An article from RealEstateJournal.com reports that in order to sell a home in 2008, it’s time to start thinking about how to make it stand out from the rest.  According to Cheri Kuhn, owner of Waters Realty in Minnetonka, Minnesota, in selling a home “it’s more important that it’s neat, it’s clean and it looks spacious, rather than making sure it’s the top of the line.”  A recent study by a Remodeling magazine said homeowners aren’t able to recoup as many improvement costs as they did in recent years. 

Here are a few tips to keep costs down and remodel wisely.  The First tip is to get a home inspection BEFORE listing the property.  Problems that could hold up a sale can be addressed in advance.  Another tip is to pay attention to exterior details such as the condition of siding and windows.  The Remodeling survey showed that a wood window replacement recovers an average 81% of cost at resale.  Finally, freshening up the bathroom can be an important and inexpensive way to help sell the home.  Consider replacing cracked tiles, as well as the sink and the toilet, if needed. 

Pack away personal items in boxes and, if possible, rent a storage unit.  If you are unable to rent a storage unit, stack the boxes neatly in the garage or in some other out of the way place.  This will make your home look bigger and uncluttered.

Walk through your home with a critical eye.  Put yourself in the shoes of a homebuyer.  Make sure your baseboards are clean and look fresh.  Spot clean your doors where little fingerprints seem to build up daily.  Buyers are looking for their next home.  There are lots of homes to choose from.  Make your home the one that they remember!

To see the rest of this article, please click on the following link:  Real Estate Journal

In Arizona, our home state, we have been hard hit by mortgage fraud and the so-called “professionals” that helped to perpetrate that fraud. As a result, on the state level and the federal level, legislation has been discussed and in some cases, already introduced that will begin making risky transactions more costly to the participants.

Arizona has already passed a law making mortgage fraud a felony. “Cash back” scams and falsifying income documents among other things can actually earn a free stay in a 5 star jail cell. On a federal level many things have been discussed including the federal licensing of Mortgage Loan Officers that would be similar to a license that a Realtor must hold in addition to tightening the standards that define predatory lending. Currently, there is no such requirement. (Personally, I love that idea.)

Whatever the actual verbage is when these laws are passed, one thing remains constant and that is the need for consumers to very thorough when choosing who they will entrust one of their most important life purchases to. Stay tuned for more updates.