Real Estate news

Person Property Verses Real Property

Is it Real or is it Personal?

If I leave it will it add value?

I have chosen this subject to talk on this week, simply because many sellers have the false belief that leaving their personal property adds value to their home. And many do not even understand what is personal property. And most of them are not even aware that their personal items do not add to appraisal value. An appraiser will not appraise personal property. Lenders only lend based on appraisal value.

  Lets first discuss what is personal property. Personal Property is any item not affixed to real property. The Real Property is the Home or Land which is considered Real Estate. Personal Property can be several things; Refrigerator, furniture, curtains, lawn mower or any other numerous items.

So many times, sellers want to let their furniture stay with the property in order to get more for the home. But a lender does not lend money for personal property. So the buyer can only get the loan for the appraised value of the home. And since the appraiser does not appraise anything not affixed to the property, personal items are not included. These items in NO WAY increase value. The Buyer would have to pay for these items out of pocket. And in most cases, this does not happen.

Leaving a Refrigerator, does not add value, but by advertising that it stays with the home may be an incentive for the buyer to buy if the buyer does not have one.

You may be selling your Farm House or Acreage and you may no longer need your tractor where you are going. The Tractor does not add value by leaving it. But could be an incentive to the future buyer. Or you may just ask them if they would like to purchase it on the side. If not sell it to someone else.

Most sellers throw in their curtains, because they know where they are moving too, most likely the new home will have different size windows and they will not fit. Most buyers assume the curtains will stay. But that is not always the case. In most cases they are not fixed to the home and the seller has the right to take them if they so choose. Blinds on the other hand are fixed and they stay.

If it is screwed down, bolted down,wired in, plumbed in, cemented in or planted in the ground, it must stay. This even goes for plants. Once a buyer has seen the landscape, the seller can not go out there and dig up the plants and take them with them. A seller must state their intensions up front as to what does not stay. And the seller may be responsible for replacing that item with a comparable item.

Take for instance a chandelier. You the seller have installed a special one that means a great deal to you. Maybe it is an antique or passed down from family or what ever the reason. You can advertise that the chandelier does not remain with the property and will be replaced. This must be made known to the buyer up front. And the replacement must be operable. It must be able to pass a home inspection. And this really needs to be done before the appraisal to avoid conflict.

My suggestion to anyone wishing to sell their property and still maintain possession of fixed items just go ahead and replace those items before you ever list the property. This will avoid all future problems. And assures you, that you can keep those items that mean so much to you. And any items you wish to sell, have a yard sale or sell it yourself. Your Realtor, really has no way of selling personal property for you. They are not in that kind of business. They have to work with Lenders and Appraisers and deal with Real Property only. And FOR SALE BY OWNERS, Remember everything needs to be in writing. So if you are planning to take something, make sure to have the buyer sign something stating your intensions in advance. It is extremely hard to make something verbal hold up in court. That is why Realtors have so much documentation, to avoid conflicts.

Thank you so much for visiting my web site.. If you should have any question as to what is Real or Personal property and you need to know before you sell, e-mail me. I will send you an answer back quickly.

Lynn Rawlinson, Assoc. Broker, Realtor, ABR., CSP

334-467-5727

lynn.rawlinson@tricountyhomepages.com

www.lynnrawlinson.com

In the last segment I wrote about Preparing your Home to Sell. Staging takes place after that is complete. Staging is simply taking a Cold looking Home or room and creating a Warm Atmosphere. It is creating a look and or a feeling for the potential buyer. It can be accomplished in an assortment of ways. The intensity in which you need to stage a certain property or particular room depends deeply upon the type of buyers you are going to attract, the property and it's location.

   Let me give a few examples and see if you follow where I am going with this. And to make this a little harder for me, I am going to choose a room you probably have never even thought of. The Garage. Yes you can even stage a Garage. The garage is a special feature to a home. Maybe even most important to the man of the family. If the property for sale has a Garage you should not overlook that feature. And do not expect it to just sell it's self.

Here in this area, Fishing is very big here. So many people have boats or wish to one day have one. So even if the home is empty and you have already moved near by, you could still be able to store your boat in the Garage of the property you are trying to sell. It puts in the mind of a potential buyer that wants a boat, that their future boat will fit in that garage. And to a fisherman that is a strong feeling.  That also goes for younger people who enjoy other activities on the water.  If the property has an oversized Garage consider adding a  few items like a knee board, inner tube, skies if you have those available. If you are in serious need of selling the home, Hang a sign on the boat or jet sky and say " Buy this House and the Jet Sky comes Free" Say you do not live by the water but you are out in the country. How about a 4 wheeler out in the garage. You Live near a Golf Course, put your Golf Cart in there. Do You See Where I am Coming From? You have appealed to the buyers interest. Maybe you think, I do not have any of those things. But you have a deep garage that fits a full size truck and you have that. Most buyers want to know their vehicle will at least fit in the garage. There are so many tiny Garages that hardly fit anything. It helps to show it fits. Buyers do not have imagination, so it helps to create it for them.

Now lets take something easy. The Master bath. Do you have a garden tub or a jacuzzi? If so, then lets decorate it. This time lets appeal to the female buyer. How about a couple of candles, some bath soap, maybe a fancy towel. It is more than likely going to be used mostly by a female, so you would want to decorate to their liking.

You really do not have to spend a lot of money to stage a home. And mostly homes that are vacant need staging the most. Because without things, there isn't really anything to set the mood for the buyers. Something to really show the buyers what it would feel like or could feel like if they bought that home.

It can be as simple as setting a baseball, bat and glove in the corner of one of the spare bedrooms to create the feeling of a little boys room. Or a couple of Baby Dolls in the corner of the other room to show it as a little girls room. Thus this would appeal to a younger family. Can you now imagine how much this has warm these two empty bedrooms up, just by adding these couple of little trinkets?

If you are going to list your home for sale and you think there is the possibility that you may move before this home is sold. Consider a Realtor that provides home staging for their buyers that need or request it. It is a perk that not all Realtors provide. And it really can help a home sell. It especially helps a vacant home sell. It will look better in pictures. It creates imagination in buyers. And it appeals to their emotions and that is what drives them to buy. It is not all price tag. A home is a life style.

I stage homes all the time to get them ready to sell. It is an added incentive for my clients.  I do this in order to help people sell their homes in the quickest time possible and get top dollar for their homes. I offer advice as to how to stage the home while the seller is still in the home. And I stage Vacant properties as needed. Staging works. You really do not have to use that much money and you may already have most of the items needed that you could work with. Just invest a little thought into it. What did you really enjoy about the home when you lived there?  Or what appealed to you most about the home that made you decide to purchase? What do you think the buyers will like? What are the homes special features?

I hope I was informative enough on this subject. If you still  have any unanswered questions, please feel free to comment to this post, email me or pick up the phone and call. I will be happy to answer anything I can for you all. In today's market, sellers need all the help they can get. Thank You so much for logging onto my web site and I hope you will return again shortly.

Lynn Rawlinson, Realtor, Assc. Broker, ABR, CSP

Your real estate professional. Coldwell Banker Towne Realty

334-467-5727 (cell)

Fnd14u@aol.com (e-mail)