colinrealestate

Some houses just sit and sit unsold – yet they shouldn’t if some key issues are understood. The four main reasons that houses don’t sell are listed below and can all be addressed through an open dialogue with your agent.
1. It is overpriced. Don’t try to ‘test’ the market, it invariably backfires. prices are quite stable right now so go with your realtor’s recommendation.
2. It doesn’t show well. Too cluttered, lawns not mowed, windows not clean, rooms untidy. Remember it’s on show and must be presented well.
3. Badly marketed. Buyers don’t just appear. We offer a proven marketing plan for a reason. Potential buyers must know about it.
4. Too much competition. Right now it’s fine as there is a shortage of good homes for sale, but at times a number houses in your street could be for sale at the same time.

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If you do want to sell now, just like at other times of the year, each season has its own tips and techniques that can improve the chances of a sale.
1. Let in the light. Pull up the blinds, push back the drapes.
2. Turn on every light in the house.
3. Turn on the heat so it’s comfortable.
4. Light the fireplace if you have one to give a cosy feeling.
And then attend to the normal issues when selling, such as de-cluttering and minimising personal items like photographs. Remember, it’s not YOUR home anymore when you sell. It has to look like the home others can envisage themselves in.

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Download the last 3 months bank statements and then break all expenses into categories (food, car, cafes, clothes etc). Don’t guess, use actual from the previous 3 months. Now go through each line one at a time and see if you can find savings. Look for 5% to 10%. Might not sound much, but it all adds up.
Set up as many payments on AP as you can, and for all variable amounts (like groceries) take out a set amount of cash each week. Pay yourself and your partner a weekly cash allowance. This should cover coffees, clothes and all personal expenses. This way you never need feel guilty about spending on yourself.
And FREEZE your credit cards in ice. Do not fall victim to the scam of ‘Reward Points’ on cards. Using these rules, the pressure of the mortgage (usually the biggest single expense line item) then feels surprisingly less

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The only two ways to build wealth are through business activity and property. Fixed interest bonds and bank deposits simply maintain your wealth as they keep its value in line with or slightly above inflation.
Business activity, be it your own business or through buying shares in other businesses, provide both income (dividends) and capital growth over time. Property does the same, in the form of rental income and increased values. While fixed interest gives you an income in the form of interest, in the end you just get your original money back.

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Buying low and selling high is the desire of most investors, but this means understanding how to ‘time the market’ which even the best rarely get right. Super investors like Warren Buffet just buy and sit. He buys shares in sound, well managed companies for $5 and then 20 years later they are worth $100. The key here is “20 years later”.
Property is exactly the same. Property investment should have a minimum time period of 10 years, preferably a lot longer, like 20. This allows you to ride out highs and lows in values and mortgage rates and issues such as periods with no tenants. Property is an excellent long term cornerstone to an investment portfolio.
Contrast property with an active share-trading portfolio, where you buy a stock for $3.50 and sell a week later for $3.70. This is called ‘timing the market’ and requires considerable homework and knowledge of the factors that may affect that company’s share price.
Right now however there is an interesting opportunity to ‘time the market’ in property.

Prices are low compared with three years ago and mortgage rates are low. Therefore it stands to reason that it is a good time to consider investing in property. If you have a 10-20 year investment horizon, there is no doubt whatsoever that property values will be considerably higher by then, boosted by the lower prices right now.
Call us to chat about opportunities that exist right now and how it can become the cornerstone of your retirement portfolio, if it isn’t already.

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