Real Estate Blog

Jacksonville, Medford and Ashland Real Estate is starting to reflect the economic recovery. Prices are on the rise and interest rates are still low. With more homes being sold, it’s important to choose your representation wisely. Here are some ways to save money, save time and feel good about the process of buying or selling a home.

Most agents are Realtors. Realtors are members of one of the largest professional associations in the U.S. Boards of Realtors require continuing education, high ethical standards, arbitration in case of disputes and more.

Real Estate is customer service and statistically, if the customer has a good experience, they will tell three people about it. If the client has a bad experience, they will tell eleven. Your Realtor knows that in an Internet-driven world, reputations can travel quickly.

Ask yourself:

• Does your Realtor call you back?

• Is your Realtor able to answer or seek answers to your questions in a timely manner?

• Is your Realtor resourceful in using his/her imagination to meet your needs?

• Would you recommend your Realtor to friends and family?

• Does your Realtor listen to your needs and desires?

There are few transactions more personal than the buying and selling of one’s home so it’s important to feel comfortable with your Realtor. It’s often a relationship than can last well beyond that first-time encounter.

Selling your home in today’s market can seem like a challenge, especially if your home could use some tender loving care. But what if you just don’t have it in your budget to invest thousands of dollars into a remodel? For many cash strapped homeowners this is the dilemma that keeps them awake at night. Rest easy, there are many small projects that you can do around the house that will increase your home’s value without breaking the bank. Let’s take a look at 10 Budget-Friendly Ways to Increase Your Home’s Value:

• Landscaping – By spending just a few hundred dollars on grass seed or replacement sod, new flowers, bushes, and or trees any homeowner with a shovel and some elbow grease can dramatically improve their homes curb appeal over a long weekend. For inspiration check out HGTV.com.

• Wash Instead of Paint – If you can’t afford to paint the home how about giving it a good wash? With a ladder and an extension brush any homeowner can give their home’s exterior a thorough scrub down. Don’t forget to wash the screens, windows, and gutters while you’re at it. When you’re done outside move inside.

• Paint the Trim and Front Door – Another way to revitalize your home’s exterior is to paint just the trim and front door two items buyer’s eyes are naturally drawn to when driving by your home. Just be sure the paint is a good match to the base color and you avoid embarrassing drips.

• Clean the Floors – If you can’t afford new flooring consider steam cleaning carpets, washing or waxing laminate, hardwood or linoleum floors, and cleaning the grout on tile floors. Have a hole or permanent stain in the carpet? Consider replacing the flooring in just that room by talking to your local flooring vendor. Be sure to ask about large remnants (left over materials from larger jobs that may fit smaller rooms).

• Re-Caulk Plumbing Fixtures – Over time caulk, the silicon that protects surfaces from water seepage around plumbing fixtures, can discolor, tear, or degrade. Stripping this material out and replacing it with a fresh bead of silicon is an inexpensive way to improve both bathrooms and kitchens. Caulk now comes in different grades and colors so be sure to shop for a product that is appropriate for the job and matches your décor.

• Pressure Wash Sidewalks and Driveways – Over the year’s dirt, dust, and grime works its way into the driveways and sidewalks of every home. The good news is that a few hours with a pressure washer can turn back the clock on these surfaces. A word of warning while it might be tempting to use the same device to wash your home, don’t, the high pressure stream can easily peel the paint off your home (not a good selling point).

• De-Clutter the Home – A home packed full of furniture, clothing, collections, exercise equipment, and or memorabilia can cause a home to look much smaller than its actual size. So have a garage sale, rent a storage unit, or start making trips to the landfill but be sure to whittle down your home’s contents to a manageable size.

• Fix the Small Things – Every homeowner keeps a list of the small projects that they never seem to have time to complete. Now is the time to jump on those projects. Need a gentle reminder? Replace light bulbs throughout the home, fix holes in doors or walls, grease squeaky cabinets or doors, clean the gutters, fix leaking plumbing fixtures, and changing the air filters would be a good start.

• Update Lighting Fixtures – You can spend a fortune on lighting fixtures but you don’t have to. Consider selectively changing lighting fixtures that date the home, exterior garage lights, bathroom lights, or bedroom lights for instance are all great choices.

• Deep Clean the Home – A deep cleaning isn’t just straightening up or rearranging the dusty bunnies, no, it’s a no holds barred war on dirt. Starting from the highest point in the home clean every single surface, yes, you will have to move furniture, clean out closets, and lift up the couch but the results will be well worth the effort.

Improving your home’s value doesn’t always have to mean taking out a second mortgage. Sometimes small projects can improve the value of your home in big ways. So roll up your sleeves, put on your gloves, and have fun!

Over the last few months I have had the opportunity to learn more about private money lenders as well as close a couple of transactions using them. Private money real estate lenders are generally used in place of traditional lenders when the buyer has either less than perfect credit or other situations keeping them from being approved by traditional banks. Other reasons to use a private lender is if the subject property is not able to be financed by a traditional lender.

Private money lenders generally are looking for a larger down payment anywhere from 25-50% and will in most cases charge a higher interest rate sometimes as high as 8-10%. I have found a couple of solid private money lenders that I am comfortable referring to people. For more information please contact me.

Financing can be the most stressful part of the Southern Oregon, Medford, Jacksonville, Ashland and virtually any Real Estate process. Few know that it can also be the most creative and rewarding parts of the Real Estate experience. Once you know your price range, ask your Realtor about owner carry financing, mobile or manufactured home financing, bank financing, FHA, VA and even first-time owners financing. Cash can be good but what about the tax breaks? Methods of financing can be as varied as one’s taste in Real Estate. Your Southern Oregon Real Estate professional may have the means to help you to find the financing the fits you best.

To everything there may be a season but when it comes to Southern Oregon Real Estate, Jacksonville, Medford, Ashland or Eagle Point Real Estate, there is no Real Estate season. For kids finishing the school year and beginning the next, spring may be a good time to buy and sell but for many, entering a cozy home during winter weather can make all the difference in their buying timing. Offers are presented at any hour, in any weather and throughout the year. What is a good time to look, buy or sell? The answer is anytime you wish to find or sell that perfect home. Real Estate is matchmaking and that’s an adventure that can work when we least expect it.

With the Southern Oregon Real Estate Market heating up, whether you’re in Jacksonville, Ashland, Central Point or Medford, the question of listing your house with a Realtor or For Sale by Owner is quite common. While it is often thought that commission will be saved by selling it yourself, exposure via the Multiple Listing Service, hundreds of Realtors, coverage of legalities, expertise and professional promotion are eliminated by merely putting that homemade sign in your yard. By contrast all of the above benefits are more than worth it once your home is officially on the market and let’s face it, a sign in the yard doesn’t make your home official in any way. Your Realtor can advise on staging your home, negotiate the sale, making sure that the sale is legal and instantly contacting hundreds of other Realtors with possible buyers for your home. It’s a fact that many who start with the For Sale by Owner sign end up selling or listing with a Realtor. In a world of cyber communication, lawsuits and competition for exposure, listing can be one of the best decisions you will ever make.

Southern Oregon Real Estate is heating up. Whether you’re interested in Medford Real Estate, Ashland Real Estate, Jacksonville Real Estate or Grants Pass Real Estate, it’s a fact that time is short when it comes to low interest rates. Years ago, a 10% rate meant that you bought your home approximately twice after just 10 years. At today’s rates it would take many years to buy your house even once. With current rates near the rate of inflation, your mortgage can mean almost free money and a great tax benefit. Time is money and in Real Estate, it can mean a lot of money over many years of home ownership.

To get started:

Get pre-qualified by a lender before hunting for your new home.

Consult your Realtor with the results of your pre-qualification.

Be ready to jump when that affordable opportunity comes along

The tail end of recession can be a gift that keeps on giving so act now. Time is money and most-importantly – it’s yours.