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Avoid mistakes that could cost you thousands.
Selling your home can be an exhausting experience. Last minute walk throughs, inconvenient calls, price adjustment and the possibility of being stuck with two mortgages are real concerns. If you are not completely prepared you could end up losing...
Custom Mini Blinds
In the mini blind market, you have three types of options: You can buy what is ready-made and is widely available in retail stores; buy ready-made but cut to fit blinds; and one-inch slat mini blinds that can fit one-eighth of an inch near your...
Decorative And Faux Painting Is Fun But Don’t Start Until You Read This
I think decorative and faux painting techniques look great, are fun to do, and add a personal statement to a room. I’ve been adding my personal look to the walls in my homes ever since my husband and I purchased our first “fixer-upper.”
When I...
Get Your Home Ready To Sell
Have you been considering selling your home in the near future? If you have, then it wouldn't be a bad idea to take a good long look at your home, using an unbiased eye.
After all, a clean, appealing, well maintained home has much better odds...
Save Money When You Renovate
(NC)-If you're planning a home renovation, now is the time to think about making your house more comfortable and energy efficient - and saving money along the way.
In many homes, upgrading the roof, the walls and major equipment such...
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Home Value Experts Warn: Think Before You Improve!
Misunderstanding your home’s value could lead you to make wrong or costly decisions.
Most Americans watching mortgage rates rise are deciding that now is the time to buy or sell before it’s too late. Whether you want to sell, or just improve your home’s value before you tap into your equity, here are five things experts suggest you consider before calling your bank or putting the ‘for sale’ sign on your lawn.
Make Only Renovations That Count.
Experts agree that the right renovations, especially bathrooms and kitchens, affect the marketability of your home. Bathrooms have become a popular remodeling choice, and for good reason— they have the highest rate of return of any home addition or home remodel. Real estate agents agree that a gleaming kitchen with state-of-the-art appliances, cork or hardwood flooring, stone countertop and lots of cupboard space can sell a house the instant a prospective buyer sees it. Conversely, a cramped, ill-lit kitchen with outdated linoleum and harvest gold appliances might actually scare buyers away.
Improve What You Can’t Renovate.
If you can't afford to renovate, update and refresh key rooms instead. Replacing an old countertop, repainting cupboards and walls, and installing new door pulls and lighting make big improvements to your kitchen for a very modest price. Similar touches increase the appeal of older bathrooms, too. Fresh paint throughout your home is another low-cost, high-return project — it makes everything look cleaner and brighter, and buyers love a house they won't have to redecorate immediately.
Maintain Where You Can.
Depending on the age of your house, you can expect to spend between one and three percent of its value every year on maintenance and repair. Your
maintenance budget should increase as your house ages, so remember to include funds to replace major systems as required. Foundations and roofs are things that are difficult to inspect, but in the long run minor repairs can save you about ten times the cost of work necessary to replace or rebuild.
Don’t Overimprove.
Before you commit to any big project, ask, “Is this three-car garage or pool out of character for my neighborhood?” If the answer is yes—you may be consigning your house to an oddity status. If your house is improved beyond the scope of all the neighborhood homes that surrounds it, it is likely that the value of your home won’t be realized when it comes time to sell.
Do Your Home Value Homework.
Many sites promising to give you the value of your home don’t deliver, but at http://www.domania.com you can use their Value Check tool to get an instant valuation from a real estate professional that includes a value range and neighborhood statistics. If you want to “value it yourself” at Domania, you can search through their database of 28 million historical home price records. Searching by price, by location or by address you’ll develop a better understanding of neighborhood trends—and if you look hard enough—what your neighbor paid for their house.
About the Author: The editorial staff of Domania lives and breathes home values. Find more advice and real estate tools at http://www.domania.com
Source: www.isnare.com
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