Whether you're a buying a home or selling a home in the Hudson Valley, New York, you're in for a ride. Sometimes (often times) that ride can be a bit bumpy, especially if it's your first time on the road. Thankfully, you've got someone like me to help chauffer you around the market and give you some tips to make things as easy as possible.
So, let's get into it; the 7 things you need to know when navigating the real estate market in 2022:
1. Have all of your ducks in a row before making any moves
It's extremely important to have everything prepared before you start looking at homes or before you put your home on the market. For buyers, that means getting pre approved, knowing what areas you want to look in, making a wants/needs list, finding a Realtor, and a few other things to chat about with your agent. For sellers that means tidying up the house, setting your showing schedules, finding a realtor, pricing the house, figuring out your timeline to move out, and putting together information about recent updates, improvements, renovations, additions, etc about the house. Set yourself up for success from the start of the process and you'll be better off.
2. Be ready for heartbreak
If you're a buyer or a seller, be ready for some heartbreak during the process, it's a natural part of it. Buyers, there's a strong possibility that you may lose out on a bidding war or two for a house you really love. Sellers, offers made in our area of NY are not binding, so a buyer may decide to pull their offer before contracts are signed. It doesn't happen often, but it's best not to break out the champagne until it's all signed, sealed and delivered.
3. Move quick
Sellers, if you have an offer or multiple offers on the table, don't wait longer to see if any better ones come along. If you've got multiple offers, give enough time for everyone to see the house and then set a hard deadline of when you're making a decision. If you have only one offer on the table with no signs of others, work with your realtor to negotiate to something acceptable. Buyers, if you see a house pop up that you absolutely love, you better be scheduling a showing in the next few days!
4. Use your imagination
When touring homes, you'll really have to use your imagination sometimes to look past the current setup or inversely imagining your furniture in a vacant house. Both can be tough, but talking it out is what helps the best, as well as putting things on paper. As a seller, if you're in a single or multiple offer situation you can get creative in the way you structure your counter offers. In this market, the seller typically has the upper hand in negotiations and you can really use that to your advantage in non-traditional methods.
5. Take notes
When you're seeing multiple homes or making a decision on multiple offers, it's important to get your thoughts out of your head and onto paper. Keep a notebook with you when you're doing anything real estate related to jot those thoughts down. You'll need them, I promise! Especially if you're seeing 4-6 homes in a single day or making a decision on 4+ offers on the table!
6. Find a great Realtor
Am I going to promote myself? Absolutely. It's my website!! Seriously though, I cannot stress the importance of finding a strong, well respected and knowledgeable real estate agent. There are a lot of us out there, but not all Realtors are the same. A good Realtor will get you through the sale from offer to close. A great Realtor will help you save the most money as a buyer, make the most money as a seller, and be your sounding board along the entire transaction and afterwards with referrals for everything you could possibly need.
7. Pre Foreclosures are not for sale
Please stop asking.
And that's all you need to know! Kidding. There's a whole lot more, but so much of the buying/selling process is different for every single seller and buyer. There are millions of possibilities of things to right and wrong, and having a trusted Realtor there to be able to problem solve on the fly and know the process inside and out will make things run so much smoother.
So, if you're considering buying or selling a home in the Hudson Valley anytime soon, or if you know of anyone looking to do the same, you know who to reach out to ;)
Thanks for listening,
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