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Give your home curb appeal for the season

November 15th, 2007 1:35 PM

'Tis the season for visitors. Time to make the front of your home—from curb to doorstep to vestibule—as inviting as possible.

From now until New Year’s, the year-end social season typically brings plenty of traffic to your front door. With a few tips, big and small, you can create a grand entrance that will leave a real impression with your visitors.

Outside charms
• Some winter landscaping can go a long way. If it suits your part of the country, include evergreens in your year-round landscape to help counter the missing leaves of deciduous trees. Spruce, pines and hemlock can really warm up a winter scene, especially when the boughs are laden with freshly fallen snow.

• If the scale of these tree projects seems too daunting, consider potted plants: Pleasing to the eye and always seasonal, potted poinsettias are ideal front-lawn additions, and are typically available at lawn and garden centers from now through the Holiday Season. Display these on your steps, along walkways, on your front porch or grouped around the base of lampposts—anywhere that is somewhat protected from hard freezes. (You may want to cover the poinsettias with a sheet or plastic during cold nights.)

• Place landscaping lights on your lawn and garden or, better still, along walkways from the sidewalk or driveway to the most-used doorway. They’ll not only ensure safer pathways, but also add a little dramatic flair to your winter landscape.

• Neatly piled firewood in a visible location can add a nice rustic feel.

• Consider a weather-resistant basket filled with pinecones, decorated with a large ribbon, for a homey touch near your doorway. Create a current of color through your property by adding matching ribbons (made of weather-resistant material ) to your lampposts, mailbox, front door and railings.

• For enhanced nighttime vision replace all outdoor light bulbs with the highest intensity wattage permitted for their receptacles.

• Make sure your driveway, front walk and porch are free of snow before guests arrive.

• Keep salt handy at the front door to sprinkle on icy steps and walkways; a handful or two can help your guests come and go safely.

Inside style
The entrance way may be the only part of your home’s interior that some guests see in the coming months, so make it count. Neat, simple and eye-catching is the key.

• If you live in a snowy and slushy climate, keep a new boot-tray in your front closet. When visitors are due to arrive, clear away the family’s footgear to an out-of-the-way place and put out the clean tray.

• As December arrives, most of us greet our guests with a large front-door wreath. Carry the outdoor theme inside by hanging smaller wreaths on the most visible indoor wall or in choice places, such as around a banquet table. No matter the size, wreaths are the simplest holiday decoration to display and easy to hang with just a hammer and a small nail.

• Artificial evergreen boughs are also easy embellishments, wrapped around a banister or table legs. But leave the lights for the tree. Instead, you can accent these boughs with ribbons or artificial berries. Select colors that will be prominent against the green and not confine your decor to a strictly Holiday Season look.

Posted by Belinda Arroyo on November 15th, 2007 1:35 PMPost a Comment (0)

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Top seven new home buying mistakes

November 27th, 2007 7:21 PM

Top 7 New Home Buying Mistakes

by Joshua Ferris

Buying a new home is great! You get to choose where your home will be built, add a sunroom here, third garage bay there and before you know it you are moving into your dream home. With all the options to choose from it is very easy to overlook crucial elements to your new home buying experience that could cost you greatly in both time and money.

1. Choosing upgrades with the lowest ROI or too many upgrades, period.

This is truly the most common mistake made by new home buyers who don't consider the resale value of their home in the future. When buying a new home be sure to stick with the essential upgrades like two sinks in the master bathroom, high quality cabinetry and above all else, top quality padding under the carpeted areas.

2. Not examining your lot choice thoroughly enough.

A recent United Feature Syndicate by Lew Sichelman highlights some very important aspects to choosing a lot for your new home to be built on. Among them are: terrain, noting that people psychologically feel more secure looking down at the street rather than up, location and lot shape which can affect your surroundings including the possibility of facing the rear of a neighbor's home.

3. Finding communities first, vitals second.

When you are buying a home you have to shop differently than you would if you were buying a car or shopping for clothes. To save yourself much heartache and frustration, be sure to hammer out your lifestyle requirements before even searching for a community to build a home in. For example, if you commute to New York City and have school age children you would want to find a school district that you approve of in an area with multiple mass transit options (train, bus, highway) and then locate new home communities within close proximity to both.

4. Overlooking the "inspection" clause in builder contracts.

A dirty little secret in the new home industry is the fact that some builders, national builders included, send out contracts with a clause stating that they don't allow home inspections by an independent, third party home inspector until after you close on and own the home. They offer to do a walkthrough of the home with you before you close but chances are, unless you are a licensed home inspector with many years of experience, you won't notice any red flags beyond the superficial.

5. Not using a buyer agent.

When looking for a new home, be sure to find a buyer agent who specializes in new homes. There are numerous important steps when buying a new home that a new home buyer agent will be prepared to work with such as price negotiation, lot choice, researching future development around the community and the pros and cons of building materials your builder will use in the construction of your new home. At present, the buyer agent's services are paid for out of the builder's marketing budget.

6. Using the builder endorsed financing company out of convenience.

Many large builders have their own in-house financing company and they often offer incentives on their products by tying in the use of the incentives to financing through their in-house lender. In some instances you will find that the builder's in-house lender financing and incentives will cost you more money in the long run than if you had financed your purchase through an outside lender. Rule of thumb: Always check your financing options with the builder's in-house lender, a mortgage broker and a loan officer for a direct lender before committing.

7. Believing everything you read in advertisements.

If it looks too good to be true, it probably is. Always verify everything you read in real estate advertisements including newspaper ads and the community's standard features list. Aside from the obvious typographical errors that occur I have also seen blatant false advertising. For example, I have seen new home community literature advertising the community's short "less than an hour" drive to New York City despite the fact that it would take at least 90 minutes on a good day from that community.

Buying a new home is a wonderful, dazzling experience that will cater to your every need. By using reasonable care and professional guidance you will enjoy many great years in your new home and reap substantial rewards from your diligent buying efforts when selling your home in the future.

Did You Know?

As a Broker Agent News subscriber, you're entitled to receive the acclaimed "Ultimate Real Estate Success Secret™" 30-chapter course, plus 2 powerful marketing resources - for nothing! More info on partner programs here.

About the Author: Joshua Ferris is an Orange County New York new homes specialist with experience in both townhouse and single family new construction sales. Buyers considering the Orange County NY area will find great value in his indispensable Monroe New York real estate guide and Orange County New York real estate search.

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Posted by Belinda Arroyo on November 27th, 2007 7:21 PMPost a Comment (0)

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Why You need a tech-savy agent

November 10th, 2007 4:11 PM

When you choose a real estate agent, you’re selecting someone to represent you in one of the largest financial transactions you may ever undertake.

As the Internet continues to simplify the way people research buying and selling homes, there are many good reasons to choose an agent who can harness the power of technology to provide you with exceptional service, including:

· Sending up-to-date information by email for you to review at your convenience.
· Providing you with an online home evaluation to stay on top of current market value.
· Emailing new home listings to you as soon as desirable properties hit the market.
· Delivering e-newsletters to keep you informed about market trends and other important matters.
· Showcasing your home on the Web to help you sell it for top dollar.

Whether you’re thinking about buying or selling or simply want to stay informed about the real estate market, I will use new technology to consistently provide you with timely information and outstanding service.

If you would like additional information about the advantages of using a tech-savvy agent, please feel free to call or email me.

Sincerely,

Belinda Arroyo
Next Level Realty & Mortgage
www.metrowestrealestate.com
www.BelindaArroyo.com
Belinda@nextlevelrealty.com
508-446-5693
800-786-0653 ext 0

Posted by Belinda Arroyo on November 10th, 2007 4:11 PMPost a Comment (0)

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8 documents that you need to get a mortgage approved

November 7th, 2007 11:58 AM

Web	rismedia.com

The Eight Documents You’ll Need to Get a Mortgage Approved

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Getting a mortgage home loan might seem like a tedious process, but if you do your part to look good on paper, you can increase your eligibility for the best interest rates (https://www.informars.com/equifax/). Financial institutions primarily consider three main areas in determining who is eligible for a mortgage: employment history, credit history, debt to income ratio (which is the percentage of income that goes to expenses). As proof of these, most financial institutions will ask for a selection of the following documents in considering your request for a mortgage loan.

Employment

1. Last two years’ federal tax returns and/or W-2 statements financial institutions typically use your past tax returns as verification of your employment and earnings.

2. Pay stubs: Most financial institutions will ask to see your most recent pay stubs, usually covering the past month. Your pay stub must have your name, your social security number, your employer’s address, and your year-to-date earnings. These help them to gauge whether you will be able to handle your monthly mortgage payments.

3. Employment history: While your pay stubs provide your financial earnings, your employment history gives the financial institution an idea of the nature of your employment. Generally, a record of steady employment is going to work in your favor.

4. Credit History: Credit report, including current creditors and account information. A credit report, including a list of your current creditors and the corresponding account information is useful to a financial institution because it allows them to see how you have dealt with your past loans. This list should include the details (i.e. minimum monthly payment and balances) of all student loans, auto loans, credit cards, and child support payments.

By establishing a solid credit history, you can avoid having to pay higher interest rates that frequently accompany subprime mortgages.

Expenses and Payments

5. Bank statements: In order to verify your banking assets, financial institutions will most likely want to see up to three months of your most recent bank statements.

6. Complete record of assets: Additional assets that should be reported upon applying for a mortgage loan should include mutual funds, retirement accounts, real estate titles, and stock certificates. These not only promote your qualifications as a worthy risk for the financial institution, but they can also help you secure a lower interest rate.

7. Canceled rent checks: If you are currently renting, canceled checks that were used to pay rent can be proof that you are punctual with your payments. Some financial constitutions may ask for the name and address of your landlord instead of the canceled checks.

8. Information about desired property or property type. Providing the financial institution with a description of either the property you want to finance or at least a description of the property helps the financial institution decide if any of the loan programs would be right for you.

Having these documents gathered and ready to go when you are in the process of shopping for a new home will help your mortgage application process go smoothly. Permission is granted to reprint this release in part or in its entirety as long as source credit is properly listed.

For more information, visit www.informars.com.

RISMedia welcomes your questions and comments. Send your e-mail to: realestatemagazinefeedback@rismedia.com.

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Posted by Belinda Arroyo on November 7th, 2007 11:58 AMPost a Comment (0)

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