February 11, 2025 • 26 mins
The Spring Real Estate Market is the Best Time to Downsize. We have seven expert tips to get your home ready, and start your downsizing adventure.
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Dennis Day (00:00):
It's a beautiful day in the neighborhood.
It's a beautiful day in theneighborhood.
Will you be my friend, Judy?
Judy Gratton (00:07):
I will.
I love being your friend,Dennis.
It is a beautiful day becauseit's snowing outside.
Dennis Day (00:13):
It doesn't happen often, but usually once or twice
a year around the Seattle areawe get a little bit of snow.
It drives people mad.
But that's another story.
It drives people mad, butthat's another story.
I'm Dennis Day and you arelistening to Getting your Edge
how to Downsize your Life andI'm with my co-host, judy
Gratton.
We're here today to discuss thereal estate cycle when is the
(00:41):
best time to sell and then we'regoing to give you some tips to
get that sale done so you can beready when it's time to sell.
Are you ready to go, judy?
Judy Gratton (00:49):
I am ready to go, Dennis.
Dennis Day (00:51):
All righty.
So first we're going to startoff with a little graph and
we're going to show you the realestate cycle and this will be
very clear that there are upsand downs to the real estate
market.
Judy Gratton (01:10):
This cycle is in our area, in the Puget Sound
region, probably the state ofWashington, but it might be
different if you lived inArizona or Nevada somewhere very
hot.
This is a snapshot of theWashington state market.
If you live somewhere else, itcould be different.
Say you're in Arizona or Nevada, where it gets very hot.
People may buy in the winter.
I'm not sure, but a goodrealtor could explain that.
(01:33):
Please, dennis, show us ourgraph.
Dennis Day (01:36):
This is directly from the Northwest MLS, mostly
in Washington state, and itcovers let me say that again, it
covers most of Washington State.
There are other pockets thatdon't use the Northwest but it
is the one, the MLS service,that is used in the Seattle area
.
This is a snapshot from theNorthwest ML which we use in the
(01:59):
Seattle Puget Sound area andmost of Washington State and you
can see the up and down pattern, going peaks and valleys.
So January starting off, thisis the number of closed sales
and peaks.
This is 2002 at 10,000, almosttwice as many closed sales in
(02:25):
June as there were in January.
And as you go we get someAugust, a little bit of a peak
and then we drop back down,january 3000.
Let's look at closed sales.
So those closed sales inJanuary would have been put
under contract in December.
(02:45):
If you figure a 30-day lag,then January 23.
This was an unusual year inthat there were really definite
peaks and valleys.
You see a little dip in Julyand then another little in
August, so dropped down again inJanuary.
So we're riding from January.
(03:08):
We're riding a long peak up tousually May or June.
Judy Gratton (03:13):
Little dip in June or July and then another dip in
late summer Not a big dip inthe late summer, and you may
wonder why 2022 has so many moresales.
That was when interest rateswere still good until June 15.
(03:34):
And then they started to riseand sales started to drop, and
that's what we see in 2023 and2024, higher interest rates made
a mark on the real estatemarket all over the country.
Dennis Day (03:49):
According to this graph, Judy, when are the most
sales happening?
Judy Gratton (03:55):
Really the most are probably in the way.
You begin to see it climb inJanuary.
That's when appreciation starts, where prices begin to rise and
that in just a good marketthat's normally somewhere
between 5% and 7% appreciation.
But in incredible markets wesaw it up to 25% appreciation
(04:19):
and that's when people startthinking about buying and
looking at homes.
And so January to May is theperiod where the appreciation
hits its mark.
May is about as high as yourappreciation will normally go
and then it kind of levels offthe appreciation period.
But throughout, you know, mayis great because the weather is
(04:44):
nicer as people are ready tomake that move.
Summer months kind of maintain.
There are some little dropsbecause of vacation periods, but
it stays not real plateau butclose.
And then in September, whenkids go back to school and
people are done with vacationsand the weather starts to change
(05:05):
, you begin to see it go down.
We used to have a saying thatthe door closes October 31st and
after that anybody who's buyinggot to really want to buy a
home in the Northwest becausethe weather is not that great.
If you want to sell your home,start thinking about it now and
consider putting it on themarket.
(05:26):
End of March, april, may that'swhen the appreciation is
happening and you can get moremoney or during the summer
months.
Appreciation won't generally goany higher, although it could
on a one-by-one basis, butthere'll be a lot of buyers out
there, but there'll be a lot ofbuyers out there.
Dennis Day (05:42):
Here's our price Median sales price January goes
up, May it peaks.
And look at the difference 525.
Judy Gratton (05:52):
Remember this.
Dennis Day (05:54):
This is 635.
Judy Gratton (05:55):
And that interest rate started climbing Also
affected the pricing a bit.
Dennis Day (06:00):
This is the entire MLS.
This is not Seattle and notKing County or Linwood or
Bothell.
This is the whole MLS, that ismost of Washington state.
Prices are different in theSeattle area Drops down, peaks
in June.
Drops in January, peaks in MayLittle drop and boost.
(06:22):
Remember we're a 30-day lag.
Little drop and boost.
Remember we're a 30-day lag.
So October closed, sales areunder contract in September and
we're back down again.
Right, I think that's enoughgraph.
Let's stop that share.
Judy Gratton (06:34):
We also have a shortage of inventory that has
affected those charts.
Not that many homes out therefor sale at this point that
could change.
Real estate changes.
Every time someone sells a homenear yours, it changes the
value of your home, and if youwould like to have access to a
monthly report that shows youwhat's going on with your
(06:57):
particular home, please reachout to us.
We'd be happy to send it to youfree of charge.
Dennis Day (07:02):
Yeah, if you want the maximum price, look at your
home going on the market inApril, may and get that thing
sold for the highest pricegenerally Now you can't say
individually, it varies, but ingeneral the peak price for a
(07:24):
home is going to come in May orJune and then it's going to.
You know it's still active inthe summer and then fall comes
and you know we have some goodsales in September and early
October but then late fall Imean people are thinking
Thanksgiving holidays and thenin winter it drops Doesn't mean
(07:49):
you can't sell your house inthose winter months.
Probably won't get peak price.
But the people who are lookingto buy in December and January
are serious buyers.
But you're not going to havelooky-loos come through.
You're going to have people whoreally need a home and they
(08:11):
can't wait.
That's our cycle and this is 50years.
It's been essentially the sameagain and again.
There's always ups and downs to2007,.
Eight crashed, et cetera.
All right, so we understand thereal estate cycle.
Now, judy, how do you get readyfor selling?
(08:32):
What were the first thing youwant to do?
Judy Gratton (08:35):
First, consider your goal.
Is it to get top dollar?
Do you need to move quickly?
Is your home in need of a lotof repair work that you don't
want to do, or are you willingto do that Because all of these
questions and I would get yourpad and paper out, or however
you figure out, you know, putyour notes up on the screen and
(08:58):
do a.
Just start answering thosequestions for yourself.
Why do you want to move now,Especially if you're downsizing?
Is it because the house hasbecome too much to take care of?
Maybe repairs are getting tooexpensive?
Answer those questions.
If you want top dollar, you needto start getting ready.
Don't wait until the lastminute.
(09:19):
Don't call the realtor andthink that you're going to go on
the market in a week if youwant top dollar, Because
generally, first of all, ifyou're downsizing, you have a
home full of stuff to go throughand determine If you're
downsizing, if you're reallygoing to move to a smaller home,
it's probably not realisticthat you're going to bring all
(09:41):
of that stuff.
So what are you going to getrid of?
It depends on how motivated youare, how capable you are of
getting it done.
Even if it's only a drawer.
Do a drawer Go through a drawer?
I went through my kitchendrawers this summer and I
couldn't believe some of thethings that happened to it.
Dennis Day (10:00):
Tip number one declutter, depersonalize.
A buyer is not going to walkinto your home and want to see
your family's history on thewall.
They want to visualize whatthis home will be like for them.
Depersonalize it.
Judy Gratton (10:18):
When you walk into a home full of trophies, family
pictures and hobbies, it'suncomfortable for the buyer.
As much of that as you can packaway, you're moving anyway.
So maybe find someone that youfeel good about giving your
things to, because you're notgoing to get hundreds of dollars
for China.
Dennis Day (10:37):
You're just not.
Your kids don't want to gothrough all that stuff.
Start getting rid of it.
Tip number two make yournecessary repairs.
What are some of the thingsthey should do?
Judy Gratton (10:48):
You might start by going around the outside of the
house.
Mildew and moss is a bigproblem because we're so wet, so
is there moss growing on thehouse?
Do you need to power wash?
Do you need to paint?
Are there pieces of wood thatare beginning to show dry rot
that need to be repaired?
One huge thing is that we have atendency to landscape around
(11:09):
our house and it grows right upagainst the house and it may
have already caused an issuewhere insects and rodents have
gotten into your home by goingthrough or up the tree or bush.
We also use a lot of beautybark in the Northwest in our
beds and it builds up along thefoundation and before you know
(11:30):
it, it's resting on the wood ofthe house and that causes dry
rot.
So pulling those things backaway, cutting bushes and trees
to like six inches to a footaway from the building itself.
Dennis, you looked at a housewith one of your clients that
had ivy growing all over it.
Not if you want to sell.
(11:51):
It looks really pretty, but itwill destroy whatever is
underneath.
Dennis Day (11:55):
Fix leaky faucets.
Put a little oil on thatsqueaky door.
Put a new light bulb in the onealmost burned out.
Judy Gratton (12:03):
And make sure they match.
When you're selling, think ofyour product.
This is no longer just yourcomfortable home, this is your
product.
Don't have three differentshades of light bulbs in the
chandelier and then one out.
People are not going to offeryou top dollar when things like
that happen.
Check under the sink.
Probably 90% of us have had alittle leak under the kitchen or
(12:26):
bathroom sink.
Make sure you've cleaned upthat mess.
You don't want people lookingat that.
Dennis Day (12:32):
Curb appeal.
It's hard to think about thisin January here, but this is
really important.
Judy Gratton (12:39):
Why First impressions?
I have had multiple clientsthat we go over to look at a
house.
The picture looked great,because the photographer can do
anything with a picture and youpull up and they literally say,
nah, we don't even get out ofthe car.
Unfortunately, you just lost apotential buyer because it
(12:59):
didn't look good out.
Front Power washing.
Are the driveways clean?
Are the sidewalks clean?
Are the bushes trimmed?
Are the beds manicured?
Do they have weeds?
Put down beauty bark.
Primroses are out at grocerystores.
Put some color into the beds tomake them look brighter.
Get a brand new welcome mat.
(13:19):
Hit your front door.
Is the doorknob worn out?
Does the door need to bepainted or washed?
Look at your garage door.
Does it need to be painted?
Those could be minor thingsthat could make thousands of
dollars for you.
Clean up the front of the house.
Make sure the roof is clean.
It's time consuming, but youdon't want a shabby looking roof
(13:44):
because again, you won't gettop dollar.
If the roof is old, you mightas well start looking at
replacing it, because unless youare willing to make an
adjustment in your price, youonly get one time to make a
first impression.
Dennis Day (13:57):
And if you've got dandelions growing all over and
the bushes aren't trimmed andthe tree is out of control,
sidewalks are mossy.
Judy Gratton (14:07):
Or in the front yard with a blue over it, or
paint buckets stacked up infront of the house.
Look at your house.
Again, a product.
It is now what you're selling,and if you, even if you're not
going to do all of it, the moreyou do, the better your chances
are getting a better price.
Dennis Day (14:25):
As a buyer.
You drive up and you see thedisarray and get uncomfortable
and you say, well, if it looksthis bad outside, what's it
going to look like inside?
Allow yourself enough time todo these repairs.
You don't have to do majorrepairs, but small things add up
.
Give yourself time to do it.
(14:46):
Tip number four deep cleaneverything.
Judy Gratton (14:50):
Everything.
Yes, the windows where theyslide in.
When you're opening and closingyour window that gets
especially here.
Maybe not in other parts of thecountry, but that can get moldy
and dirty and gritty and grimyand take a toothbrush and some
spray cleaner or a magic eraserand clean that out.
In your bathroom the caulkingaround the shower, tub, toilet
(15:14):
and sink can get moldy andcrunchy and not look good.
Make sure that's clean and, ifit needs to be repaired,
repaired the shower door.
A lot of places it's all foggyfrom soap scum that needs to be
cleaned off.
Look at the faucets, as Imentioned the doorknob.
(15:34):
Is it old?
Should it be replaced on yourfront door?
Look at your cabinets.
Are the hinges old and grungy?
Replacing cabinet hinges andholes with new ones don't have
to be fabulously expensive, butyou clean the cabinets.
You do that and it gives it amuch brighter look.
Same with faucets.
Make sure that they're notdripping.
(15:55):
Make sure that they're notreally old and decrepit.
Unless you're going to adjustyour price for it like it's
becoming a fixer.
Those should be more up to date.
They don't have to be terriblyexpensive.
The more you do, the better youcan expect to get for your home
.
The more you do, the better youcan expect to get for your home
.
Make sure all your switchcovers are on and cleaned.
Dennis Day (16:17):
New covers are less than a dollar.
Just put a new one on and havethem all match.
If you don't want to do thatdeep cleaning, hire somebody.
It might be the best $400, $500.
Judy Gratton (16:31):
If they do a deep clean.
It's hard when there are peopleliving in the home and the
furniture in the home, but ifthey do a deep clean.
We had a listing that we'rehaving come on this week.
We had it deep cleaned and itcosts $360.
And they cleaned the stove andthe oven, refrigerator, shower
doors, tracks in the windows andsliding doors.
(16:53):
They mopped all the floors.
Dennis Day (16:56):
I had a listing where the seller promised to
clean the house before he leftand he left things in the washer
and the dryer Didn't clean thestove.
I called the cleaner and theydid it before they moved in.
On my dime, a clean, sparklinghome makes buyers think it's
(17:17):
well-maintained.
Judy Gratton (17:18):
Another thing you need to be very, very, very
careful of and that's odors.
A lot of things animals,different types of spices.
If you smoke, these things aredeath to the value of your home.
If you can't smell it becauseyou've lived there, have someone
(17:39):
come in and be brutally honestwith you.
Does my home smell?
Okay, a pet odor in the carpetsor flooring?
There are some things that canbe done, but a lot of times
you're going to have to replacethat or pull it out.
And then the cooking odorspaint.
If you want the house to have alittle zing, paint a wall.
(18:00):
The smell of paint makes peoplethink, oh, they paint, they
like it.
Even if you only painted onewall, it's the first impression.
If you've smoked or you havecooking odors, then you need to
do a really good washing of thewalls with TSP, follow
(18:22):
instructions and you may need toprime.
Depends on how serious the odoris.
But if there is an odor, itwill knock the price down
significantly or some peoplewon't even make an offer.
People don't like to hear that,but it is a huge factor in the
sale.
Dennis Day (18:40):
You have to let go of your ego because you're
selling a product.
Number five neutralize andbrighten up.
Judy Gratton (18:49):
To get top dollar, neutralize the color schemes in
your home.
There was a condo that I heldopen once for someone else and
the woman loved turquoise.
The carpet, toilets wereturquoise, the bathtub was
turquoise, the sink wasturquoise, the appliances were
turquoise, the phone on the wallwas turquoise, as beautiful as
(19:09):
the floor plan was, and it had aview of the lake.
It took forever to get thatthing sold because, yes, there
are people who like turquoise,but there are people who don't
like turquoise and are notwilling to do the work and that
one would have been reallyexpensive to fix because you
would be pulling out toilets,bathtubs and sinks.
(19:29):
Those things again are going torestrict what people are
willing to offer because theyknow they have to paint over it.
Paint over colors that are notneutral with a beige, light
beige or pale gray.
Go to a paint store and talk tothem about what the current
neutral colors are.
I do not recommend white.
It's too stark and it gives offa very cold feel.
Dennis Day (19:52):
Same thing is true I don't know if it's still
trending, but it was very trendyfor a while.
Black walls Some peopleabsolutely love them.
I don't.
Bright or very dark colors canmake rooms look smaller.
Let's talk about getting aninspection.
Judy Gratton (20:11):
Tip number six there are pros and cons to a
pre-inspection where the sellerhires the inspector and the
seller has the inspection doneso that they have an inspection
report that they can offer topotential buyers.
A few years ago we had so manybuyers that they were afraid to
(20:33):
make an offer because theydidn't know anything about the
house.
They didn't want to make anoffer without knowing what the
condition was In the contract.
In the state of Washington, ifa buyer wants an inspection as
part of the contract, it'scalled an inspection contingency
and the way it's spelled out isthey have to have it done
within a certain number of days.
(20:54):
It must be by a professional orthemselves.
Sometimes buyers use this totie up a house and they may walk
away without ever doing theinspection.
And the way that inspectionaddendum is written, they can.
Once the seller's home is undercontract, the real estate agent
is required to go into themultiple listing service and
(21:17):
change it from active to pending, or if there is an inspection,
it must say pending inspection.
But we know that buyers reallywant this inspection.
Do you want to consider havingan inspection done in advance?
Now, here's the downside of that, because if you have an
(21:39):
inspector, come into your home.
They are looking for the thingsthat are wrong in the home.
Go in the attic under the house, check plumbing, electrical
safety and structural items.
That's what an inspector islooking for, and once he's found
that he doesn't ask you.
If you want to know, he givesyou the report.
You have knowledge, and onceyou have knowledge, you must
(22:01):
disclose it in a disclosure formthat is required by law.
Depending on if you're not goingto fix it, you can plan on the
price not being as great.
Are you comfortable enough thatyour home is in pretty good
shape that having knowledge isokay?
There are always all kinds ofdifferent scenarios around this.
For a while before sellers werebuying, the pre-inspection for
(22:25):
the buyers buyers would scheduleinspections before they wrote
offers.
I explain to our sellers here'swhat you can and this is what
you risk, or you don't have to,depending on the market.
We may not get multiple offersand the buyer may want one, and
that's a risk too.
Which one are you morecomfortable with?
Dennis Day (22:45):
A pre-inspection can give a buyer peace of mind and
they're more likely to waive theinspection.
Judy Gratton (22:52):
Your home's on the market for a month and you get
one offer and they want aninspection, even though you paid
for it.
Your agent's going to be kindof like this is the only offer
you've got.
How do you feel about that?
Dennis Day (23:03):
There is a couple of situations where you don't want
a pre-inspection.
Judy Gratton (23:08):
There are only two in Washington where you are not
required.
One is bank-owned and two is ifit is an estate sale, and the
reason behind that is neitherone of those entities ever owned
the house, had anything to dowith it.
They don't know.
If you are the executor of awill and you have that
inspection done and you find outthere's something wrong, you
(23:31):
now have knowledge, and so youhave to fill out that disclosure
form and you have to disclosewhat you found wrong, and so a
realtor should discuss that withyou so you can make an informed
decision.
Dennis Day (23:44):
Don't get a pre-inspection if you're on an
estate sale.
Tip seven work with anexperienced real estate
professional.
The DIY the for sale by ownerhas almost disappeared.
You can do it, but there'sreally some downsides.
Judy Gratton (24:06):
There's a lot of risk financial, legal if you
didn't get something right inyour paperwork.
I recently saw a deal becausethey called me to take care of
it after they had written it.
When you started readingthrough it it was just amazing
how many things were missing.
Studies have found that most ofthe time for sale by owner sell
(24:28):
the home for less than theycould have gotten.
Dennis Day (24:31):
There's long term evidence that a for sale by
owner sale will be significantlyless than that of a real estate
professional.
Plus, you have the peace ofmind of that person doing all
the contract for you.
Now we have being part of EXP.
We have a great situation.
How can that help?
Judy Gratton (24:52):
If you're local to us in the Puget Sound region,
we would hope that you wouldlike to maybe call us and
interview us to work with us ifyou're selling or buying.
If you're not in Washingtonstate with eXp, we are an
international company and if youneed an experienced realtor and
you're not sure where to begin,then give us a call.
(25:14):
We would be happy to connectyou with someone who is
experienced.
You get to interview them.
If you don't like them, youdon't have to use them.
We're happy to help you findsomeone wherever you are, even
in another country, but there'sno charge for that.
Dennis Day (25:31):
There's no charge for any real estate questions.
You can ask us anything.
If you need information aboutdownsizing, we will be happy to
help, all at no charge.
Judy Gratton (25:43):
When we're putting our name on that contract.
That's when we expect to earnour living.
That's when we expect to earnour living.
Dennis Day (25:49):
That's it, folks.
I appreciate all who took thetime to watch or listen.
This is Getting your Edge howto Downsize your Home.
Thanks, judy.
Judy Gratton (26:01):
Thank you, Dennis.
Dennis Day (26:02):
See you next time.
So much, bye.
It's a beautiful day in the neighborhood.
It's a beautiful day in theneighborhood.
Will you be my friend, Judy?
Judy Gratton (00:07):
I will.
I love being your friend,Dennis.
It is a beautiful day becauseit's snowing outside.
Dennis Day (00:13):
It doesn't happen often, but usually once or twice
a year around the Seattle areawe get a little bit of snow.
It drives people mad.
But that's another story.
It drives people mad, butthat's another story.
I'm Dennis Day and you arelistening to Getting your Edge
how to Downsize your Life andI'm with my co-host, judy
Gratton.
We're here today to discuss thereal estate cycle when is the
(00:41):
best time to sell and then we'regoing to give you some tips to
get that sale done so you can beready when it's time to sell.
Are you ready to go, judy?
Judy Gratton (00:49):
I am ready to go, Dennis.
Dennis Day (00:51):
All righty.
So first we're going to startoff with a little graph and
we're going to show you the realestate cycle and this will be
very clear that there are upsand downs to the real estate
market.
Judy Gratton (01:10):
This cycle is in our area, in the Puget Sound
region, probably the state ofWashington, but it might be
different if you lived inArizona or Nevada somewhere very
hot.
This is a snapshot of theWashington state market.
If you live somewhere else, itcould be different.
Say you're in Arizona or Nevada, where it gets very hot.
People may buy in the winter.
I'm not sure, but a goodrealtor could explain that.
(01:33):
Please, dennis, show us ourgraph.
Dennis Day (01:36):
This is directly from the Northwest MLS, mostly
in Washington state, and itcovers let me say that again, it
covers most of Washington State.
There are other pockets thatdon't use the Northwest but it
is the one, the MLS service,that is used in the Seattle area
.
This is a snapshot from theNorthwest ML which we use in the
(01:59):
Seattle Puget Sound area andmost of Washington State and you
can see the up and down pattern, going peaks and valleys.
So January starting off, thisis the number of closed sales
and peaks.
This is 2002 at 10,000, almosttwice as many closed sales in
(02:25):
June as there were in January.
And as you go we get someAugust, a little bit of a peak
and then we drop back down,january 3000.
Let's look at closed sales.
So those closed sales inJanuary would have been put
under contract in December.
(02:45):
If you figure a 30-day lag,then January 23.
This was an unusual year inthat there were really definite
peaks and valleys.
You see a little dip in Julyand then another little in
August, so dropped down again inJanuary.
So we're riding from January.
(03:08):
We're riding a long peak up tousually May or June.
Judy Gratton (03:13):
Little dip in June or July and then another dip in
late summer Not a big dip inthe late summer, and you may
wonder why 2022 has so many moresales.
That was when interest rateswere still good until June 15.
(03:34):
And then they started to riseand sales started to drop, and
that's what we see in 2023 and2024, higher interest rates made
a mark on the real estatemarket all over the country.
Dennis Day (03:49):
According to this graph, Judy, when are the most
sales happening?
Judy Gratton (03:55):
Really the most are probably in the way.
You begin to see it climb inJanuary.
That's when appreciation starts, where prices begin to rise and
that in just a good marketthat's normally somewhere
between 5% and 7% appreciation.
But in incredible markets wesaw it up to 25% appreciation
(04:19):
and that's when people startthinking about buying and
looking at homes.
And so January to May is theperiod where the appreciation
hits its mark.
May is about as high as yourappreciation will normally go
and then it kind of levels offthe appreciation period.
But throughout, you know, mayis great because the weather is
(04:44):
nicer as people are ready tomake that move.
Summer months kind of maintain.
There are some little dropsbecause of vacation periods, but
it stays not real plateau butclose.
And then in September, whenkids go back to school and
people are done with vacationsand the weather starts to change
(05:05):
, you begin to see it go down.
We used to have a saying thatthe door closes October 31st and
after that anybody who's buyinggot to really want to buy a
home in the Northwest becausethe weather is not that great.
If you want to sell your home,start thinking about it now and
consider putting it on themarket.
(05:26):
End of March, april, may that'swhen the appreciation is
happening and you can get moremoney or during the summer
months.
Appreciation won't generally goany higher, although it could
on a one-by-one basis, butthere'll be a lot of buyers out
there, but there'll be a lot ofbuyers out there.
Dennis Day (05:42):
Here's our price Median sales price January goes
up, May it peaks.
And look at the difference 525.
Judy Gratton (05:52):
Remember this.
Dennis Day (05:54):
This is 635.
Judy Gratton (05:55):
And that interest rate started climbing Also
affected the pricing a bit.
Dennis Day (06:00):
This is the entire MLS.
This is not Seattle and notKing County or Linwood or
Bothell.
This is the whole MLS, that ismost of Washington state.
Prices are different in theSeattle area Drops down, peaks
in June.
Drops in January, peaks in MayLittle drop and boost.
(06:22):
Remember we're a 30-day lag.
Little drop and boost.
Remember we're a 30-day lag.
So October closed, sales areunder contract in September and
we're back down again.
Right, I think that's enoughgraph.
Let's stop that share.
Judy Gratton (06:34):
We also have a shortage of inventory that has
affected those charts.
Not that many homes out therefor sale at this point that
could change.
Real estate changes.
Every time someone sells a homenear yours, it changes the
value of your home, and if youwould like to have access to a
monthly report that shows youwhat's going on with your
(06:57):
particular home, please reachout to us.
We'd be happy to send it to youfree of charge.
Dennis Day (07:02):
Yeah, if you want the maximum price, look at your
home going on the market inApril, may and get that thing
sold for the highest pricegenerally Now you can't say
individually, it varies, but ingeneral the peak price for a
(07:24):
home is going to come in May orJune and then it's going to.
You know it's still active inthe summer and then fall comes
and you know we have some goodsales in September and early
October but then late fall Imean people are thinking
Thanksgiving holidays and thenin winter it drops Doesn't mean
(07:49):
you can't sell your house inthose winter months.
Probably won't get peak price.
But the people who are lookingto buy in December and January
are serious buyers.
But you're not going to havelooky-loos come through.
You're going to have people whoreally need a home and they
(08:11):
can't wait.
That's our cycle and this is 50years.
It's been essentially the sameagain and again.
There's always ups and downs to2007,.
Eight crashed, et cetera.
All right, so we understand thereal estate cycle.
Now, judy, how do you get readyfor selling?
(08:32):
What were the first thing youwant to do?
Judy Gratton (08:35):
First, consider your goal.
Is it to get top dollar?
Do you need to move quickly?
Is your home in need of a lotof repair work that you don't
want to do, or are you willingto do that Because all of these
questions and I would get yourpad and paper out, or however
you figure out, you know, putyour notes up on the screen and
(08:58):
do a.
Just start answering thosequestions for yourself.
Why do you want to move now,Especially if you're downsizing?
Is it because the house hasbecome too much to take care of?
Maybe repairs are getting tooexpensive?
Answer those questions.
If you want top dollar, you needto start getting ready.
Don't wait until the lastminute.
(09:19):
Don't call the realtor andthink that you're going to go on
the market in a week if youwant top dollar, Because
generally, first of all, ifyou're downsizing, you have a
home full of stuff to go throughand determine If you're
downsizing, if you're reallygoing to move to a smaller home,
it's probably not realisticthat you're going to bring all
(09:41):
of that stuff.
So what are you going to getrid of?
It depends on how motivated youare, how capable you are of
getting it done.
Even if it's only a drawer.
Do a drawer Go through a drawer?
I went through my kitchendrawers this summer and I
couldn't believe some of thethings that happened to it.
Dennis Day (10:00):
Tip number one declutter, depersonalize.
A buyer is not going to walkinto your home and want to see
your family's history on thewall.
They want to visualize whatthis home will be like for them.
Depersonalize it.
Judy Gratton (10:18):
When you walk into a home full of trophies, family
pictures and hobbies, it'suncomfortable for the buyer.
As much of that as you can packaway, you're moving anyway.
So maybe find someone that youfeel good about giving your
things to, because you're notgoing to get hundreds of dollars
for China.
Dennis Day (10:37):
You're just not.
Your kids don't want to gothrough all that stuff.
Start getting rid of it.
Tip number two make yournecessary repairs.
What are some of the thingsthey should do?
Judy Gratton (10:48):
You might start by going around the outside of the
house.
Mildew and moss is a bigproblem because we're so wet, so
is there moss growing on thehouse?
Do you need to power wash?
Do you need to paint?
Are there pieces of wood thatare beginning to show dry rot
that need to be repaired?
One huge thing is that we have atendency to landscape around
(11:09):
our house and it grows right upagainst the house and it may
have already caused an issuewhere insects and rodents have
gotten into your home by goingthrough or up the tree or bush.
We also use a lot of beautybark in the Northwest in our
beds and it builds up along thefoundation and before you know
(11:30):
it, it's resting on the wood ofthe house and that causes dry
rot.
So pulling those things backaway, cutting bushes and trees
to like six inches to a footaway from the building itself.
Dennis, you looked at a housewith one of your clients that
had ivy growing all over it.
Not if you want to sell.
(11:51):
It looks really pretty, but itwill destroy whatever is
underneath.
Dennis Day (11:55):
Fix leaky faucets.
Put a little oil on thatsqueaky door.
Put a new light bulb in the onealmost burned out.
Judy Gratton (12:03):
And make sure they match.
When you're selling, think ofyour product.
This is no longer just yourcomfortable home, this is your
product.
Don't have three differentshades of light bulbs in the
chandelier and then one out.
People are not going to offeryou top dollar when things like
that happen.
Check under the sink.
Probably 90% of us have had alittle leak under the kitchen or
(12:26):
bathroom sink.
Make sure you've cleaned upthat mess.
You don't want people lookingat that.
Dennis Day (12:32):
Curb appeal.
It's hard to think about thisin January here, but this is
really important.
Judy Gratton (12:39):
Why First impressions?
I have had multiple clientsthat we go over to look at a
house.
The picture looked great,because the photographer can do
anything with a picture and youpull up and they literally say,
nah, we don't even get out ofthe car.
Unfortunately, you just lost apotential buyer because it
(12:59):
didn't look good out.
Front Power washing.
Are the driveways clean?
Are the sidewalks clean?
Are the bushes trimmed?
Are the beds manicured?
Do they have weeds?
Put down beauty bark.
Primroses are out at grocerystores.
Put some color into the beds tomake them look brighter.
Get a brand new welcome mat.
(13:19):
Hit your front door.
Is the doorknob worn out?
Does the door need to bepainted or washed?
Look at your garage door.
Does it need to be painted?
Those could be minor thingsthat could make thousands of
dollars for you.
Clean up the front of the house.
Make sure the roof is clean.
It's time consuming, but youdon't want a shabby looking roof
(13:44):
because again, you won't gettop dollar.
If the roof is old, you mightas well start looking at
replacing it, because unless youare willing to make an
adjustment in your price, youonly get one time to make a
first impression.
Dennis Day (13:57):
And if you've got dandelions growing all over and
the bushes aren't trimmed andthe tree is out of control,
sidewalks are mossy.
Judy Gratton (14:07):
Or in the front yard with a blue over it, or
paint buckets stacked up infront of the house.
Look at your house.
Again, a product.
It is now what you're selling,and if you, even if you're not
going to do all of it, the moreyou do, the better your chances
are getting a better price.
Dennis Day (14:25):
As a buyer.
You drive up and you see thedisarray and get uncomfortable
and you say, well, if it looksthis bad outside, what's it
going to look like inside?
Allow yourself enough time todo these repairs.
You don't have to do majorrepairs, but small things add up
.
Give yourself time to do it.
(14:46):
Tip number four deep cleaneverything.
Judy Gratton (14:50):
Everything.
Yes, the windows where theyslide in.
When you're opening and closingyour window that gets
especially here.
Maybe not in other parts of thecountry, but that can get moldy
and dirty and gritty and grimyand take a toothbrush and some
spray cleaner or a magic eraserand clean that out.
In your bathroom the caulkingaround the shower, tub, toilet
(15:14):
and sink can get moldy andcrunchy and not look good.
Make sure that's clean and, ifit needs to be repaired,
repaired the shower door.
A lot of places it's all foggyfrom soap scum that needs to be
cleaned off.
Look at the faucets, as Imentioned the doorknob.
(15:34):
Is it old?
Should it be replaced on yourfront door?
Look at your cabinets.
Are the hinges old and grungy?
Replacing cabinet hinges andholes with new ones don't have
to be fabulously expensive, butyou clean the cabinets.
You do that and it gives it amuch brighter look.
Same with faucets.
Make sure that they're notdripping.
(15:55):
Make sure that they're notreally old and decrepit.
Unless you're going to adjustyour price for it like it's
becoming a fixer.
Those should be more up to date.
They don't have to be terriblyexpensive.
The more you do, the better youcan expect to get for your home
.
The more you do, the better youcan expect to get for your home
.
Make sure all your switchcovers are on and cleaned.
Dennis Day (16:17):
New covers are less than a dollar.
Just put a new one on and havethem all match.
If you don't want to do thatdeep cleaning, hire somebody.
It might be the best $400, $500.
Judy Gratton (16:31):
If they do a deep clean.
It's hard when there are peopleliving in the home and the
furniture in the home, but ifthey do a deep clean.
We had a listing that we'rehaving come on this week.
We had it deep cleaned and itcosts $360.
And they cleaned the stove andthe oven, refrigerator, shower
doors, tracks in the windows andsliding doors.
(16:53):
They mopped all the floors.
Dennis Day (16:56):
I had a listing where the seller promised to
clean the house before he leftand he left things in the washer
and the dryer Didn't clean thestove.
I called the cleaner and theydid it before they moved in.
On my dime, a clean, sparklinghome makes buyers think it's
(17:17):
well-maintained.
Judy Gratton (17:18):
Another thing you need to be very, very, very
careful of and that's odors.
A lot of things animals,different types of spices.
If you smoke, these things aredeath to the value of your home.
If you can't smell it becauseyou've lived there, have someone
(17:39):
come in and be brutally honestwith you.
Does my home smell?
Okay, a pet odor in the carpetsor flooring?
There are some things that canbe done, but a lot of times
you're going to have to replacethat or pull it out.
And then the cooking odorspaint.
If you want the house to have alittle zing, paint a wall.
(18:00):
The smell of paint makes peoplethink, oh, they paint, they
like it.
Even if you only painted onewall, it's the first impression.
If you've smoked or you havecooking odors, then you need to
do a really good washing of thewalls with TSP, follow
(18:22):
instructions and you may need toprime.
Depends on how serious the odoris.
But if there is an odor, itwill knock the price down
significantly or some peoplewon't even make an offer.
People don't like to hear that,but it is a huge factor in the
sale.
Dennis Day (18:40):
You have to let go of your ego because you're
selling a product.
Number five neutralize andbrighten up.
Judy Gratton (18:49):
To get top dollar, neutralize the color schemes in
your home.
There was a condo that I heldopen once for someone else and
the woman loved turquoise.
The carpet, toilets wereturquoise, the bathtub was
turquoise, the sink wasturquoise, the appliances were
turquoise, the phone on the wallwas turquoise, as beautiful as
(19:09):
the floor plan was, and it had aview of the lake.
It took forever to get thatthing sold because, yes, there
are people who like turquoise,but there are people who don't
like turquoise and are notwilling to do the work and that
one would have been reallyexpensive to fix because you
would be pulling out toilets,bathtubs and sinks.
(19:29):
Those things again are going torestrict what people are
willing to offer because theyknow they have to paint over it.
Paint over colors that are notneutral with a beige, light
beige or pale gray.
Go to a paint store and talk tothem about what the current
neutral colors are.
I do not recommend white.
It's too stark and it gives offa very cold feel.
Dennis Day (19:52):
Same thing is true I don't know if it's still
trending, but it was very trendyfor a while.
Black walls Some peopleabsolutely love them.
I don't.
Bright or very dark colors canmake rooms look smaller.
Let's talk about getting aninspection.
Judy Gratton (20:11):
Tip number six there are pros and cons to a
pre-inspection where the sellerhires the inspector and the
seller has the inspection doneso that they have an inspection
report that they can offer topotential buyers.
A few years ago we had so manybuyers that they were afraid to
(20:33):
make an offer because theydidn't know anything about the
house.
They didn't want to make anoffer without knowing what the
condition was In the contract.
In the state of Washington, ifa buyer wants an inspection as
part of the contract, it'scalled an inspection contingency
and the way it's spelled out isthey have to have it done
within a certain number of days.
(20:54):
It must be by a professional orthemselves.
Sometimes buyers use this totie up a house and they may walk
away without ever doing theinspection.
And the way that inspectionaddendum is written, they can.
Once the seller's home is undercontract, the real estate agent
is required to go into themultiple listing service and
(21:17):
change it from active to pending, or if there is an inspection,
it must say pending inspection.
But we know that buyers reallywant this inspection.
Do you want to consider havingan inspection done in advance?
Now, here's the downside of that, because if you have an
(21:39):
inspector, come into your home.
They are looking for the thingsthat are wrong in the home.
Go in the attic under the house, check plumbing, electrical
safety and structural items.
That's what an inspector islooking for, and once he's found
that he doesn't ask you.
If you want to know, he givesyou the report.
You have knowledge, and onceyou have knowledge, you must
(22:01):
disclose it in a disclosure formthat is required by law.
Depending on if you're not goingto fix it, you can plan on the
price not being as great.
Are you comfortable enough thatyour home is in pretty good
shape that having knowledge isokay?
There are always all kinds ofdifferent scenarios around this.
For a while before sellers werebuying, the pre-inspection for
(22:25):
the buyers buyers would scheduleinspections before they wrote
offers.
I explain to our sellers here'swhat you can and this is what
you risk, or you don't have to,depending on the market.
We may not get multiple offersand the buyer may want one, and
that's a risk too.
Which one are you morecomfortable with?
Dennis Day (22:45):
A pre-inspection can give a buyer peace of mind and
they're more likely to waive theinspection.
Judy Gratton (22:52):
Your home's on the market for a month and you get
one offer and they want aninspection, even though you paid
for it.
Your agent's going to be kindof like this is the only offer
you've got.
How do you feel about that?
Dennis Day (23:03):
There is a couple of situations where you don't want
a pre-inspection.
Judy Gratton (23:08):
There are only two in Washington where you are not
required.
One is bank-owned and two is ifit is an estate sale, and the
reason behind that is neitherone of those entities ever owned
the house, had anything to dowith it.
They don't know.
If you are the executor of awill and you have that
inspection done and you find outthere's something wrong, you
(23:31):
now have knowledge, and so youhave to fill out that disclosure
form and you have to disclosewhat you found wrong, and so a
realtor should discuss that withyou so you can make an informed
decision.
Dennis Day (23:44):
Don't get a pre-inspection if you're on an
estate sale.
Tip seven work with anexperienced real estate
professional.
The DIY the for sale by ownerhas almost disappeared.
You can do it, but there'sreally some downsides.
Judy Gratton (24:06):
There's a lot of risk financial, legal if you
didn't get something right inyour paperwork.
I recently saw a deal becausethey called me to take care of
it after they had written it.
When you started readingthrough it it was just amazing
how many things were missing.
Studies have found that most ofthe time for sale by owner sell
(24:28):
the home for less than theycould have gotten.
Dennis Day (24:31):
There's long term evidence that a for sale by
owner sale will be significantlyless than that of a real estate
professional.
Plus, you have the peace ofmind of that person doing all
the contract for you.
Now we have being part of EXP.
We have a great situation.
How can that help?
Judy Gratton (24:52):
If you're local to us in the Puget Sound region,
we would hope that you wouldlike to maybe call us and
interview us to work with us ifyou're selling or buying.
If you're not in Washingtonstate with eXp, we are an
international company and if youneed an experienced realtor and
you're not sure where to begin,then give us a call.
(25:14):
We would be happy to connectyou with someone who is
experienced.
You get to interview them.
If you don't like them, youdon't have to use them.
We're happy to help you findsomeone wherever you are, even
in another country, but there'sno charge for that.
Dennis Day (25:31):
There's no charge for any real estate questions.
You can ask us anything.
If you need information aboutdownsizing, we will be happy to
help, all at no charge.
Judy Gratton (25:43):
When we're putting our name on that contract.
That's when we expect to earnour living.
That's when we expect to earnour living.
Dennis Day (25:49):
That's it, folks.
I appreciate all who took thetime to watch or listen.
This is Getting your Edge howto Downsize your Home.
Thanks, judy.
Judy Gratton (26:01):
Thank you, Dennis.
Dennis Day (26:02):
See you next time.
So much, bye.
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