Well, our beautiful, H-O-T Summer is coming to an end. We have been busily trying to complete our summer home projects and you’ve probably been doing the same! With the Fall weather coming, I know we need to do our home prep for Winter. My hope is that this Winter is a bit easier on us than last year, but I guess we’ll hope for the best and prepare for the worst!

“Nature is, above all, profligate. Don’t believe them when they tell you how economical and thrifty nature is, whose leaves return to the soil. Wouldn’t it be cheaper to leave them on the tree in the first place?” – Annie Dillard

This great Fall Home Maintenance Tips list comes from State Farm Insurance and I hope it gets your mind going in the preparation mode.

  • Check all window and door locks for proper operation

  • Check your home for water leaks

  • Review your fire escape plan with your family

  • Make sure there are working nightlights at the top and bottom of all stairs

  • Protect your home from frozen pipes

  • Replace your furnace filter

  • see more …

As always, if you have any maintenance or real estate related needs or information I can provide you, your friends or family members, give me a call or send me a quick e-mail …I’m always happy to help!

News for Buyers

First Time Home Buyers – There are Only 2-1/2 Months Left!

Although they (whoever they are!) have been talking about extending it, the First Time Home Buyer Credit is currently scheduled to end November 30, 2009.  So, if you are a first time home buyer, know of someone considering buying for the first time OR if you have not owned a home in 3 or more years you may qualify to take advantage of the $8,000 First Time Home Buyer Credit if you close on a primary residence by November 30th.  This is a really great incentive for you as a buyer, but please make sure you talk to your tax advisor about how this might affect you.

If you have already purchased your home, you may be in project mode and looking for some way to take advantage of the Energy Credit available to us as home owners.  Owen and I are going to be replacing windows before the winter hits this year (yay!) and will be able to take advantage of the energy credit there.  You may be looking at doing a home project that would allow for that as well, so take a look at the home credit information and see if this works for you this year.  You can also check with Washington Natural Gas or PSE to find out whether they match the credit on any of the qualified credits:

Energy Efficiency Tax Credits for Homeowners by Danny Lipford.



News for Sellers

A Picture’s Worth a Thousand Words!

If you’re currently a seller or going to be a seller soon in today’s market, you’ll be competing with a lot of “Short Sale” sellers (meaning the home owner’s property will not bring in what is owed to the bank due to the loss in property values) or REO properties (Bank Owned Real Estate).  These property values are hard to compete with unless you are at the top of your game.

There are many ways I can help you prepare your home for sale, and one is to make sure we have great pictures, and lots of them, on line for buyers to review.  This recent article in the Seattle Times is a great reminder of the importance of those photos. As your Realtor®, I work with you to get your home ready for the market, and will get the best photographs we can put on line so that we draw a buyers’ attention and get you SOLD as soon as possible!

The old saying, “A picture is worth a thousand words” rings so true when you list your home.  Don’t sell you and your home short by lack of preparation in this area!  Give me a call or send me an e-mail if you have questions about what you should and shouldn’t get done before listing your home in today’s market.

Fall Home Projects

Check Your Energy

Hiring a professional to conduct a home energy audit is a great way to determine how much energy your home consumes and what you can do to make it more efficient – but it also can be expensive. You can, however, easily conduct your own. Use the following guidelines from the U.S. Department of Energy and keep a checklist of areas you inspect and problems you find.

Air leaks. You might be able to save 5 percent to 30 percent a year on your energy bills by finding and fixing leaks. Start by checking for obvious leaks. Inspect windows and doors. If you can rattle them, chances are there’s an air leak. Caulking or weather stripping is an easy fix. Also check to see if air flows through less-obvious places such as baseboards and electrical outlets. Then head outside the house to inspect all areas where two different building materials meet: where siding and chimneys meet and where the foundation and the bottom of exterior brick or siding meet. Plug and caulk any holes you find and seal other cracks with appropriate materials.

Insulation. Check the attic hatch to see if it is as heavily insulated as the attic and is weather-stripped and closes tightly. In the attic, determine whether openings for items such as pipes, ductwork and chimneys are sealed. Seal any gaps with an expanding foam caulk or other permanent sealant. Also check to see if you have a vapor barrier under the attic insulation. If not, paint the interior ceilings with vapor barrier paint to reduce the amount of water vapor that could pass through the ceiling.

Heating and cooling equipment. Check to see if it’s more than 15 years old. If so, you might want to consider switching to a newer model. Also check your ductwork for dirt streaks; these indicate an air leak and will need to be sealed with duct mastic.

Lighting. Check the wattage of your light bulbs. You might be using a 100-watt bulb when you could be using a 60-watt. Consider switching to compact fluorescent lamps for lights that are on for hours at a time.

Source: www.energysavers.gov

I am always available to consult with you before you take on any home projects. Give me a call today!

If you are interested in knowing how the market is progressing in your neighborhood, or if you have any friends, relatives and business associates with real estate needs, give me a call!

Don’t Forget to Fall Back November 1st!


~Tracy