How Floor Plans Impact Living
Choosing the right floor plan for your home is a crucial decision. Different floor plans cater to various lifestyles and family habits, so it is essential to consider how your chosen layout will complement your routines and preferences. Open Floor Plans: Ideal for Families with Young Children and Entertainers These layouts combine the kitchen, dining, and living areas into one…
Never Hire a Part-Time RE Agent – Insist on Professional Commitment
When making significant life decisions, we often seek the expertise of professionals. Would you entrust your legal matters to a part-time lawyer, your finances to a part-time CPA, or the construction of your home to a part-time builder? So why consider hiring a part-time real estate agent for one of the most substantial financial transactions of your life? Financial AdvisorsYou…
Never Buy a Home Without Seeing it in Person
Buyers are relocating across the country for work. After a week in their destination state, they’ve nailed down favorite neighborhoods and home styles. Back at home, while perusing online real estate sites, they discover that their dream home just listed. The buyers immediately call the listing agent who says, “Better hurry up with an offer! It will sell fast!” Not…
Buyers Do Not Get to Benefit from Sellers’ Wise R.E. Investment
But they think they do. You were at the right place at the right time. During an economic downturn, you had cash to purchase a great off-market home at a discount. Now you are selling it when home prices are high. The home has doubled in value, and you’ve done very little in upgrades. Your buyer sees that you are…
5 Reasons Why Sellers Should Ask Buyers for Proof of Funds
You have an offer on your home. Unless the buyer included a document from a financial institution that shows the buyer has the required cash on hand, the offer is only worth the paper it is written on. Yes, you can take the buyer to court based on contract laws, but why go there if simply requiring Proof of Funds…
The Ugly Truth About Open Houses
The fiduciary duty of your listing agent and agents he hires to hold open houses for him, is to sell the house. Period. Done. It should not be your agent’s primary goal to use your home as place to get new listings. The ugly truth is that brokerages tell their agents that one way to get new clients is to…
Open Houses for Sellers
Your home is in showing condition and it is time to bring people in to see it. What is the best way to do that? Some buyers are uncomfortable contacting an agent to arrange for a showing. They would rather look at houses on their own and in anonymity. Open houses are a great way to bring those buyers to…
Open Houses for Buyers: Do’s and Don’ts
Go to open houses. At the start of the buying process, go to as many open houses in as many neighborhoods as you can. As you approach the home, get a feel for the neighborhood. Watch the people. How well kept are front yards? What kinds of cars do neighbors own? How quiet is the neighborhood? How far is it…
A Must Read If You Include Personal Property in a Sale
“Real property” is the land and everything that connects to it. That includes the dirt, the trees, the house, the pipes in the house, the sinks at the end of the pipes, the wires in the wall, the light fixtures at the end of the wires, and all else that its “affixed” to the home and land. “Personal property” is…
How Much Should I Pay for This Home?
You found a home you love and want to make an offer. The amount you offer is up to you. Your agent will suggest an offer price that factors in the current home-buying climate. If inventory is low and the home is in a popular price range, expect to pay close to the asking price. Your agent will show you…
Should You Ask Your Agent for Contractor Recommendations?
Getting ready to sell your home often entails lining up contractors to make home repairs. A cracked window needs to be replaced, the exterior needs to be painted, and the driveway needs to be resealed. After a purchase contract is in place and the inspection is complete, you may find that the buyer wants you to fix a cracked bathtub…
Sellers: Pay the Buyer Agent’s Commission
I’ll pay you $15,000 even though I don’t know who you are or what you’ll do, says the seller of a $500,000 home in Anywhere, USA, to the buyer’s agent. Why are sellers paying huge commissions to unknown people? Joe Seller meets with his agent, and they come to an agreement. Joe Seller will pay his agent a percentage of…
