What Should You Ask When Interviewing a Realtor in Maryland?

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 Today's topic is an important one if you plan on buying or selling in the Maryland area anytime soon. How can you determine whether a Realtor is any good? It's a great question that we'll try to answer here today. Here are the top 10 questions to ask to ensure you're getting what you deserve:

1. How long have you been a Realtor? Real estate isn't easy - you need to work with someone who has worked in the good times as well as the bad, so they know how to navigate the waters of any given situation. 
2. Are You Full Time? This job is hard to do on a part-time basis.
3. What areas do you cover? You want to ensure your agent is familiar with your area and your community.
4. How many homes did you sell last year? I mean YOU, not your brokerage!
5. What is your list-to-sell ratio vs. the county average? This will tell you how well your agent knows the market and how to price homes effectively.
6. How long on average does it take you to sell a home vs. the county? This number will also tell you whether they know how to price listings, as well as whether they will be able to sell your home in the amount of time you're looking for.
7. Why should I hire you? Hopefully the agent has given this some thought and can tell you what makes them unique. 
8. What is your marketing strategy? At the end of the day, you need to feel comfortable that the agent's marketing plan is going  to get your home sold. 
9. Are you a solo agent or do you work on a team? What is your responsibility, and what is your team's responsibility? If your agent is working alone, find out how much business they are doing and whether they can juggle the many different aspects of the process effectively. 
10. Can you give me some examples of your problem-solving ability? This will be a good one because it is going to catch the Realtor by surprise, and you can watch them problem-solve on the spot!

Outside of asking your Realtor questions up front, you can always Google them to see if they have a strong online presence. Their testimonials and reviews will tell you a lot about the agent! Bottom line: make sure you do your due diligence before hiring an agent! 

If you have questions about how we can help, give us a call or shoot us a quick email at any time, we would love to hear from you!

Waiting to sell WILL impact your Wallet

There are many great Anne Arundel County area homes for sale. Click here to perform a full home search, or if you're thinking of selling your home, Click here for an in-depth overview of the selling process. You may also call me at (410) 320-6551 for a FREE home buying or selling consultation to answer any of your real estate questions. 

Top 10 Reasons to Sell Now
 

Today we are going to give you 10 reasons to sell your home in our current market, instead of waiting until the 1st of the year or until next spring. All of these reasons help illustrate the point that selling now can net you a lot more money than waiting can.

10. More Buying Power
 Selling now can give you more buying power to purchase as a non-contingent buyer once January rolls around. It gives you more negotiating power as well.

9. New Hires 

The beginning of the year is when most companies bring in new hires to the area. They will want to move in at the beginning of the year, but find a home now, towards the end of 2014. You have to be on the market to take advantage of this.

8. Secure a Contract Now While Selling is High 

You can also arrange for a delayed closing or rent back from the buyer if you don't want to move right away.

7. Less Competition 

Many sellers will wait to list their homes until the first of the year. This causes a big increase in inventory. The more you wait, the more you create competition for yourself.

6. Low Interest Rates
 Interest rates are incredibly low right now. This allows buyers to afford more in the market.

5. Motivation 

More people become motivated to buy during the holiday season than at any other time of the year.

4. Emotions 

Buying a home is an emotional purchase and emotions tend to run high during the holiday season. They tend to offer higher prices as well

3. Time Off 

Many people have time off during the holidays, increasing their availability to see homes. Buyers out in this market tend to be very serious about finding good homes quickly.

2. Taxes 

 Another motivation for buyers around this time of year is taxes. A lot of people are trying to purchase homes before the end of the year so they can get the tax breaks from them.

1. Low Inventory 

There are typically much fewer homes on the market this time of year. Less supply means less competition, which in turn means more money in your pocket for your home sale.

If you have any questions, feel free to give us a call or send us an email. We would be more than happy to help.
 

Don't Get Zillow'd!

There are many great Anne Arundel County area homes for sale. Click here to perform a full home search, or if you're thinking of selling your home, Click here for an in-depth overview of the selling process. You may also call me at (410) 320-6551 for a FREE home buying or selling consultation to answer any of your real estate questions.

If you're looking to buy or sell a home, Zillow can be a good place to start. You should, however, be aware of its significant limitations. For instance:

• In the Baltimore area, Zillow estimates are only within 20% of the actual value of your home 86.5% of the time. 
• This means that 13.5% of the time its "zestimate" is more than 20% inaccurate. 
• Zillow uses nonspecific data from all over the county. They aren't on the ground assessing the value on a home-by-home basis.

If someone told you that your house would sell anywhere from $240,000 to $360,000, would that be of any help? You would still have no idea where you should price your home to sell, and are left without expectations.That's why working with a real estate professional is the best option if you want up-to-date and accurate information. 

We'd be happy to check out your home and crunch the numbers for you - for free. Give us a call or shoot us an email, we'd love to make your buying and selling experience a good one.

Spring Cleaning: 4 Tips for Properly Staging Your Home!

There are many great Anne Arundel County area homes for sale. Click here to perform a full home search, or if you're thinking of selling your home, click here for a FREE Home Value Report so you know what buyers will pay for your home in today's market. You may also call me at (512) 590-0850 for a FREE home buying or selling consultation to answer any of your real estate questions.

 When preparing your home for sale, keep in mind that the ultimate goals of staging are to make your home feel as large as possible, as bright and “airy” as possible and to appeal to the masses. To stage your home properly, I’ve out lined four simple steps that you can follow:

1.      De-clutter. If you don’t need it in the home before you move, take it out! Place your extra items at a friend’s house, storage unit or P.O.D.
2.      Neutralize your home. If you have dark walls or different colored carpet throughout your house, make the change immediately – it’s significant! This could include painting your walls tan, not white (it is too stark and too cold), and keep your carpet tan as well.
3.      Maximize curb appeal. This means your lawn has to be mowed at all times, edge the corners of the lawn and trim the bushes back and avoid them from feeling overcrowded.
4.     Review comparable home sales. Inventory homes that have recently sold in your neighborhood and find out what they have done to stage their homes. Apply those techniques to your home!

I have many more ideas that I would love to share with you! If you want more information or have any questions, please feel free to call or email me. Thanks and have a great day!

How to Appeal to Buyers When Pricing Your Home

There are many great Anne Arundel County area homes for sale. Click here to perform a full home search, or if you're thinking of selling your home, click here for a FREE Home Price Evaluation so you know what buyers will pay for your home in today's market. You may also call me at (410) 320-6551 for a FREE home buying or selling consultation to answer any of your real estate questions. 

With a spring market approaching here in Annapolis, I'm going to cover a topic that's going to be important as the real estate market warms up. If you're selling your home, the most important thing you can do to sell it quickly and efficiently is to price it correctly. 

Think Like a Buyer or an Appraiser When Pricing

It is not the seller who determines the value of a property. A home is only as valuable as a buyer or appraiser makes it out to be. You have to keep this in mind when pricing your home because you're not the one determining the value. Here are a few thing I suggest for you to do in the process of pricing your property. These suggestions are very similar to the process that appraisers go through when pricing a property. 

1. Analyze the Recent Market for a Comparative Price: To get an idea of what your property might be worth, you need to look back at all the properties that sold in the last 6 months and determine how your property compares to them. 
• You need to take into account the size, location, and features that your home offers. 
2. Weigh the Pros and Cons: Simply put - what does your property offer that other ones do not?
• You have to remember to be honest with yourself about what your home does and does not offer, because when buyers do this with their agents, they're not going to be cutting any slack in comparing your home to others. 

Mistakes to Avoid

• Estimating Your Value Based on What You Owe: What you owe on your home has no relation to the price that it should be listed at. Neither the appraiser nor the buyer will consider this, and you shouldn't either. 
• Using the Tax Assessment for Pricing: You might be tempted to compare the value of your home to the price listed on your tax assessment, but that is not an accurate way to gauge the price of your home. Prices have changed dramatically within the last 8 years and the tax assessment is not a valid tool to determine the value of your home. 
• Overpricing: Do not price high and then go low. This could cost you lots of money, as buyers will not even consider your property if this happens. Find a nice, attractive value to avoid pricing yourself out of the market. 

The best advice I can give you to price your home is to look at the listings for comparable properties within the last 6 months because this is what appraisers and buyers will also be doing. However, your best bet would be to consult with me to accurately gauge a price for your home. Also, if you need any assistance buying or selling real estate in Annapolis, I can be reached at (443) 270-5093 or email me at diane@tdgmoves.com

Why You Should Sell Now - Not this Spring

There are many great Anne Arundel County area homes for sale. Click here to perform a full home search, or if you're thinking of selling your home, click here for a FREE Home Price Evaluation so you know what buyers will pay for your home in today's market. You may also call me at (410) 320-6551 for a FREE home buying or selling consultation to answer any of your real estate questions.

Hello again, and welcome back to my video blog. Today I'm going to answer a question that I always hear at this time of the year. 

Should I sell my home or wait for the spring market?

People always ask me this and I always tell them the same thing: DON'T WAIT

1. Most people believe that spring is the best time to sell a home, but this is simply not true. When you put your home on the market in the spring you will see more competition, which will only get you a lower price on your home. 
2. The buyers that are out looking right now are very serious buyers. Although there are less people looking for homes right now, these potential buyers mean business. By spring they will have likely already found a home.
3. You will get to move during the spring if you buy now, which is a nice way to avoid the summer rush that movers experience. This way it will be less costly and you can actually enjoy the nice spring weather.

These are reasons why you should start listing your home right now. The sooner you sell it, the better off you will be. There is no question that putting your home on the market right now will be a step in the right direction.

If you need to contact me for any reason whatsoever, feel free to call (443) 270-5093 or email diane@tdgmoves.com