Lilac City Momma

Lynn

4 Real Estate Top Tips for First-Time Sellers

by

 

New Home, For Sale, Real Estate, House, Estate, Sale

There are a few things more challenging than selling a home. After all, not only can it be difficult to let go of a house that you’ve built many memories in. But more importantly, there are several factors out of your control that may work against you in maximizing the profit potential of your property, such as the location of the house and its community.

However, not all is doom and gloom. And while it may take a commitment of effort, time, and money, there are ways to increase your chances of getting as close as you can to your asking price without breaking the bank in the process. So for first-time sellers looking to secure favorable deals out of their homes, here are some real estate tips to consider.

1. Home staging will boost both the appeal of the home and its selling power

There’s a good reason why many real estate professionals often recommend homeowners to prepare their properties before listing it for sale. After all, home staging will boost not only the appeal of a house but also its selling power too. And since the task will undoubtedly entail a commitment of financial resources, it makes sense to shop around for all the materials, equipment, and services that you may require before spending your money. In this way, you’ll be able to find better deals for everything that you need without cutting corners and compromising on the quality of the intended outcome.

2. Time your listing carefully

Just like selling an automobile, timing is essential when listing a home for sale. After all, factors like the weather, time of the year, the local community can vary depending on time. And these elements will ultimately determine the current state of the market of the real estate. And since you only have one chance to present the home to prospective buyers, it makes sense to do it at the best possible time.

3. Defer to the experts

While it might sound like additional expenditure, pairing your home staging projects with the likes of sell my house Miami or real estate brokers and agents can make a difference in getting a favorable outcome. After all, their expertise and contacts in the industry will allow you to sell your home for a much better price than you would have on your own. More importantly, they’ll be able to get more offers for you quicker.

4. Opt for an open house

If your property is conducive for it, opt for an open house instead of private showings. After all, it can be a little too imposing and intrusive on your daily life to have prospective buyers pay your home a visit at random days. So to avoid the hassle, host an open house instead. In this way, you’ll get all interested parties to check your home on a single day.

Challenging as the task of selling a home might be, it’s relatively simple to attain the desired results. And by following all of these tips, not only will you be able to sell your home at a good price. But do so quickly as well.

 

 

4 Cost-Effective Ways to Improve Your Garden

by

If you have had your garden for a while now, maybe it’s about time that you give it some enhancement so you can enjoy it more for a long time. Or maybe, you just moved into your new property, and you find it difficult to begin your garden improvement project.

C:\Users\reaga_000\Downloads\krystina-rogers-5aXEo-hGwU0-unsplash.jpg

If your answer is yes to either one of these above situations, then you are probably reading the right article. Because now is the perfect time to discuss what to do with your outdoor haven. Maybe the fence needs repainting, or there are probably some plants that don’t complement the other flowers. Whatever your situation may be, below are some inexpensive ways to reinvigorate your garden.

Add more colour with bedding plants

A group of French marigolds or wax begonias provide extra colours to your garden and you can see them blossom all through summertime. Just don’t forget to take care of these flowers and let them have a liquid tomato every week, and water them well when it’s hot. Trim off any limping flower heads to maintain their attractive glow.

These types of blossoming flowers can last until the early part of autumn with the proper care.

Cultivate your garden with some vegetables

Having some vegetable plants in your garden is a fun way to introduce yourself to practising sustainability. You don’t have to worry about space; some vegetables thrive even in small containers or trugs.

Beans, chards, chilli peppers, beetroot, and herbs are some of the vegetables that you can grow even in just a tiny spot in your garden. Plus, you will get to enjoy pesticide-free veggies come harvest time.

Experiment with pots

When choosing the right pots for your flowers, clay will be your best option as it is healthier for many plants. The permeability feature of clay is best for airflow and moisture control within the sides of the container.

Plants need proper use of air and water, and clay pots can provide your flowers with that. You have several options for outdoor trade pottery when it comes to pots. Have fun when choosing; mixing and matching is the key!

Recycle your old bricks

If you have a pile of excess bricks somewhere, don’t throw them away yet as you can still use them for several purposes in your garden. For a free décor, surround your flowerbed pattern with brick edging. Such a small project greatly improves the look of your garden.

If you still have more bricks left, you can also continue by setting up a walkway. With bricks, you can also make a custom garden bench, or make mini raised planters around your garden.

With the list above, you can boost the look of your garden without the need to hire a gardener or anyone to do the job for you. The list is easy-to-do projects, and anyone can surely do them. Plus, these projects are inexpensive as well, so plan ahead and start over the weekend.

3 Ways To Boost Your Home Value Through Landscaping

by

When most people think about raising the value of their home, they instantly consider what home improvement projects they could take on for the interior of their home. However, doing some improvement on the exterior of your home can also help you pad the resale value of your home in addition to improving your curb appeal.

To show you how you can most effectively do both of these things, here are three ways you can boost your home value through landscaping.

Strive For A Mature Look

One thing that home buyers are always looking for is a home that looks like it’s mature and settled in the area. To help your home get this type of look, you’re going to want to make it appear like you’ve spent years cultivating your yard and garden areas.

To do this, Cam Merritt, a contributor to SFGate.com, recommends taking steps that will give your garden a more mature nature. This can be done by planting mature trees, having a flourishing garden, and strategically placing flowers or bushes on your property. When a buyer sees these things, they’ll notice just how well taken care of your property looks and will subconsciously connect the home on your property to being just as well taken care of as your landscaping, which can work wonders for boosting the overall value of your home.

Wash Everything Down

While this doesn’t require changing or adding anything to your property, giving everything a good washing before it’ll be shown is a great way to make your property appear more beautiful and, therefore, potentially be worth more.

According to HGTV, the best way to wash everything down is to use a power-washer on any of your hard surfaces. This should include things like your driveway, the siding of your home, and outbuildings you may have, and your deck or porch. Just make sure, however, that any surface you take the power-washer to will be able to withstand the moisture and force behind the power-washer, or you could wind up with even more problems than you had to begin with.

Make Things Low-Maintenance

Although home buyers want to purchase a property that looks beautiful, most of them don’t want to purchase a property that looks like it’s going to be too much work for them to maintain on their own. As a result, making the exterior of your home look low-maintenance can be a great perk for some buyers that would encourage them to pay more for your property.

To accomplish this look, Gina Vaynshteyn, a contributor to Apartment Therapy, recommends doing things like installing an irrigation system that will automatically take care of all the watering of any landscaping you have.

If you’re wanting to boost the value of your home, consider using the tips mentioned above to take care of this using the landscaping of your home.

 

4 Tips For Making a Marriage Last

by

Getting married is the ultimate expression of commitment and love for someone. The idea of making the promise of remaining together in loyalty for your entire life is romantic, to say the least. Rarely do people have divorce in mind when they propose to their spouses.

Sadly, in many cases, despite people’s initial intentions of staying together forever, it doesn’t always play out that way. For a variety of reasons, from financial disagreements to infidelity, they ultimately call it quits, resulting in divorce. While some situations may result in separation regardless of how hard you try. The secret lies in knowing how to set yourself up for success as a couple.

Here are some of the best tips for making your marriage last.

Make An Effort To Spend Time Together

Even though life can get busy, and you may have commitments that keep your schedule full outside of your marriage, it’s important to remember why you got married in the first place.

Take at least an hour a day to enjoy time talking to each other about how your day went. It should be in an environment without distractions and totally stress-free. Most people enjoy making dinner time a moment for catching up with each other as a couple.

Hear Each Other Out

A perfect marriage doesn’t mean that you have to agree on everything all the time. However, it does involve listening to each other. You should take the time to hear the other spouse’s opinion even if you feel angry.

Your opinion may be completely opposite from your spouse; however, rather than assuming you’re right and they’re wrong, consider hearing them out. You might be surprised to find that they may have a good point. Hearing your spouse out even when you have a strongly differing opinion than them on something is a sign of respect.

Communicate

Even happy couples get frustrated with each other at times. The important thing is to let it out and tell the other how you’re feeling. Holding in your thoughts and feelings will only lead to harboring ill will against the other.

Take time to talk to each other about anything that’s been bothering you. Squashing it early on rather than letting it fester will keep you from holding grudges. Many couples stand by the idea that you should “never go to sleep angry with each other.”

Make Intimacy A Priority

It’s vital that you make intimacy important in your relationship. Intimacy is more than just sex. It also means simple touch or rubbing backs. It means getting close to each other so that you take the time to show that you love contact,

3 Ways To Get Your Kids To Help You Save Money On Utilities

by

As a parent, you’re likely always looking for little ways that you and your family can save money. One thing you might want to try is cutting back on some of your monthly utility costs. However, you can’t do this on your own. To have this money-saving tactic be successful, you’ve got to have your entire family involved in this effort.

To show you how this can be done, here are three ways to get your kids to help you save money on utilities.

Use Fans Or Blankets First

One of the biggest utility costs that families have to pay each month is for heating and cooling. The more you use your heater or air conditioner, the higher your utility costs will be each month. Because of this, you’ve got to find ways to keep your thermostat set at conservative temperatures for each season you’re in.

While you likely have control over this in your home, you might have to endure your kids complaining about it either being too hot or too cold during certain times of the year. To combat this, Jessica Gray, a contributor to The Penny Hoarder, you should invest in some fans for each room in your home. When it’s too hot, have your family turn these fans on before dropping the temperature on your thermostat. And in the cooler months, make sure you have plenty of warm blankets available to keep everyone comfortably warm.

Cut Down On Running Water

Another way your kids can help you reduce your monthly utility bill is by taking shorter and cooler showers or baths.

According to Trent Hamm, a contributor to U.S. News and World Report, if you turn down the temperature on your hot water heater, you’ll have to use less energy to heat your water, which will significantly help to cut down your utility costs. And by taking shorter showers or using less water during baths, you’ll be paying less for water each month since you’ll be using less.

Be Smart When Doing Dishes

Washing dishes is another area of your home where you can likely cut back on your utility costs. And if your kids help you with these chores, it’s vital that you instill these money-saving principles in them in order to see any real change.

Heather Levin, a contributor to Money Crashers, shares that if you pack your dishwasher full of dished before running it, you’ll have to run fewer loads, which can save you a lot of water and energy it takes to run the dishwasher. As part of this, consider handwashing bigger items so they don’t have up so much space in your dishwasher.

If you’re wanting to save some money on your family’s monthly utility costs, consider using the tips mentioned above to help you accomplish this.