tips: Staying involved in the Inspection Process - 05/02/08 08:41 AM
First rule of inspecting a home you want to buy is to stay intimately involved in the process, and to leave no stone unturned. If you're busy or traveling during the time period, you have to complete your due diligence investigations by enlisting the aid of a friend you trust to stand in on your behalf -- someone who will keep you well informed as inspections proceed. Buyers want to be sure they get a good deal on the home they buy. This is especially so if they're buying in a soft market. Whether a property is a good deal depends … (0 comments)

tips: Inspections... - 05/02/08 08:39 AM
Inspections are an important part of home buying, but the inspection process can be nerve-racking for both buyers and sellers. Both parties want the deal to go through without a hitch. However, sometimes problems surface that the buyers weren't aware of when they entered into contract. All houses have defects, even new ones. So it should come as no surprise when defects are discovered. The pertinent issues are: Is there a problem? How serious is the problem? How much will it cost to repair? A home inspector may have a contractor's license. But, few inspectors also are engineers, architects, and plumbing, … (0 comments)

tips: How much is a view worth? - 05/02/08 08:38 AM
How much is a view worth? Here is an excerpt from a MSN real estate.
 
It's a power thing
Real-estate market analyst Ernest V. Siracusa Jr. is experienced in pricing views in Southern California. He works for subdivision builders and developers, advising them on how much their new homes can sell for -- and how much more the same place with a panoramic sweep of the hills can command.
What makes people pay so dearly for a view? It's status, for one thing, says Siracusa, and the quiet and pleasure a view affords. Californians are particularly view crazy, he … (0 comments)

tips: Fix it Up - 05/02/08 08:36 AM
Sellers who anticipate losing money if they sell their home may wonder why they should spend a dime fixing the place up for sale. Isn't this throwing good money after bad? Even sellers with plenty of equity in their homes often figure the way to get the most out of the sale is to cut sale costs to a minimum. This attitude is directly contrary to the notion that the way to make the most money on the sale of a home is by pricing the property appropriately for the market, and by making cost-effective improvements that will result in a … (0 comments)

tips: How To Handle Low Ball Offers - 11/02/07 08:13 AM
How to Handle Low Ball Offers
If your house has been on the market for quite a while (3 to 6 months), you may have already dropped your price and now you're waiting for the buyers to rush in and make wonderful offers on this now-priced right property. And then it happens. The lone buyer does appear, like a bandit in the night and offers you even less than what you just agreed to. Quite a bit less -- about 10 percent less. So on your $350,000 house, that you just dropped to $324,000, you now have an offer for $299,000. With … (1 comments)