Christine Emmick

Recently I read a post here where an agent complained about what he perceived as a"too-low" bid from a client. I understand his point of view. He wants to maximize commissions on the sale, obviously, serve the best interests of his client by getting their bid accepted, or at least countered, and not create hard feelings between other agents and himself.

However I think he's missing a very important point. While home values are made partly of location, materials and improvements, home values mostly consist of the intangibles. Let me give an example.

My husband and I have been looking at investment properties in a particular community for about four months now. We've seen listing prices from $2,500 to more than $80,000. The price seems to have nothing to do with the condition or location (some streets are more attractive than others). The $2,500 is in relatively good condition, needs a sewer line, but is worth the 20K the city is asking to pay to open up the road. Then there is one listed for ten times that with siding falling off the house, most of the windows broken and boarded up and both porches falling off.

Back when the county that holds the city of Pittsburgh did it's reassessment, our tiny two bedroom 100 year old vinyl sided farm house with its original wood windows sitting on 13 acres was compared to huge 5 and 6 bedroom brick (what I would call) mansions sitting on 2 and 3 acres. They just couldn't find anything like our little place. My point is no matter how many comparables you do, each house is an individual. Just like people, each house needs to be treated like an individual. Some of us don't see our worth and sell out for something less. Some of us are all glitz and glimmer but empty on the inside, so we're not worth the asking price, unless of course you like empty glitz.

You couldn't get me to live in a brand new premo city townhouse with no yard to grow things for a dollar. In fact, you'd have to pay me to live there. These may sell for 200K, but not to me.

On the other hand, I love my house. It's worth $500,000 to me, but most of you would look at the hole in the siding, the torn up basement floor and the windows falling off and say I was crazy. But you'd need to make an offer at least that large to get us to consider it, and we still may not sell. This house has something no other does. This house is where I found my husband's great grandparents marriage certificate in the attic. It's where my children spend hours outside exploring nature, I spend hours outside growing things, and my husband spends hours using the ATV to "take out the garbage." (Yeah right! :)

So no listing price is too high, and no offer is too low. Each is according to what the buyer and seller value the house, the location, the community, the street, their neighbors, the yard, the access and, most of all, the experience. You just can't get comps on that.

My local neighborhood hospital is facing a business crisis. UPMC, the biggest purveyor of health care in the Pittsburgh region, is attempting to build a new hospital less than five miles from where the West Penn, Forbes Campus is located.

I would welcome this competition challenge if it were anything other than the health care industry. Free enterprise is one of those things that spur us on to make things cheaper, better and faster. In service industries like healthcare, however, cheaper and faster are not necessarily better.

Another thing that has me concerned is the, "I'll do anything I want," mentality of UPMC. Here is a link to an excellent Pittsburgh Tribune Review article by Luis Fabregas. It showcases the business (rather than the patient care) focus of UPMC. They may be slowly becoming a monopoly. They have their own insurance plan only accepted at their facilities (which all their employees must carry), use less than legal tactics in human resource management and carry a significant market share in the Pittsburgh region. I detailed some of this in a communication I recently made with the reporter.

"...one of my close family members is a former employee at one of the UPMC facilities. She worked for the company for almost ten years with little incident. Then she forgot to record a measurement she had taken on one of her patients. They called her into the office and gave her a warning. The next day they called her in again. To her surprise, they brought to her attention what they said was another missed recording. She informed them that this was the exact reading that she was called into the office for the prior day. Nevertheless, she was told this was her second warning. By this time she was suspicious. The third day she was brought into the office again, for the same missed recording, and was dismissed. The only thing she can figure is she was about to be fully vested into her 401K. She was a group of about ten people filing a claim."

My question to my AR people is this, is this good or bad for real estate? Is one hospital forcing another, well established hospital out of business a good idea for residents? If you knew the rival and the area, you'd know that is clearly what this is.

Take These Simple Steps to Protect Your Personal and Corporate Identity

By Christine Emmick

Identity theft is something most people do not think about until it is too late. Statistics show over two-hundred-thousand people fall victim to identity theft each year just in the United States alone. With these numbers growing, identity theft prevention is more important than ever. Here are some ways you can protect yourself from identity thieves.

Use your credit card instead of your debit card. Credit cards tend to carry more identity theft protection, such as zero-liability for unauthorized purchases. After just two days you may be liable for up to $500 in unauthorized charges on your debit card, and after 60 days you may be liable for all of it.

Choose just one credit card for your everyday purchases. When buying all your personal and corporate supplies, it's smart to stick with one card instead of spreading the balance over multiple accounts. When you use multiple cards, you are putting each of those accounts at risk for fraud. Also, be sure you monitor the activity on that card closely.

Check your balance frequently. Also consider setting spending limit alerts with your credit card company. Most credit card companies offer an alert service that automatically contacts you when a large charge is made to your account. Contact your credit card company's online service department to see what type of alerts they offer.

Use an identity theft protection service with fraud alert. There are several companies, like Fair Isaac's myFiCO, which will help you monitor your credit report and alert you when a possible fraud attempt is made. Some will even back you monetarily, reimbursing you for the losses you've suffered at the identity thief's hand.

Be cautious when opening new retail credit card accounts. It may seem like a great idea to take advantage of that discount, but some retail workers may not be as careful with your sensitive financial information as they should, especially during busy seasonal times. As an aside, each credit inquiry from a lender lowers your credit score, eventually limiting your financing choices.

Check your credit report often. Make sure all the information is correct, including your contact as well as your credit information. Under federal law, you are entitled to one free copy of your credit report each year. Contact each of the three major credit bureaus, Equifax, Experian and Trans Union, and ask what the procedure is to get your free report.

Take a credit class. This gives you a good overview of what you will find on your credit report, helps you understand what affects your credit rating and tunes you in on how much damage is caused by identity theft. Credit and You is a class that covers the how to on preventing identity theft, how your credit score is determined as well as how to improve this credit score. This course is available from Staged for Success and for a limited time offered at over half off the regular price. Call 877-615-3294 or visit the website to register.

Following these simple rules reduces your chance of becoming a victim of identity theft drastically. Preventing identity theft does not happen by accident. Know your credit score, monitor your credit activity, and educate yourself about the credit process and identity thieves will shop somewhere else for their next victim.

Content sponsored by Staged for Success, a full service home and business staging company serving the greater Pittsburgh area. For more information about Staged for Success, visit their website at www.mystagingpros.com.
Christine Emmick is a freelance business and real estate writer based in the Pittsburgh area. You may contact Christine through her blog site at www.activerain.com/cemmick.

Strategic Home Improvement Increases Your Home Value, Inside and Out

By Christine Emmick

Spring is a great time to do home improvement and when you're selling a home, you need every one of those investment dollars to count. When a home buyer looks for houses for sale, curb appeal is not the only important factor anymore. Multi-photo listings and virtual home tours mean you need to have your house looking its best, both inside and out, before the real estate agent does a home appraisal.

Start with your home interior. Tackle the clutter and get rid of anything you do not use at least on a weekly basis. Give away what you don't use, throw away the junk and store the rest. You'll find dozens of storage facilities listed at uhaul.com. Then decide whether you'll hire a carpet cleaner or carpet installer. If your carpet is more than five years old or it is stained, it's best to replace it with new, neutral colored carpet. Finally, get a few estimates from a painting contractor to give the interior walls a fresh look. Again, make sure you choose neutral house paint colors.

Next tackle the outside of the house. Attack the clutter here as well, and then consider new improvements like roof, windows, siding and exterior house paint which will ultimately raise the sale price of your home. Again, keep with neutral shades and be sure to choose colors that complement one another. In general, avoid blue with reds, and any purple, pink or orange hues. Also, make sure to get a copy of the insurance certificate of any roofer, window installer or painter before they do any work and check the references for each contractor as well.

Don't forget the landscaping. People get their first impression of a property from the landscaping and simple inexpensive changes, such as adding an accent shrub or replacing mulch, can make a big difference. A general landscape contractor can bring an established landscape back to life, but it's best to hire a landscape architect to re-design a badly maintained site. Early spring is the perfect time to hire a landscape contractor since most are eager to get to work after the off season.

You can do all this yourself, if you have the time and resources. Most people selling a house don't have time to check a contractor's references, let alone have the experience required to inspect their work. This is where a good staging company, like Staged for Success comes in. A staging company hires experienced contractors for you who have a proven record of reliability. Also, the staging company is often times able to negotiate a better contract price than a homeowner, mostly due to the volume of business they bring to that contractor.

Staged for Success, the premier staging company in the greater Pittsburgh area, provides free consultations to all prospective staging clients and offers online classes for both those looking to buy and sell a home. Try the Home Buyer Class if you want to know more about real estate agents, credit scores. The Home Sellers Class, which is geared to help you make the most of the selling process, gives details on what to look for in a real estate agent, as well as the particulars on how to make your home look its best. You can reach them at their website, www.mystagingpros.com, or by telephone at 1-877-615-3294.

Spend some time on home improvements this spring. This is the way you "Set the Stage" to sell your home successfully.

Content sponsored by Staged for Success, a full service home and business staging company serving the greater Pittsburgh area. For more information about Staged for Success, visit their website at www.mystagingpros.com.

Christine Emmick is a freelance business and real estate writer based in the Pittsburgh area. You may contact Christine through her blog site at www.activerain.com/cemmick.

You know the old saying, location, location, location. Some neighborhoods in the Pittsburgh area, despite seemingly rampant crime, high taxes and little in the way of community services are homes to those that call their town "the best."

My question to the AR community is what makes the location? Is it only the school district, taxes and crime rate, or is it something less measurable? Can we truly call a place "home" if our heart isn't there, even if all the lawns are manicured and the school is within walking distance?

My experience, at least in the Pittsburgh area, is that some people are not motivated to move out of areas they've called home, no matter what. As a real estate investor, I hope to give communities back some of their dignity by fixing eyesores that plague the town they call home. As a writer, my question is, am I too naive?

-Christine :)