Long Beach Real Estate Blog

In 2008, we are still in a buyer’s market in Long Beach and Southern California. A buyer’s market means that there is more inventory available for sale than the number of homes. So, you, the home seller have to become more aggressive in your pricing and condition of your home; things that you have control over. that we are in a buyer’s market it becomes very competitive for you the home seller.

My Long Beach House is Better Than Your Long Beach Home

After many properties to our buyers, our agents on the team, kind of feel like home owners are in a contest called “My House is Better Than Your House”. Buyers are comparing everything now including floor plan, how the home is staged
or appears…it’s quite interesting to listen to what they truly want in a home. Of course, you will always find people who want to fix up a home but I find that means the home seller is going to receive less on their offer.

Years ago when I started in real estate, on the average, I noticed that traditional buyers inspect 12 homes before deciding to
write an offer…that means that 11 other homes are competiting against your home. The Internet buyer tends to look at less homes in person. The first factor that you need to think about is “Clean”.

The Clean Factor Plays a Big Role in a Home Sale in Long Beach

Most people are turned off by even the smallest amount of uncleanness or odor when buying a home. Sellers lose thousands of dollars because they do not adequately clean. If your house is adequately clean, you will be able to sell your home faster and net hundreds, if not thousands of dollars more.

Think about how a new model home looks like…every thing is clean, staged and in move-in condition. I would suggest using that as an example.

If you are planning on moving, why not get rid of that old junk now so that your house will appear larger. Make more space. Odors must be eliminated especially if you have dogs, cats or young children in diapers or if you are a smoker. You
may not notice the smell, but buyers do. Most agents have a difficult time communicating to their sellers about the odor.

Read also: Part 1: Setting the price of your Long Beach home or condo

On December 14th, 2007, there were 3,107 listings in the city of Long Beach.�
The number has gone down.

So, how many properties are for sale in the city of Long Beach as of today? Inquiring minds want to know….well we need some super secret investigating (okay not so secret but sounded good) and found the following:

There are 2,669 properteries for available.  There are many great buys in the city.  We just showed one of our buyers a condo conversion in Long Beach.  It was a 2 bedroom, 2 bath condo for $259,000.

It’s all about the price in 2008 in the Long Beach real estate market is focused on price. Every buyer wants a deal and every seller wants to get the most money for their home. So the question is what is the real value of your home? “Should I list the home for more than it is work to pad it for negotiating or priced it at the current market value or below?”

Determining the Value of your Long Beach home

Determining the value takes many factors into consideration including location, condition and size of the home by square footage. Let’s examine each one in detail. Where is the home located in the city of Long Beach, CA? Your home’s location and setting influence its value. A home inside a quiet subdivision sells for more than the identical home on a busy street.Remote areas typically sell for less than closed-in areas. Views, streams and trees enhance value. You obviously have no control over location.

The Condition of Your Home in the Eyes of a Home Buyer

New homes enjoy a marketing edge over resale homes because they are shiny and clean.  And builders enhance their appeal by offering model homes (clean, bright, decorated in current colors and amenities) for buyers to examine.  Get your camera.  Go out to the front of your Long Beach home and take pictures.  Then, print them out if you have a digital camera.

Look at your home through the buyer’s eyes…perhaps adding some landscaping to the front yard, moving the lawn a little more or trimming
the trees will make it more appealing to a home buyer.

• Curb Appeal Counts BIG TIME

According to the National Association of Realtors®, 92% of all homes are sold…from the CURB. Curb appeal is critical part of selling your home. Take a few minutes to take photos inside too. Your goal is to make your home look like a model home as much as possible. We have a professional home stager on staff that can give you some pointers and tips to making your home standout from the competition. You have complete control over condition.

You can increase value and decrease marketing time by being sure your property is in the best possible condition.

How does the Appraiser Really Appraise a Home or Condo in Long Beach?

There is a difference…if your own a home, then the appraiser, sent out to your property from the buyer’s bank during escrow, will search for comparable properties to yours in the same neighborhood with a similar square footage of 100 square below and 100 square feet above your actual square footage. Now, this measurement does not include the garage. They only includes the living space.

If you own a Long Beach condo, then the appraiser will do the same square footage search but his or her focus are recent sales in your condominium building not the neighborhood.

• Plus, the appraiser looks at recent home sales within the last 6 months.

Pricing Tips to Consider

If IBM stock is trading between 104 and 108, it does no good to insist on selling at 112. Likewise, your home must be priced within the appropriate range. You must actually “sell” your property 3 times: first to Agents representing buyers (65% of all homes sold are sold by an Agent from another real estate firm), second to the buyer and third to the appraiser. Now, the buyer is more subjective and compares the amenities of your home to those of other homes in the same price range. The appraiser is more objective and compares age, size and cost identifiable features in your home against other properties that have sold to determine value for the bank.We will provide you with a price range for you to choose the best listing price…..Stay tuned for Part 2 on Pricing Your Home to Sell

Imagine waking up in the morning and walking to the local coffee shop…then down to the beach to relax on the sand and think about new ideas, friends, family and other things.  Now you can if you make 282 Redondo Avenue in Long Beach Ca condo your own.  This two bedroom, two bath condo has many features that might work for you.  Go to Long Beach condos for more…

Searching for homes or condos online in Long Beach, California can be thrilling as well as a chore. We have learned over the past 15 years of real estate that to save a buyer time, it is best to meet and talk about their real estate plans in the beginning.

It helps in two areas, to help you, the buyer, get clear on exactly what you are looking and to make sure you are qualified to buy. Do it up front and it will save you hours of time. The property time saver system we developed over the years…I guess I should give it some fancy title by now. Perhaps you can give me some ideas. You can still search for homes online while we looking quicker through the local real estate multiple listing service (mls) every few hours with a special automated program that we use. When your criteria matched a new listing during that time frame, that property would be automatically emailed to you.

Then, you can preview the property by viewing the email and clicking on the Yahoo Map link to where the home was located. Plus, it gave clients the ability to get a jump on their competition for a home. To find out more about this time saving program, go to Long Beach Home Finder