Let’s begin by discussing exactly what a contingency contract is.  A  contingency contract is what you use to buy a new home when you need the equity from your current house to make the purchase. It is exactly the same as a standard contract except for the fact that it includes an addendum for the sale of another property by the buyer. For that reason, we will focus on the content of the addendum for this article. It is important to note, however, that ALL parts of the contract can affect the seller’s willingness to accept an offer.

The first question many people have is , “When can I submit a contingency offer?” The answer: Whenever you want. Will a knowledgeable seller take a contingency offer before your current house is under contract to sale? Probably not. For that reason, it is important that your first priority is getting your current house under contract. In this case, it is generally a good idea to leave yourself a fair amount of time before closing so that you have time to negotiate a contract on your next purchase. It may also be wise to include a lease back to give yourself a couple of days to move.

Ok. your current house is under contract. Now what?! The best thing you can do is get a Realtor to help explain to you how a contingency contract works. There are too many scenarios to cover in this article. Suffice it to say that the wording in the addendum protects the buyer if the contract on their current house falls through.

On the other hand, it also protects the seller by allowing them to continue showing the property. IF another offer is made on the house, though, the original buyer has “dibs.” That is to say that they have an opportunity to put down more earnest money (the amount can be negotiated) to give up their contingency and continue forward with a standard contract. If the buyer chooses to do this, the seller must stay with their offer even if the second offer was much higher.

 This may sound bad for the buyer, but generally by this point in time you have a pretty good idea if the sale of your previous house will go through. At this point, if you’ve played your cards right, The sale of your previous house closes, the purchase of your new home closes, the new house is yours, and everyone is happy.

It is important to note that seemingly minute details in a contingency contract can be responsible for the success or failure of the whole deal. For this reason, I STRONGLY advise you to contact a Realtor if you find yourself in this situation. They have the experience and the knowledge to help you through this process and to make sure that you are protected.

Due to the recent outpouring of information on television about staging, many people are under the impression that staging is a difficult process that must be done by a professional. This is not the case. All you need are a few simple guidelines to follow.

First, remember that you are selling the space in your house. The larger the space looks, the more value you add. That does not mean you should remove everything. Houses that appear lived in are much easier to sell than empty houses. It simply means that you should leave only enough furniture to give the future owner an idea about what will fit in each room. For instance, in a bedroom you might leave a full size bed and a night stand.

Next, you must remember that you are selling a house, not YOUR home. That means that personal items need to be removed. Things like religious symbols and family pictures can sometimes make potential buyers feel like they are intruding in YOUR home, not looking at THEIR future home.

Now for the final touches. At this point, you should be left with a sparsely furnished house with relatively bare walls. All you need to do now is patch and paint the walls (Neutral colors are best) and set out a few decorative items and/or artwork. These items can be purchased at hobby stores at a minimal expense. With these guidelines, staging your house and staying on top of College Station home sales is easy!

Pricing is affected by many factors. Just a few of them are how much houses in the area have sold for in the past, how much money you NEED to get, how much money you WANT to get, and how fast you need to sell your house. It is important to remember that pricing will be different for each house as well as each seller.

Many people think that the average sales price for their neighborhood is a good place to start. This is often a good idea, but make sure to base your price on average sales price per square foot, not average total sales price. From there, you can add to the price for improvements, decrease price if you are in a hurry to sell, make allowances for repairs, ……..the list goes on seemingly forever. 

The bottom line is that there is no simple formula to follow. This is why it is imperative that you consult with a Realtor to ensure that your house sells quickly at a good price. Your Realtor will guide you through the process based on your personal needs and wishes. Pricing is one of the reasons that a large majority of people trying to sell their own house end up contacting a Realtor. Save yourself a lot of head ache and let a Realtor guide you through the difficult parts of College Station home sales.

The Department of Wildlife and Fisheries has concluded that the fish in the pond all died due to lack of oxygen.  This is also sometimes referred to as the pond “turning over.” My understanding is that this occured because: we had a long period with no rain, then lots of rain at once, with not a lot of natural vegetation in the pond, and a fountain that had recently broken.  Apparently, once the amount of oxygen decreases to a certain level in a tank, it will kill the fish overnight. Now we have tons of algae in the tank and the whole thing looks nasty and green.

This brings me to my latest problem. I hand raised approximately 14 ducks and 2 geese last spring for the the Home Owner’s Association and then released them into the lake. At this point, the lake is clearly less than desirable and the ducks have moved into my back yard.

My two and four year old think it is Easter with the eggs in my back yard! The Tree Walker coon hound  See Meet Snoofy: A College Station Animal Rescue in Need of a Loving Home is definitely NOT a hunter and is no help at all! 

And it has become such an issue in the last 2 days to get water, they are even brave enough to reside on the back porch and drink out of the dog bowl! They don’t go to the South Lake, which is beautiful and in working order because another flock lives there. I am worried they are going to distroy my back porch and kill the grass. Any suggestions would be most appreciated! ;D

www.buyincollegestation.com

More Articles on College Station Animal Adventures

Original Article

The questions will likely start with a qualifying nature to determine your timeline in selling. Common questions Realtors ask are:

• When are You Thinking of Placing Your Home on the Market?
• Have You Interviewed Other Agents?
• How Fast do You Need to be Out of Your Current Property?
• Do You Know what Price You Want for Your Home?
• What Are Your Goals?

You want to be honest about what you are looking for and where you are in the selling process. If you are looking to stay in the area, see if the realtor has any suggestions of homes currently on the market or responds with news of interest from the area you are wanting to live in. This indicates the realtor is knowledgeable about the market and what is going on in the area. You also want to be ready with a few basic questions, yourself:

• How do You Plan to Market My Home?
• How Will We Communicate and How Frequently?
• How do You Come Up with a Market Price?
• May I see a List of Your Awards and References?

A good Realtor will meet you at the door with a business card and notebook in hand. When they enter your home, no matter what the flooring or condition, they will remove their shoes to show respect for your property. You don’t want a Realtor who is going to give you an instant evaluation of what your home is worth.

It is impossible to correctly evaluate the value a property without looking at all its details and special characteristics first. Give special bonus points to agents who write down notes as they go from room to room and point out special selling features of your home as they are viewing it.

You also want a Realtor who has already done their homework before coming to your home. This means they will have brought with them a CMA or Comparative Market Analysis. A Realtor who has a CMA to view with you has already scoped out your competition (other homes).

This is extremely important because this type of agent: is better prepared to answer objections, more likely to arrive at the correct asking price for your home, has the data that shows what has to be done to get the home sold, and is ready to help you meet your desired goals. You should also ask the agent for a written copy of their marketing plan. A professional agent will also have marketing examples at the listing appointment for you to review as well.

At the end of your visit, a good Realtor will ask for your business and will ask you to sign a listing agreement. The length of the agreement should reflect the time it takes to sell a home in your area. A listing that lasts between 3 and 6 months is not unusual. Remember, any reputable agent will allow you out of your contractual listing agreement with them, at any time and at no cost to you, if you are truly unhappy with his/her service or if your plans should change.

Feel free to call or email me with any questions you may have. Happy Selling!

www.ahouse-soldname.com

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Lightning Prediction Systems

past, the system will sound an “All Clear” with three short audible blasts of the horn and the flashing strobe light will no longer flash.Locations of Lightning Prediction Systems

PD Dispatch Central, Bee, WPC Unit on front of PD; horns at each location –
Sandstone Sandstone Unit on wood pole behind gazebo shelter
Southwood Park Park, Pool, CS Junior High Unit on wood pole on curve of road south of maintenance office
Thomas Park Park, Pool, College Hills Elem Unit on roof of shelter near pool
W.A. Tarrow Park Park, Wayne Smith Field, Lincoln Ctr Unit on roof of shelter at ball fields
AMC Consolidated Consolidated Believe unit is on roof of athletic field house
Oakwood Junior High Schools (Middle and Jr High), Anderson Park Unit on south end of Oakwood
Miller Park Park, Rock Prairie Elementary School Unit of roof of shelter
Pebble Creek Park Park, PC Elementary School Unit on wood pole east of school, in park
Northgate Garage Northgate area Somewhere on parking garage upper structure
The unit at PD is the only one where the sensing unit is located separately from the warning horns. In this case, the sensor
and horns should all be plotted geographically. Range circles will be different for this system.