Page 5 - Jim Seabold

90s was almost unheard of. It was very rarely done.”
Of course, in the early 2000s that became the hot trend and has gradually segued into apartment in ll projects. But Seabold has had 20 years of experience representing 32 di erent condominium projects, many from concept
to completion.
Conscientiously studying market trends and trying to
anticipate what was coming, Seabold stopped investing in real estate around 2005, 18 months before the bottom dropped out.
DEALING WITH THE DOWNTURN
“As I saw the downturn in the real estate market (of course I had no idea it was going to be as bad as it was), I started working with local community banks and their troubled assets,” he explains. “I took my experience in con- dominium sales and brought it over to the banking side. At one point, I had seven di erent banks that I worked with to sell the assets they had that were coming back.”
Of course, Seabold wasn’t the only agent to take a simi- lar approach, but he did do things di erently when put- ting these properties on the market. For instance, during the winter, he noticed that most REO on the market were actually colder on the inside than it was outdoors. Obvi- ously, this does not lend itself to a comfortable or leisurely tour of a property.
“Not only were they freezing inside,” he says, “they were dirty as well. Very unappealing. ey looked desperate.
“we made minor improvements,” Seabold continues. “ ese were basically cosmetic, but it made a di erence. Taking this one additional step, resulted in the banks mak- ing thousands upon thousands. Back in the day when the market was rst ooded with foreclosure properties, the banks weren’t doing this. Now, they’ve learned to do it, but that’s what we were doing from the beginning.”
Seabold was not just ahead of the banks in these im- provements, he was doing things 99 percent of the other real estate agents were not. Not surprisingly, he was excep- tionally successful.
While there are numerous examples of his forward- thinking and proactive, Seabold o ers one particular example. “With one bank, I had 30 di erent duplexes in North Minneapolis,” says Seabold. “ ey were all occu- pied. Faced with the multiple challenges of getting tenant cooperation, I came up with a plan that included paying them $20 per showing. Not only did they suddenly be- come more cooperative and available, I actually had them calling me asking when the next showing would be!”
Taking on an associate who specialized in short-sells, Seabold was also able to service the other end of this mar- ket crisis. ey were equally successful with these clients, in one instance negotiating over $900,000 in debt relief for a seller with no recourse.
Over the years, Seabold has became particularly adept in staging and marketing. Aware that such aesthetics are not just “a nice touch” but can mean a di erence of up to 20 percent in the sale price.
“Proper staging, professional photography and well-ex- ecuted marketing have a tremendous impact on the nal
sales price,” he says. “ e basic reason for this is that you attract a signi cantly higher number of people who look, and the more interest there is the higher the sales price tends to be.
“In fact,” he adds, “about 80 percent of my business is helping sellers prepare their homes to put on the market.”
REPUTATION FOR EXCELLENCE
With his ingenious approach and customized custom- er service, Seabold easily attained top producer ranking, earning the respect and admiration of clients and col- leagues along the way. Not only has his business continued to grow, Seabold has been recognized by the industry for his numerous areas of expertise.
Continuing to build a reputation for excellence and in- novation, he attracted new clients as well as enjoyed the endorsement of repeat business from long-time clients as well as their families and friends.
With this explosion of growth, Seabold knew he had to take additional steps to ensure he would never jeopardize his existing relationships nor fall down on the service he has always strived to provide. It was time to add more sta and form a team that could sustain his standards of ser- vice. He began seeking out like-minded professionals who he could trust to carry out his high standards.
Seabold, was just as judicious when selecting members of this group as he was with every other aspect of his busi- ness. e BOLD Marketing Team is a clever double enten- dre re ecting both the powerful assets of the group as well as the leader’s name.
“Having a vast amount of experience in so many di er- ent areas of real estate makes a world of di erence,” Sea- bold says. “We have an excellent team of dedicated profes- sionals who know the business and how to cater to our clients.”
PERSONAL SIDE
While it’s apparent that Seabold is fully dedicated to his clients, he does make time for family and friends. He and his wife are the parents of four sons and, as a family they enjoy a variety of outdoor activities.
“We live very close to Lake Como,” says Seabold, “and one of our favorite activities is just walking around the lake. It’s great exercise and truly beautiful and very calm- ing.
“Lately, we’ve been doing a lot more biking,” he adds. “We’re fortunate to live within a block of the Grand Round, which is a 26-mile trail with virtually limitless points of interest. Also, it leads into the Gateway Trail which brings us to Stillwater.”
A er spending the better part of his life in real estate, people o en ask Seabold if he’s getting bored or burned out.
“Not at all,” he says emphatically. “For one thing, real estate is one of those industries that always changing and my role within it continues to change as well. To be honest, my greatest joy is to solve problems. I love when my team members come to me and my mind immediately kicks into high gear. It’s exhilarating to come up with a solution that no one has thought of before, but more importantly one that makes all parties happy.”