Painting When Selling Home
Paint is the least expensive and most effective way to improve how a home shows. Please, you do not have to paint everything eggshell colors, and white. Yes, there are colors that should be avoided, and some used sparingly. A dramatic wall may be wonderful, while that same color used through the entire room could distract from the room itself.
I love paint, it makes the house seem clean. I know that everything has to move while painting, and those nooks and crannies get exposed so, then we have to clean them. That is a good thing. It also forces us to address clutter. After packing all those things from the tabletops and shelves, do we really want to bring it all back out? (That would be a,
no) All those family photos come down from the wall when painting, and we do not want to hang them back up either. You truly de-personalize the house, in order to allow potential purchasers to envision their family at home in the house.
Rules of Painting:
1. Don't remove the electric switch plates, and then roll over the plugs. Go around the hole the plate creates.
2. Don't paint the windows shut.
3. Tape the edges to get a clean line at the moldings, and ceilings.
4. Use drop cloths to keep paint splatter off floor.
5. Choose colors carefully.
6. Loosen light fixtures and ceiling fans, do not paint on the edge of them.
Paint is an easy, inexpensive, quick way to make a house pop. Create a Fine Virginia Living masterpiece in your home.
Why Have a Home Inspection?
In Charlottesville VA. homes are sold as-is. We are a caveat emptor state, that is Latin for Buyer Beware. This is the idea that buyers take responsibility for the condition of the home they purchase, and should examine them before they purchase. The property and all improvements are being sold as-is with no representations or warrenties as to condition. The seller must disclose all defects of which the seller has actual knowledge. To boil it all down to where the rubber meets the road. After the closing occurs, the condition of the property is the purchasers problem.
Sellers most of the time do not have "actual knowledge" of a defect. They are not professionals (for the most part) who have been through all of the homes systems, and can't accurately report things are working properly. Sellers may know they have had a problem and provide a receipt that it was corrected, but is that correction satisfactory?
I was at a home inspection, (all the inspectors I recommend have building experience. Two are Class A Contractors, and One a former Building inspector for the County. This is in contrast to some new inspectors that are ASHI approved, yet have not one day of building experience and have master degrees in marketing though. Their material looks great, I will say that. I have no idea of their inspections, I would be afraid to recommend them) and the ceiling in the basement was a suspended drop ceiling. This inspector routinely pushes up a few tiles to look. He amazed me when he kept pushing them up, and called the purchaser over.
There was a tremendous amount of mold growing along all the joists. He called it "suspicious fungi" but we had it tested and it was pennicillum, and aspergillum. This mold was also found in abundance in the attic, so much in fact that when the light was flipped on, after the hatch removed, he initially thought there had been a fire.
The seller truly had not a clue, I am confident. It was an expensive problem that was mitigated. We asked that the mold test be re-run after the mitigation completed to ensure the job was done properly. This was a prudent thing to have done, as there were additional actions necessary to mitigate the problem.
The repair cost was placed exactly where it should have been, on the seller. The purpose of the home inspection is really to find out what as-is truly is! Buyer Beware, have an experienced and skilled Realtor represent you!
Charlottesville Real Estate Economy
If I listen to the news media expound on real estate, I realize if I believed what they said I should be swan diving out a high window. To hear them tell it we are in dire straights. The market here in Charlottesville
is not bad. We are actually
on target for our second best year ever. So, why the doom and gloom?
I pulled the statistics in the MLS for the month of August 2006 and compared them to the record holding year of 2005.
Albemarle in 2005 had 202 homes sold, this year was 146 a 28% difference.
Charlottesville in 2005 had 65 homes sold, this year was 55 a 15% difference.
Fluvanna in 2005 had 65 homes sold, this year was 54 a 17% difference.
The prices of homes has gone down slightly. The slow decline in prices started in March and has continued til now. It has been extremely gradual, and not signficant in any way. Especially if you consider that the prices spiked up and up in a very short time, sellers could literally stick any price on the house and wait for offers. Inventory was low, and purchasers needed housing.
New construction has also had price reductions and other incentives given by the builders. To make it more attractive to consumers. Does this indicate that we are in a terrible situation? In my opionion
NO. Some builders had completion dates that were a year out. It was exceedingly difficult to find any homes nearing completion last year that were not under contract. We have returned to a balanced market.
Prices have stabilized, we have transitioned to a more realistic market. There has to be a balance between the wages earned and the affordability of the area. Otherwise, you lose the key service people, that are vital to the area. Nurses, Doctors, Firemen, Police Officers, Teachers all need to live in the areas they service.
We are not in a recession, don't believe me? Go to any shopping strip and look at all the shoppers. I am amazed at the number of cars with engines running waiting in the lots. We have not reached a point where families must make significant sacrifices in pleasure expenditures to pay their bills.
Fall is just around the corner, and this is when I personally buy property. This year will be no exception, homes that are priced well, and in good showing condition will sell. Interest rates are low, it is a great time to be shopping for real estate.
Right now is perfect to look at property, since we have recently gotten rain after drought like conditions, it is easy to tell if there are any water issues inside the house, or on the lot.
Perhaps "Perky Katie Couric" will place a more accurate and positive spin on things, I hope so at least.
Paint is the least expensive and most effective way to improve how a home shows. Please, you do not have to paint everything eggshell colors, and white. Yes, there are colors that should be avoided, and some used sparingly. A dramatic wall may be wonderful, while that same color used through the entire room could distract from the room itself.
