Betty Bondi

How to sell a home in today’s real estate market

 The current economic climate has certainly thrown a wrench in the traditional ways of doing business.

Pricing your home competitively is the most important piece of the puzzle. If you price your home too high, you will not get the traffic to generate an offer. Short sales and foreclosures are at an all time high and unfortunately this is affecting the price of homes in our area. Even though this may not be the reason why you are selling it still suppresses the price of your home.

 Plan your selling Strategy

 After you’ve crunched the numbers and made your decision that now is the right time to sell, come up with a strategy to achieve your financial and personal goals. Pricing your home correctly is the most important step in this process and will affect your ability to sell quickly and smoothly. A professional Realtor can prepare a CMA (comparative market analysis) in order to give you a range of your home value. This is usually accomplished by researching the market in your area.

 After you receive your CMA, the pricing of your home is very important to the success of the sale so you need to be realistic. Know your competition (previously owned homes, foreclosures, new construction) and find ways to make your home stand out.

Market your home strategically and effectively considering incentives. Fairfield County is a buyers market right now, so your strategy will make the difference between stale and sold. Your Realtor should be able to guide you through this process.

 Time your sale to maximize your selling price

 Real estate activity has two distinct peaks during the year — one just before spring and another in the fall. The influx of potential buyers during these periods can help improve your chances of finding a buyer and selling at top dollar.

 The first peak season typically begins in February or March and runs through          
Memorial Day, with house hunters looking to buy homes and move in by the summer. Parents of school-age children need to make cutoffs for enrollment and work to ensure a smooth transition for their children.

The second peak season starts after Labor Day and goes through November. Buyers  are looking for motivated sellers, such as those who missed the spring season or are juggling two mortgages.

 If possible, avoid selling during the winter month unless you have to. Most people are focused on the holidays or Christmas shopping, not on buying or selling a home. However, there is a benefit to this time of the year and that is there are a reduced amount of homes on the market, so there is less competition.

 Staging you home is of utmost importance

 You have a plan and now its time to execute. Prepare your home by cleaning and staging it so buyers can see themselves living there. In today’s market open houses and cookies are not enough to gets buyers interested. Skip the gimmicks and focus on marketing your house effectively. Technology and the internet have empowered buyers, so make them work for you too.

 Start with the outside

 Your lawn and the homes exterior is your first chance to reel in buyers. If they see an overgrown lawn, yard debris or peeling paint they will move on to the next property. Paint and landscaping will make the difference of them coming in your home or driving right past to the next.

 Now the inside

Make sure that your home has a fresh coat of paint. This is the least expensive and most impressive thing that you can do. Get rid of all unnecessary furniture the knickknacks and clutter.  Clean every room until it sparkles.

 Close the deal

 You’ve done all you can to prepare and show your home. Now you can sit back and watch all the offers come in. Not! Offers come in all forms, from the dreaded low ball to the contingency crazy. The key is not to take the offers personally. They are not reflections of your home, they are business propositions.

 Review every offer carefully, evaluate the buyer and negotiate terms so you could come to a deal. A signed contract doesn’t necessarily mean its over. You have to pass the inspections and negotiate more if needed. Once you are at the closing table and all paperwork has been signed the transaction is complete and you can celebrate!

 Betty Bondi
Bondi Realty Group LLC

www.Bondirealtygroup.com

203-899-9990

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First Time Homebuyers – 101

 Doing research on how to buy a home is a serious time investment. There are plenty of ways to get this info on your own. Newspapers are a good starting point to find information by taking a look at the local property transfers. This can help you see what homes have sold for and how much activity is taking place in the town you are interested in. You can also do plenty of research on the internet. This is a great way to start compiling your information. The next thing that you want to do is find a great real estate agent. The best way to do this is through a referral from family and friends or you may meet a great agent through a weekend open house.

 There is no need to be anxious about what comes next. The process can seem so overwhelming. The first thing that you need to do is talk over your financing options with a qualified reputable mortgage broker or bank. You can discuss your down payment options and see which loan programs best fit your needs. Then you will have a starting point on the price range for your new home. Now you are armed with your information. Its time to go home shopping.

 Do you want to live in the city or suburbs? What are you looking for in home? Do you want a certain style? How many bedrooms? What home style do you like? Do you want a ranch, colonial, condo or high rise? Once you narrow this down, take a look and see what fits in your price point.

 Now you go out with your Realtor and start looking. You will probably see a lot of properties your first time out. Don’t get confused. I recommend bringing a digital camera to document each property. You should also take notes and pay attention to the home’s surroundings. Remember the old saying “Location, location, location”. After leaving each property you should rate them right away. This allows you to make an easy decision later.

 You found your home, now what? You make an offer through your real estate agent. There will be some negotiating back and forth. Finally everyone agrees to terms and price. You give a 1% binder check to show good faith that you are serious about purchasing the home. There will be an offer to purchase which has information about the property including dates and contingencies. This is an agreement on paper that will provide the attorneys information to create a binding contract. Next its time to hire a building inspector to look over the property for you and you need to hire an attorney. It’s best if you hire an attorney that specializes in real estate law. If everything is okay you will go to contract the next few days. This will be the legal and binding document that your bank will need to continue processing the loan.

 From this point on the bank and your attorney will contact you and ask you for all sorts of paperwork and documentation to complete the loan process. When you receive your mortgage commitment, its time to start dreaming about paint colors and decorating.

  This year there is the first time home buyers tax credit of $8000 for qualified buyers.

You must have a contract to purchase a home by April 30^th, 2010 and close on the home by June 30, 2010. Eligible properties can be purchased up to $800,000. There are income limits for first time homebuyers. Single home purchaser’s income can be up to $125,000 and married couples up to $225,000. There is a partial tax credit for incomes that are within $20,000 of limits. There is also a tax credit of $6500 for “Step Up” home buyers. These are just some of the basic terms. For more information please go to www.Bondirealtygroup.com and click on Home Buyers Tax Credit.

 2010 is a great time to buy. Prices are affordable and there are many homes to choose from. Mortgage rates are historically low and there is the home buyer’s tax credit. This combination should help stimulate the real estate market for the immediate future.

 Betty Bondi
Bondi Realty Group LLC

203-899-9990