Archive for November, 2009

Looking for a reliable real estate agent is the first step to owning your dream house. A competent agent will help you strike the best deals on the market. Using his extensive background, he would explain to you the entire process of purchasing a new home. If you fail to find a good buyer’s agent, your chances of owning a satisfying property would be slimmer.

Here are some of the qualities of a good real estate agent that you should consider before hiring one. If a candidate seems to possess these qualities, do not hesitate to work with him in the future.

Ability to Please Customers

The best way to know whether your prospective agent can satisfy your needs is by asking his previous customers. Inquire about his skills as an agent. If his prior clients think that he is the best person in his league, then you should try to find out more about his background.

Impressive Background

Make sure that he has an impressive background in the field of real estate. Ascertain that he specializes in the method of buying that you would like to explore. For an example, if you are planning to buy a home on short sale, then he should have extensive experience with short sold properties. Whatever property you want to purchase, he must possess the necessary experience in understanding the entire procedure of helping you achieve your goal.

Efficiency in Providing List of Properties

Try his skills by asking him to make you a list of homes that should fit your particular preferences. For an example, you can ask him to create a list of homes for sale with three bedrooms and two bathrooms. If his list contains irrelevant homes that did not meet your instructions, think twice about hiring him. Efficient agents would never commit a mistake on a simple task like this.

Prompt and Professional

Real estate agents who take their job seriously will dress professionally once you ask him to meet up with you. He must also be prompt and punctual. Credible agents never waste the time of their clients. If he comes late during your first personal meeting, it would be scary to trust him with the immense task of finding you a new home.

Ability to Provide Constant Updates

Even if he is busy with checking up some of the homes you consider buying, he will still have the decency to return your calls immediately. He must always provide you with important updates about the properties that he visited for you.

Capability to Represent You

A skilled agent will always understand your needs and preferences quickly. You will not need to remind him about everything you want your future home to possess. He will remember the smallest details like the interior color of the house you would like to buy, or even the amount of kitchen space that you would like to have. He must have the capability to represent you during transactions, especially when you cannot talk personally to the seller or the seller’s agent.

Purchasing a New Home with Ease

Once you have found the perfect real estate agent, you will never need to worry about the technicalities of the real estate world. With his guidance and assistance, you will be a few steps away from holding the key of your brand new home.

Ever wonder why some homes for sale sell quickly and others stay on the market for quite some time? For home owners who are eager to sell, a long transition period can be very frustrating, time consuming and costly. Luckily, home staging is a real estate process that anyone can try. It can speed up the sale of your home just by making simple adjustments. Home staging helps to make your home’s beautiful features stand out and entice buyers.

Here are some tips for home staging your house in Greenwood SC.

1. When it comes to real estate, keep things clean. Cleanliness is the first thing a potential home buyer will notice, so take extra time in cleaning every room before an open house or showing. You want every room to look spotless – even the areas where you wouldn’t normally explore. Washing, dusting, steaming and cleaning are all important tasks when making sure your house is immaculately clean.

2. Clear out the clutter. Try to de-clutter your home as much as possible by sorting through what you need for your new house, and what you can give away. Minimize clutter on shelves, countertops, and coffee table. If you can, hold a garage sale with the items you won’t need.

3. Let your home show its personality. Remove any family photos, personal awards, souvenirs, etc. When potential buyers walk into your home they want to envision their life– not someone else’s.

4. Draw them in from the outside. The outdoor appearance of a home is a vital factor when buying. It is the first thing buyers will see when they walk into the home. Be sure to paint and/or wash the house’s exterior walls and inspect the gutters, windows and chimney. Also make sure the lawn is trim and your plants and gardens are tended to.

Real estate can be a tricky industry for home sellers and home buyers. That’s why it’s important to explore the benefits that come from home staging. Imagine selling your home in a matter of hours or days just by applying some simple adjustments to the look of your home. Home staging is a great tool if you are finding it difficult selling your home.

Real estate agents are in the game of buying and selling homes. At their core, they are sales people and rightly so. Given this fact, you need to be very leery of any real estate agent that offers legal advice. Why? They haven’t got a clue and are potentially breaking the law.

You go to view a home and notice the owner has done a lot of custom work. You love it. The home is unique and amazingly so. You put in an offer through your real estate agent. After some haggling, a deal is reached. Escrow gets underway and then a problem arises. The appraiser notes the home has more square footage than recorded in the county records. It becomes obvious the owner did the customization without getting permits. It also becomes obvious that some of the work is not up to code.

At this point, the deal should either die or the seller should be offering major financial concessions. You are not really sure what to do. Your real estate agent tells you to take the concessions. She has seen this before and knows that the building department will okay the home. If not, you can always come back and sue the owner for breach of warranty and contract. Taking this advice, you go ahead and buy the home.

After taking possession of the home, you are told by a building inspector half the home will need to be torn down and rebuilt to meet code. You are outraged and speak with an attorney about filing a lawsuit against the seller. The attorney looks at the deal, notes all the disclosure done by the seller and the concessions on price. Guess what, you have no legal remedy. Everything the real estate agent told you is wrong.

This type of scenario plays out repeatedly. Real estate agents are famous for giving out legal advice regarding issues they have no business discussing. They are versed in the practice of selling and buying real estate, not offering legal opinions. To this end, more than a few real estate agents have been sued for “the unauthorized practice of law”. In the scenario above, the buyer would in fact be able to sue the real estate agent and successfully so.

In truth, most real estate agents give legal advice without really thinking about it. They also do it without malice. They are just trying to make a sale. While they can incur liability for doing so, it is incumbent on you to realize that an agent is not a lawyer. If there are legal issues related to a real estate matter, you should speak with an attorney to get accurate advice. Otherwise, you are taking a huge risk.

Real estate agents are in game buying and selling houses. At their core, they are sales people and rightly so. Given this fact should be very wary of any sales agent with legal advice. Why? They have no idea and potentially break the law.

You will see a house and notice the owner has made a lot of custom work. Like it. The house is unique and incredibly well. You made an offer with your Realtor. After negotiation, an agreement is reached. Escrow begins when a problem occurs. The evaluator noted the house has more square images which recorded in the county. It is obvious that the owner has not obtained without permits customization. It also becomes clear that some work is not code.

At this stage, operation should die or seller must be representative of the significant financial benefits. You are not sure what to do. Your real estate agent asked to make concessions. She saw it already known that the building department will be well at home. Otherwise, you can come back and sue the owner for breach of warranty and contract. Taking this advice, you go ahead and buy the house.