Whiteboard Topics: 3 Reasons Why Fall and Winter Are a Great Time to Buy a Lake Home

Now that fall is officially here and winter is approaching,  Lake Homes Realty’s CEO, Glenn Phillips, explains why now is the best time to purchase your dream lake home!
 
1. Summer Enthusiasm Has Faded: Now that summer has ended, the initial wave of enthusiasm has worn off. This will prompt more homeowners to list their lake homes.
 
2. Winter Water Levels: You’ll get insight into the water levels of the lake during the fall and winter seasons. Seeing it firsthand can make all the difference.
 
3. What is Open Year-Round: You can see how active this lake is during the fall/winter seasons. Are shops and restaurants still open? Are events still happening?
 
Although the fall/winter is typically considered the ‘off-season’ for lake homes, it may be the perfect time to buy one. Visualizing your dream lake home setting in every season can help you make the right purchase!

Whiteboard Topics: 5 Common “Buyer’s Remorse” Issues to Avoid

Home buyer’s remorse is very real, but can be avoided when you’ve done your research. Lake Homes Realty’s CEO, Glenn Phillips, introduces five factors to consider before purchasing your lake home to prevent buyer’s remorse!
  1. Relying on Appearances: This can lead to miscommunication and disappointment. For example, the placement of a fence isn’t always a great identifier of a property line.
  2. Assuming HOA Rules: The rules of every lake association differ per lake, so it’s important to stay updated on the current rules in place.
  3. Assuming Shoreline Usage: These rules also differ per lake. Just because you see others with a pier or dock, doesn’t mean you have the right to build one. 
  4. Ignoring Flood Insurance: Flood insurance should not be ignored or taken lightly. The benefits outweigh the cost, but you must take the added expense into account.
  5. Grossly Overpaying: The market is extremely hot right now, but that doesn’t mean you should pay extreme prices because of the rising demand.
You should have the confidence to buy your dream lake home with no regrets. Buyer’s remorse can be prevented when you know what you’re getting yourself into. Do your research!

Whiteboard Topics: 4 Tips for Leveraging Backup Offers for Lake Home Buying

When buying a lake home, it’s important to put yourself in the best position. This means understanding the market, or working with an agent who does. Lake Homes Realty’s CEO, Glenn Phillips gives four tips for leveraging backup offers for lake home buying.

  1. Patience: Being in a hurry to buy a lake home can damage the chances of a purchase being made. Leveraging backup offers means waiting for an offer to fall through.
  2. Add Contingencies: Ensuring a higher quality offer with contingencies can 
  3. Don’t Ask, Just Submit: Instead of waiting while more offers can be made, submitting your offer can put you in the best position.
  4. No Guarantees: While an offer may seem perfect, nothing is guaranteed.

Selling your lake home doesn’t have to be difficult. Set yourself up for success and work with an agent who knows not only your lake area but the lake house market!  

Tips for Buying a Fixer-Upper

Photo by Tierra Mallorca on Unsplash

Finding your dream lake home isn’t easy. Sometimes, you’ll have to sacrifice certain “nice-to-haves” for the sake of securing your “non-negotiable” qualities in a lake home. However, the solution to attaining your dream home might be to create aspects of it yourself. Investing in a fixer-upper can be an excellent opportunity to customize a home to your liking and increase your return on investment for an eventual sale. Plus, there are plenty of DIY solutions to fixing up a property. Check out these insider tips on buying a fixer-upper lake home from real estate experts across the country.

Know Your Numbers

 Photo courtesy of @beachbumledford via Twenty20

Whether it’s a lake property or a residential home, every buyer should know their numbers. “Run your flip like a business — because it is!” says Charlie Mackey, director of investment solutions at Sundae. “Start with the 70% rule. You should not pay more than 70% of the After Repair Value (ARV) of a property or what the house can be sold for after completing all work and renovations. Think of this number as a starting point.” 

Knowing your numbers can help eliminate any cost surprises in the long run. It can also help you decide if a property is worth the money. “You’ll never be 100%, but you can be as close as possible,” says Bill Samuel, a residential real estate developer who specializes in rehabbing and selling houses. “Know what your total development cost will be at the end of the day. The most important thing is: what’s the property going to be worth when you finish, and is that number versus your total cost worth it?”

Look for the Bones

When you’re buying a fixer-upper, it’s not the inside that counts — it’s the structure. You’ll be renovating the interior, but you want to make sure the overall frame of the home is sound. “Look for the bones,” says real estate expert Steve Laret. “Look at the dock, pilings, roof, walls, the stuff that isn’t ‘sexy money’ to spend.” If everything on the outside of the home is intact, including the electrical wiring, plumbing, and a termite inspection, then you can spend your money on aesthetics alone. “Run away from a place that needs a new roof, tons of tree work, or is completely shaded. They are not going to return your investment,” he says.

Invite a Contractor

Photo courtesy of Inman.com

These days, buyers are savvier than ever. However, it doesn’t hurt to get a second opinion — especially one who’s an expert. “Don’t be afraid to have a contractor walk a property with you,” says Henry Washington, a real estate investor who specializes in buying and renovating homes. “A lot of times, people THINK they know how much a renovation will cost, but they don’t actually know. The expense of fixing foundations can be cheap or expensive, and it’s hard for an expert to know the difference. Have a professional give you a quote.” 

In particular, a contractor may help you search for things like cracks in the walls that you might not notice. These could indicate a problem in your home’s foundation, and you may want to offer less for the property. 

A contractor can also offer insight into the home’s electrical wiring. “If you’re not experienced with doing a lot of construction, stick to a house that wasn’t built over 100 years ago because you’re going to wind up with way too many surprises,” says Samuel. This is because 100 years ago, there were no building codes for electricity. 

If your house is too old and is not up to code, you will be responsible for the costly fees of updating the wiring if you were to open a wall. Bringing a contractor on-site could help you catch things like this — the little things that come with a hefty price tag.

Seek ROI Opportunities

Photo courtesy of aabsys/iStock via Realtor.com

After buying a fixer-upper, you’re going to be doing a lot of the work. Be prepared by knowing what you’re working with and looking for the home’s potential rather than evaluating it based on its current state.
For lake houses, adding bedrooms means adding value because you will be paid more whenever you rent it out or if you want to sell it one day. “Look for places where the square footage and the number of bedrooms don’t add up,” says Washington. “That means that you can add a bedroom and still have a great-sized home.”
At a lake house, you may also want to take down trees to increase the lake view. However, this can be expensive, as Laret warns. It may be a better idea to consider other ways to let light into your home, such as changing the window treatments.

Hire a Lake Agent

Photo courtesy of Getty Images via Forbes Advisor

Finally, when buying a fixer-upper on lakefront property, be sure to hire a lake-focused real estate agent. “Hire someone locally who knows all the nuances of the lake market,” Samuel says. “Know what the water quality is like, and other important factors about that lake. The more information you have, the better your decision will be.” At Lake Homes Realty, our lake agents have both local and national expertise and can help you find the property and lake area that’s right for you.

Whiteboard Topics: 4 Ways to Help Your Real Estate Agent in 2021

While real estate agents are here to help you with your lake home, there are some things you can do to make the process easier. Here are four tips to help the real estate transaction go smoothly for you and your agent.

  1. Accept the consequences. Be sure you understand that the lake market is a hot market in 2021. It’s different from other markets and knowing the nuances are important to be successful in the process.
  2. Do your homework. Agents will help you and answer your questions, but you have to know what to ask. Educating yourself and working with an expert agent will keep you out of trouble.
  3. Expert agent. Whether you’re buying or selling, working with a lake expert agent will help you navigate the nuances of each lake. The rules and regulations for each market can be different, so having someone who can guide you through those will help meet your expectations.
  4. Be prepared to buy. Do the prep work to make a thoughtful and competitive offer in a timely manner. You snooze, you lose!

Whether you’re buying or selling your lake home or property, our agents at Lake Homes Realty can help provide insight into today’s lake real estate market and guide you in your home journey.

Whiteboard Topics: 5 Questions First-Time Lake Home Buyers Should Ask

Are you thinking of buying your first lake home? Buying a lake home is unlike buying any other home so here are 5 important questions to ask when you know you are ready to buy.

  1. Dock Regulations? The rules and regulations on what you can and cannot do to a dock will vary from lake to lake. Some might not allow the existing docks to be modified. Before you decide to build one or fix up an existing dock, be sure you understand the regulations.
  2. Internet Access? Most people often think that the internet is widely accessible, but this is not always the case with lake homes. Sometimes houses on the lake are located in secluded, rural areas where internet access is not always readily available.
  3. Water Levels? Water levels vary on different lakes. Some lakes could have water levels that vary from day to day while some are seasonal. For instance, a lake might be at full capacity in the summertime and be completely dry in the winter.
  4. Boat Traffic? You might not realize that your ideal lake home is situated on an area of the lake that has high traffic. The buzzing of passersby might be appealing for some but if you’re looking for a more tranquil setting, an area with high boat traffic might not be a good fit for you.
  5. Grocery Store DRIVE Time? How long does it take to get to the nearest grocery store? Always calculate the time and not the distance because the shortest distance does not always equate to the fastest time and vice versa.

If you’re ready to make your very first lake home purchase, be sure to contact our lake experts to help guide you on this special journey.

Whiteboard Topics: 4 Gotta Haves to Consider When Buying a Lake Home

When you are considering buying a lake home, particularly in a rural area, here are 4 “Gotta Haves” you will have to keep in mind.

  1. Cell Signal
  2. Internet Access
  3. Television Service
  4. 24-Hour Emergency Room

There might be hundreds of miles of lake shoreline, one side of the lake might have these services while the other side might not. Also, the terrain of the lake areas might determine the availability of these services as well.

Our knowledgeable agents are here to help you answer these questions and assist you in your lake home-buying journey.

Whiteboard Topics: 5 Tips to Get Your Dream Home

If you’re thinking of buying a lake home in the near future, here are 5 tips to ensure your success in the current market and get your dream home: 

  1. Be Prepared to BUY! Instead of saying “I’ll think about it,” you should be ready to make a down payment on a lake house. Otherwise, good listings will be gone. 
  2. Find a Local, Lake Agent. These agents will be aware of local market changes that you won’t see online. You can find a great agent at Lakehomes.com.
  3. Use Escalation Clauses. Many buyers use these clauses which essentially say “If I’m not the highest, I’ll increase my bid up to a certain point.” This “auto bidding” can be helpful to ensure your bid is the highest. 
  4. Be Ready for a Low Appraisal. Remember that appraisers are looking out for the bank rather than you. 
  5. De-Risk the Deal! Many offers have a great price, but they also include other contingencies for the loan. Be on the lookout for these risky buys. 

For more information on buying or selling a lake home, visit the Lake Homes Realty blog or connect with one of our lake expert agents. We wish you the best of luck in finding your dream home! 

 

Whiteboard Topics: What is Title Insurance?

One thing in a real estate transaction that some people may not understand is title insurance. They may ask themselves “What is it?” and “Do I really need it?” To navigate the confusion or uncertainty, here are three things to know about title insurance.

  • Right to Sell. Title insurance is basically just insurance that guarantees that the seller has the right to sell that property. There can be a lot of confusion surrounding whether someone has the right to sell a property — whether that be fraud, a mistake, or ownership uncertainty — but title insurance can help clarify and clean up that misinformation. 
  • Clients Can Shop. You can shop around for title insurance that best fits your needs. The price of title insurance typically reflects the sale price of your home, and relative to many of the other costs involved in a real estate transaction, it isn’t that expensive. Though there are laws in place to protect buyers and sellers from fraudulent title insurance companies, you always have the option to shop around and get prices from various suppliers. 
  • One-Time Cost. This is not a recurring payment. It is a one-time cost that takes place at a closing. Once the title insurance company is paid, they will do additional filings and verifications at the courthouse, and several days later, the buyer will receive their policy.

Whether you’re buying or selling your lake home or property, our agents at Lake Homes Realty can help provide insight into today’s lake real estate market and guide you in your home journey.