STATE CAPITOL COMMENT
OCTOBER 2012
• 50PLUS • 7A
By Matt Pommer
It’s time to move:Worried your house won’t sell? Every home will sell in any market at any time of the year! That is a bold statement, but it’s true. Of course, the price will vary depending on condition, time of year, location and the state of the economy. The price you put on your home will determine whether or not you go to a closing table in a timely fashion. I visit with sellers every day and I find there are so many misconceptions about the value of their property as well as the relationship between condition and final sales price. When I visit with a potential client, more times than not the seller is holding up the tax assessment value set by the community in which they live. Your assessed value can be right on, or it can be off by as much as 30 percent depending on your community. After all, a community, when assessing your home, does not consider condition. Therefore, it takes a seasoned agent or appraiser to help you determine the true value of your home based on current market conditions as well as how your
APRON STRINGS
MOVING IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION By Bruce Nemovitz
home will be valued by a potential buyer. Remember, a home or any other commodity is only worth what a buyer will pay. It is a hard truth, but that concept has been with us as long as capitalism has AGING guided our ISSUES economy. Tom Frazier As I enter into aByconversation with my clients, my first question is how motivated are you to make your move into your new home? Why are you considering moving? It is critical to establish the urgency to make a move. Making a move from PLANTING and any home is a highly stressful TOMORROW’S important decision. IfDREAMS motivation TODAY is By Brad Olson weak, then I find that the homeowner will make bad decisions subconsciously sabotaging any potential
sale by over-pricing the home or not preparing Emma the home properly to have a chance of attracting an offer. By Auntangered Emma They may become easily by their agent or potential buyers if there is not a compelling reason to make a move. Deep down, we all dread change and will try to avoid that uncomfortable feeling if at all possible. However, I have found that if one looks to the future and sees a better situation that will enhance the quality of one’s life, then decisions will be made intelligently based on the reality of the market place. Therefore, the first step to a successful sale is establishing a compelling reason to move, taking into account the advantages of that move to a better situation. A well thought out move will almost always be successful. Once a decision has been made to move with a strong motivation, all seems to fall in place. I will ask the owner what his or her goals are as to price. If an owner decides to reach
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for the top values in the area, then condition must be excellent both inside and outside. In many cases that seller would decide to hire a stager who would collaborate with contractors such as painters and flooring companies to update their home so that young buyers would pay that top dollar. In other cases, my sellers decide to sell their home in its current condition, which may need work. We then price accordingly based on that condition. In some cases, sellers do not even want to deal with showings and marketing of their home and decide to sell to a cash broker or investor. As you can see, there are many ways to sell a home. If one is realistic with an understanding of the market place, a sale is always the result in a relatively short period of time. A properly priced home will result in a timely sale in any market, any time of the year. A well-informed homeowner with a strong incentive to move will always be successful in
the WRIGHT SIDE of
ENTERTAINMENT NEMOVITZ continued from page 22
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EARLY JANUARY – Call me for a free personalized market estimate as well as a game plan for preparing the home for market. I will explain how you can take advantage of this unique real estate opportunity, and offer suggestions as to any contractors or inspections needed. By Enis Wright
MID-JANUARY – Visit the senior community of your choice. Meet with the marketing director to determine what the apartment and service options are, as well as pricing information and availability.
KILLING TIME with Jim McLoone
EARLY FEBRUARY – Reserve an apartment at your chosen retirement community to assure you have a new home established. The marketing director will work closely with your realtor to create a smooth and timely transition. This would also be a good time to sign up with a moving and packing company. MID-FEBRUARY – Put your home on the market. The buyers will be actively looking for their new home already so they’re assured of being able to take advantage of the tax credit that will expire at the end of April. You want to make sure you’re first on the market to take advantage of these early buyers. MARCH - APRIL – You typically have to be out of our home 30-45 days after you have an accepted offer. APRIL - MAY – Move date. Your moving company will have been contacted at the time of accepted offer to set the move date.
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