Wasilla Real Estate News, Valley Market Real Estate

The Three Laws Of Staging January 12th, 2007

Categories: For Sellers, Getting Ready For The Sale

Getting the price right is the most important issue in determining the sales time of a home.  If it isn’t priced right it will not sell, period.  But even if the price is right there is a final step to take that will put you a notch above the competition.  We call it staging your home.  You are setting your house up so that potential buyers can feel themselves moving in. 

Most people in Wasilla and Palmer do not stage their homes, so this will help put you over the top. 

You need to de-clutter mercilessly.  You are no longer making the home comfortable for yourself or for anyone, for that matter.  You are setting the home up like a model home.  If you’ve gone into a model home that is staged well, you will notice that it has furniture, but not too much furniture.  The table may be set but there aren’t any dishes on the counter or in the sink. There may be a book on an end table but only one book.  So get rid of all the extra furniture, all the extra dishes, all the extra clothes, all the extra books.  Pack them nicely in boxes and stack them in the garage, or better yet, put them in storage.  You are going to be moving anyway.

De-personalizing allows someone else to feel at home.  Even though we all have photos of loved ones on the walls, momentos of adventurous hunts hanging over the fireplace, small pictures of all the cousins, aunts, and babies stuck to the fridge with magnets, they now need to go.  Anything that reminds buyers that this is YOUR  home and not THEIRS needs to be taken down.  Pack it up, you are going to be moving anyway.

Neutralize.  I think I have shown close to 6,000 homes since I have been in real estate.  I have yet to show a home with wall paper without a buyer commenting on it.  And the comment is never positive.  Wall paper is so personal  that it will almost never please the next buyer.  Take it down and paint the wall.  And while you are painting, repaint the green and purple bedroom that your pre-teen insisted upon.  It is best to repaint the whole interior some neutral color. 

If you have anything else in the home that is not a very neutral color replace it.  Most sellers say they would rather allow the buyer to pick their own colors and replace at closing but that is a mistake. 

Most buyers will not even buy your home if the colors cause them to have an emotional reaction. Choosing a home to purchase is first and foremost an emotional decision.  If a home doesn’t feel right the buyer will walk away.  They will usually name something about the home that wasn’t right but the real reason is that they could not feel at home in the house. 

It is much easier to mentally move in to a home that is staged well.  The buyers will sit on the sofa and just try to imagine themselves living there if you have obeyed the three laws of staging.  

Written by Marty Van Diest 3 Comments »

Wasilla Interest Rates, Jan 11, 2007 January 11th, 2007

Categories: Market Trends, Wasilla Real Estate News

The information below was provided by Bryan Scoresby at Countrywide in Wasilla

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?Loan Type????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????? 30 year?????????????? 15 year

Conventional Fixed with 1.0% LO Fee Conventional Fixed w/o 1.0% LO Fee	6.375 6.750	6.125 6.625
Conventional Fixed Fast & Easy with 1.0% LO Fee Conventional Fixed Fast & Easy w/o 1.0% LO Fee	6.375 6.750	6.125 6.625
Conventional 3/1 ARM with 1.0% LO Fee	6.250	-
Conventional 5/1 ARM with 1.0% LO Fee	6.000	-
Zero Down 80/20 with 1.0% LO Fee	7.875	-
Stated Income Stated Assets with 1.0% LO Fee	7.875	-
Zero Down, Flex 100 with 1.0% LO Fee	7.125	-
FHA Fixed with 1.0% LO Fee FHA Fixed w/o 1.0% LO Fee	6.250 6.750	- -
VA Fixed with 1.0% LO Fee VA Fixed w/o 1.0% LO Fee	6.250 6.750	- -

AHFC First Time Homebuyer (Tax Exempt)	5.500	5.250
AHFC First Time Homebuyer (Taxable Program)	6.125	5.750

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Rates are quoted based on a 30 day lock period.? Longer locks up to 180 days are available.? Shorter locks of 10 days are also available.?

Bryan Scoresby
Home Loan Consultant
1981 East Palmer Wasilla Hwy. Ste. 200
Wasilla, AK 99654
(907) 352-4504 direct
(907) 357-5866 fax?????? Email Bryan

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Written by Marty Van Diest Please leave a comment.

Sell Your House…Quickly ! January 9th, 2007

Categories: For Sellers

Let?s take another look at market statistics to see what we can learn.?

As of today there are?328 homes on the market between Sutton to Big Lake to Settlers Bay.?I took out the?brand new homes and condos.? ?Those homes range in price from $75,000 to $2.5 million.? The median price for the homes is $245,000.? But this is the most important number?these homes have been on the market for an average of 119 days.? That?s right, these homes that are on the market right now have been there for an average of?almost 4 months!?

Now lets look at the houses that have sold in the last?4 months.? Since?September in this same area?265 houses have sold.? The median sales price was $195,000.? But here it is?the houses that actually sold in the last four months were only on the market for 68 days.? So the average days on the market for houses that sell is only 68 days.?But the average house on the market right now is almost twice that.? What is the difference?

The big difference is price.? People that wanted to sell, priced their home to sell.? People that wanted to sell only if they get a certain price ended up just putting their sign on the house, and it?s been there for 4 months.? Many of them used these methods to price their home.? Obviously, this doesn?t work.?

Some homes are just so unique that it?s difficult to get a good value comparing to what is on the market.? On those few homes it is best to get a very experienced realtor to help.? Use someone you trust and work with them.? They will honestly tell you how they are arriving on a price and work with you and the market to sell your home.

But most homes in the valley can be priced close enough to the market to sell.? Of the homes that did sell in the last 4 months, the sales price was 95% or more of the asking price.? That shows that it is very important to price it within 5%? of the market.? With a good selection of inventory, buyers are not even making offers on house priced 10?15% over market price.? An experienced realtor can help you find the correct price.? You should list the house at that price and expect an offer very close to the price.

I have been selling homes full time?in the valley for 16 years.? I average more than one sale a week? Call me, I can help you find that magic number.?My cell is 232?7900, and when you call it?guess what?? It?s me that answers, not a receptionist. Or you can email me [email protected]

Written by Marty Van Diest Please leave a comment.

New Mexican Restaurant in Wasilla January 8th, 2007

Categories: Wasilla Real Estate News

We occasionally go out to eat as a family after church on Sunday.  Gerrit, (12), is usually the one who pushes it and is normally turned down.  Yesterday he wanted pizza but was immediately rebuffed, then he pushed for other ideas with no interest shown.  Then he said there is a new Mexican food place by Walmart.  The new and the Mexican picked up interest. We knew about several other Mexican places but not this one.

My oldest daughter was going back to school in Tucson last night and since she loves anything Mexican, including the food, we decided to try it out.  We were pleasantly suprised. 

Tacos Cancun is located in the Seward-Meridian Plaza just across from Walmart.  It is a clean, simple, small eatery with good food. The prices are reasonable and the menu is authentic.  I’m not much of a connoisseur of Mexican food, or any food for that matter,  but my wife and daughter make taste a big deal and both gave it a thumbs up. I was impressed with the service which was courteous and fast.  It’s open 7 days a week, 11 AM -8 PM.

There appear to be a lot of Mexican restaurants in the Valley.  It’s just a sign of the growing population here.  Don’t look for restaurant reviews on this newsletter often;  I’m not an authority on restaurants in the valley.  However, you will see occasional off subject articles like this about our local community. 

Feel free to suggest any others, email me or call at (907) 232–7900

Written by Marty Van Diest Please leave a comment.

Why Should You Pre-Qualify First? January 7th, 2007

Categories: For Buyers

You have made the decision to buy a house, it’s time to ACT! Let’s go look at houses!  Whoa!  Let’s put the snow hook in and stop this runaway team before we get all tangled up. 

Look at the reasons to talk to a lender before looking at a home.

• You will receive a good faith estimate.  This is a piece of paper that itemizes all your costs of purchasing the home.  It also states your interest rate and the monthly payment.  Most lenders will be willing to give you several good faith estimates based on different loan amounts and different types of loans. 
• You will get a head start on paperwork.  Your lender will always need some extra documents that will require some time to track down.  You will need bank recent account statements. You may need tax forms. A letter from your employer will be required stating that you actually work where you said you did.  Many times these documents take some time to track down and you can get them done early.
• Your offer to purchase will be stronger.  When you write your offer on your home the amount that you offer is only part of the equation.  The seller wants assurance that you can actually complete the purchase.  If you have pre-qualified, the lender will write a 90% letter to include with your offer that will  make the seller more comfortable even if your offered price is lower than the asking price.
• You won’t waste time and effort. If you fall in love with a home only to find that you can’t qualify to purchase it you will be disappointed.  Not only that, all the other homes you look at will seem dingy and small compared to the one you can’t have.  Save yourself the drama, put first things first.

Wasilla and Palmer have many qualified lenders that can help smooth out the bumps in the purchase process.  If you are buying a home in the Valley, I recommend using a valley lender.  There are many intricacies of valley real estate that they will know.  An out of state lender, or even an Anchorage lender may cause your loan to take longer to close just because they are not as familiar with the Mat-Su Valley. 

 

Written by Marty Van Diest Please leave a comment.