Home Staging at it’s best

Posted by tricia under Articles

http://dailywebtv.com/york/video/15035/Preparing-Your-House-to-Sell-

Great Realtor, and the home stager is fantastic.

No one would ever know who she is, she is so fast.

Holding a Garage Sale

Posted by tricia under Articles

A garage sale is one of the easiest ways of disposing of unwanted possessions and is

considered an environmentally responsible way of keeping items out of landfills.

Decide when to hold your sale. Weekends are best except for holiday weekends when many

people are away. Mid-spring and mid-fall are generally the best garage sale periods.

Even if you are moving in the summer, it is a good idea to hold your garage sale in the spring.

Getting rid of excess items often makes your home more attractive to potential buyers as it

appears more spacious.

Most sales are set up in front of the home; in the garage, driveway or across the lawn area. If

you have a large porch, use it for the more expensive items in case it suddenly starts to rain.

It is better to price each article in advance of the sale so potential purchasers have an idea of

what you expect to get for the item. A general rule of thumb is to charge between 40-50% of the

store price if an item is new and 10-20% for used or older items.

Make the items as attractive as possible by cleaning and dusting them before you put them out.

Put a price on everything with self adhesive tags and be sure to include the size if you are

selling clothing items.

Put a notice in your community newspaper and advertise it as a “Moving Sale” instead of a

garage sale. If you are selling furniture items be sure to include that in your ad along with your

address, date and time of the sale.

Put a notice of sale up on bulletin boards at your local supermarkets. If you have a

computer/printer make up a flyer and have your children deliver them to houses in your

neighbourhood.

Put a large sign on your lawn and on streets around your neighbourhood.

• Have plenty of shopping bags, small boxes and change available

• Record the amount of float you started with

• Have a calculator, pen and paper handy to total purchases

• Arrange small items on tables

• Clothing should be hung from a rack or pole

• Furniture items should be fully assembled so people know there are no missing parts

• Run an extension cord from the house or garage so people can test appliances

• Place books, CD’s and DVD’s upright in cartons so people can easily see what is there

• If you are using your garage to display items be sure to put a “not for sale” sign on items

that you want to keep

• Keep your cash box out of sight and keep larger bills in a money pouch around your

waist

• Keep the doors to your house locked

• If your sale is staring at 8:00 am (most popular start time) have everything ready by

7:45 am as people will show up early

• Serve coffee and donuts or cookies to make your sale more inviting

• Periodically re-arrange displays to keep them neat

• Bargaining is considered a normal part of garage sales so have fun with it

• Reduce the price of items near the end of the sale to dispose of what is left

• Consider a 2 for 1 sale and have extra cardboard ready to make a “2 for 1” sale or

“prices slashed” sign

• Count the money and deduct the amount of float you started with to determine your total

sales

• Take down all the outdoor signs including the signs you put on neighbouring streets

• Decide what to do with leftover items – you may want to consider donating useful items

to a local Thrift Store or charity in your area

Moving into a new home with pets

Posted by tricia under Articles

Moving home can be a stressful time for all of us. There is so much to consider, organize and arrange it can be easy to forget that the family pet will often find the process of moving homes difficult to understand, and adjust to. This is particularly the case with companion pets, such as cats and dogs.

The majority of animals are highly territorial. The familiar sights, sounds, and especially smells, of a familiar home and its surroundings contribute greatly to a pet’s well-being. When these comforting elements are removed, the effect can be quite catastrophic.

It may be that you only plan to move into a new property on the other side of town – or perhaps you are traveling thousands of miles away. Either way, it will cause a considerable amount of upheaval and the key to reducing the impact on your furry friend should be kept to a minimum, wherever possible.

Transportation is one of the main things that need to be arranged. Shorter distances will allow for the pet to travel with the owners in the family vehicle, and this will help settle the animal. If unaccustomed to being in the car, it is probably better to put your dog or cat in a crate where they will soon feel comfortable. Longer journeys may precipitate the need for air travel, and this will need to be planned carefully.

Many states will have specific laws regarding the transportation of animals, and you are advised to look into this in detail before attempting to move your pet. Rabies inoculations, identification and health certification may all be required, so ensure an early visit to a veterinarian to clarify just what you will need to have in place before traveling.

When your pet arrives at its new home, bear in mind that with all of the relative chaos that can be associated with moving house, it is a good idea to place the animal somewhere away from all of the activity. It is advisable to have members of the family check-in regularly, as this will help comfort your pet. A supply of food and water, in familiar dishes, will also help the animal adjust to new surroundings. Once the move is complete, and the removals team have gone, allow your pet to explore the property. Place toys, blankets and such, in similar locations as at the previous home to speed up the settling process.

Dogs should be kept on a leash when investigating the new yard, and cats should be kept indoors for the first few weeks, until they are familiar with the new location. Too often, an unsettled pet will try and find its way back to its old home and become disorientated in unfamiliar surroundings.

With all of the other issues that need to be dealt when moving home, reducing the level of stress for both owner and pet cannot be understated, and with a little planning ahead it should prove be one less thing to worry about.

Help to make things less stressfull when moving into a new home

Posted by tricia under Articles

Organizing Storage – Tips for Doing this In Your New Home

Moving into a new home also comes with some challenges.  One of the many challenges would be organizing things.

When you move into a new home, boxes and other storage items can cause clutter.  This creates a chaotic environment that makes organizing your things even more difficult.  Sometimes it can become so overwhelming that you can lose track of what do.

But getting organized with your storage isn’t too difficult to do. All you have to do is to be systematic with your activities. Doing so helps avoid stress and reduces problems in getting things done.

Here are some tips:

1. When the moving truck arrives at your new home, guide the movers accordingly. You can ask them to bring boxes inside the house and put them in their respective rooms. You can stand at the door and direct them where to go. Doing this would avoid waste of time.One tip, you can label the rooms beforehand. This way, movers would be able to locate the place faster.
2. All boxes that have entered the new house should be accounted for. Make an inventory list of the boxes that where brought inside and what rooms you expect them to find.
3. Unpack things one at a time. Do not be in a hurry to unpack them all at once. This could create problems and clutter. As much as possible, refer to your inventory list that you created when you packed the things before the move. Check the boxes that contain important stuff and unpack them first. Then you go one with other stuff the next day without creating too much clutter in the room.
4. Inside the room, all things that are small should be grouped with the same class. For example, if you have knitting tools make sure you put them in the basket or plastic containers and put them in one corner of the room. If you have magazine, make use of racks. If you have books, put them on one side of the room, on top of the shelves or cabinets. Doing all these things makes things easier to find, even when you have not finished unpacking the rest of your stuff.