Downtown, Central and East Austin Real Estate

Upper East Side Homes: Five Pitfalls to Avoid When Selling Your University Hills Home

Tue, 02 Sep 2008 09:46:52 -0500

There are particular pitfalls to avoid when selling a home in University Hills, Austin, TX. Here are the top five things to avoid if you want to sell your home for the greatest return.

Pitfall 1: Leaving the Leaves We are fortunate to have so many mature trees in University Hills - but that often means that piles of leaves can quickly mound up in the yards. The size of the lots is large for East Austin, and buyers want to see them as an asset, not something that requires lots of work. Keeping your yard free of leaves helps buyers see the space. De-leaf before the photographer comes, and keep the leaves away while the home is on the market.

Pitfall 2: Leaving Rover on Guard In a recent National Association of Realtors survey, barking dogs in a home are the number one reason why a buyer won't even go in the door. If the buyers can't see inside, they can't appreciate the home, and you won't see any offers. If you can keep your dogs with family while you're showing your home, all the better.

Pitfall 3: Offering a "Foundation Allowance" With the clay rich soil and the homes built on the hills, we often run into foundation challenges. If your home isn't level, you'll need to offer something more concrete than an allowance to sell your home. To quell the doubts in a buyer's mind, get several estimates from foundation repair companies who give lifetime transferable warranties and give them to your REALTOR®.

Pitfall 4. Not Staging Your Home. A home that has been professionally staged will typically sell for 6%-10% more than one that hasn't, so to get the most of your home equity, work with a REALTOR® who provides staging services, or get a recommendation for someone who gets results in your area. It doesn't necessarily involve a large amount of expense, but it does require effort.

Pitfall 5. Padding the Price It's tempting to pad the list price of your home "to allow for negotiation later". The reality of a home that is overpriced to start with is that it will sit on the market for a longer time, and may end up netting you less money in the long run. Setting the price correctly with no padding will yield better offers faster.

There are many other aspects to consider when selling your East Austin home, and if you want a free consultation, give me a call on 512 694 8873.

Garreth Wilcock is a REALTOR® with the Pinnacle Group at Keller Williams. He specializes in Central and East Austin Real Estate. Call 512 694 8873 if you want a free valuation of your home or contact him here.

Walk to The Triangle and Hyde Park Eateries From This Remodeled Home!

Wed, 27 Aug 2008 19:21:45 -0500

Garreth Wilcock | The Pinnacle Group at Keller Williams | 512-694-8873

4602 Speedway, Austin, TX

Remodeled Hyde Park Cottage on Quiet Street

3BR/2BA Single Family House

offered at $439,000

Year Built	1947
Sq Footage	1,847
Bedrooms	3
Bathrooms	2 full, 0 partial
Floors	Unspecified
Parking	1
Lot Size	9,116 sqft
HOA/Maint	$0 per month

see additional photos below

PROPERTY FEATURES

Central A/C	Central heat	Fireplace
High/Vaulted ceiling	Walk-in closet	Hardwood floor
Tile floor	Family room	Living room
Office/Den	Dining room	Dishwasher
Refrigerator	Stove/Oven	Stainless steel appliances
Laundry area - inside	Balcony, Deck, or Patio	Yard

COMMUNITY FEATURES

Guest parking	Storage space(s)	Swimming pool(s)
Tennis court(s)	Playground

OTHER SPECIAL FEATURES

Pre-inspected

Move in ready

Pecan trees

Large 0.21 acre lot

Backs to creek

Elegantly updated kitchen

ADDITIONAL PHOTOS

Seller contact info:

Garreth Wilcock

The Pinnacle Group at Keller Williams

512-694-8873

For sale by agent/broker

Equal Opportunity Housing

Posted: Aug 27, 2008, 3:04pm PDT

What To Do If Zillow Lowballs Your East Austin Home

Mon, 25 Aug 2008 15:52:19 -0500

Zillow is a real estate website which creates an estimate (Zestimate®) of the value of your home, which can be wildly different from the market value of your home, especially in Texas. Looking at the value of an East Austin home that I sold for a client earlier this year, I'll show you that you should get an expert's opinion on what to sell your home for.

I met the seller of a home in Cherrywood, Austin while she was interviewing Realtors® to sell her home earlier this year. Zillow had her home valued at around $320,000. The owner knew the history of the home - the convenience of walking to the Eastside cafe and restaurants along Manor Road, the value of one of the larger lots in the neighborhood, and the impact of the new development just down the road at Mueller. The home was in need of a few updates and repairs to reach its full potential, but with original flooring, and beautiful oaks and a huge porch set back from the street, it was obvious that the home would appeal to many buyers. I was glad of the opportunity to market it.

The other Realtors® she had spoken to suggested a price of up to $350,000, whereas with a few updates, I thought that this was at least 10% under what we could get. The owner set to work, and I started marketing the home in advance of putting it on the MLS. Sure enough, before the updates were even completed, we managed to negotiate a full price offer - full price being my price, over 21% more than the Zillow Zestimate®, and over 10% above the other Realtor's® price.

For sure, it's not really fair on Zillow. They didn't get a chance to view my client's home, and the comparable sales in the area vary widely. For Cherrywood homes built in the 1940s and 1950s, you can appreciate that a wide variety of improvements have been made to each home. To be fair to Zillow, if you had clicked on the value of the home, it would have said that there was a +/- 18% margin of error with its estimate.

But the interesting thing is that the screenshot below, several months after the successful sale of the home, is still around 15% too low. Why? Because there is no public information in Texas about the eventual sale price of a home. The tax office doesn't know, it's not in the county clerk's records, and the buyer and seller aren't obliged to let anyone know. Texas is a non-disclosure state. That is, real property sales prices are not a matter of public record, so it is more difficult in Texas than in many other states to appraise home values.

So there are a few things to be gleaned from this example:

Get a local expert to help you with the value of your home - it's something that I will do with no obligation in my area of speciality.
Texas is a harder state than many to generate a market value for your home.
Getting the right Realtor® can make a 10% difference in the sales price of your home.

Garreth Wilcock is a real estate agent with the Pinnacle Group at Keller Williams. He specializes in Central and East Austin Real Estate. Call 512 694 8873 if you want a free valuation of your home or contact him here. Search the Austin MLS.

Nine Sixty Nine / Agave Homes - What's New Phase Two?

Sat, 23 Aug 2008 09:46:10 -0500

Nine Sixty Nine: Austin's contemporary design community is heading towards the end of its first phase, and Phase Two sees some interesting new home options.

The premis of the Agave development was simple - get 10 architects to design modern, energy efficient homes, and build them in a subdivision on a hillside within seven miles of downtown.

They have done just that - the contemporary homes share a space at the Meadows at Trinity Crossing with the Mediterranean Villas at Sendero Hills, just on the East side of Highway 183 where MLK Blvd East becomes 969 - hence the name nine sixty nine. By my GPS, this makes it 6.5 miles to the center of Austin.

The architects include Rick Black, Kevin Stewart and Emily Little, and the homes look fantastic from the outside, as you can see from the skyline below. And while Phase One is completing (you can see a list of remaining homes available at Agave / Nine Sixty Nine here) the plans for Phase Two hit a different price point too.

The Agave Architectural series was priced from $250k and the currently available homes vary from $240k to $370k. The Agave Design Series featured in Phase Two starts from around $190k and features the same green building ethos as the Architect series.

There are several available models to look around, and the interiors have the same striking visual appeal as the exteriors. If you're looking for contemporary green living, they're certainly worth a look.

Garreth Wilcock is a real estate agent with the Pinnacle Group at Keller Williams. He specializes in Central and East Austin Real Estate. Call 512 694 8873 if you want to learn more or contact here. Search the Austin MLS.

No Mo Rent and No Mow in 78723

Wed, 20 Aug 2008 20:01:18 -0500

Condominiums - all of the luxuries of modern living without the yard work. If that sounds like your cup of tea and your interested in living on Austin's blossoming 78723 zip code, your home hunt will show a few options right now. The first is the Greenway Loft development at Mueller, Austin. The second are at Danbury Square, less than a mile North, and close to the up-and-coming Nomad bar. The luxury condo is a relatively new idea in 78723, with only 6 units selling in the last two years.

The photos above, courtesy of Dena Davis show one of the remodeled condos at Danbury Square. A two bedroom unit at just over 1000sqft is currently listed for under $180,000, and is available right now.

The Greenway Lofts are a four-story loft project with 34 planned units at 1000 Robert Browning Street - a few blocks from the planned Mueller Town Center. Designed by the HaileyGroup, they will range in price from $129,000 to the $400,000s from a 585sqft one bedroom "Jade" to a 1355 two bedroom "Luxe". The lower priced units are likely to be reserved as affordable housing - for residents earning less than 80% of the city's median income. Floorplans are available at greenwaylofts.com. The builder is taking reservations now, and will be writing contracts this week.

Garreth Wilcock is a Realtor® specializing in homes at Mueller, where he lives and watches the development being built around him.

Crossing the Pond

Wed, 20 Aug 2008 19:44:01 -0500

OK, I admit it. The reason I don't talk like the other Texans here in Austin, TX, is that I'm from England.

I have the pleasure of working with some British clients who are relocating to Austin, and they have a unique perspective on the home buying process. They have perhaps bought and sold real estate in other countries but they are first time homebuyers here. They are used to estate agents, not REALTORS®, and they come in fully expecting the process to be different.

The thing that I find strange is that natives often have misconceptions about the real estate buying process. They were brought up here, but don't realize that real estate practice is continually evolving.

They don't always appreciate that I can represent them as buyers for no cost to them other than an exclusivity agreement.

They have ideas about earnest money and option fees that aren't necessarily correct.

So while it might sound like I talk a little different to the other real estate professionals they know, I make sure to explain everything very clearly. Many of the challenges I hear about seem to be about misinformation and lack of communication.

If you'd like to spend some time discussing real estate in Austin, give me a call: + 1 512 694 8873

Garreth Wilcock is a REALTOR® living and working in Austin Texas.

Streetman Starts to Flex its Mueller Muscles

Wed, 20 Aug 2008 16:30:36 -0500

Streetman Homes at the old airport redevelopment at Mueller have unvieled plans for their flex homes on Berkman Drive between Antone and McCloskey Streets. These will be available in the current phase, commencing construction in September, for occupancy around February 2009.

They have three concept drawings for the townhomes which are modeled as contemporary European structures with flat roof and stucco sides. All are two story with a master bedroom and balcony at the front of the home which is separated by a 16'x22' courtyard from the two car garage.

Concept A at 1500sqft has 2 bedrooms upstairs, each with bathroom, and a media room / stufy downstairs that could be used as a third bedroom.

Concept B at 1784sqft has 3 bedrooms upstairs with the downstairs study / media room making a potential fourth bedroom.

Concept C at 1717sqft has 3 bedrooms upstairs with the second and third bedroom sharing a bath.

Despite the claims on their website that homes start from the 500s, the price point on their Flex Homes is projected to start at $250,000-$325,000, though this, like the details above, is subject to change. The thing I'm anticipating with these Phase II builds is heavy over-subscription. There are 16 planned units, and I anticipate more demand than supply.

How did their last new floorplan release go? There was a waiting list for the 45' lots by the Ella Wooten pool on Mendez, with options on lots bought before they were even purchased by the builder. If Streetman continue with their list of high specification interiors as standard, I would expect the land grab to be just the same when they start to sell their new Flex Homes towards the end of this month. Let me know if you want me to camp out on the porch of their model home to write you a contract on one!

Garreth Wilcock is Mueller's Resident REALTOR® and keeps his ear to the ground on the new floorplans at Mueller, Austin.

Town Center Town Hall

Thu, 14 Aug 2008 23:05:05 -0500

Last night Catellus, the developer for the Robert Mueller Airport Redevelopment in Austin, hosted the Town Hall to kick off the public part of the Town Center planning process. Mueller Town Center is envisioned as a walkable center for retail and entertainment in the heart of the new urban village - right off Aldrich Street.

The presentation started with a brief history of the project, from CARE back in 1984 (Citizens for Airport RElocation), through the formation of the Mueller Neighborhood Coalition and the appointment of Catellus as master developers. One thing that I took from this history was that the development process is subject to change, subject to input and the voices of the stakeholders. It was great to see so many familiar faces - Mueller residents were out in force all hoping to be heard and share their visions.

Many of the photos shown when introducing the design themes of the proposed town center were from California for example (Santana Row). Perhaps this is the influence of ELS/Architecture who are based out of Berkeley, California and Roma Design Group out of San Francisco. Other photos were of Austin favorites such as SoCo and West 6th Street, and international public spaces.

The six principals for the town center design were shared before the meeting attendees split into facilitated groups:

Identity - a place that belongs to everyone
Connectivity - a seamless extension of surrounding neighborhoods
Walkability - a rich pedestrian experience
Convenience - a place for people to come every day
Diversity - a place to live work and play, not just to shop
Authenticity - a unique place representative of the community's values

The breakout sessions were lively and animated - if the future town center eventually sees tables of excited visitors talking with such excitement then I would deem it a success! I took some notes on the key points from the summaries of the group facilitators, and the themes above were strongly echoed - this is what I heard from my seat, though I'm sure there's plenty of observer bias:

An all day venue == 24 hour == scheduled reuse of space == welcome to stay == flex space

Pedestrian friendly == Pedestrian exclusive == Perimeter parking == park once and walk == transit based

Unique == focal point == gathering space == event programs == social and retail

Diverse dining == shaded == smaller scale venues == community spaces == rooftop views

Bars == music == public art == local business where practical == small grocery stores

Organic not manufactured.

It will be interesting to see how the plan develops and how much public involvement and participation will be heeded. One thing I saw at last night's meeting is that there are many people who feel very strongly about the environment that's being created at Mueller, and want their say.

Garreth Wilcock is Mueller's Resident REALTOR®, and when he's not helping people find their new homes at Mueller, he's blogging at garreth.featuredblog.com

Great first time home with large private lot in Pflugerville

Fri, 08 Aug 2008 23:09:54 -0500

Garreth Wilcock | The Pinnacle Group at Keller Williams | 512-694-8873

21109 Grand National, Pflugerville, TX

Huge lot on cul-de-sac with no back neighbors

3BR/2BA Single Family House

offered at $112,000

Year Built	1998
Sq Footage	1,086
Bedrooms	3
Bathrooms	2 full, 0 partial
Floors	1
Parking	2 Car garage
Lot Size	9,261 sqft
HOA/Maint	$60 per month

DESCRIPTION

BEAUTIFUL, WELL MAINTAINED HOME ON HUGE CUL DE SAC LOT. THIS MOVE IN READY GEM IS PERFECT FOR A FIRST TIME HOMEBUYER. RELAX IN THE HUGE YARD WITH NO BACK NEIGHBORS, OR ENJOY THE LARGE AND LIGHT KITCHEN / DINING AREA. THIS COULD BE THE BEST DEAL IN TOWN!

Back on market as buyer's funding fell through. This house has been inspected and appraised, and is ready for move in right away!

see additional photos below

PROPERTY FEATURES

Central A/C	Central heat	Fireplace
Living room	Dining room	Breakfast nook
Dishwasher	Refrigerator	Stove/Oven
Laundry area - inside	Balcony, Deck, or Patio	Yard

COMMUNITY FEATURES

Playground

OTHER SPECIAL FEATURES

Huge lot

Cul de sac

No back neighbors

Popular floor plan

Ceiling fans, double pane windows

Open Floor plan

Move in ready

ADDITIONAL PHOTOS

Seller contact info:

Garreth Wilcock

The Pinnacle Group at Keller Williams

512-694-8873

For sale by agent/broker

Equal Opportunity Housing

Posted: Aug 8, 2008, 7:07pm PDT

Mueller Austin - An Urban Village in Search of a Town Center

Fri, 08 Aug 2008 00:04:19 -0500

Phase II of the Mueller residential development is firmly underway on the site of the old Robert Mueller Airport in Austin, Texas. The wooden frames of new homes are appearing rapidly on the horizon as new urbanites write contracts on their homes. The first apartment building - Mosaic at Mueller - is wrapped in plastic and standing tall, with the intersection of Aldrich and Doc Reeves ready for the upcoming Town Center district.

One of the goals of the "New Urbanism" is to reduce sprawl and to feature transit-oriented destinations, such as the town center - more reminiscent to me of a current English small town than an old European village. A principal for this district is to combine a mix of residential and commercial space in a high density wrapping, and reduce the dependence on cars for local residents.

I was recently introduced to walkscore.com which rates neighborhoods on their walkability - here's an article I wrote about walkability rating. Mueller's roads aren't yet mapped, indeed road signs are appearing by the week, so I chose a center of Airport Boulevard for the tile below. The data is a little lacking - there are several parks and a swimming pool not mapped in Mueller, so we're rated at a score of 43 out of 100 - still car dependent.

Source: WalkScore.com

This should all change with the advent of the Town Center and the community is invited to discuss it at the Mueller Town Center Town Hall meeting on Wednesday August 13th at 6:30pm - 5701 Springdale Road. I certainly plan on being at the Town Hall meeting to participate and give feedback on the proposed development. If you want to find out more in advance of the meeting, consider attending the Mueller Neighborhood Association meeting at 10am this Saturday at Ella Wooten Park's picnic area and check out MuellerCommunity.com for more discussion.

Garreth Wilcock is Mueller's Resident REALTOR, and enjoys blogging about East Austin real estate. He helps buyers get their Mueller homes with the best possible terms. And he walks to work to do it.

Taking a Stroll Through Austin

Mon, 04 Aug 2008 15:45:46 -0500

Austin is less walkable than Houston. So says a recent report from walkscore.com, a site which ranks neighborhoods for a walkability score - how easy it is to get around on foot. The method sees Austin at a walkability of 49 compared to Houston's 51. I was fairly surprised at this result - my travel experiences in Houston have mostly been vehicularly based. So I took a look at their methodology and applied it to an area I have lived and worked in - the Upper East Side - University Hills.

Walkscore is one of a number of sites designed to help homebuyers with geographic information. It uses some Web 2.0 principals and integrates publicly available amenity information with geographic data. In theory homebuyers who know nothing of an area can summon up charts and graphs and clue themselves in. Now don't call me a Luddite - (though I was born in Nottingham, England, the birthplace of the Luddite movement which sought to fight changes due to new technology). But sometimes this works and sometimes it doesn't quite work.

Walkscore uses the following algorithm: based on a given address, it checks to see if the closest amenity in each group of amenities (schools, movie theatres, grocery stores etc) is within a range of 0.25 to 1 mile of that address. It gives points based on the closeness of each of these closest amenities. One of it's self professed drawbacks is that it doesn't take into account local geography - say there is a body of water or Highway 183 between you and a school, it would still assume you could walk to it.

Within the city, it ranks neighborhoods' walkability - you can see the one for Austin, TX, here. The neighborhood of University Hills is given a score of just 43 out of 100, compared to 73 for Upper Boggy Creek - the area between Mueller and I35. I plugged in the address of Dottie Jordan Park - a park in University Hills, 78723, to see what amenities showed up.

For the most part, the amenities were correctly categorized (although The Simplifiers is an event planning business, not a restaurant). The Intrigue Bar suffered from having a huge highway between it and the target address - not very walkable. The movie theatres were a little miscategorized but by and large, I was impressed with the accuracy of the data. Score: Walkscore: 1, Luddites: 0! I also checked a few addresses in Hyde Park - which scores a whopping 77 walkability, in Upper Boggy Creek and around Central Austin and all of the data looked reasonably accurate.

So how could one explain that a sprawling city like Houston is more walkable than Austin? According to the US Census Bureau, Houston is denser than Austin, and if you look at the walkability rankings for Houston, there appears to be a continuous mix of neighborhoods. Six areas have a walkability higher than 70, whereas in Austin there are 20 similarly scoring areas. But in Austin there are a few areas that are extremely unwalkable - around McKinney Falls Parkway in southeast Austin for example. Areas that aren't walkable have precious few residents - less than 5000 in the area around McKinney Falls. So it looks like Austin is penalized due to it's state park!

In summary, I think the address-based walkability data is useful, though some specific amenity information may be inaccurate. If you take averages based on a large scale area, your mileage may vary.

Garreth Wilcock is a real estate agent in Austin Texas. He enjoys blogging about areas like University Hills.

University Hills and Austin 78723 Real Estate Market Snapshot

Tue, 29 Jul 2008 08:51:15 -0500

Year	# sales	% change in sales	Average sale price	Average sale price to list price ratio	Average days on market
2008	26	-26%	$189,382	98%	63
2007	35	+21%	$166,546	99%	39
2006	29	-67%	$144,888	98%	33
2005	43	+80%	$126,250	95%	59
2004	24	+33%	$112,114	98%	38

This table shows the relative sales price and sales volume for single family homes in University Hills, Austin, TX, 78723 up to July 28^th each year. The number of sales has decreased significantly from last year, in line with all sales in the East Austin area which has seen a 25.7% drop in sales over last year. The month of July has seen a 47.4% drop in sales in East Austin in general over last June, but there has been only a 20% drop in closed sales in University Hills during the same period.

	Royal Oak	University Hills	Windsor Park	Mueller *	78723
Homes for sale	10	23	18	14	113
Homes pending	0	5	4	7	33
Homes sold (year to date)	4	26	14	10	110
Average List Price	$222,147	$199,296	$204,406	$479,303	$240,586
Median Sale Price / sqft	$115	$114	$161	$168	$127

* All data from MLS single family home sales. The majority of the new homes at Mueller are not sold through the MLS, so this just represents a portion of the homes sold or available there.

There are plenty of homes for sale in University Hills, and the median sales price per square foot is lower than in neighboring subdivisions – buyers can still get more house for their money! There are still less than six months of inventory in University Hills, so the market is still approaching a balanced market. With so many homes to choose from, buyers are going to find and choose the best marketed and best staged homes first! Seven of the sales in University Hills this year have been of real estate agent owned homes, which is a higher proportion than for the whole of 78723. This means that home sellers need to be prepared to compete with professionally managed flip properties, and prepare and stage their homes well.

Garreth Wilcock is a REALTOR® who sold his home in Univsersity Hills last month but still lives in 78723. He blogs about University Hills Real Estate, and publishes a local newsletter, and enjoys helping people prepare their homes for sale.

Agile Systems for Non Traditional REALTORS®

Mon, 28 Jul 2008 18:59:12 -0500

Increases to the amount of text available to describe homes in the Austin area Multiple Listing System (MLS) have been rolled out today. This is an improvement on the current system, but I feel that basic changes in MLXchange 4.0 are coming very slowly, and today's REALTOR® has to work around the system and augment it with many other products.

When you sell your home, you want to wax lyrical about its features and the things that make it a unique offering to the buying market. You want to tell the world why they should ignore the other homes in your area, with the same number of bedrooms, the same size and the same lot characteristics. The marketing materials you want will show beautiful photos of your home, taken at the best time of day when the sun hits the front elevation, or the pool, or whatever makes your home special. In another part, you want to paint a picture in words so that a buyer can evaluate whether they have just found a home that excites them.

So how is this done in the Multiple Listing System - the subscription based system that REALTORS® can use to promote your listing to the world? Until today, the MLXchange 4.0 system used by Austin area REALTORS® allowed only 255 characters of descriptive text to tell your home's story. But today it has been upgraded to a whopping 512 characters. Now I can see you're jumping up and down with excitement at this huge increase in capacity. In my opinion, it's too little, too late for the tech-savvy REALTORS® out there.

I spent ten years in IT consulting, and one of the key principles that my company espoused was agility - the ability to adapt and change information systems at the pace required by a business to maintain its competitive advantage. In a nutshell, the information systems serve the business systems, and support change and flexibility in an organization's systems and processes.

Putting a listing in the MLS has been an exercise in classified advertisement authoring for me - using abbreviations and poor sentence structure to cram all of the information into 255 characters. In other systems, I don't have a limitation. For example, I also add my listings to Postlets.com. I want the data to be syndicated far and wide across the internet, as I don't have to pay a "per-word fee" as I would to advertise in the Austin Statesman's Classified Section. Postlets takes care of syndication of my text, and doesn't place any limit to the amount of text I can write.

I have a number of web resources like Postlets.com which I use to increase the impact of listing marketing. And now, MLXchange is catching up with its syndication offerings. I've been augmenting my listings with additional text in alternate systems, and now MLXchange is catching up by increasing the text field to 500+ characters. But the new functionality is coming slowly. I'm looking forward to an increased capacity to add statistical information to CMAs. I do this already using other systems, but on August 1st, ABoR is offering MarketMetrics Market Reports to it's REALTOR® members.

So the base level of tools is improving, but are REALTORS® using them? I decided to take a look. I exported data from MLS to see how other REALTORS® in MLS Area Four and MLS Area Three are using the currently available 255 character text limit in their active single family home listings. The graph above shows that most are using the majority of the space available to them in both MLS areas. In Area 3, only 20% of the listings have under 180 characters, and only 11% do in area 4. Alarmingly, there are several listings in each where less than ten characters of marketing description have been used.

Personally, I try to get as much as possible out of the tools available. I believe in agile information systems, and I make sure that I augment the slow-to-change systems that I use with more innovative ones. I hope no-one ever calls me a traditional REALTOR®.

Garreth Wilcock is a non-traditional REALTOR® eager to harness the power of the internet. He blogs about Austin Real Estate.

Closer and Closer - What Sellers Want to Know About Closing

Sat, 19 Jul 2008 18:02:12 -0500

Have you ever wondered what is about to happen at closing when you're selling your home? A closing should be a smooth process with no surprises, and plenty of results. Here are the top six questions I get asked by first-time home sellers as we approach their closing:

1. When will I find out how much money I get?

When we negotiate a successful offer, I produce a net sheet which gives estimations of the various costs. Things like title insurance rates are regulated, and I'm familiar with the costs charged by the title companies I work with like Patten Title. The day before closing, the title company will send out a HUD 1 Settlement Statement with more accurate fees from the buyer's lender and the loan pay off from the seller's lender where appropriate. This is the document that holds the actual number!

2. I'm looking at the HUD 1 and I'm being charged for property taxes, but I already pay them into an escrow account. Am I being double charged?

No. The title company takes a pro-rated figure from the seller for the property taxes which are paid in arrears. They credit the buyer with this amount, as the buyer is now going to pay the property taxes at the end of the year. The escrow account you hold with your current lender will be closed after the closing, and the pre-paid property tax will be refunded to you. Details of this will be in the payoff statement from the lender.

3. When should I turn the utilities off and stop my insurance? Will the new buyer have to pay reconnection fees?

The utilities in Austin often take a week to disconnect. Contact your utility providers a week before closing, and tell them you are selling your home on the closing date. The buyer should also contact them at this time so that they can get the utilities transferred without incurring reconnection charges. You will also want to make sure that your home is insured until it is sold - so let your insurance agent know which day you are closing and inform them if there are delays.

4. Can I take my favorite ceiling fan and mirrors down and replace them with old ones?

No! Not unless you agreed that in the contract - check out the section in the purchase contract which specifies what conveys with the home - things are permanently that are often misunderstood are spelled out (including shrubbery!). This doesn't apply to things like fridges - they are not permanently attached and should be conveyed by a "non-realty items" addendum if you are selling them with the home.

5. Why do I need to bring a check book to closing - aren't my selling expenses paid out of the proceeds?

Typically, a title company will wire funds to your account for the proceeds. They often ask for a voided check so that they can see your account and routing numbers.

6. When do I have to move out?

The buyer will ask to do a walk-through just before closing, which allows them to check that there are no unwanted possesssions left behind and no unwanted tenants! Schedule things so that you are moved out before the walk-through!

Garreth Wilcock helps people sell their homes in Austin, Texas, and blogs about Mueller Real Estate and other topics.

Weighing Up The Options - What Sellers Need To Know

Sat, 19 Jul 2008 16:26:33 -0500

When you're selling your home, have you ever wondered about what to do in the option period? Following on from my article about option periods for buyers, here's the same subject from the eyes of the seller. Here are the most frequently asked questions that sellers ask me about option periods:

1. Now that my home has a contract, is it definitely going to sell - I know the inspection will come back finding no issues?

The option period is a time for the buyer to inspect the home. The inspection results can sometimes lead a contract to fall apart, and inspectors always find something - even on a new home. The buyer does not have to give a reason to terminate the contract. They bought the option to buy - they don't have to exercise that option. To put that in perspective, most people aren't in the habit of writing offer contracts for fun, so aside from the option fee, they have their time and energy invested in the offer.

2. Why is the option fee so small relative to the earnest money? Why are they only offering $100 for me to take my home off the market for 10 days?

This is a good question. Firstly, all of these numbers are negotiable - I've seen an attorney write $10 for a 14 day option period before, something that we ended up countering to a more reasonable figure and timeframe for my seller's circumstances.

Let's look at an example.

We're selling our vacant $300,000 home, and a contract comes in asking for an option period of seven days with an option fee of $150.

The earnest money is $3,000. And the closing date is 30 days away. For the sake of argument, let's say that the seller is paying a monthly mortgage payment (Principle Interest Taxes and Insurance) of say $2500. As a seller we don't enjoy paying a mortgage on our vacant home.

The "Termination Option" clause in the TREC contract used specified that the buyer "has the unrestricted right to terminate the contract" during the option period - the right to back out within seven days in our example.

If the seller accepts the offer, they could take their home off the market for seven days and only get to keep the option fee of $150 if the buyer backs out. Seven days of mortgage PITI payment for our seller is around $583. There's clearly a higher risk in accepting an offer with these terms versus accepting an offer with a $300 option fee for a seven day option period.

In another scenario, where the option period expires, the buyer gets to a point three days before closing and gets a job offer in London and decides to back out of the contract. This is a long time after the option period has expired. The buyer is then in default, and the seller can choose to either keep the $3,000 earnest money as liquidated damages, or seek specific performance of the contract. (as per paragraph 15 of the TREC One to Four Family Residential Contract - Resale). If they choose the former option, they have taken their home off the market for 27 days, paid one extra mortgage payment, but received $3,000 + $150 = $3,150 to cover their costs. Liquidating earnest money is a little less disconcerting for most sellers.

In summary it pays to make sure that the option fee and period are coherent with the risk you take that the buyer will back out of the contract before closing.

3. Do I need to leave the utilities turned on during the option period?

The option period is a time of due diligence for the buyer to check the condition of a property. A buyer may use a licensed property inspector who will want to test things which require the utilities to be turned on. In the TREC contract most frequently used, the "Seller at Seller's expense shall turn on existing utilities for inspections." Yes, you need to have the utilities turned on! Whether or not you decide to keep them on after the option period is expired is another matter.

4. What if I break something in my home during the option period?

If the breakage is considered normal wear and tear, this may be acceptable to the buyer. Otherwise, you should update your seller's disclosure to reflect the issue, or fix it. I saw many sellers in Austin last month having their roof replaced after the huge hail storms while their home was under contract!

Garreth Wilcock is an Austin Realtor® who enjoys helping people sell their homes for the most money with the lowest risk. He also enjoys maintaining his blog about home selling in Austin.

Option Anxiety - What Buyers Need to Know

Sat, 19 Jul 2008 15:35:23 -0500

A little confused about the option period when buying a home? You're not alone. Here are the top five questions I get asked by buyers about the option period in a TREC residential single family home contract

1. What is the option period? What does it cost?

You are buying the right, or option, to purchase a home within a given period. Typically this 'option' period is used as a due diligence time by the buyer - they get the home inspected. It prevents the seller entering into a contract with another buyer while you're doing this (though they can take backup offers in case you decide to exit the contract). To take the home off the market, the buyer pays a fee, the option fee. For a median priced home in Austin, this might be $100.

2. Can I get my option and earnest money back within the option period?

No and yes! If you notify the seller that the contract is terminated before the end of the option period, (for whatever reason) you will forfeit your option money, but can request your earnest money to be returned. The option fee is paid directly to the seller, whereas the earnest money is paid to a third party - typically a title company.

3. When does the option period start and end?

It starts the day after the last party has signed the contract. So if the seller signs on Monday and you have a seven day option period, your option period expires at midnight at the end of the following Tuesday. One tip is to ask your Realtor® to put a clause in changing the time from end of day to a more reasonable hour - it prevents calling people and faxing things at 11:57pm!

4. What if I need to get more information about the property condition and my option period is about to expire?

It's simple to ask for an extension to the option period, which the seller may agree to. Option periods should be a busy time in which due dilligence is performed as soon as possible so that the buyer is armed with as much data as possible with which to make decisions about changes to contractual terms.

5. Can I negotiate the price during the option period?

Yes! At this time, the buyer can sometimes have more leverage during negotiations - they can walk away from the contract losing only their option fee- which may be as low as $100. Often, if an inspection report shows damage or problems that weren't known before the original offer was written, it is possible to present this data to the seller and negotiate compensation terms - either changes to price, contribution towards closing costs or for repairs to be completed.

Garreth Wilcock is a Realtor® who enjoys blogging about real estate in Austin, Texas, and helping clients navigate through their option periods.

"You underpriced your home"

Tue, 01 Jul 2008 12:50:59 -0500

I'm often amazed by the conclusions people jump to, and how they presume to tell me that I've done something wrong with little access to the facts. My most recent example of this is in the sale of my own home, which I have apparently underpriced.

This is what happened from her perspective. I got a call from a Realtor® after my home was under contract. This is how the conversation went.

Realtor X: "I see your home in University Hills is under contract. Are they out of the option period?"

Me: "Yes, the contract is pretty solid at this point."

Realtor X: "Well my client saw it and liked it, and it seemed to sell really quickly."

Me: "Yes, we had a very good response. Several offers in the first week."

Realtor X: "Well, it looks like you underpriced it then."

Me: "... "

Realtor X: "If the contract falls through, you just let me know."

Me: "Absolutely - will do."

I wonder what information Realtor X used to come to her conclusion about my pricing?

I doubt she knew that the accepted contract price was higher than the list price. Maybe she was just looking at the list price. She might have looked at the number of days on market and assumed that since this was so much shorter than the average in my area, that it went too fast. That doesn't really account for the difference in marketing approaches in the area.

I doubt she knew how much pre-marketing I did in advance of putting it on the MLS, or the list of interested buyers I had from activities like my internet lead generation and putting a "Coming Soon" sign up in the yard while renovations were being completed. I doubt she knows about my direct marketing to 750+ area residents, or any of the other innovative marketing techniques I use to get people to look at my home as soon as it hit the market.

I doubt Realtor X took into account seller motivation in the local listings. Some people are happy to sit on an overpriced listing hoping for a big payout for months as they don't really want to sell. I doubt that Realtor X studies the University Hills real estate market every week, or that she knows the people selling. I doubt she had done research into the average days on market of the owner/agent remodels.

Imagine you're selling your home. Your Realtor® gives you two choices:

1. Price your home correctly based on a thorough and accurate market analysis. Perform pre-marketing activities to generate interest as soon as the house hits the market. Have people anticipating it becoming available. Have buyers participate in a bidding war to purchase the home above list value in the first few weeks on market. Negotiate on the best offer. Close quickly.

2. Over-price your home. Let it sit on the market for several months gaining stigma. Keep the home clean and staged, pay holding costs and watch the days on market go up. Eventually lower the price, lower the price again, and finally as selling motivation rises, accept an offer lower than option 1. Lose negotiating position and feel lucky you got an offer.

Let me think about that carefully. Oh yes! Option 1!! If there are morals to the story:

A. Get the most capable Realtor® to help get you the most money for your home in the shortest time with the least hassle.

B. Don't confuse list price with sales price. When selling your home in Austin, set a list price that will stimulate more interest and result in a higher net return from the sale.

C. Don't underprice your home. Don't overprice your home. Price it right! The sales price is the value that the market will pay. The list price is a number in a database.

I'm looking forward to selling my home. And I know that if for some reason this contract falls through, then I'll have a whole list of people ready to compete to put in another offer.

Garreth Wilcock sells real estate in University Hills, Austin TX, including his own home, which he believes is very well priced! He blogs about Austin home selling.

Great Value in Austin's Upper East Side with Pool!

Fri, 20 Jun 2008 15:15:19 -0500

Relax in this large home in University Hills! This home is priced to sell and is spacious and conveniently located.

It's a short hop from Mueller, University of Texas and is easily accessible from I35, 183, and 290E.

4 bedrooms - 3 up, 1 down
1923 sqft
Living room, den,
dining room and breakfast area
functional split level layout
bonus storage room off double garage
Pool in the backyard with a covered patio

List price of just $179,000 - wow!

Check out the 2407 Loyola Virtual Tour

Call for recorded information: 1-800-488-0842 ext. 1129

For more details, contact Garreth Wilcock

The Pinnacle Group at Keller Williams

512 694 8873

Austin Area HUD homes - Avoid the Common Mistakes That Cost Time and Money

Thu, 19 Jun 2008 14:21:44 -0500

I love HUD homes. Why? Because a HUD home is a great opportunity to get a home at below market rate and with a very strict process. Hang on, did I just say I like the strict process? Yes! Process is great - although it is inflexible, once your Realtor® figures out how it works, you can enjoy smooth transactions. So first off a little background, and then a few comments on the process here in the Greater Austin Area.

For some background on HUD homes check out my article The Low Down on HUD Homes. To summarize, HUD homes are homes that have been foreclosed upon, which are now available through the local asset manager (Southwest Alliance for our area). They are pre-appraised, and made available to purchase through HUD approved Realtors®.

Every time I do a HUD transaction, my clients get excited. Some of the homes need items of repair (funds held in escrow to fix the property), but many have no major defects. My most recent bid was for a Lennar home in excellent condition - it had only been occupied for a little over two years, and aside from a few areas of paint touch up and a missing appliance in the kitchen, it was move-in ready. Our winning bid was also around 8 per cent below the sales price of similar homes in the area!

There are a few pitfalls to the process, so here's a list of the top five things to be wary of in the process with Southwest Alliance:

Lending on a HUD Home. Even though a buyer may be approved for an FHA loan, there may be some restrictions from the lender on the home type. For example, the HUD owner occupier has to sign an affadavit to say that they will stay in the home a certain period of time. This is to prevent people "flipping" HUD homes. This requirement can be contrary to the lender's conditions, and can result in a HUD home being unacceptable collateral. Make sure your buyer's lender is crystal clear that they're buying a HUD home!
Earnest Money. The earnest money amount is typically $500 or $1000. It cannot be in the form of a personal check - it has to be certified funds - cashiers check or money order. The asset managers are very strict on time lines, so if you don't deliver the earnest money in time, your successful bid will be rejected and you have to re-enter bidding.
Inspection. Though there is a property condition report as part of the bidder's information package, this is not a home inspection. To get a home inspection, your buyer will need to apply to get permission to turn on the utilities, turn them on for two days, and get a regular home inspector who must be accompanied by their buyer's agent.
Closing. The closing agent that Southwest Alliance uses for Central Texas homes is in San Antonio. There is a requirement that the buyer signs within 50 miles of the closing agent's office, and Austin, Leander, Cedar Park etc are outside that 50 mile radius. Prepare for a trip to San Antonio.
Investors buying as owner-occupiers to rent out the home. This isn't permitted, and if you or your client fraudulently purchases a HUD home, you're both in big trouble. The aim of the scheme is to increase home ownership, so play fair and you won't be fined!

Buying a HUD home requires a considerable amount of extra work on the part of the buyer's agent, so make sure to work with a Realtor® who knows the system and will dilligently follow the process!

Garreth Wilcock is a HUD Approved Realtor® who can help find and buy homes in the Greater Austin Area. He blogs about Austin Real Estate.

The Low Down on HUD Homes

Thu, 19 Jun 2008 12:53:43 -0500

First-time buyers often hear about HUD homes, and ask me how to get them. Why do they get all excited about HUD homes? Because they've been told that they can get them at a discount. So here's the low down on HUD home - what they are and where to find them.

Who are HUD?

In a nutshell, they are a government organization who wants Americans to be homeowners.

The US Department of Housing and Urban Development and it's predecessors have been around since the Great Depression, and they currently have six main goals, as outlined in the HUD strategic plan:

Increase homeownership opportunities
Promote decent affordable housing
Strengthen communities
Ensure equal opportunity housing
Promote high standards of ethics, management and accountability
Promote participation of faith-based and community organizations

What's a HUD Home?

HUD homes are homes that have been foreclosed upon. There is a great deal of confusing information out there, and the key thing to remember is that in Texas at least, a home cannot be sold without the consent of the owner of record (if they are of sound mind) before the home has been foreclosed upon. If the loan used to buy the home foreclosed upon was an FHA loan, then at the point of foreclosure, HUD takes back the home. It is then sold through an asset manager who ensures it is vacant. In the case of the Greater Austin Area (Leander, Round Rock, Austin, etc.) this asset manager is Southwest Alliance. The asset manager is responsible for getting the home into a known condition and then marketing and selling the home via an auction process.

What's in it for Me?

HUD is not in the business of owning vacant homes, they want to promote home ownership. This means that a buyer who is qualified for an FHA loan can purchase a home for below market rate. Austin HUD Homes are put on the market through a Realtor® in addition to the asset managers site, and buyers have 10 days to preview them with a Realtor® who is qualified to put in bids on their behalf. At this point, daily bidding commences, and each day the Realtors® are told of the status of their bids. The rules are a little different for investors, but this is the story for owner-occupiers.

Another advantage of a HUD home, aside from the potential discount over market rate homes, is that they have already been appraised, saving the cost of an FHA appraisal for the buyer. They are vacant, they are ready to be sold, and they will accept the best offer that is above the amount that they need to net. There are no emotional sellers unwilling to part with their home, no dealing with incumbant tenants, and the process can be painful with a Realtor® experienced with the process.

How Do I Find a HUD Home?

The first thing you need to do is contact a lender and figure out your prospective loan amount - I have lenders whom I work with that can turn this around very quickly and painlessly. Then you can either contact a Realtor® and have them set up a search for you and tell you of available properties, or search on SouthwestAlliance.com under Home Buyers - Property Listings. Then contact an approved Realtor® to go check it out and get them to put in an electronic bid for you. You can't put in a bid yourself - there are many steps to the process, so HUD has required that you be represented by a Realtor®. Once your bid is accepted, you go through a process of qualification and inspection and you can get the keys to your discounted home!

Garreth Wilcock is a Realtor® in Austin, Texas who is approved to help buyers search for and buy HUD homes. Contact him today to find out if a HUD home is right for you.