Tag: sell a lake home

Whiteboard Topics: The Highest Offer For Your Lake Home May Cost You More Money

Posted on Kenya Spencer

Selling a lake house is an exciting but difficult undertaking, and your main goal as a homeowner is to secure the greatest offer possible. However, it is critical to exercise caution because the highest offer may not always be the most lucrative. Let’s look at some important points to consider when selling your lake house to prevent financial hazards.

1. Avoiding Selling Too Quickly: Resist the urge to accept early offers; instead, wait for perfect market circumstances to obtain the best price.

2. All Cash Transactions: Be wary of all-cash proposals since they may come with lesser bids and make it difficult to negotiate a fair bargain.

3. Limited (or no) Contingencies: Carefully evaluate proposals with fewer conditions to prevent any legal or financial problems.

4. Seasoned Real Estate Agents Who Understand Niche: Work with seasoned agents who specialize in lakefront properties for professional advice, effective marketing, and skilled negotiating.

A thoughtful and informed approach to selling a lake house may make it a rewarding experience. While a large offer may appear appealing, it is critical to consider all elements to prevent financial disasters. Take your time, investigate all-cash bids, evaluate conditions, and seek advice from experienced lakefront real estate brokers. With these safeguards, you may sell your cherished lake house with confidence and optimize your investment return.

Whiteboard Topics: 6 Pricing Secrets for Sellers

Posted on Linda Thach

When selling your 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 six pricing secrets for sellers. 

  1. Hot ≠ Stupid: Even though the market is hot, this does not mean buyers will pay crazy, overpriced houses. Start at the right price instead of receiving no offers and having to cut the listing price.  
  2. List $ ≠ Sold $: Comparing your listing price to neighbors’ listing prices will set you up for disappointment. Listing price does not mean the house sold for that price; knowing what homes are selling for is more valuable. 
  3. Local Comps ≠ Lake Market Comps: Buyers could be looking at multiple lakes or even in different states. Working with an agent who understands the entire lake house market will set you up for success.
  4. Pretending ≠ Selling: Include an honest description of the home and make sure you are serious and committed to selling. 
  5. Time = Money: The longer a house is on the market because of a too high listing price, the more money it will cost you. Buyers will believe something may be wrong with the house or are simply unwilling to pay the listing price. 
  6. Start Too High ≠ Best $: Starting too high on your listing price means eventually having to cut that price. This leads buyers into believing you will cut the price further and therefore offer even lower.

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!  

These 4 Things are Essential to Selling Your Lake Home

Posted on Staff

Selling your home is never easy, but selling your lake home comes with its own set of unique challenges and pitfalls. Check out LakeHomes.com‘s five tips for selling your lake home to ensure you’re prepared for the journey.

Clean up the Lakefront

Just as you would pressure wash your driveway and edge your lawn for a traditional home sale, it’s important to make sure your waterfront is in tip-top shape when selling your lake home.

agent shaking couple's hands who are selling their lake home

Lake weeds can quickly overrun your shoreline, so be sure to free it from suffocating vegetation.

You should also cut overgrown grass along the edge of your retaining wall and incorporate shoreline-stabilizing landscaping.

Popular lake landscaping features blue flag iris, lemongrass and cardinal flowers.

Keep in mind when touching up your home’s waterfront appeal that you avoid introducing invasive species to your lake

Such species include water hyacinth and purple loosestrife. Though they may be pretty to look at, theses plants are dangerous to the your lake and its ecosystem.

Other ways to improve your shoreline appeal include installing solar lights along the path from your home to the waterline and painting your metal bulk head for a restored look.

Repair Your Docks and Decks

You know that plank that’s been missing from your dock since 2004? If you’re selling your lake home, it’s time to replace it.

Of course your home’s interior is important, but most likely prospects will be more concerned with the external parts of your property.

This means they will be paying special attention to the condition of your boat dock, deck and patio.

Ensure your docks and decks are buyer-ready by repainting metal surfaces with weather resistant finishes and removing any screws or nails that are not flush.

Also, replace any splintered pieces of wood and pay careful mind to weathered hand rails, which will not escape notice.

For a full boat dock inspection check list, click  here.

Lifestyle Staging

One of the most important things to remember when selling your lake home is that potential buyers need to be able to envision their own families occupying the space.

Real estate pros recommend staging both the inside and outside of the home to help make this easier.

Indoors:

On the inside, start by removing family pictures from the walls and replacing a few of them with mirrors, so potential buyers can literally SEE themselves in the home.

Also, get rid of clutter by removing knicknacks like key hangers and collectibles. You should remove any magazines littering the coffee table and swap out your colorful throw pillows and blankets for those in neutral colors.

Make sure the lake is within sight as much as possible, even if that means removing thick curtains and window screens that may obscure the view or darken the room.

To be sure your lake home is inviting and homey, subtle lake lifestyle-inspired accents such as a welcome mat that reads “life is better at the lake,” or hanging a beach towel in the changing room may do the trick.

A few candles and fishing pole-emblazoned coasters on the coffee table can also bring the home to life.

Outdoors:

Put away all inflatables, pool noodles and other water toys, and make sure there are no knotted fishing lines or rogue hooks laying out.

Take some age off your outdoor furniture with a pressure wash, and upgrade any weather-worn cushions with new, brightly colored ones.

Tiki torches, big umbrellas and other lounge accessories like Adirondack chairs are also appropriate staging props.

If you have a canoe or kayak, experts recommend placing one in your yard, and hanging a few life jackets on your deck will also help get buyers in the right mindset.

Last, outdoor kitchens and grills should be cleaned of ash, soot and food remains before showing your home.

Hire a Lake-Focused Real Estate Agent

Above all else, always hire a lake real estate professional to guide you through the lake home-selling process.

Unlike traditional real estate agents, lake-focused agents live, work and play in their local markets, which provides them with intimate knowledge about the area’s real estate and the nuances of the lake itself.

These lake experts can also provide sellers with national exposure for their listings via sites like LakeHomes.com, which welcomes two million visitors a year looking specifically for a home like yours.

Lake agents’ local expertise on current market trends and access to lake traffic information about where buyers are most frequently coming from can help make selling your lake home a smooth, effortless process, too.

Do you have tips for selling your lake home? Tell us in the comments section below. And for more on make the sale, be sure to read “3 Reasons Your Home Won’t Sell.“

7 Tips to Prepare Your Lake Home for the Market

Posted on Glenn S. Phillips

There are seven tips that will help you sell your home fast. Of course you are competing against other properties for sale, but you will have the edge if you implement this list.

These powerful tips will help ensure your house will not sit on the market too long.

Tip 1: Price it right.

In order to price it right, you will need to know what the true value of the home is. You are able to have the property survived in order to know the true worth.

Once you have the number, although you want the most money out of the deal, you will need to look at other houses in your market and find out where your property fits in. This is where an experienced REALTOR can be a fantastic asset.

Tip 2: Don’t have full closets.

If you have items still inside the home, then you will have items in the closets as well. Homebuyers will ensure that the property offers enough space for their personal belongings.

A tip for this is to take half of the items from the closet to make them appear large. Make sure to have the items that remain in the closet organized.

Tip 3: Light up the property.

One aspect of selling a home is to ensure that the home is lit up very well. You will need to open or take down drapes to let the natural light in. It will seem bright, happy, and well lit.

Tip 4: Get the right agent.

AgentMake sure that you hire a good real estate agent. This is particularly valuable when selling lake property. A good agent will know your lake and the property values, will help you set the best price, and knows where to find the home buyers, who are often from out of town or even out of state.

Tip 5: Hide the animals.

Although you love your dog, others may not. Not everyone is an animal lover, and some people see pets as just another source of dander and odor. To help this, while showing the house, have your animal in another location. Hide all animal bedding, toys, and other animal related objects.

Tip 6: Do not go over board on upgrading.

Even though offering quick fixes to the home is a great idea and will up the profit margin, redoing a large project for a room or the whole home will end up costing you. You will not be able to get the same money you spent back out of the purchase. Just make small fixes and leave the rest.

Tip 7: Take the most personal items out of the home.

This is one of the most important aspects of selling a home. People do not want to see family pictures of you on vacation of the past years. They want to imagine making their own memories. So it is important to remove any photos, keepsakes, or other personal collections.

Selling your home does not have to be complicated. Nor should the house sit for months or years while you wait. Using these tips will make sure that you sell it fast and gain the profit you want.