Prepare Your Home for the Holidays with these Decorating Tips!

Selling your Grand Rapids home? Get a free home value report

Buying a Grand Rapids home? Search all homes for sale

The holidays are approaching. Today, we thought we'd do something a little different and share this festive video on holiday decorating tips from HGTV. Designer Angelo Surmelis shares several great ideas to spread holiday cheer throughout the home. Here are some of our favorites.

1. Pay attention to the mantle. If you don't have some already, buy some kind of garland to drape over the mantle. Next, use leftover ornaments and candles to add light and texture. When choosing ornaments and candles, ensure they are in the same color-palette. This helps make your mantle a great focal point!
2. Use smaller Christmas trees. Every house has their main Christmas tree. In addition, you can also purchase smaller, inexpensive, eco-friendly trees to place throughout the home. Decorate these trees with strips of fabric from a T-shirt in holiday colors to save money for the main tree.
3. Use what you have. Be resourceful. Adding a plate charge and place mat to your everyday dining set adds some jazz to your table. Fresh-cut flowers and candles will help finish the look. You don't need grand, expensive candles -- a little candlelight goes a long way!

As you can see, it doesn't take much to make your home feel more festive. If you have any questions, give us a call or send us an email. We would be happy to help you!

What All First-Time Home Buyers Should Know

Selling your Grand Rapids home? Get a free home value report

Buying a Grand Rapids home? Search all homes for sale

Being a first-time homebuyer is very exciting, but there are a few things you should know and questions you should answer before starting the process. We’ve got the information for you today, and are happy to share it with you. Before starting the process of buying your first home, you need to:

• Know what financing is best for you. If you can qualify for certain programs through the state of Michigan, you may be able to get a $7500 grant. There are also financing programs from the USDA and VA that don’t require any down payment.
• Know what you are looking for. What area do you want to live in? How many bedrooms/bathrooms do you want? What amenities do you need? Answering these questions will allow us to set up a profile for you on our home search website, which will only send you the listings that match your criteria.

Once you’ve found your dream home, we can go through it, take a look at everything, and advise you on where you should make an offer in the current market. It’s that simple!

If you have any questions for us, or are looking to buy a home in Grand Rapids, don’t hesitate to give us a call or send us an email. We look forward to hearing from you!

We Have Clients to Buy Your Grand Rapids Home!

Selling your Grand Rapids home? Get a free home value report

Buying a Grand Rapids home? Search all homes for sale

This fall is a great time to be in the real estate market. Values are jumping right now, and it's a great time to sell. If you or anyone you know is thinking of selling, we have eager buyers looking for homes.

Let's go over our buyers. We have three buyers in the Wyoming panhandle looking for homes in the $200,000 to $350,000 range. We have two buyers looking in Grandville for a home priced between $100,000 and $220,000. We have a buyer in Jenison looking for a property priced between $100,000 and $165,000, and another in the Wayland area looking for a property with an acreage, barn, and possibly woods priced between $200,000 and $250,000.

We also have two buyers interested in waterfront property, and they are open to negotiation on the price.

If you or anyone you know is interested in selling their homes, please give us a call or send us an email. We look forward to hearing from you!

How Can You Get Top Dollar for Your Grand Rapids Home?

Selling your Grand Rapids home? Get a free home value report

Buying a Grand Rapids home? Search all homes for sale

When selling, most homeowners want to know what they can do to get the most money for their home.

Not long ago, I went to a friend's house, looked at their home, did all the measurements, and determined that their home is worth a maximum of $155,000. I then gave them some staging tips, did some professional photography, and got the house ready to show. Over the next couple days, we generated multiple offers and a bidding war.

Once a few great offers were submitted, I told the potential buyers to go back and send in their best offer. This resulted in an incredible offer of $160,000! This was fantastic, as the friends I was helping had a dream of getting a new home; they wanted something beautiful for their family. The next day, we went out and bought a house for them that was exactly what they wanted!

This story demonstrates why now is a great time to take advantage of the market. Interest rates are fantastic, at around 4%, but they won't remain that low for long. If you want to take advantage of this fantastic market, please don't hesitate to reach out to me. I would love to hear from you!

Why Aren’t Millennials Buying Homes More Frequently?

Selling your Grand Rapids home? Get a free home value report

Buying a Grand Rapids home? Search all homes for sale

One thing we know for certain about the real estate market is that it is never going to stay the same for long. Today we want to talk about an interesting trend we’ve noticed in real estate: millennials are waiting longer to purchase their first homes than their parents did.

The typical first-time buyer now rents for an average of 6 years before buying a home, which is up from 2.6 years in the early 1970’s, according to Zillow.

We came across this great video on the topic from CNBC. Here are my three biggest takeaways from the video.

1. Down payments are a huge factor

Renters in today’s market are struggling to save for down payments and qualify for mortgages. Most first-time buyers still depend on personal savings for at least some of their down payments, but rising rental prices have complicated the task of socking away money for a down payment.

2. Rising rental rates are complicating things as well

Rental rates are causing 46% of renters aged 25-34, to spend more than 40% of their incomes on rent, up from 30% a decade earlier.

3. Job security is important to millennial buyers

The Money Source, a mortgage lender, examined applications from 5,404 millennial buyers and found that these buyers averaged nearly 4.5 years in their field of work and had held their current job for slightly more than three years. Those figures point to how critical career stability is to a younger generation.

Thanks for joining me today. If you want to read the full article, click above. Otherwise, give me a call or send me an email if you have any questions. Talk to you soon!

Why Won't Your Grand Rapids Home Sell?

Selling your Grand Rapids home? Get a free home value report

Buying a Grand Rapids home? Search all homes for sale

We have had an exciting summer in real estate here in Grand Rapids. Although a lot of people have been successful selling their homes in this market, some have not. If you are one of those who has been trying to sell their home without success, today we are going to talk about the top 3 reasons a home doesn't sell in our market. 

Pay attention to these things, and you should have the answer to your problem. It could be one or all three of these:

1. Improper Staging- Your home may have a smell to it or look crowded when somebody else walks in. We can help identify this problem beforehand so you don't run into it during showings.
2. Photos have to be amazing- Your home will be viewed online thousands of times before it is viewed in person. We have a professional photographer on staff who does a great job at making our listings look great online.
3. Pricing- The home has to be priced in accordance with the market in order to sell. You can't price it too high because it won't get any offers. When we come in and lower the price of your home, it creates demand, and the home sells much quicker.

If you need to know what your home is worth or if you have any other questions for us, feel free to give us a call or send a quick email. We would be happy to speak with you!

How Can You Spruce Up Your Living Room on a Budget?

Selling your Grand Rapids home? Get a free home value report

Buying a Grand Rapids home? Search all homes for sale

If you are looking to sell your home, your goal is to get the most money possible in the shortest amount of time. One of the best ways to add value and appeal to your home is through home staging. You have a lot of options for how you want to go about it. You could hire a professional staging company, but that comes with a hefty price tag.Most of the time, a few simple fixes is all it takes to transform a living room. 

Today we are going to go through some of our most favorite, inexpensive home staging tips or you. We hope these will help you save both time and money when it comes time to sell your home.

A fresh coat of paint is always a good idea. Neutral, warm colors work best for highlighting the natural light in your home. This will make it easier to punch up the room with some colorful accessories and pull everything together.

A common design problem facing many homeowners is that they have no real entry way, as their front door opens up to the living room. To fix this, you can add a table, some lighting, and a rug to "fake a foyer" and make it feel like the living room and entryway are two different spaces.

A patterned rug, some pillows, or bright curtains add a ton of texture and an eclectic layer to the space, which is essential to a well-designed room.

In some cases, a "make-under" is just what you need. In the case of most fireplaces, taking some accessories and clutter away enhances the look and feel of the room greatly.

You could spend well over a few thousand dollars with a staging company, or you could do these fixes yourself for around $500. That's a small investment considering the value that you add to your home by adding those pieces.

If you have any questions for us about staging your home or anything else real estate related, give us a call or send over a quick email. We are always here to help, and would love to hear from you!

What is a Short Sale?

Selling your Grand Rapids home? Get a free home value report

Buying a Grand Rapids home? Search all homes for sale

Do you know what a short sale is? It's essentially when you owe more on a home than what it is really worth. For instance, if you owe a bank $200,000 and the home is really only worth $150,000. 

How can I help you in a situation like this? I can help you in communicating with the bank in regards to what your situation is, in order to help them understand what might be happening. 

What I'll also do is ask the bank to re-appraise the home, and if the home appraises out at $150,000, the bank will likely approve of the short sale and that debt will be forgiven. 

In one case, a client of mine had a home that the bank valued at $350,000, but it only sold for $175,000. The bank actually forgave the difference and so it worked out very well.

If you know of anyone that's stuck in a short sale, please refer them to me because I would love to help get them out of that rut.

As always, please consider me as your #1 sources for Grand Rapids real estate!

3 Things You Should Know About Grand Rapids Real Estate

Selling your Grand Rapids home? Get a free home value report

Buying a Grand Rapids home? Search all homes for sale

Hey everyone, today I wanted to talk to you about 3 things that have been happening lately in Grand Rapids Real Estate. Here they are:

1. It's a hot market right now, but people are paying way too much for homes. If you find a home you want to make an offer on, give me the address. I can analyze it for you and tell you what it's really worth, and what you should be paying for it.

2. Make sure you get the home inspected. I have great inspectors who can check everything from head to toe in your home to make sure it's in proper working condition. 

3. You can't forget the home warranty either. We have partnered with a home warranty company who will cover your home on all major items for 1 year. 

If you are looking to buy or sell in Grand Rapids or know somebody who is, give me a call or send me an email. We look forward to hearing from you!

What Is Your Grand Rapids Home Really Worth?

      

Selling your Grand Rapids home? Get a free home value report

Buying a Grand Rapids home? Search all homes for sale

Hey everyone, thanks for visiting my blog once again. I've met with five homeowners in the last month, who have all given me their Zillow estimates on what their home is worth. I have sold all 5 of those homes, and for quite a bit more than what their Zestimate originally said they would. If you are looking to sell your home, make sure you give me a call so I can come out to take a look at your home and give you its true value. 

One question I've been getting a lot lately is, "What is the best way to buy a foreclosure?" Well, there are a few different kinds, and I have experience with all of them, including HUD homes, VA foreclosures, short sales, and more. If your dream is to buy one of these types of homes, give me a call. I would love to help you with that as I have recently started marketing these types of homes. 

If you have any questions, feel free to reach out to me via phone or email. I look forward to hearing from you!

How Can I Serve Your Real Estate Needs in Grand Rapids?

Selling your Grand Rapids home? Get a free home value report

Buying a Grand Rapids home? Search all homes for sale

I'm extremely excited to be back with you today, and to announce that the last month at Keller Williams Rivertown has been one of the best in my entire real estate career. We've sold 9 listings at or above listing price, and seven of our buyers found great homes in Grand Rapids. 

However, last month I sent an email out that required you to ask questions, so now I'll be answering them for you today.

Erin in Hudsonville wanted to know how to avoid paying too much when making an offer on a home. This is a great question, and what I do is look at comparable sales in the area, as well as determine the age of the roof, furnace, and plumbing. If you meet with me, I can give you much more advice on how to avoid overpaying on a home. 

Wendy from Grandville asked me how to determine the best mortgage program for her particular situation. When you meet with me to discuss this, I'll ask you how much you want to spend per month, how much you can put down, and how your credit is looking. Once I have that information, I can refer you to the right loan officer.

Toby and Byron asked what they should do to their home now that they've decided to sell it. There are numerous things to be done when you're selling, but when I come out to the house I'll take a look around and tell you what needs fixing. Everyone's home is different, but usually a thorough cleaning, repainting, and maybe some slight renovations can help improve the value of the home before a sale. 

Once again, if you need assistance buying or selling real estate in Grand Rapids, then please don't hesitate to contact me. I can answer all of your questions and your experience with me should be as painless as possible.

How we helped Julie prepare her home by using our connections

"I enjoy working with Larry Martin. He knows a lot of people in the community, so he has many useful connections! He's been my Realtor for about nineteen years. There were certain things I had to do with my house to make sure the mortgage went through, and he connects you with someone who can get the job done!"

Where Is Your Grand Rapids Home Value Heading?

If you're a prospective buyer in the Grand Rapids area and are in search of your essential home, search all homes on the MLS, or if you're wanting to place your home on the market, don't hesitate to obtain a free home price estimation tool. If you have any questions, or desire any preliminary information about the Grand Rapids real estate market, feel free to contact me at (616) 532-7200.

Hey there, everyone. Today I wanted to announce that I have switched companies, and am now working with Keller Williams Rivertown. I am now located on Canal, just north of 44th.

I am very excited to be joining the Keller Williams family. Their dedication to great technology and awesome marketing has us really excited about what this year will bring.
 
Recently, we saw a report that shows home values in Grand Rapids have surpassed their highest market value in 2006, the peak year before the crash. If you're interested in taking a look at what your home may be worth in this market, feel free to give me a call or send me a quick email. I look forward to hearing from you soon!