Your Moving Checklist !

So you got an accepted offer, went thru a home inspection with which any luck went well.  You met with your lawyer and signed the contracts which means now it is a waiting game until you close.  There is not much left for you to do, and your mortgage broker and lawyer will really be handling 98% of what is going to get you that new home, and your Realtor is now for the time being on the back burner.  You will usually have between 90-120 days before you close on your new home but you have started a new phase of the home buying process so I decided to take the time to give you some advice for your "Moving Checklist"!

90 - 120 Days Before Closing 

• It is time to sort and purge ! This is the time to clean out the closets, get rid of any of the junk that you are not going to be taking to your new house.  Go thru your basement, garage, and attic to see what it is you will be taking and what you will need to put into movable containers.  
• Organize ! All those important papers that you may have scattered around the house, make sure that you have everything in one place.  If your anything like me you have alot of important papers, to make your life easy I suggest simply picking up an inexpensive 2 drawer LOCKABLE filing cabinet.  It keeps the items safe, and they won't be disturbed during the move! 
• Research ! You will want to find a reputable, and fairly priced moving company waiting till the last minute is never a good idea.  If you plan on having work done to the home before you move in like painting you will want to take the time to get estimates from them as well.  Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage is one of the few companies that have made these things much easier by having our "Concierge Services" for our buyers and sellers.

60 - 90 Days Before Closing

• Order Supplies ! Moving boxes, tape, bins, you will always find yourself needing more than you may have originally expected.
• Use it or lose it ! This may sound silly but all that frozen meat in your freezer, start using it up so you don't need to worry about packing an entire cooler to transport a ton of food.  I personally come from a large family where having 2 refridgerators is very common, so we usually have quite a bit more food than you may think.  
• Measure it ! You will want to make sure that your furniture is going to fit into your new home, I usually suggest to buyers while we are in the home for the home inspection that they take actual mesurements of the rooms this way they can have a good idea of what needs to fit where.  
• Moving Sale ! If your having a moving sale it is time to set up the date/time, and what you will be doing with the things that you don't want if they don't sell.

30 - 60 Days Before Closing

• Pack Up ! Start packing all those things that you don't often use, leaving yourself with just the necessities and a "limited" wardrobe.  Make sure that you clearly label all of your boxes appropriately, do not mix fragile items in with the blankets it is a disaster waiting to happen.  
• Change Your Address! Now don't stop your mail coming to your current home as of yet, but many local post offices will allow you to set a date when to stop your mail from coming to your current home.  As a back up plan talk to your neighbors and ask them to keep an eye out for your mail, or if your home will have new owners leave some self addressed envelopes with your new address for them to forward your mail if any comes to them.  You will want to update your workplace, and your childrens schools.  
• Utilities ! You will want to get on the phone with your utilities companies, cable company, telephone company so they will be aware of the change of address and service.  Sometimes they will need notice in order to prevent any delay in service to your new home.

2 Weeks Before Closing

• Re-Confirm Everything ! All those appointments you made reconfirm every single one of them, make sure your closing date has not changed, and that your job is aware of how many days you will not be at work. 
• Take Inventory! You want to take count of how many boxes you have and in some way organize them, this way when you get to your new home and everything is unloaded your will be positive everything made it.  

At this point you will be going thru the last steps for the purchase so the best advice I could give you is to stay organized, and try to keep calm !! 

How To Make Sure Your Home Sells At The Right Price !

COLDWELL BANKER® SHOWS YOU HOW TO MAKE SURE THE YOUR HOME SELLS AT THE RIGHT PRICE

Establishing a reasonable and profitable listing price for a home is perhaps the biggest challenge for every home seller. Before coming to a final figure, many sellers ask themselves: "That home down the block went for a lot; can I just price my home in the same ballpark?" "Can I jack the price up in a hot market?" These and many other factors must be considered before settling on a listing price. The professionals at Coldwell Banker Residential Homes recommend taking the following steps before setting an asking figure.

         

Choose the Right Sales Associate
While many people use a friend or relative's referral to select a sales associate, it is smart to interview many prospective agents. Invite several sales associates to show their listings presentations. Pay attention to how they plan to market the home, and find out the reach of their company's Web site. Also, make certain they plan to list the home on the multiple listing service (MLS) and inquire about how broad their real estate contact network is.

 

Do The Homework.
Ask a real estate sales associate for a written comparative market analysis (CMA). This will provide a list of recent sales prices of similar homes in the area (with comparable numbers of bedrooms, baths, square footage and lot size), the asking prices of homes currently for sale nearby and other important information. Then a sales associate will provide a professional estimation of a legitimate selling price.

Take the Emotion Out of It
While the seller likely has great affection for the home, the sales associate will not set the price based on the seller's emotion. Instead, he or she will evaluate the location, condition and size of the home. A house in a secluded, exclusive area may appeal to some, while others will want to be closer to schools, shopping and health care facilities. What is the physical condition of the home? Is it a fixer-upper? Does it make a good first impression (the ever important curb appeal)? Will it appeal to a growing family, or is it better suited to empty nesters?

Determine If It Is a Buyers/Sellers Market
Home inventory, mortgage interest rates and the economy play a role in determining whether the buyer or seller has a negotiating advantage. Interest rates remain at historically low levels even as the economy shows signs of improving, putting buyers in a good position to shoulder "good" debt of homeownership.

     

Do the Math
Do not forget to figure in closing costs, legal fees and other selling expenses when determining the selling price. The sales associate should be able to provide cost estimates, and negotiate with a potential buyer to ensure a good sale price.

                                                           
Give It the Once Over
There is one more step to ensure that the house sells for your price, or more. Do as much as possible to improve the home's appearance: touch up the paint, fix leaks, seal any cracks, clean up the clutter, and eliminate pet odors. The house has only one chance to make a first impression.

How Long Should I List My Home FOr ?

How Long of a Listing Should Your Agent Expect to Take?

As you will see the way to determine how long to list your home for is according to the market.  So really although it is up to you to choose, you should be sure you are basing your decision on solid facts! In today's market it takes more than listing your home on MLS get it to the closing table.  You need an agent that is actively marketing your home in all venues internet presence, direct mail and open houses are just some of what needs to be done.  For today's market you should be listing your home with an agent for atleast 180 days, with the option to be released if they are not doing all that they agreed to do to market your home. 
Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage does offer you this gurantee, if we are not doing everything we agreed to do, we will release you from the contract with us at anytime!

Reasons for a 30-Day Listing

• If your market is steaming hot and homes are flying into pending status within days, your agent might be agreeable to a 30-day listing.
• This way, if every other home on your street is selling within three weeks and yours is still sitting without an offer on day 29, you can easily get rid of your agent and hire somebody else.
• Before you refuse to relist with your agent, though, first look at the price. If your price is too high, no agent is going to sell it.

Reasons for a 90-Day Listing

• In normal markets, 90-day listings are more common.
• During the first 30 days, you should get a lot of showings if you are priced right.
• Ask your agent for buyer feedback and follow up on suggestions to improve the condition of your home and / or price.

Reasons for a 180-Day Listing

• If the average DOM exceeds two months, you're probably trying to sell in a buyer's market and will need a longer listing term.
• If you go into contract on a 90-day listing, your listing might expire while in escrow. In that event, your agent may require that you extend the listing, so it makes more sense to start out with a 180-day listing.
• Ask your agent when you initially sign the six-month listing if the agent will give you a personal guarantee that you can cancel at the end of 90 days if you are unhappy. If the agent won't give you that guarantee, then list with an agent who has more confidence to make you that offer.

Reasons for a One-Year Listing

• If you live out in the boondocks where nothing ever sells under one year, then a 360-day listing might be the norm in your area.
• Unique properties, large parcels and expensive estates might take longer to sell because they may appeal to a limited number of buyers.
• Private islands and lavish vacation homes require a longer marketing time, and agents might not be willing to shell out the big marketing bucks for a short-term listing.

Open House Event Weekend !

This is just one example of what makes Coldwell Banker Residential Homes different from your ordinary brokerage.  We think outside of the box, and reach out to all buyers in new and creative ways!

This is a wondeful opporutnity for homeowners to take advantage of, now is the time to list your home, for the next 2-3 months their will still be serious buyers shopping around.  Someone who is still looking for their dream home, WILL make a purchase before the holidays get into full swing!

Top 5 Tips For First Time Home-Buyers

I decided to spend a moment and focus on buyers for a moment.  I have a lot of information for my sellers, but when it comes to working with buyers I would have to say first-time home buyers are my favorite.  It isn't for everyone and many agents like it when they have experienced buyers, normally the deals will go along smoother and the process of finding their new home is easier.  Perhaps I like the "challenge" but it is a different kind of reward when you hand someone the keys to their very FIRST new home ! 

Get your finances in order

Before you start working with a buyer broker, getting a mortgage pre-approval is a must.  I have seen too many homebuyers starting looking before they find out what they can afford.  The result is disappointment that you may have looked at some wonderful homes that turns out does not fit into your budget.   Most licensed brokers will have reliable, and attentive mortgage brokers they work with that they will be able to refer you to. 

Know the language

Know the terminology of real estate, you want to understand what brokers are talking about.  Short sales vs Foreclosure, there is a very big difference.  You want to be sure even when you are looking without an agent you have a good understanding of what everything is.  You need to understand the difference between Listing Agents, Buyers Brokers, and disclosure.  Listing agents obviously list the house, and work for the sellers.  Every first time home buyer should work with a Buyer Broker, they will provide you with information about the homes in the neighborhood your looking for, make sure everything the seller is representing is true !

Find a well-trusted real estate agent

This is the most important part for a first time home-buyer, you are going to be depending on this person to help you make a life changing purchase.  You need someone who is okay with having to “hold your hand” so to speak during the process, not because you need it but it is a resource that is available to you.  I once stayed in a closing with my first time buyers for 5 hours, it was a short sale and the bank was having its own issue with paperwork which held us up.  Before leaving the attorney, pulled me aside to thank me for staying and explaining what was going on to his clients.                   

Decide what you “must have” and what you would “like to have”

I had a home buyer once tell me that she would never purchase a ranch they would never give her the space she needed.  For the most part she was right, almost every single home that was a ranch would not meet what she needed to have.  Before we began looking I asked her to make me a list of her “must have”,  and “like to have list”.  Must haves are the number of bedrooms, a school district, or a price range.  These are things that if they did not have them it would be impossible to move to that home.  Fireplaces, pools, central air, these are all things that you would like to have but, you could live without.  These lists are different for everyone, in this clients case the home she purchased ended up being a ranch.  If we had limited the search she would have missed out on her “perfect home”. 

Should I Spend The Money To Have A Home Inspection?                                                                                                                                  

Absolutely. The $200 to $500 that a professional home inspection costs could be the best money you ever spend on your house. Not only does the home inspection seek out any defects (and gives you some peace of mind), the home inspector will often give you tips on maintaining and repairing your house. See the section on Home Inspections for tips on what to look for and how to choose a home inspector.

Earthquake rattles Long Island, East Coast

Photo credit: Newsday/Karen Wiles Stabile | Like many office buildings in the area, 2 Huntington Quadrangle in Melville evacuated after tremors were felt from the earthquake in Virginia. (Aug. 23, 2011)

An earthquake centered in Virginia rattled buildings up and down the East Coast Tuesday afternoon, sending office workers and residents around Long Island scurrying out of their buildings or diving for shelter.

Communities including Melville, Shirley and Dix Hills reported feeling the tremor, which came from an earthquake with a preliminary magnitude of 5.9, according to the U.S. Geological Survey.
Cell phone service was briefly overwhelmed and Twitter exploded with reports of the quake.

"Felt the tremors in Blue Point too. My computer chair was jumping & I was sitting in it!" Liz Belmont tweeted after feeling the quake in her home office. Others tweeted that it was felt in Port Washington, Farmingdale, Sea Cliff, Long Beach and Rockville Centre.
The quake was about 290 miles from New York City, the USGS said. It was 3.7 miles deep and centered 25 miles east of Charlottesville, Va., and 35 miles northwest of Richmond, Va., the agency said.
The National Weather Service said no tsunami was expected.
Shaking was felt at the White House and all over the East Coast, as far south as Chapel Hill, N.C., The Associated Press said. Parts of the Pentagon, White House and the Capitol were evacuated, the AP said. National Mall monuments and memorials were closed and evacuated, AP said.
The Long Island Power Authority was reporting no impact on the electric system as a result of the quake, though spokeswoman Vanessa Baird-Streeter said the tremor was felt on the authority's fourth-floor headquarters on Uniondale. "Heck, yes, I felt it," she said.
Five customers were reported without power, the same number as were out before the quake struck.
LIRR said train service was unaffected and running on or close to schedule.
At LaGuardia Airport, planes continued to take off and land, said an official at a college near the airport.
Cellphones may have seen the first impacts from the earthquake, as callers across the Northeast bombarded the airwaves in an attempt to reach family members and others. There were no reports of structural damage on the networks, just difficulty getting lines.
"The network's operational," said Verizon Wireless spokesman Howard Waterman. "It's just volume. When you have tens of thousands, maybe hundreds of thousands of people picking up the cellphone to make a call at the same time, many will get through but some won't. It's all volume."
The Suffolk County Police Department said in a news release there were no reports of substantial damage within the police district and asked residents to stay calm.
Suffolk residents who wish to report non-emergency incidents resulting from the earthquake, such as downed trees or wires, are asked to call the Suffolk County Police Department's non-emergency line at 631-852-COPS.
Nassau County police also said there were no reports damage or injuries, said a spokeswoman.
Nassau County government buildings and other buildings on Franklin Avenue in Mineola were among those evacuated.
In Suffolk, one person tweeted that the Stony Brook University library shook.
"Felt the rumble 36 floors up in NYC. Back to work," one person tweeted.

Originally published: August 23, 2011 2:44 PM
Updated: August 23, 2011 2:49 PM
By STAFF REPORTS

Contributed my http://www.newsday.com/