A couple of months ago I sat down with a family member who had been renting for the last 5 years and he was shocked to see how much he had paid in last five years.This convinced him to buy a place of his own and he wasted no time in looking for homes. He bought just in time before the nexr rent increase.

Here is an example. If you are paying $1000 a month this year i.e in year 2007 and lets say you have a landlord who is not too businesslike and will only increase your rent by $50 each year and you live in the house for 5 years..

In year 2007 your total rent payment will be $12,000

In year 2008, your monthly rent will be $1050, for total for year of $12,600

In year 2009, your monthly rent will be $1100 , for total rent of $13,200 for the year.

In year 2010, your monthly rent will be $1150, for yearly total of $13,800

In year 2011, you will be paying $1200 , for total of $14,400 for the year.

At the end of five years you will have paid SIXTY-SIX THOUSAND DOLLARS.

There are many advantages to owning your own home. You can build equity.There are tax advantages and though real estae taxes and insurance may go up, if you have a fixed rate mortgage , your principal and interest payments will not go up.

If you are renting, you may find you may have to move if the landlord is selling the place.

You may want to sit down with an accountant and see the tax advantages of owning and if it makes sense to own, now is the best time to own.The rates are low and it is a Buyer's Market.

I spoke with a 'soon to be expired listing' homeowner today, who is just about done giving his Realtor second chances and done extending the listing contract. He's ready to list with someone else who can get the job done. Hopefully, I'll get the job - as he's interviewing with a few other agents as well as myself next week. True, the market has been fluctuating, but after doing some research into the home and the listing history it seems like this Realtor hasn't done much other than open houses.

The photos of the exterior and interior have been taken 8 months ago -- way back when the house was still occupied! Since then, the homeowner has moved out and has painted the walls. No new pictures were updated into the MLS or the advertising. The homeowner suggested installing new carpets -- now how many homeowners actually bring this up themselves!? Well, the listing agent told him not to bother, that the buyers might not like the color, etc. The homeowner even offered to pick something neutral in color! He was willing to re-carpet the entire home to get the house sold. Still, no positive input or encouragement from the agent.

So, the house sat and sat on the market. Now the agent is losing the listing, but hopefully I'll be able to not only pick up the listing, but pick up the pieces that he's left behind. I've already told the homeowner over the phone what I would do as far as presenting the home in a better light - in a way that would attract buyers and certainly not turn them away, and he was very open to my ideas. To start with, I'd like to take a look at the floors *under* the carpet! I have a feeling they are character-filled softwood pine, true to the age and style of the home and true to the area in which we live - which a buyer would most likely love and would NOT want covered with wall to wall plush! I'd also highlight many of the other features that seem to have gotten lost in the mis-categorized listing input sheet, which I realized after speaking with the homeowner.

Still, it makes absolutely no sense to me as to why an agent would disregard upgrades that the seller is willing to do in order to sell the home and present it better. I guess his loss is my gain. Hopefully. Let's see how it turns out next week when I get to see the place in person -- I might decide I don't even want it! But I doubt that - it looks like a very sellable home in a popular style for this area, not to mention a seller who is willing to do what it takes to get it sold, but who did not have the support of his agent. Makes no sense to me, but I'll be more than willing to pick up the pieces and set them right again.

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If your home for sale HAS NOT SOLD and you are looking for a Lancaster Realtor who will get the job done, visit Homes in Lancaster PA -- Lancaster County Real Estate to get a peek at my marketing plan and to contact me. No obligation. We can just talk about what you are looking for in a Realtor, and I can tell you how I can deliver a buyer to your door.

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For more information on Homes for Sale in Lancaster, or questions and/or concerns about buying or selling a home in Lancaster County PA, please contact Jeannie Kontis at (717) 330-5137 or email at Jeannie@JeannieSellsLancaster.com.

Search for Lancaster Homes for Sale at www.JeannieSellsLancaster.com

Jeannie Kontis, RealtorⓇ, is a member of the award-winning Bob Wells Realty Group of Long & Foster Real Estate, Inc, and serves buyers and sellers of real estate throughout Lancaster County.

All content Copyright ⓒ 2007 Jeannie Kontis Homes in Lancaster PA - Real Estate in Lancaster County

Well, I've tried my first attempt at staging this past week, and so far it has been pretty exciting. I don't have any formal staging or decorating experience yet, other than doing my own house which I receive many compliments on. But I've had this vacant house for sale in Manheim Township, Lancaster PA just sitting there on the market -- and it's really a beautiful house -- but it showed absolutely no personality with it's bare rooms and walls.

Luckily for me, my client just happens to be able to obtain furniture at a reasonable cost, so we went to work! We only did two rooms just to get a feel for what it would look like. The family room looks great (compared to what it was!) and turned into a fun place to "hang out". Beforehand, it was white walls and light carpet, and nothing was happening to make it stand out. The furniture we were able to deliver really awakened the room, and I received numerous compliments on it during our open house.

The second room we did was the sitting room in the Master Bedroom -- I turned it into a very luxurious, private area -- a true "grown up's room" complete with gourmet chocolates in the beaded fancy candy dish. I think it's an elegant personal resting spot - and the compliments were fantastic!

So now, we're going to be working on one more room - the formal living room. This is the room that scares me, because it's the first room you see when you walk in the front door. But I figure anything can be better than seeing a canaverous empty room - so we'll give it a shot. I have a feeling once this is done (and perhaps the dining room?), an offer can't be too far behind.

So now I've been bitten by the staging bug and am thinking of getting certified to learn more about it and offer it as a service to my clients. Any advice or comments -- pro's or con's -- would be appreciated!

Here are my results ..... and ..... before pics:

For your Lancaster Real Estate or
Manheim Township Real Estate needs,

contact Jeannie Kontis at 717-330-5137 or email at Jeannie@JeannieSellsLancaster.com .

---------------------------------

For more information on Homes for Sale in Lancaster, or questions and/or concerns about buying or selling a home in Lancaster County PA, please contact Jeannie Kontis at (717) 330-5137 or email at Jeannie@JeannieSellsLancaster.com.

Search for Lancaster Homes for Sale at www.JeannieSellsLancaster.com

Jeannie Kontis, RealtorⓇ, is a member of the award-winning Bob Wells Realty Group of Long & Foster Real Estate, Inc, and serves buyers and sellers of real estate throughout Lancaster County.

All content Copyright ⓒ 2008 Jeannie Kontis Homes in Lancaster PA - Real Estate in Lancaster County

My kids were pretty revved up about Earth day here in the Pocono Mountains, (but they don't think about septic systems).

My youngest had a ball when her first grade class went out to the surrounding woods to pick up litter. She wanted us all to go around our neighborhood near Lake Wallenpaupack and pick up more litter - I promised her that we would set aside an afternoon to do just that. I have always loved the beautiful earth God created for us.

I remember seeing the famous "Crying Indian" pollution commercial starring Iron Eyes Cody, when I was just a little kid. While the actuality of Cody's Native American heritage seems to be a matter of debate, the power of this iconic commercial can not be denied.

Several years back, I saw the commercial replayed on Nick At Nite and was mesmerized into silence again, like I was the first time I saw it in the 70s. Thanks to the Internet, I can still see this historic clip whenever I want. It pains me to see litter strewn about Pike and Wayne County and I have been known to amble around Bingham Park in Hawley or the shore along Lake Wallenpaupack, picking up the trash laying around.

I was searching for something (totally unrelated to this blog, and meant for a future blog) tonight and somehow found The Simply Green blog by Danny Seo, which promotes, naturally, reusing, recycling, and just plain "being green." I was scrolling through the articles, enjoying many of them and admittedly, snorting at some. I am a conservationist to a degree but...well...I'm not perfect, and I just can't get into a pillow that looks like a thatched roof...OUCH! I was particularly interested in Lazy Laundry, part of Danny's series "Combat Global Warming Week". When it comes to laundry, I am definitely lazy, so this blog was for me.

Natch...this blog was NOT for me. I am one of the many homeowners in northeast Pennsylvania that has a home septic system for our waste management. While Danny's suggestion of doing several loads of laundry at one time, in order to dry all the loads one after the other, makes sense when it comes to conserving electricity, it does NOT make sense for your septic system.

Septic experts teach that one of the main reasons for failed septic systems is the washing machine! One problem is the lint released into the system by the washing machine, which makes its way into the drainfield and clogs the pores, preventing proper drainage. The other issue is an overload of water being flushed into the system in a short period of time. It is better for your system to spread your loads out throughout the week, limiting your laundry to one or two loads per day, rather than several loads in one day.

Danny's suggestion is great if you happen to live in town or in a homeowner community with central sewar systems - but if you have a home septic system, steer clear.

Here are some links for information on home septic systems and their care.

1. Local conservation expert Ron Tussel offers a variety of ecological services, articles and solutions on his company website: EcoScientificSolutions.com Ron is well known and respected throughout the community.

2. SepticProtector.com

3. Reader's Digest article "Maintaining a Septic System" - a very simplistic article but offers some helpful illustrations and other links.

4. Penn State Extension - Water Resources. I was going to link to just the septic page, but felt the entire section is link-worthy.

5. Sun & Earth Cleaning Products - I love this stuff, especially the cleansing spray and dishwashing liquid.

While I'm all for being green, protecting the environment, and conserving energy, I'm also all for preserving your septic system - it's a costly thing to replace. Fortunately, with care and education, a homeowner can have a septic system last for many years. As a REALTOR, I consider it part of my "Do" diligence to point homeowners in the proper direction in the care and maintenance of their septic systems...even if I loathe to do my own laundry.

Septic Systems and Earth Day, ©Copyright 2007 by Karen E. Rice. All rights reserved.

It's not secret that not everyone is into email.  Some agents really hate computers and know nothing about it.  (I found a local real estate agent's website - if you could call it that - that was simply one page, featuing a picture of their office, with their phone number and address on it...snail mail address, that is...no joke!  Check it out:  http://www.guccinirealty.com).

Google doesn't want to anyone to be left out; Google is trying to be everything to everyone.  Here's your proof:

Google Paper Mail 

 

Enjoy!  (please notice my tongue planted firmly inside my cheek...) 

 

Okay, well, now that I have that little joke off my chest, please feel free to check out my Pike & Wayne County PA Real Estate Website.  My area is famous for Wallenpaupack lakefronts, as well as many other homes for sale in northeast PA.

Google Is Ready for The Old Fashioned Among US, ©Copyright 2007 by Karen E. Rice. All rights reserved.