The 5 Benefits of Buying and Selling This Fall

Today, I’d like to share five reasons why you might want to consider buying or selling now instead of waiting until spring.

A lot of people have been asking me lately, “Should I sell now, or wait?”

Predominantly, people tend to think that spring is the best time of year to sell. However, the fall can sometimes see more transactions than earlier months of the year.

Today, I’d like to share five reasons why you might want to consider buying or selling now instead of waiting until spring.

1. Interest rates are low. Right now, you can get a fixed-rate mortgage for as little as 3% or 4%. We don’t know what the interest rates will be next year, so acting now may be your best option.

We don’t know exactly what the future market holds, so acting now may be your best option.

2. Inventory is low. In most price ranges, there is at least a 10% to 15% decrease in the amount of inventory available. Sellers listing right now will benefit from the high demand that has been generated from this low supply. Currently, low inventory can be leveraged for better prices. Inventory in spring tends to increase by at least 15% to 20%. Why wait to sell only to face more competition?

3. Buyers are more serious. People who are shopping for homes at this time of year are very committed to doing so. The market’s current buyers are ready, willing, and able.

4. Transferee buyers are on the market now. If you wait until spring, you won’t be able to capture buyers who are transferring for jobs and must find a home before the end of the year.

5. There’s an upswing of prices. Currently, we’re running a cycle of upswings in prices. It is my belief that in a few months, this cycle will end and prices will stop going up. So, selling your home now while prices are still rising is a good idea.

If you have any other questions or would like more information, feel free to give me a call or send me an email. I look forward to hearing from you soon.

Should You Trust Zillow With Your Home’s Value?

Zillow’s Zestimates can be deeply flawed when it comes to determining your home’s value. Here’s what you should do instead.

I get a lot of questions from people asking me if they should trust the value that Zillow gave their home. 

To answer that, let me share a few facts with you about Zillow. As a company, they started in 2006. Prior to that, they weren’t involved in the real estate market. Last time I checked, they haven’t sold any homes, either.

Zillow is basically a company that collects whatever data they can find and then puts it into their website to determine home values. The one thing Zillow can’t account for is the upgrades or special features of your home. Think of it this way: has Zillow been in your home? Of course not.

Zillow's estimates, called Zestimates, are determined by an algorithm based on comparable homes sales. In the greater Milwaukee metro area, Zestimates can be off by as much as 10% or more. Zillow even admitted that 46% of the time their Zestimates were off by at least 5% or more. 

Zillow’s Zestimates can be off by as much as 10% or more.

As you might’ve heard by now, a homeowner in Illinois actually filed a lawsuit against Zillow because they claimed their Zestimate harmed their home sale. This may yet turn into a class action lawsuit. Zillow knows they have a problem, and they’ve gone as far as offering a $1 million prize to anyone who can fix their algorithm. 

In the 11 years since Zillow has been around, whenever I get calls from prospective buyers about homes they’ve found on Zillow, I’ve found that 35% of the time their information is inaccurate. Our website’s information, on the other hand, is 98% accurate. 

Taking all of this into account, I wouldn’t put much credo into Zillow’s Zestimate. If you really want to know the value of your home, call a professional Realtor. We can physically look at your home and all of its upgrades and features to provide an accurate valuation. 

If you have any questions about Zillow or you want to know the real value of your home, don’t hesitate to reach out to me. I’d love to help you.

7 Keys to Winning a Multiple Offer Situation in Our Market

To win a multiple offer situation as a buyer in our Greater Milwaukee market, I have seven tips for you to follow.

In our current market, if you see a home you like that’s a hot property in a favorable price range, there could be multiple offers for it. 

If you find yourself in this situation and have to compete with other buyers, here are seven things you can do to make your offer the best of the bunch: 

1. Make sure the seller knows you’re qualified. The best way to do this is to get a pre-approval letter (not a pre-qualification letter) from your lender and submit it along with your offer for at least the mortgage amount or higher. 

2. Submit a large earnest money deposit. A normal deposit in today’s market is 1% of the purchase price, so make yours 2%, 3%, or even 5% of the purchase price. If your offer doesn’t get accepted, you’ll get that money back anyway. 

3. Find out from your agent what’s important to the seller. Do they prefer an earlier or later closing date? Do they want certain items excluded from the sale? Your agent can find these things out by talking to the listing agent prior to you making your offer. 

4. Give the seller time to move. I understand you want to move in as fast as possible, but normal closings take about 45 days, so if you’re expecting them to be out in 20 to 30 days, that’s unrealistic unless it’s a vacant property. 

5. Consider shortening or waiving some of the contingencies you have. For example, instead of waiting two or three weeks to do a home inspection, do it within seven days. If you think the property is good enough as it is, consider waiving the inspection altogether. The fewer contingencies you bring, the better chance your offer has of being accepted. 

6. Let the seller know you love their house. I suggest writing a brief letter to the seller outlining why you love their house and why they should pick you to be its buyer. And remember—be sincere. 

Make your first offer your highest and best one.

7. Make a good offer. Make your highest and best offer now because you may not get countered. Excuse the listing price and have your agent do a comparative market analysis—sometimes properties are priced below market value, and you may have to offer thousands of dollars more to get that property. 

If you have any questions about getting your next home in today’s competitive market, don’t hesitate to reach out to us. We’d be happy to assist you.