The Terranova Team

  These days it has become quite common to see the members of a neighborhood banding together for the general well-being of the neighborhood and its residents. To help your understanding of what they are and how they work, take a look at our guide to covenant controlled communities for buyers and sellers in Delaware. What Are Covenant Controlled Communities? Simply put, a covenant controlled community is a collection of homes within a given area that is governed by the same set of agreed-upon rules and guidelines outside of your local, state, and federal laws and ordinances.  These rulesets are commonly known as covenants or restrictive covenants, while we more regularly refer to the organization responsible for upholding these covenants by the term homeowner’s association, or HOA. There may be times that you see titles such as property owner’s association in a covenant controlled community, which can be used if the association oversees business propert...

  Any homeowner can put their property on the market and close a transaction, but investing additional time and effort is what separates a stellar sale from the rest of the pack. Let’s get your excitement and motivation to make the most of your home sale going with these 5 pro hacks to sell a house in Delaware. Go Beyond Cleaning No one would be surprised to hear that thoroughly cleaning their home before putting it up for sale is a great idea, but we need to go a couple of steps further than that.  Start by decluttering every single room of your home, including storage areas. A good rule of thumb when removing unneeded and unwanted objects is to take everything out of the living space and divide it into two equal piles: stay and go.  The go pile then needs to find a new home, whether that’s a different temporary storage situation, a donation bin, or in the garbage. Buyers will go through anything and everything they can in your home, so you wa...

  Making a new home for yourself anywhere takes time and personal investment, but doing so in a completely different area of the country seems like too much stress and effort for the average person. We are going to boil things down to the basics in order to help make your transition that much easier with these cross-country relocation tips for home buyers and sellers in Delaware. Research Your Destination For some, the decision to find a new place to call home is a spontaneous one and they do their best to fly by the seat of their pants.  We recommend that you take the time to get to know not only the destination city or town but the specific neighborhood into which you’re attempting to move. Before you get too lost in the nitty-gritty of real estate negotiations and paperwork, do everything you can to immerse yourself in your desired home’s surroundings.    If you’re physically able to be in that neighborhood, take walks around the area, ...

  Like all other commodities, the real estate market is constantly going through a metamorphosis that is affected by a slew of factors – both direct and indirect. Let’s help to realign your perception regarding the current state of affairs by covering 5 ways Delaware real estate has changed in the past few years. Low Inventory One of the most obvious issues we are experiencing in 2021 is the continued low inventory of for-sale homes.  The Covid-19 pandemic that began in early 2020 put a major damper on the market as a whole, but things are certainly getting back to where they once were prior to the elevated health risks. With consumer confidence and comfortability with a new normal rising, buyers are getting out there and trying to find their next home while the opportunity is there.  This still leaves the issue of owners very slowly deciding this is a perfect chance to put their home up for sale and cash in on the low supply and high demand. An...

  If you’re thinking about buying a house in Delaware, and if you’re going to buy one with the help of an agent, make sure you get the service you need. Read this blog post for information about buying a house? Demand these 3 things from your agent in Delaware… If you’re planning to buy a house, you might want to think about getting help from an agent. An agent provides many different benefits and services and they should be focused on serving you and help you. So, buying a house? Demand these 3 things from your agent in Delaware. (And if you don’t get them, find another agent who can help you). #1. Ask for their track record Find out how good your agent will be in representing you. See if they can provide you with testimonials and success stories, or some other kind of indicator of how well they represent you. Remember, they should be able to find you plenty of houses to look at and then negotiate well on your behalf. #2. Ask to look at lots ...

  Being an agent attempting to sell your own property can sometimes put you in an awkward position, and the possibility of enlisting a bit of aid can be pretty enticing. To figure out what the best course of action is for you, let’s look into how to determine if you should hire an agent or sell your Delaware house directly. Two Brains Are Better Than One It should come as no surprise that a single agent working alone won’t know absolutely everything there is to know about their local market.  Years of experience can help you understand the general wants and needs of your average local buyer, expected pricing in specific neighborhoods, and how you can market your home optimally by harnessing the two previous aspects.  However, there’s always a chance, when you hire an agent, that bringing in another agent with fresh ideas could supplement your already-existing knowledge and give your home’s sale the extra push it needs to be an unstoppable succes...

  Are you working with a local Delaware agent to sell your house? Or maybe you’re thinking about it? If so, we’ve collected the top 4 things you need to expect when selling with an agent — to help you navigate this process easily! There are many ways to sell your house and many people choose to work with an agent to help them during that process. Do you plan to work with an agent? If so, here are 4 things you need to expect when selling with an agent in Delaware… 4 things you need to expect when selling with an agent #1. Money A real estate agent is a professional who performs a service for your benefit. This shouldn’t come as a surprise, and yet many people are surprised when they learn that the agent charges a commission for their service… and this commission can be thousands of dollars in some situations! For some people, that’s okay because they want the benefits that an agent provides, but it can be a costly surprise if you’re not prepared. #2. T...

  Throughout the process of selling a home, owners have to deal with different offers coming in with the potential for wildly varying details. Part of selling your home is making sure you select the right person behind the offer, so let’s look into what Delaware home sellers need to know buyers who are pre-qualified or pre-approved. Pre-Qualified vs. Pre-Approved The average home buyer and seller don’t have a great idea of what the difference is between a lender pre-qualifying and pre-approving someone.  Each mortgage lender has minimum qualifications that any borrower must meet in order to pass the initial application process.  A borrower who has been pre-qualified means they made it past these first few hurdles, but have not been thoroughly scrutinized to deem their request for a loan acceptable to the lender. A lender then goes about doing a complete check through the borrower’s credit history and current financial situation in order to make t...

  Over the last few years, the real estate market has seen a substantial shift in the way that agents have been making the choice to not only represent a clients’ interests when buying or selling properties but to become personally involved in purchasing and selling real estate themselves. If you are looking to streamline your selling process, here are 4 benefits of working with a Delaware real estate agent who is also a buyer. Invaluable Local Market Knowledge One of the most immediate gains you will see when approaching an agent-investor about either selling to them or having them represent you on the market is their familiarity with the local market.  This means they can better identify if what you are selling can be moved quickly for a smaller profit by giving you a fair market price now. With the current market still moving along with a shortage of inventory, agents are well aware that most properties have the probability of selling with little-to-...