Admirals Cove Blog
Home Buyer Mistakes To Avoid!
Buying a home is typically the largest and single most important investment a person will make during their lifetime. It is an experience that needs to be handled carefully and correctly in order for it to be a success and not a failure. Avoid making these following mistakes when buying your home to ensure that you make a good investment. 1.) Not Knowing Your Budget: Before you even go into your home search you should have a budget of exactly what you can afford. Without a reasonable and sensible home buying budget, you run the risk of falling in love with a home that you won’t be able to afford. 2.) Not Getting Pre-Approved: Not getting pre-approved is a mistake that has your home search failing from the start. In today’s housing market most sellers won’t even consider talking to you without being pre-approved and most realtors will require that you get pre-approved before they will work with you. 3.) Miscalculate The Costs Involved With Owning A Home: A mistake often made by people buying a home is underestimating how much it will cost them to own and live in it. You need to know exactly how much your monthly and yearly expenses will be to live in your potential home to ensure you can afford it. 4.) Not Hiring The Right Realtor: Maybe the biggest mistake a potential buyer can make is not hiring the right realtor. It is imperative that you find a specialist in the area you are thinking of purchasing a home. They need to have the right experience to guide you through this process to ensure that it is a success. 5.) Failing To Kill The Wrong Deal: It is important that even though you may have fallen in love with what you believe is the perfect home that you keep a clear head and stay focused. You can’t let your emotions get in the way of you killing the wrong deal. 6.) Forgoing The Inspection Process: You need to be sure that the investment you are making with this home purchase is a good one. The only way that you can be completely sure that you are making a good investment is to have the property inspected by a professional home...
read moreGo Green With These Great Home Upgrades!
Going green is a great idea for any homeowner because environmentally friendly upgrades not only save money on utility bills they also help to boost a home’s value as well. Green upgrades also make you feel good about being environmental friendly by reducing your carbon footprint and can also afford you with some very desirable tax breaks come tax time. Here is a list of great environmentally friendly home upgrades that will help you go green. 1.) Your Roof: Replace your roof with one that will keep your home cooler. Roofs that will reflect the heat from the sun instead of absorbing it are the best option for keeping your home cool. Materials like metal do this great and will last decade after decade plus it can easily mimic the look of wood, stone, and even tile. 2.) A Solar Water Heater: A solid purchase is a solar water heater while can costly upfront it will save you a lot down the road. This is also a great upgrade for increasing your home’s value. Solar water heaters can save you as much as 80% on your hot water bills. 3.) Slow Flow Showerheads And Toilets: Replacing your showerheads and toilets with slow flow models is a great way to green and save you money at the same time. Using less water is an upgrade that any homeowner will enjoy and can feel good about. 4.) Solar Panels: Solar panels are outstanding energy efficient upgrades that can not only save you money but can even put a little back in your pocket when used with other energy efficient features. You can even write off some of the cost when tax time rolls around. 5.) Programmable Thermostats: A programmable thermostat is another great way to be more energy efficient and cut down on your utility bills. You can set your thermostat so you are only heating up or cooling down your home during the times when you know it is colder or hotter outside. 6.) Energy Efficient Windows And Doors: It is a smart idea to replace any old outdated windows and doors with newer more energy efficient ones. Newer windows and doors are designed to be more energy efficient and will help keep your home the temperature you desire cutting down on your utility bills. 7.) Seal Up Your Home: There are many other areas of your home besides windows and doors that can allow heat or A/C escape from your home. An unsealed home is energy inefficient and will cost you more in utility bills. Be sure to get your home completely sealed up your home to make it as energy efficient as you...
read moreHome Renovation Mistakes To Avoid!
Any renovation experience has its ups and its downs and if not done correctly can be a very difficult and stressful time. Since a renovation is basically an investment into your home you want to make sure that the experience is a complete success. Here are several home renovation mistakes that you should avoid at all costs. 1.) Not Knowing Exactly What You Want: It is a huge mistake to go into a renovation project not knowing exactly what you want. If you and your contractor aren’t completely on the same page about what you want the entire project is doomed from the start. Be sure to sit down with your contractor and set out a plan and budget for exactly what you want in this renovation project and be sure both of you stick to it. 2.) Neglecting Rules And Regulations: It can be a very costly mistake to forget about or neglect rules and regulations. It is very important to check if you need permits for this type of renovation and whether your neighborhood has any rules or regulations regarding it. If you forget to check it out or decide to just neglect it you may end up in lots of trouble down the road. 3.) Going Piece By Piece: People often think they can take on a renovation project by going piece by piece but if you want to save yourself money and stress we recommend that you do it all at once. Renovating one room at a time is a good idea but be sure to do it from start to finish and not piece by piece in order to achieve the results that you desire. 4.) Not Getting Written Contracts: It is important that you have written contracts with your contractors and builders to ensure that everything turns out the way you wanted. Once you have an agreement down on paper you can feel safer moving forward with your project knowing that you are covered if things don’t turn out the way you wanted. Your contract should include things like design, budget, materials, and timeframe to ensure you get what you pay for. 5.) Not Comparing Contractors: It is important not to jump at the first bid or at the lowest one. You should try to obtain at least three bids from contractors that you have thoroughly checked out. If you go with a contractor that you don’t have all the information on you run the risk of winding up with cheap materials and inferior craftsmanship. A mistake like this can end up costing a lot down the road so be sure you know enough about your contractor to feel comfortable moving on....
read moreHome Buying Negotiation 101!
Purchasing a home is one of the if not the most important decisions and investments that you will make during your lifetime. The negotiation is a very integral aspect to this experience and needs to be prepared for and handled correctly. Once you have spent all the time and effort to find the perfect home that satisfies all of your needs and wants you would be devastated to lose it due to poor negotiating. The key is to take the emotion out of it and go into it reasonably and sensibly. Follow these great tips and tricks and you are sure to have a smooth and successful negotiation. 1.) Do Your Homework: It is imperative for you to be informed going into the negotiating process so be sure that you do your homework. It is important to discuss the process with your realtor and any friends and family members that have recently gone through this experience. You should also know as much as you can about the local real estate market like recent comparable sales and property tax rates. 2.) Know Who’s Selling The Home: It is a great idea to try and find out as much as you can about the seller and their situation. This doesn’t mean snoop around or hire a private investigator it just means know who is selling the home and what their motivations for selling are. It is also good to know how long they have lived in the home and how much it has appreciated in value. 3.) Connect With The Seller: This may sound a little uncomfortable, but it can actually be a great tool for you. If you can get the seller to see you as a person and not just a couple dollar signs the negotiating process will be much less stressful and you may even be able to negotiate a better price. Try to build a healthy relationship with the seller from the start and it will benefit you come negotiating time. 4.) Don’t Lowball: You can put in an offer that is lower than what the seller is asking but don’t make one that is too far off the fair market value. If you start of negotiations with a severely lowball offer you can offend the seller and you might loose out on the home all together. It is important to make a reasonable offer that is fair to both parties. 5.) Respond Quickly: It is important that you respond quickly to the sellers counter offer. Be sure to consider it thoroughly and develop a reasonable response but do it as quickly as you can. You don’t want the seller to be waiting for you to respond and have another potential buyer walk into the picture messing things all up for...
read moreHome Seller Mistakes To Avoid!
Selling your home can be a difficult and stressful experience and the worst thing you can do is compound it by making simple mistakes that could have been avoided. So in order to ensure that your home selling experience runs smoothly and stress free be sure to avoid making the following commonly made mistakes. 1.) Forgoing A Home Inspection: Choosing to forgo a home inspection is big mistake that is commonly made by home sellers. Having your home inspected prior to listing it can really save you some stress and aggravation down the road. This will give you time to address any issues before you list your home or at least determine a more reasonable asking price. 2.) Neglecting Your Curb Appeal: Neglecting curb appeal is a big mistake that can greatly affect the sale of you home. Your curb appeal helps develop the first impression potential buyers will form about your home. If you neglect to ramp up your homes curb appeal you run the risk of turning off potential buyers and having them leave without even entering your home. 3.) Not Staging Your Home: Not staging your home is a poor choice and will end up being a mistake that you regret. Staging is an outstanding home selling tool that can be really beneficial. It will help make your home seem more comfortable and inviting plus it will make it easier for potential buyers to view your home as their potential home and not just another property. 4.) Withholding Information: Withholding information is a huge mistake that you should avoid at all costs. If you think that your potential buyers or their inspector won’t find out about it you are wrong. If you withhold information you run the risk of losing the sale, a stressful and nasty negotiating experience, or even worse a lawsuit after the sale. 5.) Overpricing Your Home: Overpricing your home can be an issue because you have so many memories involved with it but the key is to detach yourself emotionally from your home. When you start viewing your home as a product for sale instead of the home you live or lived in you can then set a more sensible and reasonable asking price. 6.) Choosing The Wrong Realtor: The worst thing you can do when selling your home is to choose the wrong realtor to help you through this process. It is very important to put in the time and effort to seek out the right realtor to sell your home. Be sure to choose a realtor who is a specialist in your area and who has a proven track record for...
read moreHow To Sell Your Listing Faster And At More Of A Premium Selling Price!
Once you have landed a listing your job as a real estate agent has just started you now need to prepare the property for sale as well as market it correctly. Your goal is to increase your reach and exposure as much as possible to promote your listing to as many potential buyers as possible. In order to do this correctly and effectively you need to follow these five tips and if you do you are sure to sell your listing faster and at more of a premium selling price. 1.) Stage The Property: It is very important that you have your listing staged for sale to bring out the most appeal that is possible. Having a property staged makes it feel more comfortable and inviting to potential buyers and will allow them to better envision the property as their potential home instead of just a property for sale. Having a home staged for sale is one of the best ways to sell your listing faster and at more of a premium selling price. 2.) Create A Detailed And Comprehensive Listing: It is imperative that you create a detailed and comprehensive listing. A big mistake that many realtors make is thinking that less is more and that they can entice a potential buyer with a minimalist style listing but they are wrong. Potential buyers don’t want to waist their time with a property they know not much about. You can also encourage potential buyers to start thinking that you are hiding something from them. 3.) Use A Professional Photographer: I understand that many of you realtors believe that you are semi-professional photographers. But we recommend that you hire a professional real estate photographer for your listing to really highlight your listing in a way that boosts its appeal as much as possible. Even though photography may be a hobby of yours in order to increase your chances as much as possible we recommend you choose to go with a professional. 4.) Market The Property Through Social Media: Experts say that a whopping 90% of potential buyers start their home search on the Internet and social media platforms are a big part of this. They are also a great way to increase the reach and exposure of listing to a wide variety of potential buyers from all over. Social media platforms are great for meeting potential buyers, developing a relationship, and encouraging a sale. 5.) Be Willing And Ready To Show At All Times: Although it may be a bit more time consuming and undoubtedly an annoyance it is very important that not only are you always ready to show but your listing is as well. If your are willing and ready to drop everything at anytime to show your listing the chances that you sell your listing faster and at more of a premium selling price go way...
read moreCreate A “Master” Bedroom!
Experts believe that during this coming year we will see a boost in home renovation projects. If you are one of the many homeowners looking for great renovation projects for your home consider starting with your master bedroom. When you are renovating your master bedroom you should aim at creating a master suite. We have developed a list of the top upgrades you should make when you renovate your master bedroom into a master suite. 1.) Incorporate An Entertainment Center: There is nothing better than having the ability to enjoy an entertainment center right in your master suite. A surround sound system can really help set the mood and create some luxury appeal. There are even great wall mounts and ways to hide your TV until you want to use it. 2.) Add A Custom Headboard: A great way to give your master suite a luxurious feeling is to add a custom headboard. There are so many options for you to choose from such as wood, fabric, and even recycled materials. A Custom headboard can totally transform the feeling and appeal of your master bedroom. 3.) Add A Custom Bar And Beverage Center: We are seeing many homeowners adding small custom bar and beverage centers with wine and beer refrigerators right in the bedroom. A great way to add some luxury appeal to your master suite is affording yourself the ability to enjoy a nightcap right before bed. 4.) Steal Room From Adjoining Rooms: If you want more room for your master suite, try finding it by expanding into an adjoining bedroom. If you have the room to spare you could incorporate a walk in closet and or a spa like master bath with the extra space. 5.) Put In An Accent Wall: If you want to create a fresh new feeling without repainting the entire area try putting in an accent wall. This is an affordable project that you can do yourself and it can really brighten up the area and deliver you some very desirable luxury appeal. 6.) Install Crown Molding: Crown molding is a great way to increase your master suites luxury appeal and plus it is another project that you can potentially do yourself. Crown molding affords you with the classic luxury of older homes even if you own a newer more modern...
read moreFlorida’s Housing Market Finished 2013 Stronger Than Expected!
The month of December in 2013 was very beneficially to the housing market in Florida in fact the Sunshine State boasted a boost in new listings, an increase in homes sold, and even a higher median selling price. Florida also saw homes sitting on the market for fewer days. In fact, experts saw such good numbers that they are even saying Florida’s housing market has exceeded expectations. According to the experts, the states median selling price for existing single family homes in December of 2013 was $172,650 a whopping 11.5 percent higher than the same month the year before. The states median selling price for existing townhouses and condos for December of 2013 was $137,500 an incredible 17 percent increase from the same month the previous year. December of 2013 marked the twenty fifth month in a row where we saw a year-to-year increase in both the median home and condo selling price. Experts are also saying that the increased equity we are seeing has had a direct impact on inventory. However we still finished 2013 with a sellers market and despite an increase in properties listed we ended the month of December 2013 with a relatively tight inventory. Of only a 5.5-month supply of homes for sale and a 5.8-month supply of townhouses and condos for sale. But this hasn’t deterred potential buyers any, and even with limited options and rising prices we are still seeing strong buyer demand. With this demand staying high we are also seeing homes selling quicker and therefore we saw homes sit on the market for only 50 days and townhouses and condos sit on it for only 51 days before selling. However, not only did we see properties selling faster but we also saw a shift in the type of buyer. Investors bought many of Florida’s properties after the housing market collapsed but recently we have seen investor activity drop off and a boost in traditional buyer activity. The moral of the story is that 2013 couldn’t have ended any better for Florida’s housing market and it is surely on its way to a complete...
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