Home Evaluation

For our first meeting we’ll schedule a time that works best for you to meet with me in your home. This is where I’ll come, introduce myself, get to know you a little bit, and then I’ll have you give me a tour of your property where I’ll ask a lot of questions and take a lot of notes.

Don’t be shy. Your place doesn’t have to be in perfect order before I see it. The first meeting is to simply to get a sense of the basic parameters.

I will also take some time to go over my strategy when it comes to marketing and listing your home as well as possibly make some suggestions on a few repairs that might have a significant positive return on investment for you. The first meeting may take up to an hour or so depending on how many questions you have.

I will then take all of that information back to my office to perform an in-depth custom comparative market analysis (CMA) by looking at all of the recent comparable homes from the immediate area which have either been sold or listed in the past year and then make the necessary adjustments to come up with a likely range of the sales price of your home.

I will then send you my findings along with my report and any suggestions I might have. I will also include a seller net-proceeds sheet that will show you how much you will pocket after all of the fees, taxes, and loan payoff amounts have been subtracted out of the final sales price.

There’s absolutely no cost for me to do this and no obligation to work with me afterwards. I want to work hard to earn your trust and your business. I don’t sign any contracts until just before we list.

If the numbers look right and it makes sense to move forward we will begin to strategize your move immediately.

Preparing Your Home For Market

With my history as a builder and remodeler I have a number of contacts in the area who I know do quality work for a fair price if we decide a few fixes and small updates are best for you. Some repairs have better returns than others. You don’t want to spend a dollar to make fifteen cents.

In a seller’s market, which is definitely where we are today, you may be surprised at how little you’ll have to do to get your home ready to sell.

De-clutter/Staging

The most important thing you can do to prepare your home for the market is to de-clutter and de-personalize. Remove the bulk of things from countertops, shelves, closets and corners. Take down all the family photos. Clean out the garage. Donate clothing and items you haven’t touched in the last two years.

The goal is to set the stage for potential buyers to be able walk through your home and imagine themselves living there enjoying the space alongside their loved ones and all of their things.

The more suggestive you can be, the better. For example, if there’s unused space in the basement or in an upstairs bedroom to exercise, throw down a yoga mat and a basket with towels and weights next to it. Home offices are big right now so finding a space in your home to put an old table and chair with a desk light on it and a computer or even a piece of paper and pencil will show buyers that they could do work there even if you never did.

We can talk about staging in greater detail when the time comes. Most staging companies will charge you around one percent of the home’s purchase price to stage it for you. While staging can be very effective, I think it’s best to first explore your options with what I know to to be effective and what is immediately available.

My goal as a seller’s agent is to get you the equity you deserve.

Truth of Sale in Housing Inspection

A number of cities across the metro area require a truth in sale of housing inspection (TISH report) to be performed by a state certified TISH inspector. These inspections are required before listing your property and are generally code related. The inspection is mostly concerned with health and safety issues, where as a buyer’s inspection generally deals with functionality.

Some cities have required repairs which may require a building permit to be pulled. All TISH reports give you the option to have the buyer assume that responsibility. Once the report is done the house can go on the market if there are no required repairs. Once the required repairs are completed the TISH inspector will be able to issue you a Certificate of Approval (COA).

The cost is generally between $250-350 depending on what city you’re in and the size of your property.

Marketing/Listing Your Home

Once we’re ready we’ll use professional high-dynamic-range photography to present your home in its best light. All photography and marketing is paid for by the realtor. If an agent tells you otherwise, please do some more shopping around.

We’ll use those images to send out mailers throughout the neighborhood, create social media posts and send out emails to notify literally thousands of potential buyers and other real estate professionals in your area to announce that your home is coming to market.

The goal is to cast the widest net to bring in the most buyers to get you the fair market value for your home. Just like everything esle, your home is worth whatever someone else is willing to pay for it and it’s my job to make sure you get the highest and best offer.

Multiple Offers

In today’s housing market it is very likely that your home will receive multiple offers. My duty as your seller’s agent is to walk you through the advantages and disadvantages of each offer we receive and to provide you with pragmatic advice along the way.

After more than one offer is presented, it is advantageous for most sellers to call for highest and best. Essentially this is a call to get all offers in by a certain deadline. Also, this gives those who have written offers the opportunity to change their offer to make it as attractive possible for you, the seller.

The deal everyone is looking for is: cash, no inspection. The second most attractive offer is conventional financing with at least twenty percent down. The more certainty the deal will close on-time, for the agreed upon price, the better.

Problems

There are more than a few problems which can arise after accepting an offer. One, the inspection goes south. Two, the buyers get cold feet. (This happens more frequently in a seller’s market where offers typically come in for way more than list price.) Three, the appraisal falls short of the purchase price. In that case the buyers may not be able to cover the difference in cash and the deal falls apart.

Enter Backup Offers

In my mind a deal is never done until the all the papers are signed, money has exchanged hands, and the keys are handed over. Until then, anything can happen.

The last thing you want to do is put your home back on the market after the first deal falls through. One, it’s timely and two, most buyers will not be as excited to be the next in line. They might not be as willing to pay as much either. Overall, Houses that go back on the market tend not to do as well. They can get a certain stigma. It doesn’t happen every time, but it does happen.

That’s why backup offers are so important. Let’s say something does happen with that first deal. Suppose the buyer gets cold feet and sends over a cancellation notice, even before transferring over the earnest money. (They have up to two days after all parties sign the purchase agreement.) With backup offers you now have options without going through the rigamarole of putting your home back on the market, i.e. showings, open houses, etc.

Buyer Inspections

If you accept an offer which is contingent upon inspection, typically that inspection period is no longer than ten days. In the seller’s market we have today most buyers will offer shorter inspection periods closer to five days. As a seller, you must allow reasonable access to your home within that time so that the inspector can perform his/her duties.

A standard home inspection will include testing appliances, mechanicals, outlets, checking for safe electrical wiring, proper plumbing and venting, inspecting structural components, looking at the the overall condition of the roof, and an in-depth investigation for water intrusion among many other items.

Because national and local building codes can change every few years, if not every year, most home inspectors are not code inspectors.

The average home will have as many as one hundred deficiencies. Most importantly to keep in mind is that some deficiencies are more critical than others. There’s no such thing as a perfect home and even brand new homes are not without flaws.

Concessions

If the inspection does reveal something unexpected that was not disclosed and causes concern for the buyers, it is likely they will come back with either a request for concessions within the allotted time of the inspection period.

They may ask for repairs before close, money off the purchase price, or seller paid closing costs.

Depending on what the issue is, the buyers may need to request for an extension of the inspection period to perform further testing or to gather cost estimations to remedy the deficiency/deficiencies.

At no time can the seller cancel the purchase agreement because of what the buyers request. At the same time, at no time do the sellers have to perform on any requests made by the buyers. Within this inspection period the buyers can send a cancellation the purchase agreement at anytime, for any reason and, in most cases, get their earnest money back.

Appraisal

After the inspection the buyer’s lender will order a third party appraisal to be performed at the property. The appraiser will do an in-depth look at the size and general condition of the property and compare it to the recently listed and recently sold properties in the immediate area and make the necessary adjustments to calculate the property’s approximate value.

If the appraisal comes back short of the purchase price, which happens a lot in today’s market, the buyer must cover the difference in cash. If the buyers can not move things around with their lender to make it work, the deal may fall through.

Many buyers today are expecting low appraisals and stating in an addendum attached to the purchase agreement that they will be willing to cover a “short appraisal” up to a certain dollar amount.

Title Person/Closer

The title person, often referred to as the closer, is the person who brings everything together at the end. They take care of title work, issue title insurance, and facilitate closings.

Due to COVID 19, sellers now usually pre-sign all documents ahead of the buyers in an effort to avoid too many people in one room together. It’s sad because that was always fun for buyers and sellers to get the chance to meet face to face.

Once everything is signed, CONGRATULATIONS! The proceeds from the sale are wired to your bank account and are usually available immediately.

Your home is sold.