Archive for the ‘curb appeal’ Category
Uncle Sam Pays the Tab for New Windows
Does a cold draft blow around your head while you relax in your easy chair? Does the sound of actual street noise drown out the sound of the NASCAR race on TV? If you answered “Yes” to either question…it might be time to replace those old, drafty, ugly, noisy, single paned, aluminum frame windows with some good looking, energy efficient ones.
Why Replacing Your Windows Pays Off…
- New windows improve the curb appeal and increase the value of any home.
- Buyers pay up for new windows. Numerous studies show that home sellers recoop 90+ percent of the costs for window replacement at the time of sale.
- Homeowners realize the energy savings immediately, while increasing comfort.
- Energy efficient windows are a Green home selling feature.
- New models of windows are easy to clean and maintain.
- Improve your view. New glass is so clear it’s just like looking through… nothing at all.
- Maybe Best of All…Uncle Sam Pays for It. The government will pay 30 percent of the cost (up to $1500) to replace the windows in your home through December 31, 2010. And, don’t forget to check out the additional rebates and savings on windows that are being offered in most states, cities and townships.
Tip for a Tight Budget
- Just replace some of the windows. Choose the ones on the front of the home, because they improve the curb appeal. Or, replace the windows that get hammered by the most weather, be it sun, rain, snow or wind.
- Or, Roll the Dice…and, maximize the tax credit by replacing half of the windows in 2010. Then, gamble on an extension of the credit into 2011 and replace the other half.
- Uncle Sam picks up a Third of your bill and smile (:
Practical Advice About Window Replacement
- Use a company that carries a wide range of window brands. Make sure they use their own employee’s (not subcontractors) to do the installation.
- Profit from the Housing Crash. Be a hard negotiator and get at least 3 quotes. You can save Big on labor and materials because the housing market is slow.
- Replacing windows is a big, messy job. Cover up anything important such as electronics and furniture. Sawing and Ripping out windows is dirty business, no matter how good the installer.
Thank you for visiting Why6Percent.com. We have a program for home sellers that offers the MLS, Realtor.com and advertisement on dozens of real estate listing posts for one cheap price…and the seller keeps the commission. Call 1-800-381-9496 or visit http://www.why6percent.com today for the details. You will be happy that you did!!!
3 Ways to Attract Home Buyers
Making your home attractive and memorable to home buyers is critical if you want to sell your home. There are a number of proven methods to attract buyer’s through your door, but the Top 3 offer the biggest payoff.
Top 3 Ways to Attract Buyers to Your Home
- The Internet. The internet is the single most powerful tool available for home sales. If you want the maximum exposure, get your home listed in the MLS (Multiple Listing Service) database. Secondly, take full advantage of all social networking sites such as Twitter, Facebook and MySpace.
- Professional Fliers. Make a nice flyer or brochure that you can place inside an InfoTube or InfoBox that is attached to your For Sale sign. In addition, you can pass them out to prospective buyers and open houses. InfoTube.net offers a Free online service that can help you create and print professional, full colored flyers about your home.
- Giveaways and Incentives. Everyone loves FREE. Adding an incentive to your offer can generate interest and make your home stand out from your competition. Some of the most popular incentive items are home theatre’s, new appliances, club memberships, pool table, hot tub, free travel vouchers, seller paid closing costs.
Thank you for visiting Why6Percent.com. We have helped thousands of home sellers find the perfect buyer. We can help you, too.
Vacant Homes, Swimming Pools and Pleco Fish
Health Alert: Number of Stagnant Swimming Pools Increase.
Stagnant, abandoned swimming pools pose a risk to the health and life of adults, children and pets, alike. And, lenders who own these properties have been unable or unwilling to maintain the swimming pools in area’s where families live.
If you live near a dangerous, smelly, abandoned pool, you may want to try a natural, green method to remove the stench, algae and scum. In addition, this method is FREE and Bonus…it eats the insects and small rodents that may reside in the swamp next door to you.
What is this Miracle Solution for Pool Cleaning??
Enter the common, humble, pre-historic Pleco Fish. Throw a few of these into the abandoned swimming pool or spa next door, and let them do the job nature intended for them to do. To Read More About Using Pleco Fish to Clean Up Stagnant Water, CLICK HERE!!
Thank you for visiting Why6Percent.com. If you have a property to sell, we have a turnkey marketing program that reaches 10 million home buyers each month for 6 months. The price, a little more than a one-time classified ad in a newspaper that no one reads. Call us today at 1-800-381-9496. We have helped thousands of sellers and we can help you, too!! 
Easy Way to Remove Carpet Stains
If your home is on the market, you know how important staging and first impressions are to your sales success. If your carpet is stained, and you can’t replace it, then use these proven professional tips to remove the stain.
- For most carpet stains: Mix Equal Parts of white vinegar and water. Spray mixture onto the stain and blot up with a sponge.
- For Tough Stubborn Stains: Mix Equal Parts of Borax, white vinegar and salt. Rub paste into the carpet fibers and let set overnight. Vaccum the next morning, and presto, your stain will be gone.
These carpet stain cleaning recipes are green, cheap and they work. One thing that never works…placing a throw rug over a stain in a carpeted room. Everyone knows that rugs over carpeting mean bad stain. And, believe me buyer’s always lift up the rug to verify! Then, they wonder what else you’re hiding….
Thank you for visiting Why6Percent.com. We offer MLS and Realtor.com marketing exposure for owners, builders and investors. Reach 10 millions home shoppers each month and save thousands in commissions and fee’s. Why Pay 6 Percent??? Buy the MLS for only $399.
6 Reasons to Sell Your Home During the Holidays
I’m thinking Turkey. The leaves have fallen, lawn mowers are stored and furnaces are in use. It’s at this time of year that many of our customer’s ask… “Should We Take Our Home Off the Market During the Holidays?”
The answer is definitely ”NO”. There are a lot of reasons to keep your home listed right through the New Year. And, there’s an especially, timely reason this holiday season!!
- The First Time Buyers Tax Credit has been extended until April 30, 2010 AND it’s been expanded. Step Up Home Buyers, who make a lot of money, can also receive $6500 in Tax Credits until April. Big tax incentives mean that smart buyers will be house shopping vs mall shopping this holiday season.
- Interest Rates are at Record Lows. 30 year fixed rate mortgages are below 5 percent. But, with the dollar weak and falling, low rates may not be around for long. Serious home buyers are aware of the difference that even a small interest rate increase would make in their house payment. The combo of Tax Credits and Low Interest Rates create strong urgency among buyer’s. Smart seller’s spruce up their homes and play into the pressure.
- Holiday Shoppers are Serious Buyers. Trust me. Everyone of us loves the holidays. The people who are looking for homes in November, December and January are SERIOUS Buyers. Do you really want to pull your house off the market when the most serious people are shopping??
- Less Competition. Many sellers don’t read our blog. They foolishly pull their homes from the market during the holidays, and this year will be no exception. Less competition could make the difference between For Sale and Sold, this Christmas.
- Houses are Pretty during the Holidays. Staging your home is easy during the holidays. The mood is festive. Holiday colors are warm and inviting. Candles, centerpieces and decorations touch the heart and convey a peaceful lifestyle. Light the candles, make a roaring fire, bake some goodies and turn on some relaxing holiday music. Buyer’s love to see a home decorated and looking special. Don’t let this once a year opportunity pass you by.
- Curb Appeal. If your landscape and lawn isn’t that great, breathe a sigh of relief that no one else’s is this time of year, either. Add seasonal color, a wreath, perhaps some decorations. Just keep it subtle and classy. No mowing, no weeding and trimming, and best of all snow covers all…
Thank you for visiting Why6Percent.com Our MLS and Realtor.com advertising packages reach 10 million serious home shoppers each month. If your home isn’t listed on the dozens of websites in our program, then you’re home isn’t really on the market. Get serious about selling and call us at 1-800-381-9496 today.
A Big Thank You to All our Veterans and Active Military Personnel!!! Please accept our $50 Gift and start marketing your property Today!!
Staging Tip: Showcase Rooms for Intended Purpose
As you prepare your home for the market, remember that it is no longer your home. It is a product that is for sale. First, Declutter, Depersonalize and Decorate (3 D’s for Staging any property)…then, rearrange your home so that every room is staged for its intended sole purpose.
Try to ignore the strawberries hanging from the fan (although this is clearly an item of specific taste), this seller clearly isn’t getting the point. What is this room? Is it an office, dining room or breakfast nook? If you can’t figure it out, neither will the buyer. The seller of this home should pack up the clutter and the home office, then showcase this room as the spacious dining room area it is.
Oh boy. I get clastrophobic just looking at this room. Vaccum cleaner sitting out, stuff crammed in every available cranny, desk, computer, library and dining room all rolled into one. Not. Any normal buyer would turn and run, not walk, out the door. The only thing I know is that obviously this seller isn’t serious and the product has no storage. This seller should get real and get to packing. This is a formal dining room with a real fireplace. If this homeowner can’t make this room look natural and inviting for entertaining, then hire a pro or take it off the market. No one is buying this house at any price.
This room is a living room, not a playground. I don’t think the seller’s could have made this large family room any less appealing, if they tried. Even though this seller may love to watch the children play in their playhouse while they watch TV, chances are this isn’t impressing any home buyers. Seller, please pack the playhouse or move it outdoors where it belongs. Warm this living room up with a rug, some window treatments and move the furniture off the wall into a conversation grouping.
Conclusiong: If your home has been on the market for 60 days or more and you haven’t received any serious buyer’s interest, stand back and look at your product from the buyer’s point of view. If your rooms aren’t being shown for the purpose they were intended, correct it today. If not, you can’t blame the market for your home not selling.
Thank you for visiting Why6Percent.com. Please visit the website for helpful information and marketing tools to help you sell in this market.
Where to Find School Information
Whether you have school age children or not, the quality of the local schools is one of the biggest selling factors that helps define a Good Location.
Under the U.S. Fair Housing Laws, real estate agents are prohibited from recommending or warning buyer about the differences and reputations of local schools. So, where can home buyers find reliable information about public and private schools before they buy??
- Go to the web and look up the school’s website.
- HomeFair.com provides a Free School Report that contains information about student-teacher ratios, dollars spent per pupil, before and after school programs, gifted and talented programs, number of computers per student and percentage of seniors who attended college.
- GreatSchools.net provides information about private and public schools. It also serves up data and news about state education programs and departments.
- Many states offer online information about public schools and links to public education sites.
Tip for Home Sellers: Become informed about your local school system and provide information to buyer’s who need it. Thanks to the internet, finding useful information on neighborhood schools has never been easier, so get to know about the public and private schools located near you, whether you use them or not.
Thank you for visiting Why6Percent.com. The MLS is searchable by school system for a reason. Everyone wants to know about the local schools, just like they need to know price and ammenities. Do your homework!!
Virtually Stage Vacant Home to Sell
Marketing a vacant home can be difficult challenge, because empty rooms are hard to size up and they don’t stand out in a buyer’s mind. This leaves every vacant home looking like the one next door, with the only difference in a buyer’s mind being, which home has the lowest price.This problem may have been solved by Krisztina Bell, a smart Atlanta Realtor, who invented and patented a software program that will “virtually” stage any vacant property for around $250. Her company has been heralded by the Chicago Tribune, San Francisco Chronical and other publications as the answer to giving the effect of a professionally staged home at a fraction of the cost.
Thank you for visiting Why 6 Percent.com, your MLS and Realtor.com listing connection for by owners, investors and builders.
Please Update Your Bathroom Lighting
If The 80’s called, they want their lights back!!
If you haven’t replaced the lighting in your bathroom since the 1980’s or 1990’s, you really should. Nothing turns off buyer’s as quickly as an outdated bathroom. And, while a total remodel may not be appropriate, changing out the light fixtures is cheap and easy to do yourself.
Turn off the power before you take the old fixture down. The job shouldn’t take more than 30 minutes and your bathroom will make a much better impression on buyers.
Thank you for visiting Why6Percent.com. Homebuyers are out looking in mass, these days. They have only 90 days left before the $8000 Buyer Credit Expires. Make sure your home is on the MLS or Realtor.com and it shows well. Your chances of getting an offer now, are better than they have been in years.
Save Energy Bills with an Insulating Coat of Paint
Smart home sellers know that a fresh coat of paint increases the saleability of any home, but did you also know that it can cut your utility bill, too?
A new paint additive, Insuladd, cuts heating and cooling costs, reduces mold and mildew and can be used with any interior or exterior paint.
To read more about the product and its remarkable qualities, CLICK HERE.
Thank you for visiting Why6Percent.com. We help home sellers reach millions of buyers every day. See how we can help you sell your home, while saving thousands of dollars in commissions.