Atlanta Condos For Sale

Should I Stage My Condo For Sale?

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Staging Your Home For SaleAs a Seller, your life get’s turned upside down when you place your home or condo on the market, or FOR SALE! It means the front door is going to open. And Open. And Open. How many times, depends on a number of factors.

Should I Stage My Condo For Sale?

Gone will be the days of not making your bed, leaving your gym clothes on the bathroom floor, cleaning the bathroom counter and cleaning the kitchen before you leave. No dirty dishes. I get it. That’s a tough thing to do, day after day, if it is not your normal routine. (I know I’d have a challenge in my own home….but I’d have some serious de-cluttering to do before I listed my home. That is another form of staging.

Some home owners are meticulous. The photo to the right is one of a listing I had a few years back. Seriously, the condo always looked like this. The owner kept it perfect all the time.

So, there is the staging (also called de-cluttering) that you do when you still LIVE in the home. This is when we ask you to clean closets, move seasonal clothes to a storage room, take personal photos down, clean off the “stuff” on the refrigerator, keep the INSIDE of the fridge AND OVEN clean. You want your home to shine as much as possible. You want that potential buyer to be imagining him or herself living there, not looking at your “stuff.” It’s a challenge I face on almost every listing. Some Sellers jump at all that needs to be done, and others don’t get it. And then wonder where the offer is 30, 60 or more days later. Hmmmm.

How To Stage A CondoBut then there is staging when the home is completely vacant. Not everyone has a creative eye, or is a good judge of space. That empty bedroom makes it really hard to imagine a bed, dresser, night stands, etc….when it’s empty. Same with a living room. Yes, I get it’s an added expense when you are trying to sell your home or condo, and you have already moved. Take a look at this staged living room on the left. Is that space not more inviting? The couch and chairs not only make the room look alive, it actually gives a potential Buyer some place to sit and imagine themselves living there!  Isn’t that what you want? Your home sold? yeah, I thought so.

Having been through them all, vacant, occupied (and a mess) occupied and beautiful or staged, guess where a Buyer might spend more time and get more of a feel for living there.

The next time you are the Seller, listen to your real estate agent. Take their advice. De-clutter. And if you have moved, stage the home.

Oh, and this would NOT be an idea of staging……

Staging a Condo For Sale

Changes Are Coming to the Closing Process!! TRID

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Closing Changes When Buying a Home September 30, 2015
If you are purchasing a home or condominium, and you will be making your LOAN APPLICATION AFTER Saturday, October 3rd, the process is changing! And could be a bit complicated if you don’t work VERY CLOSELY with your real estate agent, your lender and your closing attorney!!

If you have purchased in the past, maybe you remember last minute amendments to your Purchase and Sale Agreement? Maybe they were to correct a name, or an address, or clarify a special stipulation in the Agreement? Ah, not so fast now!!!!

The new TILA-RESPA Integrated Disclosure Rule (TRID) is going to make follow up ever so important! NOW, when you receive something from your agent, your lender or the closing attorney, it will require your IMMEDIATE and FULL attention. Due to new disclosure time lines, everything must be in place at least 10 days before the closing (to assure that everything moves on schedule!)

Every purchased a home or condominium with a “back-to-back” closing? Where you needed to close on your first residence so you could buy your next home? These types of closings will be even more difficult to manage, because if anything goes wrong on the first closing, that messes up the days needed for the disclosure, it will in turn delay your next closing.

In a nutshell, what does this all mean? It means you need to have YOUR TEAM in place, and have your real estate agent as your Quarterback to make sure the process is moving along. Anytime you are sent something that requires you read and sign, you need to give it you immediate attention, so it can be handled accordingly!

Changes like this can be challenging, but I’m here to help you through, every step of the way!

For More Information about the new Process and understanding it, CLICK HERE for the Consumer Protection Financial Bureau and helpful information about the new forms.

 

 

What Can I Do to Help Sell My Midtown Atlanta Condo?

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Condo Kitchen backsplash September 5, 2015
“Standard” Kitchen in Spire Midtown

That seems like a mouthful question doesn’t it? Or that there will be some long lengthy answer, right? Well, there can me, but I’ll make it easy for you.

What Can I Do to Help Sell My Midtown Atlanta Condo?

And it can be summed up in two simple words — tiled backsplash. Now, in reality, this would be best done shortly after you BUY your condo, and not right before you SELL!! That way you have had years of enjoyment of something different than the stock builder backsplash you got..and that every single other condo in the building also has.  Get it?

You want to make your home stand out! Again, by changing your kitchen backsplash when you purchase your condo, you home will look different for you and your guests, but it will also be different when it comes time to SELL!

Take a look at the photo above, of a “standard, builder installed” kitchen in Spire Midtown. Cabinets look good, granite (there is a whole OTHER change you can make and have your home stand out above the others) and the lovely, ever present black subway tile back splash.

NOW…take a look at how your kitchen COULD look, and stand out to that prospective Buyer with a different backsplash….

Midtown Atlanta Condo Improvements September 5, 2015

 

What Can I Do to Help Sell My Midtown Atlanta Condo?

Now you have a good idea!

 

5 Ways To Catch the Atlanta Seller’s Attention

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5 Ways Catch Atlanta SellersYou’ve been looking for that “perfect” Atlanta condo, right. And whether you have been looking for a week or a month, you know that the HOT Atlanta real estate market does not offer you many choices! With the limited inventory, you might even find yourself in a multiple-bid situation….meaning there are more Buyers than just YOU interested in that condo. So, you need to make an offer that will convince the seller that YOU are the one they should sell to.

5 Ways To Catch the Atlanta Seller’s Attention

You don’t have to be in that multiple offer situation either. The seller still has the right to review, and refuse any offer they receive on their home. BUT, if  we write an effective offer that focuses on 5 important parts of the offer, you have a much better chance of being the offer the seller accepts.

Pre Approval Letter From Your Lender

There IS a difference between a pre-qualification letter and a pre-approval letter. With the pre-approval letter, you have provided your lender with all the necessary documents they need to review to give final approval on your loan. (with the exception of the contract we are working on!) By having this in place, it will help you with the Quick Closing and shorter Due Diligence periods noted below. Additionally the Georgia Purchase and Sale Agreement has a Financing Contingency in it. You may be able to offer a much shorter time frame for this process by having your pre approval completed.

Offer the List Price (Or Close to It!)

The first thing the seller will look at when your offer is presented is the price you are offering. If their listing agent has done their homework, the home will NOT be overpriced! And offer a full price offer is not a bad thing. You are paying what the home is worth. If it is somewhat overpriced, and we are in a multiple offer situation, you may need to offer OVER the list price. A Seller is going to look much closer at an offer that is at or near the listing price. We will also have to be prepared for the appraisal process in case there is a difference between our offer and the appraisal. But to low of an offer and we could be out of the game before we even get started!

Request A Quick Closing

The sellers are either being relocated or have already found their next dream home or condo. We want to keep that in mind when presenting our Offer.  Chances are, it is one of  those two things that have prompted the sellers to list their Atlanta condo in the first place.  Sellers may  want to close quickly, to facilitate the closing on THEIR new home, or to complete a relocation package, so a general rule of thumb is to offer a Closing date that is within the next 30 days, provided  your lender has said that is possible.  By offering a quick Closing this can also show the Seller you are a motivated buyer.

Choose A Shorter Due Diligence Period

A Georgia Purchase and Sale Agreement  includes a Due Diligence period, which allows the buyer to back out of the contract for any reason … or simply no reason at all.  This is the time when you do a detailed investigation of the property including  HOA documents and budgets,  and your property inspection.  Sellers like to see a shorter Due Diligence period, and if you are in a multiple-bid, this could be your winning card!

Earnest Money MyMidtownMojo.com August 14, 2015Offering A Higher Earnest Money Deposit

When you make an Offer on a property, you will also give the seller a good faith or earnest money deposit.  A higher earnest money deposit also shows that you are serious about buying the home, as you have more initial money upfront!

These are just 5 Ways To Catch the Atlanta Seller’s Attention and just a few of many factors that a seller considers when they receive an offer.  But by looking at these five key factors, we are focusing on those which Sellers tend to put the most significance on when making a decision.

I’m here to help you write the best offer possible!  If you need help in this HOT Atlanta market, give me a call!

 

 

10 Home Staging Tips for your Atlanta Condo

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Atlanta Condo Home Staging Tips July 26, 2015You’ve done everything you can to get your property ready for sale or rental. You’ve renovated, rehabbed, upgraded and created what you think is the perfect home for prospective buyers or renters.

But before you list it and stick that “open house” sign on the front lawn, there’s one final thing you need to do to make sure all your hard work pays off: staging.

10 Home Staging Tips for Your Atlanta Condo

Staging is the art of presenting your property in the most attractive and positive light possible. Done right, staging turns a property into a home and allows people to envision themselves living there.

While factors like location and number of bedrooms can get people in the door, it’s the way that the property captures their imagination that will ultimately influence whether or not they decide to sign on the dotted line.

Read the rest of this great article here.….and then come back for more information about Atlanta real estate!

 

4 Steps To Make Your Condo Show Ready

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Tips for Selling Your Condo June 2, 2015Congratulations! We are officially “On The Market” with your home or condominium!

We did all the pre-listing items we discussed from painting, to de-cluttering closets and cabinets. We’ve had our listing photography done and your listing has been entered into the listing service. Let the showings begin, right?

Ahhhh…Not so fast!

If you’re like me, cleaning house is not always at the top of my list of things to do. If you have a housekeeper….awesome! But, when you have your home or condominium listed For Sale, it needs to shine all the time. As much as we try to plan for your showings, they can, and WILL come with short notice. Remember, our goal here is to sell your home!

If you have been one of those people that might not make the bed before you leave for work, or like to leave that cereal bowl in the kitchen sink…we are going to have to change some habits! Potential Buyers don’t want to see or know what you had for breakfast!

4 Steps To Make Your Condo Show Ready

showing your condo!

 

Thom Abbott

Associate Broker, REALTOR(R)
905 Juniper Street, NE Suite 110
Atlanta, Georgia 30309
770.713.1505 Direct
404.876.4901 Office

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

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