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Tag Archives: sellers

The Press Is On…

Dale Stinton, CEO, National Association of Rea...
Image by whiteafrican via Flickr

I have recieved emails this morning from the NAR and from my local association regarding the $8,000 First Time Home Buyer Tax Credit.  There is a full court press from the National Association of Realtors as well as the local associations to not only continue, but expand this program.  And there is NO doubt that the program has been effective, especially in the last few weeks.  Entry level home sales are up.

But, honestly… it needs to end as scheduled.

But it is helping my business…

I can hear some of my real estate agent friends saying that very thing.  That is the basis of why the NAR wants to continue the program…  But, we really need to examine the long term implications of what we are doing.  NOT paying attention to the long term implications of current actions are what made this problem to begin with…

Whether you think that the bubble was caused by the Community Reinvestment Act, Fannie and Freddie pushing for lower and lower barrier to home ownership, out of control credit markets or even just people buying more home than they could afford… thinking that they could always bail out for more money… it is obvious that nobody had their eyes on the future.

And there is an solid fact… the market is going to find its bottom, and then begin recovery. No matter how the government intervenes, the market HAS to find a REAL bottom… a place where people look at their situation, and see that homes look like a deal and they feel like it is time to jump.

Many think that the initial $8,000 FTHBTC short circuited the process and gave the market a bottom.  But, there are some economists that think the bottom was happening anyway… others think that prices may go down after the tax credit expires.

If prices may go down when the tax credit expires… we need to keep it!

Newsflash.  If we aren’t at the bottom, and prossibly even if we were, prices will likely go down when the tax credit expires.  Demand has been juiced in the last few weeks because of the immediacy of the tax credit expiring.  That has eaten a little of the supply and buoyed prices.  If the Tax Credit is extended, the immediacy goes away and demand will slacken again. If the tax credit goes away, the demand will still slacken.  The difference is that our children and grandchildren won’t be left with yet another bill from the government.

But, what happens when the demand weakens and prices start to drop?  Gee… I don’t know…  what happens when the store runs a sale and you can get that flat screen you’ve been looking at for the last 3 months?  If you have a little money saved up, you go buy it.  That is the market working.

Prices will drop, and people will buy properties that seem like good deals to them.  A few buyers in the market will see properties that they have been eying getting snapped up before they respond… and the market will start its recovery.

The Home Buyer Tax Credit is a stalling tactic…

That’s all.  It doesn’t create recovery, it spurs demand from the people that were on the fence… but we need a constant stream of people coming OVER the fence.  The ONLY way to do that is to make people comfortable with their jobs and with the family finances.  The economy needs to begin recovery for that.  Adding more deficit spending isn’t going to do that…  That actually hurts, because it places a restriction on credit availability… subject for a different blog post…

The bottom line is that housing has to recovery naturally.  Yes, real estate agents have been helped by the program, but it is our kids that will get the bill for that help.  We need to call a stop to this before it gets more out of hand.

originally posted to GwinnettGarageGuy, another of Lane’s blogs

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Over-Updated, Under-Updated…

I visited a home recently that had an interesting mix of over and under updated features.

Overall, the home was quite beautiful.  The finishes were well done and attractive.  Honestly, it showed better than the photos… and that is a good thing, the photos weren’t bad.

The yard was amazing.  The only issue I could find is that it would require too much care for MY lifestyle, but it was wonderful to walk around the paths and see the ponds, gardens and various areas.

But then there was the kitchen…  1990 called and they want their kitchen back…  It didn’t live up to the rest of the house.

What to do?

If you are selling your home, and you want to maximize the price and minimize the time on market, the Kitchen is the MOST important room to use to WOW your buyer.  The next most important room is the Master Bath.  Of course, the rest of the house can’t fail to live up to those rooms, but those are the stars…

Solid surface counters, black or stainless steel appliances, neat, clean and organized cabinets.  Those are the keys to the kitchen.

The Master Bath is a little trickier… But, to start, make sure that it is clean, no wall paper and devoid of builder grade fixtures…  Chrome is usually bad…

This home was both over and under updated…

The kitchen was a throwback… it killed the deal.  The rest of the house almost brought it back… and the buyers were almost ready to hire the seller to do the landscaping for the home they eventually buy.  As with the yard, which was tweaked to the hilt, the house was “fully developed”.  And as such, it lacked storage space and unfinished areas.

There will be a buyer for it…  And they will be getting a great deal if the house suits them.

If you are selling your house, put yourself in the shoes of the buyer…  We’ll be talking about this more over the next few weeks…

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Mold, not just for bread and cheese anymore…

Moldy nectarines that were in a refrigerator. ...
Image via Wikipedia

Ok, mold has NEVER just been for bread and cheese.  and while it can be useful stuff… when it is penicillin… the rest of the time, it is NOT something we want in our bodies.

So, Mold and Real Estate?

I’m seeing it more and more.  Actually, it started a few years ago, but as more foreclosures come on the market, mold gets to be a bigger issue.

In some homes it is a minor issue… a little musty smell that can be handled with a couple of filter changes in the HVAC and a good cleaning.  There are even some homes that don’t seem to have any mold smells present.

But in other homes it is a MAJOR problem.  We aren’t talking about a little smell, we are talking about unhealthy levels of toxins… and in some cases, they could cause serious respiratory distress, or worse.  In those cases, if the price is good enough, and the home is otherwise desirable, a mold remediation company could be brought in to kill the mold and bring the property back into a healthy state.

How can we know?

Get an inspection.  Of course, I ALWAYS recommend getting an inspection from an ASHI Certified Inspector for any home… even brand new.  But there are actually specialist Mold Inspection companies.  If you suspect that there could be mold in the property, getting it inspected is cheap insurance.  Mold remediation can be simple, or VERY involved and expensive.  Knowing during the Due Diligence Period is much better than unexpectedly finding out that your good deal is going to suck $50,000 out of your pocket before you can move in.

Some favorite mold hangouts…

  • Crawlspaces and basements
  • Under sinks in kitchens and bathrooms
  • Attics
  • The back of closets
  • Anywhere there isn’t airflow

Be aware.  Do a little research… even trolling Google, Yahoo or Bing for a few minutes can yield a lot of good knowledge.  of course, getting professional advice isn’t a bad idea either.  And remember, almost every property is going to have SOME mold.  But, if the humidity and moisture levels are in line with what they should be, there is good airflow and the space is kept clean, the mold can’t get a solid foothold and take over the house.

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Sellers… Are you ready to compete for Buyers?

Poker Table at the 2004 World Poker Tour 5 Dia...
Image via Wikipedia

That’s right…

Buyers are looking at homes, and they still have a choice.

Don’t get me wrong, there is competition among Buyers for some homes, but the competition goes both ways.

Buyers that don’t snap up the deal fast enough might find that they lose it to another Buyer.  And Sellers that don’t accept solid offers might find that they lose the Buyer to another Home (Seller).

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REEP and Cap & Trade

High desert in Eastern Oregon, United States
Image via Wikipedia

Changes might be coming… and they aren’t good.

Buried in the 1500 page bill is a very long section on the Retrofit for Energy and Environmental Performance program, REEP for short.

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