Mainline360 Real Estate Podcast with David Wyher

Purchasing a Home? Avoid Doing These 6 Things at All Costs

cassidy@getvyral.com (David Wyher) — Mon, 18 Sep 2017 07:44:00 -0700

Finding a home can be a daunting process. If you want everything to go smoothly, you should avoid doing these six things at all costs.

Selling your home? Get a complimentary home valuation.

Buying a home? Search the complete MLS.

Today I want to talk to you about the six things you should never do when buying a home.

First, don’t shop without an agent. If you’d like, you can start out by looking online at pictures of homes on the market.

This can be a great way to get a lay of the land. But, when you want to become serious about buying a home, you should always get in touch with a quality agent. Your agent is there to turn your dreams of homeownership into reality, and will guide you through every step of the process.

The right professional will assist you in everything from getting your offer accepted to negotiating inspection repairs and more.

Next, don’t meet with just one mortgage lender. After you’ve found your agent, speaking with a lender will be your next step. However, don’t just settle on the first lender you meet.

The paperwork you’ll need will include two years of W-2 forms, two years of tax returns, proof of funds for your down payment, and other documents.

My team and I recommend getting at least three different quotes from three different lenders. This way, you can really understand all of your options and find the best loan for you.

15% of agents believe that offering too little on a property is the biggest mistake an offer could make.

The third thing you should never do when buying a home is understating your budget. Some buyers may be tempted to hide their true budget from their agent, hoping that doing so will prevent them from having to get too close to the top of what they can afford.

However, being deceitful about your price range could cause you to miss out on some great homes.

Fourth, don’t make ridiculously low offers. Everyone wants a good deal, but putting forward an unreasonably low offer could cost you the perfect home. A recent study by showed that 15% of agents believe that offering too little on a property is the biggest mistake an offer could make.

Speaking of money, don’t forget to budget for closing costs. This can be a critical mistake, since these items can really add up. The seller will chip in for some things. However, you will be shouldering most of this cost.

Your lender should be able to provide you with a rough estimate of these costs ahead of time. Though, as a rule, you can estimate that these costs will typically amount to between 2% and 7% of the home purchase.

The sixth and final thing to never do is to make a big purchase before you close. Once you’ve found the right house and had your offer accepted, remember that your loan still needs to go through underwriting before you can obtain a mortgage.

Before your loan goes through, underwriters will check your credit to make sure nothing has changed from the time you were pre-approved. Making big, expensive purchases can leave a dent in your credit. Maxing out your credit card or buying a new car could raise the rate of your loan.

If you have any other questions or would like more information, feel free to give me a call or send me an email. I look forward to hearing from you soon.

How Can You Compete as a Buyer With a Home Sale Contingency?

cassidy@getvyral.com (David Wyher) — Mon, 7 Aug 2017 08:33:00 -0700

If you want to make your home sale contingency more appealing to sellers, there are three things you can do.

Selling your home? Get a complimentary home valuation.

Buying a home? Search the complete MLS.

How can you be a competitive buyer in a seller’s market with a home sale contingency?

By home sale contingency, I mean you need to sell your home and pull the equity out of it in order to purchase your next home.

In a seller’s market, sellers tend to get multiple offers and have the option of reviewing and choosing the best of those offers. The three things sellers care about are money, time, and stress—making as much money as the market will give them in as little time and with as little stress as possible.

A home sale contingency is a big risk for a seller to consider. Therefore, it can add a lot of stress to their decision. There are three things you can do to alleviate this stress and make your offer less of a risk for them.

Sellers care about three things—money, time, and stress.

First, get your house pre-inspected. Have an inspector come to your property, get an inspection report, and make all the necessary repairs listed in that report. Provide that in the offer for the home you wish to purchase.

Second, get an appraisal done on your house. A seller will want to see that the market price you set on your home is in line with the appraised value.

Third, get your house staged, improve its curb appeal, and use professional photography in your offer so the seller can see that the home will sell and close within the time of the contingency.

There are a lot of things to consider in a real estate deal, and we have many expert advisors on our team who would be happy to help you be a competitive buyer with a home sale contingency in today’s market.

If you have any questions, feel free to call or send us an email. We look forward to speaking with you.

How to Get Your Home Sold If You Have a Pet

cassidy@getvyral.com (David Wyher) — Tue, 30 May 2017 09:21:00 -0700

The good news is, many homebuyers are looking for a pet-friendly home.

Selling your home? Get a complimentary home valuation.

Buying a home? Search the complete MLS.

Two out of three of us have a pet, and 61% of pet owners say they have trouble finding a home that is a good match for their pet.

In fact, a recent survey estimates that 31% of animal owners frequently don't put in an offer because a home would not suit their pet.

This means that if your home is a good match for a pet, it will be attractive to a large pool of dedicated animal owners.

On the other hand, 67% of Realtors also estimate that actually having a pet in your home can make it harder for you to sell.

So what can you do? Here are three things I typically recommend:

1. Repair any damage

Floors, walls, doors, the yard — these are some typical areas that pets love to chew, scratch, and dig up.

Repairing this damage is an investment that will pay for itself many times over in terms of a higher selling price.

2. Get a professional to remove pet odors

Many pet owners are less sensitive to odors in their home than prospective buyers will be.

PET OWNERS ARE LESS SENSITIVE TO ODORS IN THEIR HOME THAN PROSPECTIVE BUYERS ARE.

That's why you should hire a professional cleaning crew to clean any carpets, rugs, or upholstery that have absorbed pet odors.

Once you're done with the cleaning, ask a friend or your Realtor for a sniff assessment to make sure the job is really complete.

3. Take your pet out during showings

Some people are afraid of animals. Others are allergic. And regardless of the time, money, and effort you've put in to clean and repair your home, many buyers will be prejudiced by knowing that a pet currently lives there.

That's why I recommend taking your pet out during showings and also removing any pet objects such as toys, food bowls, or scratching posts.

By following these three simple guidelines, you will be able to sell your home for top dollar, whether the buyer is a pet owner or not.

And in case you have any questions or concerns about preparing your home for a sale, give me a call. I’m here to help.

Avoid These 5 Common Selling Mistakes

cassidy@getvyral.com (David Wyher) — Wed, 15 Mar 2017 10:50:00 -0700

Selling your home is a complex process. Here’s what you can do to make it a little easier.

Selling your home? Get a complimentary home valuation.

Buying a home? Search the complete MLS.

If you’re thinking of listing your home this spring, there are certain things that can hinder your sale. Our goal is always to help sellers get the best offer possible on their home, and doing that involves steering you clear of common mistakes we see sellers make. Keep these five tips in mind if you plan on selling this spring:

1. Don’t overprice your home. A lot of sellers plan to price high and then come down in reductions later. That is something that is going to prohibit you from getting the best possible offer on the market. Price your home according to current conditions, not according to your ideal price.

2. Renovations and permits. If you are planning on doing any renovations to your home before you sell, make sure you have the right permits and that the work is performed by licensed contractors. When we get your home under contract with a buyer, we don’t want to run into any problems because of unlicensed contractors or missing permits.

Don’t go to court without a lawyer and don’t sell your home without an agent.

3. Over-improving. A lot of sellers will make grand improvements in the hopes of getting a good return on their investment in the marketplace. However, you should consult with an expert real estate advisor before beginning any project to make sure you’re not spending a dollar to make a dime.

4. Don’t limit showings. This is especially important in the first few weeks that your home is on the market. During this timeframe, the most motivated buyers will seek out your home and if you follow all the steps listed here, you’ll get it sold.

5. Don’t sell on your own. A lot of people think they’ll save money by not having to pay an agent’s commission. However, you are very vulnerable to getting taken advantage of by a buyer and their agent if you don’t have representation of your own. You shouldn’t go to court without a lawyer, and you shouldn’t sell a home without an expert real estate advisor.

If you have any questions for us, don’t hesitate to give us a call or send us an email. We look forward to hearing from you soon.

How to Stage Your Home for the Market

cassidy@getvyral.com (David Wyher) — Wed, 1 Feb 2017 09:38:00 -0800

Today I’m chatting with Kelsey Snyder, who knows all about the best ways to stage your home for the market.

Selling your home? Get a complimentary home valuation.

Buying a home? Search the complete MLS.

It’s widely known that properly staging your home for sale can result in a huge payoff. Today I’m joined by Kelsey Snyder to help me go over what you should do to prepare your home for the market.

According to Kelsey, first impressions are the only impressions. The first thing buyers will see is your entryway, so you want to make sure coats and clutter are put somewhere else, giving your entryway a clean look.

You always need to make sure your home is “show ready.” Buyers can sometimes schedule showings with little to no notice at any time of the day. Make sure your home always looks its best while on the market.

It’s also important to note that your kitchen and your bathroom are the two biggest things that will sell your home. However, if you don’t have the budget for a full blown renovation, there are little things you can do like updating your paint colors or putting updated handles on your cabinets. Kelsey can help you do those things, as well.

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Make sure your pets are absent during showings.

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Another thing you need to do before hitting the market is take the home out of your house. This means taking down family photos or anything else specific to you or your family. Buyers want to imagine themselves in the home, which can be difficult if they feel like they are intruding.

If you have pets, make sure they are out of the house during showings. You always want to put away any toys, food dishes, and water bowls.

The final thing you need to do is hire an informed real estate agent to show off your market ready home!

If you would like to get ahold of Kelsey for further information about how to prepare your home, give her a call at (610-621-6325) or email her at kelsey@mainline360.com.

If you have any further questions, feel free to give me a call or send me an email. I look forward to hearing from you!

Should You Consider Selling This Winter?

cassidy@getvyral.com (David Wyher) — Wed, 21 Dec 2016 10:52:00 -0800

Many people think the winter is the worst time to sell a home. We beg to differ, here’s why.

Selling your home? Get a complimentary home valuation.

Buying a home? Search the complete MLS.

Winter is a great time to list your home. Don’t believe me? Consider the following statistics:

Homes listed in the winter are 9% more likely to sell than homes listed during other seasons.
They sell a week faster.
They also sell for 1.2% more relative to list price.

If you find these statistics surprising, you're not alone. Conventional wisdom says to wait for spring to sell.

Yes, it's true there are fewer buyers in the winter, but that’s not actually a problem when you think about it. For one thing, many home buyers in the winter might be new to Philadelphia and need to settle quickly due to first quarter job relocations.

Others might be looking to take advantage of lower mortgage rates, which have historically gone up in the spring. Still others have simply been searching for their dream home for months without success.

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Don’t let the winter stop you from reaching your goals.

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Whatever their reason, the buyers who are searching in winter are much more serious and eager to buy. So, if you've been thinking of listing your home, don't let the winter stop you.

However, do keep in mind that selling your home in the winter is a totally different ballgame than during other seasons. For one, you should price your home closer to market value if you’re listing in winter. You simply won’t get much of a chance to drop the price if it’s too high, due to the lower number of buyers who will come for a showing.

You can start by getting an idea of what your home is worth based on recent Philadelphia sales. You’ll also have to prepare your home differently to make it attractive to buyers in spite of the darker, colder days.

If you’re considering selling your home, give me a call or send me an email. I'll share a few tips to help you sell your home for a cool 5% to 10% more. Best wishes for a wonderful holiday season!

Introducing Our Operations Manager

cassidy@getvyral.com (David Wyher) — Fri, 2 Dec 2016 11:35:00 -0800

Today, we’ll go behind the scenes and talk to Liz Eppleman, our operations manager, about how she helps our real estate team and our clients succeed.

Selling your home? Get a complimentary home valuation.

Buying a home? Search the complete MLS.

Today I want to go behind the scenes and show you a little bit of how our real estate team works. Having a team allows us to give you the very best service possible. Our goal is to help you find your dream home or sell your home for top dollar in as little time as possible. I’m excited to introduce you to Liz Eppleman, our operations manager.

As operations manager, Liz is in charge of assisting the full-time agents on our team. She helps them with marketing, client care, contracts, and settlements, so Liz has a well-rounded set of skills.

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Liz assists our full-time agents with marketing, client care, and more.

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As for marketing properties, Liz takes pride in the professional photos that we take of all of our listings. These professional photos highlight all of the wonderful aspects of the house, both inside and outside. Not only will the photos of your home look beautiful, Liz also uses Facebook to boost your listing. Liz can create and advertise to a specific audience, which allows your listing to reach thousands of people interested in buying in your area.

When it comes to client care, Liz will give you a call to introduce herself after you meet your agent. Liz is there to help you with anything you need.

People want to know why our team is so successful, and a lot of our success comes from people like Liz who work behind the agents. If you have any questions for Liz or if you would like to learn more about our real estate team, give us a call or send us an email. We would be happy to help you!

An Inside Look at Our Sales Team

cassidy@getvyral.com (David Wyher) — Tue, 15 Nov 2016 10:29:00 -0800

We like to give you a behind-the-scenes look at how things work on our team, so today, I've invited ISA Weston Moran to join me to talk about how he works within the team.

Selling your home? Get a complimentary home valuation.

Buying a home? Search the complete MLS.

I wanted to give a behind-the-scenes look at how our team works. Many people have to come together from specialized positions to help us provide you service, so today, I wanted to introduce you to inside sales agent Weston Moran.

When Weston takes on a listing, the first thing he does is put the house online to get it in front of thousands of prospective buyers. To help get the word out, he starts in close proximity by reaching out to friends, family, and neighbors in the area. We always want to prospect for buyers to get more people through the door. This prospecting for buyers can be challenging, because if these buyers aren't in the market already, there is probably a good reason. For many people, the timing just isn't right. Many times, though, these prospects can lead us to people they know who are looking for a new home.

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A lot of people have to come together on our team for a smooth transaction.

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Weston not only spends a lot of time on behalf of our listings, he also spends a lot of time looking for listings. Currently there are a lot of people looking in the Tredyffrin/Easttown school district which was recently ranked number one in the country. Since we have so many buyers looking to get into this area, Weston will not only make phone calls to homeowners living there, he'll go out in person and knock on doors as well. He wants to let them know that they're in a very popular area, and if they are looking to get a high value for their home, now is a better time than ever.

If you have any more questions about how we do things behind the scenes or you're interested in buying or selling a home in the greater Philadelphia area, give us a call or send us an email. We'd be happy to help!

The 4th Quarter Looks Good for Mainline Sellers

cassidy@getvyral.com (David Wyher) — Wed, 26 Oct 2016 12:36:00 -0700

As we enter the fourth quarter, we're still in a seller's market here on Mainline. Have you been thinking of selling your home?

Selling your home? Get a complimentary home valuation.

Buying a home? Search the complete MLS.

As we enter the fourth quarter, we can see that the fall market is a very busy one for us; it's almost as busy as the spring.

When it comes to the Mainline real estate market, we are still in a seller's market. There is very low inventory right now, and currently in our system, we have more than 5,000 active buyers looking to purchase a home. If you're thinking about selling your house this fall, give us a call. We'd love to come out and give you a free comparative market analysis on your home to let you know what it's worth in today's market.

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We are still in a seller's market.

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You can also see some additional market data on our website.

If you have any questions for us or you're thinking about selling, give us a call or send us an email. We'd love to work with you!

Your New Real Estate Resource

cassidy@getvyral.com (David Wyher) — Tue, 18 Oct 2016 14:51:00 -0700

Welcome to our new video blog. Each month, we’ll send out two videos detailing what’s going on in our local real estate market.

Selling your home? Get a complimentary home valuation.

Buying a home? Search the complete MLS.

We’re very excited to share some amazing news with you: we will be sharing our real estate expertise through our new video blog. Each month, we’ll send out two videos detailing what’s going on in our local real estate market. We’ll also discuss the latest market trends, the world of financing, and everything that’s happening in the title world. If you have any questions about real estate, let us know and we’ll answer you with a video. To learn more about our new video blog, watch this short video.