Happy Holidays | Carlson School of Management

Happy Holidays | Carlson School of Management

Home touring day

While viewing homes the other day, the buyers and I came across this renovated farm house.  Part of the home had been recently remodeled but they did not finish the entire home.  Obviously they left the basement as it was in 1945!  Look at these jars of canned items!  Note to self: date home canned goods!

5 tasks to ready your home for sale

You've asked for it and finally I have compiled my 5 "must do" tasks for getting your home ready for sale.
1) Front entry - I can not stress this enough. Make sure that your potential buyers enter through the front door, not the garage, not the side service door, etc. And pay attention to detail! Fully operational doors, clean, keys operational, fresh door mat, decorative wreath, & no hanging wires from the broken doorbell!
2) Smell - Make sure your home is rid of offensive odors. Sometimes, that means actually removing the dog, the kennel, the bowls, the toys (if they don't see a pet? possibly they don't smell one?)
Garbage taken out, diaper odor gone, last nights poker game smell - eradicate it. And for heavens sake, do not have candles burning all over the place! That is a sure sign of a cover-up.
3) De-clutter - You have seen it on "Sell this house" and it is true. If you have to get storage boxes to store your "stuff" then do it. Closets should appear roomy, not sparse mind you, but the offering of ample storage possibilities. Table tops with 15 framed pictures - put in storage. Your buyers want to picture themselves in your home, not you! Walls, mantles, & countertops should not be overly decorated. Just the necessities - coffee maker, utensil bin, etc. NOT: cereal boxes, loaves of bread, medication containers, dirty dishes, etc.
4) Repairs - any annoying little item that you have been procrastinating on, get it done! You know what I am referring to: loose door hinges, chipped paint on the corners, burnt out lightbulbs, sticky sliding glass doors, broken cables on windows, etc.
5) Yard - pay attention to it. Mowed, trimmed, weeded, flowers and bushes maintained, no toys laying around, & yard furniture neatly arranged.
Good luck getting your home ready!

Sausage making

This is a bit of a detour from home selling but it is about making a happy home! Greg and I just bought a NESCO sausage grinder and stuffer and used it for the first time yesterday. This was one of the most satisfying culinary projects I have ever been a part of. Also, it was the first time eating sausage where there was no guilt! I knew exactly what went into our sausage so that eating it was just plain tasty. Here's the recipe: Pork butt, fennel seeds, parsley, red-pepper flakes, salt, and pepper. We cut the pork butt into chunks and then mixed it with the seasonings, allowed it sit for about an hour, then grinded it twice and voila! The next attempt will be tweaking the flavorings (more fennel!) perhaps some oregano, garlic, etc. and then actually stuffing into casings. My Dad has taught me year after year how to make Finnish Potato Sausage so this "should" be a no-brainer. Thanks Dad for that! Also, organic pork? That would be preferable but hard to find where we live.

Realtor screams as a leg slides across the floor!

Beware of cute little old ladies sitting under their afghans during a home showing. Here is how it happened: I am bringing clients to a home for a showing and the homeowner is the aforementioned "cute little old lady". She's old, doesn't like to leave the house much, so it's ok, she can stay for the showing. As clients and I are viewing the bathroom, I move the door a bit to show them the linen closet behind and out slides a lone leg! I am guessing that it was just too much work that day to put on her prosthesis! :)

Do I really need a down payment to buy a home?

The no down payment days are over. That is how the housing mess came to be, lucy-goosey lenders giving everyone a loan. I remember helping buyers find homes that didn't even have jobs, yet they had pre-approval letters and successfully went to close. Foreclosure wasn't too far behind after that happy purchase. So how do you save for that down payment? It will take some time, but it can be done. First of all, begin with an expense journal. Write it all down. Even the $4 lattes, and the $1.69 bottle of water at the mini mart, and the $1.29 roll of mints at the grocery checkout. Do this for a month or two and then analyze and scrutinize. It's all obvious isn't it? Refill your water bottle before you leave the house, use a travel coffee mug and make your latte at home (it's just coffee, milk and sugar anyway!), buy a large bag of mints and put some in your car. Eating lunch out? Start making it at home, it's really cool these days to brown bag it! Start pot luck lunches at work! Now, these suggestions are little savings that will take awhile to make a difference, but on to the bigger ones. Do you go away every winter to a warm climate? Now, don't hate me, but do it every other year instead. Open up a savings account and deposit money in it immediately when you receive your paycheck, you are actually paying yourself for the future of owning a home. Owning a home is the biggest investment you will make and it also has proven benefits to your health, family and community.

Heating season will begin soon!

I found this article helpful regarding preparing for this winters heating season. Personally, I love a big roaring fire to keep me warm even though I know I have been told that all of the heat in your home goes right up the chimney! But how can I deny myself the ambience of a real fire crackling away?
Realty Times - Green Living: Saving Energy This Season

Do not trust spell check - do it yourself

We Realtors must continually be creative when describing homes. We are always hoping that our description will be the one that catches someones attention and will bring traffic to the home. Well, this situation surely attracted attention! When noting the fine features of a lovely home, the deck was described as "entertainment size deck". Spell check did not find the error, only a proofreader could get this one: the "e" in deck was actually an "i".

Tips for selling your home #3 in a 3 part series

First impressions count! You've heard it from your mother and it's true. The first few minutes are important when buyers are out shopping. Make sure that the buyers enter through the front door, even if you never use it as a homeowner. And when they walk in, make sure the front door is clean (even painting it a new color is a good idea) and that the front foyer is ship shape. Even if it is just a small landing pad, make it as spacious as you can with clean floors, no clutter, pleasant odors, and music in the background. Yes, some very subtle classical music is desirable. The buyers may not be classical music lovers but they will definitely have a warmer reaction to your home if they believe that Vivaldi lives there! The two or three weeks you put into getting it ready to sell may be the most profitable investment of time and money you make this year.

Seller's - Tired of hearing it's a Buyer's market?

If you are seller, ugh! How many times have you heard that in the last 3 years? Let's turn that around and make it a seller's market and let you, the seller determine what the buyer will pay. Be realistic about your homes value, and don't let emotions get the better of you. The buyer doesn't care that your children were born there or that your dog was a Christmas present for your kids in 1998. Use all the tools necessary to determine value. These include: Realtors market analysis, tax assessment, neighborhood condition (this changes over the years), actual condition of your home (really, really look at it) and improvements. Remember that just because you put a new roof on the home just 2 years ago, does not mean that the buyer is going to absorb the entire cost of that roof, the buyer expected to have a roof on the house. How many homes similar to yours are for sale in your community? Be competitive! Get the job done and price it right!

Tips for selling your home # 2 in a series

Market your home as if you are buying it! A few hundred dollars maybe even up to a grand spent carefully upfront, can make the difference of tens of thousands of dollars. For example: Look at your front walk as if seeing it for the first time. Does it need weeding, or fresh stones, or fresh paint on the door trim, or new house numbers, or ... These first impressions make huge impressions. Make your home stand out from the glut of homes that are out there on the market. The thing to remember always is that the buyer has been out, sometimes for weeks, looking at houses most of which are identical in appearance to yours. The difference, providing your place isn't positively falling down, will be the little things.

Tips for selling your home # 1 in a series

#1 - Using scent - Realtors did this years ago, they actually baked bread and cookies or had their sellers do it to promote the good vibes that people get when viewing properties. Smell has the power to revive the past and transport us to a happy time or place or remind us of a special person, evoking feelings of nostalgia and comfort. Freshly baked bread is the number 1 smell that makes people happy. There are three important smells to know about: fresh bread, cinnamon and coffee. When buyers come back for a second look, vary the smell. Try this: warm a couple tablespoons of cinnamon in a pan, (this also helps to kill an animal odor), or put a 1/2 C of coffee beans in the oven. Homes that smell of animals, particularly cats, can cost you thousands. So work on ridding that offensive odor diligently. Remember, you probably don't smell the cat or dog but the buyers sure will!

Healthy you, healthy house

Want to be healthier and sell your home? Clean your house! A clean home is healthier for you and will help sell it faster. I have shown homes that have not been tidied up before the showing and it is so hard for buyers to see beyond the dirt and envision the beauty. You don't need a lot of expensive cleaners either, elbow grease and just a few products will do the trick. Some of my favorites are:
1) Vinegar - this is great at cleaning grout, soap scum and water deposits (not to mention cheap)
2) Old t-shirts and a multi purpose spray such as Green Works or Murphy's Oil Soap spray
3) Plastic gloves - I just plain work harder when my hands are protected!
4) Easiest ever window cleaning method - bucket with warm water, a drop of dish soap, a squeegee, (the kind for cars - sponge on one side, rubber squeegee on the other side), and a dry towel. Sponge the window down, squeegee the water off and wipe around the edges with the towel. No streaks! You can even do it in the sun! No more dirty black newspaper hands.
There you have it, simple easy steps for cleaning your home up for that sale.

Gottsacker Real Estate: Realty Times - Decorator Colors Through the Years

Gottsacker Real Estate: Realty Times - Decorator Colors Through the Yearshttp://gottsackerrealestate.com/index.htm

Realty Times - Decorator Colors Through the Years

You have bought your home, it has color on the walls that you remember from your Grandmother's house, blechhhh! Where do you start? Check out this article for some history on color and then off to the paint store!

Realty Times - Decorator Colors Through the Years

New listing in Sheboygan!

2020 N 8th St. What a great buy! Beautiful hardwood molding throughout, leaded glass, built-in china cabinet, remodeled kitchen with 2 sinks, private backyard, 1st floor powder room...

Why use a Realtor?

In today's world, when we want to purchase something, we open up our lap-tops and google what we need. This might be a television, a camera, a stroller etc. We compare prices, consumer reviews and reports. And I am sure that when someone wants to buy a house they look on the internet. As a Realtor, I shudder. Call me! No really, Realtors are professionals that have spent hours of study to obtain their license as well as continuing education hours every 2 years to maintain their license. Many continue and obtain special designations to hone their skills and improve their professionalism. We are here to bring buyers and sellers together and navigate and negotiate the sale/purchase of a home. We also have the National Association of Realtors and each Realtors state and local associations behind us to protect our professionalism. So, yes, the internet is a great place to start looking for that new home but when you are ready to hit the pavement and really start shopping, call me! Janet Gottsacker 920-973-7300.

"As is" Frightening words on a spec sheet!

Let's clarify "as is" on a spec sheet. Whenever I have seen it, it makes me suspicious, worry no longer, it isn't as frightening as you would think. It merely means that a seller will not complete the Real Estate Condition Report (RECR), leaving the buyer responsible for determining the property condition, and/or the seller will not repair the property or "cure any defects." However, an "as is" does not free the seller or the agent of disclosures. A seller cannot create risk, nor does this mean that an agent doesn't have to perform their property inspection diligently. Also, a buyer is still allowed an inspection contingency and this would give the buyer the option to back out of the offer if defects were so bad that the buyer no longer wanted the property. But if the buyer still goes ahead with purchase and defects have been found, a buyer can not return to the seller for compensation with "as is" language included in the offer.
THE BUYER IS SOLELY RESPONSIBLE FOR DETERMINING WHETHER THE PROPERTY IS IN ACCEPTABLE CONDITION.
paraphrased from WI Real Estate Mag. June 2011

Home improvements as tax benefits?

"Home repairs provide no immediate tax benefits to a homeowner. They are not tax deductible and they are not added to the home's basis (cost), for tax purposes. As far as taxes go, they are a nonevent. Thus, a homeowner who patches a leaky roof gets not tax benefits.

Home improvements are very different, though. The cost of an improvement is not deductible, but it is added to the home's basis for tax purposes. For example, the cost of adding a new roof to a home is added to its tax basis. This reduces any taxable gain when the home is sold."
Stephen Fishman/Inman News

The much awaited holiday of 4th of July is over and now it seems that summer will just fly by! Hurry now and buy that house so that you can be all settled in when the cool autumn breezes come in and the days get shorter and shorter. New listing with a gorgeous updated kitchen. 2241 LaFollette, $84,900 soooo affordable!

Great new listing! A beautiful & elegant historical home on Manitowoc's lovely Lincoln Blvd. Great for a family with 4 bedrooms, fenced in back yard, huge family room and country style "come hang out" in the kitchen! 828 Lincoln Blvd. 194,900. Call 920-973-7300.

The art of "staging"

This home owner truly knew how to "stage" her kitchen for showings. She cleared her counters and let the function and beauty of this kitchen stand out to attract buyers!

Sell that house!

Want your home to stand out from the others? Maximize it's beauty. Remove the personal touches that get in the way of the home's distinguishing features. For example, do you have a unique fireplace? Then remove the clutter on the mantel, go with the "less is more" philosophy. Home buyers want to see the beauty of your home and then imagine what they would do if they owned your home, they can't see that when there is too much excess. Exceptional windows? Open the blinds, pull back the drapes, minimize the accessories surrounding the space.

Mortgage rates

Mortgage rates are still holding at 4.5 for a 30 year fixed rate! Find that home, get locked in now! And seriously, can't find a home in this market? Our area is inundated with homes for sale. There are so many unique and beautiful homes for sale in the Lakeshore area from Sheboygan to Manitowoc that one would not be disappointed in a viewing tour of homes. Just give me a call, I am ready to schedule your showing appointments!

NAR President Ron Phipps, broker-president of Phipps Realty in Warwick, R.I., said buyers should look into loan availability as soon as they decide they want to buy. "Despite very affordable mortgage interest rates, credit remains a challenge -- buyers should check their personal credit, and mortgage availability in their area," he said.

And I say: This can't be important enough! All this talk lately of credit scores and such, is really starting to play out in the housing market. One can not be late with payments nor can one get overwhelmed with personal debt. Stop with the credit cards and start using cash. Nothing is more disappointing than to look for a home to buy and then find out that financing is not available for you because of poorly made financial decisions.