Brad's Real Estate Blog

The National Association of Realtors just released the data for the existing home sales nationwide. I have a bias towards the "Existing" figures as opposed to the "New" home sales which were reported yesterday.

The Existing numbers are based on facts (Sales that have closed). They also account for 85% of all sales.

The new sales figures are based on contracts that have been signed. It's a fuzzy number as an estimated 40% of those contracts do not go to fruition.

Here's a quick view of the numbers:

Overall Existing Home Sales for April were down 2.6%

This represents a year over year decline of 10.7%!

Median Price for a home sold was $220,900 which is down marginally

But that decline in value is also the 9th straight on a row!

Inventory is up 10.4% (the number of homes for sale)

Inventory sits at an 8.4 month supply (the highest since 8/92)

The Northeast absorbed the biggest hit (8.8)

The West declined only 1.7%

Overall the report was negative and lower than what the experts were predicting.

While this is not always true, the general rule to remember is that weaker than expected economic data lowers rates, contrast this to better than expected generally causes rates to rise.

What You Need to Know

Housing enjoyed a boom in which sales of both new and existing homes set records for five straight years until 2006. Realtors are forecasting that existing home prices could decline by around 2 percent this year, which would be the first setback for an entire year on records that go back four decades.

Homes are still selling, even in Sierra Vista; don't let anyone else tell you otherwise. What is helping them sell, over the many others buyers have to choose from? I believe its Price.

I also believe its Condition. I also believe its Amenities. You want to sell your home? Let's focus on its condition and how little you may have to spend to make it appeal to a buyer over and above all the others out there.

A professional Realtor® (like myself!) can help you - but this is what I suggest as a first step: walk your house from room to room, look at your yard, and your garage. Use a critical eye. Pretend this is not your home, but a house for sale. Here are a few things you might notice that can be corrected inexpensively:

1. Wash your windows, inside and out. A cloudy window may make a buyer think your windows are in need of repair because they are so dirty. Sparkly windows increase your chances to sell.

2. Clean and uncluttered, that is how your house should be when someone walks through it. This is not expensive. Store things in one room of your home; Start packing things up and put things in the garage, in a POD, or if you really have a lot of things and it's making your rooms look smaller than they are, rent a storage space for a few months. As for cleaning? We need that critical eye of yours again! Do you always have the door to your extra bedroom open because you use it as an office? Has it been years since the door has been closed? Does that maybe also mean the dust bunnies behind the door have multiplied better than real bunnies? In each room, clean things that you don't normally clean. Moldings on doors, baseboards, window sills, closet floors, under beds, inside kitchen cabinets. Wash the curtains; keep your counter tops clean.

**The key is this; if a potential buyer walks through your house and the windows are dirty, the rooms unkempt, they may subconsciously think you have not cared for the home well enough and worry about repairs they might need to make that are unseen to them now.

Amenities. Should you remodel something? Can you recoup the costs? Can it help you sell your home? The National Association of Realtors (NAR) discusses this issue on their website. According to NAR and other experts, a bathroom remodel can give you a very high return. You might want to consider remodeling an average sized bathroom by replacing the flooring, installing a new sink, freshening up the paint with modern colors. Another thing you can add for under 5k in most any house, is a deck or air conditioning, or a fence. Are your funds limited? How about adding that disposal you always wanted but never got around to in your kitchen. Get an on line subscription to Angie's List and get an idea what repairs or upgrades might cost you. Find something you can do within your budget. The NAR site also offers you “How to Remodel Your Home on A Budget”.

At the very least, you can perform some easy steps like washing windows and replacing cracked outlet covers, getting rid of those growing dust bunnies behind the doors, little things that just might help sell your home.

Good luck and give me a call if I can answer any questions.