Real Estate Market

Top Ways to Make Your Home Buyer Friendly for Little or No Money

Valentine's Day is the perfect time to 'feel the love' – for your home. Now is the time to start assessing ways you can make your house look more attractive to potential buyers as you get it ready to put on the market. Surprisingly there are many ways to make what you already have more attractive for little or no money

1. De-clutter – Go from room to room with your goal to reduce what is in the room by one-third to one-half. Buyers respond to a house that looks and feels spacious, airy, and appears to have room.  Remove everything from papers and magazines, to bulky, oversized furniture. Whatever detracts from that particular room as an attractive living space should go – pack it, store it, or sell it, but make sure it is gone and out of sight.
2. Clean - Buyers also respond to that shine that can only be gotten by a little elbow grease. This means cleaning the baseboards, buffing the floors, wiping down the lighting fixtures, and dusting the furniture. Sparkling windows and clean countertops say that you love this home and you know someone else will too.
3. Easy access – If you live in the part of the country where it is snowy, shoveled paths and driveways must be ready to receive visitors. Remove anything that makes the entrance and access to your home unattractive and impossible. Take down the holiday lights and invest in good lighting around the entrances to your home.
4. Landscape - While this might not be the time for gardening for most of the country, check your landscape and remove any fallen tree limbs, leaves, and lawn clutter. As soon as Mother Nature cooperates, plan on pruning shrubs, and painting and repairing any fencing around the yard.
5. Basement and Garage – Finished or unfinished, both the basement and the garage need to be as clean and de-cluttered as the rest of the house. Make sure the furnace and hot water tank are accessible and dust free. Air these areas out and make sure that they do not smell or appear to be damp or moldy.
6. Make a List – Make a list of all those small repairs you have been putting off. Either get busy fixing them or call in the experts and get quotes. Use the money from a spring garage sale and recycle it back into getting these repairs done as soon as possible.
7. Paint – A fresh coat of paint put on with some attention to detail can make a room appear fresh and brand new. Now is the time to use whites, neutrals, and a glossy black to give everything that ready-to-move-in look.

With a consistent plan of attack, you can get your home 'house proud' in a matter of four to six weeks – just in time for the spring market!

Extended Tax Credits and Other Programs to Help You

It is true; the First Time Home Buyer Tax Credit of up to $8,000 has been extended until April 30, 2012. This grant is for people purchasing a home for the first time. An additional grant of up to $6,500 is available to current homeowners purchasing a home between November 7, 2009 and April 30, 2010.

First time homeowners must purchase a home between November 7, 2009 and April 30, 2010. Current homeowners purchasing a home in this same period must have lived in the home they are selling for five consecutive years.

A first time homebuyer is qualified if he/she or his/her spouse have not owned a home three years prior the purchase of a new home.

The Extended Home Buyer Tax Credit applies to residences including single-family homes, townhomes, condominiums, and co-ops.  The credit is based on the price of the home being purchased ($800,000 or under) and the buyer's income (up to $125,000 for singles, and $225,000 for married couples to receive the full tax credit).

Call your Realtor today for more information on the Extended Home Buyer Tax Credit.

We also want to remind you to look at http://portal.hud.gov/portal/page/portal/HUD/topics/home_improvements page. You can check out the latest HUD home repair and rehabilitation programs available. You might qualify a mortgage to cover the cost of rehabbing a property as well as buying it. Talk to your Realtor or call your City Community Development Block Grant Program Coordinator.

We would love to have you join us at our Leads Club Mixer Wednesday, 5-7 at Marie Callenders at Broadway & Dry Creek. Lisa Benson, President of Leads Club from Carlsbad will be our special guest. Free Food and a Cash Bar, plus you get to network and meet a group that has over 16 years experience at this kind of networking. Take a look at:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5Y0D2oMN3QQ

Don't Hunker Down! Join US!