Selling Your Home

Selling in Spring

TIPS FOR SELLING YOUR HOME IN THE SPRING! 

Spring is here, and for many homeowners, it's the perfect time to sell their homes. The warm weather and beautiful flowers blooming all around can make your property look its best, but there are a few things you need to keep in mind when listing your home for sale in the spring. In this post, we'll share some tips to help you prepare your home for the spring selling season.

Start with a deep cleaning

Spring is a time for new beginnings, so start by giving your home a deep cleaning. This includes dusting, scrubbing, and decluttering every room in your home. A clean and organized home will make it easier for potential buyers to picture themselves living in your space. Don't forget to tackle the outside of your home as well by power washing your driveway, sidewalks, and decks.

Focus on curb appeal

Speaking of the outside of your home, curb appeal is essential when listing your home for sale in the spring. Spring is the time when flowers bloom, so add some color to your landscaping by planting some bright and vibrant flowers in your garden beds. Make sure your lawn is well-maintained, and your hedges and trees are trimmed.

Let the light in

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Selling your home? Be smart, use an agent

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In today’s real estate market, inventory is low for the number of buyers out there. In simpler terms: there just are not enough houses for sale to match up with all of those people looking to buy. Because of this, if you are even considering selling your home, now could be the perfect time. But you want to be smart about it. Sure, you may be able to sell it on your own, or what is called going the “For Sale By Owner” route, but it could be more trouble than it is worth. You can take a lot of stress off of your plate by having an agent list your house and do that work for you.

If you sell your home on your own, you are taking on a lot of responsibility. First, you have to negotiate the contract, and more than likely, you will be negotiating with a buyer’s agent who knows what each section and page mean. Do you? Do you know about inspection deadlines and response time?

Speaking of inspections,  you are then going to deal with what buyer’s agent on repair negotiations. But there is not much wrong with your house, right? The home inspectors will find plenty of things that you are not aware of or that you consider to be a big deal. If the buyer’s ask for things to be fixed, it’s on you to deal with the agent on what will and will not get done.

How are you going to market your house? Will you just put a sign in the front yard? Post a link on your personal Facebook page? Good luck. When Facebook thinks you are trying to sell something, your post gets bumped down and less people will see it. Your listing agent more than likely has their own website where your home would be listed. If you are looking...

Data shows that May is the best month to sell your home

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Great news if you are thinking about putting your home on the market! According to attomdata.com, the month of May is the best month to sell a home. This was from an analysis of 14.7 million home sales from 2011-2017 across the country. Below is a breakdown by month of the average % sold above market price.

Photo from keepingcurrentmatters.com

Top 5 Days to Sell:

  • June 28th – 9.1% above market
  • February 15th – 9.0% above market
  • May 31st – 8.3% above market
  • May 29th – 8.2% above market
  • June 21st – 8.1% above market

According to the National Association of Realtors, homes sold in an average of just 30 days last month! However, homes that were listed with the Brad Long Group (and went under contract) were only on the market for an average of two days! 

Thinking of selling your home? Let us know! Now is the time to make the move!

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Top Pre-Spring Tips for Preparing Your Home for Sale in Louisville

Louisville from IndianaWhile spring time is a busy time in the real estate market, sellers and those considering listing their home with a Louisville real estate agent shouldn’t wait until the weather breaks to start on the preparation for selling their home. There are many things to consider when selling your home at the height of the market, so don’t wait to act on them because last minute preparation will prevent you from really taking advantage of the large pool of buyers that comes out in the spring.

The following are a few tips to employ when the frost is still on, in order to be ready right at the beginning of the 2014 spring Louisville real estate season.

• Knowing What to Expect

Begin formulating your game plan during the winter months. Do your own homework and study the local market changes. Enlist a knowledgeable real estate agent to help you find a home and put you in touch with perspective buyers for your existing one. Confirm your financing options well ahead of time. Getting pre-approved is critical to ensuring all of your bases are covered.

• Get a Second Opinion

You are never obligated to employ any particular Louisville real estate agent or agency. When choosing the one for your real estate transaction, you want to be confident you have a full and open path of communication with your agent. Make sure you are comfortable and truly feel he or she has your best interests in mind. There is nothing wrong with searching further for the right real estate agent in Louisville to assist you in the selling of your home and finding a new one.

• Make the Most of What You Have

Small details can go a long way in boosting...

Selling your Home - 12 Home Staging Tips

These days’ appearance is everything when you are trying to sell anything, and this is especially true when selling your Louisville home. When you hear Realtors talk about ‘staging’ your home, this means getting everything ready to make a great first impression for prospective buyers when they begin to walk through the door.

Here are the top 12 tips to stage your home for fantastic first impressions.

• The number one rule for nearly all homes: paint. Even a fresh coat of a neutral shade will brighten the interior of any home, giving it a clean and fresh feeling to those seeing it for the first time.

• Green is in! When performing upgrades or modifications, use environmentally friendly labor resources and materials. This adds a great selling point to any property listing.

• Up-cycle what you can to save on money, as well as staying within the ‘green’ theme. Home Staging TipsHardwood floors can be re-purposed to furniture or fencing, old counter tops can be made into shelves, and doors can be re-purposed into just about anything to compliment the home's style and offerings.

• Allude to more space. For a small space, paint the same color as the adjoining room. For example, painting a small kitchen and open dining room the same color will make the area appear larger than it really is. Another example of giving the impression of bigger spaces is by hanging curtains that are the same color as the walls. This gives the interior a modern and seamless look.

• Avoid overcrowding. That large overstuffed furniture may be comfortable to sit in, but if placed in a small room; it can appear cramped. Make the most of the space with size appropriate furnishings...

Tips to Save Energy and Add Value

When it comes to energy efficiency, look for smart features and expertise to help you save energy and money and add value to your home.

1. Begin with a Right-Sized Home.

If the home you buy is simply too large for you or your family’s needs or plans, you stand a good chance of wasting energy through excessive heating and cooling costs. If it’s too small, you’ll feel cramped and uncomfortable. It’s a big investment, so seek balance and buy it “right” from the outset. 

2. Purchase Energy Star Appliances Such as Your TV, Dishwasher, Washer and Dryer, and Microwave.

And especially the refrigerator, as it alone contributes about 10 percent of the energy use in a home. Also, unplug electronics not in use or turn off power strips to avoid phantom charges. 

3. Install Efficient Lighting Such as Compact Flourescent (CLF) or LED Bulbs in Every Fixture.

Lighting accounts for about 6 percent of an energy bill each year.

4. Get an Energy Audit and Have Tests Performed to Identify Ways of Improving Your Efficiency.

You can always upgrade your heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) system as well as your  thermal envelope, which includes insulation, windows, and doors  and the seals or weather stripping around them. Visit energy.gov/energytips for more tips.

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