The Langhaim Group Real Estate Podcast: Recent Episodes

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“We got the price we wanted and he negotiated the deals that we needed and really appreciated working with him.”-Roy Tubbs, Home Seller

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Buying a home? Click here to perform a full home search
Selling a home? Click here for a FREE Home Value ReportThe holidays are approaching. Today, we thought we'd do something a little different and share this festive video on holiday decorating tips from HGTV. Designer Angelo Surmelis shares several great ideas to spread holiday cheer throughout the home. Here are some of our favorites.1. Pay attention to the mantle. If you don't have some already, buy some kind of garland to drape over the mantle. Next, use leftover ornaments and candles to add light and texture. When choosing ornaments and candles, ensure they are in the same color-palette. This helps make your mantle a great focal point! 2. Use smaller Christmas trees. Every house has their main Christmas tree. In addition, you can also purchase smaller, inexpensive, eco-friendly trees to place throughout the home. Decorate these trees with strips of fabric from a T-shirt in holiday colors to save money for the main tree. 3. Use what you have. Be resourceful. Adding a plate charge and place mat to your everyday dining set adds some jazz to your table. Fresh-cut flowers and candles will help finish the look. You don't need grand, expensive candles -- a little candlelight goes a long way!

As you can see, it doesn't take much to make your home feel more festive. If you have any questions, give us a call or send us an email. We would be happy to help you!

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Buying a home? Click here to perform a full home search
Selling a home? Click here for a FREE Home Value ReportToday we'll be talking about Homes for Heroes** (www.HomesforHeroes.com) because a client of mine saw a big check in the background of one of my videos. They wanted to know why I had it, and it's from the Homes for Heroes Program.

So, what is this program?

It's an amazing program, and I'm extremely grateful to be the only agent in Central Oregon that's offering it. It's specifically for military members, police officers, schoolteachers, healthcare workers, and firemen. The program is designed to reward them for their service in our communities.

The way it works is that when you buy or sell a home with us, I give a portion of my commission check right back to you! I've even partnered with a lender, and she is going to offer a discount on top of my services. I'm currently looking for other small businesses that want to join in this program to help reward our heroes.

I wholeheartedly believe in this program and that if you qualify for it, you deserve to take advantage of it. If you know a teacher, a firefighter, or anyone else who can qualify for this program, please let them know! They deserve it.

Please don't hesitate to contact us if you're thinking of buying or selling in Central Oregon.

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“We were about 7 hours away and he took care of everything so that we didn’t have to keep driving to the property to manage the sale at all so that was definitely above and beyond anything that we expected. And also the furniture that we didn’t want he took care of and gave to a needy family in the area, so he took care of taking that out of the home and getting that distributed to someone in need.”- Roberta Swenson, Home Seller

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Buying a home? Click here to perform a full home search
Selling a home? Click here for a FREE Home Value ReportWhen you get an offer on your home, what does it usually have in it? Often, offers contain contingencies on financing, home inspections, and other contingencies that may derail the entire process. The offer could be great; you could accept it, but you're still holding your breath until the deal goes through and the various inspections have been done. Everything is up in the air until you get that home inspection report, which can make the whole process quite frustrating.**

To make the selling process a whole lot smoother, I highly recommend getting a home inspection done on your home before you even put it on the market! My clients who are doing this are having a great deal of success getting stronger offers and quicker contingency removals. The sooner you can get contingencies removed, the sooner you can get the earnest money from the buyer and begin to relax a bit.

Getting your home inspection done up front before your home goes on the market is a great move for many reasons. For one, you, as the seller, are able to maintain control throughout the sale process. Rather than waiting for an offer to come in and then waiting nervously for the inspection report once you found a buyer; you can sit back with peace of mind that the rest of the process will, more likely than not, go smoothly. Additionally, buyers will be impressed by the fact that the home has already been inspected and is really ready to sell.

There's really no reason not to get your home inspected before listing it. It will put you in a stronger position to negotiate and will let you rest easy while selling your home. What more could you ask for in an otherwise stressful process?

If you would like us to put you in contact with a great inspection company, or if you need real estate assistance of any kind, we would love to hear from you. Give us a call or shoot us an email at any time - we look forward to helping you soon!

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Buying a home? Click here to perform a full home search
Selling a home? Click here for a FREE Home Value ReportAre you preparing your home for the market? If so, you need to be sure to avoid neglecting a few very important things before listing.

I have put together a report called the 90 Things You Can't Afford to Neglect When Selling Your Home. This free selling resource contains all my knowledge and experience as a real estate professional, and I would love to share it with you.

It's so simple, and yet somehow many brokers and homeowners do very little to prepare homes for the market. There are many things you need to do before you put your home on the market. The sellers who follow my program sell their homes for a lot more money and a lot quicker than people who throw their home on the market with little to no preparation beforehand.

I'm very particular about my listings. Unless there is a specific set of circumstances, I have all my sellers take the steps necessary for them to get top dollar for their home sale. Cleaning, decluttering, and depersonalizing are the big things you need to do before your home hits the market, and that's just the start.

To get your hands on my free report about all the things you need to take care of before selling, please don't hesitate to email me. I'm always available to help you with your real estate needs and would love to send you the 90 Things You Can't Afford to Neglect When Selling!

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Buying a home? Click here to perform a full home search
Selling a home? Click here for a FREE Home Value ReportOne thing we know for certain about the real estate market is that it is never going to stay the same for long. Today we want to talk about an interesting trend we’ve noticed in real estate: millennials are waiting longer to purchase their first homes than their parents did.**

The typical first-time buyer now rents for an average of 6 years before buying a home, which is up from 2.6 years in the early 1970’s,according to Zillow.
We came across a great video on the topic from CNBC. To save you some time, I will give you my three biggest takeaways from the video.

1. Down payments are a huge factor
Renters in today’s market are struggling to save for down payments and qualify for mortgages. Most first-time buyers still depend on personal savings for at least some of their down payments, but rising rental prices have complicated the task of socking away money for a down payment.
2. Rising rental rates are complicating things as well
Rental rates are causing 46% of renters aged 25-354, to spend more than 30 percent of their incomes on rent, up from 40 percent a decade earlier.

3. Job security is important to millennial buyers
The Money Source, a mortgage lender, examined applications from 5,404 millennial buyers and found that these buyers averaged nearly 4.5 years in their field of work and had held their current job for slightly more than three years. Those figures point to how critical career stability is to a younger generation.

Thanks for joining me today. Talk to you soon!

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Buying a home? Click here to perform a full home search
Selling a home? Click here for a FREE Home Value ReportToday, I wanted to talk to you about Zillow. A lot of people come to me thinking that Zillow has priced their home correctly. However, nine times out of ten, Zillow is inaccurate and we end up pricing the home based on the MLS data.**

As Realtors and brokers, we look at data on homes right in your neighborhood. We pull the most recent comparable sales and examine the property itself to determine the value. Zillow won't know about any upgrades you've made to the home; a realtor can see the granite countertops or the new roof, and factor those things into the price.
Ultimately, keep in mind that Zillow is just an algorithm, and you shouldn't rely on the Zestimate when finding your home's value. If you are interested in a home valuation, or if you have any questions on today's video, give me a call or send me an email. I look forward to hearing from you!

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Buying a home? Click here to perform a full home search
Selling a home? Click here for a FREE Home Value ReportToday we are going to look at the numbers from our market, which should reveal beneficial information for you on the Bend and Central Oregon real estate market.In Central Oregon, there are 442 homes that came on the market in July. So far, 365 of those homes have sold, which is a huge number. Homes are selling quickly, and sellers are starting to take advantage of that fact.The average price of a home here in Central Oregon is $368,981 and the average sale price is $360,857. So, you are getting quite a big return here if you are a seller, about 97% of asking price, which is insane!The average home price in Bend is a little higher, at $422,480 with the average sales price being $414,120 which is 98% of the asking price, on average. We are absolutely in a seller’s market right now and buyers are feeling the pinch. Interest rates are also starting to creep up a bit, so many of these sellers are looking to purchase very soon.
If you have any questions for us, give us a call or send us a quick email. We would love to assist you with all your real estate needs!