The Importance of Tradition

Posted on December 15, 2011 by Lori

Christmas time brings to mind all the comforts of a home – friends, family, love, tradition…

Christmas Holiday Traditions

We wish you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

What is it about traditions and especially those associated with a holiday that make them so important to us? Family traditions provide great value, and the value lasts far beyond the moment. The value of a tradition isn’t in completing the ritual; the value comes from what it provides for those who participate.

First of all, traditions provide stability. Activities that are observed year in and year out become a means by which family members can build trust and security. Regardless of what else may happen, the traditions will not change. So much in our lives these days is temporary. Family traditions provide something for every person to hold on to and to rely upon.

Secondly, traditions give us a sense of identity. They are one of the things that make us unique to other families. Although our Christmas traditions may have some commonality with other families, each household still has their own way of experiencing those traditions. That is what is so special about them. Each family’s unique twist is what gives that family its identity and helps the members bond with one another. Ethnic foods, decorations, special activities, all help families become distinctive.

Third, traditions are important because they provide continuity between generations. It can be difficult to keep up with extended family members these days, and of course it is impossible to touch those who are long gone. But traditions create a bridge between the young and the old, between the past and the present.

Traditions are obviously good for families. We can build memories and share stories so that we draw near to one another. Traditions are a building block of what makes a house a home. Through creating and maintaining family traditions, we can offer stability, identity and continuity to our loved ones. We can look to the past and not be afraid of remembering those who are no longer with us. We can enjoy the present, knowing that we are building strong families – and we can look forward to the future, when our children will sit by the fire in their homes and tell stories of their Christmas traditions.

This holiday season, create some new traditions with friends and family – and enjoy everything this season has to offer.

From Team VanRemax – Burlington Real Estate to your Family – We wish you a Very Merry Christmas and all the Best for the Year to Come!

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Tankless Water Heaters: A Big Change In Today’s Water Heating System

Posted on November 9, 2011 by PluggedIn

People are asking for more information with regards to heating home appliances. Most likely driven by the continuous increase in the price of heating, the unsure market, and last and unfortunately, often the minimum, priority for the environment, more and more individuals are seeking to search for techniques to improve their usage and bills. 

Practically speaking, most are only just now coming to understand that a major chunk of their earnings, about 25% of their household’s power dollar expenses go to heating of water for all those nice and long warm baths, for washing dishes, for doing laundry, or for brewing coffee. With that conclusion, they now understand how essential it is to be more mindful to home appliance buys, specifically all those that includes heating.   

That said, the fascination and need for gas tankless water heaters have gone to the roof. In the period of a couple of years, this product moved from a practical unknown to a actual home name. With the function of water heater company themselves and with the major nudge provided by the government towards a greener, much more energy effective household advances, gas tankless water heaters received an amazing surge. 

Nowadays, even builders realize the worth of those home appliances. A lot of new improvements accomplish a lot of “green washing” but it’s tough to falsify responses to possible customers’ questions regarding technology they’ve read and searched about. Developers and real estate professionals are aware that consumers are on the lookout for certain features in a property. Where once a gas tankless water heater was a rare benefit, right now it’s an anticipated, common part of the package. In this sense, customers are more demanding, mainly because these days they are also much more energy-efficiency knowledgeable. 

If there’s one great thing the financial crisis and the environmental turmoil has shown or continues to teach many people it is that many of us need to master to take care of our resources efficiently, in whatever form it comes. 

Energy performance is the easiest method to begin conserving something and everything. Learn more about energy productivity and gas tankless water heaters now before you begin your personal home improvement, purchase a new product, or check out a brand new house.   

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Choosing a Neighborhood that Fits Your Lifestyle

Posted on November 9, 2011 by PluggedIn

For the typical homebuyer, at the course of their home search they tend to prioritize first on the house itself and the neighborhood only secondarily. Whereas in fact, it must be the other way around. Searching for your dream home—visit Homes for sale in Gilbert. For instance, you may have that ideal house you’ve always dreamed of, but then again, you don’t want your lifestyle to suffer if you’re stuck in a bad neighborhood. Obviously, aside from your budget and the house itself, there are more factors such as the amenities and especially the people to consider about when you go house hunting.

Learn some ways in choosing your neighborhood.

1)      Don’t merely assume —check it yourself. One of the most common errors most home buyers make is relying on other people when they hear that a certain location is safe, has low crime rates and has low taxes. Home buyers should find time to verify if it’s true indeed.

2)      Go there and walk the neighborhood. Do more than just peeping at the people while sitting in your vehicle. Stroll around the community and have a feel of the atmosphere while imagining yourself living there. Is it a noisy community? Are there several people lingering on the corners everywhere? Feel the warm atmosphere in homes for sale in Queen Creek.

3)      Consider your area’s amenities and make the most of them. View your home as more than just safe and attractive. Have you checked some of the amenities there? Is there something interesting to look forward to during the weekends? If you like to relate to the community of the location why not spend a weekend there just to get familiar with the whole setting? Like for example, see how fast or how slow their customer service of their grocery store operates, then ask yourself if you can live with that.

4)      Gather some suggestions from individuals who are in the same league as yours. Although getting some tips from others may be wise, you must also be selective regarding getting advice with someone who can relate with your situation. For example, your single friend who doesn’t have kids may be clueless on where’s the best place to raise children. Also, you can rely on the Internet for your research. There are actually numerous resources on the Net you can count on when you search for communities via lifestyle using some targeted keywords like, “urban professionals”, “Hispanic community” etc.

The best of luck on your neighborhood search.  Gilbert AZ Homes for Sale has the best neighborhoods.

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Helpful Tips for Selling Your Home this Fall

Posted on October 7, 2011 by Lori
Prepare Your Home for a Fall Sale

Prepare Your Home for a Fall Sale

Thinking of selling your home this fall? While the fall season typically sees a slow down of house sales, it’s not to say it’s a bad time to sell; you may just have to put in a little extra effort to ensure that your home stands out amongst others.

Autumn’s beauty helps to create instant curb appeal for your home. Trees with leaves in warm tones of pumpkin, red and gold naturally provide a lovely backdrop for your home. Certainly fall’s rich and warm hues help to create a great first impression for your home and property. Now go the extra mile and do some work to make your home all the more sale ready for fall.

Maintain your lawn. Yes, your lawn needs attention and care during the fall season so now is no time to stop, especially if you are planning to sell! Maintain your lawn by raking leaves and twigs and patching brown spots. Prune shrubs and bushes. At the same time, ensure that walkways are free of leaves and debris. Clean gutters and downspouts too.

Make your front entranceway a fall focal point. Create a warm and welcoming feeling to your front walkway and porch area. First impressions do count, so be sure to set a favorable tone for potential home buyers. Spruce up your front entranceway with tasteful fall décor and plants. A fall inspired door wreath adds instant appeal. Take advantage of the beauty of fall flowers. A series of potted mums on either side of the front door is an easy way to help frame the front entrance. Or, with Halloween approaching, consider adding a couple of urns filled with fall plants and flowers and even pumpkins and gourds for great color and a really stunning first impression.

Inside, highlight the fireplace; it’s a super fall selling feature. Make your fireplace shine by making it the focal point. To start, add beautiful artwork to the mantle or perhaps candles or even a collection of treasured vases filled with fresh fall flowers to draw the eye upward. Nestling furniture around the fireplace is another way to make the fireplace a focal point in any room. Add cozy cushions and a throw to the couch or chairs surrounding the fireplace to complete the mood.

Make widows sparkle. Clean your widows and open blinds and curtains to let the light in. If you have a great view outside, be sure to flaunt it! In fact, everything in your home should be sparkling clean for showings. Pay particular attention to the front hall where fall leaves and debris can blow in from outdoors and muddy shoes can leave a mess on floors. Of course, no matter the season, always de-clutter before even thinking of inviting potential home buyers into your home for showings.

Play up a festive fall mood by adding flowers inside the home. Adding fall flowers to just about any room in the house is an instant pick-me-up. Flowers are simply beautiful. Rooms with fresh cut flowers look warm and inviting. A fall centerpiece on the dining room table for example is certain to stand out and make a great impression. Also take advantage of the sense of smell. Perhaps some baking before showings will do the trick. If time is short, lightly scented candles or even a pot of apple cider and cinnamon brewing on the stove will help to create a warm feeling in your home.

Make sure everything works and looks fresh. Everything should be in good working order. No leaky toilets, loose knobs or handles and walls and ceilings should be clean and free of chips, etc. Take the advice of a professional real estate agent for an objective view of what work absolutely needs to be done to ensure the quick sale of your property. Sometimes interior or some exterior painting is all that is needed to freshen up a home and make it ready for sale.

Enlist the expertise of a licensed real estate agent. If you don’t already have one, invest the time to find an experienced realtor to work on your behalf. One of the most important things you can do is develop a relationship with an experienced real estate agent with whom you are comfortable. Your realtor will be an active partner every step of the selling process. He/she will provide invaluable facts from comparable prices, advice on housing market conditions, information on neighborhood trends and much more. She will help you price your house correctly. Some buyers may be looking for a bargain before the holidays and your real estate agent will offer sound advice to price your house competitively.

Have a wonderful fall season and happy house selling!

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Cleaning Up a Flooded Basement

Posted on September 15, 2011 by PluggedIn

One of the most common areas affected after a water incident such as flood is the basement. Cleaning up a flooded basement is never easy, and it might take a good amount of time and dent your finances. Even worse, flooding in the basement exposes you and your family to the risk of disease caused by mold and mildew. Expensive as it might be, it might make more sense to seek professional help in cleaning up your basement.

The first thing you need to do after your basement has been flooded is to evaluate the extent of damage. While you can do this yourself, you need to contact your insurance company as a matter of urgency to help you in assessing the extent of the damage and also the extent of the claim you could make with your insurance company. At this point too, it is important to contact a water damage restoration expert who will be able to tell you what can be restored and what cannot. A water damage restoration expert offers the kind of definitive report that your insurer will not be able to argue with.

Apart from damaging your home and the valuables in it, a flooded basement carries the additional risk of exposing the residents of the home to illness since mold easily and quickly develops if the water is not extracted with urgency. Items such as books, newspapers, stuffed animals and cardboard boxes easily absorb the water and these could be destroyed beyond repair. You might have to discard some of those things. Rugs might be salvaged, but you must take caution not to expose your family to the risk of disease by bringing back to the house items that have not been properly cleaned. Where the items have come into contact with sewage water, professional help will be necessary.

Once all the water has been removed, the floors and walls must be thoroughly cleaned and disinfected. A professional cleaner will be able to advise on the disinfectants or cleansers to use. Should you tackle the task of disinfecting, make sure that the basement is properly ventilated to avoid inhaling harmful chemicals. Things should not be returned to the basement until the air in the basement has been confirmed to be completely dry.

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Considering Purchasing A Home? Here Are Some Tips

Posted on August 25, 2011 by PluggedIn

You have made a decision to purchase a completely new home. But before you sign anything – in fact, before you even start looking – take a close look at your way of living, and get the responses straight down on paper. How you live can without a doubt allow you determine where you live; things like pastimes, the amount of socializing you do, just how much hours you spend at home, and even what sporting activities you get pleasure from – all these may have a effect on the home you ultimately opt for.

It’s interesting, but a majority of folks don’t give as much consideration to their way of life as they do to the structure quality of the home.

While a profile needs to be created for each family member, form a list for the family as a whole, charting family priorities or the strongest and weakest tastes of each member. It might be difficult to fulfill every person’s wish list equally, but this kind of user profile is going to specify which components are generally most important to all.

Likewise, writing it down don’t just helps keep them in mind when you’re house-hunting, but could also make you aware about traits you could have in any other case neglected. The following are some points to bear in mind in drawing up the profiles.

Recreation. The majority of people enjoy some kind of leisure-time activity, whether a sports activity or a hobby. Regardless, it could have an impact on the home you decide on. In case you lean toward active sport, then you certainly should look for a home and community that allow you to fulfill these requirements handily and simply.

In case you are still working, to enjoy the most time at home, opt for a site suitable to your job, or very near to a fast commute. And in the event that your spare time is limited, chances are you’ll want to have a home in an area where virtually all of the outdoor maintenance is done for you. Residence living is the greatest option for a low-maintenance lifestyle that amplifies spare time.

Exactly how effective do you reckon you will be in starting a new way of living? Most individuals are creatures of habit in certain regard and they follow the same likes and dislikes and pursuits even though they’ve moved to a different location. Other individuals regularly develop new interests and new approaches to have a great time. People are most likely to be pleased in a home and neighborhood which gives them precisely the same fulfillment they enjoyed before.

Could there really be room for everything? You could have an amount of china or artwork, an excellent library or wine cellar. Your kids may have favorite items, too. Select a home in which these items can be shown and cherished.

How about price? Exactly how much do you want to invest in your home in relation to other interests? A mature adult couple now residing in a single-family home may decide to use their resources to move into a similar condo. In contrast, a more youthful couple may want to spend more on a home in a recreation-oriented community for them to enjoy activities that would cost them much more individually.

As you answer these questions regarding your personal way of living, you may discover additional questions you should ask yourself, to help you to determine precisely how you desire to live. Once you answer them all, the search will be a lot simpler.

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How to Save on Your Fall Home Improvement Projects

Posted on August 20, 2011 by NewsCanada
A photo of a home renovations professional

Homeowners tackling renovations may be eligible to receive grants of up to $5,000 when incorporating more energy-efficient solutions!

(NC)— The Government of Canada has renewed the ecoEnergy Retrofit—Homes Program from June 6, 2011 until March 31, 2012. What does this mean? Homeowners tackling renovations may be eligible to receive grants of up to $5,000 when incorporating more energy-efficient solutions.

Not sure where to start? The experts at The Home Depot Canada can help with a few of the most common home improvement projects that are eligible:

Remodeling the Bathroom

A cost-effective way to update the bathroom is to install a more modern vanity. Looking to a new unit similar in size to the existing footprint is smart—and a matching sink and new low-flow faucet will make the investment a good one. To take full advantage of the ecoEnergy Retrofit—Homes Program, consider adding one more update to the remodel—a new ecoEnergy approved low-flush or dual-flush toilet (that comes with a rebate of $65). This rebate can even be applied to up to four replacement toilets per home.

Finishing a Basement

A finished basement is a great place to entertain and enjoy as a family. Did you know that insulating this space could cut heating and cooling costs by as much as 20 per cent? Not to mention possible rebates of $125 to $1250. A warm basement and cash back—the perfect combination!

Winterizing for Cold Temps

With air leakage accounting for 30 to 40 per cent of total heat loss in a home, fixing drafts before the mercury dips can add up to big savings. Bigger projects, such as installing ENERGY STAR® qualified windows and doors, can save up to 12 per cent on the average energy bill and provide a rebate of $40 per rough opening (the structural framing in a wall or roof that separates a heated space from an unheated space—creating an opening for the installation of a window)

To find out more about the ecoEnergy Retrofit—Homes Program and whether other provincial incentives are available, visit www.homedepot.ca/ecoenergy

Source: www.newscanada.com

If you are thinking of buying a home, Selling your existing home, downsizing or relocating to another city – put the experience of a professional realtor to work for you. Burlington Real Estate Agent, Lori VanDinther wants to help you Make the Right Moves!

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Simple Staging Tricks to Sell your Home

Posted on July 13, 2011 by Lori

 

Photo of a decluttered and clean kitchen

A clean and de-cluttered home presents better and sells faster on average then a home with clutter

Staging your home for sale requires a plan of action, an objective eye and time to follow through. There are simple home staging tricks to help showcase your house in its best possible light. Some homeowners will enlist the services of a professional home stager, while others will take on the task themselves. Here are some simple staging tricks that offer huge impact.

If you love color and rooms in your house are painted in rich, saturated tones it’s time to put on your painter’s hat and repaint. Colors that are neutral such as white, beige and light grey will appeal to the largest amount of potential home buyers.

De-cluttering will result in rooms that feel bigger. Remove large pieces of furniture that get in the way of natural traffic patterns. Be prepared to store excess furniture in the basements of family members or even rent a storage unit if you have to. Take time to de-clutter closets since prospective buyers may open your closet doors. Be ruthless when it comes to removing accessories and sentimental pieces. Family pictures, children’s artwork, religious artifacts and trophies are best boxed and stored. A good rule of thumb is, once you think you have de-cluttered every room, do a walk through with a good friend and see what else you can remove!

During an open house, you have a short time to make a positive first impression. It may sound obvious but make sure that your house is spotless. Bathrooms and kitchens must be impeccable. Clean light fixtures, wash cupboard fronts, make floors shine and wash windows inside and out. Remove soiled rugs and have carpets and furniture professionally cleaned. If the sofa is looking too tired to be cleaned, cover it. Everything must be in perfect condition. Make plans to board pets with a friend while showing your house.

You don’t have to completely renovate your home but consider relatively inexpensive fixes such as replacing a tired kitchen counter or sink, or adding new drawer handles to kitchen cupboards. Fix leaky faucets, light switches and broken windows. You aren’t expected to do major repairs unless there is something that might fail a home inspection.

Finally, use decorator tricks to reintroduce warmth. Beautiful flowers in vases will add a nice touch to any room in the house. Replace heavy drapery with light linen ones for a fresh look. New pillows can add small punches of color. On open house day, put a fresh fruit bowl in the kitchen or display freshly baked cookies on a platter. Turn lights on in darker rooms and leave all doors open. After all of your home staging efforts and with the guidance of a professional realtor, watch your house sell in a timely manner!

Thinking of selling your home?

For more helpful advice from a professional Burlington Real-Estate Agent visit Lori VanDinther’s Burlington Homes Website.

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