Greenwich Real Estate News - Open House Tips for Sellers

If you are the seller, you want potential buyers to like your home. You want them to see your home as comfortable, livable and nice. It is important as a seller to make a positive impression on possible buyers when they come through your home for open houses. You want to make them feel welcome and at home, but you may be unsure of how to do. Here are some open house tips for you as the seller to help make the buyer feel like your home may be the right one for them.

Ask your Greenwich real estate agent for advice
Your real estate agent has much experience holding open houses and knowing what attracts buyers. They are a great resource of information for you as a seller.

Leave the house
The buyer may feel uncomfortable talking about the house with you around, so excusing yourself and telling them to have a look around is a good idea. That way they can be free to walk around and not be nervous about what they may say.

Adjust the temperature appropriately
If it is cold outside, adjust the temperature to a nice warm inviting temperature, if it is warm outside turn on the air conditioning, but be careful not to make it freezing. If buyers are too warm or too cold, they will leave sooner.

Create a mood
Put out candy or cookies so a buyer can have some, next to a card thanking them for their visit and maybe put cinnamon or some soft scent into some water but do not overpower it. Soft music in the background also helps too.

Turn up lighting
Turn on every light in the house to make it warm and inviting to a buyer and also let natural light in as well. This will make the buyer feel more comfortable and welcome.

These open houses tips for you as a seller will help make things easier for you as well as the possible buyer. Then if they like the home, they may have their agent leave a card or ask more questions later. Then you can be on your way to a sold home and a bright new future.

Greenwich Real Estate News - Tips to increase Traffic to your Home

Right now with the economy slowly recovering, there are many homes on the market trying to sell, so it is very important in this buyer’s market to get as much traffic into your home as you can. The more people you have seeing your home, the better chances you have for a possible buyer and some good offers. Here are some tips to increase traffic to your home and get you on your way to a sale. This way you can enjoy your new future with less to worry about.

Ask your Greenwich real estate agent for advice
Real estate agents have experience getting people to see a home and with spreading the word about a home that is for sale. They will be a great resource to help you increase traffic to your home to make a sale.

Use a Lockbox
These boxes allow an agent to show your home even when you are not home and they are safe and secure. An agent should call you first then go to show your home if you do not answer. This will increase the traffic by making the times that your home is being seen more flexible.

Increase your Advertising
Send direct mail to people in your area and surrounding areas that may be interested in your home. Also, try advertising in the newspaper, as well as online on websites such as craigslist or Google. Putting your home on video websites may help increase traffic as well.

Offer Buyer’s Prizes or Books for tours
Offering any possible buyer a prize or book just for touring your home, not only brings in traffic because they want the prize, but while they are there, they just may see something they like, leading to a possible sale.

Offer a lunch during the tour
This way the buyers will stay longer while they eat and agents may be able to answer more questions that a short tour of the home might miss. Plus, with this economy right now, offering a lunch would bring people to your home for sure.

With these tips to help increase the traffic to your home, it should be easier for you to attract plenty of possible buyers, leading to a sale and a reasonable offer. This way the buyer gets a new home that they love and you and your family get to enjoy your new future.

Greenwich Real Estate News - Should You Buy a Fixer-Upper?

Americans love a good deal. We also, if the popularity of HGTV and DIY cable channels are any indication, love the idea of being able to fix up our homes with minimal professional help. Buying a fixer-upper can be a great way to save a little money, and have the chance to make a neglected home into your dream home. But it’s not for everyone. Before you purchase a fixer-upper, here are a few things to keep in mind.

The first thing to consider is how fixable the home really is. Some things (such as location or the size of the lot) can’t be changed. Other things, such as foundation or major electrical problems, can be fixed, but they are very costly and don’t offer a lot of improvement in the resale value. An ideal fixer-upper doesn’t require thousands of dollars worth of work that will go largely unnoticeable; look for a home that can be improved with a few coats of paint, a few new appliances, and some drywall repair.

What will the total cost of the home be? This is an often over-looked aspect of buying a fixer-upper; by the time you buy the home and do any renovations it requires, you may very well have spent considerably more than market value for the home. If the home is your dream home, and you don’t plan on selling for a very long time, that might not be a concern for you. However, if you are hoping to regain the cost of any repairs, and then make a profit on top of that, you need to consider what the home may actually sell for.

You also need to consider how you will pay for any renovations your fixer-upper needs. Depending on the current value of the home, and the projected value once work has been completed, you may be able to get a second loan, or a larger mortgage, to cover a majority of the expenses. Eventually, after you have owned the home for a while, or after you have already made several improvements on your own, you may qualify for a home equity loan. There are also grants and government loans to assist in home repairs. Regardless of what you choose, you will still need to pay for a percentage of the work on your own. Make sure that you have money set aside for the most pressing repairs before you buy.

If you’re an experienced do-it-yourselfer with a lot of free time on your hands, buying a fixer-upper might make a lot of sense, especially if you have a team of friends and family members who can pitch in to get the work done faster. You can save tens of thousands of dollars by doing the work yourself. However, if you’ve never hammered a nail in your life, or if you don’t have a decent knowledge of how to use power tools, this may not be the best time to learn. Making a mistake can be very costly; not only are you paying for the materials to do the job yourself the first time, you then have to pay for a professional to come in and fix your mistake.

That’s not to say that you shouldn’t be able to do some of the work yourself. Painting is time consuming, but it doesn’t take a lot of skill. And there are several other smaller tasks that you could probably figure out how to do on your own. Larger renovations and repairs, however, should be left to someone with experience. Make sure you can afford to hire a team of professional contractors before you buy the home.

Buying a fixer-upper is an investment, maybe more so than a regular home purchase. In most cases, you’ll get back what you put into it. If you know that you can take on the special challenges of purchasing a fixer-upper home, it can be one of the best purchases you’ll ever make.

Have you, or someone you know, owned a fixer-upper? What was your (or their) experience?

Greenwich Real Estate News - Buying Brand New Homes

If you have decided that you and your family are ready for a new home, there is much to consider, including what you can afford, what kind of home you want, location, costs and more. Well, if you have thought about all of this and decided you would like to try looking at brand new homes to buy there are some things to still consider first. Here are some tips to buying brand new homes to help make the process easier and get your dream faster.

Ask your Greenwich real estate agent for advice
Your real estate agent has experience with the market for all kinds of homes brand new or older. They will be able to provide you with the resources you need to decide if a brand new home is right for you.

Look into the Builder’s Reputation
Ask neighbors and also your agent about the builder. Also, look at the quality of the construction in surrounding homes and check into who the builder typically sells to. All of this will make a difference in the quality of your new home.

Do not always use the builder’s lender
Shopping around for a lender that is just right for you and will help you out with all your needs is a good idea. Atomically using the builder’s lender may not offer you the best deal and they may not have your best interests in mind.

Obtain legal advice
Talking to a real estate lawyer may be good idea before buying a brand new home. This way you know exactly what you will be getting yourself into and know about any hidden costs or fees included.

Hire a home inspector
As with any other home purchase, it is very important to hire your own home inspector. They will help you make sure everything is of good quality and ready to live in. Then you can always have builders fix any problems.

These entire brand new home buying tips will help you and your family decide if a brand new home is just right for you. Then this will help you get the process started. This way you can move to your new home with fewer worries and just enjoy the future.

Greenwich Real Estate News - Carry Back Mortgages

If you are the buyer of a new home but have only reasonably good credit or live in a place where interest rates for loans are high, you may be wondering what to do. Carry Back Mortgages might be a good option for you and your family if the seller agrees. These mortgages are where the seller takes care of the financing for the buyer instead of a bank. They may finance all or part of the purchase price. This may be a good choice when money is tight. Here is some advice and tips about carry back mortgages to help you get started.

Ask your Greenwich real estate agent for advice
Real estate agents have experience with all different types of financing and may be able to help you decide if a carry back mortgage option is best for you.

Sellers may be more likely to use this option because of financial gain
Sellers may be likely to help out a buyer with this type of mortgage because they will have a monthly income, it gives them a better rate of return, and they may receive a higher sales price.

Buyers do not have to worry about being denied by a bank
With this type of financing, you just have to reach an agreement with the seller and follow through with that agreement, and do not have to worry about high interest rates or credit problems.

Payments may be lower with a more reasonable interest rate
If you are a buyer, this is good because you may get a more reasonable interest rate and more reasonable payment schedule than you would with a bank or other type of mortgage. This means less hassle.

The closing process may be faster
If the financing is worked out between the buyer and selling than the closing of the house may be faster because there will not be another lender involved. This will be nice for everyone involved.

Carry back mortgage options offer benefits to both a buyer and a seller, making it a win win situation if everything is agreed upon. Then the buyer can move into to their new home worry free and the seller can move on to their new future with fewer worries as well.