LEARN MORE ABOUT THE LOCAL MARKET.
Tips For Sellers
If selling your home is on the horizon, read this first.
Quick Tips For Sellers
Do NOT rely on Zillow for your home’s value
the fine print tells you they have a median error of 4.5% in Snohomish county. on a $550,000 home, That’s an error of almost $25,000!
If you want a free market analysis of your home to find out your homes true value, l’d be happy to help.
Insist on professional photography - even as an amateur photographer myself, I still always hire a pro.
Price your home at fair market value.
Maybe this seems like a silly tip, but often times sellers are in a tight spot and they need the home to sell for more than it’s worth.
Unfortunately, when you try to list a home overpriced, it won’t sell. Buyer’s will not pay more for a home than they need to.
This ends up costing sellers even more money. Every month that home sits on the market, that another month’s mortgage they’re paying.
Try to see the home through your buyer’s eyes. Pack away any personal belongings and decor. Give potential buyers a chance to see themselves living there.
I love all your family photos. I have similar photos all over my walls. I have kids’ art. I have special trinkets displayed. But those things are only special to me and my family.
When a potential buyer walks through your property, you don’t want them to see how you live there. You want them to envision themselves living there. That’s the whole reason they’re there.
Think of it as pre-packing for your move. De-personalize your home as much as you can. Remember, it’s only for a short time.
Are you thinking of listing your home?
Shoot me an email, send me a text, call me, fax me, send a message in a bottle (it might take a while, but I’ll respond) and let’s see if I’m that perfect fit for you.
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Tips For Buyers
Quick Tips For First or Second Time Home Buyers
Quick Tips For Home Buyers
Get pre-approved before you start looking for homes.
Getting set up with a lender before you start looking for a home is a must. Can you begin your house hunt before? Well, yes, you can do what you want.
However, It can be super disappointing if you don’t get approved for the price of home you thought you could get.
This is a crucial step 1 in the home buying process. If you need a recommendation on a lender, let me know. I’ll get you connected.
Always hire a professional home inspector to do your inspection.
“But, I have a good friend who’s a contractor and he said he’d look over the house for free.” No. Don’t do it.
Will he find everything wrong with the house? Maybe. Can we use that information to open up negotiations again and ask the sellers to do the work on the house? Maybe.
Do you really want to risk one of the biggest purchased of your life on a maybe? Spend the $500 give or take on a good home inspection. It’ll give us negotiating power and it’ll give you a full picture of the home so you can decide with certainty if this is still the home for you.
Choose a full time real estate agent.
You want to make sure that when a listing you want to see comes on the market, your realtor is 100% available to show you.
Know the costs before you get under contract.
Buying a home can be expensive, and I’m not just talking about the price tag on the home. There’s the closing costs, inspection costs, escrow fees, etc.
Find out more about who pays for what in my blog here.
Do not call the name on the sign for more info. Call your Realtor®.
Will the listing agent flat out lie about the home? I’d sure hope not.
But will they tell you the information you want to hear through rose colored glasses? You betcha! They represent the seller, not you. They are looking out for their client’s best interest, not yours.
When you have a question about a property, call YOUR agent and let them filter out the sparkle.
Find a Realtor® who works well with your communication style.
Do you like to text? Are you more of an email kind of person? Do you like to communicate through messenger pigeon?
You want to find an agent who will communicate with you in the way that works best with your style, job, and schedule.
The seller will pay for your Realtor®, so hire EXACTLY who you want.
This is HUGE! You as a buyer don’t pay any commission fees.
The seller pays for that. A good Realtor® makes the same amount of money on the transaction as a bad one. Hire the one YOU want.
So, about hiring the best realtor for you… I know a Realtor®. That person is me.
Shoot me an email, send me a text, call me, fax me, send a message in a bottle (it might take a while, but I’ll respond) and let’s see if I’m that perfect fit for you.
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Outdated Advice Buyers Should Ignore
There are SO many places to get advice about real estate transactions, but not all are created equal and not all advice is good.
Do you ever read those articles about what buyers should and shouldn’t do and you think to yourself… well ya, duh! I’m not an idiot.
There are SO many places to get advice about real estate transactions, but not all are created equal and not all advice is good.
We don’t live in the times of classified ads anymore. No one finds a home in their local newspaper or magazine. We have the glorious internet, an endless source of information. You buyers are educated. You buyers know what you want.
Realtor.com® recently highlighted some of the most common advice home buyers hear that no longer applies in the current housing market, including:
“Wait for spring.”
Advice like this is KEY for sellers when deciding when is the best and most likely time to list their home to have the best advantage, but buyers don’t need to wait for any “good” time to buy. Yes, spring is busy and there’s more inventory on the market, but that also means there’s more buyers out looking too. More buyers = more competition. Plus, sellers feel like since it’s the best time to sell, they are less likely to negotiate on price.
Buy when you find the right property that will meet your needs today, tomorrow, and the next five to ten years.
“Wait for home prices to come down.”
There’s always that fear of buying at the top of the market. It’s not all that irrational. But when you consider the cost of renting (which is also probably at its highest) you’re literally throwing money away. Paying high rent now and hoping that you’ll find a better deal two or three years down the road won’t work.
The better advice is to make a smart buy today for a property that will appreciate over the longer term.
“Make a lower offer so you have room to negotiate.”
Some buyers may be told to make an offer that’s less than what they’re actually willing to pay for a home. “Give yourself room to negotiate.” They say.
The old adage to offer 10 to 15% below asking is not necessarily the case anymore. (This advice does not apply to overpriced homes. That’s a whole other blog post for another day.) Sellers are competing against other homes in their area and most likely have already priced their home competitively.
The better advice is to base your offer on sales of similar homes in the area.
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FAQS
Your most common questions about real estate answered.
WHAT IS ESCROW?
Escrow can mean 2 things. 1. The period of time between mutual acceptance and closing day. 2. The neutral 3rd party that handles documents and facilitates closing paperwork.
HOW LONG WILL IT TAKE?
Most escrows are around 30-45 days. Cash deals can decrease the escrow time, as securing the lending takes the majority of the time. You can decrease that time by being not only pre-approved, but pre-underwritten before you even make an offer.
WHAT SHOULD MY DOWN PAYMENT BE?
It depends on your loan, but typically they are between 3 and 5% of the purchase price. There are lots of down-payment assistance programs to help with this!
WHAT IS EARNEST MONEY?
It is a good-faith deposit you make to the seller. It can range from $500-$10,000+ depending on the list price of the home. You need to have these funds available when you make an offer on a house.
CAN I GET A BETTER DEAL ON A SHORT SALE?
The easiest way to understand a short sale is the sale of a home in which the proceeds from the sale are less than the balance of debts secured by liens against the property and the home owner cannot afford to pay the liens in full. Despite their name, they take much longer than your average sale.
HOW MUCH DOES IT ALL COST?
As a buyer, hiring a Realtor costs you NOTHING. The seller pays the commissions. A home inspection can cost between $400-600. Closing costs can be around 3% of the purchase price.
WHO PAYS FOR CLOSING COSTS?
It can vary. You can ask the seller to pay for them in full or pay up to a certain amount. We can find out closing costs before making an offer so you have all the information at hand.
DO I REALLY NEED TO DO A FINAL WALK THROUGH?
Legally, no. But you absolutely should. We will do that together to make sure the sellers left the home in good condition. You don't want to open up the door to your new home and see a broken water pipe...
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What is closing? What happens? Please explain...
Find out in 10 easy steps.
Buyer’s 10 Steps to Closing
1. Apply for Loan Approval
Complete application and provide your loan officer with documentation supporting your income and assets. Ask me about the app!
2. Shop for a Home
Qualified applicants are provided with a conditional loan approval so your agent knows your target price range.
3. Make Offer on Home
When you’ve found your ideal home, your agent will negotiate the contract and your loan officer will move forward with your application.
4. Home Inspection
We have the home inspected and based on the findings we open up negotiations again!
5. Set Up Insurance
Work with an insurance agent to get homeowner’s protection on your property to begin on your closing day. Provide your loan officer with your insurance company’s information.
6. Home Appraisal
Your loan officer will order a home appraisal after a successful inspection. The appraisal gives you an opinion of your home’s value.
7. Loan Underwriting
Underwriters will review your loan application and documentation for final approval. Additional documents might be requested from you at this time.
8. Documents to Title Company
Your final loan documents will be sent from the lender to the title company for you to sign.
9. Closing
You’ll visit your title office to sign all the documentation and provide a cashier’s check for your down payment.
10. Funding
Your lender funds your loan. The title company records the deed with the county and your home purchase is complete!
You ready to take the first step?
Who pays for what in Real Estate?
There are a lot of expenses in a real estate transaction, but who pays for what?
There are a lot of expenses to consider when purchasing or selling a home. Let me know if you have any questions.
WHAT THE BUYER GENERALLY PAYS FOR...
Lender’s Title Insurance Premium
Escrow Fees
Recording charges for all documents in buyer’s name
Tax proration (from date of acquisition)
Homeowner’s Transfer Fee
All new loan charges (except those required by lender for seller to pay)
Interest on new loan from date of funding to 30 days prior to first payment
Assumption/change of Records fees for take-over of existing loan
Beneficiary Statement Fee for assumption of existing loan
Inspection Fees (roof, property inspection, geological, termite, etc.)
City Transfer/Conveyance Tax
Fire insurance premium for the first year
Notary Fees
Courier Fees
WHAT THE SELLER GENERALLY PAYS FOR...
Real Estate Commissions
Owner’s Title Insurance Premium
Document Preparation Fee for Deed
Document Transfer Tax
Any City Transfer/Conveyance Tax
Any Loan Fee required by buyer’s lender
Payoff of all loans in sellers’ name (or existing loan balance if being assumed by buyer)
Interest accrued to lender being paid off
Statement Fees, Reconveyance Fees and any loan prepayment penalties
Termite Inspection and work
Home Warranty
Any judgments, tax liens, etc., against the seller and recording charges to clear all documents of record against seller
Tax Proration (for any unpaid taxes up to time of transfer of title)
Any unpaid Homeowner’s Dues
Homeowner’s Association Document Fee
Any bonds or assessments
Any and all delinquent taxes
Notary Fees
Courier Fees
What is Earnest Money?
WHAT IS IT AND HOW MUCH SHOULD IT BE?
WHAT IS IT AND HOW MUCH SHOULD IT BE?
Earnest money is your "I promise I want to buy this house and here's how much I'm willing to lose to get it" money.
In Snohomish County the amount is typically about 1% of the offer price, while King County it averages about 3%.
For example:
In section 7 of Form 21, on an offer of $450,000, we would want to give an earnest money amount of $4,500.
When your offer is accepted, you will have 2 days to give that money to the escrow company.
There are a lot of ways to get that money back if we cancel the contract as long as we follow all the proper timelines.
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10 Mistakes Buyers Make
Don’t fall victim to any of these common mistakes.
During a seller’s market, buyers have to be on their A-game. Here are the top 10 mistakes I see buyer’s make.
1. MAKING AN OFFER ON A HOME WITHOUT BEING PRE-APPROVED
Preapproval will make your life easier-so take the time to speak with a lender. Your situation will be different from anyone else, and your communication with a fantastic lender can make or break your financing.
2. NOT HAVING A HOME INSPECTION
Trying to save money today can end up costing you tomorrow. A qualified home inspector will detect issues that most buyers overlook.
3. LIMITING YOUR SEARCH TO OPEN HOUSES, ADS, OR THE INTERNET
Many homes listed in print ads or online have already been sold. Your best resource will be your Realtor and the NWMLS. They have up-to-date information that is unavailable to the general public.
4. CHOOSING A PART-TIME AGENT
Choose a professional who is dedicated to serving your needs before, during, and after the sale. You don't want to have to wait for your Realtor to get off work to go show you houses.
5. THINKING THERE IS ONLY ONE PERFECT HOUSE
Buying a home is a process of elimination, not selection. New properties arrive on the market daily, so keep an open mind.
6. NOT CONSIDERING LONG TERM
It's important to think ahead. Will the home suit your needs 3-5 years from now?
7. NOT EXAMINING INSURANCE ISSUES
Purchase adequate insurance. Advice from an insurance agent can provide you with answers to any concerns you may have.
8. NOT BUYING A HOME WARRANTY
This is essentially a mini insurance policy that usually lasts one year from the close of escrow. It can cover basic repairs you may need.
9. NOT KNOWING TOTAL COSTS INVOLVED
Early in the buying process, ask your lender for an estimate of closing costs. Title company and attorney fees should be considered. HOA fees, hold backs, etc.
10. NOT FOLLOWING THROUGH ON DUE DILIGENCE
Buyers should make a list of any concerns they have relating to issues such as; crime rates, schools, power lines, neighbors, etc. Be diligent so that you can have confidence in your purchase.
Are you ready to take the plunge and buy a home?
Are you contemplating selling your home in the Evergreen State but feeling uncertain about the financial implications? Navigating the true costs of selling your house in Washington can be more complex than you think. Let's demystify the process and delve into both the known and the often-unanticipated expenses that come with selling a property.