Almost every time someone invites me to their home to talk about putting it on the market, they say they have a “friend in real estate” they are considering hiring as their listing agent. It’s not surprising; with 13,160 members of the Austin Board of Realtors everyone knows several Realtors. In fact, if you don’t have any friends in real estate, I’d be worried you didn’t have any friends.

As one of my friends says it’s called Show Business not Show Friends for a reason. Here are a few ways hiring your friend to sell your largest financial asset can cost you big money.

Understanding The Contract

Would you believe the average real estate agent may only sell 2-3 homes per year? This is why before you hire any agent you should ask how many homes…

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Every year I keep track of trends and make notes to avoid making the same mistakes again. Last year I made a note that sellers needed to have their homes priced to sell by the end of July. Even though our market isn’t as seasonal as you might expect we can’t blame buyers for wanting to take a break and get out for a last summer vacation when it’s 105 degrees.

This year has been different. We have never seen the amount of traffic at our listings, the number of buyers visiting open houses and the offers from motivated buyers in Augusts as we did this year. Perhaps it’s simply supply and demand or buyers are motivated by the drop in interest rates this year. Whatever the reason, based on the number of buyers and agents calling us to ask about coming soon…

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Welcome to Avery Ranch. Welcome to my neighborhood. I’m Eric Peterson, Broker and owner of Kopa Real Estate and Avery Ranch homeowner since 2007. Today I wanted to talk with you about the top 10 reasons I love living in Avery Ranch.

1. Avery Ranch Community Pool

With 6 pools in the neighborhood living in Avery Ranch is like being on vacation every day. Residents can use any of the pool areas no matter which section of the neighborhood you live in. The pool at the Main Amenity Center is a great place to hang out with friends and family. Residents can rent the pavilion or community center for parties, or just pack a cooler and enjoy the day. One of the great things about Avery Ranch is the neighborhood Avery Ranch Redfish swim team. Kids in…

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Predictions, Predictions, Predictions

If you like real estate statistics and charts as much as I do July is a fun month. We attended both the Home Builders Association of Austin Mid Year Update as well as the Austin Board of Realtors Market Update with Dr Jim Gaines from the Real Estate Center at Texas A&M University. Inside we share some of the more interesting slides. If you would like a copy of the entire slide deck text us your name and email to 512-791-7473.

The home builder’s presentation focused on supply and demand as the builders are struggling to keep up with the number of people wanting to buy in our area. To keep homes affordable builders are having go further out to find land cheap enough to build on, build on smaller lots (one builder…

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Homeowners often ask our opinion about home improvements they are planning to make and if they will increase the value of their home. Before I consider any home improvements at my own home I like to step back and think about them at a higher level and here is the thought process I go through before I get in my car and head to Home Depot.

Will It Solve My Problem?

Especially before starting a large project I ask myself if it will solve my problem.

The best example of a mistake I have seen is a homeowner who was told by a different Realtor his house isn’t worth as much as another home because the master bedroom was upstairs. Based on this information the homeowner spent $90,000 to add a 2nd master bedroom downstairs. In the end the…

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