Phil Bradbury

It is a great home, let the Buyers know! ... and always be ready to show it off!

Many times we have to live in our homes while we market them. No excuses, make the beds and wash the dishes. With grandkids over all the time my kitchen is usuallly a mess. But I'm not trying to sell my house today. People like homes that are lived in, and tolerate a little imperfection but they don't like stepping over laundry. To you perfectionists, however, it is better to show the home with a few thing out of place than to delay an oportunity to have Buyers inside. I know it is a balancing act, and for most of us it requires a little change in lifestyle to keep out homes ready to show.

I have been through so many homes that just "Scream Personality". The problem is that Buyers focus on the decor and miss the home. Pack and store most of your life mementos. Keep only a few of the accents out and the Buyers will see "all this space!" not, "what a museum". I once took Clients through a beautiful home which was decorated with facinating historical artifacts. My home Buyers couldn't remember the house, but they loved the old birdcage collection.... They ended up buying a different home.

Staging will improve client impressions. Overstaging will not.
Good staging is not decorating. It should draw an eye to possibilites, not be a focal point itself. If it adds much personality, its probably too much. Staging takes skill. Also, remember, "less stuff" becomes "more space".

Selling your home is lot of work. Your Realtor will produce great marketing pieces and send your beautiful home to every internet site in cyberspace, but 99.9% of the time it is the visit that gives the Buyer the "feel" they need to commit to your home. Let them see how great your home really is. And you know what, most of them clean up pretty good!

Defaults and Foreclosures continue to plague the real estate industry.

Research suggests they will continue to affect the market through 2013.

Banks are metering out inventory as best they can to balance the need to

reduce their holdings with their desire to not crush the value of the

rest of the community real estate. Dumping too many into the market at

one time could significantly depress a fragile housing recovery.

If you are considering buying an REO (Real Estate Owned property that the

bank has gained through foreclosure) realize that there is currently a

significant demand for forclosed property because of the great deals offered.

Here in St George we frequently see multiple offers on bank owned properties under $250,000.

The time to buy has hardly been better and buyers know they stand to gain equity quickly

on many of these purchases. You need a strategy in your offer that gives

yours the best chance of success.

These Charts are Washington County, Utah Closings for the last 30 days. All of the Data is from the WCBR MLS. Some transactions occur each month that were not listed. These charts are provided to highlight trends and should not be used to place a value on individual properties.

Banks will normally get both a Broker's Price Opinion (BPO) and a

professional appraisal. With this information they can confidently price

them to move quickly. Do your research. Know what a good price is. Don't

burden yourself with a series of offers way under the list price. Your

chance of success is low, and you stand a good chance of having to settle

for your second or third choice of properties. In most cases you will

find the REO list price is a great deal. If it is strictly an investment

and property choice is not paramount, you should consider the short sale

properties.

Pricing per Square Foot for property sold in Washington County Utah in the last 30 days. Individual values will vary considerabley per specific property.

Another misconception is that cash is king. Not so. Banks will require a

verification of funds for a cash deal or a preapproval document for a

loan. They will not give either one much preference. The best bottom line

is their goal. Make an offer very near or even above the list price, that

is where most are selling. If multiple offers come in at the same time

they might ask for a "highest and best" offer. Have in mind the best

offer you are willing to put on the table. Lastly, keep your offer clean

and avoid addendums and lists of demands. You will end up with a "Bank

Addendum Counteroffer" anyway that supercedes most of the elements of the

contract you sent them.

Washington County ,Utah. These sold above and below the asking price by these percantages. Again, the data is from the local MLS and are representative only of the current activity.

Don't feel like you are giving up all your chips. The point is that price

is the only significant element to the bank and other details are

extraneous. Give them a clean contract and a good price. (Get good

comparables so you are confident in your value!). If you know the market

you can land a great property at an exceptional price!

Give me a call at 435-862-8020 or email me at phil@philbradbury.com with

questions. Go to www.philbradbury.com for more real estate advice.

Sellers facing serious hardship have found that banks are considering short sale offers prior to foreclosing on a property. The bank benefits by the quick disposal of a problem situation and is usually willing to talk, if you follow their rules precisely. Some are more cooperative than others.

In addition to the advice I give in the video below remember to discuss the tax implications of a short sale with your financial advisor. It is critical you involve an expert to understand the financial implications of debt forgiveness.

Use the video to spark discussions with your Realtor®. There are many more facets that you need to review. Short Sales can benefit both the Buyer and the Seller, but you must know what you are getting into before you start.

 

In 2 days the new St George airport opens! It is the only current "greenfield" airport building project in the nation, (new location, from the ground up). Commercial and private service begins January 13, 2011.

This has been no small project. The cost estimate is $159 million. (It came in under budget). It is 5 times the size of the airport it replaces and is capable of handling 737s and Airbus 319s. The new runway is 9,300 ft long (with room to extend it to 11,500ft).

Tomorrow the public open house is to be held at the beautiful 35,000 square foot terminal.

This new facility will be a great contributor to the future growth of St George and all of Southern Utah. A big thanks goes to all those who had the 20 years of vision to see this through to completion. GREAT JOB!

More details can be found at www.sgcity.org/airport/

Things do change; your job is to choose to be the cause or the effect. I have decided to be the cause!

When I realized my wife and I had "Hoarding" tendencies we decided to adopt a new practice: "Don't keep something new unless you get rid of something old". I have decided to try this in my New Year Resolution process, i.e. replace one habit with another. I've got plenty of bad habits to get rid of so I'll give it a shot. I want to lose weight so I think I'll start exercising! What do I give up? How about all that eating! I'm ready to blog more so I'm going to start writing. What do I give up? Just stop sleeping!

Today I want to start effective prospecting for my real estate activity by making the calls, knocking on doors, and returning to the basics. What do I give up? How about the idea that I can hide behind my computer and let technology close all my deals.

Don't get me wrong I know social media, web presence, and effective use of technology are essential tools and without dedication to the exploration and exploitation of the benefits of these opportunities we will fail. Technology facilitates communication. It is a medium that compounds our ability to interact. Just don't lose the desire to interact or the skill of personal interaction to the autonomy of technology. Occasionally take time to turn off technology and talk.

So what do I really want to change this year? I would like to be a better person. What will I give up? I think I can turn off my computer, my phone and the TV more often, and just listen. I might find someone who needs a little help. It might have a nice effect.