Your home inspection is often the single most important day of your escrow – it’s when you finally get some answers to all those questions that have been nagging you since you first set foot in your potential new home. How old is the roof? Is there copper plumbing? Has the electrical been updated? You can try and get answers to these questions before your write your offer, but you won’t have much concrete information until your general inspection. Continue reading
How Aggressive Should your Offer Be?
Every time I sit down with buyers to write an offer to purchase a home, the first question I am asked is “What price should we offer?” The answer to that question is determined by many factors, all of which need to be carefully considered before making a final decision on price. There is no “formula” for choosing the magic number that will get you an accepted offer – the circumstances surrounding each home are different and you’ll find that your offer strategies will change with each offer you write. Continue reading
How to Pick the Right Listing Agent
If you have decided that the time is right for you to sell your home, the first step in the process is to partner with a Realtor. Picking the right listing agent can be an interesting journey for homeowners, one that sometimes evolves over many years. If you are an established homeowner and have owned your house for a long time, you’ve probably met a few Realtors at open houses in your neighborhood. Continue reading
Why You Should Call a Lender Now
If you are thinking of buying sometime in the next year, here are a few reasons why you should go ahead and talk to a lender now rather than waiting: Continue reading
Making the Decision to Sell
If you are a homeowner, the idea of selling your house has undoubtedly crossed your mind at least once. There are countless reasons why people consider selling their homes. Maybe it’s time to trade up to something larger or downsize to something smaller. Maybe your kids are nearing school age and you’d like to be in a better district. You could be considering a job transfer or a change in family situation. Making the leap from “considering” a home sale to actually listing your house can be a difficult process with many considerations. Here are some things to consider as you make your decision. Continue reading
Tips for First Time Home Sellers
Buying a home for the first time is generally an experience that is both monumentally exciting and agonizingly stressful at the same time. If you have made it through that process and are now enjoying the pride and benefits of owning your own home, you have successfully jumped one of life’s major hurdles. However, if you are like most first time homeowners, you did not buy your dream house – you are more likely living in a great starter home that is hopefully going to enable you to build equity and move up to a bigger and better home. Continue reading