Our Blog | The Lake Team | Greater Houston Area Real Estate

29 09, 2021

Sellers

How To Get Your House Ready For Sale | Prepping The Interior

Andrew Lake2021-09-29T14:46:22-06:00September 29th, 2021|Categories: Sellers|

PRO TIPS FOR PREPPING THE INTERIOR OF YOUR HOME FOR SALE You only have one chance to impress potential buyers, make it count. But what should you do to ensure buyers fall in love with your home? In this video and article we will review everything you need to know! DEFERRED MAINTENANCE & REPAIRS Remember all those things you kept putting off? You know, the honey-do list that you would “get to in a minute”? Well, now it’s time for you to get to work. All those items need [...]

28 09, 2021

Buyers

Home Warranty Companies | Real Or SCAM?! | Home Buyer Tips

Andrew Lake2021-09-28T16:50:37-06:00September 28th, 2021|Categories: Buyers|

HOME WARRANTY COMPANIES | REAL OR SCAM?! Think of a home warranty like your cars warranty from a dealership. If something happens after you purchase a new car, you can get it repaired if the car is still under warranty. It’s the same way with a house. But is it worth it? Let’s find out! WHAT IS A HOME WARRANTY? A home warranty is a service contract that covers the expenses to replace or repair certain items and appliances within the home. Some examples of items covered can include [...]

28 09, 2021

Sellers

10 Tips to Make Buyers Fall In LOVE With Your House

Andrew Lake2021-09-28T16:24:59-06:00September 28th, 2021|Categories: Sellers|

10 TIPS TO MAKE BUYERS FALL IN LOVE WITH YOUR HOUSE So you have decided to sell your house, which is great! But how do you ensure that buyers will fall in love with your house the moment they walk through the door or pull up in the driveway? Well, there are multiple tricks to the trade, so let’s begin! 1. MAKE AN ENTRANCE - FIRST IMPRESSIONS As you are aware, first impressions are everything. Every layout of a house is different, but you can do your best to decorate [...]

27 09, 2021

Buyers

The REAL Costs Of Owning A Home | Truth No One Tells You

Andrew Lake2021-09-27T12:36:06-06:00September 27th, 2021|Categories: Buyers|

THE REAL COSTS OF OWNING A HOME | THE TRUTH NO ONE TELLS YOU Do you know all of the costs associated with owning a house? Like every last expense other than your mortgage? Well in this video and article we are going to break down a real world example of every single expense you need to know. Let’s go! For this example, let’s lay down the basis of where our numbers are coming from. Purchase Price: $300,000 Down Payment: 5% = $15,000 Loan Amount: $385,000 Interest Rate: 3.25% [...]

27 09, 2021

Sellers

How Long Does It Take To Sell Your House In Houston?

Andrew Lake2021-09-27T11:47:34-06:00September 27th, 2021|Categories: Sellers|

HOW LONG DOES IT TAKE TO SELL YOUR HOUSE IN HOUSTON? If you have made the decision to sell your house, you may be wondering how long it takes. Real estate transactions have a ton of moving pieces that have to happen to get it to the closing table. So how long does it take from start to finish? Watch the video and read the article for a more in depth review. Let’s dive in! ESTABLISH YOUR TIMELINE First things first, you need to establish your own timeline and [...]

23 09, 2021

Sellers

DOM | A Key Metric You Must Know BEFORE Selling Your House

Andrew Lake2021-09-23T11:11:22-06:00September 23rd, 2021|Categories: Sellers|

DAYS ON MARKET - A KEY METRIC YOU MUST KNOW BEFORE SELLING YOUR HOUSE A key metric you should understand before putting your house on the market is days on market or DOM. Knowing this metric will help you understand how long it will take to sell your house and how to price it right according to your goals. WHAT IS DOM? Bread, cake, chips... they all get stale eventually. And when it comes to selling your house, the last thing you want is your listing becoming stale. There [...]

23 09, 2021

Buyers

Tips For Building A Custom Home | Biggest Mistakes To Avoid

Andrew Lake2021-09-23T09:56:17-06:00September 23rd, 2021|Categories: Buyers|

TIPS FOR BUILDING A CUSTOM HOME | BIGGEST MISTAKES TO AVOID Building a new house can be fun and exciting! Especially if it’s your first time. Before you go off and start signing contracts with builders or contractors, check out these quick tips on how to avoid common mistakes people make when building a house. PICKING AN UNRELIABLE BUILDER If you are building a new construction home in a subdivision with a builder, you shouldn’t have too much to worry about. But you should definitely still do your research [...]

23 09, 2021

Sellers

Tips To Sell Your House | Pro photography Is A MUST!

Andrew Lake2021-09-23T08:13:51-06:00September 23rd, 2021|Categories: Sellers|

PROFESSIONAL PHOTOGRAPHY - WHY IT'S IMPORTANT WHEN SELLING YOUR HOUSE IN HOUSTON Professional photography is extremely important when selling your house. It can make or break you. And stay far away from agents who like to take pictures with their cell phones… FIRST IMPRESSIONS MATTER As I mentioned in one of our previous videos and articles, most home buyers find their home online, so it’s crucial that your agent hires a professional photographer to make a good first impression. Have you ever scrolled through houses online and noticed a [...]

22 09, 2021

Buyers

What Is Earnest Money & Option Fee? – Houston Real Estate

Andrew Lake2021-09-22T09:03:16-06:00September 22nd, 2021|Categories: Buyers|

WHAT IS EARNEST MONEY AND OPTION FEE? | HOME BUYING 101 When you and the seller agree to the terms of a contract, the next step is to deposit two checks made out to the title company: one for the earnest money deposit, and one for the option fee. The amounts are negotiated, but will be spelled out in the contract that both parties sign. But what exactly are these? Let’s dive in.. EARNEST MONEY Earnest money is basically a deposit in good faith that you are serious about [...]

21 09, 2021

Buyers

Building A Custom Home | What You Need To Know

Andrew Lake2021-09-21T15:27:28-06:00September 21st, 2021|Categories: Buyers|

BUILDING A CUSTOM HOME | WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW There’s nothing more satisfying than seeing your vision become a reality. Building a custom home is loaded with many perks and can be very rewarding. Before you go off and start building, there are a few things you should know. Let’s dive in! FINDING YOUR LOT The first thing you need to do is find the area you want to call home and find a vacant lot to build on. You can find lots for sale on the market [...]