If you are an owner of a luxury home desirous of selling it, you might be surprised and disappointed to find that there are not many takers for it. The reason behind this reluctance is the fact that people do not want to spend an astronomical sum in buying a Modular House residential property. It is like maintaining a white elephant that does not guarantee returns on investment. You must make sure that you keep the luxury home in top condition so that it is able to attract prospective buyers. Also, you need to advertise it aggressively so as to find buyers willing to give your asking price.
Correct Pricing is the Key to Quick Selling
It is understandable if you are deeply attached to your home. But your love and appreciation for your home should not dictate the asking price you set for it when trying to sell it. If you set this price too high, you might be disappointed with the response of the interested buyers. It is a good idea to hold consultations with a real estate agent in your area to set the asking price realistically. He knows the prices of similar properties in the area that have been sold recently and so there is no reason not to believe him in this regard. However, you can double check this information by comparing the figure with the asking price of similar properties currently listed in the market.
First Impressions Are Often the Last Ones
If you are lucky enough to receive a flurry of interested buyers, make sure you are able to hold and sustain their interest through a property that looks beautiful at first glance. Just imagine how a prospective buyer feels when he comes to buy a dream house for his family and sees a structure that looks old and tattered. If there are lawns in the property, ask a gardener to spruce things up. Get the entryway cleaned with high pressure steam and also get minor repairs fixed to give the visitor a good impression.
Use Aggressive Marketing to Tell People about Your Property
There are all sorts of buyers from passive to active in not only domestic market but also at the global level looking to invest in properties. Most owners make the mistake of targeting their gun on rich people thinking they are likely to be interested in buying a luxury home. There are many middle class people who are attracted to the idea of owning luxury properties through financing. Spread the word about your luxury home through print and electronic media and do not leave social media platforms behind. The more you advertise, the higher the number of people across whom the message goes about your property.
Show Patience When Selling Luxury Property
Luxury property is not like an old iPhone or a pet that can sell pretty quickly in your own locality. You have to be prepared for grueling rounds of negotiations with prospective buyers to be able to sell the property at a desired price. Do not jump on to the initial offers you get but also do not reject them outright. If you show patience and wait for sufficient time, you will definitely find a buyer who can pay your asking price.
Hire the services of a real estate agent
It is a long and tedious procedure trying to sell your luxury property. It is a prudent idea to hire the services of an experienced agent who has the experience of dealing in such properties in the past.
• Huge Clientele
A real estate agent has high profile connections and huge clientele when it comes to home buyers. He/she knows how to sell your home to the perfect buyer within no time. On the other hand, not being a professional agent, you don’t know as much home buyers as he knows.
• Perfect Home Value
Sometimes, home sellers find it difficult to sell their homes on their own and the biggest reason for not being able to sell home is that they usually overprice their home and don’t analyze the contemporary market prices. However, professional and experienced real estate agents help them price their home perfectly so that that may get more potential home buyers quickly.
It is a wise decision to hire a handyman as it can prevent any wastage of your resources. A handyman is a person who can complete small jobs in a day’s time. Usually he will work alone and charge on an hourly basis. If you are looking to finish extensive amount of work, then you can hire a contractor.
Before you sell your home, there are various reasons to hire a handyman, such as:
- Perfect Finish
If you want your home to look good to potential buyers, then it should look worth the money. Numerous jobs such as applying a coat of paint to the bedroom wall, fixing faucets in the bathroom, or repairing the kitchen sink are simple and inexpensive. You can easily add the cost of the repair work to the home’s selling price. It will give a perfect finish to your home and make it a hot property in the market.
- Lack of Time
Selling a home already puts a lot of responsibilities on your shoulder. And if you divert your time in petty repair work, then you cannot focus on selling your home. It is better to get a to-do list ready for a handyman who can ease our burden.
- Expertise speaks for Itself
An updated home will attract more buyers and fetch you a good price. If you want a high-quality work, then it is always a good option to hire an expert. A professional handyman has the knowledge, expertise and equipment to efficiently and effectively do all the repair work.
- Increase your Home’s Value
You must make sure that your home is ready for sale in the market. An updated home will fetch more buyers and a good price. Also, potential buyers look for curb appeal. Thus, you can hire a handyman to work on the exterior of your home such as painting the walls and washing the deck. You can consider investing in all the areas that look outdated or need repair work.
Potential buyers always notice if the home is not maintained properly. They avoid buying a home that is in dire need of repair work. So, in order to avoid losing a buyer who will pay a good price for your home, you must make sure that your home is in a great condition. To get rid of the responsibility of looking into the repair work, hire a handyman to prep your home for sale.
Congratulations, you’ve found the perfect home to buy! Right about now, you are probably on information overload, and looking for resources to get everything ready. One of the most important steps you need to take after getting that ratified contract is to get the home inspected. Like most subjects on the internet, there is a ton of information about home inspections, and how to hire them. One source that is very underrepresented though is probably the best one out there: the home inspectors themselves. No, I’m not just talking about reading their websites, since anyone can put up whatever they want. Instead, we went to a group of highly respected home inspectors and posed this question: If you were hiring a home inspector to inspect a home for your out-of-state family member, what questions would you ask them?
1. What are your certifications?
If you are in one of the many states where home inspectors are licensed, that is just a minimum level to be able to do the job. As a group, we will look for a home inspector that has taken the time to get extra certifications above and beyond the minimum. There are multiple home inspection organizations (both national and local) that offer certifications for inspectors. The two major organizations are the International Association of Certified Home Inspectors (InterNACHI), and the American Society of Home Inspectors (ASHI). Both offer multiple levels of certifications based on both experience and continuing education. InterNACHI has the Certified Professional Inspector and Certified Master Inspector certifications. ASHI has the ASHI Associate, Inspector, and Certified Inspector certifications.
In states where there isn’t a licensing program for home inspectors, it is even more important to make sure the inspector has a certification, since essentially anyone can call themselves a home inspector! In these cases, it can be tempting to hire someone like a general contractor to just walk through the house with you. But, as Andrew Jolley with JODA Home Inspections in Stansbury Park, Utah said “unlike contractors, home inspectors have a system they follow so that all systems are evaluated and nothing is left out of the inspection.” Additionally, a certified home inspector has received training on all of the systems in a house, as well how to inspect them and look at the whole house as a system.
2. What kind of report do you provide and when will I receive it?
Hopefully any legitimate inspector will be providing you with a written report that you can use in your evaluation of the home purchase. That being said, reports differ in both style and level of detail. An inspection report should include digital pictures of defects as well as narrative statements about the systems and defects found. Some reports will also include things like video, glossaries, and summaries. If there is a summary, make sure you still read the entire report!
The turnaround time for a report should also be determined. As inspectors, we understand the tight timelines your real estate agent has put you under, so we will always get you the report as quick as possible. Remember that sometimes a little extra research is required, so don’t expect to get the report at the end of the inspection. Most inspectors should have the report to you within 24 hours of the end of the inspection.
3. Walk me through your typical inspection, what are the most important things?
Norm Tyler of Sage Inspections in St. Louis, MO says: “I’d ask this for a couple reasons. It would help me decide if his approach would be similar to mine. Every inspector is a little different, some will detail 500 little issues, while I’m more of a ‘disregard petty cosmetic stuff so I can focus on finding $1000 problems’ kind of guy. More importantly, if the inspector takes the time to walk me through his approach now, while I’m just a prospect – he’ll probably take all the time needed to take care of me as a customer.”
4. Are you available after you send the report for questions and/or clarification?
This was one of the most popular questions I received from the inspectors I talked to. We all strive to write a report that explains all of the issues as clearly as possible, but sometimes things may not make sense to you. Being able to call or email your inspector with questions after the inspection is critical, especially if you can’t make it to the inspection.
Along with this, you should probably ask the inspector about their policy for follow-up inspections. Once you have negotiated repairs with the seller, make sure you get those repairs re-inspected. I have done a lot of re-inspections, and I have yet to find that all of the repairs were done. Sometimes I am given receipts for repairs that were clearly not even attempted. You should expect to pay for this re-inspection, so find out what it will cost ahead of time so there aren’t any surprises.
5. What is your home inspection experience?
You will find that home inspectors come from many different backgrounds. Some may have been in the building trades, and some may be doing it as a second career. The important thing to look for is an inspector that has experience doing home inspections. David Sharman of County Home Inspection in Peterborough, Ontario mentioned to ask them how many inspections they’ve done in the last 12 months. This number could vary based on the market, but it should be a reasonable number. Look for someone doing at least a few inspections a week, but be wary of those that have really high numbers (unless they have multiple inspectors at their company). This can be a sign of someone that is just doing the minimum to get on to the next inspection of several that day.
6. How many inspections do you do in a day?
Hopefully the answer is only one or two. Most inspectors will do a morning and an afternoon inspection. Some will add in an evening inspection. If it gets over three, start to worry about how long they are spending on your inspection. Most inspections will take 2-3 hours for an average size house. Smaller houses don’t really cut down on the time, but larger houses can significantly increase the amount of time it takes to inspect.
7. What extra services can you provide?
Michael Conrad II, at Diligent, LLC in Nashville, TN points out that you should check with the inspector to see if they offer any other inspection services, such as Thermal Imaging, Termite, Radon, and Mold inspections. This can help you in many ways, since not only do you get all of the inspections you need from one company, it allows your inspector to look at the whole house as a system and provide the best assessment of the house. Some areas require separate licenses for these extra inspections, so make sure they have those licenses as well if required. If licensing isn’t required, make sure they have a third-party certification.
8. Can I accompany you on the inspection?
The inspection is your time to learn about the house. Odds are, the inspection is the longest amount of time you will spend in the house until you own it, so make the most of it. Your inspector should encourage you to ask questions as the inspection is going on. After all, it’s a lot easier to explain (and understand) an issue with it right in front of you. If you wait until a day or two later, now the inspector has to explain it over the phone, and they’ve inspected more houses since then. Charles Buell, of Charles Buell Inspections, Inc in Shoreline.
WA, says that he wants the client there the whole time. This is their time to learn about the house. Additionally, Jim Holl with 5 Star Home Inspections LLC in Hillsborough, NC says: A professional home inspector wants you, the future occupant, to attend the inspection so you can ask questions and see most of what the inspector sees. Since you are going to live there and get to maintain it, for safety, health and financial reasons, this is your opportunity learn all about your new castle. If the inspector doesn’t want you to observe, move on to the next inspector you want to interview.
