Remember just a few years ago if you wanted a cupcake you could get vanilla or chocolate and maybe just a few other flavors in between. Now all you see are elaborately flavored and decorated cupcakes. Today, it’s almost that way with buyers. Instead of a reasonably priced and relatively plain home in a nice area, many buyers have eaten one too many fancy cupcakes and want it all. Homes with sprinkles or a sparkler or two are the ones that sell. 

The buyers we are talking about are young families and adults between the ages of 31 to 45. These buyers are in full course with their careers and are busy with their growing  families and don’t have the time or money to update a house. Watchers of HGTV, they also have strong opinions about design features their new home will include. Take a look at some of these items and ask yourself how your home stacks up if you decide to sell. 

1)    Buyers want a deal! We are in a very price sensitive market and buyers want to know that they are getting the most value for their money. Saying that, Buyers are willing to pay more for homes that are in model home condition but either won’t buy or will discount significantly a home that needs work. 

2)    Kitchens and Baths Sell Homes!  We know many Sellers do not like granite counters and stainless steel appliances but at this moment Buyers do! Bathrooms with dated tile should be updated and older vanities, sinks, medicine cabinets, hardware and light fixtures should be replaced. 

3)    Paint is an Easy Crowd Pleaser! Buyers want a house with a neutral palette to help them imagine their own decorating plans. Plain white, however, is mostly out and “Pottery Barn” colors are in. Wallpaper no matter how expensive and dear to a Seller must go as well as dated carpet. And, if you have carpet over hardwood floors, show the hardwoods. They are in and most desirable. 

4)    Let there be Light! Your brass or crystal Dining Room light fixture is no longer fashionable. Brush nickel and antique bronze are in. And, the overhead light fixtures that you have in your bedrooms and halls for the last 20 years must go. Good news, however, they are relatively cheap to replace. 

5)    Energy Efficiency! While most buyers won’t pay substantially more for  green” and “energy efficient” improvements, they do want to know what it will cost to heat and cool the house and they do question whether windows, doors, the furnace, air conditioner, and hot water heater have been replaced.

 6)    It’s Clean Up Time!  Buyers want a clean house. Not just a house where the beds are made and toys are put away but a house with clean windows, baseboards, siding, and refrigerators. Clean carpets, bathrooms, kitchens and flooring are essential as well. 

 7)    Smelly Houses Don’t Sell!  Any pet odors need to be eliminated, cooking food with strong odors (unless it’s bread or cookies) needs to be avoided, and if you are a smoker, your home will need to be de-odorized and you need to smoke outside-no kidding! If you do plan to sell, do light scented candles or install plug-ins with the clean light and fresh aromas.

 8)    Oh Give Me Land!  Buyers want a home with a connection between indoor and outdoor spaces. So even if your lot is relatively small, landscape it, deck it, fence it or do whatever is necessary to create a perception of another wonderful living area, even if that area is used only part of the year.

 9)    Size Matters! Buyers want more storage space as well as flexibility in the garage. If you have a storage room or area, make it look big by straightening it up and getting rid of anything that you haven’t touched in years or that you don’t plan to take with you. If you have a garage, clear it out so that cars can easily fit in. And if you have a carport, the only thing visible should be your car.

 10)  Beauty Counts! Today’s buyers start their search on the Internet and if they are not impressed by the pictures they see, they are not coming in.  You simply don’t get a 2^nd chance to make a 1^st impression. To help you make your first impression GREAT, call Christine with Team Christine….770-386-0076

Some clients are concerned that home prices may fall further than they already have. They are assuming that the best course of action is to wait for the market to hit bottom and then buy. The problem with this approach is that you don't know where the bottom is until you see it in the rear view mirror, meaning until you've missed it!

Home prices are one factor in determining your cost of ownership, but so are interest rates and financing availability. Rates are near historic lows with a 30 year fixed rate currently around 4%. Since your monthly mortgage payment is a combination of paying down your principal and paying the interest owed, if home prices come down a little further but interest rates up, it could cost you even more to service a mortgage on an identical home when the rates were lower! The fact of the matter is that we do not know how low the market will go or even if it will go any lower, but we also do not know when rates will go back up either.

While a home is a major investment, it is also the center of your personal life. It's important to live in a home that reflects your taste and values, yet is within your financial "comfort zone." To that end, it may be more important to lock in today's low interest rates and low home prices, rather than to hope for a further break in prices in the future.

Please give me a call if I can be of any assistance in determining how much home you can afford in today's market.

In fact, I just released another report that I’ve made available on my website today. It explains the CDPE designation and lists 10 options that homeowners can take advantage of to relieve the stress that comes with owing their mortgage lenders more money than they can afford to pay.

The report also draws a contrast between short sales and foreclosures. Unfortunately, there’s a growing trend of “strategic defaulters” who think it’s smart to let their home go into foreclosure. As any one who follows this blog knows, there is nothing strategic about foreclosure; it’s one of the most long-lasting, negative financial challenges you can go through.

I’m excited about acting as a resource for more homeowners who have questions about what they should do. As always, if you know homeowners who may need my help, have them contact me immediately! Together, we can put them back on the path to financial stability.

 For your free report and more information go to Christine Helps Homeowners

All of the best….

Christine

Aside from the intangible benefits of home-ownership there are plenty of reasons to consider home-ownership now. Home affordability, low interest rates, and a surplus of inventory offers up a great selection of homes, and the ability to buy more home for less than during the booming years. Let’s look at the buying power in the market today. An 1800 square foot, home purchased in 2004 cost about $200,000, and was typically financed 30 years at interest rates around 6%. The monthly mortgage payment was about $1200.00, not including taxes and insurance.  That same house today can be purchase for around $140,000, at an interest rate of 5%, with payments of $751.00 per month… a savings of $449 dollars! But the savings is much greater than just the monthly payment; let’s look at the life of the loan.  If you bought that same home today, your purchase price would be $60,000 less than in 2004, and if you stayed in that home for 30 years with a 5% fixed rate you would be saving $101,080 on interest alone! How does a savings $161,080 dollars sound to you? It sure makes great economic sense to me!  But we are not finished yet… let’s not forget the mortgage interest deduction. That same 30 year, fixed rate 5% loan, with a combined state and federal tax bracket of 33.04% equals an annual tax savings of $1437.00 a year and $43,110 dollars over 30 years. So let’s see $161,080 plus $43,110 equals $204,190 in savings! Please don’t tell me that home-ownership doesn’t make economic sense… what economic savings or benefits will your receive by renting? Home-ownership lives on, and will always be the American dream. The path to owning a home today may have a few more obstacles along the way, but like anything worthwhile in life, it’s a dream worth persevering and working for to achieve.

One more thing… you can calculate the financial benefit of homeownership at bankrate.com, the other intrinsic values are all yours.

Christine Topham, is a REALTOR,GRI,CRS,ePRO, CREO, CDPE, SFR with RE/MAX Highland Realty. She can be reached at christine@teamchristine.com, or 770.386.0076.

Inspecting the physical condition of a house is an important part of the home-buying process. Within the GAR (GA Association of REALTORS) Purchase and Sale Agreement, there is an option for a ‘due diligence’ timeframe. The due diligence clause is the time period which allow the buyer to perform any type of inspections they prefer for the property (home inspection, termite), review the neighborhood, and to secure their financing in order to close the loan. During that time frame a buyer will typically hire an independent home inspector to inspect all major house systems from top to bottom; including the roof, plumbing, electrical & heating systems, appliances, foundation, and drainage. This may take anywhere between 2 - 4 hours and cost from $200 to $500, depending on the location, size, age, and type of home. A buyer can accompany the inspector during the examination, so that they can learn more about the maintenance and preservation of the house, ask questions, and get a real sense of which problems are serious, and which are relatively minor. Most comprehensive reports include numerous detailed photos of the property, with additional details about any existing or potential defects found, and recommendations for repair.

The State of Georgia currently has no educational or licensing requirements for inspectors, so when choosing an inspector it's important to determine their area and level of expertise, years of experience, and their current certifications held, such as; ICC – International Code Council (building code certified), and a member of ASHI – American Society of Home Inspectors, and are they insured and covered for Liability, and Errors & Omissions. Many inspectors are also certified for and offer Radon & Mold testing, and can provide Georgia Wood Infestation Inspection Reports - termite letters. You can also ask to see a sample inspection report, which will give you a better idea of type of report that your inspector will prepare for you.

Some home-buyers will say that they will do their own inspection, or they may want Uncle BubbaLouie to do their inspection for them because all it’s gonna cost is a maybe a 12-pack! Well, don’t count on it! Remember the old saying… “You get what you pay for”, well sometimes you may even get more than you pay for, and not in a good way! Now, no offense to anyone, buyers or sellers, who choose to do their own inspection, but there are many good reasons to hire the professional home inspector. Such as, if you or a friend or relative do your own inspection and something significant is missed or not addressed properly, then you inherit the problem and have no recourse, other than maybe taking you-know-who out behind the woodshed for a little discussion! With a reputable and experienced professional, the chances of something being over-looked are greatly reduced, and in the event there is a mistake (we are all human) then you may have an opportunity for some assistance in rectifying the issue at hand. Even for those with considerable construction knowledge and experience, a professional home inspector can often share new and valuable information about the condition of a property that the “construction guy or gal” hadn’t experienced before or wasn’t aware of.

Many a home-buyer has declined to have an inspection when they originally purchased, only to find out when now, when they are selling their home, that they there were unaware of these existing problems when they originally bought their home. These problems could have possibly been found with a buyer’s professional home inspection, and corrected by the previous sellers. But now these deficiencies have been passed down and inherited, and will most likely be addressed by the new buyer during their home inspection period, and will be asking the seller to correct them.

Christine Topham, is a REALTOR, CDPE, GRI, CRS, ePRO, SFR.

RE/MAX Highlands Realty. She can be reached at www.TeamChristine.com , or 770.386.0076.