About Middlesex County, ON

Buyers Have Just Walked into Your Home, Now What?

Part 3 of Easy & Inexpensive Ways to Prepare Your Home For Sale

So now we the prospective buyer has parked their car because you had curb appeal and they have entered your house. Before I get into each room, let's discuss

Ideas for Every Room in the House

Give the house a real "once over" cleaning. Clean it from top to bottom. Clean houses have a competitive edge over dirty houses.

Let some air in. Get fresh breezes going to completely air out the house and get rid of any "stale" odors you may not even notice. (That could be you too!)

Start packing now. Pack up everything you don't use right now, put it in boxes and store the boxes out of the house if possible.

Think model home. Remove "extra" furniture and accessories. Make it appear spacious, not crowded. That favorite chair may have to go for now.

Clean and deodorize carpets, paying special attention to high traffic areas and stains that can be removed.

Check all the light fixtures and lamps, replacing burned out or low light bulbs with bright white bulbs. Make sure light switches are functional, consider updating them.

Check for squeaky doors.

If necessary, paint interior walls. Paint is relatively cheap, and a great return on investment.

Check the window coverings to make sure the blinds work, clean them and keep them open to let in as much light as possible.

Remove all valuables and make sure confidential documents are out of sight, and safe.

Only the most current magazines should be viewable.

Make sure your plants and flowers are living!, Clean the leaves and make sure they're watered and looking great.

Let the buyers see their lives in your house...not yours. Store excess family photos, the "wall of shame" and anything that is too much a reflection of YOUR life. We want them to not get caught up in the museum of your life, and focus on what their life would be like in their new home.

Pack up most of the books on your shelf, leaving only the larger books and lots of room on the shelves. Overcrowded bookshelves shrink the appearance of a room.

So there you go, your home in general is presentable, has not cost you much money and you have a great chance that your buyers will stay longer.

Next, I will cover specific rooms in your home.

Ty

MOVING! Sometimes I think it should be a four letter word!

The exhiliration of your purchase soon fades and your closing date approaches. You become nervous and your "To Do" list seems endless.

With appointments with lawyers and mortgage companies, movers and the endless amounts of packing you hardly have time to think about who you have to call and be notified of your move.

Here is a list of important things to think about prior to or just after your move.

1. All utility companies need to be notified to cancel your current service (if applicable) and to ensure the service at your new home is in your name and begins on the day you take possession. Your lawyer may or may not do this, so it is always a good idea to take the extra step and ensure it is done.

In the City of London the companies that need to be notified are:

Union Gas of London (this is the company in London Ontario that supplies the gas to the property. i.e. for heating etc)

1 888 774-3111 www.uniongas.com

London Hydro (this is the company in London Ontario that provides the hydro to the property)

519-661-5503 www.londonhydro.com

Union Energy Reliance ( this is the company in London Ontario that provides the rental service of the water heater. Some homes do not use this service. However, commonly the water heaters are rented.)

1-888-RELIANCE www.reliancehomecomfort.com

Prior to closing ( about the week before.. earlier is just fine too. )

2. Home Insurance

Essentially this should be done prior to your purchase becoming firm. You want to be satisfied with your rate and terms prior to making your purchase decision. If you currently have a car or tenants insurance the company you are currently insured under will most likely give you the best deal for having more then one policy with them. If not here are a few suggestions of insurers in the City Of London that you may consider. Check the websites below to find a local agent near you.

State Farm

www.statefarm.ca

The Cooperators

www.cooperators.ca

We do not endorse any of these companies. They are given just as a suggestion to you. A good idea, if you do not have an insurer that you trust to contact them or check your local yellow pages.

3. Don't forget all of the services that you cannot live without! Your phone (both land and cell phone lines), cable, internet.

4. Think of anything you receive by mail (well that you need or want to have sent to you.. leave the solicitors behind) Credit card companies, your bank and other financial companies, magazine subscriptions, newsletters etc

5. Remember to notify your employers and the governement. Now in the City of London you are able to change the address of your driver's license and Ontario Health Card at a kiosk. These can be found in White Oaks mall for example. To change the address on your vehicle ownership you must visit the Ministry of Transportation to do so.

The list of people is literally endless. But don't worry... you will get to them all. As a safeguard you may want to visit a Canada Post outlet in the city. The offer a service that will re-direct your mail from the date and name of your choice from the old address to the new address. The cost is minimal and can be set up for up to a year. This way if anything comes to your old address Canada Post will automatically re-direct the mail to the new address for the specified amount of time. This way anyone you have forgotten will not get a return to sender and you will have extra time to let everyone know.

www.canadapost.com

So take deep breaths! You are almost there.

And always remember.. if you need help with anything, or if you have any questions. Please feel free to contact us anytime.

HAPPY MOVING DAY!! And Congratulations!!

Dan and Rachael Polakovic

Sales Representatives

Realty Executives Elite Ltd Brokerage

London Ontario

519-854-7626

rachaelpolakovic@rogers.com

www.two-realtors.com

You Passed Curb Appeal, Now what?

A Series of Inexpensive Ways to Maximize Your Selling Price While your Home is for Sale

I have talked about curb appeal, so now that the potential buyers have liked your house from the outside, they now have parked their car and are walking up to your entranceway. You don't want them to turn around and head back to their car, so here are a few tips for the front entry.

Does the front entrance and front door make a good first impression? (Remember the 10 second rule?). A fresh coat of paint can make the front door look great.

Does the front light work? You'd be surprised of the homes I go to where the porch light bulb is missing, or there are cobwebs, or are crooked or cracked. Make sure it's on if people are going to be coming after dark.

Make sure the doorbell works.

Replace any torn or worn screens on storm doors, and make sure the door is in perfect working order. No ‘KEEP OUT SIGNS' or ‘Danger' nailed to the door! No squeaking, jamming, or sticking locks. Make it easy to get in the house.

Once they get inside, make sure the hallway or foyer is free of clutter, shoes, coats, umbrellas, Uzi's and anything that takes up space.

Get rid of all the "stuff" from the entry table, or shelves in the front entry. Pick up extra key rings, mail, and other junk that gets piled up at the front door.

Clean out the front closet all of the clutter that gets thrown in the closet. Extra coats, shoes etc.and old Uncle Harry should be removed to make the closet look spacious not cluttered.

Need I say anything about cooking odours, body odours, and (BO) animal smells? And if it is you that reeks, leave while prospective buyers are touring your house. (Please note that we Canadians add a ‘u' to our words, so instead of odor, we spell it odour. Instead of color, we spell it colour. Why? No idea, we just like to confuse the heck out of spellchecker.)

So that's it, next I will talk about the other rooms in the house. I apologize up front for my lack of a sense of humour! (There is that ‘u' again!)

Ty

We are holding another of our interactive Buying A Home 101 seminars.

November 17th, 7:00pm
Cherryhill Library
Cherryhill Mall 301 Oxford St W, London

With a complete team of professionals, the home buying process from the early stages of decision making through to taking possession of your new home will be discussed. Bring your questions for realtors, mortgage specialists, lawyers and home inspectors.

Feedback from previous seminars has been excellent.
See the results here

If you or someone you know would like to attend, registration is easy;
visit BuyingaHome101.ca or call us at 519-438-2222.
Sincerely,
Patricia Howard & Warren Strong
Sales Representatives
Sutton Group-Preferred Realty Inc. Brokerage Independently Owned & Operated

Creating Curb Appeal Is Easy & Inexpensive .Someone said that you have 10 seconds to make a good first impression of your house, and if that is the case, the outside of your house may cause some buyers to keep on driving!

Here are a few ideas to make them want to come inside:

Clean up the outside by removing leaves, branches, dying shrubs or other "yard clutter" to make it neat and tidy.

Sweep off the driveway, walkway, patio and deck and if you get snow, shovel it off the driveway and walkway.

Put away any garden equipment such as rakes and tools.

Keep the grass cut and shrubs pruned.

Clean the windows and repair any caulking or paint that needs attention

Make the garage and front door look as inviting as you can. If it needs it, a fresh coat of paint and kick plate can inexpensively transform a front door. Make sure the garage is not dented or dirty. Little things count a lot.

What about eaves troughs, gutters, shutters and house numbers. Are they clean, can they be painted or washed down? If rusty, a coat of paint is worth 100 times the cost of the paint!

Make sure the mailbox is not rusty or dented and if so, what about replacing it if it needs it?

Wash down or brush off any spider webs, nests or dust, grime or chipped paint and if required, touch up the paint.

Get rid of the pink flamingos, or one of the 7 cement dwarfs you bought at a yard sale, or the plastic geranium bush, or the tomato plants or whatever shouldn't be there.

All in all, a couple days of elbow grease could be worth thousands!