10 Tips for Selling Your Home in Winter

Part 1 of a 2-Part Series

In Lake Arrowhead, as in many mountain communities, some people bury their heads in the snow, waiting for spring to arrive. But if you want to sell your Lake Arrowhead home, don’t follow suit. While there are admittedly fewer buyers in cold winter months, there is also a lot less competition. Also, since your Lake Arrowhead house was designed with weather in mind, you should take the opportunity to showcase just how beautiful it is in a winter wonderland. So, now is actually a great time to sell your house— if you follow these 10 tips: (We have provided five tips in this post and will conclude our series next week.)

1. Showcase winter sport possibilities. Since Lake Arrowhead homes are close to Snow Valley Mountain Resort, call attention to the fact that your house is near a popular ski location. If you own a snowboard or skis, display them inside the house. If not, consider displaying artwork that features ski and snowboard scenes. Your home will sell quickly if buyers can picture themselves taking advantage of nearby winter sports and enjoying snow-capped mountain views.
2. Let buyers be your guest. Showcase your home in a way that makes potential buyers feel like they are invited guests. Set the dinner table with good china. You might even want to set up an entertaining area that features small snacks and drinks such as cookies and coffee or Doing so will alert buyers to entertaining options.
3. Let the sun shine. Light is more important in the winter months than at any other time of year. So open the shades and let in as much sunlight as you can. Also, keep windows clean to improve buyers’ first impressions. Also important—try to avoid showing your house at night, when ice could create treacherous walkways.
4. Keep it clean. This tip applies to the outside and inside of your house. The first thing potential buyers will notice is the outside of your house. Unkempt, dirty, cobweb-filled windows and eves could turn off buyers before they ever enter your house. And strong southern light in the winter could reveal grime that otherwise wouldn’t be as noticeable. So dig out your squeegee or hire someone to clean your windows. You might be able to negotiate a cut rate, since winter is a far less popular time to clean windows than spring or summer.
5. Shovel and salt often. Keeping the sidewalk, driveways, and front steps free of snow and ice is critical to keep prospective buyers safe as they tour your property. Keeping walkways clear will also help make your home appear well-maintained, much like mowing the lawn does in the summer. If you’re not living in the home, or are not home often enough to keep on top of the snow, hire a service to salt and shovel your driveway and walkways.

Check back next week for the remaining five tips for selling your home in winter. Whether you are buying a first or second home or investing, real estate can be tricky—whether you are buying your first home, purchasing a vacation home, or upgrading from a starter. If you are interested in buying or selling property in Lake Arrowhead, California or the surrounding area, don’t get caught in a Catch 22 — owning two homes or none at all. The Prime Team is the only group of real estate agents in the Lake Arrowhead area who stand by our services by offering a number of guaranteed sales and purchasing programs. So don’t miss a prime opportunity to take advantage of today’s market. We’ll answer all of your questions today, and you’re never under any obligation. Call 1-909-337-7653 and ask for a member of the Prime Team.

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New Year’s Real Estate Resolutions

Part 1 of a 2-Part Series

Are you planning to buy or sell a home in 2015? Whether you are looking to purchase or sell a vacation home or a luxurious place you and your family can live year-round in the Lake Arrowhead area, our gift to you this year is help you keep your 2015 New Year’s Real Estate Resolutions.

If you’re a seller, the list will help you get started on home improvement projects so you can prepare your house for today’s competitive housing market. For buyers, it may be tough to find just the right place unless your agent helps you map out a strategy before you even get started. Whether you plan on securing a mortgage or if you plan to pay cash for your luxury locale in Lake Arrowhead, our 2015 Real Estate Resolutions will help you make your move.

This week, our post will examine resolutions for sellers. Check back next week, when we will conclude our two-part series by focusing on resolutions for buyers.

Real Estate New Year’s Resolutions:

For Sellers:

Check your entire house, top-to-bottom. Although you’ve seen the house time and again, you need to take time to look at it from a buyer’s perspective. But whatever the tour reveals, don’t think you have to every room at once.  Start at the front door. Then, go room-by-room, pretending you are seeing it for the first time.  Be honest and critical. And use the information to make a list of areas that need attention. Your real estate agent will be able to help you identify potential projects and even make recommendations about reputable service professionals who can tackle the jobs.

Clear the clutter. As you go through your home, organize the paper trail by creating piles in each room. Stow the paper. Then, sort items to keep, give to family or friends, donate to charity and sell at a garage sale or online. Put away everything that won’t help you sell. This includes personal mementos and family photographs. You will want buyers to picture their own family living in the space.

Spruce up the kitchen. Kitchens and bathrooms sell homes. So make sure yours are spotless. Create an organized area for loose items like keys and mail, which often end up on countertops. Store small appliances out of sight instead of on the counter. And make sure absolutely everything is immaculate.

Bolster the bathroom. Clean grout, tiles, shower door and vanity, all of which can make a huge difference in the bathroom. Clear out the medicine cabinet. Throw away melted bar of soap, hang a new, crisp white shower curtain and replace worn towels with high quality white or other neutral towels.

Empty closets.All too often, closets become graveyards for belongings that homeowners don’t know where to stash. Interested buyers will likely open your closets. So make sure they aren’t stacked to full capacity, because that communicates a lack of adequate storage space. Spacious closets are a coveted feature among buyers. So make yours appear larger by keeping them clutter-free and well organized. If you haven’t hired a professional closet organizer, now may be the time to do so.

Clear bookcases. Even if you love holding on to paperbacks after you’ve read them, move them out of sight. Replace them with a few home decor items for visual interest. When in doubt, follow the “rule of three,” a practice of home stagers, by clustering items into groups of threes to create visual appeal. If you want to appeal to high-end buyers, you may want to hire a professional home stager, whose skills will help you get the best possible offer.

Purge basements, attics, build-ups and garages. Organization. Separate items to be stored in clear plastic bins, to reveal their contents. Do so by categories, such as holiday decorations. And be sure each one is clearly labeled. Also, make sure lids fit tightly, to keep pests out.

We will conclude our two-part series next week. So check back to read our recommended resolutions for buyers. Real estate investing can be tricky—whether you are buying your first home, purchasing a vacation home, or upgrading from a starter. If you are interested in buying or selling property in Lake Arrowhead, California or the surrounding area, don’t get caught in a Catch 22 — owning two homes or none at all. The Prime Team is the only group of real estate agents in the Lake Arrowhead area who stand by our services by offering a number of guaranteed sales and purchasing programs. So don’t miss a prime opportunity to take advantage of today’s market. We’ll answer all of your questions today, and you’re never under any obligation. Call 1-909-337-7653 and ask for a member of the Prime Team.

How to Buy Luxury Gifts this Holiday Season

According to Forbes Magazine, “Luxury these days is not about price or brand name or status. It’s about heritage, exclusivity, access and experience. It’s also about items that are deliberate, thoughtful and beautifully functional. Simplicity is genius, after all.” We agree. Because the Prime Team caters to clients in the #luxury market, we wanted to provide our readers, subscribers and friends with some helpful hints for finding and purchasing the perfect holiday gift for anyone on your holiday gift list who seems to have everything.

Here are some Holiday Gift Suggestions for Hard-to-Buy-for Friends and Family

• If money is no object, you might find what you’re looking for at Harrods. Choices include Annoushka Mythology Tsar Feather Earrings for £11,500. At the current rate of exchange, that would be about $18,089.50. You might also consider the matching Annoushka Mythology Tsar Feather Palm Cuff for £12,500 or $19,662.50. If jewelry won’t do, don’t worry; Harrods has lots of other luxury gift options.
• Did you know that Neiman Marcus has a line called Indulgent Gifts? They include gifts such as the Burberry Stainless Steel Watch with Mother-of-Pearl & Diamonds at $1,695.
• For the kids—consider a 28” Steiff elephant for $570 or a child’s Burberry Puffer Jacket with Fur Hood in Cerulean Blue for $495.
• The Bergdorf Goodman website breaks one-of-a-kind gift suggestions into categories by price range. Want to spend under $100? How about a delicious chocolate pizza by Le Comptoir de Mathilde for $50. Looking for something under $200? Check out $195 Ray Ban Black Denim Textured Wayfarer Sunglasses. The under $500 category features a Rag & Bone Kent Tweed-Print High-Top Sneaker for $400.
• Looking for something no less luxurious but at a slightly lower price point? Consider Forbes’ suggestion of Autodromo slingback driving gloves for $110.
• Affordable luxury is available on Amazon.com. One idea is a Perry Ellis Zippo Lighter at about $70. Sharper Image has several out-of-the-box suggestions like an Executive Bison Briefcase at $300, an 18-bottle Dual Wine Refrigerator at $250, a 100 Cigar Glass top Humidor for $90 or, for pet lovers, a Soho Pet Bed for $150.

For more ideas, you could order Luxury World: The Past, Present and Future of Luxury Brands, which would set you back a mere $20 on Amazon.com. And if you are in the market to buy or sell your luxury home in or around the Lake Arrowhead area, consider working with the Prime Team. #RealEstate investing can be tricky—especially if you are in the market for #LuxuryProperty.

Don’t get caught in a Catch 22 — owning two homes or none at all. The Prime Team is the only group of real estate agents in the Lake Arrowhead area who stand by our services by offering a number of guaranteed sales and purchasing programs. Recently named the exclusive Lake Arrowhead member of Leverage Global Partners, we are perfectly positioned to help you take advantage of today’s luxury market. We’ll answer all of your questions today, and you’re never under any obligation. Call 1-909-337-7653 and ask for a member of the Prime Team.

5 Steps to Help you Sell your Luxury Home

Part two of a two-part series

Although it’s difficult to quantify the definition of a luxury property, most buyers know one when they see it. The scale is grand. The location, ideal. The house, much more than a home. If you are looking to buy or sell a luxury home, you are in good company, as estate sales are hitting records across the country. For example, the number of California homes selling for $2 million or more reached an all-time high in 2013.

In our last blog post, we covered 10 Tips for Buying Luxury Property. This week, we will conclude our two-part series by focusing on how to sell a luxury home. Admittedly, the last several years have been volatile in terms of the housing market. However, one niche segment has remained fairly strong—the ultraluxury segment.

According to Business Insider writer, Abby Rogers, “While talking to realtors and industry insiders…we heard some great home-selling tales and got valuable tips about how to sell an astronomically-priced home.”

5 Luxury Home Selling Tips

1. Show the Value – more important for a luxury property than for any other house, valuable assets should be showcased in a way that appeals to luxury buyers.
2. Understand Buyers – while their market may have been the slowest to change, luxury buyers today understand how important it is to invest in the perfect property, not just for vacation or even full-time use, but for potential future investment.
3. Reach Your Target Market – when you’re selling a modest home, it might suffice to list with a novice realtor whose ad campaign will focus strickly on the local market. But if you don’t want to waste time, and if you want to make sure you get the best available offer, work with an agency that offers global exposure. The Prime Team, for example, is a member of Leverage Global Partners. In addition to offering exceptional service and connectivity, Leverage differentiates itself from existing international luxury real estate associations by increasing the online and social media presence of their members, and providing marketing tools designed to help each member expand their individual business. Leverage promotes the presidents of member firms and extends media access for their members’ properties through a robust public relations outreach and digital platform.
4. Stage It – studies prove that people respond with higher offers when they see properties that are perfectly staged. Most of us just don’t have a good enough imagination to picture how to beautifully furnish a luxury home. So, unless your real estate agent advises leaving your home as it is, consider hiring a company which will do all of the work for you. The right luxury agent will be able to recommend staging companies and may even offer to work with the stager on your behalf.
5. Network – Referrals are vitally important when it comes to selling your home. So don’t list with someone who is new to the area or hasn’t worked hard to develop valuable connections. Word of mouth remains the best sales tool ever invented. So your broker’s associates multiply your pool of perspective buyers, which will result in a quick sale and a high price.

#RealEstate investing can be tricky—especially if you are in the market for #LuxuryProperty. If you are interested in buying or selling property in Lake Arrowhead, California or the surrounding area, don’t get caught in a Catch 22 — owning two homes or none at all. The Prime Team is the only group of real estate agents in the Lake Arrowhead area who stand by our services by offering a number of guaranteed sales and purchasing programs. Recently named the exclusive Lake Arrowhead member of Leverage Global Partners, we are perfectly positioned to help you take advantage of today’s luxury market. We’ll answer all of your questions today, and you’re never under any obligation. Call 1-909-337-7653 and ask for a member of the Prime Team.