Stage Your Home, Sell It Faster!

I love color and visual stimulation! My home is full of both. My living room and bedroom are a blue-ish/gray that I call Golden Gate Fog. My kitchen walls are terra cotta. The contents of my rooms include a 4' x 4' painting of a vase of flowers, wicker baskets, a bunny lamp, a bowl of potpourri and a Frank Lloyd Wright-inspired chandelier. It's not everybody's taste but it works for me!

I've owned this space for six years. I love it and have no intention of selling. But when I do sell, my new mantra will be “minimize, minimize, minimize."

Cleaning and de-cluttering are two important facets of getting your home ready to sell. This process is part of a concept more familiarly known as “staging.” A staged home is certain to attract buyers more quickly than a home that is not staged.

A Case History

I know firsthand the power of staging.

Last year I had a 2-BR/2-BA listing at 222 N. Columbus, the Park Millennium Condominiums. The building had multiple 2-BR/2-BA properties for sale at that time. My client, savvy to the power of staging, asked me to delay listing her property for one week. During that time she cleaned and decluttered her entire living space. Personal items were organized or removed. Carpets were cleaned and regularly vacuumed, beds were always made, dishes were always put away. My client kept her home beautiful and spotless until the day we closed.

Which, it turns out, happened pretty quickly.

We closed at sale price of $400,000. That's a higher sale price than what 88% of comparable listings sold for during the same 12-month time frame. We also sold nearly 20 days faster than the average days-on-market of comparable listings at the Park Millennium. All it took was a little elbow grease and a desire to present the property in its best possible light.

Well, that and a concerted marketing effort by the listing agent! :o)

How to Make Staging Work for You

Staging has become a booming business. But you can stage your own home by following some key guidelines:

1. Scour each room of your home with the eye of a ruthless surgeon. Make a note of what absolutely needs to stay – window treatments, a few pieces of furniture, a lamp or two – and what needs to go away.

2. Doodads and memorabilia should be gently scooped into bags and boxes. Relocate them to your garage or basement storage unit.

3. Clean, buff and polish everything to a fine sheen! No cobwebs. No dust. And definitely no yucky smells. You might even consider hiring a cleaning service.

4. Place a call to your painters. Tell them to order up a few gallons of off-white. A neutral background makes it easier for prospective buyers to picture how their own furniture and possessions would fit into the space.

5. Copy from the pros! Visit an open house or a model unit for sale, to see how they are designed and accessorized.

6. Still not sure what to do? Drop me a line. I have resources and advice to help you stage your way to sales success.

We Interrupt Our Regularly Scheduled Blog...

I need to reserve the next few sentences to acknowledge someone who recently, and very suddenly, passed away.

I hadn't been in touch with him for quite some time. But he was always one of my favorite people. Smart, sweet, gentle, easy-going with a subtle sense of humor.

He loved animals and I'm told he would be delighted to know a donation was made in his name, to any animal welfare organization. I'm sending my check to the ASPCA.

Rest in peace, Warren.

Are you Proficient in the Three Ps?

There are three things every prospective homebuyer must consider and determine before starting a home search:
1) What is your Price range?
2) Will you need Parking?
3) Do you have Pets?

Price Range

Smart shoppers know what their budget is before they go shopping. For homebuyers, this begins with a meeting with a reputable mortgage lender (ask me for some referrals if you don't have your own). This first step is critical. Everything in the homebuying process flows from the information your lender provides you.

At no obligation to you (meaning: it's FREE!), the lender will ask you some questions about your income, assets and debts. You may also be asked to provide documents including a recent pay stub or your most recent income tax return. From that information your lender can determine how much house you can afford...what dollar amount the lender is willing to lend you.

The lender will then provide you with a pre-approval letter. The pre-approval letter tells prospective sellers a number of things:

• That you've done your homework on your finances
• That you aren't just a looky-loo who wants to waste their time
• That you are qualified and serious about making an offer on the property you have chosen
  

This letter will be attached to the contract you submit on whatever home you decide to buy.

Parking

Will you need parking? Do you want to rent or purchase a space?

This is vital information to share with your Realtor. Some condo buildings have an attached parking garage; some do not. Some offer spaces for sale (known as deeded parking); some only offer spaces for rent.

In my neighborhood, for example, the asking price on parking spaces ranges from $35,000-$80,000/space. Rentals range from $225-$350/space/month.

Some of the variables include:

• What level (top floor, basement, etc.) the space is on
• How close it is to the building's entrance
• Whether it's on a level or slanted surface
  
• Whether the garage is heated
• Whether the garage has an attendant and/or valet parking
  

Property taxes and assessments will also apply to your parking space purchase. Your Realtor can tell you what those figures are.

Pets

If you have pets, definitely tell your Realtor! Most buildings have guidelines on the type, quantity and size of pets permitted per unit.

There are some buildings that don't allow pets at all! Don't risk sneaking in your pet and thinking no one will find out. Someone ALWAYS finds out. You could risk being fined, or being told to find another home for your pet. How heartbreaking would it be, to make an offer on the home of your dreams, and learn later that you cannot bring your dear four-legged companion!

When you have these three Ps in order, you'll be well on your way to finding the home that's a pretty darn good fit for you!

Tree Trash: How to Responsibly Dispose of Your Christmas Tree

The celebrations were fun. But now they're over for another year, and that pine-scented presence in your house lingers on and on. Why not turn your tree into the gift that keeps on giving?

If you have a back yard or even a balcony, you might consider taking off all decorations and leaving the tree for neighborhood birds to munch on.

That's not a possibility? Well, there are several Chicago recycling stations offering mulching services now through January 16. Just drop off your tree. The City takes care of the rest by running your tree through a wood chipper and offering the chips as bags of mulch (on a limited basis only).

For downtown Chicagoans, the nearest tree recycling location is in Lincoln Park. It's on the east side of Cannon Drive, and just north of Fullerton.

For a complete listing of Christmas tree recycling centers, contact the City at (312) 744-7606.

Daily Real Estate News | December 29, 2008 | Home Buyer Tax Credit: How It Works

The following article by Mary Umberger first appeared in Realtor.org's Daily Real Estate News.
It is reproduced here as a service to all prospective first-time Chicago homebuyers who, I sincerely hope, will contact me when they are ready to buy a home! :o)

First-time homebuyers in 2008 can take an income-tax credit on their purchase, thanks to passage in Congress earlier this year of the first-time home buyer tax credit.

The definition of first-time homebuyer is generous. To get the credit, the homebuyer cannot have owned a home in the previous three years. The home must be a principal residence and purchased between April 9, 2008 and July 1, 2009.

The credit is equal to 10 percent of the purchase price, up to $7,500. Single taxpayers with modified adjusted gross income up to $75,000 and couples with MAGI up to $150,000 will qualify for full credit. Singles with MAGI up to $95,000 and couples with MAGI up to $170,000 will get a reduced amount. Those with higher incomes don’t qualify.

If the amount of tax a homebuyer owes is less than the amount of the credit, they get to keep the difference in the form of an IRS refund.

The homebuyer must begin to repay the credit in two years in increments of about $500 a year over a 15-year period for those who received the full credit

Homebuyers who sell their home before the credit is repaid must pay off the loan with any profits. If they sell the home at a loss, the loan is forgiven.

[Editor's Note: The credit is set to expire in mid-2009, although industry groups, including the NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®, are encouraging Congress to extend it. NAR is also encouraging Congress to make the credit available to all buyers and to eliminate the repayment requirement.]