THE SELLER’S GUIDE Let us take you through the home selling journey and answer any questions you may have before we get your home on the market. This is your personal guide and your real estate agent always be there along the way.
ABOUT INTERO In 2002, Intero’s desire wasn’t to be like all other brokerages. Not only were we committed to providing our residents and neighbors a service that heralded the very nature of where we live, we owed it to our new neighbors, recruited from all over the world to come and work for many of the most creative, progressive companies on the planet. Powered by an entirely new technology platform, backed by a solid investment, lead by a team of real estate veterans who were all born, raised and weaned right in the Silicon Valley, Intero Real Estate Services was born. Over the past seven years, against the pressures of a challenging market, we continued to advance our training programs, update all of our technology, grow our brand into other markets and build a luxury sub brand. We did all this because this is who we are.
VISION AND VALUES Guided by principles of trust, respect and integrity, we empower people to achieve their dreams. INTEGRITY Honesty above all else. We are true to our word and always strive to do what is right.
COMPETENCY We hire, train, and coach to ensure the highest level of competency in all areas of the organization.
COMPASSION We never underestimate the power of a smile, a kind word, or a listening ear. We exist to serve the needs of those we touch.
INNOVATION We have the courage to take calculated risks. We evaluate our service and our systems, and constantly reinvent ourselves.
LOYALTY We are loyal to our agents, our employees, our customers. We are loyal to our values and to our vision, ensuring that the goals of the individual and the group will be achieved.
OPEN COMMUNICATION We give and receive honest communication to maintain the strength of our organization and to sustain a dynamic environment. All communication is a true reflection of our thoughts and beliefs.
COMMITMENT We are dedicated to giving back to the community. We are dreamers with a purpose.
FRIENDSHIP It is a powerful force that comes from mutual esteem, respect, and devotion.
TEAM We accomplish more collectively than what we can alone. Everyone is a contributor.
FUN In order to keep an upbeat organization you must enjoy what you do and have fun with it.
PROFESSIONALISM We conduct ourselves with the highest standards.
FOCUS What you focus on expands.
ENTHUSIASM We enjoy the process and the journey. A sense of humor encourages progressive thinking.
CONFIDENCE You must believe in yourself if you expect others to believe in you.
INTERO ACROSS THE COUNTRY
ARIZONA Scottsdale 10565 N 114th St 480.338.0501 CALIFORNIA Brentwood 5541 Lone Tree Way Suite 150 925.516.9090 Brentwood 8640 Brentwood Blvd #D 925.634.1116 Castro Valley 3185 Castro Valley Blvd. 510.886.1100 Cupertino 10275 N. De Anza Blvd. 408.342.3000 Fremont - Mission 43225 Mission Blvd. 510.651.6500 Hayward 77 Jackson Street 510.690.1700
Hollister 800 San Benito Street, Suite C 831.637.2112
San Francisco 1788 19th Avenue 415.242.8177
Union City 32145 Alvarado-Niles 510.489.8989
Livermore 187 South J. Street 925.371.6500
San Jose - Almaden 5580 Almaden Expressway 408.754.9500
Woodside 1580 Canada Lane 650.206.6200
Los Altos 496 First Street Suite 200 650.947.4700
San Jose - Alum Rock 2254 Alum Rock Ave. 408.258.1111
Los Gatos 518 North Santa Cruz Ave. 408.357.5700
San Jose - Evergreen 2230 Quimby Rd 408.528.7800
Menlo Park 807 Santa Cruz Ave. 650.543.7740 Milpitas 248 Hillview Drive 408.956.2950 Sacramento 460 Drake Circle 916.204.9493 San Carlos 1250 San Carlos Ave. Suite 102 650.622.1000
San Jose Willow Glen 1567 Meridian Ave. 408.979.5900 San Ramon 11020 Bollinger Canyon Rd 925.498.0010 Santa Cruz 2222 East Cliff Drive 831.464.5310 Saratoga 12900 Saratoga Avenue 408.741.1600
San Diego - Chula Vista 3404 Bonita Rd. 619.920.9255 San Diego - El Cajon 220 West Main Street 619.402.1101 x100 La Quinta 78015 Main Street 760.564.2900 Rancho Cucamonga 10803 Foothill Blvd. 909.900.5855 Santa Barbara 510 State Street #275 805.729.6061 COLORADO Evergreen 29029 Upper Bear Creek Road 303.670.3232
NEVADA Minden/Gardnerville 1362 US HWY 395 South 775.783.5330 TENNESSEE Murfreesboro 3173 S Church St. 615.278.1700 TEXAS Austin 11120 Comanchero Rd. 512.784.5111 CYPRESS 9525 Huffmeister Rd Pearland 11200 Broadway St #2701 713.533.8133 Houston 2800 Kirby Drive B242 713.568.2389
THE STEPS TO SELLING YOUR HOME PREPARING TO SELL YOUR HOME.
FINDING A REALTOR
Selling a home isn’t quite as simple as sticking up a ‘for sale’ sign and waiting for the buyers to come to you.
In the maze of forms, financing, inspections, marketing, pricing and negotiating, it makes sense to work with professionals who know the community and much more. Those professionals are the local REALTORS® who serve your area.
The home-selling process typically starts several months before a property is made available for sale. It’s necessary to look at a home through the eyes of a prospective buyer and determine what needs to be cleaned, painted, repaired and tossed out. Ask yourself: If you were buying this home, what would you want to see? The goal is to show a home that looks good, maximizes space and attracts as many buyers as possible.
When you’re choosing a REALTOR® to represent your interests as a buyer, your choice should be based on strong recommendations from a reliable source about your prospective agent’s attention to detail and communication skills. You will likely rely a lot on your own instinct, too, to decide whether you are compatible with a particular agent and will feel that he is someone you can trust.
PRICE If you’re putting your home on the market, especially if you live in an area where prices are going up and buyers are competing for homes, you may be tempted to try listing it at a high price just to see if you can get it. Don’t do it. Experienced Realtors will tell you that pricing your home appropriately from the beginning is critical to getting it sold quickly and at the best price. Research shows that overpricing your home and then dropping the price several times while it languishes on the market usually leads to selling it at a much lower price than what you originally should have asked for it. The longer a home stays on the market, the deeper the discount is likely to be off the original price.
MARKETING Your RealtorÂŽ should market your home in multiple ways: -Research the market to identify potential buyers to target for direct mail. -Reach out to other real estate brokers and agents who work with buyers in your price range. -Take excellent photos or hire a professional photographer to showcase your home online with attractive pictures. -List your home on the local Multiple Listing Service and make sure it receives maximum exposure on multiple websites. -Take a video of your home or produce a virtual tour with numerous photos so your home can be viewed in-depth by buyers looking online.
NEGOCIATE A REAL ESTATE OFFER Perhaps the most complex moment in the sales process comes when you get an offer for your home. Whether you have one offer or several to consider, these tips will help you navigate the negotiation. Negotiation is a complex matter and all transactions are unique. Both sides – buyer and seller – want to feel that the outcome favors them, or at least represents a fair balance of interests. In the usual case there is a bit of bluff, some give-and-take, and neither party gets everything they want.
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What does the market say? At various times we’re in a “buyers” market, a “sellers” market, or a market where housing supply and demand are roughly equal. If possible, you want to be in the market at a time when it favors your position as a buyer or seller.
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Who has leverage?
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What are the details?
If you’re on the front page of the local paper because your business went bust – and the buyer knows it – you have little clout in the bargaining process. Alternatively, if you’re among six buyers clamoring for that one special property, forget about dictating an agreement’the owner can sit back and pick the offer which represents the highest price and best terms.
A lot of attention in real estate is paid to transaction prices. This surely makes sense, but the key to a good deal may be more complex. Consider two identical properties that each sell on the same day for $275,000. The houses are the same, the sale prices are the same, but are the deals the same? Maybe not. For instance, one owner may have agreed to paint the property, replace the roof, purchase a new kitchen refrigerator, and pay the first $3,000 of the buyer’s closing costs. The second owner made no concessions.
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What about financing?
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Who has expertise?
Has the buyer been pre-qualified or pre-approved by a lender? Meeting with a lender before looking at homes does not usually guarantee that financing is absolutely, unquestionably available – a loan application can be declined because of appraisal problems, title issues, survey findings, and other reasons. But, buyers who are “pre-qualified” or “pre-approved” at least have some idea of their ability to finance a home and know that they are likely to qualify for certain loan programs. The result is that pre-qualified buyers represent less risk to owners than a purchaser who has never met with a lender. If the seller accepts an offer from a buyer with unknown financial strength, it’s possible that the transaction could fail because the buyer can’t get a loan. Meanwhile, the owner may have lost the opportunity to sell to a qualified buyer.
Imagine you’re in a fight. The other guy has black belts in 12 martial arts – and you don’t. Who’s going to win ? Brokers have long represented sellers, and now buyer brokerage is entirely common. In a transaction where one side has representation and the other does not, who has the advantage at the bargaining table?
CONTINGENCIES AND SELLERS While the burden is on the buyer to finalize financing for the home purchase and to obtain homeowners insurance, some contract contingencies will impact you, too, especially if you’re living in the home. Most transactions include a home inspection, so you’ll need to make your home available to the inspector and then negotiate with the buyers about anything the inspection turns up according to the terms of your contract.
Another important step prior to closing is the appraisal. If the appraisal comes in higher than the sales price, then the buyers can relax and be happy that they have purchased a home for less than its market value. Once the contract has been signed, you as the seller cannot renegotiate the price higher. However, if the appraisal comes in lower than the sales price, then the buyer’s lender will limit the loan amount to that lower value. The buyer may have to come up with additional cash to cover the financing gap or may ask you to renegotiate the contract.
CLOSING On the day of closing, you and the buyer meet at an escrow company office or a lender’s office so that all arrangements can be finished. Any funds that have been desposited with an escrow agent are disbursed to the seller on the day of closing. At that time, the seller transfers the deed to the property to the buyer, signifying that the ownership has changed hands. A new deed has to be recorded at the county’s Register of Deeds office. In some instances, the seller has to pay certain expenses (like clearing a lien or tax bill) out of pocket before closing. Find out in advance exactly what your obligations are on and before closing. Once settlement papers are signed and the keys are transferred, you’re free to move onto your next home.
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TIPS FOR PACKING LIKE A PRO
Moving to a new home can be stressful, to say the least. Make it easy on yourself by planning far in advance and making sure you’ve covered all the bases. 1. Plan ahead by organizing and budgeting. Develop a master “to do” list so you won’t forget something critical on moving day, and create an estimate of moving costs. 2. Sort and get rid of things you no longer want or need. Have a garage sale, donate to a charity, or recycle. 3. But don’t throw out everything. If your inclination is to just toss it, you’re probably right. However, it’s possible to go overboard in the heat of the moment. Ask yourself how frequently you use an item and how you’d feel if you no longer had it. That will eliminate regrets after the move. 4. Pack similar items together. Put toys with toys, kitchen utensils with kitchen utensils. It will make your life easier when it’s time to unpack. 5. Decide what, if anything, you plan to move on your own. Precious items such as family photos, valuable breakables, or musthaves during the move should probably stay with you. Don’t forget to keep a “necessities” bag with tissues, snacks, and other items you’ll need that day. 6. Remember, most movers won’t take plants. If you don’t want to leave them behind, you should plan on moving them yourself. 7. Use the right box for the item. Loose items are prone to breakage. 8. Put heavy items in small boxes so they’re easier to lift. Keep the weight of each box under 50 pounds, if possible. 9. Don’t overpack boxes. It increases the likelihood that items inside the box will break. 10. Wrap every fragile item separately and pad bottom and sides of boxes. If necessary, purchase bubblewrap or other packing materials from moving stores. 11. Label every box on all sides. You never know how they’ll be stacked and you don’t want to have to move other boxes aside to find out what’s there. 12. Use colorcoded labels to indicate which room each item should go in. Colorcode a floor plan for your new house to help movers. 13. Keep your moving documents together in a file. Include important phone numbers, driver’s name, and moving van number. Also keep your address book handy. 14. Print out a map and directions for movers. Make several copies, and highlight the route. Include your cell phone number on the map. You don’t want movers to get lost! Also make copies for friends or family who are lending a hand on moving day. 15. Back up your computer files before moving your computer. Keep the backup in a safe place, preferably at an offsite location. 16. Inspect each box and all furniture for damage as soon as it arrives. 17. Make arrangements for small children and pets. Moving can be stressful and emotional. Kids can help organize their things and pack boxes ahead of time, but, if possible, it might be best to spare them from the movingday madness.
2800 KIRBY DRIVE, B242 HOUSTON, TX 77098 713-586-2300