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Renovating a home to sell for profit relies on making profitable decisions. While most resident-inspired home renovations only recoup a percentage of the project investment, pre-sale renovations focus on turning a modest renovation budget into a net profit. This often involves resurfacing, rebuilding, and in some cases redesigning old homes that have fallen out of desirability over the years. Your role involves updating your home and deciding on those finishing touches that will bring in eager and high-bidding buyers. Part of this process is knowing which projects are not profitable. Today, we're here to helpfully spotlight the top eight home renovations that have proven themselves to be poor investments for improving home sales. We'll …

8 Home Renovation Projects that Aren’t Worth the InvestmentRead More

Having a Buyer's Agent or Visit Opens Houses Alone? There is something magical about stepping through an open house and imagining your future life in a new-home candidate. Smelling the freshly polished floor and freshly painted walls brings a feeling of 'newness' that is hard to rival. It's a romantic part of house-hunting for a new home that many buyers look forward to and enjoy immensely.  However, the question many home buyers find themselves asking is whether open-houses are sufficient or if the help of a buyer's agent is worth the partnership. What is the difference between touring open houses and working with a hand-picked home inventory from your buyer's agent? The fact is that a buyer's real estate agent does a lot more than …

Having a Buyer’s Agent vs. Visiting Open Houses: What’s the Difference?Read More

Do You Need a Buyer's Agent In the days of the internet, the value of real estate agents is often questioned. Many people don't get an agent if they are buying; this is particularly an issue for first time home buyers. However, the vast majority of people should get a buyer's agent. An agent cannot ethically represent both the buyer and the seller in a transaction (although it's legal in some states and many do), and there are many ways in which a buyer's agent can help you. There are also some things they can't do. Here's a quick guide to what agents can do for you. Help You Find the Right Property With the internet, it's theoretically possible to find your ideal home on your own, spending hours poring over real estate listings and …

What a Buyer’s Agent Can and Can’t Do During NegotiationsRead More

A home purchase is a big investment. In fact, it's one of the largest investments you'll ever make. If you are looking to buy a home, the first item on your agenda is to find the right agent to help you. You don't want to work with just any agent. You want to hire an agent that has excellent knowledge of the area in which you are looking to buy a home. You don't want to use a Greenville real estate agent if you're shopping in Anderson. Your agent should know the different styles of homes in the area, and which ones will best serve your needs and affordability. Your agent should also know the market and prices in the area. Finally, it's in your best interest to hire an exclusive buyer's agent to represent you. Exclusive Buyer's …

The Advantages of Working With a Buyer’s AgentRead More

Buying a New Home and Selling the Old One: Which Comes First & How to Do It   Most homeowners don't stop at buying their first home. You may be looking to upgrade from your starter home. Or you may be relocating for a new job, needing to sell your currently owned home to make the move. In these situations, homeowners often find themselves both selling their house and looking to buy a new house at the same time. How do you juggle this complicated financial maneuver? There are two ways that we recommend to our clients when they are looking at homes for sale in Greenville who also need to sell their previous home. The first is careful planning and contingency negotiation. The second is a bridge loan that neatly covers the gap. Join …

Buying a New Home and Selling the Old One: Which Comes First & How to Do ItRead More

Sold Property Data Now Available Our IDX Property Search now contains Closed Homes with full sold information! For all of those interested in seeing what homes are selling for in the Greenville area I've just added sold home information to Wessel Real Estate.  This is just another way of providing the best service as your Greenville South Carolina Realtor. Isn't Sold Housing Data Readily Available? Many people think that companies like Zillow have displayed sold property data for a long time.  That is not exactly the case.  For large 3rd party real estate websites to have any access to sold properties, they would rely on getting that data from the local Clerk of Court.  In many instances, that data was not always consistent.  In …

Closed Homes Sold Information in Greenville SC Now AvailableRead More

Help for First Time Home Buyers Hey First Time Home Buyers in Greenville SC!  Do you need help buying your first home?  Would you like an exclusive buyer's agent on your side?  A buyer's agent who has been helping people buy homes in Greenville SC for over 30 years? A realtor who has helped scores of first time home buyers over the years purchase their first home? Yep, you guessed it, that' me! First time home buyers are one of my favorite buyers to work with because the process is so exciting for them and me.  These buyers also have so many questions and are so unfamiliar with the home buying process.  So, let me get you started with the basic process of buying your first home in the Greenville SC area. Determine Your Budget The …

First Time Home Buyers in Greenville SC- Purchase AssistanceRead More

Downtown Greenville Living Good morning folks and a very Happy New Year to you.  I hope yours is starting off well.  I just had a closing at 155 Riverplace Condos in Downtown Greenville SC with a super nice retired couple who had been living out of the country.  There are a lot of reasons why they chose 155 Riverplace Condos and I'd like to share some of them with you. I've been helping buyers purchase condos in 155 Riverplace in downtown Greenville SC for many years.  The reason is mainly because of location.  155 Riverplace is located close to guess where?  That's right Falls Park!  The condos are just a short hop, skip and a jump to the bridge and other attractions!  Now, let's take deeper look at 155 Riverplace. Many Desirable …

155 Riverplace Condos in Downtown Greenville SCRead More

Greenville, South Caroline Market Update Well we are over half way through the year and it's time for my real estate sales update for Greenville SC!  I meant to post this end of June but things have been so busy I let it slip by.  So how's the real estate market in Greenville?  Still on fire!  Yep, the first half of this year was my best and the same for many realtors in Greenville.  Let's take a look at sales year to date through July and make some comparisons with the same time frame for 2017. Sold Home Information A few points: These stats come directly from the Greenville MLS. This is for Greenville County only.  This is for single family homes and townhomes/condos. Sold price $100,000 and up. Average days on …

Real Estate Sales Update for Greenville SC Year to DateRead More

Hi everyone and Happy New Year!  I normally recap the previous years sales but I thought I'd give you my Greenville SC Real Estate forecast for 2018 as my first post of the year.  Hold on to your britches... I recently had a nice fellow from Denver contact me regarding condos in downtown Greenville.  He was interested in buying and I sent him the current inventory.  His comment was that he was afraid at $300 /sq. ft. he would be buying at the top of the market.  Folks, I can't tell you how many years I've been hearing this, well I can... 17. $300 is not even close to the market right now for condos in Greenville that are selling $400+ per sq. ft.  So if you can find something at $250-$300 you might want to jump on it. So where is Real …

Greenville SC Real Estate Forecast for 2018Read More

New Experience for First Time Home Buyers I love working with first time home buyers in Greenville SC.  Now don't get me wrong, I enjoy experienced buyers too but first time home buyers just need that extra special help because buying a home is new to them.  They need help understanding the Greenville real estate market, help knowing where to buy, help writing the offer, help negotiating the offer, help selecting inspectors, attorney and making repair requests. It's very rewarding when we have a successful trip to closing and they get their keys to their very first home!!  I've had a number of very rewarding experiences with first time home buyers this year looking at homes for sale near Greenville SC, but recently I had a closing with …

Happy First Time Home Buyers in Greenville SC!Read More