Sunday, October 6, 2013
Saturday, October 5, 2013
Friday, October 4, 2013
More Housing Choices For US Buyers as Int'l Shy Away
As the real estate market offered amazing deals from short sales to foreclosures, international buyers were careful to spring into action and close on those deals. But it seems now the market is changing and those same buyers are starting to lose some interest in buying U.S. properties.
Start Growing Loyal Leads!
Markets such as Miami, Las Vegas, Phoenix, and San Francisco have lost some of the appeal. Investors are backing away as the U.S. dollar appears to strengthen compared to the Indian rupee and Canadian dollar. The Canadian dollar lost about 2 percent against the U.S. dollar. Couple that with the rising housing prices and, according to an article by Reuters, the U.S. real estate market is becoming less enticing for international buyers.
For sellers that means you may be seeing more Americans vying for your home. Selling your home to an investor (whether they are foreign or not) is a different experience than selling to buyers who plan to live in the home.
Understanding your ideal target market such as a family vs. an investor, helps you create a specific marketing campaign that intrigues your target audience to come see your home.
Start by taking a good look at your home and seeing if any repairs need to be made. More than investors, buyers who plan to live in the home will likely be more concerned with making sure that the house is in good working order. Usually because they would prefer to move in and not have to do a lot of fixing up whereas investors are used to searching for the best deals which means the property may need a lot of repairs. But because they're getting a cheaper price, investors understand they'll be repairing the home to make it ready to rent.
Next create some notes that you'll be giving to your agent about your home. What makes it unique? What types of upgrades have you done? Surprisingly, after you live in a home for many years, you can forget some of the important upgrades. So take inventory and recall all the enhancements that you have completed on your home and share them with your agent.
Focus on the neighborhood. Investors and buyers who plan to live in the home both care about the neighborhood. It tells them something about the people in the area and the potential risk in the future. For instance, if there are a lot of foreclosures in the area, it's likely that home prices will continue to drop and the area may become filled with more renters than owners. It's not always the case but, often, renters don't provide as much care for a property as the homeowners would. So the neighborhood could decline even more. If, however, the neighborhood is in great shape with some, but not too many homes for sale, this could be very appealing to any buyer. Play up the factors that differentiate your home from others on the street. Explain the advantage of your location, lot size, upgrades, etc.
Selling your home is like finding an online dating match. And, that's exactly where the hunt begins for homes too–on the Internet. So put your home's best side forward with the most attractive curb appeal photos possible. That'll get buyers interested and possibly following up with an "in-person" viewing. Then let your home's unique characteristics shine and seduce the buyer.
Thursday, October 3, 2013
Housing: The bidding are back !
NEW YORK (CNNMoney)
The bidding wars are back. Seemingly overnight, many of the nation's major housing markets have gone from stagnant to sizzling, with for-sale listings drawing offers from a large number of house hunters.
In March, 75% of agents with broker Redfin said their clients' offers were countered by rival bids, up from 56% who said so in late 2011.The competition has been most intense in California, where 9 out of 10 homes sold in San Francisco, Sacramento and cities in Southern California drew competing bids during the month. And at least two-third of listings in Boston, Washington D.C., Seattle and New York generated bidding wars.
"The only question is not whether a new listing will get multiple bids but how many it will get. One home in an Elk Grove, Calif., subdivision recently received 62 separate bids. The final sale price was for more than $150,000, well above its $129,000 asking price.
In Cambridge, Mass., two condos that could be combined into one large home hit the market two weeks ago for $800,000 each, according to Pat Villani, president of Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage in New England.
"The brokers stopped taking names after the number of bidders reached 250," she said. The winning bidder offered $2 million for both units.
The competition has been most tense in California, where 9 out of 10 homes sold in San Francisco, Sacramento and cities in Southern California have been drawing competing bids.
Inspirational Quote Of The Day"
In the business world, everyone is paid in two coins: cash and experience. Take the experience first; the cash will come later. – Harold Geneen
Tuesday, October 1, 2013
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