Must-Have tools for Homeowners!

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DIY, handy tips, home improvement, home ownership, home renovations, responsible homeowner

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When you own your home, things are going to break and, unless you want to spend your money on visits from a neighborhood handyman, you’re going to need to fix them yourself. Luckily, you don’t need an arsenal of tools to handle most home maintenance fixes. These five tools will cover most of your basic projects.

1. Cordless drill. A cordless drill is a must-have for installing cabinets, drawer pulls, hinges, picture frames, shelves and hooks, and more. Whether it’s for do-it-yourself projects or repairs, you’ll use your cordless drill just about every month.
2. Drain cleaners. Shower and bathroom sink drains are susceptible to clogs because of the daily buildup of hair and whisker clippings. You can use chemical clog removers like Drano, but they’re expensive and the lingering chemical scent is unpleasant. Instead, buy some plastic drain cleaners that can reach into the drain to pull out the clog of hair and gunk. You can purchase them on Amazon or at a local hardware store for a low price.
3. Shop-vac. No matter how careful you are, spills and accidents will happen and there are some tasks that just can’t be handled with paper towels or a standard vacuum, like pet messes or broken glass.
4. Loppers. Even the minimum amount of care for your landscaping will require some loppers to remove damaged branches, vines, thick weeds, and any other unruly plants in your yard.
5. Flashlight. You’re going to want something a little more powerful than your iPhone flashlight when you’re in the crawlspace!

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Give us a call today!  Kevin and Jennifer Hanley, REALTORS Keller Williams Realty Atlantic Partners Southside 904-515-2479

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WHAT TO REPAIR BEFORE YOU LIST

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home improvement, home ownership, home renovations, real estate, seller tips, selling your home

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When you’re getting ready to list your home, it’s of the upmost importance to ensure you are showing it in the best light. Taking time to highlight its strengths and fix up some of its possible weaknesses can make a big difference in how fast it sells. Here are our top five recommended repairs to make before selling your home.

Repaint walls.

Giving your home a fresh coat of paint is one of the most cost-effective ways to spruce it up, and generally, it can be a do-it-yourself project. Make sure cover any walls with scratches and chips and consider updating any accent walls with a more neutral coat.

Repair floors.

Hardwood floors are a very desirable feature in a home, so you want to ensure they look their best by fixing scratches or dull areas. If your carpet is worn or stained, consider replacing them. And don’t forget the tile in your kitchen or bathrooms. Re-grouting can go a long way in making dingy tile work look brand new!

Refresh the landscaping.

Show buyers your home is the full package by dressing up the outside as well as the in. Clean walkways and driveways, plant seasonal flowers and plants, trim hedges and trees, install outdoor décor pieces and fill in mulch and gravel.

Fix your fixtures.

Leaky faucet? Rusted drains? Loose drawer handle? Making these small fixes can make a big difference to potential buyers with detailed-orientated minds. Improve your kitchen. An outdated kitchen can be a real eyesore in a home. Updating cabinetry, repairing or replacing countertops, and installing new faucets and sinks may be worth the investment.

Have any questions or are you ready to sell your new home in 2019? Give us a call today!  Kevin and Jennifer Hanley, REALTORS Keller Williams Realty Atlantic Partners Southside 904-515-2479 http://www.HanleyHomeTeam.com

Home Renovations That Can Hurt (and Help) Property Value

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adding a pool, home improvement, home improvement tips, home renovations, homes for sale, Jacksonville Real Estate, real estate, renovating a house, renovation, renovation project

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The best remodels will increase both quality of life and listing price, so take care to invest in projects that will net the biggest returns.

 

Source: Home Renovations That Can Hurt (and Help) Property Value

By Brooke Nally

If you’re into renovation projects, then updating and revamping your home can be a lot of fun. But before you get too excited about knocking down walls and setting up a custom movie room, you might want to consider resale value. Flashy renovations don’t always yield the best returns, so you’ll need to take care when picking projects.

To make things easier for you, here are four remodels to avoid and four to invest in.

Remodels to Avoid

Luxury Rooms
An indoor basketball court, wine cellar, sauna, or even a movie theater won’t often recoup the high building costs. Luxury add-on rooms are hard to pitch to buyers unless you’re living in an upscale housing market—the average homebuyer won’t be willing to pay for them. Further, rooms that depend heavily on wired electronics, like home theaters, are hard to keep current because TVs and speakers are constantly advancing.

Swimming Pool
The average cost to build a pool is $39,084, a hefty price tag that is seldom recovered once the home is sold. It’s widely accepted throughout the industry that a homeowner will lose money by adding a swimming pool. Homebuyers don’t want to deal with the maintenance cost of a pool (which can cost as much as $2,000 a year), the added insurance premiums, and—if they have young kids—the safety issues.

Gaudy Accents
Though gold-plated crown molding or mosaic-tile backsplashes may feature prominently in your ideal vision for your home, they often turn out to be the average homebuyer’s worst nightmare. Passing fads or niche trends rarely stick around long, so if you miss the brief window when your remodeling choices are in, you’ll end up paying for it later.

Changes Contrary to Area Standards
If you aren’t watching the trends common to your area, you could end up losing a lot of money. A home that totals $600,000 after all the renovations won’t sell in a neighborhood where homes are netting half that price. Likewise, knocking down the walls of extra bedrooms for an open layout won’t be appealing in a family-oriented neighborhood.

Remodels that Pay

Steel Doors
You don’t want to go cheap on a standard front door. At roughly $1,000, steel doors are comparatively affordable, durable, low maintenance and burglar resistant. As an added bonus, the National Association of REALTORS® reports that steel door upgrades show the highest return on investment of any home remodel, at over 100 percent of the cost.

Solar Panels
As the price of solar panels continues to drop, the energy payback on installing them is becoming greater and greater. The average rooftop solar system is now paid off in seven and a half years. After that, panels are a big money-saving asset. A study by the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory notes that homebuyers “consistently have been willing to pay more for a property” with solar panels—a premium of around $4 per installed watt, on average.

Related: Will Your Homeowners Insurance Cover Solar Panels?

New Siding
The exterior of your house is the first thing potential homebuyers see when they come to your home, and you want to make the best first impression. This is part of the reason redoing your siding is so profitable. New siding recoups around 80 percent of the initial cost, according to the National Association of Realtors®, thanks largely to the increased curb appeal and improved energy efficiency it provides.

Broadband Access
Access to broadband speeds is considered an essential utility for today’s connected homebuyer. Research shows that faster internet speeds increase your home value by as much as 3 percent. Homeowners can prepare their homes for higher broadband connectivity by working with area providers to install requisite equipment and wiring. Building out wall ports and cable-hiding baseboards is a good move to attract buyers, too.

Even if you’re not considering selling your home just yet, keep potential selling benefits in mind. Intrepid homeowners know that the best remodels will increase both quality of life and listing price, so take care to invest in projects that will net the biggest returns.

Tips for Adding a Bathroom to your Home

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adding a bathroom, adding a bathroom to your home, bathroom addition, contractors, home renovations, Homes for sale in Jacksonville, homes in Jacksonville, Jacksonville FL Real Estate, Jacksonville Real Estate, real estate, real estate information, real estate investing, Real Estate Team, renovation

Have you been living with a single-bathroom home? Is the time here to consider adding an extra full-bathroom or “water closet” to your existing layout? First, know that of all the renovations you can make to a single-bathroom home, adding an extra bathroom is one of the soundest investments you can make. With rare exception, the money you put into a second bathroom should pay handsomely when you list your house in the future. The bathroom is one of the most-used rooms in your home and it can have a profound impact on how prospective buyers see your home in the future once you’re ready to move on. If you’ve been curious about the process or want to make the leap two a two-bathroom home without relocating, you’ll want to keep some tips in mind about this special renovation project.

1. Think about where you can add a bathroom versus where you think it’s ideal. You’ll want to identify where your existing water and waste lines are in the home. Adding a bathroom across the house ups the complexity and expense.

2. Single-story homes with crawl spaces have a bit more flexibility for adding a bathroom since crawl spaces provide easy access for running plumbing lines. If you have a two-story house, aligning your new bathroom (either upstairs or down) with your existing one can ease plumbing challenges.

3. Adding a tub can add value, especially if you suspect future buyers might have children.

4. Natural light and ventilation are a big plus. While fans are common and should be installed, being able to draw in sunlight or air out a bathroom via an exterior wall can really upgrade the luxury feel.

5. Always get the proper permits for work and only collaborate with licensed and bonded contractors. You want to make sure you’re covered in the event of any problems and you’ll definitely want to be able to show future buyers that your work is legit and up to code.

6. Choose high-end design fixtures where possible, especially if the bathroom is small. Innovative luxury options can make the room feel larger and really add that “wow” factor. Some nice-to-have options include a towel warmer and separating the toilet from the rest of the room via a “water closet” partitioning. Go with neutral palettes and classic tiles for a timeless effect. You can always jazz up the space with rugs, towels, or other bath accessories.

If adding a bathroom sounds like more hassle than it’s worth, you might want to consider your next move! We’d be happy to help you find a home with your dream bathroom already included! Kevin and Jennifer Hanley, REALTORS – The Hanley Home Team of Keller Williams Realty Atlantic Partners Southside 904-515-2479 www.HanleyHomeTeam.com

Tips for Choosing a Reputable Remodeling Contractor

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hiring a contractor, home improvement, home renovations, homes for sale in Jacksonville FL, Jacksonville FL Real Estate, remodel; return on investment; home office; renovations; remodeling projects; investment, renovating a house

With the number of foreclosed or bank-owned properties floating around out there, we often speak with folks who are preparing to embark on a renovation project.

Unfortunately, with a rise in remodeling comes a flood of disreputable contractors looking to cash in. We do our best to protect people by providing referrals to reputable contractors, but there are plenty of people out there we don’t get a chance to talk to.

If you know someone who is about to undertake a major renovation project, we urge you to share this excellent article published by the Federal Trade Commission, “Home Sweet Home Improvement.” It includes a PDF guide your friends and family will find helpful.

The guide covers:

* The types of home improvement specialists
* How disreputable contractors operate
* Questions to ask contractors
* How to check references
* Understanding payment options
* The “Home Improvement” loan scam
* …and several other useful points

Here’s the link to the article on the FTC website:
http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/edu/pubs/consumer/products/pro20.shtm

Also, you can download the PDF file directly here:
http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/edu/pubs/consumer/products/pro20.pdf

Do you need a referral to a contractor or two? Are you in the market for a property to fix-up and call your own (or use as an investment property)? We are happy to help. Give us a call or shoot us a message today: Kevin and Jennifer Hanley, REALTORS 904-422-7626 http://www.HanleyHomeTeam.com