The Hidden Killer Of Home Value

In our neighborhood everybody talks about the ways in which home values are affected in the community. Maybe it is new apartments being built, sometimes it’s cars parked on the street, many people are concerned about cars being broken into, for others the hot button is landscaping and how the community is maintained.

When I talk to our neighbors the conversation often turns to some of these issues and how they are affecting our property value negatively. They talk about all the visible things that may potentially affect home value in a neighborhood.

In reality there is a hidden killer of home values that very few people know about. The hidden killer is the average agent that listed your neighbor’s house.

Let me tell you why.

Because when…

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Is Your Property Tax Value The Same As What Your Home Can Sell For?

This is a popular question whenever we do our home selling seminars. The short answer is no.

When estimated a sales price for your home we want to compare your home to other similar homes that have sold recently. From there we want to make adjustments for specific features and benefits about your home and add in market knowledge from our side and where we expect the market is going.

The reason a tax value may not be accurate is the value of your home is established early in the year based on sales largely from the previous year. As I am writing this message some of those comparable sales are close to 2 years old and since we are in an appreciating market they may not accurately reflect what is happening in the current market.

If you…

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Cancel At Any Time

If you are like me whenever you are buying a product or service you want to know what guarantees you will receive and how you can cancel the agreement. For some reason when people are selling their home they don’t think about getting a guarantee. Perhaps it is because some people think the real estate market is so good that every home will sell quickly.

In reality, about once a week we receive a call from a person trying to sell their home. Their agent isn’t performing and the seller isn’t happy. Their home isn’t selling and it seems like promises were made by their agent and not kept.

The seller wants to hire us to sell their home but unfortunately in most cases the seller has signed an agreement with the agent that doesn’t allow for the…

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Can’t Decide Between Selling Now Or Next Year? Consider A Delayed Entry Listing

If you can’t decide between selling your home now or waiting until next year let me give you a 3rd option…what’s called a delayed entry pocket listing.

We are contacted almost every day by buyers and other Realtors asking us what homes we have coming on the market soon. Often a buyer will see one of our homes that isn’t a good fit and ask us what we will be selling that would better work for their family. A pocket listing allows us to keep your home in mind in case someone contacts us that would be a good fit for your home.

What if we had a cash buyer for your home or someone with a flexible move in date? Would you be willing to sell now if they paid the price you want for your home?

A delayed entry pocket listing means we have an agreement…

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What We Are Seeing In The Market October 2019

If you can’t decide between selling your home now or waiting until next year let me give you a 3rd option…what’s called a delayed entry pocket listing.

We are contacted almost every day by buyers and other Realtors asking us what homes we have coming on the market soon. Often a buyer will see one of our homes that isn’t a good fit and ask us what we will be selling that would better work for their family. A pocket listing allows us to keep your home in mind in case someone contacts us that would be a good fit for your home.

What if we had a cash buyer for your home or someone with a flexible move in date? Would you be willing to sell now if they paid the price you want for your home?

A delayed entry pocket listing means we have an agreement…

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What Is An "As Is" Contract?

Selling your home isn’t like selling a toaster on Craigslist or selling your car at the CVS parking lot. There is often a misunderstanding of what as As Is contract means.

I had a client whose AC wasn’t working when the buyer performed their inspection. When the HVAC tech arrived at the property, he told my client she didn’t have to repair the AC because real estate contracts are As Is.

Technically the tech is correct but there is a big difference between what happens after going under contract on your home with an As Is contract and how things play out in the end. 

When a buyer makes an offer for your home they will check off if the contract is As Is or if the buyer is requesting any specific repairs and treatments. By far the…

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FIRPTA Sale In Austin? We Can Help!

If the IRS considers you a “foreign person” and you are selling real estate your sale may be subject to FIRPTA withholding.

 FIRPTA is short for The Foreign Investment In Real Property Tax Act of 1980. FIRPTA is a tax law that imposes income tax on foreign persons when selling real estate. Read more about FIRPTA at the IRS website. https://www.irs.gov/individuals/international-taxpayers/firpta-withholding

This sounds scary and can be confusing to both sellers and buyers. Buyers can be especially frightened by the FIRPTA process because there are forms buyers have to sign that say the buyer is responsible for paying any taxes due if they are not collected at closing.

Many real estate agents do not understand FIRPTA and they do not ask…

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How To Avoid Moving Twice With A Leaseback

If you are planning to sell your home but worried about having to move twice a leaseback may be a great option for you. Last year we helped 17 sellers negotiate a leaseback on their home so it is a process we are experienced with and can explain how it works in more detail regarding your particular situation.

A leaseback is where the seller of a home is allowed to remain in the property for a period of time after closing and is something that can be negotiated between the buyer and seller as part of a real estate contract. Not only is the option to have a leaseback negotiable but also the terms of the leaseback are negotiable.

To add a leaseback to your home sale there is a 2 page addendum attached to the standard contract. In the addendum the…

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