Wilsonville Homes is Sponsored by Wilsonville's Certified Realty
A common question is ‘How much does it cost to sell my Wilsonville home?’
The answer is typically ‘it depends,’ due to some important factors. Find out more in this helpful podcast episode about local homeselling here, or click on the play button below.
Thinking about selling your Wilsonville home? Contact our sponsor, Wilsonville’s own Certified Realty, at 503-682-1083, or use the convenient form below for a free consultation.
To adults and kids alike, superheroes seem to have time-tested appeal. Some think it’s because they look different. Indeed, some superheroes dress uniquely. Others believe superheroes represent the ‘good guy’ and these days, we can always use more good guys and gals. Yet others suggest that superheroes are in the rescue business and we all have an area in our lives where we could use help. Whatever the reason, it’s undeniable that superheroes hold a unique place in our imagination.
Click here or on the above play button to hear the audio podcast of this article.
Do Real Estate Superheroes Exist?
So fighting bad guys is an expected vocation for a superhero. But how could there possibly be Realtor superheroes? And would they use x-ray glasses to view inside homes to find potential problems, carry an anti-kryptonite pen to protect against real estate ‘evil doers,’ or hold their trusty multiple listing lockbox keycard in a utility belt?
The Realty Reality
While not superhuman, some real estate agents stand far apart from others. And when hundreds of thousands of dollars are literally on the line during your next home sale or purchase, chances are you’ll feel better throughout the entire process when working with a truly ‘super’ Realtor. But is it possible to easily locate a terrific Wilsonville real estate agent that’s not only experienced, but also dedicated, plus recognized for excellence among his or her peers? You’re about to find out.
‘Superhero’ Defined
Superheroes are considered to be more than mere heroes, in part because their achievements transcend what is humanly possible. Superheros are often portrayed as heroes with extraordinary, superhuman powers. So while no Realtor is superhuman, in comparing performance, it’s clear that sometimes a single real estate agent can outperform several other, less productive Realtors. There are different reasons why this is true and part of it relates to the ‘Pareto principle,’ better known as the ’80-20′ rule, where 20% of a group is frequently responsible for as much as 80% of the results.
What’s In Your Utility Belt?
Effective Realtors are more likely to avail themselves of advanced tools on behalf of their buyer and seller clients. But it doesn’t stop there. That’s because in addition to ‘high tech’ expertise like sophisticated monitoring of real estate activity for their clients, a ‘superhero’ Realtor also combines it with ‘high touch.’ This means they help buyers and sellers with access to not only their own specialized experience and knowledge, but also to an often vast and diverse network of other experienced professionals, such as reputable mortgage lenders, roofers, 1031 tax deferred exchange experts, electricians, surveyors, title companies and repair firms.
But Why Even Hire A ‘Superhero?’
In considering the use of your own real estate ‘superhero,’ it helps to understand what they’re able to achieve better than other Realtors. After all, why use a ‘superhero’ when any old hero will do?
To begin, it’s helpful to understand that an agent is your representative. He or she advises and acts in your best interest, which includes ‘fighting’ on your behalf. So who or what might a real estate ‘superhero’ fight? Enter the real estate ‘super villain.’ In Oregon real estate, you’re not likely to run into comic book characters or movie baddies like Darth Vader, Lex Luthor or The Joker. Instead, the kind of ‘super villain’ behavior you’re more likely to encounter is both real and potentially ‘deal-killing.’
The potential list of treacherous adversaries is long. Issues that could put the kibosh on your Wilsonville real estate transaction (while potentially costing you a lot of money) include dry rot, deferred maintenance (think leaky roof), a poor home inspection, title report issues, a low appraisal or a picky loan underwriter. If you’re a homebuyer, you can add certain challenging homeseller attititudes to the potential list of transaction implosions and if you’re a homeseller, you might include certain ham-fisted home buyer attitudes. The bottom line is that in order to deal with a multiplicity of potentially detrimental factors affecting your home purchase or sale, it’s clearly best to be prepared. And when you’re knee deep in transaction challenges, that’s not the time to wish you were working with someone more qualified.
It’s A Bird…It’s A Plane…It’s The CRS Realtor
There are literally millions of real estate agents and as you might expect, not all of them are the same. As with any profession, experience, proficiency and dedication to clients can vary widely.
Most Realtors are indeed capable of providing good service, reasonable counsel and some helpful information. The fact is however, that some Realtors have considerably more experience, training and better results. It’s also undeniable that CRS designees are equipped to provide their home buying and home selling clients with advanced real estate insights, knowledge and competence. CRS holders hold an average of double the experience of Realtors without the Certified Residential Specialist designation. This illustrates a clear track record with elite standing.
But what differentiates a real estate superhero from other real estate agents? Here are a few examples.
X-Ray Vision
Because CRS Realtors are experienced and complete far more transactions than the average agent, many times they see can through and avoid problems, before they occur. This helps prevent missteps from an agent’s ‘on the job training.’
Benefits Beyond A Single Transaction
Another key benefit to working with a CRS Realtor is their networking advantage. So whether you expect to buy or sell in Oregon, or if you’ll have a real estate transaction in another state, the CRS referral network is a proven way for you to connect with another ‘high caliber’ Realtor who holds the CRS designation.
Speaking of High Caliber: Faster Than A Speeding Referral
The CRS organization has an entire system devoted to a virtually seamless referral system for buyers and sellers who seek a super Certified Residential Specialist Realtor. For example, I recently received a phone call from an Idaho CRS agent working with buyers from Oregon. These buyers found their ‘perfect’ Idaho home and needed to sell their Wilsonville, Oregon home in order to purchase the Idaho property. The Idaho CRS Realtor suggested they work with a local CRS agent to most effectively sell their Oregon home. Mere minutes upon receiving a phone call from the Idaho CRS agent, I was in contact with these Wilsonville homeowners, then proceeded to list and successfully sell their Wilsonville property, all in short order.
You May Never Have Met A CRS
It’s hardly surprising if you don’t recall ever meeting a Certified Residential Specialist. A CRS Realtor is in the top 3 percent of real estate agents in the United States. That means 97% of the Realtors you’re likely to run into aren’t a CRS. So what makes working with a CRS so much better?
Clinical Specialization Meets Bedside Manner
To put the topic of Realtor proficiency in another context, if your 5 year old has a broken arm, do you want a pediatric orthopedic specialist to examine, accurately diagnose, then properly set the youngster’s bone, or would any young intern fresh out of medical school be your first choice? After all, both are doctors. A similar principal applies to selecting an agent. The surprising thing here is that in choosing your next Realtor, it typically costs the same or less to go with the professional having more experience and proficiency.
Similarly, there’s an understandable difference between an agent who just received a real estate license and one who has been diligently working full time in the field for decades. But taking it another step beyond mere experience are those who hold accreditation for advanced real estate performance. The CRS designation isn’t easy to earn. It involves what is usually a multi-year advanced course regimen, plus documented real estate production and typically years of ‘in the field’ real estate experience. These recognized levels of education, training, production, time-tested experience and provable success amount to a higher standard of achievement.
A Bundle of ‘Keys’ to Your Next Real Estate Transaction
To most homebuyers and homesellers, one key to a Realtor’s stellar real estate performance is consistent performance. Another is experience. Yet one more is education. The advantage to you as a homebuyer or homeseller in working with a CRS Realtor is that you get the entire bundle of keys and reduce your chances of being ‘locked out’ in your next transaction.
The Answer:
While the usual term for CRS is Certified Residential Specialist, some might consider agents holding this esteemed real estate degree as being more of a Certified Real Estate Superhero. That’s because it takes a lot to attain the CRS designation and the positive results of working with a CRS designee speak for themself. Some have even compared CRS credentials as akin to the CPA of real estate.
What if there was a way you could locate a real estate ‘superhero’ for your next Oregon transaction? Thanks to the CRS referral network, there actually is an easy way to find a ‘super’ Realtor, no matter where you live. Perhaps the simplest is to contact a CRS, like Wilsonville Realtor Roy Widing, CRS with Certified Realty. And if you’d like to reach a CRS Realtor in a different state or region of the United States, Roy can connect you with a number of qualified Certified Residential Specialists near you and at no charge. From there you can interview one or more CRS Realtors and make your own decisions.
Do you have real estate questions? Contact Wilsonville Realtor Roy Widing, CRS using the convenient form below.
TMREI: Too Much Real Estate Information
Sometimes absorbing the sea of Wilsonville real estate information seems more like drinking from a fire hydrant. Yet, out of all the seemingly helpful real estate data bandied about, there is one especially helpful number, which when understood, can provide near-magical clarity to both Wilsonville homebuyers and homesellers.
What Is It?
What is this ‘magic’ number and what does it represent? Simply put, it’s the current figure for housing inventory, typically expressed in months of projected home supply.
Listen to the audio podcast presentation of this helpful program on Wilsonville, Oregon real estate by clicking here or on the above link.
Housing inventory is also sometimes known as home inventory or housing backlog. Why is this number so important? Once you understand the single figure that defines our current supply of local available Wilsonville area homes for sale, you have an instant ‘snapshot’ on whether you’re in a buyer’s market, seller’s market, or more of a balanced real estate market. Armed with that information, you’re far more ready to do battle in the real estate trenches and more likely to avoid some usual minefields.
Normal Home Supply
Among real estate experts, a ‘normal’ range for home supply in parts of Oregon is frequently cited as somewhere between three to six months. For example, if the home supply figure is three, then hypothetically our market would be ‘out of homes’ in three months, provided no new homes were placed for sale. In other words, if our regional home inventory figure is within three to six months, we’re typically experiencing a normal market, meaning one not far from a balance of supply and demand, also called equilibrium. In a way, it’s kind of like an absorption rate for how fast supply is used up.
Your Mileage May Vary
It’s helpful to understand that home inventory figures are more of an average for a region. In Oregon, major real estate regions include Portland, Bend, Eugene, Salem and the Oregon Coast. So Wilsonville homesellers and homebuyers are likely to use the Portland area figure as the bellwether for housing backlog. If your home is located in Keizer, you’re likely to see the Salem inventory figure as the closest approximation of local home supply. It’s also likely that your specific area could be somewhat different altogether, based on a variety of hyper-local factors affecting both demand and supply. That said, home inventory is a convenient ‘thumbnail’ sketch to help assess what kind of market you’re in.
What’s The Practical Impact of Housing Inventory?
Consider real estate and inventory like a pipeline. If more flows through it, the product is plentiful and therefore the cheaper it is to buy. So with a lower, dwindling home supply and the spigot turned down, the reverse is true. That’s when the local real estate environment favors sellers, because there are more buyers and it’s considered a ‘seller’s market.’ In that case, expect a short market time and an environment where homesellers receive multiple offers, often at or above listing price. If the supply of homes is higher, it’s considered a ‘buyer’s market.’ This means you can expect a longer market time, with homesellers seeing few, if any offers…and frequently for less than the asking price.
It’s routinely a good idea for buyers to get a ‘heads up’ before making an offer to determine how ‘hot’ or ‘cold’ the market is. Otherwise, if you ‘lowball’ a just-listed home in a seller’s market, you may be lucky to even get a counteroffer instead of an outright rejection by sellers experiencing lots of calls and showings on their property. Coming in with an offer that’s too low sometimes causes offended sellers to refuse to seriously consider a possible follow up offer.
What’s the Big Deal About Wilsonville Housing Inventory?
One reason Wilsonville housing inventory is so important is because it helps buyers and sellers to better manage expectations. Most buyers are interested in how long it may take to find the ‘right’ house. Inventory affects this. Alternatively, most sellers are interested in how long it may take to find a qualified buyer. Inventory affects this, too.
That’s because a high home inventory tends to slow down the market time and low inventory frequently provides a ‘jump start’ to activity. One way sellers can help to avoid an excessively long market time is to review comparable local home sales information provided by their Realtor to ensure proper, market pricing.
Another reason housing inventory is crucial is because it can significantly impact so many other important factors. In other words, inventory is a ‘driver’ for market time, selling price, appraisal results, lendability and more.
Okay, So Inventory Is Important. What Does It Look Like?
The above image provides a good example of fluctuating home inventory. As greater Wilsonville’s real estate market bounced back from the severe market downturn of the Great Recession, home inventory reduced from more than 20 months of housing supply to less than three.
Contact the Experts
Thinking about selling your Wilsonville area property? Know the market before diving in! Contact Certified Realty with your questions and for a free consultation on what your property could sell for today using the contact form below or call (800) 637-1950.
There are many good reasons why Wilsonville, Oregon homesellers hire a Realtor, including the handful who first try the ‘for sale by owner’ or ‘FSBO’ route. Here are ten of the most common reasons why Wilsonville homesellers hire a Realtor to get the job done right.
Hear the audio podcast version of this presentation by clicking here or the link above.
1. Selling Your Home ‘By Owner’ Means Taking on a Second Job.
Most homesellers are busy. So before attempting to sell property on your own, first ask yourself if you’re prepared to wear some extra hats. That’s because in addition to (1). preparing your property for market and (2). finding a replacement dwelling, along with (3). the task of actually moving, selling your home involves (4). abundant planning, (5). serious paperwork, (6). negotiation skills, (7). accurate scheduling, (8). diligent research, (9). considerable legwork (if done right) and (10). a lot of just plain toil. 
2. Legalese, Sometimes with Different Rules for Each County and/or Municipality.
Realtors use continually-updated forms written by experienced real estate attorneys designed specifically for regional transactions, with clarity and simplicity in mind. Such documents include important protections for both buyer and seller. While no document is perfect, Realtor forms include key clauses, like for home inspections and appraisals, along with arbitration/mediation mechanisms. These time-tested documents help prevent potential issues, while at the same time deterring ‘nuisance’ litigation.
3. More Accurate Pricing When Buying & Selling.
These days the average Wilsonville resident moves about every 6 years years or so. As with any activity, it’s easy to get rusty. Realtors are in the real estate market all day, every day. This means an experienced real estate agent can provide significant market awareness to help you price what’s likely to be your single largest investment.
Armed with access to multiple listing, sales and tax data, Realtors provide significant pricing experience and real life insights, whether you want to know what the property you’re selling is worth, or once you sell, how much to offer on the home you’re buying.
4. Objectivity.
We all deal with subjectivity from time to time. Does your home smell? Perhaps you’ve gotten used to having multiple pets in your small home, don’t notice the mold growing in your bathroom, or haven’t realized how gloomy your living room appears. One role of a Realtor is to be helpfully honest. That means being truthful if there’s something you as a seller don’t see (or smell).
Far better to be forewarned and forearmed by your Realtor, than witness a rapidly exiting conga line of mum homebuyers who don’t want to offend you. Or perhaps you don’t think disclosing settling water in your basement each Winter is a big deal. The reality is that disclosing such a potentially material fact is something dutiful agents will advise in order to keep you out of much hotter water after the sale.
5. Junk the Junk.
Have you ever studied a real estate earnest money agreement (also called an EMA or purchase agreement), or seller’s ‘net sheet?’ Over the course of a transaction, it’s easy to accumulate an abundance of ‘junk’ fees. Sometimes seller-paid closing costs are necessary to make a transaction work. However, paying for a buyer’s home warranty is typically more of a buyer ‘want’ than a ‘need.’ Count on your Realtor to go over such factors with you for a ‘heads up’ of what to expect. An experienced agent knows what’s usually ‘routine’ and what’s not.
6. Marketing.
Even if a seller has a sense of what his or her home is worth, effectively reaching the the widest number of buyers increases your opportunity to find more motivated and qualified buyers, even creating a ‘bidding war.’ The simple act of listing your home with a Realtor means your property is immediately promoted on a host of proven, effective home marketing venues. But it doesn’t stop there. Successful Realtors use many different tools to reach buyers for your specific property.
Connecting your property with the right buyer can mean the difference between a fast close at full price (or higher), compared to a continuous stream of ‘sale-fails’ where your property is needlessly taken off the market by buyers who were marginally qualified.
7. Experience.
There is simply no substitute for ‘hands on’ real estate experience. If your home hasn’t sold, at what point should you consider a price adjustment? How much of a price adjustment is necessary? Is there something other than price causing my property not to sell? These are not new questions to an experienced agent, who can help address these and other important questions.
It’s comforting in especially difficult situations to rely on an experienced Realtor, who is the duly able real estate ‘captain’ of your transaction. Most people prefer an experienced surgeon or pilot, so it’s understandable to want experienced representation with the important task of selling your home. It’s also helpful to know that a professional real estate agent makes the entire home selling process appear easier than it is.
8. Negotiation Skills.
If you’re like most people, you dread negotiating when buying a car. Consider how much higher the stakes are with your home sale. You want an experienced hand on your side. While real estate transactions are optimally a ‘win-win’ situation, it’s realistic to expect some friction. If you haven’t considered homeselling as a kind of ‘war,’ check out this unique perspective on the ‘battle’ of selling your home.
The best way to navigate through a potentially difficult transaction is to be represented by someone who has been over the road before. So whether you’re in negotiations with a ‘bargain hunting’ buyer, experience an unpleasant ‘surprise’ in a home inspection, or a seriously low appraisal, each unique situation presents an opportunity for difficulty and reaching common ground. Your Realtor can assist in ‘end gaming’ your best strategies and in dealing with a wide variety of buyer personalities.
9. The ‘Buffer Effect.’
Having an agent represent you makes it easier to maintain civility between ‘warring’ parties. If you don’t consider homeselling as a battle, then see our prior article and podcast titled ‘The Art of War for Homesellers.’ Ever say something you regret? An experienced Realtor can often use more constructive language to accomplish what can sometimes be an emotional and/or provocative comment.
10. More Money.
National Association of Realtor statistics reveal that homesellers who use a Realtor actually net considerably more at closing than those who don’t, even after taking into account paying a commission. Consider that when banks (which are renowned for watching the ‘bottom line’) sell their foreclosed homes, they hire an expert, a Realtor. From a financial standpoint, it really does ‘pencil out’ to hire a Realtor.
Contact Your Wilsonville Real Estate Experts
Selling your Wilsonville home? Contact our WilsonvilleHomes.com sponsor, Wilsonville’s very own Certified Realty, selling Wilsonville area homes since 1950. Use the convenient form below for a FREE consultation.
Simultaneous/Consecutive Home Transactions
Selling one home and buying another are frequently linked activities. In this article and podcast, we reveal how to maximize the efficiency and minimize the bother when simultaneously buying and selling a Wilsonville home.
We’ll also examine options to help decide if either simultaneous or consecutive real estate transactions may be best for you.
Timing
The singular act of buying or selling a home is often the foremost concern of many Wilsonville homeowners. Whichever immediate task you may be considering, it’s common to have twice the activity anticipated, but in two steps. That’s because home buyers often have a home to sell…and home sellers are frequently seeking a home to buy. So what’s the best way to navigate this potential real estate quagmire without getting entangled in a morass of stress and needless extra costs?
First Steps
To begin, it helps to examine three common Wilsonville dual home sale/home purchase options:
Your challenges, benefits and results will largely depend upon which of these three decisions you settle upon. Here are three quick takeaways for these three usual options:
Option #1. Selling your existing house first, then buying the next house
This option usually requires a ‘double move.’ Yet one advantage of this approach is that you won’t have double house payments. One disadvantage is that you may have to move twice. An added benefit of this ‘selling first’ approach can include negotiating with strength in the purchase of your next home. That’s because your purchase needn’t be contingent upon the sale or closing of your sold home. As a result, you are seen as a ‘cash in fist’ buyer, or at the very least, a buyer who is considerably more likely to qualify for a home purchase, given that you ostensibly now have access to the equity in your now-sold home. This helps you negotiate with more power in the purchase of your next home.
Option #2. Buying the next house first, then selling your existing house
When first buying a house, then selling yours, one advantage is that you know where you’ll be moving. The reduced stress of ‘knowing where you’ll land’ is empowering.
Unless you’re a cash buyer, you’ll likely need to qualify with a lender. And if you have an existing loan in place on the house you’ll be selling, this may mean you need to qualify for two loans, your current home loan and the loan on the house you’re buying.
As long as your current home sells in a timely manner, added financial obligations can be minimized. For more information about bridge loans, see the below ‘A Bridge Too Far?’ discussion.
Option #3. Simultaneously moving from your existing house to your next house
This situation is very common. Provided your activities are clearly thought out, well-executed and contingencies are in place for protection, it’s also one of the more affordable options.
Think far ahead and shoot for impeccable timing, in order to make your move the smoothest possible. In order to have sufficient time to move out soon after closing on your current home’s transaction, you will need to locate your next home, write an accepted offer, have the home inspection and if you’re getting a home loan, likely an appraisal…all before you close on the purchase and can actually move in.
One advantage of this approach is that you won’t have double house payments. You also know where you will be landing, and you won’t likely have to move twice. One disadvantage is that your timing needs to be good and possibly have a little extra ‘cushion’ to allow for emergencies, like delays with appraisals, inspections and repairs. Otherwise it’s easy to feel ‘squeezed’ by your being in the middle of two time-sensitive transactions.
That’s one challenge of going this route; It’s complicated by not knowing with precision the timeline of certain key activities. That’s because while home inspections can usually be completed within a set time frame, like 10-14 business days, other requirements like appraisals, can take much longer, with less certainty of the completion date. On top of that, most transactions involve two appraisals, one on the house you’re selling and another on the house you’re buying. So if you plan on a simultaneous sale/purchase, huddle up with your Wilsonville Realtor to create a well planned timeline, then build in some extra breathing room, as necessary.
A Bridge Too Far?
One way to do purchase a house without first selling your existing home is with what’s called a ‘bridge loan.’ This is effectively a loan against the equity on your existing home. There are plenty of added details, but for the sake of simplicity, just understand that if you use a bridge loan to buy your next home, until your current home is sold, you will likely have double house payments. So if your current home doesn’t sell in a timely manner, hopefully the squeeze on your wallet won’t be more stressful than if you were to have simply sold your existing home first.
Tools of the Trade
To accomplish the job of simultaneously buying and selling homes, among the most common protective tools is called a contingency. Consider contingencies as akin to safety goggles. They’re designed to prevent a mishap, only in this case, the mishap could be losing your earnest money.
Earnest Money
Earnest money is usually a certain dollar figure placed on deposit as a sign a buyer is earnest, and later applied to the home purchase. This helps convince sellers that a buyer is serious and take their property off the market. Earnest money essentially helps to ‘hold’ a property for a buyer. Earnest money is not often the total down payment, although it can be applied as part of the down payment. Earnest money is important to homesellers, because without it, a buyer could otherwise tie up the seller’s property with virtually no obligation.
A large part of contingencies relate to a buyer keeping their earnest money, or the initial deposit showing the buyer is ‘earnest’ in proceeding to closing on a home sale. If a homebuyer does not have a sufficient contingency in place during a home sale, forfeiture of a buyer’s earnest money becomes possible. It’s not terribly common, but it can and does sometimes happen.
Types of Contingencies
Home inspection contingencies provide buyers with the right to have a house inspected for a variety of conditions, all within a specified time frame. Another common contingency is the loan contingency, so if for some reason a lender does not approve a buyer or the property for a home loan, the earnest money deposit is returned to the buyer. Buyers have lost out on qualifying for a home loan because they went out and bought a car during the home purchasing process, thereby disrupting their loan ratios.
The Reality of Earnest Money Deposit Risk
As long as appropriate contingencies are in place and they’re followed in a time-conscious manner, it’s relatively uncommon for buyers to lose their earnest money. It’s always a good idea to keep an eye on your timeline.
Buying And/Or Selling?
Use the form below to contact our WilsonvilleHomes.com sponsor, Certified Realty for a FREE consultation. Whether your Wilsonville real estate situation involves homebuying, homeselling, or if you simply have questions about our current local real estate market, Certified has been helping Wilsonville area residents since 1950!
While there is a case to be made for homeselling in each of the four seasons, Winter is one of the most powerful times Wilsonville, Oregon sellers can place their home on the market and for ten very good reasons.
Click here or the play button below for the audio podcast presentation of this article.
And given the pleasant, even emotional attachment so many have during that time of year, expect some homebuyers to fully embrace the holiday theme of ‘Peace on earth, good will toward men.’ As a result, such positive feelings can spill over into the home selling process and make it easier.
Thinking about selling your Wilsonville property this Winter? Use the convenient form below to contact Certified Realty, sponsors of WilsonvilleHomes.com, for a FREE consultation!
