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Add You - The Eight Biggest Mistakes Buyers Make in Real Estate (and How to Avoid Them)
In today's fast paced world, man is focused on coming up with innovative methods of increasing his fellow beings' convenience and comforts. It could be something that really revolutionizes the way we look at the world, like the new space vehicle to Mars, or something that is a welcome change to the routine things of our day-to-day life, like an under water restaurant and a hotel in the sea.There is a big market for new inventors and new inventions, from television ads urging you to call toll free numbers to serious research and development organizations that give inventors funds to streamline and market their products.If you have a new invention that you would like to patent, and would not rather not contact an invention submission corporation, you can approach the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO). They will examine and patent your product if it is unique and novel. This office is authorized by Congress to patent inventions, as well as set new standards for what constitutes a patentable new invention.The process of patenting can be initiated when you have a new idea that you would like to develop. Though you cannot patent the idea, you can get a disclosure document from the USPTO to document the date of conception. After careful examination of a new invention, the USPTO patents it if the product is very different and unique, useful and if its functions are unlike any inventions that already exist.Any new invention is classified in
We ask our clients to take the time to prepare a list of "must have" features in a home. Based on these criteria and their chosen location, we'll set clients up with emailed alerts of modified listings and newly listed properties as they come to market. This is the most efficient way to get listings that fit a client's needs.
Most websites feature property that is days or months old. An MLS driven listing alert system is efficient and, when properly set-up, can save you countless hours cruising the internet.
But browsing the Internet is fun and we'll sometimes have clients call to setup showings for homes found online which don't have all their "must haves" features. If a client happens to fall in love and purchase it, it's likely down the road that the missing "must have" feature will start to bug them.
Just like the jolly guy in the
Here are some simple tradeshow do's and don'ts that you may or may not know, but you might want to review them every time to decide to attend or become a vendor at one. I've compiled these from years of doing different tradeshows, biz expos, kid's expos, health fairs, community festivals and more while working at various jobs and with my own marketing business as well.Learn how to work the room OR be the vendor everyone wants to stop at with my 23 tradeshow techniques!Here are the 14 Things Every Vendor Should Know:1. Bring your friendliest employees or friends to work the booth with you, at least one other person so you're not managing it by yourself. You want high-energy, happy people in your booth that know about your business but most of all ones that know how to talk to people.2. Try not to stand or sit behind your booth, sometimes it's more appropriate to put your table behind you while you stand out in the aisle pulling people into your booth with a great “hook” or catch phrase. In fact you can put the chairs they give you away you shouldn't really ever sit down in your booth. Those who sit at their booth are not as inviting or seem less interested in getting people to stop.3. Do not talk on your phone or to other workers in your booth; always have your attention focused on the attendees passing by. If you look busy, people won't stop.4. Practice your hook, a quick attention getting phrase to get people interested and to
Recently we interviewed people from our team as well as our colleagues at Boulder Creative Housing. We also reviewed some of what we've learned in real estate here in Boulder and from our real estate experience on Nantucket.
The result is the Eight Biggest Buyer Mistakes and How to Avoid Them. As always, feel free to contact us with any comments or questions. You can also reach me at 303.746.6896.
The Eight Biggest Buyer Mistakes (and How to Avoid Them)
Mistake #8. Skipping due diligence on location and community.
From the time it takes to commute to the quality of neighborhood schools, a lot of things can affect the enjoyment of your home that has little to do with the house itself. Will your property be impacted by the new transit oriented developments in Boulder and along the tech corridor?
Where is the nearest grocery store, post office, gas station, and city park? Is there a landfill or factory nearby that might affect the air or water quality? How close is the nearest EPA Toxic Waste Superfund site? Have you looked into the megan's law database for Colorado or contacted local authorities to check whether registered sex offenders might live nearby?
You can do a lot of research online, but community character is nearly impossible to accurately determine from a website. Yes, there are many resources on the Internet including this blog and a list of links and other resources we've collected. But that's not enough.
Before buying a home, you should invest the time to walk the neighborhood, talk to the neighbors, visit local schools, time your commute to work, and more. This kind of information is extremely valuable and may require several visits to the community. And it's well worth it if you want to be happy long term with the choice you're making.
Mistake #7. Not getting a building inspection.
Even if you are an expert carpenter with many years in the trades, we recommend a professional building inspection. In some cases (like established neighborhoods with mature trees between the house and the street which may be prone to root intrusions) we also recommend a sewer inspection with fiber optics/remote cameras. If there are signs of water damage or moisture in the home, we'll recommend a mold inspection as well. The upfront costs for inspection can start as low as $250 and it's cheap peace of mind.
Mistake #6. Overpaying for a property.
In Boulder and surrounding communities, many buyers are from out of state and compared to their home city, our local real estate can look like a tremendous bargain. Often sellers will toss out a high price to gauge the market. This also sometimes happens because the sellers chose a agent based on the highest comparative market analysis, and they'll need some time to adjust to market reality.
Smart shoppers will ask their agent for a list of compables before viewing homes and for more specific comparables before putting in an offer. Even unrealistic sellers have been known to come back to reality when confronted with well documented comparable sales. What else has sold in the past few months that is similar to this property? What is currently on the market that matches this property's characteristics?
Only put in an offer after reviewing comparables and knowing the market. This step can save you thousands of dollars. It's also something a good buyers' agent should be able to prepare for you.
Mistake #5. Compromising on your property requirements.
We ask our clients to take the time to prepare a list of "must have" features in a home. Based on these criteria and their chosen location, we'll set clients up with emailed alerts of modified listings and newly listed properties as they come to market. This is the most efficient way to get listings that fit a client's needs.
Most websites feature property that is days or months old. An MLS driven listing alert system is efficient and, when properly set-up, can save you countless hours cruising the internet.
But browsing the Internet is fun and we'll sometimes have clients call to setup showings for homes found online which don't have all their "must haves" features. If a client happens to fall in love and purchase it, it's likely down the road that the missing "must have" feature will start to bug them.
Just like the jolly guy in the f
The importance of search engine optimization cannot be stressed enough. High rankings on search engines like Google, Yahoo, and the others ranks amongst your top priorities when putting yourself or your business online. Search Engine Optimization, or SEO for short, is exactly how you do this.The first thing you need to know about search engine optimization is what search engines are exactly and how they work. Frankly, I have no idea. From what I've heard and from what I've observed, Google and its inner workings rank up there with the greatest inventions of all time. It might even possibly be a greater invention than the entire universe.Kidding. Just seeing if you’re with me.All we really need to know is that search engines have a little spider, or bot (short for robot) that goes out nightly or daily or whenever and scans sites on the internet. In the case of Google it’s "Googlebot," while Yahoo!’s robot is called "Slurp!" and MSN uses "MSNbot."These little bots go to your site and “read it” in much the same way as a human does, left to right, top to bottom. What these robots find they bring back to the "mothership," the search engine database. If Googlebot finds your site about kittens, it will report the site, its location (URL), its contents, etc. to Google’s database where it is stored. When someone then does a search through Google for kittens, Google looks to its own database for search results. This is what makes search engines so fast. All
Where is the nearest grocery store, post office, gas station, and city park? Is there a landfill or factory nearby that might affect the air or water quality? How close is the nearest EPA Toxic Waste Superfund site? Have you looked into the megan's law database for Colorado or contacted local authorities to check whether registered sex offenders might live nearby?
You can do a lot of research online, but community character is nearly impossible to accurately determine from a website. Yes, there are many resources on the Internet including this blog and a list of links and other resources we've collected. But that's not enough.
Before buying a home, you should invest the time to walk the neighborhood, talk to the neighbors, visit local schools, time your commute to work, and more. This kind of information is extremely valuable and may require several visits to the community. And it's well worth it if you want to be happy long term with the choice you're making.
Mistake #7. Not getting a building inspection.
Even if you are an expert carpenter with many years in the trades, we recommend a professional building inspection. In some cases (like established neighborhoods with mature trees between the house and the street which may be prone to root intrusions) we also recommend a sewer inspection with fiber optics/remote cameras. If there are signs of water damage or moisture in the home, we'll recommend a mold inspection as well. The upfront costs for inspection can start as low as $250 and it's cheap peace of mind.
Mistake #6. Overpaying for a property.
In Boulder and surrounding communities, many buyers are from out of state and compared to their home city, our local real estate can look like a tremendous bargain. Often sellers will toss out a high price to gauge the market. This also sometimes happens because the sellers chose a agent based on the highest comparative market analysis, and they'll need some time to adjust to market reality.
Smart shoppers will ask their agent for a list of compables before viewing homes and for more specific comparables before putting in an offer. Even unrealistic sellers have been known to come back to reality when confronted with well documented comparable sales. What else has sold in the past few months that is similar to this property? What is currently on the market that matches this property's characteristics?
Only put in an offer after reviewing comparables and knowing the market. This step can save you thousands of dollars. It's also something a good buyers' agent should be able to prepare for you.
Mistake #5. Compromising on your property requirements.
We ask our clients to take the time to prepare a list of "must have" features in a home. Based on these criteria and their chosen location, we'll set clients up with emailed alerts of modified listings and newly listed properties as they come to market. This is the most efficient way to get listings that fit a client's needs.
Most websites feature property that is days or months old. An MLS driven listing alert system is efficient and, when properly set-up, can save you countless hours cruising the internet.
But browsing the Internet is fun and we'll sometimes have clients call to setup showings for homes found online which don't have all their "must haves" features. If a client happens to fall in love and purchase it, it's likely down the road that the missing "must have" feature will start to bug them.
Just like the jolly guy in the
Picture the scene: You are not due to get paid for another 2 weeks and you receive and unexpected bill that needs to be paid or you just needs some money to see you through to your next pay day. If you are in this position then Payday loans are the easiest and most convenient way to get cash for your short term and immediate needs.Before you rush in, there are some important things to look into before you apply for a fast cash payday loan. By taking a little time to research and educated yourself about Payday loans can be well worth your time and effort.The truth is that most people are in a hurry to get a fast cash payday loan and in their desperation, sometimes forget some important aspects of payday loans. Let’s consider Payday loans together and I’ll reveal what you need to know about them:Most people opt for cash payday loans because they are generally a very fast means to get money. You can get approved in about an hour with easy online access and forms. You don’t even need to speak to anybody.Do Your HomeworkAll you need to do is simple give the cash payday loan company your information such as job history, checking information and your contact information you may be approved very quickly in most cases. This is the reason why it is important to do your homework first and spend just a little time to look into what the APR, fees, and terms will be with a fast payday loan company prior to your application.This is not hard
Mistake #7. Not getting a building inspection.
Even if you are an expert carpenter with many years in the trades, we recommend a professional building inspection. In some cases (like established neighborhoods with mature trees between the house and the street which may be prone to root intrusions) we also recommend a sewer inspection with fiber optics/remote cameras. If there are signs of water damage or moisture in the home, we'll recommend a mold inspection as well. The upfront costs for inspection can start as low as $250 and it's cheap peace of mind.
Mistake #6. Overpaying for a property.
In Boulder and surrounding communities, many buyers are from out of state and compared to their home city, our local real estate can look like a tremendous bargain. Often sellers will toss out a high price to gauge the market. This also sometimes happens because the sellers chose a agent based on the highest comparative market analysis, and they'll need some time to adjust to market reality.
Smart shoppers will ask their agent for a list of compables before viewing homes and for more specific comparables before putting in an offer. Even unrealistic sellers have been known to come back to reality when confronted with well documented comparable sales. What else has sold in the past few months that is similar to this property? What is currently on the market that matches this property's characteristics?
Only put in an offer after reviewing comparables and knowing the market. This step can save you thousands of dollars. It's also something a good buyers' agent should be able to prepare for you.
Mistake #5. Compromising on your property requirements.
We ask our clients to take the time to prepare a list of "must have" features in a home. Based on these criteria and their chosen location, we'll set clients up with emailed alerts of modified listings and newly listed properties as they come to market. This is the most efficient way to get listings that fit a client's needs.
Most websites feature property that is days or months old. An MLS driven listing alert system is efficient and, when properly set-up, can save you countless hours cruising the internet.
But browsing the Internet is fun and we'll sometimes have clients call to setup showings for homes found online which don't have all their "must haves" features. If a client happens to fall in love and purchase it, it's likely down the road that the missing "must have" feature will start to bug them.
Just like the jolly guy in the
Many times in the past I’ve written about the need to adapt, the need to be able to change your behavior relative to the market because the markets are ever-changing.I’ve stated that mechanical systems may be workable, but for only a short time relative to the life of markets. You must learn to trade what you see, and to understand what you see on a chart.When I first began trading there was no such thing as futures contracts for foreign currencies. Why didn't they exist? Because there was no need for them! In the 1970s all that changed when the US dollar went off the gold standard and began to float against other currencies. Following that, the Chicago Mercantile Exchange began to create currency futures to provide a place where currency traders could hedge the risks associated with dealing in foreign currencies. Some of these risks are direct and some are indirect. Direct risk is involved for those who deal directly in foreign exchange. Indirect risk involves companies who export or import, and receive payments or make payments in the currency of another country.Ever since currency futures were created, they have been in a state of flux. In the mid-1990s for purposes of futures trading, currency trading made a massive move away from currency futures to more direct trading in the forex markets. Currency futures, while maintaining their volume and open interest figures, became less liquid than they had been previously. Volume and open interest
Smart shoppers will ask their agent for a list of compables before viewing homes and for more specific comparables before putting in an offer. Even unrealistic sellers have been known to come back to reality when confronted with well documented comparable sales. What else has sold in the past few months that is similar to this property? What is currently on the market that matches this property's characteristics?
Only put in an offer after reviewing comparables and knowing the market. This step can save you thousands of dollars. It's also something a good buyers' agent should be able to prepare for you.
Mistake #5. Compromising on your property requirements.
We ask our clients to take the time to prepare a list of "must have" features in a home. Based on these criteria and their chosen location, we'll set clients up with emailed alerts of modified listings and newly listed properties as they come to market. This is the most efficient way to get listings that fit a client's needs.
Most websites feature property that is days or months old. An MLS driven listing alert system is efficient and, when properly set-up, can save you countless hours cruising the internet.
But browsing the Internet is fun and we'll sometimes have clients call to setup showings for homes found online which don't have all their "must haves" features. If a client happens to fall in love and purchase it, it's likely down the road that the missing "must have" feature will start to bug them.
Just like the jolly guy in the
There are many advantages in doing business via or on the internet. Some of these advantages are enumerated below:1. Do businesses 24 hours a day - Internet has no time restrictions, like the real world. People who run their shops have to follow the restrictions of time. They can only open shop and sell their products in the stipulated time period. This time period is also know to the buyers and they visit or call on the shop only in this time period of the day to buy goods. However, on the internet this is not so. Your internet business is open all hours. Any buyer can log on at any time to buy the required product or at least get to know about your products.2. Wider Market – Internet is accessed all over the world. With the help of internet you can hope to tap even the customers based in a different state or even country. If your business is not represented on the internet, you cannot have this world wide market. You can only sell to those customers that could visit your shop to buy goods.3. Anytime Buy – With the internet being accessible to customers at all times, they have the facility of placing an order at any time of the day or night. As soon as they see a product on any site on the internet, they can buy it with their credit card. This is very effective, because many a people have the tendency to buy in the heat of the moment, when they are emotionally excited about a product. Later on, they may not be in the mood or frame of mind to make the pu
We ask our clients to take the time to prepare a list of "must have" features in a home. Based on these criteria and their chosen location, we'll set clients up with emailed alerts of modified listings and newly listed properties as they come to market. This is the most efficient way to get listings that fit a client's needs.
Most websites feature property that is days or months old. An MLS driven listing alert system is efficient and, when properly set-up, can save you countless hours cruising the internet.
But browsing the Internet is fun and we'll sometimes have clients call to setup showings for homes found online which don't have all their "must haves" features. If a client happens to fall in love and purchase it, it's likely down the road that the missing "must have" feature will start to bug them.
Just like the jolly guy in the furry red suit. Make a list and check it twice (and then stick with it).
Mistake #4. Not doing your homework on financing.
This mistake can cost your thousands of dollars, cause you to miss on the best properties, and potentially damage your credit rating.
A lot of potential buyers start the process by looking at homes while assuming they can get a loan. Sure, we like window shopping too but it's helpful to do some financial homework. Start by doing the basic math yourself using widely available online mortgage calculators, including the ones we feature on our website (on pages with property's details). You should also familiarize yourself with some financing basics.
Before you start to setup showings and view properties with an agent, it's smart to consult with a reputable lender and confirm your financial plans. You'll find out how much house you can comfortably afford based on currently available loan programs. Importantly, after the initial consultation, good lenders will also be available to provide a prequalification letter matching any offer you might make - a critical element in strengthening an offer.
We always recommend clients check out several lenders and available loans because mortgages are largely commodity products. The right loan for you could be an ARM, a fixed rate mortgage, cross collateralization with another property, or a plain vanilla FRM.
Good lenders can help you find the best loan for your specific situation. A lender with access to the best programs can save you thousands of dollars over the life of your loan. Even when putting together an offer, a good lender can help structuring the financing of your offer strategically and even help you present a stronger offer with a lower purchase price.
Sadly, buyers typically do little due diligence with lenders.
Mistake #3. Not seeing past cosmetics and following first impressions.
Sometimes the best deals simply don't show well. Maybe there are obvious visible blemishes or too much clutter. The dishes may not be washed. Walls may need to be painted and doors rehung. Maybe the basement even smells like cat urine.
To point, this week we closed on a house that was at least 10% under market value. When we first saw this house it was a mess. There was mud on all the floors. Boxes were everywhere from the tenant that was evicted. The backyard was filled with junk. And yes, there was actual critter droppings of some sort in one corner of the basement. In a single word, the property was Nasty!
Luckily, my buyers had vision. Through an inspection resolution we negotiated, the whole house was cleaned from top to bottom. There are no leftover tenant belongings. The yard is clean. All the walls freshly painted. The kitchen was even recaulked and the smell is gone. The house looks like its true market value now and the buyer, who I represented, saw beyond all the cosmetic issues and literally saved himself thousands.
Mistake #2. Trying to deal with the seller directly.
The allure of contacting a seller directly is strong and without knowing much about the real estate, I probably would have once been tempted to make this common mistake as well. The idea most people have is that if they call the agent or owner directly, they'll save on the real estate commissions.
Oops. This is not usually how it happens. If the home is listed, the owner will probably refer you to their agent because (by the contract they've made) even if they do all the work, they'll most likely still owe that agent a commission. Although certain sellers FSBO their property, they n
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