Home inspections are useful, even though they can’t predict the future. Want to buy a home? Search All Homes Want to sell your home? Receive a Home Value Report Today I’m sharing a few things about home inspections. Home inspections help prevent issues and ensure you buy a home that’s up to standard.  However, remember; inspectors don’t have crystal balls—they can’t predict what might go wrong in the future. For example, if you take your car in to get checked, and the mechanic says your brakes look great, but you do a ton of driving, and three months later they’d worn out—they couldn’t have predicted how fast they’d wear down. It’s the same thing for home inspections. Recently, we had a buyer purchase a house, and everything was in good condition, but three weeks later the furnace went out—the inspector had no way of knowing that would happen. The inspectors can only give a snapshot of what things look like at the time of inspection. "Home inspections help prevent issues and ensure you buy a home that’s up to standard." While that may be the case, an inspector should provide maintenance tips that can help prolong the life of your mechanicals like the water heater, furnace, AC system, and more. That’s an indicator of a quality home inspection company. If you have more questions about home inspections or real estate in general, feel free to reach out via phone or email. We would love to help you.

In our low-inventory market, here’s how buyers and sellers stack up. Want to buy a home? Search All Homes Want to sell your home? Receive a Home Value Report What’s the latest news from our York County market? To answer that, we want to tell you the story of how one of our sellers sold their home for $35,000 over asking price. They listed the home for $280,000, which means the offer was for $315,000, and it included great terms that allowed them to settle whenever they wanted. They were looking at buying a new construction home next, but the agent for that home informed them she couldn’t accept an offer that was contingent on their current home selling first. She then told them to list their home as soon as they could and get an offer on it. Only then would she be able to accept an offer. Our clients loved this new construction home, so the next day they put a ‘for sale’ sign in their yard. They were able to keep their house very clean and were so efficient at letting people in for showings, and their effort was what led to their incredible offer. That’s the main takeaway from this story: Effort is what counts in this hot marketplace if you want to have the opportunity to accept an amazing offer and go after your next dream home. Once you put your home on the market, keep it clean and ready for as many showings as possible. With how low inventory is, it’s not hard to get an exceptional offer on your home. On the flipside, with how quickly homes are coming off the market, we know this can sound overwhelming if you’re a buyer. That’s why you must put in the same effort in buying a home as our sellers did in selling one. This means putting your best foot forward for your initial offer. Just like their buyer, you need to be willing to settle whenever the seller wants to settle. Being open and submitting your best offer up front will make it so much better than the other offers. "It’s critical that you work with an agent who’ll put their whole effort into accomplishing your goals." A key to writing a good offer is getting a pre-approval letter before you start looking at homes and making offers. In this market, we’re sometimes writing offers for our clients right after attending showings, and having a pre-approval letter handy is vital to getting your offer accepted. This letter shows sellers you’re serious about buying. Whether you’re buying or selling in today’s market, it’s critical that you also work with an agent who’ll put their whole effort into accomplishing your goals. If you're a buyer, especially, there are plenty of bumps and bruises along the way a good agent can help you deal with. If you'd like our help in buying or selling a home or have questions about our York County market, call or email us anytime. We’d love to help you.

Today I’m sharing some helpful home financing tips for buyers out there. Want to buy a home? Search All Homes Want to sell your home? Receive a Home Value Report If you’re a homebuyer, it’s essential that you at least have a pre-approval before you go out looking at homes. It’s one of the most important steps of the process. After you’ve saved up for your down payment and made sure your credit is straight, there are still a bunch of other factors that determine how much you’re approved for. "A pre-approval is one of the most important steps of the process." The last thing you want to do is spend your valuable time out there looking at homes that aren’t in your price range. You may be looking at homes at or above your price range if you’re not pre-approved. This process will let you know what those monthly payments and taxes will look like so you can get a better idea of what you can afford versus what you’re comfortable with paying. You also need to work with a lender who knows the area. Those taxes can vary greatly depending on whether you’re looking in Maryland or Pennsylvania. If you have any questions about buying or selling a home, don’t hesitate to reach out via phone or email. I look forward to hearing from you soon.

If you’re selling, here are some financially efficient renovation tips. Want to buy a home? Search All Homes Want to sell your home? Receive a Home Value Report Unfortunately, home renovations don’t always bring a great return on investment; in most cases, you’ll actually lose money. For instance, if you do a major kitchen remodel, you can expect to get back around 70% of your money. A master suite edition will only get you back about 60% of your money. Decks are only slightly better; a wood deck will bring around a 70% return on your investment, and if you use a composite material like Trex, then you’ll only get back 60% to 65% of your money. When you sell your home, your goal is to make as much money as possible. The ways to do that are pretty simple, and you don’t even need to hire professional contractors to accomplish them: Painting. Paint your home in neutral colors like beige; this will better allow buyers to envision themselves living there.Depersonalization. Taking down and storing family photos will also help buyers imagine themselves in your home.Professional cleaning. If your home is nice and clean from top to bottom, that could easily add a few thousand dollars to your value, especially after COVID’s appearance on the scene. "If you plan to sell in the short term, stick to simpler, cheaper projects." Replacing your siding. Alternatively, you could give your existing siding a good power wash to give the exterior of your home a whole new look. Be sure to check for holes in your siding too, so as not to let in any bugs or moisture.Updating your property’s landscaping. This may not be as important during the winter, but come the spring market, people want to see a prim and proper lawn.Decorating with a consistent theme. Be sure to keep your decorations fairly neutral and consistent throughout the home; that could include accenting your walls with curtains of a certain color, throw pillows, etc. This is an extension of the staging process, which helps you get the biggest bang for your buck. If you don’t plan to move out of your home for five or more years, then go ahead and make those larger renovations like in your kitchen and bathroom. You’ll gain equity over time that will make up for the costs. If you plan to sell in the short term, however, stick to the simpler fixes I’ve mentioned today. For any further questions you have about preparing your home for the market, don’t hesitate to reach out to Tru Advantage Realty. We’d love to help you.

At the moment, it’s better to sell your current home before buying. Want to buy a home? Search All Homes Want to sell your home? Receive a Home Value Report The real estate market is still very competitive during the holidays, and one thing that’s been helping our buyers get their next home under contract is selling their current house first. "It’s better to put your current home under contract before buying another." Put yourself in the seller’s shoes and imagine that you’ve received two similar offers on your property: One has no contingencies, the other has the contingency to sell their home before buying yours. Everything else is the same except for the contingency difference. You don’t know when that buyer’s house will sell. The market is hot, but we sometimes still see properties sit for a couple of months. Then, you could also run into issues with the buyer’s financing. This demonstrates why it’s better to put your current home under contract before buying another; it helps you make a stronger offer to the seller. They’ll be more willing to choose your offer if it doesn’t have extra “what ifs” attached. We’d love to walk alongside you during the process of selling and buying your next house. If you need anything or have questions, call or text us. We’d be glad to help you.

This is why the winter months are a smart time to sell a home. Want to buy a home? Search All Homes Want to sell your home? Receive a Home Value Report As the fall season begins to wind down and the holiday season ramps up, the number of available homes on the market can begin to dwindle. This comes from the common misconception that your home is worth more money in the spring and summer because of the increased curb appeal brought on by a well-groomed lawn and beautiful flowers. There are still plenty of active buyers out there searching for a home during the holiday season. This can be a great opportunity for savvy sellers to take advantage of their equity and capitalize on the lower inventory. With interest rates so low this year, buyers can stretch their dollars a bit further. Waiting until spring just means more competition, which could potentially drive down your asking price. That’s just the basic economic principle of supply and demand at work. "Buyers can stretch their money a bit further this year." Unfortunately, nobody has a crystal ball or knows what tomorrow will bring, especially after a year like this. The only thing we can tell you is that right now, home values are higher than they’ve been in a long time. We can almost guarantee there is someone out there looking for a home just like yours right at this very moment. If you’re interested in learning more about how much equity you’ve gained this past year and what kind of doors it can open for you, give us a call or send us an email today. We look forward to hearing from you soon.

Data shows that you can afford a more expensive property in 2020 than in 2019. Want to buy a home? Search All Homes Want to sell your home? Receive a Home Value Report With housing prices so high and interest rates so low, will you still get a better deal on a home this year than you would have last year? According to the financial data experts from CoreLogic, home prices have increased by 6.6% on average, or $9,800, even more in some states. At the same time, interest rates have hit record lows for well-qualified buyers. The data from financial company NerdWallet says that in 2019 interest rates averaged 3.9%. As of November 9, 2020, interest rates are at 2.8% on a 30-year mortgage, which is 1.1% lower than in 2019. (Rates are as low as 2.5% for a 15-year mortgage.) "Though home prices have risen, the extremely low interest rates still give you more leverage." That 1.1% difference equates to 14% more buying power. For example, if you could only afford to finance a $270,000 house last year, making payments of $1,274 per month over 30 years, this year, you could afford to finance a $310,000 home for that same $1,274 payment. That’s an additional $40,000 in leverage compared to 2019. So even though home prices have risen, the extremely low interest rates still give you more leverage than last year. So, can you get a better deal in 2020 than in 2019? The answer in most cases is yes. We don’t know how long these great low interest rates will last, so if you’re considering a move, don’t wait too long. If you have more questions on this topic or any other real estate matter, text or call me. I’d love to be your real estate guide.

Here’s our pricing advice for today’s home sellers. Want to buy a home? Search All Homes Want to sell your home? Receive a Home Value Report A few days ago, one of our clients was able to sell their home in just a few days for $10,000 more than the asking price because we had the right pricing strategy. When we initially discussed the price, we didn’t start at the very top. We started at a place where we knew it would grab a lot of buyers’ attention. We had four showing requests and four offers on the first day we listed it and, in this situation, we got more money by pricing here than we would have by pricing at the top of the market. This strategy doesn’t work for every seller, but we’re equipped to help you out no matter your situation. If you have questions for us, don’t hesitate to reach out via phone or email. We look forward to hearing from you soon.

Here’s what you need to keep in mind if you’re buying a home within the next three years. Want to buy a home? Search All Homes Want to sell your home? Receive a Home Value Report If you’re looking to buy a home within the next three years, there are three very important tips to remember: 1. Understand your finances. You need to know what’s coming in, what’s coming out, and what you can afford. It’s important not to live beyond your means. Understanding your finances is also key to saving up for your down payment and anything else you’ll need once you close on your new home. 2. Be mindful of your credit. A great way to stay on top of this is to check your FICO score, which is typically free if you use online banking. 3. Get in touch with a local mortgage lender. You need to know what you can afford before you start shopping for homes because you might be able to afford more than you think. Reaching out to a local lender is the best way to calculate your buying power. We’d love to connect with you to guide you through the preliminaries of buying a home. We also know plenty of great local lenders who can help you as well. If you have any questions at all, don’t hesitate to reach out to us. We look forward to speaking with you.

Buyers and sellers need these tips for home maintenance during showings. Want to Buy a Home? Search All Homes Want to Sell a Home? Receive a Home Value Report Today I have a few home maintenance tips to share for both buyers and sellers during showings. If you’re selling your home, make sure your lawn is manicured and landscaped. The first impression is the best impression buyers will get. If you’re living in the house while you sell it, here’s a tip: If you keep items on top of your nightstand, put them in a bin under the bed before showings. Also, throw any dishes lying around into the dishwasher. Small things can make a difference. Try not to give buyers anything they need to overlook to see the property’s potential. "If you keep items on top of your nightstand, put them in a bin under the bed before showings." Buyers: I know I just told sellers to manicure their lawn, but if you pull up to the house and see that the lawn isn’t manicured, don’t worry about it. You can mow the lawn when the property is yours. You can also landscape however you like, so try to see past that when you’re looking at homes. If you walk into a house and see that the sellers didn’t have time to tidy up, don’t get caught up in those details. You need to focus on whether the home has enough space for your family and the rooms you need; when it’s yours, you can personalize it. If you have any questions about what to do to get your house sold or are considering buying a property, call or email me! I have the answers you need.