11-13-19 Real Estate Weekly

NOVEMBER 13, 2019 • Volume 14 • Issue 46

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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• AREA DEVELOPMENT • FARM • COMMERCIAL RESIDENTIAL • ACREAGE 317 5th Street, Ames State of Iowa 515-233-3299 • ® licensed in the ® are REALTORS All REALTOR ads within

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The plot

thickens

Books to help you plan your next growing endeavor

By Carole McCray More Content Now

P

erusing garden catalogs might not be enough to keep gardeners happy through the winter months. Gardening books should feed the gardening spirit. Some recommendations:

• Mel Bartholomew’s “All New SquareFoot Gardening” ng has been around for some time, published in 2013, for gardeners who o are interested in growing abundant produce in small spaces. In a 4-by-4-foot grid divided by y 12-inch squares es with the plant-ing up, not down, in a raised bed, gardeners will see how it is possible to have a productive garden in a small area.

As a retired engineer, Bartholomew decided to put his professional expertise to work and came up with the squarefoot gardening concept. Though he is deceased, his knowledge in making gardening easy is embraced by both novice and seasoned gardeners.

Color photographs and graphics with growing guidelines are found throughout the book, along with harvesting information and a list of diseases and pests that

can affect plants.

• “The Foodscape Revolution”

by Brie Arthur shows how gardening with vegetables can work in harmony with w lovely ornamental plants. Her book has valuable tips and how-tos, colorful photographs, illustrations and recipes.

She maintains it’s all about planting the right plant at the right time: You can team arugula or kale, both cool-season crops, with shade-loving pansies in a container. Or you might use shrubs such as hydrangeas or viburnums to support large tomato plants.

“The Foodscape Revolution” tells us how landscape plants can grow successfully with edible plants, which results in a beautiful and functional garden.

• Plan a party or simply relax in your garden with C.L. Fornari’s recommendations in her beautiful book “The Cocktail Hour Garden.” Fornari suggests that readers come outside at day’s end: She refers to it as “the green hour.”

Readers will learn the best flowers and foliage for making the garden shine at night, and what flowering plants will bring songbirds and butterflies to your garden. She suggests herbs for aromatherapy, and edible flowers to enliven the tastes of snacks and beverages.

“The Cocktail Hour Garden” will

inspire you to make time with family and friends or simply enjoy the beauty of your garden.

• Tovah Martin is a believer in enjoying houseplants all through the house. Her book, “The Unexpected Houseplant,” is filled with beautiful photographs of her home. Chapters done by season show there are plants for year-round enjoyment — forced spring bulbs to perk up winter spirits, annuals and perennials from the garden, along with exotic plants and even small evergreens.

It doubles as a beautiful coffee table book and is informative, engaging and personal. We learn about the water and light requirements of plants, the best soil and fertilizer, when to prune plants, and problems that might be encountered and how to correct them.

Being consumed with houseplants in all your rooms may not be an option, but Martin’s book will have you taking a second look at that cyclamen or kalanchoe to fill a spot in your home.

• Making gardening fun for children is what “Gardening with Emma” will do.

Emma Biggs, 12, has written a refreshing book with help p from her dad, Steven Biggs.

Her first recommendation is to have one’s own garden space, a kid-sized place to start planting and a place not to grow, as she termed them, “adult crops.” She tells readers how her garden does not have to be planted in perfect rows, and she likes growing fun things such as crazy-colored lettuces and red, purple and white carrots.

Biggs offers information on soil, watering, garden bugs, unique pots for plants and ways to attract wildlife to the garden.

“Gardening with Emma” is a book for children, yet I found it filled with interesting and new information I could adapt to my own garden. Emma’s knowledge should inspire children to give gardening a try.

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TIPS OF THE WEEK TIP OF THE WEEK

GARDENING

HOME BUYING

FINDING A WALL STUD THE OLDFASHIONED WAY

CLEAN UP YOUR VEGETABLE GARDEN BEFORE SPRING

REPAY MORTGAGE OR INVEST?

Before starting, there are a few things you need to know about walls: Typical stud spacing is 16 inches on center and even on older houses is rarely more than 24 inches on center; the majority of electrical boxes for switches and outlets are attached to a stud on one side; studs are on either side of a window; most trim is nailed on a stud; and actual lumber dimensions of 2-by-4 studs are 1½ inches by 3½ inches.

Diseases and bugs dangerous to crops can overwinter in dead plant material. It is important, according to gardening writer Diana Lockwood in The Columbus Dispatch, to clean up your vegetable garden now. Tyson Gregory, a horticulturist at the Franklin Park Conservatory and Botanical Gardens, suggests composting viable material and disposing of plants with obvious diseases or infestations.

If you’re not ready to call it a year quite yet, however, Gregory suggests planting garlic and onions. As long as they are able to establish roots, these plants can be harvested next summer.

Many homeowners who have cash on-hand wonder if it’s better to repay some of their mortgage before the due date or invest the money. According to the Economic Times, it is almost always better to pay back more of your loan than you were planning. In general, it is good advice to clear your debts before saving.

Long-term investments in an equity fund, however, can generate higher returns than the interest you are paying on housing loans. In cases like this, it would be a good idea to save.

Before making any decisions, do your research and talk to a financial adviser.

— More Content Now

REAL ESTATE WEEKLY • Wednesday, November 13, 2019 • Page RE5

DEAR MONTY

What is value range pricing?

RICHARD MONTGOMERY

V

alue range pricing is a strategy employed by home sellers to increase the number of home showings. Hypothetically, the more shows, the higher the chance of a sale and a purchase at a higher price. The key to a successful pricing strategy, whether a fixed amount or a market range price , is to price it accurately. If similar homes in

your neighborhood are selling between $225K and $250K, and you price your home at $279K, or between $279K and $255K, neither will be effective. The market, not the seller, sets the price.

The idea driving value range pricing is that no home has an exact value, but a range of value. From a practical point of view, this is precisely how the market place works. The validation of this statement is when a transaction fails to close, and the property goes back into the market and sells again, it rarely sells for the same price the second time. It will sell for more or less.

With market range pricing, a home seller is not obligated to accept any offer, which is no different from utilizing a fixed price. It is also not unusual for a buyer to pass on a fixed price property if the buyer perceives it is overpriced. Consumers

today want to conserve their time by looking at well-priced homes.

What often happens with a value range price is the same thing that happens in a fixed price listing. Buyers tend to want to buy at a lower price. That said, when they discover the seller will not accept a lower price, they may still want to buy the house and will pay more than their original offer.

From the buyer’s point of view, having a range of value suggests that the seller is open to an offer. This message gives the buyer the feeling they are not wasting time by making a lower offer or insulting the seller. The seller is open to an offer.

Precisely what the range should show depends on what is happening in the market. If a seller and a buyer are in a hot market, both of them realize the market is hot, so the range of value may be tighter when a market is soft.

You don’t see value range pricing more often because many MLS systems only allow for a single price. Some agents do not recognize the value of it, or because it chews up valuable time explaining it to both buyer and seller.

If value range pricing brings more prospects to the house, the likelihood is that additional exposure increases the chances for a higher price from one or more of those buyers.

Richard Montgomery is the author of “House Money - An Insider’s Secrets to Saving ThousandsWhen You Buy or Sell a Home.” He advocates industry reform and offers readers unbiased real estateadvice. Follow him on Twitter at @ dearmonty, or at DearMonty.com.

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