Hometown Happenings

NARS Lawsuit, Local Tensions & Getting Locked In Basements

• Angela Ballard & Aundrea Rogers • Season 2 • Episode 2

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Ever wondered what it's like to juggle a work vacation at Universal Studios, a wedding photography gig, and a bustling career in real estate? Join us on Hometown Happenings as we recount our magical adventures through the Harry Potter sections, the thrill of the Velociraptor and Hagrid's motorbike rides, and the chaos of snapping wedding photos at a yacht club. We'll also share our transition back into the fast-paced world of real estate, breaking down the critical role city council plays in maintaining transparency and how we navigate budget discrepancies to represent our community effectively.

Switching gears, we address the frustrations of Diamond City residents upset with local council decisions and highlight the importance of public involvement in holding council members accountable. Real estate misconceptions are on the agenda, from the negotiable nature of commission fees to the necessity of buyer consultations. And for a touch of humor, we recount a slightly eerie basement adventure and contrast it with the comfort of more casual settings, reminiscing over past interactions. Don't miss out—subscribe to our YouTube channel for more engaging episodes!

The Home Team
Angela Ballard & Drea Rogers
870-577-6754 | 870-577-0276
Weichert Market Edge

https://aundrea-rogers.weichertmarketedge.com
www.angelaballardrealtor.com

Speaker 1:

I'm here. I'm here.

Speaker 2:

Where's Straya? I'm coming, sorry.

Speaker 1:

I'm late as always. What are we doing? The podcast Hometown Happenings.

Speaker 2:

Oh right, Hi Welcome to Hometown Happenings. Hometown Happenings.

Speaker 1:

What's up? I haven't seen you in a minute.

Speaker 2:

I've seen you last night.

Speaker 1:

So what kind of high do you have for the week I went on vacation? Yeah, tell us about your vacation, well technically it was a work vacation, yeah, but you had a couple days that there was no work happening.

Speaker 2:

No, it still happens. Evidently that's the life of real estate. I was standing outside of the Hogwarts Express negotiating, so I went to Universal Studios on Friday and with my husband and my oldest son His birthday was a couple weeks ago, so it was like a celebration of that and we did all of Islands of Adventure Park and then the Harry Potter section of the regular where they had Diagon Alley. We did that part of the other part All in one day. We walked about 15 miles and we stayed until they kicked us out.

Speaker 1:

So what was your favorite?

Speaker 2:

ride roller coaster wise.

Speaker 1:

That velociraptor thing was pretty sweet but you didn't get to ride the hulk.

Speaker 2:

We didn't get to ride the hulk. It was delayed for like three hours and we didn't have time to hit it. The next day, a harry potter ride with hagrid, that you ride on the motorcycle and the sidecar, the other thing. That was pretty sweet because it pulled some shenanigans that I didn't expect. A lot of these things are like 3D effects, and so I don't know how much we actually moved. It felt like a lot, but the mentors were like right here, I may have jumped several times and held my son's hand, not for his sake. Yeah, it was a lot of fun, it was just a lot. It was a lot of fun, it was just a lot, it was a lot. So we did that. And then I photographed a wedding of a longtime friend and, uh, her reception was at a yacht club and it was beautiful and it was. I cried, it was, it was a good day, and I flew home Sunday, sunday morning, wow so there's my high and then I came home to the scatteredness that it is real estate life yesterday.

Speaker 1:

So there's your low, there's my low. I need to come home. Oh my high. For the week I survived you being on vacation and being alone.

Speaker 2:

I'm a little disappointed because you leave to go to Oklahoma for like a day or two.

Speaker 1:

I didn't do anything I should have done while you were gone. You left for.

Speaker 2:

Oklahoma and we get like the resort under contract, like big things happen when you leave my low for the week, I know what your low for the week was because I heard you when you got in my car last night.

Speaker 1:

It was city council I'm just trying to go along in a positive light, like I'm not here to cause problems. I just want to ask questions because it is my job. The, the legislative branch, city council, is a checks and balances system just like big government, yeah, yeah so checks and balances is about transparency and accountability, yeah, which means I can ask questions so that there is transparency and accountability about what they're doing. Now can I go tell the police chief how to do his job? No, not really no, because I'm not his boss.

Speaker 2:

The mayor is right, but if he's not doing his job, the city council can, with a two-thirds vote, remove him you're there on behalf of people because not all of the population of diamond city is going to roll up and participate. So you're there to represent a large portion of diamond city and if you don't ask questions, then why the hell are you there? And then so my other, my big hang-up, and I'm trying not to get involved with all of our social media because you know I don't want to be a keyboard warrior. But someone said last night on the Diamond City live about the city councilwoman having a problem and that recorder and y'all's attitudes, and I get that when you're watching the video it's kind of hard to hear what y'all are saying. So if you don't have the feedback like I have with you, you don't really understand. But the assuming that just because a CPA did y'all's paperwork, like CPAs don't make mistakes and you should just pass it because the CPA did it.

Speaker 1:

I think math and pal what you wanted to do, go. Oh well, it's all right.

Speaker 2:

A CPA made it just pass it.

Speaker 1:

Numbers didn't match on these two different papers that one was done by the CPA and one was provided by the treasurer. That we had previously as our year-end budget, that we provided to the state as our year-end budget. That we provided to the state and the numbers did not match what they had for expenses from the CPA and what we said were our expenses for the year to the state were not matching. Well, it's because the CPA was missing close to $30,000 in expenses, the money that we have to transfer by ordinance. It states in our ordinance we have to transfer a certain percentage of money from our water and sewer accounts into an outlay account, which is like a savings account for our water and sewer. So when we have a major problem with our water and sewer we have money set back. So that's close to $30,000 in expenses that we have that wasn't accounted for.

Speaker 1:

That was not accounted for in the sheet from the cpa and that's where they were getting this extra income. And that's all I was wanting to know is we're supposed to have a zero budget every year, but you guys are telling us we have extra income. Where is the extra income coming from? What did, what did we do to get this extra money?

Speaker 2:

the other part about it.

Speaker 1:

That's hard is that all of this is a guess on what our income will be. We don't truly know what our income is. So, we're guessing that we're going to make that $343,000 in income. But if we don't make $343,000 in income, but we've budgeted- to spend $343,000.

Speaker 2:

By our governing, documents provided by the state. It is not okay to be in a deficit. You're spending money that theoretically doesn't exist yet, because you haven't made it yet, but banking why would you overestimate? Why wouldn't you be conservative about that?

Speaker 1:

Well, and my other issue with last night that we discussed is the sewer. People have been gracious enough to waive our late fees, all is well. I'm not saying I don't want to pay their money. My problem was the fact that we want to just take $25,000 from the general fund and not remove it from any of the budgeted line items. So they just acted like we had an extra $25,000 not budgeted anywhere, that we could just say we're going 25k from over here and we'll put it over here, but at the end of the year I don't, and I may be proven wrong when we get to the end of the year, but I would rather be proven wrong than be 25 in the hole right?

Speaker 2:

I guess my thing is is that diamond city residents should be in an uproar about the council people that just said, yes, you're cool, awesome, let's pass it, rather than being upset at a woman for her outburst or whatever it is that you were doing, trying to actually sit down and figure it out. If I lived in in Dine City and I don't, so I don't have skin in the game, except for this is my home and we're all connected. But I would rather know that I have someone that's willing to be in a little bit of an inconvenience just to make sure that things are being done right, instead of just, oh, I'm done for the night. I need to go home and take a nap.

Speaker 1:

How are you there?

Speaker 2:

Yeah, I mean, those people didn't elect you for you to sit there and smile, right. So for people to get on there and then bash you for having an opinion, where were they? They were sitting at home on their couch. Where should they have been? Well, if they had that kind of opinion, then they should have been at the city council meeting. Are those private?

Speaker 1:

Can we attend there? No, by the state. Everything is public.

Speaker 2:

We have time to get in people's faces in Diamond City while we should be out trying to recruit people in instead of running people off. Get an awesome reporter who's got a brand new business in town, who has a stake in the game. You have a mayor who theoretically has the same. This drama is going to drive them out. Who wants to sit in there and watch temper tantrums? What do you?

Speaker 1:

want to talk about now the real estate lawsuit, because it's your favorite thing is it?

Speaker 2:

it's my favorite thing because it's not going to affect us like it's going to affect everybody else, because they should have been doing it right the first time the fact that commission is negotiable.

Speaker 1:

It's always been negotiable, didn't change.

Speaker 2:

Just like I do in photography. If, technically, my prices in photography are negotiable. If you want me to shoot your wedding and I say, well, it's gonna be two grand, you go. Well, I'll do. You know, I'll pay you 1500. I have the right to go. Sure, that sounds wonderful. Or I'll meet you in the middle, or I can say no, my rate is two thousand dollars but our brokerage has rates set.

Speaker 1:

That's always been the same right. Our brokerage has a set rate which can be done within a brokerage because it's not setting it a standard all the way around the board. Exactly so another brokerage in town will have different rates. So, since they've always been negotiable, do buyer's agents have to pay a fee?

Speaker 2:

Traditionally speaking, it's all been how it's laid out in the final docs. The only person bringing money to the table is a buyer. The seller's taking the money, but it comes on the final settlement statements as coming off the seller's side traditionally, because that's how it's always been done but still the buyer bringing money to the table. It's all just how you want to word it.

Speaker 1:

So in a right to sell agreement we charge our commission and we say this is our fee and we're always obligated to that fee. Yes, if another agent from another company comes, weikert Realtors still getting that same fee. Right, but we're choosing to give a portion of that fee.

Speaker 1:

That you're paying Weikert Realtors to that other brokerage that brought a buyer's agent Correct and that's how it's written in our agreement. Yes, nothing new. No, it's all the same. Seller doesn't want to pay a buyer's agent fee, just like we've always written it in our buyer's agency agreements that there is a fee. Sometimes it's paid for by the seller because he agrees when he lists his house to pay a buyer's agent. But now sometimes that may not be the case.

Speaker 2:

Go to a doctor's office and say well, I have cut my leg, Stitch me up now please. Right now, on the spot, they're going to still sit down, or make your person with you sit down and sign paperwork. This is I know that I'm responsible for this bill and I know that I can't even, I don't even know how much that bill is going to be, but I'm going to pay it and they make you sign that up front.

Speaker 2:

But for some reason you can pick up the phone and call a real estate agent and be like hey, I wanna see the house on 123 Main Street right now, in 20 minutes, and people just say, okay, cool, be there in a second.

Speaker 1:

Well, what if they want to buy?

Speaker 2:

that house. Well, are you going to get paid for your time you just spent? There's no document in place to say you are. You're not just a door holder.

Speaker 1:

Yeah we do a whole lot more than just open some doors for people. Yeah, we do. For our buyers it means we need to do more buyer consultations with them and sit down and discuss what a buyer's agency agreement is.

Speaker 2:

As a buyer. You may be like like I want to go look at this house and I'm gonna look at it. Right now it's gonna sell and I'm not gonna be able to get the house. I don't want to sit down at the table with you. I don't want to talk to you. I want to go. Look at this house. I'm not buying you, I'm buying the house Right, but you are.

Speaker 1:

So our clients are gonna have to schedule buyers consultations with us and sit down. I know it seems like we're going to have to date or marry them before we actually get to go on a date. That's what you like to say.

Speaker 2:

But buying a house isn't. How many times have we stood in a house and the buyers looked at us and said, oh, okay, what comes next? Right, and then what? Well then, what? If we make an offer and it gets accepted, then what? Whereas you sit down with us beforehand, we educate you. It doesn't take that long, it's just a few minutes.

Speaker 1:

Maybe 20 minutes, yeah, and it actually helps the search because we're able to actually look for some houses for you that you may not even know are available.

Speaker 2:

Our consultation. The part that I think is the most beneficial is that let me walk you through the process, let me put a contract in front of you and let's go through all the legal mumbo-jumbo and let's make sure that you have all of your banking stuff in a row, that you are ready, because I'm going to take you to a house and you'll be like oh my God, this is the one and you can't buy it. That's awful.

Speaker 1:

So one of the biggest misconceptions in real estate what is your opinion is that. I think we're just door. People think we're just door openers.

Speaker 2:

Pick up the phone, call Drea, because there's that special lockbox I need her to open.

Speaker 1:

Yeah, these are legally binding contracts. Yeah, like they're written by an attorney and we, with our license, just have the ability to fill in the blanks. We can't practice law, we can't. Yeah, we can't add other things like in the contracts we use protect buyer and seller right. I think that people don't realize how serious, how serious this is when you make an offer on a house.

Speaker 2:

It's not just swiping a debit card, yeah, where you can make a return later yeah, like you're putting yourself in a legally binding contract to purchase something what I think is the biggest misconception is that we work for the seller.

Speaker 2:

If you don't have a buyer's agency agreement, even if it's not our listing, we by law sub-agents to the seller yeah, so if you do call me or you call joe bob, down at whatever real estate and you say, hey, I want to look at this house and he walked in there with him and you don't have a buyer's agency in place regardless of who if he actually has the house listed himself.

Speaker 2:

He has to tell everything that you've said to the seller, like that's who his obligation lies with. So how many people have not been treated the right way, just assuming that they're being represented just because they called him or whoever? That's my deal. I work for the seller, unless you sign that buyer's agency, which makes proposing seem a whole lot less scary. Now, buyer's agency do have durations on them, right, you don't have to marry someone for two years.

Speaker 1:

Right, well, and a buyer's agency can be for a specific house there are lots of stipulations you can use. Just being straight up makes it so much easier. How do you handle criticism and feedback, especially if it's negative?

Speaker 2:

From who?

Speaker 1:

The public.

Speaker 2:

Don't accept some criticism from someone that you wouldn't take advice from. That's applicable to everything.

Speaker 1:

If it is coming from somebody that you respect and feel like you take advice from them, then you you would take it to heart yeah, and if it's something that I feel like they're knowledgeable on yeah, and I think criticism or any sort of negative from someone like that, it's going to come across a lot differently than well.

Speaker 2:

I also appreciate the honesty, like we were talking that real estate agent yesterday on the phone and he made a criticism or recommendation, however you want to word it about one of our listings in nls that he we thought he thought he made a suggestion that we should add to it and it made sense and so I added it to the listing and I thought that that was well, in a way he like one.

Speaker 2:

thank you for having the nerve, because some people take offense. And he didn't say it in a way that was like I know better than you what about you.

Speaker 1:

I get criticism or anything negative brought to me. I put it through a filter of is this coming from someone that I value what they're saying? Is it truly applicable to me and do I like I think on it? I don't just immediately act, is it?

Speaker 2:

coming from a place of love and I'm trying to help you, or if I'm just being critical because I'm jealous, or I'm just not a nice person.

Speaker 1:

Sometimes I have to sit on things and think through them. I don't just flat out come up with a response because I feel like that's the best way to think through it. Anyone said anything to me and I reacted initially. When it's something that is negative, I'm going to react in a poor way. I keep thinking about that basement we were in in Jasper.

Speaker 2:

Yeah, but that's like.

Speaker 1:

So we drove out to Jasper, to the deep woods of Newton County to look at a house to price it. And I was headed to the basement and Drea was still on the main floor and the seller was outside just letting us do a free-for-all in their house. And I was halfway down the basement when I realized, well, he could just like lock me down here and lock Dre in a room like we don't even know where he's at. Like he may be down here he never gave me creepy vibes, like I never got vibes.

Speaker 2:

But the problem is you were walking into a basement, and I don't like basements. Yeah, that was that's the problem. You were walking into a basement. So then you waited, like basements. Yeah, that was that's the problem. You were walking into a basement. So then you waited halfway on the stairs and said, jerry, come with me. So then we're in the basement and you're like he could lock us down here and I'm like, fantastic, that's wonderful news so now we have a game plan.

Speaker 1:

We don't do that anymore. Well, we survived. Well, that was fun.

Speaker 2:

At least I let you sit on this couch comfy and talk to me, versus sitting in the car talking to you, talking to you on the phone, talking to you at the office, talking to you at your house, wandering in your house.

Speaker 1:

Yeah, you haven't wandered in my house in a while and sat on the end of my bed while I'm trying to sleep.

Speaker 2:

You haven't been sick lately.

Speaker 1:

Follow and like this on YouTube.

Speaker 2:

I feel like I'm dead.

Speaker 1:

Subscribe on YouTube to the wonderful podcast. It's getting worse. Let's do some TikToks, yeah, please.

People on this episode

Head Shot

Angela Ballard

Host
Contributor

Aundrea Rogers

Co-host