sell your home

Selling a Seminole Home? – Keller Williams Seminole FL

October 27, 2021 By Deborah Ward

Selling your home in Seminole? Seminole is a great place to live, but you know that already since you have a home there. Seminole was first settled in the 1840’s. The settlers found a native American tribe named the Seminoles, so they named the area after them.

Seminole is located about 17 miles West of St. Pete. If you are relocating and thinking of the commute, it is about 45 minutes to an hour during rush hour to Tampa.

Real Estate Agents at Keller Williams Seminole

The real estate agents at Keller Williams Seminole are pros who will help you sell your home for the best price to the best buyer. They’ll start by talking with you about what you need to know – what to expect step by step. They do this by talking with you to find out your situation and future plans.

Knowing your wants and needs will help them give you the best service. Remember that Keller Williams Seminole represents you and although they are happy to help buyers, your needs and wants are their responsibility.

They take that responsibility seriously and will show you at each step. They’ll do a thorough evaluation of your home via a detailed walk through. They’ll take that information and use it to do comparisons to other homes that have sold in the area that are similar to yours. Using that information and their extensive knowledge they will price your home at the best price to sell. Your Keller Williams Realtor is there to walk you through the process and make sure you have the knowledge you need to make the best decision in the sale of your home.

Seminole is a great community

You and they know the community so well, but you won’t be around to help the new owners of your home settle in. Your KW agent will. They will be that local expert for buyers who will advocate for your community, neighborhood, schools, shopping, restaurants and trends.

Seminole is a fantastic area. Help someone else find that out by listing your home with Keller Williams Seminole. You won’t regret it for a second.

Looking to sell your Seminole home, give The Deb Ward Team a call today! 727-410-0336

4 Bathroom Remodeling Tips That Will Help Sell Your Home Faster

October 27, 2021 By Deborah Ward

You know the old saying, kitchens and bathrooms sell houses. If you walk into your bathroom and you are underwhelmed with how it looks, buyers certainly will be too. That means it’s time to do some remodeling. It doesn’t have to cost an arm and a leg, but making your bathroom a welcoming retreat will sell your home.

Update without breaking the bank

Did you know that the average bathroom is between 400 and 800 square feet? So while it isn’t the biggest room in your house, it certainly is one of the more expensive to update. In fact, an average bathroom remodel is $10,000 or more. Obviously the more high end you go the more expensive it will be. There are ways, however, that you can make your bathroom look fabulous without breaking the bank.

A stand up shower

One way to update without going super high end is to install a stand up shower. These days bathtubs aren’t always a necessity, especially if there is more than one full bath in the home. When installing a shower, think about things like shower heads with adjustable settings and temperature controls. Remember that putting them up higher isn’t a bad thing, but if you can’t consider choosing a shower head that you can hold as it can help taller people.

Update the tub

Bathtubs are still a big deal. If you only have one full bath, don’t remove the tub. Choose a new one that has things like in-line heaters, adjustable jet speeds, foot massage jets and foot rests. You don’t have to get an oversized tub, even a standard sized tub with jets are a luxurious upgrade.

Change out the faucets

Remember to update all the faucets. Make sure that your tub faucets are at least similar metals as the sink. Don’t mismatch! If you have noticed mineral deposits on faucets and shower heads, think about adding a filtration system, water softening or neutralization (depending on your water type) to your home.

Flooring and quick bathroom remodeling tips

Also look at the flooring and consider an update. If you have old vinyl on the floor, think about putting down bamboo or tile. Bamboo will appeal to the environmentally conscious crowd.
Some quick bathroom remodeling tips and fixes for the bath that is in good shape but just looks in need of some TLC, try regrouting tile walls and floors and recaulking existing tubs and showers, updating light fixtures and maybe a new medicine cabinet or mirror.

How Are Real Estate Agents Paid When You Sell Your Home

October 27, 2021 By Deborah Ward

You’ve decided to sell your home but aren’t sure how it all works for a seller. After all your current home was your first home purchase. So you have a lot of questions, the least of which is how your Realtor gets paid.

I mean, who has hundreds of dollars laying around to pay an hourly fee to a professional? Relax, that’s not how this works.

Commissions

Unlike many other kinds of professionals such as lawyers or accountants, Realtors do not bill their clients by the hour. They are paid when, and only when, your home sells. But what if the house sells, but the contract falls through? That happens all the time! Am I supposed to pay them then? And how do I know how much to pay them?

Again, relax, “when it sells” means they collect a check when the deed is signed and money changes hands.

So how do they get paid and how do we know what to pay them, you’re thinking

Well a Realtor works with you, the seller, for however long it takes to sell your home, or until the listing contract you have with them expires. If the home doesn’t sell, they aren’t paid for their time.

Realtors are paid a commission. This commission is based on the sales price of the home and the percentage of that sales price is spelled out in the listing agreement you have with them. The average commission percentage is 6%.

As the seller, you pay the commission

How that works is pretty simple. When you go to settlement to sign all those papers the lawyer or title company will know ahead of time what the percentage is for the commission.

They will prepare a statement that both buyer and seller sign. This statement has all of the financial information surrounding the sale on it: sales price, taxes due, money due from the buyer to the mortgage company, money due from the seller for fees, etc.

One of those line items is the Realtor’s commission. It is taken from the proceeds of sale and a check is cut right then for the Realtor. So technically no money directly out of your pocket, but paid from the lump you are getting at the settlement table.

Selling a Largo Home? – Keller Williams Largo FL

October 27, 2021 By Deborah Ward

You want to sell your home in Largo. You know that Largo is fantastic place to live. It was originally and for decades a an agricultural area with citrus groves, cattle ranches and hog farms. There were also lots of turpentine stills and sawmills.

Largo was called “Citrus City”, from the time it was a citrus packing, canning and shipping center. Now it’s one of the largest cities in Pinellas County with all of the amenities a city can offer.

The Realtors at Keller Williams Seminole are there to help you sell your home

They will find the most qualified buyer to buy your home for the best price possible. Whether you’ve sold a home before or not, selling a home can be a confusing process.

Your KW Realtor will walk you through every step and make sure you have the information you need. To do this they will ask you questions to find out what is unique about you, your home and where you want to land when the process is over. How else can they give you top notch service? Your KW Realtor will be there from listing to settlement representing you and your needs.

KW Realtors will do a complete evaluation of your home

They will walk through your home and give you a truthful evaluation and help you figure out what may or may not need to be done to make your home the best choice for prospective buyers. They will make sure that it is priced perfectly by doing comparisons to other homes that have sold in the area that are similar to yours. Using that information and their extensive knowledge they will price your home at the best price to sell.

Your Keller Williams Realtor is there to walk you through the process and make sure you have the knowledge you need to make the best decision in the sale of your home.

Largo is a great city that offers so much. Help someone else find that out by listing your home with Keller Williams Seminole . You won’t regret it for a second.

Selling a Largo home, give The Deb Ward Team a call today! 727-410-0336

Selling A St Pete Home? – Keller Williams St Pete

October 27, 2021 By Deborah Ward

Selling your home in St. Pete? Whether it’s downtown St. Pete or the St. Pete beaches, Keller Williams in St. Pete knows the area inside and out. From homes and the buyers who want them to the community, Keller Williams St Pete can sell your home for the best price and to the perfect buyer.

Your needs and wants

The Realtors at Keller Williams St. Pete will start by talking with you about your expectations, situation and future plans. Knowing your wants and needs will help them give you the best service. Remember that Keller Williams St. Pete represents you and although they are happy to help buyers, your needs and wants are their responsibility.

So how will they do that?

First, they will do a complete and custom evaluation of your home. From a detailed walk through to gathering comparisons to other homes that have sold that are similar to yours. This is key in figuring out the right price to meet your wants and needs. Your Keller Williams Realtor is there to help you through the process and provide you with the knowledge you need to make the best decision in the sale of your home.

Your local expert

Since they know the community so well, they will be that local expert for buyers who will advocate for your community, neighborhood, schools, shopping, restaurants and trends. How does that assist you? By providing the highest level of advocacy for the sale of your home. You know your neighborhood. You know how awesome it has been to live there. Hire a Realtor who understands that and will use the same passion in the listing, showing and sale of your home.
St. Pete is a fantastic area. Help someone else find that out by listing your home with Keller Williams St. Pete. You won’t regret it for a second.

Why You Shouldn’t Price Your Home Using A Zillow Zestimate

October 27, 2021 By Deborah Ward

You know that you want to sell your home. You also know that getting your listing out wherever people can see it can help you sell for the best price, right? Wrong!

Many sites are way off and one, Zillow.com, has a tool called a “Zestimate” which is supposed to give you an estimate of your home’s value. Problem is, it is very inaccurate, and it will make your home look overpriced.

“Advanced algorithm”?

Yes, the fact is that in most of these cases, the Zestimate appears to be considerably lower than the asking price. Zillow claims that when they come up with their Zestimate, they use specific types of information and an “advanced algorithm” to come up with a figure.

From their FAQ’s:

“We use proprietary automated valuation models that apply advanced algorithms to analyze our data to identify relationships within a specific geographic area, between this home-related data and actual sales prices. Home characteristics, such as square footage, location or the number of bathrooms, are given different weights according to their influence on home sale prices in each specific geography over a specific period of time, resulting in a set of valuation rules, or models that are applied to generate each home’s Zestimate. Specifically, some of the data we use in this algorithm include: Physical attributes: Location, lot size, square footage, number of bedrooms and bathrooms and many other details. Tax assessments: Property tax information, actual property taxes paid, exceptions to tax assessments and other information provided in the tax assessors’ records. Prior and current transactions: Actual sale prices over time of the home itself and comparable recent sales of nearby homes.”

Imperfect information

The problem comes in with where they actually get the information. For instance, some states don’t publish any information about real estate transfers, including sales price.

The physical attributes are put in by the seller, not a real estate professional. When buyers see that inaccurate Zestimate, they think that it’s the actual value and that you are overpricing your home. It makes for bad negotiating.

Trust your Realtor

Your best bet is to trust your Realtor to truthfully and expertly evaluate and value your home. Then let your Realtor choose the sites that have your listing.