Sellers

Teamed with Power Brokers International’s multi-million dollar marketing team and my personal marketing strategy, designed specifically for you and your property, I will net you the most money possible for your property. Our Marketing is Superior.

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Decide to Sell

So you’ve decided to sell your house. Before anything else it’s a good idea to sit down and clarify your motivations and draw up a basic time frame for the selling process.

Why Sell? Why do you want to sell your house? Do you intend to simply find a larger home, or do you plan on moving to another neighborhood, school district, city or state? You might think your reasons are obvious, but it would do well to consider the implications of each option for your family’s lifestyle, opportunities and finances. Being clear about your intentions for selling will make it easier for us to determine the most appropriate option for your specified financial, lifestyle and real estate goals.

When Should I Sell? You should immediately establish your time frame for selling. If you need to sell quickly, you can speed up the process by hiring an experienced agent. If there’s no pressing need to sell immediately, you can sit down with me an expert real estate agent to thoroughly review the current market conditions and find the most favorable time to sell.

What’s The Market Like? When you work with me, you can be sure that you’ll have my knowledge, expertise and negotiating skills at work for you to arrive at the best market prices and terms. We’ll keep you up-to-date on what is happening in the marketplace and the price, financing, terms and conditions of competing properties. With us, you’ll know exactly how to price and when to sell your home.

How Do I Optimize My Finances? Deciding to sell your home in California demands a serious consideration of your current financial situation and future possibilities. With the help of a qualified agent, you’ll be able to effectively assess the cumulative impact of these changes, estimate potential proceeds of selling your home, and plan effective tax savings and estate planning strategies. I will ensure that you not only take control of your finances, but use them to their fullest potential.

For more information and for any additional questions, please feel free to contact me at any time.

Select Madelaine

Why Trust Madelaine? There are many good reasons, however, why you should choose me to assist you in this important undertaking. I’ll ensure that you maximize your opportunities in the current real estate market. With my extensive Realtor and contact networks, I’ll employ the most effective marketing and advertising strategies for your property. I will also guide you through the complicated paperwork involved, from the initial agreement to the final documents.

Prepare to Sell

You can do a lot to increase the appeal of your home and create a lasting impact on potential buyers. Move-in condition is what buyers want today, most buyers put all their money on the down payment or they work a lot, and don’t have the time to fix up a home. Selling your home is a battle with other listings for the qualified buyers that are out there, a battle with everything else a buyer has to do for their time and attention and a battle with every other thing they could be spending their money on.

A well-priced, impeccably-staged home is the A-number-one weapon you must wield to win this war. Here are some tips to help you prepare for market.

Curb Appeal. Keeping your landscape pristine, and adding creative touches to your yard such as colorful plants and flowers, will create an immediate impact on potential buyers. 45% of the decision process is made by the exterior and location of home before they even walk into the front door.

House Repairs. Keep it simple, such as window,fence and door repairs, and a fresh lick of paint in the most frequently used rooms, instantly brighten up your home.

Cleanliness and Staging. Keep your home uncluttered, odor free and well-lit from top to bottom. Some buyers won’t even walk into a home that is dark and smelly. Keep home immaculate, dust, mop, wash windows, power wash walkways and driveways, remember buyers want to feel they can  just move-in and relax, after a hard day at work. Pay attention to details: put away the kitty litter, have your carpets cleaned, you might think about refinishing wood floors, de-personalize by putting away the pictures, buyers want a home not your memories. Let us check the house before you accept any potential buyers or photographer, to see how you can improve the staging further. We are here to help you on getting your property ready for market, our team has a proven track record of selling home.

Disclosures and Inspections. I am very familiar with the legal procedures involved in disclosures and am ready to help you develop a thorough disclosure statement, as well as suggest home improvement measures before placing your property on the market (such as termite and physical inspections).

Showtime. Presenting your home to potential buyers is a job that I will take care for you. Buyers feel more comfortable discussing the property with the agent if you’re not there. Moreover, your agent will know what information will be most useful in representing your interests when speaking with prospective buyers.

For more information and for any additional questions, please feel free to contact me at any time.

Accept an Offer

You can trust Madelaine to help you thoroughly evaluate every proposal without compromising your marketing position.

Negotiating The Right Way. I take the ethical responsibility of fairly negotiating contractual terms very seriously. It’s my job to find a win-win agreement that’s beneficial to you. Oftentimes you will have to deal with multiple offers before ratifying the one you judge to be the most suitable for you – and as your agents we’ll guarantee a thorough and objective assessment of these offers to help you make the right choice.

Escrow: The Initial Agreement and Deposit. An escrow is a legal arrangement whereby an asset (such as a home buyer’s initial deposit) is delivered to a third party (an escrow holder) to be held in trust pending the fulfillment of conditions or contingencies in a contract. Once an offer is ratified, the home seller and buyer will agree upon the amount for the good faith deposit and set up an escrow account. This reflects the buyer’s intention to purchase your property and ensures that no funds or property will change hands until all instructions in the transaction are followed.

Some Important Tips. Keep these tips in mind to streamline the process even further:

• Keep written records of everything. For the sake of clarity, it will be extremely useful to transcribe all verbal agreements of everything from counter-offers and addendums, and convert them to written agreements to be signed by both parties. I will assist you in drafting addendums in your contract to ensure you’ve got all the bases covered.
• Stick to the schedule. Now that you’ve chosen your offer, you and the buyer will be given a timetable to mark every stage in the process of closing the real estate contract. Meeting the requirements on time ensures a smoother flow of negotiations. During the process I’ll keep you constantly updated so you’ll always be prepared for the next step.

Escrow inspections and Appraisals

Your escrow began when you accepted a buyer’s purchase offer and earnest money deposit. What follows is the inspection and appraisal of your home and the loan origination process.

The Title Company. The Seller selects a title company, whose job it is to examine and insure title to real estate. After researching the complete recorded history of your property, they’ll certify that 1.) your title is free and clear of encumbrances (eg. mortgages, leases, or restrictions) by the date of closing, and 2.) all new encumbrances are duly included in the title. They’ll draw up a preliminary report at the end of the process, which your listing agent will go over with you in detail.

Contingencies. A contingency is a condition that must be met before a contract becomes legally binding. For instance, a home buyer will usually include a contingency stating that their contract is binding only when there is a satisfactory home inspection report from a qualified inspector.

Before completing his or her purchase of your property, the home buyer goes over every aspect of the property, as provided for by purchase agreements. These include:

• Obtaining financing and insurance,
• Reviewing all pertinent documents, such as preliminary title reports and disclosure documents, and
• Inspecting the property. The buyer has the right to determine the condition of your property by subjecting it to a wide range of inspections, such as roof, termite/pest, chimney/fireplace, property boundary survey, well, septic, pool/spa, arborist or mold.

Depending on the outcome of these inspections, one of two things may happen:

1. Either each milestone is successfully closed and the contingencies will be removed, bring you one step closer to the close, or
2. The buyer, after reviewing the property and the papers, requests a renegotiation of the terms of contract (usually the price).

How do you respond objectively and fairly to the buyer when a renegotiation is demanded, while acting in your best interests? This is when a professional listing agent can make a real difference in the outcome of the transaction. Having dealt with various property sales in the past, I guarantee my expertise and total commitment to every client, no matter what their situation.

Loan Approval and Appraisal. We suggest that you accept buyers who have a lender’s pre-approval letter, which is a better guarantee of loan approval than a pre-qualification. Expect an appraiser from the lender’s company to review your property and verify that the sales price is appropriate.

Ready To Go? Don’t pack your bags just yet. Something unexpected might happen-a buyer’s offer fails to push through, or new buyers come by to visit right when your house is in chaos. There’s a proper time to start preparations for moving, and given our previous experience with these transactions, we’ll help you determine when that time will be.

The Next Step: Buying Your Next Home

Now that your transaction on your home is well on your way to a successful close, it’s time to start preparing for your next home.

As your trusted real estate partner, I’m ready to help you articulate and prioritize your goals for this next project. I’ll get you off to a good start by finding the best interim arrangement for you while you’re in between homes.

For more information and for any additional questions, please feel free to contact me at any time.

Close of Escrow

If you’ve come this far, then this means only one thing: congratulations, you’ve successfully sold your home! Don’t forget to tie up these loose ends:

Final Walk-Through Inspection. More of a formality than anything else, the final inspection takes place a few days before the transaction is closed. The buyer visits your Boston property to verify that all is in working order. You’ll be signing the papers certifying that the property was sold in satisfactory condition.

Cancel Home Services and Utilities. We’ll provide a list of useful numbers for the termination of home services and utilities as of the date of the close of escrow.

Be Prepared. Your agent is ready to assist you should an unforeseen glitch pop up, even at this last stage. Something at the house breaks down, the buyers’ loan doesn’t pull through on time – no need to worry. We’ve encountered these problems before so we know how to handle these problems efficiently.

Close of Escrow. The title company furnishes the principals with a closing statement, which summarizes all the financial transactions enacted in the process. A few days before the set closing date, you’ll sign the final documents for the title company. They’ll record the transaction for you and the buyer at the County Recorder’s Office. You’ll then receive your proceeds, and the buyer will become the new owner.

Keys. I’ll arrange the delivery of your keys to your buyer once the deed has been recorded at the County Assessor’s Office.

For more information and for any additional questions, please feel free to contact me at any time.