Busting Fake Real Estate
What are the fake Real Estate Revelations and what is true when it comes to selling a home or buying a home?
It seems like everyone wants to know the facts. The truth. Nothing fake. Particularly with
so much talk about what’s fake and what’s real these days. And the same holds true in Real Estate. Give me the facts.
This is quite evident in one’s search for facts when selling a home in having discovered it first hand. When I look back at a Real Estate article I wrote titled: “20 cold hard facts in Real Estate home selling” , readers seemed to be drawn to this article like a bee to honey. This is my top ranking article from all the articles that I’ve written over the years and I’ve been a Real Estate blogger for quite some time. That’s huge!
Armed with this knowledge, would you say it’s safe to assume that people want to learn the facts?
Absolutely. Afterall, learning the facts can equip us for success no matter our goal at hand.
Today’s article will focus on Real Estate revelations; separating what is fake to what is true during a Real Estate transaction. It’s full of truth.
So what is fake and what is true when it comes to either selling a home or buying a home? Let’s find out by unraveling some common falsehoods.
You know the value of your home, as a home Seller, so set the list price with what you think will get it sold, even though your Real Estate Agent suggested lower. After all, you know your home best with all the improvements you’ve made and you’re the one who has been living in the home.
Exactly, you think!
Yet, how well will this really work out for a home Seller? Let me answer with a question (well two questions actually); do you think that a home Buyer wants to pay higher than fair market value and would you, if you were buying a home? No and no.
There is so much that goes into pricing a home accurately and your Real Estate Agent knows how to price homes accurately, I’m sure. In fact, that was one of the reasons why you selected this particular Real Estate Agent, as their track record speaks volumes of knowing how to price a home for sale with their high ratios of list price to sales price and you loved how they actually sell the homes they list for sale and don’t just plop a sign in the front yard to hope it sells. Plus, they sell homes faster than the average Agent. So if this is true, why are you suddenly more knowledgeable at knowing your home’s value?!
Read more here in my article titled: “Why is my home’s initial list price so important?”
- Your Agent showed you their market analysis of comparable homes in the area of your home; those homes recently sold, currently under contract and those that are currently active for sale.
- Your Agent discussed the current local Real Estate Market where your home is located and the current supply and demand.
- Your Agent discussed price points of the homes you’ll be competing against.
- Your Agent discussed how long it is taking to sell a home.
So if they did this, why on earth would you not trust their analysis and then choose to go with what you think is the correct list price? Do you want to sell your home and for the most money? Sure you do. A highly knowledgeable Real Estate Agent knows the value of your home. Then this first revelation proves to be fake. It’s just not true.
Open houses are needed to sell a home. Everybody does them.
You’ll see open house signs pop up in your neighborhood and often in shock wondering why your neighbor is moving – you had no idea.
Are they needed to sell a home? Does everybody do them? Well, a lot of people do host one, yet are they needed to sell a home?
It used to be that open houses where more warranted as the vast World Wide Web has not been around forever. There used to be a time when open houses were more effective, when home Buyers were not searching for homes on the internet, but rather by driving through neighborhoods or searching through newspaper and local Real Estate guides. However, times have changed and home Buyers are looking for the home they want to buy via online websites, in fact, 86% of them are doing so during the home buying process. Did you know that?! It’s true. A very small percentage – 8% of homes are sold via an open house.
Why would you want to open your house to complete strangers, not even having been financially pre-qualified on their ability to buy a home and in all likelihood, open houses are a magnet for busy body neighbors wanting to see what you’ve done to your house.
Why would you risk such a scenario in your home – opening your home up to theft or worse yet, letting the wrong person come into your home, while the Agent is alone and they commit a harmful act upon her. It’s awful when we hear of such horrific stories.
What is the truth behind open houses? Open houses are a fantastic way for a Listing Agent to get new business; to help new home Buyers find a home to buy. It would be great if they’d buy your home, but the chances are pretty small that they will. So even if they don’t buy your home, your Agent, the Listing Agent, can put on their Buyer’s Agent hat and help them to find another home to buy – one of the reasons that you’ll discover why Agents will often schedule an open house.
Some Agents just do them as that is what they’ve been taught, particularly as a way in which to increase their business to obtain new customers. Not so sure how homeowners would feel if they knew that their Agent were essentially using their home to attract new customers. In the rare instance they did get an interested Buyer at an open house, they would have likely gotten the same Buyer even without the open house as the Buyer would have discovered the home over the internet anyhow.
You’ll also find that Real Estate Agents who do not have a strong online internet presence, like I do, will find more benefit in providing an open house, as your home isn’t easily found across the internet when the Agent isn’t an avid marketer online.
Wait. Your Real Estate Agent isn’t a skilled online marketer?! So we just discussed how 86% of home Buyers search for a home to buy online over the internet, yet your Agent isn’t showing up online?! How is that going to help you to get your home seen by all these home Buyers?!
This reminds me of a scenario where for the past two months, there’s a Real Estate Agent, in the neighborhood where I live (I know I should have gotten any of my neighborhood listings!), who has been hosting open houses during the week and on weekends every week and the home isn’t selling. He or she thinks if they just hold enough open houses that a home Buyer will come along. Did I tell you the home is overpriced? No amount of open houses will ever sell an overpriced home.
Now, it’s making more sense. There are more effective ways in which to get a home sold and this fake revelation is just that, fake, not true. Don’t buy it – you don’t have to have an open house to sell your home!
Why waste your time having to be inconvenienced by an open house when the chances are slim that a visiting home Buyer will buy your home. NAR reported via the 2016 National Association of REALTORS Profile of Home Buyers and Sellers that only 8% of homes are sold via an open house.
Popular Real Estate sites with their mathematically imposed algorithms showcase accurate pricing recommendations for home Sellers and home Buyers to look to for advice. They’re so helpful.
Everybody goes to Zillow,Trulia and the like to find the value of their homes. It’s so easy, just plug in your address on any of these sites and walah you know the value of your home. Quick. Easy. Accurate.
How do they provide such accuracy? That accuracy is almost magical, isn’t it? How do they know that I just installed new hardwood floors, completely gutted my Kitchen and installed state of the art, chef quality, stainless steel appliances and custom wood cabinets with quartz countertops. I’m impressed. Wait … are they spying on me from my computer’s camera?! Now I’m concerned.
No, they’re not spying on you through your computer’s camera. They’ve simply calculated mathematical algorithms and have assigned them to your home, based upon public property records and recent home sales. Really…that’s how they come up with a home’s value?
That’s crazy I know, yet a lot of people go to these Real Estate sites and put their trust in these values. Big, powerful companies are looked up to, simply because it’s been said time and time again that these sites will provide a home’s value.
How did they become so trusted? If these fake values are talked about enough, people begin to believe it. Again and again and again. Push. Push. Push. Push, until your brain can no longer differentiate between what is fake and what is true. These mathematical algorithms are fake. Forget them. Contact a knowledgeable Real Estate Agent for an accurate home value whether you’re trying to sell a home or price a home that you want to put an offer in on. Mathematical algorithms are fake, not true. This is not a home’s true, fair market value.
Buying a home requires a 20% down payment.
How will you ever save that 20% for a down payment for a home you so desperately desire? You’ll never get there. Guess you’ll just have to rent for the rest of your life, until you win some money in the lottery or until your next hefty raise at work.
You’ve had your mind set on homeownership more so lately too and just had that very conversation with your friends at the office. They marveled at your lofty goals, yet reminded you that you’ll need a 20% down payment as they quietly tossed the the idea around in their heads that you must have gotten a raise to be thinking about buying a home. (How did you get a raise over them, they thought!)
So unfortunate!
Hold on. I’ve got good news! You don’t have to have 20% for a down payment to buy a home. There are many options where you may be able to qualify for a mortgage from nothing down to 3.5%, 5%, 10% and the like. You just need to speak with a qualified mortgage Lender to determine what you personally qualify for when buying a home.
Do keep in mind however, that the more money you are able to put down the lower your mortgage payment will be, which will keep your monthly expenses down. It’s all about carefully budgeting for what you can afford. You do not want to be house poor, where you home isn’t allowing you to enjoy life outside your home.
You’re not alone in thinking that you need 20% down to buy a home either. Just the other day, I happened onto a conversation with a physician’s assistant who told me she wished that she could buy a home, yet didn’t quite have the 20% down payment requirement accumulated. I made her day when I told her that she doesn’t have to have the 20% down. “Really, she asked?! That’s fabulous news!”
You’re not the first to hear this down payment requirement. It’s fake news. It’s not true. You don’t need 20% as a down payment.
Go ahead and count your cash balance now and see if you’ve accumulated sufficient funds so far and go talk to your Mortgage Lender to determine your final numbers. Home ownership is back on track.
Wrap Up
Remember, so much about these fake revelations are due to the fact that we are trusting the wrong people to provide us direction. If you want to know about the Real Estate market, you need to talk directly with someone who is well qualified to get you the answers you need. When you choose someone not up to par, you’ll find out the hard way what can go wrong, such as what I discuss here in my article entitled, “5 Things to Expect when you Choose the Wrong Realtor”.
Clear up the confusion, the uncertainty. Bust the fake news in search of what is really true – what is accurate. Do this and you’ll be well on your way to a successful Real Estate transaction.
Related Articles:
For more support on busting fake Real Estate news, be sure to read the following helpful Real Estate articles:
Being held back by Jumbo Mortgage Myths by Luke Skar
Tips to save for a down payment by Dan Barcelon
Slaying home buying myths by Shannon Holmes
7 Insane True Factors that pull down home values by Xavier De Buck, guest posting on Kyle Hiscock’s site
Today’s Real Estate article “Top 4 Fake Real Estate Revelations [Truth Revealed]” was written by Lynn Pineda. You’ll find Lynn selling homes in Southeast Florida in the cities of Boca Raton, Boynton Beach, Coral Springs, Delray Beach, Coconut Creek, Deerfield Beach, Margate, Parkland, Pompano Beach, Tamarac, Sunrise, Plantation and Ft Lauderdale areas within Broward and South Palm Beach counties. Call Lynn at 954-464-1100 if you have more fake Real Estate revelations that you’d like to discuss further.
Lynn Pineda, a licensed Southeast Florida Real Estate Agent serving Southeast Florida since 2005. Keller Williams Coral Springs Realty. Real Estate Promises Delivered. You can speak with Lynn by calling/texting her at 954-464-1100 or you can email her at: LynnP@ImagineYourHouse.com if you need to buy or sell a Southeast Florida home, your local, trusted Real Estate professional when it’s time to buy or sell a home. Real Estate promises delivered.
What are Fake Real Estate Revelations? Want to learn the truth?! Sure you do! https://t.co/FQlkXrfq5T via @LynnPineda pic.twitter.com/F2oqAwtUql
— Lynn Pineda (@LynnPineda) September 27, 2017
