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When it comes to listing your home, making a lasting impression is key to attracting potential buyers. While major renovations and upgrades can certainly enhance your home's appeal, sometimes it's the small, simple adjustments that make the biggest difference. In this blog post, we'll explore some easy-to-implement tips that can help elevate your home's potential and maximize its marketability. Boost Curb Appeal First impressions matter, and boosting your home's curb appeal is an effective way to capture the attention of potential buyers from the moment they arrive. Simple tasks such as landscaping, painting the front door, and adding fresh mulch can instantly enhance the exterior of your home. Consider investing in outdoor lighting to highlight architectural features and create a welcoming atmosphere, especially for evening viewings. Declutter and Depersonalize When preparing your home for listing, it's essential to declutter and depersonalize each space. Remove personal items such as family photos and knick-knacks to allow buyers to envision themselves living in the space. Clear countertops, closets, and shelves to create a sense of openness and highlight the home's potential storage capacity. Additionally, consider rearranging furniture to maximize flow and showcase each room's functionality. Make Necessary Repairs Addressing minor repairs and maintenance issues before listing your home can go a long way in boosting its appeal and instilling confidence in potential buyers. Fix leaky faucets, repair cracked tiles, and touch up paint where needed to ensure your home presents well. Consider hiring a professional inspector to identify any hidden issues that may need attention before listing, such as electrical or plumbing problems. Highlight Key Features Every home has unique features that set it apart from others on the market. Take the time to identify and highlight these key features to showcase your home's full potential. Whether it's a stunning view, a cozy fireplace, or an upgraded kitchen, make sure these standout features are prominently featured in your listing photos and marketing materials. Consider staging these areas to further enhance their appeal and create a memorable impression on potential buyers. By implementing these simple tips, you can elevate your home's potential and maximize its marketability when listing. From boosting curb appeal to highlighting key features, each adjustment plays a crucial role in making your home stand out in a competitive market. Remember, it's often the small, simple adjustments that make the biggest difference in capturing the hearts of potential buyers and securing a successful sale. Considering buying a home in the central Iowa area? Contact us today!

Considering buying a home and want to ask for a price reduction? Do this instead.

Kris Gardner, Broker Associate Kris is an experienced real estate agent affiliated with RE/MAX Concepts in Huxley, Iowa. With over a decade of experience in the real estate industry, She has established herself as a trusted advisor and expert in the local market. Kris prides herself on her ability to understand her clients' unique needs and objectives, and she works tirelessly to help them achieve their real estate goals. Whether clients are looking to buy or sell a home, Kris provides personalized guidance and support throughout the entire process, ensuring that they make informed decisions that align with their best interests. Known for her exceptional communication skills, attention to detail, and market knowledge, Kris has built a loyal clientele who appreciate her honesty, integrity, and dedication to their success. She is committed to staying up-to-date on the latest real estate trends and technologies, which allows her to provide her clients with the most comprehensive and innovative services available. Kris is deeply involved in the Huxley community and is passionate about giving back to the area she calls home. When she's not working with clients, she can often be found volunteering her time and resources to various local organizations and causes.  Jenn Lee, Marketing Specialist Jenn is a multi-talented marketing specialist with a passion for real estate. Her creativity and expertise in photography, social media, and marketing have helped the Kris Gardner Real Estate Team grow and succeed. With a few years of experience in the real estate industry, Jenn understands the importance of creating a strong brand presence and engaging with clients online. She manages the team's social media accounts and creates eye-catching content to showcase their listings and services. She is also a skilled photographer, taking shots of the team's properties and highlighting unique features in each shot. Jenn's dedication to her work and her ability to connect with clients has made her a valuable member of the Kris Gardner Real Estate Team. She is always seeking out new and innovative ways to market the team's listings and services, and her contributions have helped the team become a top performer in the industry. Mandey Kinzenbaw, Administrative Assistant Mandey is a highly skilled and dedicated office manager and administrative assistant for the Kris Gardner Real Estate Team. With over a decade of experience in managing teams, she has developed a keen eye for detail and a deep understanding of how to be successful. In her current role with the Kris Gardner team, Mandey is responsible for managing the day-to-day operations of the office, coordinating team activities, and providing administrative support to the agents. She is known for her exceptional organizational skills and her ability to keep things running smoothly, even in the busiest of times. Outside of work, Mandey is wife to Mickey Kinzenbaw, a captain of the Des Moines Fire Department, a mom of 3 kids, the Ballard High School girls head JV basketball coach, substitute teacher, and co-founder of AgriHope, a non profit that serves four different countries in Africa. She loves traveling, coffee, cheering her kids on in all their sports and endeavors, reading, home organization and being with friends and family. Mandey Kinzenbaw, Administrative Assistant Mandey is a highly skilled and dedicated office manager and administrative assistant for the Kris Gardner Real Estate Team. With over a decade of experience in managing teams, she has developed a keen eye for detail and a deep understanding of how to be successful. In her current role with the Kris Gardner team, Mandey is responsible for managing the day-to-day operations of the office, coordinating team activities, and providing administrative support to the agents. She is known for her exceptional organizational skills and her ability to keep things running smoothly, even in the busiest of times. Considering buying a home in the central Iowa area? Contact us today!

LEARN MORE!

Join us on Monday, September 18 for this FREE and informative event! Jason Mason, a Des Moines firefighter and private CPR instructor will share about CPR and the importance of knowing what to do in emergency health situations. Additionally, Jordan Miller, registered dietician and local gym owner will provide healthy snacks while sharing the importance of healthy eating and what she offers with her business. Come listen and learn and enjoy sampling: - Everything Bagel Cucumber Bites - Caprese Salad Skewers with Balsamic Glaze - Caramel Apple Grapes - Mini Fruit Pizzas While this is a FREE event, we do request that you RSVP . Please email huxleyremax@realestateconcepts.net by Friday, September 15. We look forward to seeing you next Monday, September 18 at Nord Kalsem Community Center at 204 W 5th St, Huxley.

While the current mortgage rates may have you rethinking putting your home on the market, the data tells a different story. According to a recent article by Keeping Current Matters and statistics from Showing Time, the real estate industry's leading showing management and market stats technology provider, people are buying homes and in even greater numbers than previous years. Looking at the graph above, June 2023 shows a higher number of buyer traffic than 2017-2019. If you’re wondering how this could be the case, we believe it's because buyers are getting used to higher mortgage rates and accepting them as the new reality. As Danielle Hale, Chief Economist, Realtor.com, explains: “Interest rate hikes continue to further cut into buyers’ purchasing power, although they appear to have adapted to the higher mortgage rate environment . . .” Overall, it’s quite simple. Buyers will always need to buy, and those who can afford to move at today’s rates are going to do so, and real estate is never a bad investment. The Key Takeaway for You Although things have slowed down compared to the last couple of years, the market is not at a standstill or nearing any kind of crash. Instead, buyer traffic is strong - people will always need to move. Bottom Line Don’t wait to put your house on the market because you're worried you won't find a buyer. Quite the opposite. Buyers are more active than usual. Connect with our team so we can prepare your house to sell and give it the best first impression possible for those ready and able to buy. Considering buying a home in the central Iowa area? Contact us today!

You may be wondering if now is a good time to sell. And unfortunately, today’s headlines are painting an unnecessarily negative picture. If we take a year-over-year view, home prices did drop some, but that’s because we’re comparing to a ‘unicorn’ year when prices peaked well beyond the norm. To avoid an unfair comparison to that previous peak, we need to look at monthly data. And that tells a very different and much more positive story. While local home price trends still vary by market, here’s what the national data tells us according to Keeping Current Matters . As a local expert in Huxley, Slater, and surrounding areas, call me today so we can talk about what home prices are actually doing in our communities. ---- Considering buying a home in the central Iowa area? Contact us today!

3 Crucial Insights I Wish I Knew Early in My Career

There are also things our team can do to make things happen. Here are just three examples of ways we thought outside the box to make the deal: 1 - We recently had a deal where the buyer asked my sellers for closing costs to help them pay for their down payment. We negotiated some other terms that protected our sellers so they weren't paying out more money after the home inspection. Both parties came to terms and the buyers are getting a great house with help of that down payment. 2 - If the comps allow, we had a deal within the last couple of weeks where we bumped the purchase price up higher so the buyers could get closing costs and the seller still netted the same. 3 - Buyers have used a portion of closing costs to help buy the rate down. Buying your rate down will lower your overall out of pocket costs on the life of your mortgage WAY more than the savings of a lower sale price on the property! (Please confirm with your lender on this). Don’t let high interest rates keep you from making a move! Call me today so we can discuss your personal needs and how our team can help.