Document text
Business Q&A - Sandy Lighthall Q&A appears Mondays on the Mail Tribune's business page. It provides local leaders a venue to address timely issues in the business community. Sandy Lighthall, 58, has a bachelor' degree in biology from San Jose State. While working on the Alaska pipeline in 1975, he bought his first house in Medford for $30,000. Fourteen months later, he sold it for $68,000. That was the catalyst that moved him into the real estate business. Lighthall has sold more used homes in east Medford than anybody for a period of 18 years. He helped start Help-U-Sell real estate in 1989 and owned and operated Eastside Real Estate for 10 years, joining Windermere/Van Vleet & Associates, Inc., this spring. He is a board member of the Rogue Valley Association of Realtors. He has two grown children living in Medford. Q: You and three other local real estate agents recently met with members of Oregon's congressional delegation in Washington, D.C. What were the primary issues you discussed? The water issue in Klamath Falls, the issue of financial institutions getting into real estate and the devaluation of real estate value caused by high utility costs. Real estate, like other things, is governed by the law of supply and demand. If people can't sell, prices go down. In Klamath Falls, the lack of water has created a stigma that is going to affect real estate prices. I have a pool and a pond; what happens if my water supply is cut off? What happens to my property value? Whether you have one acre or 100, if you have no water, there is no value. It's like having trees on your property - they give value. But once you remove the trees, you remove the value. The scariest thing, outside of water, is the issue of keeping banks out of home sales. There are bills in Congress that would allow major banks, such as Bank of America, to buy and sell houses. We're trying to keep them out of the real estate business. Why? Because it's unfair competition; federally chartered banks have access to unlimited funds. They can borrow at prime rate and then make mortgage loans at interest rates lower than most mortgage companies. It would be foolish for the banks not to get into it, if the law passed. Sen. Gordon Smith was the only member of the Oregon delegation in support of the bill. Several of the others thought it would be a conflict of interest for banks to be selling real estate. If banks or savings and loans can list and sell their own properties, they could do it for less. How could real estate companies compete? If you list a house, sell the house and make the loan, there is no need for Realtors. There are real estate companies in the Bay Area that pay agents by the hour. Banks would pay people by the hour and that would do away with competition. Another concern is the electrical crisis in California, which has caused devaluation of property values. In Hillsborough, Calif., there are $400,000 homes that have gone down 40 percent in value. When you have $758 electric bills, that's going to happen. That's as much as people pay for their mortgages here. In reference to utility bills, Congressman (Peter) DeFazio said that it's going to be uncomfortable for two years and then all the new power sources being built right now will be in operation. Q: What's the worst thing that could happen in the real estate market? No competition - that's why it's important for banks and savings and loans to stay away from selling real estate. Whether it's a good or bad market, because of deaths , transfers, divorce, retirement, people are going to move. If S&Ls come in say they won't let me sell the house without a 25 percent commission, then I don't make a living, because I don't make a sale. Q: What is the chief cause for a continuing strong real estate market in the Rogue Valley? When you see your dream home for half the price of the one you own, you check into the area. People are amazed there are no bars on the doors and windows. It's safer here because the crime rate is low. California money is raising our prices. Here's an example of what is happening. I just sold a 3,880 square-foot house on Gardner Way, three levels with a spa, screened porch, it was tricked out to the max. The people had sold their 1,900 square-foot home in California for $751,000 and they bought this one for $439,000. I said 'Let's find out what the sellers will take,' and they said 'No, we want the house and we'll pay full price.' That makes my job easy. In the meantime, they bought two rentals. One for $2,000 over the asking price on Blackthorn and another on Trinity for full price. When you have someone paying full price, it hurts someone else that wants to negotiate. To suggest a subject for this column, please contact business reporter Greg Stiles at 776-4463 or e-mail [email protected] Mail Tribune Home | Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. | Dow Jones & Co., Inc. | Privacy | Contact Us Copyright � 2001 Mail Tribune, Inc.