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Posts Tagged ‘curb appeal’

Make the First Impression of Your Home’s Exterior Count

July 19th, 2009
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Watching potential home buyers not leave the real estate agent’s car because they don’t like the look of your home’s appearance can be a let down. Amazingly, for a small amount of money, you can spruce up the outside of your home and maybe increase its value by as much as five percent.

Before putting your house on the market, step outside and walk down to the street to get a good look at your home and yard. A few areas of your home will probably jump out that need to fixed or spruced up.

How clean is your home?

Do you see any mold and mildew on the side of your house? Is your sidewalk in good condition? How old does your fence look? For a few hundred dollars, pressure washing can make your home sparkle like new.

Florida-based pressure washer, Conrad Lawrence always walks around the property with clients looking for areas that could help increase its value. “When we’re pressure washing Jacksonville, Fl homes, we want the client to think like a buyer,” he says. “Once they make that shift, it’s amazing how many areas on their property suddenly need sprucing up.” 

Is your landscape colorful?

Make your home look inviting with freshly planted flowers. When considering colors, simple colors like yellow can evoke a very welcoming emotion.

Is your house number clearly seen?

Make your house stand out with clearly read house numbers. You’ll want to make sure that your house numbers can be seen from the street by painting them. Remember that the home buyer will be visiting many homes throughout their search. Anything you can do to help the potential home buyer remember even the smallest details of your home will go along way in their decision making.

So take a look at the outside of our home. Put yourself in the shoes of a potential buyer. You’ll want to make sure that the first impression is a positive one. Make the outside of your home look more inviting.

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bassg Personal Finance, Renting & Real Estate , ,

A Little Curb Appeal Can Go A Long Way In Getting More Money For Your Home

June 29th, 2009
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Make the best of your home’s exterior! A potential home buyer can be greatly influenced by first impressions. Your home’s curb appeal could be the cause for many of them to even consider walking in the door. You should contemplate making a small investment to groom the exterior of your house to make sure you do not loose any potential buyers.

It may be challenging at first to examine your home with a unbiased eye. We get used to the way our home looks and fail to realize its faults. They key is to stop thinking of your property as a home and to look at it as a commodity you want to trade for the most possible amount of cash. Put yourself in the shoes of potential buyers. After parking on the road, stroll towards your house as if it were the first time. What impacts you the hardest? Is the walkway clean and inviting? Could it be made more engaging? New developments such as those in Milton real estate could benefit from this.

Tackle maintenance issues first.
Stow away garden equipment and equipment. Gutters and windows should be cleaned. Dirty patios and home siding should be pressure cleaned. Anything living between bricks or concrete should be pulled up. Make sure your lawn is always mowed and free of weeds and rake the leaves.

Prune and plant.
Your home should be free of tree limbs touching it. Also cut and style shrubs to enhance their natural beauty. Planting should be following on your list. Plant brightly colored flowers in the foreground and your yard will get an immediate face lift.

Visual appeal should be developed
Harbor, fences or water features will add style and character to either your front or back yard. These will provide visual appeal to your space.

Use some color
A fresh coat of paint to the door, window trims, and shutters will wake up and brighten a property and make it seem almost new again.

Updated fixtures are the key
To raise curb appeal to your home, replace your old fixtures. An outdated door handle, knocker, or mailbox can drag down the overall look of your house. For a fresh and current look to your home, new fixtures will not need a large investment.

Let there be light
For a little extra illumination or to add some interest, you should add some solar lights along the pathway or in some flower beds.

Don’t disregard the driveway
Are there fractures, crumbles on your driveway or it is gray and damaged? Potential buyers may be frightened off by the oversight. This especially true in harsh weather areas such as in Canada for Milton homes. Seal the surface but first ensure you give it a good cleaning. You may need to apply a black top sealer or fill out holes. The driveway will seem almost new following these few steps.

By putting a little effort into the exterior of your property, you will ensure that potential home buyers have the best first impression possible and in turn ensure that your home sells for the best possible price. Showcase your home to possible buyers in the best possible state and take control of their buying experience. You need to leave the buyer thinking like this house could be “home”.

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bassg Personal Finance, Renting & Real Estate , ,

Homes Sell Faster With Proper Curb Appeal

June 25th, 2009
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How great does your property show from the street? If you ask many real estate agents they will say that purchasers frequently will not even exit the car if the first image is not a good one. This is known as ‘curb appeal’ and it can be the single most important piece of marketing a home for sale so it is necessary to invest a little time and money to get it right.  Even in a down markets such as Toronto your property may still be up against many other Toronto real estate listings so you need for every advantage.

First off ensure the front yard is well maintained. The grass should be manicured, the leaves raked, the drive and sidewalk swept and your hedges are nicely trimmed. In and around your flowers can begin looking a drab, but adding decorative pebbles or mulch will give the space a fresh look.

Having a skinny or weed filled walkway can detract from your property’s overall look. Having a wide path gives the impression that the property is larger than it really is and is more welcoming. A quick method to tell if your walk is wide enough is if 2 adults can walk side by side without bumping.

A less expensive recourse to a new walkway is to utilize flag stones, bricks or patio stones arranged in an appealing pattern. Use something that will not detract from your existing walkway and your property’s exterior. Start by removing the grass on either side of the walk and lay a line of your selected material along each side. You can fill in the space using pebbles, ordinary gravel or gardening mulch. For and even more impact you can line you pathway with an inexpensive set of solar lights.

Prune back big and overpowering shrubs so that they do not block your windows or crowd your house. You may wish to lengthen or narrow a planting bed at the front of the house and if if you can make it swoop in a curve around the side.  And remember that after planting of your new flowers that you will should to add a good 2 to three inches of mulch.

Because of the tough winter weather many Toronto homes for sale happen in the spring and summer so you will want to be prepared for similar high periods where you live.  You can add a dash of color to your front entrance by placing potted plants on either side of the door. Glazed or terra cotta pots can add a bit of class to your property’s exterior. If your front is big enough, you may wish combine several pots to create a mini garden.

Lastly, you want to ensure that the exterior of the property is in good condition. Put a fresh coat of paint or wash the siding, fix any brick or stone work and paint the window trim if needed. The front door should also be clean and fresh coat of paint]. It should pivot easily on its hinges and the knob and lock should for sturdy and function well. Make sure your house is well lit for evening showings.

Remember that first impressions are judged, especially in the eyes of a perspective buyer. From the minute they see the property they should already start to picture themselves in it and with any luck want to buy it.

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bassg Personal Finance, Renting & Real Estate , ,