SEPTEMBER 6, 2017 • Volume 12 • Issue 36
RE WEEKLY RESIDENTIAL • ACREAGE • FARM • COMMERCIAL • AREA DEVELOPMENT 515-233-3299 • 317 5th Street, Ames • All REALTOR® ads within are REALTORS® licensed in the State of Iowa
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Exterior appeal 7
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improvements that add value and increase homeowner satisfaction
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7
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By Laura Firszt Networx
M
any homeowners are currently living in a house they like well enough, but don’t expect to stay in long term. So just how much effort (not to mention cash) should you invest in home improvement? There are plenty of projects you can do that offer the best of both worlds – increasing enjoyment of your home right now, while paying off in terms of curb appeal when the time eventually comes to sell and move on. Here are seven of them, geared toward the exterior of your home.
Clean, clean, clean. Cleaning is a simple yet remarkably effective upgrade, so clean your home’s exterior until it shines. Clear away all the cobwebs, fallen leaves, dead bugs, and anything else that screams “Neglect.” You may want to power wash the outer walls, porch, walkway, steps and driveway.
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Redo your outside walls. Paint your house exterior for the fastest and cheapest enhancement. Alternatively, install siding to create a whole new look. Fiber cement siding and manufactured stone veneer installation generally provide the optimum return on
2.
5
BIGSTOCK PHOTOS
your investment. Insulated siding will increase your home’s energy efficiency, too.
new safety and security features. You might choose to replace the entire garage door at this time, changing it for an energy-saving insulated model with a clean modern look. Remove any grease stains from your driveway. Repair or resurface the driveway and sidewalk if necessary.
Replace or refresh the front door. According to Remodeling Magazine’s Cost vs Value report, a new entry door will not only make a gorgeous house look even better, but also give a great return on investment when you put your home on the market. If your door is in basically good shape, save money by refinishing it instead. Realtors recommend choosing colors that draw attention in a subtle way – wood stain, black, blue, or red, rather than chartreuse or lavender. While you’re at it, polish up your hardware — the door knocker and handle — as well.
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Put your porch in order. Scrub the porch floor, screens, windowsills, and outdoor furniture. Make sure that the railings are in good repair and free of rust or peeling paint. Consider installing new house numbers, in a simple, easy-to-read font that will be clearly visible from the street.
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Upgrade your garage and driveway. Decide whether it’s time for a garage door opener replacement – typical lifespan for this handy device is 10-12 years, and the newest models offer great
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Spruce up your landscaping. Get rid of any hazards such as dead trees and branches. Prune your shrubs neatly. Rake the yard and fill in bald spots with grass seed or sod. If your yard is a testimony to your black thumb — or just has a few problem areas (like the spot where a large tree was just removed, perhaps?), fill in with mulch. Reduce your heating and cooling bills by planting a hedge around your house to buffer summer sun and winter wind. Add a deck. Decks are highly in demand among homebuyers and add that special welcoming touch to your property. A platform deck, which doesn’t require steps or railings, tends to be the easiest and least expensive kind you can install. Because it’s only a few inches off the ground, you probably won’t need a building permit.
REAL ESTATE WEEKLY • Wednesday, September 6, 2017 • Page RE7
DEAR MONTY
Tips to establish your home’s listing price opinions on our home’s value. Each one of them has a different opinion, and there is a substantial difference in their estimates. They each provided many comparable sales and homes for sale, which we do not feel qualified to judge. We don’t want to leave equity on the table, and we don’t want to overprice. What should we do? RICHARD MONTGOMERY
R
eader question: We are going to sell our home. We asked three agents that were recommended to us by friends and family to look at our home. We wanted several
Monty’s answer: You are on the right track. While it takes more time and effort on your part to ask three agents, you are substantially increasing the odds of avoiding lost equity and overpricing mistakes. My experience is that the bulk of real estate agents nationwide
do not utilize standard appraisal protocols. To hand a home seller a stack of comparable sales data and then declare that your home is worth "X" without detailed justification increases the chances of overpricing or losing equity. Consider the following steps • Go back to each agent. You are still considering them, but there are substantial differences in the pricing, and you are not comfortable. Tell them what you need to help clarify these differences. You do not want to share the pricing between agents. • Ask them to deliver an updated estimate that contains only three comparable
sales. Instruct them to pick the best comparables because they are the experts. • Ask them to place a dollar value on the differences between the features of each comparable they chose and your home. Hopefully, they will all come back with adjusted comparables that are the same style of home as your home. • Ask them to write down the highest price they think you should expect, and the lowest price you could expect. Richard Montgomery gives nononsense real estate advice to readers’ most pressing questions. Send him questions at DearMonty.com.
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Easy ways to naturally rid your home of ants
Cool your home, save money
Do you have ants in your home but are worried about the dangers of ant poison with kids or pets around? Try these natural remedy suggestions from Mother Nature Network. • Spray lemon juice where ants enter the home. • Sprinkle ground cinnamon where ants enter the home. • Spray a 1-to-1 mix of peppermint essential oil and water where ants enter the home. • Sprinkle ant nests with cornmeal.
As temperatures rise throughout the country, many homeowners are looking for energy-efficient ways to cool their homes without increasing their utility bills. These tips from the U.S. Department of Energy can help: • Install window coverings to prevent heat gain through your windows. Keep them closed during daylight hours to prevent heat from entering via the sun’s rays. • Keep your house warmer than normal when you are away, and lower the thermostat setting only when you are at home and need cooling. • If you use air conditioning, a ceiling fan will allow you to raise the thermostat setting about 4 F with no reduction in comfort.
*$5'(1,1* Pain-free gardening tips Aches and pains are a common side effect of gardening, but you can reduce your exposure with these tips from Chatelaine.com: • Gardening is a physical activity, and even five minutes of stretching before you begin your work can have a big impact. • Many gardening aches and pains stem from doing repetitive motion or sitting in the same position for a long time. Mix up your routine to keep your body fresh. — Brandpoint
6867$,1$%,/,7< Elements for building a sustainable new home Heating and cooling typically represent the largest portion of a home’s energy consumption. When choosing an HVAC system for your new sustainable home, the experts at Coleman heating and cooling recommend choosing an option that uses leading-edge technology to tune the system’s temperature settings and performance for optimum function given exterior conditions. The systems also self-monitor to ensure they operate at the highest level of efficiency while providing maximum heating and cooling comfort.
Page RE8 • REAL ESTATE WEEKLY • Wednesday, September 6, 2017
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