Team Thayer Property Servicing

Elizabeth Thayer Team Thayer   The home inspection is one of the most important hurdles to clear in a real estate transaction. All real estate agents should attend home inspections! When buying or selling a house, the home inspection is a vital part of the process. What the inspector finds and says during and after the inspection has significant influence on the final sale, so of course it only makes sense for everyone involved – the buyer, the buyers agent and the sellers agent to be there. Yet many times, you will find buyers following the home inspector around with no Realtors in sight. A good agent is an advocate for his or her client, and therefore should be there at the home inspection to represent that client. Whether the real estate chooses to be one step behind the inspector the whole time, or wait quietly in the background to answer the client’s questions, will depend on the agent. But you can always spot a careless or uninvolved Realtor by his or her absenc...

Recreational Marijuana in Oregon I was prompted from feedback on my last report on this subject to take a look at Colorado as a template on how to decipher the effect measure 91 will have on the market economics.  The news for investors  based on the Denver housing market is positive to say the least.  "There has been a huge bump in real estate prices due to the legalization of marijuana," according to James Paine, managing partner at West Realty Advisor's. "It's massively pushed up raw land and industry prices." I n March,  Denver experienced the second-largest jump in annual home prices at 10%, just behind San Francisco, according to the S&P/Case-Shiller Home Price Index. "The pot industry is creating jobs we didn't have before," said Kelly Moye, a Re/Max real estate agent who has worked in the Denver area for 24 years. "It's brand new, it adds a whole new factor to the area; you have real estate needs, housing need...

Oregon Measure 91 As marijuana becomes legal in Oregon, those in the real-estate industry are finding the new laws have implications for properties of every variety, from residential to industrial to retail. Some of the issues pertain to the growing and processing of the plants; others pertain to the use of it in a rental property or one governed by a homeowner’s association. There are also some things that home buyers need to be aware of, to ensure they know what they’re purchasing. At the same time, some real-estate professionals are using this as a business opportunity nation wide. For example, the 420MLS is a website where people can find and post marijuana business opportunities, commercial space for future “cannabusinesses,” and marijuana-friendly living spaces. Another listing site for Colorado is PotProp.com. Legalization of Marijuana in Oregon The following are possible ways real estate may be affected by the legalization of marijuana in Oregon. Increas...

Concerns about the potential impact of higher interest rates have sent  real estate investment trusts on a roller coaster ride this year, after chalking up double-digit gains in 2014. Despite their recent fickle behavior, however, this asset class belongs in the diversified portfolios of long-term investors, experts say. What's more, the volatility could provide a buying opportunity. A REIT is simply a company that owns or finances income-producing real estate. Most REITs are traded on major stock exchanges, and investors can purchase a share of the REIT just as they would any other stock. One major draw of REITs is that they provide investors with a  regular income stream , as they typically pay out their taxable income as dividends to shareholders. In the low interest-rate environment that has prevailed in recent years, income investors have turned to REITs to generate potentially higher rates of return than more traditional income-generating investments, such as ...

Price is almost always negotiated, but there are other times when a seller will need to negotiate further.   Technically everything is negotiable. The most common negotiations are listed below. Price When it comes to the price of a home, sellers have an ideal price in mind, and so do buyers. The goal is to somehow meet in the middle. While a buyer’s “lowball” strategy may work on occasion, many times it is seen as insulting to a seller. The same thinking applies to a seller. If your home is priced to high, it may quickly be scratched off the list when a buyer is choosing homes to visit. A knowledgeable and experienced Realtor will price your home correctly from the start and use their negotiating skills when it comes time to accept or reject an offer. Appliances If a seller has just renovated their kitchen and appliances, this can be a good tool in negotiating price. For example, when a buyer is offering below the asking price, the seller can counter with a higher...

Selling Secret #10: Pricing it right Find out what your home is worth, then shave 15 to 20 percent off the price. You’ll be stampeded by buyers with multiple bids — even in the worst markets — and they’ll bid up the price over what it’s worth. It takes real courage and most sellers just don’t want to risk it, but it’s the single best strategy to sell a home in today’s market. Selling Secret #9: Half-empty closets Storage is something every buyer is looking for and can never have enough of. Take half the stuff out of your closets then neatly organize what’s left in there. Buyers will snoop, so be sure to keep all your closets and cabinets clean and tidy. Selling Secret #8: Light it up Maximize the light in your home. After location, good light is the one thing that every buyer cites that they want in a home. Take down the drapes, clean the windows, change the lampshades, increase the wattage of your light bulbs and cut the bushes outside to let in sunshine. Do wha...

Outlook for Housing and Economy Remain Positive Despite Q1 GDP Contraction In its second of three estimates of real gross domestic product (GDP) growth for the first quarter released Friday , the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis ( BEA ) issued a downward revision of what analysts had already deemed "paltry" growth of 0.2 percent in the  advance estimate for Q1  reported at the end of April. According to the BEA's second estimate for Q1, which is based on more complete source data than were available for the advance estimate, the GDP contracted at an annual rate of minus 0.7 percent. Despite economic growth taking a step backward, the forecast for housing for the rest of the year remains positive, according to Fannie Mae SVP and chief economist Doug Duncan. New home sales increased by 6.8 percent in April up to 517,000 annualized units; the National Association of Realtors' Pending Home Sales Index has risen by 14 percent in the last 12 months; existing home s...