Month: July 2017

Professional photos make a big difference

iPhone pictures are great for selfies, but get it done right when selling your house, or lose money & time on the market.

A homeowner (let’s call her Mary) was recently interviewing an agent from another brokerage and before signing any paperwork, Mary was speaking to Bob on my team about the process. Bob knows Mary personally (but not as well as the other agent), and was working on getting us an interview. Mary was convinced that she intended to hire this other agent and did not need to interview us, so Bob offered her a list of questions to ask. (We provide this list to anyone, anywhere who would like it – just click here to download it FREE).

One of the questions asks if the agent being interviewed intends to use a professional photographer. You can google the benefits of using a professional photographer in real estate here.

All of our research, as well as our experience (and our eyes) tells us that unless the house is in dire need of extensive rehab, professional photos will put additional money in the homeowner’s pocket. Studies vary on the amount, but from everything I have read, it can be as little as $900 and as much as $19,000 and averages around $3,400. Can you imagine the vacation you could take with all of that extra cash? Listings with professional photos also get more many views online and sell faster according to these studies. Yet, when asked by Mary if she intended to use professional photos, the agent being interviewed said “don’t waste your money”.

Wow!! And if she took that shortcut, what other shortcuts is she going to take that will cost Mary an additional $1,250, plus $2,275 plus $8,400 plus ????

Mary’s listing went active recently and the photos of the “highly upgraded” kitchen, as well as the laundry room and 2 of the bedrooms are extremely blurry. Mary is seen in 1 of the photos from behind, her dog’s butt is in one of the photos (just the butt prominently displayed). 90% of buyers begin their home search online, by looking at these photos, and I can tell you from experience, they often opt-out of visiting houses that have bad photos. If the agent you interview does not intend to hire a professional photographer, show them the door and call us right away at 702 SELL NOW. Even if you are not in the Las Vegas area. We will help you find and interview a competent agent anywhere in the country for FREE. We can’t stand it when lazy agents get hired to sell houses and cost the homeowner thousaands and of dollars, as well as time on the market.

Footnote: In a fascinating turn of events – as I was writing this post, a client of mine called me about a house we saw yesterday. When I asked her what she thought of the home, she said that the kitchen was actually nicer than the photos showed (can you guess why?)

New Rules for Short Term Rentals in Las Vegas

Any landlords that wish to offer short term rentals through services such as VRBO, AirBnB & Homeaway are required to comply with Las Vegas Municipal Code Section 6.75.

To read the entire statute, click this link; https://goo.gl/bAwu5x

Here are what I feel are the highlights;
On June 21, 2017, the Las Vegas City Council passed Bill No. 2017-16 by a vote of four to three, requiring that all short term rentals be required to obtain a special use permit prior to commencing operations.
First, the owner must apply to the City Planning Department for that permit for each separate unit. Then, have the property inspected to verify the number of bedrooms and compliance with safety and other minimum housing requirements. Once the Conditional Use Verification is approved, the applicant is also required to submit a business license application and affidavit to Business Licensing by the next business day.

In order to secure the permit, owners are required to produce proof of liability insurance for $500,000.00 and install letter-size placards outside the properties with contact information and maximum allowed occupancy. Any until with more than five bedrooms is now required to maintain a resident manager on site during the term of the rental.

Other provisions of Municipal Code Section 6.75 state that the owner must collect and remit Room Tax and it appears you cannot require a minimum number of nights – even over big events like New Years Eve.

If you have a short term rental and don’t want to deal with the new rules, we will sell it for you quickly! Just call us at 702 SELL NOW (702-735-5669)