3 Bedrooms

2 Bathrooms

1,317+ Adj SqFt

7,650 SqFt Corner Lot

$390,000

There’s definitely an upside  (So,  congratulations!)… but there’s also a fairly sizable downside!   In order to sell your home quickly. you  may have to price yours below what you might otherwise have wanted to.  Alternatively, consider making an offer on your new home “contingent” upon selling your existing residence. Unfortunately, sellers may be hesitant to accept an offer on their property when it is ‘contingent’ upon another real estate sale. So making an offer that way  can weaken your negotiating  position.    “Shopping” for a new home will give you a good idea as to what’s out there….  but when you stumble across that dream home,  you may be in a quandary!  Looking to sell?  Wanting to buy?  Contact Vicki Restivo (EWM Realtors, Inc)  305 793 1365  restivo.v@ewm.com

Coconut Grove•Coral Gables•Downtown Fort Lauderdale•High Pines•Palmetto Bay•Pinecrest•Plantation•Ponce/Davis•South Miami•

Coconut Grove

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Coral Gables

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Downtown Fort Lauderdale

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High Pines

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Palmetto Bay

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Pinecrest

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Plantation

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Ponce/Davis

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South Miami

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Eliminate yard  clutter: Bikes, skates, garden tools, shoes, empty pots….It can go in the garage.  Laundry and riffraff…. hide it… out of sight.  Photos… pack them away.  (You want  a buyer to begin to FEEL as though the house is THEIRS… NOT as though they are a guest in yours).

The pool, windows and mirrors should sparkle.  If you have a bathroom mirror with  ’peeling’  edges,  buy inexpensive framing from a local hardware store,  spray-paint it (black) before installing it (using glue to adhere frame to glass).  Smudged fingerprints on the walls, cabinets or  door frames (like those from newspaper print) come off like magic with “Dawn-Direct Foam”.  “Soft Scrub” or bleach  will perk up sad-looking grout around the tub!  Dryer sheets tucked  into closet shelves and linen cupboards,  and a scented candle near the entry are pluses.

See your house through the buyer’s eyes:  You want them to envision LIVING  in your house.  Keep THEIR eye on  YOUR HOUSE  (not on YOUR ’stuff’).   Organize closets, make beds  (… shut toilet lids).  Eliminate counter-top appliances, and hide them in cabinets  (neatly… because buyers WILL open everything!)   How we LIVE  is not how we SELL …or for that matter how we BUY.   Create the same sense of welcome we have when we first walk into a hotel room…  that “ready for the NEW guest” feel!   Tuck personal items away.  Store clutter in boxes…out of sight.  (You are selling…. which means you are leaving… moving somewhere new…  and if you start now,  it will mean less work later)

Besides PRICE, there are three MAIN selling points:  CURB APPEAL, BATHROOMS, and KITCHENS!  A vase with a few small palm fronds adds to  any bathroom. So do towells!  Treat yourself to fluffy new bath towells (for YOUR new house!) … and ’stage’ the one you’re selling, with those.

Buyers have plenty to pick from right now, and you want them to choose YOUR HOUSE.  Endless showings are a strain … so make yours shout:  “THIS” COULD BE “IT”!

For questions, answers…   or…  to list & sell your house: Call Vicki Restivo (305) 793-1365 EWM REALTORS,INC

Since we’re once again showing properties to potential buyers it may be good to review some of the basics in showing a property. We get only one chance to make a first impression and in a recovering market, every showing a property gets is like gold. You don’t want to waste the opportunity to make a great first impression.

When showing a property these days, you have to consider everything and you need to do everything possible to make sure your property shines above the rest. The best approach when selling a house is the minimalist approach - less is more, and often  better. I showed a house recently that had a nice size room that was about 12′-0″ x 14′-0″, but it had a large desk, sofa, files, etc. The buyer’s perception was that the room was too small for her son — for years I had two sons in a room that size. The room size was fine, but it was a 5lb bag with 10lbs of stuff - take out the desk or the sofa or somehow lighten the visual clutter. Put the stuff in the garage or rent a mini-warehouse.

For many women buyers there are two rooms in the house that are sacred… the kitchen and bathrooms. Some kitchens look like a mechanics shop with all the tools of the trade displayed on the kitchen counter; cute pictures on the refrigerator; notes, books, etc. Removing all the clutter works best - if you must, a few well placed utensils as accent but open counter space is better. A few well placed under cabinet lights to brighten dark counter areas are also very helpful in making the space look bigger.

Dark is great for drama, but terrible for selling — so brighten up the house. The amount and quality of lighting is very important in selling. Light bulbs give out different types of lights that may accent different colors - daylight is best for most conditions. When selling, you may need to accent with incandescent, halogen and other bright lights to bring out and create details. I also suggest to sellers to increase the wattage on light bulbs to the maximum when selling a property. One place that people often do not light properly is the closets - a large dimly lit messy walk-in closet will look small. But if you have it organized and well lit, it will look larger.

Animals is another area of concern. Now a day it seems like every other person is allergic to one thing or another. So if you have pets, make sure to remove them from the house when showing — I’ve found people allergic to everything but fish. Some people have food and water containers for their animals in every corner and in some cases in the path of travel. Also in houses with animals you need to clean twice as much to make sure you don’t have animal hair, smells and or little brown jewels laying around. Litter-boxes and papers or diapers on the floor for the animals to do their thing is a no-no when showing.

Most people’s first impression are made when they drive up to a property. I still remember driving up to a property with my wife years ago and saying, “if the inside is half as nice as the outside we’ll buy it” — and we did. The front of the house including the door, door hardware, door chime button, porch light, landscaping and steps to a front door are critical. There are times when showing properties that we drive up to a property and the buyer will take a first look at the front and ask to skip a showing – at that point there is nothing to do but drive, because they already made up their minds.

Convenience is also important… it is very likely that you have a greater interest in selling your property than the buyer has in buying it. You have one house to sell to one buyer, but the buyer has many houses to buy and yours however nice it is, is just one of many available — so make it convenient for the buyer. So give a key to your Realtor and let her or him work around the buyer’s schedule. Also vacate the property when it is going to be shown - I had one buyer who eliminated one house, because she felt very uncomfortable because the owner was present and she felt she was imposing. In another case the seller became furious, when she heard the prospect say that the house stunk! That is why a seller hires a professional, because they don’t take comments personal - their objective is to sell your house.

The above are just a few suggestions… there is much more. But to say simply that sellers have an opportunity to sell at this time. Do everything you can to show your property in the best light. A buyer’s first impression of your house will often determine if you will sell your property faster.

What is a Short Sale?

A completed Short Sale occurs when a Lender agrees to accept a Purchase amount for the Home
(from a new Buyer) that’s less than the Mortgage amount owed by the existing Owner. Typically, a Short Sale occurs when the value of the property is less than the existing Mortgage amount and/or because the Owner no longer has the ability to continue making payments. HOWEVER, please note that not every Home is approved for a Short Sale! Read below for details.

IMPORTANT POINTS FOR SELLERS

1. DO NOT AVOID CONTACTwith your Lender.
2. The Clock is ticking. Do not delay listing your Home for Sale. At this point,your goal is attempting to find a QUALIFIED BUYER who will place an Offer on your Home, have their Offer approved by the Lender, and complete purchase of your Home before the Bank repossesses it.
3. Unlike a regular Sale where you’re responsible for paying Broker Commissions for the marketing of your home, that IS NOT the case with Short Sale Listings. Brokers & Agents are paid BY THE LENDER from the proceeds they receive from the Buyer for the purchase of your Home.
   
4. If you’re interested in negotiating a Short Sale, you must complete a Short Sale application through your Lender. The Short Sale Application package includes items such as the
   Listing Agreement showing that you’re actively marketing your Home for Sale through a Broker, Tax Returns, Financial Statements, W2s, Homeowner or Condo Association Lien Status Letters, and a Hardship Letter.
5. Every Lender will require that you provide documentation of your Hardship (in other words, the Lender will require that you provide a written explanation of why you’re unable to continue making your Mortgage payments) and the Lender will determine whether the Hardship you explained meets their criteria of “Hardship” or not. Simply owning a Home that’s worth less than your purchase price is not
   sufficient hardship. A few examples of Hardship include Payment Adjustments (such as Adjustable Rate Mortages–ARMs), Family Illness, Death, Unemployment, Divorce, Separation, Military Service, etc.
6. In reviewing your Income, Assets, and Hardship, the Lender will determine if you qualify financially for a Short Sale.
7. Other items that can affect the sale of your home include delinquent Taxes, delinquent Association fees, various Liens, etc.
8. The Lender will not allow you to receive any profit from the Short Sale.
9. Your Credit Score WILL be decreased by a Short Sale, although your Credit Score decrease for a Short Sale is less than the Credit Score decrease experienced in a Foreclosure or Deed in Lieu of a
   Foreclosure.
10. If you receive a qualified Offer for the purchase of your Home, the Offer will be submitted to the Lender along with your Short Sale Application package.
11. If the Lender accepts the Offer, they will order a Broker Price Opinion (BPO) which they use to determine the current Market Value of the home. The Lender will use the BPO to determine
    the purchase price that they will accept from the Buyer.
12. Carefully evaluate if you absolutely must sell your home. Listing your Home for Sale does not guarantee its’ sell, nor are there guarantees that a Buyer will place an Offer, or that the Lender will
    accept the Buyer’s Offer. Inventory of homes for sale in our current market is high, so if you do not absolutely have to sell right now, then wait until a future time when conditions are better for Sellers (right now, we’re in a Buyer’s Market, not a Seller’s Market). Review my Broward Real Estate Market Report.
13. Lenders are swamped with thousands of Short Sales and Foreclosures and, unfortunately, are understaffed to handle the caseload. Because of that and because of the required steps to process Short Sale requests, the Short Sale Offer and purchase process can be lengthy. Although
    some Short Sales close quickly once an Offer has been received (within 30-45 days), many others are known to have taken more than 2-3 months before even receiving a response from the Lender as to whether the Offer will be accepted or not.
14. The listing of your Home will be competing with other Homes on the market including non-Short Sales that are competitively priced. If you have more than one Mortgage on your home, the Short
    Sale process will typically take longer than if you have only one Mortgage.
15. I am not an Attorney, nor an Accountant. I advise you to consult your Financial and Legal Advisors regarding the ramifications of a Short Sale or Foreclosure.

IMPORTANT POINTS FOR BUYERS

1. Review the points I included for Sellers above as they will help your understanding of the Short Sale process.
2. The List Price shown on a Home offered as a Short Sale DOES NOT EQUAL the amount that you will pay for the Home!!! When you submit an Offer to the Lender, they will determine the current
   Market Value of the Home and will decide how much of a discount they’re going to offer off of the existing Mortgage amount. Factors affecting their decision include the current market value of the Home, how much home inventory they own, and other factors.
3. Lenders are requesting “highest and best Offer” from Buyers, so ask me for details about how to structure and place an Offer that’s based in reality, an Offer that’s more likely to be accepted.
   I and many other Real Estate Professionals are seeing numerous Buyers’ lowball Offers being rejected by Lenders. Just because home inventory is high and because Lenders do not want to own Real
   Estate DOES NOT MEAN that they are “giving homes away” and that they’re accepting every Offer that they receive. If it were so easy and if Lenders were indeed giving homes away, the current inventory of Broward homes for sale would be A LOT lower and home sales would be A LOT higher.
4. The Lender will first have to determine if the Homeowner qualifies for a Short Sale. Not all
   Homeowners qualify for a Short Sale. The Lender will review the Homeowner’s Income, Assets, and nature of their Hardship to determine if the Owner qualifies for a Short Sale.
5. Other items that can affect the sale of the home include delinquent Taxes, delinquent Association fees, various Liens, etc.
6. When you place an Offer on a home offered as a Short Sale and submit the Offer to the Lender, the Lender will determine if they will ACCEPT or REJECT your Offer. Price negotiations are conducted through the Lender. Although Homes offered as Short Sales are still owned by the Owner (these homes are also known as Pre-Foreclosures), the Homeowner in Pre-Foreclosure DOES NOT determine the amount that will be accepted for the purchase of their home.
7. Get Pre-approved through a Lender BEFORE starting your home search in order to determine how much home you can afford. Home inventory is high in many segments of our local market
   and we have to be able to narrow your home search first based on price and then other search criteria. It’s a complete waste of everyone’s time and resources to view homes that you cannot afford.
   If you’re planning for your purchase to be a Cash purchase, a Letter from your Financial Institution verifying your available funds to purchase a home will be necessary.
8. The Lender will determine if you qualify financially for the Short Sale that you placed an Offer on.
9. Lenders are swamped with thousands of Short Sales and Foreclosures and, unfortunately, are understaffed to handle the caseload. Because of that, other reasons, and because of the required steps to process Short Sale requests, the Short Sale Offer and purchase process can be lengthy. Although some Short Sales close quickly once an Offer has been received (within 30-45 days), many others are known to have taken more than 2-3 months before even receiving a response from the Lender as to whether the Offer will be accepted or not.
10. IF YOU ARE NOT PATIENT, DO NOT ENGAGE IN A SHORT SALE!!!Repeat this a few times! Short Sales ARE NOT for Buyers who are not patient or who have a short, specific timeframe for purchasing. I’ve experienced several Buyers who ignored my advice regarding this who later regretted not listening.
11. Other interested Buyers can submit an Offer on the same Home that you placed an Offer on, so it can be a competitive process where the Buyers involved are all hoping that their Offer is the one that’s approved by the Lender.
12. Short Sales are not the only great deals available for Sale. Many Sellers have reduced their prices in response to market conditions, so there are other Homes that are priced competitively that can be purchased through a normal sale process, without the necessity of Short Sale and Lender approval and related issues.
13. I’ve outlined information about Short Sales in this post, however, Foreclosures (properties that the Bank has repossessed) are also available for sale. Foreclosures typically require a much more
    specific timeframe for closing (unlike the lengthy time for Short Sales), however, item #9 applies here as well (other Buyers can all submit Offers). Additionally, Foreclosed Homes are sold “As Is”, which
    means that the Bank is selling the Home in its’ current condition, has already determined its’ current market value and WILL NOT negotiate the price with you based on repairs or updates that might be necessary. You will pay for and complete an Inspection prior to purchase and will decide to purchase or not purchase the home based on the Inspection results (unlike a non-Foreclosure sale, you will not be able to use the Inspection results as a point of price negotiation or ask that repairs be completed prior to your purchase). Be advised as well that some Foreclosed homes are in varying states of disrepair. Additionally, the Electricity might not be on, so it will be your responsibility to pay for connection of the Electricity prior to the Inspection in order to test the Electrical components of
    the Home.

Again, the information I provided here IS NOT comprehensive and does not substitute for the
advice of Legal and Financial professionals, but is intended to provide you with basic, important details regarding the process. Contact me for additional details. I meet people everyday who
do not understand the FACTS related to Foreclosures and Short Sales.

If you are a Seller who wants to list a Ft. Lauderdale Short Sale or Broward Short Sale, please contact me for information about my Marketing Plan for your home.I work full-time to market your Home for sale and search for QUALIFIED Buyers.Real Estate is not a Part-time Profession for me.

I work with local Short Sale Mitigation Specialists–who also work with you and deal directly with the Lender, on your behalf, to negotiate the existing Mortgage(s), assist you with completing necessary documentation, and facilitate many other necessary steps in the Short Sale process, including closing/completing the transaction if a QUALIFIED Buyer places an Offer that’s accepted by the Lender for the purchase of your Home.

If you are a Buyer who wants to buy a Ft. Lauderdale Short Sale, Ft. Lauderdale Foreclosure, Broward
Short Sale, or Broward Foreclosure, contact me for information about available Foreclosures and Short Sales. As a member of the S.E. Florida MLS and Greater Ft. Lauderdale Association of Realtors, I have access to a Foreclosure database which allows me to search available Pre-Foreclosures and Foreclosures based on a variety of search criteria, including but not limited to City Names, Zip Codes, Subdivision Names, Building Names, Filing Date, Mortgage Amount, etc. The database pulls information from Tax Records, so it’s not limited only to properties that are listed for sale through the MLS and it has far more powerful search capabilities than the local Tax site.

Search Ft. Lauderdale Homes for Sale, search the Ft. Lauderdale MLS and Broward MLS.

Commissions: A typical full service agent’s commission ranges from 5-7% (i.e. on the sale of a $500,000 home, the commission earned is between $25,000 and $35,000). That is a lot of money to anyone. As staggering as this sounds, many sellers do not realize that 80% of homes are sold by realtors and that these homes are consistently sold for far more money than “by owner” sales — 27% more on average, according to the National Association of REALTORS^® Profile of Home Buyers and Sellers. Suddenly, paying a 5-7% commission makes a lot more sense, because in the long run, the use of a Realtor’s^® services yields a higher profit on the sale of your home, even after you have paid commissions.

Representation: The old adage, “He who represents himself has a fool for a client,” has universal application. It is not just for lawyers. Today’s market is much different than in years past. Consider that just 3 years ago there were approximately 150 single-family homes for sale in all of Weston. Now there are over 900. Inventory has literally quintupled and economists predict that there is a minimum of 30 months worth of inventory to be sold. Realtors^® are extensively skilled and trained to accurately price and market properties to qualified buyers (via print media, internet, television, MLS, etc.) Additionally, your Realtor^® should gather feedback from selling agents, negotiate contracts, and ultimately oversee that mortgage applications/approvals, inspections, appraisals, walkthroughs and most importantly a successful closing all take place in a timely and professional manner.

Marketing: Make no mistake about it. The key to selling in this environment is aggressive marketing, that is, exposing the property to as many qualified candidates as possible. Simply putting a sign up in front of the property or adding it to the MLS (Multiple Listing Service) will do very little in a market where inventory levels are high and similar homes exist for sale. You need exceptional marketing. Hoping and praying for an offer is futile and a complete waste of time.

The answer: An emotional attachment to and a legal ownership of your home does not necessarily suggest that you are the most qualified person to sell it. Hire a Realtor^®. You will be way ahead of the game by saving time and money. If money is the issue and you are looking to “net” more, hire a Realtor^®. If your reason for selling “by owner” is based upon negative past experiences with a realtor, you have not found the right one. Would you stop dining out entirely because the service in one restaurant was bad in the past? Residential real estate is a relationship business built on trust and professionalism. Just as important as the decision of whether to sell your home, so too is the decision of who should sell it. Buying and selling your home may possibly be the biggest monetary transaction of your life. Make informed decisions and you will be fine.

Jason Kapit, Esq. is a Realtor^® with EWM. To contact him, email kapit.j@ewm.com or visit www.JasonKapit.com

If you’d like to know what your house is worth in today’s market, I’ll be glad to give you my opinion. You can reach me at 305-401-8058 or bishopric.r@ewm.com.

What are the three key elements to sell in this market? Price, condition and a knowledgeable Realtor.

In order to move your home in this market you must price it right. That does not mean, let’s try it and see what happens. It means look at the facts and listen to your real estate professional. The days of adding 30 percent to the last closed sale are over. Unless you bought your home in the last 2 years, you have made a profit and enjoyed your home.

Clean, clean, clean! You must clean and declutter your home. Bathrooms and kitchens must sparkle. A fresh coat of paint and a cleaning of the carpets is a must. Get rid of the items you do not intend to move. This not only makes the house look better, it will help you when it is time to pack.

Finally, listen to your Realtor. They are there to relay the most current market information. They don’t make the numbers up, they are what they are. Your Realtor is there to guide you, sell your home for the best possible price and to have your transaction be as smooth as possible.

In order to prepare your sellers for this Spring market, staging and fixing all those little flaws in a home is critical. Landscaping is always an important touch. This is the potential buyer’s first impression of a home and it is usually considered the best bang for your buck when doing touch ups to list a home. Warm, happy colors are inspiring in Spring and makes a home feel welcoming. If your home evokes a peaceful and inviting feeling Buyers will be drawn to it and will imagine themselves living there.

So take advantage of this positive swing we are seeing as we step into Spring!