Welcome Home to 6513 River Oak Court, NE in Cedar Rapids!   ______________________________________        ____________________________ ________________ Gorgeous and well appointed, you will not want to miss this custom ranch!  Designed with energy savings in mind, this comfortable home boasts open spaces and unique details that are Shaker and Mission design inspired. A few of the many details in this home are the rain glass accent doors, granite counters,  and the air jetted tub in the master bedroom. This home is also prepped for central vacuum and sound system. You will love all the details of this home and great location close to shopping, recreation areas, Xavier High School, and area employers. Don't miss out!   Keep Smiling!   Karen Feltman   08/21/2012

May day! May day!  Can YOU tell your listing is going nowhere but down?  To all the sellers that are wondering why their home is not getting shown, your listing may be going nowhere.  Here are 4 sure fire ways to tell if you are headed for an expired listing contract with your current agent: 1. When your home first came on the market, it took a week, or two, for anyone to schedule a private showing and the first open house was just the neighbors.  In the meantime, the one across the street came on the market, was priced lower than you, you actually watched them redo all their landscaping, and it went sale pending before they had an open house so you couldn't even check it out! 2.  The photos of your home are less than impressive.  When you go online to view your home, if you were a buye... 08/14/2012

Gary & Melynda Wolter of Iowa Realty have a new billboard in Marion. Iowa. "We haven't advertised on a billboard for over a year but we wanted to show our hometown how much we enjoy living and working here. We both went to high school here in Marion and had this idea for a long time." Gary said who has the CRS designation. Melynda was a pom-pon girl in high school at Marion HS and went to Iowa St. where she was also on their squad. She went on to earn a spot on the Chicago Bulls during the Jordan years. Gary played baseball and football at Linn-Mar and says it was fun to shoot the picture. "Yes, we are pretty much disclosing our age on the billboard but we think its fun to show that we are ok being our age and are proud to be from Marion." Melynda said.   08/09/2012

This is Selling your Home 101:  If I cannot show your home to my buyers, I cannot sell it to them sight unseen!  Now I know that there are reasons sometimes that showings are not possible.  There are extreme situations.  I get that.  But when they start to get in the way of selling your home, it appears that your motivation is maybe not really there.  Here is my example from yesterday.  I have a qualified buyer that I was set to show 4 homes to yesterday morning.  The showings were scheduled on Friday morning, so there was plenty of notice for my Sunday morning showing times.  All were approved.  So when we pulled up to the house and saw this: You can imagine our frustration.  If the seller had an emergency, they should have called their listing agent to let them know.  The listing agen... 07/09/2012

When it comes to selling your home, you need to make your house sparkle above the competition.  A good healthy dose of spring cleaning and elbow grease will do the trick.  If you have been living with tired old fixtures that you SWORE would be the first thing to go (6 years ago when you bought the house, you had the champagne taste and beer budget), now is the time to invest in your home!  Every little update that you do will reflect to the buyers that you have carefully and thoughtfully maintained your home.  Remember, turnkey.  This is a beauty contest and a price war at the same time.  If you want to be at the top of the price range that I give you, you will need to willing to put in the effort to bring your "A game" for every showing. All the curtains and blinds pulled back to revea... 07/03/2012

Wolter Team Realtors, Iowa Realty's sales leader in the Marion office, recorded its biggest sales volume record in any 6 month period. Now in their 11th year, Gary & Melybda sold over $3.7 million with 29 house sold in the first half of 2012. "Our goal is to help 45 families move this year and we are so happy and proud that we just helped our 29th family sell their house this week!" says Gary, who is a CERTIFIED RESIDENTIAL SPECIALIST.   We believe that our superior internet marketing has helped us, along with our great service skills. Pricing homes correctly while marketing them to the most possible potential buyers has given us success.   Gary also receieved his CRS (Certified Residential Specialist) designation last year. Only 4% of all Realtors nationwide have earned this designatio... 06/19/2012

Don't let the nosy neighbor scare away your potential buyer!    The nosy neighbor....you know the one.  The one that knows everyone's business.  And you can be sure that when you put a sign in the yard, they are sizing up your home against their home and everyone else's on the street!  They will be the ones that will make sure to "grab" one of your first property flyers from the brochure box out front, just to proofread it, of course! They will be first in the door for the first open house too, just to check out what you might have done since they were in the house the last time. Now, sometimes, the nosy neighbor can be a great thing!  Why?  They watch the house for you.  They can report back how long the buyer was in the house for a showing.  They can also watch and count the number of... 06/19/2012

Come see this sharp ranch in the Marion school district! ___________________________________   This home is located on a dead end street, and boasts an oversized heated 2 car garage. The backyard also has a new privacy fence.   The kitchen appliances are new, and they will stay with the house. The charming eat-in kitchen is spacious enough to accomodate a nice size table and chairs. With easy access to the backyard, it makes entertaining easy!   The living room is bright and beautiful with natural light. Located right off the kitchen, it is ideal for game day or movie night! ________________________________________________          The lower level is perfect for a man cave. Carpeted and spacious, there is also plenty of room for an exercise area, play room or office! There is also a ful... 06/18/2012

We have noticed that more Cedar Rapids FSBO's are thinking that more signs equal more exposure. Two, three sometimes four or more signs in one yard and even more directional signs "leading" you to the over priced deal of the century. (90% of For Sale by Owners are over priced) News flash for you...PRICE, CONDITION, THIRD PARTY NEGOTIATION and MAXIMUM INTERNET EXPOSURE SELLS HOMES! A for sale by owner has to give away at least half of the commission "saved" in order to put the house at a price that a buyer will want to buy it without the free services of a Realtor.  We put our listings on over 80 websites and are at the top of popular google searches. You cannot expose the house to more internet buyers than we can. ( We find personally find the buyer of our listings 20% of the time!) Wi... 06/07/2012

Have you ever wondered how the style of the homes you are considering may affect the future resale of the property?  There are so many styles out there, and each one has it's own pluses and minuses.  For example, a beautiful ranch home with only the master suite on the main level and with 3 bedrooms in the lower level may be a blessing for a family with teenagers or perfect for an empty nester that uses the lower level for a guest quarters.  Not so much for a family with young children? What about a 2 story home with a main floor master, 2 bedrooms upstairs and 1 in the lower level.  Does this home appeal to those that crave one level living but want the traditional features of the formal living and dining room areas lacking in a ranch home? What about the split level home?  Some of the... 04/25/2012

Don't get inflicted with "First Time Home Buyer-itis."   In our 11th year of helping home buyers purchase their first home in the Cedar Rapids real estate market, almost every time the buyer will get 'the disease." It is a form of buyers remorse based on fear. (False Evidence Appearing Real) Sometimes the reluctance to go ahead with the purchase comes during or after the deal is being negotiated. Sometimes it comes after the home inspection, when the buyer finds out that the house isn't "perfect." Because first time home buyers look at lower end homes the houses need a little work. This should be looked at as a way of gaining a little sweat equity and an opportunity. Your Realtor and a home inspector can help you decide what a red flag is. By purchasing a year long home warranty, this ... 04/18/2012

Over the past 12 months, we have sold more listings than we ever have in a year's time. This is our 11th year and we credit our success to identifying what our seller's true motivation is. Too many Realtors are over-pricing  properties. We know this because many times we are the second or even third Realtor hired. This is a brutal truth. Respectfully, we understand that it is still a buyer's market, but the good news is, that you CAN sell your house. We want what you want...the most money, in the least amount of time, with no problems. So what kind of seller are YOU? 1. UNREALISTIC REBEL- Usually an overpriced for sale by owner or FSBO. Doesn't really seek guidance, only prices the house based on what he needs for a net profit. Tries to sell it in 90 days or less and rarely if ever chan... 04/12/2012

Price -We prepare a very thorough Best Price Market Analysis. We use information from active listings, recent closed/pending sales and even expired listings to determine the price that will get the greatest number of buyers through the door. Presentation - A growing number of buyers are looking for turn key homes--homes that are move-in ready. The best way to compete is to make sure your home is properly de-cluttered, cleaned, painted and staged.  We work closely with sellers to assist them in preparing their home to compete with the many homes already on the market. Photography - After we have priced a home properly and prepared it to be show ready. We have wide angle, high resolution photos taken. 95%  of buyers begin their search on the Internet. You want to make sure your home stan... 02/23/2012

The age old question of whether to answer the phone when you don't know who it is.  Whether it is blocked purposely, unknown as in a telemarketer, or from an area code that you don't know, how do you determine whether or not to answer the call?  Wait....let's add another factor to the decision....what if you are sitting in the office with a customer or client in front of you.  Do you have exceptions to the rule?  Do you only answer if it is someone that you know?  What if you are expecting a call back on a counter offer or offer?  Do you give your customer or client the backstory and apologize in advance? Seems to be a hot topic....whether to excuse yourself and ALWAYS answer the phone or the NEVER answer the phone when you are with a client.  Or somewhere in between where there are acc... 01/24/2012

Dear clients and fellow REALTORS,  I have decided that I want more from myself...and my business in 2012.  So back to school I go!  I am going to take the initiative to take the broker classes and obtain a broker's license.  I have no excuse, all the courses that I need can be taken in the first half of the year and all are held within 20 minutes of my office.  Yes, it will take a 3 day commitment once a month for the next three months, but it is worth it to me. Let me tell you why it is worth it to you: I will be more knowledgeable about the way that brokerages are managed and maintained.  In the security of being an associate, I have no risk and I have been oblivious to the everyday workings of running an office. If I decide to be an instructor or an office branch broker someday, I ha... 01/18/2012

Profit occurs when preparation and experience meet opportunity. If you are thinking of selling your house soon, keep in mind that we put your house on over 80 websites! We give you maximum  internet exposure! Discount Brokers attract Discount Buyers If an agent is ready to discount their fee from the start...how well will they be at negotiating when it's YOUR MONEY?   Here are the top 10 questions you should ask your potential Realtor before listing a house with them: (OUR ANSWERS ARE WRITTEN) 1. How many years have you been a FULL TIME agent? (Over 13 YEARS) 2. How many homes in my price range have you sold over the past year? (100 TRANSACTIONS LAST YEAR AND OVER 400 TOTAL)  3. What is your average for days on the market before you get an accepted offer? (40-50 DAYS) 4. What percentag... 01/06/2012

Another great animated story about Cedar Rapids Real Estate! Call the Wolter Team today and start packing! 01/06/2012

Gary & Melynda Wolter of the Wolter Real Estate Team unveiled a new logo as they start with Iowa Realty in their 10th year as award winning Realtors in Cedar Rapids. The Wolter Team will be using this LOGO in many of their print, online, apparel, billboard and listing advertisments. The Wolter Team logo was developed by Rick Fangman. The Wolter Team joined Iowa Realty on Nov. 14th, 2011 and have been licensed in Iowa since 2001. They have sold over 250 homes in eastern Iowa and are happy to help your friends and family make a smooth, stress free move. 12/25/2011

This time of year gives us much to be thankful for as we reflect on another great year working in real estate in Cedar Rapdis, IA. Our goal was to help 40 families move this year and we are so happy and proud that we just helped our 40th family sell their house this week!   We believe that our superior internet marketing has helped us, along with our great service skills. Pricing homes correctly while marketing them to the most possible potential buyers has given us success.   Gary also receieved his CRS (Certified Residential Specialist) designation this year. Only 4% of all Realtors nationwide have earned this designation. For over 10 years the Wolter Team has been helping families just like yours in the Cedar Rapids/ Marion area. Our new office is at Iowa Realty, Iowa's largest real ... 12/14/2011

A popular misconception may be that all homeowners are desperate to sell their home if they are on the market for the holiday season.   An even greater misconception perhaps, may be that buyers that are looking during the holiday season must be desperate to buy! Either way that you look at it, you may be thinking that there are not a lot of homes on the market after Thanksgiving.  After all, if it was you, you have way too much going on during this time of the year to make time to keep the house neat as a pin or to scoot out of the house for those mid day showings.  Keep in mind these simple tips on buying during the holidays: 1.  There is not as many homes to look at during this time of the year.  This means that the ones that ARE on the market are motivated to sell.  Which can also me... 12/05/2011