GREENS FARMS Market Trends Report March 2012     The Greens Farms Connecticut real estate market consists of 2-3 sales per month, so we cannot draw any stable conclusions from the data, however the increase in Average List Price, Average Sales Price, and fewer Average Days on Market are hopeful indicators for Sellers that the market begins to shift to a more balanced market. There is currently 12.4 months supply of single family homes in Greens Farms. Six month’s supply or less indicates a Seller’s market so Greens Farms is still firmly in a Buyer’s Market at present. Thinking of buying or selling in Greens Farms, Connecticut, call Gail Robinson, REALTOR, at 203-521-0768 for a consultation. 04/21/2012

NEGOTIATING OFFERS ON YOUR GREENS FARMS CONNECTICUT HOME Getting an offer is not the end of the sales process, it's really the beginning.  Up until this point everything has simply been paving the way for the right buyer to make an offer on your home.  An offer includes more than the price, it includes the terms of the sale, which can sometimes be more important than the price.  For example, if someone offers full list price, but makes the sale contingent upon the sale of their own home, this offer is less desirable than a slightly lower offer with no contingencies.  You need to look at the offer as a whole, not just at one or two aspects.  Sometimes getting the right price causes sellers to overlook problems that could arise from the close dates or mortgage contingency dates.  They are... 03/31/2012

SHOWING YOUR GREENS FARMS CONNECTICUT HOME After you have set the price, staged your Greens Farms Connecticut home, and agreed upon a marketing plan with your listing agent, the next step is to make your home easy to see and to show off your home in its best possible light.  EASY TO SHOW These are important words to busy buyer agents.  When your home is "easy to show" buyer agents may include your home in their schedule even if it isn't quite what their buyers say they want.  This is good because buyers sometimes fall in love with a home outside their stated criteria.  "Easy to show" means that the sellers are very accomodating in terms of showing times and are forgiving if the agent runs a bit ahead or behind in their schedule.  The more restrictions you put on showings in terms of tim... 03/18/2012

MARKETING YOUR GREENS FARMS CONNECTICUT HOME Print advertising is dead.  Well, almost!  Newspaper circulation is down and newspapers are shutting their doors across the U.S.  In tracking my Return on Investment (ROI) in advertising, I have seen print advertising decrease in effectiveness and Internet marketing increase.  MARKETING VS. ADVERTISING Let's talk a bit about the difference between marketing and advertising.  Advertising is when you pay the media to announce details of your product or service, such as when your agent takes an ad out in The Real Estate Book, a publication that is distributed at grocery stores, gas stations, and other public places.  Marketing involves all other methods to bring attention to your home and encourage its sale.  Open Houses are one form of marketin... 03/13/2012

STAGING YOUR GREENS FARMS HOME You've seen HGTV. You know that staged homes sell faster and for more money, staging works, but it requires an outlay of money that you may not have. If you can't afford a stager, you can still apply some of the basic principles of staging to help your home sell faster. First thing you'll want to do is to walk through your house room by room with your listing agent. Your agent may not be able to give you the design advice of a stager, but he/she can give you advice about which room colors might cause a problem (e.g., a bright purple dining room) or furniture pieces that should be moved or rearranged. Don't make the mistake of painting the entire interior off-white on the premise that buyers can choose their own colors. Well-chosen wall and trim colors can ... 03/04/2012

1. INTRODUCTION   This is the first installment of a six-part series on Selling Your Greens Farms Connecticut Home in a Buyer's Market.   What is a Buyer's Market?   A buyer's market is one in which there are more sellers than buyers. Nationwide we are in a real estate buyer's market, which means according to the National Association of REALTORS (NAR) that there is more than six month's worth of inventory (homes for sale). However, if you look at different locations, neighborhoods, price ranges, and even home styles, some niche markets are doing better than others. Low interest rates and FHA low down payment mortgages have encouraged sales at the low end, downsizers are spurring sales in the mid-range, and at the high end, there are buying niches, such as luxury, waterfront and water vi... 02/22/2012

  GREENS FARMS Market Trends Report January 2012       The Greens Farms, Connecticut real estate market is showing signs of picking up. The slowdown earlier in the year can be attributed in part to the season and the freak October snow storm and accompanying power outages. However, the 3 month comparison shows that while sales haven't increased, prices are on the rise. The amount of inventory that the market can absorb was down a bit August through October, likely due to Tropical Storm Irene and the October snow storm, which kept buyers away.  Sales normally slow down over the winter, so we use the 12 month absorption rate instead of the 3 or 6 month rate, which means that it would take about 11 months to sell every home currently on the market. Although it is still a Buyers Market in ... 02/18/2012