Tami Vroma-Realtor Grand Rapids Rapids Homes for Sale

Thanks to Bathmasters, a company that does Bathtub Resurfacing in West Michigan, my bathub looks like brand new. I wrote a post several weeks back, Bathtub Refinishing West Michigan - Will they be able to make my tub look new again?, about checking into having my bathtub refinished or resurfaced. Not only did I need it done myself (as you can see my the picture to the right), but I wanted a viable option to be able to recommend to both my clients who have just purchased homes in West Michigan and those that are about to sell.

When my husband and I started thinking about ripping out our old one piece tub and surround, it sounded daunting. Although we were fully capable of doing the work ourselves, it was still going to cost money and time. I started calling around Grand Rapids for bathtub refinishing, a process by which they reglaze the bathtub. As I explored the possibilities, I found that not only can your refinish a fiberglass bathtub but also ceramic tile, porcelain and counter tops.

I got quotes from two different companies. Bathmasters definitely beat everyone in price and they have been around a long time. My bathtub and surround ran $450 which is well below the cost to rip the whole shower out and put a new one in. Bathmasters called me back within the same day and had it scheduled for the next business day.

They arrived exactly when they said they would at 8:30 am this past Monday. He immediately started preparing the entire bathroom for the process by making sure everything was covered so as not to get over spray dust on anything. All my cupboards, counters, toilet and towel bars were all covered. Even the floor was completely protected. The process with the tub was started by a very thorough cleaning. I was concerned because there was some adhesive and also two small chips in the bottom of the tub. But the chips were repaired and the adhesive taken off.

He began spraying the tub at around 10 am with the primer. I was already excited with just the primer on!! He then put the non-slip material in the bottom which I am really glad I got. It was all said and done by around noon and it looked absolutely gorgeous!

This is definitely a much more inexpensive way to go and there is a 5 year warranty!! If you refinish your bathtub, I would advise you do it before any painting of the bathroom. If I were to do it again, I would definitely wait until we were going to be out of the house for several days. We only have one bathroom and we were not to go in the room for at least 24 hours. Additionally, the fumes are noxious--but well worth it because it looks great! I am so excited to clean my new bathtub. Instead of five hours to clean, it will only be 5 minutes.

Now I have to tell my husband we need to paint, get new light fixtures, get new cupboards. Somehow I don't think my husband will be too happy to have more "honey do's" added to his list. Thank goodness he is used it. We do a lot of work ourselves. You can also read Oak Cabinets with a New Face - Glazed Cabinets are Beautifulabout reglazing our cabinets!

So, If you are looking for someone in West Michigan to refinish your bathtub, I can not recommend Bathmasters high enough! You can call them today at 800-585-1000. Tell them Tami sent you!

West Michigan Short Sales-If I knew then what I know now about Michigan Short Sale Experts I would have been able to help some really incredible people stop their home from foreclosing. I would have been able to put them in the position to purchase a home in 12-18 short months iinstead of years!

I was once told I would never make it in the Grand Rapids Real Estate business because I cared to much. How can anyone care too much about people?

Many years ago I was referred by a lender to a couple who needed to sell their Rockford home because they could not make their payments. He said he gave them my number because money was not the driving force in my life. That was quite a compliment.

The meeting with the couple was heart breaking, to say the very least. They had six children ranging in age from about 4 to 21. They all lived in the Rockford house which was immaculately cared for. The distress in their eyes was evident as they told the story of how they came to own the home. Too many people in cahoots including a lender that dropped the bomb on them at close that there were two loans. They wanted to back out but were told there would be lawsuits.

With all my heart, I wished I had been there when this couple purchased the house but it was too late for that and they were in serious trouble. The financial information they gave me was devastating. There was absolutely no way they were going to be able to sell this house and pay the real estate fees. They were drowning in debt and this house was the cement block around their neck. At that time, I didn't even know what a West Michigan Short Sale Specialist was!

Life has taught me that if you pay if forward, you will be given back. I listed the house taking no commission for myself.
Even with no commission for myself, the home did not sell. Even though this home was only a few years old and on over an acre, there were other homes just as nice selling for less. So many people had lied to this couple and I didn't want to give them false hope, so I told them honestly that there was no reason for me to keep the home listed. My heart broke for them. The house foreclosed!

With all that I am, I wish I had known then what I know now about Michigan Short Sales. If I knew then what I know now, they would probably already be purchaing a home. Now I count myself among the Michigan Short Sale Realtor Experts that our times have demanded. There are quite a number of West Michigan short sale homes, but there are a very limited number of agents who really are West Michigan Short Sale Experts. Not only is it important to have an agent experienced in selling a Greater Grand Rapids Short Sale, but it is also important for buyers to have a West Michigan Short Sale Expert representing them in the sale.

For sellers, it can be extremely difficult to weed through and find an agent who is truly experienced in selling Ottawa County Short Sales and Kent County Short Sales. What questions should a seller ask to find a West Michigan Short Sale Expert? See my next blog, West Michigan Realtors Experienced in Short Sales - 6 Tips on How to Hire a Short Sale Agent to find out what steps you need to take to make the best choice.

Let me know if you would like a West Michigan Short Sale Consultation. Everything is kept confidential and there will be no pressure--I think you probably have enough pressure in your life at this moment. When you fill out the information on to submit a West Michigan Short Sale, I will contact you. We will go over your situation and I can let you know if I can help. Please feel free to call if you just want to talk.

Copyright Tami Vroma West Michigan Short Sale -If I knew then what I know now about Michigan Short Sale Experts

West Michigan Short Sales - FAQ's to buying and selling in the West Michigan Real Estate Market

The West Michigan real estate market is loaded with listings that are termed, "short sales". You hear it all the time. "They are selling their house on a short sale". So what exactly does it mean? Is selling it short as opposed to selling it long . . .well no not really. What does a seller need to know about selling a short sale in the Greater Grand Rapids Real Estate Market? Are there things a buyer should know about purchasing a short sale in West Michigan? This is part I on a series of information both buyers and sellers should know when considering purchasing a home that is a short-sale and selling a home as West Michigan Short Sale.

Most would agree there is no good way to lose a home. If there were one best way to lose a home, a short sale would probably be the least damaging to the credit score. It has been said that when you sell a house at short-sale, you could potentially get on your feet and purchase a new home in 12-18 months. If your home forecloses, you have 7 years of bad credit. It has also been explained like a car accident. In some accidents the car is fixable, you may have to wait a while to get it back from the body shop, but it is fixable. In some car accidents the car is totaled, there is nothing you can do to fix the car. A short sale is much like a fixable accident.

So what exactly is a short sale? A short sale is when a home owner is asking the bank to take less than the actual amount owed on the home loan, so that the home may be sold instead of foreclosed. For example, Mr. Smith bought his home in 2006 for $200,000 and financed it 100%. He still owes $198,000 on the home. He has lost his job and has been struggling to make the payments and finds he can no longer make the payments. He has had the home listed at $200,000 for a month but there has not been one call. His Realtor tells him the home is only worth $140,000 in this market. If he drops the price down to $140,000 and he gets an offer for $140,000, his realtor will be negotiating a short sale with the bank.

There is another home for sale in West Michigan that I want--can I just sell my home short so that I can purchase that one? It is not that simple. You can not just request a short-sale because you want to purchase another home. Short-sales are for people who are no longer able to make the payments on their home and who do not have the funds to make up the difference. It is not for the person who just wants a different home. There are certain criteria that must be met. In addition, for a short sale to even be considered, you generally already have to be behind on your mortgage payments. In that case, your credit would already be damaged and the likelyhood of finding a lender to loan you the money for the new house is slim to none.

Will the home owner be responsible for bringing the deficeit amount to close? If the owner does not have the money, the answer is usually no. One of the biggest jobs of a Realtor in the West Michigan Real Estate market is to negotiate with the bank for the short-sale. The bank is usually more apt to accept a short-sale because the cost of selling the house short is much less than the home foreclosing. A good realtor with a negotiating team can usually get the bank to accept only the amount offered on the home. Many times this leaves the seller in a position to purchase a smaller home in which they can afford the payment in just a few short months.l

Why would I want to negotiate with the bank to owe anything . . .if it forecloses I don't have to pay anything? The number one reason you do not want a house to foreclose is that it will destroy your credit for up to 7 years or more. In addition, the bank has every right to come after you for the entire amount. In the case of a short sale, the bank has negotiated that, in exchange for a small sum of money, they will consider the debt cleared. It will all depend on the terms of your negotiations.

Are all banks the same and do they all have the same rules? Absolutely not! Each institution has its own set of rules and criteria for accepting a short sale. What works for one bank may not work for another bank. It is important to understand that not all short-sales will be approved. It is a long and tedious process that sometimes ends in disappointment. It may take anywhere from 6 weeks to 6 months to get an approval on a West Michigan Short sale.

What is the process for working toward selling my West Michigan home in a short sale? Check out the next installment in this series as we examine how to sell your West Michigan home as a short sale.

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How to price a home in the Grand Rapids Real Estate Market

When an agent arrives at a price to list your Grand Rapids home at, he or she should share with you how he arrived at the figure. What facts from the West Michigan Real Estate market did he share with you to help you make an educated decision? An agent who comes in and gives you a figure without data and expects you to just believe him because he knows the market, is not giving you an active part in deciding the listing price of your Grand Rapids Home. 

Pricing a home is like a puzzle. No one piece by itself creates the picture. It is only when you view all the pieces together that the picture makes sense. Sometimes, you can tell what the picture of a puzzle will look like if it is a missing a small piece. But if the big piece is missing, it may be impossible to decipher the image. One piece ff the puzzle may be more important than others to decipher the image. It is the same way in pricing a home in the Grand Rapids Real Estate market.

One of the first pieces of information your prospective agent should share with you are what the prices of the homes in your West Michigan neighborhood have sold for in the 30 days prior. It is important to try and stay within 30 days but there are situations where you may need to lengthen that time frame.  These homes should be like yours in size, amenities, and location. Some things that should also be considered are the age, the architectural style of the home, and the type of basement (full, daylight, walkout, slab). There are so many things to consider and this is where your prospective agents expertise will come in. This will give you an average sold price for your type of home. 

Please realize, this list of comparables will almost certainly contain Grand Rapids Foreclosures and Grand Rapids Short Sale Homes. You must consider these foreclosed homes in your comparables because when your home is listed you will be competing with those foreclosed homes. When the comparables have been chosen, a large piece of the puzzle is able to be deciphered but it will take the other pieces to make it clear and easy to see.

When the comparables are chosen, there will be an average price per square foot. This price can be skewed for several different reasons. Your perspective agent should be able to explain to you why and what would cause these figures to be skewed. There are many different factors that could cause this. One cause is the difference between TFLA (total finished living area) and the ANSI (stands for American National Standard Institute but means square footage above ground on all sides). A finished or finishable basement will skew the figures and should be taken into consideration.   Once you know the average price per square foot, you should be able to arrive at a price that will add to puzzle helping you to decide what the list price should be. Remember one piece in and of itself does not determine the price you need to look at all the pieces.

Another piece of the puzzle here in the West Michigan Real Estate market, is to look at the assessed value. The comparables that were chosen and were like your home will have a percentage that they sold over the assessed value. This percentage can then be applied to your assessed value to come up with another price that will help you determine the price of your house. Remember, you can not look at only one piece because naturally, you would go for the higher price.

For example, lets say that you purchased your West Michigan home in January 2003 for $100,000. The appreciation values for the next 5 years were as follows:

+3%, +4%, +2%, -1%, -6%.

$100,000 x 3% = $3000   At the end of 2003 your West Michigan Home was worth $103,000

$103,000 x 4% = $4120   At the end of 2004 your West Michigan Home was worth $107,120

$107,120 x 2% = $2142   At the end of 2005 your West Michigan Home was worth $109,262

$109,262 x -1% = $-1,093   At the end of 2006 your West Michigan Home was worth $108,169

$108,169 x -6% = $-6,490   At the end of 2007 your West Michigan Home  was worth $101,679

Average Sale Price  $96,000

Average Price by Square Footage $110,000

You can tell that the price o f your Grand Rapids Home should be set somewhere between $96,000 and $108,000.

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