One of the benefits of being a realtor, is the satisfaction you gain in selling a home to friends, so that you can watch the transformation of their new home over time. Super handy friends of mine bought a house that needed a lot of elbow grease in [...]
This time of year, many of us find ourselves homebound on our days off (some of us choose to be homebound on our days off :)). Winter is a great time to attack our indoor homeowner to do list - since we certainly can't do any landscaping in the cold, wet, windy winter months of the Pioneer Valley. This recent article by Jolie Kerr makes great suggestions for indoor cleaning/organizing projects, best done when you don't feel like being [...]
When we pulled up the old linoleum kitchen floor in our last house in Northampton - we were excited to see fir floors beneath, just waiting to be brought back to life. I had my heart set on red floors - somewhere between the color of cherries and blood. I went to many paint and hardware stores in the [...]
As realtors, we can all confirm that condition of the roof of a house is a hot bed issue for home buyers. Maintaining the life of your roof is important for protecting your investment, whether you plan to stay put in your house for good, or whether you intend to sell at some point in the future. Living in the Northampton MA area, our homes [...]
It has been a beautiful summer, much needed after the winter that wouldn't end. I'd like to be more zen, have more of a "be here, now" attitude and continue to enjoy these summer moments, however, as realtors, we tend to be thinking ahead much of the time. In winter, we often meet with sellers to advise them about prepping their homes for [...]
As realtors, this time of year can be very busy. Whether we are helping buyer clients find a new home, or helping seller clients sell their home, the spring market tends to be jam-packed with real estate-related activity in Northampton. As with any career person during their busy season, it's good to take some time throughout the day to [...]
The snow has finally melted in our yard! I am amazed that the piles of leaves which I didn't manage to clear out in the fall have been perfectly preserved underneath the snow. In my fantasies, they had broken down and disappered during the long, cold winter. Alas, I still have some spring (formerly fall) clean up to accomplish. I thought [...]
I'm not sure about the rest of Northampton, but I am starting to experience cabin fever of enormous proportions. I love a good snow fall as much as the next guy, but coupled with sub-zero and single digit temps, I'm going outside only when absolutely necessary! A friend posted a link to this interesting article [...]
One of the pieces of advice we often give our seller clients as listing agents, is that a fresh coat of paint goes a long way towards making a home (or an individual room) look better. In addition, it is a relatively small investment to make when thinking about how to improve the look of your home. I found this relevant blog post on [...]