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Real Estate Articles
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Three
Important House Selling Tips
by
Steven Gillman
There
are hundreds of good house selling tips that
can help you when the time comes to put that sign in the yard. Some are
more important than others though. Here are three of the most important
points.
1.
Understand Value. Your home is not worth more
because you like it, and it may not even be worth more after you spend
$10,000 making it the way you like it. It is worth what others will
pay. One of the worst parts of a real estate agent's job is trying to
explain to a nice couple that their $45,000 in kitchen improvements
only added $10,000 to the value of the house.
It
is easy to see the problem with pricing too
low, but making less money is a problem of pricing too high as well.
You have costs that you pay while waiting to sell. Also, people are
suspicious of homes that have sat unsold for a year, and less likely to
make an offer even if you have finally lowered the price. The perfect
buyer who would have paid the most, might have looked at the home when
it was over-priced and walked away. To get the most money, price it
right to begin with.
2.
Understand The Market. Who are your potential
buyers? A sign in the yard wont help much if you're selling a summer
home in the woods and all the buyers are in the city. Once you identify
who the likely buyers are, you or your agent can decide which ways to
market the property.
Are
you in a quiet neighborhood that is attracting
retirees? If so, you would want to advertise the fact that your house
has one level. "No stairs!" can be an important selling point to older
buyers. If the neighborhood is one that is likely to attract young
couples, however, it would be a waste of words. Consider your market
before you try to sell.
3.
Cost-Effective Preparations. Of course you
should clean the house and mow the lawn. The other things you do to get
ready for the sale should be cost effective though. As a rule, you
should first do those things that will give you a three-to-one return
on your money.
It
isn't important (or possible) to be precise.
The point is to do things that raise the value more than they cost.
$1,000 to repave the driveway may increase the value of the house by
$3,000, but a $50,000 pool might add only $25,000 in value. Start by
replacing that dented mailbox, and work on those things that get "the
most bang for the buck."
If
you have the time and motivation, you can find
endless little house selling tips. That may not be a bad idea, but why
not start with the important things first?
Steve Gillman has invested
in real estate for
years. See a photo of a beautiful house he and his wife bought for
$17,500 on his home page, or go straight to the section on Investing
In Real Estate:
http://www.HousesUnderFiftyThousand.com
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Things
To Consider When Buying A Home
by
Raynor James
When
buying a home, it is easy to get caught up in
emotions such as love at first site. This can lead to disaster. The
best way to buy a home is to apply your daily life to it.
What
Do You Do Daily?
Ask
yourself what a typical day is like. Then, for
any home that seems like a real possibility, think about how you’d
handle a typical day there. Can family members shower and dress in a
timely fashion without getting into each other’s way terribly? Is there
a good place to put on make-up? If someone needs something quickly
touched up with an iron, can you picture a way to handle that?
Picture
the way you and other family members
handle breakfast and lunch preparations if they’re made at home. Can
you see that flowing well here?
What
about evenings? Do you cook dinner at home
and dine together as a family regularly? Is there adequate counter
space near the sink, refrigerator, and stove? Can you picture preparing
a typical meal in comfort in this kitchen?
If
you have school age children, what about
homework? Do you and they like a homework “station” near where you’re
working in the kitchen tidying up after dinner and near where you’re
catching up a few chores after that? Or do they do homework in their
rooms? Can a computer station, good light, etc. be arranged where it’s
needed?
What
about exercise? Does one or more family
members take a daily run? Use exercise equipment indoors? If so, where
would these things take place?
Weekly
Chores and Hobbies
Are
there grocery stores, dry cleaners, a library,
a farmers’ market, or whatever retailers and service providers you and
your family use regularly near this home? If not, how would you handle
that? Does the home have places suitable for any messy hobbies that
matter to you and yours? Does anyone refinish furniture, build models,
work with clay, paint pictures? Can you find a reasonable place for
those activities?
What about the “enrichment”
activities you have
your children enrolled in? How would you handle getting them to hockey
practice, dance class, and the like? Can they continue in the programs
they’ve been in, or will you have to find new ones? Is the answer
satisfactory?
Meaningful
Infrequent Activities
If
you’re changing geographic locations and have a
choice of locating within, say, a fifty mile radius of your workplace,
you might want to consider the possibility of locating in several
different towns. “Trying on” living in each town can hinge on
availability of activities you do infrequently, but enjoy greatly. For
example, if you and your spouse really enjoy concerts and plays, you
can check out what’s available in that realm in each town and then
focus your attention on the one you like best.
You
might even go to the trouble to write out a
little “check list” of things that matter to you and judge each home
you’re thinking is a good possibility by how it measures up. You might
want to encourage other family members to do the same. This is apt to
increase the chance of your finding a new home in which you’re all very
pleased with the quality of life you develop after you move in.
Raynor James is with FSBOAmerica.org - a FSBO homes
for sale by owner site. Visit our "Sell My Home" page
to list your FSBO Home or visit our home buying page to
see homes for sale.
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Would
you be happy to sell your house on the internet?
by
Edward Bennett
It
is one thing to flog a PacMan Fever lunchbox, a
slightly-damaged golf bag , or a Smurf TV tray. But how many people
would be brave enough to sell our homes that way?
Plenty,
according to a survey by first4sale, a
innovative online property website. Research by YouGov, which
questioned 2,354 UK respondents, found that 70 percent are comfortable
selling their most valuable item - their home - on the Internet. The
comparatively new idea of SIY - Sell it Yourself - could save
£4 billion in needless estate agency commission, reasons
first4sale.com. "It reflects consumer confidence in the internet," says
the chief executive of first4sale.com, Mark Fisher. "The net has over
ten million users in this country. Sell it Yourself has evolved quickly
from dealing in smaller, low-valued possessions. More than 190,000 cars
are sold on the internet each year, and houses are now the latest
big-ticket item to sell yourself." It makes sense. By selling on the
net, you avoid the estate agents commission, typically
1·5 to 2 percent of the total selling price. Fisher
points out that on a three hundred thousand pound house, , the owner
could save more than £5,000.
But does it work? Only two
months ago, Richard
Batten, a computer company director from Finchley, north London, put
his deceased father's house in Golders Green on the market for
£699,000 with first4sale.com. "I don't trust agents," says
Mr Battern, "and as I was not under pressure to sell quickly, I thought
I'd give it a go." Within two weeks, Batten had 15 enquiries - most
from the For Sale board and not the net, he adds - and an offer from a
family in Hampstead that is going through at just below the asking
price. He has had a survey done and Batten hopes to exchange shortly.
"I do not see the added value from an agent, and this way you deal
directly with the buyer." Now he is selling his own home, shared with
his family. Now he has two potential buyers who did turn up both put in
offers. "Altogether, I will save £22,000 on
agents' fees," he says.
Edward
Bennett is the founder of UK property market and
has worked closely on first4sale.
Edward
Bennett may be contacted at http://www.business-direct.co.uk
or nixies@gmail.com
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How
To Find A Real Estate Agent
by
Steven Gillman
It's
easy to find a real estate agent. Just put a
for sale sign in the yard and wait for the phone to ring. The question
is, how do you find a GOOD real estate agent? You can start with
newspaper.
Pick
up the Saturday or Sunday paper - whichever
day they have all the homes for sale in your area. You can also collect
a few real estate guides to look through. Browse the listings to find
properties similar to yours. If you are selling a cabin, you want to
look for cabins for sale. If you are selling a lakefront mansion, look
for those.
When you find similar
properties, note the names
and numbers of the agents that are selling them. The idea here is to
find a real estate agent that has experience with your type of
property. An agent that has all the million dollar homes may not be the
best to sell your mobile home, for example. You want agents that have
sold or are selling several properties like yours.
What To Ask A Real Estate Agent
1.
When you call the agents - and it's best to
call several - you want to verify that they do have experience selling
properties like yours. Ask for examples.
2.
Ask what they do to market a property. Any
agent can place an ad and put your home in the multiple listings. Do
they have existing leads - people looking for properties like yours? Do
they let other agents know about your property?
3.
Do they show their listings very often? Many
agents just list real estate for sale and let others sell it for them.
It's more profitable for them, but not for you. If they are a good
salesperson, you want them to be going through the house with potential
buyers.
4.
Do they do their own closings? Again, it may
be better for them to delegate this part of the process, but it isn't
better for you. You want the same person to be there through the whole
process. You want one person to call. Things go wrong all the time in
real estate, so don't complicate it further by having more people
involved.
Most
real estate agents will probably argue these
points. That's okay, but be aware that there are other things they
won't tell you too. For example, did you know that open houses are
primarily a prospecting tool for real estate agents? In fact, new
agents (not the listing agent) are often given the job of hosting your
open house, so they can find buyers to work with. It isn't expected
that they will sell your house in the process.
Also
understand that when you see ads for homes
for sale, and they don't have prices, it is a prospecting technique.
When that buyer looking for a $100,000 home calls on your $300,000
home, the agent isn't going to make him able to afford your home. The
whole point was to get him to call so he could sell him ANY home.
Meanwhile, other potential buyers for your home skipped over the ad -
there are enough homes WITH prices to look at (insist that ads for your
property have the price listed).
Trust
your intuition when choosing an agent. If
you don't feel comfortable with an agent, it's possible potential
buyers won't either. And ask the right questions. You don't just want
to find a real estate agent you like. You want to find the right agent
for your property.
Steve
Gillman has invested in real estate for
years. See a photo of a beautiful house he and his wife bought for
$17,500 on his home page, or go straight to the section on Investing
In Real Estate:
http://www.HousesUnderFiftyThousand.com |
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