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Why Do People Stage Homes To Sell?

August 2, 2019 by Valeria Gaufillier

Why Do People Stage Homes To SellIf you’re selling your home, your real estate agent has likely advised you to stage your home to sell. But why exactly do people stage homes to sell? Some people go to great lengths to stage their home too, even going so far as moving possessions into storage units or renting furnishings!

If your home is already nicely decorated, why should you go to the added trouble of “staging” it? There are many good reasons to stage your home to sell.

1. Staging Makes Your Home Appear More Spacious

Having lived in your home for a number of years, you probably haven’t noticed how many things you’ve accumulated. When you stage your home to sell, these things get put away out of sight. This tends to clear tabletops, open up floor space and generally make your home look larger. Homebuyers will see the spaciousness as a huge asset.

2. Staging Gives Every Area A Purpose

Part of the staging process is to give every area of the home a purposeful identity. A space by the front door becomes a true foyer, a bay window becomes a reading nook and a short hallway becomes a mail organization station. This lets homebuyers imagine how organized and productive their new lives will be in your home.

3. Buyer’s Agents Will Be Proud To Show Your Home

It may seem odd, but the homes that a buyer’s agent shows can reflect on the agent. When your home is beautifully staged, seller’s agents will be delighted to bring their buyers to see it. This can result in more traffic, which can lead to increased offers on your home for sale.

4. Staging Helps Buyers Envision Living There

Another process of staging is the removal of personal items from your home. This would include trophies, family portraits and similar memorabilia. This enables homebuyers to more easily envision themselves living in your home, which is more likely to lead to them making an offer.

5. Staging Takes The Burden Off The Seller

As the homeowner, you need to make sure all your possessions are in tip top shape for showings. Your favorite “sloppy” couch would have to be refreshed and steam cleaned to pass muster with discriminating buyers. Instead of going though all that, you can rent temporary staging furniture that’s already in pristine condition. 

As you can see, there are benefits to home sellers to stage the home. For help with the staging process, consult with your trusted real estate agent.  And, if you are in the market for a new home or interested in refinancing your current property, be sure to contact your trusted home mortgage professional.

Filed Under: Real Estate Tagged With: Home Selling Tips, Home Staging, Real Estate

Case-Shiller: Home Prices Growth Slows in March

August 1, 2019 by Valeria Gaufillier

Case-Shiller: Home Prices Growth Slows in MarchHome price growth slowed again in May according to Case-Shiller home price indices. Home price growth slowed for the 14th consecutive month to its lowest rate in 12 years. Case-Shiller’s National Home Price Index showed 3.40 percent growth year-over-year in May as compared to April’s year-over-year reading of 3.50 percent.

Las Vegas, Nevada held its first place position in the 20-City Home Price Index for highest year-over-year home price growth rate at 6.40 percent; Phoenix, Arizona held second place with a year-over-year home price growth reading of 5.70 percent. Tampa, Florida home prices grew by 5.10 percent year-over-year in May.

Home Price Growth Rates Fall In West Coast Cities

West coast cities that posted double-digit annual home price gains in recent years posted less than two percent growth in home prices in May. Seattle, Washington was the first city to post negative home price growth with a negative year-over-year reading of -1.20 percent in May. San Francisco, California home prices rose by 1.00 percent year-over-year and home prices in San Diego, California grew 1.30 percent year-over-year.

This trend suggests that home prices were topped out in terms of affordability as buyers looked elsewhere for larger selections of homes at affordable prices.

Analysts predicted a plateau in home price growth and did not expect steep declines in home prices. Steady growth in wages and jobs could help to ease affordability challenges for home buyers. Lower mortgage rates provided additional opportunity for first-time and moderate income home buyers, but home price growth needs to ease further to help would-be buyers conquer affordability concerns. Shortages of homes for sale are most pronounced for lower-priced homes, where demand is largest. Higher demand for homes during the peak selling season could boost prices in popular metro areas.

If you’re in the market for a new home or interested in refinancing your current property, please contact your trusted home mortgage professional.

Filed Under: Market Outlook Tagged With: Case Shiller, Market Outlook, Market Trends

What Is Eminent Domain?

July 31, 2019 by Valeria Gaufillier

What Is Eminent DomainEminent domain is a law that gives the federal, state, county, and municipal governments in the United States the legal right to “condemn” property and then seize it to allow its use for development. Eminent domain is supposed to be used by the government at the various levels to do things for the public benefit, such as to build new roads or construct new public schools.

Compensation Under Eminent Domain Seizure

The government cannot take property without compensating the owner for its market value. Disputes that lead to lawsuits arise when the property owner and the government have a serious disagreement about the value of the property.

Imagine an acre of desert land in Nevada with no water, nothing built on it, and no utilities. The owner would be lucky to get $10,000 for it. Now, imagine it is less than a few miles away and that same amount of land is on the world-famous Las Vegas Strip. Now, it can sell for up to $10 million per acre.

What if the vacant land becomes a part of a new extension of Las Vegas? Is it worth $10,000 or $10 million? This is the type of thing that causes major legal disputes over the property valuations.

Abuse Of Eminent Domain

Eminent domain is supposed to be only used sparingly for the public benefit. Unfortunately, that is not always the case. Developers sometimes use eminent domain laws with the complicit help of government officials to seize all kinds of property that the owners have no intention of ever selling at any price. People may lose their family homes where they lived for generations so that the city can allow a developer to build a parking lot.

To make matters worse, in 2005, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in a case called Keto v. City of London that the city could seize property on the mere expectation of increased tax revenues for the city or jobs.

This landmark case basically removed any restrictions and expanded the ability of the government to seize property on a mere pretense of having an expectation of revenues. In response to the U.S. Supreme Court ruling, 44 states enacted laws restricting eminent domain seizures in those states.

Summary

When a property owner gets hit with an eminent domain action, it is usually a surprise. The owner should immediately seek out competent legal counsel to help protect their rights and not necessarily let the abusers get away with using eminent domain laws inappropriately. There are non-profit organizations that are legal action groups, such as the Institute for Justice working on these issues that can help as well.

If you are in the market for a new home or interested in refinancing your current property, please contact your trusted home mortgage professional.

Filed Under: Real Estate Tagged With: Eminent Domain, Property Issues, Real Estate

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Valeria Gaufillier

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Eastern Financial Mortgage
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