While there has been much written in the newspaper and on the internet about national home sales, coverage of the specifics of home sales in Tallahassee has been varied and sporadic at best. But there is something that every Tallahassee home owner should know. Read the rest of this entry
I received an email request from a reader “Nancy” in Orlando, Florida last night. For medical reasons, she needs to move to a real estate market that has little humidity and she wants to be in Prescott, Arizona.
Nancy writes
“Hi Joe, saw your site after doing a search “where do I trade my house“.
My husband and I have a Lakefront Home (upscaled) on 1 Acre with Rental Income near Orlando, FL. It is a 4 BR, 4 BA, 4012 sq. ft., multi-level very unique and sunset views from every “angle”. It is priced at $1,599,000. My husband is a Licensed, R.E. Broker in FL (he actually use to be District Direct of Century 21 out of Miami) Anyway, I have Fibromyalgia and we are looking to trade a house in Prescott, Arizona only (I have narrowed down the climate to a “T”)
We are looking for: $500,000 - $900,000 price range home with sq. ft. of 3000+ in Prescott. Age of home does not matter but we are looking to finance difference for new owner here.
What is the best way to do this…any help is so appreciated! Nancy”
Many people around the country are in similar situations. They own a home in one real estate market but want or need to move to another real estate market. So what should Nancy do?
My recommendation to Nancy is to find the top real estate company in the Orlando market and work with somebody who has extensive experience in real estate investment (this can be determined by asking to see their own portfolio). This agent will be able to give Nancy specific advice for the Orlando real estate market.
The next advice is to think of this situation as two separate situations. First, what can Nancy do with the current house in Orlando? Second, what should Nancy do to buy a home in Prescott, Arizona ?
While a trade is definitely a possibility, what are the odds of somebody living in Prescott, Arizona needing a $1.5M home in Orlando, Florida? If a trade is going to help, it will most likely be trading the home in Orlando for a commercial property somewhere in America. Once this is done, it is possible then to trade that commercial property “somewhere in America” for a property in Prescott, Arizona. But most likely, this problem will be solved without a trade. The key is to get solid, experienced professionals helping Nancy on the ground at each location.
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Joe Manausa is a real estate investor and the Broker and Co-Owner of Century 21 First Realty. He can be reached via e-mail through the Tallahassee Real Estate Website or catch his latest writings on the Tallahassee Florida Real Estate Blog , or by calling (850) 386-2001.
I took a look at some of our higher trafficked articles on the Tallahassee Florida Real Estate Blog and found that these ten articles received a ton of traffic. If you are seeking great real estate information and happened to miss any of them, I’ve included a link below for you to see what everyone else is reading about.
What You Need To Know About Open Houses - One technique that real estate professionals use to meet more buyers is to hold an “Open House” at a home for sale. Statistically, we have less than a 1% chance of selling the home that we are in due to that Open house, so you might wonder why we do it at all.
How Home Values Are Determined - Everyone who owns a home typically likes particular aspects of that home. But these likes and dislikes have less to do with value that you might think, so let me give you some value-thoughts to chew on.
Short Sale Advice - A real estate short sale is when a home gets sold and the proceeds from the sale “fall short” of what the property owners owes on the mortgage(s) on the home. The bank(s) agrees prior to closing to accept a lesser amount than what it is owned. The bank will do this if it feels it will get more money through a short sale than through the timely and expensive cost of a foreclosure action. The property owner will often consider a real estate short sale when the owner receives assurance from the bank the loan will be deemed “paid in full.” Sometimes though, the property owner’s only option is the short sale, even if a deficiency judgement results in the process.
How To Buy A Foreclosure - So you’re hell-bent on buying a foreclosure! If so, this article contains the perfect “to do” list for you to use as guidance as you enter a market full of opportunity, surprises, pitfalls and rewards.
How To Evaluate Income Producing Properties - Take a look at a model that I refer to as the Real Estate Stack. This is the most basic of measurement models which allows an investor to take an investment and convert it to a mathematical model so that it can be compared with all other investment opportunities.
A Case Study in Buying Investment Real Estate - The return in real estate is found in long-term, leveraged appreciation. Too many investors think the money is in speculation or in the “flip,” whereas seasoned investors like to watch the appreciation build up.
Predicting Housing Consumption - With data on hand that has been recorded since 1991, I’m thinking that there might be a way to extrapolate a housing consumption estimate for the future by looking at what has happened in the past.
Tallahassee Real Estate Market Report (Free Download) - This is our third consecutive month of offering our free Tallahassee Housing Report. The purpose is to provide useful information about Tallahassee Housing by showing supply and demand across all price ranges in Leon County. This is the most comprehensive report that you will find on supply and demand in Tallahassee because it brings in more sources than just the MLS.
Making Florida Housing Affordable - So much of Florida real estate, especially near the beaches, has appreciated so highly that it is hard for working families to buy a home. It is so hard to build affordable housing with the cost of land, sticks, bricks and labor so high. That is where some key programs offered by the government can come into play, luring investors and developers alike. A few key programs that I think will make the difference are featured within.
How To Prepare To Sell Your Home - Preparing to meet with an agent is an important step in the process of selling your home. You see, the real estate agent is going to give you advice, and this advice will only be as good as the information that the agent uses to form the advice. With that in mind, let’s review what you should do to prepare for this meeting.
I hope you enjoyed this compilation of great real estate information. If you liked this summary format, please leave a comment below and I will put together more in the future (or if you didn’t like it, a comment here will help as well).
As a reminder for those who subscribe to the Tallahassee Real Estate Blog by email, some embedded pictures and videos might not be appearing in your email and you might need to click the title header to go to your browser where all will be visible.
Keep checking out the Tallahassee Real Estate Blog every day for updates that include charts, graphs, and analysis of the Tallahassee real estate market.
If you like this Article then please subscribe to my blog through a full RSS feed. You will be able to stay informed about the happenings in the Tallahassee Real Estate Market. You can also subscribe to this blog and have it delivered by Email.
Joe Manausa is a real estate investor and the Broker and Co-Owner of Century 21 First Realty. He can be reached via e-mail through the Tallahassee Real Estate Website or catch his latest writings on the Tallahassee Florida Real Estate Blog , or by calling (850) 386-2001.
I thought I might provide some insight on How Home Values Are Determined. Everyone who owns a home typically likes particular aspects of that home. But these likes and dislikes have less to do with value that you might think, so let me give you some value-thoughts to chew on:
I often times find that home owners do not know how home values are determined and I find that one of the biggest roles that real estate professionals have is to continuously remind our Sellers of this. When somebody decides to sell their home, they think about what they want for it and they think about what they will do with the proceeds. Unfortunately, none of the buyers for the home care.
Some of the key things seller’s think about that buyers do not consider important …
So, how do we know how home values are determined? They are determined by what a buyer is willing to pay in today’s market, based on the comparison of your house with others on the market, both here and in other neighborhoods.
(Analogy: Buyers don’t just say” I’m only going to buy in the Golden Eagle Subdivision in Tallahassee.” They don’t look just in the Golden Eagle Subdivision; they look at a larger category of inventory, across many subdivisions in Tallahassee. They screen price range, bedrooms, bathrooms, school zones, etc.)
BUYERS - I have never, ever spoken with a buyer who said, ” I don’t like that house on Elm Street, but let’s go look at comparable properties to determine its value.” Buyers don’t care about comparables (nor the value of your home) unless they like your home. The most critical data you can operate off of when determining the value of your home is from the homes available in the marketplace the day the buyer goes out and shops.
People with their homes on the market are competing with the other people and builders who have homes on the market. The number of Buyers is limited and you have to be the best deal if you want your home chosen. Do not ever misunderstand that you are in a race; a competition to attract the best buyer for your home!
If the market changes tonight and your competition all drop their prices $5,000, then you wake-up tomorrow over-priced. And you have to do something about it. This is the concept of “value is a moment in time.” Do not ever think that you have “set” the price on your home and that you do not need to pay attention to value movements in your marketplace.
“Comps” is a real estate industry term, short for comparable property sales in the past, that many people errantly rely on to determine value. The critical error that they make is the assumption that markets don’t go up and don’t go down! BAD ASSUMPTION! No other commodity works that way! Why would houses?
As a reminder for those who subscribe to the Tallahassee Real Estate Blog by email, some embedded pictures and videos might not be appearing in your email and you might need to click the title header to go to your browser where all will be visible.
As a reminder for those who subscribe to the Tallahassee Real Estate Blog by email, some embedded pictures and videos might not be appearing in your email and you might need to click the title header to go to your browser where all will be visible.
Keep checking out the Tallahassee Real Estate Blog every day for updates that include charts, graphs, and analysis of the Tallahassee real estate market.
If you like this Article then please subscribe to my blog through a full RSS feed. You will be able to stay informed about the happenings in the Tallahassee Real Estate Market. You can also subscribe to this blog and have it delivered by Email.
Joe Manausa is a real estate investor and the Broker and Co-Owner of Century 21 First Realty. He can be reached via e-mail through the Tallahassee Real Estate Website or catch his latest writings on the Tallahassee Florida Real Estate Blog , or by calling (850) 386-2001.
So you’ve decided to move and you’ve invited a real estate professional to interview for the job of selling your home. What should you do to prepare? What should you expect?
These are very important questions when it comes to selling your home. Preparing to meet with an agent is an important step in the process of selling your home. You see, the real estate agent is going to give you advice, and this advice will only be as good as the information that the agent uses to form the advice. With that in mind, let’s review what you should do to prepare for this meeting.
The most important piece of information that the real estate agent needs to know is your motivation in selling your home. Are you selling because you absolutely have to leave the area? Or, are you selling because you would like a bigger home? The differences between these two “motivators” is significant. This year, less than 40% of the homes that are put on the market will sell. If your motivation is not high enough, it is most probable that you will be part of the 60% who fail to sell their home. So, take a close look at the reason for selling your home in order to help the agent advise you on the reality of you successfully achieving a sale.
Your expectations are nearly as important as your motivation for selling your home. I occasionally meet with people who want to sell their home who have opinions on the market value of their home that is based upon rumor and seller opinion, not based upon what is happening in the market. Even though these homeowners are sitting on a pile of equity, they end up holding to a price that the market will not fetch. I have seen these same people try (and fail) to sell their homes for years! Even in a tough market, it does not take years to sell a home.
Sometimes as a home owner, you are privy to information that will affect the value of the home. Maybe the neighborhood is getting ready to have a new sewer system brought in, meaning everyone in the community will be assessed a good bit of money. It is important to know that this is a required disclosure to all interested buyers, therefore it is important that you share this information with the real estate agent prior to your meeting. The opposite is true as well, if you know of a positive event that will be occurring shortly that might increase the value when selling your home.
A list of all recent improvements will help the real estate agent determine what might be needed to make your home more sale-able as well as more marketable. A list of all liens and encumbrances will help the agent show you your true equity position. Finally, make sure you share with the agent the names of any and all people on the title of the home, and make sure all decision-makers are present when meeting with the agent.
The key to remember when preparing to interview an agent for the job of selling your home is that you need good advice and this can only come from an informed real estate professional. You have much of the information that the agent needs, so do your preparation first.
Here are some great home selling links:
As a reminder for those who subscribe to the Tallahassee Real Estate Blog by email, some embedded pictures and videos might not be appearing in your email and you might need to click the title header to go to your browser where all will be visible.
Keep checking out the Tallahassee Real Estate Blog every day for updates that include charts, graphs, and analysis of the Tallahassee real estate market.
If you like this Article then please subscribe to my blog through a full RSS feed. You will be able to stay informed about the happenings in the Tallahassee Real Estate Market. You can also subscribe to this blog and have it delivered by Email.
Joe Manausa is a real estate investor and the Broker and Co-Owner of Century 21 First Realty. He can be reached via e-mail through the Tallahassee Real Estate Website or catch his latest writings on the Tallahassee Florida Real Estate Blog , or by calling (850) 386-2001.
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