Why should a homeowner rely on a real estate agent? Between financial issues and accessible real estate information, this question plagues many sellers. The internet provides a smorgasbord of answers to every real estate question imaginable. You save money through self-teaching. The reality is you gain something else when saving on one or two parts. Yes, you use the internet and keep finances, but you gain stress and confusion. Ease the stress by hiring an agent to represent your home. Here's why.

 

Industry Knowledge & Guidance

A real estate agent guides you through each step in the home selling process to ensure the sale is final and legal. From listing to closing, the agent advises sellers on the correct steps in making a solid sale.

 

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Finding a new home is no easy task. From the number of bedrooms to location, there is so much to consider before a potential buyer can begin to look at available properties. However, in 2018, there are six home features that almost every buyer is looking for:

 

1. Lots of Storage

Due to financial constraints and availability, many home buyers are looking for cheaper, smaller properties to make their own. In these properties, having plenty of storage space becomes more and more of a necessity. Whether it's extra cabinets in the kitchens and bathrooms or closets in the bedrooms, prospective buyers want storage space to help keep their homes tidy and organized. Custom cabinets in living areas are a wonderful and unique feature for potential…

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When buying a new home, one of the most important factors about the property is the location. When shopping for a home, one option that many people consider is to buy a home on a golf course. Prior to buying a home on a golf course, there are several pros and cons of the location that you need to be aware of.

 

Serene Background

One of the main advantages of buying a home that is on a golf course is that it will provide you with a very serene background. A golf course home will likely back up onto the golf course and may have an outdoor living space that looks onto the grounds. Most golf courses are very well maintained and have a lot of beautiful landscaping including very green grass, ponds, and trees.

 

Less Neighbors

For those that…

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A common step homeowners take when preparing to sell their home is to reach out to a real estate agent. During an initial consultation with a real estate agent, you may learn more about the suggested list price or market value of your home as well as the fees that the agent may charge you. While the fees vary, it is common for a seller to pay for both the buyer’s and seller’s real estate agent fees. This could be six percent of the sales price or more in some cases. If you are looking for a way to avoid paying these fees, you may be thinking about selling your home as a “for sale by owner” property. While this sounds like a great idea on the surface, it actually has many downsides to consider.

 

1. Marketing Your Home

One of the primary initial…

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It seemed a great idea at the time. Save yourself the 6 percent commission that you'd have to pay a realtor by selling your home on your own. After all, how difficult is it to put up a “For Sale By Owner (FSBO)” sign on your front lawn and to put an ad on the local paper and in a real estate website. You've even seen enough housing shows to know that you should stage your property inside and out to make it attractive to buyers. You certainly don't need a sales agent to tell you that.

So here it is, six months later, and your home is still on the market with no buyer in sight. Before you reach that sorry state, learn to recognize the four signs that it's time to list with a realtor.

 

You don't know how to price your home.

You think the formula…

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When a seller lists a home for a certain price, he/she doubtfully expects someone to buy without trying to negotiate a lower price. The buyer may even try to negotiate covering closing costs and taxes. Smart buyers do understand they can negotiate quite a few things to their benefit. Smart real estate negotiations do need to be thoughtful and considerate. Novices -- and those who should know better -- could make some very bad negotiating mistakes, mistakes capable of ruining a deal.

 

Five major negotiating mistakes really do stand out. They should be bitterly avoided.

 

1.) Do not make a ridiculously low offer.

 

If a home is listed at $125,000, making an offer of $70,000 for no real reason other than to see if the seller goes for it is…

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Not Everything Increases The Value Of Your Home- Here Is What Does

There are plenty of things that increase the value of a home. A little repair here or a layer of paint there can add to the value of your real estate. However, not everything that one does makes a difference on that sale price. It is a common belief that doing just about anything will improve your chances of getting a higher price. That is just not factually accurate. You will want to avoid doing some of the repairs that don't add value. It would be a waste of money and time.

 

Converting a Garage

 

There is a strong pull from some to convert an attached garage into a family room or an office. This may be what you consider to be the best use of the space, but those who are…

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Some homeowners complete incredible home renovation projects before listing their property for sale. Their primary goal may be to increase property value and to attract more interested buyers. Many home improvement projects can generate a positive return for homeowners while making the property more appealing to the target audience. However, some improvements have minimal impact on property value, and it can be difficult recoup the cost of these investment when the property is sold. By learning more about these projects that have minimal impact on property value, you can make more educated decisions about your improvement projects.

 

A Swimming Pool

It can seem desirable to have a swimming pool in your backyard, but the reality is that the cost…

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After many years of renting, and being unable to make your residence your own, you have decided to buy. Purchasing property presents many opportunities for creativity and financial advancement. The road to homeownership, though, is not for the faint of heart. Here are five ways to start the home buying process right.

 

1. Start researching early

Do not wait until you have given your landlord notice that you are moving to begin searching for a home. Real estate buying takes more than several weeks, which means that you could very well be searching for the perfect residence more than six months after deciding to buy a home. There is also the issue of pre-approval that takes a few weeks. You should, therefore, begin your home buying process with…

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As you think ahead about listing your home for sale soon, you may be wondering if you should list your home for sale empty after you move out or if you should stage it. There are pros and cons associated with both options to consider. While there is no right or wrong answer to this, you may find that a closer look at the primary advantages and disadvantages for both can make one option more appealing to you than the other option.

 

The Appeal of a Staged Home

Most buyers will view images of your home online before deciding if they want to tour it or not. Furnished, staged homes may show better in these pictures than empty homes, so they may potentially generate more interest in your listing. Furthermore, a buyer may tour a dozen homes or more…

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