Curb appeal and the front entrance of your home

Curb appeal and the front entrance of your home is the first impression you will make on perspective buyers.

Creating an attractive and welcoming entrance is a good investment should you decide to sell your home.

These affordable ideas will help you get your home in shape and cost as little as a few hundred dollars.  Most of these ideas can be completed in a few hours and will add value and enjoyment.

The front door.

A weather-beaten front door can detract from the front of your home.  Painting or refinishing the front door is not costly and takes only a few hours.  Try painting the door a contrasting shade that coordinates with the other exterior colors of your home.

Replace hardware.

New hardware is a quick and easy way to update your front door.  Key less entry is also a popular choice because of its streamlined, modern appeal and ease of use.

Entry way.

Dated light fixtures, a poorly looking mailbox and doorbell greatly take away from your home’s curb appeal. Take a good look at yours.  These items may need to be replaced or in need of a good cleaning and a fresh coat of spray paint.

Add house numbers.

Highly visible house numbers help make your home easy for friends, service professionals and others to find, plus they add instant curb appeal. There are a wide range of decorate yet functional house numbers available that will enhance your curb appeal as well and visibility.

Edge and mulch the front beds.

Your front garden beds will look neater and more cared for with edging and a fresh layer of mulch. You can either buy mulch in bags or have bulk quantities delivered at a reasonable cost.   Dark brown or black mulch looks the best and the most natural.

Prune plants.

Cutting back landscaping plants to below windows and/or porch railings gives any home a clean appearance, as well as leaving the doorways and windows exposed helps with security.

Light pathways and/or driveway.

A dark, unlit house is unwelcoming. Landscape lighting adds ambiance as well as security.  Solar lighting is the most affordable but also the least dependable. If you have basic wiring skills, you can install affordable landscape lighting yourself.

Add architectural interest.

Painted shutters, window boxes, decorative molding, columns or brackets can go a long way in adding appeal to your home.  Great deals can be found at resale shops, garage sales and flea markets.  Use your artistic flair!

These pointers will create curb appeal and the front entrance of your home will give a fabulous first impression.

Call us anytime for more ideas!

Richard Thyssen, Broker of Record

Colleen Thyssen, Sales Representative

Direct: 519-495-1541

Email:  rthyssen@rogers.com

www.thyssengroup.com

Selling Your Home: 3 Must-Knows Before you List

Sometimes the hardest part of selling a home is making the decision to sell it. Our homes give us roots, provide sanctuary, house memories and, hopefully, give us some financial security. It's a huge decision to sell a home.
Once made, however, additional decisions will come fast and furious, so take some time now, before the frenzy, to understand three salient points about the successful sale of a home in today's real estate marketplace.

What is Market Value?

One of the most challenging aspects of selling a home is determining the list price. Many homeowners will go online to find homes nearby that are for sale and base their price assumption on those that are most similar.
The list price of a home, however, is a fantasy. It represents an amount of money the seller thinks, or hopes the home will bring. Until the home sells, he may be right or he may be wrong.
Buyers set market value for homes. What a knowledgeable, willing, and unpressured buyer pays for a home is the home's true market value. Therefore, when pricing a home for the market, one must always look at the sold prices of similar homes nearby.
This is the method both real estate agents and appraisers use when determining a home's market value.

First Impressions Matter

Chipped or peeling paint, sagging window and door screens, and overgrown or dead landscaping do not make a good first impression.
Before you do anything else, clean your house, inside and out. Make cosmetic repairs, especially outdoors where the house makes its first impression. Even if it's merely a new coat of paint on the front door, shiny new house numbers and some fresh mulch in the planting beds.
Don't neglect the interior either. If you don't know where to start, take a look at some websites with ideas on how to declutter and stage the home.

Don't Attempt This on Your Own

Of course we will not tell you to take the for-sale-by-owner route. So, we won't ask you to take just our word for it. Let's look at the cold, hard numbers.
First, only 9 percent of homeowners attempt to sell their homes without the aid of an agent, according to the National Association of Realtors® (NAR). Of those, almost half said they took this route because they were selling their home to someone they knew.
The next most commonly stated reason that a homeowner gave for not using an agent was that he or she didn't want to pay the real estate commission. That's understandable when one isn't sure exactly what an agent does to get a home sold. Once you get a look at the list of what we will do, you'll understand that you definitely get what you pay for.
You should also take into consideration the fact that a home that is for sale by owner is considered a bargain to most home buyers. Many will walk in expecting you to kick back some of that money you're saving by not using an agent. This is why, according to NAR, homes sold by agents sell for 16 percent more than those sold by owner.

Selling a home is a big deal. When it's time to sell yours, start with the basics, as outlined above, and you'll be ready to list your home before you know it.

If you would like to know what your home is worth in today's market, call us anytime!

Richard Thyssen, Broker of Record
Colleen Thyssen, Sales Representative
Direct: 519-495-1541
Email: rthyssen@rogers.com
www.thyssengroup.com

What home buyers love to see

Buyers are more likely to make an offer on your home if they see a lot of
things they love about it. So what do home buyers love to see?

One of the main things they like to see is a lot of space. Of course, you can't
change the size of your rooms, but there is a lot you can do to make small
spaces in your home seem more spacious.

Buyers also love to see a clean and uncluttered home. Think of how inviting
a hotel room looks at first glance, with everything neat and organized.  The more neat, clean
and attractive you can make each room, the better.

One thing buyers don't love to see is potential maintenance issues. So as much as possible, get things fixed or updated.

In fact, the more "finished" and "move in ready" your home looks, the more likely a buyer is to make an offer.

Don't forget the surrounding neighbourhood either. A buyer may not take the time to explore the area, so be sure to make a list of the most appealing features. You might want to take a picture of the brand new playground just down the street or print off a local map showing nearby shopping, schools and other points of interest.

It's all about creating a good impression, making your home look its best and
drawing attention to the most enticing features.

Want more home selling tips? Call us today!

Richard Thyssen, Broker of Record
Colleen Thyssen, Sales Representative
Direct: 519-495-1541
Email: rthyssen@rogers.com
www.thyssengroup.com

New versus Old....

One decision that is often at the top of the list when buying a home is what age to buy.  New versus old.  Location, condition and pricing are other important factors to consider.

With a new home, there may be less renovations and updating that will need to be done. Although if you prefer character, buying an older, aged home may be for you.

It is important to weigh the pros and cons of both options before deciding what is right for you.

Buying an Older Home

PROS

• Unique character: Stained glass, molding, fireplace and woodwork. Older houses often have one-of-a-kind elements and details that are hard to come by in a newer home.
• Greenery: Older homes tend to have well developed yards and gardens. The greenery and flowers are mature so you don’t need to wait years before having mature trees and flower beds.
• Availability: There is no waiting for the home to be built or finished. No delays due to construction and you will move in on time.
• History: The home will have a history, and you will have know how much it has appreciated over the years. 

CONS

       -   More upkeep:  Owning an older home is not for everyone.  Older homes generally require 

           more maintenance.

      -    Expensive repairs:  Ask when major components were last replaced so you can factor the cost

           of possibly a new furnace, air conditioner, windows or shingles into your final decision.

Buying a new or slightly used home

PROS

• Customizing: If you buy a new home, you may get a say in what you would like based on your personal taste and needs.
• Low maintenance and builder’s warranty: New constructions are built to last years before home owners have to replace major components. 
• Built to code: Code regulations change often to make sure houses are built as safe as possible. 
• Energy efficient: You may save on energy costs because your house is built based on recent environmental recommendations.

CONS

• Immature greenery: Everything is new including the yard. You will need to invest in gardens and trees and wait for them to become mature. 
• House settling: New houses settle. There is a chance that cracks in the foundation and walls can occur.
• Modern cookie-cutter design: In newer subdivisions, contractors tend to build houses where the floor plans are very much alike.

Both purchases have their pros and cons. Whichever you decide, be sure you know what to expect with your new home purchase.

We are always here to help.  Give us a call anytime.

Richard Thyssen, Broker of Record

Colleen Thyssen, Sales Representative

Direct: 519-495-1541

Email: rthyssen@rogers.com

www.thyssengroup.com

Planning on purchasing a fixer upper house?

Purchasing a fixer upper house can be a worthwhile, money making undertaking or could be a nightmare waiting to happen.  Consider these things before you purchase a fixer upper house.

What you can do yourself?

Attempting a remodeling job that you do not have the skills for will take longer than you think, lead to less-than-professional results and cost you more money in the end.

     Do you have the skills set?

     While tasks like stripping wallpaper and painting are fairly straightforward, others like electrical work can be dangerous when done by amateurs.

      Do you have the time?

      Are you able to take time off work and away from other responsibilities to renovate a fixer  upper.  If not, will you be living in construction for months while you complete projects on the weekends.

Do the numbers before you make an offer.

     Have your contractor do a walk-through of the house, so he can give you a written cost estimate on what he will do.

     If you are doing the work yourself, make a detailed list and price of the supplies.

     There are always unforeseen issues that will arise with a fixer upper house.  To cover these add on 10 or 20% to the costs of repairs.

Will you need any permits? 

Do you require a permit for the work that needs to be done?  How much money and time will this take to acquire? Doing work without a permit may save money, but will cause problems when you resell your home.

Decide if you want to get the permits yourself or have the contractor arrange for them. Permits take time and can be frustrating if you are unsure of how to obtain them. You may have to do additional work, or change the way you want to do a project, before they give you the permit.

Factor the time of obtaining permits into your plans.

Structural work.

Get written estimates for repairs before you commit to buying a home with structural issues. Shy away from homes that needs major structural work unless:

It can be purchased at a price that once the work is done there will still be profit

You have uncovered the extent of the problem and it can be fixed    

You have a binding written estimate for the repairs

Calculate your fair purchase offer.

Take the fair market value of the property (what it would be worth if it were in good condition and remodeled) and subtract the upgrade and repair costs.

This is where we, as Realtors, come in.  We can help you decided what market value of the house would be once it is fixed up and what a fair purchase price in it's current condition would be.

Call us at 519-495-1541 anytime and let us assist you!

Richard Thyssen, Broker of Record

Colleen Thyssen, Sales Representative

Direct: 519-495-1541

Email: rthyssen@rogers.com

www.thyssengroup.com

4 Home Hazards You May Not Know About

You have smoke detectors. Your doors have good locks. The bathtub has a

slip-free pad. By all accounts, your home is a safe and secure place for your
family to live.

However, there are some hazards that many homeowners don't consider or
even know about. For instance:

1. Blocked eavestroughs. Eavestroughs clogged with leaves and

other debris can cause rainwater to overflow next to your foundation
and create a basement leak.

2. Clogged dryer vents. High temperature air combined with lint is a

near ideal condition for a fire. Check and clear the dryer vent at least
once a year.

3. Dirty faucet heads. Kitchen and bath faucets often have built-in

screens to spray the water evenly. Unfortunately, dirt and other
contaminates can build up on these and, possibly, affect the quality of the water. Clean faucet heads regularly.

4. Tripping hazards. You could step around a loose
section of carpet for years and then one day, in a moment of distraction, trip over it and fall. When you see a potential tripping hazard in your home, don't ignore it.  Fix it!

Being diligent about home safety takes a little more time. But, if it prevents one injury or illness, it's worth the effort.

Safety first!

As always, if you have any friends or co workers we could help to either buy, sell or invest in Real Estate you can always call us with their name & number, and rest assured we will give them the best service possible!!!


Richard Thyssen, Broker of Record
Colleen Thyssen, Sales Representative
Direct: 519-495-1541
Email: rthyssen@rogers.com
www.thyssengroup.com
 

The importance of reading and understanding an offer

When you make and offer to buy a property or receive an offer for a property you have for sale, it's important that you read and understand the content. It is especially important to understand
any conditions or any changes that are made to the standard offer.

An offer may contain several types of conditions. The most common are "conditional upon arranging financing", "conditional upon a professional home inspection" and conditional upon obtaining property insurance, however, there may be other conditions as well.

You should be aware of – and fully understand – all of them. In addition, the wording of an offer may change during the back and forth negotiations that often happen. Aside from changes to the price, other clauses may be added, removed or reworded as well.  Your agent will always ask you to initial changes. This is done primarily to ensure you know and approve of what you're signing.

A lack of understanding of any clause in an agreement may cause misunderstandings or worse a legal dispute.

You don't want that to happen to you. Take the time to carefully review and understand any offer.

Having a knowledgeable Realtor working for you will assist in making sure everything goes smoothly with your next move.

Richard Thyssen, Broker of Record
Colleen Thyssen, Sales Representative
Direct: 519-495-1541
Email: rthyssen@rogers.com
www.thyssengroup.com