Chicago Metro Area Real Estate » Home Selling Tips

Can you over stage a home for sale?

Fran Bailey, Baird and Warner Realtor — Tue, 08 Jun 2010 00:13:22 +0000

Lisa Lynch

Michael M. wrote me last week, “I was just wondering, is it possible to over stage a place, or go too far with the decluttering?” Yes and maybe.

According to Stager Invasion’s Lisa Lynch, a home can be over staged when there’s something in every space. Check out her video on over staging. What Lisa refers to as over staging is in my opinion an example of over decorating.

Another example of over staging via over decorating is decorating a home for sale in a style that is inappropriate for the home. An example would be decorating a bungalow as if it were a mansion. It’s not what buyers are expecting and would distract them from the home itself.

Over staging via over decluttering is another matter. The ultimate example of over decluttering would be vacating a home for sale. I don’t think that this is always bad. A vacant home may appear less homey, but it may be easier for buyers to visualize it as theirs or visualize changes they might like to make. I think it depends on the home. An example of going too far with decluttering that I think hurts a home’s appeal is emptying some rooms, but not others. It creates confusion as to whether someone is living there or not and disrupts the flow of the home as buyers walk through it.

If you’re considering selling a home, schedule a time to talk with me. If you have a question, email me.Similar Posts:

Changes in FHA approvals add challenges for Chicago condo buyers

Fran Bailey, Baird and Warner Realtor — Sat, 01 May 2010 16:27:52 +0000

Advertising for FHA Approved Condos

The purchase of a Rogers Park condo advertised as FHA Approved (not the condos shown left) by my buyer, Art, hit a bit of a snag last week. His mortgage banker, Michael Poland with Baird & Warner Financial Services, discovered that the condo development where Art was buying hadn’t been recertified for FHA approval. Michael immediately offered to help the condo association with the recertification to keep the sale together.

It will probably all work out, but unfortunately there’s been added stress for Art who still doesn’t know for sure that he’ll get financing to purchase his first home. It’s also been a lesson for me not to assume that condos advertised as FHA Approved are indeed currently FHA Approved.

It used to be that once a condo was FHA Approved it remained FHA Approved. That recently changed and now condo associations must be recertified every 2 years.

FHA spot approvals for individual condos have also gone away, but I still see them in condo listings. Some condo owners selling for sale by owner aren’t aware of the FHA rule changes.

For more details on FHA condo approval requirements read the Chicago Tribune’s, “The ABC’s of FHA condo requirements“.Similar Posts:

Irving Park 5 bedroom houses for sale

Fran Bailey, Baird and Warner Realtor — Sun, 25 Apr 2010 12:45:25 +0000

Last week a seller wanted to talk with me about taking over the listing for her 5 bedroom house in Irving Park. It’s been on the market a while and she’s looking for a Realtor to do better marketing. It’s a beautiful house and I could see numerous ways of improving the marketing, but I politely declined to meet with her. Her current asking price is well above what buyers will pay and banks will finance in her neighborhood. No amount of marketing can sell a home that is significantly overpriced.

Shown below is the price distribution of Irving Park houses with 5 bedrooms or more currently on market (red) vs. those that sold in the past year (green). There are 27 such houses for sale while only 24 sold in all of the past year. This is not a market where sellers can push their luck.

Price distribution of Irving Park houses with 5+ bedrooms that sold in the past year (green) vs. are currently for sale (red)

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Worst exterior home for sale photo I’ve seen!

Fran Bailey, Baird and Warner Realtor — Fri, 26 Feb 2010 17:58:02 +0000

Sidewalk for sale, house included

This morning I was searching for a house for sale on the north side of Chicago for some clients who want to move up to a larger home. Shown left is the exterior photo for one of the houses I came across. The home has a nice new sidewalk, but I do think the house should be more prominent in the photo.

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Should you view homes above your price range, if they’re on market 30 days or less?

Fran Bailey, Baird and Warner Realtor — Fri, 19 Feb 2010 20:40:16 +0000

NOTE TO SELLERS! Homes that sell in 30 days or less get a significantly higher % of list price!

This week I received a great question. Michael M. asked, “Is it wise to see a home that only recently came on the market (let’s say less than 30 days) and is $25-50K out of your price range? Or should you wait until there is a price reduction that brings it closer to your comfort range?”

A few non-scientific real estate statistics will help me answer this question. The statistics shown in the table are based on condo and townhouse listed sales for all of 2009 in the 4 locations (2 city and 2 suburban). On average homes than sold in 30 days or less sold for 96.7% of list price.

So if your maximum price is $250K, you’re probably wasting your time looking at homes priced $275K to $300K since $250K as a percent of those list prices will well below 96.7%. The chances that sellers would accept an offer of $250K are very low. However, after the home has been on market 30 days, you chances of getting an offer of $250K accepted are much better since the average percent of sale price to list price drops to 92.7%!

If your maximum price is $500K, it isn’t outside of the realm of possibility that a seller with a home priced at $525K might accept an offer of $500K since it would be 95.2% of list price. That’s less than my un-scientific average of 96.7%, but not impossible.

Of course, these are rules-of-thumb. For each home, it depends on how well it is priced, how motivated the seller is, how well your buyer agent can help you negotiate a lower price, and other factors.

Besides list price, the other consideration is your amount of self-control. Finding the right home is often based on a bonding experience that buyers have when they see a home. It often happens within just a few minutes. Some people will fall in love with a home and blow through their maximum price. (Love often knows no bounds!) Others have more self-control and are willing to risk losing a home to another buyer while they wait for the price to fall in their range.

Great question, Michael! Let me know, if I didn’t fully answer it!Similar Posts:

Home sellers should insist on electronic lockboxes

Fran Bailey, Baird and Warner Realtor — Sun, 17 Jan 2010 14:30:17 +0000

Sentrilock Electronic Lockbox

Yesterday when I tried to schedule a second showing for a house in Park Ridge I was informed that showings were canceled since the key was lost. I recall from the first showing that the house only had a manual lockbox. Such lockboxes invite problems. There’s no record of who opened the lockbox and when. Realtors can give out the codes.

With an electronic lockbox such as a Sentrilock, each Realtor’s id is logged each time they open the lockbox. If they don’t have a Sentrilock key to open the lockbox, Realtors are assigned a code which is only good for that day. It follows that Realtors will be more careful with keys knowing that there is a record of who last opened the lock box.

Home sellers should insist on this level of key security. Their home will be better protected. Missed showings will be minimized.Similar Posts:

The master bath was perfect except for…

Fran Bailey, Baird and Warner Realtor — Sat, 26 Dec 2009 12:29:34 +0000

Who didn't change the roll?

My buyers, Lisa and John, and I were curious to see a duplex condo that looked great online. The photo of the master bath showed dual sinks and a huge, tiled shower. However, the “spa bathroom” (as the listing agent described it) lost a little of its luster when we spied the toilet paper roll with the last piece dangling ever so perilously! Similar Posts:

How not to sell a home – ugly marketing materials

Fran Bailey, Baird and Warner Realtor — Sun, 29 Nov 2009 14:53:57 +0000

Part of flyer advertising home for sale

Friends passed along to me a flyer they picked up in front of a home for sale in Arlington Heights. Shown left is part of it. With color printers priced less than $100, there’s no excuse for such an ugly flyer. Marketing materials not only provide information about a home. They give the reader an impression of the home. What’s your impression of this home?Similar Posts:

Worst exterior home for sale photo I’ve seen!

Time to clean the gutters

Fran Bailey, Baird and Warner Realtor — Sun, 22 Nov 2009 12:24:56 +0000

Dirty gutters do not add to a home's curb appeal!

Here’s a photo of the front gutters on a house I showed yesterday. To be full of debris is one thing, but to be sprouting new growth is another! Similar Posts:

Homebuyer tax credit extended and expanded to include current homeowners!

Fran Bailey, Baird and Warner Realtor — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 21:32:01 +0000

1st time homebuyers with higher incomes and homeowners who buy another home can now get a tax credit!

Yesterday President Obama signed into law an extension and expansion of the homebuyer tax credit. The new legislation benefits both first time homebuyers and current homeowners who sell their current home and buy another home. Buyers must sign a contract before April 30, 2010 and close by June 30, 2010 to qualify for the tax credit.

FIRST TIME HOMEBUYERS
Even more first time home buyers can now qualify for the $8K credit with the income limit raised from $75K to $125K for individuals and from $150K to $225K for married couples.

CURRENT HOMEOWNERS
A new $6.5K tax credit is now available for current homeowners that sell their current home and purchase another for their primary residence. The homeowners must have resided in their current home for 5 consecutive years out of the past 8 years.

For more details on the tax credits, view the National Association of Realtors’ chart comparing the current tax credit features to the new tax credit features.Similar Posts: