May 27, 2016 | Home Seller Tips
Many people think that staging a home effectively is a matter of money, but there are easy ways to dress it up and make it shine that don’t come with a high cost. If you’re looking for some economical tips that will go a long way in making a positive impression, here are a few ways to get your home prepared.
Pack Away The Personal
There are certain unique features in any house that can have a positive impact on potential homebuyers, but personal items will actually make it harder for guests to imagine themselves in your home. For a cost-free save, ensure that you pack away personal mementos and pictures so that guests aren’t distracted by the details of your life.
Keep It Clutter Free
An untidy home will have an instantly negative impact on the perception of your visitors, so you may want to enlist the help of your entire family to clean it from top to bottom. Instead of keeping papers and magazines that have been sitting around for years, sift through any coffee table piles and bedroom corners and discard all the things that will catch the eye too easily.
Take Out The Toolbox
If you’ve been postponing a few minor fix-ups like a damaged shelf or a loose door, now is the time to head to the hardware store and get these jobs done. Potential homebuyers will be looking at every aspect of your home, and maintenance will figure heavily into how interested they are, so an inability to deal with the small details can cue them to a home they shouldn’t invest in.
Do A Deep Clean
Cleaning the house, especially a sizeable one, can be the bane of many a homeowner but there’s no other time that cleaning properly is more important than when you’re staging it. While a dirty, dusty house may mean your guests won’t pay attention to your home’s best features, a newly clean home will provide visitors with a blank canvas from which to draw their conclusions.
From major overhauls to unique decorations that draw the eye, there are many great ways to stage a home, but making the small fixes and doing a deep clean are easy to do and don’t require a lot of cash. If you’re preparing to put your home on the market, you may want to contact one of our local real estate professionals for more information.
May 26, 2016 | Home Buyer Tips
When you’ve found the perfect home and you’re preparing for all of the final details to be sorted, there are a few important things that should not be forgotten about. As a home inspection is among the last steps in the transfer of the home, here’s why it’s very important to find the right person for the job.
Assessing All The Elements
Purchasing a home is among the most important and expensive decisions you will ever make, and for this reason it’s necessary to hire a professional that has experience with how a home should function. Because there are so many things that make a house run smoothly, the right inspector will be able to assess any major issues for you so that you’re not forced to pay a high price for fix-ups when the deal is already set in stone.
What The Inspector Will Look For
There are a number of things a home inspector will look at that encompass all of the main functioning systems of a house, and this should determine if your home will be a good investment for you. There will be items that need regular or routine maintenance that will be identified, but the most important issues like a cracking home foundation or mold can be a major expense. From start to finish, a home inspector will be able to give you a written report of any minor and major issues that will help you determine the value of your investment.
How To Find The Ideal Inspector
One of the most important factors when it comes to the right inspector is experience, and no piece of paper can make up for this. While your inspector should certainly have professional certification from organizations like the National Association of Home Inspectors (NAHI) or the International Conference of Building Officials (ICBO), they should have a number of years under their belt and have seen enough to know what to look for.
There are a lot of things to think about when buying a home, but finding the right inspector can go a long way in positively impacting your purchase. If you’re currently on the market for a home and are considering your options, contact your trusted real estate professional for more information.
May 25, 2016 | Home Seller Tips
Many people think that staging a home effectively is a matter of money, but there are easy ways to dress it up and make it shine that don’t come with a high cost. If you’re looking for some economical tips that will go a long way in making a positive impression, here are a few ways to get your home prepared.
Pack Away The Personal
There are certain unique features in any house that can have a positive impact on potential homebuyers, but personal items will actually make it harder for guests to imagine themselves in your home. For a cost-free save, ensure that you pack away personal mementos and pictures so that guests aren’t distracted by the details of your life.
Keep It Clutter Free
An untidy home will have an instantly negative impact on the perception of your visitors, so you may want to enlist the help of your entire family to clean it from top to bottom. Instead of keeping papers and magazines that have been sitting around for years, sift through any coffee table piles and bedroom corners and discard all the things that will catch the eye too easily.
Take Out The Toolbox
If you’ve been postponing a few minor fix-ups like a damaged shelf or a loose door, now is the time to head to the hardware store and get these jobs done. Potential homebuyers will be looking at every aspect of your home, and maintenance will figure heavily into how interested they are, so an inability to deal with the small details can cue them to a home they shouldn’t invest in.
Do A Deep Clean
Cleaning the house, especially a sizeable one, can be the bane of many a homeowner but there’s no other time that cleaning properly is more important than when you’re staging it. While a dirty, dusty house may mean your guests won’t pay attention to your home’s best features, a newly clean home will provide visitors with a blank canvas from which to draw their conclusions.
From major overhauls to unique decorations that draw the eye, there are many great ways to stage a home, but making the small fixes and doing a deep clean are easy to do and don’t require a lot of cash. If you’re preparing to put your home on the market, you may want to contact one of our local real estate professionals for more information.
May 24, 2016 | Home Seller Tips
The spring is the most popular time of the year when it comes to real estate, and it’s a good time for a few fix ups if you’re putting your home on the market. While you may have a lot of different things to do before you’re ready for your first showing, here are the four things to keep at the top of the list.
Complete The Forgotten-About Fixes
If you’ve lived in your home for a while, it’s entirely possible that there’s a damaged baseboard or broken door latch that you haven’t gotten around to fixing; however, these are the things that a potential buyer will quickly notice. Instead of leaving it to chance, make a note of the little fixes and complete them before you set a date for a showing.
Do A Spring Clean
Packing up all of your stuff for a big move can be quite a gargantuan task, but taking advantage of spring-cleaning to clear out some old stuff will make the selling process a lot smoother. Not only will this force you to look at your home with new eyes, it means there will be little less to organize and de-clutter when it comes to staging time.
Break Out The Paint Cans
It’s important to stay away from colors that are too bold, but taking your brush to the paint can bring a lot to what viewers will take away from your home. Instead of a dull coat or chip marks, potential homebuyers will see your home in its best light. As painting your home can be quite a sizeable task, make sure you take this on well in advance of putting your home up for sale.
Check Out The Exterior
There’s often enough cleaning to do inside the home that the exterior is forgotten about, but this is the first thing a new visitor to your property will see. Instead of sticking to the inside, make sure that your lawn is mowed, any flowers beds are well groomed, and make sure that nothing appears out of place or disheveled.
There’s a lot to be done before putting your home on the market, but by following these tips you’ll be well on your way to a positive home staging. If you’re almost ready to sell and are weighing your options, contact your trusted real estate professional for more information.
May 23, 2016 | Mortgage Rates
Last week’s economic news included the NAHB Housing Market Index, reports on housing starts, building reports and existing home sales. Minutes of the Federal Reserve’s last FOMC meeting were also released.
Homebuilder Confidence Unchanged, Housing Starts and Building Permits Increase
The National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) reported that builder confidence held steady with a reading of 58 in May. Analysts projected a reading of 58 and April’s reading was also 58. Builder confidence in market conditions could be slowing due to concerns over acquiring skilled labor and a shortage of developed lots. Demand for homes remains high, but a slim inventory of available properties and builder emphasis on higher-priced homes contributed to sidelining moderate income and first-time buyers.
Commerce Department reports for April Housing Starts and Building Permits issued suggest that tight housing inventories may receive some relief. April housing starts rose from a revised March reading of 1.099 million to 1.170 million starts. Housing starts increased by 6.60 percent in April. Housing starts have slowed as compared to the year-over-year period from April 2015 to 2016; housing starts increased by 10 percent for the same year-over-year period in 2015. While any increase in home construction is welcome, some analysts said that they did not expect a huge increase in home construction in coming months.
Construction of multifamily housing units rose by 10.70 percent, while single-family home construction increased by 3.30 percent. Rising rents and millennials delaying home purchases were seen as fueling multifamily home construction. As homes become less affordable, would-be buyers are continuing to rent, which places higher demand on rental units.
Pre-owned Home Sales Rise in April
Sales of previously owned homes rose by 1.70 percent in April to a seasonally-adjusted annual rate of 5.45 million sales. Sales increased by 12.10 percent in the Midwest, where homes are most affordable, and fell by 1.70 percent in the West, where homes are most costly. This development suggests that rapidly rising home prices have or will soon reach maximum levels in high-cost areas. Home prices in many areas rose rapidly in preceding months as short inventory and high demand created bidding wars and keen competition for available homes. A lack of affordable single family homes has caused some buyers to buy condos while others have put buying on hold.
Mortgage Rates Rise, New Jobless Claims Fall
Mortgage rates rose for 30-year fixed rate mortgages rose by one basis point to 3.58 percent; the average rate for a 15-year fixed rate mortgage was unchanged at 2.82 percent and the average rate for a 5/1 adjustable rate mortgage rose by two basis points to 2.80 percent. Discount points were 0.60, 0.50 and 0.50 percent respectively. Analysts are watching the Fed closely for any indication that it will raise the target federal funds rate in June, although concerns over the possibility of Great Britain leaving the European Union could cause the Fed to hold off on raising the rate. If the Fed raises the target federal funds rate, loan rates for credit cards and mortgages would also increase.
New jobless claims fell last week to 278,000 new claims against expectations of 279,000 new claims and the prior week’s reading of 294,000 new claims. Analysts said that a telecommunications strike caused the prior week’s raise in claims as striking workers who are replaced during a strike are eligible for jobless benefits.
What’s Ahead
This week’s scheduled economic releases include new and pending home sales along with weekly reports on mortgage rates and new jobless claims.
