Vivian Olkin – CrazyViv

Cleaning your house shouldn™t be harmful to the environment or to you. Have you read cleaning product labels lately? Products like furniture polish and oven cleaners contain neurotoxic chemicals that can cause headaches, irritability and other unpleasant reactions even with limited exposure.It™s enough to make you say œCleaning house gives me a headache; I had to give it up.

Don™t despair! You probably have environmentally friendly cleaning agents in your cabinets or under a sink. Here are a few tips to try around your house:

1. Squeaky Clean Floors. Less is more. Use damp mops or rags, rather than overly wet ones. Use a little soap and 1/2 cup of vinegar in the water to avoid streaking. For vinyl floors, add a capful of baby oil to help preserve the flooring. For wood floors, warm water and a few drops of soap are all that™s required.

2. Waxing Nostalgic No Longer Required. To polish your wood floors to a happy sheen, add a cup of citrus oil to one gallon of hot water. Mop as usual.

3. AHHHHHchoo. Time for dusting. To help keep dust out of your home, keep doors and windows closed. The best way to dust is with a slightly dampened rag. No furniture polish is needed.

4. Stress Relieving Carpets. Wool, silk, or cotton carpets from various corners of the world can best be cleaned by taking them outside and beating them.

5. Sweet Smelling Carpets. Sprinkle baking soda on carpet and leave it for 10- 15 minutes before vacuuming.

6. Stain Removal from Carpets. The first step is to blot up as much of the liquid immediately after a spill. Keep a spray bottle prepared with 1 cup baking soda to 4 cups water to lightly spray on the stain. Allow to stand for a couple minutes and then blot again.

7. Yes to Windows. Newspapers are the best tool to clean windows. Spray with a solution of 3 parts water and 1 part vinegar.

8. Everything and the Kitchen Sink. The same solution to clean windows also works well for countertops, stovetops and other surfaces. For stubborn stains, try using a paste of baking soda and water. Spray with vinegar/water solution for a little effervescent action.

9. Microwave Madness. This used to be the job everyone avoided until we learned this trick. Find a microwavable bowl or pitcher large enough to hold 2 1/4 cups of liquid. Fill it with 2 cups water and ¼ cup vinegar and cook at full power until the liquid rapidly boils (2-4 minutes, depending on model). Allow the hot solution to sit for 2 or 3 minutes, and then carefully remove container of liquid (with potholders) from the microwave. Now all the hardened splatters and gunk on the microwave™s surfaces are pre-softened for easy clean-up with a rag.

10. Beautiful Bathrooms. Sometimes the easiest clean-up step is preventative. When you take a shower, remember to leave the exhaust fan on during your shower and a half hour afterwards. This simple technique fights mold and mildew before they start. Another preventive approach is to choose soaps or shower gels that rinse clean without much residue. However, undiluted lemon juice or vinegar is very effective on soap scum, and lemon oil applied to a shower door gets rid of soap residue.

Cleaning green doesn™t have to be complicated or expensive, and it makes you feel good! For cleaning tips or for chatting about any real estate need, don™t hesitate to call me. If I’m not selling houses, I   may be cleaning my Chapel Hill home!

Cleaning your house shouldn™t be harmful to the environment or to you. Have you read cleaning product labels lately? Products like furniture polish and oven cleaners contain neurotoxic chemicals that can cause headaches, irritability and other unpleasant reactions even with limited exposure.It™s enough to make you say œCleaning house gives me a headache; I had to give it up.

Don™t despair! You probably have environmentally friendly cleaning agents in your cabinets or under a sink. Here are a few tips to try around your house:

1. Squeaky Clean Floors. Less is more. Use damp mops or rags, rather than overly wet ones. Use a little soap and 1/2 cup of vinegar in the water to avoid streaking. For vinyl floors, add a capful of baby oil to help preserve the flooring. For wood floors, warm water and a few drops of soap are all that™s required.

2. Waxing Nostalgic No Longer Required. To polish your wood floors to a happy sheen, add a cup of citrus oil to one gallon of hot water. Mop as usual.

3. AHHHHHchoo. Time for dusting. To help keep dust out of your home, keep doors and windows closed. The best way to dust is with a slightly dampened rag. No furniture polish is needed.

4. Stress Relieving Carpets. Wool, silk, or cotton carpets from various corners of the world can best be cleaned by taking them outside and beating them.

5. Sweet Smelling Carpets. Sprinkle baking soda on carpet and leave it for 10- 15 minutes before vacuuming.

6. Stain Removal from Carpets. The first step is to blot up as much of the liquid immediately after a spill. Keep a spray bottle prepared with 1 cup baking soda to 4 cups water to lightly spray on the stain. Allow to stand for a couple minutes and then blot again.

7. Yes to Windows. Newspapers are the best tool to clean windows. Spray with a solution of 3 parts water and 1 part vinegar.

8. Everything and the Kitchen Sink. The same solution to clean windows also works well for countertops, stovetops and other surfaces. For stubborn stains, try using a paste of baking soda and water. Spray with vinegar/water solution for a little effervescent action.

9. Microwave Madness. This used to be the job everyone avoided until we learned this trick. Find a microwavable bowl or pitcher large enough to hold 2 1/4 cups of liquid. Fill it with 2 cups water and ¼ cup vinegar and cook at full power until the liquid rapidly boils (2-4 minutes, depending on model). Allow the hot solution to sit for 2 or 3 minutes, and then carefully remove container of liquid (with potholders) from the microwave. Now all the hardened splatters and gunk on the microwave™s surfaces are pre-softened for easy clean-up with a rag.

10. Beautiful Bathrooms. Sometimes the easiest clean-up step is preventative. When you take a shower, remember to leave the exhaust fan on during your shower and a half hour afterwards. This simple technique fights mold and mildew before they start. Another preventive approach is to choose soaps or shower gels that rinse clean without much residue. However, undiluted lemon juice or vinegar is very effective on soap scum, and lemon oil applied to a shower door gets rid of soap residue.

Cleaning green doesn™t have to be complicated or expensive, and it makes you feel good! For cleaning tips or for chatting about any real estate need, don™t hesitate to call me. If I’m not selling houses, I   may be cleaning my Chapel Hill home!

An appraisal is a financial assessment or a market value of a house done primarily for the lender.   Is the home worth what the seller is asking and how much the bank will be loaning out?   Inquiring lenders want to know.   So they ask a good appraiser to tell them.

The home inspection is a physical evaluation of the house, done for the home buyer’s benefit.   Are there structural problems?   Is there asbestos in the walls of that charming cottage that was built 80 years ago?   Is the roof sound and does it look to be three years old as the owner claims?     These are questions the home inspector takes very seriously – to help a home buyer like you.

Think football for a moment.   Appraisal is what the talent scouts do. They’ve heard about this great player and know if he’s a hitter or a playmaker.   They know exactly what salary he should demand.   Much like a talent scout knows a player’s best qualities and his worth, a qualified appraiser can quote figures for houses in various neighborhoods and let you know what kind of investment you are considering.   Their expertise can guide you to a sound piece of real estate.   So you can place your nest egg in a nest that not only nurtures you but over the years gives a good return for your initial investment.

Home Inspection can be compared to a medical team’s assessment that’s ordered after the talent scouts have identified the next great quarterback or lineman.     A good medical team may find a health problem that might disqualify the hottest new talent no matter how much he can bench press or how fast he can run.   The same is true for a good home inspector.   He or she reveals potential problems or inconsistencies after conducting a thorough inspection of the house you’re considering.

While “location, location, location” is always good real estate advice, imagine your disappointment if your dream house has a faulty foundation that would cost $45,000 to correct. Sometimes a home inspection might not squash a sale; instead it gives bargaining power to the home buyer.

For example, I know of one house price that went down by $20,000 after the home inspection revealed that the house being listed as a four-bedroom house was actually a two bedroom house.   Evidently creativity only goes so far.   As Martha Stewart would say from wherever she’s doing community service, “That’s a good thing.”

To make sure you know the game rules, let’s review.   An appraisal puts a dollar figure on a house and keeps the bankers happy. A home inspection is a physical examination of the house, and its purpose is to protect the buyer. An appraiser assesses property the way a talent scout scrutinizes top dog players for the NFL draft.   A home inspector physically goes over a home, looking for potential problems, much the way a medical team examines top NFL material and looks for hitches or inconsistencies.

If you’re buying or selling a home in Chapel Hill, give me a call at 919.624.5479. I’ll coach you through the buying and selling, so you’ll come out a winner!

An appraisal is a financial assessment or a market value of a house done primarily for the lender.   Is the home worth what the seller is asking and how much the bank will be loaning out?   Inquiring lenders want to know.   So they ask a good appraiser to tell them.

The home inspection is a physical evaluation of the house, done for the home buyer’s benefit.   Are there structural problems?   Is there asbestos in the walls of that charming cottage that was built 80 years ago?   Is the roof sound and does it look to be three years old as the owner claims?     These are questions the home inspector takes very seriously – to help a home buyer like you.

Think football for a moment.   Appraisal is what the talent scouts do. They’ve heard about this great player and know if he’s a hitter or a playmaker.   They know exactly what salary he should demand.   Much like a talent scout knows a player’s best qualities and his worth, a qualified appraiser can quote figures for houses in various neighborhoods and let you know what kind of investment you are considering.   Their expertise can guide you to a sound piece of real estate.   So you can place your nest egg in a nest that not only nurtures you but over the years gives a good return for your initial investment.

Home Inspection can be compared to a medical team’s assessment that’s ordered after the talent scouts have identified the next great quarterback or lineman.     A good medical team may find a health problem that might disqualify the hottest new talent no matter how much he can bench press or how fast he can run.   The same is true for a good home inspector.   He or she reveals potential problems or inconsistencies after conducting a thorough inspection of the house you’re considering.

While “location, location, location” is always good real estate advice, imagine your disappointment if your dream house has a faulty foundation that would cost $45,000 to correct. Sometimes a home inspection might not squash a sale; instead it gives bargaining power to the home buyer.

For example, I know of one house price that went down by $20,000 after the home inspection revealed that the house being listed as a four-bedroom house was actually a two bedroom house.   Evidently creativity only goes so far.   As Martha Stewart would say from wherever she’s doing community service, “That’s a good thing.”

To make sure you know the game rules, let’s review.   An appraisal puts a dollar figure on a house and keeps the bankers happy. A home inspection is a physical examination of the house, and its purpose is to protect the buyer. An appraiser assesses property the way a talent scout scrutinizes top dog players for the NFL draft.   A home inspector physically goes over a home, looking for potential problems, much the way a medical team examines top NFL material and looks for hitches or inconsistencies.

If you’re buying or selling a home in Chapel Hill, give me a call at 919.624.5479. I’ll coach you through the buying and selling, so you’ll come out a winner!

You’ve decluttered the garage and repainted the kitchen, bathroom and hallways. You took your realtor’s advice about improving your house’s curb appeal, and the grass has never looked greener. Yet your house still has a “For Sale” sign in front, and potential clients aren’t clamoring to see the inside. What’s the problem?

Probably the most common problem shared by many sellers in today’s real estate market is an inflated price. It’s easy to make the mistake of zealously setting an idealistic price. You know exactly what money you’ve spent as well as the many hours of weekend “sweat equity” over the years¦.but clinging to that less than practical figure can cost you in the long run.

What’s the best way to set a fair price? Savvy buyers have a comparable market analysis (CMA) conducted on the house (or houses) they are most interested in. As a seller, you should do the same so that you’re prepared to negotiate. A good realtor can walk you through this step. Another strategy is to know your competition – is there an open house that’s sounds similar to yours in the MLS? Check it out! Is that seller asking more or less than you? After visiting, you may discover that the other guy’s floor plan doesn’t compare favorably to yours. Or that family has incredible storage space that may be a huge draw for many clients.

What if I go too low? Talk to your real estate agent, but in many cases, a price that’s a little lower than your competition can be a terrific strategy. More than once, I’ve seen such a situation generate a bidding contest that brought the price up above the original asking price. It’s fun to watch.

If the price is fair, shouldn’t I expect to get the asking price? The answer to that one is: it depends. In today’s market, many buyers are quick to make an offer that’s lower than what you’re asking. Don’t be intimidated by a back and forth discussion, and take your time to consider your options. If you notice “For Sale” signs around town with “Price Reduced” toppers on them, you may be in the middle of a rapidly declining market, and prices may need to be reset. I can help you decide on your best plan in the current situation.

So – is the price right on your home for sale? In Chapel Hill or Durham, I can help you find out. Give me a call today!

REALTORS ® see lots of bathrooms – of all shapes, sizes, and conditions. Some bathrooms have themes and some have style. Some need lots of work, and some need a good cleaning.

Although individual styles and looks can vary greatly in bathrooms, everyone agrees on one thing: they need to smell clean and fresh. What’s the secret? When it comes to staging your house for sale, I don’t keep secrets from a motivated seller like you!

1. Start with a scrupulously clean bathroom. Clean smells clean. Now that you have it clean, how do you keep it that way? Oh my dear, I can tell you a few tricks and help you house stage like a pro!

2. Try continuous products. Little toilet bleach tabs are great. Flush the toilet, pull top of the toilet back and drop the little tab just like it tells you on the package. Now carefully put that top back on and look confident. Every time someone at your house flushes, a little bit of that cleaning solution will swish around and keep your toilet smelling fresh. Generic brands have worked as well as the expensive ones at our house.

3. Tuck away a Bounce dryer sheet or two. A cousin taught me this one. She would tuck one underneath the trash bag in her cute little trash can and hid another one in the decorative basket of potpourri on her bathroom counter. You couldn’t see those sheets, but you could smell that fresh laundry scent as soon as you came in her bathroom door. Lovely!

4. Emergency Clean Kit’s under the sink, and I’m not afraid to use it! It happens. The doorbell rings, you race around and put the newspaper under a cushion in the sofa, kick the dog’s toy into the closet, and your next thought is the bathroom. Even your elementary aged kid can be trained to tidy up your bathroom if you have the right tools available: paper towels, Windex, a package of disposable bathroom wipes, and a few plastic grocery bags (for disposing of your cleaning evidence.)

5. Touch not the towel!!! I’m sure you have beautiful sets of matching towels that perfectly complement your bathroom. While you’re staging your house, make sure no one in the house touches them. Now is the time to place a dark brown towel (or even a roll of paper towels) on the counter. This necessary item can be tucked under the sink when potential buyers drop by, and your guest towels will still look great. No, that’s not cheating. That’s using your head, my dear.

Staging your house for sale is a cinch with just a few simple steps! For more ideas and timely tips, give me a call. There are lots of homes for sale in Chapel Hill. I have lots of great – fresh – ideas that will get your house sold before all the rest!

Every REALTOR ® knows – head knowledge – the benefits of home staging. But sometimes it takes a few quick home sales to make staging a home a deep down conviction. Over the past year, I’ve seen the difference staging makes over and over in houses I have sold. So I decided that I was going to become a Accredited ASP ® Stager. I went to Charlotte, and was taught by none other than Barb Schwarz herself. I think she invented home staging – she’s been at it for over 35 years. As I expected, I learned tons at the seminar. Here are some highlights:

• Declutter. Declutter. Declutter. Declutter. And depersonalize.
• Staging is marketing. Stand in the doorway of each room and locate the focal point – then play it up. If a window is where you want the customer to focus – don’t block the view with a couch.
• Making furniture groupings helps with focus, but also helps the customer to imagine themselves in the room.
• Make sure that nothing detracts from the house; always remember that you want people to look at the house, not the stuff in the house. The exception to this rule is if you’re accentuating an architectural feature, such as cathedral ceilings.

And there’s so much more in my brain now; it’s bursting with ideas and excitement. And yes – I DID become an Accredited Staging Professional. I’d love to stage your home for sale in Chapel Hill, Durham, Hillsborough- or anywhere in the Triangle. Be another of my great statistics – and let’s get your house sold!

The spring rush to buy a house is over, and there™s a crisp, cool feeling in the morning air. If you™re in the market for a new house, you may find that autumn is a great time to buy.Think of how car dealerships offer cash rebates and other buyer incentives before the new year™s line of vehicles arrive. Sellers who are inclined to sell before the end of the year could offer a slightly lower asking price or help with closing costs. Either  way, your bottom line is improved.

Don™t overlook new construction development or subdivision. The new tax year is a few short months away, and many builders offer incentives to entice you to buy before December 31^st.

One caveat is to carefully watch for needed repairs made obvious by fall weather. Look at the roof “ are there spots that might indicate leaks? When was the roof last replaced?   Are the gutters overloaded with leaves and small branches? Are there large trees growing too close to the house itself, and is the lawn covered with leaves? Depending on circumstances, these issues might not be enough to deter a purchase, but correcting certain problems would be something to negotiate into the price.

Lastly, carefully consider your offer. Autumn™s a good time to haggle a bit and find a good price, but if you get carried away and make that initial offer too low, you could insult the seller and bring dispensation to a screeching halt. Your realtor can help you make an offer that™s good for both parties.

Crazy Viv knows neighborhoods in the Chapel Hill area very well and can help you find the perfect home you™ve been searching for at an off-season price.   Additionally, fall is a great season to move “ it™s not sticky and it™s not snowy.

The internet provides a staggering set of options for individuals like you who are searching for a home. Search engines, real estate directories, social media outlets and classified ad sites join websites for individual real estate agents and brokers. The internet will show you pictures, stats, maps, financing options, and so many other details that it™s easy to become overwhelmed with the choices, lost in information overload.

Here™s help.

1. Search Engines. Google, Bing, and Yahoo! are the three main search engines. You can search by town “ œHouse for sale in Chapel Hill, NCœ, by zip code “ œBuy a home in 27514³, or by neighborhood or even school district “ œHomes for sale in Woodcroft Durham, NC If you™re searching by neighborhood or school zone, include the city and state. You can also further qualify your search by adding œfor sale by owner, œcondominium, or even œforeclosure.

You™ll be presented with thousands of results, which can be overwhelming. So you may prefer a more specialized option.

2. Real Estate Directories. In the last several years, some really great real estate portals have been designed that let you refine your search for a home. Zillow.com, Trulia.com, Realtor.com, and ActiveRain.com are only a few of the great options available. You can choose to search by home size, price, number of bedrooms or bathrooms, amenities, and (of course) location. These sites allow you to save your searches, and they™ll even notify you when something matching your search comes on the market. Some of the real estate directories also have forums so you can ask questions about a neighborhood or buying options.

3. Social Media Outlets. Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and other social media sites offer a more interactive and personal way to search for a home. In addition to finding out what properties they are listing, you can get to know individual real estate agents and see how they interact and respond to their clients.

4. Individual sites. Brokers and individual agents most often have websites of their own. A good agent website will display current listings, contact information, and important information about buying a home. A great website usually means that an agent is up to date with the market, and truly cares about meeting the needs of clients like you.

Getting online to find a home is something that anyone can do. But being able to navigate all the choices effectively isn™t easy. If you™re feeling like you™re getting tangled in the web of internet options for buying a home, give me a call. Together, we™ll find the house that you can turn into your home!

The 1920s house in Durham, ugly, ugly, ugly.   Have to have vision for what it can be.   My contractor partner (DRG) and his wife (FDG), my husband and I all formed an LLC.   We got a construction loan from Harrington, a local bank.   FDG would handle all the bills; DRG took care of design and construction; I would handle real estate issues.

We paid cash for the house in Oct, 2007.   First off, with the loan, we paid ourselves back for the cost of the house except for $3000 each.   We figured that we would put in extra cash at the end.   Seems good.

DRG had his own construction company.   Ah, this should raise eyebrows.   Our LLC was supporting his company, though he expected to get more work.   DRG spent a lot of time trying to build his business.   As a result, he wasn't on the job much--his hired guys were.   I expected that he was going to do a lot of the work himself to save money for our company.

DRG had a contractor's license in CA.   CA requires more expertise than NC so when DRG said he could do almost everything himself, I believed him.

When was the first sign that I should have been suspicious?   DRG did not want to get his contractor's license until Jan, 2008 because he wanted to save the fees.   The way he described them, I thought they were really hefty fees.   Feh!   Only about $75-$150.   That should have told me that DRG and FDG did not have good financial resources.

5 months later he had gone through almost the entire loan, except $7000.   He spent $93k on this renovation and the house wasn't remotely done.   In addition, he hadn't been paid for some of his work so was paid $5000, leaving $2000 to pay the interest on the loan.   You can see where this is heading.

DRG said his construction company would declare bankruptcy and he was tapped out, couldn't finish the house.   He and FDG would move back to family in the Northeast.   Guess who is left with the problem?   You got it, my husband and moi.

Can™t seem to find the œbefore picture of the house.   When I do, you™ll see this ugly thing.

Thanks for reading.   Think twice about with whom you partner to purchase and renovate properties.

Vivian Olkin in gorgeous hilly Chapel Hill

919-624-5479

www.CrazyVivHomes.com

http://InsideScoopOnRealEstate.yourkwagent