Happy Holiday's From My Family to Your's!

Warmest Thoughts and Best Wishes for a Wonderful Holiday and a Happy New Year!  Thank you for the support throughout the year! I look forward to assisting you this upcoming year!

How to Decorate for the Holidays on a Budget?

Decorating for the holidays doesn’t limit you to certain decorations home that won’t make all of your friends and family jealous.  By carefully selecting a few affordable decorations you can speak some serious holiday magic and turn your home into a winter wonderland.

1. Deck the Walls- Add some bold art pieces to your walls. Big pieces can become the focal point of a room and can tie your Christmas decorations together.
2. Bring Some Christmas Magic to Flat Surfaces- Add some pieces to your shelves, coffee tables, and other surfaces to show off your holiday spirit.  Add a candle holder to bring extra warmth to your room. 
3. Get Cozy and Create a Comfortable Couch- Add a few cozy Christmas pillows to your couch.  Festive and affordable pillows will bring comfort of the holiday into your home.
4. Fill Up Your Floor Space- Add a few pieces that can fill up your floor space.  Adding these pieces will make it look like you’ve decorated more than you actually have.  Consider adding a metal stocking holder to display your family’s stockings. 

When it comes to decorating your home, always remember that each room only needs one or two Christmas decorations to draw the eye and truly stand out.  Simple standing items, wall décor, pillows and holiday candles create the holiday magical feel while saving you money!

Broom Clean Condition: How Clean Should You Leave Your Home?

If you recently sold your home and are moving out you may have noticed a “broom clean” clause on your contract.  How clean does that mean you need to leave your home?  The answer is simple, you should leave your home in decent shape.  There really is no requirement for a home seller to clean the property upon moving out, it’s more of a courtesy for the new owner.

However, buyers do expect you leave it clean enough for them to move in and that you remove all of your belongs that were not agreed upon.  Your contract may even specify what items must be removed before the buyer will move in. 

Contractual obligations aside, you may decide there are some items you just don’t need or want to take with you like floating shelves, removing nails and screws from the wall, landscaping pots, and more.  If you plan to do so, you will have to ask the buyer for their permission to leave these items behind or you may derail the sale of the home if the buyer notices these items during the final walk-through.

How to “broom clean” a home

If the sellers been asked to leave the place in broom clean, make sure you remove all clutter, sweep or vacuum the floors- you are not expected to wash or wax the floors.  The new owner should also expect wipe down cabinets and drawers, clean the floors, and give the bathrooms a good scrub.

You don’t need to hire a professional to come in and clean the home before moving out unless it is specified in the contract.  Just make sure your home looks presented when the new buyer moves in!

What are 10 Items to Fix in Your Home that Might Be Dragging Down the Value of Your Home?

There are things about your home you can change and things about your home you can’t change but there are also things in your home you can control during the home-selling process.  You can’t always force people to come see your home and make an offer but you can make sure it’s well taken care of and small easy repairs are done before the right buyer walks through the door.  Before you put your home on the market, look around and be sure these repairs are taken care of.

Exterior paint colors don’t blend in- Colors in your home are the first thing a buyer will notice especially if it’s very different from your neighborhood or general area. 

Front door that is not inviting- The front door is one of the next things a buyer will notice.  If it is flimsy, cheap, or outdated it may discourage the buyer to move forward with the home.  If your’s may be questionable- spring for a new one!

A busted doorbell- Test your doorbell before you head out to ensure it is working properly.  Having a friendly, crisp chime is a sign that your home is well taken care of.

Tattered window and door screens- Double check your screens to ensure they look more like insect shields instead of swiss cheese.  If you notice some screens with holes, take them to get repaired at your local home improvement store instead of replacing them.

Depressing landscaping- When potential buys drive up to your home they will notice everything- the trees, grass, rock, and plants.  If your home has a half-dead tree, yellow grass, unkept shrubs, and a pathway with lots of weeds, you might get a low-ball offer based on the appearance.  Take time to make the outdoor part of your home look great!

An unpleasant smell of… something- Nothing can turn a buyer away faster than the stench of faded cigarettes, stinky trash, or poorly trained pets.  If you want to be sure your home isn’t a smelly one, ask a friend to come over and sniff it for you.

 Eerie dripping sounds- If a buyer starts to hear a dripping noise or a running toilet, they may start to guess the buildings integrity or even the plumbing of the home.  Take care of these as soon as they come up.

Bad lighting- Replace harsh lights with bulbs that have a soft glow and clean out fixtures to get rid of dirt or dead bugs.

Squeaky hinges- Don’t have doors straight out of a horror film, put some lubricant of the hinges to stop them from squeaking.

An outdated kitchen- A complete renovation can be quite expensive but small updates like adding a fresh coat of paint or changing out knobs on your cabinets can add value. 

When Selling a Home, What are Five Questions You Should Ask?

If you are looking to your home, you want to know who is selling your home and how they are going to help you throughout the process.  If you pick the wrong agent, your listing and home might suffer from here.  However, hiring a PJ Morgan real estate agent, we will provide you with all of these answers during our initial meeting with you.

Do you specialize in this neighborhood? During our first meeting, we will provide you with comps and information about your neighborhood that will help sell your home.  We will also provide

How did you arrive at the listing price? Comps will be provided to you with information about your home regarding square footage, price per square foot, and amenities. 

Whom will I be working with? As your listing agent, you will be working with me directly.  However, I will have the help from my PJ Morgan team assisting me along the way with getting your home listed, scheduling open houses, and filing paperwork.

How much will selling my home cost?  You will be provided with a packet of information about your home, our company, and price specifics regarding your home so you know to expect during the process.

What should I do to get my home ready to sell?  During our meeting, we will take a tour of your home and I will make suggestions on what you will need to do to get your home ready with any repairs that may need to be made.