Only 20 minutes from Southwest Edmonton, Riverbend community, is the Family orientated ski hill, Rabbit Hill Snow Resort.

My boys and I have enjoyed many afternoons of riding there.  Rabbit Hill’s 2nd Annual Family Winter Festival is on February 16th.  With every lift ticket purchased $1 including all proceeds from the BBQ and bake sale will benefit the Stollery Children’s Hospital Foundation.

 http://www.rabbithill.com/w/pages.php?pid=27&sid=1

Get out and enjoy your family within your community!

Talk with you soon!

Carrie Wood
Business Development & REALTOR®
780-932-5589
Edmonton’s Buyer Agent 

KENNEDY Real Estate
Your Edmonton Realtor® | Edmonton Home Stager

Call us today…780-485-3010 and GET SOLD!
Area Specialists | Lifestyle Marketing

While preparing to write my first of many short little blogs about our wonderful home we call Edmonton, I came across this cool little site:
www.streetrag.com
there was a list of “Edmonton owned” nick names and i came across the first of a few that applied to certain neighbourhoods in our city. Since one of my topics for the “Did you know…?” blog series will be on interesting Edmonton neighbourhood facts i found this very appropriate!

BEND, The : meaning Riverbend, since this is my “neck of the woods” this was the perfect neighborhood to start with.

So, here we go… in the Edmonton neighbourhood of Riverbend aka “BEND, The”, there is an small non-industrial, fully organic, family farm that was started here in 1958. Riverbend Gardens, which is still running and supplies produce to the local farmers markets in the City! www.riverbendgardens.ca

Talk with you soon!,

Carrie Wood
Business Development & REALTOR®
Edmonton’s Buyer Agent 

KENNEDY Real Estate
Your Edmonton Realtor® | Edmonton Home Stager

Call us today…780-485-3010 and GET SOLD!
Area Specialists | Lifestyle Marketing

REALTORS® : Looking for a great Team environment to grow your business…see our Brokerage Model for info on how to make that happen!

In the Real Estate Industry, you meet a lot of people – people who you know nothing about.  It is important that we refresh our memories of how to stay safe while we are working out in the field, especially all of us Women Realtors® out there…

Here is a few things to keep in mind:

Know who you are dealing with:
Meet your potential clients at your brokerage or coffee shop, somewhere public.  If the situation permits, fill out the Fintrac form when you first meet.  When you’re meeting a potential client in order to list their property, typically, you are meeting them in their home.  If this is the case, make sure you tell someone (your significant other or a friend) who you are with, where you are going and when you will be back.

Keep a cell phone by your side:
Not in your purse or briefcase, but in your hand or next to you on the table.  Keep your cell phone fully charged.

Personal marketing:
Your marketing materials should be polished and professional.  Limit the amount of personal information that you share. Always use your office contact information and not your home information.

Trust your instincts:
When you feel apprehensive about a situation, or have a gut feeling that something isn’t right – trust your instincts.  Remember these signals you are feeling are alerting you for a reason.

Let them lead the way:
During the showing walk behind your clients.  Leave doors open after entering the house and any room.  Do not go with the unknown potential client into the basement, suggest that they go down and have a quick look while you wait on the main floor.  If they insist you come with them, then that should alert you that something isn’t right.

Additional “Carrie’s Corner” Articles…

 Additional “Edmonton Realtor: KENNEDY Real Estate” Articles…

Carrie Wood
Business Development & REALTOR®
Edmonton’s Buyer Agent 

KENNEDY Real Estate
Your Edmonton Realtor® | Edmonton Home Stager

Call us today…780-485-3010 and GET SOLD!
Area Specialists | Lifestyle Marketing

REALTORS® : Looking for a great Team environment to grow your business…see our Brokerage Model for info on how to make that happen!

How To Prepare Your Home For The Market…

“Move-in Ready”… “Turn-Key Condition”… This is what a home Seller and their REALTOR® want to “hear” from potential Buyers when they first list their home for sale.  A home in which no project needs to be completed.

You want to begin to impress the potential Buyer from the “Outside – In”… in other words it starts with curb-appeal.  Having your home attractive from the outside will not only entice the home Buyer, searching on the internet, to want to see more, you are also captivating those who are walking or driving by your property.

The outside of your home is what draws the Buyer in…, once they are inside, its time to really impress…

Below is a list of 10 projects that can and WILL serve to impress any potential home Buyer and their REALTOR®…

1. The Exterior Shell:  A new coat of paint, or replacing the vinyl siding may be needed.  Make sure you choose a neutral color that will appeal to the majority of home buyers.  For a little  jazz,  you could add  a splash of color by re-painting the front door.

2. Energy Efficient:  In order to receive top dollar for your home and to avoid a failed inspection report, now is the time to get these areas of your home in order.  Replace the old furnace and hot water tank, install new energy efficient windows, and have the roof and foundation inspected.

3. Landscape:  Get out there and trim your hedges, maybe you need to hire an arborist for your trees.  ”Greenify” your lawn,  If you have a perennial garden, replace the old mulch with new.  Draw attention to your home at night by adding outdoor lighting.  If a new home, have the fence finished and deck completed with privacy panels.

4. Flooring:  Your home’s floors need to sparkle…  Now’s the time to install hardwood or laminate.  If your unsure of what type of flooring to choose visit a few Show homes for ideas.

5. The Kitchen:  Always an important room in the home…you can give your kitchen a “face lift” by re-finishing or replacing the cupbards, replace the counter tops and plumbing fixtures and last but certainly not the least…replace your appliances.

6. The Bathroom:  Start with the smaller projects like re-caulking, replacing tile grout, repainting the walls and add new plumbing & lighting fixtures all this can make your bathroom look brand new.  For a little more, installing a new vanity with a vessel sink (above counter sink) always adds inspiring designer “vibes”.

7. Lighting & Interior Paint:  A well lit home can accent the best features of each room, however, if there are swag lamps still hanging it’s time for an update.  Play with a little color, paint a couple accent walls in your home.   Canned lighting can be used to highlight any décor and design element (such as your new accent walls).

8. Basement Development:  Having your basement professionally finished adds to the home’s useable square footage.  Finished basement homes sell faster, and will continue to do so.

9. Deep Clean:  Nothing you have done to improve your home will matter if your home is not clean.  This means a THOROUGH clean, this includes the areas in the home that are not normally cleaned on a regular basis…yes, you will have to pull out your appliances.

10. HOME STAGING:  Lastly, its time to allow the Buyer to envision their new life in your home.  Home Staging is about “enhancing what’s already there”.  Using this tool is a great cost-effective way to prepare your home for the market.  For more information on Home Staging visit this link:  www.edmontonhomestager.ca

Additional “Carrie’s Corner” Articles…

Additional “Edmonton Realtor: KENNEDY Real Estate” Articles… 

Carrie Wood
Business Development & REALTOR®
Edmonton’s Buyer Agent 

KENNEDY Real Estate
Your Edmonton Realtor® | Edmonton Home Stager

Call us today…780-485-3010 and GET SOLD!
Area Specialists | Lifestyle Marketing

REALTORS® : Looking for a great Team environment to grow your business…see our Brokerage Model for info on how to make that happen!

 Adding Value Without Breaking the Bank

You may be planning to list your house in the Spring or you just want a few ideas on how to “spruce” up your home.   Below is a list of 5 ways you can give your home a fresh start to the new year without it costing too much.

1. Clean and Declutter: Spending a little extra time in each room will go a long way to adding value to your home.  While you’re scrubbing, dusting and vacuuming go through your possessions and donate anything you haven’t used in the last year (clothes, books, old toys).  If your selling your home, after you have cleaned and decluttered, make sure you also put away your favorite knick-nacks, or family heirlooms.  Buyers want to be able to envision their own belongings in their future home.  Plus it gives the illusion of more space.

2. Patch and Paint: The kitchen, living room and master bedroom are 3 of the most important rooms in your home.  Why not consider giving these rooms a little “face-lift”.    Painting your walls, is the quickest and easiest way to freshen up your home.  If your planning on selling, make sure you stick with neutral colors like taupe, light browns or off-white.

3. Make Over the Kitchen Cabinets: You don’t have to replace your cabinets or reface them to make a difference.  If they are outdated or scratched, you could simply re-paint them.  Most importantly, add new hardware, something simple and modern, brushed nickel, or a pewter finish is nice.

4. Maximize Storage Space: Most Real Estate professionals agree that storage space is on the top of most buyers wish lists.  If your home lacks in this area, consider installing organizers.  Closet organizers are made up of strategically placed shelving, drawers and bars to maximize your closet space.  Most organizers can be fitted to any size closet and they are usually something you can install yourself.

5. Refresh Fixtures in your Bathroom: Like your kitchen, little changes can go a long way to sprucing up the bathroom.  Simply replacing the shower curtain and making sure the toothbrush and soap accessories match can go a long way.  If you want to take it one step further, changing the lighting  fixture,  cabinet hardware and vanity mirror will make a huge difference in updating your bathroom.

Additional “Carrie’s Corner” Articles…

Additional “AGENT 101″ Articles…

Additional “Edmonton Realtor: KENNEDY Real Estate” Articles… 

Carrie Wood
Business Development & REALTOR®
Edmonton’s Buyer Agent 

KENNEDY Real Estate
Your Edmonton Realtor® | Edmonton Home Stager

Call us today…780-485-3010 and GET SOLD!
Area Specialists | Lifestyle Marketing

REALTORS® : Looking for a great Team environment to grow your business…see our Brokerage Model for info on how to make that happen!

Setting the Price Right the First Time

Timing is everything when you want to sell your home.  A property attracts the most excitement and interest when it is new on the market, that is why pricing your home realistically from the start is so important.

It’s no surprise to hear that more buyers purchase at market value than above market value.  The percentage of buyers increase even more when the price is just below market value.

If you set your asking price above market value, you are only reaching 30% of the potential buyers and therefore limiting your chance for a sale.

Additional “Carrie’s Corner” Articles…

Additional “AGENT 101″ Articles…

Additional “Edmonton Realtor: KENNEDY Real Estate” Articles…
Carrie Wood
Business Development & REALTOR®
Edmonton’s Buyer Agent 

KENNEDY Real Estate
Your Edmonton Realtor® | Edmonton Home Stager

Call us today…780-485-3010 and GET SOLD!
Area Specialists | Lifestyle Marketing

REALTORS® : Looking for a great Team environment to grow your business…see our Brokerage Model for info on how to make that happen!

When your property is not priced correctly a chain reaction begins…

• Potential buyers… will not only be viewing your property but the competition’s as well.  If your home is not competitively priced, they will not make an offer.

• The responsibility of the buyers agent… is to inform their clients (potential buyers of your property) of their professional opinion of the price of any home their clients are interested in purchasing.  If your home is over priced, the potential buyer will know this!

• Overpricing your home… will cause your home to sit on the market.  Your property will become ‘stale’, the amount of showings you will have will decline and no amount of marketing will generate interest at this point.

• You will need to drop your price… usually several times.  The serious buyers that originally saw your home are long gone …and happily into their new home.

• The longer your property is for sale… the more likely buyers and their agents will loose confidence with your home and therefor be less inclined to give you your price for it.

• When offers arrive they will be very low… bargain hunters actively watch the market for property that has not sold in a timely manner.  You will eventually end up getting much less than you should have for your property.

Additional “Carrie’s Corner” Articles…

Additional “AGENT 101″ Articles…

Additional “Edmonton Realtor: KENNEDY Real Estate” Articles…
Carrie Wood
Business Development & REALTOR®
Edmonton’s Buyer Agent 

KENNEDY Real Estate
Your Edmonton Realtor® | Edmonton Home Stager

Call us today…780-485-3010 and GET SOLD!
Area Specialists | Lifestyle Marketing

REALTORS® : Looking for a great Team environment to grow your business…see our Brokerage Model for info on how to make that happen!

How is the current market value determined?

The  Real Estate industry uses a Competitive Market Analysis to determine the market value of a home.  There are other Internet ‘CMA’ programs out there to use but they fail to be accurate.  A true ‘CMA’ is determined when you analyze four different factors of a property.

1. Comparable Property: Recently Sold  This shows how much the buyer was willing to pay for a similar property within the same location.

2. Comparable Property: Actives These properties are the competition.  Buyers will be comparing your property with the other properties that are similar to yours. Keep in mind, however, these “Active” listings are UNSOLD comparables and as such should never be the gold standard for comparative purposes.         

3. The Property’s Interior/Exterior Condition  Everything is taken into consideration to assess a property’s saleability; repairs that may be needed, whether or not the property is in need of updating or cosmetic improvements and the level of “move-in” condition.

4. Recently Expired Listings: the unsolds  This will show all comparable properties that have been priced too high per location or condition or both that the buyer was not willing to pay that price.

Additional “Carrie’s Corner” Articles… 

Additional “AGENT 101″ Articles…

Additional “Edmonton Realtor: KENNEDY Real Estate” Articles… 

Carrie Wood
Business Development & REALTOR®
Edmonton’s Buyer Agent 

KENNEDY Real Estate
Your Edmonton Realtor® | Edmonton Home Stager

Call us today…780-485-3010 and GET SOLD!
Area Specialists | Lifestyle Marketing

REALTORS® : Looking for a great Team environment to grow your business…see our Brokerage Model for info on how to make that happen!

What is Market Value?

It is often believed that REALTORS® have a say in determining the housing prices.   The truth is, REALTORS® have no control over  housing prices.  What determines the price of any property is a process called:  Current Market Value

Current Market Value is determined based on what the Buyer is willing to pay for the property at any given time.  In other words, Supply and Demand, which is based on the general health of the economy and the local user market.

One of the responsibilities of the listing REALTOR® is to stay current with the local market  and price their  client’s home accordingly.  Current Market Value is also recognized at all financial institutions and is used to determine how much money they will lend.

Additional “Carrie’s Corner” Articles…

Additional “AGENT 101″ Articles…

Additional “Edmonton Realtor: KENNEDY Real Estate” Articles…

Carrie Wood
Business Development & REALTOR®
Edmonton’s Buyer Agent 

KENNEDY Real Estate
Your Edmonton Realtor® | Edmonton Home Stager

Call us today…780-485-3010 and GET SOLD!
Area Specialists | Lifestyle Marketing

REALTORS® : Looking for a great Team environment to grow your business…see our Brokerage Model for info on how to make that happen!

Why you need to sell your property twice: REALTOR® and Buyer

We all know that alot of folks use the assistance of a Real Estate Agent they are are buying or selling a home.  A buyer, will often times rely on the assistance and guidance of his/her REALTOR® to help navigate all of the choices. In alot of cases it is the REALTOR® who narrows down the ‘playing field’ of choices/listings to send to his/her client.  Often times it’s the REALTOR® who initially finds the property and introduces it to the client – and sometimes it’s the other way around. In either case a seller must ‘sell’ to both REALTOR® and buyer alike.

When a  REALTOR®  searches for homes for their buyers’, the first search criteria the agent will enter is the price range.  This is why it is very important for the seller to make sure his/her home is priced within market. Pricing within market also ensures that your home will compete with other comparable homes. If you are priced too high – you will not compete with other more competitively priced homes. The only thing you will do is help to sell the other more competitively priced homes.

Pricing your home according to market demand will ensure that you will get REALTORS® and their buyer’s in to see your home and get it SOLD.

As REALTORS® are constantly in and out of homes – showing and selling. We are in the ‘trenches’ every day. We can sniff out an overpriced home in a jiffy. Surely we would not want to waste our time and that of our client(s) by showing them overpriced homes? Would you want to see over priced homes or homes that fit the budget and offer loads of VALUE

We need to have REALTORS® excited about your home too!

Additional “AGENT 101″ Articles…

Additional “Edmonton Realtor: KENNEDY Real Estate” Articles…
 

Carrie Wood
Business Development & REALTOR®
Edmonton’s Buyer Agent 

KENNEDY Real Estate
Your Edmonton Realtor® | Edmonton Home Stager

Call us today…780-485-3010 and GET SOLD!
Area Specialists | Lifestyle Marketing

REALTORS® : Looking for a great Team environment to grow your business…see our Brokerage Model for info on how to make that happen!