David Artigliere

The Smart Way to Look At Home Improvements

written by David Artigliere, ARTI Home Inspections LLC

Have you ever wondered what home improvements really pay off when the time comes to sell your house? That's an important question for any homeowner contemplating moving or remodeling.

That answer starts with the fact that major improvements like room additions, total replacements of kitchens and baths, etc., rarely pay off fully in the short term. It ends with the fact that small and relatively inexpensive changes can pay off in a great way in making your home attractive to buyers if your decision is to move soon. It's a simple fact that even the most appropriate major improvements are unlikely to return their full cost if a house is sold within two or three years. Does that mean that major home improvements are always a bad idea? Absolutely not. It does mean, though, that if your present house falls seriously short of meeting your family's needs you need to think twice before deciding to undertake a major renovation. Viewed strictly in investment terms, major improvements rarely make as much sense as selling your present home and buying one that's better suited for your needs and wants.

Even if you have a special and strong attachment to the house you're in and feel certain that you could be happy in it for a long time if only it had more bedrooms and baths, for example, there are a few basic rules that you ought to keep in mind. Probably the most basic rule of all is the one that says you should never, unless you don't care about eventual resale value, improve a house to the point where its desired sales price would be more than 20 percent higher than the most expensive of the other houses in the immediate neighborhood. Try to raise the value of your house too high and surrounding properties will pull it down!

Here are some other rules worth remembering:

• Never rearrange the interior of your house in a way that reduces the total number of bedrooms to less than three.

• Never add a third bathroom to a two-bath house unless you don't care about ever recouping your investment.

• Swimming pools rarely return what you spend to install them. Ditto for sun rooms and finished basements.

If you decide to move rather than improve, it's often the smaller, relatively inexpensive improvements that turn out to be most worth doing. The cost of replacing a discolored toilet bowl, making sure all the windows work, or getting rid of dead trees and shrubs is trivial compared with adding a bathroom, but such things can have a big and very positive impact on prospective buyers. You can also get a home inspector to come out and go through the property with you to point out any defects that might be worth correcting before a prospective buyer comes through. Your house will appear well-maintained and that could give you an edge over the other homes on the market!

ARTI Home Inspections LLC is open 7 days a week from 8am to 9pm including some holidays! We are based in Pennside, PA, a suburb of Reading, PA and inspect homes for Buyers, Sellers, Banks and Investors all over Eastern Pennsylvania including Montgomery, Berks, Chester, Lancaster, Philadelphia, Bucks, Lehigh Valley, Delaware, Lebanon counties.

David Artigliere has a Master's Degree in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Pennsylvania and has been performing home inspections since 2001. He has also been a Real Estate Investor since 1997, rehabbing over 20 properties.

Visit their website at www.artihi.com for more information or to schedule an inspection or hourly consult, contact David Artigliere at 610-220-1907.

ARTI Home Inspections LLC Prepares Homeowners For Emergencies! With a little education about the home, you might know what to do once the unexpected happens.

I have 20 water shutoff valves in my house and I know exactly where each of them are and how to operate them. Do you? Many small home emergencies become huge disasters because we don't know what to do when the unexpected happens.

Buying a home can mean building wealth and saving on taxes, but it's not just about money. Get to know your home intimately. Knowing where the shutoff valves are located, for instance, can save you a lot of money and grief later if disaster strikes.

If you are relatively new to homeownership or property management, one of the things I like to do when I'm performing a home inspection for a buyer or real estate investor, is to have them walk around the property with me so I can teach them about the house and point out maintenance issues and educate them about the systems. It is not required that you be there for the inspection, but I certainly recommend it. Below are some of the items you should be aware of if you already own a home.

WATER SHUT OFFS

Each of my bathrooms has three cut-off valves -- one for the toilet, two under the sink (hot and cold water). If, for some reason, those break and I have water coming through, I also know where the main water valve is located and I've tested it to make sure the knob doesn't break off in my hand if I ever run up against a real emergency. There are also two water shut off valves going toward the outside water faucets

It's easy to let these valves age into disrepair. Honestly, they aren't items that we work with on a regular basis. Except for the testing of the water main, I've not touched the knob in more than three years (when I moved into the dwelling

HOT WATER HEATER

How's the hot water heater? Have you checked the bottom of it lately to see any evidence of rust? For many homeowners, this is one of those household items that never gets checked until water is running everywhere. The hot water heater should also have a cutoff valve. Know how to use it and have your kids try it out too.

ELECTRIC PANEL

Have you looked over your electrical panel as well? If you've remodeled, the labels need to be changed (that's assuming you have labels). If they aren't clearly marked, this little project can take you a few minutes to an hour or so, depending on how many outlets, switches and lights you have in the house. Use a cell phone or walkie-talkies with a helper and it makes the job of identifying the circuit breakers or fuses a lot easier. One person stays by the panel flipping switches, while the other walks around the house letting you know what's on and what's off.

To identify the circuits, turn on all the lights in the house. For outlets, you'll just have to switch off the breaker and have your partner flip on an appliance, radio or lamp that's plugged in that outlet to determine the match. The good thing about this project is that it won't have to be done again unless you remodel and add on more outlets and switches on more circuit breakers

WASHER/DRYER

A couple of intensive appliances are the dishwasher and washer. Keep up with what's happening underneath these appliances. Look over the hoses periodically and make sure they are not getting old and about to split open. Check for rust in the bottom of the baskets (if you have metal construction).

If you notice a touch of rust in the bottom of your dishwasher when you are loading/unloading dishes, check the flooring for signs of water leakage or go in the basement to see if the dishwasher might be leaking during a cycle. If not, make a mental note to keep an eye on it in case it gets worse. Rust can work its way up from the bottom.

Emergencies can become less taxing with a little testing, preventative maintenance and knowing your home's systems.

ARTI Home Inspections LLC is open 7 days a week from 8am to 9pm including some holidays! We are based in Pennside, PA, a suburb of Reading, PA and inspect homes for Buyers, Sellers, Banks and Investors all over Eastern Pennsylvania including Montgomery, Berks, Chester, Lancaster, Philadelphia, Bucks, Lehigh Valley, Delaware, Lebanon counties.

David Artigliere has a Master's Degree in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Pennsylvania and has been performing home inspections since 2001. He has also been a Real Estate Investor since 1997, rehabbing over 20 properties.

For more information or to schedule a home inspection or consult, visit their website at www.artihi.com or contact David Artigliere at 610-220-1907.

ARTI Home Inspections LLC will be conducting a free seminar on August 27, 2009 titled "HOW TO IDENTIFY STRUCTURAL ISSUES IN A FOUNDATION BEFORE YOU BUY!"

This will be presented by David Artigliere, home inspector and owner of ARTI Home Inspections LLC. The seminar is open to the public and free of charge! It will take place during the DIG Tradeshow & Expo on 8/27/09 at the LuLu Shriners in Plymouth Meeting, PA. DIG stands for Diversified Investors Group but you do not have to be a member to attending this incredible event! David presents at 7:15pm in the Merrimac Room but the Trade Show & Expo runs from 6-9pm. There will be other speakers, "how to" clinics, and tons of free give-aways and raffles! Call David from ARTI Home Inspections LLC for more information at 610-220-1907 or visit his website at www.artihi.com

Also, if you are looking for a home inspection and cannot make this event, reference the keyword "ActiveRain" and receive $20 off the cost of a full home inspection from David Artigliere of ARTI Home Inspections LLC. Schedule an inspection by calling 610-220-1907, emailing artihi@hotmail.com or click here to visit our website. In addition to home inspections, we provide termite inspections (wood destroying insect inspections), radon testing, and hourly consulting which appeals to more seasoned real estate investors.

A full home inspection usually takes 2-3 hours on a single family property. You get a Digital Report Same Day with Pictures and a General Summary of Major Defects. The home inspection report will cover the condition of the home's heating system; central air conditioning system (temperature permitting); interior plumbing and electrical systems; the roof, attic and visible insulation; walls, ceilings, floors, windows and doors; the foundation, basement and structural components.

The hourly consulting service that we offer is very useful for real estate investors who either don't have an inspection contingency in their agreement, need a number of properties looked at in the same day, or who are more seasoned and only want specific major systems of the property inspected (ie. a roof or foundation). The consulting prices vary depending on the area and the costs start once he arrives at the property. We do not charge for travel time but there is a minimum charge of 1 hour.

ARTI Home Inspections LLC is open 7 days a week from 8am to 9pm including some holidays! We are based in Pennside, PA, a suburb of Reading, PA and inspect homes for Buyers, Sellers, Banks and Investors all over Eastern Pennsylvania including Montgomery, Berks, Chester, Lancaster, Philadelphia, Bucks, Lehigh Valley, Delaware, Lebanon coutnies.

David Artigliere has a Master's Degree in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Pennsylvania and has been performing home inspections since 2001. He has also been a Real Estate Investor since 1997, rehabbing over 20 properties.

Visit our website at www.artihi.com for more information or to schedule an inspection or contact David at 610-220-1907.