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Article published Mar 25, 2007
Realtor Raley “Gives Back” In More Ways Than One
By Virginia Newman
SPECIAL TO THE DEMOCRAT
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here
Joan Raley is a multimillion dollar real estate producer who holds a deep commitment to giving back to the community she lives in.
A school teacher prior to her 29 years in real estate, she recognizes the importance of educating both her clients and young people in the advancement of their goals. She also likes to share her knowledge of the local real estate market with the general public by expressing her thoughts on current conditions.
“Teaching is in my blood,” she says. “Teaching has always been a part of my real estate counseling, making sure each buyer and seller knew what they are doing each step of the way. None of this 'sign here' and flip to the next page. I have produced many educational systems and manuals for both buyers and sellers.”
Stepping forward from her business, she has taken special interest in identifying educational needs for FSU students and taking action to address those needs. For instance, she regularly speaks on real estate subjects in various FSU departments.
Most importantly, she has created three current student scholarship programs at FSU, as well as a teaching award for a faculty member. Two of the scholarships are for real estate students in sales in the College of Business. The third is for a strings student in the College of Music. The faculty award is in the College of Business.
To top it all off, she has also contributed her considerable personal real
estate holdings to FSU as a deferred gift. Seventy five percent of this will
go to the College of Business and 25 percent to the College of Arts and Sciences.
Last fall, she and other Florida donors were honored at a pre-game presentation
on the FSU football field.
Her commitment to education is life-long. She holds a B.S. degree in education from Youngstown (Ohio) University. Over the years, she has earned certifications over and above her real estate agent license as Certified Residential Specialist (CRS), Graduate, Realtor Institute (GRI) and Accredited Buyers Representative (ABR).
Add expertise to those education credits. She has worked in Tallahassee real estate full-time since 1978, gaining her broker's license in 1981. She is now the broker/owner of what she calls “my small boutique company.”
She has been ranked in the top one percent of single agents by the Tallahassee Board of Realtors (TBR). She is at the Titanium level as a single agent in the TBR, with over $10 million sold per year. Her achievements include over 950 closings for over $100 million over the course of her career.
About current market conditions in Tallahassee, Raley says, “All in all, we have a great real estate market in Tallahassee.”
Looking back, she says, “We had a “hot” seller's market for several years prior to last year. The market flipped in about mid 2006 to a buyer's market. We had an artificial appreciation during this seller's market and for the last six to nine months, we have been having a moderate market adjustment. However, Tallahassee has a very stable economy and the real estate market follows suit.”
What should sellers do in a market like this? She advises sellers to be creative by utilizing several methods of selling incentives. Said Raley, “They can offer to pay up to the maximum of the buyer's closing costs (generally six percent of the mortgage). Sellers can pay discount points to reduce the buyers' interest rate. For example, on a $200,000 mortgage, the seller can buy the rate down from 6% to 5.6% with 1.75 discount points. The seller can also offer a lease purchase to the buyer if the seller does not need cash up front and has other plans.”
She says today's low interest rates are an incentive for buyers. Also, Tallahassee has a lot of homes from which to choose.
“One tip is that, generally if you look at older homes, you will get more square footage and a larger lot with mature landscaping, “ she says. “Sometimes the homes will need updating and this is a way that you can redecorate or remodel to your liking. We have many folks in the industry that can assist the buyers in these projects.”
A long-time realtor who uses her skills and capabilities in community focused programs, Raley sets an example for others to follow. She can be reached at (850) 545-9390 locally or 888-710-5050 toll free. Her Web site is www.JoanRaley.com.