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Source: Crye-Leike Living

1. Negotiate with builders — Don’t be afraid to ask builders for concessions such as steep price discounts, closing-cost waivers, luxury upgrades, free landscaping, free trips and free club memberships. Many builder-incentive packages are worth $10,000 and up!
2. Negotiate with home sellers —Unlike the go-go market of recent years, offers of five percent to 10 percent or more under asking price will not be appropriate. As a buyer, you have more bargaining power this year.
3. Educated timing — Read up on local, not national, market trends, religiously read for-sale ads, and get a sense of what’s moving and where. Then be prepared to jump on bargains, especially as the last of the speculators are being flushed out of the market and for-sale inventories are at their zenith.
4. Avoid hot spots — Stay away from buying homes in neighborhoods that appreciated significantly above average home prices in recent years, especially if you’re moving for the short term. Once prices in these hot spots are corrected, these often see slower upward movement or remain flat after the overall market heads north again.
5. Modesty if the best policy — Consider more modest homes in well-maintained, established neighborhoods. By contrast, pricing and re-pricing on expensive homes, new homes and new condos make those products riskier during down cycles.
6. Flexibility — For maximum flexibility in pouncing on the right deal, get pre-approved for your home loan. You will know exactly what you can afford and won’t waste time looking at properties you can’t. And when you find the home that is right for you, you can make a bid immediately.
7. Follow fundamentals —  Just because a lender will advance you money to live or build beyond your means doesn’t mean you’re standing on sound fiscal footing. Buy what you can afford.

Source: Fox News 

You’ve found your dream condo, and you’re ready to relax among the mango trees and swaying date palms. Hold everything. To keep from getting stuck with a lemon, you’ve got to do some homework. Here are the seven most important questions you need to ask before buying a condo.

1. “What’s the beef?”
Take a look at the minutes of the condo association board meetings to see what the owners have been griping about. If everyone was complaining about the faulty plumbing or the gardener’s absence, you know that the complex is having management difficulties. Even if there aren’t any complaints, reading the minutes will reveal the sorts of projects that are under way at the complex — projects the seller may have neglected to mention.

2. “Who’s been naughty and who’s been nice?”
Find out the delinquency rates of present owners. If people aren’t paying their association dues on time, that is either a sign of discontent or an indication that the association might be underfunded.

3. “How much is in the repair fund?”
Ask if the community has done a reserve-fund review in the past five years. Lester Giese, the author of The 99 Best Residential & Recreational Communities in America, recommends the following formula: If the complex is one to 10 years old, the reserve fund should have 10% of the cost of replaceable items (roofs, roads, tennis courts, etc.). Between 10 and 20 years old, the repair fund should be at 25% to 30%. At 20 years, that amount should be 50% or above. Residents who brag that they don’t pay much in maintenance may be in a complex that either is not being kept up well or is living beyond its means.

4. “Can you cover me?”
If you look at nothing else, get a copy of the certificate of insurance, which is a summary of the association’s policy. First see if the replacement costs covered by the policy are an accurate estimate of the cost of rebuilding. Then make sure that the policy has a building-ordinance clause, which means that the insurance will cover the cost of bringing the building up to code if there is any rebuilding to be done. On older buildings, there may have been many code upgrades since the time of construction. Finally, make sure that you understand exactly what the association policy covers and what you are responsible for. The smart condo owner will insure his or her personal belongings, along with any other items within the unit that are not covered by the association’s policy. If you have trouble understanding the insurance lingo, take the insurance certificate to an agent whom you trust and who understands the state laws.

5. “Does the association present any legal problems?”
Buying a single-family home without a lawyer is no big deal for many people. But with a condo, there’s so much more involved. Contact a local real estate lawyer and have him or her go over the bylaws of the association. Do they make sense? Are they consistent with the state laws? Giese, the author, once found that the association bylaws of a large garden-style condo complex had been lifted from the books of a high-rise condo, leaving confused tenants with rules about shared hallway space and the correct use of garbage chutes. Benny Kass, a Washington real estate attorney, recommends that you also have your lawyer screen the association at the local courthouse, to see if any owners have filed suit against it.

6. “Is the complex renter-friendly?”
If the renter population is over 10%, there should be clear rental policies, either listed in the bylaws or tacked on as an amendment. Does the management company find renters for you? If so, do they get enough good renters? Ask other tenants about their experience. In addition, ask to see the association’s rental lease, and have a real estate lawyer look it over. Keep one thing in mind, though: An association can change its bylaws to prohibit or restrict renting at any time. The more owners who rent, the less chance that will happen.

7. “Am I my community’s keeper?”
Watch out for a condo whose owners manage the place themselves. Although many are operated efficiently, self-management can lead to more hassles for owners — especially those who live thousands of miles away. If the complex is professionally managed, check out the management company as thoroughly as you check out the association. Ask other owners. Ask people in nearby buildings. And be sure to interview the day-to-day manager directly. If you hook up with a bad manager, you can be sure of this: Your dream condo will keep you up at night.

Selling your home is an exciting time, but it can also be quite challenging. The following tips can help:

1. Do not over price your home. Based on an emotional assessment, it is easy to think your home is worth more than the current market may support. It is essential for sellers to determine the value of their home based on an objective analysis. Ask for sales statistics from your Jenny Pruitt & Associates Realtor to be sure that your home is properly priced. The market can change quickly, so it is important to keep updated with the current market, especially recent sales.
2. Keep home in good condition. Take a good, objective look at the condition of your home. Clean, well-kept homes with an updated appearance always have an advantage. A little decorating appeal can go a long way. Model homes have had thousand of dollars spent to create a mood, ambiance and sales appeal that make potential buyers “fall in love.” Keep in mind, buyers are looking for a lifestyle as well as shelter. Most new buyers are probably going to be happiest moving into a home in near-perfect condition. If they have to fix the roof, a broken file floor, etc., they may hesitate in buying. At the least, it may lower the value of the home in the buyer’s mind. A model-perfect home is going to attract the highest price.
3. Remove any items that do not remain before putting the home on the market. To avoid problems, sellers need to remove chandeliers, antique mirrors, etc., that they plan to leave with the home and replace them with quality items that match the quality of the home. Generally, anything fixed to the house is a “chattel” or asset (improvement) that stays with the home after the sale. Be specific about any items that are not included in the sales price of the home.

Getting the most from the sale of your home takes effort, but it is easier to achieve when sellers are educated and with the help of a knowledgeable Jenny Pruitt & Associates real estate professional. The equity gained and the opportunities for future investment, when selling your home, are just a few of the many benefits of the American dream of ownership.

Senior Vice President, Managing Broker

Sandy Springs office

Top 10 Reasons to Buy a New Home in Atlanta

• Home ownership is the first step to building wealth
• Home ownership qualifies you for tax deductions
• Interest rates remain low
• It is a buyer’s market! Builders are offering a host of value-added incentives, but hurry they won’t last long.
• Return on investment - the rate of appreciation in Atlanta is above the national average
• By owning your own home, you can live the American Dream
• Location…location…location - homes are available in a variety of price ranges throughout the entire greater Atlanta region
• Housing choice - home buyers have more choices than ever before - from traditional single family homes to mixed use developments, today’s homes feature flexible designs, innovative technology and the latest products and finishes.
• Energy efficient construction techniques and products translate into savings.
• Atlanta remains a hot market, ranking fourth nationally in home sales.

Visit the Get Home Atlanta! website for more information.

Source: CNN.com

These ideas offer some of the best returns for your renovation dollar. Plus, the payoff increases over time.

If prospective buyers looked at your house today, what would they see outside? A giant evergreen that looks as if it might swallow the station wagon, perhaps scraggly old foundation plants or maybe as kitchen-table view of the neighbors’ kids’ trampoline?

If so, you have a truly inexpensive opportunity to boost your home’s curb appeal.

By spending $500 to $3,000 on plants and materials and a few hours of time, you can achieve a well-landscaped look without shelling out for professional help. Besides the personal enjoyment you’ll get from a prettier yard, landscaping adds more value than almost any other home renovation.

A recent Michigan State University study found that depending on where the house is located, high-quality landscaping adds five percent to 11 percent to its price. If you have no immediate plans to move, all the better. Landscaping is the one home improvement that actually appreciates over time.

So how do you decide on which projects to tackle? That depends on how long you think you’ll be around to enjoy the results. Read the rest of this entry »

When purchasing a home, according to the law firm of Weissman, Nowack, Curry & Wilco, there is no doubt that buyers should hire a professional inspector to thoroughly inspect, examine, test and survey the property. Your Jenny Pruitt & Associates agent will help you with the selection of an inspector to help discover the defects in any property you are attempting to purchase. But should you do your own personal inspection? The answer is “yes!”

As a buyer, you should be looking for areas that may not be visible to the eye and remember that two set of eyes are always better than one! Be sure that you move large plants to look for possible water stains and be sure to move furniture around also looking for stains. Make sure you lift up area rugs and check behind heavily draped windows for any hidden defects. You also may want to open all cabinet doors and look for needed repairs. In addition, open drawers on built-ins to make sure they are functional. Look at doors going into and outside for possible damage by pets and be weary of homes with perfumed smells that could be hiding pet accidents. Turn on all faucets and showers to check for good water pressure and nose around for any musty smells that could be a sign of a water leak!

Also, make sure before your inspection, that you have an updated and signed Sellers’ Disclosure. You want to know that any defects that are disclosed by the seller are checked out by your inspector.

Be sure to check with your Jenny Pruitt & Associates agent for more details!

Senior Vice President, Managing Broker

Sandy Springs office

Source: News & Record Paper - September 2, 2007

West Hartford, Conn. - The size of the house Arnold Chase is building on Avon Mountain isn’t fully apparent from the outside, where only 17,000 square feet of it lies in plain view. It’s the two-level, 33,500-square-foot basement complex, complete with a 103-seat movie theater, ticket booth, concession stand, game room and music annex, that will make it New England’s largest occupied single-family home.

At nearly 50,900 square feet, the Chase home will be slightly larger than billionaire Bill Gates’ home in Washington, about 4,000 square feet smaller than the White House and 20 times larger than the average-size home in America.

The average U.S. home measures about 2,500 square feet - up from 1,995 square feet in 1988 - according to the National Associates of Home Builders. But although houses are getting bigger, rarely are they built as big as the new Chase house. Read the rest of this entry »

As exclusive affiliates of Christie’s Great Estates, Jenny Pruitt & Associates has the great honor of being apart of one of the world’s most respected real estate companies. Our affiliate network is the acknowledged leader in the marketing and sale of high-end properties worldwide.

In a recent release from Kay Couglin, President & CEO of Christie’s Great Estates, she shared a list of some facts that help emphasize all that Christie’s Great Estates offers to their clients:

• Christie’s Great Estates is the only worldwide network of real estate brokers owned by a major art auction house.
• Christie’s Great Estates is the only affiliate network to provide exclusive territory to member firms, allowing our brokers to differentiate themselves by offering marketing services that no local competitor can match.
• Their carefully chosen network consists of some of the most powerful, well-established brokerage firms worldwide, specializing in the marketing and sale of notable properties. Only those companies that are the proven local leader in the sale of luxury properties are appointed exclusive affiliates of Christie’s Great Estates.
• The average list price of a property currently on their web site is $4.3 million.
• The average list price of a property in Christie’s Great Estates magazine is $6.5 million.
• The approximate combined sales volume of their affiliate network last year was $125 billion.
• In 2006, Christie’s Great Estates affiliates participated in five of the six highest priced residential sales in the world.
• One of the most expensive private residences in the world is listed at $135 million by Christie’s Great Estates affiliate, Joshua & Co., and was a direct referral from Christie’s.
• Today, the Christie’s Great Estates network is the largest ever with 144 affiliates in 36 countries - far larger than our nearest competitor.
• Currently, their network has more than 5,200 properties posted on Christie’s Great Estates website about $1 million. Three hundred of those properties are priced from $10 million and above, and of those, eight are listed at $50 million and above.

Christie’s Great Estates is one of the many luxury affiliations Jenny Pruitt & Associates is a member of.