How We Helped a Veteran Find His Dream Home

We’ve been fortunate enough to help a veteran like Cody find his dream home. Here is how we helped him accomplish this.

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In honor of Veterans Day, today we wanted to honor one of our special clients who we have helped find a home. Cody Wightman is a veteran of the U.S. Army who served four years with the 10th Mountain Division, including a 16-month deployment to Afghanistan. Cody had a growing family and they had outgrown their home. They hired us to help them find a place with some more room.

The experience can be overwhelming, but we made sure to take the time to ask and answer any questions that Cody had to make sure we were taking care of things on our end and making the process easy for them.

Happy Veterans Day to all those who have served our country.

The house that we found was the result of being opportunistic. We knew about the listing before it was even on the market, and were able to get Cody and his family in there first. They beat out a lot of others to make an offer and our speed is what sealed the deal. They may have missed out on this home if they weren’t working with us. 

If you or anybody you know is a veteran, send them our best wishes. If you have any other questions or if you’re looking to buy or sell a home, give us a call or send us an email. We look forward to hearing from you.

The Keller Williams Core Values

Today's the Halloween edition of our blog, so I wanted to take the chance to talk about the values of Keller Williams and our business at the Michael Rager Realty Group.

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In today's Halloween edition of our video blog, I wanted to talk about the core values of Keller Williams Realty. These values are really the reasons that I joined Keller Williams.

Keller Williams talks about putting your life in the order of God, family, and then business. We call these values the WI4C2TS, and you'll see how they align with my Captain America costume and the Michael Rager Realty Group, as well.

We prioritize things like family, integrity, and success.

• Win-win or no deal.
• Integrity means doing the right thing whether someone is looking or not.
• Customers always come first. We have a high level of fiduciary commitment in all things.
• Communication: we seek first to understand because selling isn't telling, as I like to say. We ask questions to find out the best ways to help you.
• Creativity means ideas before results.
• Teamwork, meaning that together, everyone achieves more.
• Trust, which starts with honesty.
• Success, because we talk about results through people.

These core values also address creating businesses worth owning and lives worth having. The purpose of business is to fund a perfect life. They are also the reasons that drew me to Keller Williams.

If you have any questions about our values and how they help you buy or sell a home, or you have any questions at all about Pennsylvania real estate, give me a call or send me an email. I'd love to show you how these values can work for you!

How The Mike Rager Team Provided Insight and Guidance

“They were there all the time. It was easy to get in touch with them. They got my house sold pretty quickly. After we got an offer the buyers had gotten difficult after their inspection and wanting this amount taken off, it was a lot of back and forth. They [Mike Rager Team] provided a lot of insight and guidance through that process which was really great.”

Jay

How Mike and Courtney Helped Jennifer Sell Her Home

“We put our house up for sale and our house was in the 500-600k range which can be difficult to sell. We hadn’t had any luck with a prior realtor. The prior realtor wasn't doing very much besides listing it on the internet and having some sporadic open houses which were mostly my neighbors so I was dissatisfied. One thing I noticed about Mike and his wife Courtney was they kept in touch with me very regularly. They were always calling me, giving me updates, letting me know what was going on, letting me know what kind of homes were in the area, what was competitive, what we should do and not do. I was very pleased with them; I would definitely use them again. Once my house was sold the date was changed once or twice due to the buyers needing to get in the home. At first they said they could close in 10 weeks and then they backed it up and our closing date changes several changes. They wanted in sooner and wanted to get things in the house sooner. There was still quite a bit of things we left up there. Immediately Courtney said they would find a day and her and Mike would drive up and help me. Between Mike and a friend, my SUV and Courtney’s van, we got the rest of the stuff out of there. They helped me out. It would have been really hard to do on my own. I had a couch and TV that I couldn’t find anything to do with. They knew someone that needed it so they got that out of there and took it for me, so it was great!”
-Jennifer

The Home Buying Checklist

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It’s a great time to buy a home right now in Pittsburgh. If you’re in the market for a new home, here are some items to keep in mind as you begin the process.

The first thing you want to consider is whether you want to buy a new construction home or a pre-owned home. The question really is if you want brand-new things, or don’t mind an older home with mature landscaping and character.

The second thing you want to figure out is the makeup of the neighborhood you want to move into. Spending time in the neighborhood before buying helps, and the questions you want to answer include who you want your neighbors to be and how close you want to live to other people.

These tips will lead you to the right property.

The third and final thing to figure out is if the bedroom count and the floor plan are workable for you. If you have a big family or like to entertain, you’ll need more space. If you plan on having kids, or more kids, you might want an extra room as well.

If you have any questions for me, don’t hesitate to give me a call or send me an email. I look forward to hearing from you.

The 8 Keys to Finding a Strong Listing Agent

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When getting ready to sell your home, one of the first things you want to do is find yourself a strong listing agent. Here are eight questions you can ask any real estate agent to get insight into who they are, what their track record is, and how hard they work for their clients:

1. Is this your full-time job and how long have you been in the business?

2. How many homes did you sell last year?

3. Do you work mostly with buyers or sellers?

4. What’s your average days on market? How long does it take you to sell a home?

5. What’s your list-to-sale price ratio?

6. How will you market my home? Avoid agents who only use the three Ps. They put a home on the MLS, place a sign in the yard, and pray someone buys it. That’s not a good strategy in today’s market.

7. Do you handle the closing yourself or do you have an assistant? An agent with an assistant will always give a higher level of service than someone doing it on their own.

8. Can you give me a list of recent clients you sold homes for?

A strong listing agent is essential.

I guarantee that if you ask an agent these eight questions, you will be able to find out who is going to work for you and who won’t. I hope this helps you out and if it can help out anyone you know, feel free to pass it along.

If you have any questions for me, don’t hesitate to give me a call or send me an email. I look forward to hearing from you.

Tips to Find the Best Buyer's Agent

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I wanted to share some tips with you for finding the right agent when you're buying a home.

Anytime you buy a home, you want to hire a buyer’s agent. This is an agent who works solely with buyers, so you know they're not steering you toward any listings they have instead of all available homes on the market. This ensures that they're working completely on your behalf, representing you, and finding you the best deal they can.

Contact an agent about six to 12 months before you actually plan on buying a home. If they are a good agent, they'll educate you on the entire process with a buyer consultation and follow up until you're ready.

“

A great buyer's agent only works 
with buyers and doesn't take listings.

”

There are five questions you should ask when interviewing agents to help you determine what kind of agent they are:

1. Do you take listings? This will show you whether they're a true buyer's agent, or if they work with both buyers and sellers.
2. Is this your full-time job? You want an agent who works full-time in this business and loves what they do enough to be committed.
3. How many buyers do you help find homes a month? This will show you how active they actually are and how hard they're working for their clients. When an agent does great work, people will refer them to other people they know.
4. How many homes do you personally view a month?
5. What is your asking price to purchase price ratio compared to other agents in the MLS? This will tell you what kind of deals the agent is able to negotiate on your behalf.

Finally, I wanted to give you some final thoughts. A good buyer's agent will educate you on the whole process, not just give you a sales pitch and open some doors to see houses.

A good agent will also always get you pre-qualified by giving you names of lenders so you’ll know you how much you can comfortably afford to spend. Finally, a good buyer's agent will always ask you to sign a buyer agency agreement. This ensures that they're committed to you and will work as hard as they can on your behalf.

I hope you found this topic helpful if you're planning on buying a home. If you have any questions, don't hesitate to reach out to me.

5 Reasons Hiring a Real Estate Agent Will Help You in 2016

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I have five reasons why you should hire a real estate agent in 2016:

1. Paperwork. Real estate agents like myself have the tools and resources as well as the contracts, documents, and addenda necessary for any sale of a home in today’s market.
2. Experience. Experienced real estate agents have sold multiple homes, and we work in the market every single day. I also have a team of administrative supports behind me and specialists to give our clients the highest level of service in our industry.
3. Negotiations. Think about it - our country pays top dollar to hire the world’s best negotiators. You want someone like that to be negotiating for you. I study the practice of negotiation daily, and like a bulldog, I’ll watch over your money like I watch over my own.
4. Pricing. We study the market every day and preview hundreds of homes consistently. We’ll help you when setting the price of your home according to the real estate values of current market conditions, or when you’re presenting an offer on your next home.
5. Understanding current market conditions. Whether it’s a buyer’s market or a seller’s market, or whether we have low inventory or high inventory, supply and demand affect the market in a major way. We know this because we study that market and are able to apply that information to help our clients in the best way possible.

If you have any questions involving real estate or any related topics, please give me a call or send me an email.

How The Michael Rager Realty Group Helped Laura Sell Her Home

"We had our house on the market for a year and it was only shown twice. When that contract was up, Mike called us and he came out. My husband asked him to do a presentation on why we should sign with him. His presentation was very professional. His appearance was professional. He was very sociable. That's why we chose Mike. After we signed with him, the house was shown probably an average of at least twice a week, if not more and sold in two and a half months - for over the asking price. The whole situation was good. The whole process of selling the house was good. We were pleased with everything. When we were purchasing another house to flip, we called the team back. That went very smoothly.”

            -Laura 

Is it Better to Rent a Home or Own a Home?

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Should you rent a home or own a home? Owning a home comes with many benefits, and you may actually be able to afford a home sooner than you think.

When you rent a home, you can get trapped by rising rental rates. When you own a property, you are able to lock in your monthly cost for the life of your mortgage.

Another thing to consider is that it’s actually cheaper to own than it is to rent. Any time you rent a home, you are actually paying the landlord’s mortgage and putting some cash in their pocket. When you own a home, you are paying off your own mortgage and building equity in your home.

“

Don’t put money into the landlord’s 
pocket; build your own wealth.

”

Finally, it’s good to know your options. If you’re renting right now or thinking about entering into another rental lease, consider speaking with a lender. Find out your credit and financial situation. You may be able to purchase a home, and sellers will even pay some of your closing costs.

Don’t get caught in the trap that so many renters do. Everyone is busy and some people procrastinate on big decisions like this. Don’t let another minute go by. I can refer you to some great lenders so you don’t have to put money into another landlord’s pocket.

If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to reach out to me. I would be happy to help you!

What Is Happening in the Pittsburgh Real Estate Market?

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I usually get the same five questions about our real estate market. Here is what’s happening in the Pittsburgh area right now:

1. Are we in a buyer’s or seller’s market? If the market has fewer than five months of inventory, it’s a seller’s market. Five to seven months of inventory is considered a balanced market, while anything over seven months is a buyer’s market. Right now, there are 1,610 homes on the market, which comes out to about 5.4 months of inventory, which means we are on the lower end of a balanced market.

2. What does the current housing inventory look like? Houses are currently selling close to or at market value. Since we are on the low end of a balanced market, there are still fewer homes than there are buyers.

3. How does the current inventory affect home values? Right now is a great time to sell a house. Since inventory is low, you can get more money for your home because there is less competition out there.

4. What do interest rates look like right now? Interest rates remain at historic lows. Nationally, rates are at 3.66%. Rates might increase soon, however, as the Fed is seriously considering an increase in rates.

“

Interest rates will probably go 

up very soon.

”

5. What does all of this mean for buyers and sellers? For sellers, now is a great time to sell your home. If you’re a buyer, you still have a little bit of time to lock in a low rate. Get pre-approved now and get that low interest rate.

If you have any other questions about our current market, just give me a call or send me an email. I would be happy to help you!