10 Steps to Win Over Sellers
Helping eager buyers get the home of their dreams isn’t so easy in this unsettled market. Here are 10 tips for making sure sellers won’t turn up their nose at an offer:
1. Make sure the buyers are pre-approved for a mortgage (not to be confused with being pre-qualified) so they can close in about 10 days.
2. Study the buyer. Have they made an offer on another home or are they working against any other kind of deadline?
3. Make a clean offer – no requests for help with closing costs or other contingencies.
4. Include an automatic escalation clause – say $500 over the highest competing bid. (Insist that seller show the offers in writing.)
5. Sweeten the offer with a bonus if the deal gets done quickly.
6. Offer 10 percent of the purchase price in earnest money.
7. Waive the appraisal. The buyer will have to be willing to pay any difference between the selling price and what the bank is willing to lend.
8. Consider waiving the inspection.
9. Offer the full list price, preferably in cash.
10. Write a love letter to sellers, telling them all the things your client loves about their home.
Source: MSN Real Estate, Marilyn Lewis (08/03/2010)
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Comfortable Laundry Rooms Are a Must-Have
Convenient and comfortable laundry rooms are an increasingly popular feature among home buyers.
Tom Byrne, president of Rockville, Md.-based Chadsworth Homes Inc., says they are more popular than such features as studies and media rooms.
“In the past few years, 30 percent of the homes we build … have a laundry room with granite countertops, a single-level kitchen-style faucet, and the laundry tub will be an undercounter sink,” Byrne says.
Stephen Melman, director of economic services for the National Association of Home Builders, concurs.
“These rooms are becoming larger and more multifunctional, with organizers, a table for folding, ironing stations, and windows with a view,” Melman says.
Source: Washington Times, Carisa Chappell (5/14/2010)
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House Hunting Via Real Estate Apps
Smart phone apps are becoming increasingly popular among home buyers, sellers, and the real estate professionals who serve them.
Zillow.com, which has a free app, says people are using it to look up 2 million properties a month. Other popular apps include those offered by ZipRealty, Coldwell Banker, Better Homes and Gardens, and Corcoran Group.
The apps provide the same information that Web sites do, but they allow users access without having to lug a computer around.
They can make house hunting easier for both practitioners and buyers because the information is so immediately and widely available. “Within a minute, I had enough information to say it’s not worth driving” 25 miles to inspect the home, says Jon Mirmelli, a buyer who otherwise might have asked his real estate professional to meet him there.
Source: The Wall Street Journal, James R. Hagerty (03/09/2010)
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10 Home Features Buyers Want
Home designers and builders speaking at the recent International Builders Show in Las Vegas say that buyers are seeking cost-effective features and rejecting things that don’t have lasting value.
“It’s all about family togetherness – casual living, entertaining and flexible spaces,” says Carol Lavender, president of the Lavender Design Group in San Antonio.
Paul Cardis, CEO of Avid Ratings, which conducts an annual survey of buyer preferences, identified these must-haves in new homes:
1. Large kitchens with islands
2. Energy efficiency, including energy-efficient appliances, super insulation, and high-efficiency windows.
3. Home offices
4. Main-floor master suite
5. Outdoor living space
6. Ceiling fans
7. Soaking tub in the master suite and/or an oversize shower with a seating area
8. Stone and brick exteriors rather than stucco or vinyl
9. Community walking paths and playgrounds
10. Two-car garages, but three-car garages are even more desirable
Source: MarketWatch, Steve Kerch (01/30/2010)
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A Decade of Dramatic Developments
At the beginning of the 21st century, most home buyers had never viewed a home online; the three top home sale marketing methods were yard signs, newspaper ads, and open houses; and nearly nine out of 10 buyers financed their purchase with a fixed-rate, 30-year mortgage.
What a difference a decade makes.
“The real estate industry has seen tremendous change and evolution over the past decade,” said NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS® President Vicki Cox Golder, owner of Vicki L. Cox & Associates in Tucson, Ariz. “As the first, best source for real estate information, REALTORS® have not only anticipated and adapted to the evolving needs of their clients and customers, but also have influenced industry trends and innovations that will carry us into the future.”
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Buyers Should Prepare for Extra Expenses
Home buyers should be prepared for a bundle of extra costs beyond the mortgage payment.
“Some people walk away from closing with a nickel and a stick of gum, and that’s probably not going to be a good idea,” says Dale Robyn Siegel, president of Circle Mortgage Group, in Harrison, N.Y.
People whose only previous experience is renting often don’t realize how costly water, heating and air conditioning, taxes, and general maintenance can be, says Allan Glass, owner of ASG Real Estate Inc. in Los Angeles.
He estimates that buyers should have at least 1 percent of the purchase price of their home set aside for improvements and other expenses.
Source: MarketWatch, Amy Hoak (12/28/2009)
Front Gate Properties, We’re selling the BEST Real Estate in Aiken, SC.
A Decade of Dramatic Developments
At the beginning of the 21st century, most home buyers had never viewed a home online; the three top home sale marketing methods were yard signs, newspaper ads, and open houses; and nearly nine out of 10 buyers financed their purchase with a fixed-rate, 30-year mortgage. What a difference a decade makes. “The real estate [...]
Low Prices Draw Investors Back to Market
Real estate investors are moving back into the market, according to a new survey from Move.com.
According to the Move.com survey, 12.1 percent of home buyers today plan to buy a home as an investment property, compared to 5.6 percent in March 2009. The survey found that 15.8 percent of those interested in investment property were men and 8.1 percent were women and 52.6 percent of the investment buyers were between ages 35 to 49.
Of the 25.3 percent of buyers who are focusing on foreclosure properties, 42 percent regard the purchase they are considering an investment and don’t plan to live in the property themselves; 13.2 percent plan to rent out the property; 11.3 percent are going to fix up the property and resell it; and 17.4 percent plan to house a family member until the property can be sold profitably.
Of the 9.8 percent of buyers who say that they plan to purchase and live in a property in the next two years, 5.4 percent plan to purchase in the next 12 months; 48.3 percent are first-time buyers; 52.8 percent are women, and 44.1 percent are men.
Buyers of investment and personal property say they are motivated by these factors:
* Prices are as low as they will go, 23.6 percent
* Foreclosure prices are a bargain, 18.7 percent
* Great selection of homes for sale in their target community, 21.2 percent
* Concerned interest rates will rise, 14.2 percent
Source: Move.com (11/11/2009)
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Six Tips to Better Online Real Estate Photographs
With a majority of home buyers looking at listings online, you would be wise to use top-quality photos in your listings. Don’t make the mistake of taking pictures of rooms without enough light, failing to focus on the room itself, or snapping photos of rooms that have not been cleaned. Dennis Huckaby, an architectural photographer [...]
Can the Industry Restore Consumer Confidence? Industry Leaders Weigh In
RISMEDIA, July 17, 2009-A few years back a Harris Poll survey found that Realtors were named among the “Top 12 Most Trusted Professionals in America.” How do American home buyers and sellers feel today? In this month’s NAR Power Broker Roundtable, industry leaders weigh in on what real estate professionals need to focus on now to restore consumer confidence and help turn the struggling markets around.
Moderator: Virginia Cook, Special Liaison for Large Firm Relations, NAR
Participants: Jon Coile, President, Champion Realty, Chesapeake Bay, Maryland;
Helen Sossa, President, Prudential Palms Realty, Sarasota, Florida; and Vince Leisey, President, Prudential Ambassador Real Estate, Omaha, Nebraska.
Front Gate Properties, We’re selling the BEST Real Estate in Aiken, SC.
The Second Homes Market in 2008.
The purchase of a vacation home or a residential investment property is influenced by many factors that are often different than the motivations for the purchase of a primary residence. Especially
during a period of weak home sales and considerable uncertainty about the economy, it is important to gauge how the economic environment is affecting each segment.
To assess the state of the vacation and investment buyers market in 2008, NAR Research recently released its latest survey of home buyers specifically addressing the motivations of second-home buyers and characteristics of the vacation and investment property market.*
Primary Residence Buyers
In 2008, 70 percent of home buyers indicated that they purchased a home to use as their primary residence, an increase from 67 percent in 2007 and up significantly from 60 percent in 2005. Most often, buyers purchase a primary residence based on job relocation needs, formation of new households or changes in family circumstances necessitating a larger or smaller home or a home in a different location. These factors are present – perhaps to a larger or smaller degree – whether the economy is expanding or contracting. Consequently, sales of primary residences fell by 13.2 percent, somewhat less than the 16 percent decline in the combined sales of existing and new homes, overall.
Vacation Home Buyers
For the remaining 30 percent of home buyers, the motivation to purchase an investment property or vacation home is influenced by a variety of factors. In an environment of economic uncertainty, discretionary purchases such as vacation homes can be more easily delayed than the purchase of a primary residence as evident from the decline in the share of vacation home purchases to 9 percent in 2008 from 12 percent in 2007.
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Finding the Best Mortgage Deal Takes Work.
Home buyers who investigate mortgage options themselves as opposed to using a broker are likelier to get a better deal, according to a study for the Department of Housing and Urban Development published last year.
The study found that borrowers paid about $300 to $425 more in fees when they worked with a broker as opposed to working directly with a lender.
But comparison shopping can be tricky. Home buyers should try to devote a whole day to comparison shopping and include at least one credit union, a community bank, multiple national banks and an investment firms.
They should compare one type of loan at a time–for instance, a 30-year, fixed rate with no points. Their research should include a request for a guarantee that both the rate and the good-faith estimate will be exactly as initially presented. This standard could be difficult for a buyer to find, but it’s worth trying to find it, experts say.
Source: The New York Times, Ron Lieber (04/04/2009)
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First time home buyers, tax credit explained!
The bill provides for a $8,000 tax credit that would be available to first-time home buyers for the purchase of a principal residence on or after January 1, 2009 and before December 1, 2009.
Full details in a printable document,save and keep;
and printable First-Time Homebuyer Credit forms from the IRS.
Front Gate Properties, We are selling the BEST Real Estate in Aiken SC.
Finance options for Buyers
Fixed-Rate Loans The fixed-rate mortgage is the most popular mortgage program in use today. Fixed-rate loans offer the borrow a fixed interest rate for the life of the loan, typically 15 to 30 years. Borrowers have peace of mind knowing that their monthly payment will not change over time. Conventional fixed-rate mortgages have underwriting requirements [...]
