A Quick Update on Kansas City Winter Home Prices in 2018

This winter is shaping up to be a huge moment for area homeowners who are looking to sell. Here are a few reasons why.

Want to sell your Kansas City Home? Get a home value report here 

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This winter is likely to be a very important moment for many home sellers. That’s because three big trends are coming together to affect Kansas City home prices right now:

1. Housing inventory remains extremely tight. The total number of homes on the market fell 10% year over year in the last quarter. This is the biggest drop since 2013, and it's part of a consistent pattern of very limited and decreasing housing supply. Of course, the fewer homes there are on the market, the easier it is to sell, and the higher the price you can expect to get. Home prices have increased almost 6.5% nationally since last year.

2. Buyers are increasingly optimistic. Despite the tight inventory, homebuyers are increasingly optimistic and continue to look for homes. Some of this has to do with the recent growth in income and job stability. Loosening lending standards are also making many home buyers eager to take advantage of current mortgage rates, which slipped under 4% recently.

3. The new tax reform bill will impact the market. The federal government recently passed the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, which majorly overhauled our tax code. While it’s unclear how this will affect the real estate market as a whole, there are some changes that do not favor home sellers.  As a result of the changes made to the tax code, the National Association of Realtors now projects slower growth for home prices in 2018, with an appreciation rate of 1% to 3%. By doubling the standard deduction, Congress has significantly reduced the value of mortgage interest and property deductions as tax incentives for homeownership. On the bright side, no changes were made in the rules surrounding capital gains for home sales, which is good news for home sellers.

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It’s the perfect time to get in the real estate market.

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When you put all three of these trends together, two big conclusions emerge. First, now is a very favorable moment for home sellers, thanks to the shortage in the market, the many eager buyers, and the high and rising prices. On the other hand, higher cost, higher tax areas will likely see prices decline as the result of new restrictions on mortgage interest and state and local taxes.

If you are looking to take advantage of the present moment to sell your home, please reach out by giving us a call or sending us an email. We look forward to hearing from you soon.

Should You Hire Your Friend or Family Member as Your Agent?

These days, just about everyone has a friend or family member with a real estate license. Should you hire them to help buy or sell your house?

Want to sell your Kansas City Home? Get a home value report here 

Want to buy a Kansas City home? Search all homes for sale here

When you’re thinking about buying or selling one of the largest assets in your life, should you hire your friend or family member who has a real estate license?

Many people feel obligated to hire a friend or family member as their agent. Whether they’ve had their license for two weeks or 20 years, there are some things to consider in order when determining whether this person is the right one to serve you and your family during this huge financial decision.

For one, sharing private financial information with someone that close to you can be a little uncomfortable at times.

You also want to work with someone who will offer you unbiased opinions and advice. One of the nice things about working with someone who is more objective is that you can get advice and look at things from different angles in order to make sure that you are doing what’s in your best interest for the long run. If you work with a friend or family member, they may be inclined to inject their own personal opinions into your decisions since they know you so well.

As expert real estate advisors, we are able to advise you through a real estate transaction better than most Realtors. I use the term Realtor very loosely. You can go and get a real estate license online in two weeks and pass the test with no actual real estate experience whatsoever.

Truck drivers, nail technicians, and beauticians all have considerably more training and hours than someone who is a Realtor.

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Sharing your financial situation with a friend or family member can be uncomfortable.

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If you are thinking of hiring a friend or family member as your Realtor, I recommend asking the following questions:

• How many homes do you sell per month? 
• How many homes do you sell a year? 
• How much experience do you have in this particular area? 
• What is your list-to-sale price ratio? 
• What is your average days on market? 

It’s important that you know this information before you decide whether or not they are the right person to represent you. One wrong decision or mishandling a really delicate inspection negotiation can cost you $5,000 to $10,000 in the blink of an eye.

I often have clients say, “We really want to hire you, but we feel like we have to hire our Aunt Betty.”

In this situation, we can give Aunt Betty part of the deal and still give you great representation. I think this is a great option for those of you who have a strong sense of obligation to hire your friend or family member.
If you have any questions about this topic, just give me a call or send me an email. I can help you make sure that you are properly represented in your real estate transaction. I look forward to hearing from you.

Are Zestimates Really a Good Way to Value Your Home?

Even though a lot of people think that the value Zestimates place on their home is accurate, the truth is that this is one area that computers can’t replace people.

Want to sell your Kansas City Home? Get a home value report here 

Want to buy a Kansas City home? Search all homes for sale here

What exactly is Zillow’s Zestimate? A lot of clients have called me with questions about them, so I thought I’d relay my overall feelings about them.

Zestimates are what we call an AVM, an automated valuation model. They use algorithms to pull data from the county public tax records and they look at legacy MLS sold, pending, active, expired, and cancelled data. They take that data and apply to each one of our homes.

The problem with the methods that Zestimates use to value your home is that a computer algorithm has never walked inside of your home. Zillow doesn’t know if your home smells like a pet, if your carpet needs replaced, if the roof needs to be replaced, or if your backyard is steep or gentle graded. The website can’t take into account various factors about your home’s upgrades, the neighborhood, the general traffic, or public events that may take place near the property.

Zestimates can be off when they value your home by as much as 20%. This is problematic because a lot of the public thinks that these are accurate, and they end up leaving a lot of money on the table or potentially overpaying for a home in certain situations.

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A Zestimate cannot walk into your home and check out the condition of the property.

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This is what I recommend: If you’re thinking very seriously about the value of your home or what a potential house might be worth, call Glennon Real Estate Experts and get a trusted professional who can do a real, thorough market analysis to make sure that you’re not leaving any money on the table.

I’ve found often that, oftentimes, the fees for our services more than compensate for the amount of money that people sometimes leave on the table when they sell their home as For Sale By Owner (FSBO). Most real estate agents sell fewer than seven homes a year. They really aren’t getting enough experience and practice selling homes to really know how to advise you on the 50-page contracts we have to deal with or to get you through the inspection process and make sure that the lender is properly doing their job, along with supplying the appraiser with the information they need to properly value a property.

I’ve found often that, oftentimes, the fees for our services more than compensate for the amount of money that people sometimes leave on the table when they sell their home as For Sale By Owner (FSBO). Most real estate agents sell fewer than seven homes a year. They really aren’t getting enough experience and practice selling homes to really know how to advise you on the 50-page contracts we have to deal with or to get you through the inspection process and make sure that the lender is properly doing their job, along with supplying the appraiser with the information they need to properly value a property.

If you want expert advice and solid legal protection, you wouldn’t go to sites like WebMd or LegalZoom, and it’s the same thing with real estate—to really know where you stand, you’d need to contact a professional who’s trained and experienced in these matters to give you their take. If you have further questions or are in need of expert advice on real estate topics, give us a shout. Feel free to give us a call or send us an email. There’s no obligation or cost, and we’d love to help you figure out what the actual market value of your home is.