Do I Need a Water Softener?

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Water softeners are not a necessity, but they are super useful to have. Whether you’re trying to update your current home or are looking to buy, find out why you should invest in a water softener—once you have one, you’ll never go back.

RealQuick: How to tell if you have hard water

If you have a water softener, it should be located somewhere near your home’s plumbing. A basement, utility room, or even a garage would be good spots to check.

Still not sure you have a softener and don’t want to pay for a specialist just yet? Check for these signs:

  • Excessive lime/chalk buildup on areas that come into contact with water (like the shower)
  • Colored clothing fades faster than it should
  • Low water pressure
  • Clean dishes have residue on them once they dry
  • Feeling dry or itchy after showering

These are all indicators that you probably don’t have a water softener, or that you have one, but it’s not working properly.

Reasons to Get a Water Softener

You’ll save money

A water softener removes the mineral ions that are normally found in water. These ions lead to buildup, and this can cause lots of problems in your home. A water softener can help prevent the need for frequent plumbing and appliance repairs, and it also saves you money on energy bills—your systems will have to work harder to turn water hot or cold.

Your appliances will last longer… 

Your dishwasher, washer and dryer, and even your coffeemaker all are negatively impacted by hard water. That mineral residue wears down your appliances a lot faster than if water is run through a softener.

…and so will your clothes

Those same hard water minerals leave their mark (and get left behind) on your clothes. Bright colors will fade faster, and certain minerals can even stain white clothing. Soft water also dissolves detergent better than hard water, so your clothes will likely feel softer and cleaner.

You’ll have an easier time cleaning

The mineral buildup from hard water takes more time to clean and it comes back fast. Plus, you’ll likely be cleaning and rinsing your shower and sinks with even more hard water. A water softener will prevent you from having to deal with this residue.

Your skin and hair will feel better

Knowing that hard water irritates appliances, would you really want to use this water on your hair and skin? The minerals in hard water can leave your skin and hair feeling dry and itchy. It’s also harder to work up a lather with soap, which often leads to buildup of shampoo and conditioner. All around, you will actually feel a difference with softened water.

If you’re hoping a showerhead water softener will do the trick, save yourself some dough—these don’t work because water passes through too quickly to remove hard minerals. 

And for our last benefit, a water softener could help add value to your home when you’re looking to sell! Whether buying or selling, you’re on your way to becoming a knowledgeable homeowner. RealtyHive is here to make the “home” part come to life. Work with us to find your home or to sell in a time-limited event.

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Skip Denver—Move to These Western Spots Instead

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The mountain views, the outdoor activities, the beautiful climate and bustling city—it’s no wonder why people have relocated by the thousands to Colorado cities like Denver and Fort Collins. However, all this hype has led to Colorado being one of the most expensive places to live. 

Spots like Salt Lake City and St. George (Utah), Casper and Cody (Wyoming), and Great Falls and Gardiner (Montana) have lots of the same appeal as those popular Colorado cities, but with even more benefits. Take a look at why you should consider moving west—but not where everyone else is going.

Just as Good as Denver—If Not Better

People love Denver for its access to the mountains, wonderful city life, amazing climate, and beautiful views. And don’t get us wrong—Denver is an amazing city! But all of those cities mentioned earlier have these same benefits to some degree. SLC is an up-and-coming spot that’s close to some of the best skiing in the country, and, like Denver, has a train you can take around town. Unlike Denver, it’s free in many spots—Denver’s costs $10.50, just to get to the airport.

Even Closer to Nature

Denver is highly appealing because of its proximity to Rocky Mountain National Park. But if your main draw to Colorado is being close to the great outdoors, there are plenty of spots that beat Denver by a country mile.

Cities in Wyoming, Montana, and Utah tend to be much closer to nature and take substantially less time to access what the West is known for. Gardiner, MT, Jackson Hole, and Cody (both WY) are anywhere between 10 minutes and an hour away from Yellowstone National Park (great for spotting those bison!). You can expect that driving time to double, even on a good day, to get into RMNP from Denver.

Less Populated

Not only are you physically further from nature in Denver, the sheer number of people living in the city turn that “hop, skip, and a jump” from the mountains into hours of standstill traffic on I-90. While some people make the trek every weekend to hit the slopes or hike the trails, most become disillusioned pretty quickly—solely because the traffic is so bad.

Living in a place that’s not as crowded makes life a lot simpler and a lot better for many reasons, which leads us to our next point:

Better Cost of Living

The absolute biggest draw to living in virtually any Western city that’s not Denver is the cost of living. To buy a house in Denver, a 2019 study showed you would need to make nearly $100k a year. But that’s not all. Higher population means higher everyday costs, higher insurance rates, higher “getting settled” costs (such as registering your vehicle), and potentially higher taxes. In Denver, you even have tolls every time you drive to the airport. None of these things are an issue when moving to cities in Wyoming, Montana, and less-populated places in Utah.

Author’s Note: I moved to Wyoming from Colorado this past year and cut my car insurance and rental costs in half. 

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While Denver definitely has its perks, there are countless places in the West (and even other cities in Colorado, like Aurora, Canon City, or Pueblo) that can keep up with Colorado’s capital—if not surpass it. If you’re considering moving out West, work with RealtyHive to find your next home or sell your current one! Search today.

How Much Is My House Worth?

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From that renovated bathroom to the roof that needs replacing, from the location of your house to the market itself, how do you figure out the value of your home? RealtyHive has the answers—read on to see how much your house is worth.

RealQuick: Do I only need to know my home’s value if I’m about to sell?

An in-depth valuation (such as a home appraisal) isn’t necessary if you plan on staying in your home for awhile. However, you should keep track of all home improvement projects and stay up-to-date on market trends. Doing so will make it easier to create a listing price for when you do decide to sell.

Home Value Factors

There are countless variables that determine the price of your home. Take a look at this list to see some of the biggest factors:

  • Your house’s current condition
  • The size of your home/property
  • Renovations or improvements from the time you bought to now
  • Unique or valuable characteristics (ex. hardwood floors)
  • Fixes that need to happen
  • Your location, and trends in that location
  • The housing market (both presently and what the future might hold)

It’s OK if you can’t put a price on all of these factors right now! Even just considering them is a good starting point to figuring out your home’s worth.

Finding Your Price Tag

Whereas losing a few bucks on selling a used book at a garage sale isn’t a huge deal, the wrong price on your house can cost you tens of thousands. Luckily, there are a number of ways you can gauge a good estimate. Our real estate home auction services rank each of these methods out of five stars:

Online Real Estate Databases

Overall Rating: ⭐️⭐️

Sites like Zillow may seem like a good reference point for configuring house prices in your area. The truth is they are notorious for over or undervaluing properties. It will be hard to find a sweet spot for determining your home’s worth if you use Zillow as a source of comparison.

Tax Appraisals

Overall Rating: ⭐️⭐️

Tax appraisals look at a property’s value according to its location, usually within the county. The average prices of other homes in the area are used to evaluate your home’s price. But these averages leave out lots of details and can even be years apart—tax appraisals are problematic for finding a home’s value and don’t reflect the true market.

Home Appraisals

Overall Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️

Home appraisals happen when a lender is determining the price for a mortgage loan. They’re conducted by licensed and certified professionals and are about as accurate as you can get for determining the physical cost of your home. One downside is if you get an appraisal after listing your home for sale and your house is worth more than what you priced it for, an appraiser often won’t assign a higher value. Home appraisals also have a hard time establishing real market value and how much others are willing to pay for a home. As a result, home appraisals might be best used after you’ve thoroughly calculated the value of your home.

Comparable Sales (Comps)

Overall Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Running comps is probably your best bet for finding how much your home is worth—in fact, it’s what the professionals (real estate agents) do. If going the FSBO route, you can find comps for homes similar to yours by checking recent sales from online databases and MLS. You can also find county tax records online, but it’s usually more time-consuming.

Real Estate Agent

Overall Rating: Depends

The benefit of working with an agent is you’re more likely to get an accurate and overall higher selling price—but that benefit isn’t free. Even if your house sells for an ideal price, you’ll lose thousands paying out an agent’s commission (which averages 6% of your sale). But if you’re fine with sacrificing cost for convenience, then working with an agent is a good choice.

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Time-Limited Events

Overall Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

At RealtyHive, we offer equity checks that help find a good price for your property. Selling with a time-limited event is great for hitting that “just right” price. The other benefits of a home auction with RealtyHive include a) if your house doesn’t sell, you don’t pay for marketing and b) if you’re not happy with the price your home is going for, you don’t have to sell.

But before all that, work with RealtyHive to get an equity check! Find your home’s value today with RH.

Why Isn’t My House Selling?

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You got a pre-inspection. You staged your house and took some stellar photos. You set up your listing online. You’ve done everything right, so why is your house not selling?

There are three main things that homeowners run into when struggling to sell: price, location, and time. RealtyHive will dive into each of these and offer some solutions that could help.

Price

Listing prices are great for showing what your house is worth, but they’re also self-limiting. For example, if someone is looking for a house that’s $225k and your house is $235k, your house might not show up in their search—even though it’s so close in price that you probably could have sold to that buyer.

While your impulse is to either stick it out or lower your price, a time-limited event is a valuable third option. Selling through an auction offers range pricing, which attracts a larger audience of interested buyers. Your home might go for the bottom price, but it might sell for your ideal price—or go for even higher.

PS: The benefits of an auction don’t stop there. If your house isn’t selling or you’re worried that it won’t, here’s why you should consider selling through RealtyHive:

  • Tons more exposure. The more people see your home, the more chances you have for selling.
  • Free marketing. Stress way, way less by having our marketing team take care of your listing.
  • Opportunities. House not going for the price you’re satisfied with? You can try again and go for another time-limited RH event.

Lowering your price might seem like the only way to get your home to sell, but that’s not the case. With RealtyHive’s time-limited event process, you have options.

Location

We get it—you can’t exactly pick up your house and move it to a gorgeous beach in California (but let us know if you figure out how to do that!). Location is less about where your property is and more about where you’re targeting your marketing.

Chances are that people directly in your city or neighborhood aren’t looking to buy your property, especially if your property is somewhere remote. This isn’t always the case, but if your house isn’t selling, look to open up your search parameters. Online marketing is crucial—we’ve said it before, but a “For Sale” sign just isn’t cut it.

Time

Frustration knows no limits when your property just won’t sell. Holding onto a property for the right price might seem like the only way to get your money’s worth. The truth is that this can cost you more than if you prioritized selling earlier.

No one wants to lose money on the house, but it’s a risk that every seller takes. But as always, you’ve got options. You can go for a lower price, wait, or take your chances with a home auction. 

The great thing about home auctions is that with RealtyHive, you don’t have to sell if you don’t want to. Not satisfied with the auction price? That’s OK! At the very least, it’s nice to gain more insight on the selling market and how your house stacks up.

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When it comes to selling your house, RealtyHive takes away the struggle. From marketing to the auction event itself, you can go from asking, “why isn’t my house selling?” to hearing, “Sold!” Contact us to get started!

Wholesaling vs. Flipping Homes

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When looking to make money from buying and selling real estate, you’ve got options. Wholesale selling and flipping a house are both ways to net a profit from real estate investing. Learn from RealtyHive how both of these processes work, and see which one is best for you.

Wholesale Properties

Selling wholesale means that you act as a bridge between a buyer and seller. In order to be successful, you have to find a home before it even hits the market, or before others know it’s available. You spend no time trying to fix up a home and instead look for another buyer. 

The Wholesale Process

  1. Find a distressed home (in other words, a home that needs work or where the homeowners are looking to sell fast).
  2. Put it under contract, intending to assign that contract to a different buyer. This is not the same as simply buying a house. 
  3. Don’t fix it up—this is another key difference between flipping houses and wholesaling.
  4. Market the property for a higher price.
  5. Find a buyer and close, ideally for a higher price than what you paid.

While flipping houses seems to be more common among those investing in real estate, here are some times when wholesaling is a good idea:

Less Work, Less Cash

Renovating a property is a lot of work. While you might cut costs by going the DIY route, you’ll extend the amount of time you’re holding onto this property. If you hire contractors to rehab the place, your flip time will shorten but your expenses will rack up quickly.

Wholesaling is a good route for someone looking for a faster turnaround and spending less money on renovating. When it will cost a hefty sum to make a property livable and you don’t have the funds (or the time) to do so, wholesaling is your best bet.

New to the Market

Some people are all about jumping into the deep end. But it doesn’t hurt to test the waters first when it comes to huge financial investments. First-time real estate investors often benefit from buying and selling wholesale before trying to flip. Learning the process, terms, and even establishing connections can help future real estate endeavors. You might lose money on a wholesale property, but that could still happen if you flip a house—and chances are, you’ll lose less when you’re not paying renovation costs.

Accustomed to real estate investing but now are buying in an unfamiliar area? Wholesaling can ease your acclimation process. What worked in one location might not in another; wholesaling can be great for getting a feel for this new-to-you market.

Credit Score Doesn’t Matter

Since you’re the bridge between the buyer and the seller, you don’t have to have a stellar credit score to acquire the property. As a wholesaler, you’re acting more like a liaison who can profit off of someone else’s sale.

Wholesaling Cons: Not selling for as much as you paid, confusion with contracts and wholesaling procedures, low availability of wholesale homes.

Flipping a House

Everyone is familiar with the concept of flipping a house, thanks to HGTV shows and countless other examples in the media. Like wholesaling, it involves turning around a property that needs a little (or a lot of) work.

Flipping Houses 101

  1. Find a house for sale that needs renovations.
  2. Estimate the costs of renovation (such as through a home inspection).
  3. Assuming it’s a worthy purchase, buy the house.
  4. Make the necessary renovations (i.e. taking out carpet, refinishing hardwood floors, remodeling bathrooms, etc.)
  5. Sell the house for a higher price—factoring in both the original price and your renovation costs.

Flipping a house isn’t a perfect, guaranteed way to make a profit, but it does have some benefits that wholesaling can’t offer. Check out some of the pros:

Potential for Greater Profit

Wholesaling can be complicated and not get you the profit you’re looking for. With fixing up a home, you have more control in the selling process. It’s easier to list and stick with a selling price when you did all the renovations and know what your property is worth.

You also have the potential to make a larger profit with flipping. This is especially true if you do many renovations (if not all) on your own—though it should be mentioned that DIY renovations are only cost effective if you know what you’re doing and it won’t take too long.

But even with hiring out contractors, preparing a house to flip adds a lot of value. While the chances for a greater loss are higher with flipping than wholesaling, there’s also the chance for a greater profit.

Learn Lots, Enjoy Even More

You’ll glean tons of insight from flipping a house that’s valuable as an investor, as well as a homeowner. Plus, you can’t beat the feeling that comes from watching a fixer-upper turn into a dream home. There’s a lot of blood, sweat, and tears—and consequently, a lot of passion—that comes from being a house flipper.

More Profit Avenues

With wholesaling, your only option is to immediately turn the property over to a buyer. Wholesaling is also tough because of the lack of availability of homes.

It’s easier to find opportunities for flipping, and your profit avenues are more versatile. You can still sell after renovating the house, but you can also rent it out. It’s best to know your plan before buying, but having the option to rent can be a good backup in case the selling market is tough.

Flipping Cons: Could lose more money, the process can be more time-consuming (which can affect your profit).

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Start Real Estate Investing With RealtyHive

Regardless of whether you go the wholesale or flipping route, RealtyHive is your real estate investing solution. Quick turnaround is essential for you to generate the profit you’re looking for, and with our vast real estate database, you can buy and sell fast with us! Learn how our auction process works—find your flip or sell your project on RealtyHive!

Think Outside the Search Box

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It’s no secret we live in a digital world. According to a  2017 research report published by the National Association of Realtors, 44% of home buyers’ first step in finding a home was to look online. Contacting an agent came in distant second place with 17%. As a real estate agent, it’s an exciting time to be in business with tons of cool, new tools. It should be easy. You get your listings, add them to your MLS, and then let the powers of the Internet take over and push your listing to the edges of the universe…or something?

For many agents this dramatic shift toward the digital space can be a little overwhelming. You’re an expert in buying and selling properties for your clients, not the intricacies of search engine algorithms or the inner workings of the interweb. We all know Google is king, but what can you do to make sure Google likes your listings and shows them to prospective buyers?

While you can’t guarantee that you’ll show up in the number one position every time, here are some quick tips on simple things to do make your listings more internet-friendly.

1). Write Two Descriptions

Sometimes you can’t say everything you want to about a listing in one tiny listing description.

If you’re a member of an MLS with a strict character or word limit for your listings, you often have to choose your words wisely. Abbreviations can be necessary, but that doesn’t mean they are conducive to having your listings found.

While an agent may know EXACTLY what you mean when you say “LR fp” (living room fireplace) or “w/o LL” (walkout lower level), those terms don’t always translate for buyers–the ones you should really be trying to reach.

If character limits are no issue, then simply write out everything completely. Looking for some inspiration on how to create a stellar listing description? Check out the tips in How to Write Listing Descriptions.

2). Think in Google Terms

Everyone wants to show up high in Google’s search results– and for good reason. These days, when you need anything from directions to a recipe for meatballs, Google is the first resource many go to. It’s no different when it comes to finding the perfect home. When writing your listing description, it’s a wise idea to think in “Google terms”.

To do this, you’ll want to do a little reverse-engineering thought experiment.

Imagine your listing is the first search result on Google. What did you search to find this?

Thinking in specifics will help you connect with the right buyer at the right time in their search. Geography often plays a large part in this, someone searching “West Village brownstone for sale” has a much more specific idea of what they’re looking for than someone searching “New York home for sale” and is more likely to be a legitimate (and ready-to-go) buyer, rather than a looker.

Other things to keep in mind are unique features, architectural styles, and upgrades. These features and amenities are often searchable on Listing sites (like Zillow or RealtyHive) so having your listing description optimized in this way will help you to reach buyers who are specifically looking for homes with that particular feature.

3). A Photo by Any Other Name

One of the easiest, least known ways to improve the way search engines show your listing is by giving your photos good names. Instead of keeping the default image name, usually a nonsensical string of numbers or letters, change your image titles to be things like “Johnsonville home” “kitchen at 123 Main” and other descriptive phrases. Naming your photos adds a little additional piece of information to each one of your photos, helping them to be found by search engines. Looking to take it one step farther? Change the “alt tags” on your photos before submitting them to your MLS for an enhanced presence. 

Additionally, this helps to cover you if the image itself should break for any reason. Instead of having the typical grayed-out broken image icon, the alt tag will appear. The user might not be able to actually see the adorable “loft bedroom overlooking Lake Beautimore”, but at least they’ll know it exists.

4). Divide and Conquer

If you’re listing a large parcel of land or a mixed residential-land parcel, this next tip might be perfect for you. If your seller is willing, it can sometimes make sense to divide a property up — or at least offer the possibility of this. Search functions of websites and search engines themselves try to help users find what they are looking for in the best possible way.

This means if someone is searching for 40 acres of land somewhere, it probably won’t show them a 160-acre parcel, even if inside the listing description it says the sellers would be willing to sell off smaller parts. Likewise, this can be very useful when you have a home and a large land tract together in an area that typically has lower home values. Since most buyers search by geography and price, properties like this often are not found until they make it into a lower search bracket.

These tips can’t guarantee that you’ll shoot straight to the top of the search results, but they can  help you to achieve higher ranking and greater visibility. To learn more about creating your best chance to sell, check out How to Sell Tough Listings or contact RealtyHive   to find out how they can help you create your best chance to sell.     

International Property Marketing Options

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Whether it’s a 5-bedroom condo in the Bahamas or luxury apartment in Panama, investing in international real estate certainly has its benefits. Access to beaches or mountains, indescribable cuisine and culture, what’s not to love? 

While owning an international property is great, things can get complicated when it’s time to sell. RealtyHive explores your international property marketing options to make selling easier.

Local Marketing

house for sale sold right price

What it Entails: Advertising in a local newspaper, putting up a “For Sale” sign, word of mouth.

Local marketing isn’t the go-to marketing strategy for US properties, and this is all the more true for international luxury real estate. The market you’re likely trying to target will be big spenders who can afford such a property. In many countries where the cost of living is substantially lower, local marketing will not attract a buying audience and your property won’t sell.

Online Marketing

Online marketing can be broken down into two sections: real estate databases and self-marketing.

Self-Marketing

What it Entails: Using social media (such as Facebook, and Facebook Marketplace), and building your own website.

Screenshot of Facebook Marketplace, showing homes for sale

While self-marketing isn’t the best and most efficient solution, it at least reaches a wider audience than local marketing. However, you’re usually only reaching people you already know or who are in your area. Building your own site will require tons of marketing, SEO, and paid ads to help it rank to the point of being successful. This can take months or longer to get the international real estate traction you’re looking for.

Real Estate Databases

What it Entails: Listing your property with a site like Zillow or Trulia.

Screenshot of Trulia, a real estate database's website

These databases are popular for many FSBO home sellers but do not sell internationally. The IMLS is a site that works with international real estate, but as of 2019, it’s not a secure site; it tries to piggyback off of safer, domestic MLS sites. In the era of constant data breaches and privacy threats, you don’t want to risk your online security when trying to sell.

RealtyHive: An International Real Estate Solution

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Where other online real estate databases fail to reach the international market, RealtyHive checks all the boxes. Here’s what you can expect when marketing with our international real estate site:

  • Exposure: We’ll cast a wide net to improve your selling opportunities.
  • Security: You won’t be transferred to some third-party site that could threaten your privacy.
  • Experience: We specialize in international properties more than any other online database.
  • Marketing: We provide the online marketing your property needs—you won’t have to lift a finger.
  • Pay-for-Success Model: Work with us and there’s no sale? You pay nothing!

Set your international property up for success with RealtyHive. Contact our global real estate company to get started!

First Night Packing For New Homeowners

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That first night in your new house is unforgettable. Especially when you’re a first-time home buyer, nothing beats the thrill of being in your own house! The one that you own! No more landlords, no more upstairs apartment neighbors blaring music at all hours of the night.

Alas, this thrill can quickly wear off if you don’t have the bare essentials. Here’s a quick moving checklist of necessities to pack so that your first night home is memorable.

Toiletries

Having some routine can help you (and everyone in your new home) adjust. Don’t forget the basics!

  • Toothbrush, toothpaste
  • Any necessary medications
  • Makeup bag, shaving kit
  • Shower supplies
  • Facial wash
  • Toilet paper

If you have children, pack a favorite bedtime story (or two), any stuffed animals, and a nightlight so the first night feels a bit more familiar.

Clothing

There’s a good chance you won’t have time to unpack your entire wardrobe. Plan on packing clothing for at least a few days in an overnight bag. Any work outfits, fitness clothing, or daytime clothes should be packed. Don’t forget something comfy to wear while unpacking and moving around!

Kitchen Goods

It takes time to restock your new fridge and kitchen as a whole. In the meantime, you’ll want something easy to rely on for food. Of course, celebrating your first night in your home with takeout is practically a rite of passage, but here are some more things to consider:

  • Utensils: A few plates and silverware basics are good to have on hand. Avoid plastic or paper if you can help it, but it’s OK if you can’t!
  • Cleaning: Have a kitchen bag full of paper towels, dish soap, a dish brush, and some cleaning spray.
  • Food: As tempting as some greasy pizza or Chinese food sounds, pack some fresh fruit and veggies that require little to no prep, like apples and carrot sticks, as well. You’ll feel much better and more balanced with the proper nutrition!

Sleeping

If you can’t set your bed up on time, invest in an air mattress to ensure you get proper sleep. Moving is exhausting—skimping on quality sleep only makes this more true. Don’t forget pillows, pillowcases, sheets, and blankets!

There’s another, often overlooked thing to pack for your first night: curtains. The window treatments on a house will be gone so your new neighbors can see inside. Even if these don’t end up being the curtains you keep, it’s good to set up a temporary solution—and installing the curtain rod takes the most time anyways, so at least you’ll have that part done.

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The freedom of having your own house is a feeling that can’t be beat. Make your own first night experience all the more memorable by working with RealtyHive! Find your new home by browsing through our site.

Should I Sell My Home By Myself?

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Relying on real estate agents to sell your home has decreased in popularity over the years. While the convenience of working with a real estate agent is great, many sellers are shying away from having to pay commission. This begs the question: should you sell your home by yourself?

There can be huge benefits to doing so, but there are a number of factors to consider. Take a look at what’s all entailed in going the FSBO (for sale by owner) route.

Homework & Pricing

Figuring out your listing price is a critical first step. Priced too low, your home won’t get you your money’s worth. Too high, and you might struggle to sell—it’s like the Goldilocks of real estate; you want your listing just right! Do your homework by looking at similar listings to your own home, in your area, to get a general idea of selling prices. An online valuation calculator can also help you find a reasonable estimate. To go a step further, find recent neighborhood comparable sales (“comps”) within the last year by visiting your county’s courthouse or record office. 

As a reminder, real estate agents are not appraisers, but they do all of these things (and rely on their own expertise) to come up with a good listing price. Additionally, a pre-inspection can provide some insight to pricing your home appropriately. Look into hiring an appraiser if you want professional guidance.

Preparing & Staging

You’d probably lose interest in a home listing that had few photos, or photos that showed clutter and grime. If your home’s listing photos aren’t up to par, you’ll miss out on potential buyers.

Preparing and staging your home are crucial to your FSBO home’s appeal. Here are some things to keep in mind when readying your home for its closeup with the camera!

  • Declutter. Tidy things up and clean like company’s coming over.
  • Landscaping. Mow the lawn, trim the bushes and trees, consider planting some flowers for even more appeal.
  • Update. Those things you’ve wanted to upgrade but haven’t? Now might be a good time. Even a fresh coat of paint can work wonders.
  • Highlight. What are your home’s best features? Focus on these when photographing your home, and make sure they’re especially primed and polished for the camera.

One more thing: Taking photos of your home on a smartphone will not cut it. Use a professional camera and editing software, or hire someone who can really help the beauty of your home stand out.

Showings

When setting up showings, it’s best to set showing hours on your own schedule—that way you won’t be waiting on someone to show for three hours or have people over at 10 p.m. on a Tuesday. You can set up an open house and include the time and date of this in your FSBO home’s marketing. You can also respond on an individual basis, but again, it’s best for you to say “Between ___ and ____ work for me on Saturday, when should I expect you?” 

Inspections

An interested buyer will set up a home inspection. A home inspection helps the buyer negotiate your listing price and/or make sure certain things get fixed. As a seller, it’s recommended that you get your own inspection (pre-inspection or otherwise) so that you can compare notes and advocate for your price.

Lawyers & Title Companies

There’s a lot of paperwork that goes into closing on a house. If you choose to sell your own home, there’s a lot to be said for working with a real estate lawyer. While you can find paperwork for selling your house online, working a real estate lawyer adds a sense of relief and reassurance—you know your bases are being covered.

Even if you’re able to do every single thing in the FSBO home selling process, there’s one thing that can’t be DIY. You’ll need to work through a title company or agency to safeguard your transaction. These are relatively easy to find, and they will walk you through the final steps of selling your home.

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As you’ve probably gathered, selling your own home is a detailed and lengthy process! It can absolutely be done, but you can also rely on the professionals to make your FSBO home sale easy. RealtyHive can help FSBO clients with marketing, pricing, and even an auction. Or if you end up wanting to work with an agent, we can steer you in the right direction with your area’s most trusted real estate agents. Contact RealtyHive today to make your home selling process a breeze!

Should I Test My Septic And Well Before Listing My Home?

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You’re ready to sell your home, check. Set up a home inspection? Check. Figured out your method of selling? Check. Came up with a listing price? Check. Tested your septic system and well—huh?!

Checking your septic system and well is a step that’s often overlooked in the selling process. RealtyHive is here to explain why having these things tested can help your home’s listing price and more.

RealQuick: Do I have a septic system and well?

Great question! Most homeowners already know this answer, but this is good information for any potential homebuyers who haven’t dealt with a septic system and well in the past.

The majority of homes are connected to a sanitary sewer system. However, older homes and rural homes usually have their own water supply (a well). If you have a well, you have a septic system. Septic tanks are necessary to clear out waste and keep your water clean.

Still not sure if you have a septic system and well? Here are some ways you can double check:

How to figure out if you have a septic system

  1. Look at a utility bill.

    If you were charged for wastewater treatment, you probably don’t have a septic tank. Call your utility company to confirm if you’re unsure—some places still charge even if you’re not using public water.

  2. Call the health department.

    They should have records indicating a septic system was installed at your property.

  3. Contact septic system specialists.

    Contractors or specialists will be able to locate your tank. However, this can be expensive if you end up not having a septic system.

If you do have a septic system, then you can get it tested on this visit, which leads us to our next point!

Why test your septic system and well?

The biggest reason is that you want to be sure your water is safe and that wastewater is properly treated. Exposure to contaminated water can make you or anyone in your home very sick. 

But the other huge advantage to getting a well and septic inspection has to do with selling your home. If everything is in great condition, you can raise your selling price accordingly. If your tank is not doing so hot, it will negatively impact your home’s listing price—unless you get it fixed before putting your home on the market.

Does a home inspection include a septic test?

When going through a trusted inspector, home inspections are very thorough—but they do not include septic tank inspections. This is because a septic tank test is pretty extensive, not to mention intrusive. 

Septic systems are located underground. In order to test them, contractors find where they’re buried, dig into the ground, and pump out the sludge and wastewater if a problem is suspected.

Since most people are connected to city water lines (and don’t have a well), it’s rare to find a home inspector who could perform an accurate septic tank inspection.

I’m moving, but my septic/well needs fixing. What do I do?

You’ve got two options. As we mentioned, fixing your septic system before listing your selling price increases your home’s value. 

The downside is that fixing or replacing a septic tank is expensive. For a 3- or 4-bedroom house, you’re looking at several thousand dollars to repair a septic tank and upwards of $15,000 to replace. In some instances, fixing your tank for the sake of higher listing price won’t save you money in the long run.

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Don’t want to deal with the hassle of fixing or repairing a septic system? Is it going to be too pricey and you’d rather just sell? There’s still hope! You can sell your home as-is in a time-limited event with RealtyHive. We conduct auctions that can expedite your home selling process, without getting tangled up in costly repairs. Sell your home with RealtyHive—reach out today!