How Buyers Can Get the Upper Hand in Multiple Offers on Homes

A dear seller letter is one thing that can give the buyer a distinctive edge in a seller’s market.  Like many parts of the country, listing inventory is low and buyers find themselves competing for a limited number of available properties for sale. When competing for a home, there are many ways to make your offer attractive to the seller. When a seller is reviewing multiple offers on their home that may be very close in price and terms, you want them to feel an emotional connection to you. A well-written dear seller letter can create that connection.

Here are some tips on how to write the perfect dear seller letter:

You want the seller to know who you are: Start out your letter by introducing yourself and let the seller know who will be living in the house. They might be thrilled to know that you are, for example, recently married, first-time buyers who work in a field like theirs. It’s all about making that personal connection.

Tell the seller why you are moving: Helping the seller understand your motivation for buying their house can make a difference too. Sellers might be more motivated to sell the house to a family who is weeks away from the birth of a third child and desperately needs the fourth bedroom their house offers.

Explain to the seller why you love the house: Chances are the seller originally purchased the property because, like you, they felt an emotional attachment to the home. Let them know the distinct characteristics that drew you to the house; whether it’s the beautifully remodeled kitchen or the hardwood oak floors they may have painstakingly just refinished. Sellers will appreciate knowing the details that make their home special to you.

Use social media to learn a little bit about the sellers: Checkout the seller’s Facebook and LinkedIn profiles to make some connections. If the seller has frequent posts about races they’ve run and you’re a runner too, include that in your letter. For example, you can’t wait to establish a new running route through the beautiful tree-lined streets of the neighborhood. Perhaps you discover on LinkedIn that you and the seller attended the same university; be sure to mention that you’re an alum.

You should also remember and mention things about the house that show your common interests like evidence of pets, kids, or hobbies. If you know the seller has a dog and you have one too, be sure to let them know how much you appreciate, for example, the fenced-in back yard that will be perfect for your beloved pet.

Compliment, Compliment, Compliment: Lastly, every good dear seller letter should include lots of compliments and seller love letters are no exception. Make sure your letter is full of sincere praise. Did the sellers custom-build the home? Let them know how much you appreciate their design aesthetic. Is the lower level recently finished? Let them know how much your family will enjoy the space. Did you notice a copy of a classic novel on their kid’s nightstand? Mention how, as an English teacher, that impressed you!

Everyone needs a little love and home sellers are no different. If you find yourself competing for your dream house, using these tips to write the perfect dear seller letter may give you a edge. It’s also always a good idea to get the help of an experienced real estate professional to help you navigate through the home buying process.

If you are thinking of buying or selling, talk to a real estate professional – talk to a REALTOR® who can give you the information you need to make an informed decision.

As always, if I can help with any of your real estate needs, please feel free to text or call me at 301-712-8808 or email me at RolandLow1@gmail.com.

Roland

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What Every REALTOR® Wants You to Know About Defects in a Home

What Every REALTOR® Wants You to Know About

Defects in a Home

Buying a home is a major step for the vast majority of people and making sure you have expert help along the way is critically important. Having a home inspection by a qualified, certified home inspector is truly a must.

Home inspection

When it comes to buying a home there are two types of defects that home buyers need to be aware of – patent defects and latent defects. The first defect is a patent defect: For example, you walk into a house and you notice a dripping faucet. Although no one truly wants a dripping faucet it is clearly visible to a potential buyer. The buyer came either negotiate having the faucet fixed or they can take care of it themselves once they have closed on the property.

The more serious of the two defects is a latent defect. A latent defect is a defect that is not visible to the naked eye to a normal person. For example: A crawl space under the house that has a leaking water pipe that has resulted in mold. Few potential buyers would go under the crawl space to have a look.

This is why potential buyers should always have a home inspection conducted by a qualified, certified, licensed home inspector. This does not include a relative who once worked on a construction project. This is money well spent as it can save you from buying a home with problems or at least negotiating the repairs.

The home inspector will conduct a thorough inspection of the property and provide the buyer with a detailed, written report of their findings. They will identify patent and latent defects and make recommendations on how it should be corrected. It is important to note that not all latent defects may be observable to the inspector, but they will report those items that they can.

There is one more step that should help to protect potential home buyers. Latent defects that cannot be identified by a normal person, and that the seller or real estate agent has knowledge of, must be reported to a potential buyer. Sellers who fail to report latent defects that they had knowledge of may be liable to the buyer after the closing.

If you are thinking of buying or selling, talk to a real estate professional – talk to a REALTOR® who can give you the information you need to make an informed decision.

As always, if I can help with any of your real estate needs, please feel free to text or call me at 301-712-8808 or email me at RolandLow1@gmail.com.

Roland

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What Every REALTOR® Wants You to Know About Seller’s Settlement Fees

What Every REALTOR® Wants You to Know About

Seller’s Settlement Fees

Anyone who has ever sold a home, soon learns that there are a lot of fees associated with sellers and buyers. Although the buyers’ typically have more fees, the sellers have more dollars involved because of the real estate commission. But there is one fee that sellers often times question.

Most of the fees are self-explanatory. For example: the real estate commission of 6.0% to 7.0% is established prior to signing the listing contract. Sellers can quickly compute the cost of the commission.

The seller’s settlement fee is one that often times sellers will question yet is probably one of the most critical fees. In order to understand the settlement fee, you need to understand what the title company does for closing.

The title company represents the “transaction”. It does not represent the seller or the buyer; the title company works on behalf of both the seller and buyer to execute the agreed upon terms and conditions of the purchase contract.

The cost of the settlement fee usually ranges from $400 – $500. This amount may vary depending on how the title company presents its fees. For example: One title company may give a base fee for a closing, whereas another company may break it down for copies, courier services, etc. Nevertheless, the fees will range in this vicinity.

The fees cover a wide range of activity that the title company handles on behalf of the seller. Some examples are:

• Ordering the payoff for any mortgage, including any second home mortgage that may be in effect.
• Tracking down any liens and obtaining a lien release.
• Conducting the actual closing on behalf of the seller
• Wire transfer funds to mortgage companies or any other lien holders that need to be paid.
• Wiring net settlement funds to the seller’s financial account.

If you are thinking of buying or selling, talk to a real estate professional – talk to a REALTOR® who can give you the information you need to make an informed decision.

As always, if I can help with any of your real estate needs, please feel free to text or call me at 301-712-8808 or email me at RolandLow1@gmail.com.

Roland
REALTOR®

Personal Property vs. Real Property

Personal Property vs. Real Property

In real estate, there is often disagreement between personal property and real property. The rule of thumb is that if the property is attached to the property in a manner that would cause damage to the real property if it is removed, then the property becomes real property and should be left with the property upon sale of the property.

Unfortunately, it is often times not a clear-cut distinction. For example: A child’s swing set in the backyard would undoubtedly be considered a personal item and would be removed upon sale of the property. However, if the legs of the swing set are anchored in cement to prevent the set from tipping over, the swing set would most likely be considered real property and need to stay with the real estate with the sale of the home.

It is important that sellers’ and buyers’ determine what is personal property and what is real property. Items that may be construed as real property may be removed from the property at the time of sale provided that the contract clearly indicates which items the seller will be taking. It is also important to note that the seller is responsible for any repair work to damaged real property. This repair work should be completed before the final walk through.

If you are thinking of buying or selling, talk to a real estate professional – talk to a REALTOR® who can give you the information you need to make an informed decision.

As always, if I can help with any of your real estate needs, please feel free to text or call me at 301-712-8808 or email me at RolandLow1@gmail.com.

Roland

Earnest Money Deposit – Yea or Nay

Earnest Money Deposit – Yea or Nay

In real estate, one of the items that buyers provide along with an offer, is an earnest money deposit.  The EMD is generally a check that is submitted along with the offer to show that the buyer(s) are  serious about buying the property and that they have some “skin in the game.”

But in reality, there is nothing requiring an EMD to be submitted other than, that’s how we do it.  And further more, there is nothing requiring that the deposit be in the form of money.  Anything can be submitted as a deposit as long as the potential buyer(s) and potential seller(s) are in agreement.  Don’t get me wrong, in the vast number of real estate transactions that take place, there is money on the line as far as earnest money goes.

The important thing to remember is that the money that is submitted on behalf of the buyer(s) is used to offset their closing costs.  It is also important to remember that if the transaction does not go well, the buyer(s) runs the risk of losing their earnest money.  In many cases, buyers who forego their earnest money may be out of the house hunting for some time.

If you are thinking of buying or selling, talk to a real estate professional – talk to a REALTOR® who can give you the information you need to make an informed decision.

As always, if I can help with any of your real estate needs, please feel free to text or call me at 301-712-8808 or email me at RolandLow1@gmail.com.

Roland

 

 

The Art of a Counter Offer in Real Estate

The Art of a Counter Offer in Real Estate

In real estate, it is not always a good idea to make a “counter offer”, and the reason is this.  When a buyer makes an offer, the seller has three options: One, the seller can accept the offer; two, the seller can reject the offer, at which point the negotiations are dead; or three, the seller can counter the offer.

When the potential buyer receives the counter offer, they then have the same three options: Accept the offer, reject the offer, or counter the offer.  That means that the seller now has a 67% chance of the offer ending at that point.  Of course, there are many other factors to consider, and a good REALTOR® will help with that process, but it is a good idea to remember that the negotiations can end when the process is sent back to the potential buyer.

 If you are thinking of buying or selling, talk to a real estate professional – talk to a REALTOR® who can give you the information you need to make an informed decision.

As always, if I can help with any of your real estate needs, please feel free to text or call me at 301-712-8808 or email me at RolandLow1@gmail.com.

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Roland

What Every REALTOR® Wants You to Know About the Government Shutdown

What Every REALTOR® Wants You to Know About the Government Shutdown

 Several years ago, I broke the little toe on my left foot.  Not a serious injury, I’m sure you’ll agree, but a break never the less.  As a REALTOR® and not a doctor, the state of Maryland recognizes me as an “expert” in the field of real estate, but not in the field of medicine.  Never the less, I believe I can say with confidence that my medical advice is to avoid breaking a toe (or anything for that matter).

As my doctor was wrapping my broken little toe to the toe next to it, he said, half chuckling, “You are about to find out how your body is all interconnected.”  As I tried to stand, walk, or even balance myself I realized how the toes – even the little toe – was used to maintain balance.  The partial government shutdown is no different.  The government agencies are all interconnected.

When the partial government shutdown was first announced, FHA announced that they would stop processing mortgage loans insured by the FHA.  A few days later, the FHA reversed their decision and announced that they would process loan applications, although they would only process loan applications for single family homes, and not for condos.

That may sound like good news, but in reality, when a person applies for a mortgage, their income is verified by checking their income from their tax records.  During the partial government shutdown, the IRS workers are not working, making the verification of the tax records difficult, if not impossible.

The FHA announced that if the government shutdown is “brief”, the FHA does not expect the housing market to be “…significantly affected.”  Then the FHA stated that most employees of the Department of Housing and Urban Development are furloughed and not working and that applications for loans will be delayed.  The definition of “brief” as used by the FHA was not provided.

If you are thinking of buying or selling, talk to a real estate professional – talk to a REALTOR® who can give you the information you need to make an informed decision.

As always, if I can help with any of your real estate needs, please feel free to text or call me at 301-712-8808 or email me at RolandLow1@gmail.com.

Roland