Tag: old house

Saying Goodbye To Your Home

Posted on by Living Room Realty

As you say goodbye to the history, the moments, the treasures shared, all of your ‘first experiences’ in your loving abode, it helps to remember that a new person will enter the door after you’ve gone and create their own beautiful memories.  The house that held you will now hold another.  I know first hand what it feels like to leave a house you have poured your heart and soul into. I think that we fear that where we are going won’t be as good as where we have been. I know I felt that last year when I sold my own home. What I learned is that a ‘home’ goes with you where ever you go. Its about the love inside the walls.

****My client shared this note left on the kitchen counter from a husband who knows she’s going through a tough time saying goodbye ****   (I know some of you out there can relate)

I can I just say these were another set of my favorite clients EVER!!

 

Old Home Gets Love it Deserves with New Owners

Posted on by Mel Marzahl

Annabelle and Fabiana contacted me to help them sell their 70s, updated ranch in Hillsboro, and also to buy their next home. I knew selling their home would be a breeze with a few cosmetic updates. (See their listing here) My only concern was finding them their next home with such low inventory! As sellers, they got to reap all the benefits of the strong seller’s market we have right now. Especially in the suburbs! They got multiple over asking offers and closed at 9% over their asking price! As buyers though, they were in the tough spot of having to compete for the few great homes on the market.

Selling and Buying

We navigated this sell-buy process by asking anyone making an offer on their home to please include a free 30-day rent back. This means that all the potential buyers would allow Annabelle and Fabiana to stay in their home an extra 30 days after closing so that they would have more time to find and close on their next home. Every offer we received included a rent-back of some kind. Annabelle and Fabiana were happy to have the flexibility, and the extra cash from the great offer, to make their move.

We toured a few homes, but with so few on the market that matched what they needed, our search was actually relatively short. They lucked out by finding a home that had just come back on the market and making an offer right away. It was in an unusual location on an unimproved street, so that limited their competition as well. The home has more space than they originally thought they needed, and the location works great for getting to work and school. Their offer was accepted right away and we moved forward with the purchase!

Old Home Getting the Love it Deserves

The home that Annabelle and Fabiana chose is over a hundred years old and perched up off the street on a little hill. It had gotten some updates done here and there but it is in need of some bigger updates. During the inspections, they found a number of items that needed repair immediately. Luckily, the sellers were willing to work with them on those things. The sellers had a new roof put on the home and garage before they closed, and they also provided a credit for the cost of a new sewer line. Since I was able to sell Annabelle and Fabiana’s home for so much more than they were expecting, they were left with some extra cash to make additional repairs!

Annabelle and Fabiana have big plans to rebuild the supports for a sagging, enclosed, back sunporch and to repair a beautiful, covered front porch. They also plan to install new windows on the main level replacing cracked and dry rotted single-pane windows. They will also update some electrical items for safety, and update the bathrooms and appliances to modern standards. The house has a certified front yard habitat, and they are looking forward to maintaining the garden and growing their own fruits and vegetables, something they did at their previous home as well.

This 100 year old home is in great hands with its new owners. I saw how beautifully they cared for and maintained their previous home, so I’m sure this one will be just as well-loved. I am so happy for Annabelle and Fabiana and can’t wait to see how they give this home a new life!

Congrats Annabelle and Fabiana!

My Neighbor Got Wind I’m Selling My Home. Should I cut Out My Agent?

Posted on by Living Room Realty

The phone conversation:

“Oh, my gosh guys. Guess what? My neighbor got wind that I’m selling my house –I think they noticed you over at the house meeting with painters and contractors, and now they have expressed interest. They told me that we can avoid paying real estate fees if we work a deal privately. Ugh! What should I do? I mean, I know we had a plan to go to market and you are making the house look so nice, I mean that mural you are painting on my fence looks incredible, but I could save commissions. I feel stuck.”

 

**** The above scenario has happened to me twice this week. Twice. That’s how crazy hot the Portland market is right now. It’s cut-throat. I’ve been in these situations so many times over my lengthy real estate career. The first time it happened, I wished to hit my client over the head with a frying pan and listen to the sound reverberate like it does in the cartoons. But I have learned to pause and explain my worth – see below ****

 

My answer:

People are always eager for an opportunity to save money, but you’ve got to ask yourself what benefit the potential buyer gets, and what’s in it for you.
In my experience, it’s usually one of two situations.
In the first, and most likely, the neighbor is likely trying to get a deal by paying less than market value. Note that it couldn’t be that they expect to save paying real estate fees themselves as the buyer doesn’t typically pay the fees, the seller does (though of course most sellers do factor in fees when determining their bottom line).
In the second situation; they simply aren’t serious. They’re testing the waters, and that’s a lot easier to do without a motivated real estate agent working to complicate things for them. If you put your plans to list on the market on hold and they then change their minds, you’re left holding the bag. If you have a potential buyer like this, tell them to make an offer when your property is listed on the market. It’ll make life easier for both of you.
Last month, we were preparing to list a home in close-in SE Portland. Just before we went to market, a friend to my seller approached her to try and work out a deal. One that would put agents aside and be potentially headache free. My sellers loved the idea of selling their home to their long-lost friend. We talked about the options, whether they could do their own paper work, was the buyer really serious, did they understand disclosures etc… Ultimately, our clients offered the home to their friend for $580,000 a tad less than what we were going to put it on the market for. The friend balked at the price. They had never broached what the price would letting their enthusiasm overtake the ‘business side’ of the transaction. The buyer-friend was hoping to get the home for much less. Imagine the emotion involved when the high-fives didn’t get thrown around.

We then took the house to market, worked the property quite hard and received 6 offers. The house is selling for $48,000 over asking. Far higher than our clients would ever have dreamed it could sell for.
It comes down to this: Work equals value, and skilled work equals higher value. A real estate agent is working for you, bringing their skill, experience and reputation to the transaction.

 

Fun with Vintage Flooring

Posted on by Alyssa Starelli

Ever climbed into an attic room and found an original true linoleum “art rug” preserved for perpetuity? Maybe, you walked down into a dark basement, hit the lights and a crazy quilt pattern of asphalt or vinyl composition tiles or polished stones greeted you? Or perhaps, your agent (hopefully me) merely popped the front door to a vast wonderland of SHAG carpet?

A 2013 study conducted by the National Association of Realtors found that 54% of buyers were willing to pay more for homes decked out in hardwood. And in 2019, new wood flooring ranked as the #4 most popular project to attract potential buyers, right below kitchen-related projects and HVAC replacements. Wood flooring is any product manufactured as timber flooring that is designed for use as flooring, either structural or aesthetic. Wood is a common choice as a flooring material and can come in various styles, colors, cuts, and species. Timber flooring is a product of nature. It’s also commonly known as wood flooring and hardwood flooring in the market. Timber flooring is a product that manufactured from timber to provide warm and an easy feeling on the feet. Timber flooring that constructed with more than 1 layer of wood.

If you’ve ever shopped for a home, I’m pretty sure this has happened to you!  As a REALTOR® specializing in mid-century and “period-perfect” time capsules, I’ve been documenting floors for some time.  These are floors from houses 1890-1980 in the Portland Metro Area.  Watch for my post on Wall Papers, next!

Here are some of my collection:

And a few random floors, just for fun: