Home Prices & Sales of Newly Built Homes Increase

This Month in Real Estate…
Home Prices on the rise. Actually, on the sharp rise for sales of newly built homes. Recently the national housing reports the Standard and Poor and the Case-Shiller index was up 0.2% in December 2012 from November and 6.8% year over year. California cities posted strong increases. National home prices went up 7.3% so far this year, according to S&P/ Case-Shiller. The median price for newly built houses in January was $226,400. Also a report from the U.S. Commerce departments stated sales of newly built homes surged to nearly 16% in January. Historically low sales for new construction hit an all time low in 2011. Good news for new construction of homes. Another good sign of Recovery.

Thank you for Reading,
Gordon Inman

Tips To Determining The Perfect List Price

If you are getting ready to put your home on the market, then you know how difficult it can be to determine just the right list price. If you list too high, it will sit. If you list too low, you lose money. So what can you do to determine that just right list price?

Here are a few ideas that can help you decide on the perfect list price.

1. The number one best way to determine a good and realistic list price is to ask your realtor to perform a survey of the other houses for sale in your area. What were the actual sales prices versus the list prices. What are the list prices of the homes that are sitting stagnant on the market etc.

2. What is the average number of days on the market for the homes for sale in your area. You are going to want to price your home relative to other comparable homes in your area in order to get a sale. Otherwise, your home may sit on the market and you will lose time and money in the long run.

3. Study the list prices versus the sale prices. This will show you what other sellers think their homes are worth versus what the buyers for your area are actually willing and able to pay. This could work in your favor if homes are selling for more than their listing price because this indicates that your market is a seller’s market.

4. How much competition do you have. Don’t just look up and down your street or subdivision. Look at nearby areas that buyers may also consider. Additionally, don’t only think on terms of quantity, you must also consider the quality of those homes as well. If you live in a neighborhood that has many foreclosures, you may have some stiff competition when it comes to pricing. However, if your home is far superior and move in ready and you have set a reasonable listing price this could work in your favor.

5. Go to Open Houses in your area to gather information about their condition versus their listing price in comparison to yours and others in the neighborhood.

6. What is good about your neighborhood. Do you have a sought after school district or collage? Buyer demand should weigh heavily on how you price your home.

7. What time of year is it. In some parts of the country, you may be able to get more for your home in June than you would in October. Some people do not like to move during the school year. In addition, if you live where there is a lot of snow, then you will probably find it easier to sell your home during the time of year when there is no snow and it is easier to get around.

8. How motivated are you. If you need to sell your home quickly, then talk to your realtor about how to price your home to sell it more quickly. You want to sell it a little less than your competition, however, you don’t want to give away the farm!

If your home has been on the market for a while, or you have had lots of showings but no offers, it’s not too late to get it right.

Thanks for Reading,

The Inman Team

Questions You Should Ask Yourself Before Deciding On An Offer Price

One of the most difficult things about buying a home is deciding on an offer price. Our team are experts when it comes to deciding on a price. We take all information into consideration when we carefully choose our recommended price, but ultimately it is the sellers choice as to the final price decision.

Here are a few things you can ask yourself to help you decide on a fair offer price.

1. Stay calm and do not let the seller pressure you.

2. Check the recent market comparables for that area and look for what similar homes have sold for and why. How long did they take to sell. Ask your realtor to look beyond the comparables to find anything else that would better enable you to present and justify your offer.

3. How long has the house been on the market and why.

4. What is the condition of the home in comparison to others you have looked at in that area. If it is a fixer upper it may not qualify for certain financing.

5. What upgrades have or have not been done to the home. This will tell you what money you will or won’t have to spend later.

6. Look over the home disclosure very carefully for anything you may have missed initially.

7. How many other people are looking at the home and are there any other serious contenders. If there is competition for the home, you may want to consider offering the asking price or more just to secure the bid. Ask your agent to find out if there is any competition for that home and how serious the buyers are.

8. How badly do you want this home. If you have been looking for a suitable home for a while and have not found what you are looking for until now, don’t waste too much time trying to barter over a what will amount to a few dollars in the long run. You don’t want to risk losing the home to another buyer who slightly outbids you.

9. Set a max price offer ahead of time and stick to it.

10. Decide what you can comfortably afford. Allow for life events such as repairs and maintenance and potentially losing your job etc.

 Thanks for Reading,

The Inman Team

5 Risks of Real Estate

There are always risks that come with large purchases. You should not be fearful to buy Real Estate, but you should educate yourself on what kind of situations you may face and how you can prevent or deal with them.

1. Foreclosure. The risk of a foreclosure has recently become one of the biggest concerns for anyone considering home ownership. In an effort to avoid a foreclosure, you should work closely with your realtor to make smart mortgage choices, buy at a price you can afford, don’t use your home equity to finance frivolous things, make sure you have enough savings to carry you through a rough time and buy your home in a desirable neighborhood etc.

2. Spending more than you can really afford. Make a budget then stick to it. Especially when you are looking for a new home. Whatever you do, do not borrow more than you can realistically afford to pay back. You need to think ahead on this one – are you planning on having children or more children? Plan ahead about what you will do if you lose your job, repairs and maintenance for your home etc. You will need to make sure that you are not spending all of your income on your mortgage, not leaving enough money to put into savings for a bad day. Most mortgage companies have strict guidelines. So overextending yourself is less and less of a concern these days with the exception of unforeseen life events occurring.

3. Overpaying. Most people, after making an offer on a home, worry and wonder if they could have gotten a better deal. Would the seller have taken less? As long as you have been working closely with your realtor and done your homework with the area market comparables, then you probably have gotten the best deal possible. Most buyers are not going to accept lowball offers. There are always exceptions to this but your realtor more than likely knows when you can and can’t push it any further and will advise you of this before you sign the contract.

4. Buying a money pit. Almost everyone is a bit nervous when it comes to buying a home. However, that is what inspections are for. So don’t skip the home inspection process and you will have a lot less to worry about. You may also want to consider purchasing or asking the seller to provide you with a home warranty.

5. Losing your escrow deposit. You do have a period of time laid forth in the contract, that you can back out of the contract for any reason. However, you will lose your escrow deposit if you try to back out of the deal after that. At that point, the buyer has the right to keep your escrow deposit.

It is very important that you work closely with your Realtor throughout the buying process. This will help to lessen any potential risks you might encounter when buying a home and they can help you make smart decisions.

Thanks for Reading,
The Inman Team

About KW & Our Team

About Keller Williams Realty, Inc.:
Founded in 1983, Keller Williams Realty, Inc. is the second-largest real estate franchise operation in the United States, with 675 offices and almost 77,000 associates across the globe. The company, which began franchising in 1990, has an agent-centric culture that emphasizes access to leading-edge education and promotes an economic model that rewards associates as stakeholders and partners. The company also provides specialized agents in luxury homes and commercial real estate properties. For more information, or to search for homes for sale, visit Keller Williams Realty online at (www.kw.com). Information about Keller Williams Realty’s international expansion can be found at (www.kwworldwide.com).

About Our Team:
Gordon Inman
DRE# 00446156
O: 310-707-2133
Gordon Inman is the Broker/Owner of Keller Williams L.A. Harbor and Partner of Keller Williams Palos Verdes. He has been an expert realtor in the South Bay area for over 35 years. He obtained his Real Estate license in 1974. Born and raised in the Palos Verdes, San Pedro, and South Bay area. Gordon and his wife, Nancy moved to Rolling Hills in 1987. He has become an expert in the Rolling Hills area and has served on the Rolling Hills Architectural Committee for 15 years. His vast knowledge of Rolling Hills is often called upon by sellers and buyers and has made him one of the top agents in the area.

Gordon has formed a sales partnership with Keith Kelley. Gordon’s wife Nancy is the transaction coordinator. The Inman Team has achieved platinum awards from Keller Williams International and was recognized as the 3rd highest producing Team in the California Region. Our Team is also a member of the Keller Williams Luxury Divison.
Keith Kelley
DRE# 01810798
O: 310-707-2124
C: 310-944-5554
keith.a.kelley@gmail.com

Keith Kelley was born and raised in Southern California. After attending UCSB on a baseball scholarship, he moved to Seattle, WA where began his career in the mortgage industry as a loan officer. After living in Washington for 3 years while his wife attended Law School, Keith and his wife moved back to California where Keith became the in house lender for Keller Williams Realty in Rancho Palos Verdes. After 8 months of being the premier Loan Officer for both Keller Williams Realty offices in Palos Verdes, he joined Gordon Inman as a Realtor to grow The Inman Team. After joining the team in November of 2007, the team was awarded the Platinum Medal for production in his very first year, 2008. At the end of 2008 Keith was asked to become a member of The Agent Leadership Council whose job was to run the office and make decisions regarding the growth and stability of the office. In 2009, The Inman Team sold over $30,000,000 in homes, in which over $20,000,000 was in Rolling Hills alone, and was awarded the Platinum Medal for the second consecutive year for production. The Inman Team was also recognized as the 3rd highest producing team in the Southern California Region for all Keller Williams Offices. Keith added a technology aspect to the business which allowed the team to utilize technologies available to market properties to the fullest. In 2010 Keith contributed to the growth of the team in order to service more areas and be able to offer more home owners the unique experience and customer service that the team offers. Innovative marketing and sales techniques lead to the team receiving the Platinum Medal for production for the 3rd consecutive year as well as the second consecutive year as the 3rd highest producing team in the Southern California Region for all Keller Williams Offices. In his first 5 years of Real Estate he has been part of over $100,000,000 in sales.

Keith Kelley’s focus for the future is to expand our area of expertise by adding knowledgeable members to The Inman Team that have the same work ethic and knowledge we have. Another goal is to offer the unique marketing techniques and excellent communication and customer service to more buyers and sellers in more cities in the South Bay and Greater Los Angeles Area. Keith Kelley keeps himself up to date with new technologies and new marketing ideas to help clients get the most out of their home buying or selling experiences. He has studied the local market and knows values, neighborhoods and communities to help serve all clients to the fullest. The Inman Teams clients range for large business owners, attorneys, doctors, engineers, dentists, firemen, police officers, financial advisors and all other professions. Keith Kelley sells homes that range from $150,000 starter homes to $6,000,000 luxury homes or investment properties. Another area of this market that Keith has educated himself is short sales and distressed sales. He has become Pre-foreclosure Certified and has completed many transactions helping home owners out of difficult situations.

 Thanks for reading,

The Inman Team

Quick and Easy Decorating Tips

Here are a few quick and easy decorating ideas we recommend for anyone to use to transform your home.

1. Declutter and beautify your bookshelves. Go through everything on your shelves. Sort everything and organize it. Remove anything that does not enhance the look and add things that do. An organized space can go a long way to making things look clean and orderly.

2. Tile your kitchen backsplash. By installing some ceramic tiles to your kitchens backsplash is an inexpensive alternative to a kitchen remodel. This will give your kitchen a fresh updated look without the expense. This will take both weekend days to complete though. Because you have to allow for drying time.

3. Give your fireplace a makeover. Since you only use your fireplace a few months out of the year, you can use the rest of the year to use your fireplace as a focal point for the room. Just clean it out, then add some low maintenance plants that don’t require a lot of sunlight. Another great touch is actually painting the fireplace for a clean fresh look.

5. Add some crown molding. Crown molding will make a room look bigger than it actually is and is not that difficult to install. For the best results, use specially made corner pieces that will take away the need to cut a perfectly fitted mitered edge. Another nice touch is to install some chair railing or add some new, more modern baseboards while you’re at it.

6. Update your picture frames. You probably have many pictures on your walls that have accumulated over the years and no two are alike. So why don’t you take them all down and paint them all the same color so that they all look like they belong together. This is also a good way to add color to the room.

7. Replace your kitchen cabinet and drawer hardware. Your local hardware store has a wide variety of hardware to choose from. Unlike years ago when you were limited to gold and brushed nickel.For a bigger change, resurface your cabinets or DIY

8. Change your lamp shades. This is a great way to give your room a whole new look without having to buy all new lamps. If you prefer, you can add some fabric, beads or ribbons to your old lamp shades to give them a new look.

9. Pick a bedroom. Then add some paint, new curtains and a new comforter etc. Now you have a complete makeover for a very small price.

10. Add some new flooring. This can be easily done by adding some new area rugs or runners to the room. Or you might prefer some new vinyl flooring for your kitchen or bathroom. Vinyl flooring is a very inexpensive way to update your kitchen or bathroom.

Several Great Ways To Get Your Home Ready For A Quick Spring Sale

When a Buyer is searching for a home, some of those finishing touches will make a huge difference. Does your home have a fresh new coat of paint, are all the fixtures up to date? Little things like that can add major bonus points in your buyers eyes, especially if they’ve been searching and looking at multiple homes in the same price range. They are looking for the house where they can get the most out of their money. The home that has some extra care and pride will stand out from the rest who didn’t.

Here are a few things you can do to give your home those few extra touches that could make the difference between a sale or no sale.

1. Add a fresh coat of paint. Especially the trim and the moldings. Scuffs, marks and scratches on white trim really stand out. This is the easiest and least expensive thing you can do that will make the most impact.

2. Spruce up your front entry area. Paint your front door, install a new kick plate, a new door knocker, exterior hardware, new house numbers. Look around – how do the eves and shutters look etc.

3. Look at the area around your cabinets and drawers. Are they dirty, are there scuff marks? These areas are often overlooked by homeowners but you can bet a buyer will notice – guaranteed! Additionally, do your cabinet doors and drawers open and close properly, do they squeak, do they glide smoothly? These are just a few more things that a buyer is going to add to their list to devaluate your home.

4. When is the last time you thought about your HVAC system? Now is a good time to change the filter, clean the vent grills and make sure that there are no funny noises coming from your system that could be misconstrued as a serious problem.

5. How are your window screens? If your screens have holes in them, then have them rescreened.

6. What about your fence. Is it in visibly good condition? Make sure that there are no loose pickets and that the gate opens and closes easily and is not falling off the hinges .

7. Clean, clean, clean. Everything must be cleaned inside and out and from top to bottom. Look at places that you normally take for granted like under the sink, the garage, the drawers etc. The cleanliness of your home makes a bigger difference than you know.

8. Declutter. Pack up or get rid of anything and everything you are not using. This will make your home look and feel bigger and better to potential buyers.

9. Buy a new front entry mat. This makes a great first impression. The first thing a buyer sees will be your nice new entry mat and that will set the tone for the rest of the tour.

10. Put out some fresh flowers in as many areas as possible. This will add some color and a fresh clean ambiance to your home.

There are many things you can do to spruce up your home for a Spring sale and to help attract asking price offers.

The Inman Team
Your Expert Realtors of the South Bay

New Listing Coming Soon

Check out the gorgeous views from our NEW Rolling Hills listing coming soon!

4 Bedroom 4 Bath, with barn, riding ring, tennis court pool & views all on 8,000 sq. ft. in Rolling Hills.

Strategies For Generating Multiple Offers

In Today’s market getting multiple offers has been more difficult, but with an expert Realtor with an expert plan it can be done.

Here are a few tips and tricks our team uses to get multiple offers on our clients homes.

1. List low – auction style. Most sellers do the opposite. They list their homes at a higher price thinking they might just get that price. But ultimately they do more harm than good. If you list your home at a lower price point, you will bring in more buyers and more showings which in turn can create multiple offers. Each one trying to outbid the other knowing that you have multiple offers to choose from. This is a great way to get your preferred asking price for your home. Now we are not suggesting that you give away the farm but just to price your home slightly less than your competition to get that initial interest from many potential buyers at one time, creating a demand for your home. If you are selling your home take a look at your comparables, try to match your price just slightly under your competition.

2. Be very flexible when it comes to showing your home. If a buyer has several homes they want to look at and most of them are vacant or foreclosures and yours requires a 24 hour notice etc. you risk losing that buyer to another home that they looked at before yours. All because your home was not available for showing due to a 24 hour notice requirement. So loosen up your showing requirements and be ready to show your house on a moment’s notice.

3. Make sure your home is immaculate inside and out. That includes your basement, garage, crawl spaces etc. Everything! For our luxury homes, we like to stage the house. It allows for the buyers to see everything your home has to offer.

4. You must make a good presentation. Fresh paint, new carpet if it needs it. Check all small maintenance items such as doors, windows, stoves, faucets, the hvac system. Your home needs to be in move in ready condition. You must stand out above all of the other homes your buyer has looked at.

5. Revisions are good. If you initially overpriced your home and it has already been on the market for a while and you think you cannot implement some of these ideas well then think again.
It’s not too late to lower the price of your home below your competitors prices. You may then find that you have generated multiple offers. Now, due to the demand, you have gotten your original asking price. Because each offer is trying to outbid the other because they don’t want to lose the deal.

Their are so many ways to encourage getting multiple offers, always communicate with your Realtor about what your willing and not willing to do, from staging to a fresh coat of paint even the slightest change can make a HUGE differences.
Thank you for Reading,

The Inman Team
Gordon Inman & Keith Kelley
Your Expert Realtors of the South Bay