How to Sell Faster and for More Money

We want to help you sell your home faster and for more money in 2017. Here’s how we can help ensure a successful home sale.

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2017 is going to be a great year for real estate, and if you’re thinking about selling, we want to help you sell your home as quickly as possible. 

There are a couple key factors in making sure your home gets sold quickly and for top dollar. 

The first is pricing. When we price a home, we look at the market data and figure out the range, low, median, and high. We then price the home on the lower end of that spectrum to make sure we don’t end up chasing the market or scare off any potential buyers. This pricing strategy combined with our marketing will likely increase demand and result in a bidding war which will drive up the price. 

The second factor that will influence a successful home sale is maintenance. You want to make sure you have all those repairs or upgrades done before you list. Get new paint on the walls, make sure your yard looks great, and complete any other projects that will get your home in tip-top shape. 

A staged home sells 88% faster and for 20% more than a non-staged home.

Finally, make sure your home is decluttered and have it staged. One of the biggest complaints we hear from buyers is how much clutter is present during a home showing. So, it’s very important that you have decluttering taken care of. As far as staging goes, a staged home sells 88% faster and for 20% more than a non-staged home on average, so it’s something you definitely want to consider doing. 

If you have any further questions about this topic, or if you have any other real estate-related questions, please don’t hesitate to give me a call or send me an email. I would be happy to help! 

Why Consider Buying Early in 2017?

Buying a home should be on your list of New Year’s resolutions. Here’s why.

Selling your Birmingham home? Get a free home value report

Buying a Birmingham home? Search all homes for sale

If you haven’t already, you should make buying a home one of your New Year’s resolutions based on what we are seeing in the Birmingham market.

2017 is shaping up to be a great year in real estate. If your goal is to buy a home, you should start the process as soon as possible. We don’t want you to postpone your goals for a few reasons, such as:

• Consumer confidence is at an all-time high.
• Unemployment is as low as it has been since August 2007. 
• Most major markets have completely recovered from the mortgage and economic crisis.

It’s a perfect storm for buyers.

Based on this information alone, it’s a great time to buy this year. However, there are two key factors that will make you want to move sooner rather than later:

1. Mortgage interest rates. The Federal Reserve recently upped their base interest rate, and all signs point to even more increases in 2017. When rates go up, it impacts your buying power significantly. We can get you in touch with some great mortgage lenders if you need a recommendation.

2. Inventory. Our supply of homes is getting lower than ever. We are sinking to record lows in desirable markets.

Even with those potential problems, we still think 2017 is a great time to make your resolution of buying a home a reality. If you have any questions, don’t hesitate to give us a call or send us an email. We look forward to hearing from you.

Big Opportunities in the 2017 Birmingham Market

The year is almost over, so we're seeing expert predictions for the 2017 real estate market start to pour in. Most of the experts share the same opinion for what the market will look like next year.  

Selling your Birmingham home? Get a free home value report

Buying a Birmingham home? Search all homes for sale

The year is winding down and I'm excited to share our 2017 real estate market forecast with you today. 

The market looks like it could be really hot—scorching, you might say!

There's a lot of information going into this prediction from experts who are a lot smarter than I am, like the National Association of Realtors, the Mortgage Bankers Association, Fannie Mae, and Freddie Mac, to name a few. They're all predicting a hot year for home sales in 2017.

The NAR is predicting that home sales will reach 6 million next year after predicting 5.8 million homes sales this year. Other organizations predict well over 6 million home sales in 2017—that would be a stronger market than we've seen in a long time.

All signs point to a strong, hot market in 2017.

So what's driving this trend?

First, the economy is solid and growing right now. Another big factor is Generation Y (millennials) finally entering the market after putting off homeownership in many cases. They typically buy later in life, but they're getting to the point of being a major driving force in the real estate market. When they drive up home sales, it will be great for the economy. 

This will also drive up your home's value. If you're even just thinking about selling your house, be sure to give us a call or send me an email soon. I'd love to talk you through all the opportunities the market will provide in 2017.