If you have decided to add hardwoods to your property, you’ve made a wise decision – just keep in mind you’ll have to also plan on maintaining them.Hardwood flooring is created from mature trees, then treated & finished. Maintaining them can be difficult, however, because they can scratch easily and also absorb moisture.

Leaving a puddle of liquid on your hardwoods for any longer than necessary is not a good idea. The cracks between the hardwood can absorb the moisture and swell. Any amount of liquid that happens to be spilled, even in a small area, can still become damaging should it stay there for any lengthy period of time.

If you spill something on your hardwood floors, clean up the fluid immediately. Use a damp mop only when you clean your hardwoods. There are floor cleaners that are specifically formulated for hardwoods that you can use. Whichever route you go, use the minimum necessary to keep your mop damp.

Dents and scratches can occur to hardwoods over time. For some types of flooring, especially softer woods, high heels can leave indentations – you might contemplate taking them off and leaving them at your door to reduce wear. Over time the legs of your furniture can also damage the floor. A smart idea is placing area rugs underneath the furniture in order to protect the floor, or placing felt underneath the furniture legs. You may also want to add area rugs in any areas that are highly traveled in your home.

Some homeowners can appreciate the character that scratches and dents give to their wood floor. If you’re not one of those individuals and you have lots of dents and scratches, then one good option is to get them refinished. If you have your wood floors refinished every decade and stay on top of protecting them, they can stay in great condition throughout your entire lifetime.

About the Author – Josh manages an Austin real estate website, where users can learn about the Austin market, look at current market statistics, and search all active listings, including Rosedale homes for sale.

The two things that most sellers want is top dollar for their property and a quick sale. Careful planning on what to do with your home when you put it up for sale will lower the number of days on market. One very important step is to put all your personal items away including family pictures. Try and disconnect yourself from the home or condo and realize this property will not be yours for very much longer. Buyers want to imagine their own items and pictures in the home, making it feel like a home to them. You don’t want buyers to focus on who lives in the home or condo now, but what will it be like for them to live there in the near future. Putting your personal items away also helps the home appear larger since there is less clutter.

All counter tops and dining room tables need to be kept clear. Think of a model home you walk into, you don’t see any clutter or personal items. Everything is clean and clear of all newspapers, magazines, knickknacks and food items. No dirty dishes in the sink. A cluttered home makes the buyer feel uncomfortable and will potentially push them out of the showing quickly. It also sends a message to the buyer that you may not be taking care of the rest of the home if you can’t keep it clean – what else is wrong with the home?

As part of de-cluttering, don’t forget the closets and kitchen cabinets. Buyer’s love to open up closets.  Make sure shoes are nice and neat and boxes are not stuffed to the ceiling – nothing makes a closet look smaller than boxes from floor to ceiling. Kitchen cabinets should be nice and neat as well, rearrange and straighten food items, dishes and glassware. Think of how a buyer would feel coming into a sparkling clean and neat home. They want to live there!

About the Author: Eric Miller is a broker associate /owner with Keller Williams Realty in Fort Lauderdale with over 10 years of experience. Eric Miller and Associates is an award winning team of Ft. Lauderdale realtors and can be found online at FortLauderdaleGroup.com, where you can view every Fort Lauderdale condominium listed for sale.

If there are no repairs or upgrades needed in your home and if it is in spectacular condition, you may expect to get very close to your selling price – and you probably will! If your home is in top shape and all that the buyer needs do is bring his or her toothbrush and unpack their belongings, your house will attract a great deal of interest, and many buyers will realize that there is not much room to maneuver on price.  Essentially, this is the goal that every seller is working towards.

However, most homes that go up for sale are not in near perfect condition, or in top shape, and sellers must decide whether to fix a lot or fix a little – keeping in mind that research shows that sellers who do make repairs to their homes only receive a percentage of that cash outlay back at the closing table in the form of a higher priced sale (i.e. return on investment is not oftentimes 100%). You may spend a lot of money on installing floor tiles or re-carpeting the whole house and find that some potential buyers find your choice of flooring not at all to their liking.

If you do decide to make a major upgrade or expenditure, here’s some advice to you that will help you recoup as much of that investment as possible.  Keep the style and colors neutral. Soft, muted colors do not make a strong decorating statement and will allow potential buyers to project their own sense of taste and design on the house. It’s often shown that bathroom and kitchen remodels bring the greatest return on investment.

Don’t forget that a buyer will more than likely perform an inspection on your home, which will oftentimes uncover basic repairs. Please realize that making basic repairs is simply going to bring your home in line with average price per square foot in the neighborhood, rather than inflate the price like some upgrades may allow. Sellers may want to consider obtaining a professional home inspection before you sell.

If you have the skills and are able to make repairs or upgrades on your own without hiring professional help, you will make your money go farther and be more competitive with similar homes in your area, but be careful on what projects you take on, don’t go over your head only to find out that the “upgrade” is actually a “downgrade” because the final product does not look well done.

And finally, keep in mind that you do not want to pay to upgrade your home so that it is the highest priced home in the neighborhood, you’ll have a difficult time maintaining that high price point during negotiations because the neighborhood will provide you little assistance in supporting the price per square foot that the home warrants, perhaps in another higher end neighborhood.

Are you trying to get your home sold as quickly as possible? If so, it is essential that you present your home to potential buyers in the most favorable way possible. After all, if your home makes a good impression on potential buyers, you will be more likely to get offers that you will be happy with. Here is a look at 5 simple ways you can stage your home to draw more buyers.

Staging Tip #1: Increase Curb Appeal

First impressions are lasting ones, so make sure to take the steps necessary to increase the curb appeal of your home. Things you can do to increase the curb appeal of your home include:

• Make minor repairs to the home’s exterior
• Apply a fresh layer of paint to the exterior, if applicable (be sure to choose a neutral color)
• Repaint the shutters, door and trim
• Remove clutter from the driveway and yard
• Keep the lawn and landscape neatly mowed, trimmed and edged
• Add fresh mulch to flower beds
• Place potted plants outside the door

All of these steps will make your home more appealing and inviting to potential buyers, which will make them more interested in seeing what else the home has to offer.

Staging Tip #2: Create a Welcoming Entryway

After seeing your home from the curb, the next thing potential buyers will see when viewing your home is your entryway. Therefore, you want to be sure your home is inviting to potential buyers as soon as they open the door. Two ways to accomplish this goal is to make sure the entryway is free of clutter and well-lit. Applying a fresh layer of paint can also create a fresh look that buyers will find appealing. Choose lighter colors to help make the space look bigger.

Staging Tip #3: Update Wherever Possible

Making simple updates to your home will help increase buyer interests while also potentially increasing the value of your home. Some simple updates that will leave a meaningful impression on buyers include installing water-efficient faucets and toilets as well as other eco-friendly features. Updating cabinets with new knobs and handles is also a quick and simple way to increase your home’s appeal.

Staging Tip #4: Remove Personal Items

When it comes to selling a home, removing personal items is one of the most important things you can do. After all, if your home is filled with pictures and personal mementos, it makes it difficult for the buyer to see anyone but you in the home. Since the goal is to get the buyer to see him or herself in the home, you want to remove as many barriers as possible.

Staging Tip #5: Make the Home Appear Comfortable

Most buyers are looking for more than just a house – they want a home. Therefore, you should take steps to make the house feel “homey” to the potential buyer. You can do this by making the home look comfortable and inviting. You can accomplish this by moving the furniture around so it is easy to walk around. Placing the furniture so it is conducive to conversation is also a good way to add appeal to your home.

Per CoreLogic, a property information and consulting firm out of California, Shadow Inventory rose 10% nationwide in the past year.

Yes, 2.1 million distressed houses are still not on the market through August. Mark Fleming, chief economist for CoreLogic said “The weak demand for housing is significantly increasing the risk of further price declines in the housing market. This is being exacerbated by a significant and growing shadow inventory that is likely to persist for some time due to the highly extended time-to-liquidation that servicers are currently experiencing.”

So how does Boston rank?

Boston has a 19.3 month supply of distressed homes – ranked 14th of the largest markets. Massachusetts has a 14.7 month supply of distressed homes – ranked 17th in the states.

Sellers, you can dwell on the stats or use the end of the year to re-evaluate your selling strategy. Here are a couple of questions to ask yourself as you prepare to sell your home in 2011.

1. Be honest and realistic – are you priced appropriatly? Check with your agent and get updated comps for the last 6 months – the only comps that matter. If you haven’t already, you must take distressed properties into consderation.

3. Does your house pop? I show a lot of properties and it amazes me how unprepared sellers continue to be. There are a million lists online about cleaning, de-cluttering, de-personalizing, painting, crub appeal etc. to prepare your home for sale. Doing those are just the start. Your house needs to WOW buyers! Take another look at those lists again, and ask for feedback.

3. Are you and your agent maximizing your marketing plan? Has your agent asked you to do something that you haven’t followed through on? Have you asked your agent to do something he promised and it hasn’t happened? Now is a great time to reevaluate your online and print marketing plan and get the first quarter action plan in writing.

There is no doubt the housing market is very difficult right now. Leave NO stone unturned to get your house sold.

One of the most common ways to avoid foreclosure when facing a financial hardship is to short sale your property. A short sale, by definition, is selling your home for less than what is owed, and as of April 5, 2010, you can even get a little cash from the government to do so.

The HAFA (Home Affordable Foreclosure Alternatives) program introduced by President Obama, allows homeowners up to $3,000 to avoid foreclosure after closing on their short sale. Here are some facts that you need to know about HAFA:

Home Affordable Foreclosure Alternatives Facts

The first step to qualifying for HAFA is to apply for HAMP, (Home Affordable Modification Program).  You see, in order to get the $3,000, you must try a loan modification first. Here are the rules of eligibility for the HAMP program:

• Must Be A Personal Residence
• Mortgage Amount Must Be Less Than $729,750
• Must Suffer A Financial Hardship
• Mortgage Must Have Been Initiated Before January 1, 2009
• PITI And HOA Must Be More Than 31% Of Borrowers Gross Monthly Income

The second step is to get denied by HAMP.  If any of those five rules do not apply to you, you are not eligible for HAMP. Not qualifying is a good thing if you wish to short sale your home through the HAFA program.

If you do meet these eligibility rules it’s up to your bank to decide if they will allow you to modify your loan, and everyone knows how difficult that can be. Less than 30% of homeowners who apply for a loan mod are approved, so there’s a pretty good possibility you will be denied.

Once you’re rejected from the HAMP program, you can do a HAFA short sale or pursue a deed in-lieu-of foreclosure. In order to qualify for the HAFA short sale program, there are a few more eligibility rules.  First off, HAFA will pre-approve the short sale price and you only get four months to sell with a real estate agent.

Just like the HAMP program, the home has to be your principal residence. The mortgage must be less than $729,750. You must be 60 days behind on the mortgage. The mortgage has to be originated before January 1, 2009, and sellers with government loans do not qualify.

After jumping through all these hoops, the benefits of the HAFA program are worth it. If you sell your home within the four month time period, you will receive the $3,000 check for relocation expenses from the government. But that’s not all.

Your lender can not pursue a deficiency judgment. You wont have to make a seller contribution and the bank cannot foreclose during those four months. As you can see, short sales are a complicated process and require the expertise of a qualified short sale agent. If you’re in the San Diego area, please contact us for help with your short sale process.

Preparing your home for sale is often a tedious process. From cleaning and updating to de-cluttering and preparing for open houses and showings, preparing your home for sale can test one’s patience, for sure.  However, there are a number of things that you can do now, before you list your Boston home for sale, which will save you a considerable amount of time and frustration during the home selling process:

• Have a pre-sale home inspection – It may be a bit difficult to fork out a few hundred dollars for a home inspection given that the homebuyer will certainly have a home inspection of their own, but the idea is to make your life a bit easier. A pre-sale home inspection can bring problems to light so that you can deal with them before you list your home for sale. In other words, it’s a lot easier to repair a roof without a buyer breathing down your throat. In short, a pre-sale home inspection can make the buyer’s home inspection go off without a hitch –and without a worry on your part.
• Pay for a termite inspection – It is best to handle this “pesty” situation beforehand so that you’re not unpleasantly surprised when a homebuyer’s pest inspection reveals problems. Plus, a pest inspection report is a great selling feature for your home, as it eliminates one less worry for homebuyers.
• Fill out your home disclosure form truthfully and completely – Be as forthcoming as possible on your home disclosure form so that you don’t find yourself in a situation where the buyers are accusing you of knowingly hiding pre-existing problems.
• Repair what you can, and get repair estimates for repairs that you don’t want to address – Doing so can give your buyers a general idea of how much it will cost to address the issue. You may also want to offer a credit in the amount of the repair to the buyer.
• Organize all the warranties and operator’s manuals for your home appliances, including the furnace, the air conditioner and the kitchen appliances.

Buying and selling real estate is a very emotional and psychological experience. Perhaps you’ve been on one of the two sides at some point in your life. You know when you’ve had to either decide on a minimum number to sell your home or maximum number to buy a home? Yes, that fun game of going back and forth for weeks negotiating just to end up at a stalemate feeling frustrated, deflated and back at square one.

It rarely comes as a surprise when I meet with a Boston seller and upon our first consultation they make an irrational statement about what their home is worth. Their chest sort of puffs out and they become animated explaining just why their home is worth what they say it’s worth. None of it is based on market data. It’s all about what they think it’s worth. The dialogue is actually good to hear as it allows me to gauge the person and their level of emotional connection and commitment to the transaction. I’ve had sellers insist on pricing their homes up to 40% above fair market price regardless of having seen data that advises them against doing so. When this happens, I graciously walk away because in the end the experience is like swimming rip tide the wrong way. You just end up getting swallowed up and die. These folks are not ready to move on with their lives, but perhaps are looking to make the lives of others miserable. No thanks.

Okay, so by nature I’m somewhat of an idealist, but my experience has made me a realist. First and foremost, my role is to educate and consult clients to the best of my ability so that they may make a decision, an educated decision. The information I provide may not always be welcome news, but, it is information based on fact and in essence therefore a snapshot of reality. Unfortunately, not everyone is ready to deal with their reality. My goal is to come up with the best outcome for my clients and at times that means breaking even or plugging up the projectile bleeding before foreclosure. So what can a seller do to avoid psychological obstacles of selling real estate that will lead them to stalemate?

1. Be Committed: Assess your life and decide if you are really ready to sell your property. If not, do not waste your time nor anyone else’s.
2. Separate Your Psychological Self from Your Physical Home: Sure, you’ve owned your home for so many years or cared for your investment property for a long time, and have natural emotional attachments to it, but try to disassociate yourself from the home. Perhaps envision yourself in an upgrade or another neighborhood, as a next step in your life.
3. Stay Present: Focus on your finances today, not the money you spent yesterday. You may not be able to recoup your loses, but consider that delaying a decision to sell today may put you in worse financial circumstances tomorrow.
4. Be Real About What to Recoup: After going through your inventory of various projects, such as painting the walls, building that special California style closet, or opening up a room for that open layout feel, consider what you may be able to pass on to a buyer and what you may not. For example, if your condo association recently had a special assessment to repair the roof, you may not be able to pass the cost on since it is upgrading the building, not your individual unit. You can’t expect to get back dollar for dollar on some investments like painting and sweat equity, but upgrading the windows, front door, kitchen, bathroom or deck is a different story. Have a trained and reputable Realtor^® assist with evaluating your “inventory”.

As you begin the process of selling your home, work with a Realtor^® who will guide you through psychological obstacles – some obvious and some not so much. Their role should be to help you so that you don’t find yourself at a stalemate. Selling and buying is really about moving on with your life. Accepting reality sooner rather than later may save you some money in your pocket, but more importantly, it will save time on your heart. And in the end isn’t that what it’s all about?

You’ve successfully sold your Boston condo and now the only thing left to do is simply make the move to your home. If only it were that easy.

There are a multitude of important things to remember when moving, and some are more obvious than others. We all know to schedule a mover, accumulate a bunch of boxes and get plenty of packing materials to get things underway. However, there are a handful of things that are often forgotten in the flurry of activity that surrounds a move. Here are a few things that are at the top of my list:

• Cash and Credit Cards – If you must make a long trip to your new property, you will need cash and credit cards to get you there. I suggest stopping by the ATM several days before your closing / move takes place. Make sure you have enough cash to take care of incidentals, such as tipping the movers or paying tolls if you’re driving, enough that you don’t run out and have to use an ATM out of your network and get hit with ATM fees. As well, ensure you have a functioning credit card or two to pay for larger lodging and travel-related expenses.
• Personal Care Items – Although you may be inclined to pack everything up for convenience’s sake, it is important to keep a certain number of personal items with you. Keep a small bag and load it up with important medications, any other prescriptions or over-the-counter medications that you and your family may need during your transition time between houses. I advise you think about what you might need ahead of your move by creating a list at least one week before the move happens, and think about it in the context of what you will need between now and when all your goods in moving boxes will show up – keep in mind that if you are being moved any significant distance by a shipping company, you won’t have access to your boxes, and there may be delays associated with the arrival of your goods, so give yourself some buffer time on the back end.
• Your Kids’ Favorite Items – Comfort items for your children are an important part of any move, as they provide stability and comfort kids may need to make the transition to a new home a bit easier. It is therefore extremely important to keep these cuddle items, such as blankets and stuffed animals, with you at all times during your move to soothe and comfort your child. After all, you don’t want to wait weeks for your goods to arrive in your new home, or spend your first night in your new home searching through countless boxes for your child’s favorite doll!
• Items of Special Importance or Value – If you have special items that are either of great value or great sentiment, consider keeping them safe during your move and/or transporting them yourself (always keeping them in your possession). You may want to hire a specialty moving company to take care of priceless antiques and pianos, verifying that there is proper insurance in place to cover any losses. Additionally, you may want to ask a close family member or friend to take care of your personal items, such as jewelry and china, until you have settled into your new home. Also in this group may be important papers, such as tax documents, receipts, or credit card statements that you would like to keep close to your person throughout the move, decreasing or eliminating the chance that your personal information, such as a social security number or credit card number, be compromised.

These items may or may not already be on your list of to-do’s associated with your move, but they represent a small handful of things that I oftentimes see go forgotten until it’s too late to change. Happy moving!