Look Through the Home Staging

One of the best parts about the home buying process is going to look at the different houses.  Not only do you get different ideas from each house, but you get to fantasize about living there and making it your own.  However, most houses listed on the market are staged to sell. Realtors and professional home stagers alike are experienced and know how to make a house look its best and sometimes even better than its best.

Often, home stagers will remove or switch out furniture.  This makes the room look bigger than it actually is.  Before making an offer, make sure that your furniture will actually fit by taking measurements.  Also, make sure there is enough storage.  People selling their homes sometimes already have things packed away so the house looks like it has lots of room.  Make sure all of your stuff will fit.

It is important to remember that you are usually buying the house structure not the house as is.  Staging often makes a home look worth more than it actually is.  If you fall in love with the house AND the furniture, then ask your realtor® to include certain items that you love in the offer.

Also, just because a house looks clean, finished, and stable doesn't always mean it is.  Don’t let the home staging fool you.  I recommend a building inspection to any of my buyers purchasing a home.  This lets you know exactly what you are buying and what shape it is in.

If you are ready to start you house hunting, please let me know and I will be happy to show you homes and give you advice.

Sincerely,

Astra Mulawka
Sales Representative
Better Homes and Gardens
Real Estate Signature Service

Should I buy a home or sell my home first?

When people sell their home, they are most likely going to buy a new one.  This seems simple enough, but many go through the dilemma of should they sell their home first and then buy or buy a home and then sell.  This is a valid question and makes people anxious when trying to decide what to do as they don’t want to be stuck in a rental and they don’t want to be own two homes and making payments on both.  To make your life easier and much less stressful, I recommend one thing – HIRE A REALTOR®.

A Realtor® will ensure that the two (you selling a house and you buying a house) will occur seamlessly.  Put your house on the market and start looking for one at the same time.  When you write an offer you can make it subject to the sale of your home and when someone writes an offer on you house, you can make it subject to you buying a new one.  This makes your life a lot easier.

In addition, one important step is often overlooked. I recommend talking to a mortgage advisor to make sure you are approved and pre-qualified for buying the new house and you can afford it.  Many people don’t think about this, believing if they were approved for their current house that they can transfer the mortgage and they will be approved for the new place.  This is not always the case.  It’s better to be safe than sorry.

If you want to sell your house and buy another one at the same time and are looking for a real estate agent to help you make the transition smooth and stress free, please just let me know and I will be happy to assist you.

Sincerely,

Astra Mulawka
Sales Representative
Better Homes and Gardens
Real Estate Signature Service

What is a Comparative Market Analysis or CMA?!!

So, you have decided to sell your house.  If you have contacted a realtor®, they have most likely prepared a comparative market analysis or CMA for your home. Simply, a CMA is used to tell us how much your home is worth and will sell for in the current real estate market.  A CMA is based on the active, expired, and sold listings in the area that compare to your house.  It is fact based and so when I say “compare to your house” I mean houses which have the same number of bedrooms, same number of bathrooms, approximate square footage, approximate age etcetera and that are located in the same area as your home. Depending on the market, your realtor® will set the CMA to go back a certain length of time.  It could be a couple months or even a year.  In summary, the CMA will show houses (similar to yours) that are for sale, have sold, or have expired in your area in the last couple months (or whatever length of time that your realtor® chooses).

Now that we have the comparable listings, we start looking at the prices.  By looking at the listing prices of the expired listings we can tell that those prices were too high in the current market, and therefore did not sell.  By looking at the sold listings, we know that their listing prices were competitive in the current market and therefore sold.  By looking at the active listings, we can look at what we are up against.

Now, that is not all a CMA is based on.  Many home owners have made improvements such as recent remodels or their home might include something else that may increase its value.  So, how do you know how much this adds to the worth and therefore the listing price of your home?  You rely on the expertise of your realtor®!  Remember, realtors have experience working with buyers and sellers alike.  They know how much most buyers are willing to pay for certain upgrades or renovations.  Depend on them and trust that they know the market best.

At the end of the CMA, there will be a listing price that is recommended by your realtor®.  Now you know, this number is based on facts and experience.  However, the final listing price is determined by you.

If you are thinking about selling your home, I would be happy to provide you a free comparative market evaluation with no strings attached!

Sincerely,

Astra Mulawka
Sales Representative
Better Homes and Gardens
Real Estate Signature Service

How to Make a Rental Feel Like YOUR Home

Renting can be difficult.  It’s hard to make a place feel like your own when number 1 it’s not yours and number 2 you aren’t allowed to change anything! Or so it may seem… One of the biggest recommendations I have to renters is don’t think of the place as temporary.  If you do that, no matter how much you could do to the apartment it will never feel like yours and will never feel like home.

Here are a few tips to get you settled into a new apartment:

1. Unpack! Unpack! Unpack!  The first thing you should do is unpack your belongings.  If you have downsized or there isn’t enough room for some of your stuff, don’t keep it in boxes – get rid of it!
2. Most rental apartments and condos have a neutral colour scheme.  This is just the way it is.  However, if you plan on staying there a long time – ask your landlord if you can paint and then re-paint it the neutral colour before you leave.  Also, if you don’t feel like painting the whole apartment, consider painting accent walls.  If your landlord says no, then temporary wall paper is a great solution and you can just peel it off when you are ready to leave
   
3. Use your own lighting.  Buy a floor lamp or replace florescent bulbs with softer glowing ones.  Softening the light will give the apartment a more welcoming feel.
4. Fabric can make a huge difference to the feel of your apartment. Change the curtains, add a throw blanket and some decorative pillows, and buy a rug!  
5. Just because you are living inside, doesn’t mean that the apartment shouldn’t have a bit of life.  Adding plants will brighten up your apartment in no time.
6. Again, don’t think temporary!  If you are buying furniture, go for stuff you actually like!  Don’t get a crappy sofa that you don’t really care for because it is cheap and you aren’t going to be there too long.  Remember, you will always be able to take furniture with you, so get something you will actually want to take with you!

Hope these tips help you feel a little more at home!  If you need any help finding a new place to rent and call home, please don’t hesitate to contact me and I would be happy to assist you!

Sincerely,

Astra Mulawka
Sales Representative
Better Homes and Gardens
Real Estate Signature Service

This article was inspired by: http://www.realtor.com/advice/how-to-make-your-rental-feel-like-a-home/#.UufIUbCEiUk

How Real Estate Agents Get Paid

Some home buyers and home sellers become apprehensive when deciding to work with a realtor® because all they are thinking about is the money it will cost them.  However, most of the time, believe it or not, a real estate agent will save you money.  Below I will explain how real estate agents get paid.

To start, unlike many other professionals, real estate agents are not paid by hour.  Instead, they are paid by commission.  The commission is based on the sales price of the home and they only get paid once the deal is final and closed.  Although commission is negotiable between listing agents and their clients (the sellers), the typical commission is 6% of the sale price.  In some cases the commission is split equally between the buyer’s agent and the seller’s agent.  However, more commonly you will see the seller’s agent’s commission a bit higher.  This offsets the listing agent’s expenses for marketing the home and holding events such as open houses.

Now, who pays the commission?  The sellers do.   The total commission is paid out of the proceeds of the home sale after the deal has been finalized and closed.  Sometimes this can take a couple months.  Conversely, although the seller is the one who actually pays the commission, one can be assured that they took this into account when determining the listing price of the home.

All realtors® work at real estate brokerages.   Commission payments go to the real estate brokerage where the realtors® work.  The commission is then split again between the realtor and the brokerage.  The amount depends on their agreement.

The percentage of commission paid should always be in the listing agent’s contract with the seller.  This ensures that the realtor® will get paid when the home sells.    Buyer’s agents also usually have a contract with their clients called a buyer agreement.  This ensures that their real estate agent will get paid when they purchase property. However, the percentage is always determined from the seller’s contract and the amount is based on the sale price of the home.

If you have any additional questions about how realtors® get paid and how commissions work, please don’t hesitate to contact me.

Sincerely,

Astra Mulawka
Sales Representative
Better Homes and Gardens
Real Estate Signature Service