Krystal Wade's New London County Real Estate Blog featuring Montville CT

Should you hold a pre-inspection of your home prior to listing your home for sale?

Krystal Wade-Selling Real Estate in Montville CT (The Partner Network) — Mon, 10 Nov 2008 08:46:07 -0600

Many sellers and seller's agents are starting to see this popping up in the real estate market.

One of the many stressful times of selling a house is the home inspection. There's always worry that the inspector will find defects and the negotiations after the inspection will be tense. In my experience the inspection time period can make or break a deal and the re-negotiating that occurs after the inspection is stressful for both parties. It's better to know the issues now than to lose the buyer later.

In this buyer's market, I have found that once the inspections are being done, both parties are feeling a little beat up. The sellers are feeling like they took less for their house than it was worth, and the buyers are left wondering if they got a good enough deal.

This is one of the reasons why inspection time can be tense, since emotions are running high already.

A seller can be more prepared on any issues regarding their home and can stand out in a saturated market by having their home pre-inspected. Then they can use this as a benefit to the buyer by advertising that the home has been pre-inspected and also offering a copy of this inspection to all potential buyers.

Here are a handful of benefits to this approach:

If there's something that needs immediate attention you can get to work on addressing any defects before a buyer's inspector finds it - after you've already negotiated the price.

This is especially true for big ticket items like a septic system or a roof.

One of my sellers last year knew that his roof was only 17 years old so he wasn't at all concerned about the roof and mentioned the age of the roof in the disclosures. What he didn't know was that the shingles were defective and were past the end of their useful life. When the buyer's inspector made note that the roof needed to be replaced before winter (just a few months away), the seller didn't believe it. The seller had a neighbor (who is a licensed contractor and works for a roofing company) climb on the roof and check it out himself. Sure enough he told my seller the only thing keeping the roof from leaking was the paper underneath the shingles. So now he believed it and dealt with it. But it would have been good for him to know ahead of time so he could disclose it or replace it, and maybe have time to take advantage of the rebate that the shingle company was offering for their defective product. Once you know what you're dealing with up front, you can address it with time on your side.

You can hire your own contractors to do the work that needs to be done, or if you're capable of performing the job you can do it yourself.

Buyers are also stressed through this part of the transaction and may be nervous about the inspector's findings and sometimes will ask for money in lieu of repairs once issues are brought up. In this case they will almost always err on the side of caution and will ask for much more money than is needed for repairs.

One of my first real estate deals entailed very stressful negotiations after the home inspection. The buyers came forward with a list of about 30 items that they think needed to be done to the house, many of them routine maintenance that should really be the responsibility of the buyer once they move in. Things like trim bushes from side of the house, clean out gutters and install gutter guards, etc. The buyers then said ‘in lieu of the above 30 items being completed prior to closing we are requesting $4500 back at closing'. Honestly, this was about $1000 worth of work. My seller did everything on that list himself that didn't require a contractor and then hired a contractor to do the remaining $500 worth of work. Problem solved. But the buyers were not happy. ‘They really wanted the $4500' their agent told me. Well, who wouldn't? I had to wonder.

Inspection issues can delay a closing. Most contracts have time limits as to when these issues are to be resolved to keep the deal going at a normal pace. Imagine you have septic issues so you need the septic guy to come back out and give an estimate, a roofer needs to be called (and oftentimes the buyer will want more than one opinion/estimate), the well needs to be decontaminated and then tested again. It all takes time. Not to mention that trying to get contractors out for estimates can be challenging (Most contractors are thinking with a real estate deal they won't get the job after the estimate has been given). And all of this is not to mention that it could take weeks to get the proper contractors out there to perform the necessary work. So even if buyers and sellers agree on the remedy and who will pay for it, this could delay closing. In these cases sometimes the sellers can give money back to the buyers at closing for repairs, but then you have a new set of problems and that is if the buyer's lender will allow this.

Issues that can come up during a home inspection will give the buyers another reason to re-negotiate the price. And remember at this time the seller has most likely made plans for moving, has an offer or contract on another house, has started to call moving companies, etc. Having an inspection ahead of time and knowing what you are dealing with will help avoid this. And avoiding another round of stressful negotiations will help give you peace of mind that the deal is going smoothly.

An inspection will cost approximately $700 - $1000 depending on what you want done, and I would recommend it all. Structural/Mechanical, Septic, Termite, Radon and Water to name a few. Also keep in mind that the buyers will most likely hold their own inspections, and may find some issues that your inspector didn't note. But having some of the large ticket items fixed prior to contract or disclosed to the buyer and made part of the negotiations prior to contract can be a big benefit and take some of the emotional roller coaster out of selling a home.

K&J Photography in Uncasville Connecticut, remarkable photos of Eastern Connecticut

Krystal Wade-Selling Real Estate in Montville CT (The Partner Network) — Thu, 30 Oct 2008 21:53:23 -0500

Chapman Falls-Photo by K&J Photography in Uncasville, CT

In the past year or so I have sold 2 houses in my own neighborhood. Neighborhood friends liked to joke that I need sell to people who would make great neighbors. Some were more specific and asked for things like families with small children or cute teenage boys. (She shall remain nameless).

Not long after one of the closings I made the joke that when the house has been on the market for 8 months you start to get less choosy about who your neighbors will be and you would sell the house to anyone, so Jeff and Karen moved on in.

I made that tasteless joke in front of a handful of others when Karen hadn't really gotten the chance to know me. Eventually she did learn a few things about me.

I'm not as funny as I think I am
The more of an audience I have the more I will exaggerate for effect
I am kidding most of the time

Well the joke is on me because they are the best new neighbors, it was like I hand picked them!

In getting to know Jeff and Karen I have learned that Karen is a fabulous photographer. I will start to feature her work on my blog and on a future website. If you have any questions or would like to see more of her work, you can contact her at:

K&J Photography
Karen Ohren - Photographer

Uncasville, CT

860-237-8001

photosbykandj@gmail.com

And tell her Krystal sent you!

Timing the Real Estate market - is it a good time to buy a house?

Krystal Wade-Selling Real Estate in Montville CT (The Partner Network) — Wed, 29 Oct 2008 20:57:39 -0500

You really can't time the market

Many people are asking me lately if it's a good time to buy a house.

If you are an investor and waiting for the absolute best time to buy low and sell high, I can't say for sure whether this is the best time to play ‘flipping for dollars'.

But if you are purchasing a home, moving in and staying put for a while, then yes it's a great time to buy.

Like stocks, you can't always time the market perfectly to buy or sell. The only real way to know if housing prices have hit bottom is to wait until they start climbing up. Then everyone knows that the bottom was yesterday, and sometimes a frenzy ensues, making it harder to get a great deal. The best you can hope for is to buy somewhere in the bottom, and that's where we are right now.

During his Mad Money show today, Jim Cramer said we have 245 days before the housing market hits bottom. I see that and I'm thinking "July?", of all months you think the housing market will turn around it's July? I guess we'll see if he's right. And of course I'll take July 2009 over the 2011 predictions!

My much less scientific approach to the housing market is that there's something in the air. More houses are going under deposit, I'm scheduling appointments for my listings more often, the mortgage person I was on the phone with today has been swamped, houses that have been sitting on the market for a long time have gone under deposit, I'm too busy to watch Oprah, the list goes on.

The good (if you will) thing about my blog is that we will be able to visit this little post in the future and see if that something in the air was just the crisp fall air and low gas prices.

Til next time!

Another weekend, another blog about Asperger's Syndrome and Kevin

Krystal Wade-Selling Real Estate in Montville CT (The Partner Network) — Sun, 26 Oct 2008 21:46:08 -0500

One of the first curious things that we noticed was how obsessed Kevin was about Matchbox cars. Obsessed was really taking it lightly. "Car, car, car", I can still hear his little voice. We used to say it was like the Blair Witch Project with the cars all lined up. You could leave a room and come back to cars lined up all around and you knew Kevin was there.

This is a pattern we have seen over and over. How he has this ability to zone in on one subject or one thing and only be interested in that one thing. In the Autism community they call it their ‘Special Interest'. Kevin has one interest that has carried through from a young age, and that has been creatures of all shapes and sizes. Insects, amphibians, any kind of sea creature, snakes, mice and on and on. I won't be surprised for him to work with animals when he grows up as a vet or something along that line. For many years he told me he was going to be a vet at a zoo when he grew up. Can't wait for my family discount at the zoo, it will all be worth it.

We have raised tadpoles many times and let hundreds of baby wood frogs go free in our back woods. Then there were the Anoles, the corn snakes, the Hermit crabs with the painted shells, many fish, just to name a few of the critters we've had.

We have also fostered many kittens for the local Humane Society in our home. We would care for these kittens until they were ready to be adopted. In that time we ourselves adopted one of the mother cats and one of the kittens that we bottle raised (seen here sleeping with Kevin).

These so called special interests will wane and something new will come along. Cars gave way to sharks then sharks gave way to Star Wars Legos. It's all interesting to see how his mind works. I find it difficult sometimes. Do I let him be or do I try to get him to do something else? In the 4^th grade in particular I remember the Star Wars Lego time period was particularly long and obsessive. Not to mention expensive!

Til next time!

Is it just me or has Real Estate in New London County, CT picked up lately?

Krystal Wade-Selling Real Estate in Montville CT (The Partner Network) — Sat, 25 Oct 2008 15:46:46 -0500

I can bring home the bacon, and fry it up in a pan....

Anyone who thinks Real Estate has slowed to a grinding halt should have followed me around last week, and many of my colleagues feel the same.

Here is what my week looked like:

My week started with a team of my colleagues on the grievance committee. I can assure you we take our jobs seriously on this committee, but I can't tell you what we did while we were there. It's top secret stuff.

A relatively new set of buyers who have looked at several houses have now narrowed down their search to this one short sale property. We had 2 showings at this home this week including the showing to show the parents. There were many phone calls to and from their lender before they consider an offer, knowing it will be a long shot and a long road if they select this property.

I am searching diligently for a home for another first time homebuyer who has a very specific criteria. Every day I'm on the computer finding him the next new listing that will meet his demands. On Wednesday evening the perfect house comes on the market, he and his wife run right over, in the dark, to look at the property. We quickly act by making an appointment to view the next day and making appointments for contractors to view and write estimates as it needs work and he'll be putting an offer in with a 203K loan. This is a bank owned property so just like the short sale, I know I'll be putting in a lot of time on this one.

Monday night there was a meeting at our office with a local Real Estate attorney. He was giving us advice on how to survive in this business during a challenging market and how to handle the changes coming our way. He handed out his business cards but no need since I have his number on my speed dial as he is the attorney for the local board of realtors and a great resource for all of my questions.

Wednesday was my monthly meeting with the developer of Greenbrier to discuss marketing strategies and leads that have come in recently.

On Tuesday a condo buyer met me at my office to write an offer on a condo. That offer did not go well at all. "We are rejecting your offer, good luck to you, have a nice life", about sums up the seller's response. Undefeated we moved on to another unit in the same condo complex. I ran over to preview the property on Thursday after calling the seller's agent and decided the property would be perfect for my client. I took pictures and zipped them to my client at work, the next day she scooted out on her lunch break to look at the property herself and she signed the offer on the kitchen counter.

I received and negotiated a multiple offer situation on one of my listings, yes that still happens. Had to break the bad news to the one agent and the good news to the other, then there was the rushing around to obtain signatures to ‘seal the deal'.

I spent a lot of time on the phone planning open houses, extending contracts, setting up appointments for my listings, returning calls on my listings and anything else that came my way.

Much of my week was spent trying to keep a deal together that has had many challenges since we started in July. Countless phone calls to and from the listing agent, attorney, bank, and client sharing what we've heard.

I received a phone call from a previous buyer who is considering purchasing a piece of land behind his property. We talk for a while about the pros and cons and risks.

Followed up with potential buyer who I showed a property to for the first time. It doesn't look like this property will work for them but I'll keep my eyes out for another. I sent them over to drive through Greenbrier this weekend, I think they are the perfect new buyers for that new subdivision. I hope to hear back from them soon.

At the end of the week I have phone duty at the office. This gives me time to catch my breath and perform some mail outs between phone calls. When things are busy it's definitely not the time to stop marketing yourself. If you're on my list, look for my next mailing mid November.

One of the joys of keeping your own schedule is that I was able to sneak in a couple of lunches with friends.

Friday evening I was headed to one of those home parties with a friend, my phone was ringing non stop trying to put another deal together. My friend commented ‘don't they know it's Friday evening and it's almost 7 p.m.!' Yes, they know. But, my friend, Real Estate never sleeps!

Here's to another busy week and low gas prices!!

Understanding your credit score

Krystal Wade-Selling Real Estate in Montville CT (The Partner Network) — Mon, 20 Oct 2008 21:36:15 -0500

As mortgage lenders tighten guidelines, understanding your credit score and how it can be improved continues to be important to help you qualify for a mortgage. Here are some basics:

FICO

FICO is a credit scoring system developed by the Fair Isaac Corporation

There are 3 major credit bureaus. Equifax, Experian and TransUnion.

Americans are entitled to one free credit report from each agency within a 12 month period. To receive your free yearly credit report visit this website:

www.annualcreditreport.com

The freebie is one report from each one of the agencies per year. You will still need to pay a small fee ($5.00 - $9.00 ish) per agency for your report. If you're watching your credit report to look for inaccuracies only, you may not care to see the score.

Your score can range from 300 to 850. Each of the above 3 companies can have different numbers for your score.

As much as I love the commercials for freecreditreport.com that website is not the official website to receive your free annual credit report.

As a side note, be careful with some of these companies that will also try to sell you a membership to monitor your score and report activity to you. I'm not saying if it's a good idea or not, I'm just saying that sometimes people sign up for them not realizing that they are not just purchasing a score for $5.99 but agreeing to have their credit card charged a fee every month for belonging to this membership.

If after viewing your report you find some false information, here are the individual websites for these agencies:

www.transunion.com

www.equifax.com

www.experian.com

Understanding your score

Here's how your score is calculated:

35% is your payment history. Late payments, collection accounts, charge offs, liens, judgments, bankruptcy, etc.

30% is the amount owed, also known as your utilization of credit. Utilization means how much credit you have that you are using. For example say you have 3 credit cards with a total credit line of $30,000 ($10,000 for each card), the total balance you have on those 3 cards is $5000. You are utilizing 16% of your available credit. If you cancel one of those cards you'll now have a total balance of $5000 with a total credit line available of $20,000. Your utilization just increased to 25%. This is why when you cancel one of your cards your credit score can decrease slightly because you are utilizing more of your credit than you were before. You are better off (fico score wise) to have several cards with low balances then to transfer all of your balances to one card and then cancel the others.

15% is your length of credit history.

10% is new credit and recent inquiries. This is why it's a bad idea to have several different companies pull your credit in a short amount of time if you're concerned about your score. You shouldn't go to a furniture store, a clothing store and car shopping all in one day and have them all pull your credit, then shortly after that go to see if you can qualify to purchase a house. It makes you a higher risk. Even if you didn't purchase anything with those companies, the inquiries will hurt your score. But keep in mind that checking your own score will not lower your score.

10% is your mix of credit. Car loans, mortgages, credit cards, store accounts, things like that

Here is a pamphlet from the Fair Isaac Corporation about understanding your credit

http://www.myfico.com/Downloads/Files/myFICO_UYFS_Booklet.pdf

As a side note, please beware of companies that are popping up telling you they have a fast (and usually expensive) way of fixing your credit. Treat these like a diet titled "lose 20 lbs in one week eating everything you want and even some things you don't". Been there, done that, got the large T-shirt. If it sounds too good to be true......

Til next time

Krystal

Raising a child with Asperger's Syndrome and enjoying it

Krystal Wade-Selling Real Estate in Montville CT (The Partner Network) — Sat, 18 Oct 2008 20:08:28 -0500

While I blog during the week about Real Estate, saving electricity, green building, Montville, CT and anything else that fits in, during the weekends I will be blogging about my son Kevin and our road to a diagnosis. It's a long one....

As any parent with a child that has something such as Aspergers, it seems in hindsight you always just knew. You knew something wasn't right, you hoped he would grow out of it, you dealt with it the best you could. But you just knew.

It makes it all the more difficult when you search for answers for almost 10 years.

I would say aside from his usual challenging baby like behavior (well, he was a baby after all) he tested me to the core. I attributed it to ‘2^nd child syndrome' and ‘payback child syndrome'. If you're not familiar with these terms let me explain.

2^nd Child Syndrome: This is when you have a first child who is so easy and so wonderful and you somehow decide ‘I am a great mother, I should bless the world with more of my wonderful children'. So then you have a second one. It's then, and only then, that you realize that there is so much that is out of your hands.

Payback Child Syndrome: This is the child your parents wished on you when you were a child. While growing up, there were many times my father said to me ‘I hope you have a child just like you', because apparently I was challenging as well. And in my family, challenging was a euphemism for big pain in the rear. And by the way, Dad, if you're reading, I think I turned out o.k. LOL

Kevin was born screaming from birth. My mom told me "He's hungry" and my response was "He can't be hungry, he was just born, he doesn't know what hunger feels like". Honestly I'm not making that up. I read it in a book somewhere.

Kevin was almost one when we finally had some uninterrupted sleep. That lasted for about 8 months. Then he started getting up again in the middle of the night. Not to cry and call for us, but to climb out of the crib and play downstairs with his toys, fix himself some leftover pizza (not kidding!), things along that line. At the age of about 20 months he was out of the crib and down the stairs. So then no one was sleeping through the night since we were waking with every noise wondering if he was up, what was he doing, was that the door I heard opening, etc. I was waiting for the phone call from a neighbor at 3 a.m. telling me he was riding his tricycle down the street. Seriously, he was that kind of toddler.

I remember the day clearly when on zero hours of sleep I drove 1.5 hours to a specialty baby store to get one of those tent things for his crib to keep him in. Baby jail, Rob would call it. The first night he figured it out and got out anyway. So then we had to secure it even further and lock it from the outside to keep him in. We knew then that this was going to be a bumpy ride.

Til next weekend!

And worth every penny: Homes for sale for one dollar

Krystal Wade-Selling Real Estate in Montville CT (The Partner Network) — Fri, 17 Oct 2008 22:41:00 -0500

If you've been paying attention to the property transactions in The New London Day's Home Source you've probably been noticing what I'm writing about today. All of the homes listed as ‘Sold' for one dollar.

I have had clients call me about this, wondering what kind of conditions these houses must have been in to be sold for such a low price. My office has also had potential buyers call the office wondering how they can purchase a house for one dollar. I suppose if you could buy a house for $1 anyone would be a ‘potential buyer'.

Even though I understand what this means, many others are confused by this. The ‘buyer' of these $1 properties are the banks that hold the mortgage. In the foreclosure procedure there is an auction. If a buyer doesn't come forward with an acceptable (to the bank) offer, then the bank buys the property back, the final process in the foreclosure process. The transaction is recorded such as:

"Doe, John to GMAC Mortgage LLC, $1".

And this is what you are seeing in the property transaction report in the Home Source.

Last week I just shook my head. This week I actually counted. Here's the breakdown.

The Home Source property transactions covers the following towns:

Bozrah, Colchester, East Lyme, Groton, Lebanon, Ledyard, Montville, Norwich, Stonington and Old Lyme

There were 86 Property Transactions. 24 of these homes were ‘sold' for $1. That's a huge percentage. If I was smarter than a 5^th grader I could probably tell you the exact percentage. But all I can tell you for sure is that it's a big number.

Til next time

Saving electricity by unplugging

Krystal Wade-Selling Real Estate in Montville CT (The Partner Network) — Fri, 17 Oct 2008 07:49:43 -0500

I am by no one's definition a granola earthy kind of person. Well, maybe if it's covered in chocolate but I digress. I recycle, I try not to waste food (If Rob eating the left overs counts), and I get most of my bills on-line and have opted out of those credit card offers (https://www.optoutprescreen.com) so my mailbox is not filled with needless paper.

But just like many of you, I'm interested in saving money. One of the things I have been doing lately is unplugging things around the house when they are not in use. And not only to drive the kids bonkers. When an appliance is not being used, it's still draining electricity when it's plugged in. According to the U.S Department of Energy about 75% of the energy used by our home appliances is drawn while we think they are off.

So all of you that know me well know that I'm not unplugging my Tivo (gasp!) or other things that will mess up the programming of the unit. Like the coffee pot, the alarm clock, things like that. But a light that we hardly ever use and the cell phone charger I use to keep plugged in on the counter? You betcha.

For my office I have everything plugged into a power strip and turn off the power strip when not in use. This is what was driving the kids crazy. Finally they have figured this out and no longer yell to me that the computer is not working.

There's a website that will give you typical wattages of various appliances. Check it out here:

http://www.eere.energy.gov/consumer/your_home/appliances/index.cfm/mytopic=10040

Next month I will post my usage and we'll see what a difference it's making. Have a great day!

Green, Eco-Friendly Building and the REALTOR

Krystal Wade-Selling Real Estate in Montville CT (The Partner Network) — Wed, 15 Oct 2008 22:26:33 -0500

Rising energy costs are causing buyers to think twice about the type of house they want. Here in New London County, we are behind the rest of the state in Green Building, but we are catching up quickly!

If a buyer was looking for this particular type of house 6-12 months ago, with or without the help of a REALTOR, their options would have been limited. They would most likely search the internet and most of the sites they would find are national internet listing sites. There are limited resources for local buyers looking for Eco-Friendly homes.

Although there may not be a lot of demand right now, what we do have are buyers who are interested in keeping their families healthy, who are interested in saving money on energy costs, and who will say that their ‘next house' will be more eco-friendly. Maybe not to save the world, but to save on their energy costs. This is where the REALTOR who is knowledgeable about Green building comes in.

Just like when you purchase a new refrigerator and you expect it to be more efficient than your old one, your buyers will purchase a new construction home and assume it will be more efficient than the drafty one they are moving from. And even though this is usually a fact, that doesn't mean that it's as efficient and energy saving as it could be with the right products.

Unless you have a buyer who has taken the time to educate themselves, this will be where you will come in. You'll need to educate them on the features and benefits of the products that go into a home to make it more energy efficient.

What I have found by meeting with several prospective buyers for Greenbrier, a new community in Oakdale, CT is that they don't always understand what they can't see. Someone can see granite countertops and appreciate it and see the value. But soy based foam insulation vs. fiberglass? Passive Solar? Low-E argon windows? These things and many more will need to be explained for them to see the benefits and the savings for them down the line.

Also something to think about is that Green building is not an all or nothing approach. Buyer's think it's too expensive to build green. Your buyers can customize what they need or what is more important to them, and even keep in mind products they may add on later. For example if your buyer's purchasing power doesn't allow for a Photo Voltaic System now, knowing that they will be installing one down the line will help them make some key decisions while building.

Like so many other REALTORS, I'm still learning. What I have found is that the average buyer wants to save money on energy costs, but needs to be educated on what will get them there. And if building an energy efficient house that saves them money on their energy bill is also good for the environment, it's a great thing.

Visit the website of the above mentioned subdivision at www.arkgreenbrier.com

Till next time!

Krystal

Enough about me, let's talk about you. What do you think about me?

Krystal Wade-Selling Real Estate in Montville CT (The Partner Network) — Wed, 15 Oct 2008 22:19:46 -0500

Just a little background about me.

I live and work in Montville Connecticut. I was transported here (by marriage) from the Mystic/Groton area where I grew up. I was born in Camden, Maine but moved to CT when I was still a toddler and I have lived here ever since.

I am married with 2 sons. My oldest son Brian is in High School and my youngest son Kevin is in middle school. Brian who is 14 is a freshmen this year and has adjusted very well. Kevin is 11 and has Asperger's Syndrome so I'm always interested in issues regarding that as well. Kevin gives me a lot of funny material to write about. So even though my writings will mostly be about Real Estate, stick around on the weekends and you'll see some blogging about the long road to his diagnosis and the challenges, and yes also joy, that he brings to our everyday life.

You'll find me write about Real Estate, Green Building, energy saving tips, working with first time homebuyers (my favorite!), my family (they give me so much material!), local news from Montville, CT, and whatever else fits in.

Enjoy the ride!