Bill Nelson

This is a great opportunity for a few friends who attend Rowan University in Glassboro, NJ to get a HUGE home at an affordable monthly rate. This 4 bedroom, 2 bath ranch style home offers a full basement with a bar, huge yard with two patios, living room with book shelves, dining room, eat-in-kitchen, and another large bonus room off the dining room. A new 4 car+ driveway is being installed soon. This home is being offered for $2000 per month plus utilities and is professionally managed. Home has a maximum capicity of 4 adults as per Glassboro's current rental ordinance. Call me if you want to see it for yourself. I can be reached by phone, 856-466-2502 or via e-mail sent to wnelson@cbelitenj.com. You can get more information and pictures by visiting the home's webpage at http://220franklinrd.billnelsonrealtor.com.

I ask this question because most of the people in my area head to the beach over this 3 day weekend or gather with their family and friends for the ceremonial barbeque this Memorial Day weekend. If you're an investor or a savy home buyer, you'll recognize this as an opportunity to look at and put an offer in on a home this weekend. Typically, holiday weekends are the best time to look and buy because you have little competition trying to see the same home you want to buy. Less competition equals a better opportunity for you to get the home, price and terms you want. Why wait until next week or weekend to look? We don't know how long interest rates will be this low so forgo the beach for one day and spend a little quality time with your real estate professional and sieze the opportunity to buy your favorite home this holiday weekend.

I don't know about you, but I really like saving money whenever I can. One of the biggest expenses in our life is the cost to operate the place we call "Home". Whether you are renting or own it, utilities are expensive!!! If you follow a few of the suggestions listed below, you should be able to save enough to pay a little more toward the credit cards in January.

1) Get an Energy Audit. An independant energy audit will cost around $200-300 to have done by a professional but might entitle you to government rebates and incentives to help offset the cost of adding insulation, upgrading systems, etc.

2) Visit the Eco Options page on Home Depot's website. This section of HD's website offers you the opportunity to find rebates by state, take efficiency surveys to see where you are wasting utilities, and offers suggestions to correct or improve the efficiency of your home. http://www6.homedepot.com/ecooptions/index.html?MAINSECTION=energyaudit&cm_sp=homepage%2d%5f%2dwk43%2d%5f%2dF2%2d%5f%2dhome%5fefficiency%5faudit

3) Replace the Weatherstripping on your doors and windows. This will help eliminate drafts created by worn or crushed seals. If your windows are older than 20 years, consider replacing them with the latest in thermopane windows. If your door is an older wood door, consider replacing it with an insulated steel or fiberglass door and add a storm door.

4) Caulk around all windows, doors, and vents on the outside of your home. When coupled with replacing the seals as mentioned in #3, this will help eliminate the draft from the outside and help prevent water from getting behind your siding which can lead to other problems such as rot, mold, or wood destroying insects.

5) Insulate your pipes in the basement and crawlspace. This simple step is often the most overlooked point of savings in a home. Measure your pipes for the diameter and buy the appropriate pipe insulation. It is usually sold in 3 to 4' lengths and often features a tape seal making intallation easy. While you're at it, wrap your water heater with a pre-made water heater insulation blanket.

These are just a few suggestions to make your paycheck last a little longer or to help pay for your holiday shopping.

Thanks!

Bill Nelson
REALTOR, Real Estate Investor, SRES

Its that time again...landlords in New Jersey have to make sure to cut a check to their tenants for the interest accrued in their security deposit. This must be done by January 31st or upon the lease renewal, but most will do this in January. Just a friendly reminder. Landlords...visit this link to learn more about the law concerning security deposits and your responsibilities to the tenant.

http://www.state.nj.us/dca/codes/lt/pdf/Secty_deposit_bultin.pdf

Bill Nelson

I recently had the "opportunity" to have a tenant leave one of my rentals. We picked up the home in 2004 and put the tenant into the home within a month or two of the acquisition. We had the luck of not having to do much to the home to get it rented, but realized that over time we'd have to invest a few dollars to improve it. Now that the place was empty, we decided to make a few improvements. The windows were the old aluminum frame sliders that last had a good seal and clear glass in the early 80's. The front window was a 9 light window that had only two small panes that opened. Like most people, we opted to replace the windows with vinyl replacements and as per the contractor's suggestion, replaced a few sliders with double hungs. Bottom line, it was money well spent and the before and after pictures tell the story well. Al (the contractor), I thank you for your hard work and attention to the details.

Before After