Sercives

Which Upgrade Will Make You The Most Money When You Sell?

A major question we encounter with homeowners thinking to sell their homes lately revolve around which projects they should undertake prior to putting their home on the market for sale.

There is almost always some level of consternation regarding how much time, money and effort will be required and to what extent the projects should be completed.

There’s always the obvious punch list to take care of the areas where the home shows wear and tear. The questions arise when discussing the more ambitious projects.

Fresh paint and steam cleaned carpets only begin to scratch the surface on the “can do” projects to prepare a home for sale.

Unfortunately it’s the gray areas that present the largest challenge. The costly improvements that may or may not result in a quicker sale, an offer for more money – or both. I call the areas gray because even the best real estate schools don’t train us to use a crystal ball, so we cannot see into the future and advise with that ever so helpful hindsight. So there will be no guaranteed rate of return on investment.

A simple Google search for “home repair cost-recoup” will reap some invaluable data. While perusing the data keep in mind these are national averages, unless you can find local information. Don’t dismiss these numbers all together though, they at least give some level of indication on each named project and they certainly can assist in your decision making process. Below is a chart of repairs and what they return on average borrowed from the National Association of Realtors® from mid-range homes.

When deciding which repairs will make the most sense the first thing to do is decide on a budget. If you don’t have $62,000 available, you likely won’t be doing a major kitchen remodel—even if your kitchen looks like a scene directly out of “The Brady Bunch”.

Before making a decision on repairs or upgrades before you sell contact us at Miranda Executive Realty. We can walk you through the best repairs to make within your budget to ensure you get the highest return on investment. As you can see from the chart above, not all repairs are created equal, and it doesn’t always make sense to do some repairs. While others make total sense. Let us be your Sherpa guide when navigating through the mountains of data for your repairs. We’re ready to make you as much money as possible, and spending as little money possible. You’re success is our goal.
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Watch as we give 3rd Quarter 2017 statistics for Coral Springs, FL.

Statistics

Contact us to see how these stat affect your own home values. Or how they will affect your next home purchase.

Statistics courtesy of Florida’s Realtors.

The Man Who Wrote All Those Crazy Password Codes “Regrets Everything”

If you’re like me, you struggle with having a different password for all of the different websites and apps you use.

I recently read an article overhauling rules for creating the most secure password for your accounts.

I know you’re wondering; how does this apply to real estate? I’m glad you asked.

We know that just about 100% of home buyers actively on the market at some point in time are looking at homes online.

If people are looking online, they’re most likely setting up online accounts.

And what do you need to set up online accounts? You got it… Passwords!

What were the old password and security rules? The same rules that have been around for more than a decade.

• Use a combination of special characters (!@#$%^&*), mixed in with super long confusing letters and numbers in an order sure to confuse even the savviest internet computer hacker. Once you’ve set up your “ultra-high security” password don’t get too comfortable, you have to change that password every 90 days.
• Your other choice is to live life on the wild side. Make your password simple and memorable. Maybe some form of your name, child’s name, special dates and the such. Then you pray nobody knows enough about you to guess your low-security password.

All of this came from a pamphlet published by The National Institute of Standards and Technology, written by a mid-level manager named Bill Burr. Wouldn’t you know, Mr. Burr, who at the time of this writing is 72 years old admits much of the old password advice was inaccurate. “Much of what I did,” he said, “I now regret”.  – Wait what…? In fact, the complex passwords had a less than positive effect.

Now, enter a new age of internet passwords. A new set of rules.

Rules that will make passwords both easier to remember AND more secure than the now known less secure passwords of the past. The new rules recommend long, easy to remember sentences or phrases. The Wall Street Journal reported that “correct horse battery staple” written as a single word would take as long as 550 years to crack., as opposed to the only 3 days it takes to break TrOub4dor&3.”

The best part about this new password guideline. You don’t have to change them unless you think they got stolen. Now if only we could get back the time lost composing these silly passwords. Then trying to remember them, only to reset them to another even more silly password.

Want more tips on making life easier? When it comes to selling houses in Coral Springs check with Miranda Executive Realty at The Keys Company. When you call us, you won’t even need a password. #Winning