You are invited! Please join us for a barbecue lunch, on the 8th of July, 2009, 11:30 to 1:00 (or if you stay to swim, even longer!). It will be pool side, and we have been invited to take a dip in the pool. So, bring the kids, bring your friends, bring your suits, and join us for some good old fashion summertime fun!

Lunch will be served, an All American favorite of hot dogs and hamburgers, including watermelon and ice cream. $5 for members, and $10 for non-members.

Our guest speaker will be Matt Tishingham of Banning-Lewis Ranch, and several of the six builders in the division. And as always, we will have door prizes.

Please RSVP to nahrepcos@gmail.com.

And I look forward to seeing you there!

Happy 4th of July! It's a great day in America. Enjoy, enjoy, enjoy!

Fireworks over the Capitol building, the Washington Memorial, and the Potomac River. Can you just hear the Stars & Stripes Forever? I love to watch the fireworks from the Capitol each 4th of July. Such a patriot and stiring festival. I only wish I could be there in person.

Photo from the Los Angeles County Library

Effective July 1, 2009,the Colorado Real Estate Commission (CREC) has mandated changes in quite a few of our contracts.

Other important changes are:

• The Contract to Buy and Sell Real Estate, Exclusive Right to Buy, and the Exclusive Right to Sell. These form have been changed and will have to be used July 1 and after. Fortunately, it won't be necessary to rewrite documents that were effective prior to July 1, 2009. But, anything after that date will have to be on the new forms.

  • One exception: Seller's Property Disclosures. All Seller's Property Disclosures need to be on the new forms, regardless of when they were originally written.

• Carbon Monoxide Detectors.It is the responsibility of all sellers to provide carbon monoxide detectors prior to the sale closing on their home.
  
• Foreclosure Properties. The state has defined foreclosure properties to be any property where the mortgage payment is 31 days past due. And that any investor purchase or equity buyer can not use a Colorado license broker to write the transaction. It must be written by an attorney. This has a dynamic and far reaching effect for those of us in the business.

 The Real Estate Commission in Colorado is constantly reviewing and rewriting our contracts. In an ever increasing effort to protect the consumer. It is our responsibility to keep abreast of all changes.

Summer is a great time to get your home sold. But, if you're not in foreclosure, how do you compete with those that are? Approximately 50% of all home sales are distressed properties.

Here's the good news: Homes sales are up 2.4% in May over April, and home sales were up in April, and in March.
Here's the bad news: Home prices have dropped 17% over last years prices.

Here are 5 great tips to help you get your home sold this summer.

• Accurate pricing.To get the best idea of where to price your home, ask your Realtor what has sold in your neighborhood recently. And getting a professional appraisal will give you a more precise figure. Although it can cost a couple hundred dollars.
• Utilize all marketing channels. Distressed sales do not have all the options for marketing that a regular home sale has. Take advantage of those channels. Your REALTOR(r) will be able to advise you on all the marketing tools in available to her.
• Stage Your Home.Remember you are selling the home, not your belongings. Remove all clutter and collections, and clean everything well; immaculate! Edit the furniture in the home. You don't live in a for sale home the same way you live in your Add flowers and color to the front of your home. Paint your front door a bright red! Distressed properties are often vacant and dirty inside, often with nasty smells. With no one to keep it up the landscaping it usually needs tons of work. Buyer's realize that it will take them time and money to bring the home and landscape back to habitable condition. 
• Accept short closing time lines. Distressed properties will usually take around 4 months to close. Many people need to get into a home much quicker than that. Offer your buyers a quick closing. You can do it, you can move in 30 days! Offer that.
• Don't take it personally.Remember your competition is a home priced much lower than yours. If you get a low ball offer, don't take it personally. Buyer's have been conditioned lately to think they can get a great deal on home purchases. They hear about homes being sold for ridiculously low prices. If they really are interested in your home, counter they offer. Remember, it a business transaction, not a personal affront.

One day, on a lark, I filled out a form asking me what I thought about Twitter. Well, I got a phone call from NPR. They wanted to interview me and put it on the their show! It was fun. And I didn't hate listening to my voice.

Well, I just got another call. This time it was from Marketplace. They had already spoken with Lawrence Yun...and they wanted me! Whoo-Hoo!

The subject was "What's driving home prices down." Their piece said that home sales were up 2.4% in May, over April, and April was up over Feb. But, the median home price was down 17%. And the culprit for all this? Foreclosures.

This time my comments were kept to just a couple of lines. That's ok. It was cool. Would you like to hear it? Click here.

Marianne Snygg, GRI, ABR, ASP
Herman Group Real Estate
719.964.9682

Search entire MLS Database
Follow me on Twitter at: mcsnygg

Can you offer your buyer's new furniture? Or how about a trip to Hawaii? Or a car? NO? Well here are a few tips to help you sell your home without those gimmicky incentives.

1. Update Your Home:Buyer's are looking for "move-in" ready homes. What makes your home stand out from the crowd are new carpeting, fresh paint, updated appliances, granite countertops, and new hardware.
2. Stage it: A professional stager will look at your home differently than you will. They will declutter and edit the room's furniture. Remember: You're selling the space, be sure to show the space.
3. Curb Appeal: Your potential buyer's first opinion of his new home. It should look good and sparkle. Repair all barren spots on the lawn, make sure it's freshly cut and edged. Put flowers in pots on the front porch, paint the door. To see more on this please visit my earlier post on this subject.
4. Listing with Investors: Many investors use specific websites to find properties, listing with those websites give you a leg-up on all the other listings out there.
5. Auction House:There are several auction houses that will put your house up for auction, of course, for a percentage of the sale. And you can have "reserve" amount that you won't sell below.