We’re almost to the end of the year, and the holiday season is in full swing with happy people everywhere. Here at Donovan Home Sales, there’s something magic in the air. If you hear a song and start to hum along, it may just be the Donovan 3 singing their rendition of “Do You Believe in Christmas?” If you want a reason to get into the holiday spirit and enjoy a catchy, festive tune, go ahead and watch our new music video.
Welcome back to another episode of “Keeping in Tune With the Market.” Today’s question is: What is a home inspection contingency and how do I deal with it?
Welcome back to another episode of “Keeping in Tune With the Market.”
Today’s question is: What is a home inspection contingency and how do I deal with it?
Imagine you’ve just found a great home or a great buyer for your home, and the time has come for the home inspection. A home inspection is usually done before an offer is made or accepted. A home inspection contingency is an addendum that is placed on a contract that states certain agreed-upon repairs must be completed within a given time frame.
After a licensed home inspection company has completed the inspection, which takes about an hour, they will then submit a written report to the buyer. The buyer will turn the report over to the agent, who will then turn it over to the seller.
Sometimes, structural or safety issues may be uncovered during the inspection. But it’s important to remember that not every item an inspector puts on the report is urgent. Some issues will just be cosmetic.
Not every item an inspector puts on the report is urgent.
But if there are major repairs, the buyer’s agent is going to make a repair request of the seller. A seller can obtain a second opinion from another professional at this point.
Once the buyer and seller are made aware of the items on the inspection report, negotiations can begin. It’s critical that everyone approaches these negotiations reasonably.
After everyone is in agreement, the seller must take care of the agreed-upon repairs prior to closing. The seller will need to provide the buyer with written receipts for any and all repairs.
There is still the possibility of the contract being canceled by either party if they cannot reach a consensus on a given item. However, if the contract moves forward and all repairs are taken care of, then the inspection contingency will be removed.
If a transaction is taking place between a good buyer and a willing seller, it’s best to take care of these issues as soon as possible.
Additionally, if you’d like a free copy of our report on how to avoid 11 costly home inspection mistakes, send me a quick email at info@homesbydonovan.com or text me at (516) 822-1222.
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.
So the market’s great and you decide to sell your home by yourself. What happens next? First, you put a sign up, put some ads on the Internet, and away you go. Soon enough, people start driving by your home, knocking on your door, and calling you—even Realtors. Then perhaps you get a buyer that comes by, and they seem pretty serious...until you find out they don’t have any credit and would like you to hold the mortgage. Then maybe your neighbor knocks on your door and asks if you’ll sell your home at a discount to their children because they don’t have much money. These situations can be very frustrating, but should you give up on your dream of selling your home all by yourself? No you shouldn’t, because I have three valuable insider tips to help you pull it off without going crazy: 1. Make sure you market your home effectively. Many Realtors place their homes on Realtor.com, Zillow, and the MLS for their best results, but successful Realtors also place their homes on about 46 other websites on average. Statistically, over 92% of people start their home search online. You want to make sure your home is seen by the most number of people, so explore other places on the Internet you can advertise your home. You’d be amazed at the amount of traffic you can garner.
Make sure your home is seen by the most number of people.
2. Make sure your buyer is both pre-qualified and pre-approved for a loan. What’s the difference between the two? When someone’s pre-qualified, they’re only asked a few questions by a mortgage broker and based on that information, they’re told what their chances are for getting a loan. With a pre-approval, the buyer has actually made a full loan application and gone through the entire process—including checking their credit, income, tax returns, etc. 3. Remain objective about your home and the home selling process. If the buyer has a few negative comments, don’t get defensive. Try instead to acknowledge them and use that as a stepping point to highlight the positives of your home and how it benefits them. If you have any questions or you’d like to see the other seven insider tips to help you sell your home on your own, don’t hesitate to give me a call or send me an email. In the meantime, don’t give up and keep in tune with the market. I look forward to hearing from you.
I wanted to do something a little different for today’s episode of "Keeping in Tune With the Market." Today, I want to talk about a very serious subject: strokes. Imagine you’re with family over the holiday season when suddenly you notice a loved one's face beginning to droop on one side—one side of their body appears weak and they’re now slurring their speech. What do you do? First, it’s time to call 911. These warning signs should never be ignored. Two weeks ago when my own mother began exhibiting these symptoms, my sisters were thankfully able to recognize the signs and get her immediate medical treatment. It is critical that people who have had or are having a stroke receive medical attention within the first three hours. Unfortunately, I have first-hand experience where another family member was not so fortunate. My sister-in-law had a stroke around the same time as my mother. She was out of the town at the time and went to a walk-in clinic where they told her it was probably just her back.
Warning signs should never be ignored.
They sent her home and she suffered a massive stroke. As a result of not receiving prompt and immediate attention, her injuries will be long-term, if not permanent. You may be wondering why I’ve chosen to talk about this when my usual subjects relate to real estate. The truth is that real estate is about family and home. That’s why today I chose to share this information with you—to protect your family. The easiest way to spot and handle a stroke is to remember “F.A.S.T.,” which stands for face drooping, arm weakness, speech difficulty, and time to call 911. Whether it is you or a family member experiencing these symptoms, do not wait. Getting immediate emergency medical treatment is absolutely key. I hope you and your family stay happy, healthy, and able to enjoy your 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.
One aspect of home value that buyers and sellers tend to ignore is the property tax bill. It can actually cause huge problems when it comes time to move on.
In this episode of “Keeping in Tune With the Market,” we’re taking a closer look at property taxes and how they affect home value. We decided on this topic after receiving a great question from Gary, which went like this:
“How do property taxes affect Long Island home values when buying or selling?”
To illustrate our point, we’d like to tell you a true story. This occurred recently with two different homeowners who decided to list their properties. We’ll call them Homeowner One and Homeowner Two. Both of these homeowners owned 3-bedroom, 2-bathroom homes with garages and backyards. However, these homes ended up being very different in the eyes of buyers. Why? They had different property taxes, with Homeowner One’s property having an assessed value that was 25% lower.
How did one homeowner’s property taxes get so much higher? There were a number of factors. Homeowner One had a lower tax rate and millage rate than Homeowner Two because they were in different districts. Homeowner One also kept track of any improvements or updates she made to the home. She was also able to protest her assessment because she had the numbers to back up her arguments. She also made sure to register for a homestead exemption, which further lowered her taxes.
Pay attention to your property taxes.
Homeowner Two was located in a different district where property taxes and the millage rate were a little higher and there was nothing she could have done about that. However, she could have monitored the improvements she made and made sure she was being correctly assessed. After taking a closer look, we found that she was being assessed for a fireplace despite the fact she didn’t have one. She didn’t apply for her homestead exemption either.
What happened when these homes were listed? As you can probably guess, Homeowner One had a quick, profitable sale while Homeowner Two had to languish on the market and eventually reduce the price to get the property sold. The bottom line is that property taxes make a huge difference whether you are buying or selling and you want to be as informed about them as possible if you are a homeowner looking to make a move.
Thanks again to Gary for the question. We’ll be sending you a $25 Panera gift card. Remember, if we answer one of your questions on our videos, we’ll send you a gift card as well.
If you have any other real estate comments, questions, or concerns about the Long Island market in the meantime, give us a call or send us an email.
When you’re getting ready to buy or sell a home, you often wonder who really determines the actual value of a home and what the sales price will eventually be. There are basically two people who determine the value of a home.
The first is the appraiser. The appraiser will look at similar sold properties within the last six to 12 months. If you want to get an idea of what the appraiser will consider, all you need to do is go online and look at similar properties that have sold in the area within a mile or so of where you’re looking and what they sold for.
In addition to the appraiser, there is one other person who determines what the final sales price of a home will be. Can you guess who it is?
It’s the buyer. The buyer will offer a price for the home based on comparables of other homes currently for sale on the market and what they feel the house is worth to them.
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The appraiser and the buyer are the two people who determine a home’s value.
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You’ll notice there’s one person I didn’t mention—the seller. While they don’t determine the eventual sales price of the home, they can determine how long the home takes to sell. They do this in two ways. The first is by making sure the condition of the home is optimal. The second is by pricing their home properly in the beginning when they first list it.
We want to thank Gina for sending in her great question. For that, she will receive a $15 gift certificate to Panera’s. If you submit a question and I cover it in one of my future videos, you can also win a $15 gift certificate.
If you want to know more about determining the value of a home or you’d like a market snapshot to help you know the value of a home you’re thinking of buying or selling, give me a call or send me an email. Until next time, stay in tune with the market and make it a great day!
In today's episode of the "Keeping in Tune With the Market," I wanted to answer a question about your attorney's role when buying and selling real estate.
In New York, attorneys generally prepare and are legally responsible for both the contract of sale and the closing documents.
That said, your Realtor will generally be involved before the attorney because in New York, you want to complete your home inspections before they prepare the contracts. This is important for both the buyer and the seller to know because once the inspection is done, the agent generally gets involved by helping the buyer and seller negotiate any repairs that need to be done or any credits that need to be made for anything that wasn't working at the time of the inspection.
At that point, the attorney gets all the information they need from the seller, then they prepare the contracts, which go out to the buyer and the buyer's attorney. They'll review them, and this process usually goes back and forth a few times over the phone or email over the course of a few days. Then, the buyer will sign the contract and bring their good faith deposit, which is generally held in an escrow account.
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The sooner you have a title search performed, the better.
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After that, the attorney will begin to submit all the documents to the title company where a title search is done. The title company will then decide whether there are any legal issues or if there are any outstanding certificates of occupancy. This is exactly why we always recommend that your attorney gets a title search done sooner rather than later so that you can find out if any problems need to be rectified before closing. Then, the Realtor gets involved again to meet with the appraiser and make sure the home appraises properly. They'll also help the buyer and seller with a final walkthrough and prepare for the closing. If you have any questions about this process, don't hesitate to give me a call or send me an email. I'll be sending a $10 Panera gift to Jan for having her questions answered. If you ask a question that I answer in future videos, you'll win a gift card too. Until then, make it a great day!
Today I’m answering a question from Amanda Fabian, who asks, “How do I get my offer accepted when there are four other competing offers on a home?”
First of all, congratulations to Amanda, who will receive a $10 Panera gift card for her question being chosen.
To get your offer accepted when there are other competing offers on the same home, I have three strategies you can use:
1. Make your offer as competitive as you can without going over your budget. If you’re going with a higher financing amount, you must be competitive against someone who might be putting more cash into the deal. Also, make sure you have your pre-approval letter and that you submit it at the same time you put your offer in. Your offer must be as strong as possible. 2. Find out from the other agent or owner what their hot buttons are. In other words, does the owner want a quick closing or do they need extra time? When you structure your offer, make sure to add that in. Does the owner have a special appliance they want to take with them? Stress that the appliance can go with the owner and you don’t insist on having it stay. 3. Write a personal note from the heart. This one is my secret weapon. When you do this, find out a little bit about the owner and share with them some information about your family and how you will love the home as much as they did. If you have a cute little kid or puppy, include pictures of them in the note.
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Your offer must be as strong as possible.
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If you have a real estate question that’s on your mind, don’t hesitate to email it to me. If I answer it in a future video, you’ll receive a $10 gift card. Until next time, make it a great day!
You may have heard that spring and summer are the best times to sell a house, but today, I’m discussing why this winter is a fantastic time to sell your house.
Welcome to my new series, ‘Keeping in Tune With the Market.’ We want to use this series to bring valuable and relevant information to home buyers, sellers, and Realtors alike.
The question we’re answering today comes from Amy Chen who asks, “I thought it was better to sell my house in the spring, but I’ve been told maybe I should consider selling my house in the winter. What do you recommend?’
There are three points I want you to consider about selling your home in the winter:
1. Prices are at or above what we experienced in 2006. The only difference is that we haven’t experienced a housing bubble like then. In fact, we have a very steady market. That’s because of… 2. Lack of inventory. This means as a seller, you’re going to be able to receive a higher price for your house due to greater competition among buyers, multiple offers, and interest rates. 3. Interest rates are very good right now. Even though rates have ticked up just a bit, buyers are still out there looking. They will continue to be out looking until rates really start to climb. At that point, they’ll have less buying ability due to paying more for a mortgage.
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High prices, low inventory, and low rates make now an optimal time to sell.
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As you can see, due to high prices, low inventory, and low interest rates, putting a home on the market this winter is a great idea because you never know what’s around the corner. An additional bonus point is that you can even gear your moving date to coincide with the timing you originally wanted. For example, let's say you found a buyer in the late winter or early spring. You might be able to time your sale in a way that allows you to move in the spring or early summer. We’d like to thank Amy for the question by sending her a $10 Panera gift card! If you have a question for me and I answer it in one of my videos, you’ll receive a gift card, too. Just give me a call or send me an email. I look forward to hearing from you!
