Bristol County Massachusetts Real Estate Blog-Lincoln Team : real estate agent

Sellers, understand what homebuyers want

Lori Lincoln — Tue, 08 Jul 2008 11:04:00 GMT

The way buyers buy home are based on PRICE, LOCATION, CONDITION, STYLE

1. Fear of overpaying is a huge deal-They area afraid of paying too much, a huge issue today. Gas is expensive, heating costs will be a consideration this winter.

2. Condition- Buyers may look at your home if the price is low, but they will also consider the fix-ups and "shop up" instead of investing $30,000 in repairs, they will buy the home that needs nothing.

3. Curb appeal: Buyers do judge a book by its cover. Your front yard should be nicely landscaped and eye-appealing. Fresh paint or siding outside. Mulch, gardens. Make it look really nice!

4. Cleanliness and Decluttering- Be sure you keep your home clean, neat and tidy and smelling good. Hire a stager if it's in your budget. Staging alone can net you thousands more for your home.

5. Updated- Hardwoods are in! If you got 'em flaunt them. Remove ugly, stained or dated carpet and replace with hardwoods or new carpeting. The best choice is hardwood floors. Ceramic flooring in the kitchens and baths.

Granite or Corian countertops, maple or cherry cabinets. If you have dark oak, dingy or old looking cabinets, you may want to consider painting them white. Orange countertops- OUT!

By the way, buyers hate dark rooms. Brighten up all of your rooms with light neutral wall colors. Paneling is OUT!

Leave your appliances if they are in good working order.. Not leaving them gives buyers the impression that "this seller is cheap".

If you don't want to do any work before placing on the market you may as well just take it off the price.

Small fixes can save you from having to sell below market.

Turn offs: pet odors, dirty laundry hanging around, yard debris, cigarette or cigar smoke, unpopular walls or wall colors, holes in walls, shag carpet, dirty carpets, clutter ( especially around where the mechanical systems and electrical systems are located). Broken windows, torn screens.. welll now you're probably getting the picture.

My name is Lori Lincoln, I am a Realtor with Keller Williams Realty. I help buyers and sellers in Taunton, Rehoboth, Swansea, Somerset, Raynham, Assonet, Freetown, Middleboro, Lakeville, Berkley, Dighton and surrounding towns.

For more help and pointers on selling your home in today's market, go to the following link

Sellertips.com

Another Great Site for Online Home Value, MLS search (FREE)

http://www.BristolCountyHomeTeam.com

You can search thousands of listings in Bristol County Massachusetts here.

Interested in a short sale? Be sure your agent knows how..

Lori Lincoln — Tue, 08 Jul 2008 11:01:00 GMT

Sellers Beware! Do you know if your agent is short sale savvy??? (edit/delete)

This market is overwhelmed with agents who haven't any experience in short sale properties. It can be a daunting experience for the sellers and the buyers.

My most recent short sale involved sellers who placed their home on the market with 2 different agents in 2 years prior to listing the home with me.

The first agent grossly overpriced the home, listing it as a regular listing. In the meantime, the sellers had such high hopes of selling for a price that never would be.

Hence, the listing expired, and in walks agent number 2 who also overprices the home giving the sellers high hopes of selling the home at a profit.

When the listing expired again, the seller called me. The first conversation with the sellers didn't go as well as they would have liked. Market statistics don't lie. If a home's market value is less than what the seller wants, it will not sell, short sale or not.

Long story longer.. the sellers owed the bank $100,000 more than market value.. YIKES! I listed the home at a lower price, reduced the price 3 times ( at the mercy of the sellers bank of course), then finally sold the home for full market value.. (not what the seller owed)

Sellers who are in financial trouble should be extremely honest with their agent. As professional agents, our responsibility is to protect your honor and keep conversations confidential.

Most sellers believe that their home will sell for a higher price than last year.. yes, even with all of the media stories on how our market is declining.

In this market, if an agent quickly agrees to list your home for what you want, without documenting and verifying market data, be cautious. Some agents just like to place their sign in the front of your yard for publicity only.

There is much education involved in the short sale process. I will be happy to provide a free, no obligation consultation.

You can reach me at 508-878-0917

Thank you for viewing my blog

Lori Lincoln, Taunton Massachusetts area Realtor

Keller Williams Realty

email: lorilincoln@kw.com

http://www.LoriLincolnTeam.com

Lori Lincoln, Keller Williams Realty lists and sells property in Taunton, Rehoboth, Swansea, Somerset, Fall River,Bristol County Massachusetts and surrounding communities http://lorilincolnteam.com

Before You Make An Offer on A Bank Owned Property- Know What You're Up Against.

Lori Lincoln — Thu, 18 Oct 2007 23:28:00 GMT

Making Offers on Bank Owned Property/ Short Sales

If you are an investor or a first time buyer, you probably have considered bank owned property or properties being offered on "short sale". (A short sale is when the home is worth less than the note owed by the seller of the home.).

I have submitted several offers on both bank owned and short sale properties, over the past few months. Here is what I have learned.

1. Banks that own foreclosed properties like to see a bonafide pre-approval letter from a well known bank.

2. Earnest Deposit money must be serious. $1000 on a Purchase and Sales Agreement will probably not be taken seriously by the bank or any seller for that matter.

3. Very low offers are usually not even considered. The bank usually won't counteroffer. Their way of saying, "we have better offers". Most of the bank owned homes are priced to sell.

4. Many buyer rights are taken away when entering into the Purchase and Sales Agreement. Most banks have a page (or more) addendum that has to be signed by the buyer agreeing to buy "as is".

5. If you are looking for bank owned properties. It would be wise to have a buyer's agent in your corner. There is so much more involved in this, that I couldn't possibly cover it all in this blog.

I have access to thousands of bank owned and short sale properties for sale in Massachusetts. Please contact me for more information.

Lori Lincoln

Keller Williams Realty

508-878-0917

http://BristolCountyHomeTeam.com

I work in Bristol County MA serving cities and towns in Taunton MA, Fall River MA and surrounding areas.

"NO Hassles, NO Pressure, Just Results