Need to sell your West Texas home FAST? Read this!

So, I work with a lot of home sellers in West Texas, and they often tell me that they want to sell their property as quickly as possible. They have some kind of time deadline, and they need to get their home sold and they don’t want it sitting on the market month after month just waiting around for a buyer to come for them. To sell their homes quickly I do these 4 things.

Number 1 - Before your property ever hits the market you must prepare it for the market. Home buyers want a move in ready property, and they will fight aggressively for it. All of those little maintenance things that you’ve been putting off, you got to knock them out. When home buyers see these little deferred maintenance items, they start thinking wow, this guy hasn’t been cleaning his gutters or painting his trim, what else is he not doing that I can’t see. When this happens it’s a huge turn-off to the home buyer, because all they’re thinking about is what else is wrong with the property. Along with that, make sure your landscape is clean and trimmed. Your home’s curb appeal makes a huge difference when people 1st see your property, and the 1st thing people will often see is the exterior of your home. If you want to attract as many home buyers as quickly as possible, make sure your landscape and your curb appeal are cleaned and trimmed.

Number 2 - Professional staging has absolutely shown to sell properties faster and for more money. However, the decision to stage a home is a case-by-case basis and I don’t always think that it’s worth the cost. Most of the time your furniture is going to do just fine for staging, but you can apply certain principles from staging, like decluttering your home. I always advise my home sellers to declutter their home’s the best they can. How good you present your property to home buyers, will absolutely influence how many offers you get, how quickly you get them and how much is offered.

Number 3 - Let’s talk about price. If you want to get your home sold quickly, if you have to be honest with yourself about what your home’s market value is. I sometimes work with home seller’s that say, Lainie I want to list my home $20,000 above market value. They explain, we can just lower the price later on, it’s no big deal. What they don’t understand is that your home is most valuable the day it hits the market. After that, it’s just not as valuable in the eyes of home buyers. So, if you wait 2 weeks before you lower the home’s price to the market value, you’re probably not going to get market value anymore. Home buyers start to lose interest in homes that have been on the market that long, because they start thinking that there must be something wrong with the house. Home buyers also start thinking that the home sellers are getting desperate and that they’re probably going to take less for the property. So, if you want to sell your property quickly, you have to price it right.

Number 4 - The last thing you can do to sell your home quickly is focus on your online presentation. This falls more on your real estate agent than anything. Having a great online presentation is the 1st step to even get home buyers to come and look at your property. So personally, what I do is I always hire a professional photographer to take beautiful pictures of your home. After the professional photographer's take the pictures, they go back and edit the photos to really make them stand out amongst all the other home for sell. Also, depending on the property, I will often do a video tour and aerial photographs. All of these things influence your online presentation which is the very 1st step to getting buyers that actually come and look at your property.

To recap. The 4 areas I would focus on is. 1 – Prepare your home for sell by taking care of all those little maintenance items and focus on curb appeal. 2 – Stage your home for success and focus on decluttering as much as possible. 3 – You have to price your home right. Listing your home for the wrong price will impact how fast your home sells and how much it sells for. 4 – Focus on your online presentation. Great pictures and video make a huge difference in getting your home sold quickly.

I love people and I love real estate. If you have any real estate questions, give me a call.

NOTE- If you’re planning on selling and are in the market for a top agent to make it happen, I would love to help!

We provide real estate services to these West Texas cities - Abernathy, Brownfield, Buffalo Springs, Crosbyton, Denver City, Farwell, Floydada, Idalou, Hale Center, Lamesa, Levelland, Littlefield, Lubbock, Muleshoe, New Deal, New Home, Olton, Plains, Plainview, Post, Ralls, Ransom Canyon, Seagraves, Seminole, Shallowater, Spur, Sudan, Sundown, Tahoka, Tulia and Wolfforth.

We provide real estate services to these counties - Bailey County, Briscoe County, Castro County, Crosby County, Dawson County, Dickens County, Floyd County, Gaines County, Garza County, Hale County, Hockley County, Kent County, Lamb County, Lubbock County, Lynn County, Parmer County, Scurry County, Swisher County, Terry County and Yoakum County.

-Turn the Key to your clean Slate-

Lainie Eilenberger, REALTOR

Key and Slate Real Estate Grou

Keller Williams Realty

806-928-4453

Licensed Realtor in Texas

Sincerely,

Lainie Eilenberger

Call Today - 806-928-4453

My Top 10 West Texas Home Buying Tips

The truth is that the home buying process can be overwhelming at times and a lot of buyers are afraid of making a mistake. That’s why today, I’ve put I’m going to give you my Top 10 West Texas Home Buying Tips.

My 1st tip is for you to identify your Top 3 Must-Haves in a new home. I know this sounds simple, but many home buyers never put in the time to identify what their Top 3 must-haves are. I very much recommend writing these downs to solidify what your must-haves are.

Must Haves can be things like:

· You have a dog and a fenced in back yard is a Must-Have.

· You have 3 children, and a 4-bedroom house is a Must-Have

· You have a restored 1969 Z-28 Camaro, and a 2-car garage is a Must-Have.

By identifying your Must-Haves, it will make the process of sifting through the 100’s of homes for sell in Lubbock and the surrounding areas much easier. This will also help you find the home that will be the best fit for you and your family.

Number 2 is you have to be willing to compromise. Buying a home is not a process of selection, it’s a process of elimination. You’re going to start off with a list of a few hundred homes in Lubbock and you will narrow that list down to the handful of homes that are the best fit for you and your family. The truth is, you’re never going to find a 100% perfect home, but if you find a home that’s 80-85% of what you want, then that’s a win.

Number 3 is to write a personal letter to the seller. It’s amazing how powerful a personal and emotional letter can be to influence the seller to accept your offer. I’ve absolutely seen sellers in a multiple offer situation choose a lower price offer, because a of personal letter that connected them to the buyer. With all of my offers I have my buyers write a short 1-page personal letter with a picture of them and their family. We submit the letter with the offer that we give the seller. Our goal with the letter is to make them personal, so they stir emotional response in the seller. An example of something we might say is, I can envision my children growing up in this house and playing in that beautiful backyard. We also might say, we intend to buy this as our forever home. We’re looking to say things that will emotionally connect us to the seller.

Number 4. Start talking to a mortgage lender as soon as possible. I’ve worked with dozens of home buyers that were very confident that they could get pre-approved when they were ready, only to find out that they have a blemish on their credit report that they weren’t aware of. I’ve also worked with buyers that bought a new car recently, which caused their debt-to-income ratio to not be good enough to qualify for a home loan. I’ve also had customer that qualified for home loans, but their mortgage payment at their target price point ends up being much higher than what they originally expected. This is why it’s very important to start the conversation with a mortgage lender early on and to get pre-approved for a home loan before you start looking at homes you’d like to buy. If you need help choosing a mortgage lender, give me a call at 806-928-4453, and I’ll recommend some excellent lenders I know and trust.

Number 5. Focus on your monthly payment, not the purchase price. Most home buyers have a monthly budget and staying within that budget is what matters most, so don’t get stuck on the total purchase price. There are a lot of factors that go into determining what your monthly mortgage will be, which include:

· Do you have an HOA fee?

· What are the property taxes?

· How much will home insurance be?

· What are the interest rates at the time of purchase? (Note -As interest rates go up, you’re buying power goes down)

Number 6 is 1st identify the area in Lubbock or the surrounding areas that you want to move to, then find the house. In my opinion, the area is just as important as the house. Many of the home buyers that I work with have a picture in their mind of the home they want and aren’t thinking as much about the area that house is located. I think that is backwards and the area that the home is located in, is just as important as the home itself. I recommend that you find the area or neighborhood that you want to live in 1st, then you start to look at houses to eliminate as many of them as possible, leaving you with just the handful of homes that you’re interested in.

Number 7 is to use Google Maps to determine what your commute will be from various locations. Google Maps will show you how long of a commute you will have and what your commute will be at different times of the day. I recommend playing around with this feature and seeing what your actual commute times will be, like at 8 AM on a Monday morning when you’re going to work.

Number 8. Don’t skip your home inspection. A general home inspection in Lubbock will run between $400.00 and $600.00 hundred dollars. However, there are some other additional inspections that I highly recommend.

1. If you have well water, I very much recommend a water quality test.

2. If you have a septic system, you will need a septic system inspection.

3. If you have a basement, I recommend a radon test.

4. If you have a fireplace, I recommend a chimney inspection.

5. Lastly, I always recommend a termite inspection.

Yes, these inspections do add up, but I highly recommend them, because you want to have a safe home and if issues are identified you can request that the seller makes these repairs. I have absolutely seen buyers get 3,000 to 5,000 dollars’ worth of repairs done by the seller, because they invested in getting these types of inspections performed.

Number 9. Don’t low-ball the seller. Buying a home can be a very emotional process, both for the buyers and the sellers. If you offer to far below the home’s listing price, you run the risk of offending the home seller. By putting in a low-ball offer, you’re saying the home that the sellers lived in all of these years and made so many wonderful memories in, is not actually worth what they think. I’ve worked with home sellers in the past that have gotten so offended by a low-ball offer that when those buyers put in a more reasonable offers, the seller wanted nothing to do with them. So, you may not realize it, but there’s a lot of emotion that goes into selling a home. If you do want to get a deal, you need to think about how much you really want the home before deciding to put in a low-ball offer. If you’re set on putting in a lower offer than what the home is listed at, I recommend only 2-4% below the asking price, and no more.

Lastly, Number 10 is to buy a home that you can grow into. One thing that I see often is that home buyers buy a home that fits their family needs today, but they fail to think about what their family will look like 2-4 years. So, if you think there’s a chance that you may have more children, or if there’s a chance you may have a parent in your home someday down the road, then you’ll be better off buying a bigger house. I always recommend buying a bigger home, rather than buying a smaller home that you’re going to grow out of.

If you’re thinking of buying or selling a home, please give me a call. I’d love to have a conversation about real estate with you and help you with all of your home buying and home selling needs in Lubbock or the surrounding areas. If you’re looking for homes outside of the area I service, then I can recommend top real estate agents like me, all over the United States.

NOTE - If you’re planning on selling and are in the market for a top agent to make it happen, I would love to help!

We provide real estate services to these West Texas cities - Abernathy, Brownfield, Buffalo Springs, Crosbyton, Denver City, Farwell, Floydada, Idalou, Hale Center, Lamesa, Levelland, Littlefield, Lubbock, Muleshoe, New Deal, New Home, Olton, Plains, Plainview, Post, Ralls, Ransom Canyon, Seagraves, Seminole, Shallowater, Spur, Sudan, Sundown, Tahoka, Tulia and Wolfforth.

We provide real estate services to these counties - Bailey County, Briscoe County, Castro County, Crosby County, Dawson County, Dickens County, Floyd County, Gaines County, Garza County, Hale County, Hockley County, Kent County, Lamb County, Lubbock County, Lynn County, Parmer County, Scurry County, Swisher County, Terry County and Yoakum County.

-Turn the Key to your clean Slate-

Sincerely, Lainie Eilenberger

Lubbock’s Top Realtor

Key and Slate Real Estate Group

Keller Williams Realty

806-928-4453

leilenberger@kw.com

Are you a 1st time Home Buyer?

Are you a 1st time home buyer that’s looking to buy a home in Lubbock, Texas or the surrounding areas? If so, you need to give me a call, because I’m a top real estate agent in Lubbock, Texas that specializes in helping first-time home buyers buy their dream homes in West Texas. Let’s talk real fast about the home buying process.

The 1st step is giving me a call at 806-928-4453, so we can schedule a time to meet and discuss getting you pre-approved for a mortgage. Your pre-approval will tell us how much house you can afford and what your monthly payment will be. During our scheduled appointment I’ll give you a list of lenders that I know and trust. I can also introduce you to some lenders if you’d like, so you can meet them before you make a decision.

After you’ve decided on a mortgage lender and you’ve been pre-approved, we will discuss what kind of home you’re looking for. The pre-approval will be good for 30-90 days, so once your pre-approved it’s time to start the serious discussions about what kind of home you’re looking for. We will need to determine the non-negotiable features your future home must have. This will help us filter out all the homes on the market that don’t meet your needs.

We also need to discuss your wants for your new home. Wants are features that you’d like your future home to have but will not be a deal breaker if it doesn’t have it. These features can often be added to the home down the road. I like to remind all of my clients that the lot and the location can’t be changed, so you need to make sure you are absolutely good with both.

Once we’ve determined what you’re looking for, I will send you the information for all of the homes currently on the market that fit your criteria. We can then discuss all of the homes that you would like to be shown and schedule showings to see those homes.

After we’ve seen all the homes you’d like to be shown and you’ve found the homes you’d like to buy, it’s time to make an offer. To make an offer on a home you’ll need to provide your pre-approval letter or proof of funds. You’ll also have to make an escrow deposit on the home, which is 1-2% of the purchase price. The escrow deposit will be used for closing cost.

Buying a home for the 1st time is special and because it’s special you need to make sure you use a top-rated real estate agent like me. Even if you’re not buying now and it will be 6 to 12 months before you're ready, please give me a call. I’m always available to answer your real estate questions and get you ready to buy or sell a home.

NOTE- If you’re planning on selling and are in the market for a top agent to make it happen, I would love to help!

We provide real estate services to these West Texas cities - Abernathy, Brownfield, Buffalo Springs, Crosbyton, Denver City, Farwell, Floydada, Idalou, Hale Center, Lamesa, Levelland, Littlefield, Lubbock, Muleshoe, New Deal, New Home, Olton, Plains, Plainview, Post, Ralls, Ransom Canyon, Seagraves, Seminole, Shallowater, Spur, Sudan, Sundown, Tahoka, Tulia and Wolfforth.

We provide real estate services to these counties - Bailey County, Briscoe County, Castro County, Crosby County, Dawson County, Dickens County, Floyd County, Gaines County, Garza County, Hale County, Hockley County, Kent County, Lamb County, Lubbock County, Lynn County, Parmer County, Scurry County, Swisher County, Terry County and Yoakum County.

-Turn the Key to your clean Slate-

Lainie Eilenberger, REALTOR

Key and Slate Real Estate Group

Keller Williams Realty

806-928-4453

Licensed Realtor in Texas

Call me today - 806-928-4453