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How the Serenity Prayer Applies to Selling Your House

I read the blog: Keeping Current Matters…religiously…. And yes I have supported more then one client (of all denominations BTW) in the burying of the St. Josephs statue (upside down in the back yard). However this is the first time I have seen one of my favorite prayers applied to my day job, thanks to Keeping Current Matters:)
You may believe that selling your home is impossible in today’s market. You may feel powerless to the process. What could YOU possibly do to turn this housing market around? There is no doubt that today’s real estate market is extremely difficult to navigate. However, we want you to know thatthousands of homes sold yesterday, thousands will sell today and thousands will sell each and every day from now until the end of the year.
It is totally within your power to guarantee that your house will sell even in the current market.“How?”, you ask. Let’s look at the simplicity of the famous Serenity Prayer and apply it to selling a home in today’s real estate market.“Grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change; courage to change the things I can; and wisdom to know the difference.”

 

Accept the things you cannot change

The two main reasons that the housing prices have softened:

  1. the current economy
  2. the inventory of distressed properties (foreclosures and short sales)

As an individual homeowner, there is no way for you to impact either of those two situations. The best think-tanks in the country are struggling to discover solutions.

Have the courage to change the things you can

There is not a vacuum of buyers in the market. There is a vacuum of homes a buyer in today’s market will purchase. Let us explain: could you sell your home today for $1? … $1,000 … $10,000? Of course you could. There are plenty of buyers in the market for a home they consider priced correctly. You have to decide what the correct price is for your home if you truly want to sell. If you want your house sold, you must list it at a price a buyer will pay for it. Not a buyer from 2006 but today’s buyer who has plenty of homes from which to choose.

It will take courage to sit with a real estate professional and honestly decipher the true value of your home. If you want to sell, you must have that courage.

The wisdom to know the difference

We all realize that the economic situation will take some time to correct. If we want to wait for prices to return to 2006 levels, we will probably have to wait for 5-7 years.

Look at the reason you decided to sell in the first place and decide whether the extra money you would get from the sale is worth that wait. Is money more important than being with family? Is money more important than your health? Is money more important than having the freedom to go on with your life the way you think you should?

This is where your wisdom must kick in. You already know the answers to the questions we just asked. You have the power to take back control of the situation by pricing your home to guarantee it sells. The time has come for you and your family to move on and start living the life you desire. That is what is truly important.

Tax tips for property owners in Gloucester MA

Rounding up tax info?  It always seems I have most of the information but not all of it :) The Gloucester MA city site: 

http://gloucester-ma.gov/ is a great resource to view & gather information on your total property taxes and sewer/water costs (for landlords).  In case you are like me and can't always find this information easily in my own home, the city website has it all neatly filed in one location. Once you are on the city site:

City of Gloucester Website - Home page

"click" on the tab (left side of page) that says "online services".  That will bring you to this page:

City of Gloucester Website - Online services page

The property tax records and water/sewer bills can all be accessed by "clicking" on the highlighted type.

The next page will then ask you for your address or parcel ID number.

City of Gloucester address page for online tax records

If you are unfamiliar with your parcel ID number, it can be found in the "assessors" records online , on a tax or water bill or by calling our helpful Gloucester assessors office. Fill in the address and voila the computer does what computers do and you have your annual records in front of you!