Smarter Market Info

I have been shopping for a security systems for 10 days now and I finally purchased one that seems to fit my bungelow, my family and our livelihood.

We looked through four different alarm companies to receive the lowest cost alternative as opposed to the most big-ticket selection. I must say, that I was surprised with most of the websites we faced at but one stood out above the rest and that was www.familyhomesecurity.com. Their home security data was great, eye opening and clearing up. I wish they were a company that set up security systems themselves because I know it would be done very well and with much of care to cleanliness.

What made it a loose experience? Well, we had a break-in 6 weeks ago that wasn’t very fun. Luckily, we were away of town and they simply removed jewelry and dollar bills. Now there are babies in the house and a mass more worthwhile stuff like figurers, electronics, and above all – family and family memories and pic. We simply needed to find the greatest security system that we could all use and feel stable with. It was emphatically time to receive one this year.

So, how did the family determine the appropriate alarm system? We got going by seeking ‘home alarms’ on the search engines, then grazed nonstop thorough of the websites on the first page. A lot of them were scrap…and I was bitter about that. Everybody I know says Ask is the fullest…anyhow, aft searching over those web sites we couldn’t obtain what we were searching for. We didn’t want a hard sales procedure and we didn’t want to think lots about it. Almost all of these websites were abrasive sales pitches – I wanted selective information!

Most of the corporations we saw were ADT, Brinks, APX, Pinnacle, Monitronics and GE. All of them seem to employ like-minded home alarm systems…and we finally wound up with a Pinnacle Security system after using the great information received at homesecurityguru and FamilyHomeSecurity.

It’s decent to check tremendous informative internet sites out there on the subject of security systems.

I hope you find the right one for your family!

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Marketing Your Own Home

Your home is your most very valuable investment resource. Although you may not want to pay a real estate commission, a Realtor can actually save you valuable time, money and a lot of stress and unnecessary aggravation.

The average homeowner places a For Sale sign on their front lawn, a sign on their street corner and pays for an expensive ad in the local newspaper. In addition, they waste a lot of valuable time by holding Open Houses every weekend and are disappointed when this does not produce the desired results and they do not receive a contract of sale on their home. After losing 4-8 weeks of time, they ultimately call their local Real Estate agency. 79% of all Real Estate transactions are handled by Real Estate professionals.

Realtors with full service Real Estate companies have the expertise to market your home with many resourceful tools that get your home advertised to the buying public at large, not just locally, but all over the United States and across the globe as well. A full service Real Estate agency will implement an aggressive marketing strategy. Real Estate companies have powerful internet advertising, by which they will be alerting thousands of current home buyers in the market place about your home. Many homebuyer’s today are sitting in the relaxation of their office cubes or home PC’s and searching for homes by surfing the internet. This is why newspaper advertising simply won’t do. Listing your home with a Real Estate company will lead to a quicker sale and the potential for maximum offers, that may dramatically increase the offering price of your home and may provide maximum capital gain for you.

Further, when you market your home yourself, you have no idea who is entering your home and what their financial background is or what their real intentions may be.

When you utilize a Real Estate agency, the buyers that walk through your doors are people that have been pre-approved and interviewed by a Real Estate professional. We know this buyer can afford to purchase your home, that your home is the style they desire and the neighborhood they actually want to live in.

Installing, a lock box on your home allows Realtors to show your home to the buying public at the buyer’s convenience, greatly increasing the odds of a sale. In this busy work a day world, not all people work 9-5 work hours, many work shifts and are not available to view your home in the evening or on the weekends, so your home will not be shown while you are at work or on vacation. Relax and go about your daily routine by not having to wait home for the phone to ring and for buyer’s that never show up for their scheduled appointments. Let your Realtor do an Open House and go out and enjoy the day and your family. Showing your home yourself is a physically, mentally daunting and challenging task.

Realtors also negotiate the sale of your home, which can become quite a heated debate. Having to negotiate the sale of your home with the buyer directly is quite a difficult, emotional task, because it is hard not to become personally and emotionally involved when it comes to negotiating price and terms. A Realtor acts as a buffer, a liason between the seller and the buyer so calm and equitable negotiations are performed between Realtors and their mutual counterparts. Realtors also provide smooth transaction continuity to make sure all parties are performing as expected. We attend your home inspection to get a heads up on inspections issues. We constantly interact with all parties including the attorney’s and home inspector to make sure inspection, termite reports, radon issues, well and septic tests are performed on a timely basis and that all reports are reviewed promptly. We interact with the mortgage agency as well to make sure the buyer has submitted their loan package and that the mortgage commitment is being prepared on schedule to close on the date set forth in the contract. When it comes to repair negotiations Realtor help the attorneys and buyer and seller come to quick and equitable decisions for all parties. We sometimes also help coordinate moving schedules between the two parties and follow up to make sure all utility accounts are transferred.

Your Realtor will attend the closing and make sure the final walk through has been performed and has gone smoothly.

Your home is your most valuable resource and should be best placed in the hands of an experienced Real Estate professional for the very best results.

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It is natural to want the lowest possible interest rate on your mortgage loan. A lower interest rate gives a lower monthly payment or allows you to afford more house for the same monthly payment. Here are four quick ways to get a lower interest rate on your next mortgage loan.

1. Shorten The Term of Your Mortgage. Lenders charge lower interest rates for loans with shorter terms. For fixed mortgage loans, try a 20 year or 15 year term instead of the standard 30 year fixed rate. A 20 year term is often 1/8th of an interest rate lower while a 15 year term will save you up to 1/2 of an interest rate. The drawbacks include a higher monthly payment and stricter guidelines for underwriting, but the total interest paid over the life of the loan will be dramatically reduced with a shorter term.

For Fixed Period ARM’s (loans that are fixed for 3, 5, 7, or 10 years), the lowest interest rate will again be found with the shorter term loans. The 5 Year Fixed Period ARM gives you a lower rate without a lot of risk of increasing interest rates if you reasonably think you will move or refinance within the next 5 years. Note: The average homeowner is currently moving or refinancing at least every three years.

2. Improve Your Credit. Lenders often offer lower rates for select customers with extremely good credit, especially on jumbo loan amounts (loan amount in excess of $400,000 – 2006 Conforming Loan Limit). To qualify, you will need a credit score of at least 780 – a mark achieved by less than 20% of all credit scored borrowers.

On the flip side, if your credit score is below 680, you may find yourself being charged a higher rate or not credit-qualified for the best programs. Similar credit score hurdles may exist at 520, 580, 620, etc. The key is to find out what your score is and then work to raise it to the next level to obtain lower interest rates or access to better loan programs.

3. Increase Your Down Payment (or Equity). One of the key parameters for loan pricing is the loan to value percentage (loan amount / home value) of your loan. Borrowers using 95% or 100% loan to value financing will find themselves paying a higher interest rate. If you have access to additional cash, find out if you can get a lower interest rate at 80% or 90% loan to value and use the different interest rates to determine the best use of your available funds.

If you are refinancing, getting cash out of your house above 70% loan to value will cost more than at under 70% loan to value and the interest rates really jump at 80% and 90% loan to value. As you are researching interest rates, be sure to ask about the interest rate for lower loan to value percentages.

4. Pay Discount Points. Always consider paying discount points, or higher fees, for a lower interest rate. One discount point, 1% of the loan amount or $1,000 per $100,000 borrowed, will give you a lower interest rate on any quoted mortgage program. You will need to analyze the cost of the lower interest rate against the monthly savings that the lower rate will bring for your mortgage payment.

If you pay $2,500 to lower the interest rate by 1/4% on a $250,000 loan, this will save you approximately $600 per year in interest expenses. If you plan to stay in your house for more than 4 years ($600 for 4 years), then paying a point to get a lower interest rate will benefit your pocketbook past year 4 for the remaining length of the mortgage loan.

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New Option in Vacation Home Ownership

What could be more perfect that having a five-star vacation home at a landmark resort and receiving rent revenue whenever you’re not using it? Condo hotels are the newest real estate trend, combining a luxurious lifestyle and hassle-free ownership with investment potential.

So how do condo hotels differ from owning a traditional vacation apartment or condominium? These are not your typical second homes. They are fabulously-furnished condominium suites in some of the most famous hotels and resorts around the country. The properties are usually large, high-rise, upscale hotels operated by a big name like Four Seasons, Ritz Carlton, Trump, Sonesta, Starwood, Hyatt or Hilton. Prices range from $200,000 to over $1 million for prime properties.

Condo Hotels Generate Revenue to Defray Ownership Costs

How do condo hotel owners find guests to rent their units? This is what makes the program so appealing. When owners are not using their unit, it is put into the rental program of the hotel.

By capitalizing on a hotel’s name recognition, advertising, national affiliations, centralized reservation system and management expertise, unit owners typically receive a higher level of rental income than they would from a traditional vacation home.

The revenue generated by their unit helps defray the costs of ownership. Best of all, the hotel management company takes care of dealing with the guests, as well as all housekeeping and maintenance of the condo hotel units and common areas.

The Real Appeal of Condo Hotels Is Appreciation

While owners receive rental revenue from their vacation home, the more important factor from an investment standpoint is its appreciation. Condo hotel units have been appreciating at a far faster rate than single family homes and condos in the same areas.

Most condo hotels are purchased directly from the developer. With limited inventory, condo hotel units have been moving at lightning speed. In fact, most condo hotels sell out in pre-construction. Often a large percentage of the units are reserved before even a single spade of dirt has been overturned. And as is the case in any situation where supply is greatly outpaced by demand, condo hotel owners have been seeing significant appreciation in their units.

World-Famous Resorts Attract International Attention

Most condo hotels are located in seasonal resort areas. South Florida, particularly Miami Beach and Ft. Lauderdale, is one of the country’s hottest markets. Orlando, Las Vegas, Myrtle Beach and some of the Caribbean Islands are also popular condo hotel locations. Recently, the downtowns of several major cities, like Chicago, Boston and Toronto, have begun seeing the emergence of condo hotels.

Who’s buying? The answer, in a nutshell, is everyone. That is, investors and vacationers who recognize the appreciation potential of a revenue-generating vacation home. That appeal isn’t limited to U.S. buyers. The concept of condo hotels has had international appeal with buyers from Latin America and Europe competing with Americans for the best properties.

Learn More About Condo Hotels

Condo hotels have particular appeal in today’s market because of relatively low interest rates and a tumultuous stock market that has investors looking for safer alternatives. Investors who take the condo hotel plunge can enjoy all the amenities of vacationing in a first-class resort while watching their real estate investment appreciate.

For more information on condo hotels including listings of available properties, visit www.condohotelcenter.com.

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The value of the real estate you own, whether it is your personal residence or an investment property, is critical to your mortgage and financial success. If the balance on your mortgage is close to or higher than the value of your property, your real estate is not the financial machine it should be. Therefore, if you want to be successful in real estate ownership of any kind, you absolutely must know how to determine the value of your property.

Now, there may appear to be a simple solution to this problem, you say. Get an appraisal. Sure, this would work, but appraisals are not cheap. For residential property, they begin around $175 and range to $400. For investment real estate, they can be much higher. Imagine owning 25 houses and needing to know the value for each. You certainly wouldn’t want to pay for 25 appraisals. So, here is a simple formula for learning the value of your property.

1. Learn the average rate of appreciation in the neighborhood where the real estate is located. Almost any property will increase in value two to three percent each year, even in depressed areas. So, if your rate of appreciation is three percent and you paid $100,000 last year for your house, it is now worth at least $103,000, based solely on appreciation. You can learn this rate by calling a local realtor. Remember, in affluent neighborhoods, appreciation rates may range from four to eight percent.

2. Estimate the value of any improvements, using a ratio formula. That is, if you improve the structure of the property (new roof, deck, automatic garage doors, windows, etc.), all for about 30 to 40 percent of what you paid for the improvement. Now, this is a variable, depending on location, so don’t take this as an absolute. So, last year I put all new windows in my house. It cost $10,000. I assume I can add $3,000 to $4,000 in value to my house. Cut that ratio to 15 percent for cosmetic improvements like paint, carpeting and landscaping.

3. Know comparable sales within one mile and within the last year. For example, if a house one block away that is almost identical to yours in dimension and style sold last month for $150,000, this is a great starting ground for your value. Now, remember your home may have things the other house didn’t have, increasing your value even more.

4. Other home’s asking price plays a small role. Realtors know their business. If you see a comparable home in the neighborhood, being sold by a realtor, check the listing price. Although not nearly as important as the other parts of the formula, this certainly plays a role in determining the value of your property.

So, use this formula, learn the value of your real estate, and you will wield an amazing amount of financial power.

Mark Barnes is an investment real estate and real estate finance expert. Get his free mortgage finance course at http://www.winningthemortgagegame.com. Mark is also the author of the new novel, The League, a shocking, sports-related conspiracy. Learn more about his suspense thriller at http://www.sportsnovels.com.

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A little bit about Plymouth

Plymouth is situated in the South West Corner of England in the County of Devon, undoubtedly one of the most beautiful counties in England. Plymouth is steeped in history with the main focal point on the harbour where the Pilgrim Fathers set sail, Darwin and Cook. Plymouth has obviously moved on since those days but still keeps its heritage while moving into the 21st Century.

Plymouth is a large City with the Plymouth City Council area housing a population of 240,718. Of course like all large Cities there are all the expected facilities and good rail, road and air links to other parts of the UK. Below are some links that may give some more information on Demographics, facilities available and places to see in Plymouth and the surrounding areas.

Some useful links:-

Plymouth City Council

UpMyStreet for Plymouth

Looking for your Rental Property

When starting to think about a rental home, whether it is a long term rental or a short term rental it can seem quite a large task. The key to making your move as painless as possible is organisation. In this article are some tips on how to handle the process and make the move a little less of a headache.

Use the Four Stage Rule

When looking for your rental property there is an easy to remember 4 stage process, these stages are:-

Do your Property Research

Ensure that you are fully prepared before even considering starting your search. It is vital that you are aware of your restrictions within the market place. Make sure you are aware of what type of property you can afford to rent. Which areas of the City are suitable for you and match your requirements.

The best start is simply sit down and make a list of what is important to you. This needs to include two different sections. The first section is within the property for example you may only want to rent a flat, or maybe a house with a garage, you may require three bedrooms, a garden, large kitchen, central heating, electric shower, two bathrooms. Make a note in order of importance your top 10 requirements.

The second section needs to be area requirements, for example, maybe you need to be close to the train station, near the town centre, on a bus route, close to the motorway, near to the shopping development, a quiet area. Or maybe you have specific locations that you want to live within the City.

Secondly is setting your budget. It is vital that you know exactly how much you have per month or per week to be able to afford your rental property. Sit down and make a note of all of your outgoings including household amenities such as gas, water, electricity. Make a provision for council tax, petrol, loans, credit cards, car loan and all other outgoings. From this you can decide on how much per month you are able to afford on your rental property. It is highly important that you stick to this budget or below in order to ensure that there are no complications with your rent payment to the letting agent in the long term.

That is the worst bit out the way, now you can begin on stage two of the four step process.

Start your Property Search

There are a number of methods to achieve the desired result; this could include visiting all the letting agents in the town (very time consuming). Maybe complete a search of all the websites on the internet one by one (again very time consuming).

Alternatively you could try using one of online property portal sites, depending which you chose it is possible to send multiple emails to the letting agents expressing your requirements (let them do the hard work in contacting you with property) or maybe do a search on the site of listed property and contact them to arrange to have more details on specific ones advertised or arrange a viewing. Or simply gain quick and simple access to multiple letting agent websites from just one place.

A good site to start is Rentright this offers all of the above and much more, why not visit the Rentright Plymouth Page now and see what property is being advertised by the registered letting agents or contact all the agents with your details.

There are many other sites on the internet designed to make your search much easier, not all are dedicated to rental property and if you cannot find what you are looking for on one you may on another.

Arrange to View your Chosen Rental Home

Once you have made contact with the letting agent then arrange the viewing of the property. It is important that you remember your criteria that you set earlier. Take an impartial person with you on the visit as they may be able to give you some guidance and opinion on what they think of the property. Revisit the area on different times to view the rental property in order that you get a good feel of the location. Don’t make a hasty decision there and then, think about it for a while and ensure you are completely happy to go ahead. Once you have given the letting agent the retaining deposit if you change your mind then this will be lost.

Make your Move

Once you have chosen your rental property then on move in day remember that you will need normally but not in all instants, 1 months’ rent and 1 months retaining deposit for long term rents. Then you will sign the short hold tenancy agreement and be given the keys to your new rental property. If the house is furnished then there maybe an inventory make sure that this is correct, also if you see any damage that you had not spotted previously then be sure to make the letting agent aware of this as soon as possible.

The letting agent is there to help you so if there are any problems with the property then make sure to seek advice from them; if it is a fully managed letting service. If it is a tenant find only then be sure to make contact with the landlord (who of which you would have met previously) if there are any problems.

Some Letting Agents in Plymouth that may be of Interest

Just Lets, Trundlewood Property Management, Bullard & Scholes Residential Lettings

Chris Courtis is the co-founder of Rentright Property Letting Portal where you can find information and property for rent. Rentright is a resource available for Property Letting Agents to advertise their property and covers the whole of the UK

Statistical data in this article has been used and permitted by UpMyStreet and is accurate at the date this article was written.

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The mortgage industry has long been able to adapt to changing market conditions. When interest rates rose to double-digit levels in the late 1970’s, the industry made more adjustable-rate mortgages available. When the savings rate began to drop and Americans had less to put down on homes, the industry made more flexible loan products available that did not require as large a down payment. And now, as immigrants begin to comprise a larger and larger portion of our population, the lending industry is begun to introduce loans that are tailored to an immigrant population that may not have solid credit histories or Social Security numbers.

These loans, known as ITIN loans, are offered to illegal immigrants that do not have a Social Security number. They can qualify for the loans by obtaining an Individual Taxpayer Identification number (ITIN) from the Internal Revenue Service. The IRS issues these numbers to people who are required to pay taxes but are ineligible for a Social Security number. The government uses these numbers for tax purposes only. A few small banks, as well as national banks Citibank and Wells Fargo, have started to issue loans to customers who have an ITIN but not a Social Security number. Most of these loans have been issued in California, but they will probably be available in other places soon.

The process of obtaining an ITIN loan is somewhat more complicated than that of applying for a conventional mortgage. Applicants with an ITIN usually have a credit history that is less well documented. As a result, the usual background work required issuing such a loan is more complicated and more time consuming than for a conventional mortgage. In addition, fees and interest rates will tend to be higher than for other types of loans in order to compensate lenders for the additional trouble and additional risk.

While there is plenty of opposition to lending money to people who are here illegally, few would argue that a neighborhood that consists of homeowners, rather than renters, is a better neighborhood for everyone. Owners are much more likely to take care of their property and show concern for the neighborhood as a whole than are renters. Thus, any lending plan which encourages people to buy, rather than rent, is good for everyone.

©Copyright 2006 by Retro Marketing. Charles Essmeier is the owner of Retro Marketing, a firm devoted to informational Websites, including End-Your-Debt.com, a site devoted to personal bankruptcy, debt consolidation, establishing credit and credit counseling and HomeEquityHelp.net, a site devoted to information regarding mortgages and home equity loans.

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Recently I closed on the sale of two homes. They were located about a mile apart and had comparable market values. However, beyond these two similarities, the two deals were very different from each other. Let me discuss in more detail the similarities and differences of the two deals.

My business partner and I purchased both properties from families who were in preforeclosure. The leads for each property came from letters that I had mailed to families who had recently received Notices of Default. The one family responded to me within 24 hours of receiving my first letter. I met with them within two hours of receiving their phone call and signed a contract with them on the spot to purchase their home. The other family responded to me after receiving the fourth letter from me. After a couple of broken appointments and two meetings we signed a contract to buy their home. With each home we did a “kitchen table” type closing within a couple of days of signing the contract. Both homes were purchased “subject to” the existing financing remaining in place. The earnest money given for each home was one dollar.

First Deal

We began marketing the first house by advertising it in the newspaper at market value and putting signs in the neighborhood and nearby intersections. We had a verbal agreement with the seller that they would clear all of their belonging out of the house within two weeks. The house was very messy and dirty. When the sellers failed to make any progress clearing the house we went ahead with the marketing and reduced the asking price. Within two weeks we had only received a few phone calls from mostly non-interested prospects.

At this point we reduced the asking price further and changed our signs to notify the public that owner financing was available. At that point we started to get a larger number of phone calls from truly interested prospects. Our owner financed terms and the lower than market value asking price separated us from the hundreds of realtor represented homes that needed bank financing.

With the second home, purchased a month later than the first, we immediately marketed it with owner financing. When we purchased the home we stipulated in the contract that the seller had to vacate the property in two weeks or be charged a fee for failure to do so. The seller was agreeable and cooperative and moved quickly to remove their belongings from the house. The seller of the first house was still dragging their feet and the house was still a mess.

Shortly after changing the marketing of the first house, we received an offer from a highly interested buyer. This house was truly ideal for this family and we wanted to help them get into it. They offered to buy it with bank financing and we agreed to sell it to them. There was still enough time before the foreclosure auction to close the sale with bank financing.

I cautioned the buyer that he should seek a loan other than an FHA loan since we had not held title to the property long enough for FHA to approve a new loan. In case you didn’t know, FHA recently changed a rule that now requires a property to be on title at least 90 days before they will approve a new loan. So guess what the buyer did?

Right. His mortgage broker and his real estate agent steered him toward an FHA loan program. Luckily, the buyer qualified for a good FNMA program as well. So I stipulated in the contract that the buyer had to gain approval for the FHA program within 5 days or else drop the FHA program and proceed with the FNMA program. Both the broker and the agent needed education on this point, which I provided in writing, and four days later the broker notified me that the buyer would not be approved by FHA and that they were proceeding with the FNMA program.

The next obstacle we faced was the home inspection. The inspection resulted in asking for several hundred dollars worth of repairs that we agreed to do. The repairs took two weeks to complete. While repairs were ongoing we ordered a property appraisal. The appraisers in our area are backlogged eight weeks but we knew an appraiser who would perform an appraisal within a week for 150% of his normal fee. Of course we didn’t have the luxury of being able to wait eight weeks so we bought the expensive appraisal.

The next obstacle was to order a preliminary title search, which showed a clear title luckily. The previous owner did not have an as-built survey so we had to order an expensive set of survey documents from the county.

Now that the obstacles to closing were nearly erased and we were close to a hard closing date, we still had a problem with the previous seller. They had only moved a few things out of the house and the house was still well cluttered. They were getting around to moving out eventually but not fast enough to be out of the house before closing the sale. Their lack of cooperation and their inability to follow through with their verbal promises made it clear why they had neglected their home and let it go into foreclosure.

Since the utilities were turned off and the seller was no longer living in the home I had the legal right to declare their belongings as abandoned property and I notified them that I would move the items out for them. My partner and I spent a day boxing and bagging up the seller’s personal items, and grudgingly they picked the boxes and bags up the day before closing. Whew!

Second Deal

Now, on the other hand, events with the second property proceeded much more smoothly. We bought the home, found a buyer for it within eight days, and closed on the sale eight days later.

We decided to sell the second home on a land contract or wrap mortgage with the existing financing remaining in place. We also decided to stipulate that the home had to be refinanced within two years or it would be foreclosed back to us. We did this to protect the previous seller’s interest in the underlying financing. They didn’t want it hanging out there for a long period of time.

Our “owner finance” signage attracted several buyers quickly. We required a large enough down payment to “cure” the loan, that is, to pay off the existing arrearage and attorney fees. We found an eager buyer who had sufficient cash on hand and a good income, but without enough time in the area to have a high credit rating. He understood the concept of the wrap mortgage and the underlying financing and we negotiated a contract with him at Starbucks. He negotiated a lower sale price by offering a larger down payment. Basically we were able to immediately receive all of the “back end” profit that would have been paid to us in two year’s time when he refinanced. We received this up front in exchange for a lower sales price. It was a fair exchange for both parties.

He agreed to buy the home “as is” and to do some repairs himself. No home inspection was needed; no appraisal was needed; no repairs had to be made; no real estate agent needed to be paid; and no survey had to be ordered. The buyer paid all of the closing costs which were far less than he would have paid if he had used a real estate agent and a mortgage broker.We used a closing agent who is very familiar with transactions of this type, which she calls “unacknowledged wrap sales.” Our closing agent has become a friend and has spoken at our local Real Estate Investment Club.

In summary, each of the two deals netted about the same profit, but it is obvious which deal one would prefer to do if given a choice. If I were Robert Kiyosaki I might call one deal my rich dad’s deal and the other my poor dad’s deal. We learned enough to make deals of the first type go more smoothly in the future but I’ll take deals of the second type every day of the week.

I hope all of your real estate investing deals proceed smoothly and quickly.

*****************************
Garry Gamber is a public school teacher and entrepreneur. He writes articles about real estate, health and nutrition, and internet dating services. He is the owner of Anchorage-Homes.com and TheDatingAdvisor.com.

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Is your pet worth $100,000? It may be if you don’t make accommodations for it when selling your home.

A Hundred Thousand Dollar Pet?

A house I’d seen with a potential buyer in an attractive neighborhood built around two lakes sold for $100,000 less than was typical for the neighborhood. Do you know what caused it to sell for that much less? A pet. Actually, two pets.

I can hear you thinking, “How can that be? Surely she doesn’t know what she’s talking about this time. How could two pets reduce the sales price of a home by $100,000? Is that even possible?” I understand your skepticism, but it’s true. Let me tell you how I know. When I made the appointment for the potential buyer to look at the house, I wasn’t told about the presence of pets. We arrived at the house, knocked on the door, and when no one answered our knock, I got out my electronic key to open the box containing a key for brokers to use. While I was doing this, we began to hear some loud barking from large dog or dogs inside the house. The buyer said she did not want to go into the house with “dogs on the loose.” I have to admit I wasn’t thrilled with the idea either, so we went on to the next house she was considering.

She asked me if we could see that house the next day sans pets. I called and made arrangements.

The next day we looked at a two story, 5 bedroom, house with a fully finished, walkout basement that supposedly didn’t have pets. It was a nice house, but the whole house smelled strongly of pet odors. The furniture in the basement was shredded – truly not too strong a word to use. I’ve never seen furniture in worse shape. The front of the house was nicely landscaped. The back of the house was a disaster. The door frames and exterior doors were scratched and gnawed. The lawn had beaten paths and patches. There wasn’t a flower or a shrub to be seen. The “buyer” couldn’t get away fast enough.

I later found out the owner of the house had a German Shepherd. The second “dog” was a wolf and shepherd mix. The house stayed on the market longer than typical, the price was reduced several times and the final sales price was $100,000 below what was typical for the neighborhood. Now you tell me, what cost that seller $100,000?

Don’t misunderstand, I know pets are wonderful. Over time my husband and I have enjoyed living with a German Shepherd, two Siamese cats, assorted adopted stray cats, fancy guppies, gold fish, koi, and various sorts of wounded critters our two sons brought home.

Pets enrich your life. They don’t enrich the sales price of your home. Take the right steps though, and they won’t rob you of any of your equity.

Raynor James is with www.fsboamerica.org – providing homes for sale by owner, “FSBO”, properties. Are you thinking, “Should I sell my home?” Visit www.fsboamerica.org/seller.cfm to sell your home sale for free for one month.

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Real estate is changing hands in ways that make headlines. Whether you’re a buyer or seller, here are some tips to help you make the best deal.

BUYING:

So you want to buy a house? In this market? Are you nuts? Actually, it depends on where you are. You could be very shrewd right now if you pick the right spot, the right pricing trend and bid aggressively. It requires homework, homework, homework.

Example: My wife scoured a market, screening 90+ houses. We eventually found a fixer-upper for $162K. We offered $160K the same morning it was listed. They took it on a handshake. One year laterwith no improvements!we sold it for $208K. For those of you without a calculator, that’s a 30% return on the investment.

And you can do it, too. Here’s how:

1. Pick a growing area. This is essential. Yes, it’s hard to predict economic cycles and which metropolitan areas are going to prosper over the next year or so. However, if you read the business pages regularly, you’ll have a much better idea of where to buy/invest.

2. Learn the market. This is also essential. You’ve got to know what’s out there, what houses are going for and how to spot a bargain from the overpriced. When you find your bargain, you probably won’t have much time before the competition gets wind of it. So you must be ready to make a solid offer right away.

3. Make your offer contingent upon a thorough inspection. There’s nothing worse than buying something with plenty of infrastructure problems. They’ll cost you time, money and aspirin. If you discover only a few problems, try to get the seller to lower the price to counterbalance the flaws in the property. They often will.

4. Finally, recognize that you will not likely land your first prospect. Therefore, be patient and be prepared to keep looking until you find the right house that makes good economic sense for you to purchase.

Follow the above four tips and you’ll do better with your property investment.

SELLING:

What to get the best price for your home? Just follow these six tips:

1. Everything (usually) looks better in brighter light. So let the sun shine in. Open curtains and blinds and turn on lights in all the rooms.

2. Fix up those little things. Oil or WD-40 those squeaky door and window hinges. Tighten any loose door handles. Replace broken shutters, fix leaky faucets, etc.

3. Deodorize! Nothing turns off a potential buyer than a “funny” or unpleasant smell. You’ve heard of the bake bread or cookies in the oven trick…it’s a lot easier to just use plug in deodorizers.

4. One of the easiest things to do is clean the place. Clean in the corners, clean the cabinets, re-grout the kitchen and bathroom sinks, tubs, etc. Wash the baseboards, make the place shine, especially in the entrance way.

5. Get rid of the clutter! Buyers need to envision the home as they would live in it. Anything interfering with that vision works against you in selling your home to them. So divide all your possessions into three groups:

a) things you really need to live in the house,
b) things you don’t really need but want to take with you to your next home, and
c) things you don’t want to take with you and should really toss.

Now, put those things your want to take with you to your next home in a rental storage facility. Hold a garage sale and/or donate everything else to charity. That’ll leave your home looking elegantly simple…the best way to present it to potential buyers.

6. Paint, paint, paint. Virtually every home has some areas that could use a fresh coat of paint. It is one of the most important (i.e., best and inexpensive) investment you can make is maximizing your sale price. Make sure you patch cracks and peeling paint first, though.

Follow the above six tips and you’ll sell your home faster and for a better price that if you didn’t.

For more information: http://www.denver-real-estate-homes-for-sale.net

Marshall Colt holds a real estate sales license in Colorado, with experience in Denver’s (www.denver-real-estate-homes-for-sale.net“>www.denver-real-estate-homes-for-sale.net) prestigious Hilltop area since 1994.

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