Nikki Buys Houses/NextHome Music City Realty

                       7 SURPRISING REASONS TO BUY A HOME IN 2017 One of the best investments one can make is buying a home, especially at a  young age . This gives your money time to go to work for you vs. paying rent to build someone else's equity.  If you're paying rent in 2016, here are a few reasons to buy a home in 2017. One of the best ways to build wealth is to leverage, time. Albert Einstein calls compounding the most powerful force in the Universe.  If someone offers you a choice between taking 1 million dollars this very instant or a single penny that doubles in value every day for 31 days, which would you choose? The million dollars right? What if you take the doubling penny.... On day 5 you have 16 cents, and that one million is looking a lot like the better choice. By day ten you have $5.12 and you're kicking yourself for not taking the 1 million dollars. After 20 days you'...

What Should I Disclose When Selling My Home? | Florida Law by  Rae Catanese, Realtor  |  0 comments “To Disclose or Not Disclose When Selling a Home” Seller Liability for Non-Disclosure of Known Defects By: Charles R. Gallagher III It is a decision that every seller of real property is burdened with, to disclose, or not disclose….damage, defects or other problems with the property.  Charged with knowledge and a history of the property, the law imposes a duty upon sellers to provide the buyer with a candid assessment of the condition of the real property, for their due diligence purposes, even if it jeopardizes closing the deal. Typically, this disclosure arises in connection with a Seller’s Property Disclosure Statement furnished to prospective buyers prior to any offer.  The Florida Association of Realtors disclosure form lists a variety of areas for the seller address the condition of the property, requiring an affirmative or negative response w...

                          WHAT NOT TO DO WHEN BUYING A HOME Borrowers can set themselves up for home buying success if they do two basic things: get pre-approved and stay pre-approved. Get pre-approved Pre-approvals show everyone involved in the transaction that you are a serious buyer. You will get the attention you deserve and any offers you make will be legit in the mind of the seller. You will know how much you can afford so that your home search is efficient. And your Realtor will come up with better suggestions! Pre-approvals typically take less than 24 hours and only require some basic documentation like: • A credit report (pulled by your lender) • Identification (e.g. driver’s license) • W-2s (2 years) • Recent pay stubs (30 days) • Recent bank statements (2 months) • Current assets Get a pre-approval letter from your lender. It’s physical proof that you are ready to buy a home. Stay pre-approved ...

                GETTING YOUR HOME READY FOR SELL: AS EASY AS 1,2,3! This time of year is known for its influx of houses to sell on the market. A time of change, and for some that means expanding the family, starting anew in a different area or buying a new smaller or larger home. I’ve sold the houses we have been living in a few times now, and each time we’ve done it in less than a week, and for over the asking price. Some of this will of course be because we bought well, and the market conditions at the time, however I think I have some great tips and ideas that will help anyone when looking to sell their home quickly and for a good price. Step one : Be objective. This is before you have hired an  estate agent  or real estate broker if you are in the US.  As I think when you get ready to put your house on the market and find out its worth you should show your home in its absolute best light. So step back and look at...

                          8 Thinks to Think About Before you Start House Hunting Today, we’ll start with 8 things to think about BEFORE you start house hunting.  Yes, there are several things you should be thinking about before you even call a Realtor – though even if you’ve already started looking at houses, it’s not too late to press pause and go back to some of these basics! BUDGET Work out a monthly cash flow plan (a la  Dave Ramsey ) and figure out how much money you have to devote to a monthly housing payment.  The last thing you want is to be “house poor” – meaning to be living in a beautiful house but barely have any money left over for other expenses after you’ve paid your mortgage. Remember to include placeholder numbers for home insurance, property taxes, utilities, and a homeowner’s association fee (if applicable). A general rule of thumb is your monthly payment (including taxes ...

                           10 Things to do Before Selling Your House 1. Get rid of any extra furniture- This means that any furniture that doesn’t serve a real, functional purpose needs to go. It can be sold, or just in storage, but it needs to get out of the house. You want as much of your space shown as you can. 2. Hide the toys- Before taking any listing photos or showing your house, hide the toys! Unless there is a designated area used as a playroom, toys need to be hidden. Buyers want the spaces they are looking at to feel fresh, clean, and grown up. 3. Open doors- Be sure to open all of your interior doors before taking photos and showing your house. In photos, it helps the photos flow together so that the potential buyers can understand the layout of the home more easily. When showing, you don’t want any big surprises. The potential buyers need to be able to easily walk from one room to the next. ...

        Debbie Borron’s must-read post tackles a subject we’ve all got on our mind when it comes to listing homes: Money. While this can be a stressful topic, finding your magic number can make the entire process run a whole lot smoother. Although staging your property is valuable, Debbie points out that in order to motivate buyers and accurately assess market conditions, you need to set an accurate sales price. And the best way to do this is to work with an experienced agent. Because, the thing is, if you start off pricing your house too high you’ll eventually end up lowering that number, which will ultimately reflect poorly on the property and result in under-bidding. To avoid this and find your magic number start by researching similar homes in your area and account for things like size and amenities. Secondly, while comparing these homes, also keep an eye out for differences and things that could potentially make your house stand out. Houses are like snowfl...