10 Must Have Tools for Southern New Hampshire Real Estate Repairs

You can do many simple repairs around your home to save money. Whether you are making repairs around your Southern New Hampshire real estate to prepare it for sale or repairing items after buying a home, having the right tools for the job makes everything much easier.

Here are my top 10 must have tools to complete most Southern NH real estate repairs:

1.    Cordless drill. A cordless drill gives you a quick way to put screws in walls, put together furniture or to remove screws effortlessly.

2.    Hammer. You should have a medium weight hammer on hand for tapping pieces into place, installing nails or even removing wall sections or nails you no longer need.

3.    Level. If you want to hang anything evenly, you need a level. Use a level to measure holes for hanging cabinets, towel bars and pictures.

4.    Pencils. You will use pencils to mark studs or drill holes or to make notes while you’re working.

5.    Pliers. Pliers are essential for removing staples and nails. You can also use them to remove screws. Keep an assortment of different sized pliers on hand.

6.    Putty knife. If you are covering nail holes or wall cracks, you need a putty knife to spread the spackling. You can also use a putty knife to remove wall paper, adhesives or spilled paint or caulk.

7.    Screwdrivers. At the very least, you need a regular screwdriver and a Phillips head screwdriver with a medium tip. You should also have a set of small screwdrivers on hand.

8.    Tape measure. A good tape measure will come in handy any time you need to measure.

9.    Utility knife. This knife is basically a razor blade with a handle. You can use it to remove wallpaper, scrape paint or remove tape after painting.

10.   Vice grip. Vice grips help you hold items, and they are especially useful if you are removing screws, untwisting something with sticky adhesive or just need to hold something while you work.

Let me help you prepare your Southern New Hampshire real estate for a fast sale. Give me a call today at 603-821-1134 or email me at Dave@DaveHeeter.com.

5 Tips to Keep Your Southern NH Home for Sale Ready to Show

You’ve repaired, de-cluttered, deep cleaned and polished your Southern New Hampshire home for sale until it shines.  But how do you keep it that way when you and your family have to live in it every day?

Here are 5 tips to keep your Southern NH home for sale ready to show (without driving yourself crazy):

1.    Decree some rooms off limits.  There are a few obvious rooms that can easily be declared off limits such as the formal dining room and living room.  But there are others you may not have considered.  If you have 3 bathrooms, proclaim 1 or 2 of those bathrooms off limits.  Have a guest room but no guest?  Shut the door and forget it.

2.   Hire a maid service.  You may not be able to afford a cleaning crew on a regular basis, but to reduce your stress while your Southern NH home is for sale, consider hiring a housecleaner to come in once or twice a month.

3.    Leave your shoes at the door.  Sure, it’s inconvenient, but it really does keep your floors clean much longer which means less vacuuming, sweeping and mopping.

4.    Clean as you go. Anytime you get something out, put it away when you’re done with it.  Persuade every member of your household to do the same.

5.    Use potpourri.  You may have read some tips I’ve given about baking cookies to make your home smell great for showings.  That’s an excellent idea for people who have lots of time or just love to bake.  But for the rest of us, put out a bowl of cinnamon scented potpourri and avoid cooking smelly foods such as liver, fish or anything fried until your home is sold.  If you can’t do without your fish, go out to eat.

Need to sell your home?  Let me help you get it sold so you can relax.  Call me today at 603-821-1134 or email me at Dave@DaveHeeter.com.

4 Tips for Buying a Southern NH Home for Sale (Doing It Right the First Time)

If you’re looking for a Southern New Hampshire home for sale and you’ve never bought a home before, you might think, “This won’t take much time.” Typically, just the opposite is true.   Buying a home frequently takes quite a bit of time.

Of course, the whole home buying process will go much faster (and smoother) if you do things the right way. If you’re a first time buyer looking for a Southern New Hampshire home for sale, take some lessons from the pros. The following tips will help make the buying process fly:

1.  Weigh the Benefits - Before you actually go house hunting, weigh the pros and cons of buying a home. Can you really afford it? Is it a good idea, or are you caving under pressure from family, friends, your doctor and the next-door neighbor?

Make sure that you’ve actually considered the alternatives and decided home ownership is the best move for you. In my experience, homebuyers who are sure they’re ready to buy not only enjoy the process more, but also are more likely to enjoy the home they buy.

2.  Define What You’re Looking For - Before you walk out the door to look at homes, figure out your goals. How do you do this? Begin on the internet.  Between virtual home tours, online listings, photographs and aerial shots, you’ll be able to build a much stronger idea of the type of home and neighborhood in which you want to live.

Once you go through this process, you’ll have clearly defined goals you can then pass on to the buyer’s agent you hire. You are now halfway to home ownership!

3. Lay Off the Sugar - Before going to look at houses, lay off the sugars. Research shows sugar can inhibit your short-term memory. You want to be able to remember the homes you’ve seen.

Having said that, your agent probably won’t show you 15 or 20 homes in a day. At the most, you might see 8 or 9. You see, a good agent pays attention to the goals you told him or her on the first day. The only homes you need to see are those that fit your goals.

4. See Your Favorites Before Buying – Okay, you’ve looked at 14 homes, and you’re torn between houses 2, 5 and 6. Since you’re only buying one house, you want to make sure you get the home you want. Therefore, before signing or making any kind of commitment, look over the ones you like the most again. You’ll see things you may have missed before, which will help narrow the choice down to one.

Buying a Southern New Hampshire home for sale is one of the biggest steps you’ll ever take. It’s a big investment, and the process can be time consuming. However, following the above steps can make owning the home of your dreams less of a hassle and more of a dream come true!

If you’re looking for a professional buyer’s agent who can help you find the home of your dreams, give me a call at 603-821-1134 or email me at Dave@DaveHeeter.com.

Do’s and Don’ts of Marketing Your Southern NH Home Online

You have a for sale sign in front of your Southern New Hampshire home. Even though the real estate market is slow, you still see other houses being bought. What’s the matter with yours? Why is your home still sitting on the market? Is it you? Is it your home? Is it your agent? It may just be your online marketing (or lack of it).

Do Upload Photos
The internet is one of most popular places for homebuyers to do their

initial shopping.  If your Southern New Hampshire home isn’t online, it needs to be there. If it is online, it needs pictures. If it has pictures, pay attention to the following issues:

·    Dark or grainy pictures
·    Images with closed windows, drapes and/or blinds
·    Photos of rooms with clutter
·    Only one photo, and it’s of the front of the house
·    Images that haven’t been adjusted to look their best online

Finally, ask yourself, if a picture says a thousand words, what are the photos of my home saying? If your pictures don’t look friendly and inviting, and if they don’t make your home look its very best, you might as well take your home off the market.

Do Add Data
Don’t forget to add important information. Think about it. How many other homes are being sold online? What makes yours better/different? In other words, why should a buyer take the time to look at your house in person?

Buyers aren’t mind readers. They can’t look at a picture and see that your home has 4 bedrooms and 2.5 baths.  You have to tell them that.  If your house also has a large backyard, walking paths nearby or green home features, by all means, brag about it.

Don’t Restrict Showings
People need to see your home in person before they’ll decide to buy it. Unfortunately, many sellers make the mistake of having restricted showing hours, needing appointments for a showing and not being available when they have a prospective buyer.  Instead…

·    Do use a lockbox, so you don’t have to be there for an agent to show the house.
·    Don’t set restricted hours.  This makes showing the home at the buyer’s convenience difficult, and you definitely want it to be convenient for your potential buyer.

There are several areas where marketing can go bad and become a missed opportunity for selling your Southern New Hampshire home. However, if you make it convenient, show your home at its best and don’t overprice, you’re well on your way to changing “for sale” to “sold.”

If you want an agent who will market your home to its best advantage, give me a call me today at 603-821-1134 or email me at Dave@DaveHeeter.com.

Economy Bringing Families Closer Together in Southern NH Homes

Although the slowed economy has been a catalyst for many unfortunate changes, some of the trickle-down effects have had a positive impact on Southern New Hampshire homes and homeowners. One of the most notable effects is that families are drawing closer together.

Over the past thirty to forty years, the “steps” to take for growing up were always one: grow up and two: move out. Few parents ever considered that their now adult children might be moving back in to their quiet, empty Southern New Hampshire homes. However, with the economic problems hitting millions of Americans, the number of multi-generational households is growing.

During the Great Recession and more specifically in 1940, approximately 25% of households were multi-generational. Homes often held children, grandchildren, and sometimes even great grandchildren – four familial generations. However, as the U.S. economy began to prosper and the baby boomer generation grew into adults, more homes became single family households. By 1980, only 12.1% of homes held more than one generation.

Now, the percentages are once again beginning to climb. Loss of jobs, foreclosed homes and lack of security has contributed to approximately 49 million Americans, or 16.1%, living in multi-generational homes. While this is far from ideal for those in a hurry to leave the nest, the benefits are many.

When asked what it was like moving back in with her parents, one single mother said, “It was hard at first, redefining the boundaries, but having my parents around has been a blessing in disguise. My kids have a stabilizing influence and extra attention, while I get occasional breaks that I normally wouldn’t get. We eat dinner together too, which helps build the family atmosphere for my kids. It’s not all smiles and roses, there’s a lot of compromise, but it works.”

For those who have been thinking about letting your family move in to your Southern New Hampshire home, try to consider more than just the negatives. Look at the positives as well.  And what could be more positive than closer family ties?

Whether you need to upgrade to a bigger family home or downgrade to a smaller one, I can help. Call me at 603-821-1134 or email me at Dave@DaveHeeter.com for more information.

Downsizing Your Demands for a Home for Sale in Southern New Hampshire

Are you tired of looking for a home for sale in Southern New Hampshire? Have you seen homes that had everything you wanted, but cost too much? Are you dissatisfied with the selection in the price range you want?

A while back, I had a buyer tell me he didn’t want to spend more than $150,000 on a home for sale in Nashua. He gave me a long list of features he felt the house must have - a pool, a big kitchen for his wife, four bedrooms, etc. With it being his market (a buyer’s market), he said, I should have no problems finding a home with those qualifications and that price. He refused to budge on any of it. That buyer is no longer my client.

You May Have to Compromise
The buyer had read tons of material about it being a buyer’s market. Prices, while not particularly great for the sellers, are great for the buyers. “Thar’s gold in them thar hills.” In other words, there are deals to be had.

It’s all true, but there are limitations to what your money can buy, even now. If you’re getting frustrated due to a lack of fully automated homes with pools and fallout shelters for $35,000, it’s time to ask yourself, “Do I really need a pool?”

Okay, so that’s an exaggeration, but there is a legitimate question in all this. Can you compromise? If you want a pool, can you buy a home with a big backyard where a pool can be built later? Do you have to have a pool right now?

Consider that a home is a long-term acquisition. Think about what you want versus what you need. For example, maybe you want a big kitchen. What you’ve found are smaller kitchens with big dining rooms. Can the two rooms be opened up to create a dining/cooking area? Again, can you compromise?

Before you go house hunting again, examine your expectations. Are they realistic? If not, create a list of needs, and then create a list of wants. Think about where you can compromise on the two lists. Of course, you should be able to get some of your “wants,” but you may not be able to get all of them.

When you look at a home for sale in Southern New Hampshire that you can afford, also look at the possibilities. Can the affordable home be remodeled over time into the dream home you want? 

If you’re looking for a home with great potential, I can help. Call me at 603-821-1134 or email me at Dave@DaveHeeter.com.

Myths about Selling Your Southern NH Real Estate in a Slow Market

Trying to sell your Southern NH real estate in a slow market can be frustrating. You may find that it takes longer to sell and you can’t get as much money as you could during a booming market. However, you can’t believe all the hype about a sluggish real estate market. Do your research and separate the facts from the fiction. 

Here are 3 myths and the facts behind the fiction:

1.    You won’t get a decent price. Your Southern New Hampshire real estate will sell for whatever a buyer is willing to pay. A comparative market analysis shows you what other buyers spent on property like yours. Of course, if you bought your home when values were up, you may not get the return on your investment you’d hoped for. However, most sellers get a fair price and even make a profit in a slow market.

2.   Your Southern New Hampshire real estate will stay on the market too long. While it’s true that real estate tends to take longer to sell during a slow market, it’s not impossible to sell. People still buy in slower markets. If your home is priced right, prepared for sale and marketed professionally, it will sell.

3.    Buyers only want foreclosures and short sales. The truth is that buyers want good deals, and this can be in the form of money or time. The price of a foreclosure or short sale may certainly be attractive, but they can take a considerable amount of time to close while the banks negotiate their terms and require significant repairs after closing. Paying slightly more up front for a traditional sale is sometimes well worth the time and they can save and hassles they can avoid.

Using my proven marketing plan, I can help you sell your home whether it's a slow market or a booming market. Call me today at 603-821-1134 or email me at Dave@DaveHeeter.com.