10 tips for Spring Texas home sellers
July 2nd, 2009 categories: Home Seller Information | views
Thanks to Lani Rosales from Agent Genius for this entertaining video on the 10 biggest mistakes for Spring Texas home sellers to avoid.
These are great tips but I do not entirely agree on the tip on pricing. While pricing your home at $199,900 is more attractive than pricing your home at $205,000, the $199,900 price is “old school” and does not consider how buyers find Spring Texas homes. Buyers search for homes at one if not several of the numerous real estate listing sites. The real estate listing sites allow buyers to search for homes in price ranges such as $150,000 to $200,000 and $200,000 to $225,000. Pricing your home at $199,900 only exposes your home to those buyers searching for homes under $200,000 and not to the buyers searching for homes at $200,000 and more.
For more home selling tips: Read - 30 things to do before putting your home on the real estate market
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Can Real Estate agents show the homes listed by brokers other than their own?
June 29th, 2009 categories: Home Buyer Information | views
A term most buyers are not familiar with is broker reciprocity. What broker reciprocity means is that as a Spring Texas real estate agent I can show you any real estate company’s listings. ReMax, Coldwell Banker, Prudential Gary Greene, or some other real estate company it does not matter whose name is on the “For Sale” sign in the yard because I can show all homes.
I show buyers the homes they want to view and not just the homes listed with my broker, Prudential Gary Greene, Realtors. Why? Because my job as a buyer’s agent is not to find buyers a Prudential Gary Greene, Realtors listing to buy. My job is to help buyers find the ”the right home” for them irregardless of which real estate company has the home listed.
As a homebuyer, you are not restricted to only being able to work with a real estate agent from the company whose sign is in the yard of the home you want to buy. You have the freedom to independently choose a buyer’s agent because broker reciprocity allows agents to show the listings of other brokers.
Choose your real estate agent and then your home because your buyer’s agent can show you any and all homes. Any home in the State of Texas, that is.
Can Real Estate agents show the homes listed by brokers other than their own? YES!
Read also: Top 5 benefits of having a Spring Texas buyer’s agent
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Tips on navigating our local roads
June 27th, 2009 categories: Discover Spring Texas | views
One of the toughest things about moving to a new area has to be figuring out how to get around. A GPS can certainly help you find your way but there are some things that the GPS does not know. These are the things that only the locals who travel the Spring Texas roads day in and day out know.
To help you find your way, I am going to share with you my tips on navigating our roads. Hopefully they will make your transition to the Spring Texas area just a little easier.
1. Not all roads go through. Ella and T.C. Jester, two main North - South routes, stop at various points and then pick up again. Ella stops South of Cypress Creek and picks up again North of Cypress Creek. T.C. Jester stops South of Spring Cypress and picks up again North of Spring Cypress.
2. The shortest distance between two points is not always the fastest. If you are wanting to get from FM 1960 and I45 to FM 1960 and 290 a map would indicate the shortest distance would be to travel west across FM1960. Is it the shortest distance? Yes. Is it the quickest route? No.
The drive across FM 1960 is filled with stop light after stop light. A quicker route is to drive I45 South to the Beltway, take the Beltway West to 290, and then take 290 North to FM 1960.
3. Avoid delays get an EZ Tag. Some day you will want to travel on one of the area toll roads. Before that day arrives do yourself a favor and get an EZ Tag. The EZ Tag gives you the power to go whizzing by while avoiding the long wait in line to pay the toll. Plus with the toll charge being less for EZ Tag users, the EZ Tag will save you time and money.
4. Highways have more than one name. Adding to the confusion of navigating around the area is same road or highway having numerous names. Such as the outermost loop around downtown Houston is known as the Beltway, Beltway 8, Sam Houston toll way, and the Sam Houston Parkway. I45 North is also known as the North Freeway. U.S. 290 is known as the Northwest Freeway. The innermost loop around downtown Houston is known as the Loop or the 610 Loop.
5. Learn the major East - West and North - South thoroughfares. The major North - South roads are I45, Kuykendahl, Stuebner Airline/Veterans Memorial, Champion Forest, and 249. The major East - West routes are FM 1960, Cypresswood, Louetta, Spring Cypress, and FM 2920.
What’s the FM in FM 1960 and FM 2920 stand for? The FM is an abbreviation for Farm-to-Market. These were the roads the farmers traveled to deliver their goods to market.
Read also: Moving to Spring Texas? 10 Things you need to know
Click here or on the image of the map of Spring Texas for a closer look at our area roads.
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Who has the lowest prices on groceries?
June 25th, 2009 categories: Shopping | views
One of the things I like about living in Spring Texas is the convenience. In this case, it is the convenience of having numerous grocery stores nearby. Located within 15 minutes of my home are a Walmart Supercenter, Kroger, HEB, Randalls, and a Super Target. A great selection of stores to choose from to do my grocery shopping.
But with so many choices which grocery store has the lowest prices on groceries? To answer this question, I decided to do a cost comparison of grocery items that on a regular basis wind up in my cart. Below are the five items I decided to compare prices from the three grocery stores I frequently shop at.
On some of the items such as the Vinaigrette salad dressing there was not a significant difference in price. But look at the price difference in the Lipton Green Tea. Kroger’s price was 43% higher and HEB’s price was 31% higher than Walmart’s price.
Who has the lowest prices on groceries in Spring Texas? For my shopping items, the answer is Walmart. These days grocery shopping requires a strategy and this is mine for everyday items I shop at Walmart because on a consistent basis their grocery prices are lower. I still grocery shop at HEB and Kroger but for different things and different reasons.
If I have to get in and out of the grocery store quickly I go to HEB and not Walmart. Walmart has some of the longest lines especially on Saturdays and Sundays. For fresh produce I shop at HEB and Krogers. If neither store has the produce I want as an advertised weekly special, I shop at HEB because I have found their produce to be the freshest. I also shop at HEB and Krogers for their weekly special items because these items are usually cheaper than at Walmart.
If you want to know the locations of the Spring Texas grocery stores, you can access the Google Map I made.
Read also:
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When should you show your home?
June 23rd, 2009 categories: Home Seller Information | views
The movie, “The Godfather” proves itself once again as having the answer to yet another real estate question. This time the question is when should Spring Texas home sellers accept showings on their homes?
The answer: “Maunday, Tuesday, Thursday, Wednesday, Friday, Sunday, Saturday”. Any day of the week, any time of the day is a good time for a showing of your home. Potential home buyers want to view homes on their time schedules not just when its convenient for the you to show your home. Never decline a showing because the showing you declined could have been the ”right buyer” for your Spring Texas home.
Read also: What Spring Texas home sellers can learn about negotiating from “The Godfather”
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Top 5 benefits of having a Spring Texas buyer’s agent
June 21st, 2009 categories: Home Buyer Information | views
Before 1994, buyer’s agency did not exist in Texas. All real estate agents worked for the seller as either the listing agent or the seller’s subagent. Nobody in the real estate transaction was representing and watching out for the best interests of the homebuyer.
Fast forward 15 years and buyer’s agency still is not available in all states which is a shame. Without buyer’s agency a homebuyer does not have anyone they can truly trust.
The Top 5 Benefits of having a Spring Texas Buyer’s Agent are:
1. Someone working for you. The listing agent (the agent whose name is on the yard sign) represents the seller. His job is to find a buyer for that home. The builder’s rep. represents the builder. His job is to find a buyer for that builders homes. Neither the listing agent nor the builder representative’s job is to work for and represent you, the homebuyer. Yes, I would agree the majority of listing agents and builder representatives are nice people. Nice people whose job it is protect the interests of the seller or the builder, NOT the interests of the homebuyer.
Who works for the homebuyer? A buyer’s agent does. While the listing agent and the builder’s rep. are trying to sell a specific home, the job of a buyer’s agent is not to sell a specific home but instead help you find the “right home”.
2. Works for FREE. A buyer’s agent does not exactly work for freebut in Spring Texas the builder or the seller pays for the services of the buyer’s agent. The builder and seller have agreed upon in advance to bear the cost of the buyer’s agent and it is considered an ordinary cost of the real estate transaction. The homebuyer receives the benefit of having someone working solely for him and at no cost to him.
3. Can show you any and all homes. A builder’s rep. can show you only the homes of the builder he works for. He can not show you the homes of another builder. A buyer’s agent can show you all Spring Texas new construction homes regardless of which builder constructed the home.
Your buyer’s agent can also show you all of the resale homes on the market. It does not matter which broker the home is listed with nor whose name is on the yard sign. Your buyer’s agent can show you all available Spring Texas homes for sale.
4. Identifies how the home’s features will impact future resale value. A buyer’s agent knows which of the home’s features are in demand by buyers and will positively impact tomorrow’s resale value. A listing agent nor a builder’s rep. is going to point out the fact that the home backs to commercial and it will negatively impact the home’s resale value. Why? Because their job is to sell that specific home with its warts and all.
5. Negotiating on your behalf. A buyer’s agent can effectively negotiate on the homebuyer’s behalf with the listing agent or the builder’s rep. The listing agent can’t negotiate with the seller for you because the listing agent has already agreed to represent the seller in the negotiations. The builder’s rep. can’t negotiate with the builder on your behalf because he’s an employee of the builder and paid to represent the builder.
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Best time ever to purchase a Spring Texas home
June 19th, 2009 categories: Home Buyer Information | views
Right now is one of the best times ever to purchase a Spring Texas home because apartment rentals are projected to increase, our local Spring Texas housing market remains affordable, consumer confidence is increasing, mortgage interest rates are hovering around 5%, and if you are going to be a first time homebuyer there is an additional incentive of a $8,000 tax credit.
Over the last couple of weeks, we have seen the absurdly and historically low 30 year fixed interest rates of 4.5% disappear as the interest rate has crept into the low 5%. But don’t count on even the 5% interest rates being available for long as even President Obama has issued a warning stating the “interest rates are unsustainable”.
You hear the mortgage interest rates talked about a lot these days but how much does the interest rate really impact your monthly payment. Based upon the example below a rise in the interest rate from 5% to 6% increases your monthly payment by $94 a month which is not a budget buster.
There is more to analyze than just the increase in your monthly mortgage payment. The big number is the impact the additional 1% interest has on the amount of interest you will pay over the term of the loan which is $33,873. Sure, the number is not going to be as large if you are planning on selling your Spring Texas home before the end of its 30 year mortgage.
Let’s look at the impact a 1% higher mortgage interest rate has one more way. The monthly payment on a loan amount of $150,000 at 6% is $899. The monthly payment on a loan amount of $167,500 at 5% is the same $899. A 1% lower interest rate provides you with $17,500 more purchasing power.
Interest rates this low may never happen again and could truly be a once in a life time opportunity. Lock in your interest rate as soon as you can.
Reminder: A mortgage lender can not lock in an interest rate until you have provided them with the address of the Spring Texas home you are purchasing.
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Where to get fresh locally grown produce
June 17th, 2009 categories: Discover Spring Texas, Shopping | views
One of the things I like best about Summer is eating home-grown fresh from the farm tomatoes. The tomatoes are nice and juicy, full of flavor, and taste just the way tomatoes should taste.
But since my parents live in Illinois and not Spring Texas, I can’t quickly stop by and swipe a few tomatoes from their garden for my BLT sandwich. Instead I have to get my home-grown produce from local farm stands. Luckily there are several farm stands within a few miles of my Spring Texas home where I can purchase not only tomatoes but lots of other great produce including squash, new potatoes, greens, okra, cucumbers, corn, tomatoes, eggplant, bell peppers, 1015 onions, watermelons, honey dew melons, cantaloupe, beets, cabbage, mustard greens, peaches, and blackberries.
If you like farm fresh produce as much as I do then stop by one of the farm stands below and enjoy the difference in taste provided by fresh from the farm produce.
Atkinson Farms is located at 3217 Spring Cypress Spring TX 77388. Their operating hours are Monday - Saturday 10 am - 6 pm and Sunday 10 am - 2 pm. To find out what’s in season give them a call at 832.381.8202 or better yet send them an email at atkinsonfarming@aol.com and they will send you periodic picking reports. The Atkinson’s may be new to running a farm stand since they are only in their fifth year but they are not new to farming as they are third generation farmers.
Theiss Farms Market is located at 17045 Stuebner Airline Spring TX 77379. Their hours of operation are Monday - Friday 9 am - 6:30 pm; Saturday 9 am - 6 pm and Sunday 10 am - 5 pm. They can be reached at 281.370. FARM (3276). For over 158 years the Theiss family has been producing vegetables in Harris County and selling its produce to the people of the community. During the summer, the sweet corn is picked and delivered daily to the Theiss Farms Market providing their customers with the freshest sweet corn possible.
Mittelstaedt’s is located at 19403 Stuebner Airline Spring TX 77379. The farm stand is open Monday - Saturday 9 am - 6 pm and on Sunday 10 am - 4 pm. They can be reached at 281.370.5529.
Kieschnick Farms is located at 5702 Spring Cypress Spring TX 77379. Their hours of operation are Monday - Friday 9:30 am - 6 pm; Saturday 9:30 am - 5 pm and Sunday 10 am - 3 pm.
Neal’s Berry Farm and Farmer’s Market is located at 24527 Gosling Road Spring TX 77389. Their hours of operation are Monday - Saturday 9 am - 7 pm and Sunday 12 - 8 pm. They can be reached at 281.516.0055. Not to be missed is Neal’s Berry Farm where you can pick your own blackberries from their 3 acre patch.
Some of these farm stands are a little hard to find so I created a map of Spring Texas Farm Stands to make it easy for you to find them. Photo taken of cherry tomatoes at Atkinson Farms.
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Spring TX Real Estate: Market Report May 2009
June 15th, 2009 categories: Spring Texas Real Estate Market Reports | views
The latest MLS numbers for the Spring TX real estate market have been released and the months of inventory are showing a return to a balanced buyers and sellers market. Last May our real estate market favored the buyers with 6.9 months of inventory. We had plenty of homes for buyers to choose from and the buyers had the upper hand in the negotiations.
Fast forward a year and the historically low interest rates combined with a first time homebuyers tax credit has brought the Spring TX real estate market back into balance with 5.8 months of inventory.
Homes in the $190,000 or less price range continue to do well as the first time home buyers are out in the market determined not to let the opportunity to get $8,000 in free money for buying a home pass them by.
The influx in first time home buyers are creating more multiple offer scenarios in the lower price ranges than we have seen in some time.
Days on market remains steady at 95 days year over year and sellers are not signficantly negotiating off the list price as the sales price to list price is 96%.
New home builders in the Spring TX area have scaled back their quantity of available inventory homes causing new home buyers to scramble and pushing some of these buyers back into the resale home market.
I predict we will continue to experience strong sales in the first time home buyers price range until the expiration of the first time home buyers tax credit on December 1, 2009. Look for October and November to deliver a last minute rush from the first time homebuyers who have finally managed to save the monies to meet the FHA’s minimum down payment requirement of 3.5%.
The data represented is from the Houston Association of Realtors MLS for existing homes in Area 13. Area 13 covers the geographic boundaries of East - I45 to West - Hwy 249 to South - Beltway 8 to North - Spring Cypress.
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FREE FOOD at Chipotle
June 12th, 2009 categories: Dining and Entertainment | views
The new Chipotle restaurant at 10905 Louetta on the North side of HEB Vintage Market is getting ready for its grand opening on June 19th, 2009.
As a business promotion and to introduce itself to the community Chipotle is going to give away FREE FOOD on June 17th. The particulars on the FREE FOOD are an entree, chips, and a drink for everyone that stops by on June 17th from 11 am to 7 pm.
Chipotle’s FREE FOOD promotion sounds like a great way to introduce its products to the people. But wait didn’t another company have a similar promotion recently that back fired?
Yes. That’s right. Just last month to introduce its new grilled chicken KFC ran a FREE FOOD promotion on the Oprah Winfrey show. The only problem was the demand was much greater than KFC had anticipated and they stopped accepting the coupon for the FREE FOOD. The promotion turned into a PR nightmare for KFC.
On two separate occasions, Rick and I went to a local KFC restaurant in Spring Texas to redeem our coupon for FREE FOOD and on both occasions we left hungry. On the first visit we were told the wait was over one hour so we left. On our second visit we were told due to overwhelming demand KFC was no longer accepting the coupon. Again we left without any FREE FOOD and we have not been back since.
Our Spring Texas Real Estate blog is not nearly as popular as the Oprah Winfrey Show so I figure it is safe to spread the word about Chipotle’s FREE FOOD promotion. But if due to overwhelming demand you don’t receive any free food, please still use our real estate services and don’t boycott us.
As for Rick and I, we are going to wait a couple of weeks before visiting Chipotle’s new restaurant and when we do visit we will just pay for our food. So there will be no FREE FOOD for us this time. Wait a minute, come to think of it we didn’t get any FREE FOOD at the last FREE FOOD promotion either.
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