November 2009

2144 Watercrest Ada, Mi 49301

This Home Has Been Rented By The Steve Volkers Group!

A solidly built home in one of Ada Townships most coveted developments.  The Ada bike & walking path is just around the corner, and there is over 60 acres of greenspace for your enjoyment in the development.  The home boasts a very functional and open floor plan with gleaming hardwood floors, neutral colors, oversized windows, 4 bedrooms, 2.5 bathrooms, and a 3-stall garage.  The basement has a fully finished rec room with framing for further expansion and design, with a space designated for a future bathroom.  The home also has an ADT alarm system and invisible fence.  All while being located in the Forest Hills school district. Water and Trash is included in rental price!

LOWER Prices for Avenue 23!

Avenue 23 Condos is a great development located right in Heritage Hill.  Offering already affordable condos, the prices have been dropped to generate even more buzz.  A fully finished 1 bedroom, 1 bathroom condo complete with appliances, bamboo floors, walk-in closet, and patio is now going for only $60,000! These prices just cannot be beat.  In such an incredible location, it is hard to even come close to a price like that for such a great living space.

Each unit comes with parking, trash service, snow removal, lawn/yard care, and HEAT which is all include in the monthly association fees.

Offering these units at such unbeatable prices with incredibly low association fees will prove Avenue 23 to be a place where people want to buy, live, and invest.

Please do not hesitate to contact us for further information.

Avenue 23 will also be open this Sunday, November 22 between 2:30 and 4:30 if you would like to stop by and get a closer look.

Open Houses- Sunday, November 22, 2009

The Steve Volkers Group is holding these homes open this Sunday:

Park Row Condos-  12:00 – 2:00 pm  map

Avenue 23 Condos- 2:30-4:30 pm  map

47 Lafayette Condos- 12:00 – 2:00 pm   map

1162 Oaklawn- 3:00 – 5:00 pm   map

Stop by to say hi and check out some great homes!

Please contact us for more information.

2305 Sylvan Ave SE Grand Rapids, MI 49506

This Home Has Been Taken Off The Market

Great home in a quiet neighborhood. Home boasts a private deck with a professionally landscaped yard. Large master bedroom with his & her closets. The interior has neutral colors to match all tastes and furnishings. Walkout basement also includes 1/2 bath and a rec room.  Close to school, expressways, and downtown.

November 17th Market Update

Check out the graph below for the latest in the Grand Rapids Real Estate Market:

Allen Edwin Buyer Building Video

So I came across this great video of the building process for an Allen Edwin home by a buyer.  After contacting him to ask about using the video on your website this is what he said:

“I’m still living there and so far so good, knock on wood. I really love the layout of the big kitchen.”  -Chris

If that doesn’t speak volumes about the homes they are building, I am not sure what will.  If you’re in the market for a home you should add Allen Edwin homes to your list.  Don’t forget to tell them you got your info from Steve Volkers and we can get you a $500 preferred Realtor credit.  Just make sure you call or email us before you go through a home.

Marketing Done Differently!

So what do you do differently than our friend who is a Realtor to sell our home that has not sold for 6 months or longer?

Wow! Great question that we get all the time. It’s hard to answer because we don’t know what the other realtor did or didn’t do. But what I can tell you is we do marketing differently!

Internet- Everyone claims to market your home, but exactly how do they do that and can they show you the hits and statistics of the websites they promote your home on?

Trulia.com

Zillow.com

Realtor.com

All have special programs that give preferred Realtors listings and advantage.

We have those relationships!

Blog- Does your realtor have a blog? How often do they blog and will they put your listing on their blog?  We do and we also make sure it is tagged right.  ‘Tagging’ allows Google to read and categorize the blog correctly so that when people Google your address, it is right at the top of the results.

Text Messaging? How does that work?  We advertise your home by placing a sign with specific numbers right in the front yard.  This allows a buyer to text message to get more information right to their phone in an instant.

Facebook- Are you on Facebook? Most buyers (and just about everyone else!) are, and we work with you to promote your home on Facebook through ads, fan pages, and marketplace listings.

I can’t give away all the marketing ideas, but trust that there is a group that sets up apart from the rest.

Feel free to hire an agent but be sure to ask what are they going to do differently to earn the money you’re paying them to sell your home or condo.

Hillmount Almost Sold Out!

Hillmount is almost sold out! Now is the time for re-sales.

Hillmount Condos have had a great track record over the last 2 years: almost 50 condos sold is a great number considering the market condition we have been seeing.

So the developer only has 4 condos left at rock-bottom prices and now the re-sales are hitting the market. But what is amazing is the value in the building is still there! So re-sales are not way over priced and seem to really make sense for a buyer.

Often we see in downtown that buyers purchase their condo then decide to relocate in 2 years and think they can make 20-30K on their condo. Sorry to say, but this is West Michigan not LA. But Hillmount seems to have a great mix on all price ranges and sizes that still have great value, even as re-sales.

If you’re in the market for a condo in Downtown Grand Rapids, I highly recommend you add this development to the list if you want a place under 150K.

Market Recovery?

So there has been great news over the last 4 months out of the Grand Rapids Association of Realtors, which I am a member of.

Month after month we are seeing foreclosure sale decrease, pricing going up and inventory going down.

The question is, “Are we on our way to recovery?” “Will sellers be able to regain some of their losses?” and “Will the sale process easy up?”  Unfortunately, I cannot predict those answers, but I can give a couple of responses that seem to be pointing to moving up.

1.  Multiple Offers- We are seeing this throughout the market. When a home is priced right, it sells very fast at close-to-full price. This doesn’t mean the home is under price for the market, though.  I have had a couple times in the past 2 months were there was multiple offers on the home that were not foreclosures or short sales, they were just priced to meet the market.

2.  Tax Credit extended to move up or move down buyers. So we are experiencing the first time homebuyer credit, which helped get the market moving again.  This was originally supposed to expire Nov. 30, 2009, but has been extended to April 30^th, 2010.  But in the passing of the extension, there is also now a credit for non-first time homebuyers who are buying another home to get $6500.  See more details in previous blog: Tax Credit.

So my ‘2 cents’ for buyers and sellers:

Buyers: Be prepared with lending. Be knowledgeable about the area you’re interested in and be ready to make an offer right away when you walk through the home that fits your needs and wants. Because it might also fit someone else’s needs too.

Sellers: Price your home to be at the Market! Not what the market was 6 months ago or where you’re thinking the market is going.  An appraiser will not let you sell it above the market. See: Appraisal in a nut shell.

Energy Star Rated!

Allen Edwin Energy Star Rated!

This week Allen Edwin has received the Energy Star Rating on their homes. This is a great thing, as many homes in our community are not Energy Star rated.  Many homes have not gone through the process to test to see if they really meet or beat the requirements.

If you’re looking for a home in West Michigan, you should add Allen Edwin Homes to the list. Please give me a call before going to the home or website and we can get you a preferred Realtor $500 upgrade coupon if you decided to buy!

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