Seller Info | The Columbus Team | Columbus & Central Ohio Real Estate

5 Tips for Preparing Your Home For Sale

April 22, 2019 by The Columbus Team

The housing market in Columbus continues to be fierce for buyers and sellers alike. As discussed in our latest article, the first half of June is a prime time to list your home in Columbus. And the months leading up are an opportune time to prepare your home for sale. Afterall, the season has coined the term: spring cleaning!

The Columbus Team is here to help and save you money. There’s no sense in spending more than necessary to make updates. In fact, we make sure you have all the necessary information to ensure your home is ready to be listed.

The following are 5 tips for preparing your home for sale:

Pack and Declutter. Go through each room and pack your belongings to prepare your home for sale. If you’re still living there, leave your essentials but put away everything else. Decluttering and removing as many of your belongings as possible will help potential buyers visualize the home as their own. That means cleaning out those messy closets too!
Get Photo Ready. We have a House Coach on our team that can help you prepare your home for sale. This includes staging the layout and decor so that your home will look its best in photos and for showings.
Repair. Determine if there are any major repairs that need to take place such as, replacing leaky roof, etc. before selling your home. Minor changes can also make an impact. Changing light fixtures or faucets can add extra appeal, but these changes may not be necessary. Consult with our team to determine what to prioritize, add or remove from your repair list.
Ensure Curb Appeal. The outside of your house is going to be the first thing potential buyers see when they arrive for a showing or drive by. Keep things tidy, including a well-manicured lawn and landscaping. Consider adding to the curb appeal by planting some flowers, power washing your front steps, or even adding a welcome mat at the front door.
Deep Clean and Remove Smells. Do a deep clean and make every surface shine. Also eliminate any odors. For example, if you cooked and there was smoke in the kitchen be sure to get rid of the smell before a showing. These easy-to-do tasks will enhance the potential buyers experience and remove any distractions.

Our team is ready to help you prepare your home for sale. Contact us today to get started!

When is the Best Time to List My Home for Sale?

April 15, 2019 by The Columbus Team

You may be wondering, “When is the best time to list my home for sale?”

Ask anyone and they’ll likely tell you the best time to list your home for sale is in the spring. But wait a minute! If you’re worried you’ve missed the spring market, we have news for you. There are still buyers looking for their perfect home, as we head into summer and yours could be it!

A recent study conducted by Zillow reveals, USA homes listed for sale in early May sell for $1,600 more than the average listing throughout the year. However, some cities do better listing in early June. This includes Columbus, Ohio! Homes in Columbus can get $2,900 more during the first couple weeks of June.

You might remember from one of our recent articles, that more buyers have reentered the market due to lower mortgage rates. More houses are going on the market now that winter is behind us. This will cause houses to have higher value, which is a great opportunity for sellers. List your home during the first two weeks of June for the chance to get your best price.

Ready to list your home? Start the process now so that it’s ready by the first week of June. Go through the following steps to get ready:

Contact us to book a complimentary market analysis to know what the value of your home is in this market.
We can help you determine what repairs or enhancements need to happen
Give your house that extra dose of “curb appeal”. For example, plant some flowers or put some fresh paint on the porch.
Spring clean and remove anything personal from your walls and shelves. A potential buyer needs to walk through the house visualizing it as their own. You may need to temporarily rent a storage space for some of your belongings.
Take advantage of the Memorial Day long weekend to put the finishing touches.
Our House Coach can help with the final details too!

Our experts here at The Columbus Team will let you know what needs to be done to prepare to list your home and get the best sale price. We know listing your home can seem overwhelming, but we’re here to help every step of the way. Our priority is to make buying or selling a home as simple, easy, and stress-free as possible.

Is Right-Sizing in your Future?

November 5, 2018 by The Columbus Team

What is right-sizing? We all hear about downsizing which is primarily associated with folks over 50, however, in our real estate practice, we believe it is all about right sizing. Regardless of whether one is moving up or down, it may come with alot of emotion, a lot of details to coordinate and then there is always the physical aspect to moving. Of the physical and emotional challenge’s, the emotional tips the scale as there are many things to consider when right-sizing.

For the over 50 crowd, it can seem daunting as now they are considering not only a residential move, they also have the emotional, legal, medical and financial pieces as part of the consideration of “do I move”, “age in place” or “ I have so much stuff and do not know where to begin”. This move is about shifting possessions and memories of a home where children played, family holiday gatherings and other family major life events have occurred. Often it can be so overwhelming to individuals they do not even know where to begin to prepare for a major move.

The other end of the spectrum, is the family or individuals looking to upsize and increase their space, yard and amenities. It can still be a daunting process, albeit a fun and exciting decision when transiting into a larger property. A move to a larger home still requires a solid plan which would include how to prepare your current home for sale, finances, transitioning from one property to the other and all the many details associated with buying and selling real estate.

Our team of dedicated & certified ( Senior Real Estate Specialist SRES, and Certified Residential Specialist CRS ) real estate professionals at THE COLUMBUS TEAM, have combined over 100 years of experience, in developing a customized plan and approach for each individual or family facing the challenges of right sizing. In addition, as a full service real estate team, we assist with exploring your housing options. From our network of qualified service professionals, we are also happy to recommend, other professionals such as move managers, CPA’s, attorneys and other experts as needed by our home buyers and sellers.

It costs nothing to explore and learn about your options, give us a call at 614-888-6100 or email us at homes@thecolumbusteam.com to learn about Right-Sizing and preparing a plan for your home.

Win-Win Contracts for Buyers and Sellers

July 23, 2018 by The Columbus Team

Buyers and Sellers are traditionally thought of as adversaries, and while it’s true they often square off during negotiations, it’s possible for both buyers and sellers to win in one home sale! Part of the secret is to understand the other point of view so you can negotiate a winning compromise!

Home Buyers

Buyers are looking for a lower price, the home of their dreams with features important to them, a home that’s ready to occupy, a home in great condition, and a home that will be a good investment over time.

Home Sellers

Sellers are looking for a price that gives them a good profit, recognition of the value they see in their current home, an easy sale without having to do improvements or fixes, feeling that they’ve gotten the full value out of every improvement they’ve already made, and to feel that this house was a good investment and served them well.

How Realtors Negotiate Win-Win Contracts for Buyers and Sellers

Your REALTOR uses their knowledge of buyers and sellers to negotiate every day. The more you understand about how the negotiations work, the more flexible you may feel about meeting in the middle ground and allowing both parties to win.

For instance, rather than offering an opening bid so low that it can’t generate a counter-offer, your REALTOR may offer comparable homes that have recently sold in the neighborhood as proof that a lower price is reasonable. That gives sellers a reason to compromise.

Sellers may not want to replace the carpet or cracked bathroom tile at their expense as they are trying to move and close on the home in question. So, sellers may offer an “allowance” to offset the cost of new carpet. This provides them with more time, but acknowledges to the buyer that the carpet is getting older.

Perhaps the buyers are in a hurry to move in, but the sellers’ new home isn’t ready yet. The parties can close on the home and the sellers may agree to rent another home for a month until their new home is ready, or the buyers may agree to rent the home back to the sellers. There are many solutions that can be found with a Realtor who is willing to dig deep and find the key negotiating points.

Take a deep breath and consider how you’ll feel when it’s your turn on the other side of the deal. Then get creative with your real estate professional to find solutions that create a win for both parties!

Selling a Home at Auction

June 4, 2018 by The Columbus Team

Selling and buying your home through an auction has been a growing trend.
Sales for 2008 totaled 56.8 billion dollars, according to the National Auctioneer Association, and the trend is growing, although still a small percentage of total residential sales.

There are 3 kinds of auctions:

1. Auction without Reserve: Also called an Absolute Auction, is an auction with no minimum bid. The property will sell at the final price, whatever that price may be. This type of auction often results in the highest price, as it attracts more buyers who then bid up the price against each other. It is, however the most risk for the seller.

2. Minimum Bid Auction: The seller sets the minimum price with the auctioneer, and the minimum price is advertised to the prospective buyers. This results in fewer buyers attending, but there is less risk for the seller.

3. Reserve Auction: Also called a Confirmed Bid Auction, it is an auction where the minimum price is not made public but the prospective buyers make bids, and the final bid must be confirmed by the seller as being acceptable before the sale is final. This type of auction attracts the fewest buyers, because there is no guarantee of having purchased a property even after investing the time and effort to place the highest bid.

Why sell at auction: Advantages for the seller:

• You know your home will sell on this date (unless you turn down the highest bid at a Reserve Auction.
• The buyer pays all closing and title costs
• There are no contingency clauses, no demands to be met, all sales are “as is.”
• Your property is only seen and bid upon by qualified, motivated buyers.

Why buy at auction: Advantages for the buyer:

• You know the seller is motivated and committed to the sale
• You control the price
• There is a ton of information about the property in the “due diligence” packet
• You know the sale and closing date
• A fast and firm sale

Buyer responsibilities

• Inspect the property and make sure it’s what you want/need.
• Get pre-approved by your lender, and know your maximum price (see below)
• Find out if the bid is the purchase price, or if there are fees added to the final bid.
• Be sure you want the property, that hefty deposit is often non-refundable. If the buyer backs out, the seller retains that deposit.

What are Seller costs?

The typical auction cost is about 8% of purchase price plus a promotion fee that is paid to the auctioneer at the start, by the seller. Despite this, and because the closing costs are covered by the buyer and there are no expensive contingencies, the result can be a net savings over a traditional sale for the sellers.

Are there bargains?

Can I sell at a good price? Auction sale prices average 95% to 105% of the suggested Comparative Market Analysis (CMA) price. Approximately 50% of auction sales actually go over the suggested CMA price. This means there are bargains to be had for savvy buyers, but sellers can be at ease knowing that although their price needs to be realistic, most homes at auction bring a good price near or over the CMA.

Should you consider an auction?

Yes. If your home must sell by a particular date, or you’re in a hurry to sell, an auction can give you that fast sale. Yes. If you’re pre-approved and willing to spend some time thoroughly vetting auction listings that interest you, you can find the right home fast.

No. If you are still looking for your own next dream home, or if you’re not sure if or when you’ll find it, you may want to sell your home in a traditional sale…giving yourself the gift of extra time, and the opportunity to change your mind. If as a buyer you make decisions over time and want to be able to negotiate contingencies, an auction is probably not for you.