Vital Information Regarding STAR Exemptions

If you are looking for a STAR tax discount, you need to re-register this year. An easy way to do that is follow this link I created for you: http://www.jeffsstarlink.com/

It only takes about 2-3 minutes to sign up and can save you $800, so be sure to take time and fill it out right away.

Looking ahead to the next year, most people say they're going to put their homes on the market in the spring. Most of us think spring is an April-May time frame, but spring for real estate is really in January-February. As a real estate broker, I'm back to working 12 hour days, every day of the week. If you are thinking of listing your home this year or want more information on the STAR program, please contact me today. Thanks for your time and have a great holiday!

13 Ways to Winterize Your home

Welcome back to my video blog! Winter is upon us and along with the holiday cheer comes some freezing weather. It's important to protect your home from the potential damages of cold weather, snow and ice. Here are 13 ways to keep your property safe!

1. Get your HVAC (furnace) inspected, cleaned and tuned up. If it's running inefficiently it can cost you hundreds of dollars.
    
2. Change the battery in your thermostat. When the thermostat dies the heat can either shut off or continue to go full blast.
    
3. Change the direction of your fans. Hot air rises; turn your fans to a downward direction to maximize your heat!
    
4. Prevent ice jams. Melted snow can freeze and cause jams in your gutters. Hire a professional to clean this up; doing this yourself can be dangerous.
    
5. Turn off exterior faucets. Turn off and drain the remaining water in the line so that you don't have any cracks or bursts during the winter.
    
6. Winterize your pool and hot tub if you aren't using them.
    
7. Drain the gas from your mower. If the gas sits in cold temperatures it can often get thick and ruin the machine.
    
8. Check your sump pump.
    
9. Get your chimney inspected. If you plan on enjoying some fires this summer make sure everything is cleaned and inspected to prevent possible accidents.
    
10. Get your snowblower tuned up.
     
11. Set markers around the perimeter of your property to indicate to snow plows where your yard is to prevent damage.
     
12. Weather strip your doors and set up timers on your lights. In the winter most of us go to work when it's dark and get home when it's dark. Setting your lights on a timer can add a little cheer to coming home.
     
13. If you go away on vacation, turn off the water and the main. Again, this will prevent any cracks or bursts.

Thank you for watching. I hope you find these tips helpful. If you have any questions, please give me a call!

Renting vs Selling

Welcome back to my video blog! Lately, I’ve been asked a lot about whether it is better to take a financial hit of foreclosure or short sale or to rent out the property.

A lot of people are surprised when they find out the better option may be to take the loss. Why is that? I have two key aspects to look at when considering your situation.

The first question to ask yourself is would you buy the property as a rental? Will the property generate a positive cash flow? If not, it may be better to sell.

The second question is whether you live in town or not. Most tenants will eat a landlord up if they are out of town.

If you Google this topic you will find thousands of articles giving the pros and cons of renting vs. taking a financial hit.

If you have any questions please give me a call.

Two Reasons Why You Shouldn’t Wait to Sell

Welcome back!

Now that fall is in full swing and the holiday season is approaching us, many people have asked me whether now is a good time to sell, or if they should wait until spring.

There are two reasons why selling now is a great choice:

1.    We don’t know where interest rates will go over the next couple months. If they increase, activity will drop.

2.    Buyers, who are looking now, are serious. While you may have fewer showings, you have more qualified and motivated buyers in the market.

Give me a call today so we can get your home ready for the market. Thanks for watching!

New York State School Tax Relief Program

Some of you may know about the New York State School Tax Relief Program, more commonly known as the STAR Program. Much like homestead exemptions in other states, this program aims to reduce school district property taxes on the primary residences in New York. The program is meant to lower the tax burden on school district residents.

There are two forms of the STAR Program: Basic STAR and Enhanced STAR. The basic program is for the New York residents whose primary residence is in the state; it exempts $30,000 from the true value of the property.

The enhanced program is for senior citizens, 65 years of age and older and not have an annual income about $60,000; it exempts an annual amount which varies.

The state makes up the difference so that the overall revenue of the given school district is not affected.

The STAR rebate is subtracted from the ‘true value’ of the home. The value is determined by your last property assessment divided by an equalization rate, which is the ratio of assessed value to market value for each taxing jurisdiction.

With recent legislation, all those benefitting from the Basic STAR must register with the New York State Tax Department in order to receive the 2014 exemptions. Homeowners will not have to re-register ever year.

Registration started on August 19, 2013 and will continue through December 31, 2013.

Please visit http://www.tax.ny.gov/pit/property/star13/ to register.

Why Your Home Isn’t Selling

Hey, guys. Welcome back to my video blog!

For the past 20 years, I’ve specialized in expired listings. These are homes that were listed with another agent and just sat on the market. All my clients ask me why their home didn’t sell.

I have about five main reasons why a home may have sat on the market. The first is presentation. Presentation online and in person is crucial. According to statistics from last year, buyers only visited 4.7 homes before purchasing. That means they waded through hundreds online to only visit fewer than five homes.

Second is access. You need to make your home available as much as possible. If a buyer can only view your home at a few restricted times, they will most likely give up on your property.

Thirdly, do not have your pets present during a showing. When buyers come to look at your home they want to wander freely. Having the buyer or the pets present can be very distracting.

Pricing is also significantly important when trying to sell your home. If you price your home too high, there is a chance it will just sit on the market. When I determine the listing price of a home, I bring in comparable homes; we compare apples to apples and find a good price range.

The final reason your home may have expired is the rejection of the first offer. Sometimes sellers will turn down the first offer because they think it’s too low. We have a rule in our business: the first offer is the best offer. While I don’t necessarily believe the first offer is the best, I do believe the first buyer is the best. Don’t be afraid to counteroffer. If you reject that buyer, it could come back to haunt you later.

These are some of the main reasons I see that homes do not sell. If you have any questions or are ready to put your home back on the market, give me a call!

What's Happening with Interest Rates?

Welcome back to my video blog! I wanted to talk to you about the rising interest rates. A mere month ago we were at a 200 year low of the rates being in the mid to low 3% range. The rate now is about 4.5%.

Will they go back down? It’s hard to say, but put this in perspective. What does a one point raise mean? Well, if you are looking at $250,000 home from last month to this month, your mortgage payment went up about $80 a month.

To crunch some numbers, an interest rate of 3.5% is about $4.50 per thousand. So if you have a $100,000 home, it’s going to be about $450,000 on your PITI. At 4.5%, you are at $5.07 per thousand. If you look back a few years, though, we were at 8-9%.

Why does all this matter? For most of us, buying a home is the most important investment we make. If you are able to buy a $250,000 home today and we have a 3% annual appreciation, in ten years that house could be worth $336,000. That’s almost $100,000 in equity you have built in toward your retirement.

So now is the time to buy, to lock in that low interest rate. So give me a call at 585.721 and let’s get started!

Planning on Remodeling?

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If you are thinking about hiring a contractor to do some home improvements or remodeling, it’s important you are well informed. Lately, we’ve received calls from homeowners who are frustrated with their contractors; the homeowners have paid, but the contractor stops showing up before the project is completed.

If you are using a commercial lender to pay for your contracting, the lender will set payments up to the contractor in a way that protects you. People get into trouble, though, when they use their own line of credit.

If you choose this route, the most important thing is to check references. www.AngiesList.com is a great resource to verify the quality of a contractor’s work. The next most important thing is payment. Do not pay all at once; payment out of pocket should be equivalent to the work done.

If you have any other questions regarding contractors, please give me a call 585-721-3010.

The Short Sale Option

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We’re sure hearing a lot about short sales in the media and, in fact, they’re very common here in Rochester with 10 to 15% of the homes selling as short sales.   A short sale is when the homeowner is upside down in the mortgage, owing more than what they can sell the home for so they can’t afford to sell. In this situation most sit tight.

But what happens when the homeowner gets behind in the mortgage payments by a few months? A short sale comes into play. Here’s how it typically works. The homeowner gets an offer that is less than what is due to the lender so we submit it to the bank, telling the bank we can get a certain amount for the home. Even though it’s less than what the homeowner owes, we ask the bank to release the homeowner from the lien. With the attorneys we work with we have a 99% success rate. We have a method to achieve this type of success rate. By knowing the real estate market, we systematically get as much money for the home so the homeowner isn’t giving it away, and we ensure the transaction is an arm’s length transaction, meaning the homeowner isn’t selling it to his brother or uncle.

A short sale is much less detrimental to your credit report than a foreclosure. Last year, a client did a short sale and bought a home right away. A lot of credit unions are getting more forgiving because so many homeowners are having to do short sales.

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I’d encourage you to look strongly at short sales if it fits your needs. As the market improves and banks are not worried about foreclosures, the ability to do a short sale could disappear. If you want more information, give me a call at (585) 721-3010 or (585) 279-8250.

Your Biggest Investment: Assessing Its Value

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The value of your home depends on who you ask.  To determine this number, there are four basic home valuation models—assessed value, comparative market value, appraised value and automated value.  Each one is a bit unique.  Here are the differences. 
  
The assessed value is the value your town puts on your home so you’ll pay your fair share of property taxes, but it doesn’t often correspond to its true value.  

For a more accurate number, real estate agents use the next approach, which is comparative market value.  This model looks at similar homes sold in the past 6 to 12 months to tell you what you can expect to get out of your home.   

The appraised value, which is done by a licensed appraiser, is ordered by a bank or buyer to make sure the home is absolutely worth what the buyer says it is worth or is willing to pay.  This is done when a home is being financed or refinanced.  The appraiser uses data on what other similar properties are selling for and also makes adjustments, so the comparative market value and appraised value should be similar and accurate.   In better markets, banks were looking to loan money, so we saw some appraised values coming in way above what you would consider selling the home for because banks wanted to loan the money.  

Last, new automated valuation models allow you to plug in your address, and it spits out a number.  These are the least accurate because they don’t take into consideration special features of the home. 

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If you’d like me to build a strategy so that anyone who is looking for a house in your neighborhood—and price range—will know about your home, or if you’re looking for your dream home, please contact me at (585) 721-301 or (585) 279-8250.  You can also check out my website at www.jeffscofield.com.

Understanding How Enhancements Impact Your Bottom Line ROI

 
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Everyone needs to value and protect his or her assets, especially with the current economic situation. One of the best ways to do this is to maintain, manage and make strides toward constant betterment. In a house this can mean any number of things. Whether you choose to enhance an existing bedroom, extend your kitchen, install new flooring in the basement or even replace the garage door – all these and significant others – are excellent ways to strengthen the value of your property. With these home improvement projects, you will enjoy continued returns on the investment that you make in your most cherished asset.

How Does ROI Work?

In real estate it is the formula that is used to compare the cost of remodeling projects with the value those projects will retain at resale. With a little time, energy and effort, you will undoubtedly get back lasting value, increased enjoyment and an enhanced return on your investment. In terms of home improvements, making adjustments to outdated areas of your home, will not only make the space more enjoyable to live in, but it will also increase the resale value of the property. So while it may seem costly to redo the entire kitchen cabinetry and countertops, the chance that you will recover most of the monies spent on the improvement are very high.

Home Improvement Projects Yield Great Returns
Kitchens

Since the kitchen is usually the area in a home that gets the most traffic, it is often one of the first aspects of a home that is judged during evaluation by buyers. Updated, modern and functional kitchens are an important selling feature. If yours is lacking in any of these areas, by embarking on a kitchen remodel project you will could see significant ROI. While the cost of improving a kitchen can be relatively high, the returns of as high as 72% make the initial investment bearable.


Doors and Windows

One of the easiest ways to change the look of a home while increasing its value at the same time is to update the doors and windows. Considering the growing penchant for energy-efficiency in homes, the installation of doors and windows with high-end, energy-efficient sealing and construction will be a welcome addition to any home. When you look at the amount of money saved each year on energy bills, that alone makes the decision to update this aspect of your house an easy one.

Also with the growing security concerns many people are feeling these days, the confidence level of homeowners (and prospective buyers) will soar with the inclusion of solid, quality entry-exit points and windows. While there is a fluctuation based on the type of doors and windows on costs recouped from the initial expense, in general the returns are significant.

A new and improved garage door is a significant change for the better in most homes and one that has seen a ROI of as much as 84%.

Systems Upgrades

In many cases the core systems of a house, like the heating/cooling system or plumbing – tend not to be changed until they break down. When considering ways to improve a property, examine the condition of these systems and, if applicable, maintain or manage them to a level of improved function. If possible, replace parts or entire ensembles. The returns on these investments will be impressive.

Cosmetic Changes

A fresh coat of paint can do more than just spruce up the look of your home. If you are in the market to sell your house, a simple yet highly impacting project like repainting the walls or installing new flooring in your home, can have an immediate impact on prospective buyers. The additional bargaining power you will get from making such adaptations will be more than worth it.

Outdoor Elements

Not surprisingly, many people give great important to the quality and condition of decks and other outdoor spaces in a home. Whether this means your patio and recreation area, the landscaping or even the type and style of boundary fence – an often underestimated aspect of properties is outdoor care. According to Realtor Magazine, a deck addition can yield as much as nearly 73% return on investment.

Structural Enhancements

This is an often overlooked part of a home since it’s not really visible as much as the elements inside the house. As is the case with system-wide functions, the structural aspects are usually tended to when there is a need for major repairs. Prevention is one way to keep a roof, for example, in top condition and ready for any sudden burdens that may arise such as a storm. Siding is also important when determining a home's overall condition and one that cannot be ignored, especially when you plan to put your house on the market. The difference between having quality vinyl siding installed versus a less-than-desired state can be significant. With an ROI of as much as 70-80%, there is an excellent financial incentive to improve these areas as well.

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No matter which area of your home you decide to improve, the results are unmistakable. Not only will the quality of your life be greatly enhanced but also when it does come time to sell, the value of your home will be significantly increased, giving you an exceptional ROI as a result of those home improvements.

Busting the Myth of Selling in Winter Months

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Many sellers are unsure whether or not to wait until next spring before listing their home. The confusion comes with a combination of age-old schools of thought that predict the spring season as being almost the only season for homes to sell successfully. Not true.

A lot of homeowners are under the impression that homes are not selling at all, whereas in our own experience, time and again we continue to see complete opposite results. So much so, that we are defying the myths of never ending days on market statistics with many properties going under contract in approximately two weeks. Here’s why.

There are so many buyers in the marketplace right now that are eager to lock in the phenomenal interest rates and market conditions that continue to allow a very significant amount of buying power. The interesting thing is that while it is a strong buyers’ market in that sense, sellers are still enjoying an edge with the lower inventory that comes with it being this time of year.

Regardless of which side of the fence you are on, either way you look at it the market is strong. People are out there buying. If there are fewer homes available on the market, then that only means that there is less selling competition. This of course translates to top dollar and incredibly quick, hassle-free transactions in which everyone comes out a smiling winner.

So to answer one of the most frequently asked questions I am getting these days, it IS a great time to sell your home. Sure, you could wait till spring. But keep in mind that so will countless other sellers and by the time springtime blooms are back out, so will equally as many more “for sale” signs, competing with you.

By listing your home now, you can harness the power of the buyers that are striving to find that perfect property before the holidays kick in.

Contact us today if you’d like a custom, home valuation report detailing exactly what we expect your home will sell for in today’s marketplace. Our team looks forward to hearing from you and helping your real estate goals come to fruition.