Mary Huffman's Real Estate Blog - Erie, PA

 

 

5 Trendy Tips to Enhance a Small Porch  Who doesn’t love the idea of a front porch?  Picture a cool lemonade in the shade on a hot summer’s day while watching the world go by. Home builders have embraced this ideal over the past couple decades with more new construction featuring this timeless feature. Often though, the size of the porch seems to make it more of an idea than a usable space. But even a modest-sized porch can be an inviting place to relax. Here are 5 trendy ideas to try this weekend to enhance a small porch.  1. Outdoor Furniture – Any porch can accommodate some kind of furniture. It may be a modest bench or a small outdoor couch, but adding a sitting option is an instant plus.  2. Pillows – Soften the look of the space and create a welcoming impression by adding pillows or blankets to the sitting area. Vary the color and style by season using weather-proof fabrics.  3. Potted Plants – Small containers or size-appropriate edges of flowers or bu...

 

 

  With soaring energy costs, many homeowners are turning to solar for both their homes and their cars to save money. With solar companies touting huge monthly savings for electricity costs, how can you know what makes sense for your needs? Here are the basics of solar panels to help you start the process.  How do solar panels work?  Solar panels are positioned on your roof and absorb energy when the sun shines on them directly. The amount of energy generated will be affected by the amount of square footage of the panels. Therefore, your roof must have enough area with extended direct sunlight each day to be effective.  How to find a solar panel company?   There are a lot of solar panel companies advertising their service right now. Some companies specialize in panels as well as roofing companies adding solar as an option and big-box home improvement stores. It’s important to consider both price and expertise when choosing a contractor to install the panels. You ...

 

  Buying a home can be a financial stretch. With soaring home values and rising interest rates, many potential first time home buyers find saving for a down payment increasingly difficult. For many people, the main source of savings is in the form of a 401k and tapping into this resource for a home purchase is one way to find the down payment necessary to finance a new home; but should you use your 401k to buy a home? Experts are conflicted. A 401k is a retirement savings plan offered by employers which takes pre-tax earnings and deposits it into an investment account for use in retirement. The money in a 401k account can be accessed by either taking out a loan against the balance or by a straight withdrawal. A withdrawal before the age of 59.5 is also subject to a 10% penalty. Taking out a loan from a 401k account may be a viable option for potential home buyers. For one thing, a loan from your 401k should not count against your borrowing power. You also don’t need to qualify beca...

  How Homeowners Are Ditching The Tub Homeowners are looking for large, high-tech bathrooms with sleek color palettes and finishes, according to the Houzz 2017 Bathroom Trends Report. On average, homeowners spent $21,000 to remodel bathrooms exceeding 100 square feet. That cost drops to about $12,300 for homeowners with smaller bathrooms that are less than 100 square feet. When it comes to age demographics, those aged 55+ spent the most on remodeling their bathroom since the majority of them reported that they don’t plan to sell their home anytime soon. Meanwhile, millennials, who see their home as a short- to medium-term residence, are choosing to invest less in bathroom renovations. Out of the 4 percent of millennials who renovated their bathrooms this year, most spent $9,200 to 12,500. Homeowners of all ages were willing to shell out the extra dough for showers (42 percent), cabinets and vanities (40 percent), faucets (35 percent) and countertops (35 percent). On the ...

The Everything Erie Show Mary Huffman of Howard Hanna in Erie, PA  Episode is all about Real Estate Appraisals  

 

  25 Cheap Ways To Upgrade Your Home 1. Add some character and add texture to your walls with peel-and-stick wall panels. 2. Create a charming accent wall with peel-and-stick paper. 3. Upgrade your countertops to faux granite with a DIY paint kit instead of spending a fortune to replace it. 4. Reseal all those cracks in your tub and tile with caulking and make your bathroom look new again. 5. Update recess lighting without doing any electrical work with magnetic shades. 6. Install crown molding to help make your home look historic and charming. 7. Adding a fresh coat of paint to get that pop of color (or get rid of it) will give your home a touch-up without costing you a fortune. 8. Get the stainless-steel appliances you've always wanted at a fraction of the price with paint. 9. Add privacy and a touch of elegance, and make your windows look super expensive, with with "lead...

 Heated Flooring – Is It Worth the Cost?   It seems like everybody is remodeling these days. With everyone spending more time at home, not only are the dated features of our properties more obvious, but we also have the time and flexibility to meet contractors and supervise changes. New flooring is always a popular upgrade and heated floors are one option worth considering. Heated floors involve adding heating elements under the flooring materials. Many people love a heated tile floor in the bathroom, or heated laminate in a chilly basement. Today’s radiant heating systems are more durable and energy-efficient than ever before and, with proper maintenance, can last over 30 years. While more expensive upfront, heated floors save money by lowering the amount of heating needed from the furnace. Since heat rises, the furnace does not need to work as hard to warm the same space. Radiant floors are also great for allergy sufferers. Forced air furnaces push dirt, dust, and pollen thr...

  Getting Outbid?  Strategies to Make Your Offer Stand Out and Get Accepted  Summer is traditionally a busy time for buyers and sellers. This year has been no exception—and with lower interest rates, many homebuyers are finding the competitive environment challenging. With multiple buyers competing for properties, even terrific offers are often being outbid. Fortunately, there are some things you can do to make your offer more attractive to the sellers and increase the chances of getting the property.  • Have Full Pre-Approval – A step beyond pre-qualification, a pre-approval involves submitting your full application to underwriting. Your lender will collect all your financial data and submit for review. This is stronger than a pre-qualification; a pre-approval requires the buyer to provide the proof of their ability to qualify for the loan.  • Increase the Earnest Money – Earnest money is the deposit held in escrow. While the contract will dictate how monies ar...

  Keeping Up with Smart Homes It seems almost everything is connected these days. Want to check the temperature of your oven from outside? See how much milk you have in the refrigerator from the market? It’s possible! You can now control almost every aspect of your home from your smartphone. Yet with all this connectivity, you need a powerful internet network. If you’ve suddenly realized you have “dead spaces,” then it might be time to consider a mesh network. A basic wifi network relies on the antennae of the router to reach all the connected devices. A mesh network uses a series of access devices that connect to the main hub and each other – forming a mesh of coverage. This helps eliminate the dead spaces because, in essence, you are creating overlapping wireless zones. Smart devices benefit from the mesh network system. Unlike extenders that have their own identity, every device in a mesh network has the same name. This provides seamless coverage as smart products move between c...

  Stop Waiting - Organize That Garage! If you are feeling a little overwhelmed every time you look into your garage because it has become a dumping ground for items that don’t have another home, it is time to start clearing and organizing to make the best use of your space. This can be a simple task if you go in with a plan and create organized storage space. You can transform that garage, and here is how. First thing? Throw out or donate what isn’t used. After you’ve done that, sort what remains into groups. Items used together should be stored together. Using clear containers with lids to do so will make your items visible and help to encourage you to only keep what you need and use. Once everything is grouped and stored, you will want to consider positioning. What items do you use most? You will want to make sure those are the most easily accessible. Put rarely used or seasonal items in the harder-to-reach spots. The main focus of keeping a clean, organized garage is gettin...