5 Ways to Freshen Up Your Home For the Sale August 28, 2008

When we are looking to sell our home many things come to mind. We usually focus on the larger things we need to get done a forget about the little things that can make a big impact. First impressions are a major issue when showing your home and making sure you convey the right image to your prospects is important.

Below are 5 things that can give your house a fresh look without ruining your pocketbook:

Tip 1 Landscape: Making sure that your yard is looking its best is important. Minor things such as edging the yard, picking up paper or debris, and pulling the weeds can make a great first impression after all its the first thing they see when they pull up.

Tip 2 Opening the Curtains- Though this seems like a trivial thing to think about. The simple task of opening the curtains can make a dreary home look inviting. It can add life to your home. After all the prospect might want to see what it looks like with the sun shining in!

Tip 3 Paint and Varnish: if you have hardwood floors or other wood finishes in your home a good paint job or varnish can change its look completely. It maybe less expensive to do it yourself. This should be for mere added polish. If your home is older it may need a complete overhaul.

Tip 4 Closets & Pantries: if you home has little closet space/pantries it would be wise to organize the closets in a way that gives the appearance of storage for the potential buyer. Additionally is your closets are large showcase them!

Tip 5 Back up and give them room: When you are doing a showing and have potential buyers in the house be available for questions but don’t crowd them. Hang in the back to give them room to roam. Additionally the fewer helping hands the better you don’t want to intimidate the potential buyers!

Use these tips well and improve the appeal of your home. After all we are trying to sell and what is more appealing than that!

Pet Care: Grooming Your Dog- 3 Tips to a Healthier Happier Dog August 11, 2008

We all want what is best for our dogs. Grooming is a big part of that. As with our hair your dogs hair is equally important. Your dogs can get sores and their hair matted if not properly taken care of. Below are a few tips to get you going in the right direction. Learning to take care of their hair properly now can save your dog problems in the future.

Tip1: Combing- Combing your dogs hair is important to get any knots or debris out of their coat. Though there are different types of coats on dogs just as hair on humans. This means you will need different combs.

Long Haired dogs: The best form of comb you can use on a long haired dog is a wide toothed comb. This will help you get down under their hair and comb it out thoroughly. Also keep in mind that a long haired dog’s coat gets tangled easily and requires you to comb them daily.

Short Haired Dogs: Use of a fine toothed comb will work best in a short haired dogs coat. You should make sure you are thorough when you are combing them out. However you will be able to see more of the coat on a short haired dog and see the hair underneath more easily.

Tip 2: Brushing- Brushing your dogs coat after wards is also important this can add shine and give them the polished glow you are looking for. However as with combing it is equally important to use the proper brush on your dog.

Long Haired Dogs: The Pin Brush should be used on a dog with long/fine coats. This will allow you to get into the hair and gives them shine. A Bristle brush should be used if the dog has long/thick coats. [German Shepard's/ Husky's/ Golden Retriever's] This will keep their coat shiny and polished.

Short Haired Dogs: Short haired dogs need to be brushed with grooming mitts. These will be more gentler on the dogs coat and keep them shiny and glowing. Additionally you should brush your dog once a week.

Tip 3: When brushing and Combing your dogs you should be careful around their eyes. Use of a flea comb is good to remove parasites and too get in those sensitive places.

Remember our dogs can not take care of themselves and look to us for support. Ensure you are properly grooming them and if you don’t know what you are doing or have questions take them to your local Veterinarian for help. Whether you are raising your puppies in Chicago, Atlanta, Dallas, Detroit, New York City, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, or any  other city help is there!

Building the Home of Your Dreams: Finding a Contractor August 10, 2008

When you are deciding to go into something as big as Building your dream home you have to make sure all your ducks are in a row. Understanding the importance of contractors and determining what contractors are best for you and your budget should be thought of before you invest too much in the process.

The contractors are a big part of the over all project. If you are not comfortable with who you have chosen you should not go ahead with the project. The contractors have many responsibilities. Some of the biggest are making sure that the home is going to pass inspection at each point. The also ensure that the job is getting done within the time frame stated.

Below are a few things to look for when finding a good contractor:

Tip 1: Check their school and Certification- Make sure that the contractor you are working with is legitimate. Request to know where they went to school. What certificates they received and check out these places. Don’t be afraid to research them, don’t go off just what they tell you. If at all possible you may do background checks on them before hiring.

Tip 2: Make sure you are comfortable with them: Listening to yourself as well as the other data is just as important. If you are getting a bad vibe from them chances are you should not hire them. Learn from your instincts they can tell you a lot. And better safe than sorry.

Tip 3: Pricing: Do not leave it to the contractor to tell you how much it’s going to cost for the job. Research- Figure out the right price on your own. If they fit in your range than take a chance. If you think they are charging you too much than simply move on to the next contractor. Never pay all the money up front. Pay half in the beginning and the other half when the project is completed and inspected.

In the end the choice is yours. However remember that this is your dream project and all details should be right before the project moves on!

Until next time,

Smiles~

Finding the Perfect Home: Tips to Ease the Tension August 4, 2008

Finding a perfect home can be difficult and stressful on not only you but your family. There are many ways in which this can be done to assist you in Locating and securing your perfect home without added stress. Below are a few ways to ease your tension and keep you and your family happy.

Tip 1: The Agent: Finding a real estate agent that is in it for you and not what homes he can pawn off on you is important. Listen to him/her; check their credentials; Listen to your instincts. Making sure your agent and you are a good match is important. Listen to see if they are paying attention to you and your families needs. This will reduce stress and make the process much smoother.

Tip 2: View the houses before the agent visits with you: Go and visit the homes you are interested in. Take a look at them and evaluate them for yourself. Try and see if you can see inside before they get there. This will allow you to have some idea if it is something you want to pursue further.

Tip 3: Ask Questions: Ask as many questions as you need to so you can understand what is going on; or what they are saying. No matter how dumb you may think they are after all the real estate agent is working for you!

In the end you should always remember that the agent works for you. If you are not happy with the decisions they should not be happy!

Until next time!