Experience the best of Florida living in the highly coveted Heathrow Community in the Keenwicke subdivision. This beautiful 3 bedroom, 2 bath home features a desirable split bedroom floorplan, hard flooring (no carpet), and high 10ft ceilings throughout. The luxurious master bedroom also features engineered hardwood, a walk-in closet, a spacious walk-in shower, double sink vanity, and separate garden tub. Enjoy the open concept living and dining area with plenty of natural light flowing throughout the home. The beautiful kitchen is loaded with plenty of cabinet space, granite countertops, stainless steel appliances, and elegant uplighting. This home also features timeless king crown molding throughout, plantation shutters, and an added Florida Sunroom that makes for the perfect escape. Buy with confidence as the major components have been well maintained and improved recently – New Roof (2020), HVAC (2017), Hot Water Heater (2022). The home is situated near an array of shopping, grocery, dining, and parks, providing convenience and comfort for its residents. The Heathrow Golf Community is a 24 Hour Guard Gated community. Don’t miss out on the opportunity to make this beautiful home your own! Schedule your private showing today.
Presented by Rose A Reid PA | Benchmark Real Estate Group, Inc.
You find the perfect house, start creating all of your Home Décor Pinterest boards and BAM – you find out that the sellers didn’t accept your offer. Your dreams of making dinner in the beautiful farmhouse kitchen are crushed and you’re wondering what you did wrong. Well here are a few reasons your offer could’ve been rejected that can help you next time you find a house you want to write an offer on.
PS – I promise your real estate dreams aren’t crushed. There will be another one!
Reason #1: You’re Missing a Pre-approval Letter – Not only is it important to have a pre-approval letter so that you know how much house you can afford, but the sellers are very unlikely to entertain offers without them. If you haven’t taken the time to get pre-approved and show that you are serious about buying a home, why would the seller risk taking their house off the market before knowing if you can even afford the mortgage.
How to Correct This: Talk with local lenders about your options and get a pre-approval letter from them that you have in hand, ready for your Real Estate Agent to scan over with the offer.
Reason #2: You’re Unrealistic – This could relate to a few things, one of them being that you have too many contingencies. Do you have a home sale contingency before even having your house up for sale with an accepted offer? Did you include a long list of items that your offer is contingent on in addition to the absolutely necessary ones. Did you ask for the wine fridge and pool table when the sellers said they are not included? Many items can be negotiated but if you really want the house, you need to be realistic and not over the top.
Another way you can appear unrealistic is to low-ball the sellers with your offer price. When this happens, the sellers may get offended of think you’re not serious. Have market data that backs up your offer price rather than throwing out a number that you think you want to pay if you want to be taken seriously.
One more reason you might be being unrealistic is that you gave the sellers an extremely short turnaround time to respond to your offer. This is a MAJOR turn off. Even if you are in a competitive offer situation, you should focus on strengthening your offer and submitting what you feel is the best you can do rather than pushing the sellers to respond in an unreasonable amount of time.
How to Avoid This: Stick to what is the most important to you when it comes to writing offer contingencies. Make sure you’re going over market data with your Real Estate Agent so that you’re backing up the offer price you’re putting out there. Lastly, give the sellers a reasonable turnaround time. Pushing them into a corner will not result in getting what you want and it will only get you off to a bad start with them.
Reason #3: The Seller is Difficult or Unrealistic – This one isn’t necessarily you can do much about but it could be the reason your offer didn’t get accepted. Unfortunately there are some sellers who are going to be very difficult to work with or unrealistic no matter how strong your offer is.
How to Avoid This: While this one isn’t entirely avoidable, it’s important that before starting your home search that you understand that some sellers are just going to be difficult. Having the expectation that not every seller will agree to what you offer will help eliminate a lot of frustration for you as a buyer when your offer is rejected.
Reason #4: Your Buyer’s Agent Isn’t Easy to Work With – You might be wondering what the buyer’s agent has to do with how much you’re offering the seller. Well the buyer’s agent actually plays a very crucial role in this process because whoever you choose is going to be the one communicating with and negotiating with the listing agent and therefore the sellers, throughout the entire transaction. If the listing agent has had bad experiences with them in the past, they may share this with the sellers, making your offer less appealing.
How to Avoid This: Make sure you’re interviewing your Buyer’s Agent before committing to working with them. Find out what their negotiating style is and get a feel for their personality. Do they seem easy to work with or like they’d make others mad?
Reason #5: You Didn’t Find Out the Seller’s Timeframe or Situation – If you and your agent write an offer without ever asking the listing agent what is important to the seller such as their timeframe for closing or any other factors that might be deal breakers, you might put yourself out of the running when the seller has to decide whether or not they want to accept your offer.
How to Avoid This: Make sure your agent takes the time to get in touch with the listing agent and find out any details that may help you write a more desirable offer.
If your first offer got rejected, there is likely a reason. The best way to make sure your next offer is accepted is to go in fully prepared. Following these guidelines will not only prepare you for what to expect but can help set you up for success! Soon you’ll be entertaining in that beautiful open concept space you’ve been dreaming of (insert your #1 home wish list feature)!
Are you looking to buy in the near future? I would love the opportunity to meet and guide you to presenting an offer that WINS! You can reach me directly at 407-474-0600 or click my Online Calendar and pick a day and time that is convenient for you.
Whether you’re a potential homebuyer, seller, or both, you probably want to know: will home prices fall this year? Let’s break down what’s happening with home prices, where experts say they’re headed, and why this matters for your homeownership goals.
Last Year’s Rapid Home Price Growth Wasn’t the Norm
In 2021, home prices appreciated quickly. One reason why is that record-low mortgage rates motivated more buyers to enter the market. As a result, there were more people looking to make a purchase than there were homes available for sale. That led to competitive bidding wars which drove prices up. CoreLogic helps explain how unusual last year’s appreciation was:
“Price appreciation averaged 15% for the full year of 2021, up from the 2020 full year average of 6%.”
In other words, the pace of appreciation in 2021 far surpassed the 6% the market saw in 2020. And even that appreciation was greater than the pre-pandemic norm which was typically around 3.8%. This goes to show, 2021 was an anomaly in the housing market spurred by more buyers than homes for sale.
Home Price Appreciation Moderates Today
This year, home price appreciation is slowing (or decelerating) from the feverish pace the market saw over the past two years. According to the latest forecasts, experts say on average, nationwide, prices will still appreciate by roughly 10% in 2022 (see graph below):
Why do all of these experts agree prices will continue to rise? It’s simple. Even though housing supply is growing today, it’s still low overall thanks to several factors, including a long period of underbuilding homes. And experts say that’s going to help keep upward pressure on home prices this year. Additionally, since mortgage rates are higher this year than they were last year, buyer demand has slowed.
As the market undergoes this change, it’s true price appreciation this year won’t match the feverish pace in 2021. But the rapid appreciation the market saw last year wasn’t sustainable anyway.
What Does That Mean for You?
Today, the market is beginning to move back toward pre-pandemic levels. But even the forecast for 10% home price growth in 2022 is well beyond the 3.8% that’s more typical for a normal market.
So, despite what you may have heard, experts say home prices won’t fall in most markets. They’ll just appreciate more moderately.
If you’re worried the house you’re trying to sell or the home you want to buy will decrease in value, you should know experts aren’t calling for depreciation in most markets, just deceleration. That means your home should still grow in value, just not as fast as it did last year.
Bottom Line
If you’re thinking of making a move, you shouldn’t wait for prices to fall. Experts say nationally, prices will continue to appreciate this year, just at a more moderate pace. When you’re ready to begin the process of buying or selling, let’s connect so you have a local market expert on your side each step of the way. You can e-mail me at [email protected] or call/text 407-474-0600.
Home equity…Everybody wants it, but what exactly is it, and how do you get it?
Equity represents the degree of ownership an individual or entity has in an asset after subtracting any debts against the asset. To say someone shares equity in a company means they would share in any assets remaining after all debts are accounted for.
For example, if your business has sold $500,000 worth of product this year, but you have rent, operating expenses, and a business loan payment totaling $400,000 for the year, you have $100,000 of equity in your business. Equity changes as the value of your assets and debts change.
Home equity works the same way. When you take out a mortgage to purchase a home, your home is collateral on the mortgage loan, so the outstanding mortgage principal must be deducted from the value of the home to determine your home equity.
In most cases, you make a down payment when you purchase your home. That down payment is your initial home equity. If you pay a 20% down payment on a $200,000 home, you have $40,000 equity when you close on your purchase.
As time goes on and you continue to pay down your mortgage principal, your equity grows. Usually, the longer your own your home, the more equity you gain because you are paying down your mortgage. However, any debts you take on using your home value as collateral, such as a second mortgage or home equity line of credit (HELOC,) decrease your home equity.
The changing real estate market also influences your equity. If you paid $200,000 for your home, and two years later the homes in your neighborhood start selling in the $400,000 range, your theoretical equity increases. (Theoretical because you don’t realize your home equity until you sell your home and pay off all debts against it.) You can also lose equity if the market takes a dive but be patient and it should recover in time.
Equity also grows if you make improvements on your home that increase its value. Let’s say you add a swimming pool and all new appliances. You have increased the value of the home. Your equity doesn’t increase by the amount your spent on the improvements, but on the value you get upon resale. This is an important point when considering making improvements prior to putting your home on the market, and one that is often misunderstood.
Let’s say Joe spends $50,000 on upgrades to his home. He might tell his neighbor, “I have $50,000 in my home,” but when he goes to sell, the current market dictates how much he will actually get in return. If Joe ends up selling for $40,000 more than he originally paid, his $50,000 investment got him $40,000 in home equity.
Some things you can do to increase your home equity include:
1) Make a large down payment when you purchase your home. The more cash you put down, the more equity you begin with.
2) Make increased or extra payments on your mortgage principal. Adding to the principal portion only on your monthly payments, or making extra payments when you are able, helps chip away at your outstanding debt.
3) Be smart when making home improvements. Not all improvements build equity. Some improvements may be personal preferences that don’t necessarily add value for resale. Improvements such as a new HVAC system, new appliances, or a new roof are usually more reliable investments than a fountain in the front yard or surround sound speakers throughout the house.
4) Don’t borrow against your home equity unless you must. Home equity is often a homeowner’s biggest asset, and can help to build your retirement nest egg, but it can also come in handy if life throws you a curve ball and you need to borrow against it for an unforeseen emergency. Be careful not to borrow against your equity for frivolous purposes, so it will be there if you really need it.
5) Sell when the market is favorable. If you are counting on your home equity to help finance your next home, pay for your children’s education, or add to your retirement funds, try to sell during a seller’s market when inventory is needed in your area.
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Should you price your home in line with the market or bump it up a little “𝒿𝓊𝓈𝓉 𝓉𝑜 𝓈𝑒𝑒 𝓌𝒽𝒶𝓉 𝒽𝒶𝓅𝓅𝑒𝓃𝓈?” It’s a question I get all the time. Here’s my no-nonsense answer: Overpricing your home (even by a few thousand) is the #1 way to sabotage your chances of getting top dollar for your home. Buyer agents know what your home is worth and if a home is overpriced they’re going to say so. A home priced correctly will ALWAYS generate more interest and sell faster. When pricing your home, an experienced agent who knows our area is your biggest ally. He or she can gather data and help you analyze comps, location, size, age, condition, updates, and other factors that point to a price that will strike the right balance between current market conditions and the features that make your home attractive for buyers. Alright, savvy sellers! Shoot me a message if I can help you or someone you know with any other real estate questions. I’m here to serve you! You can also submit you information HERE to get a FREE Home Home Evaluation!
