Tri-City Area and Real Estate Blog

We’ve all heard it’s a buyers market, so your are competing with the other homeowners’s attempting to sell there homes in this market.  Your home needs all the appeal to get those potential buyers in there!  Unless your house is silver and shiny, you may want to shine it up a bit with these simple ideas can help show your home at it’s best.

Have your home pre-inspected.

When an offer is made, a home inspection must be performed. Reeling in a buyer, only to lose them to unseen problems with the house is one of the worst things that can happen.  Have your home pre-inspected to uncover any unknown issues.  Prices vary for home inspections ($250 – $500) and an agent here at Distinctive Properties can recommend a professional for you.

Check warranties and get estimates.

If the inspection turns up anything, get estimates for any repairs.  If they are affordable, repair them.  Check warranties on some items, such as furnace, dishwasher, and other real property that stays with the home.  

Make minor repairs.

Not every repair will cost you a lot.  Repair torn screens, squeaky doors, running toilets, etc.  Replace any rotten trim or other small items to increase the look of care to the home.

De Clutter.

Clutter can make the storage in the home seem small.  while you see years of perfectly fine living, other see a house that can’t hold it all.   Clear off the kitchen counters of just about everything.

Clean out closets.  Pack up lightly used items like summer clothes and camping equipment and toys.  You may want to invest in a small storage unit.  A small price to pay for curb appeal.    Store away any bulky furnishing and keep the home simple and basic.  Remember, people are looking at the home and want to picture their belongings in it.  That may be difficult with all the spaces cluttered up.  You basically want to ”depersonalize” your home by removing pictures and knick-knacks.  

Let the buyer see a blank canvas.  

Clean!

You’ve heard about first impressions and how important they are.   A buyer walks into a super clean home is left with the impression that the home is well cared for.   So clean the windows, air out the house to eliminate any natural odors from food, pets, etc.  Have carpets shampooed or steam cleaned and dust off blinds, and launder drapery. 

We hope these tips are helpful.  Visit us on our website at www.distinctiveprop.com for more information. 

The temperatures have been in the teens for the past few days.  This morning it was 16 degrees, but I didn’t have to scrape any ice of my vehicle so the air seems to be fairly dry.  However…..forecasters are saying there’s a likelihood of snow accumulation in the valleys of Eastern Washington.  

Two years ago, I came home from a long day at work to find my driveway running with water and a sheet of ice beneath.  As I clicked the garage door opener and watched the door rise, there was a cascade of water falling down across the white and blue checkerboard pattern, glistening in the light of the motion detectors.   A pipe, in the attic over the garage (un-insulated) burst when the temperatures were below freezing for several days.  With the low temps we experiencing here in the Tri Cities, I am making sure I am winter ready this year!   Are you? 

 Here are a few tips to stay safe and warm during snow and icy conditions.     

Let’s start with the most obvious…..Prevent Freezing Pipes!  Insulate your homes pipes with proper insulation or even newspapers and plastic and allow your faucets to drip a little during cold weather to prevent them from freezing. Even at a trickle of running water helps prevent frozen pipes. 

Be sure you know where your water shut off valve is located.

Avoid drafts and save on heating costs with a check of windows and doors.   How is the caulking and weather-stripping?  Does it need to be replaced?  Installing storm windows or cover your windows with plastic to keep heat in. 

Clean out rain gutters, repair leaky roofs and cut away tree branches that could fall on your house or outdoor buildings during a wind storm.

Be Safe: Avoid any fuel-burning equipment indoors.  Any fuel burning equipment should be vented to the outside.   If you are burning any fuel source, please keep a fire extinguisher close by.  A house fire can be devastating.

When driving, practice safety for you and your passengers.  Allow additional driving time so you are not rushing. 

Take it easy.  Slow your speed, braking and acceleration during your travels.  Don’t use the cruise control.

Don’t Tailgate.  The last thing you need to do is step on the brakes in the ice.  

Keep a blanket and some protein bars in the vehicle in the event of an emergency. 

 if you have any other tips to contribute, please comment below! 

HAVE A SAFE AND HAPPY JANUARY!

each week, Distinctive Properties compiles data and post the results on it’s website and this blog.  Here is out stats for 1-09-2012; http://www.distinctiveprop.com/files/files/01.09.2012RealEstateStats.pdf

In November and December, Realtors across the Tri-Cities will come together to participate in service of their communities by raising food and funds for 2nd Harvest. 

Bags will be dropped off  on their neighborhood doorsteps and bags and donations will be picked up December 2nd, 2011 and all donations will be be delivered to KNDU the morning of December 3, 2011.

The weather in the Tri-Cities has been beautiful.  Summer is trying to hang on as best it can!  It’s the perfect weather to be out shopping for a new house!! 

Check out the latest Real Estate Statistics from Distinctive Properties!!!  http://bit.ly/bZp9og

Anyone who has lived here in the Tri Cities over the past 1o years or more has seen the expansion that has become West Pasco and in fact, has made Pasco the 2nd largest of the Tri-Cities. According to recent US Census figures, that growth has landed Franklin County, Washington in the record books as the 18-fastest growing county in our country, and that is a distinction that no other Washington county can claim.  Last summer the county’s population sat at 77,355 which was a 56.8% increase since the year 2000. Housing in that part of Pasco has generated some welcome revenue for the city, however the cost of services has risen to accomodate the growth. Schools in Pasco grew to address the needs of 5,600 new students with the addition of 3 new elementary schools, one middle school and a new high school.  This part of our Tri-Cities is filled with affordable housing, family-friendly neighborhoods, easy access to the freeway and wonderful goods and services along the Road 68 corridor.  These attributes combined with economic stability and its proximity to the Columbia River make west Pasco and Franklin County a most desirable area in which to live.