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5 Great Ways To Get Rid Of Unwanted Items Before A Move

Posted on by John Conde

Although moving can be a stressful time for many people, it also provides a great opportunity for you to purge your life of items that you no longer want or need. Your moving costs will also be less expensive if you have fewer household items, and you will be able to start a clutter-free life in your new home. Fortunately, several ways exist for those who are moving to get rid of items that they would prefer not to take with them. Following are five options for you to consider when deciding how to dispose of certain household items.

1. Consignment Shops

If you have clothing or accessories that are of good quality and show minimal wear and tear, you may be able to sell them through a consignment shop. Consignment shops will keep a certain amount of the sale price and send you the rest after the items are purchased. Although consignment shops frequently only deal in fine clothing, jewelry, handbags and other accessories, some carry items such as furniture and household decorations.

2. Good Old-Fashioned Thrift Shops

While consignment stores are usually somewhat selective about items that they will accept, thrift stores will generally take anything as long as it is clean, in good repair and usable. Many thrift stores will also pick up items from your home, saving you the hassle of loading things into your car and driving to the store locations. Keep in mind those items given to thrift stores are donations that you will not be paid for. If the value of your donations is of considerable worth, however, you may be able to obtain a tax credit.

3. Have a Garage Sale

Having a garage sale is a good way to quickly get rid of things you don’t need anymore. Be sure to advertise your garage sale in your local paper as well as put up signs around your neighborhood. Some people offer leftover items for free after their sale is over.

4. Craigslist

If you have household or personal items that you would like to sell but don’t want to organize a garage sale, consider putting an ad on Craigslist or another free advertising site. You will be able to show the items to interested parties at your own convenience, and it’s possible that you will be able to make a significant sum of money on your unwanted personal items and household goods. Another option is having an online garage sale through an auction site, but you may not be able to dispose of things as quickly as you like if you go this route. You will also have to package items and ship them if the buyers do not live in your geographical area.

5. Give Things Away to Family and Friends

If you have household things that you won’t be needing in your new home, take a look among your family and friends to see if anyone needs anything that you would like to discard. For instance, if you are moving to a smaller place because you are downsizing or retiring, that large dining room table may be perfect for the young family in your circle.

Most people find that getting rid of superfluous items allows them to feel as if they are starting fresh in their new environment.

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Ask your Orlando realtor questions about your short sale

Posted on by Jenny Zamora

Don’t be afraid to ask your Orlando realtor questions about your short sale

  So you’ve decided to pursue a short sale on your home either because it owes more than what it’s worth and and just want to get out from under it or because you’ve fallen behind on your mortgage payments. You’re next step should be to find a experienced short sale realtor with a proven track record. How do you do this? Well like everything else these days… you Google it!  For example, if you need to find a good short sale realtor in Orlando, you should type in terms like “Orlando short sale realtor”, “Orlando short sale specialist”, “Orlando short sale expert”, etc…. you get the picture.  Once you hit the search button your computer screen will pull up the top results for the best short sale realtors in the city of Orlando. I would suggest that you choose from 1st page results and forget about going to page 2.

Now that you have a list of the top Orlando short sale realtors, start calling and emailing them. This is a great test to see which realtors will get back to you right away and which ones will call you 3 days later or maybe even not at all. Quick tip; If a realtor takes more than 24 hrs to get back to you, stay away! Imagine how frustrating it would be for you if this person had control of your short sale and every time you tried contacting them with an important question you had to wait days for a response.   By using this tactic of contacting every realtor on the first page, you will eliminate at least half the Orlando realtors that are showing up, which never ceases to amazes me. I can’t tell how many times sellers have called me and told me that they’ve called another realtor before me and they never got a response.

Now you should have a hand full of realtors that you were able to get a hold of immediately or at least in a short amount of time. I suggest that you now have a long conversation with them over the phone. You can tell a lot about someone by just talking to them for a while. While you’re talking with them be sure to make notes about that individual such as; “seemed friendly and knowledgeable” , “answered all my questions” , “was very impatient”, “felt like I was being rushed”, “not experienced enough”, etc. Remember, you’re looking for someone that’s not only going to be looking out for  your best interest, but this person will be [or should be] in constant contact with you and it needs to be someone that you feel comfortable  with.

The Final step in Hiring an Orlando short sale realtor

OK, now hopefully you should have at least 2 realtors that you’re thinking about listing your house with. The final step in choosing the best realtor for you is to make an appointment for them too come and see you at your home. Ask them to bring testimonials from past clients as well as anything else that they can use to prove their track record to you. You should also ask them to have a plan of action laid out for your home if they were to get the listing.   Remember, when they come over to meet with you, you’re the one in control. They are their to try and get you to hire them, not the other way around. After meeting with the 2 or 3 realtors that you’ve set appointments with, you will undoubtedly have made a decision on the realtor that best meets your needs.

Follow up with your realtor as well as your lender

Now that you’ve  found an Orlando short sale realtor that you’re happy with, make sure to follow up. A good short sale agent should provide you with weekly status reports n the status of your short sale. Another way to make sure your file is being handled properly is to follow up with your lender and find out what’s happening with your file as well as when was the last time your realtor mad contact with them. You shouldn’t feel bad about doing this and your realtor shouldn’t feel offended because you’re checking up on them. This is probably one of the most important things happening in your life right now and you have a right to know exactly what’s going on.

 

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Orlando Real Estate remains strong, despite a dip in prices at the end of summer

Posted on by Jenny Zamora

 

Summer’s gone and Orlando Real estate takes a drop

Prices of Orlando real estate dropped slightly last month for the first in a year. Don’t panic Orlando homeowners, this happens every year at this time. The reason for the drop is mostly due to the end of the peak of the summer buying season. Two facts remain true, Orlando real estate inventory is low and demand for great Orlando properties remains high. As long as these factors remain a part of the Orlando real estate market, sellers will be able to get top dollar for their Orlando Home.

Other factors indicating a strong Orlando Real Estate market

Orlando homes are selling faster and for more than they did a year ago. Studies show that Orlando homes are spending less than 80 days on the market before coming under contract and selling for almost  97% of the listing price. A year ago, Orlando Realty was selling for less than 95% of the listing price, and these properties were listed on the MLS for over 100 days.

Great mortgage interest rates are still being offered by lenders. The average interest rate currently being offered for Orlando home buyers is at 3.78 percent as opposed to a year ago when homebuyers paid an average interest rate of 4.26 percent. This is a huge incentive right now for potential Orlando home buyers and anyone interested in buying real estate in Orlando should definitely take advantage of these historically low-interest rates.

There are more regular listings in the Orlando real estate market than has been in years. Although Orlando’s short sales and REO’s still rule Orlando’s real estate inventory right now, there is another quieter group that is not desperate to sell their Orlando properties.  Believe it or not, everyone one in three homeowners owns their house “free and clear”. This group as well as homeowners with very small mortgages on their home are able to ask for top dollar on their Orlando home and they don’t care if it sells or not. Their way of thinking is “I will sell for the right price and if not then I’m not selling”. I’ve had several clients like this over the years, and homeowners like these actually help to maintain property values up in their neighborhoods because their listing prices remain high and they really don’t care how long it takes to sell.

Right now is  a great tome to sell your Orlando Home

Considering all the factors in play right now with Orlando Real Estate, it’s a great time to sell your home. Whether you need an Orlando short Sale done or you’re o of the few and fortunate people that own your property Free and Clear. If you’re interested in seeing how much your Orlando property will sell… click on “How much is my Orlando property worth?” or you can come and see me for a free consultation and I would be happy to sit and talk with you.

Realtor in Orlando, FL

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Frustrations Increase among active Orlando Real Estate Buyers

Posted on by Jenny Zamora

Active Orlando Realty buyers are more frustrated than ever

People that are actively searching for an Orlando property are getting more and more concerned about rising prices on quality Orlando homes and they have every right to be. Inventory is at an all time low while demand is through the roof. Many of them have even decided to put their home buying plans on hold and have elected to remain in their current housing situation.

One of the biggest concerns right now is the lack of inventory in Orlando real estate. Buyers get very frustrated when they find a property that they like only to find that there is already 10 offers on the table for the same property.

In Orlando there is about half as many homes for sale as there was this time last year. Some people still believe that prices will drop and are holding out for that “deal of a lifetime”.  Thinking that prices will drop in the near future is just not realistic and is just flat out not true.

The fact is that prices of Orlando real estate will continue to rise for quite a long time. Sure you can still try to get a good deal on a house needing to be refurbished, but in that market you’re competing experienced Orlando real estate investors. Re-habbers make their living on buying properties, fixing them up and selling them for a healthy profit. If you think that competition is tough on the retail side of real estate, try competing with local investors. The wholesale market is just as competitive if not more than buying an Orlando home that is move-in ready.

 

Orlando homeowners are staying put

For homeowners who were on the fence about selling but really don’t want to, have reconsidered and have decided to remain in their home. They see what’s going on in the Orlando Real estate market and they are loving it.  There seems to never be a time when both buyers and sellers are pleased with whatever the market is doing. Sellers will always want top dollar for their home and buyers will always want to get a fantastic deal on a great property.  Let’s face it, Who in their right mind would sell right now if they didn’t have to?

 

Jenny Zamora, Lic Orlando Real Estate Broker

 

Jenny Zamora Broker

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Orlando Realty Prices Continue to Rise while Inventory Drops

Posted on by Jenny Zamora

Orlando Real estate prices keep increasing as Inventory decreases

It’s becoming painfully obvious that when it comes to Orlando real estate, it’s officially a seller’s market. The market is nowhere near as inflated as it was in 05′ 06′ , but we’re definitely moving in the right direction. For the 4th month in a row Orlando home prices continue to go up. This is great news for homeowners that have had their value cut in half during the past five years, whether or not this trend continues remains to be seen.

Most of our own listings at Orlando Realty Consultants usually will have a solid contract on them within 5 days of putting them on the market,  sometimes we’ll even get a contract within that first day of listing them. More and more we are seeing multiple offers come in and most of the time the offers are above the listing price.

Orlando’s summer Home Buying season is in full swing

It’s that time of year again. The kids are out of school and people that have been wanting to buy an Orlando Property but didn’t want to switch their kids to a new school mid way through the school year are now actively searching for their Orlando home before the new school year begins. The evidence is in the numbers, median home prices are up 2.6 percent since April. This is proof that Orlando home buyers are on the hunt with a certain sense of urgency.

However, even with the increased seasonal demand and attractive interest rates, Orlando Realtors completed fewer sales in May than they did a year earlier. Orlando agents reported a preliminary count of 2,337 home sales last month, down 5.8 percent from May 2011

If you’re thinking of selling your Orlando Property, now may be the perfect time to do it. Finding a buyers for Orlando realty has never been easier. Sellers are finally back in the drivers seat for the first time since 2006. Find out what your Orlando Property is worth here

 

 

Jenny Zamora, Lic Orlando RE Broker
Serving the Orlando community since 2005
 

 

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