Are you Ready? 

We all wonder.  And that wonder can lead to arguments.  Lead to disagreements.  Lead to questions.

We all wonder about the value of our homes.  The American Dream.  The economic impact on one of our nest eggs, our safety net and our investment. . .  OK enough wondering!

Let’s move forward.  You are selling or refinancing.  You have to have your home appraised.  Now it is time to get ready for the appraiser.  What do you do?

Paige Tepping of RISMEDIA gives us a list.  And we all love lists!

•  The appraiser will need approximately 30 minutes to one hour to complete the inspection phase of the appraisal process, which includes: exterior photos of the front and rear of the home and a photo of the street in front of the property; measurements of the exterior of the home, garage and any outbuildings; a walk-through inspection of all rooms and levels of the interior of the home including the basement.

•  Get organized. Put together a checklist that will help you get ready for your appraisal and get the results you’re looking for.

•  Be flexible when scheduling the appointment.

•  Have a copy of your home’s blueprint to help verify measurements and lot size.

•  Provide a list of improvements made to the property since the purchase. Improvements that should be noted include adding a pool, patio, updating your kitchen or bathroom and any room additions, etc.

•  Allow your appraiser access to the entire property, including access to any crawl space or attic areas.

•  Keep in mind that a clean home makes a good impression. Be sure to trim the lawn, clean the pool and garage, repair cracked windows or torn screens, check for leaky faucets and secure gutters and down spouts before your appraisal.

•  Point out any amenities that may not be obvious to the appraiser: sprinkler systems, patios, pools, security systems, built in vacuum, etc.

•  Provide a copy of last year’s tax assessment information.

•  Know what year the house was built and when improvements were made.

•  The first thing appraisers look for is comparables, so be prepared and have a list of recent sales of similar properties in the immediate neighborhood.

Remember the Scouts modo “Be Prepared”.  You are allowed to participate in your homes appraisal.  Information is king and that is what the appraiser is looking for.  Just make sure you have the back up!

Now take your  list and click you heels together 3 times and repeat . . . There’s No Place Like Home, There’s No Place Like Home, There’s No Place Like Home!!

Advantage Inspection Raleigh

. . .  performs the Nation’s Best Home Inspection and provides the Nation’s Only “No Denied Claims Warranty” available in the industry. For the last 18 years, Advantage Inspection has been the deciding factor for the people we serve:  Buyers, Sellers, Real Estate Agents and Home Inspectors.  Advantage Inspection Raleigh serves Raleigh, Durham and the Triangle area.
 

Dave Park 

Advantage Home Inspection Raleigh
“more than just an inspection company!”
www.adrdu.com

Thomas Paine

Common Sense is a pamphlet written by Thomas Paine. It was first published anonymously on January 10, 1776, during the American Revolution. Common Sense, signed “Written by an Englishman”, became an immediate success.

Paine wrote and reasoned in a style that common people understood; forgoing the philosophy and Latin references used by Enlightenment era writers, Paine structured Common Sense like a sermon and relied on Biblical references to make his case to the people.   Historian Gordon S. Wood described Common Sense as, “the most incendiary and popular pamphlet of the entire revolutionary era”

One of the major concerns in the world today is depletion of energy. As concerned citizens all of us must make a concerted effort to be conscious citizens and save electricity. Electricity has become integral to life but imagine having to live without power.

Conservation of electricity benefits you personally as you will pay lower bills.

Consider these “Paine-fully” Simple Common Sense Tips:

1.            Doing an energy audit. This will tell you how and when you use energy and where the wastage lies. You will be able to make an “energy savings plan” by pinpointing exactly how you can cut back on energy consumption. Some ideas may be as simple as don’t leave the coffee machine on at all times.

2.            Think about resetting the thermostat ten degrees lower during the night. If you can do this for say approximately eight hours a day you will save 10% on electricity without sacrificing comfort. Insulate the home in winter by drawing shut the drapes.

3.            Check all insulation in the house. If you increase attic insulation to around 12 inches the electricity consumption will reduce by 20 percent.

4.            Plant more trees around the house these will cool the house in summer and insulate the house in winter. Studies show that a green cover benefits in many ways.

5.            Have all electricity wires and outlets checked for leakage. Check all fuses and appliances.

6.            Fluorescent light bulbs are energy efficient. They use 75% less energy than ordinary light bulbs. These have a longer life and contribute to great savings.

7.            Use energy efficient appliances. These use less energy and believe it or not a high efficiency refrigerator uses less electricity than a light bulb.

8.            When you are away even for a few hours or days you should turn off and unplug   all electrical appliances and turn settings on the thermostat, water heater, and refrigerator to   the lowest setting.

9.            Ensure that you use a water-saving shower head. Water heating costs for a family can be lowered by at least US$ 250 a year.

10.          Weatherize your home. This helps reduce heating bills by 20% and cooling by at least 10 percent. Even when building a home or decorating it use weather friendly materials—those that are not good conductors of heat and cold. Install windows and glass panes in the roof in such away that you use sunlight to light up the rooms during day light hours. Make an effort to switch off lights and fans when leaving a room. Ensure that the filters in air conditioners and heaters are always cleaned and free of clog and dust.

Common Sense

If you live an energy efficient lifestyle you will see the numbers on the energy bill actually reducing. The power to cut energy costs is well within your control. It is as simple as only washing full loads and that to in cold water. Use the hot wash option only for very dirty clothes.  Cook food only just before you are ready to eat that way you can save reheating costs as well as refrigerating costs of storing the food. Turn the thermostat of the refrigerator to minimum in cold or cool weather. Switch off freezers if they are not in use. Small contributions can all add up to significant amounts of power saved. And, power saved means money in the bank.

Advantage Inspection Raleigh

. . .  performs the Nation’s Best Home Inspection and provides the Nation’s Only “No Denied Claims Warranty” available in the industry. For the last 18 years, Advantage Inspection has been the deciding factor for the people we serve:  Buyers, Sellers, Real Estate Agents and Home Inspectors.  Advantage Inspection Raleigh serves Raleigh, Durham and the Triangle area.
 

Dave Park 

Advantage Home Inspection Raleigh
“more than just an inspection company!”
www.adrdu.com

What is a Home Warranty?

This is Advantage Home Inspections first ad that was designed right here in Raleigh. 

The campaign for 2010 is “You Have a Choice!”
The slogan is “Experience the Power of a Good Decision.”

The ad ties in today’s complex time with teamwork and
ends with competing on service instead of price.

Advantage Home Inspection Raleigh

. . .  performs the Nation’s Best Home Inspection and provides the Nation’s Only “No Denied Claims Warranty” available in the industry. For the last 18 years, Advantage Inspection has been the deciding factor for the people we serve:  Buyers, Sellers, Real Estate Agents and Home Inspectors.  Advantage Inspection Raleigh serves Raleigh, Durham and the Triangle area.
 

Dave Park 

Advantage Home Inspection Raleigh
“more than just an inspection company!”
www.adrdu.com

It appears that “Green” is making builders “Blue” these days. 

A new poll shows that people who once put a huge emphasis on the government’s green efforts now have other issues they care about more.The latest Pew Research Center poll shows that the economy and job market have jumped to the top of the priority list for most people. Last January, 75 percent of Americans polled said that the economy should be a top priority, and in a year’s time, that has jumped to 85 percent.On the other hand, however, protecting the environment has fallen from 56 percent a year ago to just 41 percent today. Of the 20 issues raised, the least important issue raised was global warming.

As a buyer you want to buy “Green”.  As a builder you want to build “Green”.  The problem for builders is being prepared to show the economic benefits of buying “Green.”

Buyers now appear to be less likely to spend their hard earned greenbacks on anything in today’s declining economy.  Green must present a personal benefit for the buyer.  Not 20 years from now, but in the average ownership time frame.  (Currently 6 to 7 years).

Is the demand there?  I believe so, but reality and times have changed for America.

America is worried about economic prosperity, health care and social security.  With this focus home buyers are cutting their budgets and green is the first to go.  Unless you can show the immediate benefits and long term savings, selling green will probably go nowhere fast.

People generally want to save money on utilities, protect mother earth and her resources.  It is the right thing to do and people will warm up to it.  Products must be developed to meet immediate needs of the home buyer.

When it comes right down to it, people are looking for “Green” to not add “Red” to their bottom line!

 Maverick Rules!

Advantage Inspection Raleigh performs the Nation’s Best Home Inspection and provides the Nation’s Only “No Denied Claims Warranty” available in the industry. 

 For the last 18 years, Advantage Inspection has been the deciding factor for the people we serve:  Buyers, Sellers, Real Estate Agents and Home Inspectors.  Advantage Inspection Raleigh serves Raleigh, Durham and the Triangle area. 

 Advantage Inspection Raleigh

“more than just an inspection company!”

www.adrdu.com