Real Estate Information

Keller Williams Realty The Woodlands TX announces Jutta "Utah” Burden a Mega agent at Keller Williams since 1998 earned her broker license on June 8, 2010;

Jutta ” Utah” Burden

Redefining Real Estate

Spring, TX (PRWEB) June 20, 2010

You might not remember when The Woodlands was considered “country,” but when Jutta (pronounced Utah) Burden moved with her husband to the area over 30 years ago, that’s exactly what it resembled. “I couldn’t believe he was moving me out there,” she said, laughing.

But change is exactly what motivates Jutta. She moved to America from Germany in 1966 and left behind her homeland and family. Fully embracing her new home, she went on to run a successful travel agency in The Woodlands, with three area locations.

Twelve years ago she parlayed her love of The Woodlands–its homes, families, amenities, shopping–into a second successful career as a real estate agent. Today, as a broker associate of Keller Williams, she has taken the extra step to learn as much as she can about the industry. “I wanted to be the best, to distinguish myself in this business, so I could best serve my clients,” she said. “My business is centered on service, service, service.”

Jutta holds many achievements and designations, including prestigious membership in The Institute for Luxury Home Marketing. “But I’m just as happy selling first-time homeowners their houses as I am selling a multi-million dollar property,” Jutta said.

If you’re looking for that perfect home to call your own, your first call should be to Jutta. She’s not just a sales agent, but a broker associate with industry knowledge to best serve you.

Listings in The Woodlands Texas                 What is your Market Value ?

Tips on Finding Good The Woodlands Real Estate

Tips on Finding Good The Woodlands Real Estate

If you want to buy or sell the Woodlands real estate, you have to work with a great agent in the area. It would probably be best for you to pick somebody that has been referred to you by somebody you trust, so you will know what to expect from the experience. If you can’t find any referrals, though, here are the basics.

Good realtors should know about the laws of real estate, as well as the details and forms that each transaction entails. They should know how to negotiate well, as well, so you can get the best price possible on the piece of property that you want.

When talking to an agent, make sure you find about his previous experience, his specializations, and how long he has been working in real estate. Try to find somebody with a lot of knowledge in the Woodlands real estate. Then, check out their references and, most importantly, check out their listening skills. After all, it would be vital to find somebody who actually listens to what you have to say.

Now, one thing you have to determine before anything else is whether you feel comfortable around your agent of choice. How is your communication with each other? This is vital because you will be talking to each other during negotiations and he has to represent your wants and needs in the Woodlands real estate.

Another thing to keep in mind is that every state has its own licensing boards, so get the agent’s license number and look for any record he might have. This way, you can find out whether he has any disciplinary actions or complaints against him.

In general, somebody who is a top producer is worth working with. To find people with these endorsements, you can look through local newspapers in the beginning of the year. Such agents tend to be judged by their own peers, so they can definitely be trusted. Try to pick somebody with credentials you actually care about. Several agents might have taken extra training to become a specialist in a particular market, so look into a market that is very important to you.

You can also visit various open houses to meet more agents. Doing this will help you see how various properties are marketed and you will be able to speak to various agents, as well. Just make sure you always check how long these agents have been working in the Woodlands real estate,

When selling real estate, sometimes it better to hire the professional that to ensure the job gets done right.  This can be said for many things in life.  Nobody is an expert at everything, which is why there are trained and experienced professionals in every industry. Unless you’re experienced in selling real estate, hiring a real estate agent to sell your home is the smart way to go.

 U.S. News & World Report came up with 5 reasons why they think it’s important as well….

1. Employ an expert: A typical property owner does not have anywhere near the home-selling experience of a real estate agent. Agents can recommend relatively simple improvements—painting, making repairs, decluttering—that can help a home sell faster and for a better price. “The Realtor is the neighborhood expert,” Moore says. “We can walk through a property and see right away what needs to be done to [get the home sold].” Independent sellers might not be aware of these tricks of the trade.

2. Use better tools: Homeowners using agents can get their property listed on Realtor.com, “which has more far-reaching access to market that property—with over 3 million properties on it—than the for-sale-by-owner sites, which have tens of thousands,” Moore says. Independent sellers do not have access to this service.

3. Sidestep lawsuits: Agents can also protect sellers from potential litigation. “There are all kinds of liability issues that a seller could potentially face when…dealing one on one with a buyer,” Moore says. A homeowner could, for example, tell a potential buyer that hardwood floors extend to all corners of the house underneath the wall-to-wall carpeting. But if even one room has cement flooring, the homeowner could be sued, Moore says. Agents, who have experience dealing with these liability issues, can help homeowners dodge such scenarios.

4. Duck the riffraff: Independent sellers might not have any idea whom they are letting into their homes during open houses. These potential buyers might not have the credit to make the purchase—and would therefore be wasting the homeowner’s time—or could even “try to rob them later on,” Moore says. “It’s a very scary kind of thing.” She says that homeowners working with agents will have qualified buyers visiting their properties.

5. Avoid hardball tactics: It’s a buyer’s market out there. And with all the information available online, today’s well-informed buyers are tough negotiators, too. Real estate agents have been through the home-selling process before and are trained in negotiating tactics—giving them a potential edge in hammering out a deal in the seller’s best interest. “It’s hard to do that with your own property, particularly if you are not a professional,” Moore says.

Source: 5 Reasons to Hire a Pro to Sell Your Home – By Luke Mullins, U.S. News & World Report

All these points are important, but #5 caught my attention the most. It is a buyer’s market, you know it and so do the buyers! If you are not trained in negotiating tactics when the potential hone buyer approaches with an offer, you could be manipulated to sell well below what you’re asking. A trained professional will ensure this does not happen.

In the end, paying the real estate agent fees may be worth it. It could cost considerably more to be out-negotiated.

By Kenneth R. Harney

Friday, March 4, 2011; 11:25 AM 

Picky, picky, picky! Are today's first-time home buyers passing up great deals because they insist on flawless "move-in ready" houses requiring little or no changes - even at the starter-home price levels at which shoppers traditionally have been willing to factor fix-ups and renovations into their offers? 

Or are they simply reflecting market realities? They see record inventories of houses sitting unsold, and they may not have the money, time or inclination to do fix-ups after making the purchase. 

Large numbers of real estate agents consider this a significant and perplexing issue, one that's having a negative effect on the housing recovery. New research suggests that they may be on to something. A survey by Coldwell Banker Real Estate of 300 first-time buyers found that a startling 87 percent said that "finding a move-in ready home is important" to them. 

A posting about fussy buyers on the 203,000-member "Active Rain" online real estate network in late February drew strong support from agents nationwide. Holly Kirby Weatherwax, an agent based in Reston, who wrote the original blog post, said in an interview that some shoppers are so picky that they walk out of well-priced houses solely because of relatively minor imperfections such as: 

    * The kitchen appliances are by different manufacturers.

     * There are no granite countertops - even though the house is a modest-priced starter home. 

    * A carpet needs to be replaced, or the color doesn't match their furniture. 

    * Wall colors are "wrong," such as white, when for today's tastes, they should be a warmer hue. 

"They're missing out on some excellent, older lived-in houses - it's a shame," she said, "simply because they can't overlook" flaws that would not have bothered shoppers during the previous two decades. 

Zillow, a giant Seattle-based online real estate research and data company, suggests that any shift by consumers toward greater attention to home details may be an inevitable byproduct of today's higher down-payment minimums and more stringent loan qualification requirements. 

According to Zillow researchers, the median down payment in 11 major metropolitan areas has jumped to 20 percent, compared with "close to zero" in some of the same areas just five years ago. In other words, first-time buyers today have to put a huge effort into coming up with their down payment, and they want to make sure that equity investment goes into the house that will need the fewest and least-costly upgrades. Also, Zillow spokeswoman Katie Curnutte said, shoppers in 2011 "are really in the driver's seat. Nationally, buyers who purchased homes [last] December paid 4 percent less than the asking price. That points to a lot of room for negotiating and opportunities for buyers to be choosy." 

Some agents suggest that buyers today tend to be hipper and more sophisticated about home design, furnishings, floor materials, countertops and appliances because they are exposed to far more information on cable TV than earlier generations. Michael Jacobs, a Coldwell Banker agent in Pasadena, Calif., says cable channels such as HGTV "certainly have opened the eyes of more buyers" to design and presentation details. He said he's held open houses where young buyers walk in and say immediately, "Oh, this house has been staged" - an observation virtually unheard of years ago.

But constant exposure to cable design shows may also be fostering a lack of realism on the part of some shoppers, according to agents. Cindy Westfall of Prudential NW Properties in Lake Oswego, Ore., said the shows have "given some buyers the impression that all homes should have granite counters, stainless steel appliances, etc. There are a few [shoppers who] want all the bells and whistles of that $500,000 house for $200,000, and no amount of talking to them on the realities can change their minds."

In an interview, Westfall said she recently had a buyer who was interested only in older houses under $200,000 - starter-home price territory - but who wouldn't tolerate even the sort of minor imperfections and nicks that older houses typically display. 

"The fact is," Westfall said, "you just can't have it all. You can't have the big yard, the top-line updates and all that in a starter home. You've got to compromise somewhere or else you'll never buy anything."

by Keneth Harvey

Spring Texas a place called Home

    SPRING IS MANY PLACES

Real Estate in The Woodlands, Spring and Magnolia, you’ll find it all!  

When a client states “I would like to look for something in Spring”, I am reminded of the old story about the children’s fable: Seven Blind Men and the Elephant.  One can describe it depending on what part of the elephant you touch!  The same can be said for “Spring”!  One way to describe Spring is by zip code; there are twelve!  Another way is to track the areas bordered by main commuter routes.  But, I like to describe Spring in terms of the life style and land uses that the area offers. 

So, what better way to start my description of “Spring” than one of my favorite shopping areas.  Old Town Spring is a quaint turn of the century town in zip code 77373.  It is bordered by I-45 (Exits 70A-B) and the Hardy Toll Road.  The town core is located near the original rail yards built in the early 1900′s by the Great Northern Railroad.  The  Victorian-style shop fronts transport you back in time.  As a matter of fact, several shops are actually located buildings constructed in the early 1900′s for the then booming railroad town.  Old Town Spring hosts five major festivals each year: Springfest, Celebration of Easter, Texas Crawfish & Music Festival, the Long Horn Rod Run, PetFest and Down Home Christmas. The town’s annual Christmas tree lighting at dusk November 6^th at 6:00 pm. 

Villages of Northgate Crossing, Spring Falls, and South Park are three subdivisions within easy access to Old Town Spring as well as I-45 and the Hardy.  At the present time there are some terrific buying opportunities in these subdivisions.  Most housing is ten years old or less.  If you are a first time homebuyer or want very affordable commuter houses check these neighborhoods!

Entertainment In the Woodlands: Music, Dancing, and More

Entertainment in the Woodlands is fun and exciting. In fact, this community is also known for its top of the nightclubs and bars. From a different perspective, The Woodlands can be viewed as a community that is family oriented, which is true. If you take the time to browse their website you will notice that the community is indeed designed not only to provide a place for relaxation but also the opportunity for families to bond together. The various activities that take place in this community often include families. However, the developers of this community did also pay attention to Entertainment in the Woodlands hence, the construction of bars, pubs, and nightclubs.

Residents who feel like spending the night dancing have several options. Entertainment in the Woodlands is a one of a kind adventure that will take you from one bar to the other.

Copas Bar Lounge

If you feel like listening to mixes and spins for entertainment in the Woodlands, then this is the place to be. DJs spin the night away with the perfect combination of techno, rap, and dance music. Residents in their early and late twenty’s flock to this lounge to experience the entertainment in the Woodlands that everybody is talking about. Each day, the lounge prepares something different. Like on Wednesdays, it is all about dance and rap music all night long. On Thursdays, you get to enjoy the perks of the happy hour longer because it usually ends all night. Fridays, is a night for live bands while on Saturdays it is all about salsa.

Martinis and More

Entertainment in the Woodlands is not just about dancing it is also about listening to music and relaxing. If you are the kind of person, who appreciates live bands then the Martinis and More is the place to be. Different bands play different genres of music. Each night a different genre is played it can be pop, jazz, oldies, and even rock. The place is small. Therefore, expect the dance floor to get really crowded. Martinis and More offer a different feel on the entertainment in the Woodlands.

The community may be family oriented but the entertainment in the Woodlands is not as dull as you might perceive. The bars and pubs located around the community will surely give you the music and dancing that you have been craving for. Entertainment in the Woodlands is certainly at par with the kind of entertainment you get when you go clubbing in the city. Therefore, why go far when the fun is right at your doorstep.