With memories of snow and cold fading, it’s time to remind home owners to take stock of important work to be done for themselves and potential buyers down the road. Keeping on track with seasonal maintenance will lower costs and raise value.Continue reading
I have a tip for condo sellers out there. As most of you may know, in the Commonwealth of Virginia (and in other states) the buyer must be allowed an opportunity to review the condo docs. From the time the condo docs are delivered, the buyer has 3 days to cancel the contract without cause, other than to say the condo docs contained information which caused the cancellation. The buyer doesn't have to explain why or what the problem was.Continue reading
A survey of Canadian home owners finds that smoking in the home can reduce the home’s value at resale by up to 29 percent. The potential loss on a home could be up to $107,000 on the average home price of $369,000 in Ontario, according to the study sponsored by Pfizer Canada, a pharmaceutical company.
Fifty-six percent of the real estate agents and brokers included in the survey said most buyers are turned off by a home where the home owners have smoked. Twenty-seven percent say that buyers are unwilling to even consider a home in which the home owners smoked.
“Many prospective buyers are really put off by homes that have been smoked in and they can be very challenging to sell," says David Visentin, a real estate professional and co-host of the W Network's "Love it or List it" program.
Source: “Smoking can reduce your home's value by 30%, survey finds,” CTV News (April 16, 2013)
5 Sure Signs That Its Time To Sell Your Home
When should I sell my home? This is not always the easiest question to answer. A lot of people don't plan on living in their first, second, or even third home forever, but still knowing when to let go and move on can be tricky. It can feel like ending a long term relationship, it's…
6 Budget Tips For Staging A House To Sell In Arlington
If you are trying to land a great deal for your property in Arlington, then you can't afford to overlook home staging. You'll want to hold a terrific open house- one that leaves the attendees entranced. And the good thing is, you can do that without having to break the bank.
Staging Hints For Sellers With A Place At Stratford On The Potomac In 22308
Are you planning to list your residence? A home that isn’t staged may sell if properly prices. On the other hand, a staged place of residence will sell faster and for more money. What steps can you take now to sell your split foyers-style house in a Split Foyer-style community?
The number of listings on the market increased 2.36 percent in March from the previous month — possibly an indication that sellers are becoming more willing to put their homes on the market as asking prices increase, according to housing data from realtor.com.
While the data shows a month-to-month inventory increase, inventories are still down 15.22 percent compared to last year.
The median age of the inventory continues to drop year-over-year by 12.35 percent, the amount of time homes are sitting on the market has fallen by 20 days since February, according to realtor.com. The median age of inventory of for-sale listings was 78 days in March.
“The next three months will be significant in determining the impact of the recovering housing market,” says Steve Berkowitz, chief executive officer of Move Inc.
Median list prices have increased year-over-year in a greater number of the 146 markets realtor.com tracks. California continues to show the greatest increases, as well as the largest drops in inventories as well. Denver, Detroit, and Seattle are also showing some of the biggest improvements in its housing markets too, according to realtor.com.
Source: “Sellers Becoming Confident in the Housing Market, Providing an Optimistic Outlook for the Housing Recovery,” RISMedia (April 10, 2013)
Home Prices In Arlington Continue To Hike
The housing market in Arlington County is getting more and more expensive as potential buyers continue to have fewer homes and condos to choose from.
Inlet Cove is alongside Route 1 This neighborhood of townhouses is near grocers and eateries Inlet Cove is close to Fort Belvoir, Alexandria, and Potomac Mills shops, in the city of Woodbridge Interior to these properties are multilevel Inlet Cove is serene
Pending home sales increased again in March, affirming that a surge of home sales is unfolding for the spring home buying season, according to the National Association of REALTORS®. The Pending Home Sales Index, a forward-looking indicator based on contracts signed in March, rose 5.3 percent to 102.9 from 97.7 in February, and is 21.1…
Some of the best housing deals are on high-end homes, many over $1 million. Some of them need TLC or they aren’t in the most-coveted locations. But there are plenty of desirable properties and lots of sellers who are getting impatient. Buyers with cash have the best opportunities. Buyers who need a mortgage should move…
The National Association of Realtors recently did a study about the characteristics of home buyers. Some of the findings might surprise you. Thirteen percent of buyers purchased a home with one or more parents and grandparents together with adult children. There were several reasons given for purchasing a multi-generational home. Cost savings; Children over the…
In a tight market, there will be offers. Be ready for all offers and don't be offended if someone tries to lowball you. You know what your condo is worth. Sometimes a lowball offer is just a buyer's way of asking you if you'll negotiate. Your reply should be, "Sure I'll negotiate, but I'm not stupid."
For this reason, decide in advance what price and terms you’ll find acceptable.Then, respond with a counter-offer to keep the ball moving.
For more information or to set up an appointment call Nesbitt Realty at (703)765-0300.
About 1.5 to 2 million homes belonging to seniors will come on the market by the end of this decade, predicts Arthur C. Nelson, professor of urban planning at the University of Utah. Nelson says he sees a momentum growing among baby boomers to put their homes up for sale and downsize.
“This is the decade of the shakeout, where the boomers will begin turning 65 and we'll begin to see how they influence the housing market,” Nelson told The Chicago Tribune. Nelson cites other research that shows when people hit their late 60s they tend to start selling off their homes at a much faster rate.
The baby boomer generation began reaching age 65 in 2011 and will continue until 2029.
“As they enter their late 60s, they'll begin to unload their homes in cumulatively higher rates,” Nelson says. “I'm calling it the Great Senior Sell-Off.”
But Nelson says he’s concerned there may not be enough buyers for the homes.
About 80 percent of seniors are home owners when they reach 65—the highest home ownership rate among any age group. But Nelson notes that about 4 percent of senior home owners move each year and about 60 percent of them then opt to move into rentals. As such, Nelson predicts a surge in construction of apartments for more affluent renters.
Source: “Get Ready for Great Senior Sell-Off,” The Chicago Tribune (March 29, 2013)
Home Prices In Arlington Continue To Hike
The housing market in Arlington County is getting more and more expensive as potential buyers continue to have fewer homes and condos to choose from.
Inlet Cove is alongside Route 1 This neighborhood of townhouses is near grocers and eateries Inlet Cove is close to Fort Belvoir, Alexandria, and Potomac Mills shops, in the city of Woodbridge Interior to these properties are multilevel Inlet Cove is serene
Pending home sales increased again in March, affirming that a surge of home sales is unfolding for the spring home buying season, according to the National Association of REALTORS®. The Pending Home Sales Index, a forward-looking indicator based on contracts signed in March, rose 5.3 percent to 102.9 from 97.7 in February, and is 21.1…
Some of the best housing deals are on high-end homes, many over $1 million. Some of them need TLC or they aren’t in the most-coveted locations. But there are plenty of desirable properties and lots of sellers who are getting impatient. Buyers with cash have the best opportunities. Buyers who need a mortgage should move…
The National Association of Realtors recently did a study about the characteristics of home buyers. Some of the findings might surprise you. Thirteen percent of buyers purchased a home with one or more parents and grandparents together with adult children. There were several reasons given for purchasing a multi-generational home. Cost savings; Children over the…
Some would-be move-up home sellers are eying home prices carefully. They’re waiting to see how much home prices appreciate more before they consider selling their home. But they may be missing their perfect opportunity, some housing experts say.
The best time to move may depend on when the home owner purchased their current residence, says Daren Blomquist, vice president of RealtyTrac. Blomquist says that home owners who purchased their home during the sluggish market the last two to three years may find moving up in 2013 may be their prime opportunity.
"Because they bought near the bottom, these home owners should have built up some good equity that can go toward the purchase of a new home, and waiting longer to build more equity likely won’t provide much advantage given that other homes that they might want to move up to will also be appreciating at roughly the same pace," Blomquist told HousingWire.
Home owners who wait much longer to sell their home may miss out.
"If you're selling one house just to move up to another, it does you no good to wait for prices to rise — the price of the move-up home will increase faster than the price of the place you're leaving behind," says Redfin CEO Glenn Kelman.
Plus, mortgage rates are expected to come off the 3.5 percent range and reach 4.4 percent in the next year, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association. That will increase the costs of financing your next home.
Source: “The Time to Sell Is a Waiting Game for Some,” HousingWire (March 21, 2013)
5 Sure Signs That Its Time To Sell Your Home
When should I sell my home? This is not always the easiest question to answer. A lot of people don't plan on living in their first, second, or even third home forever, but still knowing when to let go and move on can be tricky. It can feel like ending a long term relationship, it's…
6 Budget Tips For Staging A House To Sell In Arlington
If you are trying to land a great deal for your property in Arlington, then you can't afford to overlook home staging. You'll want to hold a terrific open house- one that leaves the attendees entranced. And the good thing is, you can do that without having to break the bank.
Staging Hints For Sellers With A Place At Stratford On The Potomac In 22308
Are you planning to list your residence? A home that isn’t staged may sell if properly prices. On the other hand, a staged place of residence will sell faster and for more money. What steps can you take now to sell your split foyers-style house in a Split Foyer-style community?
Here's some of our simplest and easiest staging tips:
Store toasters in the cabinet because it is almost impossible to keep them looking clean.
Take all the magnets off the refrigerator.
Stow knick-knacks, personal items and photographs
In a pricey home, get rid of any furniture that looks cheap. It interferes with the buyer’s ability to imagine themselves living there.
For most people, the prospect of selling their own home can be positively daunting. First of all, there are usually plenty of things to do just to get it ready for the market. Besides the traditional clean-up, paint-up, fix-up chores that invariably wind up costing more than you planned, there are always the overriding concerns about how much the market will bear and how much you will eventually wind up selling it for.
Will you get your asking price, or will you have to drop your price to make the deal? After all, your home is a major investment, no doubt a rather large one, so when it comes to selling it you want to get your highest possible return. Yet in spite of everyone's desire to get the top dollar for their property, most people are extremely unsure as to how to go about getting it.
Talk to a Nesbitt Realty agent and we'll give you a market analysis of your property's value as well as a report on trends in Northern Virginia real estate and real estate in your neighborhood. We're a local family-run business and we appreciate the opportunity to serve you.
For more information or to set up an appointment call Julie at (703)765-0300.
Sometimes a seller will ask to take possession of the property prior to closing. If the buyers need a place to live until their property closes, tell them to stay with a friend, relative, in a hotel, or send them on a vacation, but whatever you do, avoid allowing them to take possession of the property prior to closing.
Carlyle Towers Bedroom
The liability is too great and the risk of failure to close too severe when sellers let buyers move in early, but if such a situation is unavoidable, here are some of my key recommendations.
Insist that the buyers sign a separate lease agreement with a two- or three-month security deposit.
Use a lease agreement generated by an attorney or other real estate professional.
Make sure that there is appropriate insurance in place. Standard homeowners insurance doesn’t cover the situation.
Document the condition of the property with extensive photos and videos.
For more information or to set up an appointment call Stuart at (703)765-0300.
5 Sure Signs That Its Time To Sell Your Home
When should I sell my home? This is not always the easiest question to answer. A lot of people don't plan on living in their first, second, or even third home forever, but still knowing when to let go and move on can be tricky. It can feel like ending a long term relationship, it's…
6 Budget Tips For Staging A House To Sell In Arlington
If you are trying to land a great deal for your property in Arlington, then you can't afford to overlook home staging. You'll want to hold a terrific open house- one that leaves the attendees entranced. And the good thing is, you can do that without having to break the bank.
Staging Hints For Sellers With A Place At Stratford On The Potomac In 22308
Are you planning to list your residence? A home that isn’t staged may sell if properly prices. On the other hand, a staged place of residence will sell faster and for more money. What steps can you take now to sell your split foyers-style house in a Split Foyer-style community?
With inventories at 13-year lows, real estate professionals are getting creative in trying to convince home owners to sell.
Julie sold another!
“There’s such little inventory that my joke is it’s like the last shrimp at the buffet at a cocktail party and everyone’s jumping on it to try and get to it,” Boston-area real estate pro Ken Snyder told American Public Media.
Snyder has been posting stories on his social networks about how he’s getting six or seven offers on properties from the high buyer demand, but then adds “Sellers, hello? Where are you?!” His messaging is working. Owners who had been renting a loft saw his Facebook post and decided to sell after all.
To try to get more listings, some real estate professionals are also holding first-time home-seller seminars. And real estate professional Gary Rogers says he’s been writing personal letters to sellers.
But real estate professionals say that many owners fear selling because they’re scared that once their home is sold they won’t then have any place to move to due to the low inventories.
Source: “Realtors Ask: ‘What can I do to get you OUT of that House?” American Public Media (March 20, 2013)
5 Sure Signs That Its Time To Sell Your Home
When should I sell my home? This is not always the easiest question to answer. A lot of people don't plan on living in their first, second, or even third home forever, but still knowing when to let go and move on can be tricky. It can feel like ending a long term relationship, it's…
6 Budget Tips For Staging A House To Sell In Arlington
If you are trying to land a great deal for your property in Arlington, then you can't afford to overlook home staging. You'll want to hold a terrific open house- one that leaves the attendees entranced. And the good thing is, you can do that without having to break the bank.
Staging Hints For Sellers With A Place At Stratford On The Potomac In 22308
Are you planning to list your residence? A home that isn’t staged may sell if properly prices. On the other hand, a staged place of residence will sell faster and for more money. What steps can you take now to sell your split foyers-style house in a Split Foyer-style community?
Fifty-six percent of the real estate agents and brokers included in the survey said most buyers are turned off by a home where the home owners have smoked. Twenty-seven percent say that buyers are unwilling to even consider a home in which the home owners smoked.
“Many prospective buyers are really put off by homes that have been smoked in and they can be very challenging to sell," says David Visentin, a real estate professional and co-host of the W Network's "Love it or List it" program.
Source: “Smoking can reduce your home's value by 30%, survey finds,” CTV News (April 16, 2013)
