Jon Sigler Connecticut FHA VA USDA Mortgage

South Windsor FSBO - Real Estate Agent vs. FSBO - Should You Use an Agent to Sell Your South Windsor Property? By Jon Sigler, Real Estate Expert

Let's face it. Selling your home is probably one of the biggest financial transactions you'll ever make. Of course you want to do it right. On the other hand, you also want to walk away at the end of the day with the most money possible. Should you hire a real estate agent or should you go with a South Windsor FSBO? Let's look at both sides of coin.

On one hand, by not working with an agent you save yourself the 6% in commissions that real estate agents collect. You have complete control over the process. You get to meet all the buyers and negotiate for yourself. You decide everything for yourself.

The two most common reasons people opt for a FSBO are that they want to be in control and they don't want to pay commissions. That sounds great; but let's look at the other side of the coin.

Real estate agents have spent hundreds of hours learning how to negotiate, how to market and how to sell homes. If you're working with a good agent, chances are they have a lot of experience selling homes just like yours.

When it comes down to it, the statistics tell the real story. The statistics are quite drastic and shocking. The reality is, 88% of FSBOs will not sell and end up listed with a real estate agent anyway and South Windsor FSBO's are no different. Furthermore, sellers that work with real estate agents generally get at least 6% more on their bottom line, which includes paying out commissions.

The reality is, for most sellers working with a real estate agent will result in a faster, more profitable sell. That said, working with an agent may not be for everyone. If you truly believe you can sell the home faster and more profitably or if you must be in control of the process yourself, then perhaps a FSBO really is for you.

On the other hand, if you want to get the most money for your house in the fastest possible timeline, your best bet is probably to work with an experienced real estate agent.

There is a lot of free information available to you about buying, selling or investing in South Windsor real estate. For complete information about the South Windsor real estate market including current homes for sale, property values and South Windsor FSBO's please contact me on my cell at 860-306-8029 or email me.

South Windsor Homes For Sale - 3 Things South Windsor Buyers Must Do BEFORE Buying a First Home in South Windsor, by Jon Sigler, South Windsor Real Estate Expert

Buying a home in South Windsor for the first time can be very exciting. It can be very tempting to want to jump right into looking at homes, dreaming about your future and making offers. However, it's important that you cover your bases before you jump into the pool, so to speak. When you're buying your first South Windsor home, there are several steps you should take before making an offer.

Step One - Improve Your Credit Rating

If you're thinking about buying a house in South Windsor, now is the time to start working on your credit. There's very little you can do a few weeks before closing. However, if you get started six months before you make an offer, you can improve your credit more and possibly reduce your interest rate when it comes time to qualify for your loan.

Step Two - Finding a Great Real Estate Agent

Working with a real estate agent generally doesn't cost you a buyer anything, because the seller pays all the commissions.

Working with a real estate agent in South Windsor gives you a huge advantage in finding South Windsor homes for sale. You get access to years of real estate knowledge and experience. You have a trained negotiator to negotiate on your behalf. You have someone with a wide variety of contacts, from lawyers to property inspectors you can call on.

Step Three - Make Sure to Get Pre-Approval for a Loan

Not only should you get pre-approval, but you should also do your homework on how much of a home in South Windsor you can really afford. Although you might get approved for a loan it doesn't mean that you should spend that much on your first home.

It's important to figure out how much you can really afford and work from there. Once you have a pre-approval letter, sellers are much more likely to consider your offer seriously. Let's discuss what you can afford and what you feel comfortable spending each month on your home. You may learn that you can actually afford more than you thought because of things like the deduction of mortgage interest.

A buyer who's worked on his credit, is working with a great agent and has a pre-approval letter has a far better start on buying a house than a buyer who doesn't. Follow these three steps and you're well on your way to purchasing a great new home in South Windsor!

There is a lot of free information available to you about buying, selling or investing in South Windsor homes for sale. For complete information about the South Windsor real estate market including current homes for sale, property values and mortgage options available for you please call me on my cell at 860-306-8029 or email me using the "email me" link.

You are about to make what will most likely be the largest transaction of your life: your home mortgage.

Unfortunately, many home-buyers when shopping in South Windsor do not take the time to research some of the little but weighty intricacies of mortgages. Researching the mortgage process takes little time and can save you tens of thousands of dollars over the life of your loan. Doesn’t it make sense to become as completely informed as possible before you buy your next home? This special report is designed to help you avoid the nine most common mistakes to avoid when obtaining a home mortgage in South Windsor!

Remember that the right lender can help you make good, sound business decisions based on your personal financial situation.

1. Find a Reputable Lender-This is the most important choice you can make when starting the mortgage process. If you don’t trust your lender, you are in for a long and stressful home-buying experience.

2. Pricing-Don’t be lured into a mortgage company strictly by promises of low rates. Find out how long the advertised rate is guaranteed for. Make sure there is enough time to close on your loan. Some companies may make these ";promises"; but will try changing the rate prior to closing. They may claim that your ";lock-in"; rate has expired so make sure you have the expiration date in writing. I give you a written rate lock agreement. In some cases, the lender may even try to delay your closing to break the ";lock-in"; rate. In other cases, the delay may be beyond the lender’s control. Make sure to allow yourself plenty of time for closing. Delays in the process are common, and everyone (builders, lawyers, even yourself) can be responsible. Trusting your mortgage to a ";low cost provider"; is no way to handle the most important decision you will make.

3. Programs-You will see several programs that offer special low-interest rates. Keep in mind that they may not be the best program for your situation. Make your lender explain what programs they feel best serve your needs and more importantly, why.

4. Fixed or Adjustable Rate Mortgage (ARM)-Conventional thinking is that fixed is always better. While this is sometimes true, it is not always the case. The key here is to ask, ";How long am I going to live at this property?";; An ARM can actually be a better choice if you are going to be in the home for a short time. The average for how long a first time home-buyer in South Windsor keeps their mortgage is less than five years. In general, the longer you plan on staying in your home, the better a fixed rate mortgage will suit your needs.

5. Don’t try to bottom out the market-Deciding when to lock in to a mortgage rate can be difficult. Many people will float, trying to guess when rates have hit bottom. Unfortunately, a lot of times they will wait too long and end up with a much higher interest rate. I subscribe to a service which helps us to make an informed decision on when to lock your loan for the best pricing possible for you, saving you money.

6. Negotiate problems prior to closing and get them in writing–It's common for a problem to arise before closing. Waiting until closing will rarely be in your best interest. For instance, if you accept $400 at closing in lieu of the seller making a repair and after closing you find that the repair will actually cost $600, you’ve obviously made a poor decision. Whether the builder agreed to add an item and has not or the seller has made a repair that is not acceptable to you, discussing a solution prior to closing will give both parties time to analyze and determine options. Your closing should be a time of excitement and happiness.

7. Be prepared for closing costs–In addition to the down payment, you will be required to pay fees and other closing costs at the time of the final transaction. Closing costs typically range from 2 percent to 6 percent but will be dependent upon your situation. Lenders must provide you with a ";;Good Faith Estimate.";; The ";;Good Faith Estimate";; will breakdown all costs so that you may know what to expect at closing. We will talk about these costs and ways to keep them as low as possible, and if you need help paying them make sure we ask for the seller to pay them as a part of your offer.

8. Close at the end of the month–When making a mortgage payment in South Windsor, you will be paying interest that has accrued from the previous month. Upon closing however, your lender will charge you prepaid interest for the date the loan is recorded through the end of that month. Therefore, one way to lower your closing costs is to close in the latter part of the month. This will lower the amount of prepaid interest that you must pay.

9. Asking questions and talking with everyone on your team. We are all here to make the purchase of your new home a joy. Ask us all questions, talk with us about your hopes, dreams and needs. The more we know the more we can help make your dream a reality. I want you happy at your closing, happy borrowers tell their friends how great the who process was and to come see me about a loan to buy their new house.

There is a lot of free information available to you about buying, selling or investing in South Windsor real estate. For complete information about the South Windsor real estate market including current homes for sale, property values and more please visit the most complete website on-line dedicated to everything South Windsor real estate. So please feel free to contact me with any of your mortgage questions and I will me more than glad to answer your questions. Call me on my cell at 860-306-8029 or email me at jsigler@franklinamerican.com.

Updated with 2009 collection information.

This fall as usual South Windsor leaf collection will be offered curbside to residents. Starting November 2, 2009 crews will start the first of two passes thorough town to collect leaves. The second pass is scheduled to start on November 18th. All the dates are weather permitting. Want to know when your street is scheduled for visit the town will be releasing a schedule later. When it is available I'll post a link to it here.

My little assistants will be out helping rake up my leaves with me this year, well okay I'm sure that they will be doing much more running and jumping in the leaves than raking. We have lots of big trees all around the house so there are plenty of leaves for them to jump around in. Both say they are very excited to be helping!

Remember to rake the leaves to the street, not into the street.

If you would rather bag your leaves and drop them off for composting you may bring them to the leaf composting site on Burgess Road which will be open to accept leaves starting October 19, 2009 until December 31, 2009. Appointments are not necessary.

Want more information? We will update this posting as information about South Windsor Leaf Collection becomes available, or call the Leaf Hotline 24 hours a day 860-648-6371, or visit the towns website www.southwindsor.org.

If you are going to rake your leaves into bags to place at the curb check out this cool gadget which finally is a way to keep leaf bags open! My friends Avi and Tahl at We Care Computers introduced me to the Magic Ring. You place it in the top of the bag and it keeps it open to fill with leaves. Great idea. It is available at Pfau's Hardware in West Hartford Center.

Halloween Happenings is a Safe Trick-or-Treating event for children from Manchester and surrounding towns. It is scheduled for October 25th and will happen rain or shine (except for the chalk drawing and parade). Dress up in your favorite costume and check out all the fun activities planned for the day.

So what fun events are planned for the day?

10:30 to 11:30am - A "Spook-tacular" Magic show featuring magician Dan Bowen. The show will be held in the Howroyd Room of the Mary Cheney Library.

11:30 to 1:30pm - Chalk The Walk at Center Park. The Manchester Arts Commission is inviting everyone, children and adults alike to draw fall themed chalk drawings on the sidewalks of Center Park. If you attended the Magic Show, the park is right next door. They will be providing chalk, live music, and refreshments

Noon to 1:30pm - Downtown Trick-or-Treating. Children may "trick-or-treat" at downtown businesses displaying "Welcome Trick-or-Treaters" sign.

Noon to 1:30pm - Children's Pumpkin Decorating at 811 Main St. Children can decorate small pumpkins and take them home. Remember this is first come first served, and quantities of pumpkins are limited. The pumpkins are sponsored by Manchester Antiques Marketplace and Botticello Farms.

1:30pm - Costume Parade - Children and parents can march down Main St in costume. The parade will start at Center Park and end in front of Bennet Academy.

For more information, call the Downtown Manchester Special Services District at (860) 645-2101.