Realty Executives Midwest
1310 Plainfield Rd. Ste 2 | Darien, IL 60561
Office: 630-969-8880
E-Mail: experts@realtyexecutives.com

When you first put your house on the market, you might be hopeful for a quick sale—especially if you've put a lot of money into improving the house over the years and if the neighborhood is one that has historically attracted a lot of buyers. While you shouldn't panic if the house doesn't sell the moment you list it, you should begin to worry if the months start flying by without any real offers. If this is the case, here are 11 reasons why your house may not be selling.

1. You overvalued your property. If your house is overpriced, it's simply not going to sell. Compare your property to similar properties that recently sold within your area to get a better idea of its true value. An experienced real estate agent can give you an accurate value of your home. Additionally, don't make the mistake of tacking on the cost of any renovations you made. You can't just assume that the cost of a renovation translates to added value.

1. Your listing is poor. If the listing of your home includes a poorly written description without any images, a lot of buyers are going to skip over it. Make sure you and your REALTOR® put an effort into creating a listing that attracts the attention of buyers. Make sure to add high quality photographs of both the interior and exterior of your home. Don't forget to highlight unique features as well.

1. You're always present at showings. Let your agent handle your showings. Buyers don't want to have the seller lurking over their shoulder during showings, especially during an open house. This puts unwanted pressure on the buyer, which will make them uncomfortable and likely chase them away.

1. You're too attached. If you refuse to negotiate even a penny off your price, then there's a good chance that you've become too attached to your home. If a part of you doesn't want to sell it, or you think your house is the best house in the world, odds are you're going to have a lot of difficulties coming to an agreement with a potential buyer.

1. You haven't had your home professionally cleaned. A dirty house is going to leave a bad impression on buyers. Make sure you have a professional clean your carpeting and windows before you begin showing your house.

1. You haven't staged your home. If you've already moved out, then don't show an empty house. This makes it difficult for buyers to imagine living in it. Stage your house with furniture and decor to give buyers a better idea of how big every room is and how it can be used. You want the buyer to feel at home when they are taking the tour.

1. You kept up all of your personal décor. Buyers are going to feel uncomfortable touring your house if you keep all of your family portraits up. Take down your personal décor so that buyers can have an easier time imagining themselves living there.

1. Your home improvements are too personalized. You might think that the comic book mural you painted for your child's room is absolutely incredible, but that doesn't mean potential buyers will agree. If your home improvements are too personalized, it can scare off buyers who don't want to pay for features they don't want.

1. Your home is too cluttered. Even if your home is clean, clutter can still be an issue. For example, maybe you simply have too much furniture in one of your rooms. This can make the house feel smaller than it is.

1. Your home is in need of too many repairs. The more repairs that are needed, the less likely a buyer will want your house. Many buyers simply don't want to deal with the cost or effort of doing repair work, even if it's just a bunch of small repairs, such as tightening a handrail or replacing a broken tile.

1. You chose the wrong real agent. In my opinion, choosing the right real estate is simply the most important decision you make in selling your home.  A good REALTOR® makes all the difference in selling your home within a reasonable time.

All these things can be fixed once you realize your mistake; however, the longer your property stays on the market, the less likely it will sell at listing price. One of the best ways to avoid making these common mistakes is by working with a professional real estate agent.

Realty Executives Midwest
1310 Plainfield Rd. Ste 2 | Darien, IL 60561
Office: 630-969-8880
E-Mail: experts@realtyexecutives.com

Do you ever feel like your money is literally flying out the window? Parents have ribbed their kids about turning off the lights and closing the door for as long as there have been homes, but there’s quite a bit of truth behind one of the most common household pet peeves. Wasted utilities can be a monetary black hole in the budget of any family, and in many cases, the ways we’re wasteful aren’t always immediately obvious.

Thankfully, today’s smart home technology can enable every family to do some smart snooping for inefficient habits, and set up intelligent scheduling to keep a home comfortable while minimizing costs. Here’s some helpful advice to consider:

Keep an Eye on Your HVAC

Nothing can wreck an electric bill quite like an unusually warm summer or a brutally cold winter. No matter how you adjust your thermostat, it’s hard to find the right balance between a comfortable home and an affordable one.

Installing a smart thermostat can be a huge help to manage the cost of running the heat or air conditioner. Wi-Fi thermostats are affordable, simple to install, and they provide homeowners with valuable data and powerful tools to manage their home’s heating and cooling from anywhere.

If you’re facing colder weather, these thermostat systems can help you take an in-depth look at your heat pump’s runtime history to find the exact outdoor temperatures where expensive auxiliary heating kicks in. Some products even feature self-adjusting temperature settings that can cool down or heat up your home an hour or two before extreme weather rolls in, sparing your units from running in less than optimal conditions. Additionally, with remote access, it’s easy to lower the temperature or turn off the system if no one is home.

A few smart tweaks to your home’s heating and cooling settings can help you to better manage your electric bill.

Read Your Home’s Diary with a Smart Home Hub

A smart home hub is a great tool for a variety of reasons; it ties all of your smart home gadgets together in one interface, enables some really fun features through automation, and can even let you control your home with your voice. If you’re looking into your home’s financial efficiency, you’ll also find that their detailed daily logs can be a huge help in tracking down energy hogs and bad habits such as leaving lights or having an open window when the AC is blasting.

When you look over daily usage logs, keep an eye out for data on door/window sensors and smart lighting. Door and window sensors can clue you into who might leave doors open when they head off to school, or what windows have been left open at night. Your lighting system can give you a history on which lamps are left running for hours on end, and which fixtures are still active when the family is gone for the day.

Smart home hubs can be set up as part of a whole home security system through a security company or even your local internet service provider. The capabilities to manage your smart home devices remotely offer the ease and convenience to have better control on your home.  Keeping a finger on the pulse of your home can help you better optimize your daily habits and routines for more financial savings.

Check Your Mobile Connectivity

This applies to those who do not have an unlimited mobile plan. If your mobile connectivity is limited, make sure your device automatically connects to your home Wi-Fi whenever you are home. Also, make sure your device is streaming on your home Wi-Fi, especially if you are just within the perimeter, as your device may hop onto the wireless network which will eat into your limited plan.

Live Smarter on a Schedule

Once you get acquainted with your smart gadgets, take some time to set up schedules for different aspects of your home, which can save you some money.

Is your family typically gone during the middle of the day? Have your thermostat automatically  adjust the temperature (or turn off your HVAC) and your lights automatically shut off. Do you like to fall asleep with the lights on? Set up your bedrooms to dim automatically after bedtime. Have some forgetful roommates? Set your smart home app up to receive notifications when doors and windows are left open for more than 15 minutes or at unusual hours.

All it takes to save some money is a combination of the right gadgets and the right home automation. Having a smart home at your fingertips  offers conveniences and it’ll help you have a healthier bank account every month if you take some time to set things up .

This post is intended for informational purposes only and should not be taken as professional advice. The point of view and opinions expressed in this post are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the position of Realty Executives International.

This post was written by Eric Murrell. Eric is a software developer and technology contributor to?XFINITY?Home.?He enjoys sharing?tips on how people can benefit from incorporating smart home automation and security in their homes on his blog?At Home in the Future.??

Realty Executives Midwest
1310 Plainfield Rd. Ste 2 | Darien, IL 60561
Office: 630-969-8880
E-Mail: experts@realtyexecutives.com

It’s no secret every homeowner eventually wants to add value to their home. Not only does it boost the resale price, but it can create a more inviting and cozy space. When you stop and think about a home renovation, an overwhelming wave of stress overcomes you because all you can think about is the price tag. Well you’re in luck; adding value to your home doesn’t have to cost a fortune.

One good option to pay for your home updates would be to take out a low-rate personal loan. Since the duration of a personal loan is anywhere from 3 to 7 years, compared to a home equity loan which ranges from 20 to 30 years, you’ll end up paying way less in interest. Another alternative would be to apply for a 0% interest credit card to finance some of the smaller projects. Be wary, as it can be very easy to overspend when using a credit card. Set up automatic payments each month to chip away at the balance.

We’re not here to talk about a $40,000 kitchen remodel. Most people don’t have that kind of cash laying around. There are many inexpensive projects you can do around your home that will boost the financial worth of your home. Expect to spend around $300-$3,000 to complete some decent projects. Here are some great ideas for how to increase the value of your home at a smaller cost:

Give the Kitchen a Facelift

With a kitchen update, it can be very easy to get carried away. Before you know it, you blink and suddenly you’re $40,000 in the hole. While a full kitchen renovation is not going to be easy on your wallet, there are some small upgrades you can make to give your kitchen a facelift.

The kitchen is the heart of the house, and a house with a nice heart will generally sell faster than one with an outdated heart. One of the first things buyers tend to see when they step into your kitchen is the cabinets. While replacing the cabinets will run you a premium, there are several ways to give old cabinets some TLC and have them looking brand new. Hardware stores have kits ranging from $50-$100 that make it really easy to refinish your cabinets. After you re-paint or stain them, grab some new hardware and you instantly have a completely different feel to your kitchen.

Update the Bathroom

Just like a full kitchen remodel, a full bathroom reno can put a pretty big dent in your bank account. An updated bathroom can entice buyers and help sell your home quickly. A fresh coat of paint and some new accessories such as towels and other small décor items will improve the look and feel without costing a fortune. If you need to put in a little more work, changing out the vanity and toilet can be inexpensive options if you shop around at discount stores or the clearance section at your local Lowes or Home Depot.

Let There be Light

Outdated light fixtures can draw attention to certain parts of your house in a negative light. An easy way to add value to your home is to upgrade the main fixtures in your home. Like with many other home upgrades, you can easily get caught up in the excitement of redesign and end up choosing a $3,000 chandelier. However, if you shop around and browse online and in stores, these updates can only cost you a few hundred bucks. Much friendlier on the wallet.

Leave No Door Closed

If the doors in your home are in rough shape, replacing them is recommended. A new set of doors can run you a pretty penny, but if your current doors are salvageable, painting them would be sufficient. Replacing the door handles and a fresh coat of paint can give off a great first impression. If you can’t swing the cash to replace all of the doors in your home, a new front door can increase the overall value of your home since it’s the first thing that buyers see.

Freshen Up Curb Appeal

One of the most common mistakes sellers make is neglecting the curb appeal. Aside from the other improvements mentioned in this article, the outside of your house is going the be the first thing buyers see when they pull up to the property. With summer approaching, now would be a great time to shop around for new shrubbery and flowers. Simple things like mowing the lawn, raking leaves, and a few bags of fresh mulch can spruce up the appearance while staying within budget.

Making simple, inexpensive improvements to your home can reap some big rewards in the end. Investing a few hundred dollars can make the world of difference between selling your home quickly versus spending months on the market. What are your tips for home improvements on a budget?

This post is intended for informational purposes only and should not be taken as professional advice. The point of view and opinions expressed in this post are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the position of Realty Executives International. This post was written for Realty Executives by Jamie Wharton. Jamie loves to write about personal finance and enjoys educating others on financial management. She has a goal of making budgeting fun for everyone and loves a good thriller novel while enjoying an iced coffee.

Realty Executives Midwest
1310 Plainfield Rd. Ste 2 | Darien, IL 60561
Office: 630-969-8880
E-Mail: experts@realtyexecutives.com

Realty Executives Midwest
1310 Plainfield Rd. Ste 2 | Darien, IL 60561
Office: 630-969-8880
E-Mail: experts@realtyexecutives.com