Keep homebuyers committed by avoiding lengthy negotiations and maintaining clear, consistent communication.

Why are buyers suddenly backing out of home deals? In my 21 years in this business, I’ve never seen so many buyers who start strong but second-guess themselves and back out of deals. It’s happening more now than ever, leaving sellers scratching their heads. So, if you’re selling your home, I’ll share three tips to help you “bulletproof” your transactions and keep those buyers excited about closing day:

1. Don’t drag out negotiations. When a buyer writes an offer, they’re at their most excited. But time kills deals, and if negotiations drag on too long, that excitement can fade fast. You might be waiting for a better offer, or maybe you’re taking your time, thinking it’s a seller’s market and you have the advantage.

The thing is, that better offer might not come, and buyers don’t like to feel ignored or disrespected. If you take too long to respond, you risk upsetting them and losing the deal. The fix? Communicate clearly and quickly. Set expectations upfront, stay responsive, and keep both the buyer and their agent informed. Keep the buyer locked in by keeping everyone in the loop.

“Time kills deals. Keep negotiations smooth, responsive, and transparent to keep buyers engaged.”

2. Get ahead of inspection issues. A bad inspection can derail a sale. A buyer might love your house until they see a long list of unexpected issues, making them question their choice and potentially backing out.

Being proactive helps. While I think having a full pre-inspection is too much, one of the things I’m excited about with our team is our partnerships and vendor relationships. We have contractors who can come out during the listing appointment to walk through the property and identify visible issues that may need attention.

Fixing these or having a plan in place can boost buyer confidence. If buyers feel you’re upfront and honest, they’re less likely to feel blindsided later, which reduces the chances of them walking away.

3. Combat buyer’s remorse. Even the best buyers can get cold feet after signing on the dotted line, as it’s natural to overthink big decisions like buying a house. While we can’t control buyers’ feelings, we can ask the right questions to understand their commitment. Check with their agent about how many offers they’ve made, how long they’ve been searching, and how many homes they’ve seen. This information can give you a sense of whether they’re ready to commit.

Encouraging second or third showings is also a smart move. It may seem like extra effort, but it helps buyers feel 100% sure about their choice, and happy buyers are more likely to stick around.

In the end, sellers want two things: the best price with favorable terms and a high chance of closing. Achieving this requires an experienced agent who communicates well and builds strong relationships with other agents. That’s where I come in. Whether you’re buying or selling, I’m here to help you strategize and succeed. You can contact me at (503) 522-0090 or [email protected]. You can also visit our website, AskSarita.com. I look forward to hearing from you!

Pricing your home lower may be the key to getting top dollar.

Lately, I’ve had a few clients ask, “I want to buy a house, but how much over list price is this going to go?” It can vary wildly based on the pricing strategy. Today I want to talk  how sellers should price their homes in this market.

Someone with a $700,000 home may choose to list for $799,000 in the hopes of this hot market pushing it toward $800,000. However, even if they get beautiful photography and advertise it everywhere online, the home may still sit on the market and become a little stale. People will start wondering what’s wrong with the house and look for something else.

“Let the market frenzy dictate the results.”

One of the best ways to get $800,000 for your $700,000 house is to start much lower. List at $725,000, and when you apply a marketing strategy like mine that’s proven to get results, you’ll get lots of showings, and the price will be driven up organically. I’m not advocating that you lowball the listing and receive 57 offers. I’m saying that if you have a proven strategy to get eyes on the listing, it will make sense to reasonably but aggressively price the home toward the lower end of the average so you can let the market frenzy dictate the results.

This strategy doesn’t work in every market or neighborhood, so reach out to me by phone or email to schedule a strategy session so we can talk about your specific situation. I look forward to hearing from you.

Buyer affordability is quickly becoming out of reach in today’s market.

Is now the best time to sell, or should you wait for prices to get higher?

There’s an old adage in real estate that says the best time to sell a house is never—home prices should, in theory, always go up. A lot of people think that because prices are on the rise, they should wait before selling. However, the reality is that many people need to sell their homes to extract the equity and position themselves for the next chapter of their lives. 

If you’ve had this thought yourself, understand that the real estate market operates in cycles. The typical sales cycle lasts around seven years before correcting itself and moving back toward a buyer’s market. However, we’ve been in our current sales cycle for over 13 years.

This cycle isn’t going to last forever; what goes up must come down eventually. On average, the year-over-year appreciation rate for homes is 4%. In our market, we’ve seen some neighborhoods appreciate between 11% and 20%, sometimes more! These prices are not sustainable, and we don’t know what the future will bring.

“If you wait to sell, you might wind up selling in a market that doesn’t have as many offers.”

What we do know is that now is an excellent time to sell. It’s springtime, the weather is becoming nicer, and life is blooming. That means your home will look amazing for listing photos, and more buyers will be out in the market looking for homes. Furthermore, if you write an offer on a home in April and close in May, you might be able to stay in your current house through the end of the school year and move in the summer. The majority of the business we do occurs between May and September.

Ultimately, if you wait to sell, you might wind up selling in a market that doesn’t have as many offers, meaning that you may not get the maximal price for your property.

If you’ve been thinking about selling your home, give us a call or send us an email. Let’s have a chat about your home and determine the right timeline for you to list your property.

Rising interest rates might not be as bad as you think for a few reasons.

What are these rising interest rates doing to the market? Should you get in the market now or wait? Those are great questions, so let’s go over how interest rates are affecting our market.

While interest rates have gone up and will continue climbing, they are still very low compared to historical averages. Instead of slowing our market, rising rates have spurred buyers to secure a home before they rise even more. We’re still seeing price appreciation and multiple offers.

These higher rates might not be as bad as you think, and there are three reasons why. First, your average homebuyers are couples in their 30s with dual incomes and more assets than ever before. Also, jumbo loan rates are lower than conventional rates, so luxury buyers are still a bit protected. Finally, the additional monthly payment from a 1% rate increase is nominal compared to how price increases have been affecting payments. 

If you’re planning on buying or selling, you should call me, and we can have a strategy session over what these rate hikes mean for you. If you have any questions at all, just call or email me. I’d love to help.

These three things can derail or slow down your home purchase.

Usually, I talk about what to do when you are buying or selling, but today I want to talk about what not to do. Buyers should avoid doing all three of these things. Some of them may be obvious, but we can all do with a few gentle reminders.

Buying a home is an invasive process regarding your financials, so you want to avoid making big purchases. You don’t want your spending to be any different. Sure, you have to buy a washer and a fridge, but you should wait on those things until after you close. 

You also don’t want to have any job changes. I know a lot of us are fed up with Zoom calls, but if you want to make any change in your employment, talk with your lender and your agent. Often, you can change, but you might need several months of pay stubs before you can close. There may be an even bigger requirement if you change fields.

“Buying a home can be an invasive process.”

You also don’t want to deposit all sorts of untraced money. I remember my lender calling me up when I was buying a home. He asked about three different deposits I had. The truth was I had sold Blazers tickets to an office mate. The lender wanted to know how they could trace and prove that deposit. When you’re buying a home, lenders want to know about any money coming into your account. 

Don’t let my tips scare you; you can still live like you usually do when you’re buying a house, but you should work with your lender and be very open about your goals. If you have any other questions, please call or email me. I’m here to help.

If you want to buy a home, you must get pre-approved before anything else.

A pre-approval isn’t just going to the lender and getting a letter. Buyers have to get their assets, income, and credit verified by a lender before they start looking. Why is that?

More often than not, you’ll find a home a lot sooner than you think, especially in a low inventory market. If you don’t have a pre-approval, it’s a bit like going to the store without your purse or wallet. You can find a property you want, but without a pre-approval, you’re not in a position to buy it.

“You need to back up your offer with a lender who has verified everything. ”

You’ll probably be competing against other offers for the home, but even if you aren’t, the seller needs to know that you have the money. A good personality and a smile won’t convince them; you need to back up your offer with a lender who has verified everything.

The other reason you want to get pre-approved ahead of time is that you want to know what your budget is. A lender can tell you that you’re approved for up to $1 million, but that doesn’t matter. What matters is your monthly payment. If you’re only willing to pay $200 more than your current monthly payment, you have to look at buying homes in the relevant price range or bring in a larger down payment.

It’s important to set yourself up for the budget you want by having a lender tell you what your desired purchase price should be. That way, you aren’t looking at homes you can’t have. To use a car analogy, you don’t want to test drive a Lexus, realize that it’s what you want, and then not be able to afford it. Anything less than that will feel like a disappointment.

If you’re looking for a great lender or if you have any questions, please call or email me. I would be happy to connect you with some of our trusted partners.

Here are a few reasons why buying a home is better than renting

Should you rent or buy? If you’re new to town and don’t know where you’ll be a year from now, renting makes sense. It’s a good way to learn about the local market before you buy. However, if you’ve been renting for some time, I think there are some clear advantages to buying.

First and foremost, you’re building equity. When you rent, you are paying your landlord’s mortgage. When you buy, you are paying your own mortgage. It’s a great way to set yourself up to be an investor long term.

The beauty of buying is that your home value will go up. I can’t say that it will always increase, but over three to five years of even modest appreciation, you will at least make enough back to cover your costs and fees. Even if you just break even, you’re essentially living in your home rent-free. 

“There are so many advantages to buying.”

Renting is perfect for people who don’t want to deal with the maintenance and hassle of homeownership. However, I can connect you with so many different handymen, services, and vendors that can take care of any problem that might come up.

I think there are so many advantages to buying, but obviously, I’m biased. The best thing for you is to sit down with me, make a list, go over your concerns and objectives, and determine what’s right for you. I have spent plenty of time with clients, only to convince them that renting is better for their situation. 

If you have any questions about renting or buying, please call me. I’m more than happy to help you make that decision.

The new year is a great time to plan out your real estate goals.

Happy New Year! We counted down to midnight and watched the ball drop, and if you’re like me, you’re already looking at your goals for this year. My phone rings off the hook in January with clients who are committed to selling in the new year. 

It’s a great time to reach out to a trusted real estate professional and come up with a strategy for selling your home, whether you want to do that now or later this year. Even if you’re looking to buy, we can talk about who you need to call and what you should do with your credit.

My door is open; I can meet with you and help you create a plan for your specific situation. If you’re ready to make your financial dreams come true, whether that’s buying, selling, or investing, call me. Let’s put our thinking caps on and make this the best year ever.

From our team to your family, we want to wish you a happy holiday season.

Happy holidays to you!

The holiday season has officially arrived. We hope you enjoy this wonderful time of year and make some fantastic memories.

We wanted to take a moment to thank you for your continued support. We love helping people make their real estate dreams come true, so thank you for working with us and supporting our business.

This may be a busy time of year, but we are always here to help you and answer any questions you may have. Give us a call or reply to this email; we’d love to help you. 

In case we don’t hear from you until 2022, have a happy New Year!