real estate: 8 Crucial Questions to Ask Your Listing Agent
- 05/11/20 07:35 AM
One of the best things you can do when putting your home up for sale is to “interview” your potential selling agent. Hiring an agent with the right skillset and expertise will make a huge difference in the success of your home sale.
Here are some great questions to ask any real estate agent you are considering to get a better feel and more insight on if they will do a great job selling your home.
What are your credentials?
You want to make sure the agent you hire is licensed with the state you live and is a member of the local real … (0 comments)
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real estate: What's the Sellers Bottom Line?
- 06/03/19 09:31 AM
I hate having to ask sellers this but there comes a time in a listing when you may need to. I've noticed so many more homes go on the market this last week after Memorial Day and that's pretty typical. It's not a good idea to list on a holiday weekend even though some agents will find the timing perfect and may argue. I don't like listing on the weekend but rather the weekend before. You have a better chance at getting existing home buyers and be one of the first on the market before the big push of summer.
Now it … (0 comments)
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real estate: Benefits of a Traditional Broker Over a Discount One
- 04/01/19 07:30 AM
Everyone wants a discount, obviously. But is cheaper always better? If you’ve lived long enough to know that that is not the case you might be doing a little more savvy shopping these days, especially when it comes to looking for a real estate agent. Places like Help-U-Sell and Redfin have offered real estate brokerage services at a discount for several years using technology to revolutionize the residential real estate business, however, many people have learned a lot from Redfin’s work ethic and strategy in order to implement better customer service for traditional brokers.
Redfin began a little over 10 years ago … (2 comments)
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real estate: How to Check Your House for Storm Damage
- 10/15/18 08:37 AM
It seems like the US is getting hit by storm after storm, whether it's political, or nature, storms can come and go and leave a torrent of damage behind them. With the most recent hurricane down in the Gulf Coast, there have been a lot of people questioning me about the integrity and validity of homes even around the Columbus area. While we may not have hurricanes, we can occasionally have tornadoes and of course, our winter weather can be very unforgiving, leaving fallen trees, split branches, and damaged homes. So, what can you do to check your home for damage … (1 comments)
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real estate: Can a House Fall Out of Escrow?
- 09/26/18 07:14 AM
Interesting question I got this last week about a house falling out of escrow. Once you have an accepted offer on a house, escrow can open until the home "closes" escrow and you can move in. But there are several ways that a home can actually "Fall out of escrow" and you'll want to avoid these mistakes or issues when they arise so you don't lose your home or if you are the seller you don't lose the buyer and have to relist the house.
The Buyer Backed OutThis can happen although it's certainly not a happy occasion when it does. This … (0 comments)
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real estate: How to Handle a Real Estate Counter Offer
- 09/17/18 08:03 AM
The Art of the Counteroffer.
You've made an offer to purchase a property and you sit and wait with baited breath on pins and needles for either acceptance, rejection, or a counteroffer. Counteroffers are very common, especially if you've asked the seller to sacrifice something. Buyers shouldn't be nervous about these counteroffers but should have some etiquette when it comes to responding and negotiating that offer.
A counter offer usually comes back because some terms were not agreeable for the seller. The seller requests additional changes to be made before mutual acceptance can occur. This may be the price, terms, the size … (1 comments)
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real estate: Should We Be Worried About the Housing Market?
- 09/12/18 07:20 AM
Ah, the lovely media. Constantly steering us in one direction or another based on their level of fear and what they want us to believe, but, the housing market is taking an interesting turn this year. I think we all knew that 2018 would be a good year for the real estate market, but are the tides turning? Should we be worried about the future of the housing market?
The Federal Reserve is pushing interest rates higher and of course, this keeps a lid on inflation. Higher interest rates play into home affordability and thus demand. Buyers should keep a tight eye … (0 comments)
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real estate: Fair Market Value? How Much is a Home Really Worth?
- 06/11/18 07:22 AM
It's an interesting real estate market out there. In some markets across the country we are seeing escalation clauses and offers well above asking price but are lenders loaning money on inflated homes? It begs the question, 'how much is a home really worth'?
Fair market value is the price a property would sell for in a perfect world. This is where both the buyer and the seller are acting of their own free will and understand all of the home's good and bad points and could easily choose another home that suits their needs. This perfect world buyer and sellers rain and negotiate … (0 comments)
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real estate: 5 Signs of a Lousy Real Estate Agent
- 05/25/18 07:45 AM
Not all real estate agents are created equal and in today's market, it's even more important that agents go the extra mile on behalf of home sellers and buyers. So how can consumers know they're getting a good agent? Well here are six signs of an agent that's not quite putting in 100% of effort.
#1. No advice given.
Even homeowners that have been through a real estate transaction dozens of times still need a little bit of advice from their agent is now and then. If an agent is not offering any advice and really has no idea what's going on, it could … (3 comments)
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real estate: What to Look for in a Real Estate Team
- 04/05/18 08:13 AM
"Real estate team", this term hasn't been around for very long and I'm not necessarily talking about a group of real estate agents working together to sell a property or help you buy one. I'm talking about the group of individuals that help you get the home you want or sell on time and that includes escrow people, title officers, lenders, and any other parties involved in the real estate purchase. It literally takes a small army to effectively facilitate a transaction whether you're buying or selling.
Financial expert Dave Ramsey says, "when getting help with money, whether it's insurance, real estate or … (3 comments)
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real estate: Don't Look Past the First Offer
- 01/18/18 07:58 AM
I'm sure you've experienced this with buyers in that you look at two dozen homes but they sometimes come back to the very first one you've looked at. The same could be true for the very first offer a seller receives.
Sometimes sellers get a little nervous when they get an offer right off the bat and it almost looks too good to be true. Sellers may think that listed too low or assume that if someone offered this much right away, should we hold out for more? I find that greed tends to step in in the situations and when people … (1 comments)
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real estate: Best Real Estate Predictions for 2018
- 12/07/17 07:32 AM
There is a lot of news going around about the real estate predictions for next year. As 2017 winds down, many of us real estate agents are looking towards the next year to be a very lucrative one. Rates are still reasonably low and many markets across the US are exploding. There's a lot of major markets that have very low inventory with pretty high demand.
Let's take a look at what a lot of economists and real estate companies predict for 2018.
Interest rates will go up about .4% and inventory shortages will drive the housing market. We are finally seeing and … (14 comments)
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real estate: Do You Provide Data or a Story?
- 11/13/17 10:58 AM
People remember a story, they don't remember data. Do you walk into a listing presentation with tons of data, projections, and what you can do for them? Maybe, but you also must have a story. Anyone can spew numbers and data out, not everyone can provide a great story that makes you remember them.
Everyone has a story, especially if you've been in this business for any length of time. Nearly every deal has some unique story, like the time I walked into a vacant house to show my clients with a foot of water in the entire house, or how I … (47 comments)
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real estate: How Real Estate Agents Can Protect Themselves in the Field
- 11/09/17 07:45 AM
I'm tired of hearing about another real estate agent that was murdered, hurt or robbed while on the job. This is a tough business, especially when you are traveling around to vacant homes with unknown people. But, there are ways that we can take care of ourselves and protect ourselves on the field. Adapted from an article on Realtor Magazine, here are some of the main points I took away on how to protect ourselves in the real estate business.
Never do open houses alone.
This might be a difficult thing to do but partnering up for open houses really can protect both agents … (23 comments)
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real estate: What Really Motivates People to Buy or Sell a Home?
- 10/09/17 09:21 AM
You might always think it's money that motivates people to buy or sell. They want to buy low and sell high, but that's not always the case. And, this can really affect how you present your home to potential buyers and what you're looking for a home you want to buy.
#1. A different commute.Maybe it's time to move closer to work, or you've changed jobs and now you need to buy a house closer to your new position. While there's nothing that sellers can do to motivate you to buy their particular house, this is one of the most common reasons … (2 comments)
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real estate: What Change Does and How to Be Successful at It.
- 08/28/17 10:07 AM
Change is everywhere. We have to be open to some type of change otherwise we are stagnant and unteachable. There are basic facts to changing as well and if you want to be successful, you have to learn to change and adapt without sacrificing or compromising your values and true self. So how do we do that? I recently read an article in Entrepreneur magazine that talked about change and the facts that surround positive change and how they are constant regardless of the change happening around you. Here's what I learned.
#1. Change is really about relationships and people. Technology may … (0 comments)
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real estate: Is Amazon Your Next Competition?
- 07/27/17 06:44 AM
Is it true? Is Amazon getting into the real estate game? They're into everything else, it seems; clothing, household, even groceries. I mean, there's not much, I don't think, you can't buy on Amazon. And we love them for that, right? Sure, the small business down the street may be suffering but honestly, they can't stock 19,000 desk chairs or 500 pairs of boots. (Trust me, I do use my local vendors whenever possible) but the reality is, Amazon makes it possible to have just about anything at your doorstep in 48 hours or less.
But a real estate agent? Do I … (6 comments)
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real estate: Stop Making Verbal Agreements!
- 05/24/17 11:46 AM
"Sure, you can have that planter box!" "We'd love for you to keep the BBQ". "I promise this will all be cleaned up by the time you move in". These are only some of the things that I've heard buyers and sellers say in a real estate transaction without getting it in writing. I can't tell you how many times, probably in just about every transaction I've had, where the buyer or the seller has made verbal agreements to something pertaining to the transaction. Now, I'm not saying everybody is going to cheat the other party, but if it is not … (2 comments)
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real estate: Are You Emotionally Ready to Sell Your House?
- 02/23/17 07:22 AM
You can read hundreds of articles about how to prepare your house or property for listing, marketing, and sale but that can be completely different from preparing yourself for the sale of your home.
We can talk ad nauseam about how to create the best curb appeal, do little tips and tricks to attract the right buyers, clean, and stage the property, but how do you prepare yourself to sell your home?
Selling your home, regardless of how long you've been in it, can be an emotional process. Usually, the longer you live in a home, the more emotionally attached you become. You've … (3 comments)
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real estate: Added Protection for Ohio's Real Estate Transactions
- 01/30/17 10:46 AM
Good Funds Legislation for Ohio was signed into law on January 4, 2017, and will take effect April 6, 2017. This is a consumer protection statute designed to protect against fraud and to preserve the integrity of the consumer's funds that are held and dispersed in the real estate transaction.
This was not created for service providers or to provide maximum convenience to the parties involved with real estate transactions but to simply protect against fraud.
All transactions on or closing after April 6, 2017 will require title agents to enforce stricter controls over the handling of escrow and closing funds.
This revised law will … (0 comments)
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One of the best things you can do when putting your home up for sale is to “interview” your potential selling agent. Hiring an agent with the right skillset and expertise will make a huge difference in the success of your home sale.
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