I’ve been in this industry for over 13 years and I can confidently say that when you’re selling a home, it’s more important than ever to have great professional pictures of your home when you list it on the market.

People do so much research and leg work online before they even see a home in person. By the time they show up to physically look at a house, more often than not they are just there to confirm that everything they’ve seen online is accurate before moving ahead with the transaction.

I can’t stress enough the importance of having professional photos. The photos you put online today in this age are probably doing about 85% to 90% of the selling of your home.

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Great home photos get more activity.

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Part of my listing package for clients is setting up a professional staging and photoshoot for every house I list. It gets activity on the home much quicker, equaling a faster and more profitable sale in the end. That’s what every seller wants.

If you have any questions for me, don’t hesitate to give me a call or send me an email. I’d be happy to hear from you!

The Lane County real estate market is diverse with both buyers and sellers alike seeking a variety of different properties. As a prospective seller, you can find out the market value of your property with a free home value report right here, or if you're looking to purchase in the Lane County area click here for full MLS access. Always feel free to reach out to us for any questions regarding the current market conditions, or the value of your property at  541-767-7653  The home buying process can be awfully stressful, and much of the frustration buyers face is a result of being unprepared. Today, we share 4 major concerns many first-time buyers have with the buying process, so you know what to expect when buying. Can I afford the home? To answer that, a real estate professional will send you to a reputable lender. We will send you to a lending partner of ours who does a really good job of going over a buyer's financial situation and determining whether they qualify for the home in question. He'll go through your financials with you in detail before telling you whether you can afford the home of interest.Do I qualify for the home loan? When you sit down with a trusted lender, you will go over your debt-to-income ratio, which is the amount of money you have going out versus the amount of money you have coming in. Once the lender puts all that together, they will determine whether the house you're looking for, and the payment you're looking for, is something the lender will allow.  Am I paying too much for this home? An important part of the home buying process  is called the appraisal. The lending institution has a third party come out and look at the house to determine whether the house is valued at what you're agreeing to pay for it. This is your insurance policy to ensure you're not overpaying for a house. If the appraisal comes back at your purchase price, you can rest assured knowing you aren't overpaying.Am I buying the right house? When looking at homes, think about what your needs will be three years down the road. If, for whatever reason, you need to move out of your home in three years, will you be able to sell it at the price you want? Is it in a desirable neighborhood? Is it updated? Answering these questions will help you determine whether you're buying the right house. If you do feel like it would be an easy house to get rid of, it may be a very comfortable purchase.If you have any questions about these common concerns, or would like more help preparing for the buying process, don't hesitate to give us a call or shoot us an email. We would love to help make the process as smooth as possible! 

Lately, I’ve been working with a lot of investors. Often, I’m asked about how much our market improved in the past two years, and likewise, if foreclosures and short sales will decrease. That’s not the case!

There are some awesome opportunities and deals to take advantage of out there. These properties, such as rentals, make great investments, and are available up to $50,000 below market value right now. Once tenants move in, you can make a nice profit without much effort.

If you have any questions about investments or more, give me a call or send me an email today! I’d be happy to serve your real estate needs.

My biggest pet peeve is when homeowners renovate their home and they don't really know what they're doing. They don't know which renovations or repairs will get them the most bang for their buck. It's so important to consult your mortgage broker before making changes. Here's why.

Don't exchange a dollar for a dollar. Don't invest $500 into your home to earn only $500 back! There are key items that convince buyers to make an offer or spend more on a property.

These changes can be extremely pricey, such as a new roof, kitchen or bathroom. As expensive as these repairs are, they don't receive much money back. To receive the most out of an investment, paint or replace the carpet. It helps the home look fresh and clean.

I cannot encourage you enough to have a consultation done before you start pouring money into your house. A consultation can save you time, energy, and money in the long run.

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

Some people are under the misconception it’s not wise to sell during the holidays. However, there are plenty of benefits to listing your home during the winter. Here’s why.

There is less competition. Around October, people begin feeling overwhelmed by preparing their homes for the holidays. They don’t want people walking through it when they’re decorating or spending quality time with family. However, there are serious buyers out there and that could be a huge advantage you don’t want to miss out on. When competition decreases, you have a better chance of selling quickly and for top dollar. This adds money to your pocket.

There are dedicated buyers. They’re not window shopping like those prancing around in the summer. In fact, they may even be more motivated to move in before Christmas comes around!

If you have any real estate needs, please reach out by phone or email. Happy holidays!

Today, I'd like to talk about the importance of home inspections. Home inspections can be mutually beneficial to both buyers and sellers.

From the seller's standpoint, a pre-listing inspection can be very valuable. That way, you know about the issues with the property and you can get a lot of them taken care of up front. A buyer might misinterpret some minor issues as major issues, and having that pre-listing inspection can save you a lot of money.

From a buyer's standpoint, buying a home is one of the biggest investments you will make in your life. Having an inspection done will let you know what issues you might run into, and you can have the seller make some of those repairs. If you want to make the repairs yourself, the home inspection can help you create a maintenance plan.

If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to call me or send me an email. I look forward to hearing from you!

Today we are talking about renting vs. buying, a fun topic that I enjoy talking about. Our rental market is getting incredibly hot right now. As a landlord renting my house out, I’ve seen prices going through the roof and I can’t believe how high they are getting. For example, a house that rented at $1200 a month last year is renting for $1500 a month this year.

If you can buy a house, you should. You get many tax benefits, including your interest and mortgage insurance being tax deductible. In a rental situation, you will spend equal to or more than your mortgage payments, and you don’t get any of those tax benefits and aren’t able to do home improvements.

The clear answer is if you have the capability, you definitely want to buy. It provides huge financial benefits and incentives, and it doesn’t make sense not to if you are able to.

If you have any questions for us, feel free to give us a call or send us an email. We look forward to hearing from you soon!

For many, many years I didn't really believe in open houses as a selling tool. I primarily believed that they were simply for agents to recruit potential buyers. The likelihood of someone coming in and deciding to buy a home during an open house is not super high.

However, there are some factors that can make an open house worthwhile. If your home is in a desirable and high-traffic location, I think an open house can work very well.

I recently did an open house on a property that had 20 showings but received no offers. When I conducted an open house I got 3-5 people to come through, but 2 of those people absolutely loved the home and we got multiple offers and were able to sell the home above list price.

Given the right circumstances, open houses can help. If you live far away from town or are in a place that's not convenient, I would suggest going another route. People like the convenience that comes from an open house which is why it works in high-traffic areas.

If you have any questions or concerns about this issue, or if you'd like to learn more about Lane County real estate, please don't hesitate to contact me!

Is there a difference between having no credit and having bad credit? Many people are unaware, but there is a significant difference between the two.

When you have bad credit, it's likely because you stopped making mortgage, credit card, or car payments at some point. When you haven't made a payment, you begin to get derogatories (30 days late, 60 days late, 90 days late, etc.). You also may have had a bankruptcy in the past, which will negatively affect your credit.

If you have failed to make payments, or if your credit is just bad, it will take some time to improve your score. The longer you get away from your last negative derogatory, the better your credit will become. In other words, if you start making payments regularly, you can get your credit back on track.

If you have no credit, it means you need to apply for some and start making payments on time. This is a better situation than having bad credit because you can earn good credit much faster than you can recuperate it!

If you have any questions about this topic, or if you need real estate assistance of any kind, don't hesitate to reach out to us. We would love to hear from you!

How does Zillow affect buyers and sellers in the Lane County area? Today, we'll explain that while Zillow is a useful tool, you need to be careful about trusting everything you find there.

Often, I meet with sellers who tell me how much their home is worth according to Zillow and buyers who question the price of homes I show them because of what Zillow told them. What many people don't realize is that there are a lot of things Zillow can't do. It uses a database-structured algorithm to come up with home prices, so there are a lot of things it cannot take into consideration.

Zillow has no way of taking into account a home's curb appeal. They have no way of separating a dream yard from a dumpy one. A home with a pristine yard and one with grass ten feet tall, given the same statistics, will be valued the same on Zillow. In some aspects Zillow can be pretty accurate, but it's best to take all the information you get there with a grain of salt. More often than not, Zillow's values are either low or high.

If you have questions about the best way to find the most accurate and up to date real estate information, don't hesitate to give me a call or shoot me an email. I would love to assist you in any way possible!