Jeff & Linda: Your Desert Area Realty Team

Simple Tips to Increase Your Home’s Curb Appeal

Have you been wanting to change the look of your house but aren’t sure what you can do to increase your curb appeal? Handyman Connection, one of the largest networks of home repair and remodeling contractors in North America, has released a few home improvement ideas to help you enhance the street view of your home. The front door is the gateway to your home and can often be an easy and inexpensive way to add a different dimension to your home’s curb appeal. You can paint your door a different color to accent the exterior paint on your house or you can get an entirely new door. Pick a color that stands out from the rest of your house but a color that also meshes well with the rest of your color scheme. Painting or re-painting your house is a great...

Survey Reveals Consumer Attitudes Towards Homeownership, Design and Function

Better Homes and Gardens magazine recently released proprietary research and insights into the ideas, inspirations, and strategies driving consumers as they consider the function, style and efficiency of their homes. In a presentation given at the International Builders Show, Jill Waage, editorial director for Home Content for Better Homes and Gardens revealed survey results about consumer attitudes towards home ownership, upkeep and renovations, design and personalization, and more. A primary point revealed in the presentation shows that, despite continuing economic uncertainty, consumer thoughts toward homeownership remain strong with 8 in 10 saying home ownership is still a good investment and an important part of the American Dream. The BHG survey also found...

The More You Know: 4 Great Tips for Home Sellers

Tip 1: Identify three experienced agents who are familiar with your neighborhood. Look for agents who have “for sale” signs placed in your neighborhood. Ask each to prepare a market analysis (how much is it worth?) and a marketing plan (how do you plan to market my home?). Ask lots of questions about both. Include the main points of your marketing plan in your listing agreement so that all parties will know what is to be expected (i.e. frequency of ads and the publications/websites where they’ll appear, frequency of open houses, etc.). Limit the length of the listing—two months or less is good, but no more than three months. If the agent is doing his/her job as set out in the listing agreement you can always renew the listing when it expires. If they’re...