When to put your house on the market in Dallas

The best time of year to put your house on the market in Dallas can be determined by looking at sales over the past several years. This fantastic graph from Hexter-Fair Title Company shows the seasonal sales since 2004 for North Texas.

June is typically the busiest month for sales. Which means that May is the month that the most homes will go under contract. Working back from there, you just need to know the average Days on Market for your neighborhood. If most homes take 60 days to sell, then place your home on the market in March and hope for a June closing.

While many other factors will determine if your house sells - primarily price, location and condition - it is wise to think of TIMING when selling your home. And you can see from the chart that the time of year does make a difference.  [where: 75230]

Try to build something today

A news about an ark being built in Kentucky and the red tape they encountered reminds me think of this story ...

God came to Noah today and said: "Once again, the earth has become wicked and over-populated, and I see the end of all flesh before me. Build another Ark and save 2 of every living thing along with a few good humans." He gave Noah the blueprints, saying: "You have 6 months to build the Ark before I will start the unending rain for 40 days and 40 nights."

Six months later, the Lord looked down and saw Noah weeping in his yard - but no Ark. "Noah!," He roared, "I'm about to start the rain! Where is the Ark?"

"Forgive me, Lord," begged Noah, "but things have changed.
I needed a Building Permit.
I've been arguing with the Boat Inspector about the need for a sprinkler system.
My neighbors claim that I've violated the neighborhood by-laws by building the Ark in my back garden and exceeding the height limitations. We had to go to the Local Planning Committee for a decision."

"Then the Local Council and the Electricity Company demanded a load of money for the future costs of moving power lines and other overhead obstructions, to clear the passage for the Ark's move to the sea. I told them that the sea would be coming to us, but they would hear nothing of it."

"Getting the wood was another problem. There's a ban on cutting local trees in order to save the Greater Spotted Barn Owl. I tried to convince the environmentalists that I needed the wood to save the owls - but no go!"

"When I started gathering the animals the SPCA took me to court. They insisted that I was confining wild animals against their will. They argued the accommodations were too restrictive, and it was cruel and inhumane to put so many animals in a confined space."

"Then the Environmental Agency ruled that I couldn't build the Ark until they'd conducted an environmental impact study on your proposed flood. I'm still trying to resolve a complaint with the Human Rights Commission on how many minorities I'm supposed to hire for my building crew. Immigration is checking the Visa status of most of the people who want to work. The trades unions say I can't use my sons. They insist I have to hire only Union workers with Ark-building experience."
"So, forgive me, Lord, but it would take at least 10 years for me to finish this Ark."

Suddenly the skies cleared, the sun began to shine, and a rainbow stretched across the sky. Noah looked up in wonder and asked, "You mean you're not going to destroy the world?"

"No," said the Lord. "The Government beat me to it."

Dallas Home Inventory January 2011

When listing your home for sale, it is important to research the level of current inventory, also known as 'the competition'. When inventory is low, the laws of supply and demand make your property more appealing. The reverse is true when inventory is high.

In Dallas, a 6 month or less supply of homes indicates a seller's market. A 10 to 12+ month supply of homes indicates a buyer's market. Everything in between is a balanced market.

Keep in mind that in the past year we've seen some markets and price ranges with a 5 year inventory of homes for sale. Below is a report of current inventory of homes for sale in our area:

North Dallas (south of LBJ, between Midway and Central):
Inventory:   11.2 months
Avg Days on Market: 129
Median Sales Price:   $538,000

Park Cities:
Inventory:   10 months
Avg Days on Market: 121
Median Sales Price:   $865,500

Northeast Dallas (east of Central):
Inventory: 6.8 months
Avg Days on Market: 64
Median Sales Price: $254,040

Northwest Dallas (west of Midway):
Inventory: 7.7 months
Avg Days on Market: 71
Median Sales Price: $198,000

Far North Dallas (north of LBJ to Plano, Central to Marsh):
Inventory: 8 months
Avg Days on Market: 81
Median Sales Price: $271,000

Intown/Condos/Townhomes
Inventory: 14.5 months
Avg Days on Market: 115
Median Sales Price: $219,200
[where: 75230]

Home Security - WiFi

Would you leave your front door unlocked 24 hours a day? Too many folks are doing something almost as dangerous.
Wireless home networks are everywhere. If you drive or walk your neighborhood with your iPad or iPhone WiFi connection turned on, you'll likely find dozens of names, many of them listed generically as 'home', 'linksys', 'netgear', or simply as the owner's last name. And many of these networks are unprotected.

If you've noticed your home internet wireless connection running slower, you might want to check out this article titled "How Can I Find Out If Someone's Using My Wireless Network." It offers excellent advice on protecting yourself and shows you how to see if people are leeching your internet connection.

You should protect your network (and the data on your computer) just like you lock the door of your house.
http://lifehacker.com/5738123/how-can-i-find-out-if-someones-using-my-wireless-network   [where: 75230]

Support this Preston Hollow patrol

The Preston Hollow North HOA enjoys a 24 hour police patrol due to the support of it's members and the community. And while this fantastic service benefits those homes between Preston and Hillcrest, the added police presence is an bonus to the neighborhoods surrounding them. One way to support these neighbors is through the Tom Thumb Good Neighbor Program.

Using your Tom Thumb Reward Card, you not only save on your grocery bill, but they give 1% of what you spend to non-profit organizations like the Preston Hollow North HOA. What a nice and easy way to lend your support to a charity.

All you have to do to help is fill out the form above, add your reward card number, sign it and turn it in at any Tom Thumb. Your reward card number is printed at the bottom of your cash register receipt.

Remodel your Fireplace

A statement fireplace can give a room the 'wow' factor. One of the best ways to transform a typical Dallas family room is to reface the fireplace. This video shows how to do it yourself - or hire a good handyman to do it for you - at a very reasonable cost.

If you aren't handy with tools, it may be harder than this video makes it look. But with instructions like "Cuts like butter" and "If you've ever wiped the nose of a toddler, you'll be good at this" - I'm ready to get out the saw. The best part? It can be done in just one day!  [where: 75230]

How to Protest Your Dallas Property Tax Assessment

Even though it seems like yesterday when you paid your annual property taxes - it's not too early to start thinking about your next tax bill.

While there are many reasons for protesting a property tax assessment, the most common is when a home owner feels that the proposed value of theirr home is too high. And given the previous year's sales, this may be the case for many. Protests must be filed in writing and the deadline for the 2011 tax year is May 31.

Since your protest should include documentation that supports your market value position, including photographs of any items needing repair, now may be the time to start documenting those items. If you have recently bought your home, then you should provide a copy of your closing statement and/or a fee appraisal if one was done for financing purposes. If you have not recently purchased your home, you should provide sale comparables from a real estate professional familiar with your neighborhood.

As a Realtor active in the Dallas market, I'm happy to prepare a Comparative Market Analysis, which provides information on the value of comparable homes, for friends and clients. But usually you need to call me early. Even though the deadline is four months away, it will be here before we know it!

You can find additional details on how to file a protest in Dallas County at http://www.dallascad.org/ .
[where: 75230]

Relying on Luck

Luck,

whether good or bad,

never gives.

It only lends.

Get your appliance rebate now

Love my new energy efficient stainless steel refrigerator. Purchased on sale at Lowe's, they delivered and hooked it up, then hauled away the old one for recycling. I'm expecting to get a nice $250 rebate through the Texas Appliance Mail-In Rebate Program.

If you're thinking of taking advantage of the rebate program, you'd better get on it quickly. As of today, the program has approved $5,238,745 in rebates. They have about $4.4 million in rebate applications awaiting validation and estimate that about $8.8 in funds remain in the program. At that rate, they should be out of funds by February.

I'm going to miss my refrigerator magnets, but they aren't making the move to the new one.

Refinance or Recast your mortgage?

"Recasting" is an uncommon strategy for cutting mortgage payments but is a useful option for some homeowners. The New York Times recently ran an interesting story on the concept of "recasting" as a means of lowering mortgage payments. From the article:

"A little-known strategy, called "recasting," or "re-amortization," is available through some mortgage lenders and servicers. It involves paying off a lump sum of the principal amount and asking to have the monthly payments reset according to the original interest rate and loan terms. The lump sum reduces the principal, so your new monthly payments decrease slightly and you save on interest paid over the life of the loan."

One of the biggest appeals of recasting is that it typically involves no (or a small) fee and doesn't include the credit requirements of refinancing. To learn the details of recasting read the full article click here.    [where: 75230]

North Dallas market already picking up in 2011

Typically our real estate market picks up after the holidays. And this year it is taking off like a rocket. Here are the numbers:

I'm currently am marketing 5 active listings in MLS and 2 'hip pocket' properties not in MLS. We've had a total of 22 showings this week for these 7 properties. That's an average of 3 showings a week per property. And the day isn't even over yet.

Compare that to 2010, where we averaged about 2 or 3 showings a month for each property. This level of buyer interest beats anything I've seen in the past 2 years. The lease market has been hot and now the selling market is picking up. It will be interesting to see how many offers follow this level of interest.  [where: 75230]

Real Estate Stats - trends in 2010 and looking ahead to 2011

Looking back at the 2010 Real Estate trends gives us some indication of things to come in 2011.

The 2010 NAR Profile of Buyers and Sellers shows that buyers and sellers are optimistic about the future real estate market. According to this recent nation survey, home buyers are taking a more long-term view of home ownership, as compared to the phenomenon of rapid home turn over in the past several years. Most home sellers are reporting positive returns (over what they initially paid) when selling their homes. And the vast majority of homeowners still believe their homes are good investments.

On average, 2010 sellers reported that they owned their home for eight years before putting it up for sale, versus an average of seven years of ownership reported in 2009. First-time buyers said they plan to stay in the home they've purchased for at least 10 years. Repeat buyers (non first-timers) planned to hold their new property for at least 15 years.

Also, 2010 sellers who purchased their property eight years ago averaged a gain of 24%. Sellers who owned their home for 10 to 15 years had an average gain of 40%.

Not surprisingly, the report showed that sellers who purchased at the height of the housing market (about 3 to 4 years ago) and had to sell, were hurt by recent price drops. House flipping has virtually disappeared in today's market which is a dramatic drop from three years ago when 30% of sellers had owned their property for fewer than three years.

In response to why people are buying real estate, 31% said they wanted to invest in owning their own home. Other reasons given were needing more space, job relocation, affordability and the the home-buyer tax credit. The tax credit is responsible for the increase in first-time home buyers from 47% in 2009 (when the tax credit began) to a record 50% of all home sales in 2010.

This explains why the average price of homes sold is lower than in year's past. In 2010, the typical first-time buyer spent $152,000 on a 1,540 square foot house. The median age of first-time buyers was 30 and the median income $59,900. The average 2010 buyer searched for a home for 12 weeks and looked at 12 homes before purchasing.

In 2010, the median age of home sellers was 49 with an average income of $90,000. Most sellers stayed nearby and moved an average distance of 18 miles. About half of the sellers moved up in home size, 21% moved down in size and 28% bought a comparatively sized home.

The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) economic forecast for 2011 predicts a modest but sustained growth of 2.5% in the gross domestic product. This stat is important because it is a primary indicator of the country's economic health. The CBO report indicates that significant economic downturns often launch the start of robust recoveries.

Since consumers have postponed purchases, especially for housing and durable goods, businesses have delayed capital spending and cut inventories. Once the economy and demand picks up, business and consumer spending can increase rapidly. I look for signs in consumer confidence to tell us how quickly that will happen. [where: 75230]

Early peek at 2010 real estate statistics

Happy New Year! I hope 2011 is off to a great start for you. In 2010, more than anything, we learned that real estate is a very local business, and we are fortunate to live and work in one of the strongest economies and housing markets in the nation. 

Here are the 2010 Preliminary Sales stats for North Texas:

Existing Single Family Homes
Number of Sales:  59,033 (down 7% from 2009)
Average Sales Price:  $194,402 ( up 5% from 2009)
Average Days on Market: 78 ( down 2%)
Number of Active Properties for Sale: 38,696 ( up 4% from 2009)

Condo & Townhome Sales
Number of Sales: 3,406 (down 5% from 2009)
Average Sales Price: $174,720 ( unchanged from 2009)
Average Days on Market: 99 ( down 3%)
Active Properties for Sale: 3,757 ( down 2% from 2009)

As soon as the final statistics are in for 2010, I will post a report that includes sales trends for North Dallas and areas south of LBJ. We see tremendous opportunities ahead – some of the best many of us will ever have as home buyers or investors. And sellers should be encouraged, also, as truly motivated consumers are looking to take advantage of historically low mortgage interest rates and affordable prices.

As always, the key to success is to enter the market fully informed, and fully empowered, to make wise decisions.   [where: 75230]

Home Evaluation through someone else's eyes

When you are thinking of selling your house, it's a good idea to get an expert opinion before putting it on the market. You need an honest assessment of your house through someone else's eyes.

One of the values of hiring a Realtor includes that person's advice and expertise on making your home more appealing to buyers. A good agent has toured the homes for sale in your area and price range and they know what buyers expect from your property. How does your property compare to the current competition?

Below are some Home Evaluation questions your agent should answer.

When comparing this property to others in this area and price range, please rate the following on a scale of 1 to 5 (with 5 being the best and 1 being the worst):

Then please give suggestions on the lowest ranking items.

Look for some honest answers and be receptive to advice that you may not want to hear. One of the hardest aspects of my job is telling people something negative about the home that they love. Often I hire a professional stager or designer to evaluate the property and make suggestions. Most of my clients are such nice people and I hate to hurt their feelings. But I wouldn't be doing them any favors to keep information from them that could help sell their home faster or for more money.

I wouldn't want my doctor to withhold news that I have a disease for fear of upsetting me. Would you want to find out that everyone hates your wallpaper (that you could have easily removed) after your home has lingered on the market for 9 months?

Honesty and trust work both ways. Be forthright with your agent about your desires to hear their candid, unbiased opinion. It could help you both get closer to your goal of getting your house sold.