Does staging really matter? Does a vacant home sell faster and for more money than a furnished home? Should you do repairs and neutralize a home or sell “as is”? These are questions sellers are asking Realtors like myself everyday. Everyone has a different opinion. Since there is no unified consensus, let’s talk about a few things we can all agree will help sell your home faster.
Let’s assume you decide to spend a few dollars doing some updating. When you are working on your own home , you have a lot of things that you must consider. You know you have to choose paint colors, and you may even know that some of your home’s furniture is outdated which might necessitate a work around. If you go with too specific interior design, you may turn someone off or make it too specific that it just won’t sell. You can have wonderful interior design and great looking rooms, but if you make them personal to your existing taste you will end up having trouble selling it. Recently, I was showing a home where a single man lived. He customized the home with lots of sports memorabilia and dark strong paint tones. While it was very nice, it was too specific to what a man might prefer, thereby limiting or hurting his chances with women home buyers who have no interest in sports.
Some customization is OK. You don’t want to “beige” everything so it doesn’t have any personality either. Ideally, What you want to avoid is for your home d
Posts Tagged ‘Home Buyers’
Considering Staging a Home – Inexpensive Home Selling Tips
March 3rd, 2010Quick and Easy Green Home Improvements
January 19th, 2010Many homeowners are looking for quick and easy green home improvements. Whether you want to make these improvements for the sake of going green or you want to do some things before placing a home on the market that will make it more competitive with new homes, there are plenty of options.
Joining the green revolution will make your home more comfortable, less costly to heat and cool, and some changes will reduce your water and/or sewer bill. Many of these improvements will also make your home more comparable to newer homes on the market. This might or might not justify an increase in selling price. While these quick and easy green home improvements might appeal to home buyers who have a strong interest in a green home, it might not matter to other prospective buyers when they make an offer. If, however, you make available a record of your utility bills for the last year, showing a decrease in heating, cooling and water costs could be attractive to a buyer.
The top seven quick and easy green home improvements that are also economical are:
1. Switch to energy efficient light bulbs. Compact fluorescent bulbs cost a bit more when you buy them, but they will last years longer and use only a fraction of the energy. Start with the lights you tend to use for the longest period of time – like the kitchen light that is never turned off or the bathroom light the kids just can’t remember to turn off. If you are planning to put your home on the market, you might want to start with bulbs in permanent light fixtures.
2. Install insulating/reflective window coverings. Film window coverings are available in several levels of light and UV ray blockage and colors. You can choose different textures and colors depending on the amount of direct sunlight on various windows. The window film is available in most hardware and home improvement stores, and it is easy to install.
3. Install weather stripping on doors and window frames. Weather stripping is relatively inexpensive and it is easy to install on window frames and door frames. It will reduce the amount of heat exchange by sealing up cracks or openings. This will make your home more comfortable, more energy efficient, and more environmentally friendly.
4. Install low flow shower heads and faucets. Most homeowners can install new shower heads and faucets or affordably hire a handyman to do it. These faucets and shower heads use less water without blocking adequate water flow. They will save water and reduce your water and sewer bills.
5. Adjust the float in the toilet tank to use less water. This is a fairly simple adjustment that can be accomplished by most homeowners or a handyman. If you can’t adjust it, try putting something in the bottom of the tank that will displace some of the water. Just be sure that what you use won’t rust and won’t get in the way of the working of the flushing mechanism.
6. Insulate the hot water distribution pipes in your home. This is also a relatively inexpensive and easy job of wrapping the pipes that go from the hot water heater to the various plumbing fixtures (kitchen, bathrooms). Keeping the water warmer as it moves through the pipes will provide warmer water and it will reduce the amount of water you have to run from a faucet while you wait for the hot water to get there.
7. Install insulating or reflective window treatments. Install reflective blinds or shades at your windows. Then be sure to close them at times when the sun shines on them directly or during the warmest part of the day. This will reduce your heating/cooling bills.
Try these seven steps to make some quick and easy green home improvements. The money you will save on utility bills will probably pay for the improvements very quickly.
Copyright 2008 by ABCD Publishing
By: Dan Fritschen
Easiest Ways to Finance Home Improvement Projects
August 23rd, 2009Many people are trying to sell their house right now and they’re finding that the market still favors home buyers over home sellers. In order to make your home more attractive to a potential buyer you may need to consider some small upgrades or home improvements to set it apart from the competition. Home improvements can not only help you sell your home but depending upon the upgrades you choose to perform they may actually help you get a higher selling price for your home.
In order to improve your home the way you should you’re going to need to set some money aside to really get the job done the right way. You could save some money on your home improvement projects by perfoming them yourself, but if you’re in a hurry to sell your home then you may want to consider hiring a professional.
There are several ways you can borrow the money needed for quick home improvements, but some methods of financing a big home improvement project are much easier than others. Here are some of the more common ways of paying for large home upgrades in order from easiest to most difficult to attain.
The easiest way to actually pay for a large home improvement project is to have the money on hand already. Not a lot of people have thousands of dollars hanging around but many people do have items they can sell to raise some money. You could sell old tools, a boat, a car or simply go through your basement and sell items online all to raise the money you need to pay for a home improvement project. Depending upon what you have to sell this could either be the easiest or most difficult way to finance a home improvement project.
Home improvement store credit cards are another way to pay for smaller home improvement projects, usually totally ten thousand dollars or less. Getting a credit card from a hardware store is usually not very difficult even if you have questionable credit. The problem with cards like this is that they can sometimes have high interest rates and high fees if you aren’t careful. To get a home improvement store credit card you usually just have to fill out a single form from the store.
You can also use the equity in your home to get a home improvement loan. You could take out a home equity line of credit, a home equity loan or even a second mortgage based on your needs. These types of financing are more difficult than a credit card to obtain and they’re dependent upon you having enough equity in your home to qualify for them. Most of these types of loans carry an initial fee of a couple hundred to several thousand dollars and there are usually closing costs and inspections to go through as well.
The most difficult type of loan to get for a home improvement project is probably a loan directly from a bank without putting anything up for collateral. To get a loan like this you’ll probably want to present the bank with detailed improvement plans, quotes from one or several contractors and proof of steady income. Different banks offer different types of home improvement loans and some may be more willing to work with you than others.
Generally, it is easier to pay for home improvement projects by selling things or having the cash on hand than it is to apply for any sort of home improvement loan. Home improvement credit cards are easy to obtain and good for small projects, home equity loans are good for larger projects if you have the equity in your home and straight bank loans are usually the most difficult loans to obtain for home improvement purposes.
By: JT Miller
