We made it folks! Happy 1st Day of Spring!

Is Your Home Spring Market Ready?

Spring Market is warming up and this is a great article to get your home ready! If you are thinking of buying or selling please call me today for a free market analysis!

REALTOR Tip: Get Your Home Ready for the Spring Housing Market in the Triangle

The following compilation of tips is a collective from our Fonville Morisey Wake Forest office with contributions by: Jennifer Arthur, Keith Dbal, Leah Flach, Beth McCormick, Marsha Myers, Kaye Odum, Laura Pedersen, Yvonne Scott, Karen Turner, and Nancy Vales. Thanks to all for sharing their insights!

We recently wrote about how the Triangle housing market is primed to be a buyer’s market this spring. If you’ve been thinking about selling your home in 2014, we encourage you to get off that proverbial fence and list it. However, we also encourage you to contact your Fonville Morisey Sales Associate who can best help you determine the right price in which to sell it for keeping in mind every property is unique! Your FM Agent knows how to price it best.
With that in mind, we thought whether you’re thinking about listing your home for sale in the Triangle or you’ve already made the decision, it’s time to get your property ready for that sale. We did an extensive list of Seller’s Tips around this time last year so when we asked our Wake Forest office to come up with their own tips and tricks, not surprisingly yesterday’s are still the same today. Take a look!

Curb Appeal – It’s the First Thing Your Buyers Will See

It’s time to spruce up your lawn and garden to show its very best side. Clean it up and plant some flowers (or bulbs) and add flower pots to the front porch or step as well. Cut back on the shrubs, especially those blocking windows and the sunlight from penetrating through them. Buyers LOVE light!
Speaking of windows, be sure to wash all of your windows and insert the screens to let the sun and fresh air in too.
Don’t forget to pull the weeds too! In fact, breathe new life into a tired entrance way by mulching flowerbeds and natural areas. Remove/replace old, faded, broken flower pots and welcome mats with refreshing spring colors!
And if you need to – power wash or paint the exterior of your home as well. Sometimes all your property may need is a good power washing to make it new again…and sometimes, it’ll need a fresh coat of paint. Use your judgment there but remember, you’re trying to catch the eye of the prospective buyer!

The Front Door is Usually a Focal Point – So Make it So!

Get your front door area ready. Sweep, remove any cobwebs, clean the door itself and add a fresh coat of paint to it if it’s needed. Polish and clean the outdoor light fixture at the door too. That’s definitely a piece you don’t want to forget to clean!

Make the Inside of Your Home Sparkle AND Inviting!

Keep in mind, the home you currently live in has now become a property to market and as such, as a homeowner you need to consider how to make it appealing to the prospective buyer. The number one thing you should do – de-clutter. Better yet, depersonalize and neutralize. Take down all the family pictures and items that collect dust. If you can include home staging in your budget, that is very helpful. Even if all the Stager does is take what you currently own and re-position those items in such a way that it looks like a model home where buyers can then visualize their furniture in your space.
Give new life to rooms, removing personal bright colors on the walls (or wallpaper) in favor of using crisp soft or warm neutral tones.
Homebuyers in the Raleigh, Durham, Chapel Hill and surrounding communities look for all these things. Remember, they want to be able to visualize themselves and their possessions taking new residence in your space. Give them a reason to! Your Fonville Morisey REALTOR® will work with you on how best to do this with a budget you can manage.

Tax Tips for Homeowners!

Since Tax day is right around the corner I thought I would remind everyone about some wonderful home owner tax tips from this great article! 

 

REALTOR Tip: Homeownership and Taxes 2014 – Info for New and Existing Homeowners in the Triangle

by fmrealty on January 31, 2014/ Lisa Sullivan, Digital Media Marketing Director

#1 Mistakes in Reporting/Deducting Could Lead to Hardship Down the Road

If you prefer to do your taxes on your own, that’s perfectly fine. However, be sure you know what you can deduct and how to calculate it correctly. In other words, don’t make any unnecessary mistakes like deducting the wrong year for property taxes or if you work from home, misjudging the home office tax deduction. Houselogic captures each of these mistakes and provides tips on how avoid them in their article 9 Easy Mistakes Homeowners Make on Their Taxes. Be sure and check that one out.

#2 New Homeowners – There are Pros to Homeownership in Tax Write-offs

In 2013, you searched high and low in the Raleigh, Durham, Chapel Hill and surrounding communities for that perfect home. Maybe you downsized (or up-sized), relocated within the Triangle, or you’re a first-time homebuyer. First, we congratulate you on your purchase! Second, we also know understanding what qualifies as a tax write-off might be confusing. Don’t forget you can actually deduct your property taxes; not to mention – the interest in your house payment is also deductible, but there are rules regarding that too. FOX Business breaks down what you need to know about each of these write-offs in a recent piece entitled The Pros of Homeownership are Tax Write-offs. Read and review that one carefully as well.

#3 Beware of the Tax Benefits That are Disappearing

This is a biggie as there are three tax write-offs that are vanishing  – home energy improvements, the Private Mortgage Insurance Deduction and Mortgage Debt Forgiveness. The Pittsburgh Courier provides a listing of each and how you can take advantage of them before it’s too late in their article 8 Disappearing Tax Breaks. Again, worth taking a look at and if you have questions, ask your Accountant to clarify for you.

#4 “Second Home” Homeowners Get Tax Breaks Too!

BUT…you have to know and understand what they are before you can claim them. For instance, did you know that as long as you use your second home as truly a second home (not a rental), you can deduct 100% of your mortgage interest. However, if you rent it out at any time, then there are parameters you have to meet. Yahoo! Finance breaks those down in their article Tax Breaks for Second-Home Owners.

So there you go! We’ve shared some of the best articles we could find on tax breaks for homeowners in 2013. If you have any questions, feel free to contact your Fonville Morisey Sales Associate or your FM Lending Mortgage Consultant today as well. We’re always happy to help!

Congratulations new homeowners of the Triangle in 2013! Homeownership has its privileges. This is just one of them…and it’s a BIG one.

Remember, whether you are ready to downsize, moving in to your dream home, relocating from the Triangle, or just would like to know what your home may be worth on the current market-feel free to give me a call for a FREE comparative market analysis! I would love to help in any way I can!

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