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Why You Should Work With a Realtor

by | Feb 28, 2019 | Moving, Moving Tips, Real Estate Tips, YourHome

Working with a realtor to buy or sell a home is not only a good idea, it will take most of the stress out of the process. From dealing with the financials to writing contracts that protect you in the transaction, working with a realtor is an important first step to having a successful sale.

10 Reasons why you should work with a realtor:

 

1. Hiring a realtor will ensure your property is listed at the right price, as a result it will help it sell faster.

 

2. Presenting your property in the best manner is also vital to the sale, from staging to pricing, a professional can help direct you in this process.

 

3. Exposure is key. Realtors work for you, ensuring that your property has the proper exposure, from open houses to social media.

4. Working with a professional will ensure your contacts are signed and initialed correctly so there are no hiccups at closing. Working with a realtor streamlines the entire closing process and allows you to just show up at a scheduled time.

5. A realtor will schedule showings and appointments to see the property, all while keeping you in the loop on any progress.

6. Hiring a realtor gives you the peace of mind knowing that a professional ‘has your back’ and is working diligently to meet your needs throughout the real estate transaction. Have questions on any part of the process? Your realtor is there to help.

7. Typically, higher price offers will be presented when working with a realtor, resulting in your property selling at top of the market.

 

8. Negotiations and inspection issues are addressed by the realtor, therefore taking that responsibility off of you.

 

9. Closings are sped up when working with a realtor.

 

10. A realtor will have current market knowledge, knowing what homes have sold for in the area, therefore ensuring you have it priced correctly.

Need more information?

5 Reasons to NOT accept an offer

by | Sep 20, 2017 | Real Estate Tips

You have been preparing for months.

You did everything you could to make your home the best it has ever been.

You decluttered everything, took down all the cute photos of your kid’s, painted,

cleaned, yard work every weekend, and now the home is on the market.

After a few days on the market you get an offer.

It’s a great price, but you what else should you worry about?

 

Here are the 5 reasons to NOT take that offer

 

 

The buyer isn’t qualified

It is great if a buyer wants to pay full price for your home, but how do you know if they can afford it? First, they need to submit a pre-qualification or pre-approval letter with their offer. If they didn’t send it with the offer don’t respond until they have provided it. Keep in mind, that not all financial institution’s pre-qualification letters are created equal. There are online banks that buyers can submit some of their information and it will automatically generate a pre-qualification letter. It is best for your agent or yourself to contact the lender directly and verify they have submitted the proper documents (at a minimum pulled a credit report and received income verification) to the lender.

A pre-approval letter is better than a pre-qualification letter. With a pre-approval the buyer has submitted all their information and it has been underwritten by an bank underwriter. It is always preferred to have a pre-approval whenever possible.

The offer is contingent upon them selling their home

If the buyer has to sale their home, you may not want to take the offer. Your timing and how quickly they can sell their home should be taken into consideration. If their home asking price is reasonable for the area should also be a deciding indicator. For example, if they live in a $350,000 neighborhood, but in order to buy your home they need to sale their home for $450,000. This might not be the right buyer for your home. By waiting for them to sale their home, you may miss out on other potential buyers for yours. You should evaluate all the details of their sale before accepting their offer. We deal with these offers all the time, and most work out. However, we always do our homework first on the entire situation.

Not enough earnest money

Earnest money is what buyers put down to show they are serious about buying a home.  Earnest money can become liquidated damages if the buyer backs out. Most contracts have contingencies for retaining a buyer’s earnest money, like home inspections and financing. However, if the buyer simply decides to not buy the home after those contingencies are met, the seller can take the earnest money as damages. In most cases earnest money is not left to forfeit, but if it is, the more the better.  There isn’t a specific amount that is an official standard, but we generally see around 1% of the sales price as a fair amount.

Long closing or contingency dates

These days most homes close within 30-45 days. My wife and I sold our first home before we were agents, and the buyer had a 60 day close. The buyers wanted to close at the start of the school year. We took their offer and after 58 days they backed out. We wasted an entire summer “off market” waiting for their closing date. In the end, we took an offer $10,000 less than the first, a few weeks after putting it back on the market.

Unreasonable inclusions or repair requests

Sometimes offers come in and the buyer wants to include some personal items. Maybe you have a desk that fits a space perfectly, or a nice hot tub in the back yard. These items can be included in the purchase if you don’t want/need the hot tub or desk. However, if they want the kitchen table, living room sofa, and the family dog, you may want to reconsider their offer. Sometimes buyers feel like they need to have everything “upgraded”, especially if the home you are selling is older. As a seller you don’t need to “upgrade” your home if it is priced correctly.

 

At the end of the day the buyer and seller need to agree on price and terms. We recommend you think of the big picture and ultimately consider your goals.  If you have any questions about buying or selling a home, please feel free to email or call us anytime.

3 Factors to Consider Before Choosing a Real Estate Agent

by | Apr 26, 2017 | Real Estate Agent Tips, Real Estate Tips

3 Factors to Consider Before Choosing a Real Estate Agent

Salt Lake City real estate market is thriving right now. The pandemic didn’t seem to affect much the real estate market here, unlike other states of our country that are going through a rough time.

In an environment like that, a decent real estate agent should be easy to find, right? Wrong.

Just because you’re in a thriving market doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t do your research. Every booming market has its share of subpar agents hoping to ride the wave to success.

There are a lot of factors to consider when choosing a real estate agent, and many traits to look for. We’ll talk about a few of them in this article.

1. Communication

The mark of any good business person is the ability to listen. Communication is key and everyone benefits. It’s much easier to sell to a client if you know what they want.

For instance, why are you buying the home? Are you moving into it, or is it an investment property? Your answers may change how the agent approaches and handles the case.

Nobody wants to live in a dirty, run-down house. However, if you’re looking to resell, it might not matter. You were likely planning to spruce up the home anyways and sell it at a profit.

But it’s about more than talking and listening. It’s about understanding how you communicate best. Most people prefer to text, email, or call on a cellphone when they want to reach someone.

You’ll need to be able to contact each other quickly. This will help you buy the house you want before someone else does.

2. Experience

Finding an agent with experience can give you a significant advantage. They know how the market works.

They can help you up the price of your current home, negotiate the price of a prospective home.

Experience also means that they’re good enough to keep their job. Even so, it’s best to ask questions before deciding on an agent.

How often do they make sales? Do their clients’ houses sell at a high price? Do they end up buying homes at a reasonable price?

3. Others Recommend Them

There’s usually nobody we trust more than our family and friends. They’ve done a lot for us, so when they offer advice, we pay attention to it. For this reason, they may be the best place to start when looking for real estate agents.

It doesn’t have to be those close to you. Every opinion you can find may help. Read reviews and see what previous clients think of them.

Choosing a Real Estate Agent Who’s Right for You

Choosing a real estate agent can be difficult because a lot goes into finding the right one. We’ve offered some advice on what to look for in an agent, but there’s more to consider. You may want to do more research to make sure you’re prepared.

For more articles on real estate, especially in the Salt Lake City area, please visit our site. Are you thinking of buying a home in Salt Lake City? We’re here to help.