Know Your HOA

If you are buying, selling, or living in an Atlanta area neighborhood, you are familiar with a Neighborhood Homeowners Association. (HOA) The HOA is a fact of life. The intention of the HOA is simple: •Keep the integrity of the neighborhood •Have a written plan for violations of covenants •Promote transparency of finances •Help to keep home values up I live in a very unique neighborhood. The developer is the architectural committee. He approves new construction and improvements to existing homes. He also owns the common assets including the pool, tennis courts, and pavilion. We have an elected board. They make covenant decisions, financial decisions, and make more day to day decisions. We have a management company. One hour away from my neighborhood we have a professional management company. They send letters for violations and provide legal help Confused? You should be because the majority of my neighbors do not understand this very unique situation. And in many cases they do not care. Moral of this story: Your house represents your largest investment. How your HOA performs will have a great impact on your investment. GET INVOLVED, STAY INFORMED, & DO NOT BE AFRAID TO ASK QUESTIONS! If you find yourself in the North Atlanta, Lake Lanier area give us a call. We are The Wells Team of Keller Williams Community Partners. www.randywellsteam.com

New Lake Lanier Listing

Take a look at our new, deep water, Lake Lanier Listing

Selling Your Home, Back to Basics

We are nearing the end of a very busy 2013 housing market. What a change from previous years! Even though houses are selling at a much higher rate than last year, I need to caution the sellers. The selective buyer is alive and well! They watch HGTV, keep up with the latest trends in design, and have particular criteria. There is also new construction available which is used as a benchmark. Preparing your home for sale is still a crucial part of the marketing process. Putting a little money into the home will help sell it that much quicker. Interior paint in neutral colors New hardwoods, carpet, or other updated floor coverings Latest counter tops or fixture To the sellers: Put yourself in the situation of a buyer. Look at your home in their eyes. Be willing to invest a little in order to sell your home quicker. Work with your real estate agent not against them. Their advice is based on experience. GO BACK TO BASICS! If you are in the north Atlanta area look us up! www.randywellsteam.com

IN THIS MARKET DO YOU HAVE YOUR HOME APPRAISED?

Just attended a continuing education class hosted by DS Murphy and Associates. They do appraisals, as well as, consultation appraisals. There is no doubt that the Atlanta metro market has seen a well deserving swing upwards in pricing. What that has done for homeowners is give them a sense of optimism. It has also made some homeowners revert back to unrealistic expectations. Despite the climbing prices, we are still below prices of 2007, when the market started its considerable decline. As agents we are finding ourselves in situations where the homeowners are putting our market analysis to the side. We call it yeah....but syndrome. In other words, yeah I see the market in my neighborhood BUT.....(you can fill in the blank). This might be a good time to consider having an appraisal done on your property in order to get an unbiased opinion on your homes worth. If the homeowner truly believe that his home is worth more than the market he should welcome an appraisers expert analysis. At the end of the day price still drives our North Atlanta market. If you are priced above the market, you receive less interest, and no offers. Potential buyers do not believe you are motivated to sell. The Wells Team represents our sellers to the best of our ability. That includes giving them expert market analysis. As a homeowner remember this: The real estate agents do not dictate the market If you doubt you agents price analysis then call in an appraiser. If you are in the North Atlanta, Lake Lanier, or North Georgia area look us up. www.randywellsteam.com

Do Garage Door Maintenance

Some words of wisdom from my Dad: Be a good husband and father Be kind to other people Tighten down the nuts and bolts on your garage door????? I happened to look at my own garage doors today and noticed how many nuts were loose. Matter of fact a couple of the nuts were missing. Lack of maintenance could cause problems with the door and potential damage to the door opener. So this weekend change your clocks, change the batteries in your smoke detector, and tighten the hardware on your garage door. Thanks Dad! If you are in the north Atlanta, Lake Lanier area, come see us.... www.randywellsteam.com

Is There a Time Not to List Your Home???

It is that time of year when I hear the following from our clients: • Time to take my home off of the market. • Don’t want my home on the market during the holidays. • Nobody looks at homes this time of year. • I will wait until spring to relist the home. I decided to run some statistics from my home county, Dawson county. I took the two slowest back to back months and compared them to the two busiest back to back months Nov-Dec July-Aug Homes for sale Avg 267 Avg 339 Homes sold Avg 20 Avg 35 Percentage of sale/vs sold Avg 7.5% Avg 10.32% In other words a mere 3% was the difference between the busiest back to back months and the slowest back to back months. During the busiest time 3% LESS in sales would have resulted in 1.05 less homes being sold During the slowest time 3% MORE in sales would have resulted in .6 more homes being sold So what I want to convey to my clients is this: The difference between the slowest time of the year and the busiest time of the year is very small in terms of statistics. And: IF YOUR HOME IS NOT LISTED YOU HAVE A 0% CHANCE OF SELLING! If you are in the North Atlanta, Lake Lanier, North Georgia area look us up. www.randywellsteam.com

North Georgia Events for November and December

Some great local events in North Georgia. Come up and see us! www.randywellsteam.com