Colorado Springs Real Estate Podcast with Patrick Collins

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You need to know about any latent defects in the property, so hire a professional home inspector to go in and look through the home. You’re probably not going to look at foundation issues in the basement or how much insulation is in the attic on your own, but you need to know those things.

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You need to know about the condition of the home and maintenance costs.

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As a home seller, there are many questions you can ask a Realtor when interviewing them, but here are three questions that are especially important that you do ask:

1. What sets you apart from other Realtors? Look at the technology they have and the access they have and make sure it’s different from other real estate agents.

2. What type of marketing plan do you use? Is it a specific, delineated marketing plan? For example, we have a specific, 78-point marketing plan we use to get the most value for our sellers.

3. Can I cancel the contract if I want? If you’re stuck in a contract with an agent you’re not happy with or don’t like, make sure you have the ability to cancel that contract. On our team, we give all of our clients the option to cancel with us at any point.

These three questions will help you identify the right agent for you.

If you have any questions about how to interview a real estate agent or you’d like to interview us to buy or sell a home for you, don’t hesitate to reach out to us. We’d love to help.

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Want to buy a home? Search all homes for sale

Which is a better investment—new homes or resale homes?

I get this question a lot from buyers. Ultimately, it all depends on your perspective.

A new home is a great investment if you’re looking for a low-maintenance home. If you’re looking for everything under warranty and you don’t want to make improvements to the property right away, then a newer home is going to be the better option for you. A new home will also maintain its value longer than a resale property.

If you are interested in making improvements, you can get a resale property at a lower price and make upgrades to increase the property’s value.

You can get a resale property at a lower price and add upgrades to improve its value.

Both are good investments. It ultimately depends on your perspective and how you want to manage your time and money in the property.

If you have any other questions about buying a home, just give me a call or send me an email. I would be happy to help you!

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Want to buy a home? Search all homes for sale

What’s the difference between being pre-qualified and being pre-approved? Which one should you strive for as a homebuyer?

Being pre-qualified involves just getting on the phone and having a short conversation with a lender. They’ll take some basic information from you, and how they qualify you is based solely on the information you give them. However, this information, through no fault of your own, might not be accurate.

Being pre-approved means filling out a loan application, meeting with a lender in person, and giving your whole file to an underwriter. You’ll then get pre-approved by the underwriter. Once you’re pre-approved by that underwriter, you’re actually qualified to buy a home.

If you want to beat out other buyers, get pre-approved.

In this market, it’s especially important to be pre-approved. Sellers won’t want to take an offer from a buyer who is only pre-qualified—they’ll want a full pre-approval. If you want to beat out other buyers to the best deals in our market, get pre-approved.

If you have any questions about pre-approvals or pre-qualifications or you’re thinking about buying or selling a home in our market, don’t hesitate to reach out to me. I’d be happy to help you.

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Want to buy a home? Search all homes for sale

If you want to add value to your property, there are two main areas where you should focus your improvements: kitchens and bathrooms. They say that kitchens and bathrooms sell houses, and that is absolutely true.

People spend a lot of time in these two rooms, which means any improvements you make will add a great deal of value.

On the other hand, there are some improvements you may want to avoid. For example, you should steer clear of making major changes to the landscaping or changes to the property that are based on personal preferences.

They say that kitchens and bathrooms sell houses, and that is absolutely true.

Changing the finishing on a floor from carpet to hardwood might help the home sell faster, but it won’t necessarily add value.

If you have any other questions or would like more information, feel free to give me a call or send me an email. I look forward to hearing from you soon.

Want to sell your home? Get a FREE home value report 

Want to buy a home? Search all homes for sale

A home inspection is the process in which an inspector comes to the house being sold to find out any potential issues with the home that could affect its value. But what do you do after that initial inspection is over? Today, I’d like to give you some advice about the next step.

After you do a home inspection, the secondary negotiation period begins. The primary negotiation is where you initially discuss price and terms, but you have a secondary negotiation period that a lot of people don’t necessarily think about.

The important part of this secondary period is that you’re going to be able to negotiate the condition of the property that you’re looking to purchase. Take this time to ask the seller to make repairs that you find to your subjective discretion.

After you do a home inspection, the secondary negotiation period begins.

We will provide a document called an inspection objection to the seller, we’ll object to those items, and then the seller is going to provide us an inspection resolution. This is the agreement that you and the seller will come to regarding what they’ll repair on the property. That way, we can be confident about the property that you’ll be purchasing.

If you have any questions about what comes after a home inspection or anything else that relates to real estate, please feel free to give us a call or send us an email. Hope to talk to you soon!

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Today I have three tips that will help give you an edge when it comes to negotiating a home sale.

1. You’ve got to know before you go. Begin with the end in mind. If you do this, it takes away a lot of the emotion out of negotiating a home sale. Negotiating a home sale shouldn’t be personal.

2. Know your motivation. If you’ve got an ulterior motive, make sure you keep it to yourself. You want the other side of the transaction to know as little about you as possible because that gives us the most leverage as we undergo negotiations.

3. Don’t get greedy. Typically, the first offer you get is the best offer, so don’t be greedy and wait for the next best thing and risk losing your best offer for the idea of another one.

If you have any questions about this or other real estate-related topics, feel free to reach out to us. We’d love to help you reach your real estate dreams.

Want to sell your home? Get a FREE home value report 

Want to buy a home? Search all homes for sale

Sellers, listen up: Don’t overprice your homes.

Doing so can carry a few pitfalls. If you overprice, you won’t receive multiple offers or be as competitive in today’s market. In fact, overpricing your home will eventually reduce its value.

Also, you aren’t going to get as much feedback. This is because fewer buyers will come through the door and check out the home if they see that it’s overpriced.

Overpricing your home will eventually reduce its value.

You don’t want your home to become a stale listing. Buyers have access to a lot of information and technology today, so they know better than to fall for an overpriced home.

If you have any other questions or would like more information, feel free to give me a call or send me an email. I look forward to hearing from you soon.

Want to sell your home? Get a FREE home value report 

Want to buy a home? Search all homes for sale

Should you get a home valuation from Zillow?

You can. It’s one way to get a home valuation, but I don’t think it’s the best way.

The best way is to have a real estate professional like myself meet you at your property and walk through it with you so you can get an accurate idea of what its value is.

Zillow won’t take into consideration what upgrades you have. I, on the other hand, can come to your house and look at the upgrades and improvements you’ve made that have added value to it. I can also evaluate its condition compared to the rest of the properties in the area.

Zillow is one way to get a home valuation, but it’s not the best way.

Another thing Zillow won’t take into consideration is the inventory in your area, whereas I can look specifically at how many houses are out there and what’s available in your neighborhood.

Take a look at Zillow if you like, but having a real estate professional walk through your property with you is a much better way to get an accurate valuation of it.

If you have any questions or would like me to come out to your home to figure out what it’s worth, don’t hesitate to call me or shoot me an email. I’d love to help you.

Want to sell your home? Get a FREE home value report 

Want to buy a home? Search all homes for sale

Is it better to rent or buy?

This is a question on the minds of a lot of people in today’s market. However, it seems like an obvious answer to me. Then again, I’m in real estate.

Nevertheless, I think you might be interested in hearing my insider’s opinion on why it’s better to buy.

First of all, you have the opportunity to grow your credit when you buy. Purchasing a home is a long-term way to have a positive influence on your credit score.

Also, buying a home will build your equity. You may not stay in this house forever, but the equity you build from it can help go towards your future nonetheless.

You have the opportunity to grow your credit when you buy.

We’ve got a wonderful rental here in Colorado Springs. If you move up to a different property after purchasing your first home, you can still keep your current house as a cash-flow property for your future.

Renting out your previous property after moving to your new residence can be a great way to take on some extra income.

If you have any other questions or would like more information, feel free to give me a call or send me an email. I look forward to hearing from you soon.