5 Kinds of Smart Technology Your Home Needs

Smart home features can save you money on bills, ensure the security of your home, and make life easier for you. Here are five examples of smart tech that are popular today.

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Smart technology is becoming increasingly popular in the market. These high-tech items can attract buyers, boost your home’s value, and just make your home more convenient for you and your family. Today I’ll share five examples of smart home features you might consider installing in your own home.

1. Smart thermostats ($180 to $250). This is one of the most popular smart home features that people in the market are installing in their homes. When you leave the house, your smart thermostat will automatically adjust your temperature to your specifications, allowing you to be energy efficient in your practices and to keep your bill down. Popular brands of smart thermostats include Ecobee, Nest, and Honeywell. The cost is worth it, though; this technology can save you as much as $250 annually on your energy bill.

2. Smart door locks ($200 to $250). When you leave your house, a smart lock can automatically lock the door behind you, which can keep you from worrying about whether or not your house is secure. What’s more, if you have friends, family, or service workers coming to your house when you’re not there,  you can unlock the door remotely for them from your phone. We personally recommend the August Smart Lock brand.

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Smart thermostats can save you as much as $250 annually on your energy bill.

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3. Video doorbells ($199). With these, you can see whoever walks up to your door from your phone, wherever you are. Certain brands will alert you when someone even approaches your door; some have microphones that allow you to talk with whoever is there. It’s perfect for home security and general convenience. Ring is the most popular brand that we’d recommend.

4. Smart smoke detectors (Varies). A smart smoke detector can save you 5% on your insurance premium; like other smart technology, you can access it remotely so you’ll have an idea of what’s going on in your home when you’re not there. We recommend that you use either Birdi or Nest, which also have carbon monoxide detectors built in as well.

5. Smart irrigation ($200). The Sky Drop smart irrigation system can track the local weather and water your yard or garden depending on the conditions. It will also track how much rain accumulates and adjusts the water use accordingly.

Depending on your lifestyle, any or all of these additions can add a lot to your home experience, and add value and appeal to it when it comes time to sell.

If you have any questions about smart home features or about real estate in general, reach out to us. We’d be glad to help you.

What’s the Best Way to Make Sure Your Listing Is Seen?

Our team uses a variety of aggressive marketing strategies to ensure our clients find buyers. Here are just a few of them.

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Today, let’s talk about how to aggressively market your home.

First, why is it important to be aggressive when it comes to marketing your home? Most homes that sell for high prices typically sell in the first 30 days, so it’s very important that you market the property to increase the amount of traffic onto your property within that time in order to bolster your chance of getting the highest price.

The more homebuyers who come to look at your home, the better your chances are of getting a good offer quickly, meaning more money for you.

Here are some tips and tricks we at the Michael Kaim Team use to promote properties:

1. Internet. Today, 90% of all buyers start their search online before even getting out to look at properties. Make sure that your home is exposed on all the major sites as a featured listing. Getting featured-listing status is easy with our team because we sign up as a Zillow premier agent, and our listings stick out like a sore thumb. Websites like Zillow, Trulia, Homes.com, and Realtor.com are our top four sites that will expose your home right at the beginning of your listing period.

2. Professional photography. When you list the property for sale, you’ll want to make sure that the house is staged properly so that it looks great in photographs, which also ties back into maintaining a strong online presence.

3. Direct mailing and print advertisements. We have ads in every major news publication, so we’ll capture all the buyers who don’t search online. Additionally, we send out “just-listed” postcards to your area, which would tell your neighbors that the house is for sale. We can also post signs in your front yard to alert passers-by.

4. Email blasts. We can send out emails to not only the top producers in the industry, but also to our database of 20,000 buyers and sellers that we have registered on our site.

Between all of these marketing tools, we’re sure to find you prospective buyers. If you have any questions, you can always reach me by phone or email. Make it a great day!

11 Reasons to List Your Home During the Holiday Season

Today, I have a list of 11 great reasons to put your house on the market this holiday season.

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The holidays are just around the corner. There are 11 reasons why it’s important to list your home during the holidays, especially if you are motivated to sell your home.

1. Buyers are more serious this time of year. There won’t be any tire-kickers going through two feet of snow in terrible weather to look at homes. The buyers who are out there are not going to waste your time; they are serious about making a purchase.

2. There will be fewer homes on the market, which means you will have less competition. Less competition leads to higher demand for your house, which will naturally allow you to get more money.

3. There will be less demand for your home in January when inventory goes up, which will mean less money for you at that time.

Today, I have a list of 11 great reasons to put your house on the market this holiday season.

4. Houses show better when they are decorated for the holidays.

5. Buyers tend to make more emotional decisions during the holidays. They are thinking about being with their friends and family in the new home. As a result, they tend to make emotional decisions when choosing a home.

6. Buyers have more time to look at homes during the holidays than they do during the normal work week. If buyers have time off, they are looking at properties.

7. Some buyers need to buy before the end of the year for tax reasons. People might be buying an investment property. They may need to do a 1031 exchange and move money from one investment into your property before the end of the year.

8. Relocation buyers need to move before January 1. Since relocation buyers need to start their new jobs in January, they need to close and be in the house in December. If your house is not on the market, you will miss those relocation buyers. It’s advantageous to have your house on the market during the holiday season because you might get that corporate relocation buyer who has to make a purchase before January 1.

9. You can restrict showings during the holidays. If you have family over for Thanksgiving or the holidays, you do not have to show your home on those days. We can schedule more efficient showings on other days for serious buyers so you don’t have to worry about hosting the holiday celebration and making your home available to buyers at the same time.

10. You can sell now and delay the closing. You don’t have to close in November or December; you can close at the end of December and have a delayed possession period. We can also delay closing until January or February so that you don’t have to move during the holidays.

11. By selling now, you will be a non-contingent buyer in the spring. You won’t have to wait for your current home to sell before you can buy a new one in the spring market. Plus, you can also sell high during the winter, when inventory is low, and buy low in the spring. Once inventory goes up, you will have more options and can get a better deal.

As you can see, putting your home on the market during the holiday season comes with a number of benefits. If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to give me a call or send me an email. I would be happy to help you!

Greater Cleveland Area Real Estate Year End Review 2013

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Welcome back! I have some great news! We are now a part of Warren Buffet's company, Berkshire Hathaway Home Services. We are so excited; it's a great brand and we can't wait to take advantage of all the new tools they have to offer.

If you are currently listed with us, the signs in your yard will change. If you have any questions about the company you can give me a call, or you can check out more about the company by clicking here to visit the website or click here to view what Warren Buffet has to say.

I also wanted to recap what happened in 2013 and find out what you can expect from 2014. In 2013 the Michael Kaim Team saw a 10% increase in sales year over year. The Cleveland market as a whole saw a 13.5% increase in sales.

Interest rates were phenomenally low in 2013; at the beginning of the year they were 3.25% and they ended at 4.5%.

So what can you expect from 2014? Inventory is still low, but it is expected to increase as the spring draws nearer. Interest rates are still right around 4.5% but are expected to increase to as much as 5.5%.

If you are thinking about selling, now is the time. There is little inventory which means less competition and the interest rates are still low enough that there are a number of buyers looking.

If you are thinking about buying or selling, or have a question about our new name, give me a call today at 440.974.0404