Eastside Real Estate Working-for-you!

Staging Your Kitchen For Sale

By Greg Perry

Kirkland Realtor

 

Good words from a client....

Greg,

Carter and I just want to say thank you for all that you did for us last year regarding our move to Washington State. It was such a stressful time and you helped us handle it all. Since we were out of state you were able to handle the inspection, contractors and even gave an opinion or two about paint when asked. While I know that the above and beyond service you gave to us as your clients is something you do for everyone, it is not something that everyone else normally does for their clients. You were exceptional. Carter and I appreciate your dedication and your ongoing customer care. If we have any real estate needs in the future you are the one we will look to. 

With our sincere appreciation and gratefulness, Carter and Anna,  Mukilteo, WA

Thank you, Carter and Anna!  It was a pleasure serving you!

Greg Perry
Eastside Realtor 

Short Sale Advisory -- Washington Departments of Licensing and Financial Institutions

The Washington Department of Licensing and the Washington Department of Financial Institutions have issued a Short Sale Advisory.   A Short Sale happens when a homeowner needs to sell their home, but they owe more on their home than the home is worth.
Download Shortsales-consumers 

A short sale is a real estate transaction in which the sales price is insufficient to pay the debt(s) and obligations encumbering the property along with the costs of sale, AND the seller is unable to pay the difference.  Every short sale is dependent upon the seller's lender(s) consenting to the transaction and agreeing to release the lender's security interest in exchange for less than what is owed.  I some cased however, the lender's approval of a short sale does not necessarily mean the lender relieves the seller of liability for repayment of the entire debt.

Here are some of the highlights from the Short Sale Seller Advisory:

Before proceeding with a Short Sale

• Understand a Lender's creditors Options upon Loan Default
• Be aware of Predatory "Rescue" Scams & Short Sale Fraud. 
• Contact a Fee HUD-Approved Housing Counselor or Contact Your Lender Directly.
• Utilize Free Services Available to Washington Residents
• Obtain Legal Advice
• Obtain Tax Advice

Short Sale Considerations 

• First, Understand that a Short Sale May not Discharge the Debt
• You should know whether you will still owe your lender money after the short sale.  You should know this BEFORE you close the sale of your home. 
• Understand that a short sale may result in a higher tax debt.
• Contact a Qualified Real Estate Professional.
• Investigate Documentation and Eligibility (with you lender).
• Determine the Amount Owed On The Property.
• Determine the Estimated Fair Market Value of the Property.
• Consult Legal Counsel.
• Be Aware of the Impact on Your Credit Score.
• Understand There May Be a Waiting Period Before You Can Buy Another Home.
• Home Affordable Foreclosure Alternative (HAFA) Program.

Options other than a Short Sale

• Consider All Options
• Loan Workout
• Loan Modification
• Refinance
• Deed-in-lieu of Foreclosure
• Work Out Sale
• Bankruptcy
• Foreclosure

To see the entire text of the DOL, DFI Short Sale Advisory click this link. Download Shortsales-consumers

A Powerful Way To Profit In Real Estate: Buying UP In A Down Market

By Greg Perry, Kirkland Realtor

If you're a homeowner who needs a bigger house, or just want to move up a rung in the home ownership ladder, a down market may be a good thing.

Here is a very simple example of what I mean:

Last year your favorite real estate agent told you your house would sell for$300,000. You weren't quite ready to sell....this year was better for you. Now he/she comes by and gives you startling news. Your lovely abode is now valued at $270,000! YIKES! You're looking a $30,000 shortfall in equity dead in the eye.

But wait! The new house you like was also valued for more last year, let's say$500,000. It's very likely it's price may be off by the same percentage (10%),which means this year it's worth $450,000. Here's what this may mean:

Buying UP in a down market

At the height of a hotter market, the gap between the two houses was $200,000. Now the gap between the same houses is $180,000. Yes, your home may be worth $30,000 less, but you save $20,000 between the two transactions! Keep in mind that the markets aren't as tidy as the simple graph, however the principle is powerful.

Here's a video presentation of Buying Up In  Down Market

So...... How's the Market?

Note, this is a reposting of an article that I originally posted in 2007.   We were still in the real estate bubble.  The information below is as true today, as it was in the bubble!

By Greg Perry, CRS 

One of my greatest sources of entertainment is to ask another real estate agent, or to overhear agents talk about the market.  Some agents are "glass 1/2 full" people and will always portray a positive spin, while others can't wait for the bottom to drop to fulfill a 10 year prophesy that "this market can't last, the bottom is just around the corner."  I think the truth mostly lies in the agent's personal experience at the time.  If they haven't sold anything for awhile, the market is slow, if they've had a couple recent sales, it's hot.

We tend to want to categorize markets into Buyer's markets or Seller's markets.  I actually believe we have 3 markets:  Buyers, Sellers and Balanced.  If we have more inventory than Buyers, the Buyer has an advantage in negotiation.  If we have more Buyers than available houses, then the Seller has the negotiating advantage.  A balanced market has no advantage for Buyer or Seller.

I also believe that most agents don't have a clue as to what is really happening in the market and their perspective is emotionally driven based on their current experience.  If asked how the market is doing, perhaps the correct response is "that depends!"  So, what does it depend on, you might be wondering?  Here are some ideas:

• The specific neighborhood.
• The specific price point.
• The specific house style.
• The available inventory in these specific areas.
• The absorption rate of available inventory.

At 425realty.com, our focus is on Eastside real estate.  And yes, we can chart general trends in the Eastside real estate market when we separate the Eastside numbers from the MLS.  But what does that mean to a builder in downtown Kirkland who is currently facing over 60 weeks of inventory in his price range?  Or a house on acreage in Woodinville that's been on the market for 4 months?   While it may be true that properties within 5 miles of the Microsoft campus may be selling with multiple offers.  Does that mean that the Eastside market is a Buyer's market or Seller's market?

Again, it depends.

When a Seller wants to know how much their house is worth to the market, typically they'll ask a real estate agent to do a Comparative Market Analysis (CMA).  We are trained to look at the comparable houses that have SOLD (closed properties), the PENDINGS (properties under contract waiting to close), EXPIRED (properties that did not sell) and ACTIVES (all properties currently on the market).  Total market time is also considered, however, many times this data is woefully corrupt due to listing agents that try to cheat the system by manipulating market time.  We all pretty much compile the same data in our CMA's and give it to Mr. and Mrs. Seller in a colorful presentation and do our best to convince them that we're an expert in pricing.

THE MISSING INFORMATION

The key information that is missing is the rate of absorption of the properties within the specific neighborhood, specific price point and the specific house style.  We can calculate the absorption rate by dividing the PENDING sales into the ACTIVE inventory to determine how many months of inventory there are.  From there, an actual sales ratio number can be determined.

Here's how it works:

Example A:  If you have 100 houses for sale (ACTIVES) in a specific area, and 10 homes were sold (PENDINGS) in a month, it would take 10 months to completely sell through that inventory, so we would have 10 months of standing inventory on the market.

Example B:  If 50 houses out of the 100 were sold in a month's time, we would have 2 months of standing inventory.

Example C:  If 80 houses out of the 100 were sold in a month's time, we would have 1.25 months of standing inventory.

We can then create a sales ratio by dividing the ACTIVE inventory into the PENDING sales.  For example A, the sales ratio is 10.  The ratio for example B is 50, and the sales ratio for example C is 80.

Now we can tell exactly what kind of market we have.

0-45 = Buyer's Market.  46-54 = Balanced Market.  54-100 = Seller's Market.

The lower the ratio, the better the advantage is for the Buyer.  The larger the ratio, the better the advantage is for the Seller.

ACTIVE Inventory equal SUPPLY.  PENDINGS equal DEMAND.  SOLDS are HISTORICAL DATA.

But wait....there are more important factors to consider!

A common mistake that agents use in presenting market information is that they group all house styles together.  This is an error for two reasons:  First, costs of initial construction vary between house styles.  A rambler, 1 story house is more costly to build per square foot than a split entry house.  A split entry house has basement square footage  and a smaller footprint in which it's square footage is stacked, so foundation, roof costs and plumbing costs are less.  Basement square footage has less value than above ground finished square footage.  Second, different house styles hold different physical and emotional values to a Buyer.  For instance rambler, 1 story homes  appeal to Buyers with disabilities (physical), the elderly who don't want to climb stairs (physical) and to Buyers who see themselves living in that "sunny rambler" we see so much in marketing (emotional).  If our Seller owns a rambler 1 story house, and we see that in their area there have been 6 recent and quick rambler sales and there is currently no ACTIVE inventory on the market, we can quickly calculate that for rambler style homes there are zero months of standing inventory with a 100% sell through ratio.  How does this factor in how the Seller positions himself in the market?  Regardless of what is out there in other house styles, I would recommend a position with a very aggressive list price!  I know with all certainty that the Seller will get top dollar for that rambler with a very quick market time.  When too much value is given to the historical data (SOLDS) and the house style is not factored, the house may not be positioned in the market to yield top dollar.

Conclusion:

We love to chatter about MLS stats, market trends and talk of "bubbles".  Trends are important to follow.  However, in addition to a customary CMA, when it comes down to understanding the market and pricing a house for the market, we need to drill the information down to the specific neighborhood, specific price range, and the specific house style.  When we know and understand the absorption rates and sales ratios, we can assist the Seller better to position his house to the real estate market.  When agents track the absorption rates and sales rations on a weekly basis, they can truly be considered market experts.

Greg Perry, CRS
Eastside Realtor 

Preparing Your Home For Market -- Change Out Those Dated Light Fixtures!

By Greg Perry, Kirkland Realtor
www.425Realty.com 

One of the most overlooked areas by most sellers and agents to update are those old, nasty outdated light fixtures.  You will instantly recognize the fixtures in the first group photo.  Flat bedroom squares, ugly chandelier, those '70s ball lights and u-shape bath bars.  We live with these and don't see them.  You better believe YOUR BUYERS WILL!  Nothing screams of dating more than old light fixtures!

In the scheme of things, new fixtures give you excellent "bang for your buck".  Updating old fixtures is relatively inexpensive and will give your home a more modern look.  

One of the services that I provide is a complete consultation on what to do to Prepare Your Home For Sale.  In this project, we matched a brushed chrome finish theme throughout the house; ie. door knobs, cabinet trim, faucets, hinges and fixtures.  I have assisted many clients pick out new fixtures to give their listing a competitive edge in this tough market.  

To see the rest of the Preparing Your Home For Sale series, visit these links:

Kitchen Update

Paint, Baseboards and Interior Door Update

 Preparing Your Home For Market - Curb Appeal 

Preparing Your Home For Market - Entry Update! 

 

I was also quoted in a Seattle Times Sunday feature article on this project:
Kirkland Realtor Greg Perry Quoted in Seattle Times Article 

 

 

Kirkland Realtor Greg Perry Quoted in Seattle Times Real Estate Article

On Sunday, The Seattle Times featured an article titled "Making Sure Your Price Is Right".    I recently closed a sale where we upgraded many tired cosmetics to reap the Seller more on the sale of your house. Here is an excerpt.

"A client recently spent $17,000 on paint, flooring, countertops, baseboards and other improvements to reap much more on her sale, said Greg Perry, a Windermere Real Estate agent in Kirkland.

A buyer quickly put in an offer for the spruced-up home, which listed for $399,000, Perry said. He said he would have suggested it be priced at about $320,000 before the minor remodel, declining to give details of the sale because the deal had not closed yet."

To see the entire article, click here:  Making Sure Your Price Is Right

The sale that was mentioned above closed.  The closing price was $390,000, on the market for only 20 days!

To see more on this house:

Kitchen Update

Paint, Baseboards and Interior Door Update

 Preparing Your Home For Market - Curb Appeal 

Preparing Your Home For Market - Entry Update! 

Greg Perry, Kirkland Realtor
www.425Realty.com 

 

Why Do Some Houses Sit (while other houses sell?)? The video

I ran across this very good video that discusses whether or not you are "In" the market or "On" the market.

Greg Perry, Eastside realtor

Preparing Your Home For Market -- Kitchen Update!

By Greg Perry
Eastside Realtor
www.425Realty.com

Kitchens and bathrooms are the most important areas in a house to most buyers.   So many times I hear, "it's nice....but that kitchen!".  

Here, we invest a a very modest amount of money to dramatically improve the cosmetics on this old, tired kitchen.  The basic improvements included: 1. Painting the cabinets, 2. Replacing hinges and door hardware to polished chrome. 3. Replacing the counter material with a textured laminate and tile back splash, 4. Replacing the sink and faucet, 5. Replacing the light fixtures and 6. Painting walls and new baseboards.

The entire kitchen area cost approximately $1500.00 to update.  Here are the before and after photos:

Counter detail:

   Links to other before and after photos for this home:

Preparing Your Home For Market - New Paint, New Baseboards and Interior Door Update

 Preparing Your Home For Market - Curb Appeal 

Preparing Your Home For Market - Entry Update!  

Stay tuned!  More to come!

Eastside Real Estate Statistics: Closed by Sales Price and Percentage of Short Sale and Bank Owned

By Greg Perry
Eastside Realtor

www.425Reaty.com

Ever wonder which price range is selling on the Eastside?   The majority of Eastside homes sell for above $500,000! (54%).   Here's the 2nd quarter Eastside Report for Sales by Price Range:

 

And while we're at it, here's how short sales and bank owned homes are faring.  You'll see that these properties are decreasing in percentage of properties SOLD: