Welcome New Showcase Agents!

SHOWCASE REALTY WELCOMES NEW AGENTS

CHARLOTTE, N.C., Jan. 14, 2015 – Showcase Realty welcomes new agents to its team; Bill McCall and Tripp Ingle are the latest brokers looking forward to their new experience. Each broker is a talented asset that brings their own unique personality and attributes to the team.

Bill McCall has been involved with real estate for 12 years. He specializes in single family homes and wants to optimize his use of technology and join that with his knowledge of real estate to maximize his experience at Showcase. Bill loves the dynamic environment at Showcase, as well as the flexibility real estate offers. He grew up in Bennettsville, South Carolina. Outside of Showcase, he enjoys spending quality time with family and friends.

Tripp Ingle is a caring and honest person who brings his passion for helping people to Showcase. He has always been involved and interested in real estate. Whether it’s buying or selling, he caters to his clients, helping them have a smooth process along the way. A native to Charlotte, Tripp enjoys everything Charlotte has to offer. He spends his free time paddleboarding and wakeboarding on the lakes, working out with friends and dining at different restaurants around town.

 

About Showcase Realty

Showcase Realty is an innovative boutique Charlotte real estate firm located at 1430 S. Mint St. in the Historic South End district. Owner and Broker-In-Charge, Nancy Braun, founded Showcase Realty in 2008 on the principles of innovation, teamwork and community mindfulness. Committed to selling homes and surpassing customers’ expectations, Showcase provides professional service, personally delivered. For more information visit www.showcaserealty.net.

Finding the Right Home Inspector For You

You plan to buy a house, you saw one, you made an offer, the offer has been accepted and your funding is now ready. However, before you continue with the home buying process, ask yourself, are you sure your soon-to-be-home doesn’t have any major defects that will eventually cost you a lot along the way?

Therefore, you should never neglect one of the most important parts in the home buying process and that is doing a home inspection by an excellent home inspector. But how do you choose one? We’ve prepared for you some important tips to remember when choosing a home inspector.

Assess the inspector’s experience. You can do this by checking into how long he has been in the business and how many home inspections he has performed in the past. Ask about his expertise, the way he conducts the inspections, what will be included in his report, and how much he charge for his services. If possible, ask the inspector to give you a sample copy of a written report he has completed before. Remember, there is certainly no equivalent to experience as it enhances and broadens a person’s knowledge and skills in inspecting homes.

Check if the inspector is associated with a professional inspection organization. Although this won’t totally eradicate the bad options, it can help a lot in weeding out fly-by-night inspectors. But this doesn’t mean you’ll simply chose an organization, we highly recommend those professionals affiliated with groups like the National Institute of Building Inspectors, American Society of Home Inspectors, or the National Association of Home Inspectors.

Make sure the inspector has errors and omissions insurance. Your potential home inspectors should have errors and omissions insurance specifically for conducting home inspections. The purpose of the insurance is to cover mistakes of a home inspection – any flaws of a home that the inspector may have overlooked.

Ask for the type of equipment he’ll use for the home inspection. Never hire an inspector who’ll only use a flashlight throughout the inspection because he will not be able to provide you with the best and comprehensive home inspection results. There are actually now lots of sophisticated testing device today and if the inspector is serious about his job, he will invest in such delicate yet costly device to give the best services to his clients. Proper equipment will include electrical circuit analyzers, digital moisture meters, digital cameras for documentation, electronic carbon monoxide and fuel gas analyzers, along with the traditional necessary equipment.

Get feedbacks and recommendations. One of the most effective methods to get the best home inspector is to get recommendations and feedback from family or friends who have worked before with such professional. In this way, you already have an overview about his knowledge and skills. As much as possible, do not hire an inspector who’s affiliated with the seller, the seller’s agent or the agency selling the house.

Now is the Time to Sell

Now is the Time to Sell

According to the Charlotte Observer, the Charlotte area has the lowest supply of homes for sale since January of 2014. The real estate market is picking up in many areas that were slowing down over the last few years. Now is the perfect time for Sellers to put a sign out front because buyers are seriously looking. Some homes are being sold in a matter of days. Here are some easy steps to take if you want to take advantage of the low inventory and get top dollar for your home.

Understanding the Market

It is of core importance that you learn about the market structure and the competition around you. This helps you to understand the value of your property.

Quote the Right Price

A Seller’s market is perfect time to put your home on the market. If you price your home too high, there is a high probability that buyers might not even consider your home as a viable option. However, a great price can cause a bidding war. But don’t give potential buyers a reason to back out of the deal.

Keep it Spick and Span

• Fix that leaky faucet
• Secure loose railings
• Repair that chipped door, or that broken pane of window glass.

All these small details can make a difference.

Showcase the Best

If you have a fireplace, make sure the fire is crackling. If you have a modular kitchen, spread the delicious aroma all around the house by baking a pie on the day of the open house. Hook up the speakers and play some soothing music to lighten the atmosphere.

Patience and Flexibility

Even though the supply of homes is low, selling your home may take you longer than expected, so it’s important to keep calm and have a positive mindset. Often, the quickest way to sell a home is to fine-tune the terms of the sale instead of the price.

First Offer, Final Offer

You might get an offer within the first week. It is at this time that most sellers have the tendency to keep the buyer stalling in hope for a better offer.

Find the Right Agent for the Right Job

When buyers are lined up, you need a first-class real estate professional in your pocket. From pricing to advising, let the professionals make your job easier.

You need both yourself and your broker to work on the sale of your home. Hire a more experienced broker who can help you get interested buyers with comparative ease.

Sell Your Home Faster: Get Your Home Listed!

According to statistics, the primary step that most homebuyers do when searching for a home to buy is searching possible options online. In fact, 8 out of 10 homebuyers are checking the Internet to compete inventory and to put together a list of homes they want to see and possibly buy. Of course, any seller like you would want to be part of those listed homes. So what are the advantages of getting your home listed online with the help of a real estate agent?

You get more exposure to prospective buyers. With getting your home listed, you allow your property to be exposed to a lot more possible buyers even internationally. In this way, you don’t need to limit your property within your neighborhood where there are no possible buyers. At the same time, you don’t only target individual homebuyers but also real estate investors and companies who have higher chances of buying your home.

It’s a lot more convenient on your part. Real estate agents know the best sites or directory listings where they should post your property to get it sold quicker. Although you need to pay a small fee for such service, that’s certainly worth it because you save a lot of your time and effort than doing the conventional methods. It’s a lot faster too since your property is listed immediately in the right websites that’s mostly visited by prospective buyers. You don’t have to wait a long time to get your home listed especially the fact that time is important when selling real estate properties.

You have total control on your property’s marketing. Through real estate listings, you have total control on the information you want to be available to your prospective buyers. You can update your listing through your agent any time and as often as you need to. At the same time, prospective buyers can contact your agent through the listing to discuss the possibilities of purchasing your home.

You’re sure to get your home sold. As a seller, this is certainly what you want and this is more possible if you improve your traditional ways of selling your property by taking advantage of real estate listings. You have to embrace the fact that the Internet now has become a necessity even in selling real estate properties.

Selling homes have become a lot easier with the availability of web technology these days; therefore, as a home seller, you should use it to your advantage.

Trulia’s Top 10 Agents You Love to Hate

10. The agent who’s dangerously walking that “ethical” line.
9. The agent that doesn’t anticipate potential problems.
8. The agent that tries to be a big bully.
7. The agent who doesn’t focus on the details.
6. The agent that quotes crazy high prices to win a listing.
5. The agent that avoids (okay, ignores) every call and email.
4. The agent that forgets everything and anything.
3. The agent that always over promises and under delivers.
2. The agent that misses all of the contract deadlines. And doesn’t know it.
1. The agent that could use a little more training.

Click here to read more

First-Time Homebuyers Decline In Number

The National Association of Realtors recently conducted an annual survey and the housing trend shows that today, first-time homebuyers only account one third of all purchases, which is the lowest percentage since 1987. The survey involved asking random people who have bought a home from July 2013 to June 2014.

According to Lawrence Yun, NAR Chief Economist, it hasn’t anymore as easy as it used to be for the young group to buy a home. “Rising rents and repaying student loan debt makes saving for a down payment more difficult, especially for young adults who’ve experienced limited job prospects and flat wage growth since entering the work force,” Yun said. “Adding more bumps in the road is that those finally in a position to buy have had to overcome low inventory levels in their price range, competition from investors, tight credit conditions and high mortgage insurance premiums.”

As the job market improves, salary should also increase however, first-time homebuyers find it difficult to get a mortgage than what they actually expected.

“Less stringent credit standards and mortgage insurance premiums commensurate with current buyer risk profiles are needed to boost first-time buyer participation, especially with interest rates likely rising in upcoming years,” Yun added.

First-time homebuyers’ median age was 32 with a median income of $68,300. They typically buy a 1,570-square-feet property sold for $169,000. On the other hand, a second-time homebuyer or a repeat buyer was 53 years old with a salary of $95,000. Eventually, these buyers bought bigger and more expensive properties.

As for home sellers, the current median age is now 54 from 46 years old in 2009. Plus, they live in their house for an average of one decade.

“Faster price appreciation this past year finally allowed more previously stuck homeowners with little or no equity the ability to sell after waiting the last few years,” Yun said.

If the number of first-time homebuyers continues to drop, a lot of the current homeowners might find it difficult to move into bigger and more expensive homes, as selling their current property will be tough.

Must-Know Things About Home Inspections

For all homebuyers, having your home inspected by a professional is an important step in the home buying process. Home inspection is an educational process that helps reduce your risk when buying a home. Therefore, as a homebuyer, it’s important that you have a good understanding on the home inspection process. Therefore, we have discussed below some important things you need to know about home inspections.

• Choose an accredited home inspector. This step is one of the most important things you need to do once you have decided to buy a house. At present, several professional home inspection organizations are trying to set new standards of quality through accreditation. For instance, members of the National Association of Home Inspectors, Inc. or NAHI, need to meet strict membership criteria for each level of their membership. Therefore, when you’re looking for a home inspector to hire, check their credibility, background and license. It also recommended that you consider at least three licensed inspectors before choosing the one you’ll hire. Be sure to interview your prospective candidates and ask for referrals from their past clients. Lastly, hire the inspector base on his qualifications and not because he offers the lowest fee or he’s the only one available right away.
• Attend the inspection together with the inspector. Once you’ve decided the date and time of the inspection, be sure you attend the inspection and never leave the inspector’s side. This allows you to see for yourself the different aspects of the house especially those that need renovations or repairs.
• The inspector should be thorough with the inspection. You have to ensure that the inspector turns on all appliances to make sure they work especially if they are included during home selling. Furthermore, check the two most expensive and important parts of the house, which are the roof and foundation, that are best viewed from the attic as well as the basement.
• Inspect what’s outside the house. When you’re done checking the interiors of the house, you’ll also need to check what’s outside. Experts recommend staying away from homes that are near main roads, high-tension electrical wires, and sumps as these will eventually cause a lot of problems when you start living in your new home.
• Get a report of the property inspection. You can request a verbal and a hard copy of the summary of the property inspection especially one that focuses on the deficiencies. And if there are lots of deficiencies found, it’s your responsibility to obtain three quotes for the repairs from independent firms. The inspector should not provide estimates or recommend firms to hire for repairs or renovations.