DO YOU REALLY NEED TO NEUTRALIZE YOUR DECOR BEFORE YOU SELL?
Sometimes you don't.
When tastefully done, bright colors and unique embellishments can add
to a home. For instance, imagine a bright orange wall that compliments
your mid-century modern furniture. Or a huge custom fireplace mantel
that enhances your masculine leather seating. Buyers can imagine
themselves living in that beautiful space. But if you remove the
furnishings and are left with just an orange wall or chunky mantel,
buyers focus more on the changes they'll need to make.
While your strong décor choices might appeal to some buyers, a neutral
interior appeals to the broadest range of buyers. Seriously. There's
just too much data out there to think otherwise. You get more, better
offers from neutral décor than from strongly unique décor. Of course,
there's a broad range between strong décor and neutral décor, so be sure
to get impartial feedback if you're unsure.
What if you don't want to go through he cost or effort of neutralizing?
I have two thoughts. 1) Keep your space staged so buyers can imagine
themselves there. 2) Offer a sign that says something like "We will have
this professionally repainted before closing if you prefer."
Need impartial advice about preparing your house for sale? Set an appointment with me for a walk-through. Mardin, (408) 210-2073 Email Me Here
WIN A $5 GIFT CARD
It's easy to play! Just send your answer to the question below. Correct entries are entered into a monthly drawing.
Which word in the dictionary is always spelled incorrectly?
Last month's Q&A: If
a red brick house is red, and a blue brick house is blue, and a yellow
brick house is yellow, what color is a green house? A green house
doesn't have a color; it's made of glass. Hahahaha!
HOW ORGANIZED IS ORGANIZED ENOUGH?
According to the Princeton Neuroscience Institute, the more clutter you
can see, the less efficient your brain is. Competing visual stimuli put
demands on your attention, resulting in less focus and greater stress.
The study wasn't addressing creativity. In fact, I've seen competing
articles that say clutter can help a creative person think out of the
box. The study was saying that in normal every day life—like doing
laundry or paying bills—clutter is a detriment. Think of the stress when
you lose an important bill, or have to search the house for your car
keys every other day.
But being organized doesn't mean we need to sort the mail
alphabetically, or hang up our clothes by color, or group books by size
(unless you want to). It does mean having a place for everything and putting everything in its place. The bills always get stacked on the same corner spot. The keys always get placed on the same hook.
If you need to get better organized at home, consider using a method like the one offered by Marie Kondo, which helps you let go of things you don't really need any more. It can be fun and freeing. And if you feel that you need to move into a new house in order to get organized, I can help with that. Let’s go house-hunting!Mardin, (408) 210-2073
JUST FOR FUN
HAPPY BIRTHDAY VINCENT - MARCH 30
You've heard of the artist Vincent Van Gogh, born 1853. But have you heard of his wacky relatives? Introducing...
His dizzy aunt: Verti Gogh
The stagecoach driving nephew: Wellsfar Gogh
The ballroom dancing aunt: Tan Gogh
The bird lover uncle: Flamin Gogh
His nephew psychoanalyst: E Gogh
The fruit loving cousin: Man Gogh
A sister who loved disco: Go Gogh
THE SECRET OF PERFECTLY BAKED SWEET POTATOES
Love sweet potatoes, but don't love how hard the are to bake to
perfection? Here's a secret: Freeze them first. By freezing them,
the inside becomes ice. As crystals form, they break up the cell walls
within. This essentially macerates the uncooked flesh, so that once it
bakes, it takes on a smooth mashed potato-like texture. It’s important
that the skin isn’t punctured.
STORY TIME...
IT'S ALL ABOUT PERSPECTIVE
A
hiker came to a fast river. Though he looked up and down the bank for a
while, he couldn't see a way across. Eventually, he gave up and
was about to retrace his steps when he spotted an old man standing on
the opposite bank, staring at him.
He yelled across to the man, “Excuse me! I'm stuck here. Can you tell me how to get across to the other side?”
The old man looked up the river, then down, then behind him. Finally he looked at the hiker and shouted, "Seems to me you're already on the other side."
3 BACKUP POWER SOURCES FOR YOUR HOME
Threats to household power can include
forced blackouts during heat waves, downed lines during storms, grid
shut-downs during wildfires and floods, and random events. It makes
sense for us to equip ourselves with at least minimal back up power.
Here are three types of backup power:
1. Hand-sized solar devices. If you just want to keep your phones, tablets, and laptops
charged, there are a plethora of small solar generators available for
under $100 that will do the job. This power source is ideal for everyone
to have in a power pinch. It also makes a great gift.
2. Whole-house generators. If you need continuous power to sustain a freezer or life-support system
(such as a sleep apnea device), then you may want to spring for a small
generator. Gas-powered or lithium-ion generators range in price from
$2,000 to $5,000, and you may be able to find them used.
3. Rooftop solar panels are an option for some home
owners. The cost starts over $10,000 and up, but you may be able to take
advantage of rebates and savings provided by the government. Power
generated by your array will offset your monthly electric bill,
eventually paying for itself.
HOW TO REMEMBER PEOPLE'S NAMES
USE THE METHOD EXPERTS USE
How often has this happened to you? You're at a
social event (maybe not right now, but soon), and you're talking to a
stranger. As the conversation wraps up, the other guy calls you by
name. At that moment, you realize you have no idea what his name
is, even though he told you minutes ago.
What can you do? You can apologize and ask his name again, or you can make an awkward comment, like "Yeah, you too."
Or you can resolve to try a memory technique for your next encounter. For example, you can make associations that stick in the mind like a TV commercial jingle. Here's how that works:
Link information you want to remember to people, characters or things
you’re already familiar with. Suppose you meet a person whose name is
Scott Morrison. You might picture a Scottish terrier chasing the Doors’
Jim Morrison. Of course, you'll use images that are familiar to you.
You'll also want to practice picturing the person's face as you make the
association.
Remember to contact me to buy or sell your next home.
%20best%20for%20selling%20Be%20organized%20just%20enough%20More_files/7fab81f7-3645-5f6e-7179-a8ea3ddc9b5e.png)
%20best%20for%20selling%20Be%20organized%20just%20enough%20More_files/d59bb177-b3ca-4acd-9bcc-91120c4536cf.png)
%20best%20for%20selling%20Be%20organized%20just%20enough%20More_files/be76c685-5ccf-4d97-9c59-ea3c22145479.jpg)
%20best%20for%20selling%20Be%20organized%20just%20enough%20More_files/9715d518-9f37-4d5e-bf88-2d509304c4d3.png)
%20best%20for%20selling%20Be%20organized%20just%20enough%20More_files/50943530-6c71-412f-b244-a604d49d2b73.png)
%20best%20for%20selling%20Be%20organized%20just%20enough%20More_files/3c139955-9953-46da-8077-90e033eb8f56.jpg)
%20best%20for%20selling%20Be%20organized%20just%20enough%20More_files/5b85bce7-9573-4463-a5a8-64dda5103882.jpg)
%20best%20for%20selling%20Be%20organized%20just%20enough%20More_files/69822260-f643-419d-88da-9d0a2278f3ec.jpg)
%20best%20for%20selling%20Be%20organized%20just%20enough%20More_files/e13e3f15-0a36-46f5-a08f-23d6d30199c4.png)
%20best%20for%20selling%20Be%20organized%20just%20enough%20More_files/e88b905c-468c-4a3d-ad0e-5ceba59d14ff.jpg)
%20best%20for%20selling%20Be%20organized%20just%20enough%20More_files/0acd8615-d4bb-40f5-8759-fd1be67aa7db.png){kind=small}
%20best%20for%20selling%20Be%20organized%20just%20enough%20More_files/b5282bf9-19f2-4ab2-843a-f0338564c7c2.png){kind=small}
%20best%20for%20selling%20Be%20organized%20just%20enough%20More_files/f0793473-bcc1-4291-a2f0-544309402c72.png){kind=small}
%20best%20for%20selling%20Be%20organized%20just%20enough%20More_files/36152abe-201e-473e-87ae-24210be621f3.png){kind=small}
%20best%20for%20selling%20Be%20organized%20just%20enough%20More_files/12629ece-4e48-4316-8ed6-93e1620cf6f2.png){kind=small}
%20best%20for%20selling%20Be%20organized%20just%20enough%20More_files/e8aab763-d360-44e2-8fc8-e70bfe20a114.png){kind=small}
%20best%20for%20selling%20Be%20organized%20just%20enough%20More_files/79c70baa-da2c-4ca4-8f4c-371a5ee9800e.png){kind=small}
%20best%20for%20selling%20Be%20organized%20just%20enough%20More_files/MC_MonkeyReward_15.png "Mailchimp Email Marketing")