One of my favorite memories of home showing was a house with the giant mounted tyrannosaurus rex head. It was freakily realistic with beady eyes that watched you wherever you went in the room. We also found a giant iguana (this was real!!!) in the back bedroom that startled the living bejeezus out of my client and me...one of us actually screamed! Thereafter, we referred to that house as the reptile room. Needless to say, my client also did not buy it!
While the above case is a bit extreme it does point out that when people are getting ready to sell a home, the hardest part has to be decluttering and depersonalizing their home!
When I help a client stage their home for sale, the first thing we do is walk through each room and talk about what's in each space and the image it creates in a buyer's mind. For most homes, we're looking for space -- after all this is America where bigger is better! Make your house look half-full (as opposed to half-empty)! The more organized and neutral you can bethe better. Your goal is to make people picture themselves living in your house and have that be a good thing.
In the kitchen, clear the counters -- move off the food processor, the fax machine (my house!) and gadget holders, etc. Clean out cabinets and put away the things you know you really won't use in the next month or so in a box. Eat down the pantry!
Closets -- and yes people do go in your closets. They aren't looking for skeletons, just trying to make sure their stuff will fit in there. This is a great time to get rid of all those clothes you never wear and donate them to a worthy cause. Closets should only be half-full with lots of space between what's in there.
Family Room/Den/Living Room -- Can people move through these rooms, or does your furniture block their access ways? Sometimes our furniture it too big for the room -- you can remedy this by taking out one piece of a sectional or moving an extra chair or coffee table out of the way. Minimize, minimize. Less is more and worth the sacrifice of going without if it makes your home sell faster! Remember to depersonalize these areas. The less a buyer knows about you from your stuff--the easier it is for them to picture themselves instead of you in the house.
Okay, and how about just plain cleaning. Nothing helps a house sell faster in my opinion than being well-maintained and sparklingly clean! One of my favorite websites for the housekeeping challenge (of which I definitely include myself!) is http://www.flylady.net/ The Flylady has fantastic advice about managing all the things that clutter our homes and our lives.
Don't forget to share if you have any great tips, horror or success stories of getting your own house ready to show!
Tuesday, December 19, 2006
Saturday, December 2, 2006
A good time to buy?
I found this article and I'm not really sure who to credit for the source, so my apologies to its author. (Please feel free to share if you do know.) I thought it was worth posting here since I've had so many questions lately about whether or not now is a good time to take the plunge into buying a new home. I think it's especially relevant for the new home buyer.
Home seekers' big dilemma: buy now or wait?
During the last couple of years, new listings sold in a matter of weeks in many areas. In Louisville home prices appreciated at a steady 3 % but nationally prices escalated at a record pace. Financing a home purchase was rarely a problem -- money was easy and interest rates were low. Few buyers wanted to miss the opportunity to make fast money in a market that seemed to defy gravity.
What a difference a year makes. Now, the appreciation rate is running at a snail's pace, and declining in some areas. According to the National Association of Realtors, the median home price nationally declined a little over 1 percent in August from a year ago. This trend is expected to continue through the end of 2006. Consequently, many buyers who were anxious to buy last year are standing on the sidelines, waiting to see what happens next. Remarkably, there are still areas where the demand for new listings still exceeds the supply. In the desirable Claremont area of Berkeley, Calif., for example, there were recently nine offers on a listing competitively priced at $1.25 million. Another listing in neighboring Rockridge listed for $1.45 million sold with multiple offers for $1.5 million.Regardless of whether you live in an area where there's plenty for sale or if you are still battling other buyers for too few listings, it's time to return to the basics when considering a home purchase.HOUSE HUNTING TIP: Until recently, home buyers bought not with an eye to a quick profit but in order to gain control over the place where they lived. As a homeowner, you don't need the landlord's permission to make modifications to the property to suit your needs. You aren't at the mercy of a landlord who might raise the rent or ask you to move. Now there's no guarantee that you'll find a place to rent in a neighborhood where you'd like to put down roots. Also, rents are rising after years of lackluster performance.Additionally, homeowners tend to take a serious interest in preserving and enhancing the quality of the neighborhoods in which they live. Renters tend to be transient. The tax benefits of home ownership shouldn't be overlooked. While restrictions do apply, homeowners can claim a deduction for mortgage interest and property taxes from their federal income tax returns. This effectively lowers the cost of home ownership for taxpayers who itemize deductions.There are several other good reasons why this could be a good time to buy. One is that there is, in general, less competition from other buyers than there was a year ago. It's now possible to negotiate with sellers if the list price seems out of line. Another factor in your favor is that interest rates have recently eased and are still at historically low levels. Of course, a risk of buying now is that home prices could decline from their current level. David Lereah, NAR's chief economist, recently speculated that we will "probably see prices dip temporarily below year-ago levels as the market works through a build up in housing inventory."So, why not wait to buy until home prices start climbing again? That's certainly an option, if you can find a suitable rental. However, it's impossible to time the market. We'll know that prices have bottomed out for the cycle only after they have resumed their ascent.Buying for the short term is risky in the current market. But, this could be a good time to buy for buyers who plan to stay put for the long term, particularly if what they're looking for is not readily available.
Home seekers' big dilemma: buy now or wait?
During the last couple of years, new listings sold in a matter of weeks in many areas. In Louisville home prices appreciated at a steady 3 % but nationally prices escalated at a record pace. Financing a home purchase was rarely a problem -- money was easy and interest rates were low. Few buyers wanted to miss the opportunity to make fast money in a market that seemed to defy gravity.
What a difference a year makes. Now, the appreciation rate is running at a snail's pace, and declining in some areas. According to the National Association of Realtors, the median home price nationally declined a little over 1 percent in August from a year ago. This trend is expected to continue through the end of 2006. Consequently, many buyers who were anxious to buy last year are standing on the sidelines, waiting to see what happens next. Remarkably, there are still areas where the demand for new listings still exceeds the supply. In the desirable Claremont area of Berkeley, Calif., for example, there were recently nine offers on a listing competitively priced at $1.25 million. Another listing in neighboring Rockridge listed for $1.45 million sold with multiple offers for $1.5 million.Regardless of whether you live in an area where there's plenty for sale or if you are still battling other buyers for too few listings, it's time to return to the basics when considering a home purchase.HOUSE HUNTING TIP: Until recently, home buyers bought not with an eye to a quick profit but in order to gain control over the place where they lived. As a homeowner, you don't need the landlord's permission to make modifications to the property to suit your needs. You aren't at the mercy of a landlord who might raise the rent or ask you to move. Now there's no guarantee that you'll find a place to rent in a neighborhood where you'd like to put down roots. Also, rents are rising after years of lackluster performance.Additionally, homeowners tend to take a serious interest in preserving and enhancing the quality of the neighborhoods in which they live. Renters tend to be transient. The tax benefits of home ownership shouldn't be overlooked. While restrictions do apply, homeowners can claim a deduction for mortgage interest and property taxes from their federal income tax returns. This effectively lowers the cost of home ownership for taxpayers who itemize deductions.There are several other good reasons why this could be a good time to buy. One is that there is, in general, less competition from other buyers than there was a year ago. It's now possible to negotiate with sellers if the list price seems out of line. Another factor in your favor is that interest rates have recently eased and are still at historically low levels. Of course, a risk of buying now is that home prices could decline from their current level. David Lereah, NAR's chief economist, recently speculated that we will "probably see prices dip temporarily below year-ago levels as the market works through a build up in housing inventory."So, why not wait to buy until home prices start climbing again? That's certainly an option, if you can find a suitable rental. However, it's impossible to time the market. We'll know that prices have bottomed out for the cycle only after they have resumed their ascent.Buying for the short term is risky in the current market. But, this could be a good time to buy for buyers who plan to stay put for the long term, particularly if what they're looking for is not readily available.
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