5 Tips for Selling Your Home

Selling a home is a process that requires a lot of planning on the part of the owner. Simply putting a “For Sale” sign in the front yard will not automatically sell your home, and certainly not for the desired price you are looking to receive. Most of the time, the problem with preparing to sell your home is not grasping the fact that just because you were once satisfied with your home, means that every potential buyer will be equally as satisfied. After all, you have enjoyed your home for a period of time, but your home may appear to lack years of maintenance attention.

Here are a few valuable tips for selling your home for top dollar:

1. Great Curb Appeal Is Essential

Potential buyers will notice the curb appeal first as they drive by looking for property. Without good curb appeal, the buyers will just pass on by. Curb appeal means a well-trimmed and mowed lawn, plenty of colorful flowers planted, and shrubs and trees that are well trimmed. This is one of the most important tips for selling a home.

2. De-clutter Your Home

Homeowners may think that all of their artifacts and mementos from their leisurely vacations look great adorning the bookshelves and other visible places, but the potential buyer may only view this as clutter. De-cluttering your home is an easy way to make it look appealing to potential buyers. The kitchen is another area of the home that can become cluttered. Cook books, cooking utensils, cooking devices and mixers should be stored out of sight. De-cluttering your home will make each room look clean, organized, and more spacious.

3. Move-out Unwanted Furniture

Similarly to items cluttering a room, furniture can do the same. The overuse of furniture makes a room look small and the space poorly planned. Rent a storage locker for a few months and move all of the items that you are willing to remove from the home into the storage unit. For example, furniture items that have been passed down through each generation within your family may appeal to you, but these may not appeal to the potential buyers.

4. Remove Signs Regarding Political Affiliation

Signs that represent a view on a national debate or can be considered controversial, are best if they are put away before trying to sell your home. Potential viewers should only be focusing on the appearance and functionality of your home, not an opinionated issue. It’s even encouraged to remove any sports memorabilia from your home. Not only can it cause a controversial issue between sporting fans, but it can take away from your home’s overall appearance.

5. Clean Out Your Home

This includes cleaning the carpets and washing or painting the walls. Clean all of the windows and doors in your home. These are simple ways you can impress buyers with the cleanliness of your home, making it look as good as new. Very few buyers will show interest in a home that is dirty, unorganized, or appear to be falling apart. Let alone will they be willing to pay the asking price for a home that appears to have been neglected.

For more information regarding real estate tips, visit Kathy McCarthy’s website or Facebook page!

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5 Cost Efficient Ways to Make Your Home More Eco-Friendly

Many homeowners believe that reducing your home’s negative impact on the planet will cost a lot of money and a lot of time. But, there are many different cost efficient and easy ways to make your home more eco-friendly. Going green doesn’t always require homeowners to spend a significant amount of money on expensive gadgets. Simply by being consciences of the energy that you are using will save you money and prevent waste. Here are 5 easy, cost efficient ways to make your home more eco-friendly.

1. Replace Your Light bulbs

Homeowners save 66% more energy by replacing incandescent light bulbs with Compact Fluorescent Light bulbs (CFL) or LED lights. CFL and LED lights only use a fraction of the wattage that incandescent lights use.

2. Unplug Unnecessary Cords

An easy way to save energy and electricity is to unplug devices and appliances when they are not being used. For example, TVs, radios, phone chargers, coffee pots, toasters, lamps etc. are typically only being used for a small portion of the day and left plugged in. By unplugging unused devices and appliances, you can conserve electricity and save money.

3. Open The Blinds

Believe it or not, homeowners save 10% of energy on heating when they open the blinds during the day to let the sunlight in. However, when it is necessary to use your heater, every degree that you turn down will save approximately 1% on your energy bill. Sometimes we forget how easy and effective it can be to open the blinds, turn on a fan or a space heater, or simply open the windows in order to control your home’s climate.

4. Microwave vs. Oven

Microwaves use 50% less energy than a conventional oven. Heating your meals in a microwave rather than an oven is an easy way to conserve energy. Or if a meal requires you to use an oven, try to use both oven racks at the same time to bake, roast, or warm up the food. That way you are using your energy wisely and efficiently. Also, when using an oven, avoid opening and closing the oven door while your meal is cooking! The oven temperature can significantly drop each time you open the door and it uses more energy to reheat.

5. Conserve Water

Sometimes we forget how easy it is to turn off the faucet while brushing our teeth or when shaving. There are many different ways to conserve energy, whether it’s turning off the faucet, installing a low-flow showerhead, or fixing leaky toilets or showers. Conserving water is an easy way to save money and prevent waste.

For more information regarding real estate tips, visit Kathy McCarthy’s website or Facebook page!

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A Guide to Villa Park Real Estate Prices

Investing in Villa Park real estate is one of the best decisions that a prospective home owner can make. This small city, which is known as the hidden jewel, is certainly one of the best locations to buy home in Orange County. Due to its excellent location, property prices in Villa Park are quite high and rank among the highest in the United States of America.

Although the real estate prices are high, it is prudential to invest in Villa Park’s valuable real estate. With the direction and guidance of real estate professionals, you will be able achieve the investment you are looking for. The real estate agents at Prudential Real Estate are knowledgeable on all matters regarding real estate and investments. Their professionals have years of experience that will help lead you to the real estate investment you are looking for, while balancing your financial needs.

It’s of paramount importance that you seek the assistance of a realtor in choosing the exact location of where you should buy your real estate property. Prudential Real Estate professionals are fully knowledgeable about the real estate market and its available properties that suit your tastes, preferences and budget.

A real estate agent can carry out a proper analysis and predict the direction that the real estate market is moving. This way, he or she is able to provide their customers with valuable advice that will help inform the actions which they will take. Realtors have full access to home listings in Villa Park that are only available to fellow real estate agents are aren’t always advertised to the public. Prudential Real Estate professionals will check what’s on offer and produce a list of properties that match the requirements that cater to their customers’ needs.

Villa Park, especially, is an area that offers high-quality real estate that is worth investing in. Aside from its extravagant properties, there are many other desirable aspects of its location suited for every lifestyle.

By working with Prudential Real Estate professionals, you will benefit from their knowledge and expertise of the market, properties, locations and more! They know when it is a buyer’s market, sellers’ market and will tailor the negotiations to suit these needs. For more information regarding buying a home, click on Kathy McCarthy’s website or Facebook page below!

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Five Practical Tips for a Home Buyer

1. Make sure you’re home loan is pre-approved

There is a huge difference between being pre-qualified and pre-approved for a home loan. Anyone can get pre-qualified for a home loan so getting pre-approved means a lot more and looks a lot better to the home seller. Being pre-approved means that a lender has already looked at all of your finances and has verified how much they can lend you. This saves you a lot of time and money by saving you from looking at houses you can’t afford, it allows you to know your exact price range. Being pre-approved also gives you the opportunity to shop around and find good interest rates and the overall best deal. If you take the time to do your research to find the best loan and get pre-approved you will be in a great position to find a great deal on your new home. If you’re buying a home getting pre-approved will put you ahead of your competition.

2. Don’t try to time the market

The market is constantly changing and even with market reports it is impossible to accurately anticipate the changes so you don’t want to base your housing decisions on market estimates. The real estate market is cyclical meaning it is constantly going up and down, always changing. If you try to wait for the perfect time you might miss out on your perfect home. If you’re buying a home the right time shouldn’t depend on the timing of the market, it should depend on whether or not you found your dream home.

3. Avoid sleeper costs

When you’re not simply looking into renting a house but rather buying a home, you need to watch out for sleeper costs. Instead of just having a mortgage cost you need to be aware of the additional costs that come with home ownership. These include property taxes, utilities and homeowner-association fees. Other extra costs you may not be aware of or factoring into your budget include home repairs, maintenance and potential property-tax increases. If you’re searching the market in hopes of buying a home you need to make sure to factor in all of these sleeper costs to avoid potentially losing the house of your dreams.

4. Give your house a physical

Do you make any large purchases without first inspecting the product? Of course not! So when you’re buying a home make sure to give it a “physical”. Hire a home inspector to check the ins and outs of your potential home. A home inspector will provide you with all of the information you need to know about the home to be able to make a decision on whether or not it is actually in good enough condition to buy and live in. Plus they only cost about 200 dollars. This cost far outweighs the potential cost of issues that could arise if you buy a home without first inspecting it. Plus if they do uncover potential issues you can use them as bargaining power to lower the cost of the house. In the end you will be better off inspecting the home and preparing for any potential issues with the house.

5. Stalk the neighborhood

One thing often over looked by homebuyers is the neighborhood they are moving into. Before buying a house it is important to basically stalk the neighborhood. You want to visit the area in the morning, afternoon, and evening to see if there are any odd things that won’t fit with your lifestyle. Practice your morning commute and check out the distance to local grocery stores, restaurants, and gas stations. You also want to be aware of schools in the area. Schools can cause unwanted traffic in the mornings and afternoons and also greatly affect the home’s value, sometimes by as much as 20 percent.

Buying a home is of course a huge decision and you want to make sure you make the most educated, best decision for you and your family. Don’t overlook any possible issues and have all of your questions answered before the decision is made. If you keep these tips in mind chances are you will have a much easier, stress-free home buying process. If you are buying a home you must take the time to do your research and be completely prepared before purchasing your dream home!

For more information regarding buying a home, click on Kathy McCarthy’s website or Facebook page below!

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Orange County Home Trends

New housing trends are about in Orange County and we’ve got the inside scoop on the looks that will you modern, chic, and ahead of the game!

The American Dream is all about homeownership, so we don’t want you to find yourself bored with your home designs and outdated by years. Incorporating the latest design trends into your new home will bring back the happiness and satisfaction you got the first time you bought a house! Keep the American Dream alive and well and check out these new Orange County home trends.

Gold fixtures are one of the hottest trends on the market. Bright gold fixtures are a great accent on white marble counters whether they’re in your kitchen, bathroom, or bedroom. Utilizing gold fixtures in your home-décor will provide the perfect touch of both class and elegance.

When it comes to textures, cowhide is making a statement. Unique and stylish, you can use cowhide textures for a throw pillow, blanket, or even a rug and it will definitely leave your guests impressed!

And what ever happened to wallpaper? Well it’s making a comeback. With today’s latest technology you are now able to design your own wallpaper using your favorite digital prints which will give you the perfectly customized, exact design to fit your home’s style.

As for accent colors, blue is making a statement. Whether it’s deep shades of navy blue or a simple indigo, the blue accents will make for a warm and inviting living space.

A new housing trend is using mid-century modern elements for statement décor pieces. This trend will keep you ahead of the curve showing off a classic taste. But make sure not to overdo it with these pieces, use them as inspiration, but don’t let them take over your home.

In addition to these current home trends you also want to steer clear of old trends including bright colors, chevron print, solid painted accent walls, and matching furniture. Although these were once the top trends they have now lost their power and have become a part of the past. You want to stay ahead of the curve and show off your new home décor with these up and coming Orange County home trends!

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