Sell Your Boulder Home-11 Tips

1. Hire a Professional Realtor. This is no time to be navigating the rough waters of the Boulder real estate market on your own. You want someone who can help you truly price your home, bring in potential buyers, handle contracts, and market your home to the global masses. You can check to see if there have been any infractions with a Realtor by checking DORA (Department of Regulatory Agencies-Colorado/Search Licensees ).

2. Fully Disclose. Are you selling your Boulder home because it needs more work than you can handle? Are there infestation problems you’d rather not talk about? Whatever you disclose, the Realtor will have knowledge of and must disclose to a potential buyer.

3. Price it Right. Your Boulder home may sell the first week if priced properly and if you have to drop the price the result may be lower in the long run. The longer it’s on the market, the lower the price will be in the long run.

4 . Detach Emotions. This is a business transaction. Keep emotions in check.

5. Be Involved. Hire a local Boulder agent who will communicate with you at least one time per week and gives you regular feedback. Utilize that feedback to make changes or adjustments. Talk it over with your Realtor.

6. Stage your Home. Staging is a perfect way to help buyers see the true potential of each room. Buyers have to understand the purpose of each room and staging can help clarify that. Tone down your own style and pack away any clutter or extraneous decor.

7. Don’t Hang out. During showings or an open house. Resist the urge. This will make it very uncomfortable for buyers. Leave the premises.

8. The Next Step. Get ready because here comes the offer. Renting or buying what is your best option at this point? Start early!

9. Be Flexible. It’s no secret that today’s Boulder luxury and Boulder real estate market can be challenging for many sellers. Don’t compromise on your bottom line, but understand that you must be willing to negotiate.

10. Understand your Marketing Plan. Understand what you are getting for your money. What kind of internet exposure, media coverage and global presence will you get? A marketing plan should be clean, clear and will drive the buyers to your property’s website.

11. Positivity. Don’t get discouraged. A buyer will come.

Michael grew up near Santa Fe and is a longtime resident of Boulder and has been with Sotheby’s International Realty since their inception in Boulder County and along the front range.  If you have questions regarding this article or would like information about Boulder real estate or Boulder Luxury Real Estate check out my website. You may also call or TEXT me 303-359-6627 or e-mail Michael Hughes is a Certified Negotiation Expert and full time Realtor at Fuller Sotheby’s International Realty in Boulder, CO.

Gratitude

It will change your life

“Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life. It turns what we have, into enough, & more. It turns denial into acceptance, chaos to order, confusion to clarity. It can turn a meal into a feast, a house into a home, a stranger into a friend. Gratitude makes sense of our past, brings peace for today, and creates a vision for tomorrow.” – Melody Beattie. I have found it also brings peace of mind, abundance, joy, freedom, unconditional love, acceptance and forgiveness of ourselves and others. Have a blessed day.

Michael grew up around Santa Fe and is a longtime resident of Boulder and has been with Sotheby’s International Realty since their inception in Boulder County and along the front range.  If you have questions regarding this article or would like information about Boulder real estate or Boulder Luxury Real Estate check out my website. You may also call or TEXT me 303-359-6627 or e-mail Michael Hughes is a Certified Negotiation Expert and full time Realtor at Fuller Sotheby’s International Realty in Boulder, CO.

When should you pay more than asking for Boulder Real Estate?

Posted by Michael Hughes

Home sales in most of the country are floundering yet in Colorado and particularly Boulder, Boulder real estate is hanging in there. Unlike Detroit or some other areas,  I won’t mention, people actually ‘want’ to live here. We see the healthy lifestyle, coffee, world class dining, convenience, outdoor sports, 300 days of sunshine and a lifestyle to love. Boulder; home to the happiest people on the planet.

Couple that with low interest rates and now you have multiple offers with prices surpassing asking price. This of course will occur when a great listing comes on the market and it’s priced at or under market (did you know you can never price a property too low-the market will bring multiple offers and push it up, often past where the price should be-the market is a force and it is never wrong-I have used this as a strategy and it does work).

Paying over the offer price for Boulder real estate can be a good idea if the property has all the bells and whistles you want and as long as it appraises unless you are offering cash without an appraisal. Make sure it will appraise and that the price can be justified by recent sales activity in the area. Your Realtor can pull all this data together to see if it makes sense.

*Fair market value is the price a willing and able buyer will pay and seller will accept with neither party under undue pressure to act.

The decision of how much to offer should be based on a sound knowledge of market data/values in the area, your personal financial situation and lifestyle goals. If you do choose to pay more than the local comparable sales indicate, recognize that you may not be able to sell for the price you paid right away.

Michael is a longtime resident of Boulder and a Realtor with Fuller Sotheby’s International Realty. If you have questions regarding this article any of the neighborhoods or have any questions about Boulder or would like information about Boulder real estate or Boulder Luxury Real Estate check out my website. You may also call or TEXT me 303-359-6627 or e-mail Michael Hughes is a Certified Negotiation Expert and full time Realtor at Fuller Sotheby’s International Realty in Boulder, CO. 

Boulder Luxury Real Estate Sells

Posted by Michael Hughes

Sales of million-dollar homes and condos grew an average of 18.6% according to DataQuick in 2010. This is after several years of decline. With the Wall Street recovery people start feeling replete with cash again and the stock values have nearly doubled since the lows of 2009. When financial security increases people start buying homes and there are bargains to be had. As confidence soars million dollar homes sell. Boulder luxury real estate continues its’ bounce back.

In some areas home prices are increasing. There is a rebound underway and I am hopeful it will be sustainable and spread to other areas. In Boulder real estate between November and December 31^st 2010 there were 39 homes above $761,000 that went under contract or sold. That is one every 42 hours! A good sign indeed. It does not necessarily mean good times are in store for the lower end remainder of the market. Always good to see any segment bounce back and it’s the middle of the market that would be the most beneficial.

The Boulder real estate market has been robust at many levels for buyers and I am starting to see a shortage of listings available at many bandwidths. Low supply, the same or a higher demand and you know what that means. To read the complete article go here.

If you have questions regarding this article or have any questions about Boulder or would like information about Boulder Luxury Real Estate check out my website. You may also call or TEXT me 303-359-6627 or e-mail Michael Hughes at Fuller Sotheby’s International Realty in Boulder, CO.

The Bad News First

The bad news first. Wikileaks has reduced your ability to function and generally weakens the intelligence and military community. The good news is there are special rules for members of the Military, the Foreign Service and the Intelligence Community regarding the Home Buyer Tax Credit when you return home. Given your unique circumstances Congress is allowing:

• An additional year to utilize the HBTC or the Home Buyer Tax Credit.
• Exemption from the Tax Credit Recapture Rules. Great good news as this allows you to avoid thousands of dollars of recapture you normally would have had to pay. Ask your accounting professional or coach about this and how it applies to your situation.

When you are thinking of a great place to live and/or raise your family, think about buying Boulder Real Estate or Boulder Luxury Real Estate in Boulder County. 300 plus days of sunshine, small community feel with big city amenities. The safest investment you will ever make.

Rules for the Tax Credit Deadlines Extension

• The typical home buyer tax credit was available for qualified purchases with a binding sales contract in place on or before April 30, 2010 and closed by September 30, 2010.
• However, for qualified service members who are ordered on a period of official extended duty, these dates are extended even more. For these home buyers, the tax credit applies to sales with a binding sales contract in place on or before April 30, 2011 and closed by June 30, 2011.
• A person who is forced to return to the U.S. for medical reasons before completing an assignment of at least 90 days of qualified official extended duty outside of the United States may qualify for the one-year extension as well.

Definitions

• “Qualified service member” means a member of the uniformed services of the U.S military, a member of the Foreign Service of the U.S., or an employee of the intelligence community.
• “Official extended duty” means any period of extended duty outside of the United States for at least 90 days during the period beginning after December 31, 2008 and ending before May 1, 2010.

If you have questions regarding this article or have any questions about Boulder or would like information about Boulder Luxury Real Estate check out my website. You may also call or TEXT me 303-359-6627 or e-mail Michael Hughes at Fuller Sotheby’s International Realty in Boulder, CO.

Selling your home in Boulder…do you want to sell it or keep your pets happy?

By Michael Hughes  October 1, 2010

Are you trying to sell your home in Boulder? Does your house smell like dogs, cats or gerbels in any form?  Are cat boxes out? Has the dog made the backyard a non negotiable obstacle course? Clean it up!  Now! Is your home safe for buyers to be there, with your pets, when you are not there?

We all love our pets but a couple things every home seller must be brutally honest about – are my pets stinking up my home and making it hard for buyers to see or concentrate on my home? More specifically:

1. Are there pet stains on your carpet?

Does your house smell like dog pee, cat poop or hamster?  If it does, clean it up immediately, deodorize it or move it.  Have your carpets professionally cleaned or replaced.  Clean the cat box the backyard and the hamster cage daily!  This is not an option if you want to get your home sold.

2. Is your home safe for buyers to be there, with your pets, when you are not there? If the answer is Yes – you are good to go.

Your hamster is cozy in his cage and his wheel is well oiled with WD40.  Your cat is happy to nap on the bed and is not an escape artist ready to dart out any time the door opens.  You don’t have to make buyers wait for you to run home and get the pets ready.  As the saying goes time kills deals, even a little time and if the buyer can’t see the home it is soon forgotten.

If the answer is No, then consider the following.

Make a safe area in your home where you can temporarily confine your pet – so they are safe and visiting buyers are safe.  Crate your dog and confine your cat. Sometimes even cats attack surprised home buyers, check this out:

Of course we love our pets – But Potential Buyers May Not

If your pets are large, vicious, scared, overly affectionate, pee when visitors arrive, or have any behavioral or personality or physical characteristics that might put someone off, consider relocating them to a safe environment.  Perhaps your mother-in-laws house. Just temporarily,  until your home sells.   Put them in the laundry room, or in the kitchen with a baby gate.  Or in the backyard. Just think about how much easier it is buyers to see your home when it is convenient for them, rather than when it is convenient for your pet(s).

I can help you. If you have questions about this article or anything give me a call anytime. Michael Hughes-Fuller Sotheby’s International Realty 303-359-6627 or you can visit my website at www.BolderRealEstate.com

Attention Boulder County Homesellers

By Michael Hughes                             September 27, 2010

So your house didn’t  sell?  Selling your home in a buyers market can be, to say the least, challenging, but here are some suggestions to help tip the scales in your favor. All the hours spent vacuuming and making beds and putting your stuff away and keeping dishes out of the sink and physically leaving your home, so complete strangers, who never make an offer, could look inside your drawers, your closets or even your medicine cabinets.  Or even worse, you get your house ready to show every day and no one comes. Really!

There are only three reasons why your  home won’t sell in today’s Boulder County Real Estate Market

1.      Emotional Appeal, that get ‘em in the gut, what I like to call the WOW factor

2.    Price (oh yeah, the money part)

3.    Exposure (what we Realtors call “Marketing” 21^st Century Style)

How WOW is your house?  The more WOW – the wider appeal it has to a larger group of buyers.  The better you’ll be at grabbing those picky buyers in their gut – where they’re vulnerable and they get all mushy and emotional.  Low WOW – well just be realistic about the price.  And about how your house stacks up against the competition.  You have checked out your competition, haven’t you?

How have you priced your house?

1. Below market value? Trying to start that feeding frenzy that’s got people more riled up than a Democrat on the Fox News Network?  Hope you can handle the volume of offers  and have a great Realtor to help you see the pros and cons of each offer.
2. Right at market value? – good for you – now get in the groove and get ready for an offer.
3. Over market value? Meaning, more than 1 red cent,  over what any other similar home has sold for in the last 3 months. Similar (size, bedroom count, lot size, upgrades, condition, location….) and actually SOLD in the last 3 months – not what some other confused seller has their somewhat similar home listed for .

So – when you’re ready to get real about getting your house sold. Give me a call.  I can help.

Michael Hughes. Fuller Sotheby’s International Realty-Boulder  www.BolderRealEstate.com or you can reach me at 303-359-6627

Farmers Markets and Slurry Bombers

Posted by Michael Hughes   September 9, 2010

Every weekend I stay at my girlfriend Jocelyn’s house. We love being around each other and it’s a nice break from her and my hectic schedules. We get to work in the garden and better yet eat from the garden. Every Saturday and Sunday morning Jocelyn doesn’t exactly jump, but she is disciplined and gets out of bed around what feels like 6ish a.m. to ride her road bicycle 40-50+ miles. She rides with her best friend Marcie. I get up around 8ish. Make a strong cup of coffee and sit on the porch perusing the back 5 acres, listening to the birds and enjoying the crisp Colorado morning. I kick it into high gear to get to my usual Saturday morning Muay Thai Kickboxing, where I am pursuing my Black Belt at Tran’s Martial Arts in Longmont, run by some of the finest people on the planet. After the mornings exercise, I usually meet with clients and then Jocelyn and I usually meet up and head to the farmers market with the idea that the best produce is what we produce, but if we can’t then the best is at the Boulder Farmers’ Market.

This weekend there may not be too many cyclists on the road, what with the smoke and the fire in the nearby foothills. It’s sad to see and hear about so many of the locals having lost their homes. The final count is not in yet but currently stands at a loss of 139 homes in the foothills above Boulder, Colorado.

Fire trucks arrive from increasingly distant communities. 3,500 people have been evacuated. Only 13 families in the public shelter attesting to Boulder’s tight knit mountain community. The boulder reservoir is a tent city for all the firefighters and emergency responders. Still getting a little smoke in the city but not as bad as Monday. The ash is less frequently falling like snow. So far no known fatalities. I am most concerned for the pilots of the slurry bombers who are taking great risks flying so low in unpredictable conditions. Several years ago a big bomber went down near Estes Park killing both on board when a wing support failed. The fleet is quite old and subject to structural failure. Pray for the firefighters and the emergency responders, pray for the families and pray for the slurry bombers in their ancient craft.

If you have questions regarding this article or have thought about selling, renting, investing or  would like to Buy A House In Boulder check out my website. You may also call, text me 303-359-6627 or e-mail Michael Hughes at Fuller Sotheby’s International Realty in Boulder, CO. Featured Listings

Energy Efficiency

Posted by Michael Hughes  July 15, 2010

Definition: This little label packs a big punch — think of the Energy Star brand as proof that an appliance isn’t just green for the sake of green consumerism; it’s tried and truly energy efficient. How efficient? In 2008, Energy Star products helped Americans save $17 billion on their utility bills and offset the greenhouse gas emissions of 30 million cars.
But not just every appliance can get the label — only those that get their job done while saving a significant, measurable and tested amount of energy. They also need to be affordable, an idea aided by the federal tax credits available for Energy Star products.

But products aren’t the only thing that can earn the label — since 1995, over one million Energy Star homes have been built, and they’re 20-30% more energy efficient than standard homes. But you don’t have to buy a whole new house to live in an Energy Star home, instead you can renovate your own place to meet the standards: Effective insulation, high-performance windows, tight construction and ducts, efficient heating and cooling equipment, efficient products and the biggie: Third-Party Verification. So even if you go through the first five steps, you don’t have an Energy Star home until it’s inspected and tested.

If you have questions regarding this article or are thinking you will Buy A House In Boulder please call or text me 303-359-6627 or e-mail Michael Hughes at Fuller Sotheby’s International Realty in Boulder, CO. Featured Listings

So…What’s happening in the Market?

Posted by Michael Hughes June 30, 2010

So often people ask me so…”what’s happening in the market?”  In answer to that question here is May 2010 for Boulder and the surrounding area Market Statistics. There is no better time than now to buy a house in Boulder.

If you have questions regarding this article or are thinking you will Buy A House In Boulder please call or text me 303-359-6627 or e-mail Michael Hughes at Fuller Sotheby’s International Realty in Boulder, CO. Featured Listings