You have a house. You need to move. Although it hurts, you have priced it where the market analysis suggests. You list it. What next?

What’s  next is probably the single most important piece of the puzzle.

If I were selling my house today, I would want to know exactly where it was being advertised. MLSPIN listings are pushed out to more than 35 different online places (including Google and Yahoo) without any extra effort of the agent or the brokerage. What extra effort goes into it?

Is this how your home is going to get sold?

Ask this question of your sales agent.

And keep this in mind- the buyer of your home will statistically be in his (or definitely her) early 30s to late 40s. This group does not scour the classified section for information, nor do they read home sales magazines in pizza parlors. They look for their information online. 90% of all home buyers this year began their exploration on the Internet.

If I were selling now, I would make sure my home was priced correctly, and I would expect offers coming in at 20% lower than asking price. Before my home was listed, I would ask my agent these things:

• Is my home listing on Realtor.com enhanced? This means it is shown to be more likely to be seen by buyers.
• Will my home listing be posted on the Internet in places other than what the MLS does?
• Does my agent have any other ways to find buyers? Is the brokerage involved in social media- Facebook and twitter? If they say yes, check it out.  Do they have a blog? These social outreach places are ways to find buyers as they are starting out.
• Does the brokerage have a presence on YouTube and are they promoting listings there? According to Social Media Revolution, YouTube is the 2nd largest search engine and you want your listing there.

Even if my Uncle Harold was the family Realtor®, I would ask these same questions. In this market where average days on market is over six months, you don’t want to lose any time.

Brokers from 4 different companies share ideas

We have just come back from the flagship Real Estate Conference of the year- Inman Connect- and what a time that was!
How do you do a recap of 5 days of real estate innovation in just a few paragraphs? Gerry and I are still sorting through our notes in preparation of what will be a really interesting year- and, I am guessing, decade.
Starting off the conference was an idea-sharing day called (oddly enough) REBarCamp. Sessions were decided by and led by the participants. I co-led one called “Finding Your Social Media Voice for Business” and sat in on an interesting one called “Raising the Bar- a grassroots initiative for Real Estate.”
This is probably of real interest to those outside of the industry. We are discussing it again on my radio show today (TQ Radio- listen to the archives here)
How do you strengthen the real estate industry as a whole? That’s the goal of this initiative- and the goal of conferences like Inman Connect. Without a doubt, we brought home ideas that are going to make Towne & Country a stronger brokerage for you. More than that- we see that what we have in place already IS the future of real estate, and that is very motivating.
Education, I think, is the key to the improvement of any industry. This conference, and the seminars prior to that, nailed this down for us. It wasn’t set up by a Keller Williams or a Coldwell Banker- it was an industry-wide meeting of the minds. Without regard to affiliation, it was the best of the best sharing what they have- and this in and of itself raises that bar for us all.
I am so happy we went, so happy we participated, and so happy that we were able to share and in doing so “raise the bar.” For us, it’s all about creating the best experience for buyers and sellers- and our agents. You can’t do that without an ecumenical approach.

-Diane

Is it time to sell?

If you are seriously thinking of selling your house, NOW is the time to get serious. So you think we are at the bottom of the market? Here are a few points to consider:

• Single Family Sales units in North Central MA are declining at a Faster rate (more than 2 times) than the same period last year.
• Single Family average Sale Prices are declining at a Greater rate than the same period last year.
• Lending standards are getting increasingly more difficult – i.e. harder to get a loan.
• Job losses are only Now starting to come into play – and there are more coming.
• The economy is eroding before our eyes.
• The foreclosure rate is increasing
• Currently we are 2-3 years before the ‘Bulk’ of the Adjustable Rate Mortgages reset (Including the Option Arms – what’s an Option Arm? Look for another post soon).
• I can go on…
Looking at these facts, is there any reason why you would think that prices are going to go up?

OK, so you are a buyer. Why Buy now? Well, 30 year Fixed Rate Mortgages (yes, FIXED – not Blend loans, Option Arms, NINJA loans, etc.) are still at 40 year lows BUT prices have been beaten up over the past 3 or so years. We are seeing prices back to levels we saw in 2003 +/- but Mortgage rates are just about as low as back then – thus setting the stage for some great affordability.

If you have a secure job, this is a great opportunity. Yes, prices may fall more, however Interest rates are almost sure to go up due (to the economy, the low value of the dollar, imminent recession, etc). So remember, small changes in the Interest rate can equate to large increases in the payment.

When I had originally written this in October of 2008, I had been reading and hearing from many sources that the bottom had been reached, and the market was going to turn around. I was NOT convinced of this, not on a National level, and certainly not locally.
Today, the advice I gave in my post holds true, I think. We have not seen the bottom yet. There is more activity- and that is good. But consider this:
Many sellers are holding back, waiting for the market to change. As soon as there is any indication of this, many will list. This added inventory will keep prices flat.
If interest rates go up even a half point from the average 30 year rate of just under 5%, this will limit the buyer pool further. A home that costs $200,000 with a monthly payment of $1073.64 under that scenario would end up costing $1135.58 at 5.5%.- a significant increase.
Questions? Call me at 978-537-6401, ext.24.

the key...

Realtor.org just posted a great explanation of the extended Home Buyer Tax Credit. As of today, there are now 123 days left to take advantage of this credit, which has been broadened to include current home owners who are purchasing a new or existing home.

In a nutshell:

Extends the First-Time Home Buyer Tax Credit of up to $8,000 to first-time home buyers until April 30, 2010.

Expands the credit to grant up to $6,500 credit to current home owners purchasing a new or existing home between November 7, 2009 and April 30, 2010.

First-time home buyers who purchase homes between November 7, 2009 and April 30, 2010.

Current home owners purchasing a home between November 7, 2009 and April 30, 2010, who have used the home being sold or vacated as a principal residence for five consecutive years within the last eight. (from Realtor.org site)

The credit is dependent on the income of the buyers, and the cost of the home. See the article for details.

As long as there is a binding contract in place by April 30, 2010, the buyer is eligible to receive the credit, time-wise. Interest rates are very low now- hovering below 5%- but indications are that they will begin to rise in 2010.

If you have any questions about the implications of these conditions for YOU specifically, give me a call.