This page provides answers to common real estate questions. The page is divided into two separate sections: The first is about buying/selling homes, the second is for questions about our Realtors specifically.
Please note, these answers have been prepared for informational purposes only and should not be considered a substitute for professional advice. If you’re looking for advice on buying or selling homes in Michigan, contact a licensed Realtor at The Patti Mullen Group today.
Real Estate FAQ
Q: What price will the seller typically accept
Generally speaking, 5% off the listing price is considered “fair;” however, if the property has been listed for an extensive period of time, the seller will usually entertain lower offers. There are absolutely exceptions to this as sellers have different reasons and motivations for deciding to sell. Professional real estate agents with years of experience in negotiations can understand these factors and make an appropriate offer based on all factors.
Q: How do I list my home?
Even though listing your home for sale may seem simple, the process is actually more complex than advertised. There are multiple listing services (MLS) available to submit your listing. Here are several of the main ones you have likely heard of.
– Zillow
– Trulia
– Realtor.com
If you want to receive the best offer and value for the sale of your home, it’s important to use multiple services, advertise them appropriately, and filter through the best offers. The advantage of using a Realtor is that they will list your home for you, streamline this process, and ultimately try and get you the best value possible.
Q: Do you need a Realtor to buy or sell your house?
Although you don’t “need” a Realtor, it certainly helps tremendously. Many homeowners are busy professionals with families and don’t have the time required to get the best value for the sale of their home. Finding the right buyer or seller requires extensive knowledge of the local market and experience with the home selling process.
If you’ve never sold a home, or only sold a few, it’s unlikely that you possess an equivalent level of knowledge as a licensed professional nor have access to the type of resources they possess. Professional Realtors can help with: marketing, listing, negotiation, price guidance, and much more.
Q: How do I find the best Real Estate Agent?
Buying or selling a home is a huge decision that will likely impact your future for years to come. As a result, you should carefully choose the real estate professional you work with. Unfortunately, this isn’t always easy since there are millions of active real estate licensees and misleading marketing campaigns that exaggerate credentials. The key is to check more than one source when researching a potential agent or brokerage.
Here are some considerations when searching for the top rated Realtors in your area:
Credentials – Are they professionally licensed real estate agents?
Reputation – Do they have a reputation for success and treating clients well?
Reviews – Check their reviews on Google, Zillow, Yelp, and other third party review sites
Local Expertise – Do they have expertise within your desired local real estate markets
Experience – How many years of successful experience do they have?
Results – How many homes have they sold within the last several years?
Q: Should I get a home inspection?
Absolutely! Home inspections are critical to search for factors that may influence the price, or worse, impact your quality of life after you move into your new home. Even if the home appears to be in good shape, an inspection should still be conducted because there may be issues that aren’t visible at the surface level. For example, there may be foundational issues, water leaks, HVAC problems, etc. These issues could be extremely costly at a later date and far outweigh the cost of getting an inspection.
In Michigan, it’s required that the seller of the home submits a Seller’s Disclosure Statement which outlines these issues.
General FAQ
Q: Where are you located?
The Patti Mullen Group is located in Plymouth Township, MI at the crossroads Five Mile Rd. and Sheldon. Our office is inside the Remerica Hometown One building. Address and map directions are listed below.
The Patti Mullen Group
44785 Five Mile
Plymouth, Michigan 48170
Directions
Q: Which real estate markets do you serve?
We serve all major real estate markets in the metro Detroit area here’s a list of these areas below.