Category: Home for sale

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Home for sale Neighborhoods

How Can I Tell If A Neighborhood Is Walkable?

There’s nothing quite like a long drive through a beautiful neighborhood. But when you live an area with an ideal climate, it can feel better to walk around to get to where you need to go.

Whether you’re buying one-acre parcels or luxury real estate, it’s good to know if the neighborhood you want to move to has a good sense of walkability. But how can you tell if a neighborhood is walkable or not?

Consider the following factors to look for when you’re considering Hawaii real estate for sale.

Check out the commute

You may have already driven around the area you’re considering moving to. But have you walked around? Consider going on a stroll around the neighborhoods you like to determine just how long it actually takes for you to get to where you want to go.

Not all long commutes are terrible if you enjoy a good walk and the weather’s beautiful. But you may not always enjoy those extra steps, so be sure to keep that in mind when you’re out walking, too.

Do some research on local dining spots

Another great way to determine if your ideal neighborhood is walkable, consider taking a look on Google Maps or Yelp Maps to determine which restaurants and other dining spots are within walking distance.

When you check out which dining spots are near you, you can find out whether or not you can literally step out for a bite to eat. Your neighbors will most likely be out and about, too, if restaurants are close by.

Stop by the area at different times

Once you’ve narrowed down the neighborhoods you like and you think you’ve found the ones that are most walkable, consider stopping by those neighborhoods at different times of the day throughout the week.

This way, you can check out which spots are busy during the times that you visit. Visit the area on weekdays, evenings, and weekends.

Looking for homes for sale?

If you’re looking for homes in a private residential community, you’re not alone. In fact, approximately 5.34 million existing homes and 667,000 new construction homes were sold in 2018 alone, according to data from the National Association of Realtors.

Hawaii offers luxury real estate so you can feel like you’re on vacation year-round. For more information on Hawaii homes for sale and our luxury real estate homesites, contact us today.

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Home for sale Real estate san antonio Realtors in dallas tx

When Buying a House, Good Advice is Essential

Real estate

Buying or selling a house is one of the most important things that anyone will do in their lifetime. Most people don’t know very much about real estate to start out, and will inevitably make mistakes. Whether you’re buying a house or selling, realtors can be a good source of information and advice. It’s important to remember that choosing a home to live in is a very personal choice, and you should choose a home where you will be happy.

First time buyer? You’re not alone
If you’re a first time home buyer, you have plenty of company. Just under a third or or 32% of home buyers are buying their first home. It’s a good idea to know at the outset that you’ll have to learn the ropes, and to begin planning ahead. You’ll have to do your homework, and in fact there are even home buying classes you can take.
Family, friends, and colleagues are all good sources of information about the technical aspects of buying a home. There are also many online forums where you can even post questions about neighborhoods, prices, school districts, commutes and more. That allows you to map out desirable neighborhoods, commute times, and nearby shopping, outdoor and cultural facilities even before you begin looking at houses.

Getting good advice
The best source of advice about buying a home may be realtors. They are experienced in the field and know all the kinds of things you should look out for. As many as 78% of people who recently bought homes felt that they got useful information from their real estate agent. In fact trust and reliance on real estate agents has been growing over the years, and as of 2014, 84% of home buyers did so through a realtor. In 2010, that number was 69%.
The most difficult part about buying a home may be finding the right one. More than half or 52% of home buyers say that finding the right home is the most difficult part. Townhouse or single family house? City or country? Do you need a walkable neighborhood, public transportation and a coffee shop down the street? Picking the right house can be a very individual choice, and the best advice is to choose one that you like. You’re the one who will be living there, and for a long time.

Planning ahead is essential
If you know that buying a home is part of your plans in the near future, there are some steps you can take in advance so that you’re prepared. Establishing good credit and saving enough money for a down payment are both essential. Most lenders and buyers will require a down payment worth anything from 5 to 20% of the total value of the home.
Once you’re starting to look seriously at houses for sale, it’s a good idea to get pre-approved for a mortgage. That way when you do find a house you like and make an offer, you know that the financing is available. Home inspections and insurance are also essential steps to complete before inking the deal.

The world of real estate can be a scary place but if you’ve done your homework, and found good advice, you should be able to negotiate it with ease. At the end of it all, you’ll be a proud homeowner.

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Home for sale Homes for sale Houses for sale

The Road Map to a Successful Estate Sale: Part 1

appraisals

Planning an estate sale can be difficult. That is why most professionals recommend hiring someone to help organize everything except the smallest sales. If you are planning on organizing your own estate sale, it is important that you understand the steps required for your sale to be a success.

In this two-part series, we will look at the road map to successful estate sales by highlighting the six most important milestones you need to achieve: organizing, appraising, advertising, displaying, hosting, and cleaning.

In this post, we will look at the first three, all of which should occur before the day of the sale.

Organizing
The first step when hosting an estate sale is to organize your items. Go through the items to be sold and create a complete inventory. Take special care to note which items are damaged and if that damage is repairable. Also, keep an inventory of the items you don’t plan on selling.
These lists will become invaluable, allowing you the ultimate organizational resource later down the line. They will allow you to keep track of what needs mending, what’s been sold, and what might need to be repriced over the course of your sale.

Appraising
Estate appraisal services are an invaluable tool when it comes time to set the prices. While some items you will be able to determine the price of simply by visiting another estate sale, there are other items that can be more — or less — valuable than you realize.

Estate sales are prime spots for professional collectors, who often arrive hours before the scheduled start of a sale to stake out the best deals and rarest items. While you want to be pricing fairly, you should also ensure that your ignorance is not being exploited.

Professional appraisals will assist you in determining the full value of your products and help you determine a price that reflects your possessions’ value.

Advertising
After you have the appraisals, you can begin advertising. You can’t sell anything if no one shows up, after all. Taking high-quality photos and using the information for the appraisals to create top quality fliers, internet advertisements, and social media posts can really help your efforts towards a successful estate sale.
This concludes our first post in this series. To learn more about how to plan a successful estate sale, look for the second half in this series.

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Home for sale Luxury homes New construction realtor venice fl

Three Common Home Buying Mistakes

Venice florida real estate

Are you looking for a home for sale in your area? Buying a new house is an exciting time in a person’s life! Every new home for sale that you walk through holds the opportunity to be the house of your dreams. Today you might not know which home you’re going to end up with, but each new home for sale that you tour opens the chances of changing your life forever. Your new home will impact every aspect of your life for years to come, for the better or worse. We hope that your real estate endeavors leave you nothing but great things, and so we put together a list of common mistakes that you should keep in mind while walking through each home for sale that you have to choose from:


Three Common Home Buying Mistakes

  1. MISTAKE: Buying a home you love in a neighborhood you hate.

    There’s a reason that your realtor will tell you the three most important factors while home shopping is location, location, location. The fact is, it’s not just what you want in a your home that you should be choosy about, it’s also where. Even if your new home has hand carved wood floors that are literally to die for, you won’t enjoy it nearly as much as you thought you would if you have to commute 45 minutes in enraging bumper-to-bumper traffic every single day.


    While you are shopping for homes, take some time to figure out what parts of town you want to live in, and then be really strict with not letting yourself fall in love with a home that is outside of that range. It’s easy to lose sight of where you want to live when you find a home that has all of the qualities that you’re looking for within your budget, but 30 minutes further east than you had planned. Remember, you can always redo the floors of your home later if you don’t love them, but you can’t transplant your location of your home if you realize you hate it.


    TIP: Even if you don’t have any kids, make sure you pay close attention to the school district your perspective homes are zoned for while choosing areas you want to live in. This factor will play a big part in your home’s value and your ability to sell it down the road.


  2. MISTAKE: Losing sight of your budget while touring homes.

    It’s so easy to get swept off of your feet by an incredible home and let the emotions of the home you adore make all the dollar signs fade away. But after you sign the papers and you have to actually hand over all of your hard earned cash every month, it’s a lot less exciting.


    Most financial experts recommend purchasing a home that will leave you with a monthly payment of no more than 20% of your monthly income (and so, if you make $5,000 per month, you should purchase a home that gives you a mortgage of less than $1,000 per month). Figure out what you can afford on a mortgage each month, and how much of a total home loan you can take out while staying within that parameter, and then hold yourself to that number.


    Tip: While calculating your monthly housing budget, don’t forget to factor in additional costs such as mortgage and homeowner’s insurance, HOA fees, and taxes.


  3. MISTAKE: Not future-proofing your home purchase.

    You’re likely going to live in your home for a long time. The needs you have for your home now might not be the same needs you have in a few years, but you’ll likely still live in your home in a few years, so it’s a good idea to keep them in mind. Take into consideration where you see yourself in five or so years, and factor that into your wish list for your new home. If you could see yourself having kids down the road (even if you aren’t even married currently), buy a home that has some space that could be converted to a nursery if you need it later. Likewise, if your kids are teenagers and you foresee them leaving the nest within a few years, it might not be worth the money to buy a gigantic home today.

Questions? Please share!

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Desirable location Home for sale Low maintenance living

Why Home Buyers are Searching Online

Homes for sale in tredyffrin easttown school distr

Did you know that 32% of people actively looking for new homes are first time home buyers? If you are a part of that percentage, you may be wondering where to look first. Years ago, your parents may have contacted a real estate agent when buying their first place, but today, 92% of home buyers use the Internet as a primary resource. In fact, almost half of all buyers browse the Internet as their first step in the home buying process, looking online at homes for sale. Only a small 14% first contact a real estate agent. We are living in a digital age, and online shopping of all sorts is becoming increasingly popular. But why is the Internet especially useful for home buyers?

Why home buyers are searching online for new homes:

  1. Time – Browsing the Internet is quick and easy, allowing home buyers more time to conduct an in-depth search from anywhere with an Internet hookup or wifi access.
  2. Selectivity – Buyers can use keywords to narrow down their search in order to find exactly what they’re looking for,
    whether that is a desirable location, a classic community, or low maintenance living.
  3. Anonymity – Although real estate agents can be very helpful, some people prefer to do the research on their own so as not to be influenced by outside opinions or motives.
  4. Distance – If the buyers are planning to move out of town, or even across the country, traveling to each prospective house would be highly inconvenient. On the Internet, buyers can view photographs and learn about the home without leaving their current residence.
  5. Information – There is no shortage of information on the Internet. By conducting a quick search, buyers can learn everything they need to know about the surrounding community of a new home. This includes information regarding crime rate, the school district, demographics, news, local weather, and much more.

There are a lot of things to consider when buying a new home. If you don’t know where to start, look online. Begin your search with your basic necessities and requirements, or a specific location. With the Internet you can also save and share information, which is beneficial for couples and families. More.