Stage your home to Sell

The decision to buy a home is often made within 15 seconds of walking through the front door. To make a great first impression, and to ensure the best price for your home, consider home staging. Home Staging is the process of setting the scene throughout your home to create buyer interest.

Benefits of Home Staging

Studies show that home staging often results in a higher price than homes that are not staged, all other things being equal. The money that you invest in staging usually results in a high return on investment in terms of getting a number closer to their sale price..

Clean Up and Remove All Clutter

Potential buyers don’t want to see how you live. They want to picture themselves living in your home. When cleaning for home staging, clean every surface including windows (inside and out) and window sills, ledges, door knobs, ceiling fans, shelves, mini blinds, ceiling and floor corners, and baseboards. Remove all tile grout with bleach. Caulk areas around sinks and bathtubs. Consider hiring a maid service to ensure a thorough cleaning. The benefits of home staging will be worth the cost.

Get your carpets professionally cleaned, especially if you have pets. Even if you don’t, professionally cleaned carpets are far more appealing than worn out, stained ones.

Potential homebuyers will open your cupboards and closets. Make sure they’re organized neatly. Every storage area in your home should be neat, clean, organized, and clutter-free.

To Decorate or Not to Decorate

You need to show your home at its best potential to buyers. You are selling your home, not what’s inside it. Remove rugs, eliminate clutter and knick-knacks, and cut down on furniture. Take down your wedding photos, religious items, school pictures, and collection of refrigerator art. Rearrange furniture so it is conducive to a smooth traffic flow. Make the rooms as spacious as possible.

Consider replacing the towels in your bathrooms and kitchen with a couple of fresh new ones. Remove all personal items from countertops, and place a plant on the bathroom vanity. Remove all dirty laundry from sight. Add a centerpiece to your dining room table if you don’t already have one. Place plants in clean, attractive containers. Add a fresh, non-offensive fragrance to your home using potpourri, scented oils, or scented wax (as candle smoke can stain walls) such as cinnamon or vanilla. Many agents are even advising homeowners to bake a fresh batch of cookies if they know they will be showing their home.

A fresh coat of paint in a neutral color will also go a long way.

Your front porch is the first thing people see. If you have any dead or tattered planters, replace them with fresh ones. Keep all planters watered and trimmed. Keep your porch clean and inviting. Replace your front door handle if necessary, and put a stylish wreath on the door.

Home Staging can be a project you can do yourself, but if you want to invest in a professional Home Stager, the benefits are often worth the cost.

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Signs that you have outgrown your house

Once you’ve tripped over your kids’ toys for the 50th time or have to store pantry items in your linen closet, you may start dreaming of moving to a larger house. But how do you know if you’ve really outgrown your home?
According to Barbara Sukkau, a past president of the Ontario Real Estate Association (OREA), many homeowners start eyeing property listings after they’ve reached a new life milestone. “Homeowners tell me that their house feels too small after another child joins the family or when an elderly parent moves in. To them, it can feel like their house has more people in it than closets,” Sukkau says.

Sukkau recommends homeowners meet with a realtor to determine the value of their current home and decide what price range they can afford for a larger house. “Once you know your budget, your realtor will know whether or not you can find a larger home within your price range in the neighbourhood you want.”

While some homeowners renovate to solve their cramped-quarter issues, this is not always the best solution. “Some municipalities prevent you from building an extension onto the home or from adding an apartment in the basement,” Sukkau says. “Living through an extensive renovation is stressful, especially when you have kids. A realtor can help you sell your home for the best price to make it easier for you to buy your next home. You may find the perfect house already exists and you won’t have to try to build it yourself.”

OREA points out some other signs that it may be time for you to move:
- Your kids can no longer share a bedroom comfortably.
- Belongings you want to keep are stuck in a rented storage unit.
- You now work from home and need an office that’s quiet and clutter-free.

A realtor’s extensive training can help homeowners decide if it’s time to move or not. Realtors, who are regulated by the province, work for your best interests. Visit HowRealtorsHelp.ca for more helpful information about selling your home.

Debating Between a Townhome and a Single-Family House?

When buying a home, one of the fundamental questions you will ask yourself is whether you want a townhome or condo or a single family home. There are advantages and disadvantages to both and depending on your needs, one may be a better option for you than the other.

Consider the following when trying to decide between a townhome/condo and a single-family house:

• Budget – Generally, townhomes and condos are less expensive than their single-family home counterparts. Because single-family houses are generally bigger than condos and townhomes, the heating and air conditioning bills will most likely be bigger as well. Determine your budget to help you decide what will be best for you financially.
• Location – Do your research to make sure the location and neighborhood you’re looking at is safe and worth your investment. If you want to live in the heart of the city, a condo may be your best option.
• Yard and Home Maintenance – Do you want a yard your children can play in with a garden you can maintain? Or would you rather not bother with a yard at all? When you own a house, you will be responsible for all the maintenance, so make sure that’s something you’re willing and able to take on. The bigger the property, the more it will cost to maintain. 
• Privacy – In a townhome or condo, there’s a good chance that you will occasionally hear your neighbors, and they’ll occasionally hear you – no matter how well the home is built. You may have to share a hallway or back or front yard as well. If you want complete privacy, a single-family home may be the best option for you. However, if you find comfort in having close neighbors, consider a townhome or condo.
• Homeowner Associations – Homeowner associations include fees and shared decision-making. They help keep neighborhoods clean and help maintain home values in the neighborhood. Most of the time, townhomes and condos are part of homeowners associations. You’ll need to decide if you’ll use the amenities you pay for with your HOA fees. If you want complete control of the decisions regarding your home, consider a single-family home.
• Family Lifestyle – If you don’t have any children, or don’t plan to have children for a while, a townhome or condo can simplify your life and limit maintenance you’ll have to do on the home. If you want pets, many condos and townhomes don’t permit them, so do your homework.

Contact Cobblestone Realty Today (561) 429-3340 for all of your Real Estate needs.

5 Mistakes Sellers Make

When deciding to sell your home, it’s important to avoid the big mistakes that will keep your home from selling.

Here are 5 mistakes that many sellers make that will either cause a home to stay on the market too long or, at the other end of the spectrum, cause a seller to leave money on the table.

1. Hiring the wrong agent. Don’t hire a real estate agent just because he or she is a friend or family member. This is a business transaction. Hire a real estate agent with a good track record. Get referrals from friends and neighbors, and do your research.  
2. Overpricing. This can be the biggest mistake a seller makes. If your home is overpriced, you will receive less interest in your home as well as fewer offers. If you want your listing to perform well in a competitive market, you need to price it competitively. Work with your real estate agent to determine the right price for your home that both you and your potential buyers will be happy with.
3. Ignoring the importance of home staging. Presentation is everything. Hire a home stager or stage your home yourself. Either way, make sure the home has a fresh coat of paint, the carpet is clean, the furniture is arranged in a way that makes it easy to walk through the home. Take down family photos and knick-knacks so potential buyers can picture themselves living in the home. Always make sure the home is as clean as it can be when there is a showing scheduled. Don’t forget the home’s curb appeal. Staging your home can make a big difference in the number of offers you’ll receive.
4. Prematurely accepting an offer. Being up against a deadline should never be an excuse of accepting an offer that is too low. You might be excited when you get your first offer, but you need to allow yourself enough time to see what other offers you may receive. Buyers need to compete on price. Respond to the offers quickly when they come in, but make sure the offer is at or above the price you’ve already agreed on. Let your home be properly exposed to the market and remain on the MLS long enough to receive multiple offers. However, if you’ve only had your home on the market for a few days and you get an offer you think you want to take, ask your agent to call other agents who have expressed interest in showing your home. Have your agent let them know that you have an offer in hand and ask them if any of them are interested in submitting an offer. Give them a firm deadline for receiving offers, but don’t prematurely accept one.
5. Getting emotionally involved in the transaction. This is a big challenge. You’ve lived in your home, created memories there, invested time and money in your property, etc. But once you move forward with the decision to sell your home, it becomes a commodity. You may think your home is “worth” a specific amount, but ultimately, it doesn’t matter what you want. Not everyone will appreciate your home like you did, but now it’s time to move on. Put your emotions aside and move forward with the sale as a business transaction.

@Cobblestoneinfo

Make Dollars Out of Scents

Spruce up the Aroma of Your Home to Sell

When homebuyers walk into a home for sale all five senses are actively scanning the environment. The sense of smell can send a strong message to the brain while the brain is busy formulating a first impression.

Regardless of your home’s appearance, an unpleasant odor can turn buyers away. At the same time, pleasant aromas can invoke feelings of comfort, relaxation, happiness and peace.

Carefully selected scents can actually help you get more dollars out of your home when combined with other staging methods. We have experience in creating just the right setting to present your home for sale. Feel free to contact us for a no obligation consultation and tips to make your property even more desirable.

1. Dirt Stinks.

Let’s face it, no matter what kind of candle, spray or air freshener you use the fine scents will not cover up the smell of an unclean environment. The first smell to create is a clean smell. Don’t use overpowering industrial cleaners that leave strong scents behind. Even those scents are sometimes undesirable.

•  Wash walls, baseboards, and floors
•  Leave no dirty dishes in the sink or on counters
•  Clean the garbage disposal regularly
•  Keep trash cans empty
•  Clean toilets regularly
•  Eliminate all signs of mildew and mold
•  Dust often
•  Avoid smoking indoors
•  Never leave dirty diapers in the house
•  Keep laundry clean and put away
•  Keep pets outside or keep litter box clean and fresh for indoor cats

2. People are Sensitive to Smells

Once your house is smelling clean and fresh, be very careful about the scents and methods of distributing those scents. Many people have allergies to spray air fresheners. Other people simply feel overpowered by the scent of a strong burning candle. Still others may associate certain smells with negative memories or experiences in their lives. Strong, overpowering smells may be offensive and may make buyers suspicious you are trying to cover up a bad smell.

3. Natural, Subtle Scents are Best

Play it safe by creating an atmosphere of natural scents and smells.

Place fresh, fragrant flowers in strategic locations throughout the home for a subtle, natural scent. Flowers from your own garden are wonderful! If not available, fresh flowers from the grocer will do just fine.

Consider whipping up a batch of fresh chocolate chip cookies as your guests arrive to create a homey feeling. Maybe you could choose the day of their visit to put a nice stew in the crock pot.

Creating just the right ambiance in your home when staging it to sell could net thousands more in the final sales price. Remember, don’t over do it. Natural is best.

 Cobblestone Realty, LLC

TAXING ISSUES: Making and keeping your 2014 New Year's Resolutions

My New Year’s resolution is to save up for a new house; get rich; get in shape; help the less privileged; buy low and sell high; quit smoking; travel more; win the lottery! How many times have we heard these words uttered?

As you sit at the dining-room table with pen to paper, sipping coffee with the fireplace crackling in the background, pause for a moment before making that New Year’s resolution list and glance at the crumpled, faded list from last year. How many of your resolutions were actually accomplished? If you are like lots of other Canadians, then not many.

The new year is the time for us to put 2013 behind us and reboot for another year. It’s a great starting point to forget the old and embrace the new. It’s a time to pause and look at what has been accomplished and what still needs to be done.

No one is successful without goals and objectives that can be measured. Although, my accounting and tax background do not give me the expertise to help you lose weight or quit smoking, the approach to financial resolutions may not be much different. The old adage, “Life is what you make of it,” applies to accounting, sports, business and family goals alike.

Set realistic resolutions. “I want to look like I did as a teenager” is unlikely, unless you are one!

Don’t just say, do. Resolutions can’t be accomplished without action and following through. Stop talking about joining a health club, and do it. Regardless of what some so-called experts say, you can’t lose weight by sitting in front of your computer (although the eyes and fingers may get a good workout).

Having a plan and its execution is as important as the resolution itself. Without a plan, there will be no success. “This year, I would like to save for a home.” This is a great resolution, however how will you achieve this? How much will you need? Where will the savings come from? How and where will you obtain financing? Step one is to create a cash-flow budget. Identify how you can increase income and where you can cut expenses.

Set long-term goals, but make them achievable objectives that can be measured periodically. For example:
a: If you would like to lose 20 lbs. this year, set a weight-loss goal of three pounds per month.
b: If you would like to start an RRSP, contribute $X by the end of the year. This will be achieved by setting up an automatic payment plan with your financial institution. Pre-authorize monthly RRSP contributions.

Goals cannot be reached, unless you reach for them!

#CobblestoneRealty #RealEstate #NewYears2014 #SouthFlorida #Resolutions #BeRealistic

Tips for Decorating Small Rooms

If decorated poorly, small rooms can seem claustrophobic and uncomfortable. However, there are many design and decorating tips that can make the room look bigger than it is and give the illusion of space. Here are some decorating tips and tricks to making a small room look bigger: Choose light colors. Light colors make rooms look bigger and maximize the effect created by natural light. Dark colors make rooms appear smaller because they absorb light. Use multi-function furniture. Multipurpose furniture such as sofa beds, chest of drawers, beds with storage drawers, and extendable dining tables can all save space and help keep small rooms looking clean and organized. The more light, the better. If you can let natural light in, it will open up the room a lot. Make sure that any window coverings are sheer and/or pulled back. If there isn’t a lot of natural light in the room, adding more light fixtures will give a similar effect. Keep the room organized. Having too much clutter will make a room feel and look very cramped. Don’t cover walls with a lot of pictures. Limit the number of accessories in the room as well. Add mirrors. Mirrors give rooms an illusion of depth. Use a focal point and angle the mirrors toward it.
Cobblestone Realty LLC	Categories: General Real Estate, Helpful Tips, House and Home, New Trends, Opinion, Other, Places/Spaces, Real Estate Practices