Seller Advice

The Advantages of Buying and Selling a Home in the Off Season

December 17, 2020 By David Warren

Many people believe that buying or selling in the winter months puts them at a disadvantage. They may assume their listing will sit on the market and buyers may envision a limited selection of listings to view. However, savvy buyers and sellers know that the off season can be a great time to complete a real estate transaction!

Advantages To Buying in the Off-Season

Attentive Service From Lenders – One of the greatest perks to buying in the off season is the enhanced service you will receive from lenders. During the peak season, lenders are busy. But during the slower months you will get a timelier response from your loan officer and underwriting.

Better Rates With Moving Companies – During the peak real estate season, it can even be a struggle to find a moving company that is available. Moving during the slower months will open up your options for what moving company to move with. You will be able to shop around for the highest-rated moving companies and take advantage of lower off-season fees.

Motivated Sellers – The biggest benefit to buying in the off season is the type of sellers on the market. People who list their homes in the slower months are often very motivated. They are typically working against a deadline and want to get their house sold. This can work in the buyer’s advantage when it comes time to negotiate.

Advantages To Selling in the Off-Season

Less Competition – Selling your house in the cooler months is a great strategy for lowering your competition. Markets across the country are already experiencing low inventory and in the winter it will likely reduce even more. Buyers are still extremely motivated to take advantage of historically low interest rates.

A Quicker Process – As your real estate expert, I am committed to providing the best service to you no matter the season. However, when things are slower, the transaction can move along at a quicker clip due to all the players being less-busy – from the lender to the closing agent, inspectors, and more!

Serious Buyers – The off season typically yields more serious buyers than during the warmer months. It takes a little more effort to attend showings during the winter while contending with weather and lack of sunlight, and buyers aren’t going to go out of their way to look at a home that they aren’t really interested in. Off season buyers typically have a deadline they are up against such as relocating for a job or being settled in a home before the holidays. The cooler weather tends to weed out the buyers who are pretending to be on their own episode of House Hunters.

Now is a great time to list your house on the market or buy some real estate. Don’t let the myths of peak season keep you from accomplishing your real estate goals now. Take advantage of the benefits of a slower real estate season.

If you are thinking about selling or buying, please feel free to contact me any time to discuss your plans. I’m always happy to help in any way I can.

Source: https://cdn.nar.realtor/sites/default/files/documents/ehs-08-2020-overview-2020-09-22.pdf

Are We In A Housing Bubble?

September 29, 2020 By David Warren

The Short Answer is No

The economic landscape of 2020 has been volatile and unpredictable due to the pandemic. Record numbers are being recorded for unemployment claims and we have a portion of the workforce working from home (some balancing kids online school with work). Conversely, interest rates are at all-time historic lows. These juxtaposing factors have some Americans wondering what pandemic-induced recession is going to mean for the real estate world. Are we headed toward another housing market crash that will mimic The Great Recession 2008? The short answer is no. A close analysis of what the market factors at work should leave homeowners feeling more assured.

Housing Values

Housing values have seen dramatic increases in the last year-plus, and in some locations housing values have increased as much as 20%. This is primarily due to a lack of inventory (sellers not wanting to sell, lack of new construction over the past decade) and a large number of buyers taking advantage of historically-low interest rates. This quick increase in housing value and buying frenzy is the main reason people are afraid of the previous recession repeating itself since some of the signs look familiar. The difference is that prior to the last recession, the sharp increase in housing values took place due to a buying frenzy caused by easy access to mortgages (more on this below). One could say that this was artificial demand since a percentage of those buyers should not have been able to qualify for a mortgage.

As compared to the period just before the recession, today’s homeowners have far more equity in their homes. Before the Great Recession, many new homeowners were getting homes with little down payment, meaning they had little or nothing to fall back on when prices declined. That is not the case today.

Interest Rates

Mortgage interest rates in the early 2000’s leading up to the housing bubble averaged between 5-6% for a conventional 30-year loan. Currently, interest rates have dropped below 3% on a conventional 30-year loan for the first time ever. This difference in interest means hundreds of dollars each month in mortgage payment interest savings, especially important if homeowners need to refinance or adjust their loans.

Mortgage Lending Requirements

In addition to the difference in interest rates, there is also a chasm between the underwriting guidelines on mortgages during the housing bubble and the guidelines being enforced now. Much of what caused the housing collapse of 2008 was lenient lending guidelines and predatory lenders. In the early 2000’s loans were being granted to borrowers who were overextended and unfamiliar with their mortgage terms. Many took out adjustable rate mortgages that were a stretch to afford in the first place, and impossible to pay once the rate adjusted.

Since the housing market crash there were a series of regulatory guidelines put into place to protect the American population from predatory lending. Additionally, mortgage lenders have tightened their approval conditions, even more so since the pandemic began to mitigate the risk of mortgages going into default.

By and large, the housing market crash of 2008 was one of the key factors for the recession. The real estate market changes right now represent higher-than-normal demand for scarce inventory plus a reaction to the pandemic economy. While no one can assuredly say exactly what is in our future, real estate experts across the board do not see a looming bubble in our future.

SOURCES:

https://www.bankrate.com/mortgages/foreclosures-crisis-wont-look-like-great-recession/

http://www.freddiemac.com/pmms/pmms30.html

How Real Estate Professionals Can Help Sell Your Home

March 25, 2020 By David Warren

It has been statistically proven time and again that homeowners selling their houses through professional real estate agents get a higher price than if they try to sell on their own. If you’re considering listing your house, consider these five ways real estate agents can maximize your profit:

Marketing Power: Most home buyers begin their search by checking online listings. When sellers use a real estate agent, their house will be automatically listed on multiple services, casting the net wide for potential buyers. Agents also share listings with other agents, allowing your house to be marketed among clients of those agents as well.
Proper Pricing: There’s no easy way to determine the correct sale price for a home, but an experienced real estate agent will know how to find the sweet spot: not too high to dissuade buyers, but not too low to leave you without your proper profits.
Improvement Intuition: Remodeled homes appeal to broader audiences, but it can be challenging knowing how much to spend on improvements and what to focus on. An experienced agent will have the eye for detail necessary to determine what’s worth fixing up and what isn’t. Making only the essential improvements, be it a coat of paint or selective renovation, will ensure the most profit when the home eventually sells.
Informative Showings: Real estate agents will take care of all the details of showing your house, including scheduling houses and talking with potential buyers. They can also collect feedback from the buyers who decide to pass on your home but would be uncomfortable telling you, the owner, why. Taking note of these reasons will provide invaluable information that will allow you to make listing tweaks and get the house moving.
Paperwork, Paperwork, Paperwork: The actual closing of a home sale requires dozens of pages of complex documentation that the inexperienced seller may find daunting. A real estate agent can guide you through the legalities of the transaction and take care of large amounts of the paperwork, ensuring you don’t become overwhelmed in the final stages of the sale.

Moving Up: Selling Your Seattle Home and Buying Another

February 21, 2018 By David Warren

You’ve been through the process of buying a house as a first time home buyer, but now it’s time to move-up to a home that better suits your current needs. Maybe you need a larger home to keep up with your growing family, a home closer to a specific school or maybe you’d prefer living in a different part of the city to make commuting to work simpler? This time buying a new home becomes are little more complicated logistically as you have your current home to sell as well. Plus, you want or need to use the equity from your current home to purchase your new one.

There are several options to choose from when moving up, and the direction you choose to go in can depend on when the purchase of your new home closes in relation to the sale of your old home. Regardless of which choice you make, make sure to get your finances arranged and hire a Seattle real estate agent experienced in the process of moving up. For most people this is not a do-it-yourself project, and good negotiation skills are important. Once you’ve hired your chosen professional, choose one of the three options that best fits your situation.

Buy First: While this option is not possible for most financial situations, it’s ideal if you can afford two mortgages for a few months. Buy the home you want and move into it, then put your old home on the market. This method is pricey, but will provide you the most ease in moving and settling in. Carrying a temporary mortgage is doable through a bridge loan. Ask your preferred loan originator about this option and see if it is a possibility for you.
Sell First: This is likely the best financial option for most people, but it is less convenient than buying first and includes more work. Sell your current home and move into a temporary living space (such as a rental home or apartment) while you look for the right home to purchase. You can keep most of your non-vital belongings in storage and only unpack them once you’ve purchased the new home. Given the current Seattle market conditions this option has its risks. You may be “temporarily” displaced for a while until you can secure a new home.
Contingency Purchase: With this method, you find the home you want to purchase first and make an offer contingent on the sale of your current home. This is a great option on your end, but can be tricky to pull off. Many sellers don’t want to take their home off the market based solely on the possibility that the potential buyer (you) will make a sale on their home soon. In the current Seattle area seller’s market this is a risk sellers do no need to take and likely will not. This option works best in a buyer’s market.

Working closely with your real estate agent and choosing the best option for your financial situation will put you on the quick path to success and put you into your next dream home.

If you’d like to explore more about the different options of selling and buying a new home in Seattle please contact me. I’m always happy to talk with you.

David Warren
Managing Broker | Realtor
Metropolist

425-760-8285
david@metropolistgroup.com

5 Benefits to Professional Advice When Selling Your Home

January 15, 2018 By David Warren

When thinking of selling your home, the idea of listing it yourself to cut costs can be a compelling one. However, the DIY method of home-selling can often be more trouble than it’s worth, both mentally and financially. Here are benefits to having a professional involved in the process that you may not have considered.

Correct House Price: Professional listing agents are experts at interpreting comparative market analyses, or CMAs. A CMA shows information on recently-sold listings of similar properties in a similar area to the property you are looking to sell. Professionals have access to the most recent data and know how to filter that data to best suit your property, thus settling on a price that will accurately reflect the current market.
Qualified Customers: While getting anyone to view your listed home is the key to selling it, having a pro on board will ensure that the potential customers viewing your home are more qualified to make an offer, and will allow you to entertain competitive bids.
Choosing an Offer: Even the most confident homeowner would be hard-pressed to sift through offers and separate the fool’s gold from the diamonds in the rough. Professionals know what exactly to look for in the offer, and have the experience in negotiation and bid interpretation to ensure you are working towards the best offer.
Navigating Closing: Real estate professionals can help guide you through situations you may not have anticipated during the closing process, such as a customer’s requests for repairs. Professionals can advise you on what to concede and what to stand firm on in order to reach a satisfactory deal for everyone.
Selling for Maximum Profit: The 2016 Profile of Home Buyers and Sellers, an annual study conducted by the National Association of Realtors, found that sellers using real estate agents sold their homes for an average of $60,000 more than sellers who didn’t. No matter what your budget or price point for selling, that is not a number to scoff at.

Ultimately, the choice is yours when deciding how to sell your property, but hopefully these benefits give you a better understand of just how vital having a real estate professional on your side can be.

If you’d like a no obligation opinion of the value of your greater Seattle area home please contact me.

David Warren
Managing Broker | REALTOR
METROPOLIST
425-760-8285
david@metropolistgroup.com