Are you
behind on your mortgage payments? Does it seem that you have no way out and a
foreclosure is inevitable? Well before you give up, consider a short sale. In
fact, now may be the best time for you to sell your home as a short sale
because of what may be soon to come. Banks are filing for foreclosure faster
than ever before – and this comes at a time when many homeowners with
underwater mortgages have become complacent, expecting more time.
Not only
should you put your home on the market now as a short sale to avoid a
foreclosure but also, making the move quickly could possibly save you thousands
of dollars in taxes.
Right
now, and through December 31, 2012 any forgiven debt may be discharged under
the Mortgage Debt Forgiveness
Relief Act. What
this means is that any money you are discharged from paying back that would
otherwise be considered as income by the IRS, is exempt from taxation through
the program period. But as soon as January 1, 2013 rolls around, unless the
program is extended, you would have to pay taxes on that “income”.
So if
you are behind on your payments and it seems the bank is getting antsy, take
this advice: consider short selling today.
We deal
with many of these and would be happy to sit down with you to discuss your
options. Contact us today!
Join us from 10 A.M. to 2 P.M. Saturday, October 6th and help us fill our 20-foot moving truck with non-perishable food for the Harford County Food Bank. We will be located in the Greenbrier Safeway Shopping Center just off of Route 22. Diane Lyn from 101.9 Lite FM will also be there giving away great prizes. So come on out and support your community. We hope to see you there! Click here to see the flyer and find out all of the details on how you can join our team to help feed Harford County. >>
It’s very common to want to overprice your home but the truth is it can really backfire. It is important to make sure you are getting good market statistics that accurately depict the goings on of your marketplace and once you have those numbers that you use those statistics in determining your pricing benchmark. Since real estate is very local, anything that goes on in the next state or even the next region may not have much impact on your particular neighborhood. In fact, within one area there may be several different results when looking at and studying buyer trends and habits.
Have an Appraiser Evaluate Your Property
One of the ways we suggest sellers get an idea of what they might expect for their home is to get an appraisal done on your home as that will likely provide a true estimate of the home’s value. At the time of purchase, lenders will require that a buyer have an appraisal done anyway. Getting one done ahead of time will not only help to determine your price but also serve as a tool to corroborate the price you set during negotiations.
Get a Comparative Market Analysis
Another excellent tool used by those in the real estate profession to help determine the right price range for your home is a Comparative Market Analysis. Your real estate agent will do an in-depth analysis of all the similar homes in your area that have recently sold. Considering the previous six months’ sold homes, they will end up at a price based on what the market will likely accept.
Accurately Priced Homes Sell Faster
It is not an easy feat to have a home on the market with all the showings, keeping the home in tip-top condition and presentable as well as the uncertainty factor of not knowing when the home will sell. That is why the more accurately you price your home to begin with, the faster it will sell and the more money you can expect to get for the home.
Keep in mind that buyers these days are usually already well into their buying cycle, particularly since they are using the Internet and other resources online to conduct thorough searches of available properties. Chances are that by the time they make it to your home, they have already looked at many other properties and probably any that were for sale in your neighborhood. These are the buyers that make offers on properties quickly and they are most serious.
To have a home that is overpriced is a missed opportunity especially if you are serious about selling and want to sell as quickly as possible. That is why it is critical to price it right the first time.
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If you would like to evaluate what your home would sell for in today’s market – contact us today and we would be glad to assist you with the process.
One of the most common things we hear as top-producing real estate agents is about how homeowners had neglected to properly interview the agent they had for their home. To help avoid that from happening, here are some factors to consider before you hire a real estate agent to sell your home.
Amount of Time Devoted to Profession
The real estate industry is one that can be very flexible for some yet completely encompassing for others. Your challenge will be to look for an agent that has made the profession their full-time career. The difference will be in the amount of time you can expect them to give you and the expertise level you can expect in return.
Level of Demonstrated Expertise
Experience comes from working with multiple clients in many different situations. As you interview prospective agents, take the time to inquire about past and current clients. Find out about the types of deals the agent specializes in. Are they specifically geared toward buyers or do they have experience with listing transactions? Don’t be afraid to check whether they are good at their job through references.
Length of Time Other Listings Remain on Market
Look into the length of time other listings they have taken have remained on the market. If you see a predominantly long number of days their properties sit on the market then it might indicate a lax marketing strategy – or worse, none at all. Marketing is a key component that you should be looking for and if a prospective agent lacks a viable marketing plan, you may want to think twice about that agent.
List to Sale Ratios
A lot of agents use less than scrupulous tactics to gain sellers’ business. One example is promising their clients higher selling prices only to disappoint their clients when the market dictates their home is worth less. Look for an agent’s list-to-sale ratios on other listings they have had. Are they being sold at or at least very close to the listing price? If not, it could be an indication of bad pricing advice or worse, evidence of those sneaky tactics to reel in business.
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Keep in mind that these are just a few of the things that impact the success rate of a strong real estate agent. What you need also to be looking for is a winning combination of character, values, tech-savvy and market-smart techniques. No two attributes will be enough – rather it is essential that you feel comfortable with your agent, can trust them and are fairly certain that they deliver on their promises.
We are seeing a lot of activity in our marketplace. A very positive thing for sellers – something that many have been waiting for since the market crashed in 2007. Homes are selling very fast – our average Days On Market is now at 26 days and new listings are selling quickly and with good results.
Well-Priced Homes Getting Top Dollar
The key to quickly selling properties is often the way it is priced. We are reporting a lot of properties that are priced to sell and those are the ones that not only get top dollar on their homes but also experience multiple offers, giving sellers an edge over buyers. Another factor that impacts the outcome is that buyers today are savvier than ever before so they recognize a property with a realistic (or unrealistic) price.
Inventory Continues to Dwindle
We are seeing a significant reduction in inventory this year over last – with as much as 30% fewer homes available on the market in Baltimore County and anywhere from 20 to 25% fewer homes on the market in Hartford County (depending on the month). What this means for sellers is that they are enjoying less competition and therefore can expect a higher list-to-sale ratio. For buyers this means there are fewer properties to choose from so it is imperative to be decisive and take action on properties of interest.
Strong Showing Homes Selling Faster
Homes that have been de-cluttered, neutralized and enhanced to suit a wide range of buyers are the ones that are selling the fastest. The idea is to allow buyers a chance to visualize themselves in the space – so the fewer personal items and more “blank slate” décor that is used, the better your selling prospects will be.
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For a customized consultation to evaluate your real estate goals and how we can assist you, contact us today at 410 638 9555 or email at lee@leetessier.com. We look forward to the opportunity to work with you!
