Tuesday, December 4, 2012

The Power of the Pre-Approval

You may have seen the ads on tv and maybe you've even been told by your agent to get your loan pre-approval.  Unfortunately you need it.  It's not a guarantee, as one banker told me recently.  And he's right.  But it does tell the home seller that you are qualified "enough" to be making an offer.

I had the unfortunate experience this past week of working with a buyer that hasn't even started her pre-qualification, despite being told to do so 10 days ago.  She's an out of state buyer that is interested in buying a home soon.  So, I told her, "get your pre-qualification started first thing on Monday because they can take a week or longer to get completed."  And one week later we found THE ONE!  The perfect home.

So, the question becomes.....Do we write an offer without the pre-qualification or do we wait?  Do we risk having the offer be rejected, or do we risk having someone else submit an offer before us?  I've drafted the offer.  But now it just sits.  Waiting a decision.

This is why it's very important to get the pre-qualification done.  Even though it's not a guarantee that you'll get the final loan on that specific home, it does allow you to keep the process moving when you find the house you want to buy.  It's a reassurance to the person you're making the offer to that you've got your ducks in a row and you're prepared to move forward.  Without it, the seller is left wondering if you even have a credit score worth a banks consideration.

Do yourself a favor.  Don't fall in love with a home only to find out you can't have it.  Get your pre-qualification done.  No, it's not as fun as shopping for a new home.  But it's not as agonizing as a root canal either.  Just get it finished, get it out of the way.  Once it's done, it's done.  And you know exactly where you stand.  You know how much money you need to bring to the table to make your dreams a reality.  You know what your payments will be.  And you know that when you find THE ONE, you can write THE OFFER.


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Friday, November 2, 2012

Why Effective Pricing is So Important in Today's Home Selling Market

Selling a home is an exciting adventure.  There are several things to keep in mind however, if you want to be successful.  Most home owners take a lot of pride in their homes.  And that's the way it should be.  But pride does not always convert to dollar signs.

Let's take a look at the Lincoln, Nebraska market as it is today.  At this very moment there are 1,776 houses for sale in Lincoln.  Now, luckily for most sellers, buyers are looking for a specific price and size range along with a certain number of bedrooms and an area of the city closest to work or family members.

So, let's break this down into a very popular home and look to see how many 3 bedroom homes there are available in Lincoln today.  That number is 527.  That's still a huge number of homes for a prospective buyer to fathom.  Now, their real estate pro will help them narrow that number down even further by price, area, and bathrooms and a whole slew of other features. 

But today, I'm talking simply price.  The average price of these 527 homes is $162,218.  The average Days on the Market is 75.  The least expensive home is $79,000 and the most expensive home is $239,900.  So, let's take the least expensive house and search for homes between $79,000 and $162,218.  Only 318 homes in that price range. 

How do I ensure that your home gets noticed?  The obvious answer is that I get more information from the buyer to narrow down the search.  But more importantly, I work with you to make sure that your home is priced right.  A $79,000 3 bedroom home is going to look very different from a $239,900 3 bedroom home.  Or at least we're all hoping they look very different.  But if we price your home at $79,000, it probably needs to look like it's worth $85,000.  And on a side note - I say "we price your home" because it's something you and I will work on together.

So, how can we improve the appearance?  When you list your home for sale with me, I'll give you a cheat sheet that will give you all the answers.  But some of the answers follow.

  • Make sure the interior decorating is up to date.  Brass sea shell shaped curtain rods are no longer the fad.  Switch to something more natural looking.  Be sure any scuffed paint is repaired.  Remove stains from carpeting, consider new carpeting, or consider a carpeting allowance.
  • Clean!  A clean home appears to be worth more.  And a buyer might wonder what is hidden if they can see dirt, grime, or even filth.  Keeping it clean is not easy, but it will pay off in the end.
  • Maintain the exterior appearance.  Keep the lawn mowed, the trees and shrubs trimmed and everything in tip-top shape.
  • Make necessary repairs.  Fix things that get broke.  Fix them before you list and if they break during the listing period, get it fixed.
You want to sell your home quickly and get the most money for it as possible.  Your goals are my goals.  By working together and taking an honest buyers-eye approach to getting your home ready to sell, it will sell faster and for more money.  You may have to set a little pride aside to do so, but it will be worth it.  Doing these simple things will help your home stand out.  First price it right, price it to sell.  Then follow my cheat sheet to help ensure you get the highest offer possible for your home.

Thursday, October 18, 2012

I Need to Clean My Shower

I like to keep a clean house, but I'm not a clean freak.  Maybe if I was home more, I could be.  But it seems my career and my kids have me gone most evenings.  I'm okay with that, but after a while, I just have to stop and clean.  It's amazing how you can be hardly home and it becomes a mess.

This weekend, I need to find time to clean my shower.  And because my sister found a great, simple, inexpensive, and non-toxic solution, I really have no excuse not to get it done.  I've already got all I need to do it too!

Here's the solution.  You buy one of those dish washing scrubber things.  I know, you'd like more info, right?  It's the one with the handle that you fill with dish soap and it has the green scrubber on the other end.  Fill the handle half full of Dawn dish soap and use vinegar to finish filling it.  Now some people really hate the smell of vinegar - especially those under the age of 20.  But it's great for cleaning and when mixed with the Dawn actually gives a nice pleasant and clean scent.  Simply scrub down the shower walls, let sit for a minute or two and then rinse.  If your shower has a lot of soap scum or hard water build up, you may need to scrub it a few times to see the difference.  But if you keep this scrubber handy, you can give it a weekly scrub down before you shower for the day and rinse it out while you're showering.  It's not toxic, it's not going to hurt your skin, and the smell doesn't burn your eyes and nose.

I love this solution to cleaning the shower.  I also use it on all my sinks.  Give it a try and let me know your results.

Thursday, October 4, 2012

Open House in Firth Nebraska

If you're looking for a beautiful home in a small community, this is a must see!!!

207 E 4th Street, Firth NE

4 Bedroom home with a 5 room on the main floor that could be a bedroom, toy room, office, den, sewing room, and so many others!

Basement is fully finished on one side.

http://www.realtor.com/realestateandhomes-detail/207-E-4th-St_Firth_NE_68358_M73739-80918

Open House
Sunday, October 7th
1:00 - 3:00 PM

Monday, September 24, 2012

Cleaning Your Stove Top

Have you ever boiled noodles only to have the water boil over?  I'm not sure what chemical reaction happens here, but burnt water (and maybe that's not even what to call it) is the worst to try to clean off a stove.

In my house, over boiling water is a weekly occurance.  I have always used the stove top cleaner to get that stuck on water off.  Did that sound funny to anyone else?

A while back a good friend of mine was helping me out by cleaning for me every couple of weeks.  My stove was a mess.  I was working too many hours, spending several nights away from home for work and I just didn't have much time to clean.  And my family members wouldn't dream of cleaning the stove.  Well, my friend just amazed me, and I told her I needed to know her secret.  And it's was so easy, I couldn't believe it.

Sprinkle a little baking soda onto your dirty but dry stove top.  Take a wet washcloth and microwave it until it's steaming hot.  I use a hot pad to grab the hot washcloth.  Scrub away on the stove top with the washcloth.  It really doesn't even take that much elbow grease.  I personally think it cleans better than the commercial stove top cleaner, but I'll let you decide for yourself.

Let me know how it works for you and happy cleaning!

Shellyn Sands
Keller Williams Realty
7100 S 29th St, Ste A
Lincoln NE  68516
www.shellyn.net

Saturday, September 15, 2012

Open Houses in Firth & Lincoln - Sunday Sept 16th

Two open houses this Sunday!

1:00-3:00 @ 602 Russell in Firth.
http://www.realtor.com/realestateandhomes-detail/602-Russell_Firth_NE_68358_M81981-46769

4:00-5:00 @ 200 S 52nd in Lincoln
http://www.realtor.com/realestateandhomes-detail/200-S-52nd-St_Lincoln_NE_68510_M89351-18751?offid=1607113

Stop by to view these homes and talk to me about your dream home!

Magical Dishwasher Detergent

Have you ever gotten a really good tip and you just couldn't wait to share it?  I've gotten several throughout my life and I'm always so happy when I can share a good one with a friend or even complete stranger.

Recently I went through a serious search for a dishwasher product that would really clean my dishes.  I wasn't sure if my dishwasher had stopped working right, if they'd done something different to the water so that it didn't clean as well, or if the formula for my detergent was changed so that it was basically worthless.  Whatever the case, I knew I had to do something differrent because my dishes were really getting gross.  They were just covered in the scummy crusty white stuff - almost like a hard water or lime build up.  In fact, I used one of those harsh chemical cleaners several times during my search to just get them back to normal.

But then one day when shopping, I found a product in a little bottle that promised sparkeling dishes.  I'd been at this search for a very long time and was beginning to feel hopeless.  But since the bottle was less than $5.00, I thought I'd try it out.
Low and behold the Angels sang when I opened my dishwasher.  This stuff was amazing!  I took a picture of the bottle and sent a text to my husband and then I posted it on Facebook.

Well, the other day, my daughters and I were shopping in that same store and I just humiliated them so much.  They were sooooooooooooooo embarrassed.  A woman was in the dishwasher detergent section and she was looking at that same bottle.  I just had to tell her.  I said, "That stuff is incredible, I couldn't believe how good it worked and it's the only stuff I use now."  Of course she was surprised that I, a complete stranger, would tell her that.  And my kids tried to get away from me as quickly as they could.

But don't you think in todays world we just don't have the time anymore.  I mean, I wished someone had recommended that product to me when I started my desperate search.  Either way, I'm happy I have it now and I'm more than happy to recommend the product.

Oh, and don't let me forget....it was Dishwasher Magic in a little soda can sized plastic white and blue bottle.  I'm not rating it here for any environmental or recycling concerns, simply that it has removed all the white scale from all my dishes including the plastics.  It has made me happy again!

Have a great day!

Shellyn Sands
Keller Williams Realty
7100 S 29th St, Ste A
Lincoln NE  68516
www.shellyn.net

Wednesday, September 12, 2012

Monday, September 10, 2012

Isn't Cleaning Toilets Fun?

Isn't Cleaning Toilets Fun?

I didn't think so!! I have a strange occurrence in my house. The upstairs bathroom toilet will get a yellow to orange ring at the water line. For some reason, the main floor toilet seems to be fine. I don't know what causes this. But I do know that traditional cleaners have never made any difference on getting rid of the pesky ring.

A local real estate agent that lives in my neighborhood gave me some great advice. She recommended using a pumice stone to clean the residue. Now, this is an icky job. It requires gloves and yucky clothes just in case you get over zealous and splash. If you're lucky, you have a 13 year old son or daughter who loves challenges like this and you can just set them free. I'm one of the lucky ones and my daughter cleaned it for me. It took her about an hour.

She accomplished this project about 6 months ago and so far there is no sign of the ring returning. But just in case, I am prepared with another pumice stone.

I found the pumice stone in the health and beauty section of the store, where the finger nail files and clippers are sold. If you have a stubborn stain in your toilet you might check it out!
I make no guarantees on what it does to the finish, but I haven't noticed any problems in my situation.
Happy cleaning!