Flipping Metairie Real Estate vs. Buy-and-Hold

When you own the Metairie home your family lives in, you are by definition a real estate investor: it comes with the turf. Your investment is essentially a passive one. Until the day you decide to sell and move on, any improvement in its value is secondary to how well it serves to shelter your family.

Homes For Sale in Metairie

How you think about your investment—and how you proceed to manage it—is altogether different when you buy an Metairie home purely as a financial venture. For one thing, you face an immediate strategic decision: will you be flipping for a quick short-term profit, or aim for the long term through a buy-and-hold strategy? You have to weigh some pros and cons in order to make the right decision.                         Home Trends Report

Flipping

Pro: Capital is Freed

A flipping strategy minimizes the amount of time your investment capital is committed, freeing it for other uses. Should you identify another potentially lucrative investment, you will be able to take advantage of it.                                            Smart Home Price

Con: Unexpected Challenges

While flipping for short-term profit has definite ‘hands-on’ appeal, first-time investors can be surprised by unexpected complications. Properties that appear to be undervalued (and ripe for a quick flip!) may require costly fixes. Overspending on renovations quickly eats into profits, but underspending can lead to a lengthier holding time. Experienced Metairie flipping veterans have learned to successfully gauge a property’s true turnaround value.                                                                                               7 Seller Tips for 2015

Additional Consideration: Taxes

Metairie flipping has tax implications that impact the bottom line. Profits from a property owned more than a year are generally taxed at the ordinary income tax rate, while a property held for less than a year may be taxed at the capital gains rate. Local and state tariffs need to be considered as well—this is where input from a qualified professional is important.

Buy-and-Hold

Pro: Passive Investment

If management is outsourced to a professional property manager, the buy-and-hold strategy will require less personal attention than flipping does. Preparing a property for a flip often involves considerable time commitment and adept contractor schedule-juggling.

Con: Management Costs

The passive investment advantage holds true if outside management is contemplated— with commensurate expense. If you enjoy the challenge of successfully managing a property, this negative doesn’t apply.

Pro: Fewer Properties Need To Be Identified

Ultimately, successfully executing a flipping strategy means scrutinizing a huge number of properties over the course of time. In contrast, a buy-and-hold strategy necessitates finding only a few great bargains. Pursued intelligently, both buy-and-hold and quick flip strategies have proved profitable for many investors. Both call for finding solid value in Metairie properties—which is where giving me a call comes in!

Would you consider selling YOUR home? Name your price!

The culture of our city has so much to offer... Love our city, New Orleans.

Questions about buying or selling a home?
Call Terez B. Harris 
504.297.2619

View Homes For Sale in Metairie
View Homes For Sale in New Orleans

Terez B. Harris
Terez Harris NOLA Realtor Group

(504)297-2619

www.TerezHarris.com
TerezHarris@kw.com

See what your neighbor's home sold for...

See What Your New Orleans Home is Worth!

See What Your Metairie Home is Worth!

Metairie For Sale By Owner? 

 New Orleans For Sale By Owner?

      

Terez B. Harris   Terez Harris NOLA Realtor Group   504-297-2619   www.TerezHarris.com
Keller Williams Realty New Orleans 8601 Leake Ave. New Orleans, LA 70118 504-862-0100

Each office independently owned and operated. All brokers and agents licensed in the state of Louisiana.

Skeletons in Your Metairie House for Sale’s Closet? Fear Not!

Would you buy a house where someone died? Would it make a difference if the death was peaceful or…otherwise?

You might never have considered such questions, but the answers can become a serious issue for a Metairie house for sale—especially if it has a history that could be right out of a CSI episode. And what if you are the owner of a Metairie house for sale with this kind of issue? It may be labeled as stigmatized—the unpleasant term that can attach to a house for sale which buyers or tenants may shun for reasons unrelated to its physical condition.

Home Trends Report

It’s a good thing that the list of potentially disturbing events isn’t a long one: death; murder; suicide; scary illness; being haunted (rather, the belief that it’s haunted—let’s not get into that discussion!). An owner might have known of a sketchy history when he or she purchased the property, or perhaps found out later on. The information may not have made a difference before, but it could impact the number of prospects who will make offers on a house for sale—in Metairie(or anywhere, for that matter). What to do?

                                                                                      Smart Home Price

Selling for the Right Price

What of happenings that are simply gruesome? Another property in California's Bay Area had a grisly past involving drugs, murder and other heinous activities. This was a stylish home in an affluent neighborhood which sat empty while other comparable homes for sale came and went. Then one day a young businesswoman made an offer well below the asking price. The bank that owned the property had a list price of $335,000, already below values in the area. After negotiation, the buyer bought the home for $261,000. She saw past the horrific story to the potential that it offered to someone not affected by the drama of days gone by. And probably counted on the fact that her remodeling efforts—plus the many years she planned on living there—would make future buyers much less likely to worry about what would gradually turn into a distant past.

Telling the Right Story

One otherwise quaint home in a western small town was widely reputed to host paranormal activity. The stories of what previous owners had faced from ghosts of the past were widespread enough that even non-believers might think twice about taking it on. For some properties, it is just a matter of putting the right spin on the story. Events that took place decades ago often bring allure to a property—while more recent activities may cause buyers to hesitate. The Realtor^® took the ‘problem’ head-on by making the most of it, figuring that a good ghost story could add to the appeal if it was marketed correctly. It sold at a premium.

7 Seller Tips for 2015

The takeaway: if you have a Metairie house for sale that’s connected to a sad, tragic or paranormal history, don't assume the worst. Some ‘stigmas’ may mean a sale takes more careful handling (but that’s just one more reason why a call to my office is a good first step). With the right story and the right price, you’re pretty certain to find the right buyer—one who either overlooks the past, or is fascinated by it!

Would you consider selling YOUR home? Name your price!

The culture of our city has so much to offer... Love our city, New Orleans.

Questions about buying or selling a home?
Call Terez B. Harris 
504.297.2619

View Homes For Sale in Metairie
View Homes For Sale in New Orleans

Terez B. Harris
Terez Harris NOLA Realtor Group

(504)297-2619

www.TerezHarris.com
TerezHarris@kw.com

See what your neighbor's home sold for...

See What Your New Orleans Home is Worth!

See What Your Metairie Home is Worth!

Metairie For Sale By Owner? 

 New Orleans For Sale By Owner?

      

Terez B. Harris   Terez Harris NOLA Realtor Group   504-297-2619   www.TerezHarris.com
Keller Williams Realty New Orleans 8601 Leake Ave. New Orleans, LA 70118 504-862-0100

Each office independently owned and operated. All brokers and agents licensed in the state of Louisiana.

Selling Your Metairie House by Raising its ‘Emotional IQ’

When it comes to selling your Metairie house, the first attributes that will bring in prospective buyers will be found in your listing description: size, location, and all the details that either match prospects’ wish lists (or don’t). Price is in there, too. Next comes curb appeal, which can turn on or turn off prospective buyers. Although it is often the second “at bat” you get when you are selling your Metairie house, it’s not usually decisive. The third attribute can be just that—a bunch of factors that can hook your ultimate buyers.

Name Your Selling Price

Call it your home’s “emotional IQ.”  Everything else is important, but emotion plays a powerful role in selling your Metairie house. That’s because home is, well, home—where people hang their hats, raise their kids, and spend their precious downtime. When potential buyers come to your house, they may think they are checking out four walls and a roof, but they are much more likely to be seeking a place that tugs at their emotions.

7 Seller Tips

All very well and good, but how do you up your home’s emotional IQ (and snag the sale in the process)? Look objectively at your home, then think about the emotional plays that will get them where it count—through their senses. Give your home a quick sensory scan, looking for things that cue all five:

Sight. Is your home clean? Is it decorated and staged (but not so much that potential buyers can’t imagine themselves in it)? Make sure your home is as spotless as possible, and warm but not personal. When room entrances are arranged to feel open, they look welcoming: a strong way to please the eye.

See how your neighborhood is doing in today's market-Market Insider

Sound. Does your home sound like a home? There’s nothing less emotionally pleasing than doing a walkthrough of a perfectly empty shell of a house. Attractive floor coverings (rugs and throws) can eliminate the unbroken echo of footsteps—and make your home feel more inviting; less clinical. And don’t forget a drop or two of 3-in-1 oil or WD40 for squeaking doors!

Smell. The nose is a powerful emotive factor. Aromas can evoke nostalgia, bringing on the feeling of well-being that comes with familiarity—but it can also sound alarm bells. Make sure the air doesn’t carry strong chemical or perfume smells. Better to throw a few cookies into the oven before walkthroughs arrive. It makes it easy for potential buyers to imagine themselves living, working, eating, and enjoying time in your home.

Touch. Look for surfaces potential buyers may touch, and make them clean and inviting. Importantly, door latches and light switches should feel sound and serviceable.

Taste. No—nobody can really taste a home, but selling your house may come down to leaving your personal taste at the door. It’s risky to forget to focus on the most tasteful place of all—the kitchen. The old real estate agent trope that gorgeous kitchens sell houses is more true than not, so if yours is hopeless, you may judicious to spend your upgrade dollars in a modern, open kitchen space.

Home Trends Report

How does your home’s emotional IQ add up? 

     If you’re lacking in just one area, congratulations. You know what to fix, and a few subtle tweaks will help a lot. If you’re lacking in many areas, give me a call! I may be able to recommend some quick fixes, or point to a home staging professional. Don’t forget: Whether buying or selling your house, things can get emotional. Take a deep breath, remember the real purpose of a home, and be ready to move! Terez B. Harris (504)297-2619

The culture of our city has so much to offer... Love our city, New Orleans.

Questions about buying or selling a home?
Call Terez B. Harris 
504.297.2619

View Homes For Sale in Metairie
View Homes For Sale in New Orleans

Terez B. Harris
Terez Harris NOLA Realtor Group

(504)297-2619

www.TerezHarris.com
TerezHarris@kw.com

See what your neighbor's home sold for...

See What Your New Orleans Home is Worth!

See What Your Metairie Home is Worth!

Metairie For Sale By Owner? 

 New Orleans For Sale By Owner?

      

Terez B. Harris   Terez Harris NOLA Realtor Group   504-297-2619   www.TerezHarris.com
Keller Williams Realty New Orleans 8601 Leake Ave. New Orleans, LA 70118 504-862-0100

Each office independently owned and operated. All brokers and agents licensed in the state of Louisiana.

6 Factors Guide Investors to Profitable New Orleans Area Rental Property

 Just about any investor on the lookout for a promising New Orleans rental property has a number of assumed criteria in mind—often arrived at without bothering to sit down to list them. Remember, this is already a successful individual, usually with ample business experience—and always with the financial acumen to be able to make a substantial investment. For them, creating a written decision matrix really isn’t necessary.

Still, there’s a lot of literature on the web offering opinions on what are the most commonly agreed-upon factors for choosing a rental property. Quite a few “Top 10”s. Going over them, it turns out that some are only slight variations on a single theme, so I’ve boiled them down to a “Top Six.”

The first one is barely ever mentioned. It’s this:

1.      Most investors have predetermined the price range that his or her New Orleans Area rental property must fall into, but that can turn out to be a false step. If the goal is to garner the maximum return, it’s possible that some humbly-priced New Orleans Area rental properties can actually turn a greater annual profit—even in absolute dollars—than some higher-end homes (particularly those that suffer extended periods without suitable higher-end tenants). So Number 1 is SET YOUR INVESTMENT GOAL. Cash flow return can be a very different goal than long term property appreciation.

2.      LOCATION LOCATION LOCATION.  This is the one that combines a half dozen factors, variously listed as Neighborhood, Proximity to Jobs, Amenities (parks, malls, gyms, movie theaters, public transportation hubs, etc.), Crime, Schools, and even Property Taxes. This factor might be chosen for convenience, as when a rental property investor wishes to be able to supervise the property; or for an expectation of value appreciation in a New Orleans area which is gaining popularity. As everyone has had heard from time immemorial, L.L.L. is always important!

3.      HEALTH OF THE PROPERTY. If the underlying structure and mechanicals have been intelligently designed and well maintained, this one is of no importance. If not, a thorough inspection with top-grade recommendations and cost projections is a must.

4.      VACANCY RATES. The number of rental homes listed and the number of vacancies should be considered highly important for determining a promising rental property in the New Orleans Area. In newly expanding communities, sometimes you can spot a man parked near an intersection, clicking away on a counter as the autos pass by. He’s measuring traffic to see if the volume is great enough to support a gas station, or market, or mini-mall. The turnover of rental listings—how long rental properties stay vacant from week to week—can provide guidance about the same kind of information.

5.      COMPETITIVE MARKET. The average rent amounts advertised for comparable properties can be the decisive factor for whether a rental home investment makes financial sense.

 Of course, another factor that can make a big difference is the experience level of your New Orleans Area Realtor^®. That’s actually key factor #6—and (I hope) where I come in!

The culture of our city has so much to offer... Love our city, New Orleans.

Questions about buying or selling a home?
Call Terez B. Harris 
504.297.2619

View Homes For Sale in Metairie
View Homes For Sale in New Orleans

Terez B. Harris
Terez Harris NOLA Realtor Group

(504)297-2619

www.TerezHarris.com
TerezHarris@kw.com

See what your neighbor's home sold for...

See What Your New Orleans Home is Worth!

See What Your Metairie Home is Worth!

Metairie For Sale By Owner? 

 New Orleans For Sale By Owner?

      

Terez B. Harris   Terez Harris NOLA Realtor Group   504-297-2619   www.TerezHarris.com
Keller Williams Realty New Orleans 8601 Leake Ave. New Orleans, LA 70118 504-862-0100

Each office independently owned and operated. All brokers and agents licensed in the state of Louisiana.