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| February 2010 |
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Top 3 tips for organizing your home to ready it to sell
What a great day it was when Dylan and Catherine Rogers chose me to be a part of their real estate team! As the owner of Moving Right Along...Home Staging Services for the past eight years, I had been given the opportunity to help their customers prepare their homes prior to selling. You see, Dylan and Catherine recognize the impact that a complimentary consultation with a profession home stager can have when it comes to introducing a new listing to prospective buyers.
Some professional home stagers also have a background in organizing. My organizing career began about 12 years ago, which lead into home staging four years later. Living in an environment where clutter is eliminated and systems are put into play helps to decrease stress and increase daily productivity.
Here are some tips as you begin the organizing process:
1. Identify common clutter areas and stresses that you tolerate on a daily basis. These areas could be stacks of paperwork; overloaded closets, cupboards and drawers; garage; basement or an out-of-control office.
2. Instead of overwhelming yourself by looking at the whole picture, choose one particular area to tackle and put each items into categories of: |
- Want to Keep. These are items that you want to keep because they are used on a regular or semi-regular basis. If the items are of sentimental value but are being hidden in a closet or drawer, it would be best to remove them from your "prime real estate" and box them up for storage.
- Don’t Need. Consider donating to one of the many local charities; asking friends or family members if they would like any of the items you no longer need; recycling; or, feel free to use the trash can for those "seen their better days" items.
- Relocate. Sometimes things are just in the wrong place, especially if you want to use your space efficiently. Luggage stored in a closet, especially a master closet, can take up valuable space. Move it to a storage closet in the basement if one is available.
3. The final tip is to keep "like" items together so that you know what you have on hand.
I’ll be surprised if, during your organizing journey, you don’t shout out at least once, "Oh, I’ve been looking for that!" Happy organizing!
For further information on home staging or organizing, call Kathy Lanning at 970.225.2284, or e-mail her at KathyLanning@q.com. |
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Endless Energy-Efficient Opportunities
One of the best things you can do to keep a healthy environment in your home is by making your home more energy-efficient.
There has never been a better time than now to start transforming your home into an oasis filled with energy-saving measures that can help you save lots of money on your long-term energy bills. Right now, there are literally dozens of different tax credits, rebates, and other funding being handed out to homeowners who are currently replacing features in their home with those more environmentally-friendly.
One of the biggest programs going on right now is the Federal Energy Efficiency Tax Credit program. The way this program works, is for energy-efficient home improvements, tax payers can receive up to a $1,500 credit on their annual income tax return. Here are a few highlights:
- Homeowners will receive a tax credit worth 30 percent of the costs (with a cap of $1,500) for upgrades of biomass stoves, heating, ventilating, or air-conditioning systems, insulation, roofing, water heaters, windows, and doors. See Energy Star’s list of qualifying items.
- Homeowners will receive a tax credit worth 30 percent of the costs (with no cap) for upgrades of geothermal heat pumps, small wind turbines, and solar energy systems. See Energy Star’s list of qualifying items.
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- Most purchases only qualify for a homeowners’ primary residence. However, the exemptions list of geothermal heat pumps, wind turbines and solar energy systems DO apply to second homes and rental properties.
- The timeframe to qualify runs through December 31, 2010. This means that the improvements need to be fully installed in the home by that date. Purchases not yet in place will not qualify.
- To apply, all homeowners need to do is simply attach the IRS tax form 5695 to the appropriate year’s annual income return. If the improvements were installed in 2009, they will qualify for this year’s income return. If installed in 2010, you will need to wait until filing your next year’s return to claim this credit.
- You must also maintain a receipt of your purchase, via the Manufacturer Certification Statement and attach it with your tax return.
- Even for married couples filing jointly, the maximum amount allowed per household will be $1,500 (or 30 percent of the cost for the exception items) over the course of both 2009 and 2010. You can not claim separate tax credits for each individual improvement, also.
Another fantastic program going on in Colorado is the anticipated Governor’s Energy Office Rebate program—due to launch sometime around March. This program’s specifics are still being worked out, but the important thing to know is that as a homeowner, you can apply for |
a rebate from the Governor’s Energy Office for upgrading home appliances, such as washers, dryers, dishwashers, refrigerators, water heaters, furnaces and gas boilers, that qualify for the energy-efficient program. Continue to follow the Governor’s Energy Office web site as the program details become finalized.
There’s even more rebates and programs across the state at the local level! Check out the Database of State Incentives for Renewables and Efficiency web site for a complete list of the many programs and funds available in your local county or municipality. For example, Fort Collins utilities users can be granted rebates for purchasing Energy Star rated appliances. And many areas of the state allow home owners to receive a rebate for 20 percent (cap of $300) of the costs for increasing the insulation within their home.
And don’t forget, you can also apply for credits on new construction, as well. There are many Energy Star-certified homes out there, and many builders have partnered with Energy Star to build either fully-certified homes or partial Energy Star building packages. Most of the other major tax credits and rebate programs accept new homes that are Energy Star rated.
With so many incentive programs happening right now, it’s a no-brainer that now is the perfect to get started on making those healthy-home improvements. Not only will you save money on monthly energy costs, but you can instantly get cash back in your pocket for these purchases! |
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Tax Time: Don't forget April 15th is approaching soon!
As you start to prepare all of your financials from last year to submit your tax return, don't forget to include any settlement statements (HUD-1 form) you may have received last year.
Can't find your HUD-1? No problem! Call us or shoot us an e-mail at:
(970) 988-1030, clrogers@frii.com (970)214-6968, dylanrogers@frii.com and we can get that e-mailed to you soon! |
Last month's question: Denver businessman Louis Ballast trademarked what all-American food in 1935 at the Humpty Dumpty Drive-In?
The word, "cheeseburger"
This month's trivia: What state would you be living in if you paid the highest property taxes across the country?
Check back next month for the answer! |
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Just a brief narrative on some history with interest rates relatively speaking and to give a better perspective as to how low mortgage rates currently are, we turned to Freddie Mac, a shareholder-owned corporation developed by the United States Congress in 1970. The mission of the organization is to provide homeowners and renters with lower housing costs and better access to home financing.
At today’s rate of around 5.05 percent, rates are the lowest they’ve been in Freddie Mac’s record which dates back to 1971. Historically speaking, rates have moved relatively slow and consistent through the years though there have been some notable peaks. Among them:
- Since 2000, mortgage rates have remained relatively low with a peak of 8.52 percent in May 2000 to the January 2009 low of 5.05 percent.
- But to put it into perspective of how fast things can change, in January 1979, rates were at 10.39 percent. Just over two years later, rates reached their peak of 18.45 percent in October 1981. During this period, rates rose dramatically, and at one point jumped almost two percentage points in just 30 days.
How do interest rates really affect Buying Power? Here are a couple examples based on principle and interest:
| Interest rate* |
4.875% |
5.75% |
.875% |
| Monthly payment |
$1,317 |
$1,451 |
$134/month |
| Difference saved over 5 years |
$8,040 |
| Difference saved over 10 years |
$16,080 |
| Difference saved over 30 years |
$48,240 |
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| Interest rate* |
5.25% |
6.125% |
.875% |
| Monthly payment |
$2,749 |
$3,022 |
$273/month |
| Difference saved over 5 years |
$16,380 |
| Difference saved over 10 years |
$32,760 |
| Difference saved over 30 years |
$98,280 |
*This is in interest alone and there is also compounded interest savings as well!
A loan amount of $250,000 at 5 percent versus a loan amount of $225,000 at 6 percent equates to $1,336 per month versus $1,342 per month—almost the same payment for $25,000 more home!
Additionally, let’s take a look at some current rates for this week. Dave White from Bank of America supplied us with these figures:
| Conventional 30 Year |
4.875% |
4.993% |
| Conventional 5/1 ARM |
3.625% |
3.435% |
| FHA 30 Year |
4.875% |
5.330% |
| FHA 5/1 ARM |
4.125% |
3.451% |
Call Dave today to get preapproved or get a more personalized quote! Call at: (970) 419-2729 or e-mail at: dave.white@bankofamerica.com
**Rates quoted based on 2/16 pricing--rates subject to change daily
**Pricing assumes fully documented income, assets, and excellent credit
**Pricing scenarios based on purchase money transactions
**Minimum conventional and FHA program parameters apply. |
| In this ever-changing world we live in, it’s always important to closely follow trends, monitor progresses and prepare for the future. Luckily, there are many tools in our belt that we can use to stay up-to-date with the vast amounts of information out there.
The Colorado Association of Realtors’ Snapshot of Colorado for 2009 provides some great statistics for the past year’s real estate trends across the state. A few of the highlights include:
- Almost 75 percent of Colorado residents are homeowners
- 39 percent of home sales last year were allocated to first-time buyers
- The median income for first-time home buyers was $58,200
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- The median income for repeat buyers was $83,900
- One of the most important factors to buyers when deciding to purchase was commuting costs
Additionally, the report details just how much income is derived across all economic areas when a home is sold. Total income generated from the sale of a home was reported at $69,368. Of this figure, $21,429 is generated by real-estate related industries, $29,763 is attributed to other new home sales, $12,845 in other service/business areas, and $5,331 is expensed on consumer items. Basically, when you break it down, buying a home not only a long-term investment decision for buyers, but this decision also has an impact on many other areas of the economy. |
Home designers and builders speaking at the recent International Builders Show in Las Vegas say that buyers are seeking cost-effective features and rejecting things that don’t have lasting value.
“It's all about family togetherness – casual living, entertaining and flexible spaces," says Carol Lavender, president of the Lavender Design Group in San Antonio.
Paul Cardis, CEO of Avid Ratings, which conducts an annual survey of buyer preferences, identified these must-haves in new homes: |
- Large kitchens with islands
- Energy efficiency including energy-efficient appliances, super insulation and high-efficiency windows
- Home offices
- Main floor master suite
- Outdoor living space
- Ceiling fans
- Soaking tub in the master suite and/or an oversized shower with a seating area
- Stone and brick exteriors rather than stucco or vinyl
- Community walking paths and playgrounds
- Two-car garages, but three-car garages are even more desirable
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