Friday, May 25, 2007 - Shopping for a Sears Catalog Home?

A house recently came on the market here in Cheverly -- one identified in the "Sears, Roebuck and Company Mail Order House Survey in Prince George's County" (available through the Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission) as the Crescent model. Priced at either $1,744 or $2,281, depending on which version of the floor plan was built.

I haven't been inside yet -- I plan to take a look over the weekend -- but I confess to a weakness for these mail-order homes. Cheverly has a fairly significant concentration of Sears catalog houses, along with homes built from other mail order catalogs. When the survey was done in 1988, 82 Sears homes were identified in the County, with 25 of them in Cheverly (20 different models).  Since then, others have been identified in the county and and more are suspected to be Sears houses, but they've had additions or alterations over the years and are not as easy to identify. Our own Mr. Ray Bellamy, former Historic Preservation Commissioner in the County, is responsible for compiling the list in the M-NCPPC book.

What's not to love with a description that starts out like the one in the catalog? "To the folks who like a touch of individuality with good taste..." What a great phrase! I may use it sometime on one of my listings.

(C) Susan Pruden.

Friday, May 25, 2007 - Getting In the Door

I mean this literally. I - can't - get - in - the - door.

 There is nothing worse when showing a house and you can't get the door open. The buyers are at peak anticipation (unless it looks like a dump from the outside, which is a whole other issue). I open the lockbox. Take out the keys. Figure out which key goes in which lock.

And I can't get the door open. I fiddle with the key -- you know, that little wiggle that you give it in the lock. Nothing.

I pull the door towards me while I turn the key in the lock. Nothing.

I try other keys. I try my car keys. Nothing.

The BUYER tries the keys. No dice. (Though in the interests of full disclosure, I am key-challenged. Sometimes the buyer is successful when I'm not. It's HARD to smoothly open a door while everyone is staring!)

Then, to cap it off, the agent/owner/tenant or whoever say, "oh yeah, the door sticks. You just have to kick it/push it/lift up/fill in your own solution."

Sellers! Agents! If you do nothing else, make it easy to open the door!

Fix that first!

Before it goes on the market!

(C) Susan Pruden.

Tuesday, May 15, 2007 - Writing the Home Inspection Addendum

Several months ago, an agent called me to ask how to write a home inspection addendum. Turned out she had been licensed for a couple of years, had several settlements under her belt, but she had never been on a home inspection before. Remember that hot market? No inspections? Well, that's when she started selling real estate. She had no clue what to do, but at least she was smart enough to ask someone with experience.

There is an art to writing a good home inspection addendum. I've had real estate agents send me the entire home inspection and expect the seller to figure out what needs to be repaired. That's not acceptable, by the way.  I've gotten addenda that had lists like:

1) leaking drain pipe. (Really? Where? Thanks for letting me know.)
2) faulty outlet. (Oh, you want this fixed?)
3) stains in basement indicate water penetration. (Yep, there are stains allright. So what?)

What does that mean? Fix how? Which outlet? Repair it? Replace it? Waterproof basement? Clean stains?  This kind of addendum is a recipe for disaster. The buyer probably knows exactly what they expect from the seller, and the seller is going to take the path of least resistance. The seller will fix the faulty outlet himself, then the buyer will ask for a receipt from a licensed electrician. Oops! Can't provide that because a) there isn't one and b) the buyer didn't request one in the addendum.

Buyers seldom write these addenda themselves. They depend on their agents to look out for them by writing a clear and concise addendum that reflects what the buyer actually wants done.

I met a buyer a few weeks ago who said that he had no idea what was being done on the home inspection. His agent was taking care of it all for him. He didn't know what, if any, repairs would be done. I'm sure his agent thinks he's really looking out for his client, but the addendum will reflect what the agent thinks should be repaired, not what the buyer wishes. Since the buyer is the one who will pay money at settlement and will have to live in the house, I think this is about as backward as it gets.

Experience counts. Everyone is new at one point in his or her career, but that person should have someone competent looking over his shoulder to make sure the buyer or seller is protected. Too many agents wing it with little or no supervision.

(C) Susan Pruden.

Tuesday, May 15, 2007 - Cheverly Market Update and a Little History

Whatever a "normal" market is, we sure aren't in it! The Spring market is usually more robust than this, even in a buyer's market. This year, buyers seem to be holding back, taking a wait-and-see attitude while at the same time, sellers are pushing the envelope on their asking prices.

The Cheverly real estate market is lagging behind last year in the number of contracts written. 34 last year and only 29 so far this year. We're slightly above last year in number of listings coming on the market -- 40 last year and 43 this year. These numbers reflect listings and contracts for January - April 2006 and the same time period for 2007.

Most agents track and report on the number of houses that settled in a particular month. I find that tracking the number of contracts written in a month is a more accurate way of assessing market trends -- the National Association of REALTORS(r) calls it the Pending Home Sales Index.  A sale is listed as pending when the contract has been signed and the transaction has not closed. Pending sales typically are finalized within a month or two of signing.

For a more in-depth analysis of the market, send me an email at CheverlyMarketReport@SusanPruden.com and I'll send you a 4-page report on the Cheverly market since 2002 and how we got where we are today. As usual, if you request this report, I won't send you anything but the report and I won't share your email information with anyone.  

(C) Susan Pruden.

Monday, May 14, 2007 - Fixing Up to Sell: How Much is Too Much?

A frequent question I hear from homeowners involves how much updating and upgrading to do before selling. As with most things in life, moderation is important. Spending a small fortune to upgrade the kitchen with new cabinets, countertops and appliances won't help a whole lot if the rest of the house is a dump.

I recommend starting in stages. It's really hard to evaluate what needs replacing or upgrading when you can't see through the clutter. So, before investing in granite countertops and tile floors, take the following steps:

First, take out as much stuff as possible -- pack it away, give it away, throw it away. Whatever it takes to get it out of the house. Take out more than you think you need to. Go overboard on getting rid of furniture, knick-knacks, clothing, books, etc. Take just about everything off the walls. Remove everything personal. Become a minimalist. (You might find you like it!) The good news is that you have to pack all this stuff up anyway in order to move.

Once you've done that, clean every nook and cranny. Don't do a surface clean -- really get into corners, behind the water heater, top of the refrigerator, inside the refrigerator and oven -- everwhere. Tighten loose cabinet doors, oil squeaky hinges, relace broken window panes. Do all those minor repairs that you know you should have done ages ago, but somehow never got done.

 See? Now the largest and hardest part of your job is done. Plus, the hardest job is also the cheapest and now you're done with it.

Now you can evaluate what needs to be done and figure out what makes sense money-wise. What will give you the most bang for the return? Usually painting will give you great value. Neutral colors are best, but that doesn't mean just plain white or off-white. Darker neutrals can do a great job of showing off a room. Just don't go overboard. Have the job done professionally and well. A cheap paint job will cheapen your house.

If you have hardwood floors, show them off. Remove carpets and rugs. You may not need to have them refinished -- a good cleaning and buffing can work wonders. No hardwoods? You'll have to decide if your carpets are past hope. It's not cheap to replace them, but it could be more expensive to leave them in place.

If your kitchen is dated, but clean and functional, it's probably just as well to leave it as it is. Really awful appliances (broken or so dirty they can't be cleaned) should be replaced. Don't go with the cheapest thing out there, but there is also no need to get top-of-the-line replacements. Same goes for cabinets and counter-tops. A 20 year old laminated counter-top may be just fine if it's been well cared-for. If it has huge burn spots where hot pots were set, then replace it.

In general, a house that has older decor but also shows that it has been well-maintained over its lifespan will hold its value over a beat-up house with a cheap face-lift. If there is just too much to be updated, you might be better off pricing it to reflect the condition and moving on.  You may just end up pointing out how much work is needed in the rest of the house and not increase the value of your home one whit.

(C) Susan Pruden.