Staging Helps Buyers Visualize Their New Home
SouthlandRegional Association of Realtors® By DanTresierras, President,and DavidWalker Carefully planned and skillfully executed home staging can trigger a buyer’s emotional connection to a house, making it easier for them to visualize the property as their future home.
Realtor DanTresierras, 2019 SRAR President
As the spring home buying seasonkicks off, anew national surveyshows that 83 percent of buyers’agents saythat staging makes it easier forbuyers to see ahome’s fullpotential, According to
the reportfromthe National AssociationofRealtors, morethan half of sellers’agents said that staging ahome decreases the amount of time ahome spends on themarket, with 25 percent saying that it greatlydecreases the time and 28 percent saying it slightly decreases the time.
Notevery Realtor recommends staging in everysituation, yetmost professionals acknowledgethe potential value to homebuyers and sellers.
Buyers arenot making just an investment in aproperty,theyare making an emotional connection, purchasing aplace to call home,toraise their children, to begin anew chapter,ortoretire
Buyer Opportunities Grow as Inventory Expands
Realtors assisted the close of escrow of 266 single-family homes and 108 condominiums during February throughout the San Fernando Valley even as the inventory of homes listed for sale continued to expand and prices showed signs of softening, the Southland Regional Association of Realtors reported Wednesday.
There were 1,186 properties on the Association’s MLS service,a number that was up 23.8 percent over a year ago. Nine of the last ten months saw the inventory spike higher,a trend that stood in sharp contrast to the prior 39 consecutive months of declines.
“Today’s buyers have less competition to deal with and a wider selection of homes to choose from,” said Dan Tresierras, president of the 10,300-member Southland Regional Association of REALTORS®. “Plus, with fewer multiple offers, buyers are finding
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to anew seasonoflife. Staging enables that vision.
Forty percent of buyer’agents said staging has an impact on most of their buyers. Morethan half said that even if the effect was not visceral or emotional, it nonetheless hadaneffect on buyers’opinionofahome.
Realtors who represent buyers reportthat the living room is the most important room in a home to stage.The next most important roomsare the master bedroom, and then the kitchen.
Interestingly, sellers’agents agree with those rooms, butin reverse order.Overall,the guest bedroomisconsidered the least important room to stage.
Forty-four percent of buyers’ agents reported that staging a home increased the financial offer on ahome.Twenty-fivepercent said staging ahomeincreases its dollar value by 1to5percent and 12 percent said that it increases the dollar value 6to10percent.
The Southland Regional Association of Realtors® isalocal trade association with more than 10,300 members serving the San Fernando and Santa Clarita Valleys.
more sellers willing to negotiate the price.
“After an extended sellers’ market, what we’re seeing today looks more balanced,”Tresierras said. “It’s a market where buyers have gained negotiating leverage and sellers may have to offer concessions if they want a speedy sale.”
The 266 homes that changed owners last month were down 13.9 percent from February 2018, a drop that followed seasonal patterns yet also set a record low. Similarly,the 108 condominium sales were 13.6 percent lower than the prior year,though up 3.9 percent from January.
The median price of single-family homes sold during February of $657,000 was down 6.1 percent from a year ago. The home median price has been trending lower since hitting a record high of $708,000 in May and August of last year.
The same thing has been happening with the condominium median price: it peaked in July and August with a record $449,000 yet dipped lower in the ensuing months. The condominium median for February of $420,000 was up 2.4 percent from February 2018.
Realtors Back Newsom’s Housing Proposals
Realtors statewide recently announced their support of Gov. Gavin Newsom’s new legislative proposals designed to address the housing supply crisis.
The California AssociationofRealtors was encouraged that Newsomisaddressing the housing shortageheadonwith bold and innovativeideas that willhelp putCalifornia on theright tracktoincrease supplyand protect homeownership. “Gov.Newsom’slegislativeproposals demonstratehis steadfastcommitment to diggingCalifornia out of itsdirehousingcrisis,” said C.A.R.
President Jared Martin.
The governor’s plan,rolled out on recently, is partofhis broader $1.75 billionhousing crisis packagefor 2019.The recommendations call forhigher short-termstatewide housing goalsestablished by the California Department of Housing and CommunityDevelopment, $250 milliontohelpcities and counties with planning,$500 millioninhousing productionincentivegrants forlocal governments, $500 millionfor expanding the State Housing Tax Credit Program to spur middle-class housing productionand modernizing long-termRegionalHousing Need Allocationgoals by 2022.The plan would also provide necessaryaccountabilitybywithholding SB 1gas tax funds from jurisdictions that arenot compliant with the updated regional goals.
The governor’s most recent announcement, along with bills that C.A.R.
announced its sponsorship of recently, continue the needed momentum to prioritizeincreasing housing supplyasthe solutdiontoCalifornia’s housing shortage.
Win a BMW, a Trip to Pebble Beach!
Register now for SRAR’s annual Charity Golf Tournament, which is one of the Association’s most popular events and its largest fundraiser of the year for the SRAR Charitable Foundation — a 501(c)3 non-profit organization.
The event includes aterrificday of golf, games, lunch, as well as adelicious dinner, and amazing raffle prizes. Agolfer who makes a“hole-in-one”could win aBMW. There’salsoa“hole-in-two”competition with the prizebeing golf fortwo at Pebble Beach.The tournament willbeheld on Monday, April15, at the Calabasas Country Club.
The playergolf feeof$175 includes a two-some at alater date at Calabasas CountryClub. Arookie packageisavailable for $75. Go to SRAR.com foraplayersign-up form.Sponsorship opportunities arestillavailable,eachofwhichistax deductible.Contact Theresa Gonzales todayvia email at theresag@srar.com forsponsorship opportunities.
EAGLE Sponsors • Shane, DiGiuseppe & Rodgers, LLP • US Bank Home Mortgage • SUPRA • CRMLS BIRDIE Sponsors • HSBC • Logix Federal Credit Union HOLE Sponsors • The Box Pro • Spile, Leff & Goor, LLP • AREAA SFV & SCV Chapter
• Mel Wilson & Associates • REALTOR.com • La Rocca Inspections TEE Sponsors • EH Realty Photo Sponsor • Loans by Lela HOLE-IN-ONE Sponsor • Bob Smith BMW HOLE-IN-TWO Sponsor • Charity Golf International Drink Sponsor • Mike’s Hard Lemonade
THE VOICE FOR REAL ESTATE IN THE SAN FERNANDO AND SANTA CLARITA VALLEYS
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Real Estate Questions? E-mail Dan Tresierras, SRAR 2019 President, c/o DavidW@SRAR.com
REALTOR® is afederally registered collectivemembership markwhich identifies areal estateprofessional who is aMember of theNATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS® and subscribes to itsstrict Code of Ethics.
