Greater Cleveland Real Estate Blog

Solon Real Estate. Chagrin Highlands.

What's Your Neighbor's House Selling For?

This year we decided to start the monthly series "What's your neighbor's house selling for?".

Winter is traditionally not the most convenient time to list your Solon Real Estate or any house or condo in Greater Cleveland for sale. However, this year may be a bit different. We experienced an unusual buyer's activity during few last weeks of 2011. As a result, we don't have enough inventory to satisfy the buyer's demand.

Let's look at Chagring Highlands in Solon OH.

This is traditionally a very popular upscale development that offers a variety of large, well designed and quality built single family homes situated on spacious lots. Part of Chagrin Hihglands has been designated for luxurious cluster homes - Aberdeen Homeowner's Association in Chagrin Highlands offers beautiful one and two storied homes on a smaller lots.

  It was six homes in Chagrin Highlands sold during 2011:

36905 Aberdeen Ln - sold 04/18/11 for $$325,000

38665 Gaelic Glen - sold 04/18/11 for $400,000

6112 Penfield Ln - sold 06/20/11 for $$655,000

6212 Chagrin Highlands Dr - sold 09/15/11 for $430,000

6229 Penfield Ln - sold 12/16/11 for $$265,000

6174 Penfield Ln - sold 12/16/11 for $475,000.

As you can see, two out of six homes closed in December, 2011. Currently we have one home under the contract, pending for closing, and two active listings:

If you own the property in Chagring Highlands of Solon and think about selling it in 2012, please call Svetlana 877-770-5551 x 801. It's a good time to plan your successful selling. One of the most important parts of right planning is the honest and qualified assessment of your needs and of the market attractiveness of your property.

Don't wait too long. Call today! 877-770-5551 x 801.

I was showing the houses in Solon to my very motivated buying client the other day. It's no need to say how I love selling Solon Real Estate! One of the reasons is that we have many very professional Real Estate agents who actively sell in this prominent city.

It's hard to overvalue what good agents can do for Real Estate market! Just to mention few very important impacts:

• Right pricing. Good listing agent intimately knows the market and can analyze all available data in order to suggest a reasonable price to the seller. Good selling agent knows how to analyze available market data and how to research market trends in order to advise home buyers on reasonable offered price.
• Right promotion of the City and neighborhood amenities, which attracts more qualified buyers to Solon.
• Right advice on preparing houses for sale , which positively affects condition of the houses and their saleability.

Good new is that we indeed have many good homes diligently prepared for showings by caring owners under a smart supervision of great Real Estate agents in Solon.  It' a big pleasure to show these houses to home buyers. Three of four homes which I showed the other night were in an excellent showing condition. You can always say that agent works hard to educate her selling clients on how to keep the house in a model mode and how to utilize few little secrets to make potential buyers welcome and comfortable at the house. These homes represent the Showing Perfection, and they make me feel proud for being a Real Estate agent in Solon.

However, there was one big and really bad surprise. As professionals, we don't like surprises, neither our clients do.

Mess, strong smell, personal belongings here and there, poor dog in the cage, and all over the place - dog's poop right on the recently replaced carpet - that's not the full description of what we saw there.

If this showing were not confirmed and approved by the seller or the seller's agent, I would be seriously concerned. But it was. Actually, we were waiting for approval for a while before we got it. This house is on the market for over 600 days. What a shame that this smartly designed, spacious home presented so many bad surprises.

The worst one was that my client got such a strong allergic reaction that we literally ran out of the house.

Bad that this showing disappointment did not allow my client to even see few very strong advantages of this property.

I'm glad that pictures do not smell:))

Showing perfection sells homes.

Showing disappointment hurts both the seller' bottom line and the agent' reputation.

Short sales in Cleveland may be smooth and nice,

and we've got numerous proves to this. Few of our short sales in Mentor, Mentor-on-the-Lake, and other Greater Cleveland neighborhoods went so good that you would never tell the difference between these Short sales and normal, regular sales.

Actually, we've just closed another Short sale deal in Mentor yesterday. I am really happy for my clients, the sellers, and I wish the best to the new owners who purchased a wonderful home in a great condition for a very attractive price.

I like to analyze the successful closings because they create a pattern and raise the bar for the future sales. I  don't consider myself a real master of the short sales but I work on doing as good job for my clients as it's possible. Analysis of successful sales helps a lot. So, what makes a successful short sale?

  What makes a successful Short sale:

1. Seller's understanding of a situation: timely consultation with a Short sale specialist can protect you from horrors of foreclosure.
2. Sellers' ability to fight their own fears. Fears feed procrastination. Procrastination leads to late decision to seek an advice from a Short sale specialist, then - See #1.
3. Seller's cooperation in dealing with the lenders. If the lender asks you about any proof of income, or any detailed statement, or letter of hardship - just do it! Give it to them. Don't think that they forget. If they ask for it, they need it. Even if it looks unreasonable and stupid.
   
4. Real Estate agent who knows how to deal with the short sale negotiations.
5. Real Estate agent who is patient and polite and firm enough to make it happen.
6. Real Estate agent who knows how to market short sales. Marketing includes a right pricing strategy, it also includes an ability of a Short sale listing agent to keep you, the owner, motivated and enthusiastic about keeping the property in a salable shape.
7. Good buyer who understands what the Short sale is and who is ready financially and emotionally to wait for an approval for a while (sometimes for a long while) and, upon getting an approval, start acting quickly and consistently to close timely (usually it's 30 days upon approval).
8. Good buyer's agent who has an experience in dealing with this kind of situations and who can patiently educate her clients. I was lucky to partner with Gina Miller from Prudential Select Properties in our last Short sale in Mentor,  who was just great.
9. Good team: both Realtors(R), title agents who specialize in Short sales, buyer's lender, seller's attorney.
10. Last - and the most influential - sellers' lenders, who should be willing to do a short sale.  

Dear home owners! Don't wait too long if you are in trouble and need to sell your house. Don't let your fears ruin your credit.

CALL LOCAL-N-GLOBAL SHORT SALE HOTLINE 877-770-5551

We can really help you.

Cleveland Homes for sale needed! Sold out - and ready to sell more!

I've just come back to Cleveland from my two weeks trip to Russia, just to find out that my inventory of homes for sale in Eastern suburbs of Cleveland is almost SOLD OUT.

After few months of relatively slow market, Cleveland home buyers started actively making the offers, which  is good and smart of them.

Real Estate mantras, like "Prices are historically low", "Interest rates are historically low", "Houses have never been as affordable as they are today" are all true. I'm glad that many buyers appreaciate this unique situation.

We, the marketing and listing specialists in Local-n-Global Realty are ready to help more home owners to move up or down and to sell their homes in Greater Cleveland. Just give us a call 24/7 - 877-770-5551. We'll be happy to present to you our scientifically designed, meticulously planned, and enthusiastically performed marketing system, which helps many Cleveland home owners to sell their houses and condos.

Should we be more creative to sell all this inventory of Solon homes for sale?

I was doing the Solon Real Estate market absorption rate analysis for one of my clients the other day. Results were not unexpected but still unpleasant. In popular Solon OH we have a many-many months inventory of homes for sale.

What level of creativity is needed from Real Estate agents to sell out all this inventory?

I don't believe that it's all about pricing. Most Solon homes are priced very reasonably considering all the amenities of this great city, excellent school system, and condition of Solon properties.

Most of home buyers in Solon OH have good income, well qualified for mortgage financing, and have good credit history.

I know that excellent Real Estate agents work in Solon area. Maybe, we need just more creativity? Fresh look at the way we market homes? Better attention to core needs of our clients?

What do you think?

Just take a look at the results of the absorption rate analysis for Solon and few other cities in Greater Cleveland area. Too many homes for sale!

Home in Shaker Heights OH - sellers asked about dramatic price reduction.

My job as a listing agent is to procure the best qualified buyer - able , willing and ready to buy the property of my client on acceptable to my selling client terms. 

It happens, however, that despite all scientifically designed and artistically performed marketing, the result is not delivered as quickly as we wish. The reason is in most cases the ugly, unpleasant truth about the PRICE.

Even in 4-5 short weeks market may change, and initial price strategy does not work as efficiently as it was designed at first place.  At this point we re-analyze the market and suggest the price change to our sellers.

Usually, it takes some time and effort to convince the seller to reduce the price to a more adequate level. Not in this case. My amazing client - the owner of a beautiful and spacious home in Shaker Heights OH -  asked me to make even more dramatic price cut than it was intended.

This is the reason of this post - to announce that the house at 2669 Rochester Rd. in Shaker Heights, OH is offered now for unbelievable $220,000!

You should take your chance and immediately call 877-770-5551 ext.127 to see this 4 bedrooms, 2 1/2 baths home in one of the best neighborhoods of historic Shaker Heights.

Best Price in The Best Neighborhood of Shaker Heights

Overview Maps Photos Description

$220,000 Single Family Home For Sale Main Features 4 Bedrooms 2 Bathrooms 1 Partial Bathroom Interior: 2636 sqft Lot: 0.28 acre(s) Location 2669 Rochester Rd. Shaker Heights, OH 44122 To get updates on open home dates and other property events, please click the "Like" button below:

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Svetlana Stolyarova Local-n-Global Realty (440) 2475388 Realty@Local-n-Global.com http://www.Local-n-Global.com Listed by: Local-n-Global Realty

Our recent listings Best Price in The Best Neighborhood of Shaker Heights Dream home in South Euclid. Simply irresistable! Great Home in Pepper Pike OH For Under $300K Updated ranch in Brandywine Preserve - better than new! Exciting House in Gates Mills Subscribe to our listing feed

See more Shaker Heights, OH real estate for sale

Cleveland is a wonderful city. I dearly love living here and helping people buy and sell the houses in wonderful East Side suburbs of Greater Cleveland.

One thing I don't understand: WHY WINTER IS SO-O LONG HERE in CLEVELAND?!!

We have this Sunday's Open House planned and scheduled couple weeks before. We ordered a nice TV presentation on Real Estate Showcase TV on Channel 43, which will be broadcasted at 11:00 am. 02/28/2010.

We announced it everywhere. I mean, really everywhere - Twitter, Facebook, OhioOpenHouse.com, Local-n-Global.com, Trulia, Zillow, you name more.

We compiled a short video and uploaded it at YouTube.

What we need now is a good Sunday without snow, so our home buyers get a chance not to miss this wonderful opportunity to preview beautiful ranch style home in a convenience of Open House.

I am very optimistic about our home buyers. Besides this Open House, we have a house tour and a home inspection for our home buyers.

When people really need to buy they don't care about the weather or any other excuses! Good luck to all homebuyers in Greater Cleveland!

What's our home in Cleveland suburbs really worth?

There are many homeowners who want to sell their homes and move to another one. However, according to 2009 NAR Profile of Home Buyers, 47 % of all home buyers were first time buyers, which means that only 53 % were repeat home buyers.

This was a record low number of repeat home buyers. Multiple reasons are responsible for this disbalance, such as falling home prices, inability to sell for more than owed to the bank, ruined or corrupted credit history of current homeowners, inability to verify income to be sufficient for a new loan, etc., etc.

Besides these reasons, there is one, which is hard to measure but which is very real: FEAR. Fear to move to a bigger home, fear to get a higher mortgage, fear to lose a job or business.

I personally believe that new $6,500 tax credit, which has been expanded to existing homeowners who own their residences during five consecutive years within last eight years is the best stimulus action offered by our government. We see more and more inquiries from existing home owners who are willing to buy another home.

Just few examples: young family wants to move from the condo in Highland Heights to a bigger home in Kirtland, or Family of four  needs to sell a house in South Euclid in order to move to a bigger home in Solon, couple wants to downsize from their home in Gates Mills to condo in Aurora, and many more.

All these people have the same question: what's our home or condo in a Cleveland suburb really worth on today's market?

We in Local-n-Global Realty have a great tool for the homeowners: instant Real Estate evaluator. Just click the banner above, type in your address and get one of the very accurate estimates in the industry.

Sure, none of the machines can do the same job as experienced, knowledgeable Real Estate expert can do in giving you a right idea of not only how much yout house in Cleveland can be worth, but also - and more important - on what to do to get your house sold .

You deserve to move on with your life! It's just a right time to make a move! Call us 877-770-5551 or Svetlana Stolyarova directly 216-548-4663 and let's discuss your Real Estate situation in order to find the best solution for your family!

Is it wise to list your home or condo in Cleveland during the Holiday season?

Many Cleveland Real Estate agents are traditionally on their vacation at this time of year. Some experts, on the contrary, believe that Holiday season is the best time to show your homes in Cleveland to serious home buyers.

Let's see what are advantages and disadvantages of selling a house in Cleveland OH during the Holidays.

Disadvantages:

• We have real winters in Cleveland! It may be cold, snowy, hard to see the driveway or roof, hard to walk around the yard
• It's hard to show the properties as daylight time is shorter
• It may be disturbing and inconvenient for homeowners to show the properties due to family gatherings, cooking, gift packing, etc.
  

Advantages:

• There are no "Just lookers" on the market at this time of year - serious buyers only
• Competition is not as strong as on Spring or Summer market, fewer properties listed for sale
• If the property is decorated, it looks more attractive for potential buyers - warmer, prettier, more like Home should be
  
• Limited home buyers tax credit incentive makes buyers more active and anxious about purchasing a home timely.

SOMETHING ELSE? YOUR OPINION PLEASE!

The Plain Dealer will feature one of our listings - a condo in Willoughby, Big Turtle II on December 26, 2009. We'll see how efficient this advertising will be. In order to make the Plain Dealer's Ad more powerful, we will support it by broadcasting it on Twitter and Facebook. I hope, home buyers and their agents will not miss this wonderful opportunity to buy a very good condominium in Willoughby in truly move-in condition.

Happy Holidays to all of you!