Triad Real Estate Podcast with Jason Bramblett

Buyers who may not be seeing what they’re hoping to find in the resale market have been asking whether now is a good time to build a new home.

Actually, it is. Now is likely one of the best times to build new construction, as this type of home purchase eliminates the element of competing buyers from the deal.

However, there are some considerations to keep in mind before making the final decision to build. First of all, the newer the home, the longer you should stay in it. So for new construction purchases, you should probably plan on living in the home for quite some time.

This is especially true if you’re buying into a development where other homes are still being produced. Because in this case, buyers planning to move in the next few years will be competing with the builder as they attempt to list their home.

In terms of benefits, though, new construction properties have phenomenal warranties. New construction is, therefore, an especially desirable option for those who may not have emergency funds in place, as these properties are less likely to have major issues anytime soon. 



So with bidding wars as common as they have been lately in our market, now is truly a great time to consider purchasing a new construction home. But make sure that when proceeding with this type of deal, you are well represented. Don’t approach a builder without an agent by your side. The agent present during a new construction open house represents the builder’s best interests, not yours.

If you have any other questions or would like more information, feel free to give us a call or send us an email. We look forward to hearing from you soon.

A question I get on occasion is, “How do I know I am getting the best person to sell my home?” 

Well, I think that our company is a great solution to your real estate needs. It has been around for 20 years and we have developed systems and proven strategies that work right here in the Triad community.

I've focused on is developing and hiring the best people. We have a phenomenal training program. I look for the best people in the business, bring them on, and plug them into our proven trackable system. We can then see the win-win results.

It doesn't really matter to us if you are selling to reach the top of the market or selling as-is, we have a plan in the service for everybody.

You can talk to friends, or perhaps you have seen our advertising on TV or billboards, to learn more about our reputation. Our online reviews show how many homes we’ve sold.

The biggest thing we like to have you do is see our operation and how we work in person. This is something you should do with everybody. A lot of real estate agents work out of their homes part-time and are unorganized. Seeing the flow and the production says a lot about the success of the company. 



You will see that we will be successful at selling your home. We sell a lot of homes that have been on the market many times with many different companies. One of the things that we hear when people come here is that they sense a sense of urgency. They can see and experience the professionalism by coming to our office.

If you would like to come check us out to see if we would be a good fit for you, call or email me. I look forward to speaking with you soon.

Homeowners in the Triad are frustrated. Inventory is low, demand for their homes is high, and they’re receiving multiple offers from prospective buyers, but home prices are still dropping.

How can that be? Supply and demand economics would say that if there’s only a little bit of something that a lot of people want, the price should go up.

In real estate, things don’t always work this way. The factor that is causing this counterintuitive price drop is the banks. Banks don’t care that you’re pushing home values up; they feel that a given home is worth X amount, therefore, the amount they will loan will reflect that.

Now, the buyer can pay the difference out of pocket, but we’re seeing in certain price ranges that that is not always the case.



Be cautious out there if you’re a homeowner attempting to sell your home. Just because you get the highest and best offer doesn’t necessarily mean that it’s going to stick. It could come right back down to where it might have been in a more reasonable market.

If you need help, I’m here for you. We’ve been doing this a long time, so we can walk you through the process, make sure that we diligently price your property to get top dollar, and get every offer to stay. Do you really want to see a house four or five times just to get an offer to stick? We’ll always get you the most money in the shortest amount of time.

For any questions or if you need assistance, feel free to reach out to me. I’d be glad to help.

It’s officially spring, so what can we expect from the spring real estate market?

It’s exciting to see that prices are actually increasing and that homes are starting to appreciate in the marketplace, which we haven't seen in 10 years, at least.

Nationally, inventory is very low, and it’s likely we’ll run out. How do we overcome that?



As buyers reach out to us about certain areas, cities, and neighborhoods, we’ll reach out to homeowners to introduce them to buyers. If they’re a good fit, maybe you’ll consider selling your home. It’s a great time to take advantage of low inventory if you’re a homeowner who is mobile.

If you’d like to upsize or downsize your housing situation or just look at the value of your home in the Triad area, feel free to reach out to us.

One of the things I get questioned about a lot is mortgage lending. Many people tell me, “I used this bank last time I refinanced my house and that went pretty good so I think I’ll use them again.” However, be careful. These large lenders offer what may appear to be a discount, but they make it up in additional junk fees. 
 
Here’s what we are finding. People are being enticed by working with these big online lenders, but these lenders aren’t giving the right information, funds, or materials in order to close on time. With our local lenders, we see the opposite. When you work with a local lender, you are much more likely to close on time.


We recently had a person who thought they had everything taken care of with their online lender, but the loan didn’t close when it was supposed to. They are now going to have to stay in a hotel all weekend with their moving truck because we couldn’t get the loan closed.

If moving in on a specific day is important, don't risk it by saving $4 a month on your payment. Working with a local lender makes a huge, huge difference. We have two great local lenders we'd be happy to connect you with.

If you have any other questions or need anything else, don’t hesitate to give us a call or send us an email. We look forward to hearing from you.

I hope everybody had a phenomenal year in 2017. I hope you achieved your goals and are ready to make some new ones.

We saw more home appreciation in the Triad Area in 2017 than we had in the previous 10 years! I think that trend is going to continue right along in 2018. This is going to be the best year to sell your home in the last decade from what I can tell.

If you didn’t get your home sold this year, give us a call and we will make sure that it does. We were able to serve over 580 families in 2017 and we hope to serve another 1,000 in 2018. We’d love to add you and your family to our list of fantastic clients.


If you have any questions for us about real estate or there is anything that you need help with, don’t hesitate to give us a call or send us an email. We would love to hear from you.

  

One question that we get asked frequently during this time of year is, “Should we sell in the winter?” This year, the answer is yes. Absolutely. This is a golden year for you to get top dollar for your home.



Inventory levels across the country are down and there are hundreds of buyers on our site looking for homes just like yours. Some are getting frustrated and deciding to build new homes because they can't find anything. There are a ton of people relocating to the area right now who are looking for properties as well. The situation is like this across the Triad.

Buyers are serious right now and are searching with a mission. If you or someone you know has been entertaining the idea of selling a home, get in touch with us. We’d be happy to help you take advantage of this seller’s market.

In the meantime, we hope you had a great Thanksgiving and have an even better Christmas. Happy holidays!

We’ve gotten this question a couple of times in the last few months, and today I wanted to take the time to talk about how to handle multiple-offer situations.

From a seller’s standpoint, having multiple offers is typically a good thing. You do have to be careful though. I have seen situations where a home has multiple offers, and then the seller gets a little too aggressive and ends up with no offers because everyone withdraws for whatever reason.

We can coach you on how to handle multiple offers as a seller. The power of a third-party negotiator such as a real estate agent typically always yields a higher price for the home.

From a buyer’s perspective, it can be a little bit scary to find yourself in a multiple-offer situation. Making your offer as clean as possible and allowing some of the terms to appease the seller is going to make it stand out amongst the competition.
Now I didn’t say to make your offer have the highest price. There are aspects of an offer outside of the price that the seller will look at. Adjusting your offer to meet the seller’s needs, such as a specific closing time and date, will sometimes put your offer to the top of the list.

If you need some help with multiple-offer situations, both our buyer and our listing teams have been coached through many similar situations and can help you navigate that process easily.

If you have any other questions about this topic or you’re looking to buy or sell a home, please give me a call. I’d be happy to help!

Do you need an agent representing you when buying a new home?

In our opinion, it’s very important to have representation as a buyer. When you visit a model home or a sales office, the person there isn’t working for you. They are working for the builder and have their best interests in mind. It behooves you to have someone acting in your best interest as well. They are a second set of eyes on the paperwork and on all of the details in the contract. There are certain fees and non-refundable deposits that they are aware of. You might miss those if you’re doing things on your own.
As someone who has been in real estate for a long time, I know the process of how to walk you through new construction from start to finish. I know the things to look for and can put leverage on the builder if things start to run behind. A huge benefit of hiring a buyer’s agent is their ability to juggle things around so that you have a smooth closing. They can also help be an advocate for other resources you may need such as an attorney, a home inspector, or a mortgage lender.

Having agent representation during the new construction process is essential, whether you’re building your first home or your 12th. The extra professional looking out for your best interests is always a welcome addition.

If you have any questions about hiring a buyer’s agent or anything else relating to the buying process, give me a call or send me an email. I would love to help you out.

Are you thinking about buying an older house? If so, how do you know if it's a wise investment?

Older homes typically need a little more maintenance and love, but that shouldn't stop you from considering older homes if you have a solid budget. However, I think there are a few select groups that are probably better off not buying an older home:

• People just starting out their first home search
• Those without three to six months' worth of emergency funds
• Anyone living paycheck to paycheck (You might even want a new home with a warranty)

Just be cautious when shopping for homes; I see many homebuyers get into trouble buying an older home because of the location and taking on the risk of an older home. For example, if a house is 10 years old, it will probably need a new roof in the next 10 years. Some newer homes come with 30-year architectural shingles that you don't have to worry about for a very long time.
If you're considering an older home, just make sure you're not only OK with these potential maintenance costs and headaches, but prepared for them as well. Have an emergency fund and be ready for things to need replacing.

If you have any other questions about buying a home or selling a home here in the Triad, don't hesitate to give me a call or send me an email soon. I'd be glad to help.