New York Renovator

Amongst my news reading yesterday (something I really haven’t done for a while), I saw that Californians are looking to move out of the state. Expenses and taxes are too high, jobs and wages are too few and costly. It’s very notable that the liberal/socialistic states that have taxed and spent for the past few decades are finally seeing people leave. I can fully understand why folks are fed up. Here in New York State, government and taxation is a disaster.

Yet how does that saying go? One man’s junk is another man’s treasure? With a swelling exodus of people leaving certain areas, property prices go down. This is a good time to be keeping your pulse on the real estate market, especially in beautiful California (where the property value just never seems to go down). There’s a very cool and easy-to-use website called “Krunching.com” (love the name) where you can keep tabs on the changing real estate prices. You can “Krunch It” (do a search) on any California property and get an instant investment analysis. The search feature is extremely versatile: search by street, town or city, zipcode, county, MLS ID number, property values, property features (such as so many bedrooms and so many bathrooms, so many acres, etc). The lists are very detailed and informative.

Krunching.com can be a very important tool if you are looking to take advantage of a seller’s housing market. Check it out! Krunch It!

Isn’t it wonderful how the Internet has freed up so many things? Over a decade ago, when I was looking for a house to buy, it was so hard to find houses on the market. All I had was a little newspaper, printed by the local realtors, of specialized house listings (that is, they listed the properties they wanted to sell, not every property that was for sale). If you know me, you know I’m choosy and I like to know all my options before making the purchase of my life. I was really at the mercy of what the realtors wanted to show me. Nothing against realtors, but if I know for a fact that they didn’t show me every house available.

Well, thanks to the Internet and some really great websites, more and more listings are being made available to us, the general public. I absolutely love browsing through property search websites. And here’s another really great one– Krunching.com. It’s a funny name, but a memorable one. The site allows you to “Krunch It,” that is, search for properties in California.

Krunching.com is designed to help investors find investment properties in California. The site has a very good tutorial. Basically, you can search by state (California, currently), property type (condo, duplex, single-family, etc), MLS ID Number, zip code, county, city, and street; you can also search by the type of building you’re looking for (square footage, baedrooms, bathrooms, occupancy, etc). It’s pretty comprehensive and very easy to search for properties. Search results are very fast, and the table shows you the typical stuff (square footage, how many bedrooms, etc), but also the realtor’s name and company, asking price, approximate cash flow (which I found very unique), and in most cases, a photo(s) of the property. Very nice! Realtors can also find the site useful.

There’s also the opportunity to have a personalized account at Krunching.com, where you can save your favorites, maintain a detailed graph of investment property listings, view maps, and much more. This website is limited to the state of California, run by Level 2 Realty, a California real estate brokerage company. I’d like to see them expand into other states, but the site is definitely useful for us in states besides CA, for determining and comparing property values across the country (something I like to do). The website is good and very comprehensive.

Now that real estate seems to be the hot topic these days (what with the mortgage bust and the major shift in the real estate market), more people are thinking about selling their homes. Now everyone knows that you can’t put your house on the market, fling the doors open, and expect interested buyers to come streaming in and handing you cash. It requires a little more effort than that. The market is a little shaky right now, and the competition is pretty fierce. You want your property to shine above the others. So everyone knows that much. The real question is HOW DO YOU DO THAT?

Have you ever heard of the book, Dress Your House for Success? It was written 20 years ago, a groundbreaking book, way before its time. It’s a book about the art of “home staging,” which is preparing your home to look, smell, and feel attractive to prospective buyers. It was written by Martha Webb, author and home staging expert. I got the chance to ask Ms. Webb a few questions about home staging, especially for the renovator who has an older home. Her answers are very insightful; some surprised me. Here’s the interview:

Mrs. Mecomber: What are the worst things you’ve seen some homeowners do when trying to sell their house?

Martha Webb: Do nothing, or believe that lived in is good enough for selling. Fail to pay attention to the basics – clean, clutter and odor free, in good repair.

Mrs. Mecomber: When I was looking for a house, over decade ago, it seemed that people were not averse to buying a “fixer-upper.” Does this hold true today?

Martha Webb: No, there are so many properties on the market that are phenomenal deals, there isn’t the reason to buy a fixer upper to get sweat equity. Also, today’s buyers (average age 39) have less time and money to fix up a property. With all the competition for buyers, they need only look around the corner for a house that won’t require time, work or money.

Mrs. Mecomber: Do perennial gardens add much to the emotional value of a home? In your opinion, about how much emotional value would a garden (or gardens) have, overall?

Martha Webb: A garden (perennial or well-landscaped) tells buyers that the house has been well cared for. The garden can add to the “homey” feel of a property and may be an added benefit to some; to others, they may not want the work to maintain it. If the gardens exist, sellers should make sure they are well-manicured to add to the charm of the house, not elicit the response of work. If there are not gardens, I would not recommend spending money to install them.

Mrs. Mecomber: What are most prospective buyers looking for the most when walking through a prospective home?

Martha Webb: Research has shown that buyers’ first impression have to do with the basics of cleanliness, clutter and repair, which translate to “well cared for,” “spacious,” and “no work.” They also want the “homey” feel, but are less likely to be able to describe that; they recognize it when they feel it – and that where staging comes in.

Mrs. Mecomber: What are some inexpensive “props” or techniques for staging a home?

Martha Webb: Entry: make sure that you show some elegance or style – possible a half-round table, artwork, a mirror, flowers
Kitchen: show more than an organized space, include a hint of entertaining or family gathering: a cookbook, serving dish, fruit arrangement
Bath: counter the cold of tile with a fabric shower curtain and matching rug, stacked or rolled towels and a packaged spa-like soap or bath product
Bedrooms: add comfort and relation with pillows and throws, a book on a nightstand

I really appreciate Martha Webb taking the time to answer my questions. Someday I hope to sell my own house, and I’ll come back to these tips and the ones in her books.

I’ve been through a lot of homes, and the one thing that strikes me just as much as the appearance of the home is the smell. I have a very sensitive nose (more women than men do, too). If I smell stale cigarettes or mildew or dog, that’s a REAL turn off. You can count on me turning down the house. So I recommend eradicating the sourest smells from the home before showing the home. For other smells, like cooking oil (another smell that makes me wretch), burning toast, or an oddball stinky sneaker that one of the kids left in the front entry, I recommend the new Febreze candle. I have used the Apple & Spice and I am nuts about it. I have four kids, a cat, and a bird in the house. I NEED these candles. They have a special core that freshens the air while the colored section fills the house with frangrance. The Apple & Spice is sooo good, and I love to burn them during the winter months. It just makes the house feel warmer.

I hope these tips help you! And really, even if you aren’t selling your home, you can always do yourself a favor by staging your home for yourself! The holidays are coming up, so this is actually a terrific time to pamper the family and spruce up the place for them.

OUCH! How does one say that in German? I found this video, a German parody about the real estate market bubble (and there are some jabs about AIG and 401Ks). It’s funny, but also very, very sad. How do you think our idiotic politicians get our countries in such a disastrous mess? (Hint: it’s alluded to in the very last line in this movie).

I think I recognize the main actor– he played Martin Luther’s mentor in the movie Luther. A very good actor!

Renovating isn’t for everybody. It’s TOUGH work. And if you are living in the house while renovating, well, that’s even tougher. So some people can tolerate the temporary disorder (it IS temporary, right?) and others can’t. Right now my goal is to fix the house up, enjoy a “new” house for a while, and then perhaps sell it for something smaller in a few years. All making a tidy profit, of course.

If you are thinking of moving, particularly moving overseas, check out Relocation.com’s international and domestic moving site. They are a company dedicated to making the transition of moving from one place to another easy and comfortable. They have EXCELLENT articles about overseas moving, too– everything from passports and health, to how to help your child adjust to moving and how to take the sting out of culture shock. Their website is well-organized and the drop down menus make it easy to get an idea of what you’ll need and how to get an estimate on moving costs. Shipping quotes are free, too.

The site has other information beside that on moving: they have articles about real estate, apartment hunting, insurance, careers, and more. It’s a good site to bookmark and browse, even if you don’t plan on relocating in the near future.

I’ve been interviewed by a realtor in Cleveland, Ohio, Cecilia Sherrard! She runs the You Should Own website. You can go to the site and read the interview here.

I have been reading the New York Renovator Blog for about a year. The updates are filled with humor and reality. I’ve enjoyed following this blog and the work being done to this home in New York. There are many older homes in the Cleveland, Ohio area, and many people buy these old homes to restore. I’ve witnessed amazing after shots and some of the work is stunning. If you’re thinking about rehabbing a century home, you’ll want to check this blog out even if you just need motivation. Also, make sure you read her tips at the bottom of this article. Yes, it’s long, but I think you’ll enjoy her tips and stories. This is my interview with Mrs. Mecomber who is truly a vibrant and energetic mother and wife. She’s now also… a renovator.

I was absolutely floored when Cecilia approached me for an interview. But she said that Ohioans are experiencing much of the same things we in New York are experiencing: a slow economy, high taxation, loss of manufacturing jobs, a slumpy housing market. Lots of us in the Rust Belt states have been unable to buy spanking-new homes (we’re just too busy buying new homes for our politicians, you know) and renovation has become “new again.”

Restoring older homes is not easy. But it is wasteful to junk an old house if it can be restored, and especially if it is less expensive to restore it than to build new. The population booms and busts have left our towns with cavernous lots full of empty houses, overdeveloped acres, and a mess in suburbia. I am one of many rooting for the new class of renovators here in the Northeast!

Thanks, Cecilia, for graciously sharing your webspace with my answers.

Now that hot and steamy July and August are gone, people are once again breaking out the boxes of stuff for yard sales, and putting their homes up for sale. I used to do flea markets with my step-dad when I was a kid. We traveled all around the county, selling goods (he was a trader in the 70s, before the rise of WalMart and Jamesway). After he got a little too old to travel, we held the “yard sale” on our front lawn. It was quite the experience for me! I am a a terrific haggler now, and I handle all the bargaining in the family. hehe. Do you know what the best thing you can do to get people to visit and buy your stuff at your yard sale? Make quality, professional-looking yard signs, and have everything organized on nice, neat tables. Believe me, it works!

However, the cost of printing up paper yard signs at your local print shop can quickly overshadow any profit you’d make. So I suggest you check out VistaPrint for your printing needs. I have used VistaPrint and can account for their speedy service, excellent quality, and great prices! And I have a goodie for you– a promo code you can use to get 25% off your customized yard sign! Use the code: YardSigns25. These sign are also great if you are selling your own home, have a business, support a candidate or a cause, or just feel like telling your neighbors to have a nice day! Signs start at $11.99, which is very affordable. I love VistaPrint! I know you will love them, too!

I’ve found a few very good and reliable websites for researching and finding real estate online. These websites can give you property value and market value, among other things. The Yahoo! site also breaks down demographics for the local area. I think these are valuable resources.

Yahoo! Real Estate

Realtor.com

Zillow.com

Trulia.com

There are also the mainstream realty companies you can search, such as Coldwell Banker and RE/Max. Personally, I have found these to be difficult to use and they don’t always display everything in a local area.

For bargain properties, there’s Home Sales.gov (homes for sale by the U.S. government), Bargain Network.com, and Realty Trac.com.