Your Agent Can Find the Perfect Property!

We worked with a buyer who identified the street she wanted to live on. We represented her as a Buyer Broker, so we sent a letter to all the owners letting them know we had a buyer interested in a home on their street -- were they thinking of moving?

We got a response, she liked the house very much and wanted to buy it. After some consideration, the sellers decided the timing was not right. If she could wait until the end of the summer, they would be happy to sell to her.

I check the multiple listing service several times a day, looking for new listings for our buyers. As I was looking for her, up came a listing on that street! We had seen it before but it was already under deposit, came back on the market for a day and was back under deposit again. She wasn't focused on that street at the time. Now she wanted that street and the house was back on the market! This was a foreclosure, so we were concerned there were problems with it -- maybe there was mold... or structural issues -  but I called her and we ran down to see it within the hour.

It was perfect -- great condition, better location than the other one. The listing agent said there were unresolved title issues and the previous buyers got tired of waiting for the resolution. We went right to my office and wrote up an offer. It was accepted by the bank that day!

We had to wait for title issues to be resolved. We negotiated a couple of inspection issues. But it only took about eight weeks to close.

Your Buyer Broker has a responsibility to be looking out for your best interests and that means looking for the right property. When you hire a REALTOR, he or she will comb the for sale by owners as well as the MLS for homes that fit your criteria. Because I knew where she wanted to live, I was focused on that section of the town and specifically that street. (Though we never thought another house would come on the market!) We jumped on it and she now owns the house of her dreams!

Persistence and paying attention to the market yields happy results!

Carpet in the Basement = Offers

I have a house for sale that had old carpet in the basement. It was stained from some pet and food damage (think spilled beer) but basically was acceptable for a basement. Trouble was, buyers said the basement smelled. They said it smelled like a litter box (there was one way in the corner behind a door) but the litter was always cleaned.

Then there was a back up in gutters and some water seeped in through a corner of the  basement, travelling to the carpet. Now the carpet was dirty and wet. And according to a lot of buyers, smellier.

Solution? The sellers went to Home Depot and bought low grade but nice carpet for the basement. They put it on an 18 month no interest charge knowing they would pay it off when the house sold. All of a sudden, we had about five showings a week and an offer. We are expecting a  competing offer.

And guess what, no smell. It was the carpet that was giving off a litter smell. Once it was changed, the smell was gone and the basement presented itself as great living space. This is especially important in a small house where families might outgrow the space on the main floor quickly.

It just shows that an investment of $1,000 - if it is spent correctly - can do the trick and get results!

Decorate the Deck

It's easy to create the allusion of an outside room with small changes that are not expensive.

Start with an all season table and four chairs. Place them on top of a weather resistent rug. You can find one at Bed Bath and Beyond. If the deck is low and has no side railings, put four large pots of flowers on the four corners of the deck as long as you don't obstruct passage ways. With railings, get window boxes that hang on the railings. You can get them at Gardener Supply. Over plant the flower boxes and pots so they are colorful immediately. If your deck is large, just keep adding pots of plants, grouping them together.

On an adjacent wall, place an arrangement of weatherproof art such as wrought iron or resin designs that look like wrough iron. Try Home Goods.

If you want lights on the deck, try inexpensive solar lights that normally stick in the ground. Instead, fill children's pails with sand and put the lights in the sand. You can put them anywhere around the deck to create lit activity areas. They cost about $2 each and you can get them at Home Depot and Lowe's.

This idea is especially good when you have a small condo and need to give buyers the feeling of having more space.

Multiple Offers

If a property is unique, in great condition, is in the perfect location and the right price, it will get many showings as soon as it hits the market. Buyers are bored with stale listings and are salivating for the next new home, hoping it's the perfect one for them.

If more than one buyer finds the house perfect, and they both (or more than two parties) put in offers, they find themselves in a multiple offer situation. What should you do if you are facing this?

Every situation is slightly different. Rely on your REALTOR to guide you. Generally speaking, you will need to "pull out the stops" as best you can, keeping to your comfort level. Put in as few contingencies as you feel comfortable -- most sellers expect a property inspection and I do not recommend removing that contingency. Unless you are paying cash, you have to have a finance contingency. But how can you streamline your offer? Again, rely on the guidance of your agent. They have been in this situation before.

The most important aspect of a multiple offer is price, although terms and conditions of the sale are important also. The seller wants to see what his bottom line will be. They will also check to see if you have to sell a home in order to buy. A seller might take a lower offer if the buyer does not have to sell first. You never know.

Sometimes in a multiple offer situation the one that gets the contract will offer over the asking price -- yes, even in a buyers' market, this is happening. If you want the home, don't let a couple of thousand dollars cause you to lose the house of your dreams!

Recently we were representing buyers in a multiple offer. They knew there were three offers but they would not give the asking price because they were sure none of the offers would be full price. I told them I was 99.9% sure there would be one full price and that possibly someone would go over the price. They lost the contract. The house came back on the market following a faulty inspection that couldn't be resolved. Again, a multiple offer situation and again, I could not talk them into going full price. They lost it again. Lesson learned.

Your REALTOR has been through multiple offers and can guide you. It is always your choice what you offer, but be sure you feel 100% content with your offer -- whether you give full asking price, more or less, this is your decision -- just make it an informed one.

Small Changes Make a Difference

I showed a house recently that had a great open floor plan. The kitchen was huge and opened into a family room. There was plenty of space to socialize, lots of storage areas and a large lot. Many of the floors were hardwood. The carpet was neutral and in good shape.

But I feel there are a few easy changes that the sellers could make that would help them sell their house faster and for more money. First, neutralize the wall colors with earth colors. There was sponge painting and ragged walls in three rooms. While they were done well, ragged walls are an individual taste and not appreciated by all buyers. It would be better to paint over them or at least better not to have so many ragged walls.

Second, the kitchen had two appliances that were brushed nickel and two that were not. It is better to have matching appliances. The brushed nickel choice is great, but it is better to buy all of the appliances with the same surfaces.

Lastly, the knobs on the kitchen cabinets needed simple modernizing. It would be inexpensive to unscrew the porcelain knobs and replace with brushed nickel.

It's amazing what simple changes can be made and can make a difference.
Cost:
Paint, about $50
Knobs for the kitchen, approximately $2/each, so less than $100
New stove and microwave: Depends on the brand and the bells and whistles, and these items would be the biggest investment, probably about $800 for both.

So, all these changes would be less than $1,000. If you can't afford them, consider buying at Lowe's or Home Depot and charge with their program that offers 12 to 18 months to repay. Then when your house closes, pay off the bill. I really feel this investment would help you get a higher sales price for your house and pay back your investment.

Preapproval Letters

In order to be taken seriously by a seller, buyers need preapproval letters to show their ability to buy a house. The process is easy and painless.

I suggest starting with the banking institution that you currently do business with. They can easily access all your financial information.Make an appointment to sit down with a loan officer but find out ahead of time what information they will want you to bring. Often they want a recent pay check and your most recent tax return in addition to three months of bank statements. You will need to give permission for the loan officer to run credit, so they will need your social security number.

There are many great lenders in the area. We are happy to give you names of companies we have worked with. You also might want to ask a friend who recently purchased a home and liked working with his or her mortgage company. Referrals are a great way to find a good loan officer.

Some lenders will do a preapproval over the phone, taking your information about your salary verbally. They still will need to run a credit check and will verify your salary and banking information later.

The best thing for you to do is to get preapproved before you start looking for new homes. That way you know what you can afford, are comfortable with the monthly payment and you won't look for houses that are out of your price range. Doing that will be disappointing to you and a waste of many people's time, including your own.

So, get preapproved, call us and we'll sit down with you and find out what you are looking for. We'll ask you for your "wish list" and "must haves" and then we'll go out to look at houses or condos. Getting preapproved is a good example of doing "first things first."

Looking at Future Needs When Buying

We've been showing houses to many different age groups and noticing that buyers are doing a good job looking at their future needs before choosing a house. The house might be perfect for where they are in their lives now, but they have to reject the house because it doesn't offer what they know they will need in the future.

Take the case of a recent buyer in her mid-fifties. She wants her next purchase to be her last home. While she is very able bodied now and kayaks, walks, and does yoga, she is looking to a time when as she ages, she might not be able to climb stairs. She is also thinking that her mother may need to live with her some day and wants to accommodate her if that day comes. Thinking further into the future, if one of them ever needs to be in a wheelchair, the doors have to be wide enough for a wheelchair to fit through or the doors will need to be retro-fitted.

The house therefore must be on one level. The bathroom should have a low threshold shower, if possible. And if the door is not wide enough, there has to be a way to widen it.

We found the exact house for her although it took looking at about 20 first -- because it's not just about future, but it's about present needs too. It's a balance. And she also had location requirements. The price obviously has to work also! Oh, and she did not want to have to put in a ton of money to fix it up, so condition had to be satisfactory.

I surfed the MLS for listings one day and the perfect house came on while I was on the computer. Just popped right up! I called her, we saw it within the hour, wrote the offer and got it accepted!

One level, wide doors and hallways, great condition, right price, and the perfect location!