Sell Your Home

First and foremost, put it in the best condition possible, especially if you are in a market with few buyers and lots of homes for sale. That means taking care of any major repairs that could deter a buyer (such as replacing any broken windows or replacing a leaky roof) if you can afford it. Next, work on your home’s curb appeal. Make sure your landscape is pristine. Mow the grass, clean up any debris and weed the garden beds. Plant a few annual flowers near the entrance or in pots to be placed by the door. Other quick fixes that don’t cost a lot of money but can help you get top dollar for your home:

While it may not reduce the actual value, a cluttered landscape next door can detract from the positive aspects of your home. Review your local laws, which should be on file at the public library, county law library or City Hall.

A typical “junk vehicle” ordinance, for example, requires any disabled car to either be enclosed or placed behind a fence. And most cities prohibit parking any vehicle on a city street too long.

It also may be worthwhile to check into local zoning ordinances. An operator of a home-based business usually is required to obtain a variance or permanent zoning change in residential areas.

In addition, if a neighbor’s repair work produces loud noises, he may be breaking local noise-control ordinances, which are enforced by the police department.

Before bringing in the authorities, you may want to make a copy of the pertinent ordinance and give it to your neighbor to give them a chance to correct the problem.

Resources:
* “Neighbor Law: Fences, Trees, Boundaries and Noise,” Cora Jordan, Nolo Press, Berkeley, Calif.; 1991.

There is no “best” time to sell per se. Selling a house depends on supply, demand and other economic factors. But the time of year in which you choose to sell can make a difference both in the amount of time it takes to sell your home and in the ultimate selling price.

Weather conditions are less of a consideration in more temperate climates, but most of the time, the real estate market picks up as early as February, with the strongest selling season usually lasting through May and June.

With the onset of summer, the market slows. July is often the slowest month for real estate sales due to a strong spring market putting possible upward pressure on interest rates. Also, many prospective home buyers and their agents take vacations during mid-summer.

Following the summer slowdown, real estate sales activity tends to pick up for a second, although less vigorous, fall market, which usually lasts into November when the market slows again as buyers and sellers turn their attention to the holidays.

If this makes you wonder if you should take your home off the market for the holidays, consider the advice of veteran agents: You are always more likely to sell your house if it is available to show to prospective buyers continuously.

There is no “best” time to sell per se. Selling a house depends on supply, demand and other economic factors. But the time of year in which you choose to sell can make a difference both in the amount of time it takes to sell your home and in the ultimate selling price.

Weather conditions are less of a consideration in more temperate climates, but most of the time, the real estate market picks up as early as February, with the strongest selling season usually lasting through May and June.

With the onset of summer, the market slows. July is often the slowest month for real estate sales due to a strong spring market putting possible upward pressure on interest rates. Also, many prospective home buyers and their agents take vacations during mid-summer.

Following the summer slowdown, real estate sales activity tends to pick up for a second, although less vigorous, fall market, which usually lasts into November when the market slows again as buyers and sellers turn their attention to the holidays.

If this makes you wonder if you should take your home off the market for the holidays, consider the advice of veteran agents: You are always more likely to sell your house if it is available to show to prospective buyers continuously.

If you find yourself stumbling over weird acronyms in a real estate listing, don’t be alarmed. There is method to the madness of this shorthand (which is mostly adopted by sellers to save money in advertising charges). Here are some abbreviations and the meaning of each, taken from a recent newspaper classified section:

• assum. fin. — assumable financing
• dk — deck
• gar — garage (garden is usually abbreviated “gard”)
• expansion pot’l — may be extra space on the lot, or possibly vertical potential for a top floor or room addition. Verify actual potential by checking local zoning restrictions prior to purchase.
• fab pentrm — fabulous pentroom, a room on top, underneath the roof, that sometimes has views
• FDR — formal dining room (not the former president)
• frplc, fplc, FP — fireplace
• grmet kit — gourmet kitchen
• HDW, HWF, Hdwd — hardwood floors
• hi ceils — high ceilings
• In-law potential — potential for a separate apartment. Sometimes, local zoning codes restrict rentals of such units so be sure the conversion is legal first.
• large E-2 plan — this is one of several floor plans available in a specific building
• lsd pkg. — leased parking area, may come with an additional cost
• lo dues — find out just how low these homeowner’s dues are, and in comparison to what?
• nr bst schls — near the best schools
• pvt — private
• pwdr rm — powder room, or half-bath
• upr- upper floor
• vw, vu, vws, vus — view(s)
• Wow! — better check this one out.

Resources:
* “Real Estate’s Ambiguous Language You Oughtta Understand,” Glennon H. Neubauer, Ethos Group Publishing, Diamond Bar, CA; 1993.

Seller financing is when a seller helps to finance a real estate transaction by taking back a second note or even financing the entire purchase if the seller owns the home free and clear. Usually sellers do this when a buyer has difficulty qualifying for a conventional loan or meeting the purchase price.

Seller financing differs from a traditional loan because the seller does not give the buyer cash to complete the purchase, as does a lender. Instead, it involves extending a credit against the purchase price of the home while the buyer executes a promissory note and trust deed in the seller’s favor. These special circumstances must be acceptable to the lender who makes the first mortgage on the property.

The necessary paperwork is prepared by the title or escrow company after the terms are worked out between the buyer and seller.

If you are a seller considering such an arrangement, it is critical to thoroughly evaluate the creditworthiness of the buyer first. Fear of default makes many sellers reluctant to take back a second. But seller financing can bring a higher price plus complete the sale sooner in some situations. For more information, contact the Internal Revenue Service for a copy of its Publication 537, “Installment Sales.” Order by calling (800) TAX-FORM.

Since the Taxpayer Relief Act of 1997, if you’ve owned your home and have lived in it for tow of the previous five years before selling it, then you can make a profit of up to $250,000 if you are single or $500,000 if you’re married, with no federal tax bill. You may, however, owe state taxes. This new provision replaces the prior rollover provision on home sales and the $125,000 exclusion of gain for those 55 and over. This new $500,000 ($250,00 for singles) exclusion will not benefit those whose profit exceeds the 20% capital gains tax rate limit. Compare these two cases:

• John and Sue are in the 31% tax bracket. They sold their primary residence for a profit of $200,000. Since the profit was less than $500,000, they pay no tax on the home sale.
• Greg and Lisa are in the 31% tax bracket, too. They sold their primary residence for a profit of $550,000. They owe $10,000 in capital gains tax ($550,000 – $500,000 exclusion x 20%).

If you fail to meet the two-year requirement because of an unexpected move related to job or health, you are still entitled to a prorated amount of the exclusion based on how much time of the two-year requirement you were able to meet. Also, if your move is job-related and the moving expenses are not reimbursed by the employer, you may qualify for a deduction of those costs.

For further tax information, consult a tax accountant specializing in real estate matters in advance.

Your homework and patience has paid off. The offers are now rolling. When someone prepares an offer, they advise your real estate sales associate who them nakes an appointment to present it to you (all offers for your property must be presented to you).

Your sales associate will counsel and advise you, but the final decision will be yours. Review every offer, comparing the financial qualifications and readiness of each buyer. You may either accept an offer as is, reject it or make changes and sign it back to the purchaser to see if they are willing to accept your changes. In turn, the buyer then may either accept your changes, reject it or come back with a counter-offer. This process continues until a deal is agreed upon or negotiations are terminated.

Rest assured that your sales associate will be armed with information to negotiate the best deal for you. And for your protection, a deposit will be collected from the buyer prior to any acceptance of the purchase offer. A written agreement stating all conditions of the sale will be signed by both parties.

Now comes the time to sit back and be patient. The buyer is busy arranging mortgage financing. The real estate company and the title company are beginning to accumulate data and prepare documents. Your sales associate is tracking the progress of the sale. It’s a good time for you to take a breather and start thinking about the next big step – moving into your new home.

Final closing day will be scheduled when all the steps are completed. Closing is when you and the buyer sign all the paperwork and pay your share of the settlement fees, and the documents are recorded. Once you present an executed deed to the buyer and receive the check in the amount agreed aupon, your house is successfully sold.

Even in a down market, real estate experts say that price and condition are the two most important factors in selling a home.

If you are selling in a slow market, your first step would be to lower your price. Also, go through the house and see if there are cosmetic defects that you missed and can be repaired.

Secondly, you need to make sure that the home is getting the exposure it deserves through open houses, broker open houses, advertising, good signage, and listings on the local multiple listing service (MLS) and on the Internet.

Another option is to pull your house off the market and wait for the market to improve.

Finally, if you who have no equity in the house, and are forced to sell because of a divorce or financial considerations, you could discuss a short sale or a deed-in-lieu-of- foreclosure with your lender.

A short sale is when the seller finds a buyer for a price that is below the mortgage amount and negotiates the difference with the lender.

In a deed-in-lieu-of-foreclosure situation, the lender agrees to take the house back without instituting foreclosure proceedings. The latter are radical options. Your simplest, and in many cases most effective, option is to lower the price.

It’s very important to price your home according to current market conditions. Because the real estate market is continually changing, and market fluctuations have an effect on property values, it’s imperative to select your list price based on the most recent comparable sales in your neighborhood.

A so-called comparative market analysis provides the background data upon which to base your list-price decision. When you prepare to sell and are interviewing agents, study each agent’s comparable sales report (the data should be no more than three months old).

If all agents agree on a price range for your home, go with the consensus. Watch out for an agent whose opinion of value is considerably higher than the others.