Let's Talk Property Appreciation!
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It is not secret real estate prices are hot, but let’s take a look at how price appreciation has happened over the last decade.
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I Love Referrals
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I love referrals! With spring buyers coming around the corner I always appreciate your referrals to help my business!
Read MoreSelling Vacant Property Tips
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Here are some tips if you are considering putting your vacant property on the market for sale.
Read MoreDo This Before Listing Your Home
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If you want to get the most for your home in the quickest time frame consider this important tip too many sellers often overlook.
Read More6 Home Improvements That Don’t Add Much Value
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6 Home Improvements That Don’t Add Much Value
Homeowners are used to spending money on their homes for routine maintenance. Some will go as far as spending money on home improvements to better their home for their taste or even increasing the value. The issue I often come across is when these improvements are completed they don’t always added value to the home.
Here are 6 Home Improvements I see all the time however don’t add much value to the home.
- Over The Top Landscaping - Landscaping is key to buyers it is your curb appeal and first impression of the home. Keeping up with mowing the lawn, watering and trimming the bushes is a good for your curb appeal. However when you decide to go over board with the landscaping that goes above and beyond the norm for the neighborhood you start to lose money. Going over the top on landscaping can become too niche and often lead to losing money on the landscaping improvements.
- Improvements beyond the neighborhood - Improvements should be kept within range of the norm for the neighborhood and not go above as you start to lose your ROI. An example would be installing wrought iron doors in a neighborhood where no one else has some, this would be difficult to justify increasing the value much. While in other neighborhoods those doors may be the norm and are expect just to keep up with the neighborhood norm.
- Delayed Maintenance - Often maintenance items are confused with home improvements and this is not something that necessarily adds value. For example a homeowner could have delayed painting, roof, a/c and new carpet in the bedrooms for year but then does this all at once. While this may add up in expense it doesn’t necessarily add value, instead it is maintenance buyers expect and just brings the property up to par with the neighborhood norm.
- Inconsistent High End Upgrades - You ideally want to keep all the upgrades consistent instead of over investing in just one area & ignoring another. So maybe you put really high end appliances however you still have old bad counters, cabinets in need of TLC and laminate floors. Can you picture how those inconsistent upgrades might not fit in or flow with the rest of the home? Instead spread the improvements to bring everything up to par, not just in one area but the whole home.
- Sunroom Additions - It is no secret in North Texas is hot and a sunroom really isn’t appealing for most buyers.
- Pools - Pools tend to be a niche upgrade with low demand making the ROI rather low. Keep in mind people don’t want to deal with the maintenance, cleaning, chemicals, safety issues and the space it takes up in the back yard. As a result I find pools don’t have a good ROI as an improvement.
I hope you found this list helpful if you plan on making improvements or had questions regarding your ROI on these projects. At the end of the day I encourage anyone to make improvements that makes them happy. If you have questions or if I can help please do not hesitate to reach out to me.
With a heart of a teacher I look to educate my clients about the process of buying, selling or renting real estate. I strongly feel an informed and educated consumer will make better decisions and be less likely to be taken advantage of.
Have questions about this or other topics, don not hesitate to contact me.
Don’t forget to “LIKE” this video and be sure to Subscribe to my YouTube Channel as well.
Luis Cuevas, Realtor®
RE/MAX Cross Country
1990 Justin Road
Highland Village, Texas 75077
(214) 783-0535
Luis@MakeNorthTexasHome.com
Check out my website for more helpful tips:
Subscribe to my YouTube Channel:
http://Youtube.com/MakeNorthTexasHome
Follow me on Facebook:
Why Homes Don't Sell In A Hot Market
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Why Homes Don't Sell In A Hot Market
If you haven’t heard it is a very hot market, but why are you still seeing homes not sell? Is it the house that has too many issues? Location? Condition in bad shape? Pricing? It is a combination of all those but lets take a closer look.
Now more than ever I am seeing homes continue to be over priced and that is a result of a seller expecting a high demand for their home. The seller will often build in the premium and expect to get it. The reality is it doesn’t alway work that way, the market may not agree and stay away. Over pricing tends to happen all the time but this can be risky and often leads to sitting on the market much longer than normal.
Another common reason I am seeing is the condition of the property, homes that sell fast right now are in move in or turn key condition. Properties that are in bad shape and their price does not reflect it tend to sit longer. In other words if the home is in bad shape but the seller is still asking full price like homes that are in perfect move in condition, that home will tend to sit on the market longer.
Other factors I see is location and needed repairs. Location is always important and even a gorgeous home located in a bad location will sit on the market even when it is hot. Excessive repairs tends to cause an issue as well for not selling quickly. Remember not every buyer is willing to do some repairs. Keep in mind some banks have their limits on property condition and if those limits are exceeded they won’t finance it at all which really alienates many buyers. Once you get rid of buyers with financing you are left with cash buyers and those buyers want a discount.
Remember price the property correctly given the condition and location. Don’t add a premium as that will scare buyers away who are in tune with the market. Also look at properties that have been on the market as an opportunity to possibly go in with a realistic offer and win the home. This is really where having a real estate agent like me help your properly price the home so this doesn’t happen to your home when you list it.
With a heart of a teacher I look to educate my clients about the process of buying, selling or renting real estate. I strongly feel an informed and educated consumer will make better decisions and be less likely to be taken advantage of.
Have questions about this or other topics, don not hesitate to contact me.
Don’t forget to “LIKE” this video and be sure to Subscribe to my YouTube Channel as well.
Luis Cuevas, Realtor®
RE/MAX Cross Country
1990 Justin Road
Highland Village, Texas 75077
(214) 783-0535
Luis@MakeNorthTexasHome.com
Check out my website for more helpful tips:
Subscribe to my YouTube Channel:
http://Youtube.com/MakeNorthTexasHome
Follow me on Facebook:
Location! Location! Location!
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Location! Location! Location!
You hear it all the time but what does it actually mean? Location! Location! Location! Let me explain from a real estate agent’s perspective.
Location is by far the most important quality when buying a home. Location determines many things from what school district it is zoned to and how far it is from work.
The reality is homes can be changed both in the inside and out. Sometimes those changes can be easy and cheap while others are a bit more expensive but none the less those options exist. Location however is something that can not be changed, that land isn’t moving anytime soon so it is very important.
Buyers want to be in a certain school district which is another important factor, however remember this is determined by location. Also how far or close they will be from work, shopping, church and family come in to play as well. Location cannot be changed and see it tends to be the most important factor.
Let’s look at two extreme examples, both involve your dream home. In your mind think of what your dream home looks like but don’t put it anywhere just yet. Let’s start by putting it right next to a landfill, busy intersection, gas station and even busy shopping center. Still like it? Now lets move that home to back up to the beach in a quiet neighborhood. Now how do you like it?
While that example is extreme the home was the same yet we had to responses, no I don’t like it and yes I love it. Same house but different location. Location is very important and you should keep that in mind, not just for when you buy but also when you sell as it will be important to the next buyers as well.
With a heart of a teacher I look to educate my clients about the process of buying, selling or renting real estate. I strongly feel an informed and educated consumer will make better decisions and be less likely to be taken advantage of.
Have questions about this or other topics, don not hesitate to contact me.
Don’t forget to “LIKE” this video and be sure to Subscribe to my YouTube Channel as well.
Luis Cuevas, Realtor®
RE/MAX Cross Country
1990 Justin Road
Highland Village, Texas 75077
(214) 783-0535
Luis@MakeNorthTexasHome.com
Check out my website for more helpful tips:
Subscribe to my YouTube Channel:
http://Youtube.com/MakeNorthTexasHome
Follow me on Facebook: