Archive for the ‘Education’ Category

5 Things that Turn Home Buyers Off…and What a Seller Can Do to Prevent It!

Wednesday, April 27th, 2011


I’ve been showing a lot of homes recently, and it never ceases to amaze me at how some homes ‘show’ to a potential buyer. Sellers need to understand that they are competing in the marketplace with other properties and their home needs to stand out in order to get an offer. Here are 5 big turn-offs that make a potential homebuyer cringe at the thought of your home, and steps you can take to correct it!

1. Dirty, crowded and smelly houses. Ok so this is a no-brainer, but yet I consistently walk into homes that look like they just had a big party with children and pets and didn’t have time to clean up afterward.

What a seller should do: Only show your house in tip-top shape. Think back on when you looked at homes and how one home stood out above the others. Dishes need to be done and the kitchen counter should be free of clutter. Put the coffee maker, mixer or canister set away for now…even store it in the dishwasher during the day if you have to! Dirty laundry should be off the floor. Rooms need to feel open…take out a piece of furniture from a room and store it if it looks too busy. Remove the figurines and knick-knacks from the desk tops. And above all else, control pet odors. I have had buyers step into a house only to turn around and walk out without even looking at the property because of pet smells. We love our pets, but this is a time that you have to be super-diligent. If you can let someone else watch them while you have your house on the market, great! If not, vacuum often. Clean the backyard and litter box every day. Use Febreeze!

2. Seller in the home. I know you personally want to show the buyer how you just painted your bathroom lime green and talk about how great the neighbors are, but buyers want time alone to talk between themselves or their agent. And what you find lovely about your home may be a negative to them.

What a seller should do: Leave the home for showings. Or step onto the back porch or take a walk around the block (take your pet with you) while a potential homebuyer is looking. If they have questions, they will ask their agent and you will be notified through your agent.

3. Irrational pricing. Yes, you want to make money on your home. And yes, you spent a lot for the new landscaping, you want a trip to Europe and you want to get a certain amount of money from the sale of the house to pay for your new dream home. The next buyer doesn’t care. What they see is an overpriced property in a market where the buyer has their pick of homes. They will just move on to the house down the street that IS priced well.

What a seller should do: Do your research. Get real. Get a few opinions from multiple agents. Hire an agent who knows the neighborhood and the market, and don’t take it personally when they suggest a list price that is lower than you expect. If you owe more than your home will most likely sell for, consider working with your bank on a short sale. If your home needs paint or a new roof, don’t price it the same as the one down the street that doesn’t need those things and still expect it to sell. Go look at homes in your neighborhood and see for yourself what other comparable homes are selling for. Does yours compete? Don’t be tempted to price it higher for awhile thinking that a buyer will lowball you anyway. Buyers are smart and will just wait until the price drops and you become ‘desperate’ for any offer. Price it competitively from the beginning.

4. Photographs of your home. Keep them real. Make them relevant. Buyers want to see the home online before they go see it in person and it should look similar when they do!

What a seller should do: Take a lot of pictures of your home, or have your agent or a professional photographer do it. Post them online. Photos should be clear, in focus, and should show a particular feature of the home. Please don’t show the corner of each bedroom so that the buyer can say, “Yep, that’s a corner!” And don’t take a picture of the laundry room with dirty clothes on the floor, or of the kitchen with food or dishes out. I recently saw a picture in the MLS with eggs in a frying pan on the stove. Obviously breakfast was a priority…not selling their home. Make sure there are plenty of pictures of the outside of the house, the kitchen and the living areas. If you live on a lake or walking path, make sure you have pictures of the views from your yard.

5. Ugly home improvements. Not everyone has the same taste in decorating. I’ve had buyers walk into a property expecting to see these great home improvements that were bragged about in the MLS listing only to have their heart sink when they find that the marble flooring in the bathroom is bright pink, or the new carpet in the living room is a lovely shade of kelly green (and the buyer hates golf). I understand that a seller wants to make these improvements with frugality in mind and maybe the carpet was on sale, but there is a point that you are hindering, not helping the selling process.

What a seller should do: If you’re getting the house ready for sale, check with a professional before making any home improvements. Realtors and Stagers have a good feel for what buyers in the current market are wanting when it comes to colors and materials. They may suggest a few minor improvements that will make a big impact over a major remodel. And remember that neutral finishes will appeal to the largest possible range of buyer tastes.

Now I hope I don’t see these mistakes this weekend when I’m out with buyers! Let’s get them sold!

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What Do the Letters After Your Name Mean?

Thursday, February 10th, 2011

Over the years you’ve probably received a few business cards from real estate agents, or have seen their ads in newspapers or online.

In addition to belonging to organizations such as the National Association of Realtors (NAR), and local organizations like the Nebraska Realtors Association (NRE) and the Omaha Area Board of Realtors (OABR), real estate agents in Nebraska are required to take 12 hours of continuing education classes every 2 years. As part of this education, most agents will do more to acquire certificates or designations relating to the industry.

Some of the most common designations include:

GRI- Graduate Realtor Institute — Developed for members of the National Association of REALTORS® and offered through State REALTOR® Associations, the GRI program includes 90 hours of coursework on topics from marketing and servicing listed properties to real estate law.

CRS- Certified Residential Specialist – Offered by the Council of Residential Specialists, this course requires 60-90 hours of classroom instruction in a variety of real estate topics as well as field experience working with Buyers and Sellers.

ABR- Accredited Buyer’s Representative – Developed by the Real Estate Buyer’s Agent Countil (REBAC), this designation involves a 2 day intensive course, as well as one elective class and actual experience with Buyers in the field.

e-PRO- Developed ten years ago by the National Association of REALTORS® (NAR) the e-PRO® certification program teaches members how to effectively use real estate technology to grow their business and help their clients.

CSP- Certified New Home Sales Professional – Offered by the National Association of Home Builders, this course is designed for specialists in new home sales to increase their knowledge and marketability.

There are others, but this gives you a general idea of the education most experienced agents have. We don’t just get our license and do nothing! We stay educated within our industry with required continuing education classes and designations. We strive to learn more, be a better resource and keep you, our clients, informed.

Sincerely,
Julie May, ABR, GRI

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Technology and Real Estate – Exciting New Ideas!

Tuesday, October 19th, 2010

Last week I attended a real estate technology class hosted by John Mayfield (http://www.realestatetechguy.com). While some of the information was basically simple like how to use social media (Facebook and Twitter), other ideas were exciting and new to me. There are incredible tools on the internet to make a house listing stand out from all of the others.

The one that most intrigued me was the use of QR Codes. Per Wikipedia: “A QR Code is a matrix barcode (or two-dimensional code), readable by QR scanners, mobile phones with a camera, and smartphones. The code consists of black modules arranged in a square pattern on white background. The information encoded can be text, URL or other data.”

Here is mine for this website:
QR Code

By using these types of codes, anyone with a smart phone can ‘read’ the barcode and be directed immediately to any website, YouTube video, Facebook page or anyplace on the web. So think of the possibilities…a QR code on a yard sign of a house, directing potential buyers to a video or visual tour of the home they are sitting in front of. Or a QR code on house flyers directing consumers to the local MLS site displaying all pertinent information on the home. Or consider putting your website’s QR code on the back of your business card to direct clients to your site! It’s such a simple way to get a lot of information out to people without a lot of paper. NP Dodge is already adding QR codes to agent flyers and other tools.

You need to download a quick free application on your smartphone in order to ‘read’ or ‘scan’ these codes. I use ScanLife Barcode Reader on my Blackberry. Try it out…you know you want to!!

Isn’t technology amazing?

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The Reality of Realtors’ Commissions

Wednesday, May 19th, 2010

Many people have been asking me lately how a Realtor is paid, and I’ve learned there are a lot of misconceptions. People think all Realtors are rolling in the dough; because after selling, $150, $200, $300 homes they should be, right?

Wrong.

Commission for Realtors varies, everything is negotiable and they take on all of their own expenses. So let’s look at a basic and rough breakdown of the commission for most Realtors.

Take a commission of 7-percent on a $200,000 home, which would be $14,000.

That $14,000 paid by the seller is then split between the Selling Brokerage and the Buyer’s Brokerage.

Each $7000 is further split down to pay franchise fees (Prudential, ReMax, etc.) – about 7-percent on average.

Then, that $6510 is further split down between the Brokerage and the real estate agent – a percentage agreed upon at the time of hire – say a 75-25 percent split with 75 percent going to the agent and 25 percent staying in house at the brokerage.

At the end of the day, this leaves the Realtor with $4883 to take home.

Like I said earlier – everything is negotiable for a Realtor. The fore-mentioned 7-percent commission is variable, the seller’s and buyer’s brokerage do not normally have a 50-50 split and the end result does not consider the cost of open houses, fliers, signs and advertising that go into the sale of a home.

It is often a misconception that a home sold by an unrepresented seller (For Sale By Owner) will be less expensive and the entire sale will make the seller more money in the end. Often, for sale by owner properties are valued above market value and will not sell at all.

A Realtor values the property at a fair market value and does not raise the price based upon the fact that they need to incur commission, so a buyer will not pay more than the home is worth. In fact, every lender requires an appraisal in order to get a loan, and if the home appraises for less than the purchase price, the buyer can go back to the seller and demand the appraised value.

Each Realtor is an independent contractor and gets paid only when they close on a property. That commission check is a gross payment, before taxes. Independent Contractors pay quarterly taxes on their own to the IRS. This, on top of office fees, MLS fees, Board of Realtor fees, continuing education classes, vehicle expenses and errors and omissions insurance can add up to a big chunk of money directly out of a Realtor’s pocket.

So sure it SOUNDS like we make a lot of money, but at the end of the day after business expenses, taxes and splits with our brokers, we work hard for our money just like everyone else.

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Building Good Credit – Back to the Basics with Simple Do’s and Don’ts

Friday, March 19th, 2010

Building good credit is something that should be taught at an early age – maybe in school along side Home Ec as a basic life-skill. Credit rating has become a hot topic due to the economic downturn, since a good rating is few and far between these days and a bad one can haunt you in all life’s larger decisions – like applying for a mortgage loan.

So, let’s take credit ratings back to the basics with simple do’s and don’ts.

Do pay off your credit card balance – No lender can look past hundreds of thousands of dollars of debt. Keep your credit card balances under 30 percent of your approved credit level.

Do pay all your bills on time – This seems simple, but is one of the most effective ways to insure a good credit score.

Do understand that it is never too late to improve your score – It is never too late to turn things around. Start paying your bills on time and don’t overspend.

Do establish various types of credit – This does not mean to go buy a Mercedes because you need to build credit, or to apply for Target, Younkers, Dillards, Macy’s and JCPenny credit cards. Instead, think about ways you can build your credit – like getting a small furniture loan instead of paying cash up front. Some places even offer no interest for two years. And if you pay it off in time you’ve built credit and didn’t pay any interest!

Don’t make any big purchases if you are planning to buy a house – i.e., car, furniture, etc. – until you’ve closed on the house, because credit is checked again the day before closing. You could be denied the loan.

Don’t strictly pay the minimum balance of your credit card bill every month – Making only the minimum payment each month increases the amount of time it will take to pay off your debt and the amount of interest you will pay.

Don’t cancel your credit cards – Frequent closing and opening of accounts may decrease your credit score.

Don’t completely skip a payment – Being a few days late with a payment isn’t too bad, but skipping a payment all together is detrimental to your credit score. Don’t be lazy, just pay your bill.

Don’t bounce checks – Though your overdraft may not show up on your credit report, most banks have their own system to track customers with bad finance habits.

These may be things you did or did not know before, however, it’s never bad to review the basics. For those who can’t see a light at the end of the tunnel – it is never too late to begin turning your credit rating around.

Buying a home starts with gaining good credit so you will be approved for a mortgage loan. So whether you have bad credit or no credit just follow the basic rules and you’ll be on your way to financial success!

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Staging DOES make a difference!

Thursday, February 25th, 2010

Before

After

Before

After

I was talking with fellow agents in my office this week, and I heard an interesting story. One agent who is also a ‘stager’ of homes, had just picked up a listing that was previously on the market for 5 months with another agent. As she walked through the home, she made suggestions to them about how make their home more marketable. She had them tear down any wallpaper and re-paint with a warm neutral color. They replaced all of their shiny brass light fixtures and plumbing hardward with brushed nickel or oil rubbed bronze. They installed new stainless steel appliances. They also un-cluttered their house by removing a piece of furniture from every room and making sure surfaces like kitchen and bathroom counters were clean and clear of normal everyday ‘stuff’. The results were amazing, and the house has had multiple offers within the first few weeks at a higher price.

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Realtors – Not Your Typical Salesman

Friday, February 19th, 2010

Many people use the terms Realtor and real estate agent interchangeably, not knowing there is a significant difference between the two.

Realtors are members of The National Association of Realtors, and therefore adhere to its Code of Ethics. Most people are not even aware that such a code exists, and in fact consider Realtors to be glorified used car salesmen who are just trying to sell something. But the importance of The Code of Ethics should not be undermined. It enforces lawful and quality practices that clients consider essential when trusting someone to assume the responsibilities related to buying and selling a home. This is not to say that real estate agents do not strive to observe these same practices, but there is no “higher power” that holds them responsible.

If buyers and sellers know and understand this Code of Ethics, they can better understand their Realtor’s practices and establish trust in the quality work they contend with. Clients can ask their Realtor about the Code of Ethics at any time and failure to comply with the code will result in disciplinary action toward the Realtor.

The seventeen articles in the code were created to ensure that the client’s best interest is at heart in all business dealings either with the client or with real estate agents. Duties to customers and clients include disclosure of any fee or financial benefit from a recommended product or service, integrity when dealing with funds and contracts and honesty with all facts relating to property or transactions.

To the general public, Realtors must maintain equal and professional service despite age, race, religion or handicap and be honest about their knowledge base, consistently striving to keep up-to-date on real estate trends. The code also enforces truthful advertising and representation of themselves and their properties.

Finally, the Realtors have a responsibility to one another, outlined in the code as speaking well of one another, respecting the exclusive representation of brokerage relationships of other Realtors and to mediate financial disagreements.

Take a look at a summary of the code yourself. Everything outlined in this document is most likely what the general public hopes and expects of their Realtor or real estate agent.

Knowing a Realtor is held to these standards should give clients a sense of security as they make important decisions concerning their home; and trusting in a Realtor – in their guidance and value of moral law – buyers and sellers should truly know they are in good hands.

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Effective Pricing Ensures More Efficient Home Sales Process

Wednesday, February 10th, 2010

Ineffective pricing is a primary reason why homes do not sell. If a home is listed above fair market value, it won’t get showings; and with few showings it’s not likely to be sold. The seller must see their home from the perspective of a potential buyer and realize it is only worth what someone else is willing to pay for it.

A key aspect of pricing a home effectively is to price it fairly at the beginning of a listing. Sellers run a risk when having their home on the market for an extended period of time, since the bulk of buyers will show interest when a home is first put on the market. If the asking price is initially too high and the home doesn’t sell, potential buyers down the line may wonder why no one wanted the house months earlier.

If, however, a home sells at an above market price and the comparable sales for the last six months and current market conditions do not support the price, the house may not appraise and the sale could fall through. The buyer and seller can renegotiate the price, but there is always a possibility the house will go back on the market.

The best way to ensure your home is priced effectively is to look at current market statistics. Many Realtors do a comparative market analysis (CMA) to analyze homes that have sold, are pending and are active on the market within the last three to six months. Comparing square footage, number of bedrooms, lot size, year built, amenities and several other factors, will help determine a realistic price range.

Research put out by Prudential Ambassador Real Estate shows homes priced within fair market value are likely to attract 60 percent of buyers. The same study also shows that homes priced just 5 percent above the fair market value only attract 30 percent of perspective buyers and homes at 10 percent above only attract 2 percent. Even a small percentage over the fair asking price can cut the chances of selling a home in half.

It’s often difficult for sellers to value their home because they don’t have experience looking at the market. A Realtor will be able to help sellers effectively price their home to make it marketable to potential buyers. Again, a home is only worth what a prospective buyer will pay for it.

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