You’ve all heard it: kitchens and bathrooms sell houses.  

Want to know what comes in third place?  CLOSETS!

While I was out on showings earlier this week with a new buyer she was commenting on homes closet space and how she was going to have to learn to downsize/organize. This got me to thinking how can you get everything you need to fit better in a smaller area!! Organization!!

This posts is great for buyer and sellers………Seller show your buyers it can fit and Buyers learn to organize!!

via realsimple.com

via MarthaStewart.com

via Source Unknown

 

Simple, affordable do-it-yourself projects such as cleaning and decluttering and just adding lighting can help increase a home’s resale value, according to HomeGain’s annual home improvement and staging survey.

HomeGain, an online real estate marketing resource, surveyed nearly 600 real estate professionals in creating a list of the top do-it-yourself home improvement projects that offer the biggest return for your buck.

Overall, the home improvement projects that boasted the highest price returns were updates to the kitchen and bathroom–an estimated $3,435 price increase for resale. Painting the outside of the home ($2,222 price increase) also offered one of the highest returns, according to HomeGain’s Home Sale Maximizer study.

Here are six do-it-yourself projects–all under $1,000–that made HomeGain’s list, as well as the estimated increase to the home’s price at resale for each project.

1. Cleaning and decluttering: Remove any personal items, unclutter countertops, organize closets and shelves, and make the home sparkling clean.

Cost: $290

Estimated return: $1,990

2. Light and bright: Clean all windows inside and out, replace old curtains, update lighting fixtures, and remove anything that blocks light from the windows.

Cost: $375 cost

Estimated return: $1,550

3. Staging: Rearrange furniture, bring in new accessories and furnishings to enhance rooms, including artwork and playing soft music in the background.

Cost: $550 cost

Estimated return: $2,194

4. Landscaping: Punch up the home’s curb appeal in the front and backyards by adding bark mulch, bushes and flowers, and ensuring current plants and grass are well-cared for and manicured.

Cost: $540

 Estimated return: $1,932

5. Repair electrical or plumbing: Repair any leaks under the bathroom or kitchen sinks, remove any mildew stains, and ensure all plumbing is in good working condition. Update the home’s electrical with new wiring for modern appliances, fix any lights or outlets that don’t work, and replace old plug points with new safety fixtures.

Cost: $535

Estimated return: $1,505

6. Replace or shampoo dirty carpets: Steam-clean carpets, replace any worn carpets, and repair any floor creaks.

Cost: $647

Estimated return: $1,739

IS IT WORTH IT TO YOU?

If you are still wondering if its the right time to buy……….You wont be for long!!

Fortune Magazine released their April issue that declares that housing is back in their cover story, “The Return of Real Estate.” The article tells consumers to, “Forget stocks. Don’t bet on gold. After four years of plunging home prices, the most attractive asset class in America is housing.”  CLICK HERE for the full story.

Fortune 500 -April Issue

This is a story you don’t want to Miss Reading!!!!

Listen Up!! Prices are Down……..Inventory is Up, what else do you need to know??

Via House Hunt

Ok, for you skeptics……..

Via source unknown

 Lets take a closer look into our, 5 Reasons to Buy NOW!

1.  Mortgage Rates will stay low.  (Yes, we know they’ve climbed a touch and could reach 6% by the end of the year, but that is still SO low! ) Ask someone what their interest rate was when they bought their first or second home 10-15 years ago, and you might hear something like 8%, 10%, or even 12%!  Crazy Right!!  

2.  Americans want to be homeowners.  Renting is not the American Dream, my friends. - By the way how much do you pay in rent? Compare that to what your mortgage would be………..Bet its pretty comparable but in the end what do you get for renting? Something to think about!

Via source unknown

3. News Flash, National Association of Realtors came out with the local market in the Twin Cities that shows we currently are at the Highest “Housing Affordability Index” in History! Simply meaning that more people have the opportunity to purchase more homes that are more affordable than ever!

 4.  Tax cuts might help.  Extending the tax cuts might mean a more rapid recovery for the economy.Tax deductions are a plus as well!

5.   Appreciation.  You may be laughing at us right now, what with the news telling us that home values are declining everyday more and more…….But we are here to tell you that “What goes down must come up!” If you could buy a home in a good location at a favorable price right now and plan to make it your for say 5-10 years, It will appreciate!

Via source unknown

Does buying a home make sense for you now? Let us know!

A Few weeks ago Oprah did a show called, “Are You Happy?” 

Dan Buettner was a guest…….know who he is?

Dan is known best for his book “Thrive” about finding happiness. Check out a few of the astounding results of Dan’s happiness research! 

Who’s in a book club and how quickly can we join?

WOW!  This blew us away.  Geez, if you’re driving an hour each way every day, you need to call us STAT so that we can find you a house closer to work and make you feel $40,000 richer.

 Happiness guru Dan Buettner said that where you live,  has a massive impact on your happiness. 

Are you happy?

Traditionally the fourth quarter of the year provides wonderful values in an environment where there are fewer buyers. It is traditional that if you are looking to buy the fourth quarter of the year provides some wonderful values in an environment where there are fewer buyers. That simply means that you, as a buyer, are in high demand.  Sellers are more willing to negotiate and with the help of your Realtor, you are in a position to negotiate a very good value on your next home.

The affordability index is  a measure of the financial ability of U.S. families to buy a house. 100 means that families earning the national median income have just the amount of money needed to qualify for a mortgage on a median-priced home; higher than 100 means they have more than enough and lower than 100 means they have less than enough.

In October, the Affordability index for the nation was 184 (224 in the Midwest) compared to 113 in 2007.

 With the low interest rates, listing inventory at higher levels and the affordability index so favorable, this truly is a great time to make a move. The best news is that virtually all price ranges have great values. There are an abundance of homes under $150,000 which is the typical price range for first time buyers. The move up market is as competitively price as ever and looking for buyers.

We have been very pleased to help a number of first time buyers this year purchase homes with a monthly payment less than what their rent was or would have been. Get out there and look. www.kraus-kuntz.com provides access to all the available properties and you can even set up an automatic search that will send you new listings that fit your search criteria.

With talk of recovery and the start of some commodity pricing increasing, it is certainly good to look if buying a home is in your future.

Today in national and regional news media, it seems, that the only good real estate news is the day they don’t have anything about real estate. It is evident that the real estate market is going thru some struggles and we are hard pressed to find a solution that will “turn things around”.

I don’t claim to be a visionary or even a financial expert – although I do believe there are fewer financial “experts” around – but I do believe we can take a lesson from another industry that has gone through a recent difficult time. Let’s look at the car industry that also was at the end of their ropes and looked for government help. The industry went through some downsizing and retooling of the survivors and it made them stronger. They are now on the way back and some are experiencing profitable gains again.

The same is happening in the real estate industry in perhaps smaller more individualized cases. In the late 1990’s and early 2000’s tremendous appreciation affected most all residential real estate. This appreciation, as many believed, was not stainable. Today the industry is retooling itself. We are seeing sound finance decisions by the lending industry. The appraisal industry is looking closer than ever before at values and value trends. Realtors, as always, are giving their clients long term consultations and helping their clients make big picture decisions.

Of course today the big winners are the buyers that are benefiting from near record low interest rates and values that are approaching prices last seen in the 1990’s. All of the dozen homes we sold in the last 30 days were sold at prices that translated into 50% or 60% less than what they were or would have been at 5 years ago.

The real estate market is retooling itself. Like all industries in America, supply and demand works. We know that there are many individuals waiting on the fence for the right time and they are starting to see the right set of circumstances come together. There are still struggles ahead in the real estate industry, but with those struggles exists many great opportunities. Call or e-mail us to see if your situation allows you to take advantage of the many opportunities that exist in today’s real estate market.