Do Backup Offers Really Work in Our St. George Market?

Backup offers used to be a fool’s errand in our market, but two recent developments have changed that way of thinking.

Want to see which St. George area homes are currently for sale? Click here to perform a full home search, or if you're thinking of selling your home, click here for a FREE Home Price Evaluation so you know what buyers will pay for your home in today's market. You can always call us at (435) 215-4533 for a FREE home buying or selling consultation to answer any of your real estate questions.

Is it wise to write backup offers if you’re a homebuyer?

For years, we told people not to write backup offers because it was considered a fool’s errand. If they did write a backup offer, they often failed to close on the house they wanted because someone else closed ahead of them. These buyers were always seeing other homes. Every time they saw one dream home, another dream home popped up somewhere else. 

Two situations in our St. George market, however, have changed this real estate rule of thumb.

First, we have insanely low inventory—less than three months' worth. That means it would take less than three months to sell every single home currently for sale. Buyers in this case are having a hard time finding what they want to purchase. When they DO find what they want to purchase they’re often getting beat out by 1,2, even 5 other Buyers ahead of them!

UGH. How is this helpful to you as a St. George home buyer? 

Because so many folks are writing so many offers on so many homes…(that’s a lot of “so many”), many buyers are “flaking out” on the first offer they wrote. They’re writing offers on properties they’re not sure they even want just to tie the property up, then later cancelling their offer after finding a home they like better.

Enter: your backup offer, stage right!

Knowing that many of the Buyers that beat you out may in fact end up pulling their offer, you write a backup!

This means if you see a home you like and someone else has already written an offer on it: pick up the phone, call your real estate agent, and tell them you’d like to write a backup offer on that home.

 If they’re not willing to do that for you, they clearly don’t understand the current real estate market. 

Bottom line? There’s a better chance now than ever in our market to score a home with a backup offer.

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Don’t be discouraged to write a backup offer—it just might work.

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If you have any questions about the buying or selling process or you’re thinking about buying or selling a home yourself, give us a call. We know this town, and we’d love to help you. Our phone # is 435-216-3888 or email us at sales@gostgeorge.com.

How Boomerang Buyers are boosting the St. George Real Estate Market

Want to see which St. George area homes are currently for sale? Click here to perform a full home search, or if you're thinking of selling your home, click here for a FREE Home Price Evaluation so you know what buyers will pay for your home in today's market. You can always call us at (435) 215-4533 for a FREE home buying or selling con

Today, we're going to talk about “Boomerang Buyers” and how they affect the real estate market both locally and nationally. A “Boomerang Buyer?..What is THAT?” Great question.

A boomerang buyer is someone who lost their home in a foreclosure or short sale in the housing crash, and who needed time to improve their credit in order to purchase another home. Now that their credit is back in shape, it's really affecting the market. 

Starting in 2006, over 7 million homeowners went through short sales or foreclosures. In 2015, 350,000 homes were sold to return buyers. A.K.A. “Boomerang Buyers.”

According to the National Association of Realtors, up to 1 million consumers have restored their credit, and 2.2 million consumers are expected to restore their credit in the next five years. That means that there will be up to 2.2 million buyers coming back into the market over the next five years. 

In spite of going through a foreclosure, nearly all of these consumers say they want to buy a home again. They see the value of owning a home vs. renting. After all, if you're going to pay a mortgage, it might as well be your own!

The “boomerang effect” has sustained the St. George real estate market through the heat of summer – a time when we almost always see a fairly strong dip in St. George real estate sales.

During summer (June-August) 2014, 919 residential sales too place in Washington County versus 1136 during the same time period in 2015…an extra 217 home sales! That’s $54 million in total value, a serious figure. And we believe that boomerang home buyers had a strong part in that increase

If you have questions about this video, or about your home value, please give me a call or send me an email. I'd be happy to help you!

I have my Washington County Property Tax Notice…Now what?

Want to see which St. George area homes are currently for sale? Click here to perform a full home search, or if you're thinking of selling your home, click here for a FREE Home Price Evaluation so you know what buyers will pay for your home in today's market. You can always call us at (435) 215-4533 for a FREE home buying or selling consultation to answer any of your real estate questions.​

You've probably received your Washington County Property Tax notice in the mail by now. It’s one of those things that gets tossed aside into the “I’ll deal with that later” pile, right? I get it.

But since you’re inevitably going to wonder if they’ve overcharged you for property taxes at some point, I’m going to address it with you now! Here are the 3 key points you’ll want to consider:

1. Is the assessment accurate? You have to keep in mind that the value you see on your assessment is not the value of your home. This number is not what someone would pay you for your home if it were on the market. I would actually go so far as to say that 90% of assessments are probably a bit low. Meaning that your home is actually worth MORE than they’ve assessed you for....SHHH…I won’t tell the County if you don’t!

2. What should you do if it's inaccurate? If you think your assessed value is too high, get on a home evaluation site (Dixiehomevalue.com) and compare their value to what you received. If the difference is too great, you can contest it. Reach out to us and we can produce a price analysis that you can take to the assessor's office when you appeal. If you need to appeal, go to the Washington County website:(http://www.washco.utah.gov/assessor/boe.php).

3. What is the benefit to you financially? If you appeal and the county assessor accepts your appeal, for every $1,000 that they have over-assessed you, you will get $12 back in the form of a credit. So, a $10,000 over-assessment will get you $120 in credit.

Most of you don't need to worry about these things, but if you have any questions about your property tax notice, please don't hesitate to contact us. We would love to resolve any issues you may be having.

Until that time, or our NEXT video – onward and upward!

How Does Your Home’s Value Compare To the “Peak?”

Want to see which St. George area homes are currently for sale? Click here to perform a full home search, or if you're thinking of selling your home, click here for a FREE Home Price Evaluation so you know what buyers will pay for your home in today's market. You can always call us at (435) 215-4533 for a FREE home buying or selling consultation to answer any of your real estate questions.​

Welcome back to another edition of GoStGeorgeTV, we have a really exciting episode today. We are going to talk about, and actually show you, where home values are in Utah and across the Country compared to 10 years ago at the “peak” of the real estate bubble.

A lot of crazy things have happened with the economy in the last 10 years - Ponzi shemes, government bailouts, and even a major recovery of home values across the Country.

Before we can even talk about where values are TODAY, understand the following:

•  St. George area home values fell an average of 35% from 2006 to 2011. “Average” meaning that in some St. George neighborhoods values fell as much as 50% or more!
•  As implied above, 2011 was the absolute “rock bottom” of the market in terms of home values. Yes, you can now consider 2011 the “good old days” of buying.. :)

In the video above, you will see that home values in the states colored dark blue have actually climbed back to peak levels seen 10 years ago. States like Colorado, Wyoming, Texas, and Nebraska all fall into this category.

On the other side, in the States marked by the color orange home values are still 15-20% below their peak. Nevada is 35% below their peak and Arizona is at 27.4% below peak home value ranges.

As for Utah, we are still 9% below our peak values, which is actually a very healthy number. If you want more info on “why” it’s a healthy figure, give us a ring!

An example: If you have owned a home in St. George that was valued at the peak for. Say, $400,000…the home is probably worth more like $360,000 now. If your home was valued at $200,000 in the “peak”, it’s probably closer to $180,000 today. Now these are not EXACT figures, but it’s a good rule of thumb.

However, we are starting to notice a much larger increase in home appreciation as of late. In the last year, homes have appreciated by 5.5%, and they have appreciated by 1.5% in the last month alone.

The most important thing to remember when interpreting this data is this….

 All real estate is local!

So local, in fact, that each neighborhood right inside of a single City could be experiencing different home value “symptoms.” Many factors can affect home values on your street so don’t be shy about reaching out for assistance! Trusting Zillow or Google to give you a clear view of your home’s true market value is, well, not reliable. We produced a previous episode about it HERE.

If you've got questions about your home’s value or anything else real-estate related, give us a call or send us an email. We would be happy to offer you a free, no-obligation home value assessment!

The Truth About Selling Your Home During The Holidays

Want to see which St. George area homes are currently for sale? Click here to perform a full home search, or if you're thinking of selling your home, click here for a FREE Home Price Evaluation so you know what buyers will pay for your home in today's market. You can always call us at (435) 215-4533 for a FREE home buying or selling consultation to answer any of your real estate questions.​

Today's blog comes to you from Elk Grove, California, where I was visiting family for the Holidays! We hope you had a very happy Thanksgiving, and we wanted to take the time today to wish you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year as well! 

Today, we want to debunk the common myth that the holidays are a “bad time” to sell your home. Real estate agents love to say, "There are 20 AMAZING reasons why you should sell your home during the holidays!" I don't find that to be very helpful. Rather, I'm going to run through some of the pros and cons of selling during this time.

Economics 101

Remember your sophomore year High School economics class? Selling your home is all about supply and demand. Lots of supply and little demand pushes prices down, while low supply and high demand push prices up. It goes without saying that everyone wants the highest price for their St. George home. 

Truth 1: There are indeed FEWER BUYERS out in December. Of course there are, it’s Christmas! But….

Truth #2:  There are also fewer homes FOR SALE, meaning the supply is low…meaning that competition is low. This is illustrated by comparing last December, when 165 new homes hit the market, to last January, when 423 listings hit the market. 3 times as many families put their home on the market in January as in December…all waiting until “after the Holidays”….thus creating a much more “cluttered” St. George real estate market in January than was experienced in December.

Holiday buyers are serious - they're not taking time away from Christmas shopping to look at homes for fun. They NEED to do it. 

If you want to put your home on the market to take advantage of those buyers, but have concern about being hassled showing it during the Holidays, remember that 

You have complete control over when your home is shown - so we recommend you isolate and restrict showings on specific dates or times, like December 24-26 for instance.  If you have family gatherings or events, tell us and we'll work around your schedule.

Having your home on the market during the holidays isn't the end of the world, and it could even be a great thing for you because of the lack of competition.

Also, if you decide that now is the right time to sell, check out our blog post on 10 Steps to the Best Decorated Home for the Holidays!

If you're looking to make a move in St. George, would like to discuss your options, or have any general real estate questions, don't hesitate to give us a call at (435) 215-4533 or shoot us an email at LarkinGroup@GoStGeorge.com. We look forward to hearing from you soon!

Is it "Now or Never" for St. George Real Estate Market?

Want to see which St. George area homes are currently for sale? Click here to perform a full home search, or if you're thinking of selling your home, click here for a FREE Home Price Evaluation so you know what buyers will pay for your home in today's market. You can always call us at (435) 215-4533 for a FREE home buying or selling consultation to answer any of your real estate questions.​

The Clock's Ticking...Now May Be the Time to Make Your Move!

Is it a "now or never" type of market here in St. George? It sounds dramatic, but there are a few changes we may see soon that could knock many St. George area Home Buyers and Seller right out of the market for a very long time...if not forever!

CONSIDER THIS:

Interest rates are currently close to historic lows, hanging around 4.5%. If they go up 1%...just one point, a Buyer's purchasing power is DECREASED by a full 10%! For example, if you're trying to buy a $200,000 home, and rates jump just 1 point to 5.5%, you're buying power drops to $180,000. That's 10% of your buying power gone...obliterated...vanished like it was never there! 

If, for instance, you were having trouble finding that perfect home for $200,000, think how hard it will be to find one for $180,000. That one point increase in interest rates can drastically change the whole buying process and make you settle for less. 

And it’s not just gonna affect BUYERS. Sellers need to understand that this effect on Buyers will hurt their ability sell their property as well!

If you are on the fence about entering the real estate market, take the fact that interest rates are expected to rise as early as winter 2014/2015, and "they" have been saying they would rise at any moment for over a year! 

By waiting to make a move, you could cost yourself a lot of money...and perhaps the ability to buy or sell AT ALL for the near future.

GET YOUR FREE APPRAISAL:

Our friends Brad Shutterfield and Patriot Mortgage have offered to give our clients a free appraisal at a $450 value to help them take advantage of this opportunity. Just REPLY TO THIS EMAIL and let us know you'd like us to connect you and the free appraisal is yours!

We're serious folks, it's opportunity time. Reply by email or give us a call with your personal burning real estate questions. Take care!

Washington County New Home Construction: Heading for BOOM or BUST?

There are many great St. George area homes for sale. Click here to perform a full home search, or if you're thinking of selling your home, click here for a FREE Home Price Evaluation so you know what buyers will pay for your home in today's market. You may also call us at (435) 215-4533 for a FREE home buying or selling consultation to answer any of your real estate questions.

Washington County New Home Construction: Heading for BOOM or BUST?

Welcome! Today on GoStGeorgeTV I’ve got my hard hat on because:

1. We’re going to be talking about the recent construction boom here in Washington County. 
2. And I believe (obviously) in a “Safety First” philosophy. 

I will walk you through this subject and let you know what to expect in the near future as a result of this rise in home construction

So, who is building all these homes? As of May, the top Builders shook up as follows: 

• Salisbury Homes is the leader pulling 41 building permits totaling 7 million dollars.
• Henry Walker Homes – 34 permits
• Ence Homes – 30 permits
• Sunriver St. George – 19 permits
• And New Trend Construction pulled 15 permits as of the date of this video. 

What people really want to know is if this BOOM is going to BUST, and after the events of the most recent economic meltdown, it’s a valid question! Here are my thoughts: 

No, this building boom is not out of control. Note that the total # of building permits pulled in 2013, (1600), is less than HALF of the total # pulled in the “Boom” of 2005 when a whopping 3500 permits were pulled. As a matter of fact, in 2009 85% fewer permits were pulled than 2005, that’s almost a 100% decrease! This is a healthy return to the construction industry based on cooped up demand for new homes. 

The real question here is can this level of construction be sustained?

• While I do not believe that we will have a big home construction decline, I predict that 6 months from now there will be quite a few builders who will regret building those last few spec homes, left holding the proverbial “bag”. 
• This will likely result in having to sell those homes for a lower price than they had hoped. 
• I also predict that the building market will slow down soon due to a decline in housing affordability. NOTE – I did NOT say that the entire market will necessarily slow down, simply that the dramatic increases in new construction costs will price Buyers out of NEW HOMES. 

If you have any more questions, feel free to call or e-mail us with anything Also, don’t forget to utilize our FREE MLS home search and home value report links on our website. And our full, detailed St. George Real Estate report is always available 24/7 so you can be the smartest kid on the block! Check it out here: St. George, Utah Real Estate Report

Our contact info once again, (435) 215-4333 or email us: larkingroup@gostgeorge.com. 

St. George Real Estate: Can You Trust Zillow to Estimate Your Home’s Value?

There are SO MANY  great St. George area homes for sale!  Click here to perform a full home search. If you're thinking of selling your home, click here for a FREE Home Price Evaluation to see what Buyers are actually paying for similar homes in our market.  You may also call us at (435) 767-9821 for a FREE home buying or selling consultation to answer any of your real estate questions.

Today, on GoStGeorgeTV, we’re going to answer the question: “Can I trust the Zillow home price estimate?”

Zillow has become a wildly popular online tool to get a quick estimated value of home values. We estimate that eight out of ten Sellers we work with first go to Zillow to get an initial estimate for their home. With so many users, so many millions of homes, and having those homes spread across the entire United States, is it possible that the site could have inaccurate estimates? We’ll take a look at the three traditional values for a home and compare them with the Zillow value. 

1. The first value is the assessed value. This is the value that the Washington County assessor uses to determine how to tax your property. The assessed value typically falls on the low-side of a home’s market value. Not always, but most often. This value actually has little to do with your home’s true value. 

2. The second value is the appraised value. This value is based on the opinion of a qualified appraiser who will come out to inspect your home and establish a very analytical and scientific estimation. This value is often established during the mortgage origination process, but may be updated as the home undergoes renovations. While this value may not reflect “true” market value, it’s still incredibly important as it has the potential to make, or break, a real estate transaction. 

3. The third value is the market value. Definition: What a Buyer is actually willing to pay for your property! The market value is the most fluid value because it is dependent on the state of the current real estate market. The market value is what the buyer is willing to pay  for your home. Everything else is, quite frankly, quite irrelevant. 

These three traditional values are well established in the real estate realm. Recently, the “Zillow value”, or just about any other FREE online home value estimate, have emerged as a fourth value. Zillow, and these other systems, are what is called an “automated valuation model” that takes neighborhood statistics and tax data to determine a value of your home. Because Utah is a “non-disclosure state”, sales prices are NOT available to a company like Zillow. 

And because they lack that actual sold data, it’s highly likely that using Zillow as your guide will cause you to either, A. Overprice your home and sit for MONTHS, or..B – underprice your home and leave money on the table…yikes!  I encourage you NOT to trust it as a tool to estimate your home’s value.  If you want to play around with it, go for it! As a matter of fact, here’s OUR “AVM” (automated valuation model) site, feel free to play around there! www.DixieHomeValue.com 

Now, if you are looking for an accurate assessment of your home, I encourage you to reach out to credible real estate professional to receive the most accurate pricing of your home. 

If you have any more questions, feel free to call or e-mail us with anything Also, don’t forget to utilize our FREE MLS home search and home value report links on our website. And our full, detailed St. George Real Estate report is always available 24/7 so you can be the smartest kid on the block! Check it out here: St. George, Utah Real Estate Report

Our contact info once again, (435) 215-4333 or email us: larkingroup@gostgeorge.com.