Bad Habits That May Ruin a Home

Bad Habits That May Ruin a Home

Certain home owner habits could actually be harming the home, and can lead to major home improvement projects later on. This Old House recently featured a list of several bad home owner habits to avoid, including:

Slamming the front door

Slamming the heavy front door can push it out of alignment. Eventually, the door may get really tough to open and even have a gap between the trim and jamb that could allow moisture and cold air to seep in.

Fix: Replace the existing hinges of the door with self-closing ones so that the door can softly close without slamming.

Never lifting up outdoor rugs.

Outdoor rugs with rubber or vinyl backings shouldn’t be left in place. They can trap water and lead to mold and mildew.

Fix: Select an open-weave rug that allows rainwater to evaporate and air to circulate. Also, rinse the rug with a hose occasionally and then hang it out to dry.

Failing to clean the gutters.

Fallen leaves, pine needles, branches, and even the neighbor’s tennis ball can end up clogging your gutter and prevent water from properly flowing through. Water could then either back up or dump along the foundation and seep into cracks and crevices.

Fix: Clean your gutters before the spring rains. Check them in the winter for any ice or snow damage. Consider mesh gutter guards to help prevent clogs.

Flushing “flushable wipes.”

Pre-moistened, flushable wipes may not be so good to flush down your toilet after all. Flushing them could cause a plumbing problem, according to This Old House. The nonwoven fabric from the wipes may collect with grease and other materials and lead to a clog.

Fix: Place a covered trash bin in the bathroom to dispose of the wipes instead. Stick to traditional toilet paper.

Closing vents.

Shutting vents to try to push air to other rooms to cool or heat may end up doing more harm than good. You could cause “a pressure imbalance in the ducts that can make the furnace work harder or the cooling coil freeze over,” according to This Old House article.

Fix: An HVAC contractor can install branch dampers in the main areas of your ductwork to force cooler air to the second floor in the summer and warmer air to the ground floor in the winter.

Using too much drain cleaner.

Clog-dissolving liquids or crystals may help unclog a septic system. But too much of it may lead to less of the essential bacteria needed to break down the waste continually.

Fix: When you first get a clog, pour some boiling water in and flush. For more pesky clogs, try a mechanical cleaning with a closet auger snake – which according to the article is less damaging than drain-clearing chemicals. If you do use drain cleaner, use them sparingly.

View the full list of 25 bad habits of home owners and how to avoid them at This Old House.

Source: “Break These Bad Home Owner Habits,” This Old House (September 2016)

10 Beach Towns With Housing Bargains

10 Beach Towns With Housing Bargains

Beach towns don’t tend to be cheap. However, a few places offer opportunities for more buyers to live in the beach town they always dreamed of.

RealtyTrac recently identified the beach towns with fewer than 50,000 residents that have the highest quality of life (e.g. air quality, low crime, good weather, etc.) and where homes are at the best bargain prices (less expensive compared to other beach towns).

That said, even the most affordable beach towns are still pricey, RealtyTrac notes. Many of the towns on its list still had median home prices above $300,000. Also, home owners who live near the beach also likely will need to factor in higher insurance costs due to the potential for flood or hurricane damage.

Here are the 10 most budget-friendly beach towns, according to RealtyTrac:

Source: “10 Beach Towns Where Real Estate Is a Bargain,” MarketWatch (Aug. 30, 2016)

Real Estate to Get Its Own Stock Category

Real Estate to Get Its Own Stock Category

Real estate companies have been included in a category with banks and insurance firms since 1999 in stock markets across the globe. But that soon will change. Come Thursday, real estate will be getting its own dedicated category.

The Wall Street Journal reports that the move likely will prompt analysts to pay closer attention to real estate investment trusts.

The Global Industry Classification Standard separates companies into 10 industries, like energy and health care. The groupings allow investors to follow broad trends. But the new category for real estate will now make number 11 in the groupings.

The growth of the real estate sector has prompted it to get its own category. The market capitalization is $1.48 trillion and accounts for 3.5 percent of the global equities market, according to the European Public Real Estate Association. What’s more, REITs have been one of the top performing asset class for more than 20 years. U.S. REITs total returns over the past 25 years are 12 percent compared with 9 percent for the S&P 500, according to Green Street Advisors.

“There is going to be more money looking at the sector,” says Matthew Norris, executive director for a real estate fund at the Grosvenor Group, a London-based property firm. “This is going to bring real estate into focus.”

Source: “Real-Estate Shares to Get Own Sector,” The Wall Street Journal (Aug. 30, 2016)

Buyers Will Pay More for Smart Tech Features

Buyers Will Pay More for Smart Tech Features

Home buyers are willing to pay extra in order to have a smart home, according to several new studies. Network-connected thermostats, security devices, appliances, and lighting already installed in a home may help home owners sell their properties faster and for more money, reports The Washington Post on the studies’ findings.

Fifty-seven percent of home shoppers eyeing older homes say they would consider them updated and more appealing if they had smart-home features installed, according to a survey of 1,250 American adults conducted by Coldwell Banker Real Estate. Sixty-one percent of millennials say they would favor a home that had smart-home features; 59 percent of parents with children living in the house say they would too.

Another recent survey this year conducted by John Burns Real Estate Consulting also found Americans heavily favoring, and willing to pay extra for, smart-home features when shopping for a home. Sixty-five percent of nearly 22,000 home buyers surveyed said they’d be willing to spend more for a home with smart-home technology. More than half of those surveyed said they’d be willing to pay extra for interior and exterior security cameras, network-connected appliances, doorbells with text alerts and access to security cameras, smart air filtration vents, and more.

Some appraisers say they are making adjustments when comparing a smart home with a similar home that does not have such features.

“Smart-home technology can definitely add to market value,” Pat Turner, an appraiser in Richmond, Va., told The Washington Post. “If you have the data showing that houses with smart technology sell for more, then you’ve got to.”

Source: “Buyers Say They’re Willing to Pay Extra for ‘Smart’ Homes,” The Washington Post (Aug. 24, 2016)

HARP Extended to 2017 as Bridge to New Refi Program

HARP Extended to 2017 as Bridge to New Refi Program

The Federal Housing Finance Agency is extending the Home Affordable Refinance Program (HARP) until Sept. 30, 2017. The FHFA estimates that more than 300,000 home owners could still benefit by refinancing through HARP.

The Home Affordable Modification Program and HARP aim to help borrowers lower their monthly payments. The program was launched in 2009  and originally set to expire on Dec. 31, 2013, but the government continues to extend it.

FHFA says the reason it opted to extend it again was to smooth a transition into a new refinance product that will be offered by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac at the end of 2017. That product will reportedly be aimed at borrowers with high loan-to-value ratios.

“The new refinance offering will provide much-needed liquidity for borrowers who are current on their mortgage but are unable to refinance through traditional programs based on their LTV ratio exceeds the [GSEs’] maximum limit,” according to a recent news release.

The FHFA says that with the new LTV streamlined refinance product eligible borrowers will not be subject to a minimum credit score, there will be no maximum debt-to-income ratio or maximum LTV, and an appraisal often won’t be required. Borrowers would also be able to use it more than once to refinance their mortgage. (View more of the eligibility requirements at FHFA.)

The new LTV refinance offering won’t be available to borrowers until October 2017, FHFA says.

Source: Federal Housing Finance Agency and “HARP Extended into 2017; FHFA Plans New Refinance Program,” HousingWire (Aug. 25, 2016)

Things Pet Lovers Look for in a Home

Things Pet Lovers Look for in a Home

Sure, your clients may think a particular listing is perfect, but what does Fido think? It’s a question becoming more commonplace these days, as more Americans than ever are pet owners.

In fact, 79 million U.S households currently own a pet, and 83 percent of pet owners think of their pet as a member of their family. When this group of buyers starts a house hunt, it’s important to think about not just the needs of the clients, but of their pets as well.

“Many people who don’t have children view their pets as their children, and they consider their pets’ needs in the same way others would consider how the schools or playgrounds are in a particular neighborhood,” says Arlene Kagle, a psychologist in a recent interview in the New York Times. “These are people who have a great deal of empathy, so they worry about their pets as they would worry about another human being — though some have been known to carry it to extremes.”

The New York Times asked pet owners what features and amenities they look for when choosing a new place to rent or own. Here are some of their main concerns:

Location

• Whether your clients are in an urban walk able city like New York or in the suburbs, pet owners will want to be close to parks and have access to safe walking trails where their pets can exercise and run around.
• Living in a neighborhood with access to dog walkers and dog daycare options are also important considerations for dog owners, particularly those in urban areas.
• Some pets are overwhelmed by loud noises or other pets, so living in high-traffic areas or areas with pets in close proximity might not be the best fit. 
• Owners with talkative animals like birds will also have to consider location in their home search, especially if considering condo or apartment living.

Layout

• For owners with older pets in particular, a home’s layout is an important consideration. A home featuring a lot of stairs may not be the best situation for an elderly dog.
• On the other hand, a small home without an open floorplan may not be the best fit for a rambunctious puppy to run around.
• Dog owners will also want a home with easy access to the backyard.

Features

• Housing options with separate laundry rooms that include pet-washing stations are becoming more desirable. Many condos, for instance, now offer dog-walking services and pet grooming on-site.
• Pet owners are also likely to be attracted to listings that already have plenty of hard-surfaced flooring that makes cleaning up after pets easy.
• Your clients will also want to consider if a home has an area for a cat’s litter box and an area where pets can eat without getting in the way of family traffic patterns.

Source: “When the Dog Decides Where You Live,” The New York Times (Aug. 19, 2016)