The Tampa Bay Real Estate Warriors!
Now is the time of year when many homeowners think of making some renovations. Whether you are thinking of a major overhaul or minor improvements, in this month’s Item of Value you will find great tips on how to renovate on a budget to keep you on track and prepare for any surprise expenses.
Home buyers often start their search having a big list of must-haves … only to discover they need to whittle it way down once they see what’s within reach. Unless you’re a bazillionaire, it’s impossible to check all those boxes on the wish list. So, just how do buyers determine what pieces of their dream (home) they’re prepared to hack off?
Visualize a triangle with price, location, and size/style/upgrades at each point. In most cases, you will have to be prepared to give up one of those particular three. Expect to compromise. If you get 80% of what you'd like, you’re lucky. See all compromises here
We are RE/MAX agents who cover Tampa and all the surrounding areas. You can always research the agent by drilling down to aspects such as years of schooling, experience, designations and in addition production level -through the internet today. Now this is not the be all way, by any means. One thing to consider is, purchasing your home is probably going to be the single most expensive thing that you will do in your life. Do you really want someone to assist you who is being an agent part time? Find out more here
A generation ago, buyers didn’t have the luxury of the Internet to research and investigate real estate. Today, of course, many enter the real estate market with statistics and information gathered online. Or the best one is always well we seen them get a really good deal on HGTV. Despite all this data, many people, especially first-timers, have only a cursory understanding of how to be a successful buyer, how to negotiate, and how to approach the home-buying process. And they often develop pre-conceived notions about buying real estate, either from what they’ve read online or seen on TV, what their friends and family have told them, or all of the above. So let's debunk the Home buying Myths that many home buyers have. See Myths here
Have you and your family fallen in love with a vacation home and you're wondering whether it makes sense to buy a vacation home there? Here are some key questions to ask yourself (And keep in mind that a great real estate agent can always help you talk through them!). See Article Here
In Florida and most states when you submit an offer to purchase a home, you can request that the owner provide a Home Warranty. A home warranty is a service contract that covers the repair or replacement of many of the most frequently occurring breakdowns of home system components and appliances. The cost will vary based on the size of the home, whether it has a pool, septic, well and there are other added protection services that the warranty can cover. To see the complete story just click here.
Found the house you are ready to make your new home. Now comes the time to the offer together. Which way will you submit your offer? In Florida there are two ways to submit your offer. We will explain some of the differences between each Contract so you may be able to make the decision for yourself. To see the complete article please click here
Are you thinking of buying or selling in 2016? Experts say the U.S. housing market will likely grow faster than the overall economy. Whether you’re thinking of buying or selling, this may be an ideal time to get into the housing market. In this month’s Item of Value you will find some great insight as to why 2016 is projected to be a great year for housing.
You have done your searching online, looked at homes that met your criteria for your new home. Found the home that you want to purchase and now it’s time for making an offer. So far so good agreed? We have to dispel a few things for you here.
In our experience with working with several hundred buyers over the years. We have found a few things out that are similar in most cases. A REALTOR® in the local market where you are has all the information needed to assist you in making an offer that is fair for you and the seller.
What Nick and Cindy Davis do for their buyers when they are getting ready to make an offer on the home that are going to purchase is:
We do a comprehensive analysis of all the homes that are similar within the same community to see what the median sales price in that specific community has been over the last 180 days. This way we can determine what homes should be selling for. What homes are selling for in another community or part of town is really irrelevant. Real Estate is very specific to the area that the home is located. Also comparing an Apple to Apple is so much better than comparing an Apple to an Orange. We will dial in our search to look at 10-15% plus or minus the square footage of your house with the comparables. We will look for details that are as close as possible. For example if the house you are buying does not have a pool, then we will not include pool homes in our search. We will then go over all this information with our client so they can make a decision on what offer they will make on their new home.
Normally when all this is done and our client is in agreement things go smoothly and their offer is accepted and then we start the home buying process. We would like to share with you some things that we have encountered throughout or real estate career that have caused our clients to not get the home that were making an offer on. Now, this may sound negative, and we want to ensure you we are not trying to be at all.
If you have a relative in another state giving advice on what offer to make. Here in the Tampa, FL area, this is probably not a good idea. As we explained prices are specific to location and not even close that we could compare what homes are selling for in another state like Los Angeles California for example. So to use statistics from somewhere else other than where you are buying really cannot even be considered.
Making an offer below market value as a starting point. If a home is priced over market value then we will be able to show that in our analysis. But if the home is priced right and the seller knows that because they listened to their REALTOR® and we looked at the sales and the prices are in alignment. This is not a good idea. Also since we have such a low inventory of homes in the Tampa, FL area. There is a strong possibility that the seller will receive more than one offer when a home comes on the market. Nowhere is it written that a seller has to request for highest and best offers if they receive more than one offer for their home. So it is possible that if they receive an offer that is better than your offer that they just accept the other.
Asking for Seller to pay 100% of your closing costs. What we are referring to is that in a scenario where a home is priced at $200,000 normally a lender will allow up to 6% of the purchase price towards the buyer’s closing costs and pre-paid items, so this can be up to $12,000. So even if the offer was at $200,000 the offer to the owner is $188,000. Just asking for 100% or all buyer closing costs not a wise strategy. It is not uncommon to ask for some assistance if it is needed. A suggestion would be if you do not need the assistance in closing costs and a home is overpriced. It would actually be better to offer market value for the home and pay your own closing costs. Because ultimately you would be financing the portion of your closing costs that the seller is paying. Because you would still be getting a mortgage for the full amount. And then paying interest on that money for the entire time you live in the house. Now if you do need some assistance and the home is priced right at $200,000 we would recommend an offer of $200,000 with 3% of purchase price towards buyer’s closing costs and pre-paid items. This way you are making a $194,000 or 97% of market value offer, which is a much stronger offer and will increase your chances on having the seller accept your offer.
Reducing the price based on things you want to change. This is typically a hard thing to explain so we will do our best. If the home is painted a color you do like, that is not a reason to reduce the offer amount. You want wood flooring in the bedrooms, these are actually part of home ownership and normally will not be something a seller will even consider. Now a good example of something you have to change or repair because it is not functioning as it is intended would be the Air Conditioner is not working. Something like this is something that if the seller does nothing to get it working will affect all future offers. Hopefully this made sense.
In summary, it still is a good time to be a home buyer in the Tampa, FL area. There are a significantly lower amount of distressed properties on the market now. Nick & Cindy Davis are ready to assist you in purchasing your new home. We will ensure that you do not over-pay for your new. You can always reach us at 813-300-7116 or email us at NickandCindyDavis@TampaHomesSold.com or fill out this contact form and we will reach out to you so we can get started. We look forward to meeting you soon.
Nick & Cindy Davis would like to discuss pricing you home in today’s market. There are some myths out there about the price of home and what a “Seller’s Market” really means.
The Buyers in today’s market are seeking maximum value in a property.
Their decision is based on a few things such as Market Condition, Location, Size, Amenities and overall Condition of the house.
By knowing these and pricing your home correctly you will be maximizing your chances of selling your home quickly for the best price and most favorable terms.
In closing we would like to share something that happened to us in November 2015. We listed a home for a past clients Mother and Father in Law. W suggested that based on market conditions and the condition of the home that we list the home at $150,000. Comparables showed home sales $145,000 to $152,500. The home went Active in MLS.
On day 3 we received First Offer, Day 4 2 more offers came in and day 5 a 4th offer was received. We suggested to owner that we request Highest and Best Offer. We did and the home was sold for $157,400 by a cash investor with 0 days for inspection contingency and closing took place 14 days later. To see some other examples of how Nick & Cindy Davis assist you in selling your house. Just click here
We are ready to sell your home. By Pricing your House to Sell, not go into MLS and then just sit on the market. Please feel free to contact us at 813-300-7116 or you can always email us at:
NickandCindyDavis@TampaHomesSold.com
