No two homes are alike, which is why pricing a home for sale can be so challenging.

You may have an idea of what your home is worth on the open market, but in order to sell it, you’ll have to support your price to buyers with comparables – other similar nearby homes that have sold recently or are currently for sale.

To help determine the right asking price for your home, your real estate professional will prepare a comparative or comparable market analysis, or CMA.

The CMA is a professional report that real estate agents give to their clients. CMAs are generated by a computer program from your agent’s multiple listing service, (MLS). The MLS is available to members only, and they pay a fee to get access to the service’s public and proprietary data, including tax information, sold transactions, and listings input by all cooperating MLS members.

Your agent puts search perimeters into the CMA program for homes for sale or those that have recently sold that are most similar to your home. This information is sorted according to fields of information such as neighborhood or area, number of bedrooms, number of baths, age of the home, square footage, price range, sold dates within 3-6 months, and other data.

The program then creates a report that tells the agent which homes most similar to yours have sold recently and which homes are for sale.

The CMA is an analysis based on the most current information. It provides unbiased empirical evidence of the latest market conditions as they relate to your home.  You can clearly see a snapshot of the market in the CMA – that prices are going up or down, and what buyers are willing to pay right now.

As a pricing tool, the CMA has some limitations. For example, it can’t tell you why some homes sell above or below the market average. While one home sold for $130 per square foot, another home on the same block sold for $120 per square foot – the same week!

What made the difference?

There are features about any home that can’t be quantified by a CMA, but you can read through each listing in the report for clues for why a home sold for more or less than the market average.

Between identical homes, one property may simply offer better drive-up appeal or is in better condition. Clutter, dirt, overcrowded closets, pet odors or too much furniture can overwhelm buyers and cause them to view a property negatively, which will influence the price they’re willing to pay. To avoid this, be sure you are staging your home to sell by simplifying your space. You can sometimes tell from pictures on the CMA if conditions made a difference in a home’s selling price.

Also, buyer and seller motivation can’t be quantified.  You don’t know why a seller agreed to take less for their home or why a buyer paid more for another home. Family problems, corporate relocations and other reasons all play a role. What you can learn from the CMA is how long the home took to sell. If it was quick, the seller was highly motivated.

For these reasons, your real estate professional may suggest that you disregard the highest and lowest sales price in a CMA before choosing your listing price.

As you’ve lived in your home, you’ve made repairs and improvements that only you know about. Your real estate professional can help you look at these costs realistically.

While a home with a new roof is certainly worth more than a home that needs a new roof, you may not get 100% of your investment back in your sales price. What a new roof can do, however, is make your home more attractive to buyers, and more likely to attract offers.

Your real estate professional will suggest a pricing strategy for you based on the CMA, but the asking price will be up to you. You have to consider your home’s condition and your motivation as well as local market trends.

Remember, comparables are your home’s competition – the homes you use to compare to yours are the same homes buyers will use for comparison as they shop for a home.

They’ll choose the home that best suits their needs and what they perceive to be the best value in price, location, and condition.

1. Determine Your Needs

The process of purchasing a home can be especially daunting if you don’t take the time to determine your needs. A real estate professional will be able to best assist you if you are willing to answer a few important questions:

• What is your current lifestyle and how will that play into the neighborhood or community you choose? e.g. sports enthusiast that requires hiking trails within the neighborhood
• Size of home including bedrooms, bathrooms, and specialty rooms such as media or pool room.
• Style of home: Ranch vs. Two-Story and Tudor vs. Cape Cod

2. Consider the Cost of Homeownership

There are various financial commitments to consider, most importantly how a new home will fit into your budget.

You need to ensure that you can afford the monthly mortgage payment, as well as any expenses including utilities and/or possible homeowner’s association fees.

3. Interview a Real Estate Professional

The interview process is one of the important first steps in buying a home. An experienced sales associate, like myself will be eager to share  expertise and skills so you can make an educated decision.

Ask for references and listen to what other people have to say about their experiences with a particular agent. Ultimately, you want to find someone that knows your area, has a good grasp on current market conditions and that you feel comfortable with.

4. Decide if You Will Build or Buy Resale

Are you going to buy an existing home or build something new? There are pros and cons to both, with each a reflection of your lifestyle and needs.

This calls for thorough research to identify which of the above is beneficial to you as an aspiring homeowner.

5. Location, Location, Location

Location is one of the key factors to consider in any home purchase. Make sure that you buy a home in areas where the value of property is set to increase as opposed to those with low prices and high chances of stagnation.

6. Understand Mortgage Options

Speak with a mortgage professional about your options and make sure to share details about your current financial situation, including your monthly budget for a new home. They will be able to offer guidance on which loan program will work best for you.

7. The Benefits of a Home Inspection

A home inspector will inspect the home prior to purchase to examine for structural and safety issues. An inspection is not required, but a wise choice as it will determine if the home is structurally sound and wiring and pluming are up to code.

They will also check for safety hazards, including loose railings, rotted or damaged porch or entryway steps and broken windows.

8. Get Everything in Writing

The best way to protect yourself is to ensure that every part of your transaction is captured in writing. An example of this would be repairs the seller agrees to make prior to closing.

Your real estate professional is there to make certain those repairs are added to an addendum which becomes a part of the purchase agreement. You do not want to have a casual conversation with the seller that could be left to interpretation when it comes to the largest purchase you will probably ever make.

9. Finalize the Purchase

To avoid problems at the closing table, make sure you have a clear understanding of what to expect. Go through your loan details one last time so there are no surprises when it comes to interest rate, loan amount or mortgage term.

There will be a substantial amount of paperwork to sign so give yourself plenty of time to adequately review the details.

10. Home Improvements

Your home is a valuable asset. Once you close, continue to put aside money on a monthly basis for any necessary repairs or maintenance.

It’s also important to note that certain upgrades may contribute to lower insurance premiums. This makes it important for you to stay in touch with your real estate professional. They can provide guidance on value boosting renovations.

As it does every summer we are starting to see a slowdown in the Estevan market.  It is no surprise to me as this has happens every year.  People are on holidays or those that have been looking for a house have found one and are already moving.  It is easy for frustration to set in, however there are some things that you can do to still make your home attractive to others.  It is true though that if you are holding on to the prices from the spring market and still hoping to get them that your house will sit for a fairly long time. It’s a whole new world for home sellers. So, how do you make your house stand out so it will sell when sales are slow?

1. Price your home aggressively. When mortgage rates are low and buyers are chasing too few houses for sale, sellers can ask high prices and get them. Even when houses are overpriced for the market, sellers are likely to receive some offers, as buyers are often desperate to find a home that meets their needs. But, when things are slow, pricing is absolutely critical. But instead of pricing your home aggressively high, you should consider pricing your home no higher than the middle of the range for homes comparable to yours. And if you need to sell your home quickly, you should consider pricing your home among in the bottom 25 percent of comparable homes. Why? With few buyers chasing many homes, you need to quickly get the attention of those who are serious about buying. If your home is priced too high, you many never get buyers to even consider looking at your home.

2. Quickly cut the price if you don’t get action. Everyone wants to sell their home for as much money as possible. Nobody wants to “give” their home away. But homes that languish on the market in a slow market often are forced to make one price reduction after another, as buyers and real estate agents may begin to question why the home has been on the market for so long. In a slow market with few buyers you may want to cut the price to more quickly make the sale

3. Find the right agent — it’s critical. Any agent can list your house. But when buyers are few you need a first-class real estate professional on your side. They’ll help with everything from pricing to advising you on the other 6 other points in this article. I have had experience selling in a slow market and know what it takes to have a successful sale.

4. Curb appeal. After pricing, nothing will bring more potential buyers into your home than a house with outstanding curb appeal. Take a walk down your street with a critical eye. How does your home stack up from the outside? If it doesn’t stand out from the rest then it’s time to get to work.

5. Consider home staging. The quickest way to add value to a home for sale is a fresh coat of paint. After, you may want to consider home staging—either do it yourself or hire an outside firm. A home staging professional will come in and take away some furnishings and rearrange others to make your home show better. When home sales were going gangbusters this was a technique used mostly by those selling high-end homes. When things get slow and homeowners need to sell, more people find home staging professionals to help them prepare their home to make it home more appealing to prospective buyers.

6. Fix stuff. The loose railing. The broken pane of glass. The closet door off of its track. The leaky faucet. They all need fixing. If you don’t have the time or skill, find a handyman to go through your home and make repairs. Also, consider replacing the old roof that looks like it might leak, the antique furnace, and the stained rug. When there are few homes on the market, sellers sometimes offer cash at closing to repair the roof or for the stained rug. With so many homes on the market, buyers can afford to only bid on those that are in move-in condition. Fix what needs repair before listing your house.

7. Offer flexible terms. Flexibility is the key now. You’d like to close in two months, but the buyers might be in a hurry and need to close sooner. Find a way to make it happen. You were planning to take the appliances to your new home but the buyers make a bid near asking price – but with the appliances. Leave the washer and dryer behind (and then go find a store that offers no payments on appliance purchases for a year). And for those items that have deep sentimental value, make sure they are removed prior to any showings. Competition between home sellers is high – you don’t want to lose the only buyer who has looked at your home in a month.

Source: http://www.homeinsight.com/details.asp?url_id=5

As of late I have had many people approach me to purchase homes but they need to sell their home first before they can do so.  This can be one of the most frustrating situations for a buyer/seller combo as there are many factors to consider, and many different situations you could find yourself in.  Below are five things that you should do and experience throughout the whole scenario.

1. Prepare to be stressed

Buying a home is stressful. Selling a home is stressful. When you do both at the same time, the experience is super stressful, not to mention emotional and difficult on many levels. You’re potentially carrying two mortgages or trying to time the purchase with the sale. There will be a lot of sleepless nights, worrying over finances and pressure to make a decision. It’s enough to ignite a family war.

Accepting upfront that this process will be extremely stressful will help in the long run. Know that most homeowners go through this, and there is success at the end of the long, dark tunnel. Plan everything as much as possible in advance. Do your homework. And take care of yourself. You’re going to be busier than usual.

2. Meet with your agent early on

Owners often believe their home is worth more than what the current market will bear. That’s why it’s important to meet with your real estate agent early on, even months before you plan to buy or sell. Researching online valuation tools or doing basic research will help to guide you. But I will help you understand your home’s true current market value and marketability. A good agent is in the trenches daily and knows your neighborhood and market inside and out.

3. Learn the market where you want to purchase

After getting some hard numbers for your home’s sale you need to do the same on the purchase side. What’s on your wish list?  What are your priorities? Determine your needs and understand what you will get for your money on the purchase side. You need to know this to factor in how financing will work with the buy/sell. Also, understand that market. Is it more or less competitive than where you live now? How long can you expect to search for a home? This will factor into your sale timing. If you’re moving within the city or town where you live, your listing agent will likely serve as your buying agent. If you’re moving just outside your area, you may need to ask your agent to refer you to an agent knowledgeable about that area.

4. Know your numbers

Once you understand the numbers on both the purchase and the sale, you need to know your financing options. Many people today don’t have a strong-enough financial foundation to purchase another home before selling their own, so knowing this upfront can help you plan more appropriately.

Engage a local mortgage broker or lender and understand what kind of down payment you’ll need to make a purchase, given the price point and type of home you seek to buy. How much equity do you have in your current home, and is the equity available? Do you have enough of a down payment liquid and would a lender allow you to make the purchase before selling the home? Find out by going through the loan pre-approval process. A good, local mortgage professional is as valuable as a good real estate agent.

5. Make a plan

Now that you know your numbers, it’s time to come up with a plan and execute. The plan can vary greatly, depending upon any number of conditions. Some examples:

• Buying in a competitive market? Adding a contingency that your current home must sell before you buy probably won’t work.
• Selling in a competitive market? You may be able to negotiate with the buyer for a longer escrow or even a rent back. This would buy you time on the purchase side.
• Selling in a slow market and buying in a competitive market? Need the sales proceeds in order to do the purchase? Unfortunately, you’re in the worst-case scenario. Consider the option of selling your home first and moving into temporary housing. While not the most physically convenient, it could be less stressful.
• Need temporary housing? Start researching those options now well in advance

Understanding the variables

• There are so many variables that can come into play when buying or selling. Each one may affect your decision-making process. Identifying and planning for the variables as much as possible early on will help you avoid sleepless nights, stressful days, or fights with your spouse or partner.  In my experience with home sales, you lose a lot of negotiating power, you almost succumb to the seller, as you are asking for them to wait on you to sell your home.  There are a couple of different things that can be done. 

• Interim or bridge financing- Talk to your financial provider and see if you are able to pay a mortgage on both homes if you have too.  Although it is a little bit more pricey, you gain your negotiation power back, and most of the time your home will sell if it is priced competitively.  Then it is a matter of negotiating possession dates accurately so you do not incur that additional cost, or mortgage payment.

• Option Clause – In a majority of situations a clause will be incorporated into an offer which is called the option clause.  This allows sellers to still show and accept other offers on the same home you have an accepted offer on, however in the initial negotiation of your purchase you and the seller will decide how many hours after the other offer is accepted you will have to remove your conditions.  Most of the time a seller will allow between 48 – 72 hours for you. 

There are many different things that you will experience throughout the ‘domino effect’ but in the end the transaction should be as smooth as any other regular transaction should be.

For those who say that there is nothing to do in this town, they are sadly mistaken!  Recently, I read a Letter to the Editor in the Mercury where Michel Cyrene (Director of the Estevan Chamber of Commerce and Tourism Estevan) who was quick to inform those that there is nothing to do in town, there is.  For those who do not know what is going on in town and would like to find out, I would highly encourage you to visit tourismestevan.com. Here you will find a large calendar full of events that are going on every month, and throughout the year in the Energy City.  This being said, there were many events and initiatives that were going on in the month of June and I think it is important that some of the people involved should be recognized for all that they do!

1. Estevan Motor Speedway – Thank you to all of the volunteers and board members who put in countless hours to provide the residents and racing enthusiasts of Estevan with some high energy entertainment.  It always amazes me at the amount of people that are out there pre and post-race to get everything ready!  Good on you all!

2. Estevan Exhibition Association – Thank you for the amount of work you put in to make sure that we are able to have a fair every year.  My father was previously the President of the is Association and I know first-hand the amount of work and dedication it takes you to put the fair on!  Another exciting attraction for our residents!  Also, a shout out to all those who continue to organize the Idol competition which allows us to showcase some of Estevan’s musical talent!

3.Estevan Art Gallery – Unfortunately, I was unable to attend this event, but heard nothing but great reviews.  The work that the Art Gallery and all those involved in the Arts Council who work tirelessly to keep Art and Culture alive in the City is appreciated!

4.Woodlawn Regional Park Board, Nathan Puffalt and Becky Howie – A fantastic day that you put on to re-open Estevan’s biggest treasure, Woodlawn.  An amazing day was planned and you should be very proud of the accomplishment.  The re-building of Woodlawn truly shows the strength of this community and how well we can all work together when tragedy strikes!  Great work!

5. To all of the Community who took part in the United Way Day of Caring and to the Executive of United Way Estevan – Thank you for all of the work you did.  At ECS we are one of the agencies who benefit through Challenge Day, an initiative to combat bullying at our School.  The work you do is greatly appreciated.

6. Maureen Ulrich and the Souris Valley Museum Group – After combatting the effects of the flood, it is good to see this large tourist attraction back and in full swing!  It is always a great experience anytime I have attended.

7.Tanis Savill and the supporters of the Gown Drive at ECS – Your kindness, gratitude and initiative is something that leaves me speechless.  Again, it shows the strength and caring nature of this community and the people who live in it! Your story has been province and country wide! 

8.Kinsmen and Kinettes July 1^st Celebration – Thank you for allowing use to celebrate this Country’s Birthday with this city event you put on every year at your park in Hillside!  Thank you to the dedicated members who continue to help out with this.

This is not an exhaustive list there are many out there!  For those who continue to believe that nothing goes on in this city, I encourage you to check out the different websites out there that continue to showcase Estevan’s great events.  Also, get involved!  All too often I hear so many negative things about what goes on in this city!  My new motto is NO PARTICIPATION, NO OPINION.  Things don’t just happen; it takes a large amount of time and dedication to make it happen.  Sure there are efficiencies that can be found, but it takes time, volunteerism and dedication to find them.  I encourage everyone to seek out different volunteer opportunities and together we will work to grow this community into a stronger more proud community!

The decision to sell a home is not an easy one. There are many emotions tied to a house and unraveling them can feel daunting. one way to remove the stress out of the process is by offering sellers insight into what will be required throughout the transaction. While the home selling checklist below is not all-inclusive, it will better prepare you for a quick sale.

Home Selling Checklist

• Open lines of communication with your real estate professional from the beginning. Discuss a realistic selling price and share how much you need to net from the sale. This will ensure that proper expectations are set and that current market prices support your needs.

• Work with your real estate professional to determine whether you want to pay for a pre-inspection of your home. This is often a wise choice as it gives you a glimpse into any potential repairs that might need to be made.

• Make any necessary repairs to the exterior or interior of your home before your first open house to avoid last-minute stress. This includes safety repairs, minor cosmetic issues, updating interior and exterior paint or fixtures and cleaning up both the front and back yard for added curb appeal.

• Make it easy for potential buyers to envision your home as theirs by making yourself invisible. Remove or box photos and clutter that will not be needed.

• Go through your belongings such as furniture and appliances and determine what will stay and what will move with you. Weeding through unnecessary items will save you money during the move and even allows you to put a few extra pennies in your pocket if you choose to hold a garage sale.

• Get familiar with financing terms, such as mortgage financing (fixed, adjustable, seller financing, assumable loans), pre-qualified, pre-approved, commitment and discuss loan approval with your real estate professional. They will be able to recommend a qualified mortgage professional to work with you through the loan approval process.

• Be prepared for closing:

o Have enough cash for closing costs and other expenses
o Be ready for property assessment and home inspections
o Double check that all documents are ready

The video below also provides some information that may be helpful to you!

source:  http://bhgrealestateblog.com/2013/06/17/home-selling-checklist/

I thought that it was time to move away from all of the industry related posts and write a personal one this time.  People continue to ask me why I teach and not go into Real Estate full time.  Well my response is simply because I like working with the kids too much.  People always say, “How do you put up with those kids?” “ I couldn’t handle the attitudes!” “Kids are lazy now a days” .  They are right yes there are attitudes.  Some are hard to handle and yes there is attitude, but last night illustrated the true reason why I teach.

At Estevan Comprehensive School I teacher in the Business Education Department.  Over the past two years I have taught may technology based classes, accounting and of course the one that I love the most Entrepreneurship.  I partner with a great non-profit organization called Junior Achievement.  The resources and experience they provide is fantastic, it is real life, hands on and a true experiential learning opportunity for the students.  From September – January I had the pleasure of teaching 37 budding entrepreneurs the ins and outs of running a business.  The 37 were split into two classes and created two companies.  Truffle Shuffle was a business that made hand crafted chocolate truffles and First Class Baking was a group that prepared single serve deserts in mason jars.  You can see the videos by clicking on the links at the end of the post.  This semester was one of the most challenging that I was involved in, the businesses were very successful and Truffle Shuffle made upwards of 3400 boxes of truffles and First Class Baking made 3200 deserts.  They had to prepare everything from scratch, package and deliver to each of the buyers.  They also had to secure sales opportunities and did so by negotiating space in the local farmers market, craft fairs and even went as far as door to door selling to different companies around town.  The classes had to prepare business plans, marketing material, shareholders reports, hold company board meetings and present plans in front of different local business owners.  They worked tirelessly on weekends, during class and before and after school putting in close to an additional 100 hours of time to complete the projects (classes are only supposed to be around 100 hours).  These kids worked very hard and to see them go from not knowing anything about business to creating products and handling customers is impressive.  To be able to sit back and see a group of students develop and grow is something that is rewarding as a teacher.

Last night was the Junior Achievement Business Hall of Fame Awards in Regina at the Ramada Hotel.  Here all companies that participated in the venture program were brought together to celebrate their accomplishments.  Estevan Comprehensive School was successful in securing nominations in each of the award categories and brought home award for:

• Top Salesperson of the Year
• Production Excellence
• Top Shareholders’ Report
• President of the Year and:
• Company of the Year

To see the kids’ faces light up as they won the top award is the most exhilarating, and rewarding moment for a teacher.  It is the moments that we call ah ha moments in education and it is the moments that are more rewarding than any monetary amount could be.  To know that you took a group and taught and mentored them to being the Top Company in the Southern Region of the Province is Huge!  That same feeling happens when I open the door on Possession date to a client getting their new home.  The excitement, the wonder, the true belief that you have done well for someone and created a true, memorable experience is something that makes me want to continue to do both jobs for a long time!

So to answer the question “Why do you still teach” it’s because of the moment I experienced last night.

Buying a home is an important decision in life with everything from location to unique features impacting a buyer’s decision.

A recent survey from the National Association of REALTORS® questioned buyers about what particular features swayed their decision more than others and which features they want most in a home.

The list included household composition, age of the home and even whether or not air conditioning was available. Below are five of the features buyers considered most important in their decision to purchase.

1. Eat-In Kitchen

An updated or modern kitchen is often found at the top of a homebuyers most wanted checklist. However, this survey found that an eat-in kitchen was an item many buyers crave.

69 percent agreed that they would gladly spend more for an eat-in kitchen while 89 percent of buyers who said this feature was critical did indeed purchase a home that included an eat-in kitchen.

2. Sufficient Storage

Homebuyers want a home that offers smart and sufficient storage. Such options include linen closets, built-in storage spaces and a large walk-in closet.

3. Garage

A garage ranked as critical with 78 percent of the homebuyers polled purchasing a home that included at least a one car garage. A garage will add to resale value making this a smart choice in both the short and long term.

Owners said they look to their garage to serve multiple purposes including shelter for their automobile, storage for belongings and an extended work space.

4. Central Air Conditioning

Out of the 33 features within the study, central air conditioning was at the top of the list. 65 percent of all homebuyers considered this vital to their decision to purchase.

In fact, 69 percent of buyers who had purchased a home without central air conditioning stated that they would be willing to spend $2,500 more for a home that included air.

It should be noted that buyers in the Southern part of the United States placed a higher importance on AC than anywhere else in the country. Those hot and humid summers are undoubtedly the driving force behind that.

5. Cable-Satellite TV

Homebuyers who preferred a home with central air conditioning also considered cable or satellite TV as an important feature. Amazing to think that there was a day when homes did not include cable, satellite or internet!

Source: Clean Slate – BHG Real Estate Blog

Custom details, updating tired decor and other simple home improvement renovations can make a big difference when it comes time to sell. While neighborhood, community and other amenities play into the overall value of the home; there are numerous additional cosmetic changes that buyers can make to boost value and maximize their potential return.

Below are three top home improvement ideas that boost value and help homeowners maximize their potential resale return.

Top Home Improvement Ideas

1. Remodel an Older or Outdated Kitchen

Kitchens are said to be the heart of the home. They have the ability to boost home value and appeal by creating a whole new look and feel. Some ways to update without remodeling the entire kitchen include:

• Reface kitchen cabinets
• New appliances
• Resurface counters
• New hardware
• Updated faucets
• Tile backsplash

2. Curb Appeal

Your home’s front entry is the first thing potential buyers will see. Pump up curb appeal by giving the front door a pop of color. Choose a bright hue to attract the attention of buyers. Also make sure that everything is neat and tidy, including doorknobs, metal fixtures, lawn and shrubs.

If a home has curb appeal, making a great first impression won’t be difficult. Encourage potential homebuyers to take the next step by touring the inside.

3. Update the Bathroom

Updating a bathroom can be one of the fastest ways to boost a home’s resale value and make it more useful and conducive to everyday living. A few ideas to give a ho-hum bathroom a fresh new look:

• Refinish an old and outdated bathtub
• Turn a flea market furniture find or existing piece of furniture into a vanity
• Wake up the walls and cabinets with a fresh coat of paint
• Install beaded board for a custom cottage look
• Update shelving and cabinets or add shelves to keep important items out of view
• Add new hardware to create an instant visual impact with minimal out-of-pocket expense
• Change out lighting fixtures – the right ones can make all the difference
• Replace tired window treatments

Whether your clients look to sell next year or in the next ten years, you can guarantee that they will be looking for the maximum return on their investment at that time. Help them sell their home faster and at top dollar by making timely renovations that will offer their home in the best possible light.

Are you unsure if you should do these or let the buyer?  Take a look at the quick video below and hopefully it will answer the question for you!

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