August 16, 2017
Downsizing: 5 Things to Consider
Posted in Buying and Selling by Tara Sharp
Downsizing is on the minds of many homeowners today. Some are ready to retire. Others want to live more simply. Many want to save money and say goodbye to home maintenance. If you can relate to any of those sentiments, ask yourself these five questions:
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July 14, 2017
How an Investment in Green Technology Can Pay off for Today’s Homeowner
Posted in Buying, Selling, and Living by Tara Sharp
Studies continue to show that real estate buyers are willing to pay a substantial premium for homes that feature highly efficient, environmentally friendly “green energy” technology. While the added value depends on the location of the home, its age, and whether it’s certified or not, three separate studies all found that newly constructed, Energy Star- or LEED-certified homes typically sell...
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July 10, 2017
Selling Your Home: The Impact of Staging
Posted in Selling by Tara Sharp
How can you make your home more attractive to potential buyers? The answer is with some “home staging”. According to the Wall Street Journal, implementing some basic interior design techniques can not only speed up the sale of your home but also increase your final selling price. It all comes down to highlighting your home's strengths, downplaying its weaknesses...
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June 06, 2017
Time to De-Clutter? Some Tips for Selling Your Stuff
Posted in Selling by Tara Sharp
If you are looking around your home and thinking to yourself that it’s time to de-clutter, the summer months provide an ideal time to hold a garage sale. But if that sounds like too big of an undertaking, there are other options available to you thanks to popular resale sites like eBay and Craigslist. And if even that sounds like too much effort...
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April 25, 2017
How Neighborhood Affects Home Value
Posted in Buying and Selling by Tara Sharp
A real estate agent’s appraisal will not only consider the selling prices of surrounding properties, as the online services do, but also take into consideration a host of other criteria. For instance, when it comes to assessing the surrounding neighborhood, the following factors can often significantly affect the market price of a home:
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April 17, 2017
How to Avoid the Most Common Buying and Selling Mistakes
Posted in Buying and Selling by Tara Sharp
There’s nothing more exciting, rewarding, and fulfilling than buying a home. However, it’s a complex transaction, and there are a number of steps along the path that can confuse, betwixt, and befuddle even the most seasoned buyers and sellers. How can you avoid those potential pitfalls and common mistakes? Look to your real estate professional for advice and keep these guidelines in mind:
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April 05, 2017
A Quick Guide to Understanding Real Estate Designations
Posted in Buying and Selling by Tara Sharp
What do those letters and acronyms mean at the end of your real estate agent’s name? We’re here to answer that question and explain why it might matter to you. Like other professionals, real estate agents have the ability to specialize in certain areas of the business by earning designations. Those acronyms signify that they have achieved a specific designation through extensive training...
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March 24, 2017
Home Inspection: a Reality Check from a Pro
Posted in Buying and Selling by Tara Sharp
A home is a major investment and, for many people, the greatest financial asset they have. With so much at stake, it makes sense to do what you can to protect your financial interest. Getting an inspection is a smart, simple way to do just that. When you make a written offer on a home, insist that the offer provide that your contract is contingent on a home inspection...
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March 16, 2017
Six Key Factors That Affect the Sales Price of Your Home
Posted in Selling by Tara Sharp
Pricing a home for sale is not nearly as simple as most people think. You can’t base the price on what the house down the street sold for. You can’t depend on tax assessments. Even automatic valuation methods (AVMs), while useful for a rough estimate of value, are unreliable for purposes of pricing a home for sale. Here's what you need before talking to an agent about pricing your home to sell.
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March 08, 2017
Real Estate Seller Tip: Home Updates for the Best ROI
Posted in Selling and Video Tips by Tara Sharp
Are you thinking about selling your home? Making home updates is usually a part of the process. Windermere Real Estate agent, Julie Hall, shares her expert tips on what home updates will yield the best return on investment, and they may surprise you.
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