Want to sell by summer? Better get started!

With all the good news in the real estate market, lots of sellers have decided that this is the year.

What many people don’t realize is that the time between the first conversation with a Realtor to the day you collect your proceeds can be longer than you think. If you want to be at the bank by summer, you need to get started!

Typical home sale timeline:

1.     Interview and select Realtor (1 week)

2.     Valuation, paperwork, photos (1 week)

3.     Shine up your property for sale (4 weeks)

4.     Allow current average market time for Cape properties (3 months)

5.     Plan on 4-6 weeks to close.

That’s 6 months. If you start today, your property could go live just in time for the hot spring Cape Cod market, probably go under agreement in May with the hope of a June closing. For each month you wait to make that first call,  add a month to your timeline.

Cape Cod Real Estate Forecast for 2014

Image courtesy Horizons Beach Resort, North Truro, MA

What is on the horizon for Cape Cod real estate in 2014? In general the slow, steady recovery of 2013 will continue. Notables:

• Expect to see a continued decline in distressed sales. This affects investors and first-timers. Only the most savvy will get a crack at these diamonds in the rough.
• Buyers: With low inventory, you and your agent need to vigilantly monitor new listings. The good valued properties practically evaporate as soon as they hit the market. Be ready with your financing.
• Sellers: Presentation is always important, but it's especially important now. You want your property to be the one everyone clamors for. Put the time, money, and effort into making it outshine the competition, and you will be in the drivers seat.

Some wildcard factors to keep an eye on:

• Rising interest rates. Not really a wildcard--it's happening. But it's not always clear when we'll see these increases.
• Tax law changes
• Government squabbling (another shutdown?)
• FEMA flood maps

For more information visit www.realtor.org

Source: Cape & Islands Association of Realtors

Septics Are Gross, But They Don't Have to Be Stressful

When you think of selling a house, it's all about making the house look great for buyers, cashing in on your investment, moving on to the next exciting chapter of life, etc. Fun! You don't tend to give much thought to the challenges that you will face during the process: the hard work of decluttering, the home inspection crises, and least of all the septic system (yuck).

In MA when a house changes hands, the seller generally has to spend $300-$400 to get said system inspected, which is unexciting enough. Then, if the system needs repair or (God forbid) replacement, the unanticipated costs and the headaches rise exponentially.
  
How can you avoid these challenges before you put the house up for sale?

1. Maintain your system well by having it pumped every 2 years or so.
2. Don't use your toilet like a trash can.
3. If you're planning to sell in the next 6 months, go ahead and get an inspection. A certificate of Title 5 compliance is good for 2 years.

If you are already up to your neck in septic issues (ew), there are still things you can do to ease the psychological and financial burden:

1. If the cost of repair/replacement of your system is prohibitive, there are low-interest loans available through Barnstable County.
2. Many septic companies will do the work on a house that is under agreement and wait to get paid until the house closes.
3. Don't be afraid to ask your local septic company for their help and advice. They see these challenges every day and understand your struggle.

Too Good for Up Time?

In my pre-Realtor life, I looked upon the real estate industry with disdain.

Those people have no soul, no pride! Ugh, I would never waste two perfectly good weekend hours parked in an empty house like a bottom-feeder waiting for a tasty buyer to swim by. Or worse, fritter away an entire morning or afternoon as a volunteer secretary (aka Up Time, Floor Time, 'Opportunity' Time...). Where is their dignity? And really, how hard can this job be? The bar for entry is not exactly high. Someone as educated, brilliant, and worldly as myself could surely be running circles around the masses without much effort.

One day during that time I was chatting with my friend Lori, a very successful businesswoman and a pretty terrific person. She's also one of the classiest people I know. Which is weird, because she's also a Realtor.

She's so good, she makes real estate look good.

At that point in my life I was growing dissatisfied with my career and looking to do something new. Lori suggested real estate. I spit out my coffee.

You must be joking--those people eat their young! ...Well, except of course you. ...Hmm. Perhaps it is worth exploring another perspective...If I could do business the way Lori does, maybe I would consider it.

Fast forward through a few weeks of intense coursework and no-joke studying, and there I am, newly licensed, stepping through the door of Lori's office.

I found out very quickly that real estate doesn't much care how many degrees you have, or if you're pretty, or can speak French. That's all well and good, but real estate is more interested in what time you get out of bed, how fast you respond to email, how thick your skin is, how many phone calls you can make, and what makes you give up (or keep going).

I learned that doing well means going outside my comfort zone. If I want business I have to go find it; and when I look everywhere, including floor time, open houses, on the phone, etc....I eventually find it. Some people think it's just dumb luck when that 'random' new client 'just shows up'; but I go back to the old saw: The harder I work, the luckier I get.

I'm not gonna lie, I still get antsy at a quiet open house. But I always bring along a stack of thank you notes, my laptop, and the latest issue of Realtor Magazine so that my time is never wasted. And I wasn't entirely wrong about the soulless bottom-feeders; they're out there. But they're everywhere; every industry has their own version.

The biggest lesson I've learned is that a successful career in real estate demands the highest level of character in the form of focus, courage, faith, integrity, perseverance, commitment, and sacrifice. The best people in this business are people I really like to be around. They are smart, ambitious, and yes, very classy.

Not Particularly Great Mortgage News

This just came to my inbox. Kind of a big deal...

Good Afternoon William Raveis Sales Associates,
If you are working with clients aiming to buy and finance a home in the near future, you’ll want to be sure to close the transaction before the end of the year.  There are several changes on the horizon for the mortgage industry that may make it more difficult and more costly to obtain a home mortgage.  To beat these changes, buyers should aim to sign an agreement by November 1st  so they can allow time before the holidays for an orderly 2013 closing.

Here’s what to look out for in 2014:

Tighter Guidelines on the Amount You Can Borrow
In January of 2014, a new mortgage rule from the Consumer Federal Protection Bureau (CFPB) goes into effect.  The rule, which impacts the entire industry, introduces a concept that will discourage lenders from making mortgage loans where the debt to income ratio exceeds 43%.

So what does this mean? If these rules were in effect last year, roughly one-fifth of all home-owners would have had to either increase their down payment or buy a less expensive house.  William Raveis Mortgage estimates that the implementation of this rule alone could negatively impact the maximum amount that a buyer could borrow by about 5%.

Negative Impact to Interest Rates
It is widely assumed that interest rates cannot stay at historical lows.  The Fed has already begun pulling back on their strategies that have kept rates artificially low, and we have seen rates jump upwards in excess of 1% since the summer.  In addition to the financial and monetary factors that will push rates upwards, there are regulatory factors that will negatively impact rates as well.  Firstly, the role that Fannie and Freddie play in the mortgage market will be diminishing.  We have seen these entities decrease their maximum loan amounts, and they are scheduled to drop even further in 2014.  The government is hoping that private investors will fill the void, but with few entities in this arena, we can expect that private investors will want a higher return on their investment – pushing interest rates to borrowers upward.

What Action Can you Take?
1.     Make sure to inform your buyers of these regulatory changes.  Sellers will also be interested, as the potential pool of buyers may be impacted by these changes. For more on this see http://files.consumerfinance.gov/f/201301_cfpb_ability-to-repay-summary.pdf

2.     If you are near your maximum mortgage amount and deciding on a closing date, make sure to schedule the closing before the end of the year.  Signing an agreement in early November will assure a smoother transaction.

3.     If your buyers aren’t going to buy before year’s end, make sure that they are pre-approved again, in accordance with the changes, so they can confirm their maximum borrowing amount.

Please feel free to contact any William Raveis Mortgage Banker for further explanation or assistance.

Best Regards,

Ryan


Ryan Raveis
Executive Vice President
Direct: (203) 925-4553

Realtors are People Too!

Click on the image to go to the Raveis Blog post about Katie Clancy

You're Already Behind

Here we are at the peak of the summer season here on Cape Cod. Some people are enjoying their last summer in their Cape house and thinking of selling sometime after Labor Day. But if they haven't started the process, they may find themselves selling a house with a Christmas tree in it. Most people underestimate how much time it takes to get the job done. Here’s a quick breakdown of the timeline:

Close by the holidays                                                                             November 15

On market 10 weeks                                                                              September 1

Prepare House 4 weeks                                                                        August 1

Valuation, paperwork, photos 1 week                                              July 21

Interview and select agent 1 week                                                    July 14

You’re already behind!