Sheri’s Blog

While it is true that Huntsville has seen a decline in home sales and pricing, there’s no reason to hit the panic button. As history shows, our real estate market is cyclical, based largely on the state of our economy, which will, overtime, improve. But what do you do if you’re a seller,  and need to sell your home in the upcoming months? First, you must be realistic about “value”. Your house is worth exactly what a buyer is willing to pay. Buyers determine “value” based on other home sales in your neighborhood. And in this market, buyers are largely concerned about overpaying, particularly if they believe values will be coming down. Right now “pricing” and “presentation” are the keys toward a successful home sale. Pricing your home at fair market value, and “staging” your home will bring you the needed traffic to generate an offer. But here’s another thought. In a down market, though you may lose money on your existing home, you will gain more on your purchase. For example, if the market is down 3%, your $200,000 house would be worth $194,000. However, that $400,000 house you’ve been eyeing would now be worth $388,000, making your net gain $6,000! A down market is a good time to trade up!

Dear Homeowner,

Have you noticed…

• Small cracks in the drywall above windows and doors
• Small cracks in the exterior brick motor
• Funny smells
• Floors feel a little uneven
• Sound of water dripping in the walls
• Allergies flaring up (nose running, eyes watering, etc.)

These are my invitations to come visit me, your crawlspace. I know you probably don’t want to visit me anymore than you do the dentist, but you need to, before the pain gets bad- maybe real bad.
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Some years ago, my husband and I bought our second home. We found what we thought was a great house, made our offer, and then entered into a contract. Later the next day, I began thinking. The home seemed dark inside… so many trees. And we’d have to repaint and re-carpet… hmmm how much was all that going to cost? And the den, with all those dark beams running across the ceiling, they would have to be removed. Suddenly, I was besieged with fear. What had we done? I was in a full fledged panic now, and was feeling trapped by the contract. This house was just all wrong! I wanted out!

I had a good case of what we in the business call “buyer’s remorse”. And this is where many deals are lost, or buyers get themselves into trouble.

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This month, I worked with a family relocating to our beautiful Madison County, Alabama. We had begun our correspondence over the internet, after they expressed great interest in one of my listings. They were very excited about their relocation, and couldn’t wait to fly here and explore, hoping to find the home of their dreams. So they planned their trip, and feverishly began emailing me homes that they wanted to see once they arrived. They felt eager to buy, and came with checkbook in hand, ready to put down earnest money on a home.

Sure enough, they found a beautiful house that they loved, and we wrote up an offer. The only issue with the offer was they wanted to sell their current house before they bought a new one — to avoid a double mortgage payment. So, the offer was contingent on the sale and closing of their existing home.

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Here is a fun little poem that I whipped up for all of my buyers.
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