Remember back in the day when we had no email, texting, facebook, IM, and pdf’s? When we actually passed real written notes in school? Do you like me? Check yes or no! Well sometimes it’s good to get back to basics and your house can do the same thing. I’m talking about writing an old fashioned love letter of sorts. As a Realtor, we can only know what you tell us about your home. We are given exactly 500 characters to describe all the attributes of your home, and guess what… that’s not a lot of space. No one knows more about your home than you do and you can help to pass along extra pertinent…
It wasn’t that long ago that we were dealing with 20 inches of snow on our roofs. We were all shoveling like mad to avoid roof problems, dealing with snow days and looking forward to the warm sunshine on our faces. Yesterday I was in line at Stop and Shop when I heard someone complain about how hot it was outside. I had to laugh, but I must admit I was right there with her. As a true New Englander we are constantly complaining about the weather and waiting for the next season to approach to give us our needed change of scenery. This change of scenery affects not only us as New Englanders, but…
There are two types of probate situations that I lovingly call the 2 “D’s”, Death and Divorce. Both situations can create an enormous amount of extra emotions behind a real estate transaction and often times turn Realtors and Probate Attorneys into psychoanalysts, to say the least. Yes we already have to be good listeners but sometimes we go a little beyond that! Divorce is obviously a situation that you never expect yourself to be in. Unfortunately when you are in a divorce your home is most likely one of the largest marital assets needing to be divided, and usually this means having to sell…
About 8 or 9 years ago, I was starting to feel that we were outgrowing our first home. The kids were starting school, the toys were seemingly breeding overnight and the garage was filled to the gills with “stuff”. My husband and I went on a 2 year on and off search for the perfect house. I was my own worst client, indecisive on just about everything! Well except for one thing that is, a pool. I was drop dead certain I would NEVER live in a house with a pool. The words that came to mind were: maintenance, cleaning, safety and liability. My husband had grown up with a pool so he was on the …
When I was thirteen, every girl I knew, including me, had her room plastered with Sean Cassidy posters. We had so many posters they were even on the ceiling, and we spent countless hours cutting out magazine pictures of every size to make a collage of these feathered-haired hunks so we could cover any leftover white wall space. Well today it’s not that different, except instead of boys with feathered hair, we have Bieber fever and Vampires, go figure. Well, while all of this is completely normal, when you are trying to sell your home you may have to talk to your teens about toning down the …
There are so many firsts in a person’s life. Getting married and buying a dress, having your first child, sending them on a kindergarten bus, the first time one of your kids leaves for college etc... Well in housing your first time can be just as stressful and nerve wracking. I was asked by my first time buyer clients K.M and C.M to write a little something about this experience and how to handle yourself during this time. Here are some advice tips to keep you cool during this first time process. 1. If you equate this process (in hypothetical terms) to planning your wedding, PLEASE stop …
A shark at the door? No one can ever dispute that the original Saturday Night Live was really the best! Nothing compares to John Belushi and Dan Akroyd doing the Bass-o-Matic or Gilda Radner being Lisa Lupner. But one skit from the golden oldies that relates to Real Estate is Shark at the Door! Chevy Chase was brilliant at fumbling the names and somehow always managing to get the girl on the other side to open up. Well when you are selling your house you should always be prepared for a potential shark at the door and remember not to open up for just a candy gram or flower delivery. Here are …
I distinctly remember being in the third grade and thinking how funny it sounded to say those words. Now that I am a mother of two I hear my kids and their friends making fun of that same saying. The unfortunate thing is that it is not funny. It is very serious and when you are selling your home you will need to be sure your house meets current and local fire codes in the town which you reside. To go about this you will need to contact your local fire department and make an appointment for them to come to the house to do a fire inspection. The cost is usually $50. Here is what they will be …
I have had the situation arise on many a soccer field or at a dinner party when I overhear one person telling another person, “I am building a house!” I try so hard to bite the old tongue but eventually the wisenheimer in me comes out and I very politely say “Oh I didn’t realize your husband was a builder.” Of course, I already know that he is not and that what she really means to say is that they are buying a new construction home. Yes, there is a big difference!! HUGE! Having the opportunity to buy a new construction home is fun. It gives you the chance to choose your cabinets, flooring, …
Pricing your home for sale can be a difficult task, even for a realtor. Sometimes you have a unique property that just doesn’t match up to anything else sold in your area. How do you determine if the price you set is right for you? Well you’ve heard the phrase “build it and they will come”, in Real Estate it’s “price it right and they will come.” I often show my Sellers what they are up against for competition and try to have them objectively judge how they fit into that price category. It’s always an eye opener for sure! We all love our homes, myself included, but sometimes we need to remove…
I often get asked the same question over and over by both buyers and sellers while negotiating a deal….”What is normal?” I have to chuckle, under my breath of course, because I have learned over my 20 years in this business that nothing is normal. In fact what is normal anyway? Webster’s’ says normal means in conforming or standard but we are all created with our unique ways making the word normal seem almost strange. In fact every transaction takes on a life of its own and is almost like a strand of DNA, never to be duplicated twice. Remember you always have a seller and a buyer each with …
If I’ve heard it once I’ve heard it a thousand times, “we are looking for something with a nice backyard!” Almost all buyers are looking for that euphoric green space in the back to set up a patio, host barbecues on the deck, assemble a swing set and of course have room for the new dog. Believe it or not a well laid out yard can offer all these things even if it is small. Nearly every home tour by a buyer concludes with the family exiting through the slider to check out that coveted space which in New England we greatly appreciate when that weather starts to turn. If you have a backyard that …
In some situations it is not always possible for a seller to show his or her home while they are still living there. Perhaps they have been transferred to another part of the country and had to leave prior to the house sale, or they have nine kids and four dogs and find it impossible to show the home with all that activity going on. In either case some homes are left empty while on the market and that can leave a buyer wondering what a home would look like furnished. A buyer needs to be able to imagine themselves in a home and often will mentally place furniture, photos etc... to try and …
Some sellers do not know, or have not been told that they can get their own home inspection prior to putting their house on the market. Not only is this a great idea it is one I highly recommend to all sellers! If you have lived in your house for thirty years, when was the last time you crawled into the attic and poked around with a ski pole! Probably never! Over time your house goes through changes and although you have done a great job maintaining it, you can be sure a buyer’s home inspector will find faults and deficiencies with something. Why not find it first and fix it, by hiring your …
