National Open House Weekend !

This weekend is the National Open House Weekend on Saturday April 20th and Sunday April 21st we are going to see buyers out in mass ! If you only hold one open house this year whether your an agent or a For Sale By Owner this will be the weekend to take get your home out there ! Because there will be a large amount of homes holding these open houses it is very important that your home shows well, and you take the time to make sure it stands out from the crowd !

• Timing: You should consider letting your agent hold a longer open house, because there will more than likely be alot of homes on a buyers itinerary for the day you want to make sure they don't miss yours ! Simple adding an extra hour to the open house can make a difference or consider holding one later in the day during times that others are not like 3PM - 5PM ! 

• Be Inviting: Either your or your agent will want to find a way to get the buyers to slow down and really see your home, when there are so many open houses to get to buyers will sometimes go through a home quickly and miss some great features.  A simple way to do that is by setting out some refreshments.  Make an area where they can help themselves to some ice tea or water it will give them a reason to take a minute to relax and take in what your home offers.  

• Spruce Up Your Curb Appeal: Putting up some new numbers on your front door, putting out some brightly colored potted plans, add some additional solar lighting, or even a small lounge area on a porch can really change the look of a home from the curb ! 

• Set Up Outdoor Space: I always stress in the spring time for homeowners to play up their outdoor living area, but during this weekends open houses it is the perfect opportunity.  Buyers will be happy to be able  to spend sometime outside with their agent or yours discussing what your home offers them ! Other plus is anything you invest in outside will usually be things that will be going with you to your new home so it is not an investment you would be leaving behind ! 

• Make It Memorable !  Buyers will be receiving quite a few highlight sheets from all of the open houses. You want to take the time to set yourself apart and give them a reason to keep your homes information separate from all of those others that will more than likely be lost.  What I do is actually give them a packet with your homes information, community & school information, and other real estate related articles, and for some homes I include an Virtual Presentation DVD of your home ! 

I wish the best of luck to all homeowners who are hoping to find their buyer this weekend, and for all those buyers happy house hunting ! If your interested in seeing a full list of what homes will be holding open houses in the Babylon Village area please look under the Real Estate Round-Up which I publish every Friday on the Babylon Patch ! 

Home Sweet Home Improvement

If your thinking about putting your home on the market, and you want to get top dollar from your home the saying you need to spend money to make money is often the last thing you want to hear.  There are plenty of inexpensive ways to help improve your homes chance of selling, you don't necessarily need to spend thousands of dollars by doing a complete overhaul but certain key changes can really change the overall appearance of a room ! 

• Kitchen makeover. The kitchen is the most popular room in the house to remodel. Most in the industry will tell you money spent upgrading a kitchen produces the highest return on investment. One of the best things you can do in a kitchen is replace the countertops, sink, and appliances.  Depending on the size of your kitchen you can get remnant pieces of granite, or another great option is butcher block counters they always give a kitchen a great clean look ! 

• Bathroom fixer-upper. Upgrading a bathroom is another sound choice and will often provide a significant return on investment, as large bathrooms typically top the list for those seeking a new home. A quick change of a vanity, toilet, lighting, and fresh paint can cost under $500 and give your bathroom a great facelift ! These are simple things that can really give a buyer a fresh look at your space ! 

• Flooring updates. Many homes on Long Island have hardwood floors if they were built in the 60's or 70's whats amazing is the builders than covered them with carpeting ! If you have hardwood floors pull up that carpeting and show them off ! If you have bright colored carpet trade it out for more neutral colors this can help the buyer visually picture their furniture instead of thinking about what exactly would match your carpet ! 

• Create Outdoor Living Space. This is another great trick, and the best part is normally you will get to take your upgrades with you.  If you have a nice patio you can buy some new furniture, solar lighting, and a few potted plants can show the buyer the potential in even the smallest yard plus that new patio set will come with you to your next home ! Solar lighting and bright colored plants are also a great option for your front yard to help your curb appeal ! 

Whether or not you choose to update your home there are some things you should do and I can not stress this enough but de-clutter your home.  Pack up what your not going to be using (seasonal clothes, holiday decorations ect.) and put them into your attic or storage facility ! I can't tell you how many times homeowners de-clutter the home but put it all into their closets and than we have an avalanche when the buyers open them up ! You want the buyers to have the space in your home to see what it will look like with their furniture and their family living there ! Almost every buyer whom I have had buy a home, always took the time to figure out where there things would fit before making the final decision ! 

What You Must Know When Selling Your Home !

Many homeowners listed their homes back when our spring market started, which was early this year around February when we started seeing alot of buyer activity.  With the summer market quickly approaching those same homeowners are starting to wonder why their home may not have sold yet.  Now some of you may be thinking that is has only been 4 months since buyer activity picked up, but with a home correctly priced we will normally see them go under contract within 60 days.  There are only 3 things you & your Realtor have control over, and if your home is not selling than you should look at those 3 things first and foremost !!

Price

• When a person is searching for a home with the same characteristics as yours (bedrooms, baths), where does your home fall in the list? Look at the homes as if you are a buyer, if you are finding all the homes are priced below yours offer more you may want to consider adjusting your price. 
• Ask your Realtor to pull recent comps, meet with them and discuss market conditions.  This is also important because your Realtor will need to have these to support the price of your home once you have accepted an offer.  

Myth: Not all homes are created equal, sometimes your home may not be selling as quickly as you would like not because of price but because it is for a particular kind of buyer.  An example of this is if the home your selling is a cottage, or a high-end home because there is a smaller buyer pool for that kind of home.  The most important part of selling a home with a small buyer pool is making sure that you have the best exposure, and easy availability to make sure your don't lost out on any buyers.  

Tip: If your home is priced above market value, it will be impossible for your Realtor to get potential buyers to come and view your home.  Many homeowners will agree to taking a much lower offer than the listing price, but there is no way to convey that to buyers who are viewing your house online, they will rule it out simply because of the price.

Availability

• If your home has very strict restrictions on when potential buyers can come and see it, you may want to reconsider how/when you are showing it.  If you are unavailable to show your home during the week because of your work schedule, you should speak with your Realtor about allowing them to accompany showings during the week to take the burden off of you, and allowing more buyers to be able to get in.  
• This next one is something that not all Realtors agree with, but I am a big believer in open houses.  I schedule all of my open houses for the month in advance because I want to give buyers an open invitation to come in and see your home the moment that they see it online.  
• Taking it a step farther you will want to make sure your Realtor is getting back to those that are inquiring about your home in a timely manner. Sometimes it is not always about how quickly buyers can see your home, bu how long it takes for your Realtor to get back to them! 

Myth: Some sellers believe that by requiring 48 hours for their home to be shown gives them a better chance of preparing their home to make sure it shows well.  Unfortunately, not all buyers give their Realtors 48 hours notice that they want to see your home, it is better to ask for a reasonable amount of time to prepare than possibly lose that buyer. 


Tip: When potential buyers are viewing your home whether it is a private viewing, or an open house do not follow them around.  Often times buyers will feel as if they are intruding on the homeowners by being there, you want to give them space to take it all in! 

Condition

• First thing you should do is look at  your pictures, if you took pictures before the spring flowers and grass became green you should ask your Realtor to update your pictures.  Remember you need to sell the house first via the pictures to get the buyers to want to come and see it in person.  
• Spruce up your curb appeal, give the front door a fresh coat of paint or add some solar lights and plants.  Buyers spend their weekends driving around looking for open houses, even if your home is not having one you still want to catch their attention!  
• If you have broken screens/doors/cabinets/tiles take the time the time and replace them if it is not a huge expense those are the things that make buyers look at your home and think of "projects" although they have quick fixes.  

Myth: Many homeowners think fixing up your home is a waste of time and money when you are attempting to sell it. Now this is only somewhat of a myth, doing major renovations may not be the best idea, but doing small projects to fix or update your home is normally recommended to help your homes chance.  

Tip: Take the time to look at your home objectively, remember although you can not make every buyer happy you can help the chances of your home selling quickly by doing some small projects.  The best place to start is by doing all those things that were on your "honey do list" that you hadn't had time to get to! 

There are so many different factors that come into play when getting your home sold, but these are the top 3 that are the most important ! Over the next few weeks I will be blogging more about some tips for sellers, but as always if you have a question I did not cover please feel free to comment or email me directly! 

Winter Safety Tips

The holidays are in full swing, and I am sure we are all enjoying the holiday season since Long Island has gotten quite lucky and we have had some unusually warm days, considering this time last year we had already had 3 or 4 snow storms by this time!

Buyers are also taking advantage of this warmer winter weather, I have personally had some amazing turn outs to my open houses, and many clients who are still very active in the search for their new home, so I wanted to take a moment and talk about some safety pre-cautions that both home sellers and buyers should be doing during since this season has been quite busy!

1.  Christmas Decorations Are NOT Meant To Be An Obstactle Course To Your Front Door!
Let me start by saying I always tell my homeowners that they should put out their decorations, it will make your house feel like a home, and it does wonders to sell your neighborhood.  I put out a ton of Christmas decorations out, which also means a ton of extension cords, timers, and outlets but  if you have cords running across your walkway, you need to be sure that they are placed where potential buyers will not trip or fall!

2. Let There Be Light
Make sure that buyers can see where they are walking, this is a simple fix many people have lights in the driveway that are triggered when someone walks up and it will usually illuminate the walkway as well.  This is not the only area that you need to be able to see, home buyers need to be able to see your HOUSE NUMBER, I can not tell you how many calls I get from a buyer who happened passed a home with a for sale sign, but have no idea what house number it was! This also is necessary so people who are coming to view your home can easily spot your home, not all streets have only 1 house for sale, and some seller choose not to have signs, so make sure that numbers stands out!

3. Be Prepared For The Snow Trail
This has got to be the biggest pet peeve for home sellers in the winter, and that is buyers will often track snow and salt into their home.  I say this for both buyers and sellers, put a winter mat in the front hall of your home, and agents wipe your feet normally the buyer will be sure to clean off their shoes if they see the agent do so, and sellers and if you choose not to have a mat, be prepared for the trail, and a good chance someone will slip and fall.  I often carry one in my car, this is for when I have open houses to make sure my homeowners come home to a semi-clean floor!

4. Let It Snow
Of course if it begins snowing right before your homes showing or open house, there is not much you can do except shovel and home not too much accumulates between the time you leave, and the buyer arrives.  A simple suggestion is leave a smaller shovel, and container of salt next to your front steps.  This gives the buyers agent the ability to throw a tiny bit of salt down to make your walkway or steps easier for the buyer, and in the case of an open house allows them to keep the walk clear.  Not all agent will do this, but personally I do, I want the buyers to feel comfortable coming in even if it is flurrying out. 

5. Don't Open Your Door To Just Anyone
It is oddly alarming that I have had numerous homeowners if they should just let "people" not agents just come thru their home if they knock on the door! The answer is NO, NO, and NO! This is not just a rule for the winter time, but all year round.  This is also why I always have a open house advertised thru-out the time a home is listed with me, obviously you do not want to be rude, simply say that it is not a good time, and be sure to tell them when your next open house is scheduled, or give them your listings agents direct number to schedule the appointment! You do not want to turn off these potential buyers, but our company believes in safety anyone that enters your home we want to have some sort of information before they go walking thru. 

Now some homeowners have chosen to sell their home after they have moved into their new home, and if your home has not gone under contract by the fall, I always suggest taking some steps to winterize your home to protect it for the winter time.  So here are a few tips for those whose home are vacant!

1) Furnace Inspection

• Call an HVAC professional to inspect your furnace and clean ducts.
• Consider switching out your thermostat for a programmable thermostat.
• If your home is heated by a hot-water radiator, bleed the valves by opening them slightly and when water appears, close them.
• Remove all flammable material from the area surrounding your furnace.

2) Get the Fireplace Ready

• Cap or screen the top of the chimney to keep out rodents and birds.
• If the chimney hasn't been cleaned for a while, call a chimney sweep to remove soot and creosote.
• Buy firewood or chop wood. Store it in a dry place away from the exterior of your home.
• Inspect the fireplace damper for proper opening and closing.
• Check the mortar between bricks and tuckpoint, if necessary.

3) Check the Exterior, Doors and Windows

• Inspect exterior for crevice cracks and exposed entry points around pipes; seal them.
• Use weatherstripping around doors to prevent cold air from entering the home and caulk windows.
• Replace cracked glass in windows and, if you end up replacing the entire window, prime and paint exposed wood.
• If your home has a basement, consider protecting its window wells by covering them with plastic shields.
• Switch out summer screens with glass replacements from storage. If you have storm windows, install them.

4) Inspect Roof, Gutters & Downspouts

• Check flashing to ensure water cannot enter the home.
• Replace worn roof shingles or tiles.
• Clean out the gutters and use a hose to spray water down the downspouts to clear away debris.
• Consider installing leaf guards on the gutters or extensions on the downspouts to direct water away from the home.

5) Service Weather-Specific Equipment

• Service or tune-up snow blowers.
• Replace worn rakes and snow shovels.
• Clean, dry and store summer gardening equipment.
• Sharpen ice choppers and buy bags of ice-melt / sand.

6) Check Foundations

• Rake away all debris and edible vegetation from the foundation.
• Seal up entry points to keep small animals from crawling under the house.
• Inspect sill plates for dry rot or pest infestation.
• Secure crawlspace entrances.

7) Prevent Plumbing Freezes

• Locate your water main in the event you need to shut it off in an emergency.
• Drain all garden hoses.
• Insulate exposed plumbing pipes.
• Drain air conditioner pipes and, if your AC has a water shut-off valve, turn it off.
• Leave the heat on, set to at least 55 degrees.

 

Key Elements To Get Your Home To Sold

I recently was going thru some key points during a listing appointment, and have decided to take the time to put "pen to paper" so to speak.

When someone list's their homes I like for them to have a clear understanding that I don't just want the listing, I want the home to sell.  That is our purpose, and believe it or not many people do not realize that if you are going to list your home with a Realtor you should be ready to move within 60 - 90 days.  Not all homes take a 6 month period of time to find a qualified buyer, not if they are marketed properly and priced at what the market calls for.

I have decided to take the time to elaborate on some of the tools and resources I use to help my listings get to sold.

Professional Photo's and Videos 

This is a great tool, your home will not always have perfect light when buyers come to see it, or some homes are vacant.
The company I work with for the pictures, also does a Virtual Tour which is uploaded to YouTube allowing your potential buyers to feel as if they are walking thru your home, all the while they are sitting in their living room.  This does 2 things, it catches the buyer and makes you that memorable listing because virtual tours are not yet common, and gets more serious buyers into your home !

** Sellers Tip **

Buyers in todays market, spend most of their time searching for their new home on the internet.  Those pictures are your very first impression, if there is not enough or they are not well taken you could be overlooked.  On more than one occasion I have had to push for a buyer to go see a home that they didn't like the pictures on MLS, after some prompting they agree to go and almost all the time they can not believe how the home showed in person.  

Another inside tip for sellers, many websites have their own way of how the homes they show in their search results show up to the potential buyer.  Many first go by what kind of account the listing agent has with the company, second they go by how many pictures you have of the home ! Let your listing agent take pictures, trust us we spend 90% of our time in people's homes we know what they are looking to see ! 

Here is an example of a home I personally have listed, and used professional photography to give it an edge on the competition.

                                                                                                                                                        

Staging

Any home can benefit from staging, a professionals eye will be able to give your home a un-biased opinion.  

Realtors will know what can distract a buyer, even though what distracts them has nothing to do with the home they are potentially buying.   

Sometimes simply moving around things in a room, can give it the illusion that it is bigger than it is, some de-cluttering is always recommended you don't want your home to be cold or sterile feeling there is always a happy medium.  

** Sellers Tip **

Begin your packing the moment you list your house on the market, not the everyday necessities but the things you can do without. 

If your home is on the market your ultimate goal is to be moving, it will help de-clutter the home for the prospective buyers that will be coming in to view your home, and you will need to pack those things at some point, I look at it as positive thinking ! Many storage facilities offer specials for very low rates, and the benefit to you will be priceless.  

Now some people have decided to buy their new home first, and than list their home for sale.  Vacant homes can be a wonderful thing, but buyers are visual, I work with a wonderful company who does staging, it is at no cost to my sellers.  Their is no pesky rentals fee's it is all done virtually, and again it is a benefit of using a professional photographer.  

                                                              After                                                                   Before

This home was bought by investors, renovated but they did not want to have to rent furniture for the pictures.

Online Marketing 

The absolute best marketing tool you could possibly have today is the internet.  I don't mean just Zillow, Trulia, or Realtor.Com.  

Social Marketing is the best exposure you could ever ask for, you know how you re-united with past colleagues, classmates, or even extended family.  You will never know if they or someone they know is looking to a buy a home, you want your home to be blogged, twittered, and facebooked as much as possible.  Not only does it attract prospective buyers it will catch the eye of other agents we all network together and it is the easiest way to let other realtors know about our listings all over Long Island.   

On any given day you can look at my Twitter feed and know exactly what I am doing, and where on Long Island I am.  The same goes with other realtors, if we are having an open house we like everyone to know.   When I first list a home I will often blog about it, conveying the excitement I have about this new listings to my network and many people will share this with others.  Remember you never know where your buyer will come from !!