Let Us Find Your Home’s Value

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Recently, home values have gone crazy, and many people are curious about what their homes may be worth, whether they are looking to sell or are just curious. How do you find out the value of your home in today’s market?

Home appraisals can be very expensive. If you hired an appraiser, you could spend anywhere from $500 to $1,000 to have someone appraise your property here in the Rochester area. While it is very valuable information, many sellers just want an idea of what their property is worth from an expert without a full-blown appraisal.

This is where your real estate agent can come in. If you contact us, we would be happy to set up a time to evaluate your property. It is very simple; in fact, oftentimes we can do it without seeing all of the details of your home.

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Many sellers just want an idea of what their property is worth from an expert without a full-blown appraisal.

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We can set you up with the information if you send us an email. Or, you can get a computerized value by going to http://www.housevaluesrochester.com/. This uses algorithms to draw data about your home from public tax records, so it's not as accurate as the home evaluation we can do for you for free.

If you would like us to put together an actual home evaluation, please feel free to call or email. I would be happy to speak with you.

How to Get Buyers Excited for Your Listing

Buying a Rochester home? Click here to perform a full home search

Selling your Rochester home? Get a free Home Price Evaluation

Today I want to talk about a newer marketing strategy that’s been making waves in our industry. If you’re listing your home with an agent who isn’t employing this strategy, you could be missing out on a great opportunity.

For years, real estate agents have waited to start marketing listings until they’re live on the market. The problem with this is that homes lose more and more momentum each day they sit on the market. This is true even in a hot market like the one we’re seeing today.

What’s the solution to this dilemma? Instead of waiting until the moment a home hits the market, my team and I have found that it’s more effective to start marketing the property ahead of time. It’s hard to believe more agents out there aren’t leveraging this amazing technique, which we call “Coming Soon” marketing.

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Our exclusive “Coming Soon” marketing program gets homes sold faster and for thousands of dollars more than homes listed without this strategy.

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This strategy gets buyers excited about purchasing your property before it even hits the market. Why wait for your property to go live before you start generating interest?

Think of it this way: Let’s say a new Star Wars movie was coming out tomorrow, but no one knew about the release until the moment it happened. How many people do you think would be lined up to go see it?

Most movie companies spend months hyping up a release. Creating a sense of anticipation generates additional revenue, which is exactly why we use this same strategy when helping sellers list their home. Our exclusive Coming Soon marketing program gets homes sold faster and for thousands of dollars more than homes listed without this strategy.

If you have any other questions or would like more information, feel free to give me a call or send me an email. I look forward to hearing from you soon.

How to Overcome Appraisal Challenges

Appraisals have become a bit of a challenge in our market. Here’s how to make them a little easier.

Buying a Rochester home? Click here to perform a full home search

Selling your Rochester home? Get a free Home Price Evaluation

Buyers and sellers face a lot of different challenges in this market. One area, in particular, has been seeing a lot more challenges than others: appraisals.

The reality is that the state of supply and demand in our market is creating higher sale prices. This is good news for sellers, but it’s also causing some problems. The main issue is the disconnect between some of the sale prices we are seeing the market bear and what appraisers are valuing homes at. Appraisal issues are more common now than ever, and they can ruin transactions. So, what happens when you don’t agree with an appraisal?

You have a few different options. One is disputing the appraisal and potentially asking and paying for a second opinion. You may also be able to renegotiate with the seller or meet them halfway to make up the difference from where the appraisal is and where the sale price was agreed at. You also have the option to walk away as a buyer. We write appraisal contingencies into all of our contracts.

Keep in mind if you’re a seller that if you have an FHA buyer, that appraisal sticks with the property whether they decide to proceed with the sale or not. 

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You always have the option to walk away as a buyer.

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Pricing your home appropriately with a pricing strategy that takes into consideration the potential appraised value of your home. With a good agent, you can help avoid a lot of these kinds of issues.

If you have any questions for us or are curious about buying or selling a home, don’t hesitate to give us a call or send us an email. We look forward to hearing from you.

Make Your Older Home More Attractive to Buyers

If you’re worried about how your older home will fare in a market full of new houses, here are a few ways to make it more attractive to buyers.

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A viewer recently asked, “How can I make my older home more competitive with all of the new homes on the market?” There are a few things that I recommend you do:

1. Meet with a real estate agent. An agent can tell you what specifically you’ll need to do to compete with other homes in your neighborhood. For example, we use a 75-point checklist that we’ve formulated over the years that will allow you to check every aspect of your home that may be important to potential buyers.
2. Get a pre-inspection. Your home doesn’t need to be perfect, but remember that what you get out of your home sale is dependent upon what you put into it. There is no better money spent than the $300 or so you’ll spend on a pre-inspection. This is because a pre-inspection will identify the kinds of things that a buyer may find later when they do their own inspection and will give you an opportunity to fix them beforehand. In addition, handing the buyer the pre-inspection report ahead of time will also give the buyer more confidence in your home when making an offer because they’ll know you’ve repaired any glaring issues. A confident buyer is more likely to make a strong offer with fewer inspection contingencies, and you’ll have peace of mind knowing that there is one less thing standing in the way of your closing.

If you have any other questions about preparing your home for the market or about anything else related to real estate in our area, feel free to give me a call or send me an email. I’d be happy to help you!

5 Ways to Market Your Rochester Home

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Selling your Rochester home? Get a free Home Price Evaluation

There are five key factors to consider for marketing your Rochester home. Check them out below!

1. Location. Location has a lot to do with the value and appeal of a property, and that has a lot to do with marketing. This is a given value, and it’s not something you control. 
2. Financing. What is going on in the financing world? Again, this is something that is beyond your control, but will greatly affect how you market your home. 
3. Marketing. Your agent controls the steps and processes used to market your home. You want to make sure your agent responds to you, has a proven marketing plan, and is a great negotiator.
4. Condition. As the owner, you are in control of the condition of the property. A good agent will advise you on what to do to prepare your home for the market in order to increase its perceived value. Ultimately, as the homeowner, it’s up to you to ensure your home is in good condition. 
5. Price. As the owner, you control this as well, but your agent should be able to guide you. Price is intertwined with marketing. Even is a home is well-marketed, if it's priced incorrectly it will not sell. Additionally, a home that is priced correctly but not marketed well won’t sell, either. 

Hire the agent with the best marketing plan and take their advice on the price and condition of your home. If you do so, you will have a good experience selling your home. If you have any questions about today’s video or about real estate in general, give us a call or send us an email. We would be happy to help you!

4 Simple Ways to Add to Your Home’s Value

Buying a Rochester home? Click here to perform a full home search  

Selling your Rochester home? Get a free Home Price Evaluation

Today we’ve got a topic that is going to really help you out if you’re considering selling this spring. We’ve got four simple and inexpensive ways for you to increase the value of your home today. If you’ve been thinking of selling your home, paying attention to small details like these could mean the difference in your home selling for top dollar or not selling at all. Here they are:

1. Clean your carpets.
Buyer allowances don’t exist anymore. You can’t just ignore the carpet and say that you’re going to let the buyer replace it or give them money to do so. You’ve got to be prepared for the market from the get-go, and cleaning your carpet can be an easy fix. The smell alone is refreshing to buyers.

2. Touch up your paint.
Touch up any old or worn paint, especially in larger rooms. The fresh paint smell is something buyers will notice as well.

3. Replace your cabinet hardware.
Whether you go with a lighter town like a brushed bronze or a darker one like nickel, it’s a very inexpensive way to update your kitchen.

4. Update your lighting fixtures.
This is a simple thing that will update the feel of your home immediately. You can get a 2-pack of brand-new light fixtures from Menards for just $30.

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Buyers want a turn-key home.

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The fact of the matter is, buyers in this market want a turn-key home. If getting top dollar and selling quickly is important to you, the above fixes are things you need to do. If you have any questions for us, or are thinking about selling your home in the near future, we’d love to hear from you. Just give us a call or send us an email!

5 Steps to Selling for Top Dollar in Rochester

Buying a Rochester home? Click here to perform a full home search  

Selling your Rochester home? Get a free Home Price Evaluation

Today we are going to talk about the 5 steps you need to take to ensure your home gets sold for top dollar in the Rochester market. If you take these steps to heart, you will have a smooth and profitable sale. We see sellers all the time that have no idea where to start, but we’re going to put you in a position to win today.

1. Prepare and research
This process may start months before your home just listed. Start with decluttering and depersonalizing your home, as researching potential real estate agents to interview. Don’t focus on who has been in the business a long time and who is actually selling homes.

2. Establish your own motivation and objectives
If an agent doesn’t know your motivation or objectives, it’s hard for them to advise you correctly. You need to be able to verbalize them, so you know what kind of obstacles there are, and what you’re ultimately trying to accomplish.

3. Develop a marketing plan to sell for top dollar
To sell for top dollar in Rochester, you’ve got to have top-notch marketing. When you’re interviewing agents, ask them what their marketing plan looks like. Focus on what they are going to do to sell your home and get top dollar for it.

4. Select a real estate agent
Hopefully, you’ve done your research, seen the marketing plan, and can then select the best agent. You want someone with a great track record and someone that’s selling homes now. Just because someone has been in the business a long time doesn’t mean that they are the best option. Our team sells out homes faster and for more money than the competition by a significant margin.

5. Establish an asking price
If you hire an agent based on what they tell you your home will sell for, it will cause you to fall for whatever agent tells you the most amount of money; they’ll tell you what you want to hear. The good agents will tell you what you need to hear because it’s in your best interest. It’s what you need to hear to make sure your home sells for top dollar.

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The good agents will tell you what you need to hear.

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If you have any questions for us or want to know how we can sell your home for top dollar, give us a call or send us an email. We would love to hear from you!

Can You Really Trust Zestimates?

Buying a Rochester home? Click here to perform a full home search  
Selling your Rochester home? Get a free Home Price Evaluation

Today we are talking about a topic we get a lot of questions about: Zestimates. Zestimates are Zillow’s automated home value system that will tell you what your home could sell for in the market. Is this the best way to determine value, and should you trust it? The answer is maybe, but it might not be a good idea.

Zillow themselves have disclosed that their Zestimates can be anywhere from 5-15% inaccurate. They use a basic algorithm to determine value that takes into account square footage, bedrooms, and bathrooms, but not much else. They also use sales data from their site, but that is often inaccurate as well.

So please don’t look at your Zestimate as the exact figure your home will sell for. To truly determine your home’s market value, you need to hire an agent who has boots on the ground and understands what buyers are looking for.

There are a lot of things that go into determining your value that aren’t calculated in Zillow’s algorithm. Things like absorption rates, inventory, and interest rates can all change from one price range to the next.

With that being said, there are a lot of agents out there that don’t have a ton of experience. It’s easy to get your real estate license, but it’s much more difficult to get to the point where you have the experience needed to accurately assess the value of the home. Every listing we take, we do a pre-appraisal to get yet another valuation for your home.

So, be careful on Zillow, and don’t make your decisions based on that valuation. If you have any questions for us or are looking to buy or sell, give us a call or send us an email today!

How Long Will Sellers Have an Advantage in Rochester?

Buying a Rochester home? Click here to perform a full home search  
Selling your Rochester home? Get a free Home Price Evaluation

Everyone knows that the real estate market has been very hot lately, but how much longer will this market be good for sellers? That's what we'll discuss today.

This question is not so easily answered, and we're going to have to look at a few different market statistics to give you an accurate answer. It really all has to do with supply and demand, and there are things that can affect these factors.

Interest rates can alter demand, and if rates continue to rise we will probably see fewer buyers on our market. If this happens, the market may shift in favor of buyers.

Right now in most prices ranges up to $350,000, it's very much a seller's market. If we move beyond that, the market shifts into a buyer's market in higher price ranges.

But how long will it stay a buyer's market? This depends on interest rates and how much demand we have. If interest rates rise, fewer buyers will purchase homes and the decrease in demand will shift our market in favor of buyers.

I think interest rates are the most important factor in whether or not we see a shift in the market, but I don't expect them to rise unexpectedly. With this being said, I think our market should remain friendly towards home sellers.

If you need any help buying or selling real estate in Rochester, please don't hesitate to contact me.

Four Important Questions to Ask When Selling Your Home

Buying a Rochester home? Click here to perform a full home search 

Selling your Rochester home? Get a free Home Price Evaluation

 

Today I want to speak about some important questions you need to be asking your real estate agent before you go to sell your home. You could potentially be setting yourself up for disaster if you fail to ask these questions, because sometimes the line between success and failure is thin. 

1. What is your agent's specific marketing plan? This question alone will help to weed out at least 80% of the agents out there. Your agent needs to do much more than just list your home on the MLS and hope that it sells. Having an agent with a proven and repeatable system is key to selling a home.
2. Is the marketing plan passive or active? Is your agent actively trying to bring buyers to your home? Simply listing your home and hoping that buyers find it is not enough. We like to go above and beyond for our clients, because we actively promote your property on multiple websites and we have great lead-generation software to bring the most qualified buyers to your door.
3. Does your agent have experience? Rochester is a competitive marketplace, so your agent will need to be qualified to handle that pressure. We realize that everyone has to start somewhere, so if you're using a newer agent, at least ensure that they have an experienced partner on their team that they can turn to for help. Our team has already sold 75 properties in 2015, and I think that speaks volumes about our experience.
4. Does your agent have the right tools to meet your expectations? Only 42% of homes that go up for sale are actually being bought. Your agent needs lead-generation software, advanced marketing techniques, and systems in place that are proven to sell homes. 

The results only get better when you hire a team of agents to work for you. It's well-known that a team of professionals will almost always net you more money for your home and actually sell it quicker than just a single agent. Why hire a single agent when you can hire 10 people for the same price?

If you ever need help buying or selling your home in Rochester, please don't hesitate to contact us. We look forward to exceeding your expectations!

How Much Money Can You Save By Selling Your Own Rochester Home?

There are many great Rochester area homes for sale. Click here to perform a full home search, or if you're thinking of selling your home, click here for a FREE Home Price Evaluation so you know what buyers will pay for your home in today's market. You may also call me at (507) 258-5850 for a FREE home buying or selling consultation to answer any of your real estate questions.

If you're thinking about selling your home, you might be wondering whether selling it yourself is the right thing to do. After all, you wouldn't have to pay an agent's commission if you were successful. Today, we'll explain why you're actually at a huge disadvantage when you do For Sale By Owner.

Why do homeowners who work with a real estate professional have an advantage? There are too many reasons to cover in today's blog, but you can find a detailed response to that question in my best-selling book, Cracking the Real Estate Code Volume II. 

In the book, we discuss the importance of hiring a real estate agent if you want to accomplish your selling goals. For starters, if you do For Sale By Owner (FSBO), you're only getting your home marketed to people who see your ad in the paper or on craigslist. 

If you work with a high-octane real estate agent or a real estate team, you will have the advantage of being exposed to the large pool of buyers they have access to. More importantly, you'll have access to the MLS, exposing your home to thousands of agents in the area as well. It's simple: if you want a successful home sale, the best way to accomplish your selling goals is to get maximum exposure for your home.  

If you went the For Sale By Owner route every time you moved, you might do three or four transactions throughout your lifetime. A good agent will close three or four transactions a week! They know all the ins and outs of the selling process and will help you with every step of the process.

Research has shown that between basic mistakes, pricing errors, and lack of negotiating skills will cost you more money than the agent's commission every time you try to sell your home yourself. 

If you would like the expert assistance you need to accomplish your real estate goals, don't hesitate to give me a call or shoot me an email. I would love to give you a hand!