When there is an appointment for a potential buyer to view your home, you want to make the most of your opportunity. Remember the saying “You only get one chance to make a first impression.” These tips are especially important when your Realtor is doing an open house and there is a possibility for multiple visitors. I have even provided a checklist for you.
Special Report : How To Show Your Home
OUTSIDE: Curb appeal is one of the key factors in your homes potential sale. If the buyer doesn’t like the outside, they may never attempt to see the inside. Trim all shrubs. Pull all weeds. Flowers planted. Leaves raked. Water lawn to keep green. Pick up and discard or store all implements, materials and debris that are not part of the lawn decor. All windows washed. Garage should be swept, neat and tidy. During the winter, all walks and drives should be shoveled and salted.
LIGHTING: Open all shades and draperies during the daylight hours. Replace all burned out light bulbs with the maximum light producing bulbs. Turn on all lights throughout the house and basement prior to showing the house.
STORAGE: All clothing, shoes, hats, accessories, tools, papers, magazines, books and personal items not contributing to the decor of the room should be stored in closets or dressers. All closets should be tidy, neat and clean. Basement storage areas should be neatly arranged. Kitchen counters should be clean and free of any articles not contributing to the decor of the room. All magazines, books, ashtrays, food, bottles, containers, boxes, cans, toys, hobby accessories, tools, dishes, cookware, etc. should be stored in the proper cupboards or closets or storage areas.
CLOSETS: The interiors of all closets should present an organized, tidy and uncluttered appearance. All unneeded or unused items should be discarded. Display your storage and utility space by removing all unnecessary accumulations in attic, stairways, basement, closets and garage.
WINDOWS: All windows should be spotlessly clean inside and out. All window sills, as well as any space between the window and storm window should be spotlessly clean and free of any flaking or loose paint. All windows should be in good repair with no cracks. Screens should be clean and in good condition, free of rust and holes. Any paint on glass should be removed with a razor blade prior to cleaning.
FIXTURES: All bathroom and kitchen fixtures and counters should be sparkling clean. Polish chrome faucets and handles in the tub and sinks. All sinks, tubs, toilets and counters should be clean.
FLOORS: All flooring should be clean and waxed if necessary. All carpeting should be very clean regardless of its age. If the carpeting has not been steam cleaned for more than two years, now is the time to do it. Basement floors should be swept and mopped.
DOORS: All doors should be free of scotch tape, posters, decals, or stickers. All door handles should be clean and in good repair.
CERAMIC TILE: All joints between tiles should be clean and white. Use DAP bathroom tile sealer to reseal the joint between bathtub and wall and floor.
WALLS: All walls should be clean and free of gouges, scratches, smudges, scotch tape, posters, thumbtacks, etc. Walls should only have decorative items. Posters and paper pictures taped to walls should be removed and all evidence of the tape markings removed.
ODOR: Nothing smells better than fresh air. On warm days, have your windows open and shades up. Make your home feel and smell bright, fresh and clean and you will have a faster sale. KEY POINT: Make very sure that there are absolutely no pet odors.
Here is a checklist:
Checklist: How to Show Your Home
Before You Show Your Home
Remember, a buyer’s emotions are triggered by sensory experiences, especially touch, smell and sight . . .
temperature check – cool in summer, toasty in winter
background music – instrumental or easy listening; volume low
television off
fire lit in winter; fireplace full of lit candles in warm weather (nothing if it’s hot)
scented votive candles lit in each room (same scent throughout the house – vanilla recommended) OR pot of simmering apple cider with cinnamon sticks on the stove – especially important if someone smokes or there’s a pet
family pet out of the way or preferably at a friend’s or neighbor’s house
valuables hidden, or in another location
dining table set with four place settings of your best china and glassware
Service Is Golden: Real Estate Programs to Put Seniors’ Minds at Ease
The mature years can be the best time of life – retirement has come, the kids are grown and you can enjoy the results of your hard work and smart choices with all your loved ones. And now is a good time to be a senior – the U.S. Census Bureau says that the mature population is expected to jump nearly 80 percent by the year 2025, and business is already taking note, with many programs to suit seniors’ special needs.
That’s only right, since, even with all the rewards of a life well-spent, the golden years can bring unique concerns not previously encountered. The prospects of moving for the first time in years or even decades, selling a beloved family home, maintaining rental properties, and navigating related tax issues are all special considerations that call for special service.
For reasons like these, the real estate industry has established a special organization to address the unique needs of this fast-growing and significant part of the American family: the Senior Advantage Real Estate Council (SAREC). SAREC has in turn established a certification program by which Realtors® of all ages are schooled in the specific interests of senior homebuyers and sellers. The “Seniors Real Estate Specialist” (SRES) designation qualifies professionals to answer the many questions on the minds of mature customers contemplating their retirement moves.
SRES holders can help guide you through the complexities of selecting your next home for maximum quality of life, considering such factors as accessibility of homes (not too many stairs, high cabinets, etc.); availability of public transportation and senior services; comfort-level of climate and terrain; and much more. These Realtors® also have access to referral networks that can help put you in touch with qualified professionals and suitable housing nationwide.
Your local ERA Real Estate office participates in the SRES program. Among the many other advantages provided by our trained professionals is the ERA® Sellers Security® Plan*, which offers the relief of a guaranteed sale of your current home for those who need to move into their new one in a specified time (as can often be the case with commitments to purchase a new house or deadlines to join a retirement community). Unmatched among national real estate brands, the Plan promises that “We Will Sell Your House, Or ERA Will Buy It!®”, and it’s just part of the array of methods we have to meet your unique needs.
In the senior years or any other time, buying and selling homes is one of life’s most important decisions, both financially and emotionally. It shouldn’t have to be the most stressful and complex, and there are programs and professionals in place to make sure it’s the opposite. With the right Realtor®, you can be the “senior” partner in your own lifetime satisfaction and sales success.
Are you curious about the value of your home? Do you want to know what your neighbors paid for their home?
Contact me and I can send you monthly updates on activity in your neighborhood.
My local expertise, training and experience enable me to provide a more thorough, precise and up to date assessment of your home’s value than you could get from any web site. If you are curious, please contact me for a custom evaluation and I will provide a Maximum Home Value Audit and Competitive Market Analysis to help accurately price your home for sale.
Please contact me any time via email or phone for professional assistance in any real estate transaction.
There are advantages to you in getting pre-approved for your mortgage.
Primarily, with a pre-approval you should receive a “Good Faith Estimate” from the lender. So what good is that? A good faith estimate will tell you exactly what to expect from your loan. The first item is the loan amount. You may want a $200,000 mortgage, but the lender may not approve you for that. You may be approved for a $500,000 mortgage but you may not want to borrow that much. The GFE (Good Faith Estimate) will include the amount of loan you have discussed with the lender, not necessarily the maximum amount for which you would qualify, but for the loan amount with which you and the lender are comfortable. It really is senseless to begin looking for a house until you know exactly how much money has been approved.
An excuse from borrowers on loan defaults is they did not know the terms of the loan. If you are dealing with a legitimate lender, you will know the terms of the loan. The GFE will tell you the length of the loan, usually 15 or 30 year terms. Most mortgages are for 30 years because the longer time frame makes for lower payments.
The GFE will also give you, in precise detail, the interest rate terms for the loan. There is a plethora of loans available, be sure to consult your Realtor and loan officer on the best for your situation. I will mention a couple of loan types here. In my opinion, under MOST circumstances, the optimum loan is usually for a fixed percentage rate. A fixed percentage rate will not change, even if the loan is sold. Another type of loan I will mention here is the ARM (Adjustable Rate Mortgage.) These loans can be quite beneficial under certain circumstances because they usually have the lowest interest rate, but the rate can change. The details are in the GFE. One of the occasions this type of loan could be useful is when you know, beyond the shadow of any doubt, that you will only need the loan for a very short amount of time, 2 or 3 years. After that, the rate adjusts and you could find yourself in trouble with the new calculated payment.
Another advantage to pre-approval is you will learn the costs of obtaining your mortgage. The GFE will tell you how much down payment is required for your loan. This amount will vary with the type of loan and other requirements for your situation. There are also other closing costs involved with obtaining the loan. Will the lender be charging an “origination fee?” These costs are detailed in the GFE. Have you enough cash on hand to cover these costs?
The GFE will give you the exact terms of the loan, removing all doubts about the loan, unless you simply choose to ignore the facts, as is the case with most defaults.
So, you really should consider the pre-qualification mandatory for yourself. With the GFE you will know if you really are ready to look for a house. It is extremely disturbing to find the house you love and then learn you can’t buy it. Therefore, with pre-qualification you have saved yourself a lot of time and heartache.
Since the purpose of the pre-approval is only one part of getting you into that home you want. There are other factors involved. I recommend you start the whole process of house hunting by choosing your Realtor first. We are a decided benefit to you due to our training and knowledge. A professional Realtor will be able to coach you from start to finish, including your loan needs and recommendations of legitimate lenders.
If you are in the Tulsa area, contact me, I would be honored to work with you. If you are not in the Tulsa area, contact me and I will find a professional Realtor in your area through my extensive, world-wide network.
As your real estate consultant, part of my job is to prepare you for potential issues. The pre-approval process is not necessarily an easy one. You will be required to give the lender a lot of details about your finances. You will also be filling out a lot of papers. I want you to know this can be a frustrating part of the home buying process. The good news is, when you get the information to the lender, the entire process can be completed quickly. Timely action will make your pre-approval easier for you, and once it is done right, it is done. I have a checklist of items the lender will want. If you would like a copy, just ask.
I received an email from one of my clients. It read:
“I did not tell a friend we were looking….They came right out and asked us if we were looking and now they are sending us info, without asking.
This was exactly why I did not mention it to anyone else. (I have several friends who are Realtors.)”
I find this situation happens frequently so I thought I would comment on it. This was my response:
Knowing multiple Realtors can be frustrating.
I am not sure if you are asking for advice, but if i may give some advice. The Realtor you choose should have access to the MLS so they will have information on any listing. Your Realtor can help you with any house that is for sale, it does not matter whose sign is in the yard, or if it is a builder, an open house or a FSBO. In my opinion, the best practice for your peace of mind is to choose the Realtor you would like to work with and tell all others you have made a choice and will be working with that one Realtor. This should remove the pressure from the other Realtors whom you did not choose. It will also reveal the character of the Realtor you didn’t choose. If they get abusive with you, that will reveal something about that person.
In my practice, I would much rather someone choose one Realtor and just tell me I am not their Realtor of choice. It is much better than when I do my best to work with someone and then find they have bought a house using someone else’s services. I always wonder, “What did I do wrong?” when in actuality I did not do anything wrong, I was just deceived. That makes me feel used, which is not pleasant.
Does that make sense? I hope it helps.
With that information, I would like to say that I would really love to be your Realtor of choice. I hope you find it helpful to use the web site I created for you which gives the listings that match your search criteria.
The report looks at several things, two of which are the unemployment rate and housing prices.
The moral of this story is stop listening to the national media and buy your home now. This is a fantastic time to buy a house. Depending on your credit score, the interest rate on your mortgage just might be under 5%. Be honest with yourself, how much longer do you really think interest rates will remain this low? Another thing about the current market in Tulsa is there are some fantastic houses that will fit your price.
The bottom line is that this is an incredible time to buy a house in the Tulsa area.
As a homeowner, I thought you’d be interested in avoiding one of the most common mistakes homeowners make when they decide to sell their property. Even if you aren’t planning any changes soon, it wouldn’t hurt to know how to avoid the loss of several thousand dollars when you DO decide to make a move.
How do you get the LEAST money possible for your house? That question has a simple answer: ask too much for it, believing you can always come down later if you have to! It is a common strategy among sellers (and some real estate agents) who don’t know any better. But it doesn’t work!
The reason is because nothing ever sells when the price is too high. Buyers always look at more than one home to get a feel for their choices, and no one ever spends more than necessary. Also, the longer a house sits on the market without selling, the more likely people are to assume that there must be something wrong with it. Is it the price? Or does it need hidden repairs? Will it be this hard to sell when this buyer wants to sell it?
If you’d like to sell your house quickly and at top dollar, CREATE A DEMAND FOR IT. That is, price it VERY close to its expected actual selling price and watch people compete for it. Don’t worry about selling it for too low a price. Just because someone offers you too little for it doesn’t mean you have to accept their offer. And you can afford to be choosy–you’ve got the property that’s in demand!
My years of experience have proven this particular piece of information to be accurate. And I have a lot more information and experience to share with you. So when you decide you’d like to sell what you now own, there is no one in the market who is better equipped to move you ahead than me. When that time comes, I’d like the opportunity to show you how to get the most for your property!
If you are thinking of purchasing your first home, and taking your first step onto the property ladder, your head will be spinning with the amount of advice you will come across for first time buyers. Everybody purchasing a house before you has experienced the same things, so you can take some comfort in that. If you know someone who has recently purchased a house, it can be a good idea to get some advice in simple terms from them. Unless you are a person with substantial means, you will likely be looking to purchase your house using a mortgage. Often first time buyers do not have any money saved which they would use as a down payment. This means they will be trying to borrow 100% of the value of the home. That just doesn’t happen much any more and when it does repayments are obviously going to be higher. If possible, it is always better to purchase a house using the biggest down payment you can afford, thus reducing your monthly repayments. A 20% down payment is the threshold at which you’re exempt from private mortgage insurance, which can add a few hundred non-tax-deductible dollars to your monthly payment. If you cannot afford a deposit or down payment you must still find the money for the closing costs of buying your home. If you estimate about 2% to 3% of the purchase price then you will have a good ball park figure on closing costs. There are many different mortgages available in the market, some are specifically for first time buyers. With so many lenders and so many different types of mortgage, going for one specifically for first time buyers is not always beneficial. so bear that in mind when you are researching. One last thing, and most importantly is that if you do not keep up repayments on your mortgage, or any other loans secured on it, you are at risk of losing the property, so don’t overstretch yourself, work out how much you can comfortably afford each month and don’t go above that.
The Author bought a house in Auckland and he wants to make his landscape auckland style, and he met some interior designers for his bathrooms, bedrooms and all other details in the house.
I have received information that Oklahoma Central Credit Union has Tulsa County Bond Money available.
I trust you are tired of paying rent and are ready to buy a house. OCCU (Oklahoma Central Credit Union) has bond money available.
As a first time home buyer you may qualify for:
Down Payment Assistance
Lower Interest Rates
Lower Monthly payments
Most first time home buyers are going to most easily qualify for an FHA loan. For more information on FHA loans or the Tulsa County Bond money, call OCCU (Oklahoma Central Credit Union) at 664-6000 ext 186 or 437 or stop by one of their locations.
When you have been approved for your loan, be sure to contact me and I will enroll you in my free HomeFinder Service.
Each night my HomeFinder computer system accesses the Multiple Listing Service and searches through all of the information on every home listed in the entire area by every real estate company.
The computer sifts and sorts through all of the new listings, automatically finding and matching the homes that meet your exact specifications. The system then sends you an email with those listings.
My HomeFinder Service gives you access to inside information, normally available only to real estate agents. From the privacy of your home you will receive information about every single home available in the area of your choice. The magic is that you receive this information even before many other real estate agents have seen it.
As you receive information about homes of interest, you can study, compare and drive by the properties as you choose. When you find a home you’d like to see, all you need to do is give me a call and I will make the arrangements to get you inside the home at your convenience.
My HomeFinder system is totally service-oriented. At no time will you feel any pressure to buy a house. When you find the perfect home, you’ll know it, and then you’ll tell me.
Wayne Barnes - 918-645-1470 Contact Wayne via email
"Marketing Maniac"
Senior Real Estate Specialist
By Referral Only Designation
Real Estate Cyberspace Society
Wayne Barnes - Realtor
Broker Associate with
ERA John Hausam, Realtors
6550 E 71st St
Tulsa, OK 74133
(918) 645-1470
Fax: 918-492-6337
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