Sales

Feb 27 2015

Thinking of putting your Western MA home on the market? Do it NOW!

If you have been thinking of putting your home in Western MA up for sale you might want to move your timeline up to right now.

Common thought is the best time to sell your home is in the Spring, most people think April and May are the right time. Following that timeline may not be your best plan.

There are several factors at play that make now a great time to get your home on the market:

Listing inventory is at a serious low level. There are not many houses available and that means the buyers have less selection. New inventory that is priced appropriately will get a larger percentage of “screen time” for these buyers.

According to a post by Keeping Matters Current, “The January National Housing Trend Report from realtor.com now reveals that inventory in January has decreased another 6.7% month over month and 8.7% year over year. This is occurring at the same time that buyer activity (demand) remains strong.”

The next piece to this puzzle is the buyer activity. Mortgage activity is on the rise with a fresh pool of buyers getting ready to hit the market in March. As reported by CNBC in their story about the rising mortgage applications, ” Spring generally brings more sellers to the market, but so far Realtors are not seeing enough new listings at affordable prices to meet the demand. ”

Buyers who are out looking right now are very motivated and serious about a home purchase. They may need to purchase before they lose their low interest rate or perhaps are relocating. Whatever the reason, they want housing NOW and there isn’t enough inventory to satisfy the current demand, much less the buyers in the wings who are getting pre-qualified now.

Waiting until the traditional “spring market” will mean there will be more homes on the market to and your edge will be reduced.

So, snow or no snow, these signs point to NOW being a really great time to get a jump on the competition and get your Western MA home sold.

If you would like a free, no obligation home value analysis, please contact me:

Lesley Lambert, REALTOR with Park Square Realty 413-575-3611

Mar 11 2014

Starting off the day with the words “Western MA Short Sale Approved”!

Getting a home sold in Western MA using a short sale can be a very time consuming and difficult thing, but with the right team in place, it can be done!

Post by Lesley Lambert, The Real Estate Natural.

This morning I had a message from my short sale attorney’s office to tell me that another one of my short sale listings is approved for sale. This is great news for everyone involved: the seller will walk away with no debt and even a bit of money to secure an apartment, the buyer will get an affordable home to build equity, the neighbors get a revitalized home in their neighborhood which improves the home values and I get to know that I was able to help another person avoid foreclosure (yes, and a commission check, but that is secondary to me).

If you know someone who owes more than their Western Massachusetts home is worth and needs to make a move, let me know- I can help. I have a decade of short sale experience and I have the right team in place to make sure the sale gets done properly with full protections to the seller.

Did you know that depending on your type of mortgage, if you work with an inexperienced agent and get your home listed before working with your lender that you could forfeit thousands of dollars in relocation funding? That’s right…certain lenders will give you relocation money at the closing of your short sale, but ONLY if you work in the right order. Working with an agent that isn’t well versed in how short sales work could actually cost you money.

Did you also know that hiring me to work as your short sale agent costs you, the homeowner, nothing? That’s right, all fees due to the short sale team of realtor and attorney are paid through the lender’s short sale package.

There is a lot to know about short sales…why not call the area expert?

Lesley Lambert, Short Sale Expert in Western MA at Park Square Realty 413-575-3611

Apr 05 2012

Selling Your Home is Emotional – Tips For Working Through the Home Selling Process

Buying or selling real estate is an emotional business no matter what, but when you are selling a home that you wish you could keep it is much more emotionally taxing.

I have worked with many clients who are selling their beloved home for a number of reasons: job relocation, need to downsize, moving to a retirement community or divorce. Even when they are excited about the next phase in their life, it can be so difficult to let go of the home that they have loved so much.

I can empathize and understand this intimately as I had to sell my home five years ago. I thought I would live there until I grew old. I had built the home with my own hands and every part of the home was there because I chose it. It was so difficult to walk away from that home, but I did discover some tips and tricks that worked for me and have worked for other clients experiencing an emotionally difficult move.

#1- Redecorate and stage the home specifically for sale. You usually need to do this anyway, but in my case I made this process the opportunity to begin detaching emotionally. As I removed personal items and took down decorations I began moving both physically and emotionally. I painted the interior and moved furniture around. With my items gone, a different color wall and the furniture in a new arrangement it didn’t feel like my home anymore. Now it was a house for sale, a commodity…not a home. It was time to find that new home.

#2- I said goodbye. This may sound goofy because clearly a house can’t hear and doesn’t care who lives within it, but I thanked my house and wished it well with it’s new owners. I said goodbye over and over again.

#3- Small steps. Once the decision has been made to make the move you need to take one thing at a time so that you won’t get overwhelmed. Putting too much on your plate or thinking too far out in the process will cause you anxiety and emotional strain. You do, of course, need to plan and have a strategy in place, but you don’t need to extrapolate on a daily basis.

I met with two clients this week that were experiencing this and after leaving one of them I recorded the following: