If you are planning on listing your home for sale, make sure that you don’t overlook that outdated kitchen. A recent article on realtor.com listed “7 Signs Your Kitchen Is Way Overdue for a Renovation,” in which they warned: “Dated kitchens—just like bathrooms—are a major barrier for resale. Buyers want modern amenities and styling, and most aren’t interested in renovating post-purchase.” Kitchen remodels can be pricey, with many complete remodels costing $20,000 or more. But not every … [Read more...]
The Difference an Hour Makes
The Difference of an Hour - Time to FALL BACK Every Hour in the US Housing Market: 633 Homes Sell 253 Homes Regain Positive Equity Median Home Values Go Up $1.43 … [Read more...]
Art of The Sale – Mangoes Cottage
Original artwork Mangoes Cottage by Ed Brown We'd like to share a painting Ed Brown recently created for us of another recently sold home on Useppa Island. Ed is a local watercolorist with a true gift and the amazing ability to capture the "essence of Useppa Island" in his paintings. We fell in love with his work and use his original work as our logo. We never tire of seeing what he created. These paintings make a wonderfully personal gift for our new home buyers…something they will … [Read more...]
Art of The Sale – Casa Veranda
Original artwork Casa Veranda by Ed Brown We were so fortunate to find Ed Brown, about the time we started in residential real estate. Ed is a local watercolorist with a talent for capturing "the feel" of Useppa Island. The first painting that we saw of his amazing work captured us. We showcase his work as part of our logo and branding. We have also commissioned him to create painting of the homes we've sold, as a special gift to the home buyers. … [Read more...]
U.S. Vacation Homes Sales Remain at High Level
Baby Boomers propel demand for vacation homes. In 2015, total annual U.S. vacation home sales reached the second highest level since 2006, according to the National Association of Realtors® 2015 Investment and Vacation Home Buyers Survey. “Baby boomers at or near retirement continue to propel the demand for second homes”, says Lawrence Yun, NAR’s Chief Economist and Senior Vice President of Research. “The expanding pool of buyers amidst a dwindling number of bargain-priced properties led … [Read more...]
Budget-Minded Upgrades That Give You the Most Bang for Your Buck
Smart Home Upgrades Even if you aren’t ready to list your home, a few smart changes can make a big difference in adding to your home’s value and maybe lift your spirits as well. If you want to increase the appeal and profit potential, strategic and budget-friendly home improvement ideas in these six categories will offer the biggest return on your investment. A budget-friendly kitchen remodel Real estate agents will tell you time and again: Kitchens and baths sell houses. Dated … [Read more...]
Play Chess… Not Checkers – Second Home on Useppa Island
Checkers is a simple game with a simple objective; eliminate the other player’s pieces. Even the process of doing so is simple, jump the other player’s pieces and start a collection. There is very little thought as to a defensive strategy and it is often more reactive than strategic. Even though the objective of Chess is simply laid out — obtain the other player’s King — the process in which to obtain this goal is much more strategic. Chess requires a greater understanding of the ability of … [Read more...]
Main Street Holds up as Wall Street Struggles
Wall Street is hurting, and Main Street doesn't care. It's got burgers and cars to buy. Big losses in stock markets around the world this year have the wingtip-set fretting, but regular consumers across the United States are confident enough to open their wallets and spend more. It's an about-face from the early years of the economic recovery, which began in 2009, when stocks and big banks were soaring but many on Main Street felt like they were getting left behind. "It's almost like a … [Read more...]
Staging Your Home for Great Photos
Here's great tips for getting impressive photos when you're staging your home to sell. Design for the camera, not for the end user. When putting together a space, we always think of the camera first. Will this angle look right, will it show off the best feature of the house? Will the light hit these items correctly? The good news is you have a camera in your pocket as you read this. When we stage a house for market, we are constantly taking photographs of it and looking at it through the … [Read more...]
2015 Florida Real Estate Review
In 2015, Florida's real estate market faced changes big and small, good and not so good. Here are the most influential Florida real estate stories of 2015: The Florida Real Estate Market? It's back As a state famous for investment homes and international sales, Florida tends to be hit hard by recessions and blessed by economic booms. In 2015, it was the latter. According to Freddie Mac's latest Multi-Indicator Market Index – a measurement of state and local markets' strength – Florida's … [Read more...]