Maybe you should read this if you are considering becoming a DIY home seller

Are you thinking about selling your own home by yourself? Do you have a list of potential buyers ready to purchase your home? Do you have a lot of extra time to market your home? Are you up to date on the latest regulations for closing a home sale? Are you ready to meet and greet potential buyers at various times during the day to view your home?

Some homeowners think that if they sell their home themselves, they will profit more financially from the sale without using an agent, in exchange for some blood, sweat and tears from doing it themselves. Research tells us otherwise. What they will get is some last minute wheeling and dealing, a 30 day stress headache, and a lower price than what the market really could get them.

According to a study by the National Association of REALTORS (NAR), 8% of all homes sold in 2017 were sold as For Sale By Owner (FSBO). This number is down from 2004 when it was 14%. People are learning and seeing the value in using a professional real estate agent when making one of the biggest purchases of their lives. 

In the NAR's 2017 Home Buyers and Sellers Profile Report, they found that the average FSBO home sale actually made less than they would have if they used a real estate agent. In the study the national median selling price was $250,000. The median selling price for a FSBO home was $190,000. That is a $60,000 difference and with a 6% average sales commission ($15,000), that is $45,000 that is missing from the sellers' pocket. When a FSBO deal occured between someone the seller knew, that number fell to $160,300. That is a $89,700 difference! That is a lot of money to lose out on when dealing with the sale of your home.

These are hard, real numbers. Big numbers. These numbers are different than our median sales price numbers here in Utah, so the $$$ difference is even greater. The best thing you can do if you are thinking about selling your home by yourself is to talk to me or another trusted real estate agent. Ask what commissions are (I offer a discounted commission for teachers, fire fighters, law enforcement, active military, and EMTs) and figure out what that number is for you. The numbers show that in reality, selling your home by yourself results in less money in your pocket at the end of the transaction. Save yourself some money, time, and stress and have an agent hang the sign for you. Call or text me, 801 631-3430. I'd be happy to chat with you about this.

Brought to you by Heath @ HeathsHomes.com

                     

Are you ready to sell?

Have you asked yourself the question - What do I absolutely, bare bones, need to fix before I sell my house?

Here are the basics, hopefully it's not as daunting as you think!

1. patch holes and cracks in the wall

2. fix all broken appliances

3. leaky faucets

4. repaint any marred walls

5. replace any broken windows

6. repair any roof issues

then.... for a bonus,

change any outdated light fixtures

Now you are ready to call your realtor, sign a few papers and get some pictures taken of your spiffy house. I would be happy to help. My sign would look great in your front yard and I will do my best to keep you the best informed seller and get you the best buyer for your house. 801 631-3430

P.S. You might also be interested in going the extra mile and doing some remodeling or improvements that will make your home more desirable to potential buyers. Take a look at these blog posts to get your efforts going in the right direction. Click here and here, but this one is my favorite.

Brought to you by Heath @ HeathsHomes.com

Top 10 remodeling projects by costs recouped at resale

Recently quite a few people have asked me these questions as well as similar ones. You may have the same questions too. 
"What are the most important things I need to fix on my house before I put it up for sale?" 
"I am planning on selling my house in the next 4 or 5 months, what can I do now to get ready?"  
"What is the smartest remodeling project that will get me more money at resale time and make my home more desirable?"

In the most recent Salt Lake REALTOR Magazine there is a table in the corner of one page that answers most of these questions people are asking me. You may be interested as well.

This report says that a new garage door will recoup 98.3% of its costs and a new front entry door will get you 91.3% of the cost back at resale as well. A wooden deck addition claims an 82.8% return on investment and a minor kitchen remodel will get you 81.1% back on the cost of the remodel.

There are a handful of projects that you can do by yourself that can really help your home stand out from the others on the market and give you that extra edge. If you have any questions, call me or send a text. I'd be glad to offer my help and advice. 801-631-3430

Brought to you by Heath @ HeathsHomes.com

I'm sharing secrets of the trade

HGTV.com just shared their best kept secrets for selling your home. I picked my favorites to share with you but if you want to read the entire article, here it is.

#9 - HALF EMPTY CLOSETS
Taking half of the stuff out of your closet and tidying the rest of it lets potential buyers think that if you have plenty of storage space, they will too. Storage space is important to everyone and if you can make it seem like your home offers alot of it, then your house gets to move up to the top of their Favorite Homes list.

#8 - LIGHT IT UP
Maximizing the light in your house is a very effective way to make your home more desirable. Clean the windows, clean lampshades, dust or remove window coverings, go for a higher watt light bulb, and cut the shrubs to let the sunshine in through the windows. Making your house more bright and cheery makes it more sellable.

#6 - CONCEAL THE CRITTERS
I love my dog and you love your pets, but not everybody else does. It is a turn off to potential buyers to walk in your house and see the slobbery dog dish, smell the litter box, hear the dog barking furiously from the laundry room, or walk out of your house with tufts of pet hair on their clothes. It gives the impression that your house is not clean. Take your critters with you and put the traces of them away when your house is being shown.

#4 - TAKE THE HOME OUT OF YOUR HOUSE
One of the most important things you can do when selling your house is to depersonalize it. The more personal stuff in your house, the less potential buyers can imagine themselves in your house. Remove 1/3 of your stuff, especially personal memorabilia, photos, and keepsakes.

#3 - THE KITCHEN COMES FIRST
The kitchen can make or break a home sale. The benefits of remodeling a horrible kitchen are endless and you'll probably get much of your investment back with your home sale. If you had to chose between spending a few thousand dollars on new kitchen countertops or getting $10,000 less for your home because your kitchen was too outdated, I think you'd pick completing the upgrade. The fastest most inexpensive kitchen updates can be just a fresh coat of paint and new cabinet hardware. Use a neutral colored paint so potential buyers can see their own blank canvas to work with.

#1 - THE FIRST IMPRESSION IS THE ONLY IMPRESSION
Spruce up the exterior of your home. Inexpensive shrubs and flowers go a long way in making your house feel welcome, warm, and safe. You can typically get 100% return on investment on your home's curb appeal expenses. Entryways are also important. Even though you use it for keys, coats, and shoes, when you are selling your house furnish it with a bench, a table, and some flowers.

Hopefully these 'secrets' are helpful in helping you think about what will help you sell your house faster and more easily. If you would like to talk to me about specific concerns with your house I am more than happy to offer you my professional opinion and help. 801 631-3430

PS, you might also enjoy my blog post about 4 easy ways to add value to your home, the smartest remodeling projects, and should I sell. 

Brought to you by Heath @ HeathsHomes.com

For our local heroes

All teachers, firefighters, law enforcement, EMS professionals, and military personnel are eligible for our

Innovative Heroes Incentive.

I've been working on getting these postcards out to the locals that I know work in these fields, but I am sure I have missed a few so I'm trying to spread the word.

I want to say thank you to our local heroes by offering real estate savings when they buy or sell property.

Last summer I sold a home in Heber for a family. The seller works at JR Smith Elementary School. I was able to give them a $1800 check at the closing of their property because of the Heroes Incentive. It's my way of saying THANK YOU to the people who help our community in so many ways.

If you are considering buying or selling, call me and I'll tell you the good news and the money I can save you. 801 631-3430 

Brought to you by Heath @ HeathsHomes.com

Add value to your home by using 1 of these 4 methods

Expanding your living space into the great outdoors is one of the top four ways living landscapes can add value to your property and extend the usefulness of your home. 

Yards can be outdoor family rooms and are becoming a more and more important element for those of us that like to spend time outside and provide a safe place for our kids and pets to play outside as well. Merging indoor with outdoor living to increase living space is a huge trend right now and will in most cases increase the value of your home and make it more desirable to home buyers as well as yourself.

Adding curb appeal is something also commonly talked about when discussing ways that living landscapes can add value to your property. A first impression is very important to most home buyers and the front yard and front entry is the ticket. Studies show that improving curb appeal by beautifying the lawn and front landscape can boost property values by as much as 17 percent.

The third way to make your living landscape work for you is by adding trees. Mature trees are a positive point for home buyers. According to the Society of Arboriculture, each mature front yard tree adds 1 percent to a homeowner's sale price and a large specimen tree can add as much as 10 percent to a property's value. That 1 percent may not seem like much, but given that the usual commission of a real estate agent working for you receives 3 percent of the sale price, that little tree investment is pretty awesome.  The research suggests that if you plant 3 trees to increase your price by 3 percent, then you've technically paid for a real estate professional to help you with the contracts, deadlines, and hassle of selling your home.

The other top four method to add value with living landscapes is to actually plant and nurture them. Living landscapes impact monthly utility bills. The U.S. Department of Agriculture tells us that strategically placed trees can save up to 56% on annual air conditioning bills and in the winter, evergreens that block winter winds can save 3% on heating costs. Even your lawn is beneficial and can impact your energy efficiency. According to the Alliance for Water Efficiency, cumulatively, eight average sized front lawns can provide the cooling equivalent to air-conditioning for 18 homes. 

So as you decide what living landscape projects you want to undertake to increase your property value as well as your own outdoor family happiness, consider these statistics from the National Association of Realtors:

Seeding the family yard will recover 417% of the project cost.

Updating a landscape with sod will result in a 143% recovery of costs.

Adding a new patio will recover 102% of the investment.

Building a new wooden deck will recover 106% of the project cost.

It looks like any beautification or enhancement to your outdoor living space will pay off financially as well as let you enjoy the great outdoors to a fuller extent.

To read the full article I found about this topic, please go to www.LivingLandscapes.Matter.com. 

Brought to you by Heath Harvey @ HeathsHomes.com

What YOU need to know if you are considering buying or selling your home in the next 4 months.

In the May 2017 issue of the Salt Lake Realtor Magazine, an article was published with an eye catching title, 'The Strongest Seller's Market Ever.' So I had to read it.

The article points out what we have personally witnessed here in Wasatch County - fewer listings and a lag in new home construction. This combo makes for a robust sellers market, and this means home prices are up. Sellers are getting multiple offers in on their homes that are at or near listing price. This is great news for those wanting to sell their home but a bit rough for most first time home buyers.
The current situation puts potential home buyers that are not using a real estate agent at a severe disadvantage, as well as those that are selling their homes by themselves. For those that are not familiar with the home buying or selling process, which includes most people, the process can be taxing and stressful, as well as possibly short cutting themselves financially.
The knowledge a successful real agent possesses concerning tight deadlines, correctly filling out contracts, appropriate pricing, disclosures, inspections, earnest money, warranties and a handful of other issues, will probably be the difference between someone buying the house of their dreams for the best price or losing it to another buyer. Likewise, it might be the difference in selling a home for the best price and under the best circumstances rather than losing buyers because of inexperience or selling it under what it is truly worth.

Troy Peterson, the president of the Salt Lake Board of Realtors, is the one who was quoted saying "This is the strongest seller's market ever." He was referring to the state of Utah and his comments noted that competition is fierce for homes priced under $500,000 right now. We see that truth in Wasatch County. If you need any real estate advice, recommendation, consultation, or instruction, please feel free to let me help you. I love being a real estate agent. I love working with people to help them find their own little piece of happiness in our beautiful valley. I love the process of buying and selling homes, and I am great at it. 801-631-3430

Brought to you by Heath Harvey @ HeathsHomes.com

2017 predictions for Wasatch County real estate

The US Census Bureau recently released the news that Utah is the fastest growing state in the Union. We hit the 3 million mark in 2016. This growth is not just because we are the nation's baby making state, but also because it is an amazing place to live and Utah is experiencing a net inward migration.

The demographic director at the U of U says Utah's growth is not a rip roaring growth but a sustainable controlled growth as we emerge from a recession. James Wood, a senior fellow at the U of U, says there is a housing shortage in the state as we experience this growth. What does that mean for the real estate market in Utah and in Wasatch County?

James Wood states, "The number of new listings of “for sale” homes have been disappointing. Listings have lagged well below demand, limiting home buyer choices."

Experts that predict real estate market conditions expect 2017 to be very similar to 2016. If you are selling your home in 2017, you can expect to benefit from the housing market with quick sale times and many potential buyers interested in your home. If you plan on purchasing a home this year, you can expect to have quite a bit of competition with other buyers for homes you are interested in buying.

The Heath Harvey 2017 Outlook for Wasatch County shows a low inventory of homes for sale with a high demand of buyers. Home prices in the Wasatch Back will increase slightly along with interest rates. The market is still good overall for both buyers and sellers. Sellers will see a good return on their investment and buyers can still take advantage of low interest rates.

As the demographics of Utah and Wasatch County change and shape the real estate market and home buying experience, questions may arise. Please feel free to call me and talk about your real estate investment. 801 631-3430

Brought to you by Heath Harvey @ HeathsHomes.com.

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Should I Sell?

Are you thinking about selling your house? You might have a handful of questions swimming around in your mind that need to be answered to help you decide IF you do want to sell your house. Let's talk about just a few of them.

The usual response is probably late spring or early fall. The change of the seasons elicits a need for change in our lives as well, and it may just seem like a natural time. 
The current trend shows the demand for quality, well priced houses in our valley are at a premium in the late spring and early fall. Currently, the demand for a modest house in the 4 bedroom range is very high. If you wanted to sell your nice, 4 bedroom, 2 bath house right now, you could get a supreme price because there aren't many on the market. 
Keep in mind the best time to sell houses also depends on the size of house. Luxury houses are not as hot right now. Currently there are many luxury houses to chose from, so the demand is lower which usually results in longer list time and longer days on market.
Don't discount winter as a perfect time to sell your house. There is usually less competition so that increases the demand of the house you are selling. Also, serious buyers are always looking for a house, no matter the season.
So the answer to the question of when is the best time to sell your house is whenever you want to sell it. Your real estate agent will have the best inside information to help you decide the local market and the best timing for our valley.

This is another question that might be on your mind. If it's not crunch time and you don't have to move quickly, you don't want to list your house if the market isn't safe and you can't come out financially ahead. Your real estate agent will provide you with quite a bit of information that is a good indicator of the market in our area as well as how much your house is worth.
You'll get a sizable list of houses similar to yours that recently sold, recently expired, that are currently under contract, houses currently for sale, and all the prices that are attached to each of those houses. The list includes a large amount of information including acreage, square footage, age, bedrooms, baths, garage specifics, maps, and photos. This helpful list is called a CMA, a comparative market analysis.
If you want to figure out the worth of your house and see how the local real estate market is performing, stay away from internet websites that give you estimates. We live in a beautiful and unique part of the state which dictates it's own market that only a real estate professional can perceive. Don't hesitate to call your local professional for a free CMA on your house.

Not properly getting your house ready to put on the market can be a big disadvantage and a turn off to potential buyers, but you are probably closer to being ready than you think.
Eliminating any odors, getting rid of clutter, spiffing up the furniture, possibly a fresh coat of paint in portions of the house, and tidying up the front yard go a long way in the overall appeal of your house. If you know something doesn't work, get it fixed. If something needs to be repaired, repair it. 
Don't get the wrong idea, there is a fair amount of work to get your house ready to be shown, but truly, decluttering is the majority of it. It's not more than you can handle. Your agent will let you know if anything requires special attention.

Selling your house is kind of a big deal and this is only a handful of hundreds of questions you might be considering and thinking about. A good real estate agent will be happy to answer all of the questions that might be swimming around in your head about selling your house.

Brought to you by Heath Harvey @ HeathsHomes.com

divorce

Sometimes divorce is not a pretty word.  Especially if you're in the middle of one. It's usually quite rough. What makes it rough is figuring out child custody and dividing assets and liabilities. In most relationships the largest shared assets are usually real estate assets; either the marital home or investment properties.

The division of these assets can be intense, complicated, stressful and can be the hardest part of the divorce process.  Hopefully both parties can come to an agreement and arrangement that is equitable and fair. This drastically reduces court and attorney costs.

When the divorce is finalized, after mediation, or after the court divides the assets, the future of the marital home will be known. Sometimes when one party is awarded the home, they will 'buy out' the other party.  This can be done with awarding the party not receiving the home with more shared assets that equal their half of the worth of the home. It can be done with splitting the worth of the home so one party pays cash in the amount of half of the house to the other. It can be done multiple ways depending on how much equity is in the home and how much is still owed on the home.

One of the downfalls of this situation is that one party wants to hold onto a house they can not afford to live in.  They do this for many reasons but one may be an emotional one. They don't want to let go of the house they may have raised their children in or they don't want to leave neighbors. They willingly keep the house while the other party takes other assets that equaled the worth of the house and find a less expensive place to live. This can leave one spouse buried in bills and debt to keep the house running.

Often the best way to handle the situation is to sell the home and each move on and into their own separate homes. It may seem kind of harsh to suggest this, but during a divorce emotions are on high alert and the decisions made are usually very important and can be detrimental if made emotionally. 

A New York Daily News article about divorce and real estate division stated that one of the worst mistakes made while working out the details of a divorce and distributing property is that one spouse makes the emotional decision to keep the house and is therefore consumed in debt because he or she can not financially make it work with day to day living and bills. Because one spouse is determined to hold onto a house they can not afford, they are drained and in a stressful situation while the other spouse lives easier and less burdened with finances.

If you or someone you know is getting a divorce, I would be glad to help in this emotional time. I give professional yet compassionate service and I would love to help work out the real estate puzzle you or they may be facing.

Brought to you by Heath Harvey @ HeathsHomes.com

Are you thinking about selling your home?

Are you thinking about selling your home?

Are you unsure of where to start or think your price range expectations are too high?  Or possibly too low?  Did you know that any real estate professional would be more than happy to run a CMA for you?  That's a Comparative Market Analysis.  

This little bit of information will ease your mind by letting you know how much other homes in your area that are similar in size, condition, and age to your home sold for recently.  Yes, you get to know the selling prices of the other homes in your neighborhood so you will know what price is a fair price for you to list your home. And the kicker is, if you use a good realtor, they will usually do this free of charge.  See?  No need to worry or be unsure.  Getting a CMA done is the best place to start if you are thinking about selling your home. Give me a call and we can talk about your CMA. 801-631-3430

Brought to you by Heath Harvey @ www.heathshomes.com