A Sellers Guide: The Price is Right

A Sellers Guide: The Price is Right

You’ve lived in your home for several years, but now you’re planning a move to a place that better fits your lifestyle. Time to sell your current property, but for how much?

You may tell yourself that you need, even deserve, a certain amount of profit from your home. After all, you’ve kept it up, made some upgrades, and you should be able to get at least as much as yours neighbors did recently, right?

As hard as it might be, you have to let go of any emotional attachments you may have about your home. You have to look at it like a buyer would—like a product in a market. What would someone pay for a home like yours in this market? It’s really not guess work, and a Realtor can help you figure out how much to ask.

Start with a comparative market analysis

Ask your Coldwell Banker Burnet Realtor to give you a comparative market analysis (CMA) for your home. You’ll see what similar homes are listed for in your community. You’ll also see homes with sales pending. Most importantly the CMA will show you how much similar homes in your area sold for in the last six months. That tells you the direction prices are going and at what price your home would likely appraise.

Realtors can interpret the CMA for you in more detail. They can tell you why a home may have sold for more or less than another. They know the dollar value of different features and upgrades and which are most important to buyers. Realtors also know the neighborhood and how home prices can change from area to area.

Time flies—away with your best offer

You might think “I’ll be patient and wait for the price I want,” but a newly listed home will get its most traffic and activity within the first three to four weeks on the market. Buyers and their agents are watching for new listings.

Most people search online for homes within a certain price range. If your home is priced too high, buyers may not even see it. Or, they may pass it by because it’s more than they can afford. Your home may sit for weeks with few showings and no offers, increasing your market time and forcing you to lower the price. By that time, a number of buyers may already found another property.

Ask Liz Sandwick, your Coldwell Banker Burnet Realtor about average time on market in your area.  If your home is on the market far longer, buyers may wonder if there’s something wrong with it. Or, they may believe you are now desperate and they can get it for a steal.

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Stage Your Home for the Millennial Buyer

Stage Your Home for the Millennial Buyer

In 2015, real estate sales sharply shifted toward the Millennial buyer and there are many ways sellers can prepare their home to attract this buyer. Here are ten things Millennials look for, and how to implement them in your home.  

The U.S. Census Bureau reports that for those between the ages of 32 and 44, home owners are beginning to surpass home renters. With the oldest Millennials approaching 34, these young professionals are now first-time buyers and are a demographic that cannot be ignored when preparing your home for sale. There are many ways sellers can prepare their home to attract this buyer. Here are ten things Millennials look for, and how to implement them into your home.

1. Location, Location, Location

Millennials view a home as a base camp from which to explore their world. If your home is within walking distance to any type of shops, cafe’s, restaurants, or within easy transport to a major city, highlight this in your listing to show off the unique characteristics of your area.

2. Updated Fixtures

Millennials, as well as any other demographic, know that kitchens and bathrooms are the most expensive rooms in a house to renovate, and remain budget conscious. While a full renovation is not required, consider small fixes like replacing cabinet hardware, installing a new backsplash, or even painting worn cabinets to create spaces that are clean and fresh.

3. Less Maintenance

With busy lives and time spent away from home, Millennials are looking for houses that are easy to care for and won’t require extensive maintenance. If you’ve recently replaced any major components in your home such as the roof, furnace, or air conditioning unit, let buyers know. Similarly, a yard and garden that is lush with low-maintenance greenery can also be a selling feature.

4. Smart-Home Savvy

Recent research suggests that homebuyers are learning to expect smart technology in their purchases, and this includes their home. Adding a smart thermostat, some USB charging ports, or even just a few more outlets or dimmer switches, may give you an edge.

5. Flow

Even if you don’t have an open floorplan, you can create the open flow Millennials want simply by reducing the amount of furniture in a room, or changing its location to allow free passage from one room to the next.

6. Home Office

With work-at-home options still on the rise, having a dedicated space for an office is essential. Convert a bedroom into an office or create a nook in a larger room with a desk, chair, and lamp to create the feeling of a dedicated space.

7. Energy Efficiency

Today’s first-time buyers are very aware of environmental impact, so using low VOC paints, replacing traditional bulbs with energy efficient models, and replacing worn weather-stripping on windows and doors are all easy ways to add efficiency to the home.

8. Staged to Meet Expectation

With design-related television shows and social media dominating the market, the Millennial buyer desires the latest home trends. One of the biggest returns can come from replacing wall to wall carpeting with a hard surface laminate or hardwood flooring. Smaller changes can be made by shifting furniture around and picking up some on-trend accessories to give your home a modern look.

9. Great Photos

Most buyers make a decision on your home via the Internet. Great photos are a must for any buyer and are essential to getting buyers through the door. Taking photos during the daytime, de-cluttering, and including outdoor photos are all must-dos.

10. Market as an Investment

If your neighborhood is going through regeneration or growth, this could be attractive to the Millennial buyer who, unlike past generations, may not be looking for their forever home. Marketing the potential of your home as an eventual resale can be a great strategy to win these buyers over.

Open House Safety Tips - For Sellers

Open House Safety Tips | For Sellers

Selling your home is a daunting task, and sometimes safety is overlooked when a seller is busy making sure that the interior and exterior spaces of a home are in pristine condition. When it comes to selling your home in Minneapolis and St. Paul, keep private showing and open house safety tips in mind.  As the saying goes, it is better to be safe than sorry.

Why Safety Matters When Selling a Home

When your home hits the real estate market, you are essentially inviting strangers into your house. Selling a home could make you a target for a crime. Burglars may attempt to steal your belongings if they believe you are not home. Others with even more nefarious intentions could attempt to harm you and those who live with you. Moreover, houses for sale may entice vandals to destroy your property. While these circumstances are not common, it is best to keep safety in mind so that you are prepared for anything.

Open House Safety Tips

The National Association of Realtors offers a number of recommendations for open house safety tips. The organization stresses the importance of keeping a charged cell phone within reach at all times and keeping a log of visitors. Sellers or agents should ask visitors to sign in during an open house. The form should have space for visitors to write their phone numbers, full names, and addresses. Try to have an additional person with you during your open house. A family member, friend, or real estate agent is useful for deterring unwanted activity during open houses.

Private Showing Safety Tips

When it comes to private showings, it is important to only accept visitors on an appointment-only basis. Crime prevention expert Andrew Wooten recommends that homeowners and agents alike write down descriptions of vehicles (including license plate numbers) and visitors. This information can be useful in the event of a crime or theft at a later date.

Another tip offered by the National Association of Realtors is to walk behind, not in front of, potential buyers. Rather than leading guests through the house, a seller should direct visitors. This will help you maintain control over your surroundings while keeping an eye on the movements of potential buyers.

General Safety Tips

Those selling their homes should make sure all doors and windows are locked — especially at night time. If you notice unusual activity, such as a vehicle driving by your home multiple times, write down the car’s plate number. You can also ask the police department to patrol your neighborhood more frequently. These requests can be made by simply calling your local department’s non-emergency line and asking for additional patrols.

When selling, be sure to hide valuables in a safe or remove them from your home all together. Family heirlooms or jewelry with sentimental value can be targeted by thieves.  Consult with Liz Sandwick,  your Coldwell Banker Burnet Real Estate Professional to help you determine if an open house is an advantageous way to market your property and then to help you prepare for the same.

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Common Questions from HomeBuyers

Common Questions from HomeBuyers and How I Answer Them

Interesting commentary from a seasoned Real Estate Professional

I find that today’s home buyer is more educated than ever, largely due to vast Internet resources and other technologies that have put the majority of information online. In fact, many of my clients are sending me listings from various sites like CBHomes.com before I even know about them, thanks to listing alerts and real time search engine functions. So in today’s market I field as many questions about a myriad of things as I do about prices and inventory.

What’s on Buyers’ Minds

I find today’s buyers are largely concerned with value and lifestyle. When the market went down, many people were stuck in that “in between property” they never intended on living in for more than a few years, but now could not sell. Everyone felt that the market would continue to go up and selling wouldn’t be a challenge, which we now know is not a guarantee at all.

So today’s buyer is often relying on me — the professional with the inside track on community amenities, retail, market shifts, and overall values — to guide their search to help meet their housing objectives. Many of them are looking at their next purchase as something they will potentially live in for a while, so getting it right is important. But even more than that, today’s buyer wants value in their next purchase. I get a lot of questions about where I see shifts in business and development, especially in the more urban markets, and how I interpret the prices in the area will change over time.

I also get a lot of questions about costs of repairs and remodels. I’ve never sold a house that needed nothing (even new construction), and buyers often ask my opinion on costs to make changes or improvement so they can input that information in their value equation. There is always the question of whether making the improvements will add value to the property, so in that sense my input is often requested.

My Answers

First, it is mandatory that my client relationships are built on trust; otherwise answering any of these questions can be tough. I explain to my buyers that I have market insights and expert knowledge which I will freely share, but that you should always do your own research, too. There are many great tools that I turn my clients on to which can be helpful. Basically I treat home searches as a collaboration more than anything. I do a lot more listening than talking and try to determine how I can best put them in front of properties that meet their criteria and living/lifestyle goals. I answer their questions candidly and work towards getting them the best possible information so they can make an informed decision. After that I allow the property to do the selling.

As for the costs, I always give the big disclaimer that I am not a contractor and will also not be the one performing the work, or making the final evaluation of costs. After making that clear, I offer my opinion based on my experiences, which at this point have given me a very good sense of costs and home repairs through the countless inspection reports I’ve read. As a real estate professional, you always have people and resources to call upon to get specific answers and I always offer the client to get them involved.

In short, I find the home search and buying process to be very similar to dating. For as odd as that may sound, the process is strikingly similar, where my role is to play a bit of matchmaker. Every property (like every person) has strengths, weaknesses, baggage, and appeal. It’s about finding out as much as you can, so you make the decision based on what you are looking for. My job is to help get the client(s) in front of properties that fit their needs and budget, getting them the best information, then allowing the process to unfold. Like I mentioned before, when it’s a good fit I find that the property speaks for itself.

Advice I Give Buyers

First and most importantly, do your research. Be the weekend warrior cruising open houses around town, or be the person doing the regular evening Internet sweep of your local listings, paying special attention to the details. Not for the Realtor’s sake but your own, do your research. This will save time and your sanity, and it will make you a well-informed purchaser and prepared to make a strong offer when you find “the one,” because you will have already painted the target in your mind.

Next I say write down your real estate goals, that they should focus on three major categories — location, description, and price. Using those three categories, compile a wish list of what you want out of each and rank them by priority. Take your list and pick two of the three major categories that you feel strongest about based on the facts you compiled and the subsequent rankings. Realize now that the third major category is going to be your variable. Being organized, informed, and confident are going to make buying your next property an exciting and rewarding process.

7 Seller Mistakes You Can’t Afford to Make

7 Seller Mistakes You Can’t Afford to Make

While the housing market in The Twin Cities is currently seller-friendly, there are still several ways for a homeowner to sabotage a home sale. Here are seven common mistakes that can cost sellers money and potentially ruin a deal.

Sellers are in luck this year. The housing market in Minneapolis|St. Paul and our suburban areas are witnessing extremely low inventory and high demand, which means that some buyers are being forced to compete against each other for homes. While that might sound like it means less work for sellers, that’s not the case.

Here are seven common mistakes that can cost a seller money and potentially ruin a home sale.

1. Ignoring curb appeal. When buyers show up to look at a house, they immediately start deciding whether or not it’s the right property for them. An unkempt lawn and an unwelcoming front entrance can make them view the interior of a home in a more negative light. Pay attention to your home’s curb appeal, and make sure that it’s maintained the entire time your property is on the market.

2. Not ensuring that your home is in the best condition before you list. The high demand might encourage some sellers to list their homes prematurely in hopes that buyers will still compete for it. While inventory is low, that doesn’t mean that buyers will take whatever they can get. Listing your home before it’s market ready is an easy way to ruin your chances with potential buyers.

3. Overpricing your home in hopes that you’ll get a higher offer. Oftentimes, buyers won’t even look at a home if it’s out of their price range, which means that you could miss out on a lot of buyers by pricing it incorrectly. Higher list prices do not guarantee higher offers, but they can lead to extended market time and questions about why the home has been for sale for so long. Some buyers might even see it as an opportunity to offer you less because they assume you’re eager to sell.

4. Not keeping it clean for showings. A showing is an opportunity to connect with a buyer, which means that every single showing matters. Not keeping your home clean can turn off buyers who might not return to see it again at a later date. While your home is on the market, try to keep it in pristine condition. If you know there’s going to be a showing, take the time to do a little extra cleaning to make it shine.

5. Using poor quality photos online. Nowadays, buyers make a decision about whether they’ll even see a house in person based on the photos online. Make sure that your photos showcase your home’s best features. If the photos aren’t great, ask your real estate agent about hiring a professional photographer who can help make your property stand out online.

6. Trying to hide problems from buyers. This can cost you big in the long run. Buyers can (and should) schedule a home inspection prior to the purchase of a home, and any problems that you’ve tried to pass off will be discovered. When they are, the buyers can ask for a reduction in price, require you to fix the problem, or cancel the contract completely.

7. Not hiring a real estate agent. A lot of the work that a real estate agent does is not always obvious to a seller. Trying to sell your home yourself can lead to hiccups in contracts, missed deadlines, and lower offers. Selling your home is one of the biggest financial decisions you’ll make in your life, so let a professional take charge.

It’s a seller’s market, but that doesn’t mean that sellers don’t have to put their best foot forward. Competition between buyers is high, but not all buyers are desperate, and they will pass on your home if they believe that they can find a better option. Don’t risk losing money by not taking the process seriously.

Contact Liz Sandwick,your Coldwell Banker Burnet Real Estate Professional, to analyze all of the options and opportunities available to you for selling your property in today’s marketplace.