Ruthie's Corner

  Prepping your home is one of the best things you can do to get the most money and a quicker sale. I mean that is your goal, right? Here are some tips to help you prep your house or property to get ready for listing it with a Realtor ® in the CC-V district. First look at your home through the eyes of potential buyers. I am not talking about the personal effects in your home (yet). I mean what are some projects you have on the honey do list that keep getting put off? Maybe you need to chalk your windows? Or perhaps fix up that back room to a spare room. The little projects you have been putting off might not seem like they would make a world of difference but to a buyer, they do. That is one less thing they must worry about when looking for a home. The house or property with the least amount of work that needs to be done is the winner 9 times out of 10. Unless it is an investor or a house flipper. Second, declutter is a must. Now while you are packing to move yourself you will ...

While some people who are selling their home think a small kitchen is a negative, there are several ways that you can make it stand out and appeal to potential buyers: Light it up. Darkness can often make smaller rooms feel even more cramped. To open the room up to more light, consider removing all curtains from windows and instead install recessed blinds. You still get the privacy factor, while also allowing your kitchen to have a brighter feel. Keep the counters tidy. Many people have things strewn about their kitchen counters and cabinets. Think about keeping your counter tops clear of all items, including photos, papers and even appliances, to make it seem like the room is larger than it truly is. Brighten the walls. Sellers should consider making the tone of the wall color in the kitchen brighter. Lighter colors tend to open up a room. They are also much more inviting, enticing potential buyers. Mounted appliances. Sellers may want to consider mounti...

Trying to sell a home can often be difficult. Everyone likes something different. The question then becomes, how do you present your home so that a wide variety of potential buyers become interested? Enter the practice of staging a home. This is when you furnish your home to show off its most attractive qualities and properties, making it more appealing to buyers.       Taking the art of staging a step further is the practice of virtual staging. With no actual furniture involved, this is a digital rendering of what a potential home would look like when furnished. Here are some of the benefits and drawbacks with virtual staging: Pros:       If your home is empty, it’s easier to showcase its best features      Considerably cheaper than traditional staging      Grabs the attention of buyers who primarily view properties online      Allows the variation of styling in regard t...

Home Sellers’ Questions Answered (a few may surprise you)  I love working with home sellers! It’s such an exciting time for me to be an integral part of their moving on to what’s next for them, whether it’s upsizing, downsizing, or moving across the country for a new job! I understand their concerns and it’s my pleasure to work diligently on their behalf. Today, I’m sharing their answers to their Top 3 Questions… 1) What is most important when preparing my home to get listed? There are three things that are most important, excluding of course location– because your home will either be in a good location that qualified buyers desire or isn’t- there isn’t anything we can do about that. But the three things sellers can effect are: 1- Light 2- Clean 3- Uncluttered Light – The #1 thing buyers always mention when entering a home is, ” Oh my, it’s awful dark in here.” And we turn around and walk out the door to see the next home. Yes, everyone wants to walk in and see ...

3 Quick Tips to Make Buyers Fall in Love With Your Home   Do you like visiting model homes? Most people do. Did you ever think about why visiting model homes is enjoyable? (It’s more than just liking the décor.) Model homes are designed and set up to evoke an emotional connection. Visitors feel immediately welcomed. And leave thinking: “gosh, I’d love to live there!” Let’s talk about 3 quick things you can do to make your home feel like a “model home” to prospective buyers. Declutter & Clean. Picture a model home. One thing that will always be missing is clutter. No toys on the floor. No laundry piled high on the sofa or bed. Everything is put away, where it belongs. Also rooms are laid out to feel “big.” Typically rooms have less furniture than might be in a home where someone actually lives. To properly ready a home for sale, you also may need to remove extra or larger pieces of further, to make the space feel bigger. Let the Light In. Another thing you...

7 Tips for a Profitable Home Closing Be sure you’re walking away with all the money you’re entitled to from the sale of your home. Read Visit houselogic.com for more articles like this. Copyright 2018 NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®

Home Buyers Want to Know Your Home Inside-Out While home buyers are as individual as the home they plan on purchasing, one thing they share is a desire to insure that the home they will call their own is as good beneath the surface as it appears to be. “Will the roof leak?" “Is the wiring safe?” “What about the plumbing?” These and others, are the questions that the buyers looking at your home will seek professional help to answer. According to industry experts, there are at least 33 physical problems that will come under scrutiny during a home inspection. We've identified the 11 most common of these and, if not identified and dealt with, any of these 11 items you dearly in terms of repair. In most cases, you can make a reasonable pre-inspection yourself, if you know what you’re looking for.   And knowing what you’re looking for can help prevent little problems from growing into costly and unmanageable ones. 11 Things That You need to Know   to Pass ...

3 Home Staging Mistakes to Avoid According to the latest statistics, a home that is staged sells 73% quicker. And for nearly 20% more money than a non-staged home. In fact, it’s been said that for every $100 a homeowner spends on staging, he will typically see a $250-400 return on that investment on the sale of the home – definitely worthwhile. Many homeowners try their own hand at staging. If you’re interested in staging your own home, you’ll want to avoid these staging mistakes: 1.  Too much furniture & too much clutter.  Take a look at the picture above. Think about a recent model home you toured. What is it that makes those spaces stand out? One thing is that the furniture is well placed, creating conversation areas in the living spaces. Another is there is no clutter. When staging, take a hard look at your rooms. Remove furniture you don’t need. Remember: the less furniture in the room, the larger the room will appear. 2.  Dark rooms . Cheery and ...

6 Reasons Your Home Won't Sell Are you ready to sell your home and want it to have a great first impression on the market? Or maybe your home has been listed for a few weeks or months, and you can't figure out why it won't sell, and you know your agent is working hard to market it. We've listed below the top 6 reasons your home may not make a good impression and end up stagnant on the market. 1. IT'S OVERPRICED To be clear, an overpriced home is the #1 reason a home won't sell. We often times want our homes to be worth a lot more than we may see based on the data, but if you put your home on the market for the number you wish it will bring instead of the price it actually needs to be, your home can sit on the market for months without getting a single showing. If you're thinking you need to price high to leave room for negotiations, statistics show that views for your property, for buyers in your price r...

Achieve Feng Shui In Your Home If you take the time to dig into the philosophy around feng shui, you'll understand that it doesn't come off as esoteric as one my think. It's based around the simple practices to make a home feel healthier and a lot more organized. It also helps you to connect to your home, in a way that can affect your mood and well being. Feng shui is as common as "spring-cleaning," or decorating to make a home feel much more comfortable. This ancient Chinese tradition can be incorporated into your own home. It can be done in a modern holistic approach, while still honoring the age-old traditions that come with feng shui. It's not about transforming the structure of your home, but instead making it to evolve into a space that refreshes your home - and in turn your health. The following feng shui tips will do a little more than just bring some harmony into your home, they can potentially increase the v...