“Dear Home Buyer,
I bought this home about a year and a half ago and have really loved living here. One of the reasons I love this home is the neighborhood. It is close to a lot of great restaurants, shopping, and the highway. After looking at many homes in the area, I fell in love with this one because of its open floor plan, and its low maintenance features. I love the enclosed porch, and all the closet room in the bedrooms. Continue Reading →
Michigan home values are increasing. According to a recent report by the Federal Housing Finance Agency, Michigan home values are up an average of 9.43% in the last year. This puts Michigan in the Top 10 for home value increases.The top states are those in the West, with Michigan and Minnesota standing out from the rest of the Great Lake States with higher than normal home value increases.
Nevada had the nation’s highest gains at 24.32% over the last year. West Virginia is at the bottom of the list with -1.78% loss in home values. It should be noted that West Virginia was the only state in the Country with a loss in home values. The rest of the Country was all in the positive. Continue Reading →
My husband and I attended a surprise birthday party last night, and one of the guests was a fellow Realtor® from a different firm. We spent the evening talking about everything from soccer teams to office pranks when the conversation eventually turned to real estate. He mentioned one of his frustrations is when someone hires him to list a house, asks for his advice, and doesn’t follow it. Then, after six months or longer on the market, the seller decides to switch agents, and that new agent tells the seller the exact same thing, the sellers listen and the house sells instantly. The new agent gets paid, the old agent gets nothing. I can’t tell you how often that happens, and it isn’t fun. Continue Reading →
Another month is in the books, and sale prices in Jackson County continue to rise. We may have sold less homes than last year, but the average sale price skyrocketed!
“How do I write an offer?”
This is the question I was asked by a buyer this week after finding the right house. Because they aren’t first time buyers, I was caught off guard because I assumed they had been through the process before and already knew what to do. This got me thinking… just because someone already owns a house, it doesn’t mean they understand the process. Things have changed so much over the years with real estate that a crash course is necessary. So let’s explore how to write an offer and what that entails. Continue Reading →
We had a blast competing in this years annual Jackson Michigan Chili Cook Off. The snow and cold could not keep the crowd away. Congratulations to all the winners below! Continue Reading →
While average sale prices continue to rise, the number of homes sold has dropped. I believe the weather has something to with that. It is very hard to sell real estate when you have to hike up a 200 yard driveway with three foot snow drifts to show a $300,000 house.
Hint: Plow your driveway if you want to sell real estate in the winter. Continue Reading →
It’s 4:30 am and I just shot an email over to my buyer requesting more documentation for our offer. To my amazement, she responds immediately. Why are we both awake so early on a Friday morning? One word: Stress!! We are both anxious about the offer we wrote on their dream home last week. There is always anxiety during the negotiation process, but when you add the pressure of a multiple offer situation, it makes it 10 times worse. Continue Reading →
