Posts Tagged ‘marketing a home’
Home Staging for Pet Lovers
Staging your home for potential buyers can be quite the hassle. You may start moving your furniture around spontaneously, or become tense when your children or spouse make messes in a room that you just prepped for show. With all of the planning that one can put into making their home shine, one crucial step in home staging is often overlooked: your family pet.
For the sake of simplicity, I will outline a few things that you must keep in mind when cleaning up after your pet in a home for sale.
Pet presence – For obvious reasons, some pets can’t leave the house. Giant enclosures, aquariums, and disabled pets are hard to relocate sometimes, and a lot of people will be understanding of this. But if your dog or cat is healthy, then you’ll want to strongly consider relocating your pets temporarily. Many people aren’t pet owners, and don’t like being around an excitable golden retriever or a yippy chihuahua when they are trying to imagine their family occupying your home. Remember….You are trying to make the potential buyer as relaxed as possible. Ask a friend if they wouldn’t mind looking after your loved one for a bit, and if all else fails, look into a reputable boarding service for your pet.
Fur – Fur can get everywhere. Even in places that you, as a resident of your home, don’t necessarily notice all of the time. Be sure to give your couches, chairs, and love seats proper attention. That means taking the pillows and cushions off, and using a hand vacuum or brush to remove all of the fur you see. After you are sure that they are thoroughly cleaned, use a fabric freshener to finish it off. Try to do this well in advance of the potential buyer, as some people have sensitivities to fabric fresheners.
Litter – No matter what kind of animal you have, odds are you have do deal with some form of waste. It may sound pretty obvious, but make sure your litter beds are clean and well hidden. Even if you own an exotic pet like a reptile of amphibian, this includes you too. Many people don’t like snakes, but they’ll like a messy snake cage even less. Another important thing to remember as an exotic pet owner is this: even though you may not be able to smell anything offensive coming from your reptile’s cage, that doesn’t mean that there isn’t an odor. Many people who live with reptiles get used to the subtle odors that emit from the cages, and will tend to spot-clean their animal’s cage without giving it the proper scrub-down that it needs.
Odors – Don’t use air fresheners to mask pet odor. It is meant to freshen the air…Not cover pet odors up. Instead, use powdered cleaners on carpets and rugs that your pets frequent. These can be purchased at your local pet store in the cleaning isle. Odds are, if someone has a severe allergy to animals, then they are going to be at risk of having a reaction. The cleaner the house, the less dander will be in the home.
Thank you for visiting InfoTube.net homes for sale and rent website. List your property on the MLS and reach millions of homebuyers, today!!
5 Tech Savvy Tips for Selling Your Home for Top Dollar
Not long ago, real estate sales involved hammering a sign in the yard, placing newspaper ad’s and mailing post cards to neighbors. Today, selling a home requires a huge amount of internet advertising and distribution…which means using great photographs, video’s and social media to boost your properties image and catch a buyer’s eye.
If you are one of the thousands of home sellers looking to capitalize on the real estate recovery and pocket maximum profit from your home sale, you have to embrace the internet. Home buyers use Ipad, tablets, desktop computers and smart phones to shop online and compare hundreds of homes for sale. Today’s buyers quickly scan through hundreds of listings on sites like Zillow and Realtor.com, looking for that one home that catches their eye.
To maximize the sales price of your home, consider these 5 tech savvy tools and tips.
- Use Professional Grade Photography. A recent study revealed that professional property photo’s increase the perceived value of a home by 13 percent. Considering that a 13% added value on a $250,000 home equals an increase in value of $32,500, it could well be worth your while to hire a pro. Buyers are visually oriented, so selling your home has become a bit like a beauty pageant, of sorts. To increase your sales price, provide the best possible pictures on the internet to grab the buyer’s attention and motivate them to schedule a home showing.
- Post a Video Tour on YouTube. About 20% of buyers search online for home video’s. Grab their attention by posting a video on InfoTube.net . We will upload it to YouTube for you, or you can upload toYouTube.com by yourself.
- Include a Floor Plan of Your Home. If possible, include an interactive floor plan that shows how rooms in your house relate to one another. Interactive floor plans combine the floor plan with professional photo’s and create an exciting shopping experience for home shoppers.
- Get Rid of Clutter. We have all heard this before, but it is amazing at the number of people who do not pay attention to this simple advice. Buyers are not interested in buying furnishings; they are shopping for a home. Your house will show much better if it is clean, organized and all personal items are removed.
- Advertise on the MLS. The internet has made it possible for sellers to list property on the MLS and sell it By Owner. The MLS is the national database of homes that are For Sale. If your listing is not a part of the MLS, you are missing millions of home shoppers every month, who will never know your house is For Sale. All MLS listings are distributed to every major search engine for real estate including Realtor.com, Zillow, Trulia, Google, Yahoo and many more. These websites report buyer traffic in excess of 24 million home shoppers each month. If you want to maximize your sales price and profit, you have to be on the MLS.
Thank you for visiting InfoTube.net. Please search our website for fantastic deals on thousands of homes for sale by owner, investor and builder. For more great marketing tips and home improvement idea’s…then be sure to LIKE us on Facebook.
Housing Outlook for the Next 6 Months
The real estate market was overheated during the first 6 months of 2013. Low home inventory, record low interest rates and the lack of new construction were to blame for the unsustainable, rapid price increases and multiple bidding wars for properties.
5 Reasons we do not feel the hyper-inflated housing market will, or should, continue.
- Rising Interest Rates – Interest have risen sharply in the past few weeks and the trend continues up. Current rates will slow the number of homebuyers and speculators that are coming into the market during the next 6 months.
- Marginal buyers have been priced out of the market due to bidding wars, rapid price increases and higher borrowing costs.
- Wall Street and large investment groups are curtailing their buying. One-third of all homes purchased this year were Cash sales. This translates to heavy investor buying, which will slow down going forward in 2013.
- Shocking run up in home prices are not sustainable. In May, home prices were up 12.1% on average. This brings home price levels to a 5 year high. Pricing is now at a point that many of the short term gains have been realized, and the market will fall back to more normal levels.
- Realtors and builders report that inquiries and calls from new customers is down 11%, so far for June.
Summary: We feel that the housing market was under valued at the start of 2013, but a frenzied market chewed through much of the low hanging fruit. With rising interest rates, and increasing inventory levels, we see a move to more sustainable and healthy growth moving forward. It is still an excellent time to buy or sell. Inventory levels will increase, but they will remain on the low side throughout the year. Interest Rates are still at historic lows and price increases, although impressive, leave the average home price far below levels seen in 2006 and 2007.
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FSBO Sellers Who Use the MLS – Sell Quicker and For More Money
Home sellers and investors are a happy bunch this spring. Homes are selling quickly and for very near their asking prices. If your home is on the market and you haven’t had success…you should consider an MLS listing and here is why.
Washington Post writer and real estate expert, Iilyse Glink weigh about why the MLS is the key to home sales and why it works so well.
Studies indicate that most homes sell with the help of a real estate agent. The No. 1 tool to market those homes is probably the MLS. This listing service in most markets gives real estate agents the ability to see and review all listings in an area. If your home isn’t in the MLS, you’re missing the most effective tool to sell your home.
Twenty or so years ago, an FSBO seller would advertise his home in local newspapers and a lawn sign, with InfoTube or InfoBox, to market his home. Few if any of these FSBO sellers succeeded in selling their homes. More recently, the Internet has started to level the playing field, but many buyers still work with real estate agents to buy their home. Those agents rely on the MLS.
An FSBO service may offer various packages to sellers such as you. The more you want, the more you pay, with the top package giving you access to the MLS for six months. We guess you want to give your home the greatest exposure possible and that you wouldn’t want to exclude a major source of potential buyers.
As you decide whether you want an a FSBO package, you must understand what it will take to sell your home. If you overprice your home for sale, trying to sell it yourself isn’t likely to give you a good result.
You still will need to price your home right, make sure your home shows really well, both from the inside and the outside, take great photos for posting on Web sites, create a beautiful brochure for the home, and make sure the description of your home is succinct, emphasizes the good points of your home and accurately shows off its best qualities.
As the real estate market has improved in many areas, you likely have a better chance of selling your home today than you had a year or two ago. But home sellers can make the same mistakes in any market. Again, you need to decide whether you want to spend money upfront to sell the home yourself in a FSBO or try again with a real estate agent.
We think that listing your home on the MLS is a good step toward getting your home sold. Unless you find a buyer that is searching for a home on the many sites out there that carry listings, you might miss out of that one buyer truly looking for a home like yours.
InfoTube.net offers low cost MLS and Realtor.com listing packages that will get your home noticed by millions of homebuyers, who wouldn’t otherwise know your home is for sale. Call 800-858-6000 for more information or visit our website.
Nearly 1 in 10 Homebuyers are Foreigners
The 6 year slide in U.S. home prices and the dollar weakness against some currency are driving a property buying binge with Asians, Canadians, Europeans & Latin Americans eager to own a piece of America.
Plowing money into real estate may sound like a risky venture to many Americans. But to a growing number of foreigners, U.S. housing has never seen a smarter investment.
International buyers accounted for $82.5 billion, or 8.9%, of the $928 billion spent on residential real estate in the 12 month period ended in March, according to a survey released Monday by National Association of Realtors. (Article by the Wall Street Journal)
How does this news impact your potential home sale and your marketing efforts?
Simply, if you are not on the Multiple Listing Service (MLS) or Realtor.com, you miss out on 1 of every 10 homebuyers looking for property in your area. International buyers primarily use these services to locate property and if you’re not listed there…they can’t find you.
BONUS: Foreign buyers also pay in CASH . No Loan Qualifications. No Apprasials. No Delays and No Waiting. CASH NOW!
The cost of listing your home on the MLS or Realtor. com is only a few hundred dollars for a 6 month listing. The summer selling season is well underway. Get your house on the MLS and Realtor.com today. There is no other way to get your property in front of all the homebuyers in the marketplace….and Time is ticking!!!
Thank you for visiting InfoTube.net. Homes are definitely moving this year. Don’t miss the season or you may be sitting for a while. Contact us for help with your MLS listing today.
Home Sellers Get “Real” about Selling their Real Estate
A recent survey of hundreds of real estate agents uncovers the reasons some homes sell….and others languish on the market.
Agents say that the majority of home sellers have gotten more “real” about their real estate in 2012. More than half (51%) of sellers are willing to price their homes more competitively this year vs last. And, nearly half (45%) are more willing to change the appearance of their homes to appeal to and entice buyers.
What is the best use of a seller’s time and money? De-clutter, de-personalize to make their home appeal to the broadest cross-section of potential buyers.
- 94% of sellers are getting rid of clutter and making cosmetic updates.
- 78% are willing to “de-personalize” their homes.
- 59% are bringing in new home decorations or furniture to make their home updated and appealing.
De-personalizing and de-cluttering a home makes it easier for a buyer to imagine him or herself living in the property. In order to sell your home in today’s competitive marketplace, it is crucial for seller’s to realize that the property is no longer their “home”…it is an expensive product that is For Sale.
Always remove family photo’s and personal artwork. They do nothing for the appeal of the home. They simply distract a buyers focus and perhaps give the buyer too much information about the seller’s personal life. Never good.
Thank you for visiting InfoTube.net. 5 FSBO houses on InfoTube.net SOLD this week. Things are improving for those seller’s who work smart to attract buyers. Visit our Facebook page for informative, fun and revealing news.
Lowes Hardware Now Selling InfoTubes
We would like to say a big THANK YOU to the folks at Lowes Hardware for putting InfoTube back on the store shelves.
Lowes has been a supporter of InfoTube since the early 1990’s, but they made a decision to stop stocking The InfoTube a few years back, when the real estate market hit the skids.
Now, in support of our effort mutual efforts to Support American products and American workers, Lowes has restocked the shelves with InfoTubes, in anticipation of the spring home selling season. As a result, we have been able to add workers and our customers love the convenience of shopping at Lowes. (Lowes will also continue to sell our popular InfoBox, too.)
We appreciate everyone at Lowes and we appreciate all of you. Please look for our products trademarked Red Lids and Caps when you shop…and ask for InfoTube and InfoBox products by name.
Say NO to Chinese imports. Together, we can rebuild our country… one little product and one worker at a time.