Buyers
Click to Learn More
Sellers
Click to Learn More
About
Click to Learn More
Contact
Click to Learn More
A Seller’s Guide to Preparing for an Open House
Kischma Channette
Follow this room-by-room checklist to leave Buyers and Open House guests wanting a second look.
Entire home
- Declutter your home. You might have to rent a storage unit or ask a friend or family member if you can store items in their basement or garage.
- Depersonalize your home. Displaying items like photos, awards, and framed certificates can make it difficult for homebuyers to envision themselves living in your home.
- Switch out the art. If you have personal, controversial, or abstract art, consider changing it for pieces that appeal to a broader audience.
- Eliminate signs of pets. Put away food and water bowls, toys, and beds.
- Remove any unpleasant odors from your home. Use these tips to give your home a fresh and clean scent.
- Replace any burned-out lightbulbs inside and outside of your home.
- In warmer weather, open the windows right before the open house to let in fresh air.
Kitchen and dining room
- Thoroughly clean the kitchen.
- Put away all dishes from the sink and dishwasher.
- Clear items such as toasters, blenders, dish racks, and utensils from countertops; you can replace these items with bowls of fruit or vases filled with flowers.
- Clean and reorganize your drawers, cabinets, and pantry.
- Remove magnets, coupons, calendars, and papers from the refrigerator.
- Update older cabinets with a fresh coat of paint and hardware.
- Clean trashcans. Move them somewhere else if possible.
- Clear the dining room table, leaving only the centerpiece.
- Remove extra chairs from the table.
Bathrooms
- Clean toilets, sinks, and bathtubs.
- Put out fresh soap and a new roll of toilet paper.
- Recaulk the tub and sink, if needed.
- Hang fresh towels.
- Add a new shower curtain and rug, if necessary.
- Pack up and remove any medications or products that you don’t use regularly.
- Make sure all plumbing is working and isn’t clogged.
- Remove stains from tile and grout.
Living room
- Rearrange the furniture to make the room look larger and spacious.
- Make sure there is enough room to walk around.
- Remove any unnecessary furniture. Furniture should match; if any pieces don’t, remove them from the space.
- Add small plants to give the room some liveliness.
- Remove items from the coffee table, and move small items like remotes into a decorative box.
- Add accent pillows or a colorful throw blankets to couches or chairs.
- Open curtains and blinds to boost natural light and give the room an airy and spacious feel.
- Remove rugs to showcase any hardwood floors.
- Clean out the fireplace.
Bedrooms
- Consider painting bedrooms a more neutral tone.
- Remove clothing from bedroom closets to make them feel larger.
- Keep jewelry and expensive items in a safe place.
- Use gender-neutral colors in all bedrooms.
- Make beds look inviting by adding a headboard, accent pillows, and a throw blanket in neutral colors like gray or brown.
- Move daily necessities into bins, drawers, or closets.
- If your bedroom is small, make sure the bed is full-size or smaller to prevent the room from feeling cramped. You can also use scaled furniture to fit the space better than large furniture.
- Clean thoroughly.
Exterior
- Consider upgrading your front door with a fresh coat of paint.
- Stage your porch, patio, or deck with furniture and plants.
- Place a simple decorative welcome mat by the front door.
- Mow the lawn.
- Trim back trees, shrubs, and plants.
- Clean up your landscaping, and remove any leaves or branches from your yard.
- Power wash the siding, gutters, driveway, sidewalk, front porch, and windows.
- Replace old light fixtures.
- Fix any torn window screens.
- Clean up after your pet.
- Upgrade your mailbox to a more modern or sophisticated design.
- Store away items like toys and sporting equipment.
- Upgrade your house numbers.
from American Lifestyle Magazine (Get your free monthly digital magazine.)
July marked the third consecutive month where total property sales declined, with sales down 2.1 percent year-over-year. Total dollar volume rose 4.4 percent to $3.8 billion. Active listings, or the total number of available properties, increased with 30.5 percent more listings for sale compared to July 2023. Single-family home sales rose 1.8 percent year-over-year; Days on Market (DOM) for single-family homes went from 42 to 44 days; Total property sales were down 2.1 percent with 8,969 units sold; Total dollar volume increased 4.4 percent to $3.8 billion; The single-family median price increased 2.9 percent to $350,000; The single-family average price rose 4.7 percent to a record high of $445,440; Single-family home months of inventory registered a 4.3-months supply, up from 3.1 months last July; Townhome/condominium sales continued to decline, falling 19.5 percent, with the median price up 0.7 percent to $221,500 and the average price declined 0.8 percent to $261,123. “Despite the temporary setbacks caused by Hurricane Beryl, we expect to see transactions catch back up next month,” said HAR Chair Thomas Mouton with Century 21 Exclusive Properties. “Recent declines in mortgage rates have also given consumers a bit of renewed optimism, with some previously hesitant buyers now showing increased interest in buying a home.” Adapted from Houston Association of Realtors (HAR) Categories: Market Overview, Home Sales
1. “Do I have to pay the Buyer’s agent?”
First-time homebuyers often have a slew of questions about the home buying process, obviously, because they may have little to no prior experience purchasing real estate. However, for some Buyers who are moving-up or downsizing, there may still be a few questions that need to be addressed since their last purchase. Here are a few of the most commonly asked questions that I’ve received from Buyer- clients:
The Houston housing market experienced a cooldown with home sales below 2023 levels for the second month in a row. All housing segments saw a slowdown in sales in June. Houston Real Estate Highlights in June Single-family home sales declined 11.6 percent year-over-year; Days on Market (DOM) for single-family homes went from 45 to 46 days; Total property sales were down 13.6 percent with 9,133 units sold; Total dollar volume declined 12.2 percent to $3.8 billion; The single-family median price was statistically flat at $345,500; The single-family average price was statistically flat at $432,090; Single-family home months of inventory registered a 4.3-months supply, up from 3.0 months last June; Townhome/condominium sales continued to decline, falling 19.9 percent, with the median price up 12.1 percent to $241,000 and the average price up 7.8 percent to $271,356. “While there are more options available for homebuyers, affordability concerns continue to be a major hurdle,” said HAR Chair Thomas Mouton with Century 21 Exclusive Properties. “Many consumers are taking a wait-and-see approach due to elevated mortgage rates and higher prices, and some are ultimately choosing to rent.” Adapted from Houston Association of Realtors (HAR) Categories: Market Overview, Home Sales
Preparing your home to sell can be a daunting task that requires a multitude of smaller projects along the way. From decluttering to cleaning to staging, here are three stories from personal experience that will help to show you what not to do when selling your home. True Story #1. Setting out for a full day of showings, my clients were excited to see one particular house because it checked all of the boxes for their wants and needs. It was the last showing on our list for the day, and it was the one they most looked forward to. They had high hopes that it would be “the one”. Upon arrival, the wife raved about the study, she loved the size of the kitchen, and she was impressed by the ceiling height of the living room. She was also very observant about how many pets possibly lived in the home based on the numerous feeding bowls placed in several areas downstairs. As I led the way upstairs, she stated that the Owners must have a cat because she felt the onset of an allergic reaction. We casually laughed it off, but as she reached the second floor, her laughter turned into a scream. Unbeknownst to me, a cat had darted out of one of the bedrooms and scampered past her into another room. And that was it. While I was processing what happened, my client scooped up her daughter and was already downstairs and heading out the door. She was not only allergic to cats, but both she and her daughter were afraid of them, too. We never finished the tour, and instead of that house being “the one”, it became “the one with the scary cat”. Sellers, it’s fairly common to remain living in your home while it’s on the market, but that doesn’t mean that Buyers want to see how you live. The house should be presented in a way in which potential Buyers can see themselves living there.
The Houston real estate market navigated a unique set of challenges in May. While severe weather and resulting power outages may have caused a delay in some closings, the market continued to see strong activity with expanding inventory and persistent consumer demand. This unwavering demand fueled record-breaking home prices in the Greater Houston area. According to the Houston Association of Realtors’ (HAR) May 2024 Market Update: single-family home sales across the Greater Houston area declined 1.5% 8,538 units sold on the Houston MLS in May, 2024 compared to 8,664 units in May of last year and 7,926 units during the previous month of April, 2024 months supply of homes climbed from 2.7 to 4.0 home sales in the luxury segment ($1 million+), which represents just 4.8 percent of all homes on the market, increased 9.6% the average price of a single-family home reached an all-time high of $443,970 in May, topping the previous record in May 2022 when it reached $438,350. the average home price increased 3.6 year-over-year Days on Market for single-family homes decreased from 49 to 45 days “The Houston market has demonstrated its adaptability yet again,” said HAR Chair Thomas Mouton with Century 21 Exclusive Properties. “While the weather disruptions may have impacted some sales, there continued to be strong activity with a rise in available listings and persistent buyer interest. We are beginning to see a more balanced market pace, benefiting both buyers with more options and sellers with sustained demand.” Adapted from Houston Association of Realtors (HAR) Categories: Market Overview, Home Sales
When working with clients at the start of their home buying process, especially those with little to no experience in buying real estate, the first recommendation that I make is to get a pre-approval. Getting a pre-approval allows the lender to review a Buyer’s income, assets, debts, and credit in order to determine an affordable loan amount and mortgage payment. Having this information will not only provide a Buyer with knowledge about the financial components of a home loan, but it will also position them with a realistic understanding of their affordability and a competitive advantage when it comes time to make an offer on a home. How to get mortgage pre-approval:
There are benefits to getting either a pre-qualification or a pre-approval for a mortgage loan although one holds more weight than the other when it comes time to seriously begin the home-purchase process.
Warmer weather and a shift in market dynamics brought a welcome change to the Houston housing market in April. While the spring homebuying season initially saw a sluggish start, home sales rebounded and inventory expanded to pre-pandemic levels, offering opportunities for buyers and sellers. According to the Houston Association of Realtors’ (HAR) April 2024 Market Update: single-family home sales across the Greater Houston area rose 9.2 percent 7,926 units sold on the Houston MLS in April, 2924 compared to 7,256 units in April 2023 months supply of homes climbed from 2.6 to 3.7 (the highest since a 3.8 months supply in October 2019) all housing segments saw an increase in sales in April home sales in the luxury segment ($1 million+), which represents just 4.8 percent of all homes on the market, surged 33.8 percent the average price of a single-family home rose 4.6 percent to $437,198 (the second highest price behind May, 2022 when it reached a record $438,350) the median price increased 3.0 percent to $340,000 Days on Market for single-family homes decreased from 56 to 49 days “The spring homebuying season seems to be blossoming later than usual this year,” said HAR Chair Thomas Mouton with Century 21 Exclusive Properties. “While elevated interest rates continue to be a factor, the rebound in April home sales shows buyers are adapting to the new market realities, and sellers are finding opportunities as inventory levels rise.” Adapted from Houston Association of Realtors (HAR)
Kischma Channette, Real Estate Agent
“Sold & Sealed with a Kisch”
Phone:
(832) 578-3326
Location:
16903 W Lake Houston Pkwy Humble, TX 77346
Email:
kischmachannette@gmail.com