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Author Archives: Gail Spada
Understanding The Comparative Market Analysis
Deciding to move isn’t a step anyone takes lightly. Your house is more than just an investment, it is your home. As you begin the process of distancing yourself from the place where you made so many lasting memories you will begin to think about what your home will be worth to someone else. When you are ready to meet with a Realtor you may already have an idea of what your home is worth. You may have seen what other homes in your neighborhood have sold for or kept an eye on local listings. Your agent will prepare for you a comparative market analysis (CMA) that is an in-depth version of any research you may have done on your own. The CMA is used to help evaluate how your home will fare against the competition. It takes a look at both homes that are currently listed and those recently … Continue reading
6 Quick And Cheap Ways To Give Your Home A Spring Makeover
Spring is here, and just as every year you swap your heavy, dull winter clothes for freer, lighter attire when the days begin to warm and lengthen, you want to do the same for your house. Best of all, optimizing your house for spring doesn’t have to take a lot of money or time. You can do it all over the weekend, and a few inexpensive touches are all you need to purchase. Here are six quick and easy ways from THE Gail Spada TEAM to give your home a spring makeover without breaking the bank. Tip 1: Laced With Sheer Beauty Take down your heavy winter curtains and replace them with sheer curtains, valances and or panels that are embellished with Swiss polka dots, swirling ivy vines, bumblebees or stripes. These simple window treatments can slip onto your existing rods, or, for a real change, try a wrought iron … Continue reading
6 Curb Appeal Ideas to Make You the Star of the Neighborhood
A few hours of exterior home and yard work can add thousands to your home’s value. April 20 and 21 marks Nationwide Open House weekend — the unofficial opening day of the spring real estate season. Since curb appeal strongly influences home values, it’s a great weekend to spruce up your own yard, especially if the neighbors are trying to sell their home. How much value can neighborhood curb appeal add? Having nice landscaping adds $1,777 in home value when you’re selling your home. Curb appeal works in the other direction, too. If a for-sale house down the block is sporting some bad curb appeal, it could sell for less than it might otherwise. And that comparable sale drives down the value of your home. We couldn’t find any data on how much the average buyer discounts his offer when the neighbors haven’t painted their house since 1979, but we … Continue reading
Home Renovations That Add Value And May Come In Handy Later
Spending tens of thousands of dollars on a home renovation gets easier if you know you’ll see two-thirds of it reflected in the sale price of your home. The good news is that renovations are returning more of their cost than they have in a while… an average of 60.6 percent nationally, according to Remodeling magazine’s “Cost vs. Value Report 2013.” Plus, there are simple tweaks you can make along the way that could make it easier to live in your home longer. Here are some smart changes. Add space without adding on. Adding a deck is one of the most lucrative home projects. You’re increasing your home’s usable square footage without the expense of expanding its footprint. If you can do a really nice outdoor living area, it gets you the kind of square footage that you’d get inside the house but at a third of the price. The … Continue reading
10 Mortgage Tips For 2013
If you’ve been sitting on the sidelines, waiting for the best time to refinance or get a mortgage to buy a home, THE Gail Spada TEAM thinks 2013 might be your last chance to act. With good credit, persistence and some shopping skills, you can still snag phenomenal deals this year… even if you are underwater on your loan. Here are 10 mortgage tips to help you with your mortgage decisions in 2013. Tip 1: Stop Procrastinating and Refinance Now If you haven’t refinanced recently, you’re probably paying a higher interest rate on your mortgage than you should. Take advantage of today’s record-low mortgage rates while they last. Rates are expected to remain low during the first few months of the year, but they should gradually increase. When they do, many borrowers will regret having missed the opportunity to grab the lowest mortgage rate in history. Tip 2: Buyers…Get Moving … Continue reading
Home Ownership Remains an Essential Part of the American Dream
Strengthened by a healing housing market, home owners have an optimistic outlook…this optimism is seen and heard daily by THE Gail Spada TEAM. A whopping 79% of us think home ownership is an essential part of the American dream, says a recent LendingTree survey. Additionally, 76% of home owners said they’re confident that when they’re ready to move up to a new home, they’ll be able to sell their current home, obtain a mortgage, and afford a down payment despite the recent recession and housing market crash. Of those surveyed, slightly more than half believe the housing market will take 12 months or less to recover and only 19% are postponing a home purchase or sale because of a weak housing market. “Low rates, affordable home prices, and a recovering housing market have created a unique window of opportunity for potential home buyers. The good news is that the housing … Continue reading
Do You Wear Your Shoes Inside? And Ask Guests To Do The Same?
Is it just me, or are people getting more prickly about wearing street shoes inside? Of course, taking off shoes before you enter the house will keep homes cleaner. But I still can’t get used to going shoeless in my own home, no less slipping around in my socks when I visit friends. Although more and more home owners ask guests to switch street shoes for socks and slippers when they walk inside, most of my friends don’t ask, and I don’t offer. To me, it seems more disrespectful to dress down at a luncheon or dinner party than to wipe my shoes on a doormat and enter like I care, not like I just stepped out of the shower. Of course, I’ve always insisted that my daughter and her friends leave their cruddy shoes in our mudroom because I don’t want mud tracked all over my good carpets. And … Continue reading
Reimagining Your Kitchen For 2013
If you’re looking to remodel your kitchen, THE Gail Spada TEAM has good news and bad news for you. First, the good stuff. According to trend experts you don’t have to shell out major cash to add space. Instead, look to expand what you already have. Vault your ceiling, add windows, squeeze in clever storage ideas. Make the space work harder, not bigger. Plus, relax. Casual kitchens are trending, with doo-dads and gee-gaws (think elaborate trim and vent hoods that look like medieval castles) going away, and simpler, sleeker designs coming on strong. It’s all part of a new kitchen gestalt that described as the “prep-eat-play” triangle, with flexibility and casual living as key ingredients. The notion tosses the kitchen into a design blender along with living, dining, and family rooms, and frappes everything into communal happiness. Example: You can eat at a comfy banquette, or in front of the … Continue reading
3 Tips For Selling Your Home In 2013
After years of declining home values and a buyer’s market in Florida, 2013 could be the year of the seller. We’ve seen a glimmer of hope for sellers and the housing market in general over the past six months in Hernando County. Homes that didn’t move for a year started getting activity as buyers came off the sidelines, their confidence in the housing market and their financial situations greatly improved. That confidence, coupled with record low interest rates and rising rents, has been the fuel the real estate market needed. Add to this the low inventory seen in many neighborhoods, and you’ve got buyers motivated to make a purchase. If 2013 might be your year to sell, start planning and let THE Gail Spada TEAM do as much of the legwork as soon as possible. You only have one chance to be “Just Listed” in this new market. More than … Continue reading
Home Owners Tax Benefits In The Fiscal Cliff Deal
Home owners win two important tax benefits in the fiscal cliff deal. They keep PMI deduction and short sale tax benefit. The fiscal cliff deal Congress passed this week lets home owners keep the tax deduction for private mortgage insurance payments. It also says troubled home owners won’t owe income tax on amounts forgiven during a mortgage workout or foreclosure. PMI is what you pay your lender each month if you put down less than 20% on a home, which protects the lender if you default on the home loan. Without mortgage cancellation relief, home owners who have a portion of their mortgage forgiven as part of a workout plan, short sale, or foreclosure would have to pay income tax on the forgiven amount. In addition, the American Taxpayer Relief Act of 2012 lets home owners continue to keep up to $500,000 ($250,000 for individuals) in home sale profits tax-free. … Continue reading
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