<title> A fascinating and fun blog on Broomfield Real Estate written by Broomfield Realtor Beth Skinner. Find Broomfield homes for sale, mortgage news and other information on real estate and living in Broomfield.

Home Selling Tip #19

June 19, 2008 – 8:13 am

Move the cars!

If you have a garage full of junk (see Home Selling Tip #18) or your vehicle is simply too big to fit in your garage for whatever reason, don’t leave them sitting in the driveway hogging the front of the house.

Nothing is more awkward than buyers wondering whether or not they should cut across your lawn to get to your porch, because the vehicles are taking up your driveway.

It also cuts down on your curb appeal and makes the front of the house appear cluttered and blocked from view.

Also, if you’re a multiple vehicle family, move those from the front of your house. You want to give buyers the feeling of spaciousness and roominess and organization. Vehicles “sprawled” all over the front of your property don’t facilitate this one bit.

photo credit: avramishin33

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Home Selling Tip #18

June 18, 2008 – 10:20 am

Replace your sinks.

A new sink* is relatively inexpensive which is good, and it can make a great impact on your kitchen or bathroom. On the flip side, if you fail to replace a stained, chipped, or scratched sink it’s yet another one of those things that stick out like a sore thumb.

Failure to replace your crappy looking sink just shouts “deferred maintenance” and laziness. It also adds a burden on buyers because they’re thinking, “Well I’ll obviously have to replace this sink…” And in this softer market buyers won’t want to bother.

* Cat not necessary.

photo credit: lindsayhickman

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Home Selling Tip #17

June 18, 2008 – 9:36 am

CLEAN OUT YOUR GARAGE!!

I know, I’m shouting. I think it’s important though. Even though the garage is just a place that you normally use to either store your vehicles, or as in my neighborhood your junk, it needs to be clean when you have your home on the market. Everyone will open the door to the garage and peek in there.

Even better than cleaning your garage is offering additional storage. Whether it’s simple shelves or more elaborate cupboards, buyers LOVE to see that additional storage capability.

If you decided to completely redo your kitchen before you put your home on the market, hang your old kitchen cupboards in the garage. Or just build simple (but sturdy) shelves. Or put up large hooks to hang things like bikes, garden hoses, or tools. It doesn’t have to be elaborate. You don’t have to spend a ton of money on expensive storage systems just to sell your house, just make sure it’s clean and organized.

I’ve seen garages with stuff literally piled to the ceiling. I assure you that buyers do NOT look in there and say, “Hey look, great, here’s a place to pile all my crap!” Buyers look in there and say, “Ewww. Nice mess.” And then they walk away with a feeling of clutter and disorganization.

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Home Selling Tip #16

June 17, 2008 – 7:10 pm

Windex your mirrors and faucets.

This is especially nice on the days you know you have a showing or right before an Open House. The Windex cleans the mirrors obviously but it makes your faucets shiny and new looking.

Buyers will marvel over what a meticulous housekeeper you are.

photo credit: trekkyandy

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Home Selling Tip #15

June 17, 2008 – 2:58 pm

Don’t forget to set the table kids!

If you have a particularly attractive or spacious dining room (and dining room set) set the table as if you were hosting a formal dinner party. Decorative placemats, napkins, a centerpiece, and pretty china can all be used to make your dining room area pop. You can of course get a lot of these supplies (even the china!) at the thrift store. (I love thrift stores!)

If your dining room set is looking a little worse for wear, cover it with a pretty table cloth along with covers for the chairs. Your buyers will marvel at how nice it all looks and picture themselves hosting dinner parties right there. (Even if they’ve never hosted a dinner party in their entire lives.)

Sellers will frequently gripe about how inconvenient it is to do things like this. I’m sure it is! Selling your home in general is pretty inconvenient. But remember, the faster you sell it, the less time you have to spend being inconvenienced, so I strongly encourage folks to suck it up, and do all they can to get that house sold as fast as possible, and for the best price possible.

photo credit: star5112

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Home Selling Tip #14

June 17, 2008 – 10:26 am

More flowers.

As you might recall, I mentioned the need for lots o’ flowers out in front of your house to create a welcoming presence for your buyers when they first pull up in Home Selling Tip #1.

Today’s floral tip however is about placing fresh cut flowers in your home to help show it off. I especially like to see fresh flowers in a pretty vase in the bathroom and kitchen, because of course the bathrooms and kitchen are what sell your home.

You don’t have to place a ton of flowers on display. In fact just a few will do. Place a few gerbera daisies in a delicate vase on your bathroom counter and perhaps a slightly more elaborate display in the kitchen.

If you have a Costco membership (or have a friend with one) you can get gorgeous flowers there relatively inexpensively.

Pick up some vases at your local thrift store for super cheap too!

Fresh, pretty flowers make people smile and that’s exactly what you want people to do when they’re in your home!

photo credit: leepus

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Home Selling Tip #13

June 17, 2008 – 9:26 am

Replace the knobs on your kitchen cupboards.

I don’t think (in fact I know) that sellers just do NOT get this one. They don’t understand that things like this stick out like a sore thumb when they’re tarnished, dirty, worn, broken, etc. You don’t want them to stick out, you actually want them to be “unnoticeable.” Sellers like to balk at the idea of replacing kitchen hardware but at approximately $1 a piece and returns that are way more than $1 each, there really is no excuse.

Your kitchen will sell your home and so you need everything looking tip-top and spotless in there, right down to the knobs on the cupboard.

photo credit: gitsul

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Home Selling Tip #12

June 17, 2008 – 8:22 am

Replace the doorknobs.

I went on a listing appointment yesterday to talk to a couple who have been working on fixing up their mother’s house since October. They pointed out (among the NUMEROUS other things they’ve updated) that they had replaced all of the door knobs with brand new matching ones.

I must admit that as many things as I notice in a home I really hadn’t thought about replacing door knobs. It put a nice, finishing touch on the entire place. They weren’t fancy, expensive doorknobs. In fact they cost $7 a piece. They’re just a basic, but brand new door knob that helped tie the house and all their updates together.

photo credit: midiman

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Broomfield Real Estate Market Report May 2008

June 12, 2008 – 1:31 pm

According to Metrolist statistics the average Broomfield home sold for $318,994 in May of 2008 and $322,374 in May of 2007. Part of this is due to a softer market we’re all experiencing, but part of it can also be attributed to the mortgage lenders tightening their standards. There are a lot of folks out there who want to buy, and who can really afford to buy, but who may not have great credit and/or as high a percentage as lenders would like to see for a down payment.

Remember that if you are a person who doesn’t have excellent credit, but has the income to support a monthly mortgage payment, you may be able to qualify for an FHA mortgage loan for up to $370,000 in the Broomfield County area.

There were 360 active listings, 87 were under contract and 67 actually sold in May 2008. Compare this to May 2007 where there were 418 active listings, 125 were under contract and 70 sold.

Also according to Metrolist statistics, note that Broomfield currently has roughly a 6.8 month inventory depletion rate. (In other words, how long it will take the homes on the market to sell.) What I think is most interesting about this is: a 6 month supply is considered “neutral,” more than 6 months is a buyer’s market and less than 6 months is a seller’s market. So at 6.8 months, Broomfield is still in a buyer’s market but not by a large margin.

As a buyer you’re likely to have your pick of homes but it’s highly doubtful you’re going to find one at bargain basement prices. (Like the person who called me the other day insisting he knew he could buy a home for $50,000. Not in Broomfield!)

As a seller it’s crucial that you price your home properly and that you make it the most competitive home in the neighborhood. (Read my daily, summer long series on home selling tips for helpful hints in this area.) You may even find it’s worth the expenditure to hire a Realtor who will devote themselves to selling your house by marketing it in as many ways as possible (i.e. doing more than sticking a sign in your yard and listing it on the MLS).

Beth I. Skinner is a highly skilled Broker Associate with the Moser Real Estate Group. She specializes in the Broomfield area and Internet marketing.

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Home Selling Tip #11

June 11, 2008 – 11:30 am

Get a pre-inspection.

What on earth is a “pre-inspection” you ask? It’s the same as the professional inspection buyers get before closing on your home, but you the seller are paying someone to do it for you, before you list your home or before your home goes under contract (depending on what stage of the game you’re in right now).

This is actually another somewhat controversial tip because again, some believe that buyers will wonder what is wrong with your home that you would bother to do a pre-inspection.

I happen to believe that it shows you’re serious enough about getting your home sold you were willing to pay for a pre-inspection, so you could fix any issues beforehand, that the professional inspector may have raised.

I will say however that even if you the seller do have a pre-inspection performed before listing the house, and then you have any issues taken care of, along with the documentation to prove that you fixed all of the things that needed fixing, I (as a buyer’s agent) would still recommend that the buyers have their own separate inspection performed as well. However, the fact you have a report from a professional inspector still makes your house more attractive than the one that didn’t.

In addition to that I tell sellers that a pre-inspection can buy peace of mind, knowing that you either have no major issues at stake in your house OR that you fixed those things before a buyer’s inspector can find them and surprise you with them, as you nervously await your closing day.

photo credit: Iain Farrell

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