Louisiana Real Estate Podcast with Jason Delatte

We’re excited to bring you some new developments that are sure to optimize the way in which we serve your real estate needs.

When making a home purchase, there are a few things you should absolutely avoid doing. Today, I’d like to share five of the worst mistakes you can make during the home buying process. Want to sell your home? Get a FREE home value reportWant to buy a home? Search all homes for sale People are often curious about what they should avoid during the home buying process. Today, I’ve compiled a list of the five worst things to do when buying a home. Shopping without an agent. Thanks to the Internet, we all have access to pictures, videos, and information from properties on the market. However, this isn’t enough. When you become serious about buying a home, it is critical that you work with an agent. Meeting with just one mortgage company. A home is likely the largest financial asset you will have in your life. It’s important to explore your options before settling on a particular mortgage company. Working with the right mortgage company will help you understand which costs to prepare for.Making a lowball offer. Everyone wants a good deal. As a result, many people right now are making ridiculously low offers on homes they love. This is simply not a good idea, since it could lead to you losing out on the right property. Make reasonable offers, instead.Forgetting to budget for closing costs. Sellers do have the option to pay some of the closing costs, but buyers should never assume this will be the case. Working with the right mortgage company is going to really help you understand which costs you’ll need to prepare for. Making big purchases before closing. Buying a home is exciting and can put people in the mood to make purchases in general. This is understandable—but you should definitely wait until after closing. These purchases can actually affect your ability to close, since things like your credit are still being evaluated during escrow. 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.

When making a home purchase, there are a few things you should absolutely avoid doing. Today, I’d like to share five of the worst mistakes you can make during the home buying process.

Want to know how to sell your home for top dollar? You’re in luck—I just finished a book about it. Want to sell your home? Get a FREE home value reportWant to buy a home? Search all homes for sale I recently saw a statistic that said 84% of FSBO (for sale by owner) sellers end up listing with a real estate agent. While my hat is off to the 16% of people who were able to sell their home on their own, my focus is on the 84% who didn’t.  Your home is probably your single largest asset and the decision to sell it is one of the biggest financial decisions you’ll ever make. I want to help you make that decision by putting all my knowledge and resources into a book called: “The Delatte Difference: A Step-by-Step Guide to Selling Your Home.” In this book, I take a detailed look at many aspects of home selling, including the emotional aspect, the most important factors in getting it sold, how to hire agents, how to handle showings, and how to work with offers. “ I take a deep look into home selling. ”I’d like to give you a free copy of the book when it’s out in less than a month. If you’d like one, just give me a call or send me an email today and I’ll make sure I send one out. If you have any other real estate questions, I’d be happy to answer them as well. I look forward to hearing from you soon.

Want to know how to sell your home for top dollar? You’re in luck—I just finished

a book about it.

Most real estate agents use what we call “the four P’s” to sell your home, but I add a fifth. Want to sell your home? Get a FREE home value reportWant to buy a home? Search all homes for sale If you’re thinking about selling your house or even if it’s already on the market, I want to help you out with something I call the four P’s of real estate, and the fifth P that I use to help my clients.  For most agents, the four P’s are: Put a sign in the yardPut professional photos onlinePut it on the MLS (or sites like Zillow and Trulia)Pray someone buys your house The fifth P is proactively prospecting to find buyers for your home. This is what I call the Delatte Difference. You owe it to yourself to find out what the Delatte Difference is all about! “ You owe it to yourself to find out what the Delatte Difference is all about! ”If you’re thinking of selling your home or it’s on the market and you’re struggling to get it sold, give me a call or send me an email soon. I’d love to show you what the Delatte Difference can do for you.

How do you know if staging your home is the right move when selling your house? Want to sell your home? Get a FREE home value reportWant to buy a home? Search all homes for sale If you are selling your house, how do you know if you should stage it before putting it on the market? Painting, decluttering, and re-carpeting will probably bring you the cheapest bang for your buck when getting your house ready for the market, but I also recommend staging your property.  “ People think on logic, but act on emotion. ”Think about it—you see clean, staged homes at the end of every episode of those home-flipping shows that are so popular on TV right now. They all do this because it truly helps them sell the home. The logical thinkers out there might think it’s a waste of your time and money. In real estate, though, logic may make us think, but emotion makes us act.  Of course, you want a buyer to act in the form of bringing a great offer to you for your property. If you’d like any tips about staging a home or about buying or selling real estate in general, don’t hesitate to give me a call or send me an email. I’d be happy to help!

When interest rates go up by even just a fraction of a percent, it can affect your ability to buy a home by tens of thousands of dollars. Want to sell your home? Get a FREE home value reportWant to buy a home? Search all homes for sale If you're looking to buy a home, how does a rise in interest rates actually affect you? Interest rates for homes loans are currently hovering at about 4%, but that might not necessarily be the interest rate you get. The interest rate you get for a home loan is determined by your credit score, income, and debt-to-income ratio.  For example's sake, though, let's say your interest rate is 4% and your lender has approved you for a $250,000 loan. Every 0.5% increase in interest rates means you lose 10% of your buying power.  “ Every 0.5% increase in interest rates means you lose 10% of your buying power. ”What does that mean, exactly? In our example, where you are approved for a $250,000 loan and the interest rate increased from 4% to 4.5%, you would then only be approved for a $225,000 loan. That's a significant decrease for such a small rise in interest rate.  As a homebuyer, it's important to grasp how rate fluctuations can impact your buying power. If you're looking to buy your dream home, now is the time to move while interest rates are so low. I'm here to help. If you're thinking of entering the market or have any other questions, don't hesitate to give me a call or send me an email soon. 

When interest rates go up by even just a fraction of a percent, it can affect your ability to buy a home by tens of thousands of dollars.

How do you know if staging your home is the right move when selling your house?