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Selling in Burlington, Vermont? Tips and MHG Seller Services

by Matt Hurlburt Group


What services does the Matt Hurlburt Group offer to our clients? 

  • When we host an open house, we are there to sell your home! Other agents may seize the opportunity to build their own businesses and find buyers without agents, our only goal is to sell your home.
  • We solicit feedback from every agent who shows your home so we know how Buyers are reacting to it.
  • We provide weekly status reports (or more often if you want) about the number of showings, the feedback about your home and what’s been happening in the market while you’ve been listed.
  • 24 Hour Exposure! Online, Print, and Video that is specifically designed to sell your home quickly and at the right price!
  • Call us! You will get a person to speak to that knows you, your home, and the latest information about your sale. 
  • All of this is Risk Free to all of our sellers. 

​​

Your home is ready, the price is right, the marketing has worked, and the Buyers want to see it. Here’s our best advice for showing your home to potential buyers:

1. Be flexible with showing times

Selling your home is an inconvenience, there’s no denying that. But if you want top dollar for your home, you’ll want to be flexible with when you allow people to see it. Remember that most people work from 9-5 Monday-Friday, so they’ll most likely want to see your home in the evenings or on weekends.

2. Leave your house during showings

While I’m sure you could tell potential Buyers all about your renovations and the leaky basement, Buyers aren’t comfortable looking at a house when the Sellers are home, so it’s best to let them explore at their own leisure. Go for a walk, catch a movie or temporarily move in with a friend—do whatever you need to do to allow potential Buyers free reign.

3. Make sure your home is always in top condition

Make your bed, do the dishes, wash the floors, clean the litter box—and always remember to crate the dog (or better yet, take him with you).

4. Open Houses

While the official stats are that 4% of houses sell as a result of an open house, our personal experience is that they’re much more effective than that. Open houses allow potential Buyers (and let’s face it, curious neighbors) to see your house in a non-threatening, low-pressure environment. Many a Buyer who wasn’t in the market to buy a house fell in love at an open house.

5. Feedback

Remember: what really matters in selling your home is what Buyers are seeing and feeling. Responding to their concerns and objections in a timely matter will go a long way to reducing how long your home is on the market.

As always, we are there for our clients for every step of the way. Contact us today to see why you should Expect More. 


 

If you’re in the market to buy a house in Burlington, there’s a lot of due diligence that you and your MHG Agent will have to do. Here’s a list of 10 important questions to ask before making an offer:

1. Have there been any water issues in the basement? With wild weather swings, some years haven’t been kind to home owners. Given some of the basement flooding that has happened, most Sellers should know if they have a wet basement. Find out if there have been any issues and what (if anything) the Sellers did to waterproof the house.

​​2. Is there any knob and tube wiring in the house? Much of Burlington's housing stock is older, (vintage? classic?)  and many houses still have knob and tube wiring. Knob and tube wiring is often hard to find and given a house may have changed several times in the last few years, the Sellers themselves may not know they have knob and tube – but it’s an important question to ask. 

 

3. Can I get copies of the water and gas bills? It’s important to know how much your utility bills are going to be, and there’s no better way than asking the Seller for their bills. Unusually high or low bills are a good indicator of the energy efficiency of the home.

4. Have there been issues with any of the neighbors? Here’s where you have to hope for some honesty (smart Sellers would disclose any ongoing issues). 

5. Were the renovations completed with permits? Are copies of those permits available? If you’re buying a home that’s been renovated, this is an important questions – a lot of renovations require permits (and thus get inspected), but it doesn’t always mean that the home owners got the permits. We often run into renovations that should have had permits and didn’t, so each house has to be evaluated separately.

6. Is anything in the house rented? In Burlington, it’s pretty common for hot water tanks to be rented and it’s important to know all the costs you’ll be taking over.

7. Is there any history of pests? Always a good question to ask. It’s safe to assume that most houses may have issues with squirrels, raccoons, mice, or other pests.

8. Are the pipes lead? Has the supply line from the city been changed? Understanding not only your water cost, but also any potential water issues can be important. City water will have available public information about water quality. If it is a private well, has it been tested? 

9. Is there anything else about the house we should know? Sellers have a duty to disclose anything that could materially affect the buyer’s enjoyment of the house. This is always an important question to ask.

10. Disclosure, disclosure disclosure! Have the sellers filled out a Property Information Report? Ask to see it before any offer!

 

There are more, but we will be there, helping with due diligence, every step of the way. 

Expect More.

What do buyers agents do? Why not just handle it yourself?

Buyer Agent's Job

 

As a Buyer Agent’s, our job is to get you from Point A (Would-be Buyer) to Point B (Happy Home Owner) in a safe, simple, and professional manner. More specifically, it’s our job to:

1. Educate You About the Neighborhood

Choosing a new neighborhood is part of the fun! We will play a critical role in educating you about the pros and cons of various neighborhoods. You could  go knocking on doors and speaking to neighbors, but it is not necessary. We can help you understand the neighborhood schools, crime rate, transportation options, demographics, nearby restaurants/shops/services and the trends that are happening in that neighborhood.

[See our related: Burlington Neighborhood Guide]

2. Perform Due Diligence on the Property

Another critical role is helping you do your due diligence on the property. That involves:

  • Being there to fully  investigate the property. This means going into the scary basement, looking for signs of knob and tube wiring, failing windows, or strange plumbing/ heating issues. We also can refer you to outside professionals as necessary.

  • We ask the important questions: Have there been any water issues in the basement? Were the renovations completed with permits? Are there any issues with the neighbors?

  • We investigate and report back  the ongoing costs of the property (hydro, heat, water, etc.)

One of the Buyer Agent’s most important jobs is to make sure you don’t buy the WRONG house.

3. Negotiate Price and Contract Terms

The Buyer’s agent works for the Buyer, so their job is to negotiate the lowest possible price with the best possible terms for the Buyer. We investigate the price history of the homes you’re interested in, the prices of comparable homes recently sold in the neighborhood and what’s happening right now in the market. Helping you understand how the differences between properties affect value (for example, lot size, the number of bathrooms, finishes or view) is crucial when making big decisions. Buyer’s agents also protect you by making your offer conditional on, for example, obtaining suitable financing or performing a home inspection.

4. Help You Find the Home

Long ago, a Buyer’s Agent’s primary role was to introduce properties to buyers. There was a magical book that contained all the homes for sale and if you wanted to buy a house, you hired an agent to find out what was for sale. Enter the internet. Today’s Buyers are often identifying the homes they are interested in themselves…but that doesn’t mean that Buyer Agents don’t play an important role in locating homes. Sometimes that means introducing the perfect home that was overlooked because it didn’t fit the initial criteria or neighborhood or finding an opportunity to buy a house that seemed out of budget (but really won’t be after negotiations). Fact: what you think you want when you begin your home search is often not what you decide to buy in the end.

5. But Wait! There’s More!

A Buyer’s Agent will also:

  • Help you determine your needs, wants, and priority criteria

  • Reduce financial surprises by helping you determine the full cost of buying a property and the ongoing costs of owning it [Related: Closing Costs]

  • See ‘potential’ in a home and educate you on value in the property.

  • Connect you with the best lawyers, lenders and home inspectors (Vendor Lists)

  • Be an ongoing resource for connecting you with home professionals to help once you own the home

But Does Who I Hire Matter?

Not all agents are created equal! Who you hire to represent you on the purchase of a home MATTERS. Who you choose to work with will impact the choice of the home you buy, the neighborhood you buy it in, and final cost. It can mean the difference between:

  • Overpaying for a home vs. paying market value

  • Buying a condo in a building filled with college students vs. buying a condo housing professional couples like you

  • Unknowingly buying a house that will cost you $50K in surprise repairs vs. knowing before you buy

  • Losing money on your real estate investment vs. being cash-positive

Buyer Agent Hiring

As always, you can choose any agent. But wouldn’t it be nice to go with a time tested, experienced group of agents? Shouldn't you Expect More?

 

HGTV Syndrome in Burlington, Vermont Real Estate? Don't let this happen to you!

by Matt Hurlburt Group

When is it reasonable to Expect More? Do you believe that you can create a brand new kitchen for under $10,000? Even though I can put in 80+ hour weeks focused on my clients, I still hit the couch and indulge in a "House Hunters" or "Flip or Flop." I laugh away my cares! Fantasy can be fun, can't it?

 

Let us get to the bottom of the Pinterest and HGTV Phenomenon.  

 

For example, in real life it is common to look at more than three homes for a client to pick one. The one they do pick comes with several contingencies (home inspection, appraisal, securing financing, etc.) It costs more than $8,000 for a kitchen renovation; and there isn’t always a fat profit on a flipped property. That designer turn key home is not the standard for every home, regardless of your budget.  Watch these programs with no education and an illness sets in. HGTV Syndrome.

 

Untitled design (36)     Afflicted with HGTV Syndrome image via Shutterstock.

Symptoms of HGTV Syndrome can vary from person to person; however, some common attributes are listed below:

  • Do you consider black and white appliances old? Even if they are brand new?

  • Does the word "Formica" make your stomach turn?

  • Does that flake of chipped paint on the door trim make your roll your eyes?

  • Is your budget for a full kitchen renovation (demolition, new cabinets, travertine flooring, appliances, backsplash, lighting and accessories) around $9500?

  • Do you think flipping a house for profit is easy as long as you demand long hours of your contractors and spend time at the designer home center picking out the cheapest recycled Lava Stone countertops?

If you have answered yes to any one of these questions, you need to seek immediate help.

Are you at risk for HGTV Syndrome?

YES! All of you!

Does this really happen? Will a buyer offer $40,000 less than the asking price and justify it with upgrades like the need for a brand new kitchen appliances because they are not stainless steel? They will HAVE to redo all the bathrooms because that tile color is SO 2015. How will they live without the recycled decking and local marble pizza oven with recycled rainforest fair trade pergola and hand carved mahogany dining set? Don't get me started on the three car garage concession! (Not Kidding!)

 
 

WARNING! Your agent might have it too!

Is there a cure? The cure can set you free!

 

No! Not that Cure!

 

How can you be sure you don’t come down with a case of HGTV Syndrome? Take a preventative, healthy dose of reality by speaking with a us first! Armed with the knowledge and perspective, you to can ward off any hint of home fantasy. We can provide a detailed assessment on what to expect in a certain town, neighborhood, and community. For some properties may be normal to have granite countertops — thus, if the home you are considering does not, then your expectation is justified. In other areas, it may be that popcorn ceilings and older appliances are the norm, and to expect a seller to drop their price so you can upgrade to your own personal taste is not considered reasonable.

 

See? Piece of cake!

 
 

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Contact Information

Photo of Matt Hurlburt Group Real Estate
Matt Hurlburt Group
RE/MAX North Professionals
100 Main St, Suite 2
Burlington VT 05401
802-862-5337
Fax: 866-660-0032