Spring Real Estate Market

The Holidays and New Year are behind us and Spring is just around the corner.At the same time,the start of the Spring Real Estate Market eill be starting in a few short weeks.More homes will be coming on the market for sale and buyers will start their search for homes.For home owners its key to ready their homes for sale.This process not only includes pricing the home for sale at a realistic price.In order to price the home effectively,recent area sales and number of homes for sale must be taken into consideration.In view of the banks conserative stance regarding mortgages,its also important to price the property at a value that will pass an evaluation by the bank appraiser.Home buyers have become more aware of home prices and value.Home buyers are aware of which properties have sold and are unwilling to over pay.Home owners need to price their homes to these points in order to help make their homes stay competative regarding price. In order to help make their homes more attractive for sale,using a home stager can be helpful.Hiring a home stager can be an expense,but making a home more attractive will help increase its value and help quicken its sale.Home stagers may sugguest any number of steps from decluttering the house or rearranging the various objects around the house.Having a few plants in the house or a well landscaped outside is also a good selling point.While good advertising and correct pricing are key bringing a buyer to your home,first impressions of the buyer when they arrive at your house and what they see inside your home are key to them staying interested in your home and making an offer on it

Green Residental Projects

Over the last few years,I have noticed that many existing home owners and perspective home owners have been an expresing an interest in living in a green home.Their major reasons for doing so are to live in a home that is more comfortable,more healthy and economical than the traditional home. While there is not a uniform standard in the real estate and green community,there are many points that need to be taken into account when talking about a green home.These include how the house is oriented on the property,the degree of insulation in the house and how much air leaks out of the house,how efficient is the heating system,the materials used in building/remodeling the house,landscaping and most important, what are the home owners habits regarding use of heat,water and electric use.Green is a relative term.In order to live in a green house,the home owner needs to strive to lowering use of their utilities,use enviremently friendly materials(and building techniques) and landscaping techniques.It is possible to create a home that is near a net zero energy use building and has limited inpact on the surrounding land but this is extremely expensive. How to create a green house and green issues will be discussed in future blogs

Direction of the Real Estate Market

One of the most frequently asked questions posed by potental buyers or sellers or interested members of the community is "What s happening in the Real Estate Market? As most of us are aware,there has been a downturn in the Real Estate Market.There reason are varied and can be attributed to a number of factors.Real estate has always been subject to the ups and downs in the broader economic market.These factors include the employment rate interest rates changing demographics and a number of other related factors.The two most important factors that relate to real estate sales is employment and interest rates and all three are closely related.Lending institutions have been perhaps too loose in some of their lending practices and have trightened their lending standards and the employment rate has changed significantly over the last three years.Housing prices have taken a major decline from a spike in prices.As a result we nave seen a major correction in the real estate market.
There is a matter of some discussion regarding if we have reached the bottom of real estate prices and the direction of the real estate market.There are indications that lending instutions are becoming more flexible with their lending practices and employment is on the rise.Interest rates are at a near record lows but rising and there is a high level of distressed properties.These factors plus the employment figures weigh heavily upon the direction of the real estate market.The direction of the real estate market depends greatly from region to region and varies greatly from community to community.There is not a set answer for the entire nation and must be viewed on a locale basis and looking at the historical perspective.