Your guides through the real estate transaction process...

Now that you've decided to purchase a new home or sell your existing property, you need to determine the most efficient and effective way to accomplish that goal. Misconceptions abound regarding the buying and selling process, and there is no shortage of potential pitfalls for the careless or misinformed. That's where we come in. Our role in this process is simple: protect your interests and deliver the best results in the shortest time possible while minimizing the impact on your valuable personal and family time.

There are various stages of the buying and selling process. This breakdown briefly describes some of the activities and the import of each. Space constraints do not allow this section to be all-inclusive. For more detailed information, please feel free to contact us at info@virginia-properties.com

Purchasing A Home
Pre-qualification
The obvious first step in purchasing a new home is determining your price range. By answering a few questions regarding current savings, income level and debt, we can estimate your buying power and refer you to lenders best qualified to meet your individual needs. We encourage our clients to not just look at their maximum borrowing potential, but evaluate their budget and determine a monthly payment with which they feel comfortable.

Locating & Choosing A Home
We will provide you with a wealth of information to make the home selection process easier. You'll have access to data on important subjects like local schools, taxes, zoning and utilities etc. Searching through the Multiple Listing Service, homes that meet your specific criteria can be found quickly and easily. The detailed information, to include a picture, available on each property makes it possible to weed out unsuitable homes and saves your time and energy. For clients with very limited house hunting time, we personally preview candidate homes to further ensure you're only shown homes that meet your criteria. Potential homebuyers can search for properties in magazines, newspapers, brochures and even on the Internet. However, no other search medium can begin to compare with the Multiple Listing Service. This special Intranet is the main medium through which realtors communicate properties for sale or rent.

Contract Negotiations
Our work really begins after you have found the right home. The real estate sales contract, with its many provisions and addenda, has become longer and more complicated in recent years. We will assist you in understanding the contractual obligations and potential ramifications before making a purchase offer. Then we will help you to negotiate the best deal possible. Negotiating points include, but are not limited to, sales price, terms, possession date and purchaser financing. An inspection period is often included, and if so, reputable and licensed home inspectors will be recommended. The home can then be evaluated for general structural soundness, termite infestation, well and septic condition and a host of other latent defects. Issues that arise from this inspection can then be addressed in a home inspection addendum to the sales contract.

Settlement
In the Northern Virginia area, title & escrow companies or real estate attorneys can handle the settlement (or closing) process. Some of their typical responsibilities are:

Selling A Home

Pricing
The two most important factors in selling a home are pricing and property condition. It is critical to understand that the real estate market is driven by the sales value of comparable properties, i.e. other like properties currently on the market and homes that have recently sold. The more similar the comparable property is to yours, the more the sales value directly impacts what potential purchasers will be willing to pay for your home. It's a question of value for your money. Housing is expensive in the Northern Virginia area relative to many areas of the country, and homebuyers can and will shop around for the best value. If three stores offered the same product for radically different prices, shoppers would tend to gravitate to the store with the best price. This principal holds true for the real estate market as well, the only difference being our product is not canned vegetables, but a four bedroom / 3 bath single family home on a half acre lot.

Of course, location is key in real estate and certain areas will demand a higher price because they are considered premier locations. This being said, the first step is to perform a comparable market analysis on properties in your area. Being armed with solid facts to back up your asking price is key to getting you the best price and terms quickly, without undue haggling and negotiating.

Property Condition and Curb Appeal
You never get a second chance to make a good first impression. We will advise you on ways to enhance the aesthetic appeal of your home. The goal is to make your home appear as bright, roomy and inviting as possible. The way a house shows can be significantly improved simply by ensuring proper lighting and removal of unnecessary items that give a room a cluttered appearance. A freshly mowed lawn, trimmed hedges and perhaps some new flowers in existing flower beds can make a good impression before the homebuyer even walks in the door. If appropriate, we can suggest some minor cosmetic touches and enhancements that we know will most influence the opinion of today's homebuyer. It is certainly in your best interest to make those enhancements which can be done with a minimum of expense or effort, yet will greatly impact the overall appearance of your home. More specific home improvement tips are provided below.

Marketing
Marketing is the means through which your property gets exposure to potential buyers.

Every house is unique, therefore we design an individual marketing program for each client. A written marketing plan is provided to each client with an exact breakdown of timeframes and events to prevent any confusion or misunderstanding. A marketing approach will be chosen that most effectively targets the areas from which the buyer of your home is most likely to come. Of course, all listings are entered into the Multiple Listing Service, thereby exposing your property to other Realtorsâ who may already be working with the person who will purchase your home. Potential purchasers are pre-qualified to validate the strength of the offer.

Contract Negotiating
Much the same as noted earlier in the home buying section, we will assist you in evaluating the strengths of each offer you receive. Once the contract has been ratified, various reports and documentation may need to be provided, appraisals performed, and inspections completed. We will help you through this process, ensuring your interests are always protected and causing the transaction to be successfully completed as smoothly as possible.

Tips for Selling Your Home Faster

When we list your home, we will go through the house together, listen to you input, and potentially make some recommendations. Meanwhile, here are some general tips for you to think about. By following these tips, we will be ahead of most of our competition (other sellers) that are currently on the market.

INSIDE:

1. Clear all unnecessary objects from furniture throughout the house.

2. Clear all unnecessary objects from the kitchen countertops. If it hasn't been used for months, pack it away! Clear refrigerator fronts of messages, pictures, etc. Kitchen space very important to many people, clear countertops and tables make the whole room look bigger

3. In the bathroom, remove any unnecessary items from countertops, tubs, shower stalls and commode tops. Keep only the most needed cosmetics, brushes, perfumes, etc., in one small group on the counter, not strewn about.

4. Rearrange or remove some of the furniture, if necessary. As owners, many times we have too much furniture in a particular room. While this may meet our personal needs, (or maybe we just needed to find a place to put that extra chair) excess furniture will make any room appear smaller than it really is.

5. Take down, or rearrange certain pictures or objects on walls. Patch and paint if necessary.

6. Review the house interior room by room. Paint rooms that look dingy due to the age, quality or condition of the paint. Clean carpets or drapes that appear soiled or dirty. Clean dirty windows and windowsills.

7. Don't worry about closets or garages being cluttered, it's expected.

8. Leave on certain lights during the day. (We'll show you which ones). During arranged showing appointments, turn on all the lights.

9. It is crucial to have a lockbox on the property. If other Realtorsâ have to make special arrangements (appointments) just to gain access and show your home, they'll eliminate it and move on to another house!

OUTSIDE:

1. Go around the perimeter of the house and move all garbage cans, discarded wood scraps, extra building materials, etc., into the garage.

2. Clear gutters and roof of debris.

3. Prune bushes and trees. Keep plants from blocking windows.

4. Weed and mulch flower gardens. Keep lawn freshly cut and fertilized. Remove any dead plants or shrubs.

5. Clear patios or decks of small items such as charcoal bags, barbecues & toys. (Put them in the garage).

6. Check the paint condition of the exterior - especially the front door and trim. The purchaser will notice these items in particular while he is waiting to enter the home. Don't let his first impression be a bad one!

7. Look at your house through the eyes of the buyer, seeing it for the first time. Any time, effort or money spent on enhancing how the home "shows" should bring a better price, and hopefully a faster sale.

The Pricing Trap

Pricing a home can potentially be very frustrating for sellers. Everyone wants to get as much money as possible for their home, that's only common sense. In response to this, many people make the mistake of insisting on overpricing their property. This actually works to their detriment, and here's why - the public buys by comparison.

Overpriced property helps to sell property that is priced correctly.

The wrong people will look at the property. They may view the home, but they're really looking for homes that belong in a higher price range.

Your listing will only emphasize the added value of more attractive, better-built and better-situated homes because it should not be in the same price range.

Few buyers will even try to make an offer. In their minds, they'll be overpaying or think that the seller is being unreasonable.

Overpricing initially, with the intent to reduce the price if it doesn't sell is also a mistake. Properties attract the greatest amount of attention when they are new to the market.

Just bear in mind that real estate is a commodity, and like other commodities the current market value may be more, less or the same amount that you paid for it. The key to getting top dollar for you home is determining the market value of similar properties, pricing the home within that general price range, then marketing correctly and ensuring that your home compares favorably to the competition.

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