Home staging can sometimes make or break a sale. “A home has to be staged to be competitive in this market,” said Barb Schwarz, creator of the home staging industry. In part two of our series on home staging, Schwarz, who’s been staging properties for 35 years, discusses interior staging and said, “If you’re going to stage a home, you need to stage the entire property.”

Barb Schwarz

Virtual staging is a growing trend that many REALTORS® are using to move listings.

Barb Schwarz, creator of the home staging industry, has been teaching and speaking about home staging for more than 35 years.

“Virtual staging is fine as long as the house is staged as well,” said Schwarz.

In part one of our series on home staging, Schwarz discusses the pros and cons of virtual staging and recommends that REALTORS® “do the right thing and get the property staged.”

Daniel Shapiro, Ph.D.

Harrisburg native and internationally renowned negotiation expert Dr. Daniel Shapiro says, “When it comes to real estate you can’t avoid emotions and in fact, you don’t want to.”

Drawing from his experience at the Harvard Negotiation Project, Dr. Shapiro teaches his audiences how to deal effectively with emotions. Dr. Shapiro, who will be speaking at the REALTORS® Conference and Expo in San Diego on Friday, has consulted Fortune 500 companies such as Microsoft and Starbucks, as well as former British Prime Minister Tony Blair and Queen Rania of Jordan.

Duration: 3:41

The law extends the present $8,000 tax credit for first-time homebuyers through April 30, 2010. Current homeowners are eligible for a $6,500 tax credit through April 30, provided they have lived in the home they are selling, or have sold, as the principal residence for five consecutive years during the past eight years.

If potential homebuyers have a binding contract on or before April 30, they will have 60 days to close the transaction.

PAR president Greg Herb says this hopefully gives more Pennsylvanians the opportunity to purchase a home.  Listen: 

Income limits for eligible homebuyers are expanded to $125,000 for single buyers and $225,000 for couples. The purchase price of the home cannot exceed $800,000.

Qualifying service members have until April 30, 2011 to take advantage of the first-time homebuyer credit. If ordered to deploy and forced to sell the home within three years, the service member will not have to repay the credit.

To help guard against fraud, buyers are required to attach documentation of purchase to their tax return. The person claiming the credit must be at least 18 years old.

Q.  Existing homeowner credit:  Must the new house cost more than the old house?  

A.  No.  Thus, for example, individuals who move from a high cost area to a lower cost area who meet all eligibility requirements will qualify for the $6500 credit.  

Q. I am an existing homeowner. On October 25, 2009, I signed a contract to purchase a new home.  I have lived in my current  home for more than 5 consecutive years and am within the new income limits. I will go to settlement on November 20. If President Obama has signed the bill by the time I go to settlement, will I qualify for the new $6500 tax credit?

A.  Yes.  The existing homeowner credit goes into effect for purchases after the date of enactment (when the bill is signed).  There is no reference to the date of contract for the new credit. The provision looks solely to the date of purchase, which is generally the date of settlement.  

Q.  I am a first-time homebuyer but was not within the prior income limits at the time I entered into my contract to purchase on October 30, 2009. I will be covered, however, by the new income limits.  If the new rules have been signed into law by the time I go to settlement, will I be eligible for a credit?  

A.  Yes.  The new income limitations go into effect as soon as the President has signed the bill.  The income limit and other eligibility rules will look to your status as of the date of purchase, which is the settlement date. So if the new rules have been signed when you go to settlement, you should be eligible for the credit (or a portion of the credit if you’re within the phase-out range).

Q.  I am an eligible existing homeowner. I have a fair amount of equity in my home. I have found a home with a non-negotiable price of $825,000. Will I be able to use any of the $6500 tax credit?

A.  No. The $800,000 cap on the cost of the purchased home is firm at $800,000.  Any amount above $800,000 makes the home ineligible for any portion of the credit. The $800,000 is an absolute ceiling.   

Q.  I owned my home for 10 years, but sold it two years ago and have been renting since. If I purchase a home, will I be eligible for the $6500 tax credit if I meet all the other eligibility tests?

A.  Yes. Because you lived in the home for more than 5 consecutive years of the previous 8, you will qualify for the $6500 credit. For example, say John and his wife bought a home in 2000 and lived there until 2008 when he got a divorce. Whether John has been renting or bought in the interim, he WOULD INDEED be  eligible for the credit because he owned a home and occupied it as his principal residence for 5 consecutive years out of the last 8 years. The keyword here is “consecutive.” As long as he lived in that house for 5 years straight, what he did since 3 years doesn’t impact eligibility.

Q.  I am an eligible first-time homebuyer.  I entered into a contract to purchase on November 1, 2009.  Do I have to go to closing before December 1?  How does the extension date affect me?

A.  You do not have to close before December 1.  Once the legislation has been signed, it will be as if the Nov. 30 date had never existed. Therefore, so long as the contract settles before April 30 (or July 1, worst case), the purchaser will be eligible for the credit.

To  learn more, download this homebuyer tax credit changes chart from NAR.

Don’t make claims you can’t substantiate. Do follow the rules and regulations of the PA Real Estate commission, licensing act and Code of Ethics when communicating through social media. In part two of Social Media: Law and Ethics, Hank Lerner, director of member and legal services, says when targeting consumers, “you have to paint a true picture in all your advertising.”

Duration: 3:50

Many PAR members communicate through social networking. Hank Lerner, director of member and legal services, says if REALTORS® are going to target potential real estate customers online, “all the regulations of the PA Real Estate Commission, licensing act and Code of Ethics still apply.”

At a minimum, Lerner says a REALTOR® who posts listings on his Facebook page should have the following information underneath his picture:

First Name Last Name, REALTOR®
Broker Office Name
Broker Office Phone #
Street Address
City, State Zip Code

In the last installment of PAR’s “Taste of Triple Play” Series, former Major League baseball player, professional speaker and trainer Tom Lundstedt offers REALTORS® a few tips from his presentation, Real Estate Investment Made Easy.

Tom Lundstedt, CCIM

Lundstedt says his love for baseball didn’t make him a good player but a fellow teammate helped him make a home run in real estate.

He will be conducting two sessions at Triple Play REALTORS® Convention & Trade Expo on Wednesday, December 9.

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Chandra Hall

In the second of PAR’s “Taste of Triple Play” Series, speaker Chandra Hall previews her seminar, A Thousand Things Went Right Today, which will teach REALTORS® to “shift their mindset and not buy into negativity.” Hall combines humor, knowledge and motivation to energize her audiences.

In 2008, Hall was awarded the prestigious Distinguished Real Estate Instructor (DREI) designation. In addition to being a CRS instructor, she also teaches GRI and ABR courses for real estate groups across the nation.

REALTORS® have four chances to catch Hall at Triple Play 2009 in Atlantic City on Tues. Dec. 8 and Wed. Dec. 9.

Duration: 2:21

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Karel Murray

As the Triple Play Convention quickly approaches, PAR’s Real Property is giving REALTORS® a “taste of Triple Play” by featuring speakers from the professional seminars. Karel Murray, whose expertise and sense of humor always stirs up audiences, said she is going to “Make REALTORS® laugh again and feel good about themselves and the work they do.” Murray will be speaking at Triple Play in Atlantic City on Wednesday, December 9.

Duration: 3:00

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Brad Hanks

Social media is the now and the future of networking and business but using these tools effectively is the key to a successful business. 

Social media expert Brad Hanks of Brad Hanks Seminars gives a glimpse into his seminar, “Social Media – What’s in it for my business,” which he will present at the PAR September business meetings on  Monday, September 21 at 3:30 p.m. at the Harrisburg Hilton.

Duration: 3:06

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