Appliances: Enough is Enough!

We have owned many appliances in the course of our home-ownership lives. As agents, we have witnessed thousands of issues involving home-ownership and maintenance. However, never before have we encountered such a pesky, unrelenting, annoying issue as a dishwasher that requires more than annual service, and has never performed properly. We have had the same service folks out repeatedly, the most recent this last August. Diana announced this morning that “the lower dish drawer will not close”. I investigate. After many frustrating minutes lying on my side with a flashlight in my mouth, I cannot discern why it will not close.

For the first time I decided that enough is enough….I called the manufacturer this time. They have some spotty records pertaining to our ownership, and said that I should call the same service folks and give them a reference number with which to call the manufacturer.

The service tech will be here November 13, two weeks out, between 8:30 and 11:30 AM. Great, another half day off from work. The good news about these dish-drawers is that while they tend to break down one at a time, you still have the other one to work with for two weeks while waiting for the service call. [I wonder if that was the driving force behind the 2 drawer design decision? Funny that's never mentioned as a feature in the promo materials.]

The following is the letter that I sent to the manufacturer following a rather terse session with a representative on the phone. If the company makes good on this I will tout their wares. If they don’t, you’ll hear about that as well.

__________________________________________________________

This is concerning Dish-Drawer Serial Number 88271 CAM745047.

Having talked with a company representative this morning [Ref #7489913A], I thought it prudent to follow up in writing.

While on hold with your representative, I found the “hold music and message” full of irony as the spokesperson stated something to the effect that “customer care is an integral part of business at Fisher & Paykel, that integrity is the backbone of….”

While the representative was willing to listen to my concerns and stated the next step to be taken (call the service tech….again) there was not much empathy.

I am 55 years old and have owned several homes, and thus appliances. I must conclude that my Dish-Drawers are defective. They require service more than once per year, they DO NOT clean dishes. We scrub every item that is loaded into them, knowing anything bigger than a pinhead will block the drainage system.

I respectfully request that you consult with our service company, At Your Service, Inc.: 425-814-9462.

If indeed “Integrity is the backbone of your philosophy….”, these dish-drawers should be replaced at your company’s expense.

I have owned $400 dishwashers that never required service for 10 years. This unit doesn’t clean i.e., requires thorough rinsing of every item, and is unacceptably unreliable.

I ask, how many times should service be required for the average appliance? I do not know, as I am not in the appliance business. I am in the home selling business. I contend that you are indeed in the appliance business and thus are acutely aware that annual service should not be required for ANY appliance. And certainly, one for which a premium is paid, one should reasonably expect that it be capable of performing its function, which this unit does not, never has.

I am looking forward to your reply, anticipating, and hoping, that your own statement regarding integrity holds true.

You may review this statement for reference on my blog at http://redmondrealestateblog.com where I will track the progress.

Seattle Times Saturday Headline: “Let The Buyer Rejoice” Oct 6, 2007

For the full text of the article referenced here, use THIS LINK. The focus of the story is the the sea change in the local real estate market. I don’t know if there is much for buyers to rejoice, other than the fact that there are more choices than there have been. But buyers have to be patient and smart to sort through the sellers and figure out what properties are priced to sell.

The subject of the news article purchased their home for $354,500 in 2001 and is now “slashing” their asking price to $629,900 would net nearly $50,000 per year of ownership. While that figure does not take into account maintenance and possible upgrade costs, what other investment in 2001 would have yielded that type of return? Especially when you consider that 80% of the investment was financed at 6%, and the interest paid was tax deductable.

So the seller didn’t make an additional $100,000. So what? It was never his money to begin with.

The most important components of this article are on pg A10:

1. Median Price is Lower: Yes, that happens when more lower priced homes are on the market

2. More Homes Are On The Market AND Prices Are Higher Than Last Year: Yes, that happens when properties are overpriced…..they don’t sell.

Generally, properties have been priced too high since early this year. The market began flattening in late 2006, but it seems many sellers had it in mind that they were entitled to 1% monthly appreciation in spite of this fact. Thus sellers that got around to putting their homes on the market by May or June of this year were, for the most part, already 5-6% above the market. Coupled with the media blitz concerning the mortgage business that has spooked many buyers and those same sellers are, in many cases, now priced 10% above the market.

Expectations. It is interesting to observe sellers reaching for money that was never theirs. While the last 4 years have provided greater appreciation than I’ve seen in my 23 years in the business, it still isn’t enough. Why? Expectations. Never mind the fact we should feel blessed that our local market is not going backward as many parts of the country are, that we actually have buyers that want to buy, that our region is creating good paying jobs. We are incredibly fortunate to have an economic climate that will allow home sellers to sell and get on with the next stage of their lives.

If you, or anyone you know is sitting on the market, wondering what to do, and if the property condition is the best that it can be, here is a way to judge your pricing: showings.

If you are getting 0-1 showing per week, you are priced way too far above the market;

2-3 showings per week, you are closer, but still too high to get offers;

consistently getting 4-5 showings per week, you are close enough to get offers. If no offer is forthcoming within two weeks there is likely a property condition issue. It could be a barking dog, a dead tree, the neighbor’s car up on blocks, mildewed caulking around a bath tub, crooked cabinet doors, dirty or dated light fixtures. Every detail counts. Miss one and that could be the cause of no offers.

A recent problem we’ve run into are wide angle photos that many real estate agents are using to enhance the appearance of properties on-line. Wide angles are fine, but not when they make homes, rooms, and yards look twice as big as they are. The net effect is a lot of showings and no offers when buyers see that the property details are much smaller than represented on-line.