"Utilize all your resources, including your favorite shows on HGTV, to help you make good decisions in buying or selling your home. Don’t forget the importance of working with a qualified, experienced lender and real estate agent to help make the process go smoothly. When you’re part of a solid team with a common goal, you’ll find that buying a home or selling your own home is much easier. This is from an article that appeared on Michael Putnam's website: http://michaelputnam.com/reality-television-buyers-sellers/"

2. You have Color Splash or Designed to Sell programmed on your DVR so
you never miss a segment. You’ve imagined having Candice help you
redecorate or Genevieve solve your design dilemma. As you begin your
own purchase or sale of a home, you discover a startling truth – reality is
quite different from what you watch on TV.
Your favorite HGTV shows are designed to inform and entertain. They
present a lot of truths for first-time buyers or sellers. At the same time,
many of the details are glossed over, so you never get a complete picture
of the process you must go through. You can learn a lot from these shows
if you know what to focus on.
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3. While shopping for homes seems like so much fun when you
watch House Hunters, you’ve quickly discovered you are
visiting more than three homes to make your decision. And it’s
not so easy to decide which one is best for you as it was when
you were choosing for buyers on TV.
Then there’s the renovations. How much easier it would be to
have the Property Brothers help you remodel an outdated space
and turn it into your dream home. While an hour of television
turns a hopeless case into a fabulous house, it takes much
longer in real life. You can spend weeks or even months living
through a remodel.
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4. While these shows make buying a home seem glamorous and real life is often quite different,
you can learn some valuable lessons from watching your favorite.
• What you see is not always what you get – how many times home buyers will choose a
house only to discover an unseen problem they must deal with – the lesson learned is to
always get an inspection and pay attention to what it tells you.
• Be willing to invest some sweat equity – you can transform a home if you’re willing to put
in the work or hire contractors to turn your outdated space into a place you love.
• Little changes make a big difference – for those on a limited budget, they can create a
wonderful space by making a few small changes or even working with what they already
own.
• Hire the pros – even the experts on TV hire contractors to help them in the process.
• Stay under budget – one of the constant facts on these shows is that some unexpected
expense will show up and eat into your budget, so always work to stay below your
maximum and plan for those unavoidable expenses.
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5. First-time sellers may also be shocked when people don’t come beating their door down to look
at the property. You see how many buyers attend open houses on TV, and yet no one shows up
to look at your place. Pay attention to the lessons homeowners learn on television and you just
might discover an offer for your home is right around the corner.
• Start with Curb Appeal – If you watch the show and see how much a little landscaping can
transform a property, you’ll see the value in investing in your own curb appeal. While the
main property goes through a major transition, neighboring properties get minor facelifts.
What this shows sellers is that even small changes can make a big difference.
• Sellers can learn from shows like House Hunters and My First Place – even though they are
targeted to buyers, sellers can find out what buyers want and what are deal-breakers for
them.
• Shows like Designed to Sell can inspire sellers who need to update their own homes – some
shows go all out, while others focus on minor renovations for sellers with limited budgets.
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6. What You Need to Remember
When you watch any of these shows, remember you’re only seeing a portion of
what goes on in the process of buying and selling or renovating. Look more at
the advice you’re being given rather than the timeline. Don’t view these shows
as the total picture but rather a glimpse of what happens in this process.
Utilize all your resources, including your favorite shows on HGTV, to help you
make good decisions in buying or selling your home. Don’t forget the
importance of working with a qualified, experienced lender and real estate
agent to help make the process go smoothly. When you’re part of a solid team
with a common goal, you’ll find that buying a home or selling your own home
is much easier.
http://michaelputnam.com

7. Website: http://michaelputnam.com/
Michael Putnam
info@michaelputnam.com
703-928-6514
Sources:
• http://www.creditsesame.com/blog/home-buying-
tips-06082011/
• http://www.realestatewiki.com/wiki_content/Top_10
_Real_Estate_Reality_TV_Shows_and_What_We_Ca
n_Learn_From
• http://michaelputnam.com/reality-television-buyers-
sellers/
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