE topic that they wanted to explore most in the 2009 world of social networking. Read more

the bay area team

East Bay Real Estate: Market Update – February 2009

Jim Walberg’s update on the East Bay real estate markets – from Alamo to Antioch.  Five micro-market results for February 2009 versus February 2008.

When I have spoken in the past about real estate always being local, real estate is actually broken into very small micro-markets in the same region.   I am looking at trends every week (Jim’s YouTube) in order to property advice my Sellers and Buyers regarding where they need to be positioned, and were the values are.  After looking at the February 2009 results for the East Bay, I thought it would be very useful to view five micro-markets as to what a difference a year makes.  Here goes.

PER CITY       Average # Actives    Pending Sales       Months of Inventory   

Danville-Alamo                                       2009              2008

San Ramon                    226                  46              4.91                 5.35

Walnut Creek

Dublin-Livermore

Pleasanton                      251                  59              4.37                 6.92

Blackhawk-Diablo          43                    3              14.33               11.17

Lafayette-Orinda              62                    8              7.75                 3.06

Moraga

Pittsburgh-Antioch     412                  179             2.30                 7.76

Brentwood-Oakley

So…the BIG number to watch in 2009 is Months Of Inventory.  This is defined as to how many months of sales would be required to absorb the current inventory if no other homes came on the market in that micro market.  You can see the dramatic differences in each of these market areas.  Months of Inventory dropped in three of the five areas in the past year – Danville-Alamo-San Ramon-Walnut Creek;  Dublin-Livermore-Pleasanton; and, Pittsburgh- Antioch-Brentwood-Oakley.  AND, there have two markets where Months of Inventory has increased in the last twelve months; Blackhawk-Diablo; and, Lafayette-Orinda-Moraga.

There is a trend happening in these five micro-markets.  The Pittsburgh-Antioch region had 714 sales last month!!!  The Danville-San Ramon region had 182 sales!!!  Both regions are up in sales for the past year.  The higher priced micro-regions are seeing a sales trend downward during the past year.  Mortgages are easier to get in the lower price ranges today.  As you move up the price ranges credit is more challenging to get.  We believe that is the critical reason why the higher priced homes are taking longer to find qualified buyers.  Where do you live in these micro-markets and what has your experience been?  Contact me anytime for further updates.

the bay area team

Beverly Steiner Chosen As Recipient Of Women Of Distinction Award!

Since 2002 East Bay Business Times has honored business women who thrive through tough times because of their talent and resourcefulness.  Keller Williams Realty congratulates Beverly Steiner for this well deserved honor.

On February 26^th at the Palm Event Center  in Pleasanton,  the San Francisco Business Times  honored 15 East Bay Women Of Distinction.  Beverly Steiner (YouTube), owner of Keller Williams Realty in Northern California was one the remarkable women honored.  These amazing women represented retail, real estate, non-profits, health care, finance, science and many other industries.  These women business leaders make a significant difference each day in the East Bay companies and organizations they serve and lead each day.

I had the opportunity to speak with Beverly after the event and got some first hand insights into this year’s honoree.  Beverly Steiner started her real estate career at age 18.  In 2000 she launched the second Keller Williams Realty  office in Northern California.  She is now one of the owners Keller Williams Realty – Northern California & Hawaii Region.  Keller Williams Realty has moved from a ranking of 14^th in East Bay real estate companies and has now moved to 3^rd!  It was honored two years ago as the East Bay Business Times Real Estate Company Of The Year. Keller Williams is the nations third largest real estate company in North America, and the Northern California/Hawaii region is the #1 region in the Keller Williams international network of market centers!

The greatest part of Beverly Steiner’s job is the teaching, training, and mentoring that she does with Realtors and business owners across the country as one of only a handful of Keller Williams University’s International Master Faculty members.  She is also one of the national board members of Keller Williams Cares, a non-profit organization that assists Keller Williams associates and their families when a catastrophic event shows up in their lives.  For example, over $5 million was contributed to the Keller Williams Realtors and employees that were devastated by Hurricane Katrina.

You now have an idea why Beverly Steiner was selected for such a well deserved honor as one of the 15 Women Of Distinction in the East Bay.  Congratulations!!!  Contact me  if you would like to learn more about Keller Williams Realty.  Until next time…your East Bay real estate and life style detective remains on duty.

the bay area team

Jim Walberg – East Bay Realtor In Europe – 5th & Final Installment!

Geneva = International.  Of the ten families that make up our “Geneva Family”, twelve of them were born in some other country besides Switzerland.

Some of you know that my wife and business partner, Ann Marie Nugent, lived in Geneva, Switzerland for 12 years. All three of our kids were born there. After the Who’s Who In Luxury Real Estate Paris Conference  we took the TGV – the bullet train, to Geneva in order to spend time with our “Geneva Family”.  The reason why Geneva = International to us is because of the ten families waiting for us at the train station most of them are naturalized Swiss who were born in various parts of the world. Out of 20 people waiting at the train station, here are their countries of origin… Canada, USA, Scotland, England, Sweden, South Africa, Holland, France, Chile, Spain, Russia, and Denmark.  In addition, they all have second, third, and/or fourth homes outside of Geneva.  Here are some of the locations of their homes outside of Geneva:  Spain, France, England, Thailand, Singapore, the Alps, USA, Chile, and more.  So, even though we think of the San Francisco Bay Area as a melting pot of the world,  this special group of friends is the definition of international in living/breathing form.

From the Geneva train station we car pooled to Champery, Switzerland  to our friends’ Swiss Alps chalet.  This was our headquarters for a three day ski trip.  This is one of our favorite European destinations for skiing.  The Champery ski resort allows you to ski from Switzerland to France any time you want – which we did.  Our lunch destination on one of the days was a goat village at the base of the French side of the slopes.  What adventure of skiing on fresh powder all the way down the mountain to this quaint village for food and wine.

The men took a side trip one day to the Chevalier de Bayard Winery  in Varen, Switzerland.  My past views of Swiss wines are typically sweet white wines such as the Alsace region of France.  Boy, was I wrong.  What I didn’t know is that the Swiss do not export their wines so the world generally does not have the chance to enjoy the many varietals that they produce.  The other surprise for me was visiting a wine region that was covered in snow!  I have never seen snow covered vineyards.  We shared a wonderful day with one of the owners, René Bayard.  (The Knights Of Bayard have been in existence since the 15^th century!  Even the knight’s armor is at the winery.)  After wine tasting, we shared a typical Swiss meal of Raclette cheese, potatoes and pickles – plus, more great Swiss wine.  What a day of exploring new regions of the world and lots of new experiences – and some great wines!

My last few days in Europe were spent exploring Geneva – the Old Town, the yacht clubs along Lake Geneva, and the many Swiss watch shops.  I even visited the yacht club that holds the Americas Cup – Societe Nautique Geneva.  Another cold moment was showing off my Obama t-shirt in Old Geneva.  A man from England asked where I purchased it.  I told him San Francisco.  He wanted a copy of it, so I gave him the shirt off my back.  Another magical moment. 

We are blessed beyond measure to have such dear friends as part of our world’s extended family.  And, I am sick of being so cold!  The San Francisco Bay Area is 73F degrees today.  Varen, Switzerland is 28F degrees.  We are back in the East Bay serving the real estate needs of our wonderful clients.  Contact me today  for any of your real estate needs.

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