Selling Real Estate in Lake Geneva

Things to consider before listing your home

~ bwebster

Selling a home in today’s market requires more than just listing it…you need to meet buyers where they are. With home prices at record highs and mortgage rates around 6.5%, many buyers simply don’t have the funds left for renovations or repairs after closing. That’s why preparing your home before listing is crucial to achieving the best possible price, a quick sale, and a smooth transaction.

One of the biggest benefits of preparing your home is financial. Homes that are clean, updated, and in great condition often sell at a higher price. Buyers are willing to pay a premium for a home that’s move-in ready, especially since they likely won’t have the budget for post-purchase improvements. Addressing cosmetic issues or minor repairs before listing helps you avoid buyers nitpicking during negotiations, allowing you to keep more money in your pocket.

Time is another major factor. Homes that are well-prepared tend to sell faster. When your home looks its best, it attracts more attention from serious buyers, making it less likely to sit on the market. A home that lingers too long may eventually require price reductions, cutting into your profit. Preparing your home upfront ensures you’re setting yourself up for success from day one.

Buyers also form opinions quickly, often within minutes of stepping inside a home. A staged, clean, and well-maintained property makes a strong first impression, creating an emotional connection that motivates offers. Plus, addressing potential issues before the inspection can prevent last-minute surprises that might delay or derail the sale.

In today’s competitive market, a well-prepared home also appeals to a broader pool of buyers. Neutral decor and a fresh, polished look allow buyers to envision themselves in the space, making it easier for them to say yes. This broader appeal not only helps your home sell faster but also reduces the likelihood of complicated contingencies.

Preparing your home may take some extra time and effort, but the payoff is worth it. To maximize your home’s value and ensure a smooth sale, schedule a pre-listing prep consultation with your real estate agent. They can guide you on which updates will deliver the highest return and help position your home to attract today’s buyers. A little preparation now can make all the difference when it’s time to sell.

Could It Be Time To Put Your House Back on the Market?

~ bwebster

If you took your house off the market in late 2024, you’re not the only one. Newsweek reports that data from CoreLogic and the Wall Street Journal (WSJ) says nearly 73,000 homes were pulled from the market in December alone – that’s more than any other December going all the way back to 2017 (see graph below):

a graph of blue bars with numbersWhether it was because offers weren’t coming in, the timing around the holidays felt overwhelming, or they wanted to see if the market would improve in the new year – a lot of other homeowners decided to press pause, too.

But now, with spring fast approaching, it’s time to reassess. The market is already picking up, and waiting any longer to jump back in may only mean you’d face more competition from other sellers down the road.

Why Now Could Be the Right Time 

Selma Hepp, Chief Economist at CoreLogic, explains that some of those sellers may have pulled their listings late last year with the goal of trying again this spring:

“Another reason for a step back could be that sellers wanted to wait and see how spring home buying season goes, and if mortgage rates fall, which would bring more home buyers and competition back in the market.”

That’s because spring is when buyer demand is typically at its highest point for the year. More people start their home search once the weather warms up. They’re eager to close on a home so they can move in during the summer. So, it’s a great window for sellers. It means more buyers.

And while mortgage rates haven’t fallen dramatically, they have come down some in recent weeks. Early signs already show buyers are becoming more active as a result. Since January, demand has picked up – and that should continue as spring draws even closer.

What To Do Differently This Time

Start by checking the status of your listing agreement. Because even if you pulled your listing, you may still be under contract. And until your listing expires, your agent or brokerage is your best resource on what else you could try to get it sold. Realtor.com offers this advice:

“If you aren’t sure of the status of your listing, whether active, expired, or withdrawn, take a look at your listing agreement and talk to your real estate agent.”

If your contract is still active, now’s the perfect time to reconnect with your agent to explore strategies to get your home sold this time around. If your contract has expired and you’re considering other options, reach out to a trusted real estate professional who can help you figure out where to go from here.

Either way, take some time to reflect on your last experience. What held you back from getting it sold before? And what can you do to improve your chances this time around?

Be sure to include your agent in this thought process. They’ll give you an objective point of view and some advice based on what may have gone wrong last time, like:

  • Your Pricing Strategy: Did buyers overlook your house because it was priced too high? Your real estate agent can help you analyze the latest sales in your area to make sure you’re hitting the right number. Believe it or not, you could actually be leaving money on the table by not pricing competitively. When it’s priced appropriately for the market, your opportunities for multiple offers and buyer competition increase.
  • Your Marketing Approach: Was your home staged to look its best? Did you use a skilled photographer for your listing photos? Small tweaks can make a big difference in how buyers see your house. Something as simple as taking new photos now that it’s spring can help your house show better than it did in the winter listing.
  • Offering Concessions: Were you willing to offer incentives to buyers? As the supply of homes for sale grows, more sellers are entertaining the idea of concessions or incentives to get the deal done. If you weren’t open to those conversations, that may have been a factor, too.
  • Showings and Flexibility: Did you have limits on when buyers could see the home? If your house is accessible and available, you’ll likely get more offers.

Bottom Line

If your house didn’t sell last year, spring may be your second chance. With buyer activity rising, it’s the perfect time to talk to an agent about coming back into the market with a fresh strategy.

What do you want to do differently this time around? Talk to your agent to go over your options and make a plan.

Insightful Questions Can Guide Your Decision

~ bwebster

When interviewing real estate agents to sell your home, asking the right questions is key to finding an agent who will best meet your needs. The process of selling a home can be complex, and the right agent will not only have the experience and market knowledge but also the right approach to guide you through every step.

By asking insightful questions, you can gauge an agent’s expertise, communication style, and understanding of your goals, ultimately helping you choose someone who will work tirelessly to achieve the best possible outcome for you.

Here are 25 common questions homeowners often ask when interviewing a real estate agent to sell their home:

  1. What is your experience in real estate, and how long have you been working in this area?
  2. How many homes have you sold in the past year?
  3. What is your average sale-to-list price ratio?
  4. How familiar are you with my neighborhood?
  5. How do you determine the listing price for a home?
  6. What are the current market trends, and how will they impact my home’s sale?
  7. Can you provide references from past clients?
  8. What is your marketing strategy to sell my home?
  9. Do you use professional photography, staging, or virtual tours?
  10. Will you host open houses? If so, how many and when?
  11. How will you keep me updated throughout the selling process?
  12. What online platforms and social media channels will you use to promote my home?
  13. What do you think are the unique selling points of my home?
  14. How do you handle multiple offers?
  15. What is your strategy for negotiating the best price for my home?
  16. What is your commission rate, and what services does that include?
  17. Are there any additional fees I should be aware of?
  18. What steps do I need to take to prepare my home for sale?
  19. How long do you expect it will take to sell my home?
  20. What challenges do you anticipate in selling my home?
  21. Can you provide a comparative market analysis (CMA) for my home?
  22. How do you handle a situation where my home isn’t getting offers?
  23. What happens if I’m not satisfied with your service? Can I cancel the contract?
  24. Do you work alone, or do you have a team?
  25. What sets you apart from other agents? Why should I choose you?

Answers to these questions will help homeowners understand an agent’s expertise, marketing approach, negotiation skills, and overall fit with their needs.  For more information, download our Sellers Guide.

Avoiding tax when you sell your home

~ bwebster

In the past, many homeowners didn’t give much thought to keeping detailed records of home improvements. With capital gains exclusion thresholds of $250,000 for single filers and $500,000 for married couples, most homeowners didn’t come close to exceeding these limits when selling their homes.

As a result, they often overlooked the importance of tracking and documenting their expenditures on property improvements. However, the landscape has shifted significantly in the last decade.

The rapid appreciation of home values has pushed many homeowners into a position where they might exceed the capital gains exclusion threshold and owe taxes on their profit. By understanding what qualifies as a capital improvement and maintaining accurate records, homeowners can increase their adjusted basis, thereby reducing their taxable gain when selling their property.

What Counts as Capital Improvements?

Capital improvements are expenditures that add value to your home, prolong its useful life, or adapt it to new uses. These are not limited to big-ticket items like kitchen remodels or room additions, installing energy-efficient windows, replacing a roof, or upgrading HVAC systems.

Even landscaping improvements, building a deck, or adding a fence can qualify, as well as replacing a faucet, adding a video doorbell or other smart devices in the home. The key is that these improvements must be permanent and add to the property’s value.

Why Keeping Records Matters

Every dollar spent on a capital improvement adds to the cost basis of your home. The cost basis is used to calculate your capital gain, which is the difference between your home’s net sale price and its adjusted basis (original purchase price plus improvements). By increasing your cost basis, you can reduce the taxable portion of your profit, potentially saving thousands of dollars in capital gains taxes.

To maximize these benefits, it’s crucial to keep receipts, invoices, and other documentation for all qualifying expenditures. Create a folder�physical or digital�to organize these records and ensure they’re readily available when it comes time to sell your home.

Why This Matters Now

In the last decade, home prices have appreciated at an unprecedented pace. Inventories are smaller and demand is high causing the prices to increase. This rapid growth means more homeowners may find themselves exceeding the capital gains exclusion thresholds.

By properly documenting capital improvements, homeowners can mitigate their tax burden and retain more of their hard-earned equity. As home prices continue to rise, understanding and utilizing these strategies has never been more important.

For more information, consult your tax professional and download our Homeowners Tax Guide or IRS Publication 523.

A Pre-Listing Inspection May Be Worth It in Today’s Market

~ bwebster

Selling a house comes with a lot of moving pieces, and the last thing you want is a deal falling apart over unexpected repairs uncovered during the buyer’s inspection. That’s why it pays to anticipate potential issues before buyers ever step through the door. And one way to do that is with a pre-listing inspection.

What Is a Pre-Listing Inspection? 

A pre-listing inspection is essentially a professional home inspection you schedule before putting your house on the market. Just like the inspections your buyer will do after making an offer, this process identifies any issues with the condition of your house that could have an impact on the sale – like structural problems, faulty or outdated HVAC systems, or other essential repairs.

While it’s a great option if you’re someone who really doesn’t like surprises, Bankrate explains this may not make sense for all sellers:

“While it can be beneficial for a seller to do, a pre-listing inspection isn’t always necessary. For example, if your home is relatively new and you’ve been the only owner, you’re most likely already aware of any big issues that could impact a sale. But for an older home, a pre-listing inspection can be very insightful and help you get ahead of any potential problems.”

The key is deciding whether the benefits outweigh the costs for your situation. Sometimes a few hundred dollars now can get you information that’ll save you a lot of time and hassle later on.

Why It May Be Worth Considering in Today’s Market

Right now, buyers are more cautious about how much money they’re spending. And they want to be sure the home they’re buying is worth the expense. In a market like this, a pre-listing inspection can be your secret weapon to make sure your house shows well. Here are just a few ways it can help:

  • Gives You Time To Make Repairs: When you know about issues ahead of time, it gives you the chance to fix them on your schedule, rather than rushing to make repairs when you’re under contract.
  • Avoid Surprises During Negotiations: When buyers discover issues during their own inspection, it can lead to last-minute negotiations, price reductions, or even a deal falling through. A pre-listing inspection gives you a chance to spot and address any problems ahead of time, so they don’t turn into last-minute headaches or negotiation roadblocks.
  • Sell Your House Faster: According to Rocket Mortgage, if your house is listed in the best shape possible, there won’t be as many reasons for buyers to ask for concessions. That means you should be able to cut down on negotiation timelines and ultimately sell faster.

How Your Agent Will Help

But before you think about reaching out to any inspectors to get something scheduled, be sure to talk to an agent. Your agent will be able to give you advice on whether a pre-inspection is worthwhile for your house and the local market. Because it may not be as important if sellers still have the majority of the negotiation power where you live.

If your agent does recommend moving forward and getting one done, here’s how they’ll support you throughout the process.

  • Offer Advice on How To Prioritize Repairs: If the inspection uncovers problems, your agent will sit down with you and offer perspective on what’s going to be a sticking point for buyers so you know what to prioritize.
  • Knowledge of How To Handle Any Disclosure Requirements: After talking to your agent, you may decide not all of the repairs are worth it right now. Just be ready to disclose what you’re not tackling. Some states require disclosures as a part of a listing – lean on your agent for more information.

Bottom Line

While they’re definitely not required, pre-listing inspections can be especially helpful in today’s market. By understanding your home’s condition ahead of time, you can take control of the process and make informed decisions about what to fix before you list and what to disclose.

If you choose to skip this step, you may be just as surprised as your buyer by what pops up in their inspection. And that could leave you scrambling. Would you rather fix issues now or risk trying to save the deal later?

Let’s connect so you can see if this is a step that makes sense in our market.

A Smart Strategy: Using Seller Concessions To Get Your House Sold

~ bwebster

For the past few years, it’s been mostly a seller’s market. But dynamics are shifting as the number of homes for sale grows. And that means that the market is balancing out a bit. As a result, some sellers are finding they need to be more flexible to close a deal. One strategy that can help? Offering concessions.

As the National Association of Realtors (NAR) explains:

“As home inventory begins to grow and buyers regain some advantage in the market, sellers may consider offering more in negotiations to make the deal more attractive and get to the closing table.”

What Are Seller Concessions? 

Concessions are homebuying costs that a seller agrees to cover as a way to get their house sold. And based on data from the National Association of Realtors (NAR), nearly 1 out of every 4 sellers (24%) offered a concession in 2024. Here are a few of the most common types of concessions:

  • Covering Closing Costs: The seller pays for part (or all) of the buyer’s closing costs, like appraisal fees, title insurance, or loan fees.
  • Price Adjustments: Instead of making repairs, a seller might lower the purchase price to make up for updates the buyer will need to tackle.
  • Adding a Home Warranty: A seller may throw in a home warranty, giving the buyer peace of mind key repairs will be covered in the first year.

And don’t worry. This doesn’t mean you have to come up with more cash to make it happen. These are things that get subtracted from your profits at closing – not more funds you have to bring to the table.  And not all concessions are about money.

There are other extras you could throw in. Like, if your buyer is coming from an apartment and has never had a yard before, they may ask if you’d be willing to leave your lawn mower behind. That’s another lever you could pull to keep them happy.

How Concessions Help Sellers 

Offering concessions can be a smart strategy for sellers to get a deal done. As Dennis Shirshikov, Professor of Finance and Economics, City University of New York/Queens College told The Mortgage Reports:

“Pricing homes realistically and being willing to offer concessions, such as covering a portion of closing costs or including upgrades, will be key to closing deals . . . in a less frenzied market.”

For example, let’s say you accepted an offer from a buyer, but after their inspection, you found out there are some repairs they want you to tackle before you hand over the keys.

Rather than starting at square one and searching for a new buyer, you could offer a concession. One option is you can take on the repairs and cover the costs yourself. But, if you really don’t want the hassle of dealing with contractors, you could reduce your price by however much repairs would cost. Alternatively, you could offer to pay a portion of your buyer’s closing expenses with the idea they’d use the money they saved at closing toward doing the repairs themselves.

Either way, a concession can be a great way to meet in the middle. However, it’s important to have an agent on your side to help with these negotiations.

A good real estate agent can help you decide when and how to offer concessions, so you don’t give away too much while still ensuring your house gets sold. It’s all about finding the right balance.

Bottom Line

With the market becoming more balanced, seller concessions are coming back into play in some areas. The key is having an agent to help guide you through the process, so things work out in your favor. That’s where I come in.

What’s a concession you’d consider to move things along?

What’s the Secret To Selling? Use an Agent To Get Your House Noticed

~ bwebster

In a recent survey, the National Association of Realtors (NAR) asked sellers what they want most from a real estate agent. The number one answer was to help market their house.

It makes sense. The way your agent markets your house can be the difference between whether or not it stands out and gets attention from buyers. That’s why it’s so important to work with an expert local agent that knows what they’re doing.

According to that same report from NAR, here are some of the most common methods real estate agents use to market homes, and how you benefit when your agent uses them effectively (see graph below):

  • Listing on the MLS – Real estate agents have access to the Multiple Listing Service (MLS) database. And that’s great for you because having your house on the MLS helps it get more visibility from other agents and buyers. And the more people who see it, the more likely it is to sell.
  • Using a Yard Sign – A yard sign may seem simple, but it’s one of the best ways to catch the attention of people driving or walking by. And when it does, they’ll help spread the word to friends and family who are looking to buy that there’s a house for sale in the area. It also puts your agent’s contact information on display, making it easy for interested buyers to get in touch.
  • Having an Open House – An open house is a great way to create a sense of competition and urgency among buyers – and that can lead to stronger offers. And since you’ll only need to leave once for many buyers to visit, it makes the process easier for you, too. Plus, an open house helps your agent get real-time feedback about what buyers love and what they’re not as sold on.
  • Showcasing on Your Agent’s Website – Having your house on your agent’s website presents it in a professional way to buyers. And odds are, people visiting your agent’s website are serious and ready to make a move, so this is a smart way to get in front of motivated buyers.
  • Social Networking – Posting your house on social helps get your house in front of buyers who may not have seen it with traditional marketing. It also makes it easy for people to share your listing with friends and loved ones.
  • Providing Virtual Tours – For buyers who are relocating from out of town, virtual tours allow them to check out your house anytime from wherever they are. This helps reach more potential buyers who may not be able to come to see your house in person.
  • Using Video – Video is an excellent way for your agent to show off some of the top features of your house like your kitchen, large closets, outdoor entertainment areas, and other key details that could attract buyers.
  • Sending Emails – Sending out information about your house to your agent’s expansive database is another way they’ll get it in front of even more people. Great agents may even send emails teasing that your house is coming to the market as a way to boost interest and excitement before it officially has an open house.

Here’s what it comes down to. Most good agents will write a description of your house for the listing and pair it with high-quality photos. But a great agent will do so much more than that.

They’ll not only lean on their expertise, they’ll put in the time and effort to make sure your house makes an impression on buyers, and ultimately, sells.

Bottom Line

As a seller, working with a creative local real estate agent is a smart way to ensure your house grabs the attention of the right buyers. If you’re ready to sell and want to talk about strategies we can use to get your house sold, let’s chat.