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Category Archives: sellers

Lawrenceville, GA Market Report, January 2011

Thursday, 24 February 2011 08:06
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Downtown Lawrenceville (as of June 2006)

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Market stats for Lawrenceville, January, 2011, indicate that there are 1686 properties on the market. Overall, there is about an 10.6 month supply of properties. In 2010, sales for January were only at 111, so 148 is a 33% increase, year over year. The Absorption Rate increasing from 9.9 months to 10.6 months is due to lower month over month sales, as well as the increase in listings.

For Lawrenceville Homes Under $200k, there are 1440 listings, with about a 10.5 month supply of homes. The inventory went up for January, as did the number of months of inventory. Sales were up dramatically from January 2010 (121 v 94). But, like other segments, sales were down significantly from last month (152 in December).

Between $200k and $400k, there are 214 listings for sale, and about 11.7 months of supply. It is one of the few market segments that actually recorded a better Absorption Rate for January than December (11.8). This, despite lower month over month sales (18, v 23 last month), only slightly higher year over year sales (17 for January, 2010) and a slight increase in listings from last month.

From $400k to $600k, there are 22 homes on the market. The absorption rate is around 22 months. However, with the level of sales in this segment, a couple of sales added or subtracted can have a HUGE impact. December had the first sale (1) since June, and only three in May and June (combined). Those were the only sales in the segment last year. However, there were two in January. That rocked the charts.

In the $600k to $800k arena, there are 6 listings, with about 9 months of supply. As with the next lower priced segment, a couple of sales makes a big difference and there were only two sales since November, 2009 (One each, April and July) until this month… there were two sales for January.

Between $800k and $1M, and Above $1M there are 4 homes listed (combined) and not enough sales data to give an accurate absorption rate. There has only been one sale in this range in the last 2 years (Aug, 2010), according to FMLS.

Lawrenceville is in Gwinnett County, GA, just outside of Atlanta. As of the 2000 Census, there were 22,937 people in Lawrenceville, but that is only including people in the city limits, and there has been a lot of growth since 2000 in Gwinnett County (2008 estimates from the Census Bureau peg population around 29,000). It was incorporated in 1821. Lawrenceville is home to Central Gwinnett High School, and also has students that the Mountain View and Archer clusters. It is also home to Gwinnett Technical College and Georgia Gwinnett College. Another recent addition to Lawrenceville is that it is home to the Gwinnett Braves, playing at the Gwinnett Stadium on GA20 between I-85 and GA316. Possibly the most famous resident of Lawrenceville was Oliver Hardy. As a small boy he lived in Lawrenceville with his parents for a short time. Lawrenceville was also home to Junior Samples. Some of its other residents included Jeff Francouer, Brian McCann and Jennifer Ferrin.

I have a page dedicated to Lawrenceville Market Data.

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Local? Hyper-Local? National? What IS the Market?

Thursday, 10 February 2011 08:20
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old photo of peachtree street, atlanta, GA

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I love watching the news… but when they talk about the real estate market, I cringe.  I like to hear the national numbers, but I also know that they are just a framework for a smaller discussion.  Yep… a smaller discussion.

It matters what the overall market is doing, but it’s not nearly as important as what is happening in your neighborhood.  It matters what is happening in Georgia, and the Atlanta Metro market, but not nearly as much as what is happening in your specific city.  Real estate prices and demand react to specific local issues much more than to national trends.  In fact, the national trend is just a compilation of local and hyper-local trends.  What the national market does is create a headwind or a tailwind.  That’s about it.

Here locally, we look at things like…

  • changing employment statistics
  • companies relocating into or out of the area
  • school performance and trends
  • tax burdens
  • quality of local governmental services
  • proximity to recreation and entertainment
  • ease of movement (commuting, shopping, etc)

As we see these things change, we see the market move in one direction or another.  A prime example at the moment is the City of Atlanta schools issue.  It is possible that the Atlanta City Schools could lose their accreditation.  If that were to happen, it would drive down the price of most of the homes served by those schools.  The price would be driven down because there would be a lack of demand on the part of buyers, combined with an increase in supply as sellers seek to move to districts without the same problems.

Gwinnett County has one of the lowest unemployment rates in Georgia, below the national average.  But there is also a tremendous overhead of foreclosure action.  We also have one of the highest performance school systems in the region… and reasonably low tax rates.

The market in Miami or Las Vegas doesn’t have an effect on what is happening in Georiga, much less what is going on with real estate in Gwinnett County.

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Cheap Tips #3… Making a First Impression in 6 Steps

Tuesday, 08 February 2011 22:50
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A Garden hose.

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We all know that there is no second chance to make a first impression.  That saying almost couldn’t be more overused.  But it is still true.  I drive up to homes for the first time with buyers on an almost daily basis.  I listen to them as we approach the house.  I listen to them as we park in front or in the driveway.  I listen to them as we walk up to the front door.  I listen to them as I access the lockbox and open the front door for the first time.

I hear a lot of the same comments…  It doesn’t cost an arm and a leg to freshen up the outside of the house, but you do have to be strategic.  These are the things to concentrate on.

  • Driveway.  Clean it up.  If you have a pressure washer, it might be a good way to spend a Saturday morning.  If there are oil stains, there are a few tricks you might try.  I have also had success with a paste made out of powder laundry detergent.  I wet the area, apply the paste, letting it sit for a while.  I use a stiff pushbroom to scrub it in… then rinse it off with a LOT of water.
  • The front door of a house is often decorated t...

    Image via Wikipedia

    Keep the Grass Cut. So easy, and it is something that about half of the foreclosures I see don’t have done enough.  Since it is something you should be doing anyway…. it really isn’t costing more.  And you never know when the right buyer is going to show up.  It is an easy way to seperate your home from the foreclosure up the street.

  • Pinestraw, Mulch and Edging.  A few bales of pinestraw or bags of mulch can really make the landscaping look fresh.  Keeping the lawn neatly trimmed, with nice edging goes a long way.  A few fresh flower plantings can push it over the top.
  • Front Door.  Make it the best it can be.  If it is painted, a fresh coat of paint is cheap and VERY important.  If it is stained wood, clean it up and consider refinishing it.  Buyers, and their agent will be standing outside of the front door for a couple of minutes while the agent opens the lockbox to get the key.  The buyers WILL be looking at the house while they stand there.
  • Clean up Outside.  There are places that we never think about… spiderwebs under the eaves, junk in the HVAC Outside Unit, junk in the gutters, keep the rear deck or patio swept.
  • Last thing…  Clean the outside of the Windows.  Windex makes a sprayer that screws onto your garden hose.  Clean out the spiderwebs and get rid of last winter’s grunge… it will brighten the inside, too.  Buyer love that.

It isn’t about creating perfection, just making sure that your home is seen in its best light.  Everything here can be done on a Saturday.  Of course, some of it is continuing maintenance.  But, if you can sell quickly, then it will be worth it.

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Cheap Tip #2… Tip-Top Shape in 5 Steps

Saturday, 05 February 2011 08:31
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DSCN2948

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You are NOT a bank.  Your home isn’t a foreclosure. Hopefully it isn’t on its way to a foreclosure.  You need to maximize the price your home fetches on the market, and minimize the time it is on the market.  The problem is those foreclosures that your house has to compete against.  Foreclosures often have price going for them. That is a VERY powerful tool.  It can overcome a lot of issues.  But, you have to find a way to overcome the prices that banks are asking for their properties.

You are not a bank… so you probably don’t have a pile of money to toss at your home to get it sold.  Even if you did, it likely wouldn’t really pay back for you.  On average, renovations pay back half or less of their cost. Throwing a few thousand dollars at your house, while trying to sell it, usually isn’t a great move.  But that doesn’t mean that you just pack it in and give up…  It means that you have to be smarter than the banks.

  • Paint.  There is NO better, cheaper way to REALLY affect the look of your house than with a coat of paint.  Especially on the interior.  The foreclosure up the street likely won’t have fresh paint and clean walls.  Use neutral colors that fit with the personality of the home.  If in doubt, talk with a Stager about specific colors.
  • DSCN2941

    Image by lane.bailey via Flickr

    Shampoo Carpets.  Unless they are in really bad shape, it should be worth it to get them cleaned.  A professional cleaning would be the way to go, but even renting a cleaner at the store and doing it yourself would be better than skipping this step.  Remember, the foreclosure up the street is likely to have stained or worn carpets.

  • Clean EVERYTHING.  And clean it well.  And keep it clean.  If you read Cheap Tips #1, you should already be in the process of getting rid of stuff and getting rid of clutter and extra stuff.  That means it is a great time to clean everything that is left.  Again, it isn’t likely that the foreclosure up the street will be terribly clean.  My wife has been known to hit the sanitizer pretty hard after a cheap foreclosure.
  • While you have the paintbrush in hand, you might consider painting cabinets.  If they are a nice wood, especially a lighter wood, I would probably advise against it.  But, if they are painted, dull or dated, it might be a great way to freshen up the whole kitchen or bathroom for less than the cost of a nice dinner.
  • Drawer Pulls, Knobs and Hardware. For under a couple hundred dollars it can be the crowning touch on a kitchen or bath… especially the kitchen.  Oil-rubbed bronze, satin nickel and pewter are the finishes that are currently popular with buyers.  Don’t go wild, but don’t cheese out, either.  And keep in mind that the foreclosure around the corner is probably missing some of the pulls and knobs, especially if they were nice.
    • DSCN2934

    Image by lane.bailey via Flick

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Cheap Tips #1… Getting Ready to Sell.

Tuesday, 01 February 2011 08:18
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Yard Sale Northern California May 2005. This i...
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For many sellers, there isn’t a bottomless pit of money to get the house ready to go on the market.  Simply put, between pressure to get to market, the need to pay sales fees, buyers needing concessions like closing costs and even the cost of moving expenses, there isn’t enough money to go in and make major renovations to the house before selling…

In fact, it is seldom worthwhile to make major changes to the home prior to going on the market.

But there are some inexpensive and relatively simple things that can increase the sales price of your home and decrease its time on the market.

Tip #1…  FREE!

master_bedroom_3
Image by lane.bailey via Flickr

Perhaps the VERY first thing a seller should do as they prepare to bring their home to market is get rid of stuff.  Not only can this be free, but it can actually bring IN cash.  Here are a few ideas:

  • Go through your stuff…  Look at the kids toys and clothes, see what really needs to make a move and what doesn’t.
    • Are the kids still playing with that toy?
    • Can they still fit in those clothes?
    • Are you still wearing all of the clothes in your closet?
    • Do you really want all of the furniture that is in your house?
  • Now that you have a big pile of stuff, figure out what needs to be in the house while it is on the market (major furniture like dining room tables, beds, sofas, etc. may need to stay.  Minor things, like extra dressers, tables or chairs may not need to be there).
  • Talk with a Stager…
    • I recommend doing this, but it isn’t my money.  The Stager might be able to help you figure out which items should stay and which should go… they also may suggest alternate arrangement for the remaining items.
    • A Stager is NOT the same as an Interior Designers.  The goals are different.  A Designer wants to make a space you like.  A Stager is trying to create a more appealing environment for Buyers.
  • great_room_3
    Image by lane.bailey via Flickr

    Get rid of stuff that needs to be gotten rid of…

    • Garage Sale (maybe it will cover the cost of staging… and even a nice dinner to relieve some stress from doing all of this work.
    • Donate some things to charity.  Often, when we have a garage sale, everything that is left ends up with a local charity.  If we don’t feel like having a garage sale, everything goes to a charity.  Our toys and clothes that have been outgrown usually find their way to charities like Family Shelters.
    • Give stuff away to family and friends that may be able to use the items.
    • Finally, throw away things that are at the end of their useful life. Don’t donate junk just to try to get a tax write-off.

We aren’t done yet…  We have removed things that we can’t use anymore, or that are worn out.  That doesn’t mean that the house is ready to show…  That just means that we are a big step closer.

Remember when I said that you should talk with a Stager? The Stager will likely have told you to “declutter” and “depersonalize”.  That means that there are probably some things that you intend to keep, but they don’t need to be on display in the house.

Pack It Up…

BRAC will cause hardships, expanded HAP could ...
Image by familymwr via Flickr

Whether you get a storage unit, move items to your new home or just pack things away in boxes to neatly store in the basement or garage, you NEED to clear out the house of excess stuff.

I hate saying it to you as much as you hate hearing it.  Seriously.  I don’t want to do it in MY house, and I don’t think you want to, either.  But it is important. The goal is to allow the buyer to be able to visualize THEIR FAMILY in the home… not your family.  That can be kind of tough with your “World’s Largest Collection of Plaid Fishing Lures” or “The Ultimate Precious Moments Collection”.  I regularly see buyers spending more time looking at the items in the home and wondering about the people that live there than looking at the home itself.

A final note…

I hate to even have to say this, but it HAS to be said.  Absolutely pack up things that can’t be replaced or that you don’t want folks to see. “Strangers” will be wandering your home.  They should be accompanied by a real estate agent, but one agent (or even two) can’t see everything happening at once.  Kids might bump something.  An item could turn up missing.  I’ve never had it happen to my sellers, and I’ve never gotten a call related to one of my buyers, but it CAN happen.  Be proactive.

Some of the things I recommend locking away or packing up include:

  • Jewelry
  • Cash  (I have walked into a house and seen several hundred dollars laying on a dresser, out in the open)
  • Prescription Drugs (and other things that might be related…)
  • Guns (an agent that I know had a kid walk out of a bedroom with a handgun that belonged to the owner…  EVERYBODY was a little freaked after that)
  • Collectibles
  • “Adult-themed” items…  I have stories about things that have been out in plain view ;^ )

Assuming you didn’t go out and get a storage unit, and you were able to score some boxes from a local liquor store or grocery store (they often will keep boxes assembled and give them to you if they know you are coming for them), you might actually have come through this step with a little more change in your pocket than when you started.

That is the ultimate “Cheap Tip”…

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