During 40 years of working in real estate, one issue keeps popping up over and over again: residential real estate. Naturally, clients seek advice for one of the most significant financial decisions of their lives. Purchasing the right home is about finding a place for putting down the roots of a family.
For some clients, of course, the motivation is different – their belief is in the fact that buying a house can boost their investment portfolio. And this is easy to see why.
Homes for sale in Spring Hill, Tennessee and Spring Hill Apartments have spiked in prices and are showing less signs of slowing down. Also, the unsettled equity market environment is there as well. We know that various indexes are floating around out there, causing some people to believe that residential real estate could be the best alternative.
Now, in your case, whether you want a place to live in or you’re looking for an investment opportunity, Springhill Reality would like to update you about the important variables for selling or buying a home – variables your real estate agent will not tell you about.
We at Springhill Reality believe that when the picture is clear, it makes buying and selling easy. The trust and relationship that’s required between an agent and client on either side should not be compromised with hidden details. Consider the following and choose your real estate wisely:
1 – Dispel the Myth: Your Home is Not an Investment
Never believe in this – home is not an investment, but a place to live in. There’s no question to the fact that healthy home ownership provides a huge support to the economy. Let’s explain this to you in a better way; what you essentially buy is a piece of land, since the structure can depreciate over the course of a few decades and would require repair, worth hundreds of thousands of dollars. So a house you bought in Spring Hill Tennessee worth of $250,000 might get sold for $500,000 after some 20 years. The return will not be as significant as it should have been, due to inflation and upkeep costs etc.
2 – Ironclad Protection is Not Offered by Sale Contracts
Remember that each and every house, whether new or old, will have material defects. Although these defects are normally reflected and disclosed in the sale price, the standard language of real estate contracts gives buyers much more leeway for prying more money out of sellers, even after the deal has been made. So if you are to sell your home, do add a real estate lawyer for your future protection against attempts of clawing back money.
3 – Don’t Expect Home Inspectors to Always be Unbiased
The majority of home inspectors generally fail at reflecting the actual cost of required repairs. The reason is very simple: real estate agents don’t want the costs to show. A thorough insight of the depreciating asset would simply kill the sale. This is why home inspectors are brought into the picture, so the jobs of real estate agents are not made challenging. It’s recommended for home buyers to use their own home inspectors and also contractors for providing accurate estimates.
4 – Commissions are Easily Negotiable
If some listings receive multiple cash offers, it can easily border on insanity for a seller to pay real estate agents a commission of 5–6%. Although the job is commission based and the commission is well deserved, good real estate agents take the right level of compensation. Just understand that you will need to negotiate down the commission.
5 – You Might Hate Your Neighbors
Although location is the most important factor for real estate, do not ignore the neighbors. Especially if you are planning on buying a condo, pay special attention to the neighbors, since the walls can be as thin as a paper.
