Lori Todd

Just like many of you, we are muddling through the daily changes and interrupted life due to the coronavirus.  We are doing our best to market listings and restricting showings to those who are serious buyers showing no symptoms of illness. For Buyers in need of a home, this is a time that only serious buyers who need to secure a home immediately need to be touring houses. We have discontinued showing houses to buyers who are just in the research and browse phase.

Right now, we are also able to close the pending sales and we’re working with Inspectors and Appraisers so that every transaction can proceed and meet deadlines.

We are fortunate to have technology available that allows us to post photos and virtual tours on listings so that consumers can shop online during this unprecedented time in history.  These are tools that allow the real estate market to continue functioning and help reduce the impact on the economy.

First and most important tip….  PREP.

Properly preparing a house to put on the market can mean a full-price offer or a quick sale.  Many times, when sellers to get a quick offer, they think they priced the house too low. But, most times, quick offers mean the house was prepared for good presentation and priced accurately!

#2 Tip – Clean up the outside. You’ve heard of ‘Curb Appeal’.  It’s real!

#3 Tip – Fresh Paint. Painting the front door and all the main traffic areas can provide a fresh, clean appearance.

#4 Tip – De-clutter all the rooms, especially the closets. If your closets are too full, buyers will feel like there isn’t enough space for them either.

#5 Tip – Create a spa-like setting for the bathrooms.

#6 Tip – Make all the small, miscellaneous repairs. They can add up and end up creating more problems.

#7 Tip – Remove personal items. Although they can help create a ‘home’, they can be distracting.

#8 Tip – Pressure wash the exterior and clear away any overhanging tree limbs.

#9 Tip – Clean the mechanicals and keep all the surfaces clear.  A clean appearance reflects the care given to the house.

And, the 10th Tip we can share….. HIRE A REALTOR.  Don’t go it alone. Legal documents, marketing, negotiations, ownership transfer and all the steps along the way can be overwhelming, especially when you don’t know the process.

 

We recently had a prospect who got furious with us because we wouldn’t answer all of his questions.  He threatened to leave bad reviews on the internet and went on to call us names, and even went as far as contacting the property owner to report us.  Unfortunately, this young prospect was completely in the wrong and I’m sure our tenants will appreciate our stance. So I wanted to share his questions and explain why we couldn’t answer all of them. 

Does the current tenant live alone or is there a family living here?

What is the neighbors like and what do they do?

What is the neighborhood like?

Is there crime in the area?

Questions like these are actually illegal for Realtors to answer.  Outside of legal positions, we would NEVER disclose who our current tenants are for basic safety reasons. Not understanding or accepting the privacy of tenants is just disrespectful!  We did refer the prospect to the local police department who could provide reports on crime but this didn’t seem to satisfy him. He felt like we should answer the question directly but we don’t have that data as we, too, turn to the police department for information.  

Due to local, state and federal laws, agents cannot legally profile what ‘type’ of person lives in a building or offer to stereotype a neighborhood. This can be considered discrimination and/or  steering, both of which are illegal! Besides, we don’t make it a habit to drive around neighborhoods looking at people – we have plenty of other work and other things to care about! But, if a tenant or buyer cares about that, then they can spend time in the area to form their own conclusion.  

If questions like these are important to you, then please know that you need to do your own due diligence because agents will not violate laws, discriminate or stray from our Code of Ethics. 

Many sellers pull their homes off the market if not sold by December. That isn’t always the best decision. And, here’s why….

There is generally less inventory in December, January & February. That means for any buyer who is house-hunting during this time frame has less to choose from and if it is necessary for them to buy, they are willing to settle for less features and pay a higher price.

Also, in December, many people decorate for the holidays. Although a decorated house can feel a little cluttered, it also can feel full of warmth and love, another selling feature to capture buyers!

If you want to avoid the moving period during the holidays, that can easily be a negotiated term during the offer to purchase period. But, if you still want to pull the house off the market to avoid showings during Christmas, you should be prompt and prepared to get the house back on the market right after the New Year’s holiday. If the weather is mild, the Spring market starts in January, not in May so don’t miss the opportunity to sell during peak market conditions!

If asked which room would you want to remodel/update, most people will answer one of two rooms….. Kitchen or Bath. It just so happens that these two rooms also earn the highest return on investment and can provide the best impact on pricing a home for sale.

Avoid making remodeling mistakes if you plan to sell. By choosing traditional and neutral products, it’s best to stay away from trendy patterns that may become outdated too quickly. You should also think like the general buyer rather than personalize to your own taste if you tend to have unique preferences. Painting and choosing the right paint colors are important tasks to complete a remodel by giving a fresh, clean and crisp finish.

Rooms that have not been updated in the last 10 years are overdue! It may not sound like very long, but decorating and designs typically last no more than a decade.

The quick answer is YES. Houses DO sell after Labor Day. In fact, we usually see a surge in activity in October & November. Buyers are able to make an offer and close on a mortgage in a month so having a goal of being in a new home for the holidays is realistic.

Unfortunately, we are seeing the continued challenge of low inventory so the statistics look like sales have fallen but that’s just because there are less transactions due to few houses being for sale.

Meet Kaili Frye! Kaili Frye is a lifelong resident of Bloomington. She graduated from Bloomington High School South in 2013 and continued her education at Indiana University, graduating with a Bachelor’s Degree in 2017.  She is a third generation real estate agent and watched her family as they owned a Real Estate Firm working with sales and rentals. She decided to follow in the family’s footsteps and became a licensed real estate agent in January 2018.  She received extensive training with a large real estate franchise during an 18-month period but knew she wanted to grow her real estate career with a locally owned and operated company.  Kaili is driven to help her clients succeed and will be using her skills along with tools from Choice Realty and Management to better serve buyers and sellers with their real estate needs.

If you’re like me, you don’t have much free time to work outside in landscaping. And, when you do have free time, it rains! With 97% humidity and temperatures in the high 90’s, it doesn’t take long for weeds to take over and create a mess.

Spraying weed killer might be quick and easy and it does kill the weed but it’s still there, looking brown and wilted. For the best appearance, the weeds still need to be physically removed. And, sometimes it’s best to hire a crew to take care of the work that you don’t have time to do.

Planning ahead and taking preventative steps is even better. When you are creating landscape areas, be sure to use black plastic to help prevent weeds. Use a landscape border to help create an edge for weed-eating and keeping grass clippings out of the landscape beds.

Do you start with picking out a new counter top? Or, do you start with picking out a new wall paint color? Or, what about painting cabinets or the backsplash? I had this conversation recently and I think the answer is: whichever item is most important to you! There is no right or wrong way to go about updating materials. If you start with the counter top then you can match paint color. Or, if you start with a wall paint color then you can match the counter top or backsplash.

If you plan to stay long-term, updating to please yourself is most important. However, if you plan to sell and move, then thinking of the general buyer would be an important factor to consider. The general consumer likes neutral and traditional. The general consumer is typically a medium-grade buyer; not too fancy and not too cheap.

When remodeling, it’s also important to match the value of the home. For example, if you have a basic, affordable ranch, you most likely would avoid spending thousands of dollars on a solid surface counter top. However, if you have a high-end priced home, you most like would not pick out the cheapest laminate top.

With the low inventory challenges still lingering, we have been experiencing high price increases and contracts within hours. It sounds great for sellers to maximize their home value but buyers are pushing limits on market value. Will the demand for paying top dollar cause a slowdown in the market or jeopardize the health of the economy? Some would argue that it cannot be sustained while others are searching for ways to create more inventory which would lessen the pressures on pricing.

We have noticed an increase of price reductions. It’s hard to say if the market is slowing down or if sellers were wrongly confident on pricing. In most market conditions, a home priced right and in good condition will sell.