St. Cloud Real Estate Podcast with Chris Hauck

Chris Hauck

If you are looking to buy or sell a home, get all the information and the latest updates, tips, and tricks from Coldwell Banker Realty - your professional St. Cloud Real Estate Agents.

  1. 23/04/2020 · VIDEO

    What You Need to Know About Computer-Generated Pricing

    Here’s what you need to know about computer-generated pricing and why you simply can’t beat having boots on the ground. We’ll typically do three to six market valuations per week, helping people with pricing by looking at past sales and current listings. Our computer pulls up estimates from Zillow and a few other services on every single property we look at. Not only can we see what a particular property was listed and ultimately sold for, but it also shows us what Zillow estimated the value to be. “Zillow’s algorithm has no clue whether you have brand-new granite countertops, or if your feet stick to the carpet.” Zillow is a company well-equipped to handle very big data; if you take 10,000 houses and their computer crunches the numbers, their average price will be right on the money. However, their computer doesn’t know a specific house’s value accurately.  Zillow’s algorithm has no clue whether you have brand-new granite countertops, or if your feet stick to the carpet. This leads to a rather large variation—the estimate is 15% to 20% above or below market value.  In essence, computer-generated pricing, like the model made popular by Zillow, gives you a sort of dartboard pricing from which to work. It’s a start, but it’s simply not as accurate as a real estate agent who’s going through 50 to 60 properties a week and can truly understand the value of your property—updates, remodels, condition, etc.  If you have any questions about this or any other topic, please don’t hesitate to reach out. We’d love to hear from you.

  2. 18/02/2020 · VIDEO

    The Real Estate Industry: What’s Changed, What’s Stayed the Same

    What’s changed and what’s stayed the same in the real estate industry over the years? Here are a couple of examples. My team and I recently attended a Mike Ferry conference with 4,000 of the other top agents in the country. None of us compete head to head, so this conference is a wonderful opportunity to share ideas, techniques, etc. One of the more interesting topics that came up during this conference was how much things have changed in real estate, but at the same time, stayed the same.  Some of the advertising, for example, is the same, and person-to-person interaction is still extremely important. Our job is to help you make the right decision and get the information you need so your home sale and/or home purchase goes smoothly. “The bottom line is, we’re here to help you do the right thing for your family.” One of the things that has changed is the delivery of information, which is wonderful. We can get you far more information about homes much more quickly, and you can see a lot more about the properties you want to look at. Years ago, for about half of the homes we walked into, buyers only needed about two steps to know that the home wasn’t right for them. With virtual tours now available, buyers can weed out the homes that don’t fit and focus on the ones they like best.  The bottom line is, we’re here to help you do the right thing for your family. If you have any specific real estate needs, don’t hesitate to reach out to me. I’d love to speak with you.

  3. 12/12/2019 · VIDEO

    Are the Holidays a Good Time to Buy or Sell a Home?

    The holidays can be a great time to buy or sell a home. Here’s why. Are the holidays a good time for you to buy or sell a home? Actually, they are, and for a few different reasons. If you’re looking to purchase a property, you’ll have less competition from other buyers. That also means that you’ll see fewer multiple-offer situations on homes. Further, interest rates are outstandingly low right now, lenders are more readily available than in other seasons of the year, and title companies have more time to dedicate to your transaction. All in all, home purchases this time of year tend to be less hectic than they will once the spring market begins in March, April, and May. If you’re thinking of selling a property, there’s a prime reason that the holidays are a good time to list. Many buyers who view properties in the spring market are looking for homes, but not seriously. On the other hand, buyers in the wintertime tend to be people who are really focused on buying a property and moving into it as soon as possible. Additionally, the holidays are a great time to capitalize on the warmth and emotion of having a home; there’s nothing like seeing a beautiful home decorated for the holidays. “All in all, it’s a good time to both buy and sell.” If you’re thinking about selling after the holidays, it’s worth noting that, for some reason, a lot of sellers don’t believe that anything will sell on the market until about April. That means that we’ll have the lowest inventory of the year until early March. You may get fewer showings, but the showings you get will be high quality. All in all, it’s a good time to both buy and sell. We have a decent selection of properties on the market, great interest rates, and if you need to take the house off the market for a day or two to enjoy a family get-together, that’s certainly acceptable over the holidays. If you have any questions about buying or selling a home, reach out to us. We’d love to help you. Until then, have a wonderful holiday season!

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If you are looking to buy or sell a home, get all the information and the latest updates, tips, and tricks from Coldwell Banker Realty - your professional St. Cloud Real Estate Agents.