Five Bad Home Improvement Ideas
When considering adding value to a home, you consistently hear from the real estate industry that updated bathrooms and quality kitchens stand out in a home sale. Those are proven sale closers. There are certain other improvements you can make to your home that will beautify it or create convenience for your family. When it comes time to selling, however, those improvements may do nothing to increase the value of the property and may even turn off potential homebuyers.
Over-the-Top Renovations
Au contraire mon frère, not all renovations will raise the value of your home. Just `cause it's bigger doesn't mean it will be perceived as better by future homebuyers. Unless your home is located in Beverly Hills or some other very posh neighborhood, don't install the bathroom with the supersized steam shower, imported Italian marble and several different spray heads ... unless you have the money to do it for your own pleasure and enjoyment only. That kind of improvement doesn't typically do anything to increase the value of the average home.
On the other hand, if you updated an old bathroom, you could see an increase of several thousand dollars to your home's bottom line. Real estate professionals suggest that homeowners pour over local home listings to see what amenities are the standard in your area, then upgrade your home to meet it. If you overdo it, however, you may not recoup your investment.
Swimming Pools
If you think installing a swimming pool in the back side of your home will draw hoards of homebuyers clamoring to make offers on your home at sale time, you'd be wrong. Some may consider it a perk, but others may perceive it as a pain with all the maintenance it will require.
Homeowners have even paid to have their swimming pools buried to create more yard space. If you shell out the expense to build one, don't expect your home's value to budge. The only exception to building a swimming pool is if you live in states where they are considered the norm.
Home Office Renovations
Although, a home office is often an amenity appreciated by those shopping for a home, it should be built with frugality in mind. Overhauling an office doesn't pay off when it's time to sell your home. Don't steal usable space from another living area to create a home office. Instead, make sure the space can easily be converted back into a bedroom or other living space if needed. If you decide you just have to have the built-in Curly Maple wood shelves, know that you will only recoup around 50 percent of your cost at sale time.
Unique Builds
Home magazines are always coming up with clever and creative ways to change the look of your living space. Some are exotic and outlandish, but they can pique your interest. Tempted to put a classic disco ball with lights in your bedroom, a constellation ceiling in your family room or a peaceful Koi pond in your back yard? Avoid making outlandish changes to your home or changes that will be perceived as adding work for a future homeowner. Don't be tempted to incorporate these ideas into your own home, unless you don't plan on selling anytime soon. Homebuyers may not share your enthusiasm.
Roof Renovations
If your roof needs repair, don't hesitate to have the work done. It will be one less issue you'll have to deal with when listing your home. If in your pursuit to list your home you think replacing your roof with cedar shakes or clay tiles will increase the value, think again. Although they have the ability to make your home stand out, they probably won't inspire homebuyers to pay more for them. So, unless you have the money to burn, keep it simple when preparing your home to be listed on the real estate market.
Kimbrough Gray -
I can be reached at 615-777-4663 or via email at George.Margrave@MIGonline.com
Tuesday, May 24, 2011
Wednesday, May 18, 2011
Rents Expected to Climb in 2011
At long last someone other than your Realtor or Mortgage loan officer is recommending that you should buy rather than rent. According to an author at CNN Money if you can’t afford to buy a home, you may also have a problem renting. A record number of renters are spending more than half their income on housing according to a report released by the Harvard Joint Center for Housing Studies. And more middle-class folks are feeling the pinch.
Rents are expected to climb more than 7% this year where as housing has become very affordable to purchase. Part of the problem is that there is a flood of new renters who have had their homes foreclosed or lost in natural disasters.
If you think you can’t buy, you might be surprised. It is my job to figure out the answer to that puzzle for you.
I can be reached at 615-777-4663 or via email at George.Margrave@migonline.com
Rents are expected to climb more than 7% this year where as housing has become very affordable to purchase. Part of the problem is that there is a flood of new renters who have had their homes foreclosed or lost in natural disasters.
If you think you can’t buy, you might be surprised. It is my job to figure out the answer to that puzzle for you.
I can be reached at 615-777-4663 or via email at George.Margrave@migonline.com
Wednesday, May 11, 2011
Credit Issues
Today we had a meeting with a Credit consulting and restoration company. Low credit scores and incorrect credit reports are becoming a large part of what we deal with every day. Now we are perfectly capable of helping get scores increased, but there are many cases where folks need their hand held. We can only do so much, but it has been successful. We are successfully getting scores increased for probably two families per month. There are just so many more people that need this kind of help. So if you know someone who needs us, please tell them and then let me know their number or e-mail address. If we can’t help we will put them with someone who can.
I can be reached at 615-777-4663 or via email at George.Margrave@migonline.com
I can be reached at 615-777-4663 or via email at George.Margrave@migonline.com
Friday, April 29, 2011
Owning=More Affordable Than Ever
Owning a home is more affordable than renting in 39 of the nation's 50 most-populated cities, based on the latest quarterly rent vs. buy index from Trulia. Falling home prices and rising rents make buying cheaper in 78 percent of cities, up from 72 percent in the previous quarter; the price-to-rent ratio fell quarter-to-quarter in most of the 50 cities.
Some signals to pass on to your clients.
1. Mortgage rates are at a point below 5% in most cases, which really helps your numbers
2. Landlords are seeing an opportunity to raise their rates and they are doing it.
3. The career and income of many people is stabilizing, so that there is a comfort level with buying that home.
The signs are there that this is the time. Tell people you talk to that I will run their numbers with no obligation to them.
You can reach me via telephone at 615-777-4663 or via email at George.Margrave@migonline.com you can even follow me on Facebook...check it out. Thanks for reading!
Some signals to pass on to your clients.
1. Mortgage rates are at a point below 5% in most cases, which really helps your numbers
2. Landlords are seeing an opportunity to raise their rates and they are doing it.
3. The career and income of many people is stabilizing, so that there is a comfort level with buying that home.
The signs are there that this is the time. Tell people you talk to that I will run their numbers with no obligation to them.
You can reach me via telephone at 615-777-4663 or via email at George.Margrave@migonline.com you can even follow me on Facebook...check it out. Thanks for reading!
Wednesday, April 27, 2011
5 Things Home Buyers Do That Turn Sellers Off (and Kill Deals)
On today’s market, every savvy seller wants to know what turns buyers off, so they can get their homes sold as quickly as possible, for as much as possible. But buyers, take note – there is a minefield of seller turn-offs you can trigger that hold the potential to keep you from getting the home you want at the best price and terms, or to unnecessarily complicate dealings with your home’s seller.
Lest you think all of today’s sellers are under the gun and will just put up with whatever behavior buyers dish out, be aware that there are still many multiple offer situations in which buyers have to compete with each other to get a home – buyers who trigger these turnoffs tend to lose in those scenarios. Also, avoiding these seller turnoffs can create a transactional environment of cooperation and avoid things turning adversarial. That, in turn, can empower you to score a better price, get extra items you want thrown into the deal, and even negotiate more flexibility around your escrow and move-in timelines – all perks that can make your life easier and your budget go further.
For sellers, these turnoffs pose the potential of irritating you out of an otherwise good deal – maybe even the only deal you have!
Here’s a few of the most common buyer-perpetuated seller turnoffs, with tips for sellers on how to keep an emotional (and economic) even keel, even if your home’s buyer makes some of these waves:
1. Trash-talking. Trash-talkers are the home buyers who think they’re going to negotiate the list price down by slamming the house, telling the sellers how little it is really worth, how the house across the street sold for nothing, why the school on the corner should make them desperate to give the place away, etc. This strategy never works; in fact, when you attack a seller and their home, you only cause them to be defensive, and think up all the reasons that (a) their home is not what you say it is, and (b) they shouldn’t sell their home to you!
Sometimes this happens with buyers who actually love a house and just walk around it fantasizing about all the ways they would customize it to their tastes while a seller is there. Sellers: avoid being at home while your home is being shown. Buyers: save your commentary for your agent; if you do encounter the seller in person keep your conversation respectful and avoid critiquing the house or the list price.
2. Being unqualified for mortgage financing. When a seller signs a buyer’s offer, most often the seller agrees to effectively pull the home off the market, forgoing other buyers who might be interested. As such, the only thing worse than getting no offers on your home is getting an offer, getting into contract, then having the whole thing fall apart when the buyer’s loan falls through – especially if that could have been predicted or avoided up front.
Sellers: Work with your agent to vet your home’s buyers’ qualifications, including their loan approval, down payment and earnest money deposit – before you sign a contract. It’s not overkill for your agent to call the buyers’ mortgage pro before you sign the contract and get a level of comfort for how robust their qualifications are. Buyers: Get pre-approved. Seriously. And make sure that you don’t buy a car, quit your job, deposit lottery winnings or do any other financial twitchery between the time you get loan approval and the time you close escrow on your home.
3. Making unjustified lowball offers. No one likes to feel like they are being taken advantage of. And sellers generally know the ballpark amount that their home is worth, as well as what they need to sell it for to get their mortgage paid off. Yes – the price you pay for a home should be driven by its fair market value, rather than the seller’s financial needs, and deals are more available in a market like the current one, in which supply so vastly outpaces demand. But just throwing uber-lowball offers out at sellers hoping one will hit the spot is not generally a successful strategy, especially if you really, really want a given property.
Sellers: Don’t get overly emotional about receiving a lowball offer; counter at the price you and your agent decide makes sense based on the total circumstances, including your motivation level, recent comps and the interest/activity level your listing is receiving. Buyers: Work through the similar, nearby homes that have recently sold (a/k/a comparables) before you make an offer to factor the home’s fair market value into your offer price – also factor in how much you want the place, too. Don’t be amazed if you make an offer far below asking, and don’t get a response.
4. Renegotiating mid-stream. Sellers plan their finances, moves and - to some extent – their lives around the purchase price a buyer agrees to pay for their home. If you get into contract to buy a home, find out during inspections that costly repairs need to be made, then propose a lower sale price, repair credit or even actual repairs to the seller, that’s sensible and fair. But if you were aware that the property needed a lot of work before you made an offer on it, then you come back asking for beaucoup bucks’ worth of credit or price reductions midstream, expect the seller to cry foul. And holding the seller up two weeks into the transaction because you caught a case of buyer's remorse? Not cool, and not likely to foster the spirit of cooperation you may need to get your deal closed.
Sellers: avoid mid-stream price renegotiations by having a full set of inspection reports and repair bids at hand when you list your home. Buyers: try to avoid renegotiating the entire deal unless you get some major surprises at your inspections or inflating small repairs to try to justify a major price cut.
5. Misleading or setting the seller up. Remember when we talked about buyer turn-offs? Being misled by listing photos or very fluffy property descriptions was high on the list. The same goes for sellers.Offering way over asking with the plan to hammer the seller for a reduction when the house doesn’t appraise at the purchase price? #LAME Making an as-is offer planning the whole time to come back and ask for every penny ante repair called out by the inspectors? Lame squared.
Sellers: If you get multiple offers and are tempted to take a sky-high one or one that claims to be all cash, consider requesting proof that the buyer has sufficient funds to make up the difference between what you think the home will appraise for and the actual sale price, and statements showing the cash truly exists. Buyers: Don’t be lame. I’m not saying you have to tell the seller exactly what your top dollar is, but making offers with terms designed to intentionally mislead is really, really bad form – and can result in losing the home entirely if and when your bluff gets called.
I can be reached at 615-777-4663 or via email at George.Margrave@migonline.com
Lest you think all of today’s sellers are under the gun and will just put up with whatever behavior buyers dish out, be aware that there are still many multiple offer situations in which buyers have to compete with each other to get a home – buyers who trigger these turnoffs tend to lose in those scenarios. Also, avoiding these seller turnoffs can create a transactional environment of cooperation and avoid things turning adversarial. That, in turn, can empower you to score a better price, get extra items you want thrown into the deal, and even negotiate more flexibility around your escrow and move-in timelines – all perks that can make your life easier and your budget go further.
For sellers, these turnoffs pose the potential of irritating you out of an otherwise good deal – maybe even the only deal you have!
Here’s a few of the most common buyer-perpetuated seller turnoffs, with tips for sellers on how to keep an emotional (and economic) even keel, even if your home’s buyer makes some of these waves:
1. Trash-talking. Trash-talkers are the home buyers who think they’re going to negotiate the list price down by slamming the house, telling the sellers how little it is really worth, how the house across the street sold for nothing, why the school on the corner should make them desperate to give the place away, etc. This strategy never works; in fact, when you attack a seller and their home, you only cause them to be defensive, and think up all the reasons that (a) their home is not what you say it is, and (b) they shouldn’t sell their home to you!
Sometimes this happens with buyers who actually love a house and just walk around it fantasizing about all the ways they would customize it to their tastes while a seller is there. Sellers: avoid being at home while your home is being shown. Buyers: save your commentary for your agent; if you do encounter the seller in person keep your conversation respectful and avoid critiquing the house or the list price.
2. Being unqualified for mortgage financing. When a seller signs a buyer’s offer, most often the seller agrees to effectively pull the home off the market, forgoing other buyers who might be interested. As such, the only thing worse than getting no offers on your home is getting an offer, getting into contract, then having the whole thing fall apart when the buyer’s loan falls through – especially if that could have been predicted or avoided up front.
Sellers: Work with your agent to vet your home’s buyers’ qualifications, including their loan approval, down payment and earnest money deposit – before you sign a contract. It’s not overkill for your agent to call the buyers’ mortgage pro before you sign the contract and get a level of comfort for how robust their qualifications are. Buyers: Get pre-approved. Seriously. And make sure that you don’t buy a car, quit your job, deposit lottery winnings or do any other financial twitchery between the time you get loan approval and the time you close escrow on your home.
3. Making unjustified lowball offers. No one likes to feel like they are being taken advantage of. And sellers generally know the ballpark amount that their home is worth, as well as what they need to sell it for to get their mortgage paid off. Yes – the price you pay for a home should be driven by its fair market value, rather than the seller’s financial needs, and deals are more available in a market like the current one, in which supply so vastly outpaces demand. But just throwing uber-lowball offers out at sellers hoping one will hit the spot is not generally a successful strategy, especially if you really, really want a given property.
Sellers: Don’t get overly emotional about receiving a lowball offer; counter at the price you and your agent decide makes sense based on the total circumstances, including your motivation level, recent comps and the interest/activity level your listing is receiving. Buyers: Work through the similar, nearby homes that have recently sold (a/k/a comparables) before you make an offer to factor the home’s fair market value into your offer price – also factor in how much you want the place, too. Don’t be amazed if you make an offer far below asking, and don’t get a response.
4. Renegotiating mid-stream. Sellers plan their finances, moves and - to some extent – their lives around the purchase price a buyer agrees to pay for their home. If you get into contract to buy a home, find out during inspections that costly repairs need to be made, then propose a lower sale price, repair credit or even actual repairs to the seller, that’s sensible and fair. But if you were aware that the property needed a lot of work before you made an offer on it, then you come back asking for beaucoup bucks’ worth of credit or price reductions midstream, expect the seller to cry foul. And holding the seller up two weeks into the transaction because you caught a case of buyer's remorse? Not cool, and not likely to foster the spirit of cooperation you may need to get your deal closed.
Sellers: avoid mid-stream price renegotiations by having a full set of inspection reports and repair bids at hand when you list your home. Buyers: try to avoid renegotiating the entire deal unless you get some major surprises at your inspections or inflating small repairs to try to justify a major price cut.
5. Misleading or setting the seller up. Remember when we talked about buyer turn-offs? Being misled by listing photos or very fluffy property descriptions was high on the list. The same goes for sellers.Offering way over asking with the plan to hammer the seller for a reduction when the house doesn’t appraise at the purchase price? #LAME Making an as-is offer planning the whole time to come back and ask for every penny ante repair called out by the inspectors? Lame squared.
Sellers: If you get multiple offers and are tempted to take a sky-high one or one that claims to be all cash, consider requesting proof that the buyer has sufficient funds to make up the difference between what you think the home will appraise for and the actual sale price, and statements showing the cash truly exists. Buyers: Don’t be lame. I’m not saying you have to tell the seller exactly what your top dollar is, but making offers with terms designed to intentionally mislead is really, really bad form – and can result in losing the home entirely if and when your bluff gets called.
I can be reached at 615-777-4663 or via email at George.Margrave@migonline.com
Wednesday, April 13, 2011
Watch Your Inbox!
You may have heard some vague reports about a security breach at a company called Epsilon. But, if you’re like many Americans, the news didn’t strike you as fairly relevant to your life. After all, you probably didn’t recognize the company’s name or didn’t think you had any affiliations with it.
Or do you?
The reality is, the news wasn’t just about the company Epsilon, but instead was about the more than 40 companies - from Walgreens and TiVo to J.P. Morgan Chase and Ameriprise Financial - who have said their customers were among the email addresses stolen. In other words, even if you don’t know the name Epsilon or have anything to do with that company, your email address may be part of this important news story.
The good news... It appears only names and email addresses were stolen as part of the breach. Most of that information is fairly public - and isn’t as sensitive as, say, a social security number.
The bad news... Clever criminals can put together very convincing email scams to steal the rest of your personal information... right from you, rather than the company.
What should you do?
Whether you were informed that your email address was stolen or not, here are some important tips to ALWAYS KEEP IN MIND when dealing with unsolicited emails... even from companies that you do business with regularly.
1. Never email personal information... even if the company or email looks legitimate! Cyber criminals today can create very sophisticated and convincing emails that ask you to reply with your password or social security number. In fact, some criminals may be creating emails that look as if they’re informational emails about the Epsilon breach as a way to seem even more legitimate. So, if you receive an email asking for any personal information - including your password, account number, date of birth, social security number, and so on - do NOT respond. Instead, look up the company’s phone number on a recent bill, receipt, or other paperwork, and call the company about the email. If it’s a scam, they’ll want to know that it’s going on.
2. Be careful which links you click. Today’s cyber criminals often don’t ask you to reply with personal information, but instead build and link you to fake company websites - in the hopes that you’ll let your guard down and enter your information for them there. Don’t be foolish. Legitimate businesses will not ask for your information - they already have it. Moreover, they won’t collect personal data outside of a secure website. So if it’s not the normal website URL that you use, be extremely skeptical and contact the company by phone if you even suspect it may be fake.
3. Don’t download. If an email looks suspicious be very careful about attachments. Email scams can include malicious programs that look harmless, but once downloaded can either infect your computer or steal your personal data without you even really knowing. The best word of advice is simply: Don’t download anything that seems even the slightest bit out of the ordinary.
Those tips are good advice any time of the year, but they are especially pertinent after widespread breaches. So be extra vigilant when it comes to reading, responding, and clicking on your emails in the weeks ahead.
Mortgage Market Guide
I can be reached by phone at 615-777-4663 or via email at george.margrave@migonline.com.
Or do you?
The reality is, the news wasn’t just about the company Epsilon, but instead was about the more than 40 companies - from Walgreens and TiVo to J.P. Morgan Chase and Ameriprise Financial - who have said their customers were among the email addresses stolen. In other words, even if you don’t know the name Epsilon or have anything to do with that company, your email address may be part of this important news story.
The good news... It appears only names and email addresses were stolen as part of the breach. Most of that information is fairly public - and isn’t as sensitive as, say, a social security number.
The bad news... Clever criminals can put together very convincing email scams to steal the rest of your personal information... right from you, rather than the company.
What should you do?
Whether you were informed that your email address was stolen or not, here are some important tips to ALWAYS KEEP IN MIND when dealing with unsolicited emails... even from companies that you do business with regularly.
1. Never email personal information... even if the company or email looks legitimate! Cyber criminals today can create very sophisticated and convincing emails that ask you to reply with your password or social security number. In fact, some criminals may be creating emails that look as if they’re informational emails about the Epsilon breach as a way to seem even more legitimate. So, if you receive an email asking for any personal information - including your password, account number, date of birth, social security number, and so on - do NOT respond. Instead, look up the company’s phone number on a recent bill, receipt, or other paperwork, and call the company about the email. If it’s a scam, they’ll want to know that it’s going on.
2. Be careful which links you click. Today’s cyber criminals often don’t ask you to reply with personal information, but instead build and link you to fake company websites - in the hopes that you’ll let your guard down and enter your information for them there. Don’t be foolish. Legitimate businesses will not ask for your information - they already have it. Moreover, they won’t collect personal data outside of a secure website. So if it’s not the normal website URL that you use, be extremely skeptical and contact the company by phone if you even suspect it may be fake.
3. Don’t download. If an email looks suspicious be very careful about attachments. Email scams can include malicious programs that look harmless, but once downloaded can either infect your computer or steal your personal data without you even really knowing. The best word of advice is simply: Don’t download anything that seems even the slightest bit out of the ordinary.
Those tips are good advice any time of the year, but they are especially pertinent after widespread breaches. So be extra vigilant when it comes to reading, responding, and clicking on your emails in the weeks ahead.
Mortgage Market Guide
I can be reached by phone at 615-777-4663 or via email at george.margrave@migonline.com.
Wednesday, April 6, 2011
New FHA Rules Go Into Effect 4/18/2011
Are you intending to buy a home this Spring with a small down payment (FHA Loan)? If you get it under contract before April 18, your payment will be less than it will be if you wait until after that date. The mortgage insurance the Dept of HUD charges goes up .25% then. That doesn't sound like much, but on a $150,000 home that is $31.25 per month. That is a lot of money over the life of the loan.
So if you need something besides low interest rates and prices rolled back to levels seen in the early 2000s, this could be a great reason to move forward. Call me for details. You don't have to close by then. We just have to order the case number.
I can be reached by phone at 615-777-4663 or via email at george.margrave@migonline.com
So if you need something besides low interest rates and prices rolled back to levels seen in the early 2000s, this could be a great reason to move forward. Call me for details. You don't have to close by then. We just have to order the case number.
I can be reached by phone at 615-777-4663 or via email at george.margrave@migonline.com
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