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Simple Things You Can Do to Make Your Home More Appealing

 

Not everyone can afford the cost of a renovation or a new home, but you can never go wrong when you cosmetically upgrade the interior and exterior of your home. Investing in the upkeep of your residence not only improves its appearance, but the overall appearance of your neighborhood. It can be cost efficient, simple and quick to do.

 

            On the exterior of your home, power washing the siding or brick can dramatically improve the appearance. Painting the fence, planting some colorful flowers and mulching the trees in your yard can add curbside appeal. The first thing most people focus on when approaching your home is your front door. Painting or staining your door is a simple low cost improvement that can highlight your entrance without the costly expense of replacement. Shutters are also a low cost item, pre-painted, easy to install and can change the appearance and style of a plain looking facade and enhance its charm. If your entrance walkway is in disrepair you can install brick pavers for a warm but elegant, country look. There are many styles, colors and shapes.

 

            The interior of your home may need a new coat of paint. You may want to consider some of the new color schemes available at your local paint or home improvement store. New carpet in the bedrooms or new rugs over a freshly scraped and polyurethaned hardwood floors in your living room and dining room can be a refreshing change. Upgrade the interior trim and add ornamental crossheads above the doorways. If you desire more light, have a larger window installed where you feel the interior can be enhanced by exterior views. Maybe it’s time for new kitchen appliances or modern bathroom fixtures. From new garage doors to installing a new lighting fixture, there are many things you can do to make your home more appealing without spending thousands of dollars.

 

Take a walk around your home and imagine what it would look like if you made a few minor changes. Just make yourself a list in the order you feel a repair or change is needed. These projects can be a lot of fun for you and your family and time together, well spent.

 

To get your copy of Hector’s book,

 

What Your Parent’s Never Told You About Owning a Home

 

Visit www.americashomeimprovementcoach.com and with

 

your purchase his book you will receive 5 reports on

 

ü     Selling Your Home In Any Market

ü     Hiring the Right Contractor For You

ü     Staying Within Your Budget

ü     Looking Out For Contractor Scams

ü     What Questions Should You Ask a Potential Contractor

 

Getting in shape is on the minds of many individuals these days. Some choose to obtain gym memberships whereas others would like to have the convenience of working out at home. For the latter group of individuals, creating a home gym might be the perfect option to bringing the optimal exercise atmosphere home to you. If you are interested in creating a home gym and making working out as convenient as can be, the following will provide some tips on how to make your dream of a home gym reality.

Figure Out Where the Home Gym Will Go

The first step to creating a home gym is to figure out where it will be placed within the home. If you have a separate room which you can set aside as your workout location, this is ideal. However, for those who have limited space within the home, it is completely possible to create a home gym in a room which is used for other purposes as well. Take a good look around the home and determine which area would be most suitable for your home gym location.

Determine How Much Space Is Available

When creating a home gym you also want to determine how much space you will have available. Doing so in the beginning will help you to decide what type of workout equipment you want to buy for your home gym. Before making any equipment purchases, take down some measurements of the available space as this will prove helpful when shopping for workout products.

Peruse Different Types of Gym Equipment

Some individuals will know exactly what types of gym equipment they want to buy for their home gym whereas others may need to peruse the options before deciding on particular types thereof. Try searching various equipment options online and in fitness magazines to see which ones peak your interest. Also, if you are interested in working out specific portions of the body try searching for equipment which will work out those areas in particular.

Shop for the Home Gym Equipment and Furnishings

Once you have a good idea as to what type of home gym equipment and furnishings you wish to buy, the next step is to make the desired purchases. Buying items at sporting good stores and fitness retailers will often provide one with the most options. Try visiting your local sporting good stores so that you can view the equipment in person and even try it out. Later, if you figure out what brand equipment you want and have tested it out in the stores, look online for the items as these may yield the best prices. However, just be sure that the online retailers ship for free as these products are often quite heavy which can make for extremely expensive shipping costs.

In addition to the fitness equipment, you may also want certain furnishings in your home gym. Items such as a chair, towel rack and even a television for viewing while working out may be good purchases. Consider what extra niceties might fit perfectly within your new home gym and check out options with regard to those as well.

Time to Set up the Home Gym

Once everything has been decided upon, purchased and received, the final step is to set up your new home gym. Prior to setting the equipment up you should already know where everything is going to go as it will be difficult to move things around too often due to the weight of a lot of exercise equipment pieces. Since most equipment will need to be assembled, try to do so in the home gym room as this will make for an easier time getting everything set up and ready to go. Once you have it all set up, you are ready to get started working out in the convenience of your own home.

Need help paying for your home gym? Check out www.MyDreamHomeRegistry.com and make your dream a reality.

Think about why this is true. A good appraisal is the best reassurance that the lender won’t lose its pants on the transaction. If the borrower defaults, the lender still has a marketable property that can be sold to recoup its losses. All of which makes it understandable why lenders are so picky about appraisals. And with recent changes in the industry, the focus by lenders to obtain good appraisals is at the forefront.

Appraisals typically cost anywhere from $350 to $400. However, if the house is gigantic, multi-unit or in the boondocks, it could run more. The cost varies on property type, location and square footage.

The most common type of appraisal is the Uniform Residential Appraisal Report (URAR). It consists of interior and exterior photos and sometimes (depending on the age of the home), a complete cost breakdown of the property and comps (comparison sales of homes nearby that meet the proper criteria). These comps help determine the “market” approach. Each comp sale is adjusted in value when stacked against the home being evaluated (the one you’re buying or refinancing). Usually you will see a comp below the value of your home, in line with the value of your home, and a third above the value of your home. Kind of like the three bears. But if the valuation gets tricky, you can see fourth, fifth and sixth comps. The net value of the comps is estimated based upon the approaches used to come up with the appraised value of your property (meaning the appraiser performs some type of calculation that’s kind of like an average, but not necessarily a true average. Confused yet?)

URARs also, typically but not always, reflect a cost approach, which determines what the value would be based upon what is estimated it would cost to rebuild the home, less depreciation. The final estimated value of the home is then determined by using a melding of the market approach described above and cost approach (if applicable).

Lori Babb, Staff Appraiser for Mortgage Investors Group of Knoxville, TN, further explains comparables. “The best comparables are those similar in size, style (ranch, basement rancher, 2 story, etc.), age, and are close in proximity to the dwelling being appraised,” she explains. “Unique properties will typically require more adjustments than the average properties.”

So, say you’re Bill Gates and want to secure a mortgage on a $200,000 home (I know, it’s ridiculous, but I’m trying to make a point). He’s got the best credit profile a lender could imagine, yet the house appraises for $175,000. Deal or no deal? You better believe it’s no deal. The sales price will have to be lowered, or Mr. Gates will just have to pay cash for his new home (you think he can afford it?). The point is, your average Joe won’t go ahead with the deal without a price adjustment, and he will be obligated to pay for the appraisal regardless of the outcome of value.

Dan Tyrell, principal of Knoxville area’s Tyrell Appraisal Service, Inc., has this comment about value, “When determining value of a single family house, beauty is more than ‘skin deep’. Fresh paint, new carpet, new appliances, and nice landscaping all enhance the marketability of a house. Not so obvious items also impact the appraised value of a house. For instance older houses that have replaced plumbing/electrical systems, updated HVAC systems, newer roofs, replacement windows, etc. lower the effective age of the property which in turn increases the appraised value.”

There are other types of appraisals that are not as common, like an Automated Valuation Model (or AVM). In this case, different factors combine to ensure the value of the home (it’s worth $200K, but your loan amount is only $100K) and your unbelievable credit worthiness (800 credit score!), allowing you to skip purchasing a typical appraisal. You may also only be required to get a “drive by” appraisal, where the appraiser just inspects the exterior of the subject for size, looks at the lot and makes you wonder who that person standing by your mailbox is.

Most lenders control what appraiser is used to determine the value of your home. After all, it’s their money on the line. The appraisal is such an important factor to the mortgage transaction – make sure you’re satisfied with the results. Your lender will make sure it is satisfied!