Archive for the ‘Home Improvement’ Category
-->
Oct
19
Posted by Susan Moore
Carpet or paint allowance does NOT work in selling a home. If the home needs carpet, put it in. If the home needs painting, get it painted. Take a look at the difference in this home below. A new exterior coat of paint, trim and accenting the shutters to match the roof, makes a great first impression.
If a buyer walks into your home, and sees that the carpet is worn, their first impression is that the entire home has seen better days. They assume that the owners probably haven’t keep much else up to date either and will actually look for signs to prove it. Now they’re thinking, I don’t mind fixing things up, I can do it…. but it’s gonna cost them. Their anticipation of seeing this home has just dropped dramatically in the first few seconds.
A seller has 8 seconds for a buyer looking at a home to decide if they really like the house…
-->
Aug
26
Posted by Susan Moore
Since I’ve been gone for two weeks, I took my first run through the neighborhood and found that many people had made recent improvements to their homes. I don’t know about you, but this makes me happy. People are taking pride in their homes, and especially, improving their property values. This is encouraging. Aside from the many new and trendy exterior paint schemes, and many new roofs, I also saw…
New Windows
New Fences
New Decks
And New Landscaping
The neatest part was seeing how many people had added seating areas on the front side of their homes, in view of seeing their neighbors walk by. Ah, another sign of a strengthening community as was mentioned in The Best Places to Live by CNN Money Magazine.
-->
Jul
06
Posted by Susan Moore
There’s no better way to get some frank, honest opinions about your home than to put it on the market. Potential buyers have no problem scrutinizing and analysing every detail of your home. They’ll explore and inspect every aspect, only to tell you that it’s all wrong. The up side is that you may come out with some collective, constructive feedback that may actually help you in case your home doesn’t sell. If you can overcome some of these objections with moderate changes, you may be able to change the whole perception of your home, and probably find it much more enjoyable yourself. After living in our homes for a while, we start to ignore those pesky little things about a nonfunctional space, or an awkward layout and just learn to live with them. Until you finally do something, will you realize that they were bothering you all along. Ours was that there wasn’t enough usable yard space which I had known all along. With the leveling of some of the back yard and adding a 4 foot retaining wall to the front yard, we ended up adding about 2000 sq feet of flat, usable space.
With the help of Lowe’s who delivered the blocks, Sunset Materials who delivered the dirt, and R&R Rentals who have machines and equipment to rent that you wouldn’t even believe, we were able to gain alot of usable yard space. All for less than $4000.
And here’s my disclaimers: Be sure to keep your wall at 4 feet or less (otherwise you’ll need to obtain special permits). Its also extremely important to provide adequate drainage at the base of your wall. Contact the Call Before You Dig folks who came out and located all the utilities within 2 days! With that, the folks over at the city are very supportive of Newcastle Neighbors making improvements and increasing their property values.
We were even able to create an additional parking area with the extension of the retaining wall….. for maybe a small boat??!
-->
Jun
10
Posted by Susan Moore
We all know inspiration when we feel it. It is a force that enlivens us and activates us to do something—we might dance, sing, or decide to paint the house. Whatever the case, doing what we do from a place of inspiration makes all things seem possible. Inspiration sometimes comes out of nowhere, landing unexpectedly in the midst of your life and lifting you out of your habitual mind and into a higher level of seeing. In my recent inspiration, I’ve decided to try to create more outdoor living space by adding a large deck. Problem is, there’s a huge wall of dirt in my back yard. This isnt an uncommon problem in Newcastle so watch as we create more level living space which has been said to be a cost-effective way to protect your home’s value, according to a recent article By U.S. News & World Report
Outdoor living spaces can increase your home’s appeal at a lower cost than an additional room.
Building a deck can be a smart way for property owners to maintain or even improve their home’s value. After all, it’s less expensive than building an additional room but still enables homeowners to expand their living space.
“It’s safe to say that a deck is one of the more cost-effective things you can do,” says Robert Markovich, home and yard editor for Consumer Reports. “Decks are really a high-return item.”
You can really improve the appearance of the backyard of your home. The whole purpose of this is to start the thought process of how you can really expand these spaces. Read more..
Here is some inspiration from a few local deck companies; Deck Pros and
-->
Nov
29
Posted by Susan Moore
When we decided to pull the house plans out of the drawer and see what exactly was behind the pantry and under the stairs, we couldn’t tell much. So my curiosity go the better of me and while my husband was pre-occupied watching football, I pulled an old knife and a stud finder out of the drawer, and went to work on my own little investigation. He eventually heard the little mouse in the pantry and came to see what I was up to this time. “What are you doing that’s going to create another project for me?”, he said. I giggled and said, “look what I found!” What I found was a ton of sheet rock burried underneath the stairs, obviously from the original house construction. This isn’t uncommon. When they were constructing the walls upstairs, they dropped all the scraps down into the stairwell, knowing it would be enclosed later. There are two reasons for this. Sheet rock is heavy so it’s expensive to dispose of. Second, they say it adds extra insulation. Either way, it was no big deal to me. I was just thrilled to discover that there was usable space here and I couldn’t wait to find out how much.
So yes, Mike got another project. It is typical around here that I get these wild ideas, start the demolition, and then he has no choice but to complete it. In the end we are both usually pretty proud of ourselves. Look at all this storage space we have for Costco items now! So start digging around. See what kind of usable space you may have in your home. Add more value with little details. Click here to see some of the other creative space ideas.
-->
Oct
13
Posted by Susan Moore
Even though I am a real estate agent, I also like to give tips on keeping the value of your current home. This time, we’re going outside….
Pruning Your Plants and Trees – Pruning is a vital part of plant and tree care. Here is a guide to help you prune properly. Three basic tools suffice for most pruning jobs: shears, loppers, and a pruning saw. Keep them sharp for clean cuts; disinfect after pruning diseased material.
• When Do Roses Need To Be Pruned?
Prune in winter or early spring when plants are still dormant. Prune plants to maintain symmetrical bushes and to encourage strong new growth. Cut back all previous years growth as much as one-third its length. Remove branches that cross through center and remove plants understock. Also prune weak and dead stems as needed. This will also encourage strong new growth.
• When Do Fruit Trees Need To Be Pruned?
The most common fruit trees are apple, peach, pear and cherry.
Apple Trees
Apple trees should be pruned in late winter or early spring before new growth starts. Always remove all suckers (summer is a great time). Also remove dead and other unproductive branches as needed.
Peach Trees
Peach trees are fast growing and need to be pruned in winter. Without pruning the peaches will grow farther away from the tree’s center. This will put great strain on the branches, causing them to break. In winter, thin out upward-growing branches that cross in tree’s center.
Pear Trees
Prune back in early spring. Always prune dead and unproductive branches as needed.
Cherry Trees
Prune in winter. Prune out branches that cross in center and dead unproductive branches as needed.
• When Do Azaleas and Rhododendrons Need To Be Pruned?
They can be pruned in winter or early spring. However pruning at this time will prevent plants from producing many blooms. The best time to prune azaleas and rhododendrons is just after their blooming period in spring. If you prune at this time , no additional pruning will be necessary.
• When Do Flowering Trees Need To Be Pruned?
Flowering trees should be pruned after they have finished blooming. Prune as little as possible. Dead branches, branches that cross in the center, and branches that are unproductive should be pruned out. Read More…
-->
Oct
07
Posted by Susan Moore
Most people can use more organization in their lives. Additional wall storage can help bring that organization into your home. And original and unusual wall storage ideas can help room organization become decor pizzazz! Here are some ideas to get you started:
1. If you have an entertainment center cabinet, recess it into a wall that may have some extra, unused space behind it. We found one in our home that housed some heater ducting but had lots of unused space. It now displays the stereo equipment and we were able to move that bulky piece off the floor.
2. Smaller spaces between the verticle studs are great ways to display Cd’s and movies. If you know a drywaller, (I do !) there are many ways to make cubbies, art work cutouts, and other creative spaces like the one below.
The more that you can keep things off the floor (cabinets, basket etc.) the more you will have that “model home” look that everyone loves.
-->
Sep
24
Posted by Susan Moore
When you walk into your kitchen, do you feel like you’ve stepped into a time machine? Do your appliances and cabinets look like something from the Brady Bunch era? If so, it might be time for an update.
With the housing market in a slump, it’s a great time to invest in your current home. Many homeowners dream of having a new kitchen, after all, the kitchen is the heart of the home and often the place where family members will spend most of their time together.
Kitchen remodels are one of the most popular types of renovations for homeowners, and for good reason. It’s something that can be enjoyed on a daily basis and much of the renovation costs can be recouped when you do decide to sell the home. Read More…
When remodeling a kitchen think about efficiency, functionality, and whether you’re interested in entertaining. Dont forget the three “R”s of cabinets to consider. Reface, Replace or Redesign? Once you decide on a design, you get to decide on all the fun details of your dream kitchen. When it comes to counters, there are lots of options to consider: stone, concrete, ceramic tile, laminate, wood or stainless steel. For appliances, Check out King and Bunny’s just down the street. I was surprised to see what a huge selection of really nice stuff they have here.
