Home Improvements 
There are currently 48 blog entries related to this category.
Is Your Santa Cruz Home for Sale a Victim of DIY Remodeling?
Sunday, August 22nd, 2010 at 1:01am. 8 Views, 0 Comments.
Has your Santa Cruz home for sale been victimized by DIY remodeling projects? Did they not quite turn out like you thought they would? You aren’t alone; I’ve walked into houses with cabinets hanging at a slant and the owner proudly telling me they did it themselves.
Leave it to a pro.
Not everybody can be a remodeler. Not everybody is handy at everything. For instance, I can change the oil on my car, but I leave engine overhauls to the professionals. Why? Because that’s what they do, and they do it well.
Now, many people choose to do remodeling themselves because they think it’s cheaper – and it often is when done right. However, knowledge is power. It’d be cheaper for me to do my own engine overhaul, too, but I’ve never done it before and don’t know how.…
How Buying Santa Cruz Real Estate is Like Running a Marathon
Friday, August 20th, 2010 at 1:01am. 8 Views, 0 Comments.
It's true. There are a lot of parallels between buying a piece of Santa Cruz real estate and running a marathon.
The Starting Line
At first, there is excitement. The idea of buying a new home pulses in your veins and you can't wait to get started. You're like a runner in the blocks just itching to begin. Your muscles twitch in anticipation with every piece of Santa Cruz real estate you see. That's when the real adrenaline rush kicks in.
Start Out Slowly
Keep to a steady, consistent pace and you’ll make it to the finish line. There's so much to do before you can get your Santa Cruz real estate. Home appraisals, inspections and financing to apply for…
You start to think about all the 'what ifs,' like what if you don't get the financing, what if something…
Santa Cruz Homes for Sale: A Case of Cold Feet
Thursday, August 12th, 2010 at 1:01am. 12 Views, 0 Comments.
While those who own Santa Cruz homes for sale are worried about the real estate market, some buyers are getting good deals. However, there are plenty of people on both sides of the market with a case of cold feet.
For instance, some with Santa Cruz homes for sale took them off the market. Others, who’ve thought of selling, haven’t.
The same can be said for buyers. Many potential homebuyers change their minds or still worry over that age-old question of, “Should I or shouldn’t I?”
Two Cases of Cold Feet
A 26-year old with a steady job, good paycheck and good credit, sums it up for many potential buyers. “My job’s steady and my credit is good. I keep watching the houses that go up for sale, thinking I could go ahead and buy, but then the ‘what if’s’ pop into…
10 Things to Do While Waiting for Your Santa Cruz Home to Sell
Tuesday, August 10th, 2010 at 1:01am. 14 Views, 0 Comments.
Selling a home is sometimes a long process. You can sit around worrying and wondering when you’ll have a buyer, or you can get busy to help the time fly. Here are 10 things to do while waiting for your Santa Cruz home to sell:
1. Clean. I’m sure you’ve already cleaned every part of your Santa Cruz home to prepare it for sale. Make a game of it this time. Time yourself to see how fast you can clean one room or one drawer. Or, take out every type of cleaner you have and use it in each room.
2. Plant a container garden. The best part of a container garden is that you can take it with you. Plant some herbs or easy to grow vegetable plants, like tomatoes or cucumbers.
3. Sort through your magazines. Now you have the time to read all those magazine articles…
How to Set a Kitchen Renovation Budget on Santa Cruz Homes
Sunday, July 25th, 2010 at 1:01am. 19 Views, 0 Comments.
There are many Santa Cruz homes currently for sale. An obvious question you must ask yourself in today’s market is how to make your home stand out.
Whether you’re a real estate investor wanting to flip several Santa Cruz homes or a homeowner selling your current home, one of the top ways to increase your home’s value is remodeling the kitchen. The kitchen is the central meeting place of the American family and people want it to be modern and up to date.
Do a Price Comparison among Santa Cruz Homes
Your renovation budget is one of the primary concerns to take into account before you begin. The current value of your home, as compared to other homes in your neighborhood, is one way to determine how much you should spend on your kitchen renovation.
- Higher…
5 Tips to Creating Stress-Free Santa Cruz Homes
Saturday, July 17th, 2010 at 1:01am. 22 Views, 0 Comments.
Many people have trouble relaxing, even in their Santa Cruz homes. Why? Frequently, it’s because of too much visual stimuli such as unfinished projects, knickknacks and clutter.
You may think the answer to being able to relax is to move into a “better” home. However, what usually happens is that you move your unfinished projects and clutter with you. Instead, if you take the time to get organized, you may find – like many owners who have backed out of a sale – that you don’t need to move, you just need to re-organize.
Take a moment from your busy, stressful life to read these tips and discover how you can improve and de-stress your personal castle:
1. Add money to your wallet. Unwanted or unused items can be turned into cash. eBay and Craigslist are two…
When You Can’t Sell Your Santa Cruz Home to Younger Buyers…
Friday, July 9th, 2010 at 1:01am. 21 Views, 0 Comments.
You may just be targeting the wrong market. Young families, Gen-Xers and 30-somethings tend to want to move into a Santa Cruz home with high technology: expensive items like home theatres or home automation. Older buyers, however, have a frugal mindset, are often on a fixed income, and have a different set of requirements for their potential Santa Cruz home.
Why would you want to market to older buyers? Several reasons, but the main reason is the size of this market, especially the size of the baby boomer generation.
The Population Reference Bureau reports that there were 76 million births during the 19 years covering the baby boomer generation. A large percentage of these baby boomers, who are now between the ages of 46 and 64, are looking or soon will be…
Santa Cruz Homes for Sale and Virtual Staging: New Sales Method or Old Scam?
Saturday, July 3rd, 2010 at 1:01am. 25 Views, 0 Comments.
Home staging has long been a way to sell Santa Cruz homes for sale. In short, stagers come into your home, look the place over and start packing (if it’s not already empty). They bring furniture, draperies and other things to make the home look warm, beautiful and inviting to buyers.
The trick is to make the Santa Cruz homes for sale inviting in a way that doesn’t overwhelm the buyer’s personal tastes. It’s worked, selling thousands of homes that might not have sold otherwise, and selling them faster than non-staged homes.
For the past year or two, however, virtual (or conceptual) staging has come into the real estate world. Somewhat like traditional home staging, the virtual stager spruces up your home for sale. The differences are where the work is done…
Open Season on Homes for Sale in Santa Cruz – Hunting License Not Needed
Tuesday, June 29th, 2010 at 1:01am. 22 Views, 0 Comments.
It’s open season on homes for sale in Santa Cruz, and no hunting license is needed. You might want to wear bright orange jackets if you’re a seller, though. It’s a buyer’s market and, in this case, you want the house hunters to see you.
Now, you can only take the hunting analogy so far; I don’t think you’d appreciate being hung on a wall as a trophy. You will appreciate hunters setting their sights on homes for sale in Santa Cruz, however. Here are a few tips to ensure that your home is the one they target:
Stand out in the open
To put it simply, buyers are using more and more technology nowadays. Obviously, you, as the seller, want to be where the buyers are, right? Embrace the Internet. Twitter, Facebook, blogging and other forms of social media are some of…
Buyer’s Market? Santa Cruz Real Estate Agents to the Rescue
Friday, June 25th, 2010 at 1:01am. 24 Views, 0 Comments.
“Buyer’s market” means that the buyers have the upper hand; there’s more supply than demand. When it comes to selling your home, it’s safe to say that you’re competing in one of recent history’s toughest real estate markets. This is a true buyer’s market, where supply far outweighs demand. So how do you go about selling your home in these conditions?
Interview Santa Cruz Real Estate Agents
Don’t pick an agent based on looks. An agent who drives an expensive car may very well just be someone who lives beyond his or her means. Instead, create a list of the top Santa Cruz real estate agents in the area and interview them. Ask:
• About their experiences in selling homes in your area this year and last year – not in years gone by
• What they’d recommend to make…
