how to pick the perfect Realtor

Well lets see there are so many ways to look at this question... are you the buyer or the seller?

If you are the buyer then you need to make sure your agent is someone who works with buyer a lot.. why? well because an agent that works with a lot of buyers knows a lot about different loan options.. has the scoop on which lenders can get things done.. and also knows how to write up a really good offer (NOT low-ball offer because no one likes those ever).  But that's just one thing... 

You also need to find an agent that is always on call... and yes even at 10pm at night!  What if you see your dream home on Zillow and want to see it at 9am the very next day?! ahh lets talk about kicking in the stress... better hope your agent isn't snoozing at 8pm after Wheel of Fortune goes off

You should also find an agent that you can be yourself around... what I mean is if your touring houses and your feel like you have to keep your thoughts to yourself till your back in your car.. well that's going to be a problem. You need an agent you can have fun with and be honest with so they can find you the perfect place and be there if an issue pops up during the whole process.


If you are the seller...  then you need to make sure you get an agent that helps you net what you need... as simple as that.... let the agent run the numbers.. tell them what you want to make after the sell and let them make the numbers work.  marketing is key, but remember open houses almost never work for the sellers advantage.  don't stress the commission don't stress anything just trust the realtor your working with.   I know you want to negotiate with your realtor on commission and fees but take it from me "you get what you pay for" so you cant expect an agent to reach for the stars and negotiate on your behalf if they cave and take less commission to sell your property just because you asked (because that means they couldn't even negotiate for themselves )

all in all folks just remember you have to pick the person you vibe with.. you should know after the first meeting if its meant to be :)   I personally would LOVE to help and promise to always text back in a matter of minutes ;)   (actually answering a call may take a little longer.. one because I live in the country and have to run to the nearest service spot of my home... and two because I'm not mentally prepared to answer  hahah)

If your buying to get a GREAT deal... now is the time

I deal with clients that what to buy homes for many different reasons..

Some want the perfect kitchen with double sink in that master bath..

Some want a condo with no outside work

Some just want a house that they feel they got a GREAT deal on even if that means settling for less then they wanted cosmetically.

If you are the last one that wants a GREAT deal.. then you should be looking like yesterday..  November is the best month to get the greatest deal.. why?  Well because if the seller is selling during the holiday seasons its usually for a reason.. such as a job transfer or wanting to build by spring, whatever the reason is most are ready to sell now.

What does wanting to sell now mean...  means accepting a lower offer (not low ball because NO one likes that & most cant afford that)... you have more negotiation power, such as adding a home warranty or for inspection repairs which all buyers love to ask for.

SO if your wanting a deal... better call a Realtor today.. (me preferably)!!

How NOT to sell a house....

How Not to sell a house might possibly be one of the easiest post I could do... I could tell you what not to do all day long.....  let me break it down for you as easy as I can....

If you don't want your house to sell (for top dollar) then simply don't do a thing.. easy as that.  So don't worry about decluttering, or cleaning, just leave it as is and go with it. 

If you don't want your house to sell then you should make the house looked as lived in as can be... make sure that everyone can see you have outgrown the house and no longer have space ..  When people come through and go through your closets and vanity's to make sure there is room for their stuff, you want to make sure they don't see any spare space.

If you don't want your house to sell you should also decline showings in the evenings and the weekends..  propose a new time like early morning during the week :) buyers love that.   If you don't want to sell then don't worry about boxing away all the extras in the house and placing them neatly out of the way..  no one does that.. that's to much work and would get you prepared for a move. 

& last.. if you don't want to sell your house then you should most definitely look at the comps your Realtor (me) have given you about the similar properties sold and then take that price and add 15,000.   So if your house should be between 150,000-155,000  then by all means list that thing for 199,999. "just to try it"

** this post is clearly just for entertainment :))  all just for laughs....  haha... you could also do everything perfect and it still not sell and in that case I need to sit down and review all the things TO do.  It could be the market, the location, the type of property or many other issues... **

Why am I a Realtor?

In high school I had no idea what I wanted to be when I "grew up"...  I mean of course I wanted to be a famous movie star but who doesn't...   The only thing I knew for sure was I didn't like anyone telling me what to do and when to do it lol.. again who likes that's lol. 

I had such a strong passion for children so maybe a teacher?...   Then I would have summers off and I could be off on the weekends.. But then that means I had to get up and go to school (which I hated doing for the past 12 years so why do it for the next 30)  and all I heard the past 4 years of high school was how every teacher didn't make enough so they needed summer jobs.. no thanks. Then I thought Daycare Teacher for life!..

Now let me be 1000% honest... If I made enough money to afford an apartment, one child, food and gas on a daycare income I would have totally made that my career choice. I was good at that.. I loved teaching the toddler age and it was something that truly made me happy...  would explain why I worked at the same daycare for a total of 13 years..  After about 3 years working in childcare I realized I had the passion for this job like no other, however it comes with a boss... and "regular hours"  so it was lacking the freedom and income I wanted... I needed a career with passion, freedom, and income and if one was lacking I felt trapped...
 
My wonderful parents didn't like the fact that I dropped out of NKY and that I had no path to take.. they said why don't you try real estate? They said they would pay for me to try it...  so I looked into it.. I had NO idea how anything with real estate worked.. I just liked the fact that I had a year to do the school and that I could go anytime I wanted until all classes were done FREEDOM lol....  so I agreed.  In 2006 I spent maybe 2 evenings a week going to a random school on dream street... It was something I knew I could be good at.. I was learning so much of a world I would have never entered had someone not mentioned it to me. When I started it was around the same time I found out that little Maria (my daughter) was going to be entering this world..  Well that sent me in to a very over protective mom that needed to be by her child's side everyday all day because who is going to love her like I do lol... which would be why daycare stayed in my life for 13 years....

Fast forward to today....

A few years ago I decided you know what I cant be a Realtor "part time"  I have to pick one or the other because both jobs were lacking with me trying to be awesome at both..

Realtor it has to be..  Maria is in school I have the freedom from her so why not try to be a "real Realtor"..  Thank God I made that leap..  From the outside looking in many people see a Realtor as a salesperson, as someone just looking for a commission check..  I can promise you this job is SO much more..  I have had the chance to meet so many people that I would have never crossed paths with.  They have become friends and some family to me. 

Sure buying a house and touring many gets to be stressful on the buyers end... but I love the fact that within a few weeks... some months of searching I will get to see their face light up when they find "the one"..   I can usually guess which house is the one just by a look now lol. After that moment they glow for 30-45 days and then when closing day comes they beam with excitement that all other problem's fade away because they are so happy to be making a huge life changing move..   Now for the buyer or seller this excitement might only last a month or two but for me as a realtor I get to see this day after day after day......  The feeling I get knowing that someone is making one of the biggest decisions of their life and I got to help is priceless.....  So this job for me not only comes with the endless amount of income and freedom I dreamt of.. it also comes with the fact that weekly I get to help someones dreams come true and they are so grateful...  It couldn't be more rewarding. I leave the final walk through and closing just so fulfilled that I helped someone become so happy that they could cry (some do)!  

This is why I am a Realtor....

I want to buy a foreclosure

Everyone wants a great deal.. but trust me not ever one wants a foreclosure.  

What is a foreclosure?  

Foreclosure

Foreclosure is a legal process in which a lender attempts to recover the balance of a loan from a borrower who has stopped making payments to the lender by forcing the sale of the asset used as the collateral for the loan.en.wikipedia.org

 

Now you must understand yes you can get these homes for cheaper then other homes (if you qualify) however almost all of these homes will need TLC. I get asked this a lot " im approved for 120k the house is only 80k can I use the extra money to fix this house back up?"  You would think it works like that but sadly No.  So while buying your first home you want to get a deal but most first time home buyers don't have the extra 30-50k the house might need to get in back in great shape. Also these updates take awhile to fix and that means you might possibly need to find a backup place to live while this takes place.

 

You can check on foreclosures at hudhomestore.com and homepath.com   But remember to contact me before you see these home and I will help guide you though the process.  

 

Garage tips

If your selling your home anytime soon, on of the over looked spaces is the garage.  Many people will worry so much about getting the clutter out of the house (which is a BIG deal ) but by doing that they just stack it up in the garage.  Many buyers are in pairs so that usually comes with two cars.  While most accept a one car garage they like to have that extra space to store their clutter...  trust me when we open the garage door to peak at the size if there's boxes, toys, shoes, clothes and totes all over then the space has lost space in the buyers eyes that is there because they are just looking at your stuff..

How to fix it?

That's simple really, just pick it up.  Make special areas for toys, and shoes.  If you can afford to then go a step farther and invest in (the same solid color) totes.  Plus this is great for moving :)

 

HOA fees

HOA fees

 

What are they?

An amount of money that must be paid monthly by owners of certain types of residential property to an organization that assists with maintaining and improving that property and others in the same group

Make sure to ask your realtor (me) before putting an offer in on a home you like if you will have a hoa fee.  Some are monthly and some are yearly.  It can range for 10 dollar to 250 dollar PER MONTH... make sure to know before making a decision, because this is extra on top of what your already paying for your loan.