Monthly Archives: June 2020

Top Tips For Preparing Your House For Sale

When preparing your house for sale, your ultimate goal is to have potential buyers fall in love with your house. In order for this to happen, your home needs to be appealing, clean and free of clutter. You’ll want prospective buyers to be able to envision themselves living in your house.

Clutter is distracting. You want potential buyers to admire your home rather than the things in your home. Further, clutter can make your home appear small so make sure you tidy up and make your property, inside and out, appealing.

One of the main things that prospective buyers will be looking out for is square footage and storage. They won’t show up with a tape measure ready to go through each inch of your house, but, they will let their eyes do the calculating. With furniture in the “right” place(s) and appealing decorations, you can help prospective buyers get a sense of what it would be like to live there.

A clean and organized house can show potential buyers the value of your property. There’s nothing that says a property is worth its asking price more than the care that went into the property. Show potential buyers that your property is worth every penny by cleaning thoroughly, organizing efficiently and reducing clutter.

Before you put your house on the market, there are things that you should do before your first open house. Implement these easy, do-it-yourself suggestions to get the most money for your home in the shortest amount of time:
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1. Go through your entire house and reduce the visible clutter in each room.
· Declutter all surfaces
· Remove personal pictures
· Remove excess furnishings and décor
Remember…less is more!

2. Declutter your closets and cabinets: Potential home-buyers will be looking in your closets, kitchen drawers and cabinets to see if there is enough storage for their needs.
· You can showcase what your house has to offer in terms of storage by decluttering your closets, cabinets and drawers to show off the potential those spaces have to offer.

3. Think about the small, but important, details:
· Add some plants or flowers
· Make a room look larger by adding a mirror
· Make sure to have the right lighting
• Remember to turn on all of the lights, open the blinds and shades before your open house

We can facilitate and coordinate your entire move. From downsizing and de-cluttering to packing to unpacking we are a one-stop shop. We will make sure that your move is as stress free as possible.

If you’re in need of assistance with any or all aspects of your relocation, give us call. We’d love to help!

Top Tips For Setting Up A Home Office

Crazy times! Welcome to the new normal, whatever that means. I guess we all have our own definition of what that means. It seems that everyone is doing what feels comfortable to them. There are, however, some things that we will all be seeing and experiencing at least for the near future. We will be all be wearing masks and/or face shields especially while shopping. Things that we never thought about, but did on a daily basis without thinking about, are no longer acceptable, ie. shaking hands. Elbow bumps or some other greeting like the “Vulcan Salute” (See Star Trek) will now be the new normal.

Many people will no longer be returning to an outside office, even if you were lucky enough to keep your job. Or, you may have an office to go to but may not be required to go there as often as you used to. As such, during the pandemic, many of us have had to set up a home office or at least a space in our home to get work done. Many of us will continue working from home permanently and will now have to create a space where we can work.

Wherever you live, no matter the size, I’m thinking it would be a great idea to create a space in your home so that you can get your work done efficiently. That can mean anything from paying your bills to writing a newsletter or working on a client project. Work comes in all shapes and sizes. But, I think we can all agree that a dedicated work space will make all the difference in the world.

Here’s some tips to set up your home office for maximum efficiency, productivity and success:

1. Make sure:
• It’s comfortable
• It’s functional
• Supplies are accessible

2. Use Technology:
• Make sure your computer has a good internet connection
• Set yourself up for virtual meetings
• Make sure your computer has a camera
• Adjust your background
• Use a phone that has good reception

3. Create a Workspace:
• If possible, utilize the door or partition to close yourself off from others in the house
• Set up a desk and filing cabinet
• Use a desktop file organizer so that whatever you’re working on is vertical (instead of in piles)
• Whenever possible, try to keep anything not work/office related out of that space.
• Your kids toys do not need to be in your work space

4. Keep a Schedule:
• Get up in the morning when you normally do (or did)
• Get to your “office” the same time each day
• Get dressed (not just from the waist up)
• When you look good, you feel good and it changes your mindset and confidence
• Take meal breaks
• Get out of your “office” and don’t eat at your desk

5. Set boundaries:
• Let others know that you are working.
• If necessary, put a “Do Not Disturb” sign on the door
• Start work at a specified time and end work, whenever possible, at a specified time
• Don’t get distracted by social media
• Check social media 3 x per day and set a limit for 5-10 minutes

6. Create systems:
• Filing
• Virtual and physical
• The two should mirror one another
• Follow up
• This is sooo important!
• To Do’s
• To keep yourself accountable

7. Communicate:
• Stay connected with colleagues
• Join or attend virtual networking groups
• Take time for education
• There are so many webinars, seminars and on-line training available