Sell Loft – Page 45 – LA Loft Blog

Sell a Loft in Downtown Los Angeles:
10 Most Common Mistakes Made by Home Sellers

Downtown Los Angeles offers many advantages and disadvantages to home sellers. Most Downtown buildings have issues that sellers must address, including answering objections and questions about lawsuits and other common issues in loft buildings. Every building in Downtown has issues that many buyers are aware of. Even the most popular buildings such as Market Lofts and Barker Block lofts receive complaints or balking questions from buyers about lawsuits, flooding, broken fire sprinklers, water damages, stains, HOA conflicts, parking problems, safety and health issues for a start. A seller absolutely must use a Downtown specialist Realtor(R) who is aware of the issues, and is able to answer and overcome objections and increase the value by pointing out the positive sides.

PRICES IN DOWNTOWN | FREE, QUICK HOME EVALUATION | 27 SELLER TIPS

Alta Lofts Offers Rise Faster Than Appraisals

One common problem with selling in Downtown is that offers have been coming in higher than the appraisals. When an appraisal comes in lower than the offer amount, the deal can often fall through unless it is an all cash offer or the buyer can put down more than 20%. That is why it is imperative to have an agent who can attract multiple buyers, including cash buyers.

Many loft owners in Downtown make the mistake of using an agent who is a friend or relative and not a Downtown specialist. Out-of-area agents have the most costly problems. They cannot show the property as quickly, cannot show it as often and thus are more likely to get lower offers or no offers. Non-local agents have trouble explaining the positive, valuable points of the buildings and are less able to describe the tantalizing details of the amazing shops, exciting restaurants and entertainment of Downtown. A Downtown specialist is able to add value to all downtown properties by emotionally communicating the powerful truth about the amazing renaissance of Downtown Los Angeles.

Agents who are not Downtown specialists often are unaware of the special documentation and reports required by the City of Los Angeles, leaving the buyer and seller squabbling over the required L.A. reports. Most buildings in Downtown require loft lenders or other unique lending requirements. The unfamiliar agents will often fail to take steps to help buyers use the right lender such as a loft lender, litigation lender. A Downtown specialist agent will help buyers choose a lender who is likely to be successful lending on that building. The unknowing agent will suggest that the seller accept offers that are too low or with down payments that are too low for the building’s appraisal or lending situation. The Downtown specialist will know what the appraisal is likely to be, and will suggest to the seller that they require a certain down payment or other terms that will be successful for that building.

Barker Block - All buildings have issues — Barker Block – All Downtown buildings have issues

A mistake that is expected to increase in Downtown is owners failing to sell while prices are high. Prices have increased by more than $100,000 on the average Downtown loft in the past 2 years. Some sellers who really want to sell will delay after beginning to feel elated, almost greedy about the future potential gains on the loft. If a buyer wants to sell, then the most profitable time to sell is when prices are high. Once prices start to drop, the market can disappear quickly, leaving the seller in a depressing position of waiting for years for the market to recover. Most real estate professionals in Downtown agree that prices may continue to rise for only a fairly short time before having another 2009 style crisis causes a significant collapse in prices.

Downtowners who love their full-time urban life will likely want to continue it, and may only sell to upgrade to a larger or more central loft. Those who are less committed to Downtown should take advantage of the opportunity to test the market at no cost and receive offers so that the seller will get a true sense of the real market value.

PRICES IN DOWNTOWN | FREE, QUICK HOME EVALUATION | 27 SELLER TIPS

<a href="https://laloft.wufoo.com/forms/m1spfx910pdzxmx/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Fill out my Wufoo form!</a>

To find out what your Downtown property is worth, request a free market analysis or contact:

DOWNTOWN LOFT & CONDO: FOR SALE | RENTALS | SUBSCRIBE | VIDEO

Corey Chambers, REALTOR® (213) 478-049

GET PRIORITY ACCESS TO SECRET, UNLISTED LOFTS IN DOWNTOWN!

corey@laloft.org http://www.LAloftBlog.com

L.A. Loft Blog, 200 N. San Fernando Rd., #119, Los Angeles, CA 90031

The #1 Downtown buyer’s agent with 19 successful buyer transactions closed in 2013, Corey Chambers is a Realtor®, and member of the Top 6 award-winning, 5-Star Yelp rated team. J.D. Power Award 2012 – Keller Williams Realty ranked Highest in Overall Satisfaction for Home Buyers and Sellers Among National Full Service Real Estate Firms. DRE#01889449

DOWNTOWN LOFT & CONDO: FOR SALE | RENTALS | SUBSCRIBE | VIDEO

10 Ways to Turn Off a Potential Home Buyer

For those of you who are thinking about selling your loft or condo, home improvement guru David Keeton gives us 10 Ways to Turn Off a Potential Home Buyer. David is the only home improvement contractor that I often recommend for lofts in Downtown L.A.

For Downtown industrial loft sellers, you should go ahead and rip out your carpet and provide polished concrete or wood floors. Loft buyers do not want carpet. Lofts need to be complete decluttered. Avoid suburban styles. Get rid of grandma’s cabinet doors and sell off grandpa’s sofa. Cabinet, doors and other elements should have a clean contemporary urban style or industrial style. See the complete list below:

Thu, Feb 27, 2014 at 10:18 AM

10:18 AM

10 Ways to Turn Off a

Potential Home Buyer

February

27th, 2014

Dear Corey,

If you have decided to sell your home, the last thing you want to do is not to have it in its best shape for anyone who comes to take a look at it. Home sales are a competitive field, and no matter how great you think your house is, you are doing yourself a disservice by not making it as presentable to potential buyers as possible. For that reason, you should do everything in your power to avoid anything that may turn off someone who comes to look at your home.

Here are 10 surefire ways to turn off a potential home buyer that you want to avoid at all costs:

1. Keeping a Dirty Home. I know it seems like people should be able to look past dirt, knowing that they will keep a cleaner house than you do. But that isn’t how the human mind works. When a buyer comes to look at your home, it should always be spotless. That means hiring professionals to clean the carpet, scrub the dirt and grime from your bathrooms and kitchen, and simply just making the place shine.

2. An Unkempt Yard. One of the keys to selling your home is creating a “love at first sight” scenario. If your potential buyer gets out of their car and immediately has a great feeling before even setting foot inside, then you are already ahead of the game. That’s why you should keep your hedges trimmed, your grass watered, and your kids’ toys in the garage.

3. Popcorn Ceilings – that squishy stuff on your ceilings: Many of us grew up with these types of ceilings in our homes. But nowadays, they make a house look incredibly dated. That’s why you should have your local contractor come out and get rid of them, which can make a major difference in the amount of buyers you will attract.

4. Odd or Bad Smells. Raise your hand if you want to live in a smelly house? None of you? Yeah, I thought so. When a buyer comes to look at your home, make sure it smells nice (or doesn’t smell at all). Even if you tell them the bad smell is temporary, most people won’t want to chance it.

5. Old Fixtures and Hardware. If you have old fixtures in your kitchen and bathroom, I think it’s a good idea to replace them before you start showing your home. Changing out the knobs on your kitchen cabinets won’t cost you a ton, but it can be the difference between a sale and a pass.

6. Too Much Clutter. When you put your house up for sale, one of the first things you should do is pack away some of the knick-knacks and other personal items that may be cluttering your home. The more of that stuff that’s lying around and taking up space, the harder it will be for a potential homeowner to picture themselves there.

7. ‘Hawking’ Around the Buyer. To me, a person’s home is a very personal subject. Because of this, it is to the seller’s benefit to let a potential home buyer look through the home at their own speed. Let them imagine themselves living there. Don’t hang around and knock them out of that fantasy!

8. Old Appliances. Outdated appliances can really hurt your ability to sell your home. Nobody wants to move into their new house only to have things start breaking on them. It may be a good idea for you to replace these appliances before putting your house on the market.

9. Carpeting. This is another home item that can make your house look incredibly dated, especially if the carpet is in every room. If your home is carpeted, you may want to talk to a reputable flooring contractor about replacing it. In my opinion, your best bet would be to rip it out and lay a hardwood floor, which everyone seems to love these days.

10. Misrepresenting Your Home. Simply put, you should not lie on your real estate listing. And when I say lie, that includes Photoshopping pictures of your home to make everything look larger. There is nothing that angers a buyer more than taking time to look at a home they thought they were interested in only to find out it’s nothing like the listing.

To speak to a reputable Los Angeles contractor who can help you get your home ready for sale so you can avoid turning off buyers, please give me a call at (213) 232-4783 or contact me here.

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