Tuesday, December 18, 2007
Weichert Realtors / Access Realty website
Weichert Realtor agent Cindy Park works in the Springville and Trussville area.
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How To Beat Other Buyers To The Best New "Hot" Listings
Mike Carraway Specializes in Helping Buyers Find the
Best Homes At the Lowest Prices
Do You Know About Every Home For Sale?
If you’re looking for a home, you may have been calling real estate companies and attending open houses. You may even have some agents sending you information on some houses.
Are You Missing The “HOT” Listings?
“How do I know that I’m not missing out on the perfect house?”
“How do I know that I’m being shown everything I want to see?”
“Why are the good homes sold before I find out about them?”
If you’re calling on ads and visiting open houses, you probably will miss out on the perfect home. Nice homes, fairly priced (called “Hot Listings”) usually sell quickly, often within a week.
Do You Have Computers To Work For You?
With our free Preferred Buyer Service, you help us program our powerful computers to search all listed homes for sale. Our computers match homes that meet your exact specifications. We then mail you, at least 2 times each week, all of the new listings. For even speedier service, if you request, we’ll fax you the information daily.
Our state-of-the-art computer software has direct access to the Birmingham Association of Realtors mainframe computers. You’ll know about new listings the day they are entered into the Multiple Listing Service (often 4 to 7 days before other buyers know about these homes) - and a week or more before these home are advertised or held open.
No matter what style of home you want, you’ll find it with our computers. Do you want 2 or 3 baths? A 3 car garage? How about a fully finished basement? Do you want an acre of land in the country?
Do You Decide Which Homes You Want To See - At Your Convenience?
Our computers will provide you with information on every home available meeting your exact specifications. You obtain all the facts you need. You see exactly what is available for sale. You tell us what homes you like. We’ll make private showing arrangements, at your convenience, for any home, anywhere, listed by any real estate company.
Will You Obtain The Best Home Loan?
Many of our Preferred Buyers report to us that other real estate companies tell them that they need $6,000 - $11,000 to buy a home when you add in all the closing costs. This is not always true.
There are more than 187 different ways to finance a home. Many agents are familiar with only 4 or 5 methods. We know about, and use, all 187.
ALL OF OUR SERVICES ARE FREE
All of our services are free. We’re paid by the seller if you buy a home. If you look at homes for a while and decide not to buy, that’s fine. There is never any obligation or any pressure.
Ask For Our Free Money Saving Reports:
* How Seller’s Price Their Homes
* The Federal Government Home Ownership Assistance Plan (every home owner qualifies!)
Call us at 833-6300.
Call us today to learn more about our free services or to ask us to mail your free money saving reports. If you wish, you can make an appointment to learn more about these free services. We’re here for one reason - to help you find the perfect home at the very best price and terms.
Call us today. We’ll Show You:
* How to find the best hot new listings
* How to beat other buyers to the best “Hot” listings
* How to use our computers to search for thousands of homes in your price range
* How to save time, money and gas
* How to make sure you’re seeing EVERY home for sale
* How to find the Very Lowest Down Payment
Weichert Realtors/Access Realty - Cindy Park- 205 919-5462 or for more free information, call our 24/hr. hotline at
833-3350
Best Homes At the Lowest Prices
Do You Know About Every Home For Sale?
If you’re looking for a home, you may have been calling real estate companies and attending open houses. You may even have some agents sending you information on some houses.
Are You Missing The “HOT” Listings?
“How do I know that I’m not missing out on the perfect house?”
“How do I know that I’m being shown everything I want to see?”
“Why are the good homes sold before I find out about them?”
If you’re calling on ads and visiting open houses, you probably will miss out on the perfect home. Nice homes, fairly priced (called “Hot Listings”) usually sell quickly, often within a week.
Do You Have Computers To Work For You?
With our free Preferred Buyer Service, you help us program our powerful computers to search all listed homes for sale. Our computers match homes that meet your exact specifications. We then mail you, at least 2 times each week, all of the new listings. For even speedier service, if you request, we’ll fax you the information daily.
Our state-of-the-art computer software has direct access to the Birmingham Association of Realtors mainframe computers. You’ll know about new listings the day they are entered into the Multiple Listing Service (often 4 to 7 days before other buyers know about these homes) - and a week or more before these home are advertised or held open.
No matter what style of home you want, you’ll find it with our computers. Do you want 2 or 3 baths? A 3 car garage? How about a fully finished basement? Do you want an acre of land in the country?
Do You Decide Which Homes You Want To See - At Your Convenience?
Our computers will provide you with information on every home available meeting your exact specifications. You obtain all the facts you need. You see exactly what is available for sale. You tell us what homes you like. We’ll make private showing arrangements, at your convenience, for any home, anywhere, listed by any real estate company.
Will You Obtain The Best Home Loan?
Many of our Preferred Buyers report to us that other real estate companies tell them that they need $6,000 - $11,000 to buy a home when you add in all the closing costs. This is not always true.
There are more than 187 different ways to finance a home. Many agents are familiar with only 4 or 5 methods. We know about, and use, all 187.
ALL OF OUR SERVICES ARE FREE
All of our services are free. We’re paid by the seller if you buy a home. If you look at homes for a while and decide not to buy, that’s fine. There is never any obligation or any pressure.
Ask For Our Free Money Saving Reports:
* How Seller’s Price Their Homes
* The Federal Government Home Ownership Assistance Plan (every home owner qualifies!)
Call us at 833-6300.
Call us today to learn more about our free services or to ask us to mail your free money saving reports. If you wish, you can make an appointment to learn more about these free services. We’re here for one reason - to help you find the perfect home at the very best price and terms.
Call us today. We’ll Show You:
* How to find the best hot new listings
* How to beat other buyers to the best “Hot” listings
* How to use our computers to search for thousands of homes in your price range
* How to save time, money and gas
* How to make sure you’re seeing EVERY home for sale
* How to find the Very Lowest Down Payment
Weichert Realtors/Access Realty - Cindy Park- 205 919-5462 or for more free information, call our 24/hr. hotline at
833-3350
What is "Home Staging" and How Does it Help Sell My House?
by Lori Matzke
“Home staging” is not a new term, but for many homeowners and real estate agents the concept of “professional home staging” is shedding new light on how to promote a home in the real estate marketplace. In past years, homeowners were left to their own discretion as far as preparing for home showings. Though they could occasionally rely on an agent for instructions, more often than not real estate agents were just as perplexed at working out the details as the homeowner.
While agents are experts in the field of selling and closing, many are not design savvy. Agents usually know exactly what factors can help sell a home. It’s just not always easy to get a home into selling condition in a timely manner without some sort of experienced assistance.
Professional home stagers are practiced in the art of preparing a home for resale. They work with the “flow” of a home, eliminate clutter, edit and arrange furniture, and even assist in enhancing curb-appeal. With the aid of a professional home stager, your house can make a notable first impression on potential homebuyers.
First Impressions
As the real estate industry often stresses, the first impression is the key factor in selling your home. Typically,” says Jan Van Horne of Coldwell Banker Burnet Realty in Eden Prairie, Minnesota, “a potential buyer has made up their mind ten seconds after they step in the front door. They were already forming an opinion as they pulled into your driveway!” That really doesn’t leave too much room for fault.
“To achieve the greatest possible outcome,” Jan adds, “a home should always be presented at its best the first time around.”
Finding a Professional
You find and select a professional home stager much like you would find any other professional service. Ask around and get referrals. Check with your real estate agent. A number of larger real estate companies offer access to a listing of professional home services in your area. These individuals and companies have often already been pre-screened by the real estate agencies or their agents.
How Much Does it Cost?
When you contact a home stager, ask for an estimate. Most home staging businesses will be happy to give you a free estimate and it is usually a quick process. Keep in mind that this is only an estimate and estimates can be a bit off. However, unless something unforeseen takes place between the estimate and the actual job itself, an estimate should be fairly accurate.
Get several free estimates and make some calculations. Just like any service, pricing in the home staging industry can vary over a wide range. Some charge an hourly rate and some will charge you a set fee for the entire job. Be sure to ask how they determine their fee so that you can make an educated decision. Also, factor in the condition of your home, the average amount of time homes have been on the market in your area, and the asking price of your home.
Asking price can play a huge factor in what a homeowner should be willing to pay for staging services. Some professional home stagers bring in rented furnishings, driving the price up considerably. Some simply charge too much to make it pay off. A lot of home stagers seem to forget that their clients are planning on moving out of the house very soon. Most home sellers are not willing to invest a huge amount of cash in a house they are planning on leaving behind.
Find out up front what the stager is planning to bring in and at what cost. Though expert services do come at a price, the cost should balance with the expected benefit of a higher selling price. As a rule, the higher the asking price of the home, the more one can spend to have it professionally staged.
Agent Participation
In some instances, it makes sense for a real estate agent to contribute to the cost of professionally staging a home. “As a real estate agent,” says Tony Cirelli, a Minnesota Re/Max agent from Apple Valley, “I have to look at profit margins. I analyze current market trends and what will be spent on advertising before dropping any cash into staging.”
Pat Cirelli, Tony’s wife and partner, agrees. “For the most part, an agent should be able to determine if a home is in need of this type of service, and if it would be of benefit or not. If you know it would be in the homeowner’s best interest and if you know that something will need to be done before the home is listed, it might be wise to set aside an amount of your marketing budget for staging. If it’s a reasonable fee, it is usually a worthwhile investment. It could certainly make all the difference in your showing.”
“Home staging” is not a new term, but for many homeowners and real estate agents the concept of “professional home staging” is shedding new light on how to promote a home in the real estate marketplace. In past years, homeowners were left to their own discretion as far as preparing for home showings. Though they could occasionally rely on an agent for instructions, more often than not real estate agents were just as perplexed at working out the details as the homeowner.
While agents are experts in the field of selling and closing, many are not design savvy. Agents usually know exactly what factors can help sell a home. It’s just not always easy to get a home into selling condition in a timely manner without some sort of experienced assistance.
Professional home stagers are practiced in the art of preparing a home for resale. They work with the “flow” of a home, eliminate clutter, edit and arrange furniture, and even assist in enhancing curb-appeal. With the aid of a professional home stager, your house can make a notable first impression on potential homebuyers.
First Impressions
As the real estate industry often stresses, the first impression is the key factor in selling your home. Typically,” says Jan Van Horne of Coldwell Banker Burnet Realty in Eden Prairie, Minnesota, “a potential buyer has made up their mind ten seconds after they step in the front door. They were already forming an opinion as they pulled into your driveway!” That really doesn’t leave too much room for fault.
“To achieve the greatest possible outcome,” Jan adds, “a home should always be presented at its best the first time around.”
Finding a Professional
You find and select a professional home stager much like you would find any other professional service. Ask around and get referrals. Check with your real estate agent. A number of larger real estate companies offer access to a listing of professional home services in your area. These individuals and companies have often already been pre-screened by the real estate agencies or their agents.
How Much Does it Cost?
When you contact a home stager, ask for an estimate. Most home staging businesses will be happy to give you a free estimate and it is usually a quick process. Keep in mind that this is only an estimate and estimates can be a bit off. However, unless something unforeseen takes place between the estimate and the actual job itself, an estimate should be fairly accurate.
Get several free estimates and make some calculations. Just like any service, pricing in the home staging industry can vary over a wide range. Some charge an hourly rate and some will charge you a set fee for the entire job. Be sure to ask how they determine their fee so that you can make an educated decision. Also, factor in the condition of your home, the average amount of time homes have been on the market in your area, and the asking price of your home.
Asking price can play a huge factor in what a homeowner should be willing to pay for staging services. Some professional home stagers bring in rented furnishings, driving the price up considerably. Some simply charge too much to make it pay off. A lot of home stagers seem to forget that their clients are planning on moving out of the house very soon. Most home sellers are not willing to invest a huge amount of cash in a house they are planning on leaving behind.
Find out up front what the stager is planning to bring in and at what cost. Though expert services do come at a price, the cost should balance with the expected benefit of a higher selling price. As a rule, the higher the asking price of the home, the more one can spend to have it professionally staged.
Agent Participation
In some instances, it makes sense for a real estate agent to contribute to the cost of professionally staging a home. “As a real estate agent,” says Tony Cirelli, a Minnesota Re/Max agent from Apple Valley, “I have to look at profit margins. I analyze current market trends and what will be spent on advertising before dropping any cash into staging.”
Pat Cirelli, Tony’s wife and partner, agrees. “For the most part, an agent should be able to determine if a home is in need of this type of service, and if it would be of benefit or not. If you know it would be in the homeowner’s best interest and if you know that something will need to be done before the home is listed, it might be wise to set aside an amount of your marketing budget for staging. If it’s a reasonable fee, it is usually a worthwhile investment. It could certainly make all the difference in your showing.”
Ten Top Secret Design Tips
It's all in the details! Who knows why, but I just started thinking of how small, pesky, planning details, if overlooked, can cause pain and heartbreak if not addressed. OK, "top secret" may be just a little stretch, but not by much!
I came up with these planning secrets, largely unknown to the typical consumer, off the top of my head, and trust me, there are MANY more that I must be aware of as I slowly and carefully go about editing a kitchen plan for the last time before putting the order "to bed" as I call it, at which time there is no more time for changes. The factory begins to produce the order, and the result of these planning exercises will be known....upon installation. It can be the stuff nightmares are made of, if only thought of, say, during cabinet production, or as a surprise, during installation!
Here are just SOME of the details I'd like to share with you:
1. Size (width) of window and door casings - If cabinetry must fit between, say, a wall and a window, the size of the window casing is critical. Likewise, cabinetry fitting BETWEEN window or door casings. Casings being changed? To what size, and how will that affect cabinetry?
2. Casings and moldings colliding - Will your cabinet crown molding and window or door casings collide? That's just not right! Check floor, cabinet, and ceiling junctures.
3. Is there adequate room on the wall planned for receptacles, primarily when one walks into a room? If tall cabinets align a doorway, would there be room/depth planned in for receptacles, even if they have to be cut into the cabinet side?
4. Backsplash height - What height is perfect for you? This is adjustable, unless it is driven by the height of a tall cabinet, but should be planned in advance. Are you short in height? Or, do you have tall countertop appliances? Another critical area to look at.
5. Floor level - Is your floor wavy, as most are? Are you designing in decorative feet, valances, toekick details, or columns, which reach the floor? If so, and the above mentioned items are too short, you will experience gaps, as the cabinets are first installed at the HIGH POINT of the floor...as the floor dips, that's where you see the gaps. The cabinets in the low points are propped up with shims so that the tops of all cabinets are level to receive a level countertop.
6. Microwave - Don't assume it can easily be built in snugly, for a great, tight, look. Many microwaves have trim kits which MUST be used or the warranties will not be in effect. I've not come across any microwaves that can be built in tightly, ever.
7. Large sinks - You love the large sinks, but beware of how deep they are front to back, and if undermounted, add the rim size to determine if your faucet will fit underneath the countertop. More and more recently, I am making sink bases deeper to accommodate these large sinks. This also effects adjacent cabinetry!
8. Cooktop and oven brands, one above the other - In this configuration, make sure you use the same brand of appliance. Typically, if two different brands are used, each warranty may not be in effect. A bad scene...
9. Downdrafts - Downdrafts are tricky. If you do not use the same brand downdraft as the cooktop (this IS typically allowable) the configuration underneath the countertop may not fit with the height or depth dimension of the cooktop under the countertop, making the combination uninstallable..something to check.
10. Where do your cabinets end on a wall? Me...I HATE little slivers of wall, say, 1-2". I think it's tacky. i like to leave at LEAST 3 1/2", more typically, 4" at least between a cabinet side and, say, door casing.
FACTS TO TELL YOUR BUYERS AND SELLERS
1. The Birmingham real estate market traditionally is a steady market with few highs or lows.
2. Total home sales grew annually for the past seven consecutive years until this year.
3. No industry can sustain growth year after year after year...there has to be an adjustment at some point.
4. What we are experiencing is a buyers market which will continue into 2008.
Sellers are adjusting their asking prices for their properties.
This means home ownership remains affordable...translation...this is an excellent time to buy.
5. The backed-up inventory in MLS is finally moving.
August 2007 was the peak for backed-up inventory.
Current inventory is the lowest since this April.
6. Consumers have reason to be confident in purchasing now...
Birmingham is at the top of the list of the nation’s largest cities for record low unemployment.
Mortgage interest rates continue at 40-year lows.
We have a diverse home sales market with many choices in all price ranges.
Homes are affordable.
2. Total home sales grew annually for the past seven consecutive years until this year.
3. No industry can sustain growth year after year after year...there has to be an adjustment at some point.
4. What we are experiencing is a buyers market which will continue into 2008.
Sellers are adjusting their asking prices for their properties.
This means home ownership remains affordable...translation...this is an excellent time to buy.
5. The backed-up inventory in MLS is finally moving.
August 2007 was the peak for backed-up inventory.
Current inventory is the lowest since this April.
6. Consumers have reason to be confident in purchasing now...
Birmingham is at the top of the list of the nation’s largest cities for record low unemployment.
Mortgage interest rates continue at 40-year lows.
We have a diverse home sales market with many choices in all price ranges.
Homes are affordable.