The BrazzelDazzle Blog: February 2010

Wilde Lake High School in Columbia MD, is presenting "CATS"! 

This wonderful Spring musical will be performed on March 11 and 12 at 7:30pm and March 13 at 8pm at the James Rouse Theater at Wilde Lake High School located at 5460 Trumpeter Road, Columbia, MD 21044.  No need to travel to New York, London or LA to get your cultural "fix"!

This is the first time that this Andrew Lloyd Webber musical will be presented by a Howard County High School.  In 1983, "CATS" won three Tony Awards including "Best Musical", and two Laurence Olivier awards for "Best Musical" and "Best Choreograpy.  When it colosed on Broadway in 2000, it was the longest running Broadway show in history!  This is an opportunity not to be missed!  

Tickets are $10 in advance and $12 at the door.  You may call Wilde Lake High School at 410-313-6965 or email abbyfutter@verizon.net to reserve your seats. 

A "sold-out" crowd is expected, so call or email for your tickets TODAY! 

Wilde Lake High School in Columbia MD, is presenting "CATS"!

Two "must do's" when staging your house for sale are fresh paint and carpet.  Potential Buyers need to fall in love with your property AND they need to see the value of your property before they'll make an offer.  New paint and carpet are the best ways to help them do so!  If your house has old and dirty carpet and dingy paint, it will appear tired, sad, and worn-out ... which doesn't appeal to buyers emotionally or intellectually.  Sellers often think that buyers will want to pick out their own colors ...  but many buyers cannot envision what the house will look like with fresh paint and carpet and how it will transform it from tired to perky!

 Realtors often hear Buyers comment: "But, I'd have to get that wallpaper removed!", "But, I'd need to get the whole house painted!", "But, we couldn't live with that carpet!" ... and then the Buyers assign a dollar value to the improvement that is often hundreds or thousands of dollars more that the actual cost would be.  So, even if the Buyers decide to make an offer on the property, they will "deduct" their imagined cost of the carpet and paint - usually WAY more than the actual cost would be.  Plus, their perceived value of the property will be way less, so their initial offer will be lower.

What's a Seller to do?  If your house needs paint, check with your paint store salesperson for the most popular neutral color that is in fashion.  Currently, bright earth tones are in favor.  New carpet should be a taupe or beige tone - those colors go with any decor.  You can't go wrong with neutral choices and you WILL recoup the cost of these improvements.  The neutral colors you choose may not be the perfect fit for every buyer, but a "re-do" will not be seen as necessary, either.

Some updates may not give you any return on your investment, while others, if done wisely (remember that neutral sells!), will.  Carpet and paint are two "must do's" when staging your house for sale!  You WILL get the money back as long as you've chosen wisely.  Consult your Real Estate professional to determine what other steps you should take to get your house ready to market.  It will make a big difference in your profit and in the time it takes to sell your house.  And remember the two "must do's" when staging your house for sale!

Buyer Alert!  The low interest rates that we have been enjoying for the past few years is likely about to end ... AND IT MAY HAPPEN QUICKLY!  As Mike Jones in Tucson points out in his blog, the rate rise has already begun and, if we learn from history, interest rates may go as high as 17% in the near future.

First time homebuyers - you must be "under contract" by April 30th to take advantage of the possible $8,000 tax credit!

A FULL PRICE OFFER ... in THIS market?  YES!

Last Saturday as I was pulling out of my driveway to meet my Buyer Clients at 10:20AM, a few snowflakes were beginning to fall.  By the time I reached my office ten minutes later, the roads were already covered and the forecast was for icy conditions throughout the day.  Feeling trepidatious about driving all over the County in the snowstorm, I offered to let Mr. Buyer drive for me - he chose to drive his vehicle, which was fine with me!  His profession provides training in defensive driving and he is a PRO!

The first house we toured had just come on the market the day before, was priced agressively, and was exactly what the Buyers were hoping to find.  There had only been one showing the evening prior, and all of Saturday's scheduled appointments had been cancelled.  The agent had a scheduled Open House for that afternoon which she cancelled, as well.

Cars all around us were slipping and sliding and we passed numerous fender-benders.  But, we continued on our tour all day long, seeing all of the available options that my Clients or I had identified. Nothing beat #1.  So, we returned at the end of the afternoon for a second viewing.  Mrs. Buyer literally was clapping her hands with joy and hopping up and down, saying that this was "IT" and that the house fit almost everything she was hoping to find.  It was not quite a "10", but they could make it into one.

I contacted the listing agent who agreed that if we made an acceptable offer that day, she would cancel tomorrow's scheduled showings and mark it "under contract" in the MLS.  My Clients decided to make a full price offer and asked for a few concessions.  The Seller countered and said that if we accepted the counter, it would be my Client's house - with no further showings tomorrow. 

DONE DEAL!  A full price offer in THIS market?  YES!

The Howard County Snowplow Tracker is a new website that Howard County has made available to residents. Now, we can sit at our computers and watch the Howard County road crews do their work.  The Howard County Snowplow Tracker shows you where the plows are and where they've been!  Which roads have been plowed and which have been salted.  The data is updated every 15 minutes.  So, no more standing at the window waiting for the plows to appear.

You'll know when you have a shot at getting out to the grocery store for milk and eggs.  Sit back and watch the trucks do their thing from the warmth of your home computer.  You can watch for the red dot (the snowplow) approaching your house.  The Howard County Snowplow Tracker allows you to follow the progress and anticipate your imminent freedom!