Tailored Real Estate Services for Seniors: Choose The Pelham Group

Navigating the world of real estate can be challenging at any age, but for seniors, these challenges often come with additional considerations. Whether you’re downsizing, transitioning to a retirement community, or looking to make your current home more senior-friendly, it’s essential to have a trusted expert by your side. That’s where Kim and The Pelham Group step in.

At The Pelham Group, we specialize in tailored real estate solutions designed to meet the unique needs of seniors and their families. We understand the emotional and logistical hurdles that come with buying, selling, or transitioning to new living arrangements, and we offer comprehensive support every step of the way.

Why Seniors Choose Kim and The Pelham Group
Senior Real Estate Expertise You Can Trust

With certifications in senior real estate services and in-depth knowledge of the local market, Kim and the team are experts in guiding seniors through their real estate journeys. From downsizing to finding senior-friendly housing options, we provide compassionate, hands-on assistance tailored to your needs. Our goal is to make the process as smooth and stress-free as possible.

A Personalized Approach to Real Estate

We recognize that no two situations are the same. That’s why we start with a no-cost consultation to discuss your specific circumstances. Whether you need help selling a family home, finding a more accessible living space, or navigating complex financial decisions, Kim and her team create a plan that is fully personalized to your goals and timeline.

Support for the Whole Family

Transitions often involve more than just the senior. Families play an important role, and we work closely with them to ensure everyone is on the same page. From legal guidance and financial planning to home care and moving services, we offer comprehensive support that gives families peace of mind.
Comprehensive Real Estate Services for Seniors

Whether you’re buying or selling, we offer a full range of services that include:

Downsizing Assistance: We help you plan and organize every step, from decluttering to managing estate sales.

Senior-Friendly Housing Options: We provide expert guidance on finding the right senior living arrangement, whether it’s independent living, assisted living, or memory care.

Home Modifications: If you choose to age in place, we offer home modification solutions to make your home more accessible and comfortable.

Let Kim and The Pelham Group Be Your Trusted Partner

Senior transitions can feel overwhelming, but with Kim and The Pelham Group, you don’t have to navigate them alone. Our compassionate and experienced team is dedicated to providing the highest level of service, ensuring that your real estate needs are met with care and expertise.

If you or a loved one are considering a move, downsizing, or exploring senior-friendly housing options, contact Kim today for a complimentary consultation. Let us help make your next real estate experience a seamless and positive one.

Fall Buyer and Seller Guides NOW AVAILABLE

As we move into the fall season, The Pelham Group Northwest is excited to announce the release of our new Fall Buyer and Seller Guides!

 

These guides are designed to provide valuable insights into the real estate market and offer essential tips for anyone considering buying or selling a home this season.

Click to view

In each guide, you’ll find practical information to help you make more informed decisions. From the latest statistics to current market trends, we aim to keep you updated with everything you need to navigate the ever-changing real estate landscape. Whether you’re a first-time homebuyer, looking to upgrade, or planning to sell, our guides are tailored to make the process smoother, more transparent, and stress-free.

Have questions? Want to know how to apply the insights in these guides to your own situation? Don’t hesitate to reach out to us at The Pelham Group Northwest. We’re here to ensure you’re supported every step of the way.

Let us help you feel confident in your real estate journey this fall!

Selling Your Home As-Is

Selling a home as-is can be a strategic decision for many homeowners.
This option often appeals to those who want to avoid the costs of repairs
after negotiations, homeowners with limited equity, or those facing financial
challenges. It can also set clear expectations that buyers should conduct
their due diligence and not anticipate repairs later. Regardless of the
reason, there are effective ways to facilitate a successful as-is sale.

First, it’s important to clarify what “as-is” means. While some homes are
marketed as-is, others may not be. In an as-is sale, the seller is usually not
responsible for making repairs or addressing issues identified during a
home inspection. Buyers need to understand that unless they waive the
home inspection and/or condition contingency, they can typically still back
out if they find the home’s condition unsatisfactory during their inspection
period.

To successfully sell a property as-is, accurate pricing is essential. This
doesn’t mean pricing it below market value, but rather being realistic about
the home’s value and condition. The marketing should clearly state that the
home is being sold as-is and provide details about its condition,
emphasizing its potential and any expected repairs. This transparency can
help reassure buyers and encourage them to consider the property.

Overall, selling a home as-is can be a smart strategy that maximizes the
seller’s return on investment. With the right approach and open
communication, both buyers and sellers can have a rewarding transaction.

Lessons from a Failed Bidding War Attempt

BAM! Another Buyer under contract for LESS THAN LISTING PRICE! I negotiated $60,000 off the purchase price of this classic north Everett home for my Buyer client.  Here’s some important take-aways for both Buyers and Sellers:

LESSONS FOR SELLERS — Failed Bidding War Attempt:
  1. LESSON ONE: You can’t overprice your home. If the seller had listed this home for $575,000, they would have had a bidding war and probably sold for $625,000 and maybe even got to their list price of $650,000. Instead, they tried to get the bidding war price without doing the bidding war process.
  2. LESSON TWO: The more flaws the home has, the more important staging is.  Like many classic homes, this one has some issues that need to be addressed (floor needs to be leveled and refinished, the kitchen is worn, no refrigerator, the electrical system needs some updates, some windows don’t open, etc.)  The sellers chose to show the home vacant without staging.  Staging distracts the eye from flaws. Without staging, all the flaws become glaringly obvious. Also, staging gets buyers emotionally attached to the home which is imperative if you want a bidding war.
  3. LESSON THREE: Seller-provided pre-inspections are great — if you fix things before going on the market! This seller had pre-inspections available for the buyers (sewer and home inspection), but they did not fix any of the items called out by the inspector.  So in effect, you are handing the buyer a list of things that are wrong with the house.  Not the best strategy to get multiple offers!
LESSONS FOR BUYERS — How to Buy Without a Bidding War:
  1. LESSON ONE: Homes that need some work are opportunities. Many buyers do not have the ability or financial means to fix up a home, so the competition on these homes is reduced.
  2. LESSON TWO: Overpriced homes are opportunities, especially if you have any type of financing challenges. My buyers had 5% down, which would make it difficult to compete with other buyers who had larger down payments.  We were the only buyer that was willing to make an offer in the 12 days the home was on the market, so the seller was willing to engage in negotiations resulting in getting $60,000 off the purchase price!
  3. LESSON THREE: You need an experienced broker to negotiate a lower price.  I wrote a 460-word letter explaining what my buyers love about the home, their financial qualifications, how they have owned two classic homes before, and why our offer price was lower than the asking price, providing a laundry list of items that need to be fixed.  This was not a “love letter” written by the buyer, but a calculated piece of salesmanship to convince the seller to accept our offer.

Maximize Your Buying and Selling Power

Contact me if you are thinking of selling to get a complimentary copy of my book on Maximizing the Return on the Sale of Your Home in Seattle which will help you avoid these and other Seller mistakes.

If you are thinking of buying, I provide a free, no-obligation strategy session to help determine your best path to winning your next home.

Discrimination Liabilities When Selling Your House

Most home sellers are not aware that they must comply with the HUD Fair Housing Act when selecting someone to purchase their property.  The Fair Housing Act, as administered in the state of Washington, protects against discrimination on the basis of race, color, national origin, religion/creed, sex/gender, the presence of children, disability, sexual orientation and gender identity, marital status, and military/veteran status. These are known as “protected classes”.

In this very competitive market, many buyers write “love letters” to the seller explaining what they love about the home and often giving lots of info about themselves, sometimes including a photo with the dog and kids.  The problem is that the letters reveal many things about the buyers that fall under the protected classes.

These letters can sway sellers to select one buyer over another.  This is usually not done with malicious intent, but because they recognize something about themself in the buyer or they feel sympathy for the buyer’s situation.  “I’m a single mom, so I want to pick the single mom,” “I’m selecting the grandparents so they can be close to their family who lives on the same street.” Other times, it could be more openly discriminatory — “Their last name is foreign and I don’t trust someone from that country” etc.

So, as a real estate broker, how do I protect my sellers from discrimination liability? 
Let’s look at a recent example of a client we will call Mr. E. He had 9 offers on his home from people of various ethnic backgrounds, genders, and family statuses. Many of them included buyer love letters complete with photos of the buyer’s family.

To protect Mr. E, I put the information about each offer on a spreadsheet, assigning each buyer a number, and I did NOT forward any of the buyer love letters. This way, we were able to evaluate the offers based on:

  • The merits of the offer such as price, terms (amount of earnest money and down payment, closing date, inspection required or waived.)
  • The likeliness of the sale to close.
  • The financial condition of the buyer.

Mr. E made his selection based on these items without any risk of potential discrimination, as he knew each client only as a number.  The winning client’s offer was $30,000 over the asking price, had a $150,000 down payment, and I was to negotiate a one-month rent-back (at no cost to the seller), which was very important to him because his next home in another state would not be available until then.

My real estate process is not just about generating multiple offers —  it’s also about protecting you from the many areas with liability risks. When you work with me, you are getting a broker who is experienced and aware of the areas with potential risks that can arise and has a plan in place to protect you from those risks.  Call me to find out what I can do to help you maximize the return on the sale of your home while protecting you from potential liability risks.

Maximize Your Homes Value

When you’re looking to sell your home, the details matter. At the Pelham Group NW, we use our years of experience to advise you on the Pacific Northwest market and help you not only list your home but repair and stage your home to maximize its selling price.

Our clients are often surprised by the level of creativity and commitment we bring to selling their home. With our years of interior design and remodeling experience, our team has unique insight into how to showcase your home’s full potential and generate the best market response with a competitive pricing strategy and customized marketing plan.

Most of all, we handle all the details with the utmost care and discretion. Your personal and financial information is treated with sensitivity, and we always put your best interests first. That’s our promise to you.  Give Kim Pelham a call today at 425.213.8761 or schedule a FREE consultation today to learn more about selling your home this Summer.

Real Estate Selling Advice During COVID-19

During the first few weeks of the pandemic, there was a marked decrease in buyer activity, but once the ban on showings was lifted and people got used to operating in the new COVID environment, buyer showings steadily increased week-by-week.

Right now, supply is at a near all-time low, and demand is exceptionally strong resulting in near all-time high prices. I am predicting that there will be an influx of homes coming on the market in August which will relieve a little bit of the pressure on the market, but I expect that demand will stay strong through the fall since we have had a housing shortage for a very long time resulting in a large backlog of people who want to buy homes. It is unknown if the demand will remain strong through the holiday months, as traditionally people do not like to move at this time.

FORECLOSURES: Housing analysts do not expect a dramatic increase in foreclosures anytime soon for a couple of reasons.

  1. Housing prices are at record highs. This means that most people who are experiencing financial difficulty have equity in their home and can sell it. This was not possible During the Great Recession where prices had fallen 35% in 2008 alone.
  2. Regarding forbearance: Interestingly, it appears that people who requested forbearance seem to have done so as insurance just in case they lost their jobs, as 55% have continued to make their mortgage payments. Even if the economy worsens and there are many foreclosures, it could take a year or longer before we see those properties finally go on the market due to the lengthy foreclosure process.

For more details, check out this article on COVID-19 Foreclosures.

That being said, we are long overdue for a downturn in the market. Historically, the housing market cycles every 12 years. The last peak was in 2006, so we are due for a swing anytime now just in the normal course of the market.

COVID economic stressors and massive problems with Boeing might affect consumer confidence enough to slow down the real estate market. So my best advice for someone considering selling their home is to do it as soon as you possibly can to take advantage of the current market conditions which are extremely favorable toward sellers. We are at peak demand and peak prices right now, and there is no way to know how long this will continue.

Maxmize Your Homes Value

When you’re looking to sell your home, the details matter. At the Pelham Group NW, we use our years of experience to advise you on the Pacific Northwest market and help you not only list your home, but repair and stage your home to maxmimize its selling price.

Our clients are often surprised by the level of creativity and commitment we bring to selling their home. With our years of interior design and remodeling experience, our team has unique insight into how to showcase your home’s full potential and generate the best market response with a competitive pricing strategy and customized marketing plan.

Most of all, we handle all the details with the utmost care and discretion. Your personal and financial information is treated with sensitivity, and we always put your best interests first. That’s our promise to you.  Give Kim Pelham a call today at 425.213.8761 or schedule a FREE consultation today to learn more about selling your home this Summer.

Remodeling Without Permits

Remodeling Without Permits | The Pelham Group NW, Author Kim Pelham

In the last few months, we had a few issues with people who were thinking of listing their home and did a remodeling project without permits.  DON’T MAKE THIS MISTAKE!

If you are doing your own remodeling, please be sure to get permits and have licensed contractors do the electrical, plumbing and HVAC work. If you are doing structural work, get an architect and any necessary engineering done in advance.

Read More

Choosing the Right Real Estate Agent

Choosing the Right Real Estate Agent to Sell Your Home by Kim Pelham | The Pelham Group NW | Pelham Real Estate

When you decide to sell your home, you may wonder if you need a real estate agent. If you decide to use a real estate agent, you will need to know where you can find an agent. Once you find an agent, it’s important to ask the right questions when you interview the agent. You want to work with someone that you connect easily with. If you’re not happy with your current agent, it may be necessary to switch agents. Also, you might want to think twice before working with friends or family. Read More