Most Marietta Banks are Requiring Down Payments Again

Making a household budget and sticking to it is the easiest way to save for your next Marietta home. However, if you are like many homeowners, finding the extra money every month can be difficult. With that said, cutting back and making realistic savings goals can be accomplished with a little planning and a lot of hard work.

It is important to remember that working toward a goal of owning your own home will be more than worthwhile the moment you can say you are officially a homeowner!

Now that we are all in agreement that the key to saving for your next Marietta home is budgeting, let’s take a look at all the ways you can find the extra money in your budget to accomplish your savings goals.

Let’s explore some of the common excuses for not saving:

I can only afford to save $100 a month. How will I ever be able to afford to buy a home?

Regardless of how little per month you can afford to put away for the down payment on a new home, remember that every dollar counts. And your financial situation could change at any time, so although you may not be saving as much as you’d like right now, you can always increase this amount in the future. Which brings us to the next excuse…

I can’t find any extra cash in my budget to begin saving.

Most people that say they can’t afford to save for their first home often have the ability to save, but choose not to.

What does this mean?

This means that at first glance you may not have any money left over to save each month, but upon further reflection (i.e., making a budget) you may be quite surprised to find many areas in which you can save. For example, how many days per week do you go out to eat? Could you cut those days in half and use the money towards savings? Is your cell phone plan working for you, or are you paying for minutes or coverage that you rarely use? Is it that important to have premium channels on your cable bill each month?

The bottom line is that we can all find areas in which to cut back. If you want to save, you will almost always find ways to do it. It is often as simple as that.

I’m not disciplined enough to save every month.

So many of us make commitments to save every month, but as each month passes, we find other ways to spend the money. A simple solution to this is to set up automatic withdrawals to an interest bearing money market or savings account, either directly from your paycheck or through your checking account.

If you hve ever heard the term “pay yourself first,” this is exactly what it means. Make it a priority to pay yourself first and it will pay off in the form of a new home.

Set your sights on a savings goal and stick to it! You will be rewarded with a new Marietta home of your own sooner than you think!

Tina and her staff of professional Realtors are available to assist with all your real estate needs, to speak with an agent who has local Marietta real estate knowledge call 404.842.1555

Pricing Your Home Correctly in Today's Market

As most real estate experts will tell you, the number one reason homes don’t sell is because they are not priced correctly.

It is important that, when pricing your metro Atlanta home, that you get it right the first time. Pricing your home right is essential if you expect it to move in the current buyers housing market.

Gone are the days of pricing a home in hopes of making a hefty profit, quickly. You must price your home according to the local market conditions. The only exception to this is if you don’t expect to move in the near future. Then, by all means, price it high and wait for the right buyer.

On the other hand, if you are looking to move your home expeditiously, to ensure maximum impact and greatly increase your chances for a quick sale, do your research and set a fair and realistic listing price right from the start.
The following are a list of aspects to keep in mind when setting the listing price for your Atlanta home:

• Pay attention to local real estate trends. Your real estate agent will assemble statistics of all recent sales and listings in your area. This information will be able to give you a good idea of how long houses in your area are sitting on the market, as well as the final sale prices in relation to the listing prices.
• Put your ego aside. That means, regardless of how spectacular you think your home is, ultimately the selling price will be influenced by other sold home prices in your subdivision or community.
• In a perfect world, we would all make a great profit and see a healthy return on all home improvement projects, but this, unfortunately, in today's market is not realistic.
• Price it to sell – from the beginning. Starting out high and then lowering it should it not sell in a predetermined amount of time should not be your game plan if you hope to sell your Atlanta home in a reasonable amount of time.
• Homes that sit on the market for an extended period of time often make buyers concerned that something could be wrong with the house. Pricing your home right will create excitement and generate much more activity than will a reduced house sitting on the market for six months.

Tina and her staff of professional Realtors are seasoned experts in the Metro Atlanta real estate market. To schedule an appointment to discuss your real estate needs contact us at 404-842-1555.