According to a survey conducted by the U.S Census Bureau, “The average first time home buyer is 33 years old and has a household income of $64,100 per year.” What do these stats tell us? They tell us that we will need to cater to a market of young and hip professionals, and we will have to carry out our home improvement projects accordingly.

What does a young, hip and professional first time home buyer want in their starter home? Modern accents. Therefore, our goal is to transform the bathroom from cramped, busy and messy to modern, simple and streamlined. The good news is that this goal can be attained with just a small investment of $500 and a weekend of your time. What will you need? Don’t worry, we’ve got you covered. Below is a chart of the items you will need to purchase and their average cost.

According to HGTV (Home and Garden Television), “You will recoup a rate of 102% on a minor bathroom renovation. Since this small-scale, yet highly effective home improvement project will cost you just under $500, this project falls into the “minor bathroom renovation” category. Ok, it’s time to get the ball rolling. When choosing your wall color, stay as neutral as possible.

While it is true that colors that are associated with modernism tend to be on the bright and bold side of the spectrum, sticking to a modern paint palette that falls on the “safe side” is ideal for a minor bathroom renovation. After all, you are trying to sell a house here, right? A safe and modern color palette will appeal to the masses, in turn pulling in a wider range of interest from the first time home buyer set.

The next most important factor of your bathroom makeover is to build cohesiveness. In order for the bathroom to appeal to buyers, the eye needs to flow throughout the room without obstruction. The easiest way to build a visual obstruction is to place a black finish wrought iron towel rail into a bathroom with nothing but stainless steel finishes. The towel rail will stick out like a sore thumb, consequently breaking up the flow provided by the stainless steel finishes. Choose hardware and accents in the same finish. If your faucet has a stainless steel finish, make it a point to purchase matching hardware and accents.

Another thing to remember when transforming your bathroom is to choose a vanity that blends in with your modern theme. Nothing will turn off a buyer (especially a choosy first time home buyer) like a bulky vanity that looks as if it were catapulted from the late 70’s. Remember, modern is synonymous with up-to-the-minute and antonymous with ancient.

Jazmin Espinal is a professional freelance writer and the owner of Capital Web Writing, a web content solution for businesses and webmasters. To contact Jazmin or to see samples of her writing, please visit CapitalWebWriting.com.

Anyone can place an ad in a newspaper, anyone can buy radio time and anyone can place a flyer in front of the post office. But, guess what? Anyone can turn to the next page in the newspaper to avoid your annoying real estate ad, anyone can tune in to a different radio station in order to avoid your annoying real estate ad, and anyone can ignore your flyer when walking into the post office to pick up their package. Notice a pattern here? These people are annoyed by your ad; it’s an inconvenience.

Let’s Talk Demographics

You need to start marketing your property to people who actually are interested in what you have to share.  Real estate marketing, and all marketing for that matter, come down to one thing: targeting the right demographic and presenting them with an opportunity that they can’t refuse. Make your home the opportunity they can’t refuse. This may sound simple, but it’s not. Narrowing down your target demographic is going to be the hard part. So, let’s get to work.

What’s Your Unique Selling Proposition?

In order to cater to your target demographic, you need to know figure out your home’s unique selling proposition. What do you have to offer that is different from all of the other houses on your street? What do you have to offer that will be beneficial to a select group of home buyers? Does your home have ample square footage and a generous amount of spacious bedrooms? If so, you can market your property as a potential bed and breakfast. Market your home to retired couples who may be looking for a little excitement and profit in life. Does your home host a professional grade kitchen that has been approved by the state for commercial use? If so, you can market your property as home-based bakery business ready. Market your home to stay at home moms who may be looking to bring in some extra income. Both of these are unique selling propositions. And most homes have them. If you feel that your home doesn’t have a built in unique selling proposition, create one. Creating a USP can be as simple as mirroring the walls of an entire room and adding a ballet bar. It’s truly as simple as that, now you’re unique selling proposition is an in-home ballet studio.

Let’s Get Down to Business

So, you’ve got a unique selling proposition, now what? The next step is to purchase direct mail leads to a list building provider. You can purchase direct mail leads from Experian.com. Experian allows you to narrow down your local direct mail leads by specialty, life style, occupation, consumerism and business, so you can create a pretty targeted direct mail lead list for your real estate marketing campaign. Expect to pay anywhere from $1.50 to $3.75 for a single lead.

You’ve figured out your unique selling proposition and have purchased a local direct mail lead list, are you done yet? No, now it’s time to create the marketing collateral. In this real estate marketing campaign, your marketing collateral will be postcards. Take high quality pictures of the front of your home, the backyard, the unique selling proposition and the kitchen. After you have taken a batch of photos that you are happy with, you need to create your property description. Click here, for a step by step guide to writing compelling property descriptions.

Once you’ve created the property description you need to hire a graphic designer to create your marketing collateral. You can find an experienced graphic designer for a reasonable price on Elance.com. When you have chosen a designer you would like to hire, send him your property description and photos and let him get to work. The designer should be done with your postcards within a four weeks and deliver your postcards via snail-mail within six weeks of the project’s start date. The next step is the easiest and most rewarding step of the process. Place a stamp on each postcard and address them to each recipient. Now, all you’ve got to do is walk over to the post office, mail your postcards and wait for the inquiries to start rolling in. Isn’t real estate marketing fun?!

Jazmin Espinal is a professional freelance writer and the owner of Capital Web Writing, a web content solution for businesses and webmasters. To contact Jazmin or to see samples of her writing, please visit CapitalWebWriting.com.

The financial guru worshipper flicks on the television and overhears Rachel Maddow and Suze Orman expressing their disapproval on the matter and claiming that home buyers who opt for no money down home loans will lead a foreclosure ridden homeownership, immediately they assume that the gurus are in the right. What most people fail to understand is that these are not factual statements. These statements are not based on extensive studies or scientific analysis. These statements are mere opinions, based off of personal observation and theories.

Admittedly, there is merit to their claims. Home buyers who cannot afford to keep up with monthly mortgage payments should not squeeze their way into premature homeownership with a no money down home loan. That is why so many people with no money down are facing foreclosure; premature homeownership. However, classifying all who opt for a no money down home loan into a foreclosure ridden home ownership is an inaccurate overgeneralization.

Recently married young couples who are fresh out of college with promising careers are ideal candidates for no money down home loans. First time home buyers who fit the above description have the funds to keep up with their monthly mortgage repayments, but they simply do not have the capital to pay for a traditional 20% down payment. Would you peg this young professional couple as “foreclosure ridden?” More often than not the answer would be no.

Those who are foreclosure ridden are heading in that path due to personal lack of money; it has nothing to do with the amount of money they coughed up for a down payment. Granted, the number of foreclosures would likely drastically decrease if unqualified home buyers weren’t given the opportunity to default on their loans, but the ones responsible are the lenders. If lenders would tighten up their lending strings, our economy would most likely be in a much healthier state than it is in now.

Why do I blame the lenders? I blame the lenders because of sheer irresponsibility. Handing out home loans to people who can not afford it to keep up with payments is like selling alcohol to a 15 year old boy; nothing good can come from it because he is not equipped to handle alcohol.

If you fall into the large pool of homeowners who have less than stellar credit, there’s no need to panic, you can still refinance your home. However, the home refinancing process is far more tedious for home owners with bad credit because the home refinancing programs tailored to those with bad credit aren’t heavily advertised.

Lowering Monthly Mortgage Repayments

The most popular reason home owners choose to refinance their homes is to lower their monthly mortgage repayments. Wouldn’t it ease your wallet if you could lower your monthly mortgage repayment by $500? Home refinancing makes it possible to lower your monthly mortgage payments by such a substantial amount. If you strategically time when you will refinance your home, you can drop up to 4% of your current interest rate. Do note that costs will be incurred during the home refinancing process. Closing costs are necessary and you will often be charged a prepayment penalty fee by your current loan holder for paying off your mortgage before its full term.

Generally, prepayment penalties are for no more than six months of your current monthly mortgage repayment amount. For example, if your mortgage is $1,500 your prepayment penalty would amount to $9,000. However, prepayment penalties, if applicable, vary according to your mortgage holder.

Making the Swap: ARM to FRM

Ever since the financial crisis created a wounded real estate market, home owners with adjustable rate mortgages started to feel the burn. Unstable mortgage rates mean that a home owner doesn’t know what their payment will be 60 days from now. Home owners with adjustable rate mortgages choose to put their repayments at ease with a more stable option, a fixed refinance rate mortgage. Home owners who decide to make the mortgage swap lower their monthly mortgage repayment rates substantially.

Switching to a Shorter Mortgage

The longer a mortgage term is the more money that is drawn out of a home owner’s pocket in order to pay steep interest payments. Often, a home owner will end up paying more than twice of what their home is worth in interest payments alone during a 30 year or over fixed rate mortgage.

Making the switch from a 30 year term to a 10 or 15 year term can literally save a home owner over $100,000. However, this option is only ideal for home owners that don’t mind paying a little extra towards their principal through every mortgage repayment. Unlike the two benefits of home refinancing mentioned above, this benefit may have a high price monthly price tag if the home owner hasn’t already paid off a substantial part of their initial mortgage.

Jazmin Espinal is a professional freelance writer and the owner of Capital Web Writing, a web content solution for businesses and webmasters. To contact Jazmin or to see samples of her writing, please visit CapitalWebWriting.com.

Before carrying out a short sale on a pre-foreclosure property, a home owner should contact their lender’s office and ask to speak to the lender in charge of the short sale department. It may take a couple of days for the lender to get back to you; typically, their phone calls are heavily screened by secretaries. But, when the lender does get back to you, ask whether or not they would be willing to give you a bit more time in order to carry out a short sale. More often than not, the lender will respond positively to the inquiry.

Lenders lose a tremendous amount of money when they are forced to repossess a home. The opportunity of being paid what they are owed and never hearing from you again may seem very attractive to the lender. So, eight times out of ten, you will get approval for a short sale.

Marketing a Real Estate Short Sale

Hiring an experienced real estate agent who has proven to be successful at finding buyers for short sales properties will greatly increase the chance of a seller in distress successfully unloading a short sale home. Due to the gravity of this sale, home owners should put their own real estate marketing tips into action as well as allowing the real estate agent to embark on their own real estate marketing campaign. This will increase the possibility of sale of the house as well because a larger number of people are being targeted.

Buyers of a Short Sale

Short sales aren’t only beneficial to home owners in the pre-foreclosure process; this real estate transaction has the possibility to be beneficial to buyers as well. If the home owner has paid off the majority of their mortgage, the buyer who snags the property is in for a bargain. Typically, lenders will accept an offer which meets or exceeds to amount owed to date on the mortgage by the current homeowner. Buyers are allowed and encouraged to tour the property before deciding whether to place a bid on the home.

However, there is a downside for buyers; the response time. For some reason, lenders tend to take a fairly long amount of time to inform the prospective buyers whether their bid was accepted. Buyers should expect to wait anywhere from three to six weeks to hear back from the lenders.  If the home sells great, this means that you are liability free. However, if your property doesn’t sell, at least you know that you did everything in your power to come out of this situation on top.  

Jazmin Espinal is a professional freelance writer and the owner of Capital Web Writing, a web content solution for businesses and webmasters. To contact Jazmin or to see samples of her writing, please visit CapitalWebWriting.com.

Photo courtesy of infrogmation

The Difference

Unlike foreclosure auctions, real estate auctions allow prospective buyers to take a physical tour of the home and perform a home inspection before placing a bid. The image portrayed by movies about home auctions is incredibly inaccurate. Sellers aren’t forced to sell their homes for dismal amounts of money unless that is their prerogative.

Real estate auctions allow sellers to set a minimum bid amount that they are willing to accept in exchange for the property. Buyers who go into real estate auctions with the intentions of purchasing a top-notch three bedroom home for less than $5,000 need to hop off of the clouds and reenter the real world; this thought process is common amongst inexperienced home buyers such as a first time home buyer or someone who hasn’t purchased a home within 30 years or so.

Seller’s Advantage

Evidently, both parties involved stand to gain great monetary advantages. But, the seller stands to gain far more advantage than ones that pertain to money. A seller gains the advantage of time and ease-of-sale. Quality auction houses (such as Williams and Williams) take the hassle out of home selling for sellers. The real estate auction house will assign a team of qualified auctioneers to a seller’s auction and take full reign of the process. The only task a seller is responsible for is being present at the auction, the initial consultation with auctioneers and being available for open houses (typically held on a Sunday).

The difficult tasks, such as marketing the auction and dealing with the financial issues of potential buyers is handled by the auctioneers. The top-ranked real estate auction houses also take the initiative of prequalifying prospective buyers in attempts to rule out the occasional first time home buyer that isn’t good for the money and problematic attendees who never plan on paying.

Buyer’s Advantage

An attractive feature for buyers that purchase a home through a real estate auctions are the reduced closing costs. Because a buyer is not required to employ the services of a real estate agent in order to participate in a real estate auction (though he may if he chooses), the closing costs are drastically lowered.

Additionally, all closing costs are split 50/50 with the seller of the property. The reduced closing costs are a definite benefit for the first time buyer who is short on cash and the home buyer who only has enough money to put towards their future home’s down payment. However, closing costs will never total less than $1,500 and on occasion, the real estate auction house may charge home buyers a 5% buyer’s premium.

Jazmin Espinal is a professional freelance writer and the owner of Capital Web Writing, a web content solution for businesses and webmasters. To contact Jazmin or to see samples of her writing, please visit CapitalWebWriting.com.

Has the American Dream Been Oversold?

For years the “American Dream” has been to own your own home.  The notion itself is a little absurd.  After all, you never really own your home outright.  Don’t believe me?  Try not paying your mortgage for a couple months.  But you own your home free and clear you say?  Well, try skipping out on property taxes this year.  No, we never really own our homes completely free of any obligation.  However, to a lot of people “owning” a home represents the pinnacle American financial experience.

Realtors and Brokers and Politicians, Oh My!

So who has been perpetuating this idea that owning your own home would somehow complete you, financially?  Realtors have certainly played their part.  Let me make clear first, I am a fan of Realtors.  I think there are some truly great real estate agents out there who have their buyer’s (or seller’s) interest at heart.  But I think there is an even larger number out there who signed up clients for mortgages they knew they couldn’t afford, and did so by conspiring with banks and mortgage brokers to work “creative financing” for their clients.  In other words, since the buyers couldn’t qualify using standard mortgage practices they had to “get creative,” which led to a variety of bad loan options such as adjustable rates and  interest-only loans.

So Realtors and banks played their part, but the government isn’t off the hook.  For the last two decades administrations have pointed to increases in home ownership as evidence of a strong economy, and a happy citizenry.  The Clinton administration called for increased loan options for lower-income families, particularly those who did not have funds available for down payments.  Bush furthered the problem by calling for an “ownership society” early in his first term.  It seems both administrations were caught up in the idea that home ownership was a proper measure for our fiscal health.

We’ve now discovered many homeowners would have been better off continuing to be renters.  Despite what others tell you (particularly those associated with the real estate industry), renting is not the equivalent of “throwing money away.”  Renting a house is a viable option for providing safe shelter for you and your family.

There should be no shame associated with renting, and in fact, in many cases it is much smarter to continue renting than opting to buy real estate.  After all, a house is just sticks and bricks, but a home is where you make it.  And it doesn’t matter who holds the mortgage on that “home,” you or a landlord.

Often times mortgage brokers run numbers and say things like, “Well, for the same amount you are throwing away in rent each month, you could be making a mortgage payment!“  Unfortunately, the real world tells us that rent and mortgages are not equal, in terms of the financial risk associated with each.

If you buy a house with no emergency fund and the hot water heater bursts sending gallons of water over your flooring, guess who gets to pay for the cleanup and repairs?  If that same scenario happens in a rental home, your landlord is on the hook for necessary repairs.

Owning a home is still a worthwhile goal as real estate prices do typically increase over the long term.  However, it’s best not to jump into home ownership solely for the investment potential.  Leveraging too much of your life by over-buying a house can wreak havoc on your family’s finances for years to come.

Renting has its downsides as well, but they are typically more inconveniences (fluctuating payment amount year to year, having to move if owner wants to sell or reoccupy, etc.) as opposed to the uglier potential negatives associated with mortgages.  Can you say “foreclosure?”

So, if you are in position to buy a home, make a frugal purchase and enjoy your new humble abode.  If you are not in position (no down payment, no emergency fund, etc.) then simply rent a space and keep plugging away at building savings–no shame in that game.

Photo courtesy of Mish Bradley

How Often Should I Water My Lawn?

Some of this depends on how well-established your lawn is, and the kind of conditions you live in.  For new lawns, it is recommended that they get daily watering (or at a minimum, every other day) until the lawn has established a strong root system.  Older, more established lawns, should only be watered two or three times a week to encourage roots to dig deeper for water sources, which leads to a healthier root system.

What’s the Best Time Of Day to Water My Lawn?

The best time of day to water your lawn is early morning, just before sunrise. The temperatures are relatively cool, so no worries about evaporation. Watering in the heat of the day can be counterproductive because much of the water will evaporate when it hits the surface of a hot lawn.  Watering in the evening can lead to fungus and grass disease because the lawn blades do not have adequate time to dry before nighttime.

How Short Should I Cut My Grass?

Mowing height depends on a variety of factors, such as the type of grass, your climate, etc.  Generally speaking, grass should be cut relatively short early in the year to discourage weed growth. As the spring wears on, and the temperatures begin to rise, it is recommended to raise your mower blade slightly as well.  A taller lawn will withstand periods of extreme heat and be more drought-tolerant than a lawn with shorter grass.

When Is The Best Time of Year To Put Down Weed Killer and Fertilizer Products?

The best time to put down weedkiller is before weeds appear. In early spring, before the weather begins to warm, putting down a pre-emergent weed killer can significantly reduce the number of weeds in your lawn.  Once weeds appear, treat them with a “weed and feed” product that acts as both a fertilizer and weed killer, or spot treat with a liquid weed killer. Take care in selecting the type of weed killer to use to be sure it is safe for your type of lawn.  If you are unsure, ask a local nursery, landscaping company, or agricultural extension.

Inspect Lawn Sprinkler Systems and Sprinkler Heads

If you have an in-ground sprinkler system, spring is a good time to run it through all the various zones to make sure sprinkler heads are properly adjusted.  If you discover a broken sprinkler head, pick up a replacement at a home improvement store.  Though most sprinkler heads are simply threaded onto the PVC pipe running below, take care removing them or you could pull a pipe joint loose somewhere downstream and have a bigger mess to clean up.

Putting these spring lawn care tips into practice will help you establish a beautiful, green lawn for many seasons to come, improving your curb appeal and the value of your real estate property.

Photo courtesy of pnwra

1. Don’t share your excitement with everyone. Being excited about finding a house that you hope to one day call your home is understandable. However, not everyone needs to be clued in on your excitement, especially the other party. Never tell the seller’s real estate agent how excited you are to place an offer on the property or how you would love to turn the spare bedroom into your sewing room. Real estate agents know when buyers are willing to do almost anything to get a home and if they smell it on you, they will try to push you beyond your budget. Act aloof around the seller’s real estate agent, and place a reasonable offer. If your offer is up to their standards, you will get the home on the first try, if not there’s always negotiating.

2. Don’t play with fire. If you are certain that you have found your dream home, don’t place an unreasonably low offer, especially if there is steep buyer competition. If the home truly is as dream worthy as you consider it to be, it is highly unlikely that you are the only interested buyer. If the home is well within your budget, consider placing an offer that is towards the top of your budget in order to knock your real estate competition out of the ball park.

3. Don’t go into this blindly. Buying a home is the biggest purchase of your life. This is not the appropriate time to “wing it.” In real estate, it pays to do your homework. Analyze your local real estate market and homes that match your ideal description. Figuring out the average sales price of homes similar to the one you are searching for will help you make an informed and accurate offer when you do come across a home that you would like to purchase.

4. Don’t fall for a home’s décor. Making an offer on a home simply because you were enticed by its chic décor and spacious furniture layout, is irresponsible. The home staging was likely done by a professional home stager, or was strategically decorated by a homeowner in order to garner more offers. Remember, when in the market for a piece of real estate, you are purchasing the property itself and not much else. The décor and the flashy furniture is rarely included in the price.

5. Ignoring additional expenses. For some reason, first time home buyers seem to forget about the costs that are paired with becoming a homeowner. While it is true that the most obvious cost that you are to incur will be your monthly mortgage, there are lots of other costs that you will be responsible for as well. Unlike renters, homeowners are responsible for the maintenance, protection and taxes of their property, such as garbage pickup, lawn maintenance, property taxes and home insurance. To avoid accumulating a mass of debt, factor these additional expenses into your monthly budget before purchasing a home.

Photo courtesy of dno1967

Eight Common Real Estate Listing Buzzwords/Phrases

“Cute, cute, cute.”
Translation:  Probably too small for most families. In the world of real estate listings, the word “cute” literally translates to small.”  If you are looking to downsize this might be a listing to check out.

“Super investment potential”
Translation:  I doubt you would want to live here, but I’m sure you could find a willing tenant.  Property listings with “investment potential” often require some work to make them move-in ready, so unless you want to toss in a little sweat equity you may want to steer clear of these.

“Needs a little TLC”
Translation:  The foundation is sinking, the walls are cracked, the house has mold, needs paint, or all of the above.  TLC usually means trouble, and it can range from the worst kind of trouble (foundations, roofs, etc.) to simple lipstick upgrades (paint, landscaping, etc.).

“As is”
Translation:  Get a thorough inspection before entertaining any idea of purchasing this home.  “As is” means just what it says – no warranty, no guarantee, and probably only a bare-bones disclosure of any problems to satisfy real estate law requirements.

“Perfect starter home”
Translation:  Starter homes are usually small, on small lots, and with basic features.  It’s true they’re great for new couples, or those looking to get out of the rental game.  If you are 30 years old with two kids, two cars, and a bunch of stuff, chances are you simply won’t “fit” into a starter home.

“Cozy backyard”
Translation:  Cozy backyards are often not much larger than a postage stamp. If you have kids and a pet, or enjoy gardening and summer cookouts, you probably ought to skip this listing.

“Motivated seller”
Translation:  The words “motivated seller” are traditionally used to send the signal that the current homeowners are ready to unload their property because they are moving, ready to buy another home, or simply cannot afford their mortgage payment. Either way, potential buyers may have luck asking for concessions such as the seller pays closing, or a carpet allowance, etc.  If sellers are really motivated they will likely be more willing to negotiate.

“This one won’t last long”
Translation:  This phrase reminds me of those infomercials that say, “If you call within the next 90 minutes we’ll send you two salad spinners for the price of one!”  The phrase is used to create a sense of urgency, and most of the time it is used for prime properties that agents know will show well.  If it appears to be a real estate listing that interests you, play along and schedule a showing soon.