What I Learned From the 2007 Housing Crisis

Though the 2007 financial crisis was a rough period in our economic history, there were lessons to be learned from it. Here are the top three things I took away from the crisis.

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What lessons did I learn from the 2007 financial crisis that still apply today?

For those who don’t remember, back in 2007, we had some troubles with home values. We can laugh about it now, but it was a tough arena back in the day. These are my takeaways from that hard period in real estate history:

1. Don’t buy a home that you can’t afford. Should you stretch yourself a little bit to get the home you want? Absolutely. However, when you meet with your mortgage broker for the pre-qualification process and they ask what payments you’re comfortable with, don’t exceed reality. You want to be comfortable in the house that you buy, but you want it to be a good purchase at the same time.
   
2. Don’t always believe that your home will increase in value. When you’re looking to purchase a house, you’re going to be living in that home. This isn’t an investment property and you’re not renting it out to make cash flow or see the appreciation.
3. Make sure you have adequate reserves. Spend less than you need; if something bad were to happen, you’d want to have something to fall back on. At the end of the day, make sure you’re protected.

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When you meet with your mortgage broker for the pre-qualification process and they ask what payments you’re comfortable with, don’t exceed reality.

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When you’re looking to purchase a home, we’ll walk through these tips with you as we go through the process so that you can feel more comfortable with your purchase.

If you have any questions, please feel free to give me a call or send an email. We’ll help you understand what’s going on in the market and put a plan together for you.

Happy Holidays and Thank You!

The holidays are approaching and with that comes the special time of year where we want to give thanks and show love to our family, friends and people who have helped us this past year. We hope that our family, clients and business partners feel the same way and offer thanks to the people who have made you the person you are today.

We want to wish you all a happy and safe holiday. Thank you!

4 Ways to Winterize Your Home

Winter is here and it’s important to make sure your home is prepared for those cold temperatures. We have a few tips to help prevent your home from any damages this winter.

1. Get your furnace serviced. Your furnace sits during the spring and summer, so it’s important to get it checked out to make sure everything is running properly.
2. If you go away for a weekend, make sure to turn your thermostat between 55-60 degrees. 
3. Also, if you go away for the weekend be sure to shut off the water main and drain the pipes This prevents pipes from bursting and causing damages.
4. After a heavy snow, shovel your deck. Snow left on the wood can cause chipping and wearing of paint.

These are four simple tips to help prevent damages to your home during the winter months. If you have any questions, please give me call.

Thanks so much for watching!

10 Reasons Why Now is a Great Time to Sell Your Home

Traditional school of thought dictates that selling a home during the holidays is a bad idea. People are busy celebrating with their families and will hardly go shopping for a home, right? Not so!  There are numerous advantages to listing a home during this season and below are ten great reasons to put a home on the market now. 

More serious buyers – Less time wasted

These are people who are interested in buying so there is a far greater chance of actually selling the property.  Nothing is more promising to a seller than a motivated and qualified buyer that knows what they want and is actively seeking to get it.

Fewer Homes On the Market

The less competition there is, the higher the chance there is for homes on the market to sell. Where during the peak season sellers might be dealing with some interest from buyers on their home, nonetheless there is more selection for buyers to choose from and they can stray to another property.

In January Inventory Increases – Chances of Selling Decreases

With so many homeowners assuming the holidays is a taboo time to sell there is a plethora of new listings in January, resulting in a diminished chance of your home selling.  Also, there is a risk that the price you may receive on the home can be less.

Decked Halls Look Great!

Homes are very appealing to prospective buyers when they are decorated for the holidays.  With all the festive décor, lights, greenery and added beauty of the season – the home shows very well and attracts buyers faster than if shown during other times of the year.

More Time To Browse Homes

Buyers have extra time off from work and are on vacation, which translates to a more aggressive buying pattern and more chances of your home being viewed.

More Emotional Buyers

Because of the high stress of the holidays, buyers tend to be more emotional during this time than in the summer months. A more emotional buyer will tend to pay more for a new property, so selling your home during the holidays could make you more money. 

Show The Home With Flexibility

Sellers that have their home listed prior to the holidays have the added advantage to be able to “pause” the process so they can celebrate the holidays, essentially not showing the home during a period of time during the break.  When the festivities die down, things can pick up again and the seller has not only managed to save potentially lost time but can also jump right back into the market.

Transferred Employees

January is typically the month where employees are transferred into new position. In order to capture this demographic of buyers, your home must be on the market since these buyers cannot wait until the spring to buy. 

Sell Now For More Money Then Delay Closing

Extended occupancy can be negotiated, leaving both parties the leniency to get through the holiday season and past the New Year so that all sides can rest assured the deal is done but it can follow through at a more convenient time.  For sellers this option is great because they are able to secure a higher selling price on the property before the market is inundated with new listings come January when the selling values drop.

Fewer Foreclosures On the Market

Many banks will suspend foreclosure listing during this time of year, especially on properties where there are still families occupying the home.  As a result of this, some of the competition that arises for sellers from low-priced foreclosures can be avoided during the holidays.

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Keep in mind that the idea of your home’s value increasing significantly over the next several months is a myth.  The truth is that housing values likely only go up when consumer income rises.  Pay rates increase at a rate of three to five percent each year and that is 
about the maximum yearly increase we can expect to see in a home as well.  So if you are wondering whether or not to put your home on the selling market now, or to wait – one important factor is that waiting will not provide much benefit.

Why is Now the Time to Sell?

Welcome back to our video blog! I hope you had a fun and safe Fourth of July! I want to talk to you about why now is a great time to sell your home! We have three important reasons.

1. Believe it or not, school is starting in two months! There is a huge push from buyers who want to get settled before the back to school craze.
   
   
2. From 2012 to 2013 there has been a 14.5% increase in sales price. So if you want more for your home, now is the time to sell.
   
   
3. Sellers are getting 96% of their list price. That’s an incredible number!

So give us a call and we’ll give you a free market analysis, 952.303.4347!

Seven Things You Can Do to Help Your Appraiser Come Up with a Strong Number

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These days, a lot depends on how an appraiser thinks your home (or the one you are purchasing) is valued. Whether you are having an appraisal done to appease the lender for a new purchase or if you are getting your existing home refinanced – it is very important the numbers line up. If the sale price/refinance amount does not line up with what an appraiser thinks the home is valued at – you can expect to face some pretty hefty challenges.

So to help make the appraisal process as positive and frankly, as much in your favor as possible, here are some tips to get the ball rolling in the right direction:

Request a Local Appraiser
Lenders commission independent companies to go out and evaluate homes, then provide them with reports. Many of these companies are regionally based or in some cases national firms. By requesting your lender to hire a local person, you can count on that appraiser to provide a more accurate number.

Don’t Hesitate to Make Their Job Easier
Provide as much information as possible, including area comparable properties, well-documented evidence of all improvements made to the home and other helpful items such as blueprints or recent surveys, etc. Not only will this make their job easier, but also it will help to support your case on why the home should be valued higher than if they did not take those things into consideration.

Renovate and Remodel Carefully
Whenever considering a remodel project on your home, consider the potential return on investment for each project. By far, kitchens and bathrooms yield the strongest return on dollars spent for improvements.

Keep Up-To-Date With Citywide Improvements
If you know of any new developments, projects and citywide improvement schemes, share them with your appraiser. Current knowledge of these things will only help to enhance your appraiser’s valuation of your property, keeping in mind that these things typically bring up the value of a home.

Pay Attention to Your Surroundings
Just like a homebuyer or anyone else that walks through a home, there is a lot to be said for perceived value. An easy way to steer your appraiser’s attention to the more attractive features of your home is to be careful not to let them be distracted with unsightly aspects. Keep your spaces clear, clutter-free and updated. Most appraisers do not spend too much time in a home and first impressions can do a lot to influence an appraiser’s opinion of a property.

Don’t Hover But Be Available
In case the appraiser has any questions, it is a good idea to be around to be able to answer them. But it is just as important not to hover and crowd around the appraiser, rather give them space to do their job without feeling cornered. They will appreciate this and also likely be more lenient when not stressed during an evaluation.

Know the Difference Between Above and Below Grade Square Footage
Just as certain improvements to a property yield a higher ROI, it is important to keep an eye on value as it translates through above grade changes verses lower level enhancements. In other words, keep in mind that a finished basement will get you a certain percentage back on the money you put into it, but the end value will not be impacted as much as had you expanded the main levels of the home.
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Keep in mind, as our housing market continues to improve – we will tend to see more and more appraisals that may not reflect upon the current trends. This is primarily as a result of them using past sold data that may easily be a fair amount off from today’s prices.

For help with finding good comparable properties, rather than relying on outdated data from the Internet, contact us today. And as always, we welcome the opportunity to serve your every real estate need.

May 2013 Market Update: The Time is Right to Sell Your Home

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As spring comes to Minnesota, we at Team Winegarden are seeing buyers having a tough time finding a home they truly love and want to own.

That’s because there are so few homes on the market right now in Minnesota. For sellers, this should dispel reasons for sitting on the fence waiting for the market to improve.

The improvement you’ve been waiting for is here! Rising market values means the opportunity for better profits. If you have a great location and price and present your home well, you can do well in this marketplace by taking advantage of this huge pent-up demand.

If you want a more specific market update about what’s happening in your city or neighborhood, be sure to give us a call or drop us a line today.

greg@teamwinegarden.com       erik@teamwinegarden.com  (952) 303-4347