Uh Oh! A sewer backup!

When you wake up in the morning, or you return home after work, you never want to hear “Uh Oh! A sewer backup!” If you do, your next thought would likely be “Will my homeowner’s insurance cover this?”

Spring and Fall tend to be our wettest seasons in Saline (this past Spring was, for sure!), making our homes most susceptible to the backup of sewer or drain lines. While these events don't occur often, when they do, the problem can be a small disaster (I know first-hand, as one of my rental properties had such a backup recently). Did you know that a standard homeowner's insurance policy excludes coverage for such an event?

It's true. The backup of sewer and drains, as well as the failure of a sump pump, is excluded from most homeowner’s policies. The damage you sustain from either of these problems will not be covered, and you'll be responsible to pay for the loss (and the clean up). If you have a finished basement, or use your basement area for storage, you shouldn't go without this coverage endorsement.

Heavy rains can trigger a backup. A storm sewer or sanitary sewer backs up into your home and usually comes in through a sump well, washtubs in the basement, or toilets in the basement. However, the damage can happen anywhere in the house. Sump pump failures normally occur from power outages or motor failures. Sump pumps run on electricity, and during a bad storm, the power can go out. That’s when you need the sump pump the most, to pump the water from the heavy rain out of the basement.

The damage can be quite costly. Normally damage occurs in the basement, which houses the mechanical systems of the house, such as the furnace, hot water tank, washer and dryer, and the numerous items we tend to store there. Water or sewage usually destroys anything it comes in contact with. For the possible thousands of dollars in damage, it would be well worth purchasing additional coverage with your homeowner's policy to cover such an event.

Be sure to ask your insurance agent about this coverage (to make sure you already have it on your policy). This coverage can often be purchased as an endorsement on its own, or with an endorsement that will expand or increase other coverages on the policy. The additional cost runs typically between $60 and $90 annually (well worth the peace of mind it brings). The key is to ask your agent or company what you best option is, and BEFORE you need. That way, you can breathe a bit easier when you hear “Uh Oh! A sewer backup!”

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If you have questions about your specific situation, or if you’re considering buying or selling any Saline real estate, you owe it to yourself to take advantage of my experience in the Saline market. I’d be happy to meet with you! Just give me a call at (734) 476-2063, or send an e-mail, “Vance (at) SalineMichiganRealEstate (dot) com”.

You can search for homes and condos in Saline here.

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Five Deal Killers in Saline real estate

No matter the condition of the real estate market, you’ll want to avoid these five deal killers in Saline real estate.

1. Skipping the pre-approval process. You do not want to pick out your dream home, tell everyone about the home you are buying, and spend money for the appraisal and inspections, only to find out that you are not eligible for a mortgage to pay for it. Do you know what your new dream home is going to cost you a month? I’ve written before that mortgages are still available in Saline. Let’s be absolutely certain that you have been pre-approved for your mortgage, so you’ll know exactly what you can afford!
2. Not understanding what you are signing. The offer to purchase that you sign is a legally binding contract. If you are selling, the buyer can force you to sell. If you are buying, the seller could sue you for any loss they incur as a result of your not completing the purchase of their home. It is a good idea to talk with an attorney BEFORE you sign the offer to purchase. Make sure that your purchase offer expresses completely your understanding of the agreement. In God we trust – everything else must be in writing, to be sure that you can enforce your agreements.
3. Letting Emotions override the facts. Never let your excitement over any Saline home or condo cloud your vision. You can jump up and down with excitement AFTER you get back in your car, or once the deal closes. Otherwise, the seller will see your enthusiasm, and take advantage of it. Trust me, it happens!
4. Poor timing. If you’re considering a home involved in a short sale, give yourself a few extra months to complete your transaction. The bank you want to buy from may take weeks, or even months, to accept your offer. There could be hundreds of other possible delays. If you are a first time buyer, you may want to time your move with the expiration of your lease – but remember that it is a whole lot easier to pay for one extra month of rent at the end of your lease than to try to find a place to live for a month while waiting for your “short sale” deal to close.
5. Missing the whole picture. The wisest investor I know taught me early that he never made money when he sold a property – he made money when he bought the property. For that reason, think about when you will sell your Saline home or condo before you buy it. For example, a one bedroom home or condo might be great for you, but there’s a limited market for re-sale, which may add to your time to eventually sell it, or it may result in a reduced market value when you sell. Think about your property taxes, commute times to work and conveniences, the quality of the local schools, deed restrictions (if the property is in a homeowner’s association), and whether the home will fit your needs five, ten, or twenty years from now. Drive by the home at various times of the day - a quiet street during the day may be a zoo at night, or traffic might make getting to or from your home a challenge. Not being able to back out of your driveway in the morning can sure make for a bad start to each day!

If you like what you’re reading here, please subscribe. Thanks!

If you have questions about your specific situation, or if you’re considering buying any Saline real estate, you owe it to yourself to take advantage of my experience in the Saline market. I’d be happy to meet with you! Just give me a call at (734) 476-2063, or send an e-mail, “Vance (at) SalineMichiganRealEstate (dot) com”.

You can search for homes and condos in Saline here.

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Flipping for Video of your Saline real estate

It is said that you never get a second chance for a good first impression. When you’re looking to sell your Saline home or condo, you want to be sure that your home gives a great first impression.

Recently, I added a new tool to my real estate arsenal – the Flip video. If you haven’t seen one already, you likely will very soon. They’re becoming ubiquitous. Here’s why:

1. The Flip is incredibly easy to use for recording.
2. It has a USB plug-in already built in – just plug it into your computer.
3. The software for manipulating the videos is built into the Flip.
4. Once you’ve downloaded your video to your computer, you can immediately upload it to YouTube.

So why is the Flip so important when you’re looking to sell your Saline home or condo?

Most Realtors® pay close attention to the new listings of homes and condos for sale, every day. Most Realtors® also have set up “automatic” searches for homes and condos, to alert their active buyers of new listings which meet the client’s needs. We use the term “flash” to signify an e-mail update of the new listing information sent to the buyer client.

When that e-mail goes out to buyers, you want to have every tool for marketing your home in place – especially a video of your home. And that is where the Flip is so useful.

In the “olden” days of real estate sales (2007 and before), if you wanted a video of your home, you’d have to wait for a professional videographer to do the shoot. Then you’d have to wait several days, up to a week, to have the video available for viewing on the internet. Those videographers still exist, and they still serve a useful purpose.

But when that “flash” e-mail is sent, these days, we can include a video of your home available on YouTube. That way, when a buyer first sees your Saline home or condo for sale, they’ll be able to take a quick video tour of your home at the same time, when their excited about seeing your home. That could be just the edge we need in selling your home these days.

If you’re considering selling your Saline home or condo, you owe it to yourself to take advantage of my experience with the Flip video. I’d be happy to meet with you! Just give me a call at (734) 476-2063, or send an e-mail, “Vance (at) SalineMichiganRealEstate (dot) com”.

Foreclosures in Saline

It’s a sad fact of life that, even in the Saline real estate market, many people have lost their homes through bank foreclosure.

According to RealtyTrac; a website that logs foreclosure filings, foreclosure rates continue to rise in most of the top 100 largest metropolitan areas of the country.

The effects of foreclosure have spread beyond the delinquent borrower. The losses had a chain reaction from the defaulting borrower, to the lender and the investors. The foreclosure process costs the lenders thousands in losses through legal fees and taxes due until the property is sold. Not to mention the lost equity when the house is priced to sell in a weak market. We’ve seen the news that many of the major financial institutions (such as Citigroup, Bank of America, Morgan Stanley and Merrill Lynch) have reported billions in losses on investments backed by mortgages. You can read one of these reports here.

On a wider scale, even those who have not, or will not, default in their payment were affected. Foreclosure raises the risk of fire, vandalism, theft and other crimes not only in the vacant foreclosed homes but in the surrounding houses, streets and neighborhoods. Here is an article that discussed how the mortgage meltdown sparked a crime wave in one of the areas hardest hit by foreclosure.

When you combine an increase in inventories of foreclosed houses for sale with the typically lower-than-market value sale price of foreclosures, the result is that it weakens the local housing markets. It pulls down the value of other nearby homes and sometimes the whole neighborhood. Buying a foreclosed property in an area known for a lot of foreclosures doesn't leave much room for capital growth, if an investor is planning to flip it.

Remember, although there are many opportunities available in foreclosed properties, not all foreclosures present an opportunity for successful investment. Do your own research. Check the foreclosure statistics in the area. How did the foreclosures in the area affect the neighborhood? Did it increase the crime rate in the area? Are there any developments or job growth that can affect the area's future capital growth potential? Be aware of any indicators that can further dampen the house prices and look out for genuine bargains that can be a potential gold mine.

If you’re considering an investment in a foreclosed home in the Saline real estate market, you owe it to yourself to explore the risks and rewards first. I’d be happy to share what I’ve learned through my experience. Just give me a call at (734) 476-2063, or send an e-mail, “Vance (at) SalineMichiganRealEstate.com”.

Stage your Saline home for selling now

If you’re looking to sell your Saline home or Condo, ask yourself how serious you really are to sell. If you’re really serious, it pays to have your home professionally staged.

Home Staging is the very best proven way to get top dollar for your home as you prepare it for sale. Homes that are Staged by a Professional Home Stager sell faster and for more money! This is because Staging sets the scene throughout the house to create immediate buyer interest in your property. This will then lead to your home selling for the highest possible price in today's market. Remember, "The way you live in your home, and the way you market and sell your house are two different things."

“Home staging” is not a new term, but for many homeowners and real estate agents the concept of “professional home staging” is shedding new light on how to promote a home in the real estate marketplace. In past years, homeowners were left to their own discretion as far as preparing for home showings. Though they could occasionally rely on an agent for instructions, more often than not real estate agents were just as perplexed at working out the details as the homeowner.

While agents are experts in the field of selling and closing, many are not design savvy. Agents usually know exactly what factors can help sell a home. It’s just not always easy to get a home into selling condition in a timely manner without some sort of experienced assistance.

Professional home stagers are practiced in the art of preparing a home for resale. They work with the “flow” of a home, eliminate clutter, edit and arrange furniture, and even assist in enhancing curb-appeal. With the aid of a professional home stager, your house can make a notable first impression on potential homebuyers. As the real estate industry often stresses, the first impression is the key factor in selling your home.

You find and select a professional home stager much like you would find any other professional service. Ask around and get referrals. Check with your real estate agent.

When you contact a home stager, ask for an estimate. Most home staging businesses will be happy to give you a free estimate and it is usually a quick process. Keep in mind that this is only an estimate and estimates can be a bit off. However, unless something unforeseen takes place between the estimate and the actual job itself, an estimate should be fairly accurate.

Get several free estimates and make some calculations. Just like any service, pricing in the home staging industry can vary over a wide range. Some charge an hourly rate and some will charge you a set fee for the entire job. Be sure to ask how they determine their fee so that you can make an educated decision. Also, factor in the condition of your home, the average amount of time homes have been on the market in your area, and the asking price of your home.

Asking price can play a huge factor in what you should be willing to pay for staging services. Some professional home stagers bring in rented furnishings, driving the price up considerably. Some simply charge too much to make it pay off. A lot of home stagers seem to forget that their clients are planning on moving out of the house very soon. Most home sellers are not willing to invest a huge amount of cash in a house they are planning on leaving behind.

Find out up front what the stager is planning to bring in and at what cost. Though expert services do come at a price, the cost should balance with the expected benefit of a higher selling price. As a rule, the higher the asking price of the home, the more one can spend to have it professionally staged.

So when it’s time to sell your Saline home or Condo, consider having it professionally staged. If you’d like the names of some excellent home stagers in the Saline area, give me a call at (734) 476-2063.

Saint Joseph's Statue?

Why do people bury a statue of a Saint in their garden? How could it be nice to a real Saint to bury a statue of him in the ground? These questions inevitably come up when considering the old tradition to bury a statue of Saint Joseph when you want to sell your Saline real estate.

The history behind the tradition to bury a statue of Saint Joseph is hundreds of years old (A.D. 1515 - 1582). It began in Europe when the nuns at a Cloister needed to expand their land, and as a prayer to Saint Joseph, they buried medals of him in the ground. After a short time they found out that their prayers had been heard and they got more land. This old story has lived on until today, but on the tradition has changed from burying medals to burying statues.

When you first heard that a friend sold their house thanks to a statue of Saint Joseph, you may have been confused. Like any other normal person, your first response was likely “No surprise there!” when your friends told you that they had wanted to sell their Saline home for a few months, but no one showed any interest.

That was when they were recommended to try to bury a statue of Saint Joseph by their “For Sale” sign. They felt a little strange burying it, but they also said that they had known many people that had put their faith in God and succeeded, and that history is full of those stories, so why not give it a try? They bought a statue of Saint Joseph, read the instructions, read the prayers, and said that after the ritual was done, they felt relief, and really knew that soon they were about to sell their house. One week later, they were pleased to accept an offer on their house.

Your friends were religious before, but their faith in the Saints and Saint Joseph has surely increased. That little Saint Joseph statue they buried followed them to their new home, and can be seen over the fireplace in the living room. Do they credit the sale to Saint Joseph? For sure, that little statue helped them to get the faith they needed to make the sale. And they did.

So when it comes to buying or selling your Saline real estate, I look forward to the opportunity to serve you. Vance@SalineMichiganRealEstate.com (734) 476-2063.

Open House at your Saline home?

When you are considering Saline real estate, you may be wondering “What is an Open House, and what is its purpose?” The short answer: It depends. That wasn’t very helpful, was it? Let me explain.

An Open House can serve a multitude of purposes - it’s a real multi-purpose tool for a real estate agent. The intended outcome is to sell your Saline home, so that should be the primary goal of an open house. But the fact is, that doesn’t happen very often. Why? There are lots of different reasons most homes don’t sell at the open house. So why do Realtors® hold open houses? To sell your house. OK, is this not making sense?

Look at it this way: If your home does not sell at an open house, that does not mean the open house was not successful. Perhaps the buyers came through and will take that information back to their own Realtor®. Perhaps they are parents or friends of out of town buyers and will take that information back to the buyer. Perhaps they are nosy neighbors who are have always been curious about what your property looked like, but once inside, they know someone who would love your house! By holding an open house, you are creating interest in your Saline home. If your home is priced correctly, and prepared properly, you and your real estate agent have a real opportunity to generate some buzz. Hopefully you have done the things you need to do in order to welcome serious buyers. So what is your Realtor® doing? Marketing, of course!

How do you market an open house? It depends on the market for your home. Who are the potential buyers? Your real estate agent should be able to tell you who those buyers are, and have a plan for reaching them. You are hiring a real estate agent to market your home, hopefully they understand the difference between buyers who are looking for starter homes and buyers who are looking for a palatial estate in the country. Some marketing will be similar for each, but marketing is never a one-size-fits-all proposition.

Open houses are a form of entertainment for some people on a Sunday afternoon. Some Realtors® complain about those visitors, but I welcome them! Who better to appreciate your home than someone who looks at open houses for fun and excitement? I figure these are the people who are talking up homes to their friends! “You are moving?!? Where to? Oh! I just went through the cutest little home in Saline last week! Let me tell you about it…” Hooray! We have someone marketing for us! If you are an open house fan, you are welcome to my open houses anytime! Come on in! Take your time, look around. I only ask that you please remember me - Vance Shutes, Real Estate One, the brilliant and nice Realtor® who didn’t mind that you visited his client’s beautifully and well-priced home, welcoming you on Sunday afternoon as his guest. Then when you discuss homes tell people that you know a great Realtor® who holds the best open houses around (I suppose it’s too late for a shameless self-promotion alert… ?).

If you are selling a home, ask questions - know why an agent is holding your home open, and make sure it meets your needs.

I have to thank my friend Teri Lussier, in Dayton, Ohio for the inspiration for this article.

Auction your Saline Real Estate

The traditional method for selling your Saline real estate is to list it with a Broker. By “traditional”, I mean only that most sellers choose this method. You ask your friends and relatives for the name(s) of reputable Realtors®. You contact each of them, making note of the ease of reaching them, and your comfort level in speaking with them (after all, you’ll be speaking with them a lot during the selling process). You choose one and begin the listing process.

In today’s market for Saline real estate, we have an 11-month supply of homes available for sale. What that means is that it could take many months to get your home sold. (Let me emphasize that it could take that long, depending upon your asking price).

But what if you can’t wait that long to get your property sold?

There’s always (gasp!) an AUCTION (HUGE GASP!)

Why would you choose an auction?

With a real estate auction, you have the likelihood of a certain date for the sale of your property. I must emphasize that it’s only a likelihood – which you’ll understand more below.

There are two primary forms of auction.

1. An ABSOLUTE auction. This is where the property sells, no matter the hammered price. It is via an absolute auction that you get the most interest from the buying public, as they know that THEY could be the one to scoop up your property at THEIR price.

At an absolute auction, you also know the exact date that your property will likely sell. (I say “likely”, because until the buyer actually hands over the certified check to the auction house, it still isn’t sold).

2. A RESERVE auction. This is where the property sells, but only if the hammered price is above your minimum price. At a reserve auction, you’ll generally see fewer buyers than you will at an absolute auction. Bidders at a reserve auction will not know your minimum price. My guess is that a bidder’s thought process will be something like this – “I’ll bet they set a reserve because they ‘have’ to get a certain price, so I won’t bid as high, and hope only that I’m above the minimum.” Contrast this attitude with one from an absolute auction, where the bidders will continue to bid until they either win, or reach their maximum bid level.

At a reserve auction, if the reserve price isn’t met, you still won’t have a certain date that your property will sell. You may have to list it for sale again with a Realtor®, or try another auction. But understand, once an auction fails, the likelihood of a bidder increasing a bid amount is totally diminished. This ties into one of my fundamental truisms of real estate – the first offer is USUALLY the best offer.

I have been the listing agent for sellers at auction in the past. It is a gut-wrenching process to go through – not for those with a weak stomach. It’s not like eBay where you don’t see the seller or the other participants. Think about this. You have to know with absolute certainty what price you will accept, and stick to it. No wavering.

In one particular case, I recall watching a seller writhe in agony as the hammered bid amount was just slightly below the reserve price. I advised the seller to accept the bid, even though it was below the reserve level. While the seller deliberated, the buyer tapped his foot, waiting, and about two minutes later, walked away. The seller lost the sale, and eventually lost their house to foreclosure. Rather than accept a little less than they “wanted”, they lost their entire equity and their ability to borrow for years to come. All for a couple thousand dollars. Ouch.

If you’re wondering about an auction of your Saline real estate, ask an experienced Realtor® first.

The Importance of Pricing

In good times and bad, in buyer’s markets or seller’s markets, the number one influence on the sale of your Saline real estate is Price, Price, Price. Oh, sure, the three most important issues to most buyers (and sellers) are Location, Location, and Location. But unless you have a mobile home, there’s not much you can do to move the location of your home.

Having lived in Saline since 1985, I’ve seen the changes in price of most Saline real estate over the years. In fact, since 1996, I’ve kept records of the pace of sales activity in the Saline area. It’s what I call my Total Market Overview, or TMO for short.

Using the TMO, I can show you how, since 1996, we have moved from a moderate seller’s market, to a strong seller’s market, to a neutral market, to now – a strong buyer’s market. If you’d like to see the graphical TMO, I usually post it around the middle of each month.

Today’s market conditions – a strong buyer’s market – means the following:

There are many more homes for sale than there are buyers looking for a home. In economic terms, we have too much supply chasing too few buyers. Price has to come down until the extra supply is finally sold off.

So, getting the price of the house right is the number one influence on getting your Saline Real Estate sold today, and getting on with your life.

Here's a short video that makes the point:



See also:
What $4 gas means to Saline Real Estate
Curb Appeal
It’s the Big Sale!

What $4 gas means to Saline real estate

When the gas pump turns off automatically at $50 while filling your tank, you know that gas prices are REALLY high. But, what does that mean for Saline Real Estate?

Most of the articles about the price of gas are based upon an implicit assumption: that the price of gas is only temporarily as high as it is. This is not the case. Gas isn't going to get significantly cheaper than today. As a matter of fact, it’s a better bet that the price ten years from now will be much higher. It's a matter of supply and demand. Two billion people in China and India are joining the consumer society, and they want our standard of living. There was a recent article in the AP headlined Gas guzzlers a hit in China, where car sales are booming.

But while sport utility vehicle sales in the U.S. are tumbling, automakers are finding that for China's newly prosperous car buyers, bigger is still better. So General Motors Corp. has made the Escalade a star of its Chinese auto-show display, and is eager to get it on the market there. "If you look at the fastest-growing market segments in China, there are two - SUVs and luxury cars," said Joseph Y.H. Liu, GM China's vice president for sales and marketing.

It isn't a matter of price gouging by the oil companies, or even by OPEC. The real bottleneck is in refining capacity. Oh, there's only a finite supply of oil and eventually it will all be gone. But right now, the things limiting supply are how fast we can get it out of the ground, and how fast it can be refined to a usable form. It doesn't matter how much water is in the lake if you need more supply faster than the pipes can carry it.

Suburban and rural real estate (like around Saline) grew on cheap gas. Five years ago, gas was $1.40 per gallon. A car that gets 20 mph can go 70 miles on $5 worth of $1.40 gas. With gas in Saline now over $3.60 per gallon, things aren't nearly so rosy. Instead of 70 miles, that $5 will only barely take you marathon distance (26.3 miles), and it's going to get worse. At $5 per gallon, the consumer with a job in downtown Detroit who lives in Saline (40 miles) has gone from spending roughly $1400 per year on gas for their commute (five years ago) to $3600 per year on gas now, to possibly $5000 per year (when gas hits $5 per gallon). That difference of $3600 is $300 per month right out of the family budget. In most cases, two spouses are driving separately, which means that difference goes to $600 per month, or more than $7200 per year right out of their after tax income. It’s only a matter of time before already-stingy mortgage lenders figure out a way to account for a borrower’s reduced ability to re-pay a mortgage. When mortage-ability is an issue, you know that home prices will be negatively affected.

Saline isn't the furthest of Detroit's bedroom communities, by any means. I know people who commute from Tecumseh to Southfield each day. Many commutes are over 100 miles, plus all the people from even further afield (for instance, Saline to Lansing). Despite greatly augmented gas mileage, hybrids aren't going to offset this increase and even if they were, people would be adding the cost of at least one new car in order to do so. I don't know if you've looked recently, but hybrids aren't economy-car priced.

With this effectively raising the cost of living further from the job, one of two things will need to happen: Either the places where the jobs are will have to relocate to the suburbs (where their workers can afford to live), or people will have to start finding places to live closer to their jobs. The older communities closer in have long been less attractive than new developments further out (like, in Saline), but raise the price of making that trip enough, and the macroeconomic reality will force people to start thinking more in terms of shortening the commute, even if it means they have to settle for a 1200 square foot house built in 1950 instead of a new 2600 square foot one way out in Saline. People are willing to make sacrifices when it's mostly time out of their day, but when it's a continuing drain on the wallet that means little Billy can have an 8x8 bedroom and food, clothes, and a college fund, or a 15x12 bedroom and none of the others, you can expect more people to start choosing the former.

What this means is that suburban bedroom communities (like Saline) become less valuable, while older communities closer in to the job centers become more valuable. For those who may not realize what I'm saying, the closer it is to places where people work, the more valuable it will become. This factor has always been present, and the cost to commute has always been part of the cost of the property, no matter how many people pretended it wasn't. It will become a more important component as time goes by and gas prices rise further. The further people have to drive to work every day, the less a given area will be worth. The people who work there won't have these costs, of course, but most of the skilled trades that get substantial paychecks have to work in the main job centers, and there aren't as many of those in Saline or Manchester as there are in the central areas of Detroit and Ann Arbor. Corporate facilities are where they are, and if you can't afford to commute, you're either not going to work there or not going to live here.

Shop, or Buy?

Just another quick note to let you know about recent happenings in the Saline real estate market, and with a question: Do you Shop, or do you Buy?

What’s the difference?

Shopping means that you check out all of your available options and research until you conclude which choice is best for your needs. Then, you go out and buy.

These days, over 80% of home buyers do their shopping via the Internet. In years past, most home shoppers would dread having to drive around and look at many homes before making a decision. These days, buyers use the Internet to narrow down their home search choices to a few homes, which they then go out and see in person.

So, when it comes time to sell your home, you want to be absolutely certain that your home is marketed effectively and extensively via the Internet.

And you can be certain that will happen with me.

What are you waiting for?

Curb Appeal - Part 2

A couple of weeks ago, I wrote about one of my favorite subjects regarding the selling of a home – Curb Appeal. It’s one of the easiest ways to improve your likelihood for selling your Saline, Michigan home this spring.

Curb appeal is the aspect of your home which a prospective home buyer can see from the curb or the street. It’s the first impression your home gives to anyone who approaches your home.
There are many aspects of curb appeal to consider, including the condition of your home (roof, trim, paint, clean windows, etc) and landscape (lawn, gardens, sidewalk(s), driveway, patio(s)). Today I’ll focus on another aspect of the “Curb Appeal” of your home – the overall landscape of the front and back of your home

If you’ve ever read the book by Steven Covey, The Seven Habits of Highly Successful People, you may recall his story about a home chore which he assigned to his son. Covey’s simple point – Clean and Green – has always stuck with me, because of its simplicity and practicality for selling your home.

Despite the “green” efforts we see sprouting up all over, and those who would tell you that you should save the environment by leaving your lawn go dormant over the summer, there is no denying that a reasonably green lawn in the summer gives a better first impression than a brown, crunchy lawn.

That doesn’t mean that you have to go out and purchase an expensive in-ground sprinkling system. Instead, at Lowe’s or Home Depot, you can buy an inexpensive, battery-powered timer which turns on and off your outside water faucet. Then just lay out your hoses and sprinklers to cover your front lawn (at the very least) so that your lawn stays reasonably green. If you want to get ambitious, lay down some general lawn fertilizer to give your lawn an extra “green” boost.

When you drive down many neighborhood streets and see the various landscape efforts on the front of many homes, you can draw some general conclusions. Many people spend a lot of money on an expensive landscape design and installation, and then just leave the landscape to become horribly overgrown. There is no better way to telegraph to buyers, when they pull up in front of your home, that you have not maintained your home well than by leaving your overgrown landscape in place when you list your home for sale.

In the competitive selling environment that exists today, you want every advantage to get your home sold. It’s well worth spending a few hundred dollars with an experienced lawn and garden landscape firm to properly prepare your gardens and shrubs for their best presentation. That few hundred dollars could mean several thousand dollars more in selling price, or bring about a sale many months sooner than would otherwise occur.

When it comes time for you to sell, be sure to ask your Realtor® to help you maximize the first impression of your home’s curb appeal. It can earn you a higher sale price and a likely faster sale.

Curb Appeal - Part 1

Despite the residual snow on the ground outside – I know, it’s ONLY the end of March! – it’s time to start thinking about ways to improve your likelihood for selling your Saline, Michigan home this spring.

Curb appeal is the aspect of your home which a prospective home buyer can see from the curb or the street. It’s the first impression your home gives to anyone who approaches your home.

There are many aspects of curb appeal to consider, including the condition of your home (roof, trim, paint, clean windows, etc) and landscape (lawn, gardens, sidewalk(s), driveway, patio(s)). Today I’ll focus exclusively on only one aspect of the “Curb Appeal” of your home – the landscape as you approach your front door.

What is the condition of your front sidewalk? Is it smooth and level? Are there trip hazards – raised/sunken sections of the sidewalk?

Are the plants along the edge of your front sidewalk overhanging and interfering with a buyer’s walk to the front door?

Do you have a fresh “Welcome” mat outside your front door?

Are the windows on the front door, or to the side of the front door, clean and shiny?

Does the doorbell work?


I’ll always recall the sale of home several years ago, for the complete effectiveness of the curb appeal as we approached the front door.

As we approached the home, the sellers had installed, to each side of the sidewalk approaching the front door, a hanging flower basket. The metal pole holding the hanging basket on each side was shaped in the form of a half-heart. In other words, when you looked at the poles from a distance, you saw the form of a Heart outlined by the poles. The hanging flower baskets were full of vibrantly colored flowers. All in all, the setting was incredibly inviting. Once we were inside the home, the buyers (who already had a fabulous first impression of the home), fell in love with the interior, and immediately made an offer to purchase. Sadly, though, this example is more unique that you might imagine.

When it comes time for you to sell, be sure to ask your Realtor® to help you maximize the first impression of your home’s curb appeal. It can earn you a higher sale price and a likely faster sale.

Lockbox? What's that?

When your home is listed for sale with a Realtor®, other Realtors® will be interested in showing your home to their prospective buyers. It is best that you are not at home during any showing. If you’re in your home during a showing, the prospective buyer will feel uncomfortable about the intrusion into your home, even if it was cleared by their Realtor®. The best way for a showing to occur is for you to allow the placement of a secure lockbox on your home.

In the Saline and Ann Arbor area, there are a couple of lockbox options which most Realtors® use on a regular basis. The first option is an electronic lockbox (which most Realtors® refer to as an “iBox”).

iBox Supra electronic KeyBoxes are used on over 2.3 million homes nationwide.

The iBox works as follows:
1. It usually hangs on your front door knob, or a secure home feature near the front door (perhaps a water faucet or a porch railing).
2. One of your front door keys is kept inside the lockbox.
3. Realtors® will open the iBox using their own security device. The security device must be updated each day by the Realtor®, so you are assured that only a Realtor® can open the lockbox.
4. After the showing, the Realtor® will replace your home key inside the iBox, so it is available for the next showing.

The next option is a combination lockbox. There are several types of combo boxes – alphabetic rotating dials, numeric rotating dials, and numeric push buttons.

Supra - Push Button Portable Lockbox -- Push-button key boxes make access easier, Codes are easily changed, Great during escrow for appraiser, termite, repair, etc. Trusted by real estate agents for over 40 years.

The combo boxes work as follows:
1. As with the iBox, it usually hangs on your front door knob.
2. One of your front door keys is kept inside the lockbox.
3. Realtors® will open the combo box using the combo provided by the listing Realtor®. Note that once an agent knows the combo for the lockbox on your home, they can re-enter at any time. Note also, though, that no right-minded Realtor® would ever jeopardize their professional status by an un-authorized entry of your home.
4. After the showing, the Realtor® will replace your home key inside the iBox, so it is available for the next showing.

So when it comes to putting your home up for sale, be sure to ask your Realtor® about the lockbox they will be using on your home.

What Every Seller Should Know - Part III

Once you have an accepted offer on your home, there are a few things that you should know. For the most part, these are general ideas, applicable to most forms of real estate. Check with your Realtor® to be sure.

1. The Earnest Money Deposit

When the prospective buyer writes an offer to purchase your home, they are requested to provide to their representative agent an earnest money deposit (EMD). The amount of the EMD can give you, the seller, an idea how serious the buyer takes the offer. The more the EMD, the more serious the offer. In general, and EMD of less than $1000 is considered to be not a serious offer, but your Realtor® can advise you how to proceed with the offer.

2. Clouds on the Title

The title to your property is recorded in the public records. A “cloud” on the title to your property is a charge against your property which has been filed in the public records. Examples of common clouds are unpaid property taxes, mechanic’s liens (an unpaid bill from a contractor who did work on the property), and unpaid Federal taxes.

The buyer will expect you to provide a clean title to the property, so you will be responsible for removing any clouds. Your Realtor® and your attorney can assist you.

3. Contractor’s Inspection

Before the buyer prepared their offer on your property, they reviewed the “Seller’s Disclosure Statement”. Still, the buyer will likely put a contingency on their offer that your home be subjected to, and the buyer accept the results of, a thorough inspection by an experienced home inspector. In many cases, the inspector is a former builder. If there are any “surprises” which result from the inspection, you may need to bring about some repairs to your property. Your Realtor® can best advise you here.

4. Pest Inspection

In addition to the contractor’s inspection, your buyer will likely insist on a pest (termite) inspection. While a contractor’s inspection might kill the deal (if major problems are discovered with the home), it is unlikely that a pest infestation will kill the deal. Most likely, the buyer will insist that you, the seller, provide a “clean bill of health” for the home prior to closing the deal. In the worst case, this would likely take the form of a total fumigation of the property.

5. Real Estate Transfer Tax

On January 1, 1995, the State of Michigan increased the real estate transfer tax, taking the total transfer tax from 55 cents per $500 value of the sale to $4.30 per $500 value of the sale. As the seller, you pay this transfer tax when the title transfer is recorded in the public records.

Conclusion

I hope that this series of three reports has been helpful to you in understanding what you must know when you sell your Washtenaw County home.

If you have any questions about any of the topics covered in these reports, please let me know. I’m here to serve you.

What Every Seller Should Know - Part II

While your your home is up for sale, there are a few things that you should know. For the most part, these are general ideas, applicable to most forms of real estate. Check with your Realtor® to be sure.

1. Curb Appeal

Curb appeal is the term used for the first impression a prospective buyer has of your home. Approach your home from both directions on the street and the sidewalk. What do you see? Is it what the modern home buyer wants to see? Is the lawn mowed, and are the trees and hedges trimmed? Are your outside windows clean and shiny?

2. Inclusions / Exclusions

When you list your property for sale, you must determine what you want to include and exclude from the sale. If the removal of an item will damage the property, it is considered a fixture, and would otherwise be included in the sale, unless you specify otherwise. For example, if you have a stained glass window in the dining room that is a family heirloom, or if you have a flower or shrub that is special to you, you may want to exclude it from the sale.

On the other hand, personal property is an item that may be removed without any detriment to the property, so you may take it without specifically excluding it. For example, if you want to leave your washer and dryer for the new owners, you may specifically want to include them in the sale.

3. Seller’s Disclosure Form

When you sell your home, you must prepare a “Seller’s disclosure statement” form. This statement is your disclosure of the condition of, and information about, your property. As the seller, you are not expected to have any expertise in construction, architecture, engineering, or any other specific areas related to the construction or condition of the improvements on the property or the land. You disclose the information with the knowledge that even though it is not a warranty, you make the representations based only on your own knowledge.

4. Agency Disclosure

All real estate licensees act as agents or sub-agents of the home seller or buyer. The subject of agency could fill a volume, so this guide will only briefly cover the main issues.

In Michigan, there are three primary forms of agency in real estate. The “seller’s agent” is the most common – as the licensee represents the home seller’s best interests. The “buyer’s agent” has become equally common, as the licensee looks out for the best interests of the home buyer, perhaps at the expense of the seller. The “dual agent” is the licensee who lists your home, and then represents the home buyer, as well. A dual agent must be disclosed to both parties, who agree in writing, their consent that the dual agent is looking out for both parties’ best interests.

5. Effective / Efficient advertising

Effective means “doing the right things”, while efficient means “doing things right”. When it comes to advertising your home for sale, do you know the difference? Your Realtor® does, and can design an advertising campaign for your home which will result in direct interest from qualified buyers.

6. Financing Options

Many prospective buyers for your home don’t know much about financing – how or where to get the best mortgage. Your Realtor® knows just about all there is to know about financing. The Realtor® knows how to work closely with all kinds of financial institutions, and knows their methods and requirements. The Realtor® can also get the buyer to the right lender for the specific financing needs. Did you know that one local lender has 22 different financing options for the purchase of a home?

7. Qualifying the Buyer

How do you feel about discussing your finances with a stranger? About the same way that most home buyers do, too. Your Realtor®, as a third party, has been specifically trained to ask just the right questions to determine if the buyer is qualified to purchase your home, without unnecessary prying into the buyer’s financial situation.

8. Environmental Issues

In Washtenaw County, there are at least four environmental issues that you must be aware of when selling your home:
1. Do you have an underground oil or gas storage tank? If so, you may have to dig it up before you sell.
2. Do you get your water from a well? Has the water been tested?
3. Do you have invisible radon gas in your basement?
4. Does your furnace, water heater, or gas stove give off carbon monoxide (CO) gas?

Each of these four issues will be reviewed during the contractor’s inspection (covered in part III – my next post).

9. Closing the Deal

How good a salesperson are you? Getting a reluctant and indecisive buyer to make a decision will be the test. Saying just the right thing, and knowing when not to say anything, can make a big difference. Successful selling is an art and a science. And since buying a home is the biggest investment most of us ever make, highly sophisticated sales techniques are demanded. This is where your Realtor’s® specialized training and experience really pays off.

What Every Seller Should Know - Part I

Before you think about putting your home up for sale, there are a few things that you should know. For the most part, these are general ideas, applicable to most forms of real estate. Check with your Realtor® to be sure.

1. Selling is a 4-step process

A B C D
Sale <-> Offer <-> Showings <-> Competitive Price

A: In order to get a sale “A”, you must:
B: Get an offer. In order to get an offer “B”, you must:
C: Get showings. People do not buy a home without seeing it,
at least once (usually twice). In order to get showings “C”, you must:
D: Have a competitive price. Your Realtor® can help you price your home
competitively, while earning the top dollar for you. If your price is not competitive, prospective buyers will not even look at your home, since you cannot be objective about the price of your own home, and they do not want to insult you with a low (but fair) offer, when there are other, more realistically-priced homes available.

2. The Seller’s Job

Your job, as the home seller, consists of two critical tasks:

A. You must price your home competitively, and
B. You must “stage” it well (in other words, make it look its best for prospective buyers).

If you, the seller, do your job well, your Realtor® will be more able to do their job well – get your home sold for the most money in the fastest time possible.

3. The Market Analysis

A Comparative Market Analysis (CMA) gives you a range of value that a ready, willing, and able buyer may pay for your home in a competitive market. If you price your home above the CMA range, you risk ever getting a sale (based on the 4-step process described above). If you price your home in the CMA range, you are doing your job of pricing your home competitively.

4. How Much Is Your Time Worth?

Selling a home looks easy. But if you stop to add up all of the time, effort, and money put into advertising, phone calls, showings, paperwork, negotiating an offer, dealing with lenders, title companies, building inspectors, obtaining public records, and shouldering the liability of the sales process, you quickly find that the Realtor® earns their commission at a fair wage.

5. Third-party Negotiators

When an offer is received on a home, there is likely to be several thousand dollars between your asking price and the offered price. Should you stick to your guns? If you do, you may lose the sale. If you don’t, you may cheat yourself. This is likely to be a time of compromise, of give-and-take. But knowing how much to give, and whether to give at all, demands knowledge and negotiating skill. The fact is that you are in an awkward position to best advance your own interests.

At this point, your Realtor’s® advice is invaluable. As a third party, your Realtor’s® objective viewpoint will be reassuring to the buyer. And as a seller, you’ll have an experienced professional in your corner to bargain for you.

6. Cooperating Brokers

Did you know that there are over 1100 licensed Realtors® in the Ann Arbor Area Board of Realtors®? When you list your home for sale with a cooperating broker, you immediately gain not just the listing broker and their agents, but all those other 1100 salespeople working to help sell your home. When you consider the commission paid, how could you hire 1100 experienced salespeople to work for you at the same total compensation?

7. Improvements That Will Pay Off

There are two primary improvements that will have an immediate positive impact on selling your home – the condition of the kitchen and bathrooms.

In both cases, make sure the rooms are clean and freshly painted – preferably white, or a slight off-white. Make sure the faucets work, with no drips. Make sure the sink drains do not leak – and, by all means, do a spotless clean-up job in the cabinet under the sink. Clean the windows and curtains, and clean the light fixture. It might help to put in a brighter light bulb, too.

What's That Smell?

Oooh, that smell! Can you smell that smell?

Other than being a great song from Lynrd Skynrd, it’s not something we, in the Real Estate business, ever like to hear.

One of the things my parents taught me, from an early age, is that you never get a second chance to make a good first impression. That said, can you imagine a worse first impression of any house than a bad smell when entering? Yuck!

The possible sources of bad odors in a house is endless – far more than I could ever list in this article. I’m reminded of the gist of a definition from the Supreme Court – You can’t really define it, but you know it when you see (smell) it! Here’s a “short list” of possible bad odors you can leave in your home, which will turn off most buyers:

1. Cooking odors – especially regional spices.
2. Animal odors – food, dander, litter box, you get the picture.
3. Smoking – both legal and illegal materials.
4. Mold – more on that later.

Let me relate some experiences (each of these with different buyers) I’ve had in my years in the business:

A. I recall showing a house in the country, which was occupied by tenants. Evidently they liked living in the country for law enforcement reasons, as the house reeked of freshly-smoked marijuana! They must have stubbed out the joint right before we got there. Wheeeeee!!!!

B. Another house smelled so terribly of dog (it must have been a “water” dog, like a retriever) that the buyer and I both coughed terribly upon entering. We tried to make it into the next room, hoping the odor would dissipate, but no luck. That house stunk so bad, even a dog lover wouldn’t touch it!

C. In another house, the buyers and I arrived soon after dinner. We coughed and sneezed at the spices in the air – throughout the whole house! It wasn’t just the kitchen. When I called the other agent to report what we had found, I was told that they had prepared their special (insert country name here) “death sauce”. Lovely! Right before you want to show your home to potential buyers? Brilliant!

D. You can never predict your pets. I’ve lost track of how many times I’ve walked past a freshly-used litter box. It’s like the cats know that strangers are about to enter their home, so they like to leave a present for the guests. Yikes!

Earlier I mentioned mold. We’d all like to think that we don’t have mold in our homes, but the sad fact is that it’s everywhere. Given the increasing use of products like Tyvek in home construction these days, there is plenty of moisture available in most homes to breed a nice crop of mold.

I found a nice checklist from the government about problems with mold, and copy it here below:
Here are 10 things to consider regarding mold:

1. Potential health effects and symptoms associated with mold exposures include allergic reactions, asthma, and other respiratory complaints.
2. There is no practical way to eliminate all mold and mold spores in the indoor environment; the way to control indoor mold growth is to control moisture.
3. If mold is a problem in your home or school, you must clean up the mold and eliminate sources of moisture.
4. Fix the source of the water problem or leak to prevent mold growth.
5. Reduce indoor humidity (to 30-60% ) to decrease mold growth by: venting bathrooms, dryers, and other moisture-generating sources to the outside; using air conditioners and dehumidifiers; increasing ventilation; and using exhaust fans whenever cooking, dish washing, and cleaning.
6. Clean and dry any damp or wet building materials and furnishings within 24-48 hours to prevent mold growth.
7. Clean mold off hard surfaces with water and detergent, and dry completely. Absorbent materials such as ceiling tiles, that are moldy, may need to be replaced.
8. Prevent condensation: Reduce the potential for condensation on cold surfaces (i.e., windows, piping, exterior walls, roof, or floors) by adding insulation.
9. In areas where there is a perpetual moisture problem, do not install carpeting (i.e., by drinking fountains, by classroom sinks, or on concrete floors with leaks or frequent condensation).
10. Molds can be found almost anywhere; they can grow on virtually any substance, providing moisture is present. There are molds that can grow on wood, paper, carpet, and foods.

For more information on mold, visit the EPA’s mold site.

Should I Go For Sale By Owner?

When it comes time to sell your home, one of your options is to sell your home yourself. Since it’s always a good idea to consider the “flip side” of your decision, let’s look at your “for sale by owner” (FSBO) from the perspective of a buyer.

Buying FSBO real estate has its own particular problems and opportunities. Dealing with an uninformed seller who thought he knew enough to handle everything by himself can be frustrating, but it can also be very profitable if you are prepared. First you need to understand the FSBO seller.

People try to sell a house on their own for one primary reason: To save the sales commission. Unfortunately for them, they usually underestimate the cost and complexity of going it alone. They'll often get frustrated and tired of the process, and be ready to drop the price and be done with it. As a buyer, if you can help them solve their problems, your reward can be a good price on a good investment. Just keep the following in mind:

1. A seller isn't an agent. You have to be more careful in what you say and ask. Avoid negative comments about the house. Like it or not, the truth is that it's difficult to get a good deal if the seller doesn't like you.

2. Sellers think they're being smart. If you encourage that belief, they'll be more open to your offer. If they have a good idea, tell them so. It's not unethical to make people feel good about themselves when negotiating.

3. FSBO real estate has often been on the market a long time. Sellers are usually tired of the process, and want it to be done. This means you'll get a better price if you are willing to close quickly and easily.

4. Sellers usually don't have a plan. They don't know where to close, where to buy a title policy, where to keep an Earnest Money deposit, etc. Have simple solutions ready for all these problems. If you walk the seller through the process while letting him feel in control, you'll both be happier.

5. Skip over problems and return later. After a seller has invested more time with you in a negotiation, he'll be more inclined to give you what you want.

6. Sellers have often spent more than anticipated. Classified advertising and other costs have already eaten into their imagined extra FSBO profit. You may want to be generous in negotiating the many closing costs - as long as you get your price and/or terms.

Realtors will tell you that most houses "for sale by owner" net the seller less than those sold by an agent. By the time a seller realizes this, it's often too late to recover his money and time spent. At this point, he usually just wants to get the thing sold as easily and quickly as possible. If you help sellers with that, you can get a good deal on FSBO real estate.

HOA - Whoa!

What the heck is an HOA?

It is an abbreviation for Home Owner’s Assocation, which Wikipedia defines as “the legal entity created by a real estate developer for the purpose of developing, managing and selling a community of homes.”

But what is it, really?

I’ve never lived in a place where I was under the auspices of an HOA, so I cannot speak with direct experience. I can only relate what I have learned through experience, both good and bad, on behalf of my clients over the years.

On the good side…

An HOA can protect the value of your property by establishing and maintaining a uniform set of property conditions for your neighborhood. That’s good, in case you get a neighbor who does something with their property which reduces the value of the surrounding properties. For example, if your neighbor wanted to put up a really tall antenna for their amateur radio operations, many HOAs would preclude that. Who wants to look out their back window and see a tall tower, and the associated guide wires to keep it standing straight?

And, many HOAs have terms in them which would make it difficult to run a home-based business when you have many visitors each day. Who wants a “commercial” operation right next door in their own neighborhood? This doesn’t mean you cannot have a home-based business, only that you have to be careful about the volume of traffic it will generate at your home.

On the bad side…

An HOA can sometimes prevent you from doing something which is otherwise good. For example, many HOAs preclude the use of clotheslines or clothespoles in your back yard. Given the concern over energy usage these days, the ability to save some electricity by hanging your washed clothes out to dry makes sense. It’s good for the environment, and it leaves your clothes with a great “fresh” smell! So, why not allow it?

Many HOAs also have terms in them which prevent the use of fences in your yard, (unless required by governmental ordinances, such as around a built-in pool). When it comes to pets, the only option seems to be with the “electronic” fences, which many pet owners see as cruel to their pets. In such a case, a small fenced-in dog run may be a good option, but how to bring it about?

How do you change things?

In many cases, an HOA is run by a board of directors made up of your neighbors. Most HOAs have terms in them which define how changes can be made to the rules and regulations. With sufficient “yea” votes from your neighbors, you can bring about a change in the rules.

If you’re ever in question about your HOA, I’m happy to help understand a situation. I’m not an attorney, so I cannot give legal advice. If it involves any legal interpretation, I would be happy to refer you to a local real estate attorney for advice.