How Touring Open Houses Helped Me See My Own Home in a Whole New Light By Jillian Pretzel Aug 14 2019

Want to learn how to sell your house? Simple: Put on your buyer hat and tour a bunch of homes for sale in your area.

Walk through two identical homes and see the difference. Good staging could offer a huge advantage.  Before you move everything out,  it is important to keep at least some of the best things. Buyers will have a hard time picturing eating their meals at a table they can’t see, or imagining falling asleep in a bedroom without a cozy-looking bed.

Walking into an open house, it can be hard not to look at the owner’s sense of style before anything else.  You may be unpleasantly distracted by an outdated dining room table, or gaudy light fixtures.  

Once you start looking at modern, expertly designed homes, you may notice that none of your furniture really went together and that the accent wall you love so much is a bit outdated.

Kitchen cabinets and bathroom vanities wouldn’t cost too much to update, and when the time comes to sell, buyers would be more willing to pay top dollar with those updates—so they are worth the added expense.

Look out in the yard.  Is the patio furniture inviting or beat up?  Is it worth having to show potential buyers?

An hour of your time looking at Open Houses may provide you with the right ideas to make your home more inviting and sell for more money.  For the whole story on why you would want to go to Open Houses go to bmre.us/hint7

What Is Fair Market Value and How Much Is a Home Is Really Worth By Kimberly Dawn Neumann Aug 12 2019

Whether you’re buying or selling a home, one question that’s always front and center is the price: How much is a home worth? 

A home’s fair market value is the price it would sell for in a perfectly logical world—one where both home buyer and seller are acting of their own free will (in other words, they aren’t desperate to make a sale) and are reasonably aware of a home’s good and bad points, and where the buyer could just as easily choose a different house that suits her needs better.

A home’s fair market value is comparable to a home’s market value—what it would fetch on the open market—but is used in special circumstances where the concept of fairness is important to evoke so that the home’s sales price carries more weight.

Here are some circumstances where you’ll likely hear about the fair market value of a home:

• Property tax assessments
• Home insurance claims
• Refinancing a home loan
• Estate sales
• Eminent Domain
• Short sale—this is when a home is worth less than the owners owe on their mortgage.

To determine fair market value, a licensed appraiser gathers and measures the qualities of a home, such as its square footage, condition, similar homes in the area, neighborhood, market conditions, and other factors. The appraiser’s information is used by lenders, attorneys, insurance companies, and other agencies to estimate a home’s market value.

To learn more about fair market value go to bmre.us/tip6

How Much Are Closing Costs and How to Reduce Closing Costs By Judy Dutton Aug 20 2019

When you get a mortgage to buy a home, you’ll have to pay closing costs: These fees, paid to third parties to help facilitate the sale of a home, typically total 2% to 7% of the home’s purchase price. So on a $250,000 home, you can expect the amount to run anywhere from $5,000 to $17,500.

Both buyers and sellers typically pitch in to cover closing costs, although buyers shoulder the lion’s share of the load (3% to 4% of the home’s price) compared with sellers (1% to 3%). And while some expenses must be paid upfront before the home is officially sold (e.g., the home inspection fee when the service is rendered), and others, like property taxes and homeowners insurance, are recurring, most are paid at the end, when you close on the home and the keys exchange hands.

Home buyers pay the majority of these costs, since many of these fees are associated with the mortgage.

Here are some of the fees home buyers should brace themselves to pay:

• A loan amount origination fee, which lenders charge for processing the paperwork for your loan.
• A fee for running your credit report.
• A fee to underwrite and assess your credit worthiness.
• A fee for the appraisal of the home you hope to own to make sure its value matches the size of the loan you want.
• A fee for the home inspection, which checks the home for potential problems from cracks in the foundation to a leaky roof.
• A fee for a title search to unearth any liens on the property that could interfere with your ownership of it. Title insurance protects the lender and buyer from claims against the home and property.
• Taxes, also called stamp taxes, on the money you’ve borrowed for your home loan.
• Private mortgage insurance is an additional fee that buyers can expect to pay if they can’t come up with a down payment that’s 20% of the purchase price.
• Discount points, or mortgage points, are fees paid right to the mortgage lender in exchange for a lower interest rate. One point is valued at 1% of your mortgage total. It may seem like lot to pay upfront, but doing so will lower your monthly mortgage payment.
• One-time fees may also include: document recording fees for the deed and mortgage, buyers’ attorney fees, real estate agent commission.

Buyers should also account for the following:

• An escrow deposit, managed by a neutral third-party escrow officer, covering typically two months of prepaid property taxes and mortgage insurance payments.

How much can sellers expect to pay?

Here are the fees that sellers are typically responsible for:

• A closing fee, paid to the title insurance company or attorney’s office where everyone meets to close on the home
• Taxes on the home sale
• A fee for an attorney, if the home seller has one
• A fee for transferring the title to the new owner

For information on how to estimate or even reduce closing costs go to bmre.us/tip5

Selling Your Home then Don’t Neglect These 7 Maintenance Tasks or Else By Wendy Helfenbaum Feb 1 2018

We’ve got news for you: Just because you’re selling doesn’t mean you’re off the hook from routine maintenance tasks—and that’s especially true if you’ve already vacated the house.

Sure, a well-cared-for house shows better: Small things like broken doorbells and leaky faucets make buyers wonder if your property also has bigger issues elsewhere. But more important, a little routine maintenance can help you avoid a catastrophic problem down the line (e.g., burst pipes, roof leaks, critters moving into your attic) that could devalue your property and derail that sale.

• Whether you’re still living at the home or not, you’ll want to make sure to keep your landscaping tidy—remove dead tree limbs, rake leaves, and clean out flowerbeds.
• Overflowing gutters can damage your foundation, and also lead to drainage issues. 
• Have your HVAC systems professionally serviced.
• Be sure to have the chimney inspected and cleaned as well.
• Inspect the inside and outside of your home for any areas that need to plugged up.
• Wash your windows
• Do the seasonal tasks such as clearing away lawn mowers in the fall and storing shovels in the spring.

For more information on how a well cared for home shows better go to bmre.us/hint5

How Much Does It Cost To Build a House and Is It Cheaper to Buy or Build By Margaret Heidenry Aug 23 2019

How much does it cost to build a house? According to data from the National Association of Home Builders, the median price of constructing a single-family home is $289,415, or $103 per square foot.  Just keep in mind that the cost to build a home can vary widely.

• The shell of the house, which includes walls, windows, doors, and roofing, can account for a third of the home’s total cost, or $95,474.
• Interior finishes such as cabinets, flooring, and countertops can eat up another third of the budget, averaging $85,642. 
• Mechanical—think plumbing and heating—runs around 13%, or $37,843.
• Kitchens and bathrooms are the most expensive rooms to build, especially when the average cost for finishes like cabinets and countertops alone is $16,056.
• Architect and engineer drawings will run about $4,583.

• The cost of a plot of land to build on varies. That said, the average home is built on only 0.2 acres, so unless you want a lot of space in a highly desired neighborhood, that alone won’t break the bank.
• Excavation and foundation work are by far the most variable cost when building a home.   In other words, you never know what you’re going to find until you start digging—be it bad soil or massive boulders. If excavation and foundation work goes relatively smoothly, the average cost for both is $33,447.
• You’ll need a building permit, of course—it averages $908 nationally.
• Other costs you’ll incur before you hammer even one nail include land inspections ($4,191) and an impact fee, levied by the government to cover the costs a new home will incur on public services like electricity and waste removal ($1,742).

Is it cheaper to buy or build a house?  You can buy an existing single-family house for a median price of $223,000, or $66,415 less than building one. You will also save yourself the headaches that inevitably come with construction.

There are trade-offs, however.  For more information on buying vs building a home go to bmre.us/tip4

Will They Dig It How to Keep Your Perfect Landscaping From Scaring Off Buyers By Wendy Helfenbaum Sep 11

For many buyers, a beautifully landscaped yard with show-stopping curb appeal can seal the deal.  As it turns out, there are indeed some buyers who might take one look at your sprawling outdoor oasis and think, “It will take a ton of work to maintain all of this!”

Many home buyers looking for yards that don’t require a lot of maintenance, a lot of younger, first-time buyers don’t want to be home all day gardening or dealing with the lawn.

You want your yard to say, “Sit down, have a cold beverage and relax,” rather than, “Please weed me.”  Make sure trees and shrubs are trimmed.  Divide overgrown plants, so your garden looks neat instead of needing attention. And lose the whimsical gnome statues, tacky lawn ornaments, and noisy wind chimes in your garden that won’t let buyers imagine themselves in that space.

Maybe you do have lush landscaping—but perhaps you’ve also figured out an efficient way to take care of it. If so, point this out to buyers. For example, noting that the large flower bed consists of easy-care plants and an in-ground irrigation system tells buyers that they won’t have much to do—and ends up being a perk.

For more tips on presenting your yard go to bmre.us/hint4.

Home Buyers Reveal What I Wish I Had Known Before Buying My First Home By Stephanie Booth Jan 23

In an effort to clue you into some of the challenges you’ll face as a first-time home buyer, we asked some folks who’ve already gone through the ringer to spill what they wish they’d known earlier, that would have saved them a ton of time, effort, and tears. Here’s to hoping their 20/20 hindsight will help pave your own path to home-ownership.

You can’t get pre-approved by plugging in simple numbers on a mortgage calculator. You need an experienced lender who will take a detailed history and require documentation of your assets and income. This is the only way you’ll establish if you qualify for a mortgage and for how much.

It looks perfect, What could go wrong? The home inspection, that’s what.  No matter how nice a home looks, a home inspection is the only way to make sure you aren’t buying a lemon.

Buying a home requires you to stay on top of your to-do items, especially during the escrow process where there may be penalties for missing a deadline. Prime among this is the three-day requirement to send in your deposit. Miss that and you may miss out on the deal.

A lender can make or break a deal, so choose wisely. One of the main things to look for besides the loan rate is the responsiveness of the lender. They need to move fast or the deal may fail.  Your Realtor knows the track record of lenders in our area.

It’s tough not to get disheartened while house hunting. Competition is fierce, and you need to prepare yourself for the long haul.

You may need to adjust your criteria so more possibilities are opened up. In the meantime, “keep making those offers. One of them will get accepted.”

For more information on what to expect when looking for your first home go to bmre.us/tip3

How Much Is Homeowners Insurance? The Cost for Different Types of Homes by Margaret Heidenry | Sep 1, 2019

How much is homeowners insurance? It’s a question with answers that are going to vary for each homeowner, depending on the size, age, and condition of the home, as well as the deductible and liability coverage. But know this: No matter how safe and secure you feel in your home, it’s a fact of life that bad things can happen at any time—floods, fires, sinkholes, theft. And that’s why buying home insurance is a must. But how much does homeowners insurance cost? The average annual premium runs about $1,083, but a bunch of unique factors can go into calculating a specific quote, and that information could help you get a lower home insurance rate in some cases. Got it? Go to bmre.us/tip2 for more information.

What Sellers Should Expect When Closing On a House

Ah, closing on a house. It’s the finish line! You’re almost home free (or free of your home in this case). You’ve accepted the buyer’s offer, the negotiations are finally winding down, and there is only one more little box to check: closing.

OK, so maybe it isn’t a little thing. And maybe you’re a little bit worried something is still going to go wrong when closing on a house. That’s why we’re here to help get you through closing without a hitch—or barely a hitch (hey, stuff happens).

So check the approved offer, make a note of any repairs you and the buyer agreed on, and get to it—and don’t forget to cover yourself. Save receipts from items purchased and invoices from contractors, and take before and after photos of any work completed. You will have proof that repairs were completed on the off chance that the buyers contest them during the walkthrough or at closing.

Before your closing —often 24 hours or right before—the buyers and the buyers’ agent will do one more walkthrough of the house (for which you should not be present).

If things are going smoothly, the closing for you might boil down to a blur of paperwork.  Unless problems creep up—or the buyer wants to negotiate further—you only have two jobs: waiting and reading documents.  

Once the negotiations are handled and the papers are signed, the buyers’ funds are transferred to your attorney, who will handle the payments to cover your loan and pay your real estate team. Thankfully, this part is handled by someone else.

And then comes the best part: You’ll get a check for the remainder! For more details about the closing process go to bmre.us/hint2 

Home buyers will, at times, be their own worst enemy when it comes to buying a home.

Stop Making Excuses! Busting the Most Common Reasons for Not Buying a Home

was written by Terri Williams for realtor.com on Sep 4, 2019.

Owning a home means you can build equity, take advantage of tax deductions, and partake in a little something called the American dream. For the past couple of years, the U.S. homeownership rate has hovered around 64%. But there’s also a considerably large pool of renters in the country who have plenty of reasons for not buying. And some of those explanations are totally legit: Financial, economic, or personal limitations can prove that now is not the right time to buy. But we know an excuse when we hear one.

We get it—investing in real estate is a huge commitment. It’s scary and exciting all at the same time. But what if buying actually is in the realm of possibility?  Go to bmre.us/tip1 and learn more about owning your own home!

Color Trends From the 2019 Maison & Objet Design Show

Sellers should think about classic neutral colors that may be easy for the buyer to paint over for their own taste.  Agnès Carpentier has a September 10, 2019 article. 

Color Trends From the 2019 Maison & Objet Design Show

If you’re ready for a change from white, gray or a single bold hue, you’ll like this news out of the Paris trade fair.

Sweet Harmonies of Beige, Taupe, Greige, Honey and Fawn are back.

These colors are timeless classics rather than novelties. However, there’s no better way to spice them up than to combine shades of these colors. Taupe (and onward through the spectrum to brown) has made a big comeback, and there are also mustard yellow, fawn and sienna. These reassuring palettes inspire cuddling up under a blanket! bmre.us/hint1

Tracking your home related espenses

Owning a home means having a place that’s safe and secure to come back to after a long day at work, every day, forever, until you decide it’s time to buy a different home. In exchange for all this homeiness, all you have to do is keep all the broken bits together, maintain the grass and track home-related expenses.

Oh yes. If you don’t do a little bookkeeping, the tax man gets his and more. Might as well keep that cash as not, right?

Why You Should Track Home-Related Expenses

Your primary residence isn’t an investment, this has been said time and again (especially since the market crashed entirely), but that doesn’t mean that when you go to sell you have to take a loss. Far from it.

In fact, as of the writing of this article, you’ll likely qualify for a tax exclusion (meaning you won’t pay taxes on this amount of profit from your home sale) of $250,000 if you file on your own or $500,000 if you and your spouse file your taxes together. But, if you sold and there was more than the applicable amount in gains, you’ll have to pay taxes only on the profit above the mark. When you have all your ducks in a row, it gets a lot easier to see what side of that line you stand on.

Reducing Your Tax Burden is the Goal

When your gain from your home sale exceeds your tax exclusion, there are two ways to help improve the situation with all those receipts you’ve been saving (you have been saving them, haven’t you?). First, you can deduct expenses related to selling your home, provided these are not expenses that affect the house physically. Think closing fees, brokerage commissions, and some seller-paid closing costs.

The other way to reduce your capital gains burden is to produce records that account for your extensive remodeling. These are the kinds of projects you definitely need a hand with. They include, but are not limited to:
    Adding an additional room
    Upgrading your kitchen
    Replacing flooring
    Having new landscaping installed
    Putting on a new roof

The best part? These don’t have to be from the same tax year as when you sold. If you added that bedroom three years ago, pony up the receipts and reduce your tax burden. Unfortunately, regular home maintenance isn’t included on this list of ways to save a few dollars. Make sure you keep those receipts separate.

Get a Little Help From Your Friends

Keeping track of your personal finances, let alone the expenses related to your home, can be a daunting task. There are so many ways to pay these days and so many different kinds of things to pay for. This is the very reason, though, that you must be even more careful when tracking home-related spending.

Everybody has their own system, to be sure, but some are clearly superior to others. For example, if your plan is just to toss a bunch of receipts in a bucket until you get around to sorting them and manually recording each one, you may want to look into something a bit more efficient.

Even an Excel workbook is out-modeled these days, but there are several different types of apps you can use to help track your expenses, including:

Complete personal finance apps. Popular apps like Mint and Wally are essentially full personal finance packages that happen to store receipts. While you can give these apps permission to grab you bank information from a variety of banks all at once, you may end up with enough data that it’s a trick to find those old receipts down the road.

Dedicated receipt storage. Shoeboxed, Receipts by Wave and Expensify are far more focused on the receipt part of your financial picture. All allow you to photograph and upload the receipts in question, can export the data you collect as a variety of reports and have a cloud-storage option, so you don’t have to worry that you’ll lose your receipts if you change phones or need to reload your operating system. PS. BTW, Shoeboxed will actually take that bucket of receipts and process them for you if you mail them in.

Receipt storage designed for homeowners. 

Not to toot our own horns, but toot toot. HomeKeepr allows you to scan your receipts in and helps you track home-related expenses automatically. All you need to do is snap a picture of your receipt and the software does the rest. You can then sort your receipts by the service type or business so you can see at a glance how much you’re spending on your project. Unlike other receipt trackers, HomeKeepr can track and maintain records for related items like appliance manuals and maintenance tasks that are due for your home.

Are You Ready to Invest in Your Home This Year?

May 2019 Real Estate Market Report Bridget Morrissey

East Lyme Realtor Bridget Morrissey presents the East Lyme Real Estate Market Activity Summary for the month of April 2019. It shows that there were 18 homes sold and 14 are pending. There were 103 active homes for sale in East Lyme in April. Ten units were sold in 0-30 days, one in 31-60 days, two in 61-90 days, two in 91-120 days, one in 121-180 days, one in 181-365 days and one took over a year to sell. For the entire East Lyme Real Estate Market Report from East Lyme Real Estate Agent Bridget Morrissey please click HERE.

Groton Realtor Bridget Morrissey presents the Groton Real Estate Market Activity Summary for the month of April 2019. It shows that there were 21 Groton homes sold and 17 are pending. There were 163 active homes for sale in Groton in April. Eleven units were sold in 0-30 days, five in 31-60 days, one in 61-90 days, none in 91-120 days, none in 121-180 days, one in 181-365 days and three took over a year to sell. For the entire Groton Real Estate Market Report from Groton Real Estate Agent Bridget Morrissey please click HERE.

Gales Ferry Realtor Bridget Morrissey presents the Gales Ferry Real Estate Market Activity Summary for the month of April 2019. It shows that there were 48 Gales Ferry homes for sale and 4 Gales Ferry homes for rent . The Median Listing Home Price in Gales Ferry was $219,000. On average, homes in Gales Ferry sell after 93 days on the market. For the entire Gales Ferry Real Estate Market Report from Gales Ferry Real Estate Agent Bridget Morrissey please click HERE.

Ledyard Realtor Bridget Morrissey presents the Ledyard Real Estate Market Activity Summary for the month of April 2019. It shows that there were 18 homes sold and 23 are pending. There were 59 active homes for sale in Ledyard in April. Five units were sold in 0-30 days, four in 31-60 days, two in 61-90 days, two in 91-120 days, one in 121-180 days, three in 181-365 days and one took over a year to sell. For the entire Ledyard Real Estate Market Report from Ledyard Real Estate Agent Bridget Morrissey please click HERE.

Mystic Realtor Bridget Morrissey presents the Mystic Real Estate Market Activity Summary for the month of April 2019. It shows that there were 145 Mystic homes for sale and 6 Mystic homes for rent . The Median Listing Home Price in Mystic was $335,000. On average, homes in Mystic sell after 98 days on the market. For the entire Mystic Real Estate Market Report from Mystic Real Estate Agent Bridget Morrissey please click HERE.

New London Realtor Bridget Morrissey presents the New London Real Estate Market Activity Summary for the month of April 2019. It shows that there were 12 homes sold and 10 are pending. There were 69 active homes for sale in New London in April. Five units were sold in 0-30 days, one in 31-60 days, four in 61-90 days, none in 91-120 days, none in 121-180 days, none in 181-365 days and two took over a year to sell. For the entire New London Real Estate Market Report from New London Real Estate Agent Bridget Morrissey please click HERE.

Niantic Realtor Bridget Morrissey presents the Niantic Real Estate Market Activity Summary for the month of April 2019. It shows that there were 104 Niantic homes for sale and 14 Niantic homes for rent. The Median Listing Home Price in Niantic was $289,900. On average, homes in Niantic sell after 86 days on the market. For the entire Niantic Real Estate Market Report from Niantic Real Estate Agent Bridget Morrissey please click HERE.

North Stonington Realtor Bridget Morrissey presents the North Stonington Real Estate Market Activity Summary for the month of April 2019. It shows that there were 3 homes sold and 4 are pending. There were 26 active homes for sale in North Stonington in April. No unit was sold in 0-30 days, one in 31-60 days, none in 61-90 days, none in 91-120 days, none in 121-180 days, one in 181-365 days and one took over a year to sell. For the entire North Stonington Real Estate Market Report from North Stonington Real Estate Agent Bridget Morrissey please click HERE.

Norwich Realtor Bridget Morrissey presents the Norwich Real Estate Market Activity Summary for the month of April 2019. It shows that there were 26 homes sold and 33 are pending. There were 107 active homes for sale in Norwich in April. Nine units were sold in 0-30 days, six in 31-60 days, none in 61-90 days, one in 91-120 days, seven in 121-180 days, two in 181-365 days and one took over a year to sell. For the entire Norwich Real Estate Market Report from Norwich Real Estate Agent Bridget Morrissey please click HERE.

Pawcatuck Realtor Bridget Morrissey presents the Pawcatuck Real Estate Market Activity Summary for the month of April 2019. It shows that there were 55 Pawcatuck homes for sale and 6 Pawcatuck homes for rent . The Median Listing Home Price in Pawcatuck was $267,500. On average, homes in Pawcatuck sell after 72 days on the market. For the entire Pawcatuck Real Estate Market Report from Pawcatuck Real Estate Agent Bridget Morrissey please click HERE.

Preston Realtor Bridget Morrissey presents the Preston Real Estate Market Activity Summary for the month of April 2019. It shows that there were 5 homes sold and 3 are pending. There were 17 active homes for sale in Preston in April. Three units were sold in 0-30 days, none in 31-60 days, two in 61-90 days, none in 91-120 days, none in 121-180 days, none in 181-365 days and none took over a year to sell. For the entire Preston Real Estate Market Report from Preston Real Estate Agent Bridget Morrissey please click HERE.

Stonington Realtor Bridget Morrissey presents the Stonington Real Estate Market Activity Summary for the month of April 2019. It shows that there were 11 homes sold and 10 are pending. There were 131 active homes for sale in Stonington in April. Four units were sold in 0-30 days, one in 31-60 days, one in 61-90 days, one in 91-120 days, none in 121-180 days, one in 181-365 days and three took over a year to sell. For the entire Stonington Real Estate Market Report from Stonington Real Estate Agent Bridget Morrissey please click HERE.

Waterford Realtor Bridget Morrissey presents the Waterford Real Estate Market Activity Summary for the month of April 2019. It shows that there were 25 homes sold and 13 are pending. There were 139 active homes for sale in Waterford in April. Twelve units were sold in 0-30 days, seven in 31-60 days, none in 61-90 days, three in 91-120 days, none in 121-180 days, none in 181-365 days and three took over a year to sell. For the entire Waterford Real Estate Market Report from Waterford Real Estate Agent Bridget Morrissey please click HERE.

Charlestown Realtor Bridget Morrissey presents the Charlestown Real Estate Market Activity Summary for the month of April 2019. It shows that there were 9 homes sold and 35 are pending. There were 49 active homes for sale in Charlestown in April. Three units were sold in 0-30 days, one in 31-60 days, two in 61-90 days, none in 91-120 days, one in 121-180 days, none in 181-365 days and two took over a year to sell. For the entire Charlestown Real Estate Market Report from Charlestown Real Estate Agent Bridget Morrissey please click HERE.

South Kingstown Realtor Bridget Morrissey presents the South Kingstown Real Estate Market Activity Summary for the month of April 2019. It shows that there were 41 homes sold and 52 are pending. There were 103 active homes for sale in South Kingstown in April. Eighteen units were sold in 0-30 days, eleven in 31-60 days, five in 61-90 days, two in 91-120 days, one in 121-180 days, two in 181-365 days and two took over a year to sell. For the entire South Kingstown Real Estate Market Report from South Kingstown Real Estate Agent Bridget Morrissey please click HERE.

Westerly Realtor Bridget Morrissey presents the Westerly Real Estate Market Activity Summary for the month of April 2019. It shows that there were 23 homes sold and 38 are pending. There were 82 active homes for sale in Westerly in April. Seven units were sold in 0-30 days, eight in 31-60 days, four in 61-90 days, two in 91-120 days, one in 121-180 days, none in 181-365 days and one took over a year to sell. For the entire Westerly Real Estate Market Report from Westerly Real Estate Agent Bridget Morrissey please click HERE.