Tips For A Quick Sale This Winter
Selling a home in winter can have its pluses and minuses. On the plus side, there is less competition. On the minus side, days are shorter, the weather doesn’t always cooperate and flowers aren’t in bloom.
BankRate.com has some excellent tips to help speed up a winter sale:
1. Keep walkways and driveways clear of snow and ice. You may not have to mow the lawn or trim the shrubs, but in the winter, consider this duty your “yard work.”
2. Present a warm and cozy home. Make sure the temperature is comfortable and not too cool for visitors coming in from the outside. Turn on gas fireplaces if you have them.
3. Show during “high-daylight” hours and make your home as light as possible. Clean blinds and curtains and keep them open during daytime showings. Put the highest wattage bulbs in amps and fixtures, and turn the lights on when you show. And wash your windows — even a little bit of grime gives the impression that the home isn’t well cared for.
4. Set the mood with a little soft background music and some pleasant smells. Light a few candles that give off a nice scent, such as vanilla. Just don’t overdo it — you don’t want people to think you’re trying to mask a bad smell.
5. Ask prospective buyers to remove their shoes or slip on paper booties over them. Doing so shows buyers that you are proud of your home and take meticulous care of it.
6. Emphasize the features of your home that make it a good place to live in the winter. If your roads are regularly plowed and de-iced, be sure to make it known.
For more information about selling Ludlow, VT real estate and Okemo Mountain real estate, visit my website. You’ll be glad you did!
Home Renovations Less Profitable In 2006
A few years ago when the real estate market was booming and inventory was low, many homeowners decided to renovate their current home rather than sell and buy something larger that better suited their needs.
The National Association of Realtors has reported that the cost of renovations climbed in 2006, while the resale value of those renovations declined. Last year, for example, adding a master bedroom suite to a house cost an average of $75,959 nationwide and boosted the home’s resale value by $64,419 – that’s 84.8 percent of the cost recouped. The same job this year cost a lot more – $94,331 – and returned just $68,458, or 72.6 percent.
With the current leveling off of the real estate market, it may be time to rethink a remodel project vs buying a new home. Home sales have slowed causing inventory to increase and making it easier for buyers to negotiate contingency contracts. It used to be, a seller wouldn’t think twice if you needed to sell a house prior to purchasing. But these days, sellers are thinking long and hard about working with a buyer who is also selling a home.
If you are considering a remodel vs buying, give me a call. I am glad to discuss your options with you so you can make the best decision for you and your family. Also, visit my website to view all Ludlow real estate listings.
Tags: ludlow vt real estate, irene gaffigan, home renovations costs,cost vs value
Should You Try to Sell Your Home During the Holiday Season?
A common misconception is that trying to sell a home during the holidays is a bad idea. If you are serious about selling, it can be an excellent time to list. During the holidays buyers are more serious. They have a different motivation like using vacation time to search for property. They’re doing that because they have to buy, rather than want to buy. Remember Thanksgiving and Christmas is one day a piece not two months.
10 reasons why you should list your home during the holidays
1. Most November and December buyers are particularly serious and very likely facing some sort of deadline.
2. January is the biggest transfer month of the year and job transferee’s use the holidays to house hunt.
3. Many people want to buy before the end of the year for financial and tax reasons. Investors usually want to close escrow by year-end for tax purposes.
4. Most sellers wait until spring or summer to list their home. This means that during the winter months your property will have far less competition versus any other time of the year.
5. Homes show well when decorated for the holidays creating a sense of family and people are much more emotionally drawn to the house, emotion sells.
6. Many people take vacation around the holidays allowing more time to look for a home.
7. Remodeling, decorating, appliance installation and other services are more available and at less of a premium.
8. There is plenty of mortgage money available for buyers.
9. Lenders aren’t as busy and can process loans faster.
10. Showings will be fewer and less intrusive, but more likely to be fruitful with motivated, qualified buyers.
Visit my website if you are thinking of selling your home.
Landscaping Pays Off Big
Money spent sprucing up the yard with trees, shrubs, lighting, and patios is well worth it — especially when it comes time to sell the home, a new study says. The report, by Arbor National Mortgage, found that 84 percent of real estate professionals believe a house on a treed lot would fetch at least 20 percent more than one on a lot without trees.
Another of the company’s surveys suggested that while shelling out for top-of-the line landscaping may only bring in an additional 4 percent to 5 percent, spending minimal amounts has a penalty. Homes swith average landscaping sell for 20 percent more than homes with just fair landscaping.
The American Society of Landscape Architects suggests budgeting 5 percent to 10 percent of a home’s value for its initial landscaping.Before launching into a landscaping project, keep these pointers in mind:
1. If you can’t afford to hire a landscape architect, check out the services offered by nurseries and big-box home improvement retailers, such as Home Depot. Many offer design services — sometimes without charge — if you are buy plants there.
2. You can save about half the cost of landscaping if you do the work yourself. But keep in mind that large trees are often killed when carried uncovered in the back of the buyer’s SUV from the nursery to the house, not because they are planted poorly. Also, most nurseries won’t guarantee plants they don’t install.
3. If you’re trying to stick to a tight budget, remember that a few larger plants will have a greater visual impact than many small ones.
4. Before planting trees, determine how large they will become and what leaf pattern will develop. If you plant a big tree too close to the house, the growing roots could cause the foundation to crack. And if you place it too near a sidewalk or driveway, root expansion could cause the pavement to buckle.
Source: Orlando Sentinel, Lew Sichelman (6/11/06)
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Want to know how your landsaping has increased the value of your Vermont home? Visit my website for your Free home evaluation.
What Is A Contingency Contract?
What Is A Contingency Contract?
Sandra Nickel, Realtor in Montgomery, AL, has an excellent post on contingency contracts. What are they and should you as a seller accept one. It is short, sweet and informative.
Please contact me with any questions you have about contingency contracts or real estate in Vermont.
Painting Tips
Painting Tips
Tis the season for do-it-yourself projects. The honey-do- list at our house is a mile long and I am always looking for a way to make the job I am tackling easier. Sam Miller, an excellent Realtor in Mount Vernon, OH has a post with interior painting tips. If painting is on your list of projects, take a look.
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If you are thinking of buying or selling a home, visit my website. Here you can view all local real estate listings.
Mistakes Home Sellers Make
Mistakes Home Sellers Make
Orange County Realtors, Drew and Linda Hartanov, have a great post on their Blog… 4 Common Mistakes Home Sellers Make and How To Avoid Them.
Take a look and then contact me, 802-226-8022 with any questions you might have about how these mistakes relate to the Vermont housing market.
You can receive a Market Valuation of your home by visiting: www.ISellVermontRealEstate.com
Post-Contract Pitfalls
Selling a home is like climbing Mount Everest – getting a signed contract is a great accomplishment, but that’s only half the journey. The typical home sale today involves more than 20 steps after the initial contract is accepted to complete the transaction.
Much of what needs to be done before the closing is the responsibility of appraisers, loan processors, attorneys, and inspectors — my role, as your REALTOR®, is to coordinate those responsibilities, helping to ensure that others do their jobs promptly and correctly and that the closing isn’t jeopardized.
Many steps between contract ratification and closing involve the cooperation of both buyer and seller, and it takes attentive REALTORS® on both sides of the transaction to troubleshoot and keep everyone on track. When things go wrong, closing can easily fall behind. Here’s how much time to expect on particular delays:
One-Week Delays
1. Buyer submits incorrect information to lender.
2. Source of down payment changes.
3. Escrow fails to notify parties about missing documents.
4. Principals leave town without signing all necessary papers.
5. Unknown defects are discovered in the property.
6. Last-minute liens discovered.
7. Cloud on title.
8. Move-out date changes.
Two-Week Delays
1. Lender decides at the last minute it doesn’t approve of the borrower or the property.
2. Lender raises interest rates.
3. Lender requires last minute reappraisal or repairs.
4. Appraisal too low.
I have extensive experience in handling problems that may arise during the time between contract and closing; I can anticipate difficulties and address them in time to ensure a smooth settlement for all involved.
To ensure a smooth settlement when buying or selling your home, give me a call, 802-226-8022. I’m here to help!
Considering a Home Remodel? Make Sure It Will Pay Off
If your family has to wait in line to take a shower, or if you’re storing pots and pans in the laundry room due to lack of cabinet space, it could be time to consider a home remodeling project. Not only will an updated space make your house more pleasant for you and your family, it can pay off in higher resale value.
To find out if your project will add to the resale value of your home, take stock of other houses in your neighborhood. Have many of them been upgraded in the past few years? If everyone on the block has added a bathroom or upgraded their master suite, these projects would be worth considering. On the other hand, you may not want to price your house out of the market by adding a third or fourth garage if that’s not the standard in your area.
Remodeling Magazine conducts an annual survey that compares construction costs with resale values. Over the past four years, bathroom and kitchen remodeling have consistently shown good returns on investment. In 2005, a kitchen remodel that included updating cabinet fronts; replacing the oven, stove, sink and faucet; adding new paint or wall coverings; and replacing existing flooring recouped 98.5 percent of the job cost at resale time as a national average.
Bathroom remodels pay off even better. Updating a bathroom that is 25 years old with new fixtures, tub, and toilet; adding new tile, a solid surface vanity counter, ceramic floor and wallpaper recoups on average 102.2 percent.
Of course, you won’t want to tackle a home improvement project solely for the resale value, especially if you intend to stay put for a while. A remodel can contribute to a better quality of living for your family while your house increases in value. “Choose an improvement that makes sense for you and your family and one that you can afford,” says Maxine Sweet, vice president of public education for Experian, a global information solutions company.
To decide if a home remodeling project is right for you, make a list of features that you would like in the room to be renovated, taking into account how you and your family use the space. Consider traffic patterns, lighting and special features you’d like, such as a wet bar or walk-in shower.
Next, figure out how much you can spend on the project. You might want to consider taking out a home equity loan to finance the remodel. Because the loan is secured by your home, it will likely have a lower annual percentage rate, and you may get some tax breaks, too. The amount you can borrow is limited by the equity you have in your home. Other factors that may influence the amount you can borrow include your credit history, income and current financial responsibilities. Also, be sure to have a plan for how you will repay the loan. You don’t want to put your home at risk or add too much stress to the family budget.
To make sure your financing is ready when you are, visit a credit reporting company online such as www.experian.com to quickly and easily access your credit report. “If you notice anything questionable, such as accounts you don’t recognize, or payment disputes, deal with those issues before applying for a home equity loan,” says Sweet. “It can also be helpful to have your credit score which will tell you specifically the factors in your credit history that could be considered risky by lenders.”
Finally, get bids from several contractors to see how your budget and the cost of your dream remodel compare. Ask friends, neighbors and co-workers for recommendations, or ask your lender if they’re familiar with the contractors you’re considering. Another great way to check out a company is SmartBusinessReports, also available through Experian. These business credit reports provide consumers with background information, comprehensive financial information and credit risk facts about the business they are considering using in an easy-to-read, online format.
As with any big project, you’ll need to be flexible and not let the inevitable glitches get in the way of the big picture – when you’re done, you’ll have a beautiful new space for you and your family to enjoy for years to come. (ARA)
If you would like input from a real estate professional as to whether or not your home improvement project will add resale value to your home or if you are over-improving for the neighborhood, just give me a call at 802-226-8022. I am glad to help.
What Is Your Okemo Mountain Home Really Worth?
A new website claims to give the numbers in Okemo Mountain and beyond. Wherever you live, if you plan to buy or sell a home, one of the most important pieces of information you will need is the home’s current value in reasonably accurate terms. Zillow.com is a new national website that purports to be able to tell you that so that you – uh – won’t need a Realtor like me.
Well, I just read a good post on this by my friend Margaret Rome in Baltimore, Maryland and want to share it with you. It really says it all: “In the last few days, a new Web site launched with great fanfare but spotty performance. When CNN included a story about it on their evening news, the site couldn’t keep up with the hits. Why all the fuss? Zillow promises to give homebuyers and sellers up to date and complete information about the value of their home and comparables in their area.
Some have suggested this will make real estate agents obsolete because people will be able to price their own homes to be competitive. The early returns are that the site’s information is incomplete and sometimes wrong, which makes the suggested price ranges they give hard to justify. In some cases, the range is optimistically high, and for others, I’ve negotiated sales higher than their top amount.
The site depends on public records for its data. But public records will not show factors, like recent additions and improvements or the condition of the interior, that affect price. Public records can also be wrong; a friend of mine checked her house and said she wants that fireplace she’s supposed to have, but will not give up the second bathroom they didn’t count. If the information about a house is wrong, how valid is the price estimate? In time, the site will undoubtedly improve, but for now – caution.
There is no question about real estate agents becoming an endangered species because of this or any other site. Price is only one factor in buying or selling your home, and getting to the settlement table means avoiding traps and overcoming obstacles. A top agent will be experienced at:
negotiating the terms of your contract,
making sure only qualified buyers troop through your home,
meeting and dealing with appraisers, and
working with home inspectors and title companies to be sure you are protected from start to finish.
Buying or selling a home is an emotionally-charged transaction. Now more than ever it pays to have an experienced professional on your side. Embrace the benefits of new technology, but don’t fall into the trap of believing it will replace market knowledge and personal service.
The end of real estate agents? Not any time soon. Margaret”
Visit Margaret Rome’s Blog here.
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