Disconnect Your Emotions

You need to think of your house as a marketable commodity. Property. Real estate. Your goal is to get others to see it as their potential home, not yours. If you do not consciously make this decision, you can inadvertently create a situation where it takes longer to sell your property.

Make Your Home "Anonymous"

The reason you want to make your home "anonymous" is because you want buyers to view it as their potential home. When a potential homebuyer sees your family photos hanging on the wall, it puts your own brand on the home and momentarily shatters their illusions about living in the house themselves.

Uncluttering the House

This is the hardest thing for most people to do because they are emotionally attached to everything in the house. After years of living in the same home, clutter collects in such a way that may not be evident to the homeowner. However, it does affect the way buyers see the home, even if you do not realize it.

Clutter collects on shelves, counter tops, drawers, closets, garages, attics, and basements. You want as much open clear space as possible, so every extra little thing needs to be cleared away.

Take a step back and pretend you are a buyer. Let a friend help point out areas of clutter, as long as you can accept their views without getting defensive. Let your agent help you, too.

Why Use A Real Estate Agent?

When selling a home, a real estate agent can be an indispensable resource. Real estate agents can give you up-to-date information regarding prices, financing, terms and conditions of competing properties, and information about the housing market in general. A real estate agent will market your property to other real estate agents as well as to the public, and will know the best way to go about doing so. A real estate agent can also help you objectively evaluate buyer proposals, and then, finally, help you close the sale. In fact, a 2002 study on Home Sellers reports that the median sales price of an agent-assisted home was 27% higher than one sold "by owner".

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12 Suggestions on Preparing to Place Your House on the Market

Tidy up the grounds, porches, garage, grass, bushes, flowerbeds, don't forget clean up the backyard. Add alittle color. Flowers or seasonal decorating. The outside could draw the buyer to make the appointment. The outside looks so good, they can't wait to see what's inside.

Freshen up any curtains.

Your front door gives a vital first impression while a Realtor is getting the key out of the lockbox, the prospect is standing in one place examining the front door, porch, and exterior condition.

Scrape and paint any window trim or exterior paint if needed.

If any decoration is needed do it now! Bathrooms and Kitchens add more value to a home than any other room. Dress the kitchen and bathroom up. Give it the updated look. You'll be surprised how a fresh coat of paint looks.

Keep all steps clear of hazards.

Don't forget to have all light sockets filled with bulbs. Bright is better. Illumination is like a welcome sign. The potential buyers will feel a glowing warmth when you turn on all your lights for a showing.

Wash dishes, put away clothes, straighten up end tables, clear off the dining room table, and try to keep the bathroom tidy.

Make up beds with attractive bedspreads.

Keep pets out of the way when showing. They may cause a distraction.

Avoid being present during showings. The potential buyer will feel like a intruder and will hurry through the house. Do not allow children to tag along on the visitors tours.

Have garage sales, give items to charities, give things to family members, or rent a storage unit. A good rule of thumb: If you haven't used it in two or three years, get rid of it ! !

Remember, the earlier a realtor is called in the qicker we can get sell moving in the right direction!

The Best Investment

As a fairly general rule, homes appreciate about four or five percent a year. Some years will be more, some less. The figure will vary from neighborhood to neighborhood, and region to region.

Presumably, if you bought a $200,000 house, you did not pay cash for the home. You got a mortgage, too. Suppose you put as much as twenty percent down that would be an investment of $40,000. At an appreciation rate of 5% annually, a $200,000 home would increase in value $10,000 during the first year. That means you earned $10,000 with an investment of $40,000. Your annual "return on investment" would be a whopping twenty-five percent.

Of course, you are making mortgage payments and paying property taxes, along with a couple of other costs. However, since the interest on your mortgage and your property taxes are both tax deductible, the government is essentially subsidizing your home purchase. Your rate of return when buying a home is higher than most any other investment you could make.

Why use a Realtor?

A REALTOR® helps you determine how much home you can actually afford. Often a REALTOR® can suggest additional ways to accrue the down payment and explain alternative financing methods.

A REALTOR® can help you work out a realistic idea of the available homes, can evaluate them in terms of you needs and affordability, and doesn’t waste you time on unsuitable homes.

A REALTOR® often can supply information on real estate values, taxes, utility costs, municipal services and facilities, and is aware of proposed zoning changes that could affect your decision to buy.

A REALTOR® acts as the liaison between you and the seller in presenting offers and counter-offers until an agreement has been reached.

A REALTOR® can tell you about financing, and what personal and financial data is needed when you apply for a loan.

A REALTOR® can familiarize you with contracts and closing procedures in advance.

Closing Process & Title Insurance:

Buying a house is an exciting time and the more you know about the process, the more relaxed you’ll be going through it. Lifetime Television did a great job explaining the closing process and how purchasing an Owner’s Title Insurance Policy will give you peace of mind that your investment is protected. To watch the video, go to: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z-IBqVGk2Pg&feature=youtu.be

Mortgage Payment Calculator:

To calculate your mortgage payment, go to "http://www.bankrate.com/calculators/mortgages/mortgage-calculator.aspx"

Prospectors was founded in August of 2006. After being in real estate 14 years it was time to move ahead to the next step. God provided and I opened my doors. Soon afterwards, Jennifer Taylor joined the staff and we began to conquer the world. In 2007 four more agents joined the office and we are on our way to a very successful years in business.

We believe in continued education for our agents. We are always eager to learn. In turn, we help educate our client in purchasing one of their biggest investment of their life. Please feel free to call Sherri Jones, Broker/Owner any time for questions or comments, 918-869-2552.

We believe in continued education for our agents. We are always eager to learn and, in turn, we help educate our clients in purchasing one of the biggest investments of their life.

Our website is kept current with our listings as well as a link to all properties in the area. There is also helpful information for buyers and sellers as well as facts about Muskogee. Please feel free to navigate and contact us with any questions or comments @ 918-682-8501.

In addition to the private sector, we are a HUD co-listing broker. For a complete listing of HUD properties for sale, please see WWW.HUDHOMESTORE.COM.

For more information, please call Sherri Jones, Broker/Owner, any time for questions or comments @ 918-869-2552.

Muskogee, OK, 74403

p: 918-682-8501

f: 918-682-8587

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Historic Muskogee has several museums to visit: The Five Civilized Tribes Museum (918-683-1701),Ataloa Lodge Museum (918-781-7283), Oklahoma Music Hall of Fame (918-687-2800), and the U.S.S Batfish and War Memorial (918-682-6294).Within these museum, are displayed culture of our Indian and musical heritage, art, the train depot and the importance of our military.

For entertainment we have the historic Roxy which was recently redone and The Little Theatre.At the Roxy you can review national acts and amateur night. Live entertainment such as; concerts, plays, musicals and family-style movies. It’s also available for meetings and cooperate parties. Call 918-684-6362. The Little Theater also has family style musicals and plays. They are fun for the whole family. The town has wonderful talent, young and old; you would just have to see it for your self to believe it! Call 918-683-4901 for their upcoming schedule for the year.

For the Children, we have 3 parks available: Spaulding Park, Hatbox Sports Complex, and the Famous Honor Heights .Spaulding has tennis courts, basketball, a playground and a picnic area. There is also a gazebo overlooking a pond. Hatbox Sports Complex contains 8 softball feilds, 10 baseball, a soccer complex, an outdoor skate complex for the skate boarders, a walking or biking trail, and the award winning River Country Family Water Park. Now we have Honor Heights Park.It has over 30,000 azaleas with over 625 varieties. In April we have the Azalea Parade, chili cook-off, a dance, and beautiful Azaleas all through the park to tour for 3 weeks. They have hiking trails, picnic areas, paddle boats and ducks to feed. They even have a baseball field if you get that full of energy.

Our restaurants vary from gourmet dining at Miss Addies to fast food at Burger King. The Main 3 strips to eat on are Shawnee Bypass, 69 Highway, and Main Street. We do have BBQ on Chandler Road and York and Gibson streets.

Now for our favorite time of the year!!! Christmas! Honor Heights Parks has a display of lights you wouldn’t believe! All of the ponds are lit up, the trees, around the roads. They even have some special surprises I won’t mention. But on occasion you can take a hay ride through the park and maybe even a helicopter ride over the park. Then the Castle has a holiday of inflatables! You can drive through and look at all they have and finish the night out with some hot chocolate ,snacks and some arts&crafts for the kids. Oh! I almost for got, if you want to buy inflatables, you can buy them there to save and extra trip to the store.

Hope you enjoy the tour!!