real estate advice: Top 5 Home Staging Tips - 01/13/17 10:12 AM
If done properly, home staging can make the home look much more appealing to buyers in photos and showings. Other than just the obvious tasks of cleaning, which is the first thing you should do, there are several essential steps in staging a home to sell.
 
#1 Make Obvious Purpose for The Space
An empty room makes it hard for buyers to imagine what they can use an empty space for. Put a desk in the office space, a T.V. in the family room, a chair with a reading lamp in the reading space, and twin beds in children’s bedrooms.
 
#2 Position “Floating” Furniture
It … (0 comments)

real estate advice: Valuable Lessons for First-Time Homebuyers - 01/13/17 08:05 AM
Buying a home can be a particularly stressful, and time-consuming process. Buyers may learn through experience some valuable lessons for buying a home. Here are 5 useful tips for first-time homebuyers to consider when entering the real estate market. 
 
#1 Get your documents in order
To apply for a home mortgage, you will need income and tax documents. Typically, lenders will ask you for 2 recent pay stubs, 2 previous years’ W-2s, tax returns, and the past 2 months of bank statements. Having these documents in hand will save you a lot of time when buying a home.
 
#2 Watch the market 
Stay up-to-date with … (3 comments)

real estate advice: 5 Steps Toward Buying A Home - 12/28/16 10:43 AM
 
Buying a home can be a particularly stressful, painstaking process, especially for first-time home buyers. To prepare you for the real estate market, follow these 5 steps toward buying a home.
#1 Save Years In Advance
Down payment requirements depend on the loan program, ranging anywhere from 3% to 20% of the home value. Zero down payment loans are also available from the USDA or VA for those who qualify. Most buyers should expect to put a large sum of money down to buy a home, so it’s important to plan on saving years in advance. 
In addition to the down payment, is the … (1 comments)

real estate advice: 5 Important Home Maintenance Tips - 12/27/16 12:58 PM
 
To keep your home in its top shape, it requires regular maintenance to be done every year. To reduce energy costs and prevent future costly repair bills, here are 5 important, yet often overlooked, areas to perform regular maintenance procedures.
#1 Plumbing
Clogged plumbing is extremely difficult, costly, and especially dirty to fix. To keep yourself from going through this headache, consider the following precautions.
Avoid pouring your cooking grease down the drain as it is the common culprit for clogs. If you do accidentally spill grease or oil down the drain, immediately run hot water with some dish soup to break up the … (2 comments)

real estate advice: Get an Energy Audit to Improve Home Efficiency - 10/22/15 04:16 AM
I read a great article by Troy Carter of the Bozeman Daily Chronicle, outlining the importance of getting an Energy Audit to improve home efficiency. In his article, he interviewed local experts, getting their advice on how to make homes more efficient while keeping the investment worthwhile.
Obviously, the easiest, cheapest and most efficient way to save money over the winter is to change your lifestyle. Wearing sweaters and turning down thermostats will do the most to keep payments low while using less energy.
All homes are different and therefore need to be evaluated on an individual basis to determine how they might … (1 comments)

real estate advice: Ready to Buy? Here Are Some Questions To Ask Yourself - 11/06/12 02:32 AM
Doing your homework does not end when you make the decision, although it is a big step, that you are going to buy a new home. Here are a few guiding questions you can start to ask yourself in order to fully prepare for the adventure to come:
Home Condition-Your lifestyle is unlike anyone else’s. Are you seeking a fixer-upper home that you can add your touch, your blood sweat and tears, and your elbow grease in to? Or are you someone who is relocating and need a place fully furnished and move in ready? There is the whole spectrum in … (0 comments)