What to Expect from 2014

Can you believe 2014 is almost here? Before we start looking ahead, let's go over what happened in 2013.

First, we saw historically low interest rates despite the increase in May from 3.5% to 4.5%

Second, inventory is still at a 15 year low. Buyers do not have much to choose from.

Third, in the overall market, we've seen a slight decrease in sales, but for our team, we've seen an 80% increase! Thank you so much for your support. Without you, none of this would be possible.

If you have any questions, please give me a call today. Have a safe and wonderful holiday!

Small Things That Can Make (Or Break) Your Selling Success

Small Things That Can Make (Or Break) Your Selling Success

When people decide to sell their home, you might think that it is a matter of connecting with a Realtor®, placing the listing on the MLS and then waiting and watching for an offer to come in. That does pretty much sum it up in a nutshell but there are some important things to consider in the interim that, if the homeowner is not mindful of, could jeopardize the sale. Here is a look at four seemingly little things that could have a big impact on whether or not your home sells well.

Motivation
Until and unless you are motivated to sell your home, there is a strong likelihood of things not going well. If less than fully motivated, some people may not do all they can to present the home in its best light or be accommodating to buyers’ requests to see the home. Furthermore, homeowners that do not feel pressed to sell their home do not take the time to prepare their home, declutter or update the space as would be necessary to attract a good pool of buyers.

Flexibility
Any homeowner that is currently trying to sell their home will say that it is not an easy feat to continue with daily life while constantly preparing the home for showings, leaving when necessary, allowing their agent to host open houses or keeping up the home while it’s on the market. These are all things that require a fair amount of flexibility and without that flexibility there is a fair amount of risk. The risks include a much slower process to get the home sold or worse yet, the home not selling at all! You can be flexible on things other than price, such as closing date, other terms or seller concessions.

Discretion
This is a very important aspect of selling a home that too many people neglect to realize. Whether casually discussing the motivation of your sale to coworkers or mentioning details of a contract underway to someone in the family – disclosing details can and do pose a threat. It is critical to keep confidential terms of the contract and other things that may have an impact on others’ perception.

Stay Neutral
When you set up your home, try to imagine what buyers will be thinking as they walk through. Is there so much personal stuff that they are unable to see past it and envision their own lives in the home? Do brightly colored walls or outdated wallpapered walls hinder a buyer’s ability to see their own tastes fitting in? Be sure to heed your real estate agent’s advice when they share insight as to what buyers would likely respond to.

For more tips on how you can successfully sell your home for more money, in the least amount of time with as little hassle possible, contact us today! We look forward to helping to sell your home!

How to Get the Most Money on Your Home Sale

Welcome back!  If you’re getting your home ready to sell, it’s important to know how to appeal to buyers. What is it that they want to see when they view your home? Here are three important elements of preparing your home.

1.    Paint. You’d be amazed at what a simple coat of paint or touch up does for a home. Remember to stay neutral.

2.    Wallpaper and floor coverings. If you have wallpaper you need to either remove it or paint over it (depending on the condition). If your carpet is worn down, it’s time to replace it. Don’t worry we know some vendors who can help you for a very inexpensive cost.

3.    Landscape. You don’t have to plant all new bushes, just have a well-kept lawn. Trim the bushes, mow the lawn, etc.

These are three easy tips that have a huge impact on the appeal of your home. If you have any questions, please give me a call at 770.396.6100

Thanks for watching!

3 Reasons to Sell Now

Welcome back to my video blog. I have had a lot of people ask whether now is a good time to sell or if they should wait until next year. If you can get your home on the market now, it’s the perfect time for three reasons.

1.    Interest rates are still historically low. While they have increased a bit in the past couple of months, they are still a phenomenal rate.

2.    A lot of people are taking their home off the market during the fall months. That means less competition for you!

3.    In the last quarter of 2012, 7,531 homes were sold. Buyers are motivated to buy during the fall months.

Give me a call so we can get your home ready to list! Thanks for watching!

Selling Your Home During the Fall

Welcome back to my video blog! A lot of buyers and sellers have asked me is it too late in the year to sell?

Well, I have four points to consider when getting ready to sell your home.

1.    Weather: We’ve had a lot of rain lately and it has caused some delays in our market.  The activity that normally happens in May and June has been pushed back to the earlier fall months.

2.    Schools: Yes, school is back in session, so many of the families who were looking to move before then have already purchased their home.

3.    Supply and demand: We have a shortage of inventory, which puts your new home in high demand!

4.    Financing: There is plenty of financing options for buyers to purchase your home.


These are just a few things to consider if you are thinking about selling your home now. Of course each situation is different, so if you would like more help or have any questions, please call me at 770.396.6100! Thank you for watching!

Where are interest rates headed?

Hello again! Welcome back to my video blog!

This week’s theme is increasing interest rates. The recent jump has had a lot of people worried.

Rates have increased by about a point, 3.5%-4.5%. This is a jump, but those of us who bought homes in the ‘80s, we saw interest rates as high as 14%-15%. So 4.5% is still a fantastic rate.

Now, where are interest rates headed? Will they come back down? We really don’t know the definite answer.

If you have any questions about your home or your neighborhood, please call me.  I would be more than happy to help!

3 More Industry Secrets to Maximize the Sale of Your Home

Thank you again for watching my blog! Last time we spoke, we talked about three industry secrets for getting the most money on the sale of your home. This week, I have three more!

The first is ‘stay in front of the market.’ You want to hire an agent who will proactively look for buyers for your home. You want an agent, like us, who has a 96% sale to price ratio and an average of 46 days on the market.

The second tip is to offer flexibility. Be flexible in your terms and possession, more than just price.

The third secret is to choose a good agent. You want someone who has your best interest and will proactively find buyers for your home!

If you have any questions or are ready to sell your home give me a call at 770.396.6100 or send an email to melida@pottsrealtyinc.com 

Thanks again for watching!

3 Secrets to Selling for Top Dollar

The market is on fire! Partly because of the time of year we are in and partly due to the dramatic shift in our marketplace. As of just a few months now, we are completely in a seller’s market where there are far fewer homes for sale than there are buyers. So how does a seller in this environment get top dollar on their property? It’s more than just time of year or general buyer trends; it’s a matter of actively, aggressively going after the best outcome. Here are three tried and true strategies that we use to get our sellers top dollar.

Price Your Property Effectively

We’re not suggesting you set a price lower than everyone else in the neighborhood to get it sold. But we are saying it’s critical to know and understand the market pulse in your area as it relates to today. The key word here is today. It’s no secret that one of the most prevalent methods used to determine market value is by evaluating comparable properties.

Appraisers and Realtors® in general, look at homes sold in the last 6 months to a year when considering values. However, when we are dealing with the drastic change that is our housing market today, it’s important to look at under contract values. This is what shows the truth of what buyers and sellers value in the market right now.

Follow the Laws of Supply and Demand

In any marketplace, whether real estate or otherwise, the basic principles of supply and demand play a huge a role in market activity. With real estate, we tend to see an upswing in activity beginning the spring months and it stays active until the fall when people slow down from their home search. Listings also follow closely with those trends.

When there is increased supply, demand goes down. Conversely, the fewer homes available for sale will dictate increased demand – a phenomenon we are experiencing these days. This translates to the spring and summer markets being better for sellers, with the expectation they will earn top dollar if the home is well priced.

Promote, Promote, Promote!

You can have any number of homes on the market but until and unless the word gets out, they will just sit there. Promotion is the key word and the way you promote your listing is also critical. In today’s fast paced, very NOW world – it is essential to cater to buyers’ needs. That means putting your property on social media, on every syndicated property home search site possible and advertising in other locally preferred ways.

Kick it up one more notch by working with a broker that has an extensive database of active buyers that are just waiting to be matched with the right property. Imagine – finding a buyer that is willing to pay over and above your asking price because your home is exactly what they’ve been looking for!

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The first step to getting top dollar on your home is to know and understand your local neighborhood’s buying and selling trends. Contact us today for an updated market analysis that’s catered to your locale. We’ll give you real time values so you can move forward with your listing with all the leverage you need to come out on top!

Seven Things You Can Do to Help Your Appraiser Come Up With a Strong Number

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These days, a lot depends on how an appraiser thinks your home (or the one you are purchasing) is valued. Whether you are having an appraisal done to appease the lender for a new purchase or if you are getting your existing home refinanced – it is very important the numbers line up. If the sale price/refinance amount does not line up with what an appraiser thinks the home is valued at – you can expect to face some pretty hefty challenges.

So to help make the appraisal process as positive and frankly, as much in your favor as possible, here are some tips to get the ball rolling in the right direction:

Request a Local Appraiser
Lenders commission independent companies to go out and evaluate homes, then provide them with reports. Many of these companies are regionally based or in some cases national firms. By requesting your lender to hire a local person, you can count on that appraiser to provide a more accurate number.

Don’t Hesitate to Make Their Job Easier
Provide as much information as possible, including area comparable properties, well-documented evidence of all improvements made to the home and other helpful items such as blueprints or recent surveys, etc. Not only will this make their job easier, but also it will help to support your case on why the home should be valued higher than if they did not take those things into consideration.

Renovate and Remodel Carefully
Whenever considering a remodel project on your home, consider the potential return on investment for each project. By far, kitchens and bathrooms yield the strongest return on dollars spent for improvements.

Keep Up-To-Date With Citywide Improvements
If you know of any new developments, projects and citywide improvement schemes, share them with your appraiser. Current knowledge of these things will only help to enhance your appraiser’s valuation of your property, keeping in mind that these things typically bring up the value of a home.

Pay Attention to Your Surroundings
Just like a homebuyer or anyone else that walks through a home, there is a lot to be said for perceived value. An easy way to steer your appraiser’s attention to the more attractive features of your home is to be careful not to let them be distracted with unsightly aspects. Keep your spaces clear, clutter-free and updated. Most appraisers do not spend too much time in a home and first impressions can do a lot to influence an appraiser’s opinion of a property.

Don’t Hover But Be Available
In case the appraiser has any questions, it is a good idea to be around to be able to answer them. But it is just as important not to hover and crowd around the appraiser, rather give them space to do their job without feeling cornered. They will appreciate this and also likely be more lenient when not stressed during an evaluation.

Know the Difference Between Above and Below Grade Square Footage
Just as certain improvements to a property yield a higher ROI, it is important to keep an eye on value as it translates through above grade changes verses lower level enhancements. In other words, keep in mind that a finished basement will get you a certain percentage back on the money you put into it, but the end value will not be impacted as much as had you expanded the main levels of the home.
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Keep in mind, as our housing market continues to improve – we will tend to see more and more appraisals that may not reflect upon the current trends. This is primarily as a result of them using past sold data that may easily be a fair amount off from today’s prices.

For help with finding good comparable properties, rather than relying on outdated data from the Internet, contact us today. And as always, we welcome the opportunity to serve your every real estate need.

Assessments Coming to a Mailbox Near You

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To determine the property tax that is due, a city assesses the value of your home. At this time, all counties, such as Fulton, Cobb and Forsyth, are sending their assessments to homeowners. A few points we wanted to share with you include the following:

1. There was a formula error in Fulton County’s assessments so their assessments were, of course, figured incorrectly.
2. Remember the assessment is not a bill.
3. Compare this year’s assessment from Fulton County with last year’s to ensure the millage is the same.
4. Although we’re not tax accountants, we know about property taxes in our area so call us if we can be of any help.

Remember, the city’s assessment often doesn’t correspond to the true value of your home. Real estate agents use a different method—the comparative market value approach—to value a home. The realtor comes up with the value by looking at similar homes sold in the past 6 to 12 months to tell you what you can expect to get out of your home. This is a more accurate approach.

If you’d like us to let you know your home’s value or if you’d like to learn how to be successful in this market, please call us at (770) 396-6100 or email us at Melida@PottsRealtyInc.com.

Not Enough Supply for Current Buyer Demand

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For the longest time buyers have been able to enjoy a strong buyers market, particularly after the housing industry crashed in 2007 causing prices to plummet and too many homes on the market. But today it’s a completely different story and sellers are the ones enjoying the benefits with fewer homes than ever before for sale.

Buyers Competing Against Each Other

Buyers are pulling out all the stops when it comes to getting the home of their liking. In some areas, we are seeing so much competition that sellers are selling their home at or above their asking price. So much competition can only mean good things for sellers and now is the time to seize the opportunity!

Multiple Offers and Bidding Wars Are Back

One result of all the competition faced by buyers these days is multiple offers on one single property. In fact, some sellers are seeing more than two offers on their home. The advantage of course it they can demand more money and another advantage of this market for sellers is that their home will likely sell quickly.

Sellers Can Be Choosy Again

Nicely done homes that are in great locations and are priced right are getting a lot of attention. With all that attention and multiple offers comes the opportunity for sellers to be picky. When a cash offer with no seller concessions requested is compared to an FHA or RD loan that might take a lot of extra time to process – the options are comforting for sellers.

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If you have been on the fence about selling your home – trust me, now is the time to think again! Not only will you likely sell it faster but also for more money and without much hassle. Contact us today and we’ll get right to work helping you sell your home with success!

770-396-6100

melida@pottsrealtyinc.com

How Do You Know You've Picked the Right Real Estate Agent?

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All real estate agents are not created equal.  They may have access to the same systems, the same information and market data, similar industry tools used across the board and universal access to government agencies that house important data that may be relevant in helping you sell your home.  So what sets apart the successful ones from the bad apples?  It is how they use the things that are at their disposal – that is what makes all the difference. 

Now, unless you are completely well versed in the process of home selling and real estate, chances are you may not know all the ins and outs of these tools.  So how can you measure the success rate of potential agents you may or may not want to work with?  The answer lies in three important metrics that you can easily employ to help you make that decision.

Does The Agent Have a Proven Track
Record?

Anyone can tell you they are good.  They can even show you a few case studies that support their statement.  But the best way to tell whether the performance is up to par is to measure how they do and have done during the good times and the bad.  These days, in light of our challenged market of the past several years, it is the perfect time to assess the track record of agents you may be considering.  Do they have sales that average one every few months?  Is this metric standard for all their years as an agent or reflective of the more recent hard times? 

What Is The Agent’s Marketing Strategy?

In real estate, the marketing has traditionally not been as aggressive as other areas of investment.  Lately, however, there has been an increase in more aggressive techniques that more often than not lead to success for several reasons. Agents typically adopt passive marketing measures – industry standards – such as MLS listings, conducting open houses, using the Internet for localized promotion as well as word of mouth.  However, the newer brand of marketing is active marketing.  This entails a “reach out and grab prospects” approach and while it may seem pushy, the results are worth it.   The difference between an agent opting for both styles versus just the one, traditional method, can be as significant as landing you a better offer in quicker time with a bigger selling price.  The presence of an additional offer on the table raises the stakes, making all these things possible and far more probable than if there was just one offer on the table.

What Does The List of References Look Like?

Of course you will be provided a list of references while shopping for a new agent.  And of course the people on that list will have good things to say about the Realtor.  But consider this: what agent will give you a list of people that don’t have something nice to say?  A good way to approach what could be a gaping hole in this area is to ignore the list provided to you and instead, request a list with names of people the real estate agent is either currently working with or with whom he or she has recently closed a sale.  Then, ask the key questions to help guide you whether this is the right agent for you:  Are they timely?  Is the agent accessible? Do they deliver on the promises they make?  What were the results of each case?

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At the end of the day, the goal is that you sell your property and sell it well. Selling it well can translate to a higher price, more efficiently managed procedures, smoother and streamlined process, and an overall quicker turn around time.  By following the suggestions in this article, you will be able to discern the best agent in your area to handle your specific needs.  Half the battle of selling your home is in choosing the right agent to help you achieve your goal.

Are Bi-Weekly Mortgage Payments Worth the Time and Effort?

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In most cases, yes! It’s essentially a process by which you make extra payments on your mortgage. That way, you save interest costs and pay off the loan faster.

How Does It Work?

You make a payment to your lender every two weeks instead of once a month. This means that each payment is equal to half of the monthly amount due. The result – you’re paying the equivalent of 13 full payments rather than the usual 12.

It gets even better! The full amount of the extra payment is applied toward the principal. And because the principal balance is the amount on which interest is calculated, paying down principal results in a reduction in accrued interest!

Let’s look a traditional payment monthly schedule vs. a bi-weekly schedule so you can see exactly how it works.

Example 1: Traditional monthly payments

Let’s assume you have a loan balance of $250,000 with a 6 percent interest rate and a 30-year loan term. In this example, your monthly payments are $1,498.88. So, over the life of the loan, you’d pay a total interest of about $289,595.

Example 2: Bi-weekly payments

Using the same loan balance and terms described above, the difference would be the following:

• $749.44 paid every two weeks

• About $225,490 paid in total interest

• This results in a savings of more than $64,000 in interest!

• In addition, the loan is paid off in 24 rather than 30 years

Bi-monthly payments are still a good strategy if you’re an individual who doesn’t plan to keep your house for 24 or 30 years. Why? Because bi-weekly payments still reduce principle, even over a short period of time.

For example, in the first year, the principle is reduced by nearly $1,600. And, at the end of the fifth year, the principle amount has been reduced by about $9,000!

How Do I Arrange Bi-Weekly Payments?

The first task is to contact lenders to find out if they do offer a bi-weekly payment schedule.

If they offer one, ask what the participation requirements are. In typical situations, lenders require you to have payments automatically withdrawn from your bank account since they dislike processing checks every two weeks.

Often, it’s the case that a one-time fee is charged for this service. The fee can be minimal or be in the several-hundred-dollar range, depending on the lender.

So, after all these benefits, how can there possibly be disadvantages to bi-weekly mortgage payments?

Well, the first disadvantage relates to a situation I mentioned above - the lender’s fee is very expensive for the service provided. In such a case, the costs may outweigh or cut down your overall savings.

A second disadvantage occurs when paying bi-weekly is too hard on your budget. Upfront, you need to make sure that you have the money available for the increased payments.

The final potential disadvantage relates to the length of time you plan to stay in your home. That can affect your overall savings on interest.

I recommend that you weigh the pros and cons of bi-weekly mortgage payments by using one of the many online calculators. Just enter your numbers and the calculator will give you a comparison.

If you’d like the assistance of an expert on the subject, contact us immediately!

Atlanta Market Update 2012; Sellers Gaining Ground

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Things have been moving along quite nicely in the northern part of Atlanta and today, as we report on the real estate market for 2012 – the numbers look promising. As we continue to move into 2013 it is very clear that we expect strong sales, unprecedented activity in the marketplace and favorable conditions on both sides of the fence.

Distressed and Equity Sale Divide Grows Wider

Looking at the number of properties that were sold, including single-family homes, condos and land sales – we had a total number of 26,825 properties sold in 2012 just in the northern part of Atlanta alone. Of those properties, a very significant 75% of them stemmed from sellers that had equity in their homes as opposed to being in distressed situations.

Fewer Distressed Property Sales in 2012

Just 25% of the total sold properties represent distressed properties (foreclosures, short sales and bank-owned properties). Taking a closer look at the distressed inventory that sold during 2012, we reported 12% foreclosure sales at 3,259 properties sold, there were 2,838 short sales that represent 11% of total sales and HUD homes accounted for 3% at 642 properties sold.

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What this means for you as a seller is that things are becoming much more favorable to you, giving you far more flexibility in the marketplace and of course the ability to gain top dollar for your home that will likely sell quickly.

If you would like more information on how we can sell your home for you – or if you are a buyer looking to seize the amazing opportunities today’s marketplace presents, please contact us today! We look forward to helping make your real estate dreams become a reality!