Archive for November, 2011

10 Tips for Selling Vacation Homes in Colorado

by BULL Forms in Real Estate with No comments

Tips for Selling Vacation Homes in Colorado

photo by Lena

Selling vacation homes in Colorado requires careful planning in order to ensure that the property sells quickly for the highest possible price. To successfully achieve this, it is essential that the property stands out from all others on the market. Here are 10 tips for selling vacation homes in Colorado to assist in a quick sale:

Tip #1 of Tips for Selling Vacation Homes in Colorado: Buyer’s Perspective

It’s important to take a step back from a much-loved property and view it as a potential buyer might see it. Ensure that the home is viewed with a critical and objective eye in order to see things that need to be changed, fixed or improved upon. Looking at things from the buyer’s perspective is one of the best tips for selling your home.

Tip #2 of Tips for Selling Vacation Homes in Colorado: De-personalize

When a potential buyer visits, it’s important that they can see themselves in the house. Many will already be imagining how their furniture will look, where they can put their photographs and so on. With this in mind, ensure that they can view the property as a ‘blank canvas’. If rooms are full of your personal belongings, photographs and clutter, it will be impossible for a viewer to imagine themselves in that setting.

Tip #3: De-clutter

Work on clearing things out – don’t simply shove clutter into cupboards. Be ruthless in throwing things away as viewers will obviously look into cupboards and storage spaces. Imagine a potential buyer who’s in love with your property opening a closet only to have ten-year-old fishing equipment fall on their head. These tips for selling your home are important to apply to all areas of the property.

Tip #4: Local Knowledge

Be enthusiastic and prepared to offer plenty of useful information on the local area and available services. Remember that buyers are looking for a vacation spot so it’s important that it sounds as attractive as possible. Mention how good the food is at a local restaurant and talk about how many activities can be enjoyed at the lake down the road. If there is a rental program, mention it.

Tip #5: Fixtures and Fittings

Put any furniture or fittings you do not want included in the sale into storage – this will stop viewers from falling in love with something and experiencing disappointment when they realize it doesn’t come with the property. Similarly, mention anything that you’re willing to leave.

Tip #6: Essential Repairs

Ensure that all repairs are carried out before placing the home for sale. This is essential to listing any property and, in particular, for selling vacation homes in Colorado. Sales can be held up if the house fails inspection, which is easy to prevent in many cases.

Tip #7: Clean & Fresh

Make sure that the homes are sparkling clean when selling vacation homes in Colorado. Hire professional cleaners if necessary and make sure the home smells fresh and inviting at all times.

Tip #8: Curb Appeal

Curb appeal can make the buyer feel instantly welcome or put off before even stepping foot inside the house. Ensure that the exterior paint is fresh, the flowerbeds are weeded and the lawn is freshly cut to make potential buyers see the beautiful of the home.

Tip #9: Natural Beauty

The natural beauty of Colorado can make it easier to sell a vacation home. This is our 9th of the tips to sell your vacation homes in Colorado. Ensure that you add emphasis to the mountains, lakes and areas that surround the property. Many of these treasured places may be tucked away and not well known about. Buyers can easily fall in love with a home and area if you share these local treasures with them.

Tip #10: Aesthetics

A home’s overall aesthetic appeal can make or break a sale when selling vacation homes in Colorado. The general design and flow of a house is what can help to see it as a home. Use a neutral palette in your décor and add touches of color with natural items such as cut flowers.

Remember to follow us on twitter if you want to stay up to date on other tips for selling vacation homes in Colorado.

If you know of any tips for selling vacation homes in Colorado please feel free to add them in the comments.

Showing Colorado Real Estate in the Snow

by BULL Forms in Real Estate with No comments

Showing Colorado Real Estate In The Snow

The three most important things when considering the value of real estate are location, location and location! What should you do when you’re trying to sell a piece of real estate located in an area constantly buried by snow? Often, Colorado real estate endures between 50 and 150 inches of snowfall per year, which can make selling real estate a risky business. Luckily, a few simple tricks can turn the pesky snow into a much appreciated ally.

Clear a Pathway

Shovel or clear the walkway that leads up to the building with a snow blower. The idea is to make the property look cleaner than the rest. When the piece of real estate on the market appears cleaner and better kept than the rest of the neighborhood, it gives potential buyers the impression that the building is of value. A clean walkway also decreases the chances of immediate rejection. If a potential buyer has to walk through mounds of snow, they are more likely to lose interest in purchasing the property because it gives the impression that the property is dirty and requires a lot of maintenance. Once the pathway is cleared, sprinkle it with salt or a de-icing product to prevent the build up of ice.

Remove Excess Snow

Remove snow from any roof, section of gutters, patio, balcony, deck or porch. The idea of showing real estate to potential buyers is to show the actual real estate, not how much snow it can hold. Clearing excess snow allows potential buyers in the Colorado real estate market to see the property clearly, which is a big selling point. Removing excess snow is also a safety precaution because falling snow or ice can injure a buyer and open up an unwanted legal can of worms.

Protect the Floor

Lay plastic or runners, which are small rugs, on the carpeting near the entrance way of the building. Shoes that are wet and dirty from the snow may track filth onto the carpeting. Dirty carpet is something that no buyer in the Colorado real estate market wants to see. Clean carpets present potential buyers with the image of a clean property. If the carpets do get dirty, have them professionally cleaned immediately.

Turn on the Heat

Turn on the furnace and warm the property so it is a comfortable temperature. If the property doesn’t have a furnace or an electric heating system, purchase space heaters and place one in each room of the property. The last thing potential buyers want in Colorado real estate is a cold building. Providing a warm environment for potential buyers not only encourages them to stay and look at the property without rushing through it, but it also gives them a sense of comfort when they walk in from the cold. The comfort associated with the property just might be the tipping point that gets them to put an offer on the property.

The Colorado real estate market is unlike any other in the United States. Constant snowfall and winter-like conditions may make it seem difficult to sell real estate in Colorado, but removing snow and maintaining the property will prevent potential buyers from being deterred by the snow.

Looking for a Colorado Real Estate Form Solution. Give us a try.

November Agent Spotlight – Debra Christensen

by BULL Forms in Agent Spotlight with No comments

Introduction

It has been a while since our last agent spotlight, and we have improved our product drastically over the course of the past 3 months thanks to feedback from our users. Please keep giving us your feedback here. Let’s dive right into the next edition of our agent spotlight:

BULL-Forms-Colorado-DORA-Christensen

Name: Debra Christensen

Company: Keller Williams Foothills Realty

Website: www.DebChristensen.com

If you don’t already, please follow us on twitter and like us on facebook!

How Long Have you been in Real Estate?

6 Years

What areas of Colorado / Type of Property do you specialize in?

I specialize in the Foothills of Denver – Evergreen, Conifer, Pine, Bailey, Morrison, Genesee – I-70 and the 285 corridor. I have earned the ABR (Accredited Buyer Representative designation and the CMAS (Certified Mountain Area Specialist) and feel very strongly that if you’re looking to buy and/or sell in the Mountains, you should use a Mountain Specialist. We know the questions to ask.

What other real estate contract software did you use before switching to bull forms?

I’ve used RealFast, QES, Metrolist’s Instanet and tried CTM econtracts before finding Bull Forms. I’m not changing again – love this product!

Tell us how BULL Forms has helped you in your day to day business

I decided to go with electronic contracts when I was in a situation where we had to get an inspection notice and Amend/Extend delivered and I had another appointment looming. I had to rush home, boot up my computer, quickly write the documents, email them to my client who had to print them out, scan them in page by page, email them back to me to deliver to the agent on time.

Bull Forms is so easy! I can access it on my Droid phone, my Tablet and any computer when I’m with clients. Clients love it, the learning curve is fast and fun.

What are your favorite features of BULL Forms?

Love that I can write as much as I need to, that my clients name can be (almost) as long as it needs to be. (Don’t know why i work with so many Trusts and Estates??). Compared to CTM the learning curve is quick and easy and I’m always learning new features. Signing is a dream and I like that I can decide where and when I want initials and/or signatures.

My company has it’s own econtract system and I’m trying to learn it, but it is so not as easy as Bull Forms. I like that I can add my own documents.

What issues have you had using BULL Forms?

1. Would like the Seller’s Property Disclosure be an open form where clients can check their own boxes. I am not allowed to fill this out or help them with it, so I have to go back to the old system and make them fill it out by hand and get it back to me.

BULL Forms Comment: We are in the process of adding this functionality. Hopefully it will be launched within the next few weeks!

2. I’ve experienced difficulty with scanning a document in and the file is too large with my scanner at home, so I’ve had to go to the office to scan it. Sure this is my fault, I’ll figure it out.

3. For some reason, the auto populate still isn’t working right with my contact information (office, name, phone, etc). I have to really check each form-switching form views, and sometimes don’t realize that it’s been placed incorrectly before I get to signatures, then have to go back and correct it and start the signature process again. I would like my information visible on the Auto Populate form, so I can make sure it is correct.

BULL Forms Comment: We apologize for this issue as it is unacceptable. We will do everything in our power to ensure this feature is working properly.

WHAT DO YOU DO WHEN YOU ARE NOT SELLING REAL ESTATE? WHAT ARE SOME OF YOUR HOBBIES?

I play the piano and accompany the high school group at our local theatre: StageDoor Theatre in Conifer. Currently we’re performing “Hello Dollly”.

WHAT OTHER ONLINE APPLICATIONS OUTSIDE OF FORMS WOULD YOU FIND HELPFUL IN YOUR DAY TO DAY LIFE OR BUSINESS?

My sister-in-law is a graphic designer and very envious of me with these electronic contracts! She wants a easy application for her contracts!

BULL Forms Comment: Just as an FYI, we launched our full featured e-signature solution here.

We would like to thank Debra for taking time out of her busy schedule to chat with us. If you are interested in signing up, please do so here.

Cheers,

-BULL Forms Support

Switching from RealFast for DORA Contracts

by BULL Forms in Tutorials with No comments

August 1 2011 RealFast announced that it was acquired by ZipLogix. For many Colorado Real Estate professionals, this meant it was time to look for a new provider of DORA Colorado Real Estate Contracts. Change is difficult, especially if you have been using RealFast for an extended period of time and you have built up a large library of transactions.

Here at BULL Forms we are doing our best to ensure a smooth transition to our new users coming over from RealFast. This guide will assist you in copying over your existing transactions to BULL Forms. With unlimited storage included with each paying subscription there is no need to worry about uploading too many documents!

Migrating Documents from RealFast2Go

Once you have logged into your realfast2go account, navigate to a transaction that you would like to export. Click on the create pdf link near the bottom lefthand side of the page, highlighted in yellow below:

Switch from RealFast to BULL Forms For DORA Forms Create PDF

Next, check each of the documents you would like to export into PDF format, again, highlighted in yellow below:

Switch from RealFast to BULL Forms Colorado for DORA Forms Export your PDFs

Almost there! Next you have to select the location where the PDF files will be saved. Enter the output directory into the location highlighted below. Make sure that you select any easy to remember and easily accessible location.

Switch from RealFast to BULL Forms Colorado Save File

Final step in the export process, click on the create PDF button highlighted below:

Switch from RealFast to BULL Forms Colorado Create PDF

Repeat this process for all of the transactions you would like to import into BULL Forms and you can now start importing your transactions.

Importing transactions into BULL Forms

Now you are ready to import your PDF documents into BULL Forms. Start by creating a new deal for all of the forms you are going to import. Click on create new deal near the left hand side.

BULL Forms Colorado Create New Deal

You will be prompted to choose a deal name:

Once you have created the deal, click on the files icon for the deal, as highlighted in yellow below:

BULL Forms Colorado Files

After clicking on the file icon you will enter the file management window. You can create a folder, or upload all of your documents anywhere you choose. Click on the upload link:

BULL Forms Colorado Upload Files

From the upload window you can upload multiple files at a time, navigate to the location where you saved your RealFast documents and click on the upload button.

BULL Forms Colorado Upload Files Modal For more information on our file storage functionality, please read this previous blog post.

If you need assistance transferring previous transactions please contact us here.