Katie Zarpas, Author at Katie Zarpas Group

How to Choose a Real Estate Agent

July 15, 2019 By Katie Zarpas

Even if you have bought or sold a house in the past, you may want to consider working with a real estate agent for assistance with future home purchases or sales. A real estate agent can be your biggest ally throughout the process and can make buying or selling a home much easier. They will research comparable home prices, schedule showings, negotiate prices, arrange for inspections, recommend repair providers, and review paperwork for you while providing their expert advice and guidance. Knowing how to choose a real estate agent for your needs can help to make your home buying or selling process go by far smoother.

Helpful Tactics in Finding A Real Estate Agent

When choosing a real estate agent, it is important to select someone who aligns with your priorities and will work in your best interest. Knowing how to choose a real estate agent that fits your needs is helpful in your process. In this article, you will understand how to choose a real estate agent to make the home buying or selling process easier.

1. Conduct Research on Available Agents

The first step in selecting a real estate agent is to compile a list of available agents in your area. Read online reviews, consult friends for their recommendations, and keep an eye out for names on for-sale signs of homes that appear similar to yours. Many real estate agents maintain websites that list their experience, recent sales, and even blog posts that provide a glimpse of their expertise. Consider your priorities and how each agent may be able to assist you in reaching your buying or selling goals, then narrow down your list to a handful of top choices.

2. Schedule Interviews to Become Acquainted

After creating your list of potential real estate agents, contact each one to schedule a consultation or interview. Be prepared with a list of questions about the frequency of communication to expect, their ability to handle any unique situations in which you may find yourself, the neighborhood in which you are hoping to buy, and how long they have been in the real estate business. You should also ask for a list of recent clients that you can contact as references. After the interview, evaluate your assessment of each agent’s experience, process, and personality to find the perfect fit. Remember that while experience matters, your comfort level with the person with which you will be working is also essential.

3. Attend Open Houses

An excellent way to see a real estate agent in action is to visit an open house that they are hosting. This gives you a good idea of how they operate, what they focus on when selling a home, and how they interact with potential buyers. If you are looking to buy instead of sell, visiting an open house and chatting with the real estate agent there can still be a valuable way for you to make a connection and better understand how the agent approaches their job.

4. Consider the Agent’s Area

When you are looking to buy or sell a home, you will want as much information as possible about the surrounding properties to determine a price and, if you are selling, attract buyers to the home. An agent who understands the area at a hyperlocal level can give you the most detailed information possible. Instead of having a broad understanding of the entire city, hyperlocal agents will know neighborhoods on a block by block basis. This is especially important in areas where home pricing can vary significantly from one street to the next (based on the age of the homes in that area and their proximity to key amenities). Choosing an agent with this expertise helps you settle on the best price for a home that meets the majority, if not all, of your home wishlist.

5. Evaluate the Agent’s Support

An agent who works with a team is more likely to provide you with comprehensive support during the buying or selling process. Since most agents work with several clients at once, having a support staff on hand can help them stay organized and on time. They will also be able to provide a higher level of customer service and help you resolve any issues that may arise more quickly than agents who work solo.

6. Signing an Agreement

After choosing your agent, you will be asked to sign a buyer’s or listing agreement, depending on whether you are buying or selling a home. These documents state that the agent will act in your best interest and outlines the rights and responsibilities for both you and your agent. Some agreements allow buyers or sellers to work with another agent if a better deal comes up, while others exclusively commit the agent and buyer or seller to work with each other throughout the entire process. Exclusive agreements generally ensure that the real estate agent will dedicate more time to helping you with your transaction, but speak with your agent to discuss your needs and find the right contract format.

Work With An Experienced Virginia Beach Real Estate Agency

At the end of the process, you should be able to select an agent who understands your priorities, meshes with your personality and working style, and has extensive experience with homes like yours. If you are buying or selling a home in the Virginia Beach area, consider working with The Katie Zarpas Group. The Katie Zarpas Group has years of experience with country homes, historic homes, vacation properties, and more within the area, and the industry has recognized their expertise with numerous awards. Contact The Katie Zarpas Group at 757-685-4400, or by scheduling an appointment online for more information about working with a real estate agent.

What Does A Real Estate Agent Do?

July 8, 2019 By Katie Zarpas

Buying or selling a home can be a complex process full of paperwork, legal jargon, and unexpected turns. Thankfully, a real estate agent can guide you through the entire process. Real estate agents help arrange the purchase, sale, or renting of a property, be it an office building, house, or apartment.

The Role Of A Real Estate Agent

A real estate agent can manage all aspects of the transaction to ensure that it is a legally binding one and that all parties involved are happy with the outcome. The agent’s specific role, however, varies depending on who they are representing in the sale.

On The Seller Side

Real estate agents working with sellers focus primarily on ensuring that their client’s home is perfectly positioned within the market. An agent will meet with the seller to understand their goals and reasons for selling the property, and conduct research on the local market. They will identify similar homes in the area that have sold recently to determine an asking price that is not too low for the seller, but not so high as to deter potential buyers.

Creating A Listing

After conducting research, the agent can create a listing for the house. This listing will include photos of the interior and exterior of the house, vital information (such as square footage and the number of bathrooms, and any special features, like a large backyard or proximity to schools. The listing should get potential buyers interested in the house and be posted on several websites to attract the maximum amount of attention.

Help With Preparing The Home

Once the property is ready for showing, the real estate agent will help sellers prepare their home for open houses and be prepared to answer questions from potential buyers. When an offer is made on the property, the agent will assist in evaluating whether it represents a good one for the sellers and, if so, work to finalize the sale by conducting negotiations and filing the appropriate paperwork.

On The Buyer Side

When working with home buyers, real estate agents take on a slightly different role. They meet with buyers to determine the best homes for their needs, then research listings to find properties that match. Real estate agents often have access to listing sites that the general public does not, making them a valuable resource during the search for a new home and allowing them to find a wider range of homes to show their clients.

Arrange Private Showings & An Open House

Once an agent has found suitable homes, they will arrange for private showings or inform their clients of open houses and give their clients a tour of the home. A real estate agent must know enough about the house to answer buyers’ questions and be prepared to conduct find a new property if the buyers decide that they want something different after seeing the home in person. Most buyers view several homes, going back to their favorites for a second look, before committing to making an offer.

Preparing An Offer

When the buyers choose a house on which they would like to place an offer, a real estate agent will help them prepare an offer package and negotiate as necessary to close the sale. As when supporting sellers, real estate agents will also assist buyers with all paperwork, legal documents, and filings necessary to ensure that the sale is legally binding.

Why You Need A Real Estate Agent

While it is possible to buy or sell a home without the help of a real estate agent, the process can become needlessly difficult if you choose to go it alone. Agents are highly knowledgeable when it comes to the rules around buying and selling homes, helping buyers better understand the purchasing process and telling them what to expect at each stage so that they are fully prepared. They can also point out unnoticed features that buyers might find enticing or flaws that sellers should fix before showing the home.

Whether assisting buyers or sellers, real estate agents are also expert negotiators who can secure better contract terms that help their clients feel more comfortable with their purchase or sale. Agents typically have strong ties to the community, giving them inside knowledge about the best neighborhoods and allowing them to connect clients with service providers, such as mortgage lenders and home inspectors, that clients can trust to treat them fairly.

Reach Out To An Experienced Virginia Beach Real Estate Agent

Speak with Katie Zarpas Group for more information about the role of a real estate agent and to see if the team might be a good match for your needs. Katie Zarpas has more than 10 years of experience in real estate herself, and has won numerous industry awards throughout her career in recognition of her expertise. She specializes in helping buyers and sellers of investment properties, new construction, vacation properties, country homes, and historic homes, among other properties throughout Virginia Beach and in surrounding coastal areas. Reach out to the Katie Zarpas Group by giving them a call at 757.685.4400 or by scheduling an appointment online.

How To Sell Your House

July 1, 2019 By Katie Zarpas

Selling a house takes careful planning and patience. This is not always easy to maintain when you are eagerly waiting for an influx of cash, but in the end, that patience will likely be rewarded.

Top Six Things to Prepare to Sell Your Home

As the home selling process can seem like a confusing and overwhelming undertaking, working with an established real estate agent can help speed the process along, allowing you to spend less time on paperwork and more on picking out your new home.

Pre-Sale Chores

Before listing your home, you and your real estate agent need to complete a few preliminary tasks. Owners should clean their homes and make any repairs or touch-ups necessary to ensure that the home is presented in the best light. A formal home inspection can help you identify areas of improvement.

Then, the real estate agent will work on pricing and marketing your home. They may hire an appraiser to assist with this or do their own comparison analysis to determine the right price. The agent will then photograph the home, write a description that lists key features and exciting elements that might interest a buyer and set the home apart, and place the listing on a variety of websites and databases to get the attention of buyers. This entire pre-sale process can take about two months or more, depending on how much work needs to be done on the home before it is in sellable condition.

Listing and Showing

After preparing your home for showing, you will likely need to hold several open houses and host some private showings before you receive an offer. According to Zillow, the average American house is on the market for 68 days. This includes the standard 30-day closing window after receiving an offer, so you should expect your home to be on the market for a little over a month before you receive a viable offer that you are willing to accept.

Closing Processes

During the 30 day closing period, the lender, title company, and county records department will be able to complete all of the necessary paperwork to make your sale legal and binding. If you are in need of a faster sale, you may be able to select a buyer who is willing to pay in cash and avoid dealing with mortgage lenders, inspectors, and other intermediaries. The following steps typically occur within the closing window.

Accepting the Offer

After a buyer puts an offer on a home, they will be anxious to hear back about whether it has been accepted. That is why it is a good idea to make your decision as quickly as possible. State laws typically regulate response times, though buyers will also include information about how long their offer is valid before it needs to be accepted or declined. This time period generally lasts between 24 and 72 hours after submission.

Home Inspection

Once you have accepted an offer, the buyer will have between five and 10 days to have the home inspected, depending on the contract you establish. The actual home inspection takes much less time — a few hours for the inspector to review the property, and an extra day or two for them to write their report. In a fast-moving market, the buyer will sometimes choose not to have the property inspected to make their offer stand out and allow you to close the sale more quickly.

The Counteroffer

Buyers are allowed to adjust their offer after the house has been inspected to reflect any flaws or other factors that may influence the amount they are willing to pay. The renegotiation usually takes between 24 and 48 hours, because, at this point, there is likely little new information to discuss. A real estate agent can help you handle these negotiations to ensure that all parties are satisfied.

Working With a Virginia Beach Real Estate Agent

Whether you are buying or selling a home, working with a real estate agent can make the process go more smoothly. Real estate agents handle marketing for homes being sold, collect suitable options for buyers to review, and handle all of the paperwork and negotiations associated with the transaction.

Speak with the Katie Zarpas Group for more information about the selling timeline and the ways in which a real estate agent can help you close your sale as quickly as possible. Katie Zarpas has more than a decade of experience in real estate and has won numerous awards in recognition of her talents. She specializes in transactions involving investment properties, new construction, vacation properties, country homes, and historic homes, among other types, within the Northern Virginia area.

Home Selling Myths

March 29, 2018 By Katie Zarpas

Thinking of selling your home? Is your home already on the market and just won’t sell? Here are some common home selling myths about the real estate market in Virginia Beach and Hampton Roads, VA.

Top Home Selling Myths

Everyone wants to sell their home fast for top dollar. But often, misconceptions and misinformation get in the way of a real estate sale. Below, you’ll find the most common reasons sellers give me for their home lingering on the market. The home selling myths you’re about to read will get in the way of selling your home, and will set you up for failure.

Better Offers Will Appear If I Wait Longer

The opposite is true. The longer your home sits on the market, the worse the offers will be. Many buyers spend weeks or months looking for homes to buy. They will notice your home when it first sits on the market. And as it continues to linger, they will wonder what’s wrong with it. They will assume the price is too high, or they will think that something is seriously defective in your house.

In general, homes get the best offers when they first hit the market. That means the offers you receive in the first 30 days are the best you are going to get.

Consider This

The first question buyers ask is “how long was this home on the market?” Buyers believe that sellers are more likely to negotiate if the house has been for sale for a long time. Time is NOT your friend!

Solution

Price your home appropriately at the beginning. Really listen when your Realtor gives you a price recommendation. A good price means a fast offer.

My Home Is Priced Too Low If I Get Quick Offers

No. Big no. Let me put that in caps and bold it and make it red: NO.

This is the Internet Age. As soon as your home goes on the market, it will be seen by hundreds of buyers. Those buyers will see it on the Multiple Listing Service, on Zillow.com, on Trulia, on Realtor.com, on your agent’s website, on social media, or just by a Google search. If your home was priced correctly, some of those hundreds will be instantly attracted to your home. If your home was priced too high… well, they won’t.

With the right price at the right time at the right market, you may get multiple offers very quickly. If home inventory is low, this is especially true. Multiple offers are a good thing – that means you can create competition among them and drive the price up.

Solution

Hire a capable agent who can set the right price.

The Right Person Will Want To Buy My Home At The Price I Want

False. This is one of the worst Home Selling Myths. A lot of things have to happen in order for this to work. Let’s break it down:

The Buyer has to ignore the advice of their agent (and possibly friends and family) to pay more than the house is worth.

The Buyer has to pay above market value. Why would they pay more when they don’t have to, especially if there are lots of homes for sale? The Buyer will likely see similar homes in the same neighborhood. If your home has not been updated or has a serious defect, why would they pay more for your home than the cheaper one across the street that has been renovated?

Finally, and most importantly, how are they paying? If they are getting a mortgage, the bank will have an appraiser verify the market value of the home. They will deny the mortgage if the home price is more than its actual worth. That means your home will have to be purchased for cash. Cash sales are less than 30% of all home transactions.

Conclusion

It works against the interests of the buyer to purchase an overpriced home. Period. So don’t rely on a magical buyer flying in the face of common sense to purchase your property.

Solution

Be realistic about your property’s value within the real estate market. Put yourself in the shoes of a potential buyer and think about what they would want.

A Higher Price Gives Me More Space To Negotiate

Nope. Starting high to create negotiating room means you never get to negotiate.

We all know that negotiation is part of the real estate process. We also know that buyers frequently offer less than the listing price of a property. But if you price your home too high, buyers and agents will avoid your home like the plague. And the longer your home sits on the market, the more those same buyers will assume something is wrong with your house.

Solution

Leave the negotiating up to your agent. They will look out for your best interests – including the listing price of your property.

Zillow Says It’s Worth More

Zillow is garbage. For an agent, this is the most infuriating of the home selling myths.

Zillow is notoriously inaccurate. Zillow’s estimates are generated through old tax assessments, tax assessments which are notoriously un-aligned with actual market value. And Zillow knows that. Their data is almost always old or inaccurate.

Furthermore, they haven’t visited your property. Lots of little adjustments go into the proper pricing of a home for sale, things like size, features, age, or changes to the surrounding area. A skilled agent or appraiser has actually been to your home. That agent can navigate those adjustments, but Zillow cannot. Zillow doesn’t visit your house individually – they won’t know that your roof is leaking, you installed a hot tub, you have an easement, or that you’re considering a short sale.

Solution

Don’t trust Zillow.

Final Thoughts On Home Selling Myths

The key to selling your home is price. If you price it appropriately, the buyers will come. For more information, please give us a call at 757.685.4400 or schedule an appointment online.

How to Increase Your Home’s Value

March 1, 2018 By Katie Zarpas

Want to increase your home’s value? Thinking of putting your house on the market? Here are some improvements you can make to your property that will increase resale value without breaking your checking account.

7 Ways to Increase Your Home’s Value

There are various projects a homeowner can do in order to increase overall home value. These changes are able to add value when selling, and improve the home for the future. Here are home projects that provide serious return on investment when you decide to sell.

Update your HVAC Systems

Before you do anything else, be sure your home’s electrical, heating, and plumbing systems are in good working order. Most buyers today are looking for a turn-key home. They will not appreciate that gorgeous granite bathroom if the plumbing makes the room un-useable. All of your basic home features should run well.

Improve Curb Appeal

How does your house look from the sidewalk? Be honest with yourself. First impressions matter, and you can buy yourself some exterior appeal for the low cost of an afternoon’s sweat. Painting, replacing or repairing your trim, windows, front door or garage door is often less expensive than a hefty interior remodel.

Keep The Landscaping Clean

You don’t need an elaborate yard, but your property should be clean, neat, and well-maintained. Do you need mulch? Are weeds crowding out your azaleas? Is your lawn a foot high? This one’s just like Curb Appeal – first impressions matter, and a little hard work will pay off. Take the afternoon to improve the landscaping of your home, and you’ll see an immediate increase in appeal and value.

Think About Renovating Floors

Buyers will notice your floors immediately. But before you spend a pile of money, consider: do you need indestructible hardwood or gorgeous Berber carpet to compete in your neighborhood? If the answer is no, replace the bath or kitchen floors first (go for some nice tile). Ask your Realtor if you should replace your carpets or splurge on a good shampoo. When in doubt, ask your Realtor to show you pictures of other homes nearby – it never hurts to know what you’re up against.

Upgrade The Kitchen

Updating your kitchen is the single most valuable improvement you can make. Nobody wants to time travel just by walking from living room to fridge. Be ruthless. Get rid of that floral wallpaper. Pull up that vinyl floor. You don’t necessarily have to replace your cabinets – a good staining or paint job can do wonders. New drawer handles and cabinet knobs are cheap and can quickly get rid of that 1980s feel. Faucets and light fixtures are another surprisingly inexpensive improvement (especially if you can do it yourself). Stainless steel appliances are all the rage right now, but before your replace that Frigidaire, think about those counter tops – granite counters get you an astounding rate of return! Buyers love them. Granite counters can sometimes sell a house more than any other feature.

Make Bathrooms More Appealing

Buyers love updated bathrooms, and a little TLC in there can help sell your house faster than the outdated listing down the street. Start with the floors and walls: most bathrooms are small, so some neutral paint and real tile will go a long way. If you go to a hardware store, you’ll notice that decent light fixtures, shower heads, and towel bars are surprisingly cheap. Rent a drill and go to town.

Deceiving Improvement Jobs

Some improvements aren’t improvements to your home at all. They end up being eye sores and will work against you when you try to sell. Rather than give you a long list to avoid, I’ll just say this: don’t punch above your weight. Don’t do $100,000 worth of improvements and expect to add $100,000 to your home’s asking price. Check out what is normal and ordinary in your neighborhood and plan accordingly.

Oh, and just say no to above-ground pools.

Work With a Virginia Beach Real Estate Agent

First off, be proud of all your hard work! When you list with The Katie Zarpas Group, we always design and distribute a flyer about your property. If you give us a list of your home’s upgrades, we will include this list with all of our marketing so that everyone is aware of your efforts. Our team strives to provide you the best home value increasing process. If you’re ready to increase the value of your home, reach out today by phone at 757-685-4400, or by scheduling an appointment online.

Should I Buy a Condo or a House?

October 24, 2017 By Katie Zarpas

There’s a lot to consider when you buy a home. For many people, those considerations start with a simple question: Should I Buy a Condo or a House?

What is a Condo?

First, if you don’t know what the word “condominium” means, don’t worry – you’re not alone! I get asked that a lot, especially by first-time home buyers. The word “condominium” is a fancy Latin word for “shared home.” You share responsibility for your home’s maintenance and upkeep with your condo board. In most condos, you own and are responsible for everything inside the dwelling, but the condo association is responsible for everything outside the house.

For example, if your hot water heater goes bust, you would be responsible for repairing it. But if your roof gets a leak, the condo association is responsible for fixing it – because it is an exterior feature of the condo. Exterior repairs and maintenance are paid for through condo fees. Everyone in the condo association pays a little money to the condo board each month, and that money is used for commonly-agreed upon bills. What is covered varies from place to place, but here are common features that condo fees may include:

lawn maintenance,
sewer bills,
insurance,
water bills,
trash pick-up,
community pool maintenance,
community gym maintenance,
upkeep of the community tennis court, playground, or golf course,
cable bills,
snow removal and/or plowing,
elevator maintenance (if you live in a multi-level building),
security (for gated communities or multi-level buildings),
community clubhouse maintenance,
roof or exterior siding maintenance, or
whatever the board votes on and agrees to, really.

Of course, some of these bills are things that Homeowners or Property Owners Associations cover if you live in a single family neighborhood. It’s up to you to decide which situation is the best fit for your needs.

There are advantages and disadvantages for each purchase. If you’re a first time home buyer, or someone older who is downsizing, a condo can be very appealing. If you’re somewhere in between, maybe not so much. Here’s my quick guide to understanding the difference between condos and single family homes.

Pros and Cons of Condos and Homes

a white home

Size – Usually – but not always! – a condo is smaller than a single family house. This is not necessarily bad. Depending on your needs, a smaller home might be perfect. There is less to clean and therefore less clutter.
In Virginia Beach, condos are often built up instead of out. Meaning, your 2000 square feet of space might be spread across three floors straight up instead of out across a single family ranch home.

Maintenance – This is another reason that many buyers emphatically prefer condos – especially older buyers that don’t want to push that lawnmower through the summer heat. Or young military families – mothers with small children and a husband deployed somewhere in the Med would rather not worry about weeding flowerbeds.When you own a house you are responsible for external maintenance, including mowing the grass, weeding the flower beds and keeping whatever plants you have alive. You can also expect to rake a ton of leaves every fall. Some people enjoy the work, but if you’re like me, you’d rather avoid it.
When you own a condo, you pay fees to have the association keep the grounds you share with all the other owners. Often the landscaping is designed for minimal maintenance. Your overall workload for upkeep is less when you are in a condo than a house.

Privacy – Depending on where you are, homes tend to be more private. A house is a self-contained unit generally separated by at least a little space from other houses. In contrast, a condominium shares space with other units by definition. This is a major distinction that every purchaser must seriously consider. If you value privacy and want space from your neighbors, a home is probably a better fit for you.
There are some advantages to sharing a common area like you do with a condominium though. You might have access to better amenities – pool, sauna, hot tub, fitness center – that would be cost prohibitive to purchase privately. You may also enjoy being closer to your neighbors as well.

Financial Health – this is where condos and houses vary substantially. Most condo boards are tasked with managing the neighborhood’s financial health. The owners in the neighborhood pay monthly or quarterly fees to cover expenses.
But what if one (or several) homeowners don’t pay? It doesn’t happen very often, but condo associations can get in trouble if not everyone pays their agreed-upon share.

Mortgages – Depending on your loan type, getting a mortgage for a condo can be more difficult than with a single family house. For starters, FHA mortgages (a very generous government loan program) must approve of your condo development. Not all developments get the seal of approval.
So be careful – with a condominium you need to verify upfront that you will be able to use certain types of loans.

Control – If having complete control over your property is absolutely essential for you, buying a single-family home outside of an HOA is probably best. You won’t have the safety net that a POA is supposed to provide – making sure the area retains certain standards, that home values remain as high as possible and that all owners comply with agreed upon rules.In exchange, you can do anything you like so long as you don’t violate municipal laws: paint your house with glitter, erect a statue of Captain Hook, build a slide from your second floor window to the driveway.

If you buy a home in a neighborhood with an HOA, there will be limits to what you can do. You must obey the rules of the HOA. Say goodbye to Captain Hook and that glitter garage door. However, you get benefits that may keep your neighborhood within certain quality standards.

Buying a condo is similar to buying a house in a POA neighborhood. There will be fees and there will be condo guidelines.

But with a condo, you are sharing even more than a regular HOA. You share a roof with your neighbors and possibly other common areas – all of which you will share financial responsibility for. Associations can be good or bad depending on who is running them.

What Can I Do to Protect Myself?

Maintenance, privacy, control… by now, you’re probably asking “How do I know what I’m getting into before I buy? How do I protect myself if I don’t like it?” The answer is simple: we add a condo (or a POA) contingency to your purchase contract.

What’s a contingency? A contingency is an exit strategy. POA and condo contingencies are very similar. When you make an offer on a house, we’ll ask for a copy of the POA (or condo!) association bylaws and financial statements. After that, you’ll have three days to read them. If, for any reason, the bylaws make you uncomfortable, you can back out of the contract. It’s that easy.

The Final Say: Should I Buy a Condo or a House?

Here’s a quick recap of everything we discussed above.

Homes – Pros and Cons

Home and yard maintenance is always your expense.
You don’t have to ask anyone else’s permission to paint your house.
You are responsible for taking care of all insurance costs.
There are no condominium fees to worry about paying.
You have complete control over the property.

Condos – Pros and Cons

There may be pet or rental restrictions.
You’ll probably need permission for any exterior changes to the property.
A condo might provide perks you can’t afford on your own, like a pool or gym.
Expenses for maintenance cannot be paid on your own schedule.

Each option has its own distinct advantages and disadvantages. Should I buy a condo or a house? It is up to you to decide which fits your circumstances best.