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The Stevens Team

Thu, 11 Mar 2021 22:40:30 GMT

The Stevens know the market.

Working with Buyers

Wed, 13 Mar 2019 22:29:48 GMT

Greetings

It's been a while since I last wrote a blog. I had a Buyer come in today who decided that the home that was offered on was simply not a good fit. I was actually relieved that the Buyer decided to let go of a home, altough beautiful, had a lot of deferred maintenance that was beyond the capacity of the Buyer to handle. There is no guarantee - even with an inspection that everything will come to light and so one has to understand the capacity of the Buyer to carry on after the fact.

One of the things that being a good match maker in real estate is making sure that at the end of the day that it is a good fit for everyone. The Buyer was so appreciative that their perspective was understood. She said to me - it's almost like you are a counselor as well as a realtor. It's true being a good realtor is more than just being able to put up pretty pictures on listings and have a large media presence. It takes a lot of time and experience to become familiar with the market to gain those skills and making sure that clients are happy at the end of the day. Realtors understand there is a lot of delayed gratification in this business. Someone I am working with this year may take a while to find the right home. Onward and upward - looking forward to continuing to find the perfect home for this Buyer.

Best Regards

Sylvia

Nelson and Nelson Rural

Wed, 09 Jan 2019 22:22:34 GMT

Greetings

Happy New Year to all of you.

Lot of home owners are surprised by the increase in the Tax Assesment value on their property. And yes property values have increased in Nelson City - anywhere from 18% to 24% depending on the type of property. And certainly the rural areas have gone up as well.

The young buyers are not able to afford to buy in Nelson unless they have family assistance. In 2018 the banks introduced the stress test - that means you need to qualify for a mortgage 2% higher than the rate that you will actually be given. So if you havent requalified you should do so before you go to the market. This will include the family members who may have no debt and lots of equity - they will also have to pass the stress test. The days of going into a purchase with 35% down and purchasing with out having to prove income are gone.

With the every changing economies it will be interesting to see what unfolds in 2019. There are still a lot of buyers looking for a homes.

Look forward to an exciting year.

Best Regards

Sylvia Stevens

TOP 10 THINGS TO DO WHEN SELLING YOUR HOME

Mon, 20 Nov 2017 23:46:00 GMT

#1) Call Me

( I'll take care of the other 9)

Websites

Thu, 09 Nov 2017 00:19:00 GMT

Deciding to get my own web site took awhile to get there. Most of my business has been built on referals and repeat clients which has worked very well for me over the 20 plus years that I have been a realtor. And it still does to a degree.

I had been the top producer in my office for many years and things were humming along smoothly. Then of course my market share dropped and I was being encouraged to get out there and get a web site. Ok - finally I started to research and look at the different web sites out there and chose the one that I am at right now. I wanted it to be simple and easy to use and provide quick information that anyone would like.

Tell me what you think of my web site.

Sylvia

Home Renovation that a Client has done

Wed, 11 Oct 2017 20:43:39 GMT

Greetings

First of all so grateful to have wonderful clients and friends. Thanksgiving gives us an opportunity to reflect.

Just visited one of the nicest couple along with their two kids who have just done a huge renovation to thier home. A few surprises along the way including finding out that the footing on one of the walls was none existant. They had to reconfigure part of the budget to cover that. The home is located in Nelson. Thank goodness they got into the market before it really became ridiculous. This couple moved from Ontario and did very well and had some extra money to put into the renovation. The budget was in place and they were able to get quite a bit of the upgrades done. The funds did not stretch to finish the final phase. They did however create the most important items in thier list and have plans and budgeting for the future upgrades.

Just found a great article for you to read for anyone considering a renovation. I know this couple certainly followed this approach.

http://www.styleathome.com/how-to/renovations/article/10-things-to-think-about-before-you-renovate