Thursday, September 13, 2012
Friday, August 31, 2012
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7 Hot Home Improvement Trends that Make Your Home Work for You
Home improvement trends embrace energy efficiency, low maintenance exteriors, and double-duty space. Read
Visit houselogic.com for more articles like this.
Copyright 2012 NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®
Monday, August 20, 2012
Are These Home Projects Really Worth It?
Are These Home Projects Really Worth It?
I strongly agree with this list.......these are often projects that have little or no ROI. Garages especially.....I often see in the Seattle area garage additions that negatively affect the value of the home. Nothing like a massive garage/shop building to take away from a homes curb appeal.
I strongly agree with this list.......these are often projects that have little or no ROI. Garages especially.....I often see in the Seattle area garage additions that negatively affect the value of the home. Nothing like a massive garage/shop building to take away from a homes curb appeal.
Thursday, August 9, 2012
4 Kitchen Design Trends Cooking Up in 2012
I've seen great examples of this ...it's a terrific approach to kitchen design. A way to have personal expression and avoid a kitchen that looks like so many others.
Unmatched cabinets: Cabinet colors and materials are being mixed, such as darker colors for the base cabinets and lighter colors being used for upper cabinets to “provide a sense of openness,” according to the blog.
4 Kitchen Design Trends Cooking Up in 2012
Unmatched cabinets: Cabinet colors and materials are being mixed, such as darker colors for the base cabinets and lighter colors being used for upper cabinets to “provide a sense of openness,” according to the blog.
4 Kitchen Design Trends Cooking Up in 2012
Tuesday, July 3, 2012
Prevent Short Sale Delays, Double-Check Paperwork
This is why buyers and sellers involved in short sales need to use an agent like me. As a Distressed Property Expert (CDPE) with a great deal of direct experience, I know how to process the paper work. Knowing how is critical to getting a short sale done.
Prevent Short Sale Delays, Double-Check Paperwork
Prevent Short Sale Delays, Double-Check Paperwork
Monday, June 18, 2012
Agents Exploit ‘Pinball’ Listings to Sell Houses
In a competitive market like Mercer Island this could occur. Experienced full time agents will see through this tactic and can help buyers and sellers avoid this pitfall.
Agents Exploit ‘Pinball’ Listings to Sell Houses
Agents Exploit ‘Pinball’ Listings to Sell Houses
Saturday, June 16, 2012
Thursday, May 24, 2012
Spring is Here!.....7 Gardening Mistakes to Avoid
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7 Gardening Mistakes to Avoid
Even veteran gardeners make rookie mistakes, like giving plants too much water and too little space. Here are common garden blunders. Consider yourself warned. Read
Visit houselogic.com for more articles like this.
Copyright 2012 NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®
Tuesday, April 24, 2012
Think Before You Remodel—Tips to Consider Before Changing Your Home
Our market tends to be very competitive. Home owners should remember that when you sell, buyers will be looking at numerous houses. Make yours stand out with a smart, long-lasting remodel, rather than a trendy or too-personal renovation.
1. Always update first. You don’t have to live in a mansion to make your home more desirable on the real estate market. If your home is smaller or older and you’re thinking about a renovation, choose a project that helps update it. For example, replace carpet with new wood flooring, or dated appliances, opting for modern, stainless steel. If your home feels cramped or dark in any areas, consider remodeling to open rooms or add windows. New, energy efficient windows or water-saving systems, are always a great addition. They save you money now, and are a desirable feature to any future buyer.
2. The kitchen is key. One of the most important rooms in a home is the kitchen. It is no longer just the place where meals are made. The kitchen is the hub of the home, and often the room that most strongly attracts or repels potential buyers. The kitchen is the first room that should be considered for a remodel. Guests often congregate at an island or a counter while the hosts cooks the meal. So an open, inviting space is important. As mentioned above, modern appliances, fresh flooring and plenty of light are important elements of a well-used and attractive kitchen.
3. Is the remodel too personal? Are you an avid reader who wants to add wall-to-wall built-in shelves to an extra room to create your own library? Is your garage an ode to the hardware store, complete with benches, cabinets permanent workspaces? While it might seem great to completely customize certain parts of your home, if you plan to sell in the future, think twice. While you may think the library is a good idea, the next homeowner might not agree, wishing they had that empty room for another use. When it comes to anything permanent, keep it simple. Add your own personal flair with removable items, such as bookshelves that can moved to your next home.
4. Don’t overdo the Master Suite. Everyone deserves a place to escape, relax and unwind. But when you start to go over the costs of creating your own slice of heaven, you might find it hard to do any of the above. A luxurious, remodeled master suite might seem like a great selling point (and it probably is), but don’t count on recovering the invested sums from your home’s buyer. According to an article published last month in the Seattle Times, a top-of-the-line master suite addition that adds square footage and uses top-dollar materials can cost upwards of $200,000. For this amount, sellers can only expect to recover about 52.7 percent of the invested sum at resale, resulting in a hefty hit to the wallet.
5. The office is now anywhere. If you’ve walked into a busy coffee shop on any given weekday, chances are you’ve seen the forest of laptops accompanying the double lattes. Working from home no longer means that you actually have to be at home. With smart phones and laptops, professionals can work from virtually anywhere, meaning that a home office is less necessary. According to the Seattle Times article, home office renovations recouped the lowest percentage rate of invested money at resale. Nationally, home office renovations cost an average of $28,888, and only recouped 45.8 percent. If you do need a home office, again, keep things simple. Don’t make any permanent structural changes to the room. This allows the next owner flexibility to use it as they see fit.
Even if you aren’t planning on selling for a long time, it is always smart to think ahead and make choices that will have a positive impact should you decide to move in the future. When considering a remodel, Realtors like myself are willing to provide information and suggestions to help you make the good choices.
- Ken Urman, Ewing and Clark East, Mercer Island
2. The kitchen is key. One of the most important rooms in a home is the kitchen. It is no longer just the place where meals are made. The kitchen is the hub of the home, and often the room that most strongly attracts or repels potential buyers. The kitchen is the first room that should be considered for a remodel. Guests often congregate at an island or a counter while the hosts cooks the meal. So an open, inviting space is important. As mentioned above, modern appliances, fresh flooring and plenty of light are important elements of a well-used and attractive kitchen.
3. Is the remodel too personal? Are you an avid reader who wants to add wall-to-wall built-in shelves to an extra room to create your own library? Is your garage an ode to the hardware store, complete with benches, cabinets permanent workspaces? While it might seem great to completely customize certain parts of your home, if you plan to sell in the future, think twice. While you may think the library is a good idea, the next homeowner might not agree, wishing they had that empty room for another use. When it comes to anything permanent, keep it simple. Add your own personal flair with removable items, such as bookshelves that can moved to your next home.
4. Don’t overdo the Master Suite. Everyone deserves a place to escape, relax and unwind. But when you start to go over the costs of creating your own slice of heaven, you might find it hard to do any of the above. A luxurious, remodeled master suite might seem like a great selling point (and it probably is), but don’t count on recovering the invested sums from your home’s buyer. According to an article published last month in the Seattle Times, a top-of-the-line master suite addition that adds square footage and uses top-dollar materials can cost upwards of $200,000. For this amount, sellers can only expect to recover about 52.7 percent of the invested sum at resale, resulting in a hefty hit to the wallet.
5. The office is now anywhere. If you’ve walked into a busy coffee shop on any given weekday, chances are you’ve seen the forest of laptops accompanying the double lattes. Working from home no longer means that you actually have to be at home. With smart phones and laptops, professionals can work from virtually anywhere, meaning that a home office is less necessary. According to the Seattle Times article, home office renovations recouped the lowest percentage rate of invested money at resale. Nationally, home office renovations cost an average of $28,888, and only recouped 45.8 percent. If you do need a home office, again, keep things simple. Don’t make any permanent structural changes to the room. This allows the next owner flexibility to use it as they see fit.
Even if you aren’t planning on selling for a long time, it is always smart to think ahead and make choices that will have a positive impact should you decide to move in the future. When considering a remodel, Realtors like myself are willing to provide information and suggestions to help you make the good choices.
- Ken Urman, Ewing and Clark East, Mercer Island
Thursday, March 15, 2012
Positive Real Estate News
2012 is beginning with positive news for the housing market. According to national statistics, existing-home sales are on the rise (pending sales rose 8% from January 2011 to January 2012). For the Pacific Northwest region, and more specifically Mercer Island, this is a positive sign as larger and more luxurious homes will benefit from move-up buyers.
According to an article published last month in Realtor Mag, existing-home sales rose 4.3 percent in January, marking the third gain for sales in the four months prior. The National Association of Realtors (NAR) reported that in 2007 unsold listed property had risen to a record high of 4.04 million. Since then, it has declined, and currently sits at 20.6% below where it was last year. This signals that the gap between buyers and sellers on the market is starting to even out. People are actually buying homes and keeping them longer.
NAR also reported last month that despite the appearance that buyers are downsizing or choosing smaller living spaces, there is a distinct group of buyers who are choosing larger, more upscale homes with more bedrooms, more amenities and additions that may have before seemed superfluous, such as finished basements, outdoor entertainment spaces and multiple-car garages. In other words, the types of homes commonly found on Mercer Island. The Seattle P.I. even reported http://goo.gl/SCbrc that in 2011 there was a rise of waterfront home sales on the island (30 homes total), and that 18 of them were multi-million dollar sales.
It must be acknowledged that the people buying such homes are financially stable and admittedly a small percentage of the population. However, for Mercer Island sellers there is a double advantage—not only are property values rising, but a new demand for larger homes with upscale amenities gives them the ability to better control their asking price.
Ken Urman, Realtor, Ewing and Clark East, Mercer Island
According to an article published last month in Realtor Mag, existing-home sales rose 4.3 percent in January, marking the third gain for sales in the four months prior. The National Association of Realtors (NAR) reported that in 2007 unsold listed property had risen to a record high of 4.04 million. Since then, it has declined, and currently sits at 20.6% below where it was last year. This signals that the gap between buyers and sellers on the market is starting to even out. People are actually buying homes and keeping them longer.
NAR also reported last month that despite the appearance that buyers are downsizing or choosing smaller living spaces, there is a distinct group of buyers who are choosing larger, more upscale homes with more bedrooms, more amenities and additions that may have before seemed superfluous, such as finished basements, outdoor entertainment spaces and multiple-car garages. In other words, the types of homes commonly found on Mercer Island. The Seattle P.I. even reported http://goo.gl/SCbrc that in 2011 there was a rise of waterfront home sales on the island (30 homes total), and that 18 of them were multi-million dollar sales.
It must be acknowledged that the people buying such homes are financially stable and admittedly a small percentage of the population. However, for Mercer Island sellers there is a double advantage—not only are property values rising, but a new demand for larger homes with upscale amenities gives them the ability to better control their asking price.
Ken Urman, Realtor, Ewing and Clark East, Mercer Island
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