Here are some common questions that all
clients have so I will take this opportunity to give my take at it.
1.) How long does buying
or selling a home take?
I can’t give you a definite time frame
but on average with a mortgage loan it will take approximately 45 days from
acceptance of your offer to close escrow.
National Association of Realtors® says that the average buyer previews
10 to 12 homes before buying. I know of a buyer that took 5 years before
finally finding a home in Monterey Park that was right for her so it varies
from buyer to buyer. I will say though
that being realistic and knowing what you want will be the key factors to how
long it will take.
Sellers on average have their home on the market for approximately 90
days before selling if everything goes according to plan. Price will be the crucial factor here.
2.) How do I know I
am getting the best price?
As you probably already know, value is in the eye of the beholder so you
may feel that a property is worth more or less than another person would. That is where my “Competitive” Market
Analysis comes into play. It will allow
us to gauge what other buyers are willing to pay for a similar home. This way you are seeing if you will be getting
the right deal with a competitive price.
3.) What schools are
nearby?
Many buyers plan to grow their family in the home they are buying and the
school your children will be going to is definitely going to cross your mind. In fact, schools have a positive correlation with
real estate prices. With good schools
and more nerds in the area, the better the real estate prices are.
As a REALTOR®, one of the tools that clients always value is my detailed
report of all the schools in the area along with ratings that I will provide to
you. It also lists some on the local
businesses nearby. With that in hand,
buyers have another tool to determine if they are indeed buying the right home.
4.) What if something
is wrong with the house?
Product defective? Too bad? Well,
with real estate it is completely different.
Laws governing real estate transactions protect the buyer. Sellers are required to disclose all known defects
and anything that would affect the price.
It even goes as far as requiring sellers to disclose any known deaths in
the home within the last 3 years since you know, not all ghosts are going to
behave like Casper the friendly ghost. Buyers
have nothing to worry about because they have the right to continue doing inspections
even after the offer is accepted.
What if something is wrong? Well
then, the seller is not going to be too happy because the buyer has the right
to back out and get their deposit back.
That’s just the way it works so honesty upfront is very important in
every transaction.
5.) But the news is
saying home prices are going (up/down) and you are telling me otherwise?
Before you start thinking I am crazy, understand this, the real estate
market is stratified. That means it is
different in every market or neighborhood.
What the media does is average out all the markets together and that
doesn’t give you a realistic picture of the home we are discussing.
Info that I am giving you is market specific. I conduct detailed research and report back
to you and of course it is different than what the newsman with the pretty
background will be telling you.
Example: Let’s say home prices nationally are going up 15% every
year. However, the City of Make Belief sits
on the mountainside and have been hit by constant landslides. That will definitely affect the home prices
for the City of Make Belief as you can imagine.
The real estate market in the City of Make Belief will have depressed
home prices while communities all around it will continue to have the rising
prices.
Yes, it was far-fetched but it demonstrates the point.
