Home sellers planning to put their homes on the market often ask how to prepare.  What are some things a home seller should consider when getting their house ready to sell?
Top 7 Tips
●There are 27 things you can do to sell your home fast and for top dollar but today we will talk about the top 7

#1 - Curb appeal and exterior. The largest time period a buyer views a home online is on the exterior. That means your curb appeal must be excellent. Make sure the lawn looks great, the lawn looks neat and tidy and any deferred maintenance on the exterior is repaired.
Tips:
●make sure the front door has a fresh coat of paint, 

●the doorbell functions property and in good repair

●refreshing mulch beds

●inserting flowers

●trimming overgrown bushes

●removing large gangly bushes in the front

●making sure your mailbox is in good shape are important.
#2 – Your back yard or views. If your home has something very special about its lot and/or views, make absolutely sure those spaces look fantastic. Hire a great agent that will highlight those things with great photos, videos and drone imagery to wow potential buyers.

#3 - The Living Room. Recent surveys of homeowners indicate most homeowners spend a majority of their time at home in their living room. So, it makes sense that these rooms must have the best appearance to attract a buyer to want to see and love your home. Here are some top tips for the living room:
a. Position your sofa so that it is facing the door, if you cannot, then place a console table behind the sofa

b. Create a Focal Point – typically it’s the fireplace, draw attention to the farthest wall with a piece of art or decorative mirror 

c. A Nice accent rug can be good but don’t use one with deep red colors. Neutral is always better.

d. Soften the space with a few accessories – Things like oversize pillows, a soft blanket, 1 or two accent pieces on a coffee table.
#4 - The Kitchen. Many say the kitchen is the heart of a home. So

●make sure it’s fresh, clean, 

●all things off counters except the coffee pot,

●throw rugs removed, 

●dish towels and utensil display removed. 

●And, here are some inexpensive ways to make your kitchen look expensive: 

■Update the hardware

■Use lighter colors 

■Replace broken cabinet doors 

■Change lighting 

■Update the plumbing fixtur

We are talking Barb about the The Top 7 Tips to Sell Your Home Fast and for Top Dollar, in Fact up to 11% More!  Tell us more of these tips Barb

#5 - Master Bathroom. The master bedroom is a top space behind kitchens and living rooms. In general, buyers are looking for an organized and tidy master bath that has a spa-like feel that is calm, neutral with some storage space. Most home buyers would like a 5 piece bath, If that is not possible, consider making sure the paint is bright and neutral, putting in good lighting and updating the hardware to brushed nickel with solid surface counters.

#6 - Master Bedroom. Most buyers want a roomy master bedroom in neutral and tranquil colors. Make sure you remove clutter and excess furniture. Light and neutral bedding is most desirable

#7 - Closets and Garages. These spaces tend to create the most concern for home sellers. The good news is that most do not photograph closets and inside of garages. But during in house showings buyers do want to see the size of the space.
If home sellers are interested in ordering the Free Report on the Top 7 Tips to Sell Your Home for Up to 11% More they can visit my Website: www.BarbHasTheBuyers.com and click on the Green Button on the upper right corner or call us  at 719 301 3900

Hiring a great real estate <&l

Barb, everyone is saying the market is really strong for home sellers.  So why do the details of selling need to be carefully managed.
❖Market indicates are very strong.

➢Available Inventory down by 51% from 1 Year Ago

➢Total Number of Homes that Went Under Contract UP by 22%

➢Average Days on Market = 19 Days

❖However that does not mean sellers can let their guard down about the process.

➢Any little thing can derail a buyer

➢Agents managing expectations:

■Repairs

■Upgrades (Avalanche story)

■Improper loan approvals

➢Sellers do get very discouraged at losing a buyer

➢Good news it’s a great market and we will get another
Things to Manage:

❖How Easy is the agent to communicate and work with

❖ How much detail in the agent helping with

➢Recently sold Sierra

■Details involved:

●Well Water Test

●Roof permits

●Septic Transfer

●Title issues

●Lack of agent knowledge of contract

➢  Most home sellers want to know what to expect, the

■ “what happens next”

❖We are set up to do that both on our email system of videos and extensive communication with our clients….
Tell Us About Some Hot New Listings You Have Coming UP?

167 Fordham Street, Fountain, CO, $269,999
2585 Sierra Drive, CS CO 80917, $359,999
3020 Woodview Ct, CS CO 80918, $349,999

17260 Honeydew Ct, Peyton CO 80831, $324,999

85 May Queen Cir, Cripple Creek, CO

 Low $300s

6826 Mountain Top Ln, CS, CO 80919, $239,999

Barb it would seem like common sense to me to have great pictures presented about your home for sale but from what I can see online that is not always the case.  How Important are great photos and imagery of homes when you sell?
●Its hugely important

■Buyers ELIMINATE homes based on the online pics

■You may never know how many people are taking your home OFF the ‘must see’ list based on poorly presented photos 98% of Buyers Begin Their Search Online!

These are Average Agent Photos
●Its not necessary to put photos of every nook and crannie of a home online!

■Listing Agents job is to get all the buyer population to come see it

■Best they don’t use images that make buyers

     eliminate the home

■We use images that make the home look

            more valuable than the asking price
We are talking about photos and presenting homes for sale the right way.  What are the key rooms a home seller should focus on when getting their home ready for sale?

o   Study of Buyers viewing homes

o   Only have less than 57 seconds to make an impression

Hot Picks of the Week:

2585 Sierra: $354,999

6620 Bear Tooth Dr: $274,999
Barb, you and your team are the only company I would recommend to people out there thinking of selling their homes and downsizing to a smaller home, how can they get more information? They can call 719 301 3900

This discussion fits dovetails in with the next topic…When we come back, we will be discussing: 

Why the Details of Selling Need to Be Carefully Managed  and Hot New Listings! 

Barb, when people have a house to sell before they buy their next home, how can they make that work?

1.   If they need their net proceeds out of their home to buy their next home there are a few options to consider:

o   Some people fear the risk of two payments and will not make a move without selling their home first.

o   That’s ok, it just creates a little bit more, carefully times work on our part, we can do it though

o   I recently had a client who was in that situation but they qualify for both the home they are selling and the one they are buying,

❖  We were seeing homes they were interested flying off the shelf

➢Scheduled 3 homes on Thursday for Sat am show

➢ 2 were cancelled because they went U/C on Friday

➢That is in $575-600K price point!

❖They got a Heloc line of credit to use as their down payment

❖Qualified to Buy First then take their time selling and moving out…Ahhh!  Much less stress if you can do that

2.   If you need to Sell first here are the options:

●Put your home on the market, make an offer contingent on your home selling

●Might get shot down a bit

●Wait to get a contract then make an offer contingent on your home closing

●Puts closing in doubt for your seller because waiting for 2 deals to go through

 Take advantage of our Catch 22 Solution of our Guaranteed Sale

●We offer a Guaranteed sale program

●Must agree on price

●To find out more about we would have to see the home first and meet and discuss the sale.

Barb, what are some OTHER THINGS PEOPLE SHOULD CONSIDER when they have a house to sell?

❖Talk to a lender you trust first

❖Make sure you are prepared before you accept a contract

➢There are only two ‘outs’ in a contract for a seller

■Inspection and Appraisal

❖Consult with a great real estate agent that does these all the time

■ We write and get these contracts accepted all the time

■ Neighbors story

This discussion fits dovetails in with the next topic…When we come back, we will be discussing: 

How Important is it to Have Great Pictures of Your Home When Selling & Hot Picks of The Week

Barb, home sellers planning to put their homes on the market often ask how to prepare.  What are some things a home seller should consider when choosing an agent to sell their home?
1 . Not all real estate agents are the same

➢Years of experience helps but it may not indicate if they are actively selling in this market

➢Ex you may get an agent who has been licensed for years but only sells a few homes here and there

➢So when it's time for negotiating how would they know things like:

■      It's no longer customary for

            the seller to pay buyers closing costs
2. Negotiating prowess:

➢ An agent who does not sell many homes may be anxious to encourage you to jump at the first offer..

■ Active on Monday, offer on Tuesday, what about the weekend buyer who may pay more?

➢ What about inspection repairs – recently got one that has 26 items on it including…
■New stucco siding & mud jack basement slab

■The buyers agent, clearly did not properly manage expectations with her buyer about this market and what inspections are for.

■Too many are just ‘the messenger’
3. Agent who knows how to market appropriately to create the most demand

➢  Scariest thing for me is that no one knows how many homes are being eliminated by photos online

➢ I can take 5 minutes in the MLS and find really, really bad marketing photos

➢ We focus our business on getting GREAT pics to get as many buyers in the door as possible
4. Serving the clients during the transaction

➢   Once it goes U/C there is ton of work still to be done to get to closing

➢   One of my team agents working the buyer had to handle all of the LA responsibilities because that agent just disappeared.

➢   Think about, we are helping people sell one of their largest assets and this guy just abandons his client in the middle of the sale…crazy stuff
❖ #4 Knowing you are in good hands is hugely important

■Right now, most homes are selling quickly

■But there is still a big project to complete to close the sale – in addition to the seller moving!

■Not every agent knows how to serve the client, communicate with the client, every step of the way, and don’t leave them in the dark!

■People are moving – that alone is enough stress.

■We try to make it clear about the entire process, keep them informed as we go along

■We even have a series of videos explaining every step as they are happening so there is less mystery about the process.

■One of my team members tells her clients:  “Im going to do everything except move in and pay the bills to get this done!”

■Things can easily go sideways in a real estate sale, that is why we stay on every part of the transaction, even other people’s jobs to get it done!
We are talking Barb about the Picking the Best Agent to Sell Your Home, Barb you have some tools that can help home sellers make that selection?
  Yes there are a lot of factors for home sellers to consider yet

➢  55% of the listings are with people they know

➢  74% of agents sell 3 or less homes per year!

➢  Many home sellers become disillusioned once it goes up for sale only to discover:

■ Photos are poorly presented

■ Home sits on the market unsold

■ Agents do not keep them informed on the feedback of the showings

■ Agents do not educate them about similar sales as the listing goes on

➢  Once a listing goes stale on the market, buyers start to think there is ‘something wrong’ and if they make an offer at all, it could be a low ball offer.
❖ To Help Sellers we offer an Agent Selection Guide and the 10 Questions You Should Ask When Choosing a Real Estate Agent

➢   Not all agents are the same, we all have difference experiences

When a home seller gets an offer on their home, how do they decide whether or not to wait for another offer or take the first one that comes along?

Home inventory is down by 51% from a year ago and sales are up 22%!
●If you have priced the home appropriately, it is just as important to hire the right agent that understands how to get you top dollar.

●Just last week, I scheduled 3 showings for my buyers on a Thursday, planning for a Saturday showings.

●They were shopping = in the $575-$600K price range
●By Saturday AM, two of those appointments had been cancelled because the sellers accepted offers and did not want to show.

●While that may seem to be a victory for the seller and their agent….how do they know my weekend shopping buyer would not pay MORE FOR THE HOME?
●At the end of the day it’s up to the seller but, for my business I like to slow it down a bit and make sure I’m exposing my listing to most of the current buyer population to command top dollar!

●Typically you can tell when the home hits the market whether or not there will be huge demand based on the number of requested showings and views only.

●But it takes an experienced agent who actively sells a lot of home in this market to know that informatiTell Us About Some Hot New Listings You Have Coming UP?

167 Fordham Street, Fountain, CO, $269,999
2585 Sierra Drive, CS CO 80917, $359,999
3050 Woodview Ct, CS CO 80918, $349,999
17260 Honeydew Ct, Peyton CO 80831, $324,999
6826 Mountain Top Ln, CS, CO 80919, $239,999

We’ve talked before about the behavior of real estate agents representing buyers and how they can be difficult when selling a home.  How do you keep other real estate agents from making the home sale miserable?
1.  Let’s talk about how a typical real estate sale works:

●Seller lists with their Agent

●Seller pays commission

●Part of commission goes to the buyer’s agent…

○Effectively Opposing Counsel

●Lawsuit underway in Chicago about this

○Seller has to pay for Buyers agent to:

■Beat them down on price

■Beat them down in inspection repairs

■Make demands about who is present for showings and inspections

■Whine if they don’t get their way

●Effectively seller is paying for Opposing Counsel

●Even in a Sellers Market, in my experiences I am seeing:

○Agents make ridiculous low ball offers

○Confront sellers about being in their own home for showings and inspections

○ Tie of sellers’ homes while they shop around and figure out if they want to pay for upgrades

○Investigate the seller’s repair contractors

○Let inspectors in the home then leave

○Call sellers’ a fraud

○Reach out directly to my clients without permission

○And on and on.
2.  Fortunately, many of the local industry knows I am not one to accept bad agent behavior.

○I will not hesitate to get in their face about it

○The typical result is the call me names… Ha Ha

○At the end of the day, I’m advocating for my clients

○The real estate agents have gotten used to being coddled into thinking the way we have always done it what is necessary:

■Ex Seller being Home for Showings – Its their Home!

■I’ve had Agents and Inspectors order my clients to leave their homes for inspections

■I had one agent tell me, in writing when I let her know the seller would be present for the inspection, that the “buyer had a right to privacy”.  

■I asked “In someone else’s home???”
●Just this week this is how it went.

●Agent gets to the door.

●Seller opens door

●Agents says “What are You doing here?”

●Seller says, “It’s my home”

●Agent says ‘You are not supposed to be here and you need to leave and take you dogs with you so I can do an inspection” When I confronted her about it, she denied it!
It reminds me of that scene in the Titanic when Leonardo DiCaprio tells her to leave the deck and she turns around and says:  “I don’t have to leave, this is my part of the ship, you leave!”

3.  Then there are the concessions:

●Most agents (74% of them) sell 3 or less homes

●That means they may not be in tune with how Sizzle hot the market is.

●It used to be seller gave concessions.  Now they don’t have to.

●Most sellers are pretty reasonable when it comes to repairs.

●But if they are out showing homes at all, they will quickly see that many homes are selling very quickly and with multiple offers.

●That does not mean they get to:

○Get a contract then keep shopping

○Get a contract and price improvements

■Most repair costs can be determined with a 10 minute google search!

●Home Sellers Should think twice about who they hire to represent them.  The ones that do not sell many homes may not even know about the market conditions.
How Can Home Sellers Protect Themselves from Making Other Real Estate Agents make it miserable?

➔Manage expectations every step of the way.

◆Put in showing instructions if seller present

◆Most showing instructions now have a huge paragraph about not going if the buyers or agents are sick.  Don’t we know that now?

◆Communicate with Buyers agent if seller will be present for the inspection

➔Most of all… Hire an agent that sells in this market
Barb, you and your team are the only company I would recommend to&

Sometimes people have to sell a Rental home, what are some of the things they should be prepared for?
1.First, with the recent Covid Pandemic, there were some Federal and State tenants rights in place that protected tenants from eviction for 30 days after failing to pay - in that the landlord had to give 30 day notice to quit or pay rent where as the state law is typically 10 days.

●Those moratoriums ended in for both Federal and State on August 25

●If a landlord has a tenant who is not performing they can go through the normal eviction process.

2. One of the top questions I get from landlords hoping to sell a rental is whether or not they should sell it with the tenant in place.

●Although most landlords do not prefer to have to pay the expenses of a property without having rental income…in most cases selling and showing a home with a tenant there does not go well and here is why:

○Tenants don’t want to leave therefore they are reluctant to allow showings and even more reluctant to have it look good during showings

○The tenant has a right to what the state calls “Quiet Enjoyment” of the property.  So, if a landlord does NOT have a provision in the lease to allow for showings with a specific time from for notice of showings – you would have to get the lease modified or get permission from the tenant for each and every showing.
3. Condition issues are more likely with a tenant occupied properties:
●I met with a home seller last week that is selling their condo they had rented for a number of years.

○It was clear that the tenant had a pet, yet the tenant was not allowed to have a pet, based on the odor in the carpet.

○Some the repairs the tenant promised to do were not done.

○Basically, it had years of deferred maintenance that has to be addressed to command top dollar for the home but that is where we come in…..
4.   Evaluate How Much it Will Cost to Remodel the Home:

●Buyers do not want to do any remodel work

●If you have a rental you should budget for updating when it’s time to sell.

●Most popular things buyers want:

○Fresh flooring

○Fresh appliances

○Updates in Kitchen

■Can be as simple as new appliances - $3000

■New formica counters - $2000

●Updated baths:

○Can be as simple as:

■Updated light fixtures

■Updated plumbing fixtures

○Be sure to check the tub and shower surround:

■Tired grout – can be refreshed fairly reasonably.

●Mechanical systems

○If furnace and Water heater are old consider providing a $500 home warranty if they are functional

○We just replaced our 22 year old water heaters and I wish I had them back.  Each one costs $1500.
5.  Present the home clean, repaired & empty is the best case

6.  Pricing a home appropriate to its condition is CRITICAL

●This does NOT mean under pricing

●It means pricing AT market value without:

○Adding money for ‘negotiating room’ 

○Even as little as 1% can make the difference

●Buyers in this hot market will think twice about making an offer on an overpriced home because they are so used to being in bidding wars.

●They tend to move on to other homes that need less work.
What are some OTHER THINGS PEOPLE SHOULD CONSIDER WHEN SELLING AN INHERITED HOME?

7.  Step 1 – Typically the tenant will clear out their stuff, however there ares always a thing or two to take care of.

8.  I find, in most cases, Landscaping, Flooring and Bathrooms take the biggest cosmetic hit with tenant occupancies.  

9.  Improving these things will bring the biggest bang for the buck.

10.  The average buyer spends less than 1 Minute viewing homes on line.  Of the rooms they focus us are in this order of priority:
This gives you an idea on what spaces in a home are&

Of the many emotional and financial challenges with a divorce, dealing with the real estate part of it can be daunting. What are the things homeowners need to know about the house, the mortgage and taxes when facing a Divorce?
  #1 – Get some non-emotional trusted advisors around you
●If a lawyer is involved sometimes the divorce decree dictates what happens to the real estate.

●In most cases its straight forward, but you need someone to evaluate:

○The home’s value

○How you hold title

○What will happen with the proceeds when it sells

○The strategy of what happens next, will you buy another home, will you rent, are you moving away, etc.
#2 The Four Basic Options

●You have 4 basic options in the midst of a divorce as it relates to real estate:

○Sell the house and divide up the proceeds per the divorce decree

○Buy out your spouse

○Have your spouse buy you out of the home

○Retain ownership
#3 If you have to sell and want to buy another house, check affordability first
●Market values are increasing like crazy

●In the past 3 months prices have increased by 8% on average from $402K - $436K
●For every $10,000 in price, at the current low rates, a house payment increases by about $45 per month:
If you want a great website to calculate house payments, google Bankrate Mortgage Calculator and you’ll be able to get a good idea of what a house payment will be based on your down payment, price range

It even allows you to adjust for taxes and insurance

#4 Be Prepared for Your Destinatio

●Right now, most homes are selling quickly

●There are very few ‘outs’ in the contract for a seller

●You need to be prepared for your next destination:

○Be that another house

■Have Pre Approval Lined up

■Many people fear we will sell their homes too quickly and render them homeless…however we know how to handle this

■Make sure your agent publishes you preferred closing date – most buyers will work with you

○Make sure you hire an agent that know how to put protections in place for you

We are talking Barb about Divorce and How it Could Affect Your House Mortgage and Taxes, Barb, What about the Mortgage and Tax

#1 The Mortgage Will get Paid off at closing
●There is no need to refinance one or the other spouse out unless the Divorce Decree mandates it
  #2 How you hold title can be tricky
●If you are both in title, both are decision makers about the home, both have to sign for everything that happens with the sale.

●I’ve had some homes sellers, manage to get one spouse to deed the home over them and then there is only 1 decision maker.  It does not matter if they are still both on the mortgage because it will be paid off at closing.
#3 Taxes are pretty straight forward
●If you are still married during the sale, a married couple can gain (profit) as much as $500,000 on the sale and not face any capital gains taxes the next year.

●If you are not still married, you are exempt from paying taxes on a profit of up to $250,000 on the sale.

●In both cases it applies if you have lived in the home for 2 out of the last 5 years as your primary residence.

●Questions on that though I would make sure you talk to your tax professional when you sell.
When we come back, we will be discussing: Selling a Rental Home – How to Handle all the Issues and Keep Your Sanity

Barb, the August real estate market numbers are out and this market is RED Hot, Tell about the trends you are seeing…

o   Two Strong Indicators for August:

o   Available Inventory down by 51% from 1 Year Ago
● Typically we are seeing over 2000 available homes on the    market at this time

● Currently only 1079 Single Family Homes available in El Paso Teller & Elbert Counties
Total Number of Homes that Went Under Contract UP by 22%

Average Days on Market = 19 Days

Average & Median Price Increased in Just 2 months!

August Results:

Month Supply = # of Months to Sell all Inventory by Price Range
Buyers:  Make great offers…

Last week: Price $359,999, Offer $340,000, lowered price to $349,999

Got a full price offer and $340K buyer lost out

Sellers:  Respond to Market Trends…

●More than 10 showings – no offers – Priced too High

●Make sure your home is NOT DATED – if so price accordingly or update

o   Just cosmetics:

●Mis match appliances

●Kitchen Counters

●Tired Flooring

●Gold Hardware

●Gold Light Fixtures

o   Just listed a home that the seller put Bright Red Shag Carpet over Real Hardwood  - Yikes

o   In the price range it was less expensive to just replace the carpet rather than re-coat the hardwood

o   That is the best option because price range is low enough…

o   Buyers do NOT want to take on ANY rehab projects unless you price it WELL BELOW MARKET VALUE!

Tell Us About Some Hot New Listings You Have Coming UP?

167 Fordham Street, Fountain, CO, $269,999
2585 Sierra Drive, CS CO 80917, $359,999
3020 Woodview Ct, CS CO 80918, $349,999
17260 Honeydew Ct, Peyton CO 80831, $324,99