Buyers/Sellers

Buying a new home can be a major decision which can be both exciting and difficult, especially if it is your first home purchase. All buyers want to get the best price for their purchase since most homes are a long term investment; however, many times buyers may have concerns about the cost and financing of a home.

-Steps to buying a home:
How much can I afford?
Early in the process of purchasing a home, it is important to meet with a mortgage broker to find out exactly how much you can afford to spend on a home. This will help both you and your REALTOR when trying to find your home.

Tell sellers that you a serious buyer.
Once you know how much you can afford to spend on a home, you may want to start the pre-approval process for financing early. This will not only speed up the process when you do find your home, but sellers are often more responsive when they know that buyer financing is already available. This can tell a seller that you are a serious buyer. The longer you wait to receive financing approval, the more likely a seller is to pass on your offer.

Look past the décor.
Always remember that when viewing a home to look past the seller's furniture, paint choices and décor. Try to visualize the house as you would arrange it. Often buyers are too focused on the bed or paint that they miss out on the potential and charm that the house can be once the seller has moved out.

Selling your home can be challenging. Some sellers may not know what features to highlight in their home to attract willing buyers; however, as a seller, you want to get the best offer for your home.

-Steps to selling a home:
Cleaning and Staging!
Although first priority when selling your home is to make certain that during the time your home is being shown it should always be clean; staging your home can make or break a sale. Though it may seem strange, it is important to remember that "neutral is beautiful." Some buyers may like the bright colors and personal touches, but most buyers want to envision their items in the home, not the seller's. Personal pictures can often distract from the charm that a house has to offer. Neutral colors and clean lines can help buyers look beyond the seller's furniture and picture themselves in the home, which could lead to a speedy sell.

What's my house worth?
The first step to selling your home is to get a CMA or comparative market analysis. Once you decide to sell, your REALTOR will compare similar homes in your area to determine the appropriate listing price for your home. It is never wise to base your price on how much you, as a seller, need to get out of the home. Doing so could cause your home to stay on the market longer than others due to high pricing, or worse if it is priced too low, it could cause you to not receive the most out of your sell.