The Luxury Home Experts and the Neighborhood Experts at Platinum Real Estate discuss what’s happening in Lake County today
By Patricia Nugent
On the heels of the Fourth, when we take pause to wish our great country a resounding happy birthday, the enthusiastic group The Luxury Home Experts and the Neighborhood Experts at Platinum Real Estate are feeling inspired. This highly collaborative team comes from different ages and stages in life, with diverse backgrounds and levels of experience.
Thanks to esteemed Co-Commander in Chief of Platinum Denise Zervos for sharing her important address with us.
And props to Judah the lion, Platinum’s long-time mascot, for being part of the whimsical cover photo shoot.
Denise and her husband and fellow Co-Commander Mark have successfully mirrored a bold American spirit by putting forth a very different model of real estate firm. They give agents the power to manage their own deals, and the choice to spend their ad dollars however they best see fit.
“We do things from an agent-centric perspective, allowing them to truly become the creators of their own careers in real estate,” she says.
So integral are her “cabinet members,” we decided to catch up with some of them to lend their perspective. We asked for one word they’d use to describe the current market.
Lee Jarocki, Senior Ambassador and Luxury Partner: Challenging
“Low inventory and rising interest rates have put buyers and sellers on the sidelines.”
Erin Paglio, Supreme Boss of Neighborhood Experts and Luxury Partner: Unique
“In Lake County, our housing values have remained very strong, and I don’t see that changing. People moving to the Cleveland area realize what a value our housing market is. Those thinking of selling their home might not find a better time than now. Who knows what the future holds?”
Jaime Cordova, Chief Commander of the Hometown Heroes Program and the Neighborhood Experts: Active
“We’ve been working the past few months especially to find the types of properties buyers want.”
Andrew Niebuhr, Chief Ambassador of Sales and Marketing: Changing
“Our access to properties that may be currently off-market allows us to emphasize marketing to those homeowners to provide more opportunities to our buyers. With low inventory, we are seeing buyers valuing the location of a home more than how renovated and up to date it is. They are more willing to compromise now to get where they want to live.”
Lily Maharg: Booming
“This has been a crazy spring and summer with lots of activity. There are excellent opportunities for anyone who puts their home on the market now.”
Residents of Lake County, I am here to give you a report of where we are as we enter the second half of 2023. Figures tell all. We are slightly down around 140 home sales compared to the same time last year. Coming in at 1,652, there is an approximate eight percent decrease in homes sold. This total includes single-family and condominium sales. We are currently experiencing a slight uptick of homes available for sale, with a steady flow of homes sold during the first half. This indicates a window of opportunity for both buyers and sellers this summer as we head into the fall. Median closed prices are strong and remain up, and local lenders are reporting an increased surge in loan activity, sensing buyers have adjusted to interest rates.
Our Platinum Real Estate organization of top-producing teams and agents, including many strong hometown real estate veterans in the business, continue to meet a high benchmark of professionalism and knowledge, and are displaying a commitment to further education for the benefit of the buyers and sellers they serve. Newer agents to the business are given an opportunity to reside under the mentorship and branding of a committed, successful team. They form strategic alliances with the top industry lenders and partner with local title companies to ensure that when you work with a Platinum Agent, their fiduciary duties to you, the consumer, are the primary objective.
A younger generation has entered the real estate field with a zest for social media advertising, making their team a stronger force for property marketing, which catapults the established practices to new heights one could only dream of.
As I continue to lead my own teams within our organization, my passion for providing buyers and sellers the level of service they deserve with strong negotiating power present, regardless of their price range, has not dimmed. I attribute that to my God-given ability to look at a problem as a solvable puzzle. Everyone around me has a commitment to making a difference in the lives of those we serve. My husband Mark always ends his correspondences with, “you win in life by helping others.” This rings true, as we are blessed to be living here in such a time as this—in a quickly changing real estate market landscape. This summer, let us all encourage others to take time to smell the roses. Life is short.
If anyone has questions or real estate needs, I encourage and welcome a call to my personal cell. I end this report with this: The real estate of our market here in Lake County is strong, values are higher than ever, and our communities are proud and growing. God Bless America.
—Denise Zervos, Co-Commander in Chief of Platinum Real Estate
Platinum Center headquarters is located at 7200 Center Street in Mentor. Platinum Real Estate has offices in Northeast Ohio, Columbus, Florida, Tennessee, and South Carolina. To get more information, call 216-990-2100 or 440-974-SALE and visit NeighborhoodExperts.com.