How Is Our Market Improving this Year?

There are many great Metro area homes for sale. Click here to perform full home search, or if you're thinking of selling your home, click here to contact us for a FREE Home Price Evaluation so you know what buyers will pay for your home in today's market. You may also call us at (262) 797-6453 or (262) 798-1162 for a FREE home buying or selling consultation to answer any of your real estate questions.
 

The fall is here and we are ⅔ of the way through the year. Today I thought I would give you a quick market update. I’ve been looking at some of the latest numbers and in August 2015, sales in the metro area were up 7% from this time last August! We now have 1,644 homes that have sold so far this year, as opposed to 1,524 at the same time last year. 

I was also looking at the year-to-date numbers, and noticed an even bigger trend. Compared to where we were at this point in 2014, sales are up 16.5%! There have been close to 1,500 more sales this year than last year. At the same time, inventory is declining. There are about 8,523 single-family homes for sale right now on our MLS, down 8% from 9,200 last year.

What does this mean? Well, more people are buying due to confidence in the economy and the fact that interest rates have remained extremely low. If you’re thinking about buying, I would consider making a move now due to the fact that you can lock in an interest rate on a 30-year mortgage for less than 4%, which was unheard of in the past. 

Rates may rise very soon, so we recommend taking advantage of conditions now and making your move while money is cheap. 

If you have any questions for us about the market or how you can succeed in it, give us a call or send us an email. We look forward to hearing from you!

The Benefits of a Home Warranty

There are many great Metro area homes for sale. Click here to perform full home search, or if you're thinking of selling your home, click here to contact us for a FREE Home Price Evaluation so you know what buyers will pay for your home in today's market. You may also call us at (262) 797-6453 or (262) 798-1162 for a FREE home buying or selling consultation to answer any of your real estate questions.

Today, I want to briefly discuss how to use a home warranty to help sell your home. 

Here at Shorewest, we work with a company called Home Security of America, which provides warranties on the sale of used or existing homes. Many of our clients use these to help sell their home. They are attractive to buyers because they cover heating, air conditioning, plumbing, electrical, and appliances. Essentially, warranties cover the guts of your home, not the structural items like roofs, basements, and windows. 

 

Home warranties cover the buyer for one year from the day of closing. Plus, the seller gets free coverage while they are listing. Homeowners use warranties as a selling feature. For instance, if you have a home warranty on your home, but the three other homes that buyers are looking at do not have a warranty, your home will be viewed in a much more favorable light.

Warranties provide buyers and sellers with peace of mind. If something happens after closing, the buyer isn't going going to call the person who sold them the home, they're going to call the home warranty company, who will then come out and fix the problem. The basic single-family home warranty, which covers all the entities in your home, is about $564. Deductibles range from $75-$100, depending on the plan you go with.

If you have any questions about home warranties, or if you need real estate assistance of any kind, don't hesitate to reach out to us. We would love to hear from you!

How Much is a relisted Home Worth?

There are many great Metro area homes for sale. Click here to perform full home search, or if you're thinking of selling your home, click here to contact us for a FREE Home Price Evaluation so you know what buyers will pay for your home in today's market. You may also call us at (262) 797-6453 or (262) 798-1162 for a FREE home buying or selling consultation to answer any of your real estate questions.

I've been getting asked the same questions lately from prospective sellers who had previously listed their home, but failed to sell. One question is "Will relisting my home affect its overall value?"

I don't think it does, and here's why. When we relist your home, the "days on market" that shows how long your home has been listed, is reset to 0. So if you had listed your home previously for 100 days and it didn't sell, when we relist it's going to show up like a new listing. Therefore, most buyers will have no idea that your home previously failed to sell. 

Another question I've been getting a lot is, "Would my previous list price affect my home's value today?" It depends. Many sellers improve the condition of their home and that could affect the value positively. The other thing that affects your value is marketing, and if your agent isn't taking the right approach, you won't get as many eyes on the property as you should.

So just because you've listed your home before, it doesn't mean you are doomed to suffer the consequences. Your value will not be affected by anything other than what homes are selling for in your area. If you have any questions for us, feel free to reach out to us via phone or email. We look forward to hearing from you!