Making an Offer to Buy a DFW Home

Be Sure to Obtain Crucial Information Before Making an offer on a DFW Home

Because your Realtor may be reluctant to give you the price you should offer when buying a home. It is always helpful to find out why the seller is selling. You may not be able to obtain this information because the listing agent may refuse to tell you. But you can gather information without relying on the listing agent. You should realize that none of the following alone is sufficient by its self, each used in conjunction with the others will help you make the decision on which price is best for you to offer on DFW Homes.

 

Determine the Market in the Area You Want to Buy in

Check the activity of the marketplace. It is it neutral, hot or cold? If you're making an offer in a buyer's market on one of many Highland Parks homes, for example, you will have less competition for the home. Sellers will be more likely to be open to any offer because there are fewer buyers. If you're buying Collin County real estate in a seller's market, sellers may not consider any offer that is less than full price. Sellers could receive multiple offers, which means your offer should be as attractive as possible to get it acceptance.

Find Out How Much the Seller Paid for the Home

While it is true that in most cases the price the seller originally paid for their house has very little bearing on its market value today. However, if the seller purchased only a few years ago in a depreciating market, the asking price should be closer to the seller's purchase price or they may not accept it. Although you may not be able to determine the condition of the house when the seller bought it, nor whether there were any extenuating circumstances, you can adjust for an increase due to appreciation and improvements the seller has made.

Determine What The Seller's Mortgage Balance is

Unless the seller is in default on their mortgage and are willing to participate in short selling their house they are unlikely to accept an offer for less the amount of their mortgage(s), plus selling cost. If the seller has a high mortgage balance, and the house is vacant, you may assume the seller is making their mortgage payments out of their pocket, probably paying on two homes. If the mortgage balance is very low, the seller might not be as motivated to sell immediately and can afford to wait to get their list price.

Examine Comparable Home Sales

When looking at comparable home sales use only the homes that are similar in square feet, age and location to the home you want to buy. Use the data from the most recently sold sales, and don't look back more than six months because appraisers won't.

Analyze List and Compare Price to Sales Price Ratios

Ask your DFW Realtor for a trending report covering the last six months. Look up the prices of the homes as they were listed and compare them to the prices that have sold. Ask how much is the spread? Are houses selling at, over or under list price? If under list price, by what percentage? If many properties are selling at 3% under the list price, for example, that percentage could indicate the price the seller will or should accept.

Check Square Foot Cost Averages

Understand that smaller homes are priced higher per square foot and larger homes are priced less per square foot. You generally cannot take the average square foot cost and multiple it by the square footage of the house you want to buy and come up with a good offer price. However, you can check the trends to determine if the square foot cost averages are rising or declining and you can use that information to your advantage.

Ask for the Home's History and Days on Market (DOM)

At times, Realtors take listings off the market and re-enter them as a new listing. Find out if the home was an expired or cancelled listing and then relisted. The DOM is important, because if properties have been on the market for more than 30 days, the sellers may be more motivated to negotiate. Don't become emotionally attached to the home before your offer is accepted. Prepare yourself for the sellers to counter your offer. Keep other homes in mind just in case your offer is not accepted by the seller.

Plano Home Sellers Who Need to Sell Without Equity

Sometimes people who need to sell Plano homes may end bringing cash to closing to sell their house. You may be thinking, if I am selling my house, why would I need to bring in cash to closing to sell it? Isn't the buyer paying to buy my home? Unfortunately, this circumstance happens more often than you think.

Why Would a Seller Need to Pay to Sell?

· Unexpected Home Repairs

Few transaction close until the buyer has completed their home inspection. Home inspections and termite inspections can uncover undisclosed problems or deficiencies in a house that run into thousands of dollars to repair. What can begin as a simple repair job can expose other problems when walls are opened up or roof shingles are removed.

· Not Enough Equity.

If you have owned your home less than two years and you took out a mortgage that was greater than 90% of the purchase price, it is likely you don't have enough equity to pay closing and selling costs. These costs 8 to 10% of the sales price.

· Declining Real Estate Market

Maybe you have to sell in a declining market, which would mean your house might not be worth enough to generate money upon selling. Real estate market cycles can make markets move down as well as move up. Not every home will appreciate every year.

· Community Values Change

Sometimes external factors or nearby Plano Foreclosures can affect property values. When new subdivisions are built close by and the houses are offered for less, buyers will generally gravitate toward the new houses, avoiding slightly older homes. New commercial developments change the value of surrounding homes. Sometimes homes with views lose those views when high-rise buildings are constructed near existing housing.

How Do Sellers Pay to Sell DFW Homes?

· Some Sellers Access Their Retirement Accounts or Borrow From Family Members

Sellers who are on the short end of the stick must bring a check to closing. A man in Dallas used a home equity loan against his home to help make her mortgage payments. When he could no longer afford to make the mortgage payments, he bought another home with 100% financing. He then rented his condo and put it on the market. His tenant was uncooperative and made it difficult for the man's agent to show the house. The tenant had to be put out of the house. Faced with falling prices, this seller was going further into debt every month. He finally had to face the fact that if he wanted to sell his house and not lose it through a foreclosure sale, he would have to bring money to the table to close the sale.

· Some Sellers Choose to Bite the Bullet

A seller in Fort Worth contacted me recently to ask if her Realtor was telling her the truth when she suggested she bring in money to close his sale. This seller's best financial move may have been to stay put and not sell. She already owned a home; she wasn't a renter trying to become a first time home buyer. The seller insisted on selling because she no longer liked her neighborhood or any of her neighbors. Out of all the houses in his neighborhood, she was the only owner occupant left. The rest of the houses were rentals, which lowered values. She decided that it was worth it to spend $25,000 to get out of that neighborhood and into a more desirable area.

· For Some Sellers a Short Sale May be the Answer

Most lenders will agree to a short sale. Lenders have specific requirements that will persuade a lender to forgive mortgage debt. A seller in Frisco Texas had no liquid assets, no income and had refinanced his house for more than its market value. He found out that negotiating a short sale with his lender meant he could walk away from the house without getting a foreclosure on his record.

Every home selling situation is different. Sellers who find themselves in financial difficulty should first talk to a legal, financial adviser or a CPA to help them weigh the pros and cons of bringing cash to close the sale of their home.

Tips for Winning Over Springtime Dallas Home Buyers

 The season of Spring is generally the best time to sell Dallas Real Estate. Regardless of whether it is a seller’s market or buyer’s market sales activity generally rises in the Spring.  This happens because the largest number of buyers are actively searching for a new home during the months of April, May and June. If your home has been sitting on the market since the holidays, or longer, take it off the market for a little while.  Wait at least a few weeks before putting your house back on the market.  Few buyers are going to look at your home in the Spring if the Days on Market (DOM) show that it has been on the market for several months. Buyers will generally gravitate toward new listings. Blow are several things you can do to improve your odds that your home will stand out among the many new listings that flood the spring real estate market. These tips apply to all homes including Tarrant County homes and Denton County Homes.

2) Rake Your Yard, Pull Your Weed and Trim Your Bushes

Put down fresh mulch, rake out the leaves and debris from your lawn. Don't let overgrown bushes block the windows or path to the entrance. Cutting bushes and tree limbs will let the sun inside and showcase the exterior of your home.

2) Clean Windows and Polish Mirrors

Clean and sparkle sells homes. Potential buyers may not realize why your home seems so inviting to them but they will feel drawn to it if the windows are mirrors are spotless. Cleaning your house is the first step to preparing it for sale..

3) Cut Your Lawn Diagonally and Edge the Lawn

Manicured lawns that are edged tells potential buyers that you pay attention to the details and upkeep of the property.

4) Plant Flowers with Plenty of Color

Colored flowers and plants stimulate home buying urges. After the winter season, everyone is anxious to see the signs of spring.  Tulips and daffodils generate feelings of happiness and contentment. Take extra care and plant extra flowers and plants near the entrance of the home.

5) Clean the Curtains and Blinds and Let the Light in

Send your window coverings to the dry cleaners or wash, dry and press. Toss blinds into a soapy bathtub for a quick wash. Get rid of all accumulated dust and spider webs. Crisp linens and a spring-time breeze through the windows invites the season inside.

6) Polish Floors and Clean Carpets

Your hardwood floors should be cleaned and refinished, if necessary. Make your ceramic and linoleum floors shine. Get all carpets and rugs professionally cleaned.

7) Put Fresh Smelling Flowers in the House

Natural flower scents are more appealing than artificial and trigger fewer allergies.  Professional home stagers bring color and fragrance into the home.

8) Utilize Accessories Like Towels, Throws, Pillows in Light Colors

Even if it means buying replacement items, towels, linens, throws and sofa pillows are inexpensive accents you can buy. In soft spring colors, they will light up a room. Layer towels on bathroom towel racks and place rolled wash cloths on the counters.

9) Use a Welcome Matt at the Homes Entrance

Wherever you live, spring weather is often unpredictable. In some states, it can be 80 degrees one day and snowing the next. If it's raining, give buyers a place to place their umbrellas and wipe their feet before entering your home. Some sellers will install plastic runners across carpets to protect it.

10) Put Out Color Fliers That Show Financing Options

Don't be a cheapskate when it comes to your marketing materials. You want potential home buyers to select your flyer among the dozens of others they pick up. Show home buyers how easily they can afford to buy your home by showing them two or three financing options. The first thing on buyer's minds when considering a home purchase is the monthly mortgage payment. Don't make them guess, put it in front of them

11) Use Color Photos for Print Advertising

Spend a little more money on newspaper and online advertising by using color photographs in your advertising.  It’s like they say, a picture is worth a 1,000 words. Look through your photo galleries for a seasonal photograph that shows your home as it looks in different seasons.

12) Put Out Refreshments for Buyers Looking at Your Home

Touring lots of homes tends to make buyers hungry. Give them a little snack.  It will give buyers an opportunity to linger in your kitchen and get a better feel for the home. You want them to get the feeling it is their home

Why Isn't My Plano Home Selling?

Many Sellers with Plano homes for sale have had their property
on the market for months with very few or no showings. Some of these sellers have had dozens of showings but not one offer to purchase. In a buyer’s market, it is especially important to pull out all the stops and make sure your home stands out among the other entire competing inventory on the market. Ask yourself why a buyer would choose your home over all the other homes for sale find the things that don’t
stand out and get to work on them.

Condition of Your Home: Be sure to study your competition. If 85% of the homes in your market are not selling, then yours needs to shine above the top 15%. Also, study the homes that are pending sales because that's your current indicator of market activity. You want to know what is happening right now, and pending sale data will tell you which homes are selling. Unfortunately, in the DFW Real Estate area MLS the Pending sales do not show how much the house is under contract for. Separate from preparing your house for sale, consider its condition. Maybe you should consider adding upgrades and doing updates and repairs before putting your house on the market. If the top 5% on houses on the market have new flooring and your flooring is worn and dated, your house is not going to sell and could become one of the many Plano foreclosures. Replace the flooring. Paint the walls a neutral color and spruce up the curb appeal.

Not Enough Photographs / Poor Photographs

Houses in the DFW MLS that have only one photo are quickly passed by. Houses with dozens of photographs get noticed. Take quality photos or hire a professional photographer. Shoot wide angles with plenty of light showcasing your home's best features. If the photos are blurry or otherwise look bad don’t use them!
·
Take many photos of the kitchen area. The kitchen is one of the most important areas to photograph.
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Unless your bedrooms differ from one another greatly, just take photos of the master bedroom or largest bedroom.
·
Don't get yourself in the photo of the bathroom by shooting the mirror's reflection.
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If the hallway is narrow, don't take a picture of it. Take photos of the fireplace or other nice
feature instead.
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Living room photos should show space so take photos of it from many different angles.
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Don’t forget to include the back yard and gardens.
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Add descriptive text to each photo.

You Didn’t Pay For Extensive Marketing and Advertising

No single aspect of a marketing plan will sell your sell your home. It takes a comprehensive combination of marketing efforts. Print color postcards and mail them to surrounding homes in the neighborhood and to out of area buyers.
·
Get a virtual tour of your house to use in your marketing.
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Keep marketing aggressively until your house sells.
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Create color fliers containing several photos to distribute to potential buyers and those who view your home.
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Hold Open Houses on the weekends that coincide with other neighborhood open houses.
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Very important; Get feedback from buyers that have viewed your home. See what they liked and disliked about your home, and make adjustments to overcome this issues.

You May Have Hired the Wrong Listing Agent

You want to work with a professional DFW Realtor who is competent, experienced and rustworthy. There are a many ways to find Realtors but the easiest way is through referrals from friends and family. If you desire full service and want an agent to spend money marketing your house hire a full service brokerage company and interview at least three agents. To find the best listing agent don't base your decision solely on the suggested listing price or how much the agent charges for commission because there are other considerations. Discuss the listing price and commission amount last. First, find out the agent's marketing plan and experience.

You Haven't Priced Your Home Properly to Sell

Many sellers say that they don’t want to “give their house away”. To sell your house, the listing price must be right. Don't test the market at a high value because if you do, your house will probably just sit on the market and the days on market (DOM) will continue to increase. Dated listings don't usually sell for list price. To avoid overpricing your house, study the sold comparable sales. Adjust for square footage, upgrades and condition, if necessary. If your home has a bad floor plan or is located in bad location such as next to power lines, on or near a busy street, you're not going to get the same price as homes with a good layout and in a good location.
Example: if the last three homes sold at $300,000 but you feel they are not comparable to yours because they aren’t updates, but they were located on a quiet street and your street is busy your house is probably worth about the same. A plus of$25,000 adjustment for the updates could wash
out the minus $25,000 for the noisy street.

In a buyer's market, price your home a minimum of 3% less than the comparable sales. If you can't live with this amount then don't put your house on the market and set yourself up for
disappointment. Overpricing your house is the worst selling mistake a home seller can make.

Earnest Money Deposits and Your Plano Home Purchase

Home Buyers always ask how much earnest money deposit they should offer. Generally, there is no set amount. In most States, contracts must contain a consideration to be valid, but that amount can be as little as one dollar. Laws in your state may be different. Keep in mind that the amount of your earnest money deposit depends primarily on your local marketplace and customs.

What is an Earnest Money Deposit?

An earnest money deposit is a good faith deposit. When buyers execute a purchase contract the contract specifies how much money the buyer is initially putting up as earnest money to secure the contract. It will also show how much down payment the buyers are agreeing to make. The balance is usually financed as a mortgage. An earnest money deposit says to the seller that you are serious about buying their house. An earnest money deposit for Plano foreclosures also shows the bank that you are a serious purchaser.

How Much Earnest Money is Enough?

Because there is no set amount, it varies from market to market and across the country. Where I work, selling Plano homes and DFW Homes in Texas, generally this amount is between 1% and 5% of the purchase price. Buyers here do not often put down more than 5% since the sales contract contains a liquidated damages clause that awards that earnest money to the sellers should they default and not close on transition. If we were in a seller's market, with many buyers fighting over limited amount of home, it makes sense for the buyer to put down a much larger earnest money deposit to entice the seller to accept their offer. In a buyer’s market, a larger earnest money deposit might entice a seller to accept a much lower purchase price.

Who Do You Give Your Earnest Money Deposit To?

In every jurisdiction that I am aware of, the earnest money deposit should either go to the Title Company or legal firm handling the closing or to the listing brokers escrow account. Review the advice below:

· Never give an earnest money deposit to the seller.

· Verify that the third party will deposit the funds into a separately maintained trust account.

· Obtain a receipt.

· It is not advisable to authorize a release of your earnest money until your transaction closes.

Is Your Earnest Money Deposit Refundable It You Do Not Close?

Study your sales contract and addenda to see what it says about what happens to your earnest money deposit if the transaction doesn’t close. The answer will depend on why the transaction didn’t close. Were you not able to get your financing approved or maybe you couldn’t get clear title to the property. Did you or the seller simply change their mind about closing? Upon cancellation, the sellers and buyers are asked to sign mutual release agreement. If an agreement cannot be reached, the party holding the earnest money deposit will continue to hold it until an agreement is reached. If no agreement has been reached after certain period of time, title companies will send the parties a certified letter asking for mutual instructions. The letter will state that if no one responds within a certain time period, then title agent will return the money to the buyer. If the seller contests the action then the parties will have to go to arbitration or court to get the issue resolved.

Do You Need a Deed of Trust With your Plano Real Estate Purchase?

The amount of paperwork a Plano real estate buyer signs at closing is overwhelming to say the very least. Almost all of these documents will be generated by the buyer's mortgage company. Without ever reading them and just signing off on them, it generally takes buyers an hour to complete them. Every blue moon, I attend a closing with buyers who actually take time to read through the closing documents.

Unless you are paying cash or you are in a mortgage state you will be required to sign a Deed of Trust. It doesn’t matter if you are buying a Highland Park Home or Dallas Foreclosure properties the Deed of Trust works exactly the same.

What is a Deed of Trust?

A Deed of Trust is the security instrument for your loan. It is the document that is recorded in the public records and secures a lien for the lender against your property.

A deed of trust contains three parties:

· Trustee, which is an entity that holds "bare or legal" title

· Trustor, which is you, the borrower

· Beneficiary, which is the lender

The deed of trust is a security instrument that identifies the following information:

· Original loan amount

· Legal description of the property being used as security for the mortgage

· The parties to the transaction

· Inception and maturity date of the loan

· Provisions of the mortgage and requirements

· Legal procedures, including acceleration and alienation clauses

· Riders, such as clauses for prepayment penalties

Who or What is a Trustee?

Deeds of trust contain a trustee who is an independent third party that does not represent the borrower, the lender, or the owner.

· The trustee can be a person or an entity that holds the "Power of Sale" in the event of a loan default.

· The trustee also reconveys the property once the deed of trust is paid in full.

· In the event of a default, the trustee files a Notice of Default; however, in most instances, the trustee will substitute another trustee to handle the foreclosure process under a Substitute Trustee.

· After the required period of time in the public records, and the required period of time in the publication period in the newspaper, the trustee then has the power to sell the property without a court procedure or lawsuit.

· In many jurisdictions following recordation of the Notice of Default, the borrower can redeem the property by making up the back payments and paying the trustee's fees.

· Once the trustee sells the property at a Trustee's sale, it is final.

What is a Promissory Note?

Whereas the deed of trust is security of the loan, secured by the property, the promissory note is the evidence of the debt and the promise to pay.

· The promissory note is a promise to pay, signed by the borrower.

· It contains the terms of the loan such as the interest rate and payment terms.

· The promissory note is generally not recorded in the public records.

· When the loan is paid, the promissory note is marked "paid in full" and returned to the borrower.

Before Signing a Promissory Note and Deed of Trust

Read both of these documents thoroughly, including the small printed sections. You should consider asking the closer to send you a copy of the preliminary deed of trust and promissory note beforehand. Because closers are human and make mistakes, here are the important items to review:

· Address of property

· Spelling of trustors' names

· Principal balance of the loan

· Interest rate

· Payment amount

· Prepayment penalties, if applicable