real estate tips

Real Estate Tips: Upgrade Your Home Before Selling?

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Lesbian Renovation - Pixabay - upgrade your home

Is It Wise to Upgrade Your Home Before You Sell It?

One of the biggest questions many homeowners have is: Should you upgrade your home before you sell it? Is the investment going to pay for itself? Should you make specific decisions about your home that a future buyer may or may not be happy with? There are arguments for and against making lots of upgrades. A decent Realtor can help their seller research how much various upgrades may cost, and what might give them the most bang for their buck.

Most people start their home search online. So, the photos for a home are in most cases the first impression that a potential buyer gets of a house. And as many people say, you never get a second chance for a first impression. Most Realtors will try to get their seller to at least get the house de-cluttered, vacant or just as clean as possible for photos. If it’s in the seller’s budget, do we want to replace appliances? Do we want to put in granite or quartz countertops? Does the bathroom need an updated vanity? What kind of lights and ceiling fans do we have? Obviously, it comes down to budget. And each seller will have a different circumstance.

For many people, hardwood floors are much preferable to carpet. In some cases, just putting in new carpet can be a great upgrade. But if you can afford it, putting in hardwood floors, or luxury vinyl plank flooring can be a nice upgrade.

At Gay Realty Watch, we look for news to share with you about the gay real estate market – both lgbt real estate news and news specific to gay and lesbian real estate meccas.

Authored By Joseph Hudson
See the Full Story at the Washington Blade

3 Undeniable Ways a Realtor Can Help You Sell Your House in the Gayborhood

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gayborhood - deposit photos

Attempting to sell a house in the gayborhood with the current real estate market conditions is tough. Interest rates remain sky-high. Many homebuyers are either priced out of the market or scared to jump in. Partnering up with a credible realtor is the best way to ensure your property will have the greatest chance of selling. However, it’s important to note that not all realtors are created equal. There are different marketing strategies that realtors use to connect you with people shopping for homes. It only takes one excited buyer to successfully sell a property in the gayborhood.

Here are 3 reliable ways that a realtor can help you sell your home located in the gayborhood.

  1. 3D Virtual Tours

3D virtual tours bring the online presence of your listing to life. Consumers – now more than ever before – shop online for nearly everything. This includes houses! Homebuyers oftentimes start their search by scrolling through listings on Zillow or Redfin. Creating a 3D virtual tour of your property enables people to become emersed in your property without having to drive there.

Naturally, this generates more potential buyers that will be interested in purchasing your home in the gayborhood. Additionally, it will weed out tire-kickers that aren’t as serious about your property. 3D virtual tours showcase the primary highlights and stunning interior features of a home. If your home in the gayborhood suffers from damages, like a bad roof, virtual tours of the interior can help show why your property is still worth buying. Realtors can use technology to their advantage to help homes sell quickly.

  1. Open House Events

Open house events help create urgency among a pool of prospective homebuyers. It makes sense, right? If you walk into a dark, vacant home that looks like buyers haven’t been through in months, there is less urgency to make an offer right then and there. However, if your realtor hosts a fun open house event, buyers will cross paths and the urgency to make an offer will arise. Plus, who doesn’t love a fun party in the gayborhood?

You can create a unique theme for your event and provide food to bring people together. Dress to impress and have fun. If you can generate a strong turnout for the open house event, buyers will start to sweeten their offers. Homebuyers oftentimes offer to pay for a portion of your closing costs once the property sells. Seller closing costs are expensive, especially if your home in the gayborhood sells for a high price. Every dollar counts when selling your home!

  1. Networking in the Community

Realtors are experts at networking within the community. You never know who you’ll meet and how you can add value to each other. Gayborhoods offer inviting communities filled with incredible people to connect with. Your realtor can strap on their walking boots and hit the pavement to help sell your home. Typically, realtors can find real estate meetups and other public events to attend. They can let everyone they meet know about your property and promote it. This strategy, tailored with an open house event, can be the exact dynamic duo you need to sell your house in the gayborhood.

Real Estate Tips: Wanna Flip a House?

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Real Estate Tips: Wanna Flip a House? - Deposit Photos

If you still use Facebook, you know that there is a group for everything, from different breeds of dogs and cats to silly games that lead to data mining of your information for business or nefarious purposes, to groups that offer advice on certain medical issues, to everything real estate.

Tips to Flip a House or Renovate it For Sale

One of the Facebook groups in which I participate allows users to share do-it-yourself home improvement tips to flip a house. It’s a bit like HGTV or the DIY network, with a dose of reality thrown in.

Simple topics might include improving curb appeal, selecting paint colors, installing flooring, replacing an electrical fixture, or changing a toilet. 

Sometimes contractors weigh in on more complicated work and even give an idea of how long a project might take and how much it might cost in a particular area of the country.

Full Story From the Washington Blade

How Can Buyers Fight Rising Interest Rates?

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rising interest rates - deposit photos

Loan officers are projecting further increases in rates as the Federal Reserve (the “Fed”) attempts to control inflation. Basic economics tells us that more expensive credit slows spending, which, in turn, lowers prices. It can be a fine line to walk between inflation, control, and recession.

People who are seeking a conventional loan of $647,200 or less with a 20% down payment will likely receive the best 30-year fixed rate if they hold a salaried job and have a credit score of more than 740.

So, what can you do to minimize the effects of rising interest rates?

How to Fight Rising Interest Rates in Today’s Market

First, make sure your credit is squeaky clean. Consult a loan officer to get a copy of your tri-merged credit report (Equifax, Experian, and Trans Union) to avoid any surprises. Do not start paying off debt or closing credit cards without your loan officer’s input. There is such a thing as good debt where credit is concerned.

At Gay Realty Watch, we look for news to share with you about the gay real estate market – both lgbt real estate news and news specific to gay and lesbian real estate meccas.

Authored By Valerie Blake
See the Full Story at the Washington Blade

Click here for gay realtors, mortgage lenders, and other real estate professionals in AREA

Improving Your Home – The Washington Blade

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remodeling / improving your home - Washington Blade

Improving Your Home Before Selling

What are some of the things I am seeing my clients doing lately to improve the functionality and value of their homes? Improving your home can be done in ways both big and small.

I have one client who is turning a dining room with an attached full bathroom into an extra bedroom. He has a large living area to entertain in and thinks the space would be better used as a bedroom. Another client of mine has removed the popcorn ceiling from her condo just because it drove her crazy.  Another is considering installing a home office along one wall, instead of just a desk — basically wants to construct an installed desktop/countertop with attached cabinets and drawers, and enough outlets for devices, charging and screens.  

Another set of clients has installed a wall full of bookshelves and has turned an extra bedroom into an office where the bookshelves will live. I am seeing basement renovations, installations of washrooms, additional bathrooms in lower levels and reducing the size of a lower-level garage to include more living space, since there is also off-street parking in the driveway.

Other projects clients have tackled include painting, replacing damaged floors with new hardwood floors, ordering custom built islands for their kitchen with extra storage space, adding fun wallpaper for accent walls, replacing the HVAC system, ripping out carpets in living areas and replacing them with hardwood floors.

At Gay Realty Watch, we look for news to share with you about the gay real estate market – both lgbt real estate news and news specific to gay and lesbian real estate meccas.

Authored By Joseph Hudson
See the Full Story at the Washington Blade

What Happens Once You’re Under Contract? – Washington Blade

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housing contract - pixabay

What are the most common questions real estate agents, title companies and lenders get once a client is under contract? Well, luckily on my team we send out a next steps letter to all of our clients once an offer has been accepted and this helps them to know what to do the first week, the second week, and in any subsequent weeks before the settlement.

Once You’re Under Contract

For example, the letter will go out and say, “Make sure to get your EMD check to the title company in the agreed upon amount of time.” The EMD is your earnest money deposit, and most contracts have a buyer write a check for several thousands of dollars that will go the title company as sort of a “security deposit” on a contract that later gets applied to the buyers’ closing costs.

The letter will also instruct a buyer to contact their lender and confirm with them that they are under contract and to get the contract over to the lender so they can start preparing the loan and order the appraisal. The letter also states that later in the process the buyer will get the wiring instructions from the title company where settlement will be held for the down payment money. If there is to be a home inspection, we will also get that scheduled, usually in the first week after going under contract also.

Full Story From the Washington Blade

A Real Estate Primer – Washington Blade

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A Real Estate Primer - Washington Blade

When working with first-time buyers, I often hear them say, “I have a stupid question.” I automatically respond that there’s no such thing.  What they think may be a stupid question almost invariably has been asked before by many other people in the same situation. The answer to a stupid question almost always makes you smarter, so what they really have may be a “smart question.”

Several questions that were recently asked of me have prompted me to take another look at what I discuss in my initial buyer consultations, so let’s start there with a short real estate primer.

Real Estate Primer

A Buyer Consultation is an initial meeting with a buyer, whether face-to-face, by telephone, or by Zoom or similar interactive means, where we exchange information about the buyer’s needs and the services I provide and determine whether we shall work together exclusively and for how long.

If we decide to go forward, we sign an Exclusive Buyer Representation Agreement, which allows an agent to be the buyer’s advocate by solely representing the buyer’s interests in a real estate transaction, protecting the buyer’s confidentiality, and providing essential services reserved for a client-based relationship. In the DMV, absent such an agreement, agents must legally represent and owe allegiance to a seller they have never met of a property they have never seen.

Authored By Valerie Blake
See the Full Story at the Washington Blade

Fix or Sell As-Is – BHGRE

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Fix or Sell As-Is - BHGRE

When you’ve decided to move on — whether you’re upsizing or downsizing, accepting a fantastic job offer in another city, or fleeing to (or from) the suburbs — think long and hard about what you really need to do to get your house market-ready. You may be tempted to go into renovation mode, but you might be better off selling your house as-is. So… fix or sell as-is?

Anything that impacts the home’s operation needs to be fixed before you list, including a leaky roof, a broken furnace, plumbing and the electrical system. These are all things sellers are legally obliged to disclose. If not, a home inspector will identify them to a potential buyer, possibly leading to an offer being withdrawn.

Here are some things to consider when selling your house.

Fix or Sell As-Is: Renovation ROI may not be there

Most home renovations don’t pay off instantly. Complete bathroom and kitchen renovations add the most value but also cause the most disruption and can be very expensive. If these rooms haven’t already been renovated, don’t start now. Focus on making sure the existing selling features of the home are in great shape.

At Gay Realty Watch, we look for news to share with you about the gay real estate market – both lgbt real estate news and news specific to gay and lesbian real estate meccas.

See the Full Story at BHGRE

Knowing When to Buy a Vacation Home – BHGRE

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When to Buy a Vacation Home - BHGRE

When to Buy a Vacation Home

If you’re lucky enough to have reached the time in your life when you can seriously contemplate buying a vacation home, there’s much to be excited about. According to the National Association of Realtors, one in eight homeowners are thinking of buying a second home. While summer may be the time of year you start to think longingly about sun, sea and sand, it may not be the best time to buy a cottage.

Here are some things to consider when deciding when to buy a vacation home.

Peak of Season is Seldom a Good Idea

Avoiding peak seasons makes sense in supply and demand terms. Peak season, whether you have your eye on a Vail ski chalet or a Cape Cod sea shanty, is when the area in which you’re looking is at its finest. Since vacation homes can be sentimental investments, many who’ve inherited them rent them out as additional sources of income so they can hang onto a property.

They may be sharing it with siblings or have had to buy them out. They also may be part-time vacation home investment owners who got in early on a new resort but need to ensure 100 percent occupancy during peak season to make their investment pay off.

Full Story from the BHGRE Blog

Getting Your House Ready to Rent

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Getting Your House Ready to Rent

Even if you bought your home to live in rather than as an income property, you may end up renting out your house at some point. A contract opportunity on the other side of the country (or the world), a drop in property values that means you want to build up more equity in your home before trying to sell it, or a formal or informal sabbatical might mean you want to rent rather than sell.

Here’s how you can get your house ready to rent. While it may seem like a lot of work and a moderate amount of money, it’s well worth it. Good tenants are attracted to well maintained, trouble-free properties, and good tenants are hopefully the only kind you’ll ever have to deal with.

Start With The Exterior

Make sure all your exterior maintenance is up to date. That includes landscaping, raking, gutter cleaning, roof repairs, and checking, cleaning and replacing exterior lights and/or sensors. Test and repair any exterior railings and make sure pathways are safe. Replace any broken interlock.

Get the screens cleaned and the exterior windows washed.

At Gay Realty Watch, we look for news to share with you about the gay real estate market – both lgbt real estate news and news specific to gay and lesbian real estate meccas.

See the Full Story at BH