Curb Appeal.

Curb appeal is a word used frequently by us people in the real estate profession but not everyone knows exactly what it means. Curb appeal is what the house looks like from the street, or the first impression buyers will have when they look at your house from the outside for the first time. In today's market you need to have really good curb appeal to attract buyers and get showings to bring in an offer. Here are the most common and easiest things you can do to make your house stand out.

1. Get a new door.
The front door is the most telling detail of your house. You can give your home's entryway an instant lift by choosing custom colors, handsome woods such as mahogany or cherry, or cut-glass storm doors. The door is the first impression people will have of your house. That probably means that I should buy a new door. Mine is super old and is even having some of the material fall off! Maybe I can put that on my Christmas list for my husband.

2. Think shutters.
If you have an older house, this is one way to add character without spending a lot. You can hunt for them in antiques shops or order them from a home store. Shutters are also a good place to add vibrant accent colors like blue, red, yellow, or green.

3. Accessorize.
Brass knockers, mailboxes, and lanterns are small investments that make your house look great. Since these accents can lose their shine, choose tarnish-free pieces. House numbers, kickplates, and doorbell buttons are also available.

4. Spruce up the grounds.
Trim shrubs so that doors and windows aren't hidden. Fill window boxes with vines, geraniums, and ornamental grasses, or plant tried-and-true perennials like climbing hydrangea. The garden should complement the style of the house.

5. Paint it right.
Traditional colors are big right now. Since the average cost to paint a two-story home is more than $8,000, don't rush your decision. Check out homes you like in your area and ask the owners for the names of the paint colors they used.

There are many other things that you can do as well but these are easy starting points and will make your house stand out against the neighbors.

NEGOTIATIONS

How do you negotiate the best terms in a transaction or contract? Negotiating is something that causes goosebumps in many people, even seasoned salespeople. The key is to think like the other party.

Deadly sins of Negotiating
1. Think only of yourself
2. Insult the other party (lose-win propositions)
3. Ask for too much, too quick
4. Inadequate or no preparation
5. Poor communications
6. Emotion
7. Think about at least your next two steps

Know Yourself
Sit down and do some soul-searching. Write out your desired outcomes-needs, wants and nice-to-haves. If you can accurately peg what you want and need from the negotiations, you are in a powerful position to articulate your strategy to get the needed outcomes.

Know Them
Who are you negotiating with? What are their needs, wants and nice-to-haves? What type of person or organization are they? These questions will enable you to determine how they will likely negotiate. Perhaps there are one or two of their needs that you can give up in the negotiations to be able to obtain your needs or perhaps even your nice-to-haves.

Relationship
All too often, we want to take, take, take. Get to know the other side, personally if possible. This will take some of the emotion out of the negotiations for you and for them. Don't underestimate the importance of this step. This is not about shmoozing. This is about making sure you both understand the other sides position and trying to form a win-win solution.

Patience
Successful negotions often don't happen in one negotiation session. The first session should often be used to get to know the other party and confirm their intentions and/or needs for the negotions. Verbalize your position and establish a time for your next meeting.

Real Estate
In Real Estate, it isn't only about the sell price of the home. There are several other items that are as important or almost as important to the buyer or to the seller.
- how much is the earnet money?
- when is the closing date?
- is there an inspection and if so, is it quick?
- how solid is the financing?
- are there other concessions: i.e., is the riding lawn mower asked for in the purchase agreement, are there seller-paid closing costs?

Bottom Line
If you are buying a home, think like a seller and if you are selling a home, think like a buyer. Always try to understand the other party and their position. You are at least half-way to achieving your desired outcome already!

MICE!

MICE in the house: Is it just me or does anyone else have a problem with mice cruising around the house? I have 3 cats at home so I shouldn't have a problem but once I caught my precious feline just staring at the mouse and then he walked away. That's it! I decided to take matters into my own hands. I was only finding them in my kitchen, where all the goods are that they want. Here are some things that I did and that you can do to elimate mice in your house.

1. Clean areas under stoves, refrigerators and dishwashers.
2. Store dry food (rice, pasta and grains), dry pet food and birdseed in metal, glass or plastic containers.
3. Clean pet bowls at night.
4. Store lumber, firewood and compost away from the house. Elevate lumber and firewood on pallets. Use thick plastic or metal trash cans with tightly fitting lids.
5. Rake, collect and remove fruit, nuts and other foods that have fallen out of plants or trees. Repair all small holes in foundation, walls, basements, etc. Use caulking, a concrete patch, course steel wool or copper mesh.
6. Properly dispose of garbage.
7. Plug any holes with steel wool (they can't chew through it)

Good luck! Hopefully this keeps them away for all of us.

HOME SECURITY

A home burglary happens every 12 seconds in the U.S. with an average loss per burglary of over $1500. Home burglaries seem to always increase around the holiday periods but statistically, the summer months (July and August) have the most reported home break-ins and the winter months (February) have the fewest.

Burglaries
- are most often committed by young males, 25 years old and younger
- are cased out ahead of time to find the best home to break into and the best time to break in
- take items easily converted to cash - electronics, jewelry and cash
- target residences where the home-owner/resident is away
- happen most often during the daytime
- 35% of the time are via unlocked doors or windows

Tips to minimize your risk:
1. Get a security system
- cost is approx. $30/month
- you may be able to just get a "decoy" sticker for doors and windows saying there is a security system
- get a dog or place a screw-in leash holder with leash and water dish in your yard
- join Operation Identification with your local police department and etch i.d. numbers on high value items making them easier to track and harder to sell

2. Make your home a "hard target", difficult to break into
- install deadbolts on doors
- re-inforce doorframes
- remove brush or cover around doors and windows (thieves could use to hide)
- light the exterior especially areas around doors
- lock all doors when away including inside garage door

3. Make your home appear lived in
- use timers on your lights in more than one room while you are home and away

***When you are away for an extended time:
- hire a house-sitter when away to care for plants and animals
- have neighbors collect mail and newspapers
- have someone park a car in your driveway and ask them to move it occasionally
- keep the lawn mowed

4. Get to know your neighbors - let them know you will be gone and ask them to keep a watch on your home for suspicious activity

5. Secure and inventory your valuables
- every year, photograph your belongings in the home and keep track of make, model and serial numbers to be used in the event of an insurance claim
- keep valuables put away and locked up if possible

The Bottom Line
The bottom line, practice good security all the time by keeping your doors locked and valuables out of sight. Look out for your neighbors and build strong community.

ENERGY SAVING TIPS

Energy Saving Tips. Everyone could use some of them. I know I could. I live in an 1896 built home and every month I spend $500 on gas and electric. Yikes! I would love to get that lowered to around $300, that leaves $200 for me to spend on other important things, like shopping or going out to eat. Anyways, the reason that my house has these high costs is because it is so old and has poor insulation. While researching online for tips for myself to put more money in my pocket at the end of the month, here is what I came up with:

• Space heating and cooling accounts for about 45 percent of your utility bill and offers the greatest opportunity to improve energy efficiency.
• Adjust the thermostat in small degree changes - your home won't heat or cool faster by cranking it up.
• An easy energy saving tip is to install a programmable thermostat that will automatically adjust the temperature according to your schedule. It'll pay for itself in less than a year.
• Changing the furnace filter every month is a good energy saving tip.
• Keep furniture and drapes away from the HVAC air supply and return air ducts to increase the energy efficiency of your system.
• Be sure the air conditioner is fully charged with freon so it operates efficiently.
• When installing a new furnace, check the energy rating and choose a high-efficiency unit for maximum energy savings. This energy saving tip will pay for itself in about 7 years.
• When buying an air conditioner, don't over-size it. Select the proper size and choose an energy-efficient model.
• During the winter, remove window air conditioners and seal the windows with caulk and weather stripping.
• Ceiling fans are more energy efficient at circulating the air than turning on the main furnace fan.
• Install a whole-house fan in the attic to draw hot air out of the house. INSULATION & CAULKING
• More than half of the energy used for heating is lost through uninsulated walls, floors, ceilings and attics.
• Adding additional insulation to the ceilings, walls and floors of your home is one of the most effective energy saving tips. It traps heat inside during the winter and keeps heat outside during the summer.
• Caulking and weather stripping your doors and windows is an efficient energy saving tip.
• Caulk and seal air leaks where plumbing, ducts or electrical wires penetrate the exterior walls, floors and ceilings.
• Install the ready-made foam insulating pads inside your receptacle and switch plate covers to keep out the winter cold and summer heat.
• Seal cracks in your basement walls and floor to keep heat in and cold air out.