(RE/MAX Blog)- By Carriann Johnson, interior designer and TV personality

It's a great moment! The housing market is on fire in several states, and many of you may receive multiple offers on your home. Remember, your goal as a seller is to accept the ONE offer that best fits your needs. This is the time to leave emotions aside and logically weigh all offers from a realistic perspective. Choosing the best offer will be less challenging if you consider these items:

Financing
Who is presenting the best financing option? The more solid the financing, the more likely you are to have a smooth transaction. When you arrive at the closing table, you want your transaction to go off without any unexpected hiccups that can arise when buyers are not properly qualified or a lender doesn't prove to be solid.

Terms of the Offer
Consider all details of your offer. Does the closing date complement your needs? Does the offer satisfy your asking price? Are the inclusions and exclusions ones that you are willing to accept? Perhaps the buyers are offering you full price plus closing costs but they need to close in 30 days. Another offer may give you 45-60 days to close but they are requesting you pay for closing costs. These details should be carefully considered when determining the best offer for you.

Consider Using My Checklist

• Go over all offers in detail with your agent. You trust your Realtor, so rely on him or her to educate and guide you throughout the process. After all, that is why they are there.

• Create your own checklist with pros and cons. Seeing these items on paper can seem so simple, yet it helps you reach a conclusion you're confident about.

• Make sure you are prepared for the what-ifs in the deal. Weigh scenarios that seem likely or could happen with each particular offer.

• Educate yourself. This is a legal transaction, so if you don't understand certain terms or terminology, don't sign the offer until you do. Make sure you have ALL of your questions answered before signing – you don't want to have any regrets later. Your agent can help break things down for you.

• If you simply don't feel good about an offer, make sure you've pinpointed why that feeling is there. Having peace – about anything in life – is priceless.

• Be reasonable and fair.

• Leave emotions out of the offer as best you can. Yes, you are selling something that is very personal to you but remember why you are selling.

Keep these items in mind when receiving multiple offers on your home, and you'll be able to reach a decision with confidence!

(RE/MAX Blog) - Is school called off and the office closed? Don't waste your snow day cooped up inside. Bundle up, take the hot chocolate to go and follow this checklist for the perfect snow day.

1. Epic snowball fight

Step 1: Build your snow fortress. Step 2: Stockpile your snow ammo. Step 3: Dig out your ski goggles, divide your crew into teams, and let the battle begin.

2. Make snow ice cream

With just three ingredients, condensed milk, vanilla extract and snow, you can stir up a sweet snack. Paula Deen shows you how.

3. Snow graffiti

Fill spray bottles with water tinted with food coloring and have at it, artistically expressing yourself in the snow. An afternoon of spritzing can transform a yard of white into a bright work of art.

4. Build a snow fan

Roll up a family of snow people and outfit your new friends in your favorite sports team's colors.

5. Icy architecture

Use Tupperware containers to mold bricks and put your imagination to work to construct your dream igloo, castle or Craftsman-style bungalow.

6. Make maple candy in the snow

It's easy to make candy by pouring boiling maple syrup onto fresh snow and wrangling it with popsicle sticks. The snow instantly stops the syrup from cooking and cools it to a taffy-like consistency. Follow these instructions to take part in this Canadian tradition.

7. Winter bonfire

Bundle up and bring on the s'mores. Light up your fire pit for a magical night surrounded by glittering snow and winter starlight.

(RE/MAX Blog)- Is the call of the great outdoors getting louder? A cabin in the mountains, on the lake or in the serene middle-of-nowhere can be a great place to escape to. Before you start shopping, here are a few things to consider:

1. Can you afford it?
You may have found a great cabin at a great price. Don't forget, however, to calculate annual property taxes and maintenance costs. Insurance for second homes can run higher than for primary residences. Financing may be more expensive for a second home as well. Get quotes, do your research and do the math to see if you can heed the cabin's call without creating so much financial stress that you won't be able to relax when you're there.

2. How often will you use it?
Look at your number of days off each year, then think about how many you want to spend at your cabin. Would you miss the beach? Regret not traveling abroad? Be sure you'll enjoy the area, and not just the cabin itself, through most of the year.

3. Will disaster strike?
Forest fires are tough beasts to tame, and mountain cabins are often directly in their path. Although no one can predict when a fire will spark, you can find out if your desired area is prone to droughts or other conditions favorable for an out of control conflagration. Look into insurance coverage for different disasters, and add it to the monthly cabin costs.

4. Could you rent out your cabin?
In some instances, you can rent out a vacation home for up to 14 days a year without paying taxes on the income. The money could help offset the cabin's maintenance or mortgage payment. Make sure you research the tax benefits (if any) of your own unique situation.

Want to buy a cabin? Start your search today with RE/MAX Realty Group and RE/MAX Realty Group. 

(RE/MAX Blog)- The sudden victory of Theresa May, Britain's new prime minister, meant former Prime Minister David Cameron had to vacate 10 Downing Street in about 48 hours. Needless to say, Cameron did not pack his own dishes. Professional movers arrived with a reported 330 boxes, 30 rolls of tape and three rolls of bubble wrap. Hopefully when you move, you'll have more lead time – and just as much help. But in case you don't, here are a few tips to help maximize what time you do have.

1. Gather your tools
Pick a place to be your packing station so you don't waste time constantly wandering the house, hunting for your Sharpie or the right-sized box. Stock it with plenty of tape, boxes of various sizes, bubble wrap, newspapers and markers.

2. Stick to a strategy
Pack vital things together, in specially marked boxes. This includes what you'll want on your first day, like sheets, pet food, electronics chargers, toiletries and a change of clothes. Then pack one room at a time and label boxes by room. It's helpful to color code rooms, whether with markers or strips of duct tape.

3. Use plenty of trash bags
To avoid confusion, buy them in two colors, one for packing and one for throwing things away. Don't be afraid to pack clothing and linens in the big plastic bags. You can squish them in between boxes to save space.

4. Fill your drawers
If you're using professional movers (and not friends with sensitive backs), pack your dresser drawers full. Otherwise, you're wasting space.

5. Watch your weight
Fill big boxes with lightweight items and small boxes with the heavy stuff. It'll help prevent the boxes from breaking down.

6. Don't get hung up on clothes
Wardrobe boxes make it easy to simply transfer your clothes on hangers rather than bothering with unhanging and folding.

7. If you've got the bucks…
Use professional packers. You can hire them to pack your whole home, just a room or a group of time-consuming items, like your extensive collection of fragile ceramic clowns.

Start your home search today.

(RE/MAX Blog)- According to the National Association of Realtors, 42 percent of homebuyers start their home search online, and 92 percent use the Web during the home search process. While the Internet can be a good place to start looking, there are things real estate agents know about the process of buying and selling a home that can't be found in any Web browser.

Here are a few.

1. How to price a home

When setting a listing price, agents consider scores of factors, from local and national market trends and neighborhood development activity to the latest buyer preferences for kitchen appliances and landscaping. Every home is unique, and an agent with a track record of success knows how to price it attractively in the market.

The Internet isn't always much help when it comes to comparison shopping, either. Many of the same factors that help an agent set an appropriate listing price aren't available in an algorithm, so online estimators aren't always accurate – and could be costly if you purchase without consulting a real, live professional.

2. Marketing offline

While online marketing can certainly be valuable, agents have networks of contacts and years of experience to round out their marketing plans.

And, for buyers, agents often can tap into their network to learn about great properties before they hit the real estate websites or even the MLS.

3. Key points in the process

If you find a home you love online, the website won't be there to guide you through a mortgage application, find a home inspector or advise you what to do if an inspection reveals issues.

4. How to negotiate

Having an experienced, professional negotiator drive your transaction can be vital to reaching a fair price for the property you're buying or selling. A website can give you an estimate of how much a property should cost, but it can't evaluate whether that's a great price or not.

(RE/MAX Blog)- The day many tech lovers have been waiting for is here: Google Daydream View is now available in stores. The new virtual reality headset connects with a smartphone (specifically, Google Pixel) to immerse users in their favorite games, movies or even the latest news story. And at just $79, Daydream is making VR technology more accessible to consumers than ever before.

But the uses of virtual reality technology go beyond entertainment. Here are a few ways VR is making its way into real estate.

1. Open houses

Virtual reality headsets, about the size of a scuba mask, can provide 360-degree virtual reality property tours of homes. The headsets completely fill the user's field of vision with a view of the home, allowing them to look up, down and from side to side. Developers are working on adding more tactile features to the experience, so users can do things like see their own hand opening a door, reports the New York Times.They're even developing smells. One day Realtors might be able to add the smell of virtually baking cookies to their virtual open house.

2. Long-distance shopping

Virtual reality home tours give out-of-town buyers (and local buyers, too) another tool to help narrow down their choices of homes they'd like to physically visit in a limited amount of time.

3. Staging

More affordable than hiring a pro to stage your home, several virtual options allow you to add furniture and decorations to vacant rooms using computer technology. It can help buyers envision a property with different furniture and paint.

There's a lot more to a real estate transaction than VR goggles can replace. Ready to buy or sell your home? Start the process here.

(RE/MAX Blog)- Negotiating your deal is one of the most critical aspects of your real estate journey. It's also one of the parts of the process where your agent's experience can make the most dramatic difference. Your home purchase or sale, probably one of the biggest financial transactions you'll make in your life, is not the time to test rookie negotiation skills. Here are just a few things agents, as professional negotiators, know that help them reach the best closing agreement for you.

1. That knowledge is power
In addition to their in-depth knowledge of the market and valuing a home, your agent will have dug into public records about the property and the neighborhood. Your agent will also look into the seller's motivation. Knowing things like whether the seller is under pressure to move quickly can help shape negotiating strategy.

2. How to time it
Sometimes a quick response to an offer is critical. Other times, it's best to keep the other party on the hook. Knowing which strategy to employ is crucial in negotiations.

3. Objectivity is a must
As a professional negotiator, your agent is able to control the process without being affected by the emotions that swirl around real estate transactions for buyers and sellers. Among other potentially expensive missteps, inexperienced negotiators can reveal too much info to the other party, especially during intense, fast-moving negotiations.

4. What to ask for
If you don't ask for something, you won't get it. As your advocate, your agent will know how to ask for things like concessions and repairs in a manner that's most appealing to the other party.

Selling your bike online? Go forth and make a killer deal on that two-wheeler. But when it comes to buying or selling your home, stick with a professional. Real estate negotiation is no place for training wheels.

(RE/MAX Blog)- Keeping your home looking like a furniture showroom for long stretches isn't easy. Here are a few tips to keep your house ready for showings while you're still living in it.

1. Attack the clutter
As you prepare your home for showing, start with a major decluttering. Throw out, recycle or give away things you don't use. Getting rid of junk will make your home more appealing to prospective buyers and free up space for you to neatly store things when it's time to tidy up for a showing.

2. Rent storage space
Keeping things neat is easier when you have less things. An off-site storage unit can help (and you can keep it as messy as you like).

3. Start packing
Packing most of your dishes and large baking and cooking items frees up cabinet space that you can use to stash items you use on a regular basis. It also gives you a head start on packing for your move.

4. Rope off a room – or two
If you can, temporarily rope off rooms or areas from the kids, pets or spouses to contain your mess in a smaller space while your house is listed. But remember to make those rooms look nice, too, before the showing!

5. Buy hiding spots
The home sections of discount stores are filled with attractive fabric boxes and fashionable bins that can simultaneously hide junk and match your décor.

6. If all else fails, stash it under the bed
Invest in a couple of under-the-bed bins that you can use to store everything from socks to kids' toys in when faced with a last-minute showing.

Begin the home selling process today with the number one RE/MAX brokerage in Maryland and Northern Virginia.