Apr 16, 2019 | Real Estate
From small touches such as new lighting to larger efforts such as tiling the porch or stoop, creating curb appeal is one of the best investments you can make to resell your home fast.
Here are eight ideas to maximize curb your appeal.
Landscaping Is Critical For The First Impression
- Cut Back Trees and Shrubs. Landscaping should enhance your house, not overwhelm it. Trimming can bring impressive results. If you don’t have a steady hand, leave it to a professional or handy relative.
- Manicure Your Lawn. A freshly mowed lawn is a must the week before a showing. Be sure to trim and edge it for a finished look that increases your curb appeal.
- Plant Some Color. If the weather permits, flowering plants are a cheap way to brighten the walkway leading up to your front door. It also gives the home a fresh vibe. Adding fresh mulch to your flower beds is a great quick fix, even in colder weather.
Don’t Forget Your Home’s Exterior
- Paint the House. If you can’t afford to paint the whole house and the exterior paint is in good condition, consider retouching the trim. The gives your home a sense of newness. If the exterior colors are outdated, painting the home should be a budget priority.
- Clean the Roof and Gutters. If anything is likely to attract a buyer’s attention, it’s clogged gutters, tree branches brushing the roof and algae growth. If you’re in a drier climate, make sure you don’t have obvious roof damage or missing tiles. If you need to replace the roof, it’s better to get it over with. Chances are, you’ll make up the money with a faster sale at a higher price.
- Clean the Walks and Driveway. Pressure wash patios, drives and walkways. Put fresh sealant on black-top driveways for a like-new boost to one of the areas buyers notice first.
Spruce Up The Outdoor Areas
- Make Outdoor Living Space Inviting: Take steps to make porches, patios and decks clean and inviting. This might include repairing wood decks and restaining them. If you can replace old furniture, it’s a great investment that you can take with you when you go.
- Stage the Yard: Just as you stage the inside of the home, it’s important to declutter and depersonalize your outside living area. You can leave furniture in neutral colors so that the buyer can imagine themselves in the space. However, bikes, kids’ toys and the rusted grill need to be stored out of site.
These basic ideas go a long way toward improving the curb appeal of your home. In return, you may be very happy with the positive effects on the sale of your home.
Your trusted real estate professional has many tips to make your home appealing to the most buyers. Communicate often with this valuable resource to ensure that you are set up to sell quickly.
Apr 15, 2019 | Financial Reports
Last week’s economic readings included reports on inflation, mortgage rates, and first-time jobless claims. Monthly reporting on consumer sentiment was delayed.
Consumer Price Index: Inflation Rises in March
The Consumer Price Index rose 0.40 percent in March, which matched expectations and surpassed February’s month-to -month reading of 0.20 percent growth. The March reading showed the highest consumer price growth in 14 months; higher rents, fuel and food prices contributed to month-to-month price gains in March.
The Core CPI excludes volatile food and energy sectors and was unchanged in March although 0.20 percent growth was expected. February’s reading showed 0.10 percent growth. Inflation increased 1.90 percent year over year.
Mortgage Rates Rise
Freddie Mac reported higher mortgage rates last week that stopped weeks of decreasing rates. Mortgage rates for 30-year fixed rate mortgages averaged 4.12 percent and rose four basis points. Rates for 15-year fixed rate mortgages averaged 3.60 percent and were also four basis points higher than during the prior week. The average rate for 5/1 adjustable rate mortgages jumped 14 basis points to 3.80 percent. Discount points averaged 0.50 percent for 30-year fixed rate mortgages and 0.40 percent for 15-year fixed rate mortgages and 5/1 adjustable rate mortgages.
Freddie Mac reported fewer mortgage applications in response to higher rates. Potential homebuyers were sensitive to higher mortgage rates, but may not have to wait long for lower rates to return. Low 10-year Treasury yields suggested that mortgage rates are likely to fall and to remain lower during the peak home-buying season. Mortgage rates are expected to stay comparatively low throughout 2019 according to Freddie Mac.
New Jobless Claims Fall To Lowest Since 1969
First-time jobless claims fell last week to 196,000 initial claims filed as compared to the prior week’s reading of 204,000 new claims filed. Last week’s reading was the first to fall below 200,000 initial claims since 1969 and provided another sign of strong labor markets.
Federal Reserve FOMC Minutes Released
The Federal Reserve released minutes of the Federal Open Market Committee meeting held in March. The minutes explained the Committee’s reversal of its plan to raise the target range of the federal funds rate twice during 2019. Committee members said that they were holding off on raising rates due to slowing in domestic and global economic conditions. While Committee members said that the current economy is strong, they were willing to exercise patience in raising rates based on slower growth of home prices and potential impacts caused by Brexit and slowing in China’s economy.
What‘s Ahead
This week’s scheduled economic reports include the National Association of Home Builders Housing Market Index, housing starts and building permits issued and data on retail sales. Weekly reports on mortgage rates and first-time jobless claims will also be released.
Apr 12, 2019 | Real Estate
Fixing up your home to sell doesn’t have to be a budget-breaker. You can revitalize the look of your property with a little bit of paint in the right places.
Here are some areas that will really stand out to prospective buyers.
1. Front Door
The front door always makes the first impression on visitors to your home. Remember that while they are waiting to enter your home, potential buyers have nothing to do except get a good look at your front door. For maximum impact, paint the front door a contrasting color to your house color. If budget allows, add a new door knocker and door knob.
2. Shutters
Vinyl shutters are very affordable when you buy them online. Before you hang them, use a spray paint gun to paint them in a matching color with your front door, or a contrasting color to your house color.
3. Interior Trim
If your home still has bare wood trim throughout, consider painting it. This will instantly modernize your home since exposed wood trim tends to date a house. The best trim color is actually a creamy shade – not white. White trim can come off as a little harsh, and your goal in most cases is to make your home look as warm as possible.
Based on the results after painting the trim, you may find that you don’t even need to worry about repainting the walls. Instead, just spot clean walls in areas where they most need it.
4. Statement Wall
Another way that a little paint can revitalize your home for sale is to paint just one wall in a room with a contrasting color. This is commonly called a “statement wall” because it helps define the room and make a big impact on guests.
Note that oil-based paint leaves a residual odor for quite some time. If your home is being listed soon, you’re probably better off using acrylic paint. Consult with your paint store representative for details.
These projects can all be accomplished by anyone who’s a little bit handy around the home. With a little paint and some elbow grease, your home will be picture perfect for prospective buyers.
Your trusted real estate professional can help you narrow down which home improvements will be most appealing to buyers. Asking for this valued advise could save you both time and money.
Apr 11, 2019 | Real Estate
Members of the Federal Reserve’s Federal Open Market Committee voted to hold the target range of the federal funds rate to its current range of 2.25 to 2.50 percent. The minutes of the most recent Committee meeting cited softening domestic and global economic conditions as reason for not raising the target federal funds range.
While labor markets remained strong, the minutes noted that household spending and business investment slowed in the first quarter of 2019. FOMC members expected Gross Domestic Product growth to slow as compared to its 2018 pace.
While current inflation and the national unemployment rate fell in line with the Fed’s dual mandate of seeking maximum employment and price stabilization, inflation fell due to falling fuel prices. The meeting minutes said that the Committee would be patient as it determined which, if any, action would be appropriate regarding the federal funds rate.
Strong Labor Sector Indicators Offset Lower GDP
Labor sector indicators remained strong with a national unemployment rate of 3.80 percent; labor force participation rose and the ratio of employment to population also rose. Strong employment and consumer sentiment readings suggested that more households may transition from renting to buying homes. Home sales recently fell due to affordability issues and rising mortgage rates.
Factors influencing FOMC monetary policy decisions include labor market conditions, inflation expectations and readings on domestic and international financial developments. The meeting minutes noted that near-term adjustments to monetary policy were dependent on changes to current economic outlook according to emerging data. The Committee consistently says that monetary policy positions can change according to developments in global and domestic economic data.
Fed Chair‘s Press Conference
Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell said during his post-FOMC meeting press conference that the Committee’s “wait and see” stance on raising the target range of the federal funds rate was based on information received since growth expectations based on 2018’s economic growth rate of 3.10 percent. As of September 2018, the Fed forecasted economic growth of 2.50 percent in 2019, but subsequent information caused the Fed to downwardly revise its growth estimate.
Mr. Powell said that global economic slowing was expected in Europe and China; unresolved issues including Brexit and ongoing trade negotiations were given as reasons for slower global economic growth. While domestic and international economic forecasts indicated a modest slowdown in economic growth, Chairman Powell said that overall economic conditions remained favorable.
If you are in the market for a new home, be sure to consult with your trusted real estate professional to get the most up-to-date information about the market trends in your area.
Apr 10, 2019 | Real Estate
Real estate agents are constantly looking for new listings, which will attract potential buyers. We no longer need to limit our search for good listings to planet Earth because Mars is now for sale.
Although this may sound a bit far-fetched at first, it is not such a strange concept if you consider the serious efforts being made to colonize Mars with the commercial efforts by companies like Space X. There is a company, called Lunar Land, which is already selling acres of land on Mars as a novelty.
Historical Precedent
Off-planet land sales have already had considerable success for those crazy enough to sell titles to land on the Moon. Lunar Embassy, which started in 1980, claims to have sold 2.5 million acres of the Moon for about $20 per acre. That’s $50 million in revenues.
This happened in spite of the Outer Space Treaty, which was signed by the US, the UK, and the Soviet Union. The treaty went into force according to Earth’s laws on October 10, 1967. Currently (February 2019), there are 108 countries who signed the treaty and 23 more who signed it but have not yet legally ratified it in their home country.
There is a loophole. There are 195 countries in the world. That means 64 are not a party to the Outer Space Treaty. Any of these countries can legally lay claim to any off-planet real estate according to their own country’s laws.
It’s A Fad Now That Becomes A Reality In The Future
Buying acres of land on Mars is really a fun fad. It has symbolic value but really has no practical value to earthbound persons. In a few decades, this may change.
The estimates by SpaceNews are that it will cost $230 billion to establish a human outpost on Mars with the target date of 2035. Each resupply mission, once every three years thereafter, will cost about $142 billion. The total cost to start the colonization of Mars is about $1.5 trillion.
Mars has about 35 billion acres. That means a commercial colonization program can “own” Mars for only $42.85 per acre.
The Mars Experience On Earth
One way to make this fantasy of colonizing Mars more real is to set up a practice project on Earth. We searched and found the worst, cheapest land in the United States. It is available for purchase at a mere $50 per acre. It is the worst kind of remote desert land with horrific conditions and no natural resources. However, even with the worst Earth conditions, it is a paradise compared to the challenge of living on Mars.
Some clever entrepreneur should create the Mars Habitat on Earth and invite participation to buy land and habitation in a project that develops a workable living space that is self-contained in these harsh desert areas on Earth.
If you are interested in buying a property here on Earth, contact your trusted real estate professional to assist in finding the home of your dreams.
