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DC
METRO REAL ESTATE
Serving
the Real Estate needs of the communities of
Manassas, Bristow, Haymarket, Warrenton, Gainesville
and Culpeper in Northern Virginia
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Dave
Scardina
Broker
/ Owner
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703-829-SOLD
866-909-0900
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Tips for Buying Haymarket Real EstateHaymarket Home Improvement
Don't underestimate how much projects will cost. Expenses usually are added, not subtracted. Homeowners, even Haymarket homeowners, routinely go 20% to 30% over budget. Remember, it is common to under budget cost and time.
When remodeling for resale, don't waste time with renovations that won't pay off. If you must have a pool, you still may have to lower your expectations on who will be interested in buying. The National Association of Realtors/Remodeling magazine study has identified four renovations that show the greatest return at resale: improvements to siding, windows, kitchens and bathrooms. Remember you have a lot invested in Haymarket.
Haymarket HOME BUYING PITFALLS TO AVOID
Sellers usually rely on sales of Haymarket homes of comparable value to determine a fair and realistic price to set for their home but many sellers feel their home is worth much more and price their home accordingly. Buyers must also be tuned into sales for comparable homes in Haymarket in order to judge the price of any home that is under consideration.
Being “House Poor” gets to be “Old New” real fast. A large and beautiful home with little or no furniture tends to be empty and cold. A life where almost every dime of income goes to the support of the Haymarket house wears thin very quickly and is a frequent cause of family stress. Pushing yourself right up to your limit leaves you highly exposed when the inevitable changes to the national or your personal economy occurs.
Haymarket Real Estate Cycles
During a slow economic time, fewer people are buying homes in the Haymarket market. Even so, some homeowners find themselves in a situation where they must sell. Families grow beyond the capacity of the home, employees get relocated, and some may even find themselves unable to make their mortgage payment - perhaps because of a layoff in the family.
During sellers' markets, Haymarket real estate sells quickly and sellers have a lot of pricing power. As a result, prices rise more rapidly than at other times. During buyers' markets, Haymarket real estate may sit on the market for a while before selling, so sellers become more flexible and may even drop their prices.
Rent or Buy Haymarket
In the early years of your Haymarket mortgage, nearly all of every monthly payment is interest. This means you are only paying off a tiny bit of the loan principal, but it is good news in terms of tax savings.
The monthly payment for a $100,000, 30-year, 8% mortgage on your Haymarket would be about $734. In the first year of your mortgage, $7,970 of your $8,805 payment or 91% would be deductible as mortgage interest. Even in the tenth year, almost 81% of your payments would be deductible. What this is worth to you depends on your tax bracket but this tax savings built into the home-buying equation is why you can afford to make higher mortgage payments than your current rent payments without squeezing your budget. There is no similar tax subsidy for renters.
The Benefits of Selling Haymarket
As you know, you are allowed to sell your Haymarket principal residence once every two years and exclude up to $250,000 ($500,000 for a married couple) of the gain of the sale on your Federal income tax. Please note: This is not a once in a lifetime tax savings and you don’t have to be any certain age or buy a more expensive property. If you meet the two-year residence test you can sell your principal residence every two years if you are so inclined and the market cooperates. But this tax saving does not affect rental property unless you convert the rental to your personal residence, live in it for two years and then sell it.
Tips for Buying or Selling Haymarket
Most people, when they want to buy a house, contact a real estate agent or broker. That is why it is true that the best way to sell your Haymarket is to list your property with a qualified agent. Make sure that the agent you select will list your home in the local MLS and will make sure your property appears on the Internet. Since most buyers start their search online, you want to make sure that your Haymarket is available to those who search the Internet.
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