Pick up that Poo... Or ELSE!

First, some quick reading homework for ya...

READ ME

If you don't have the time (and I know most of you don't), here is the gist:

How POO-fect is THIS?!?

There is now simple DNA testing for dog poo, to identify the poo-er. In the Reuters story at the link, in Conway, MA an apartment manager fed up with steaming piles left about her charge decided to enlist newly mass produced DNA technology called "PooPrints," developed by BioPet Vet Labs of Knoxville, Tennessee. 

How does it work? They basically require every new pet that moves in to the property to provide a cheek swab (MOUTH cheek...) so their doggy DNA is extracted and entered into the system. As time passes, and bombs are dropped about the property and left unattended, the property manager mails a "gumball sized amount" of the poo in question to the testing facility (and that is legal with the USPS HOW?!? Again, ew.) and the guilty pooch (rather, their naughty person) is identified. Then the owner is hit with a pretty hefty fine--$1000 in some referenced cases. And the accuracy rate is listed at 99.9%, so good luck explaining that one away when Geraldo or Maury reveal the DNA results... "You, Scruffy, ARE the father... of the brown babies in question..." <dog howls>

Wait - why, again? It seems that some property managers are ready and willing to take CSI-style investigation into their own hands. But I wonder, will it one day become illegal to snatch up dog poo without the express written consent of the owner? Will this stand up and be admissible evidence? Will the testing, sampling and processing (ew...) procedures become inadmissible because they were not handled by experts in the field? The imagination just runs WILD on this topic and the hours of due process (or shall I say... DOO POO-cess) it one day might command.

Bottom line is that DNA testing, even for what seem like such trivial things as dog droppings left behind, is rapidly finding its way into the hands of common folks like you and me. I can only imagine how this mainstreaming could begin to translate into widespread "who-dunnit" style CSI <insert your town here>-meets Angela Lansbury DIY crime investigations all over the place. No longer a highly technical futuristic tool for the researcher or investigator with years of training and education under their belts to wield, this seems to be the edge of a pretty step cliff that will level the playing field so to speak for using science to proving sourcing and more... and prove it beyond a shad-DOO of a doubt....! Sorry. Could not resist.

All in all, it seems kinda cool, but also makes me want to take my recycling home with me when I finish off a Diet Coke. Leave no trace! ...Or else!

Rooms with a View...YOUR View

I was thinking a lot about rooms recently - specifically, how rooms of homes are planned, named, and how their purpose is truly determined. How are those spaces defined, and who should define them? Is it the furniture stores that sell attractive, culturally acceptable concepts of what rooms should be and how time should be spent in them? Is it the architects that design the home initially, captioning the space on the floorplan? I mean, is it really such a stretch to delete certain traditional rooms and add others when you make a house your own?

My first thought was that there are some self-evident rooms that always seem to be standard issue:

• A kitchen is an easy one. They have specific appliances and such that truly dictate their purpose. You don't often see a sub-Zero fridge in a bedroom, nor a king size bed in a kitchen. Nearly every home has a kitchen of some kind--sometimes two in the case of an in-law suite. You walk into a house and nearly always know it is the kitchen, even when the appliances are all stripped out (courtesy of the ever-popular foreclosure or short sale, or just someone who REALLY wanted to take their appliances with them). It is an easy identification.
• Garages: Though I have seem my share of garages that become finished family rooms (in various degrees of DIY and professional "finish" to be sure), and a plethora of garages that are more storage spaces than a place to park a car (including how our garage was used growing up--never a car parked inside), it is pretty clear from the inside and outside that a garage is (or was) such a space.
• Bathroom: Toilet. Sink. Possibly a tub, shower, tub/shower, bidet, fan, etc. There is no denying a bathroom. Though again, in my travels I have seen a bathroom or two that has undergone DIY retasking: Photography darkroom, storage closet, blacklit greenhouse, and cat bedroom/bathroom are some examples.

That said, some long-standing rooms and spaces that used to be found on the majority of home floorplans seem to be disappearing. Parlors, formal living rooms, formal dining rooms, etc. are some of the victims of this cultural design shift. They are being replaced by great rooms and open floorplans that show flexible spaces up for interpretation and imagination--not third-party declarations of purpose. Most rooms in an traditionally, culturally Western house (even those initially defined on a plan by an architect) are in reality left to your chosen culture, lifestyle, and practical (or not so practical!) needs as an occupant. You define the spaces. When you think about it, the furniture (or other defining items) you choose to put in it tell the room what it is - not the other way around. If you decide to put a desk and a chair in a walk-in closet, it becomes an office. Right?

When we move to our new home later this month, we have plans for:

• A LEGO ROOM: This space will take the place of an extra bedroom across the hall from my son's main bedroom. The plan is to give our little Lego enthusiast a place to do his thing, and create a gallery. We will be putting up several sets of wood plank style wall shelves, where we can take the plank down, affix a Lego baseplate, and he can anchor his creation for display short or long-term. He enjoys spending hours upon hours coming up with some pretty intricate designs, and understandably gets upset when they get stomped, vacuumed, or otherwise Godzilla-ed by visitors (big and small). This will give him a place to show them off but keep them out of reach as he chooses...AND keeps Legos off of my floor and out from between my toes in the middle of the night...clear WIN. Who needs a guest room, anyway? He will use this all the time.
• An official, dedicated HOME OFFICE: This will be in what is per plan, the formal dining room. Changes include replacing the chandelier with a much more practical ceiling fan, adding some doors for privacy, and filling with office furniture (and a chaise lounge allowing for a more informal workspace/reading place). This will also help set the cultural expectation in our family that when I am in that room, I am not at "home" - I am at work. Respect my space!
• A PROJECT ROOM: Taking the place of another extra bedroom (that also houses the upstairs laundry room), this is a place where our collective art and craft projects can sit undisturbed... and I can simply shut the door when I grow tired of the project until I revisit it or when company comes to visit! A guilty pleasure, but much more useful than a den or another guest room.
• A RUG-RAT RUMPUS ROOM: Taking the place of the formal living room (aka: "The excitement room" as my son said he wants to call it) this will be a room with a lounging couch or two, some colorful beanbags, a couple of stocked bookshelves, the train table (aka puzzle, Lego, Bionicle, and transformer table) and bins of toys. Though we initially thought about relegating this room to the basement, I actually like my kiddo, and want him (and his cousins) to be able to play on the same level where we plan to spend most of our time. It is adjacent to my home office, though separated by a set of french doors so I can keep an eye on him while I work from home (after all, good "fences" make good neighbors--even inside of your own home).
• The MAN LEVEL: The best use for a finished basement in our home is self-explanatory. The man level will feature a cool/dark early-to-bed early-to-rise snore-and-thrash-at-will bedroom for the hubster, full bath (where you can leave the seat up 24/7!), wet bar, adult beverage mini-fridge, and sound insulated video game/theater room. Enter the man level at your own risk...though betting some may never want to leave.

The interesting part is that I have been surprised at some of the strong reactions I get when I tell people I am scrapping certain standard-issue rooms to make way for others above. As if opting out of having a traditional formal dining room somehow diminishes my ability to "make house" - I guess it certainly makes me less of a contender for "Domestic Goddess of the Year," anyway :)  Oh, and I am putting a couch in my kitchen. Everyone hangs out there anyway - so why not be comfortable?

What are some of the more creative room ideas/purposes you have come across? Have you ever stripped a room of its intended purpose, and transformed it into something that works better for you, not the architect?

Decisions, Decisions...

I have had the good fortune lately of being in the position to purchase a new home. My family has lived in the same home for about seven years, and with our son now past the childcare years, we had recently decided it was time for a change.

When we (my husband and myself) recently talked about a possible move, there was a lot to talk about. Among the many factors that were at play:

1. Can we sell our current home without losing too much money? We had that covered.
2. Can we afford anything better than what we already have? We got pre-approved for a loan amount/interest rate that was acceptable AND carried a monthly payment we felt 100% comfortable with.
3. What are our motivations for this change? Been here 7+ years. Need more space. Want a change in routine, specifically to shorten Sean's commute.
4. How LITTLE were we willing to accept for our home? We ran those numbers and found our basement.
5. How MUCH were we willing to pay for a new one? We found the top of our desired range and gave it a buffer of about 20K so we felt prepared to extend (to a point!) if need be to get something worth moving to. 

Initially, we started down the road with these criteria in mind:

• Better commute for him (he currently drives quite a bit)
• Out of a neighborhood, especially any with a HOA
• A location on the more rural outskirts of Frederick (Jefferson, South of Thurmont, Middletown, New Market, Mt. Airy, etc.)
• At least an acre of land (No less than 3/4 acre, for SURE)
• All hardwood floors (or a pricepoint where we could add them)
• A fenced yard for our dogs (or a pricepoint where we would still have plenty of cash for a fence)
• A rancher or contemporary style home with a finished/walkout basement (or a pricepoint where we could budget and finish it ourselves) and a main floor master bedroom
• A bathroom for each of us (three)
• An updated home (or newer home) with a decent kitchen 
• Large space for entertaining, connected/with open sight lines to the kitchen where people tend to gather

We found a few properties that we felt met our list of needs/wants only a few weeks into our search, and wrote up an offer or two. Problem was, our offers were contingent upon selling our current home, which we had yet to put on the market. We were preparing it for market, but did not want to pull the trigger until we had identified a home of choice. Twice we were rejected. They did not think accepting a home to sell was a good idea in this market, and we were not interested in accepting a kickout clause. Admittedly, neither of those homes really felt 100% like "the one" so to speak, so when we did not go under contract on either, it was more like a shoulder shrugger than a real disappointment.

We then decided to change our fate, and explore the rental angle for our current home. Luckily, we were approved to carry both our current home (with a renter) and a new home of choice, which certainly put us in a better bargaining position for our home search. The very next day, a listing came on the market that fit some of our needs, but not the ones I *thought* were major, and was in an area of Frederick itself that I had not even considered. I previewed it (along with about four others that same morning), then immediately called my husband to come see for himself. He was sold--He said THIS was "the one" and that he wanted to offer. I was totally in agreement. And shocked.

This home was:

• A traditional two story colonial (NOT a rancher or contemporary) with mostly carpeted rooms (not hardwood)
• In a large neighborhood with a Frederick city address, WITH a HOA
• On a postage stamp sized lot (though it IS fenced, and has a sweet new in-ground pool, something I found out both of us really always wanted, though we never discussed it until we saw it)

The moral of the story is that you might THINK you know what you want, but sometimes you really don't... until you find it. Take the time to let your Realtor stretch the bounds of your preferences a little to really get a comparison of what your money will buy. Remember that though it is an amazing resource, the database excludes many things if you are too strict about your criteria (not to mention exclusion if a lister accidentally enters the info incorrectly...). Look all of the options open to you, and be ready to act fast. This is actually a pretty active market, all things considered, and lately my clients are finding themselves in bidding situations when they hesitate.

I like writing things out to walk myself through decisions, so after this recent adventure, I developed a homebuyers worksheet for when you sit down with those involved in your decision making process and lay out all of the stuff that goes into a home buying decision. If you would like a copy, give me a call or send me an email: kristi@frederickareahomes.com - Enjoy the pre-summer heatwave!

Photos Matter! So Take a (GOOD) Picture - It Will Last Longer

Guess what? Some modern-era statistics say the more pictures your listing has, the quicker it will likely sell. Even two and three times as fast as a home with no pictures. And I believe wholeheartedly that is 100% true.

When words become unclear, I shall focus with photographs. When images become inadequate, I shall be content with silence. ~Ansel Adams

I am shocked at the number of listings I see that do not have more than a horrible exterior shot uploaded to the listing system. Or worse, a listing that uses the moldy old photo in the database from the LAST time it sold, several years of wear, tear or even updates ago. Buyers (and their agents doing the legwork) want to see pictures--EVERY Buyer is visual, and well-composed pictures do more to sell your home than you know. In fact, many of my clients dismiss properties with no pictures from their "go see" lists. Why, you ask?

• People are visual creatures (yes, even the women). Descriptions can only do so much for a listing, and people start to tune those out amidst the puffy Realtor-speak descriptions we all see every day... "Spacious colonial awaits your finishing touches" often = "Big old empty house that needs major updates," right? :D The pictures are where they get to see the relative condition of the home, getting the buying decision underway.
• When Buyers are surfing the web, they are drawn back to homes they remember over time based on visual cues obtained from the pictures. Essentially, they don't call me saying, "remember that house on #4567 Blah Blah Place?" They say, "remember the house with black shutters and the cute white and stainless steel kitchen?" - Yes. Yes, I do.
• Not having pictures is a perceived warning sign to Buyers that there is a REASON why you don't have pictures, even if that is not the case. It invites the question mark into the room. 
• Not having pictures signals to other agents that the listing was not worth their attention as a professional ... and that may hint that they may be difficult to work with on a possible transaction if they either do not have the time nor the attention to detail to fulfill that critical piece of the listing/marketing process.

Now that I have you thoroughly convinced that most Buyers do not want to even see homes that do not have pictures (good ones, of BOTH outside and inside), here are some things to avoid when you go through that exercise...

• Avoid overdoing it with the fish-eye lens. If you do not know how to properly use a fish-eye, it can look like you are overcompensating for small spaces, having the opposite effect to a viewer. The outer edges of the halo effect a fish-eye produces should not be visible in the shot nor should there be a high degree of distortion.
• Avoid taking too many shots of the same thing/same room. Aim for a single representative shot of each room, taken from a vantage point that is interesting and makes the room look as spacious as possible. One area in which you can break that rule is the kitchen. If you have a nice kitchen and can't fit it all into one shot, grab a couple that highlight different key features.
• Avoid overdoing it with descriptions superimposed on the pictures that cover key images, or gush a bit too much about a feature. I do think this can be a useful technique, just be sure the verbiage isn't overwhelming and that the font is legible in thumbnail form. 
• Avoid trivial pictures, or pictures of things that are not highlight reel material. One agent recently posted a picture of an outdated faucet. Just the faucet. Huh?!? Another took a picture of a flower outside--not the whole of the landscaping, which was nice, but an artsy-fartsy picture of a SINGLE flower. I suggest the agent save those items for their Flickr account or personal art gallery - those will not sell the home.
• Only post clear, complete pictures. Having the flashback shadow (or reflection in the mirror) of the photographer in the shot is amateurish, as is allowing a picture to be uploaded to a listing photo gallery that is much too grainy (resolution problem) or too fuzzy to see. In the age of easy to use point and shoot/SLR digital cameras, enough shots should be taken (and previewed on the spot) at staging/listing prep that you can get decent exposure under control.
• Do not allow your home's condition to deteriorate significantly form the photos during the time it is on the market. Nothing is more disappointing than previewing a gallery of tasteful, promising photos than to arrive at the front doorstep and see it in shambles--and looking totally different (in a bad way!) than it did online that same day. Stage it in such a way that you can maintain it. You are setting the expectations, so live up to them, and watch your home sell before you know it (provided it is priced well, of course).

The bottom line is that any good agent will be proficient in this important discipline, and will either have the right equipment to do the job well, or will outsource it to a professional.  The part you play is simple: They will need for you to do some pre-photo shoot cleaning, decluttering, and basic staging. They will be able to give you cues (or even a list if you would like) as to how to best present the home to get the ball rolling.

Ever seen any funky listing pictures before? Have you ever been surprised to see a home in person based on the expectation the photos created in your preview process?

Oh, no, Zillow...

I love the Internet. I really do. 
And in my many years as a licensed Realtor, there has been no better tool to come about for everyone involved in buying or selling a home or a piece of property.

It can help market properties at an extremely reasonable cost, works to generate business, speeds up the closing of a transaction, and overall, it produces a much more informed and prepared consumer. But the Internet can also be a source of confusion for the general public. Unfortunately, all of the wonderful value calculating widgets and apps developed by software gurus and marketing geniuses often fail at one thing: Recognizing the "soft" criteria that contribute to determining true value of a subject property--What you will have to pay to get it, and what you will really be able to sell it for.

When it comes to the valuation process, many of these generators swing and miss because soft information is simply not database consumable. Price setting and valuation is a gray area to begin with, but these sites can't pick up on improvements, renovations, and proper accounting for local comparables that are foreclosures or short sales. They also can't take into account true square footage--Ever looked at public records? They are often incorrect, both ways. All of this and more is taken into account with adjustments by a Realtor or experienced Appraiser, and of course, matters quite a bit to a Buyer that sees value in the complete package. Curb appeal, for example, which is proven time and time again to yield higher offers by Buyers who just "get that feeling this is the one," can't be easily calculated to begin with, let alone by a formula. These tools also do not trend as effectively as the real world does. For example, in a Spring market, (traditionally) values tend to increase based upon an influx of buyers and transactions--And the fact that people buy emotionally and tend to descend upon a marketplace in greater numbers at that time, year after year. Everyone knows demand drives values up, and those swings can happen pretty quickly in a local setting (for example, in a "prime" neighborhood without any other available inventory, or on a certain street)--The price fluctuation will have happened well before the aged closing data from the past few weeks catches up to the database. The bottom line is that arriving at the true market value of a property is a far more complex process than a few clicks would suggest (and any appraiser can attest to that fact, as their job is extremely technical and time consuming when done correctly). These instant gratification tools are based on algorithms and data sets that simply cannot interpret the three-dimensional reality of value. 

The outcome of hard data only generators often leads consumers blazing into my world with figures and estimates that are often way out of line with the realities of the marketplace--Again, what someone would (and will) actually pay for a property. I want all of my Buyers to feel like they paid a fair price for a property (even got a great deal whenever possible, if there are no competing offers), and were not taken advantage of. And I want my Sellers to have a realistic picture of what their home will really sell for and not feel as if I took them to market too low, or counseled them to accept an offer that was lower than what the market should really bear. It goes without saying, but I always have the best of intentions when it comes to my clients. I do the great majority of my business from referrals--and you can't continue to receive those important nods unless folks are left with an overall feeling that you know what you are doing and that they would use you again themselves. 

But at the end of the day, when the results of my data collection efforts and educated market interpretations are not exactly in line with something like Zillow or Trulia, if my clients do not trust my judgment and expertise as someone who has additional soft data to put in play, it can work to erode the trust factor. It puts a subtle (or not so subtle) question mark in the mind of a client. In a digital world like ours where there are so many readily accessible real estate (and Realtor) horror stories and messages of caution, it is difficult to set a client's mind at ease that your figures are likely more correct than what pops up in seconds on a valuation site.

So the moral of the story is that the Internet-powered valuation engines are great to get a general ballpark idea of what a home might be worth, or what you may be able to sell your home for. But take the results with a grain of salt--Your best bet to determine value is still going to be with a qualified Realtor or Appraiser, not a machine. Have a property you would like me to take a look at, and put Zillow or Trulia to the test? Reach out to me anytime at kristi@frederickareahomes.com.

13 Years of Real Estate = Non-Profit Money to be Had

I am so excited to share with you that this is officially my 13th year of Real Estate licensure. I can't believe how quickly the years have flown by, and how much has changed in my life since I first took the plunge and enrolled in the initial licensing course after graduating from St. Mary's College of Maryland in 1997. Thirteen has always been my lucky number, so I wanted to celebrate this special year of achievement in a meaningful way - something that was bigger than myself.

If you know me, you know that I have always been into volunteering. This need to give my time means that I tend to be intensely scheduled across all of my worlds...I enjoy that fulfilled feeling, and don't know how else to live. But, that means my better half (gotta love him!) becomes Mr. Mom, holding down the homefront more often than not. So during this special year, I have decided to try something new, and give of my piggybank (I would like to say that this will be "instead" of giving my time, but something tells me that I probably wont be able to resist the next opportunity to volunteer...!).

That said, here is how the promotion will work:

• If you have a house to sell or are thinking of buying, allow me to represent you and I will make a donation to the non-profit of your choice after settlement.
• The donation amount will be based on the final sales price: I will earmark $100.00 for every $100,000 of value. Example: A $420,000 property will equate to a $400 donation.
• If you directly refer someone to me as a new client (buyer or seller), I will kick in an additional $50 per $100K on your behalf. For example, if the closed sale price is $300,000, an additional donation amount of $150 will be generated, for you as the referring individual to determine the recipient.

The fine print on this is pretty simple and straightforward:

1. It has to be a recognized non-profit organization in the United States. I will not discriminate along the lines of what charity or organization it is - this is truly your choice to make. Some examples might include community organizations, animal shelters, youth sports leagues, etc.
2. I will get to keep the tax deduction - a necessary evil of being self-employed!
3. The donation will be made in your name (or, if you prefer, in the name of someone else).
4. The donation will be made within 30 days of the closing of escrow, and you will be notified via email when the donation takes place.

That's it! I ask that you take the time to pass this along to folks you know who are considering buying or selling. The more clients I get under this promotion, the more money I can spread around. There is NO LIMIT to the dollars to charity that this will generate, nor is there any limit to the number of times you can refer a client to me. Though it obviously benefits me as a professional Realtor, it also legitimately works as a great way to get some extra money for your chosen organizations, especially when people are seeking an experienced, quality agent to work with in the first place. I am good at what I do, and have no doubt s to the service level I can provide. :D  I intend to run this promotion throughout the duration of my 13th year, so it will go through at least April 2012 - And I may continue it on into the foreseeable future if things go well!

Rain, Rain, Go Away...

As I was unloading groceries in the pouring rain last night, I began thinking about all of the Noah’s Ark style precipitation we have been subject to lately in the mid-Atlantic area, stuck in an apparent low pressure weather pattern. Always one to both consider the positives and negatives of a situation, here are some things I came up with for “what’s good” and “what’s not” about all of this precipt…

Things that are pretty great about all this rain….

·      No need to wash the car (or if you must wash, wait for the next rainband to come through, get out there with a bucket and a sponge and save some cha-ching that you would normally have spent at the car wash!!!).

·      Pollen levels tend to get washed out, so grass and tree allergy sufferers have a bit of a get out of jail free card (exception: see mold allergy sufferers below).

·      Nobody is going to tell you to stop watering your lawn or garden, and a lessened chance of the water table falling to drought conditions this summer.

·      It is super-easy to pull weeds from gardens and flowerbeds.

·      Too cold to put out our seasonal pool just yet, so no pool maintenance or pool pump electric bump.

·      I get to wear my sweet plaid rain boots pretty much every day… SCORE!

·      Morning’s first light is pretty dull, and allows me to sleep in a bit later as compared to streaming bright sunshine.

·      No unexpected spring sunburn from being caught unprepared without sunscreen on.

·      Random outdoor cats that are usually screeching and pooping about my yard have not been seen lately.

Things that are not so great…

·      The ground is literally saturated and that means trees of all sizes could fall fairly easily if faced with even less-than-severe straight-line winds. It would NOT take a tornado to topple a tree with such loose soil, so keep an eye on any trees close to your home.

·      I have not been able to find a good time to mow the lawn/weedwack because it is just too wet – grass and weeds are starting to look pretty shaggy. Dislike.

·      Mold allergies are flaring up (I am among these sufferers - <sniff>).

·      Farmers are being delayed in planting crops for summer/fall yields. This could have major impact, especially with all of the impending stinkbug damage to navigate as well.

·      Roads are being damaged by flash flooding (one in Thurmont – 550North of town – has been shut down for weeks already).

·      Sinkholes may begin to open in the coming weeks at an unusually high frequency as the water tables shift and soils settle. This area is prone to sinkholes after weeks of heavy rains, so keep your eyes open!  

·      Basements and already humid rooms in your home will be even wetter than normal – Be sure to keep a dehumidifier running!

·      Nuisance pests are likely thriving (ants and termites especially—and when it starts to warm up a bit expect a ton of mosquitoes).

·      The thunderstorms freak out my dogs, and make them shake, pace nervously, and try to smash themselves up against me for security. Cute, but annoying.

·      You are definitely not getting enough critical Vitamin D on a daily basis, as there has been little to no sun exposure (though average Americans do not get anywhere near the suggested intake even if they work outdoors – consider a supplement!).

·      Many people suffer from Seasonal Affective Disorder, which has been tied to a lack of UV light exposure. Cloudy weather patterns like this can find SAD sufferers to fall into a winter-like funk (and from a less scientific standpoint, gloomy weather makes people cranky!).

·      Car washes, ice cream shops, and other seasonal/weather sensitive small businesses are not exactly making a killing.

·      Children’s outdoor athletic events and outdoor recess opportunities are being cancelled week after week (my some is none too pleased about the recess situation).

·      Construction projects (commercial, residential, road improvements, etc) are being delayed and many hourly workers are basically on furlough and without income until a clear weather pattern returns.

·      It is still too cold to put out our seasonal pool …ALSO listed in what’s GOOD about this rain!  :D

Wait a second… I think I just might see the sun trying to peek through a tiny break in the clouds! Could it be? The weather forecast is looking fairly nice for this weekend, so be sure to get out and enjoy it!

So what do you hate about all of the rain? Anything you think is great about it? Any fun rainy day activities you enjoy?