Being a lookiloo means you’re always out at open houses “looking”. As any realtor will admit, many of their best clients are “lookiloos” who didn’t know they were looking to buy, but were struck by a certain property or neighborhood they were browsing through. We had the chance to chat with Holly Barr, who is a realtor with Coldwell Banker in San Jose (Willow Glen specialist). She is in the top 7% of agents for Coldwell Banker in the USA, so I thought she would be perfect to share some ideas on where the market is today and to get your home ready quickly if one of your “lookiloos trips” inspires you to move.
Q: Given today’s real estate market, what 3 things that are essential to getting a home ready to sell?
- Curb appeal is a must! Get that grass greened up and trimmed (and keep it that way). Power wash the front and back. Tune up the paint with a fresh coat on the trim or a whole paint job. Your realtor should be able to suggest a good painter. Get color into the front yard – say “come inside” with flowers! Trim big bushes and trees, you want to see the house. Here’s an article about curb appeal.
- Clear and clean. Clear out anything extra in
your home. Pictures, books, games (yes, all
that extra furniture that
you are holding for your sister – time to give it back to her or store
it off site. Less is more within reason. Then it is time to clean!
Hire someone if you have to. The house has to sparkle. From the
baseboards to the crown molding. Buyers will be looking closely at the
details of your home and have a hard time picturing living there if
they see pet hair on the floor, a messy refrigerator or a dirty bathroom. - Consider staging the house. Even if you only have one room
that needs work or just need a few accessories. Talk with your realtor
and be open about changing your artwork and color schemes on your
bedding. When a home is staged it sells faster and for more money. I
have seen buyers walk into a staged home and say things like, “I could
live here” and “can they sell all the furniture with the house?”. I
have had a home that was vacant and sat on market for 3 months. When
the seller decided to have it staged, that same house sold within 30
days! (Editor’s note: For more on staging check here.)
Q: What are you seeing in the Silicon Valley market? What types of homes are selling? Is it a bad time to sell?
As always, the homes that are selling and the homes with the most
showings are those that are priced right and with GREAT locations. The
third factor is how updated a house is will play into the speed and
price it sells for.
Here is what I am seeing right now with the buyers in my office. If
you have a family type neighborhood with kids playing and parents
talking, block parties and good schools, nice houses with trees on the
street (trees make a street feel much warmer and more inviting), you
are much more likely to fetch a buyer faster and for slightly (approx
3-5%) more money than what the last comparable home sold for.
If you do not have the benefit of a great location, the only pulls
you have are price and condition. Do all that you can to upgrade your
home. You may have heard that you do not get all your money back when
doing a remodel. That may be true. However, the speed of sale is
another way to look at the return on your investment. If your house has
been upgraded, say, you put in some granite counters for $10K, while
you may not be advised to add $10K to the price, you will likely sell
the house FASTER and that translates into one or five less mortgage
payments.
Q: As a realtor, it seems you must be the ultimate “Lookiloo” getting to see different homes on a daily basis. Do you have a
favorite room or what stands out to you?
Personally, my favorite room when looking at a home is any room that
has something special and elegant to offer. I love an updated kitchen
with something innovative like glass block
side lights or hand made custom tiles in a bathroom.
For example, a romantic master suite with a walk in closet and a nice chandelier in above the tub!
Contact Holly at www.hollybarr.com, holly@hollybarr.com or (408) 887-3225.
Photos courtesy of Holly Barr.
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