Sellers: What Are Buyers Looking For?

After I went on an appointment the other day, I was really struck that all four houses, for what they were, showed really well. To start, they were all row houses. Two were grandma houses, one was cleaned up (new kitchen, new hardwood, paint and trim), and one was a complete rehab and very modern and innovative.

It usually doesn't happen in the price range, in which we were looking, that all of the properties would show well. What did they have in common? They were all clean. One had furniture, but no knick knacks or pictures. Why is this important? There are no distractions. The buyer can picture themselves living in the house. When it is clean, they can imagine that they can move in without a big cleaning job, and they can look around and see the good attributes of the house.

I had this subject on my mind, had the television on this morning, and they were talking, on the TODAY SHOW, about a how to make your house look good for both you, and when selling the property without spending a fortune. The biggest piece of advice, which was given, was to paint the walls in light and neutral colors. Of course, I have seen examples where bold has worked, but it seems you need to be very careful when using bold colors. Next, they advised sellers to keep the house straightened, and remove pictures and personal knick knacks.

They gave an example of someone with a white tiled bathroom with hot pink paint. The owner loved the hot pink, but the advice was that no one really wants someone else's bathroom, and it would be good to paint the walls white and make it look like a new, clean bathroom.

Then, they spoke about quick fixes in the kitchen, which can make it look much better. They were as follows:

• New Back Splash
  
• New Cabinet Doors versus All New Cabinets
• New Knobs and Pulls
• Add an Island
• One "Status" Appliance

The next piece of advice they gave was for the buyer. I thought it was the absolute best piece of advice in the segment and that was to not buy a fixer upper unless you can fix it up. I would add to that .... or unless you can afford to have it fixed up in a timely fashion.


So, when I am going through a house, and I am talking about a row house, the following are the things I am looking at with my prospective buyers:

1. Cleanliness
2. General Condition of Kitchen and Bathroom
3. Basement: at minimum should be clean and neat, and in good repair. Hopefully it will also be dry.
   
4. Heater
5. Water Heater
6. Electric: Fuses or Circuit Breakers? Number of outlets in each room? Are there ground fault circuit interrupter outlets in the bathroom and kitchen (GFCI)?
7. Soil Line
8. Age of windows
9. Treatment of front of house and back of house
10. State of yard and wall
11. Lastly, decor and features such as anything high end or closets, etc.. In Philadelphia, we have that great store called IKEA and if there are no closets, you have a great opportunity to buy attractive, and functional wardrobes in place of the closets. For me, I prefer the wardrobe. I know, however, from showing houses that most people prefer closets.
    

Other things that seller should consider are the conditions of the roof and chimney. These things cannot be checked by the buyer, but instead by the home inspector, but the seller should be aware of the age and condition of these two items when selling their house.

For those of you not from Philadelphia, the yard in the above
picture is really big for a South Philly Yard!

Realtor Recommended Home Inspectors

I am responding, in this post, to the credit counselor I mentioned in the GRANTS AND CREDIT COUNSELING post.

He accused Realtors and Real Estate Agents of Recommending Home Inspectors that just pass houses without disclosing the "real" condition of the property so that the deal goes through. It is a ridiculous accusation.

In my office, agents use and recommend different home inspectors. I have had buyers go out and hire their own. I attend all of the inspections so I can be informed and witness any problems, which may exist with the exception of the roof. I attend the inspections to help my client's bargaining position and to ask questions, which my clients do not necessarily have the experience themselves to ask. I do not go on the roof, however.

What I am looking for in a home inspector, which I said before is one who will take the risk to provide estimates and also take pictures. I want a home inspector, who is patient with my buyer and will answer their questions. I want good service. Why?

1. To let the buyer know what the actual conditions of the property are,
2. To give my buyer negotiating leverage,
3. To give my buyer the ability to get out of the contract and retain their deposit money,
4. And to make my buyer's home purchasing experience a good one.

There are two things to remember. First, the home inspector is a licensed person and has potential liability. They generally look for everything! They do not want any stone unturned. Yes, sometimes they scare the buyers, and sometimes that is a good thing! Sometimes the buyer should get out of a contract.

Second, your Realtor is a licensed person, and has liability if they are not representing your interests. Further, reputation is everything to a Realtor. If you bought a house, and your Realtor worked in cahoots with the home inspector to hide the real condition of the property, would you recommend that person? No, of course not. Referrals are the life blood of a Realtor, and what this credit counselor accused us of is absurd!

Home Inspectors

How do you pick a Home Inspector?

It, typically, is not something you are doing regularly. So, you will not have your favorite home inspector like you may have your favorite electrician or handy man. Thus, what should you look for in a home inspector? And how should you find one?

1. Ask your Realtor for a reference or several, look on the web, look in the phone book
   
2. Call and ask them a few questions:

• Will they give estimates on critical items?
• Will they go up on the roof?
• Will they take pictures?
  
• How long will it take to get the report back?

I would expect that they will give you estimates on critical items. If you don't have estimates, then you must meet and arrange with each contractor to meet you at the property to give estimates. And these meetings must happen before your contingency period lapses if you intend on re-negotiating the price based on those inspections, or rescinding the contract.

I would also expect that the home inspector goes up on the roof and takes pictures so that you the home buyer can see the condition of the roof without climbing the ladder yourself! Again, although, in general, it is easier to get the roofer on the roof than other contractors to come out, who must go into the property, it is best if your home inspector does it at the time of the home inspection. You can always follow up with a roofer.

Pictures... they are nice to have, but best for the roof ,and next for critical items. I would insist on the roof, and would like the critical items, but would not turn away a good home inspector if he/she only gave me roof pictures.

Some provide the report right on the spot. That is a really nice service, however, if they will email within 24 hours, it is also good. It still should give you enough time to review the report and respond to the sellers.

When your offer is accepted, and you have an inspection contingency, please schedule it immediately.