Meet My Lender Tom Ross

Staged to Sell with Robin Leigh

Hello everyone! Thanks for returning to my real estate video blog.

Today, I am so excited to introduce to you Robin Leigh from Staged to Sell Design. Now, we are at a home in Arcadia. This home was on the market for three months and I had 60 showings, but no offers. It was kind of bizarre!

Robin came to me and said she thought I needed to stage the property. So, we pulled it off the market and she staged the entire home! We put it back on the market and we sold it in 5 days with three offers! So, folks, I am a believer!

Robin, tell us what is home staging?

Staging is taking a property and making an evaluation of its best features. Then we create a plan around those features to show the property at its very best.

When we go into a home, we first look at what we can take away. Often times, staging is about decluttering a home.

Staging is not decorating, although decorating is an aspect of the staging process. So, we minimize; we recommend people take pictures down; put their books away; get a fresh coat of paint. Then if the home needs more modern furnishing we will do that as well!

You can take a look at our website www.StagedToSellDesign.com and see the before and after pictures!

Thanks for watching!

What is a Prequalification Letter?

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When you’re ready to start looking at homes, the first thing your agent will tell you is to get a prequalification letter. This letter is your license to buy a home; it tells the buyer, not only are you ready to buy a home, but that you are able.

There are two important parts to a prequalification letter. The most important is the payment amount; make sure you have a payment amount you are comfortable with. The second is your financials. To close the loan you need to present all your bank statements, pay stubs, W2s, tax returns, etc.

Once you’ve established a comfortable payment amount and your lender has gone over your financials, the lender will write a letter stating you can buy a house for a certain amount. You are able to show the buyer and close faster in this highly competitive market.

Professional Loans

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Today we have Fred Gerten from BBVA Compass to tell you about their Professional Program. 

The Professional Program allows doctors, lawyers and CPAs to purchase high-end homes with low down payments.  Compass offers million dollar loans with as little as five percent down. 

All that is required to be eligible for this Professional Loan is a credit score above 700.  Employment and assets will also be verified, but there is no minimum employment length required. 

Loans of more than a million dollars are also available, but a slightly larger down payment is required.

While interest rates do fluctuate, Compass offers market competitive rates and no one else has a program like this. 

Please call us if you have any questions or want to get started with the Professional Program!

Low Inventory Makes Now the Time to Sell

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Would you like to get multiple offers on your home? Thanks to low inventory, sellers right now have the upper hand, especially if the home is in great condition and presented well, located in a good place and priced just right. If you’re at all on the fence about selling, now is the time because sellers can even get more than their asking price, and homes are selling faster than they could have imagined. Buyers are desperate!

What does this mean for sellers? Take advantage of the low inventory and get your home on the market as soon as possible! It certainly won’t be on the market for long. Since there are fewer homes on the market, there’s more competition for available homes. Low inventory often translates into multiple bids, high list-to-sale price ratios and being able to negotiate better terms. Again, sellers have the upper hand.

What is the landscape like for buyers? Very competitive with multiple offer situations. This market means you have to be aggressive. When a home that you’re interested in hits the market, plan to see it as soon as possible and make the best possible offer that’s at an appropriate price point for the seller. Remember, inventory is low. If you hesitate, the property could be gone because others will be making offers.

Keep in mind that mortgage loan rates are extremely low, which makes buying a home more affordable than ever, but the rates won’t last forever. Interest rates are still below 4% with some as low as 3% for a 15- or 20-year fixed-rate mortgage. If you wait and interest rates rise, you could get locked into spending a few hundred extra dollars a month on your payment. Ouch!  

If you would like to build a strategy to succeed in this market, give us a call at (602) 413-8195 or email us at Monique@MoniqueSells.com.