home sale

Did You Know Having a Realtor Help You Buy a Home is Free?

November 17, 2021 By Deborah Ward

You’ve decided to buy a home, but you are worried about the costs. One big one is the cost of the Realtor when you buy. Did you know that having a Realtor helping you buy a home is in most cases free? Here’s how.

Hire an agent to represent you

Did You Know Having a Realtor Help You Buy a Home is Free? If you hire an agent to represent you as a buyer, that agent represents you, not the seller. They are there to be in your corner. Sure, you could look on your own or take your chances relying on the seller’s agent. If you do that there is no one to answer your questions or represent you in the purchase.

Do you know all the ins and outs of a real estate transaction? Do you know what to do if things go sideways? Having an agent on your side is important. Not having to pay them for their time and advice is priceless.

In general, Realtors don’t get paid at all until a property closes

The Realtor gets their paycheck at the settlement table, whether seller’s agent or buyer’s agent. That said at the closing table the seller is responsible for paying those fees. If you have a separate buyer’s agent the fees are split, unless there is an agreement saying otherwise. Remember in a home sale, everything is negotiable. Generally, though, the seller pays.

So what does that mean for you? It means you get the services of a professional, the advice, the legwork and everything else, for no cost to you.

If you are thinking about buying a home give The Deb Ward Team a call today! 727-410-0336 (we love helping homebuyers!)

10 Ways You Are Sabotaging Your Own Home Sale!

October 27, 2021 By Deborah Ward

You want to sell your home, right? Really? Because your behavior says otherwise. Your actions are sabotaging your own home sale. If you’re wondering why your home isn’t selling, read on and see if you fall into one or more of these examples… then STOP IT!

Issues of availability:

It makes sense that the more people that see your home, the more likely one will buy it. So why in the name of all that’s holy are you being so restrictive in your showing hours?

1. If you aren’t making the home available at times when normal people are looking, then it won’t be seen.

2. And for goodness sake, use a lockbox for a house key so other Realtors besides your listing agent can show the home!

3. If you don’t want it to be obvious for security reasons, put it on a door that is out of sight, but use one!

Pets and pet smells:

4. That “adorable” yet huge dog of yours, you know, the one that you swear “doesn’t bite” and is a huge sweetheart? Yeah, even the nicest dog can be territorial about strangers in their home. When you leave for the showing, take Fido with you.

5. And that cat smell? Total turn off. Find a place for Fluffy to stay while the house is for sale so you can dispense with the litter box.

6. Same goes for snakes, lizards, rodents and other small pets. Even if they don’t smell, they can scare or turn off buyers. That person who fell in love with the rest of your home but is terrified of snakes will NOT buy because you have one, trust me.

House condition:

7. We get it, you have to live in your home while you try to sell it, but when it’s going to be shown you need to CLEAN IT! That means pick up toys and clutter, clean bathrooms and kitchen counters, leave on some lights (as discussed with you when the home was staged) and…

8. DON’T SMOKE ANYWHERE! Yes, that means even no smoking in the garage since it‘s attached to the house.

Sabotaging interested buyers:

9. You have offers! You refuse to negotiate them. Not cool.

10. Oh, and those major home problems you know about? You are required to disclose them to buyers. And yes, a sinkhole qualifies.

Where Do Buyers Come From? Hint, Hint…Think Realtors

October 27, 2021 By Deborah Ward

You are considering selling your home, and you aren’t sure if you should sell with a Realtor or by yourself. Which will bring you more buyers? Think Realtors.

Some interesting things

The Association of Real Estate License Law Officials estimates that there are about 3 million active real estate agents in the US. In 2017 there were 106,548 brokerage firms.

So what are they doing? Well, the American Housing Survey said that in 2018 there was approximately 119.7 million occupied housing units. The typical home seller has been in their home for 10 years. They typical home size is 1,900 square feet and the typical homeowner is 47 years old in 202o as of the National Association of REALTORS® (NAR) Of the sold homes in 2020 were 5.64 million existing homes and 822,000 newly constructed.

Realtors

The NAR has as of July 2021 1,534,008 members, 68% percent of Realtors are licensed as sales agents, and 20% of members specialize in residential brokerage. The median number of years of experience is 8 years. Most Realtors work a 35 hour work week and have some college education, or a degree.

Message? Most are hardworking and educated past high school to some extent. They generally pay attention to technology as well. The top three technology tools that most use or plan on using are an iPad, smart phone and digital camera. 91% use social media to some extent and the top sites for Realtors to place listings are realtor.com®, Zillow and Trulia.

Interesting results

Obviously, hiring a Realtor means that you will have a qualified person helping with your home sale, but how much of a help will they be? Well, the NAR showed that 88% of buyers purchased their home through a Realtor – a share that has steadily increased from 69% in 2001.

The average sales price for an agent based sale was $295,000. For sale by owner (FSBO) sales were 8% of home sales in 2020 and the average sale price was $217,900. That’s a difference of $77,100! They also don’t have the assistance of a professional who understands the process and paperwork.

Home Seller Tips – What Are Home Sale Contingencies

October 27, 2021 By Deborah Ward

If you’ve ever bought or sold a home, you have an idea of what a home sale contingency is, but if you haven’t they are probably a mystery. So what are home sale contingencies?

A home sale contingency is a clause in a real estate contract. The contingency is a condition that is placed on the contract. Completion of the contract is dependent, or contingent, upon the conditions being completed. If they aren’t completed, or something goes awry, the settlement, and the sale of the home doesn’t take place.

There are two types of home sale contingencies pertaining to the seller: sale and settlement contingencies; and settlement contingencies. A sale and settlement contingency is a condition that the buyer sells his or her existing home. It’s used when the buyer hasn’t received or accepted an offer to purchase their current home, and allows the seller to continue to list their home, in case the contract contingency falls through. Part of the contingency clause says that if the seller receives another offer, the buyer can either agree to purchase without the contingency or back out of the contract and allow the seller to take the other offer.

A settlement contingency is used when the buyer already has a contract on their property and a settlement date is scheduled. Since a sale isn’t final until settlement, this protects the buyer if their settlement falls through. This contingency also prohibits the seller from accepting other offers on their property for a period of time.

Other kinds of contingencies protect the buyers. These deal with having inspections done. They provide the buyer’s an out if the home inspection or other inspections like well and septic or pest inspections are not good. They usually specify an amount that the seller may be responsible to pay to fix problems, and each side has the out if the problems are more expensive than the contingency provides for.

So how can a seller not get burned on a sale and settlement or settlement contingency? First, make sure the buyer has a home and it is listed for sale. Next, make sure it is listed at the best market price, and see how long it’s been listed. In other words, do your homework on their listing like you did for your own.