3 Important Home Inspection Questions Answered

 Today I’ll tell you what home inspections are, why they’re important, and why you need to hire a good inspector if you’re buying a home. 

Selling in the Austin area? Get a market analysis report

Purchasing in the Austin area? Get full MLS access

What is a home inspection? Why is a home inspection important? Why is it important to hire a good inspector? Here are your answers to these questions: 1. What is a home inspection? A a home inspection is simply a process designed to verify the condition of your property. Once they’ve inspected everything, they’ll give you an itemized report of the home’s condition. 2. Why is a home inspection important? Homebuyers want to know exactly what shape a property is in before they purchase it. And while sellers will provide a disclosure concerning its condition, it’s still a good idea to have an independent third party working on your behalf so you can make an informed decision.

"It’s important to hire a good inspector who will do a thorough job and give you a full report on the house you’re buying."

3. Why is it important to hire a good inspector? A home inspection is like anything else—you want the best people working for you and representing your interests. Your inspector should be licensed, they should know what they’re doing, and they should know what they’re looking for. They should also be able to walk you through everything that’s on the report they give you. 

If you’re thinking of buying a home and you have any more questions about home inspections, give me a call or shoot me an email. My team and I would love to help you.

4 Common Housing Inventory Questions Answered

Housing inventory can be a difficult idea to grasp. Today I am answering common questions to help you understand.

Selling in the Austin area? Get a market analysis report

Purchasing in the Austin area? Get full MLS access

Today we're going to talk about housing inventory. You may be asking, “Why is this such an important statistic when you're looking to sell your house?” I am here to answer just that. What is housing inventory? Housing inventory is the number of homes on the market at the time you're looking to buy or sell your home. What is considered good inventory? Good inventory varies depending on if you are looking to buy or to sell. If you are looking to buy, six months’ worth of homes (or more) on the market is ideal. This means it would take six months or more to sell every home on the market at the time. When the market is shifted this way, it is called a buyer’s market, and it tends to favor the interests of buyers.

If there are fewer homes, buyers have fewer options and, therefore, they may have to pay more for your home if they want it.

If you're looking to sell, six months’ worth of homes to be on the market is the sweet spot, since this means that there are fewer homes than there are buyers.

Does the number of homes on the market affect your home’s value? Absolutely, it does.

More homes on the market means that there are more homes for buyers to choose. This can impact the value of your home, causing it to go down a little.

If there are fewer homes, buyers have fewer options and, therefore, they may have to pay more for your home if they want it.

What does the current inventory mean if you're looking to buy a new home or sell your home? This means that if there are six months’ worth or more of homes on the market, it would take six months or longer to sell every home on the market at the time that you're looking. Again, this is called a buyer’s market. The buyer is in control and could potentially pay less for a home since they have more choices. If you're a seller, then you want six months’ worth or less. This can increase the value of your home and could create a multiple offer situation, which could increase how much you net for your home.

If you have any questions about your home or the inventory available in your area, feel free to reach out to me. I would love to speak with you about the current market in Austin.

Selling Your Home While You’re Still Living in It

How do you live in your home while it’s on the market? I have a few tips that will make things easier and help sell your home quickly. 

Selling in the Austin area? Get a market analysis report

Purchasing in the Austin area? Get full MLS access

When you are selling your home and it’s priced correctly, agents will be knocking on your door and trying to get their buyers in to look at the home as quickly as possible. Of course, all of this is happening while you’re still living in your home. How do you handle this? How do you live there while your home is on the market? The first thing you can do to minimize the amount of time your home is on the market while you’re living there is to make sure that your home is squeaky clean at all times. We don’t live in our homes like we do when it’s on the market. Make sure your home is five-star-hotel clean. Doing so can add $5,000 to $10,000 of value to your home. Isn’t it worth it then to make sure your home is clean?

It’s important to maintain some level of privacy when your home is on the market.

Of course, you do want to maintain some level of privacy when your home is on the market. Make sure that people can’t see things like medication or fine jewelry. When people come to look at your home, they will go through your cabinets, your drawers, and your pantry. Lock up any personal items you wouldn’t want someone to see.

If you have kids, get them involved. Make sure that it’s a game for them. See who can make their bed the fastest each morning, or who can put their toys away quickest.

If you have any other questions about selling your home or would like to know what’s going on in the market, give us a call or send us an email. My team and I would be happy to help you!