Season's Greetings from the Donovan Team

It may surprise some of you to know that we at the Donovan Team are as passionate about music as we are about real estate! Please Check out this year's Singing Christmas Card!

Want to listen to the song? Play Song
Want to watch the full video? Play Movie

With the holidays in full swing, we wanted to share something special with you today.

As many of you may know from prior posts - when we aren’t busy helping our clients buy and sell real estate or helping our team members design their dream real estate career, we love writing and performing music!

We are proud to present our 5th Annual Singing Christmas card for your musical entertainment! This year's presentation is entitled: “Memories Are Evergreen”. With guest vocalist Paul Donovan on lead, Joe Donovan, musical producer on harmonica, and Karen Donovan, singer, song writer, on backup vocals. Warning - this video could bring a tear to your eye as you recall happy memories from your past.

Click here to hear the track and see the music video, which is comprised of our home movies from years ago. You may even recognize a few members of the Donovan team in it!!

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Wishing you and your loved ones a Christmas & Holiday Season that is truly Evergreen!

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From all of us at the Donovan Team, we’d like to wish  all of our Clients, Friends, Colleagues & Loved ones a Blessed Holiday and Happy and Healthy New Year and may all your wishes come true!

In the meantime, if  we can help you or a loved one make your real estate dreams come true in 2017 - don't hesitate to give us a call!

What Is a CMA & Why Do You Need One?

What is a CMA? Why do you need one? I’ll go over the entire comparative market analysis process for you today.

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This month I’m answering a question from Evan Resnick, the winner of our $25 gift certificate. Evan asks, “What is a CMA and why do I need one?”

First of all, CMA stands for competitive market analysis or comparative market analysis. If you want to know what your home is worth, you would ask a real estate agent for a CMA. Some owners might want to use online home valuation sites, but that is a mistake.

If you are buying a car or something like that, it’s pretty easy to go online, look at similar products, and set a price. It is not so easy when it comes to setting the value of your home. Those automated home values do not take the many upgrades you have made to your home into account. They also have no way of knowing what features your home has that other homes do not. The other problem is that those automated values only look at sold properties.

When a Realtor does a CMA, they will look at several different kinds of properties. They will look at sold properties because that gives you a history of what homes in your area have sold for. However, they will also look at properties that are currently listed for sale (your competition) and homes that recently went under contract. If a home just went under contract, that tells you that the property was priced competitively.

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Realtors look at many different properties during the CMA.

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Your agent will also look at homes that did not sell, which are called expired listings. If a listing expired, you’ll know that those homeowners were asking for more money than what the market was willing to bear. In short, the market didn’t support the price they wanted for the house, and you don’t want to make that mistake when pricing your own property. 

Once the Realtor takes all of these properties into consideration, they will come up with a proposed asking price for your home. They will also give you a selling price so that you know what you can actually get if you decide to put your home on the market. 

A lot of the time, people might not be able to sell right away but would still like an idea of what their home is worth. That is no problem. A Realtor can still come by, look at your home, ask a few questions, and put together a CMA for you. If you wait for a year to sell, you can look at that CMA and see if it makes sense for you to sell in that market.

If you have any other questions about finding your home value, please let me know. If you have a question you would like answered in our next video (and if you want a chance to win a $25 gift certificate), please submit it to karen@homesbydonovan.com or text your question to 727-517-1751.

As always, if you need any help in the meantime, please don’t hesitate to reach out to us. We would be happy to help you!

Helpful Travel Alert

Travel alert — avoid bright, shiny objects!

More and more people are traveling every year, so I thought I'd better issue this travel alert to watch out for bright, shiny objects at the airport. I'm not talking about guns or knives, but rather clothing with metallic features, like the ones on my shirt in the video above.

I actually set off security with this shirt! I thought they'd just take me aside for a moment, but it turned into a full-body search in a private room. I also had to take apart all of my carry-on luggage so they could check for explosives.

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I'm talking about clothes, not guns or knives.

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My husband and I were able to move on without a mishap from this rural airport, but I can't say the same for the poor French people next to me who were searched. They missed their flight and had to stay overnight in the airport.

So I repeat, don't wear clothing with metallic decorations, and be prepared with extra time in case the unexpected happens!

Likewise, if you're thinking about traveling to a new place to live, I'd love to help you out. Give me a call or send me a text, and let's talk soon. I look forward to hearing from you!

Avoid Major Mortgage Mistakes When Buying in Tampa Bay

I recently had a buyer whose lease was up. This buyer had been in the army and felt that he “hadn’t had a place to call home since.” He was about to close on the property when the lender sent an email requesting more paperwork, pushing the closing back another month.

The buyer had sent in his application on time and paid for inspections and appraisals. Unfortunately, the lender never sent the application to underwriting. When the buyer asked why everything took so long, the lender cited staffing issues. Because of this, the buyer didn’t have a home to move into when his lease was up. As the buyer said, this finance company failed.

When you buy a home, there are certain things you can do to avoid major mortgage heartbreak like this. First of all, make sure you work with a local, reputable lender. Get recommendations from friends and colleagues. Hire someone who has done many transactions. 

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Work with a local, reputable lender.

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Please, don’t search online for lenders and hire one from a different state. They won’t know any appraisers in our area, and that can only lead to headaches.

You should also make sure that you have money in the bank to close. That means you should have enough for your down payments and closing costs. Don’t run up any additional debts by purchasing something like a car or furniture between contract and closing; doing so will also cause trouble with your mortgage.

Finally, make sure that you call your lender with any questions. Make sure you are pre-approved, not just pre-qualified.

If you have any questions, give us a call or send us an email. We would be happy to help you!

How to Avoid Common Home Inspection Mistakes When Buying & Selling

Buying a home? Click here to perform a full home search
Selling a home? Click here for a FREE Home Value Report

I wanted to touch on five common mistakes that I often see buyers and sellers make with home inspections in the Tampa area.

1. Not researching the home inspector. Some people hire purely on price, and we all know what happens. Many certified home inspectors belong to the Association of Certified Home Inspectors. Ask the inspector to provide their credentials before you hire them.
2. Not attending the inspection or getting too involved in the inspection. Yes, you should be there for the inspection if you’re the buyer; they will explain little things that will help you when you own the home, and it’s not as scary as reading a long report. From a seller’s point of view, the inspection is very invasive, and most of the time it’s best to meet the inspector, give them your cell number, and leave.
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   With a pre-inspection,
   you can get ahead of issues.

   
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3. Reviewing the inspection from an emotional standpoint. From a buyer’s standpoint, read the items that need to be fixed and what needs to be done to get them up to standard. As a seller, don’t take offense because you’ve been told things are wrong with your house. Look at them as things that need to be corrected.
4. Not obtaining a pre-listing inspection. This is for sellers only. With a pre-inspection, you can get out ahead of issues that can be easily fixed before putting the home on the market.
5. Not preparing for the inspection. As a seller, you need to make sure all areas of the home are accessible. Can the inspector get into the garage and the attic? Are all the utilities turned on? Buyers should check with their agent to make sure the power, water, and all utilities are on, so when the inspector does their job, they can get access to everything they need.

I hope you find these tips helpful. If you’d like to have a detailed report on mistakes that buyers and sellers make with inspection, click here or call me at 1-800-822-1222 and we’ll happily send you one!

Professional Photos Are Crucial for Your Tampa Bay Sale

Buying a home? Click here to perform a full home search
Selling a home? Click here for a FREE Home Value Report

We've probably all seen the mistake of poorly photographed properties listed for sale in Long Island. Did you know that 92% of buyers start their search on the Internet for homes? I have 3 main reasons to use professional photography when selling your Long Island home.

1. You only get one chance to make a good first impression.
2. They take high-quality HD photos with good lighting and a wide-angle lens to show your entire space. We don't want to deceive people and make the home look bigger than it really is, but you do want things to look attractive, well-lit, and not grainy in your photos.
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   You only get one chance to
   make a good first impression.

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3. Once you have the professional quality photographs, you can utilize them in multiple ways. Your agent can post the photos to Facebook and on numerous websites, as well as virtual tours of your listing.

If you're going to use photos of your home online, it's really a no-brainer whether or not you should use a professional photographer. If you have any further questions, please don't hesitate to reach out to me! I'd love to help in any way that I can.

How to E-Sign a Document Via Email

Buying a home? Click here to perform a full home search
Selling a home? Click here for a FREE Home Value Report

Whether you’re 18 or 80 years old, there will be some point where you will sign a document via email. This tool saves a lot of time, especially in the real estate industry.

It’s incredibly simple. Let’s review a brief demo. First, fill in your personal information. Next, review and act on these documents. You’re already at the point where you need to sign once you read everything over. At the bottom of the page, you sign to agree to the document’s conditions. You can see I’ve already chosen a signature that reflects my own handwriting. Lastly, click finish.

It’s that easy! Now you know how to sign a document electronically, in case you’re ever asked to. If you have any questions about this topic or more, please contact me. I’m available by both phone and email! I look forward to hearing your questions, suggestions for future topics, feedback, and more.

Buying and Selling at the Same Time in Tampa Bay

Buying a home? Click here to perform a full home search
Selling a home? Click here for a FREE Home Value Report

Today we’re back with another edition of our blog, where we share the latest real estate trends, tips, and strategies to help you succeed in the market. This time, we’re going to be talking about what you can do if you need to buy a new home and sell your current one at the same time.

If you’re a seller, the first thing you need to do, if you’ve found a buyer for your home, is make sure that the buyer has obtained a pre-approval letter from a bona fide lender stating that they are not required to sell their home in order to purchase yours. This way, you won’t be left in the lurch at the last moment if they fail to sell their home.

One way to be absolutely sure about your buyer is to ask their agent if they have a valid buyer for their home with a pre-approval letter. You can even ask to see a copy of the contract. It’s not 100% guaranteed, but you would have a better chance of knowing that your sale will go through.

What about if you’re a buyer that needs to sell first? Well, first off you need to know that many sellers will not be interested in talking to you until your home is at least under contract. However, if you are a buyer, you could target a home that has been languishing on the market without many offers. These are the kinds of sellers that would entertain a contingent offer from you.

In any event, it’s a brisk market out there in Tampa Bay, and it’s a great time to buy or sell. If we can help you in any way, or if you have any questions for us, give us a call or send us an email. We would love to hear from you!

What Does Low Inventory Mean for Buyers and Sellers in Tampa?

Buying a home? Click here to perform a full home search
Selling a home? Click here for a FREE Home Value Report

When inventory is low, it means that homes are not very plentiful in our Long Island real estate market. When there aren’t enough homes available, sellers benefit and buyers will have a tough time finding a good deal on a home.

We’re currently seeing low inventory in Tampa, so all homeowners should know that their properties will be in demand if they decide to list them for sale. When homes are in demand, they sell quicker and for more money. Sellers can also get away with not improving every aspect of their home. Buyers will have to settle for a home that’s not landscaped if homes are in high demand.

This is great news for sellers, but buyers need to prepare for a competitive market. You need to know what you want to buy, and you need to act on your impulses when you see something that you like.

One thing that is working in the favor of buyers is that we are still seeing historically low interest rates. You can save thousands of dollars over the lifetime of your loan with these extremely low rates. The longer you wait, the more expensive it will become to buy a home. Interest rates are only set to keep rising.

If you need help crafting a winning home offer for a seller, please don’t hesitate to reach out to us. We look forward to hearing from you!

3 Valuable Tips to Get the Most for Your Money When You're Selling or Buying This Winter

Buying a home? Click here to perform a full home search
Selling a home? Click here for a FREE Home Value Report

You may ask, "Is winter a good time to buy or sell a home?" Our answer is emphatically yes, and we've got the reports to back up our answer.

We have a free report on selling your home during the winter. This guide is full of useful information, featuring topics like:

• 5 reasons to sell now.
• How to get the most money from the sale of your home. 
• 5 demands to make on your real estate agent. 
• Home prices over the last year.

Peruse this information while you enjoy a cup of coffee or tea. We'll tell you how to do everything from setting the right price to how to make your home stand out from the crowd. This guide gives you all the details that will lead you to the home of your dreams.

We also have a great report for buyers looking for a home during the winter. This guide covers the following topics and more:

• 4 reasons to buy a home now. 
• Why you need to work with a professional when buying a home. 
• What do you really need to do to qualify for a mortgage? 

Even though it may be a little chilly, grab one of our free guides, sit by a fireplace, and get insider tips on how to buy or sell during the winter season. Get a jump on all of those folks who are still waiting for spring. You could be enjoying your new place sooner than you think.

If you have any questions, give us a call or send us an email. We would be happy to help you!