We would like to congratulate Karlene Smith for earning the Residential Remodeling Specialist (RRS) and Residential Construction Certified (RCC) designations. While Karlene has worked with clients and investors for years on home remodeling consultations, she wanted to take things a step further and earn these designations. The knowledge she has, and the continued effort she puts into learning, really makes her top in her profession. When dealing with real estate, you want an agent that does more than open the doors and gets a contract signed. You want knowledge, experience and someone that will consult/advise you about all aspects of selling for top dollar – or buying with future equity in mind. After all, a home is your largest investment and should continue to gain value.
If you’re not sure whether you want to make changes to your existing home, or to sell and buy another home to meet your family’s changing needs, Karlene can help determine if the remodel will be beneficial for your current home and location, or if you will be putting more money into a home that will not gain enough value to recoup your expenses.
Karlene is also a Mortgage Loan Originator (NMLS #2053107) with Rocket Mortgage. It does not matter what lender you are working with she will be able to go over the different types of loans eligible for reconstruction or remodeling.
Karlene started her Real Estate career working with Coldwell Banker, then changing to Real Living after the franchise bought out GMAC (Colleen Christy). After purchasing the remainder of the franchise agreement from Real Living she made the decision upon its expiration to join Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices. As she always says, “the same great agents working with one of the premier companies in the industry, all for the benefit of our customers and clients.”
Karlene’s goal is to help educate the public on what is involved in a real estate deal, start to finish.
Here are her words of wisdom:
The sellers have hired an agent to sell their home. That agent is representing the seller’s best interests. As a buyer, you have the right to have a buyer’s agent represent you and your best interests. In most cases, there is no broker’s fee for the buyer as the seller has already agreed to pay the buyer’s agent to bring the buyer to the table.
Don’t get confused by those that claim they are a “multi-million-dollar producer” – most of us are! A Realtor can have only one “2 million-dollar” sale and be a “multi-million-dollar producer”. While another agent has had hundreds of sales and, in turn, gained valuable experience from inspections, lenders, and negotiating contract terms.
Another one is “we are the #1 Real Estate Company”. If an office has 20 agents and they are comparing themselves with an office that has 3 agents, of course the 20-agent office should do more sales but that does not mean they have more knowledge or experience.
Did the agent explain the whole process to you when you were looking to sell or buy a home? There are a lot of moving parts to real estate. Nothing should be a surprise. A good agent will explain the process, give you advice, and do an in-depth market analysis so you can understand the true value of a home in today’s market. If you are thinking of listing your home for sale, they will also explain to you the benefit of full market exposure in a limited inventory market. No-one can get you 10%, 20%, or 25% more out of your home than another agent. The market is determined by what other similar homes in the area have sold for and this is what dictates your home’s value. Most homebuyers use a mortgage to purchase a home and the lender will send an appraiser out to determine the value based on its condition. You may have a contract for $200k but if the house is only appraised for $150k, the only way the buyer can purchase the home is to kick in the additional $50k. Do you think the buyer will still want to buy? The only one way to get more money for your home is by making improvements to your home or buying or building something new. In that case, you need an agent that has experience and education – like a Residential Remodeling Specialist designation (RRS) and Residential Construction Certified designation (RCC) – to guide you through the improvements that will provide the best return on investment on your home. Call today to see exactly what Karlene has to offer.