Monthly Archives: February 2014

Consider the ROI When Remodeling the Home

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It?s easy for Acuity National Real Estate Solutions Remodeling the Homea homeowner to get their heart set on a particular design for a new kitchen or a particular style of bathroom for the master bedroom when remodeling the home. However, a savvy homeowner is going to think about the return on investment that they will get from a remodel prior to executing it. They will consider the question: ?Will I be able to recoup my investment when the time comes for me to sell my home??

In order to answer this question, homeowners first need to think about the other homes being sold in their neighborhood. How much are these homes going for? Will the remodel job a homeowner is planning to do make the home more expensive than what people would be willing to pay for in the neighborhood?

Buyers shop where they know they are going to find what they want. This means that if buyers want a home with a swimming pool, they are going to look for neighborhoods where most homes have swimming pools. Therefore, if your home is the only one in its division that has a swimming pool, it?s likely that buyers in your area aren?t considering pools and may not even know your home exists. It?s actually likely that an over-improved home will be more difficult to sell?

Remember to consider that not everyone has the same taste. Sometimes homeowners include features in their homes that are important to them but that many buyers could care less about.? Other times homeowners may make improvements in harmony with their own visions but which may be too radical for the buyers in their area.

Remodeling the home to mask a problem is a mistake. For example, an individual may have a kitchen that?s just too small. This person may choose to install expensive cabinets and counter tops, which is great?they look really nice?but in the end the kitchen is still too small for many buyers.

At the end of the day, when it comes to remodeling the home, homeowners must be realistic, if they?re considering selling in the future. They should make their home generic enough that another individual would be interested in it. When considering remodeling, a good rule to adhere to is to speak with a realtor or lender in your area. Ask them what they would consider to be reasonable updates that would add value to your home without alienating it from the market.

When Selling Your Home, Think Beyond Location

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When it comes to real estate, every home seller has heard the old advice that location is everything. Well, in reality, that?s just not true most of the time. While there is some truth to the claim that location makes a difference to potential buyers, this oversimplified perspective leaves out two critical factors buyers consider when seeking a home: condition and price.

The Problem with Relying on Location

Although location does have an impact on the value of a home, buyers don?t always mind an extra few minutes? drive to the beach when they can find a more affordable option down the road. In fact, plenty of potential buyers will turn down the penthouse or mountaintop villa when they can find a home in better condition at a lower cost. For this reason, your agent may tell you stories about oceanfront properties sitting on the market for ages because of sellers refusing to negotiate on pricing preference.

How Buyers View Condition

When touring prospective homes, buyers often take into consideration how the home?s current condition affects its value. While you may know that your faded carpets can be replaced, many buyers are ready for a home that is all set to be moved into immediately. Remodeling costs money and it?s time consuming. It?s especially a hassle when a family is just moving in. Really, no one wants to have to wait to move into a home because of its poor condition, and buyers are willing to continue their housing search if price doesn’t match current condition.

Why Fair Pricing Matters

If you believe your real estate skills are strong enough to sell your home solely based upon its location and condition, then go ahead and give it a try. However, you may be surprised to discover that you?ll be in for a long wait. This is especially true if you?re selling with the representation of a real estate agent who has likely already told you that your pricing is too high. Many homes on the market have continued to sit as buyers pass them by in favor of another home that better fits their budget and yet also offers plenty of amenities to suit their lifestyle.

So, the takeaway here is, when it comes to selling your home, always listen to your agent. She or he can help you avoid hosting showings where your house is left empty of visitors. Remember too, once your home hits the market, it?s no longer about you. Rather, it?s all about setting the right price.

Acuity Image Sellers Need to Think Beyond Location

How to Find the Mortgage Option that Works Best For You!

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If you want to take out a mortgage, you probably can. However, many mortgage options may not be in your best interest, and many home loans are sold by people who claim to be professionals but who are, in fact, not. Below we discuss some tips on how you can choose a mortgage option that works best for you.

First, use a mortgage payment calculator. Doing so will help you pick a mortgage option that is appropriate for your situation. Now let?s take a look at some mortgage requirements and options:

The Reimbursement Mortgage

If your income and savings are small, then a usual reimbursement mortgage may be ideal for you. With this option, you should have the ability to buy the house you want with payments you can afford. Additionally, a low start mortgage requirement might allow you access to a nicer residence or to lower mortgage payments if you expect your income to increase.

The Repayment Mortgage

For those with a good income but low savings, a usual repayment mortgage could be great for you, if you’re able to get one. If you want to pay off your mortgage early, then paying short-term here may be the best option. However, having a counteract mortgage linked to your current account could help with doing this far more easily.

Smaller repayment mortgage requirement loans may be best if you have a lot of savings but a small income. If you can commit funds to a much better return as compared to the monthly interest payment, then you should receive the best repayment mortgage loan that the earnings can leverage.

Additionally, because preliminary payments are usually quite expensive, it?s important to ensure that you earn an individual income that covers your expenses. If your earning is less than the loan, paying over 30% of you income could be very challenging. If your income is larger than your loan, however, then it may be wise to allow 50% of your respective income, as doing so would be less challenging for you.

Lastly, if you purchase a home just as an investment, you might need professional assistance. A professional should be able to help you obtain the most optimal deal on a mortgage that fits within your financial situation. Additionally, if you have doubts about being a new landlord and owning a number of houses, it might make sense for you to take advantage of the assistance of an expert specializing in such mortgages before taking the mortgage out yourself.

Realtors: How to Engage Leads With Your Website

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As a real estate agent, you probably find that maintaining constant engagement with leads is tremendously valuable for your business. You also probably understand that an important way to achieve this lasting connection is with your website. Here we discuss some ways to really maximize the impact of your website and simultaneously build client engagement by offering free and ongoing information.?

One way to offer free information to potential clients is to have a blog, and to update this blog on a regular basis (very important for your SEO optimization). Now, this blog may be your own commentary, or you may want to provide links on your site to other articles that you think are interesting and trustworthy, especially since there are so many articles out there already written by skilled pros in your industry. For instance, various marketing companies may be a suitable source for linkable blogs.

If you?re considering blog topics, feel free to browse those we?ve already posted on the Acuity website. You can provide cautionary or advisory tidbits of expertise, reflections, updates on what?s going on with your business or sales. For instance, you can bust out an article about tips to guarantee the highest value for your home. A read-through like this would not only attract sellers, but would also keep them coming back to
Acuity rewrite engage leads with your website 2your for more!

When considering blog topics, it?s important to have articles that are not only for sellers but are also for those interested in buying a home. Some folks out there may browse your site simply to learn more about the real estate business. In all, you should cover enough information to answer all basic questions you can think of and to explore unique topics.

Another effective way of maintaining communication with leads is to produce a newsletter. Doing so, really, can be as simple as giving people an opportunity to regularly read your material through subscriptions via email. The consistency of good quality material should in turn produce more leads for you. Hint?make sure to send the newsletter to everyone on your email list at least once a month to keep them engaged.

Another hint?if the concept of a newsletter is new to you, consider using a template! Do a test run with the template to see how well readers respond to your newsletter. Remember, you can always tweak it here and there as you go along, and soon you?ll learn just what your readers like. As with the realtor website, the newsletter should contain a hybrid of your original material and information gathered from other sources. Eventually, you?ll have the perfect layout.

The Kitchen is the Heart of the Home

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Many people trying to sell their home don?t realize just how important the kitchen is in this process. However unassuming some may think the kitchen is, the room can actually play a big role in selling a house. After all, there?s a lot of truth to the old saying, ?the stomach is the way to the heart.?

The kitchen, some would argue, is the real heart of a home. It?s where many of us both eat and spend time with family. A kitchen can also be the main show piece of a house. You see it everyday, and visitors may see it at almost every visit. So, it?s no surprise that today?s buyers want houses with up-to-date and/or just plain charming kitchens.

Of course, kitchens can be quite expensive to renovate. In fact, many homeowners spend much more money and energy renovating a kitchen than they would any other room in the house. These sorts of projects require a lot of time and labor; there?s a lot more to renovating kitchens than just adding a new layer of paint.

Really, prospective renovators often deal with a dizzying array of tiling, flooring, cabinetry, and counters. Buyers do want houses with up-to-date kitchens, but they most certainly don?t want to do the job themselves. The vast majority of buyers want a kitchen that?s ready for use on move in day.

So, what are buyers looking for in kitchens? The answer to this question depends on the price range of the home.

As a seller, you do not want to price yourself out of the market. If houses in your neighborhood are selling for $100,000 with tidy kitchens, then you do not need to upgrade to marble, travertine, or granite at the price tag of $40,000. You just won?t find any buyers.

You should always take a good look at the competition. Use MLS listings or open houses in your area to find out what your competitors? kitchens look like.

Do the other houses in the area have new granite counters and solid wood cabinets in today?s designer colors? If so, then you may want to make that same move. Do these homes have stainless steel appliances and other features like wine coolers, trash compactors, or updated dishwashers?

Also, consider, are you in an upscale neighborhood? Is so, then you have to think high-end for that kitchen of yours. Older houses may have nice kitchens, but buyers often consider the time and money it would take to renovate them in the future. You may want to make a concession price-wise if you don?t want to make the upgrades yourself.

Really, though, there is no need to be overwhelmed. Kitchens can be updated with just a few simple changes. You can alter the paint, de-clutter, update the appliances, and get a lower end granite or faux granite for a lower price. You can save a lot of money by doing some of the work yourself.

Nice kitchens sell homes. If you?re thinking of selling, do yourself a favor and find out about other kitchens in the area. Doing so should allow you to find out what you need to do to your own kitchen to make your home a real competitor in the local market.