At Home With Valerie

Now that summer is well underway, it is a great time to enjoy your backyard. Here are some great ways to entertain guests and have fun too! When it comes to entertaining outdoors, there's no place quite like your very own backyard.  Many families enjoy the warm summer weather by spending as much time outside as possible, and one way of doing that is by making it a fun place to be. Get Out Your Grill The smell of a freshly grilled hot dog or hamburger… the unmistakable taste of a meal that's been prepared outdoors… the excitement of getting together with family and friends for a barbecue… these are all things that you are sure to enjoy and, if you really want to get things cooking, you will get out your grill and cook up something that your entire family will love. A cookout is a fantastic idea for summer entertainment, which means it is perfect for both small and large groups.  Whether you prefer a quiet dinner with your family or you want to make your out...

All across America, communities have been faced with increased demands on existing water supplies. In Canada and other countries, we too have faced increased demands on water supplies. Consequently, there is a greater focus on water conservation, not just in times of drought, but in anticipation of future population growth.  Water can no longer be considered a limitless resource.  A philosophy of conservation of water through creative landscaping has created the new term, xeriscape. The term xeriscape is derived from the Greek word xeros meaning dry, combined with landscaping, thus xeriscaping. The term was coined by the Front Range Xeriscape Task Force of the Denver Water Department in 1981. The goal of a xeriscape is to create a visually attractive landscape that uses plants selected for their water efficiency. Properly maintained, a xeriscape can easily use less than onehalf the water of a traditional landscape. Once established, a xeriscape should r...

One of the joys of owning your own home is getting to sit back and admire that lovely emerald green stretch of lawn in your front yard.  Of course, before you sit back and admire you have to bend over and use a little elbow grease. Some people work harder than they have to in order to have a beautiful lawn.  Grass is pretty tough.  If you give it the right growing conditions your grass will defend itself from most weeds and diseases.  One of the main mistakes people make is in when and how to water the lawn.  Here are some watering tips that will help your lawn be strong and healthy. DO water every five to six days during the warm season. DO water early in the morning. DO set sprinkler water spray close to the ground, not in high arcs. DO soak the area for 30 minutes to 1 hour. DON'T water during the heat of the day (you lose ⅓ of the water to evaporation). DON'T over-water, as you will lose nutrients and encourage rot an...

While some home upgrades can add value to your home, others don’t fare nearly so well. One of the worst offenders? The home office remodel. Many home remodeling projects do wonders for the value of the home.  Certain upgrades and renovations pay dividends when it comes time to sell, and you often can recoup the money you’ve invested in the upgrade. There are exceptions, however. And one stands head and shoulders above the rest (or should I say below ) when it comes to return on investment: The home office. Surprised? It may seem like a home office would be a boon for your home at sale time, especially considering the number of people who telecommute and work online. But the fact of the matter is, a home office seldom recoups more than 45% of the money invested in the remodel. Why? A couple of main factors. First, even people who work at home often don’t work at home. When was the last time you walked into a coffee shop and didn’t see a laptop open? Ma...

Sure, you probably had a garage sale before the big move from your old neighborhood, but have you ever thought of having one after you’ve relocated? It’s a great way to meet the neighborhood. It’s common sense to have a garage sale before your big move. There’s no reason to pay movers to load boxes of items you can do without.  Plus, who needs the clutter in their new home? But have you ever considered a garage sale after you’ve moved into your new house? It’s actually a great idea for a number of reasons: Why did I save this stuff? When you unpack items in you new home, you’re likely to come across a lot of stuff you find you can live without. What seemed essential in the old place just loses its luster in your new space. But I thought this love seat would fit in here! Despite our best plans, old furniture can turn out to be a poor fit in new spaces. You don’t necessarily have to live with the mistake. Prep it for sale. Who are these people, anyway...

Often ads for homes on the market include the phrase “motivated seller,” and while this sounds as if it may be to your benefit as a home buyer, what does it actually mean?   If a seller is truly motivated you can benefit from a number of potential perks they may be willing to throw in to get their home sold, or they may even be willing to accept a lower offer than the asking price.   Here are a few tips on how to find motivated sellers, and how to get the best deal possible. Is The Seller Really Motivated? Believe it or not, all “motivated sellers” are not really motivated.  The phrase is often used by sellers and real estate agents to get a response from potential buyers.  From the perspective of agents, if a seller is fairly insistent that they want a particular price for their home, which the agent feels is above the market value, they may use this phrase to encourage bids below the asking price.  Sellers, on the other hand, may r...

If you own a car, you know there’s more to the cost-of-ownership than just finance payments and gas.  You also need to budget for maintenance and repairs. If your car is older, those costs are going to be higher. That’s just common sense. The same is true of your home. It’s wise to budget for anticipated repairs and maintenance.  Otherwise, you might be caught by surprise when you find that your furnace stops working and needs to be replaced. That can easily be a four-figure expense. Experts recommend that you set aside 1% of the value of your home for repairs and maintenance. For a $500,000 property, for example, that would be $5,000. That is, of course, merely a rule of thumb. If your home is older, you may need to budget more. Another recommended method is to budget $1 a square foot. If you have a 2,500 square foot home, that would be a budget of $2,500. Again, that number would need to be higher for older properties. When budgeting, consider things t...

Neighborhoods are always on the rise and on the decline. A variety of factors can influence property values and neighborhood quality.  Do you know how to read the signs?  Find out in this short article. Like most things in real estate, neighborhoods are constantly changing in value. In some cases they can improve rapidly and decline gradually, but more often than not they change slowly, over time. Ideally, you want to buy property in neighborhoods as they’re appreciating. You certainly don’t want to pay top dollar in a neighborhood which is in decline. So how can you tell which direction things are heading? Home values over time are one way to tell, but they tend to lag behind the trends. Values reflect what the current situation is… they don’t predict the future. While you definitely want to observe a neighborhood first-hand at different times of day and night, here are some other indicators of neighborhood value trends: Positive indicators: ...

America celebrated its 239th birthday on July 4, 2015.. It was on that day in 1776 that America’s founding fathers signed the Declaration of Independence marking the birth of the United States. As my American friends celebrate, I wanted to share this quote with you, from   Erma Louise Bombeck , who   was a talented American humorist who achieved great popularity for her newspaper column that described suburban home life from the mid-1960s until the late 1990s.   I think she captured one of the great truths about this great country called the United States of America: “You have to love a nation that celebrates its independence every July 4, not with a parade of guns, tanks, and soldiers who file by the White House in a show of strength and muscle, but with family picnics where kids throw Frisbees, the potato salad gets iffy, and the flies die from happiness.    You may think you have overeaten, but it is patriotism.” May my American friends hav...