Tulsa Needs You!

Hi! I’m Jennie Wolek, with the Wolek Group at Keller Williams Realty Advantage in Tulsa, OK

Today I’m at the Greater Tulsa Association of Realtors building with our team and our Keller Williams family to help the Backpacks for Kids committee stuff backpacks!  This committee has worked hard to gather donations, mostly from Realtors, to buy and stuff 350 backpacks for children in need.  These children are carefully selected by the Family & Children Services, for those children who have the greatest need.  We are stuffing the backpacks today and they will be given to the children at an upcoming pizza party.  The backpacks include basic essentials such as socks, shirt, underwear, jeans, shoes and toiletries.  We are so happy to help out today- actually our team leader, Susan Beach, cancelled our office meeting so that we could all come and help out. 

On another note, we wanted to update you on our Tornado Relief donations.  After the June tornadoes that hit our state so hard, we promised to give $100 of every closing to the relief efforts.  So far we have given $2000 and plan on continuing these donations through the end of this year.  We really want to THANK YOU for all of your referrals and business that help us give more to help those in need.  We have been dividing our contributions between the Red Cross, Food Bank, Salvation Army and the United Way

NOW Is the Time to Close Your Deal

Hi!

It’s Jennie Wolek with The Wolek Group at Keller Williams Realty Advantage in Tulsa, OK.

I just wanted to chat with you today about URGENCY for both Buyers and Sellers in our market right now.

Schools are going to be starting in about 40 days and that’s the amount of time needed to get a real estate transaction closed. So writing an offer ASAP is important if you want to be settled before school starts.

If you are a seller currently on the market- NOW is the time to be proactive in attracting buyers. We know that price, condition and location are what sells a home, so make sure all of those are in alignment. Let’s re-evaluate the market and make sure you are priced right. Even small price adjustments can help to get your home to pop up as “priced reduced” on the MLS and websites. This could attract buyers that may have overlooked you before.

If you are a buyer who has children, now is the time to get into contract so you can move before school starts. This way you won’t have the added stress of back to school and moving into your new home happening at the exact same time.

The other important factor for Buyers is an increase in interest rates. This week they have been over 4.5% and last week they were close to 5%.  We do not have a crystal ball, but the historic low interest rates we have seen may be over. So, in order to still lock-in at a great interest rate, now is the time to take advantage of our strong market.

Active listings have gone back up over the last month, and our median sales price is around $140,000, AND its taking an average of 40 days for listings to sell!- so it’s still a great time to buy and sell!

Contact us today and see how we can help you sell your home or buy a new one – before summer is over!

Do You Understand the Inspection Period in Tulsa, OK?

Please call us at (918) 706-9845 if you have any questions about the TRR or inspection period. 

At The Wolek Group, we want to make sure our clients are aware of all their options during the inspection period.

During this period, the buyer has 10 days (or more depending on the contract) to have the home inspected: electrical, mechanical, plumbing, etc. 

Once the inspections are complete, the buyer needs to fill out a form known as the TRR (Treatments, Repairs and Replacements) with anything that is not in working order. The TRR lists the items that were on the inspection reports that were not in "normal working order" and the buyer would like the seller to repair prior to closing. The seller has five days to collect bids on all items listed on the TRR. If the repair bids exceed what was negotiated in the contract, the buyer and seller may need to re-negotiate. 

Remember:  When the contract was negotiated, you and the seller agreed on a dollar amount they would pay for repairs. If the bids collected by the seller exceed this amount, the buyer and the seller have the option of renegotiating the contact. 

These new negotiations open the contract back up and the buyer and seller have to agree on new terms. The seller may offer to pay for all the repairs or split the difference or remove some of the items from the list. However, if you are not satisfied with any of the new negotiations, as a buyer, you have the option to cancel the contract and get your earnest money back. 

Getting Your Home on the Market

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A lot of people have been asking when the best time to sell is. It all depends on when you want to be where you are going. We don’t know what the market will be like in the future, but we do know the statistics now. In Tulsa, the average days on market is 35 days; then from there it is roughly 30-45 days to finalize closing. Combining those two numbers, on average, in today’s market, it takes about 2.5 months to list and sell your home.

If this is a good time frame for you, now is the time to call me. With lots of buyers in the market and low interest rates, we can help you sell your home at a great price!

Tulsa OK Experiencing Very Competitive Buyers’ Marketplace

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More and more buyers are eager to find their dream home and lock in today’s excellent interest rates. The caveat to that however, if you’re a buyer, is that you will have to get very competitive with other buyers. The reason for all this competition? Low inventory levels.

For the past several months now, our region – like much of the nation – has been experiencing unprecedented levels of activity coupled with fewer homes on the market. All this adds up to less supply and more demand. So how do we help our buyers manage to find and happily move in to their dream homes? We have several strategies. Among them are to share full-time, wholly dedicated buyers’ agents with you that are fully focused on finding you what you are looking for.

We will do what it takes, even if that means driving around looking for the right home, seeking out For Sale By Owners that may not be widely marketed. We will even reach out to colleagues in the real estate community from other firms, to see if they have anything coming up that suits our buyers’ needs.

In short – we get it done. But there are some things that you should do to make it an even more positive and fruitful experience.

Get Pre-Qualified By a Lender
This may sound like an afterthought but the truth is that with so few homes for sale, sellers know they have the upper hand. And these days many sellers will not even entertain an offer unless it is accompanied by a letter from a lender pre-qualifying you for the purchase.

Know What You Want and What You Can Afford
It is critical to be able to know exactly what your deal breakers are in your search for a home, and what items you are willing to compromise on. It is also important to know exactly what you love in a home so that the moment it becomes available, you are don’t have to go through the process of second-guessing yourself.

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Before you embark on your home buying journey, be sure to line up with a real estate team that will go to bat for you, help you navigate through today’s trends, work their way successfully through multiple offers and get you the keys to your new home!

Call us today!

Tulsa April 2013 Real Estate Update – the Market is On Fire!

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We watch our marketplace closely throughout the year with the understanding that any activity reflects upon what we can expect moving forward. As such, the numbers of sales, amount of inventory on hand and average price ranges are all experiencing some major changes. Here is a look at what’s happening today in our Tulsa marketplace and what it means to you as a buyer or seller.

Homes Sales Continue to Rise
Looking at year over year figures, the number of closed sales right now is a significant 13% higher than last year. The number of homes under contract this year has gone up dramatically at 22% higher than the previous year.

Inventory Levels Dwindling
As more and more buyers seek out their perfect homes, the number of available homes on the market is continuously going down. Right now, we are reporting 14% fewer homes on the market than the same time in 2012. With a median sales price of just $136,000 buyers are out there to maximize the affordability of these great prices. 

Buyers Experiencing Fierce Competition
Considering that our sales are up and inventory is down – buyers are pulling out all the stops to get the home of their liking. In fact, many are resorting to aggressive measures to get their homes. Multiple offers, price wars, removal of contingencies and larger earnest deposits are just a few of the things buyers are resorting to, making it a great time to sell your property.

Interest Rates At Historic Lows
Buyers are still able to lock in amazingly low interest rates – currently at about 3.5% in our area. This has almost created a buying frenzy of sorts especially given the pent up demand following last year’s Presidential election and the Fiscal Cliff crisis. With rates expected to rise by mid-year this year or at the latest, next year – many buyers are scrambling to buy now.

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Whether you are looking to sell your home or buy now is a great time to jump off the fence. Sellers are enjoying stacks of offers and buyers can relax with the peace of mind knowing they are locking in the industry’s lowest rates ever. Contact us today – we’d be glad to help you find your next dream home or help you with an honest opinion of what your home will sell for in today’s marketplace.