Stronger economy and soild job growth expected to boost home sales in 2015:
Housing Expectations for 2015
Category Archives: Interesting Facts
Reasons to Buy Before Spring
•Prices will continue to rise
•Mortgage rates are projected to increase
•You are paying a mortgage either way
•It’s time to move on with your life
Tips for Selling Your Home
•Don’t overprice – This will only lead to disappointment and your house will get “market worn”.
•Take care of needed renovations – In today’s market most buyers are looking for a move-in ready home and not a fixer upper.
•Make sure general maintenance is done – Taking care of the details will help your home to shine and stand out from the crowd.
•Remove the clutter – Pick-up and clean-up. You want your home to have a clean and spacious feel for the prospective buyers.
•Leave for showings – Buyers will feel more comfortable looking at your home if your not around, plus you will not be put on the spot with questions that you might handle differently if asked through your agent.
Why Do Americans Buy a Home?
• Having a good place to raise children and provide them a good education.
• Having a physical structure where you and your family can feel safe.
• It allows you to have more space for your family.
• It give you more control over what you do with your living space.
• Owning a home is a good way to build wealth that can be passed along to your family.
Source: Keeping Current Matters
10 Tips for Staging Your Home
•Remove the clutter – put small things away
•Brighten areas up with light – open drapes and blinds, add lighting
•Re-purpose rooms – add some new furniture and paint
•Vary wall hangings – try different groupings
•Bring nature inside – add plants and fresh cut flowers
•Group in threes – odd numbers are preferred when grouping accessories
•Give areas a face lift – add new counter tops or cabinet doors if dated
•Add some color – paint with warm tans, honeys and soft blue-greens
•Beware of layout – pay close attention to the traffic flow of each room
•Clean – this is the cheapest and easiest way to improve the look of your home
More People are Entering the Real Estate Field
The number of applications for real estate licenses is up in many areas of the country due to the improving real estate market. The National Association of REALTORS® added 42,000 agents in 2013, which marked the first increase in about seven years.
If your are considering a career in real estate or are looking to return to the business, then click on the link below to find out more about Ferguson Realtors and what we can offer you to make your real estate career a success.
http://www.topofknox.com/visual-marketing/
Regrets of the First-time Home Buyer
- 62% outgrew their homes quickly and wished they had purchased a larger home
- 40% feel they paid too much or should of put more down
- 38% were surprised by how much it costs to maintain a home
- 34% wished they had negotiated more or found a better mortgage rate
- 25% found out after moving in that they didn’t like the neighborhood
- 24% have regrets related to their yard
- 17% dislike their parking situation
Source: HouseHunt.com
10 Questions Home Buyers Need to Answer
You can make the home buying process go much smoother for yourself and your agent if you can answer these 10 questions in the beginning:
- Why buy and why buy now
- Are you working with a lender
- How many houses have you looked at already
- How do you prefer to be contacted
- What if we found the perfect house tomorrow
- What are your three favorite neighborhoods
- What is your favorite room in the house
- How important is outdoor/garage space
- How long do you think that you’ll live in the house that you buy
- What is a deal breaker for you
Consider a LeadingRE Firm for Your Real Estate Needs
Leading Real Estate Companies of the World® is a network of over 500 of the very best real estate firms that are located in nearly 50 countries. These firms have 3,500 offices with 120,000 sales associates. In 2013 these firms had sales of $314 billion dollars representing over one million transactions, which placed Leading Real Estate Companies of the World® #1 in sales volume in the United States.
Sales volume numbers for 2013 were as follows:
Leading Real Estate Companies of the World® – $314 billion
Coldwell Banker – $267 billion
Re/Max – $221 billion
Keller Williams – $131 billion
Century 21 – $122 billion
Prudential – $114 billion
Berkshire Hathaway Home Services – $80 billion
Real Living – $44 billion
Sotheby’s International Realty – $28 billion
ERA – $22 billion
Realty Executives – $19 billion
Better Homes & Gardens – $12 billion
Firms affiliated with Leading Real Estate Companies of the World® can offer sellers global exposure of their home in addition to strong marketing expertise at the local level. Leading Real Estate Companies of the World® has the resources to market your property to the highest possible number of potential buyers. With 120,000 talented associates around the world, they expose your property to buyers on six continents ensuring more eyes are on your property. In addition they receive inbound clients from other affiliates around the globe who are interested in purchasing a home.
If you are looking for the best real estate firm to sell your home, then you need to consider a firm that’s affiliated with Leading Real Estate Companies of the World®.
Source: Leading Real Estate Companies of the World®
Inside the Mind of a Seller
The NAR 2013 Profile of Homebuyers and Sellers gives some key insight into what today’s typical seller is thinking when it comes time to move.
97% – Recent sellers typically sold their house for this percentage of the listing price.
88% – Sellers that were assisted by a real estate agent when selling their home.
59% – Purchased a newer home than they’d owned previously.
47% – Reported that they reduced the asking price at least once.
36% – Sellers that offered incentives to attract buyers.
13% – Sellers that had to delay or stall selling their home because the value of their home was worth less than their mortgage.