Alaska Dream Makers

Sellers- We have a flexible fee schedule depending on the situation. Here are the most common full service fees.

Existing homes 6%

New construction homes 5%

Land 10%

cabins 10%

Buyers- Normally, there is no cost to a buyer if Alaska Dream Makers assists you with the purchase of a listed property. Commission is paid to Alaska Dream Makers through the office that has the property listed. Sometimes home buyers would like our assistance with the purchase of a non listed property (for sale by owner). In this example, a commission may be paid by the seller and/or by the buyer

Most fees can be paid out of the closing proceeds. The typical upfront fees would be the cost of the appraisal, upfront inspections and any repairs. Unlike other companies, we have no cancellation fee or marketing fees.

While we are not home inspectors, there are common items that occur regularly that we may point out. Some examples would be GFCI’s in the kitchen and bathrooms, missing CO detectors and self closing door from the garage into the house. This process of familiarizing ourselves with the house and making valuable suggestions often takes 30 minutes to an hour.

In order to properly price your house we need to look at the market data and trends. We like to involve you when determining market value of your property. Primarily we do this by meeting at our conference room to go over similar properties that have sold recently. It is very important to us that you know how we price your home, what we are comparing your home to for pricing, and what your competition is. You see what we see.

After we go through the comparable sales and pending offers to get a price range, we then take a look at all homes in that price range. This will be your competition – what buyers will see when they start their search. This is important to see if your home will stand out among the others.

It is very common for our listing to have between 50-70 select photos in the MLS and internet marketing. Once we are all ready (usually a couple or 3 days) your house will be input into the MLS and ‘online’ for public viewing.

During the time of photos and your home being on the market. Between the time photos are taken and your home is placed on the market, there are several things we are doing in the background.

This process may include but is not limited to…

Selecting photos from sometimes hundreds that are taken.

Preparing full color, card stock flyers.

Designing and creating a virtual tour of your house.

Setting up a QR code and text message with photos for instant information.

Publishing a home book and placards with the specific details on your house.

Researching DEC records

Ordering a property profile from a local title company

Entering your home into our showing feed back system

Creating Craigslist advertisement

Coding an electronic lock box to your address

Placing a sign on your property complete with flyers and text message rider.

Customizing a specific real estate search in order to update you weekly on market activity.

Upload specific documents to the MLS on your home.

See Weekly Market Update Topic on our marketing plan.

Some photos will highlight special features of your home. We also use specialized stitching software for panoramic photos, which provides the potential buyer a better perspective. We only use wide angle lenses in our photography. You will see the difference.

Here are some things we will need from you:

Keys for our electronic lock box.

State of Alaska Disclosure completed.

Previous information you may have such as an as-built survey, well and septic test, documentation on any disclosure items if available.

Phone numbers for showings.

E-mail address for communication.

Any special showing instructions (such as pet information or work schedules)

Final signatures from the title company such as the warranty deed and lender specific documents will require an original or notarized signature. These documents may also be signed by a Power of Attorney in your absense.

If a POA is to be used it is best to have the title company prepare it so it meets any lender or title company requirements.

Although we often have buyers looking in all price ranges it is more common for our marketing efforts to reach more buyers working with other real estate licensees. As we market your home we will get calls and e-mails from potential buyers that already have a licensee working on their behalf. These calls and e-mails generate showings which lead to a successful sale.

There may be an occasion where that time will not work with your schedule. It is best to be as flexible as you can with showings, but use judgment and discretion if a showing conflict arrises.

We advise our clients to not be present during showings. There are several reasons for this. The buyers may not be comfortable looking through the home, placing themselves in the home if they are distracted with your presence. Questions may be asked that could be detrimental to your negotiating ability. Gathering feedback to report to you diminishes as most buyers spend less time in the home and are less likely to verbalize their opinion.

Licensees will get access to your home using the key provided in your lock box. We believe the lock box should be at the front door for ease of access and a better presentation into your home. Data can be tracked from the lock box to determine when and who accessed it. Most licensees will leave a business during their showing.

We ask our clients to call us to let us know about any scheduled showings to ensure we get them into our feedback system. Feedback usually occurs within 72 hours of the showing. It is rare we get feedback the same day.

When possible if the showing is scheduled for twilight or dark hours, turn on lights throughout the home.

Have light music playing softly in the background.

Be mindful of any odors that may need to be taken care of prior to the showing, ie: empty the trash cans, clean litter box, etc.

For safety and security it is always a good idea to hide jewelry, medications and fire arms prior to showings.

We will prepare a net sheet for you based on the offer or your counter offer if the offer is not acceptable as written. We will discuss the details of the offer and provide advice.

Before responding to an offer, we believe it is in our clients best interest that all parties that have recently seen the property or have expressed some interest in the property be notified of an offer.

There have been numerous occasions through the years where this practice has produced multiple offers for our sellers.

The inspection is normally attended by the buyer, possibly the buyer’s licensee and the home inspector.

We advise our seller clients not to be present during a home inspection. The inspection itself may take from 2 to 4 hours. The inspector then will prepare an inspection report on either on site or within a few days of the inspection. Once the inspection report is received the buyer and the selling licensee (licensee representing buyer), go through the report.

The buyer at that point has an opportunity to ask the seller to make repairs based on the inspection findings. There must be an agreement or the buyer shall have the option of rescinding the agreement and retaining their earnest money. The buyer may also elect to have additional inspection performed, such as radon and water quality.

The appraisal is usually ordered after the inspection is agreed to. Once an appraisal is ordered the appraiser will contact either you or our office to make arrangements to view the property. The appraiser may look for health and safety items and require them to be completed to satisfy the loan.

Most appraisals are turned into the lender within a week to 10 days from the time the appraiser views the property. This time frame will vary depending on market conditions such as a high volume of refinances and the appraiser’s schedule. The appraiser will spend anywhere from 15 minutes to an hour at your house. Most have access to the electronic lock box.

There are several reasons why we believe preinspections are important to our seller clients. By being made aware of issues before a contract is negotiated it allows a seller to make decisions based on all the information. It also makes it easier to deal with repairs on your own terms rather having to negotiate who, how and when a repair is to be performed. Many items discovered upfront can be turned into a positive to help sell the house.

As an example, if you discover your furnace needs replacement after you negotiate an offer it leaves you with little leverage. If you knew the furnace had to be replaced before you negotiated the offer it could be used and marketed as a value added item to assist with getting a higher price.

Although buyers are still allowed to hire another inspector during their inspection period, most will use the seller’s pre-inspection report. This removes the element of surprise for a buyer and seller and allows the process to continue without the normal inspection delay.

The recorders office is closed weekends and for many holidays.

It is important to keep this in mind as sometimes a Friday closing may mean recording will not occur until Tuesday if Monday is a holiday. Recording to a seller is also the day of disbursement. Monies can be picked up directly from the title company, deposited by the title company to a local bank or wired to your account for a fee.

There is a common belief that the borough assessed value is lower than market value. The reality is that the values the borough places on property are sometimes high, sometimes low and sometimes right on. The best source of data when determining value is closed sales data.

Closed sales data from the MLS system is not available to the borough since we are a non disclosure state and sales data is private unless the owner voluntarily reports it to the borough. An actual appraisal is performed using closed sales data along with an inspection of the property.

The engineer is testing the leach field and will have to fill the tank up with water before they are able to test the leach field. The result could be an increased bill for the extra time it takes to fill the septic tank.

Many engineers will only require a tank to be pumped if there is more than 6″ of solids at the bottom of the tank.