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6 Winter Home Maintenance Tips Real Estate Agents Always Tell New Homeowners

Just like it’s in your best interest to get a head start when it comes to holiday shopping, it’s also a good idea to start prepping your home for winter early, too. Once the first signs of crisp air and winter-like weather make an appearance, you know it’s the perfect time to start making sure you won’t be left in the cold literally and figuratively.


If you’re a former longtime renter new to homeownership, you may be at a loss determining how to best prepare your home for winter. I talked to seasoned real estate agents to learn the best winter home maintenance tips which will spare your home in the cold and possibly save you time and money.


Clean the gutters ASAP.
If you want to preserve your walls, ceilings, and insulation, it’s best to keep your gutters clean, says Patricia Matus, a Realtor with CENTURY 21 Alliance Realty Group. Allowing snow and water to freeze and accumulate at the eaves of the house can cause damage to the roof and create leaks in your home, she explains. Use a snow rake to remove heavy snow when temperatures fluctuate between above and below freezing — this can prevent ice buildup and reduce the potential for leaks.


Make stray branches disappear.
The trees you admired in the spring and summer can do damage to your property come winter. Dealing with fallen branches after a snowstorm can be a huge headache turned financial burden, especially if they land on your house. Hire a professional to identify dead trees and trim branches before it’s too late, suggests Matus.


Drain your hot water heater.
Sediment build-up is a common problem for hot water heaters. Draining the heater can help the reduction of sediment so it runs efficiently, says Ryne Lambert, co-founder of Sell My House In Wisconsin.


Tune up the snowblower.
Nothing is worse than having the first big snowfall of the season, pulling out your snowblower, and finding that it doesn’t work. You’ll end up frustrated and tired from shoveling your way out a foot of snow and thinking about the money you wasted on the snowblower. Avoid this pitfall by having the snowblower tuned up. Replace spark plugs, change the oil, and make sure the unit is running efficiently ahead of time, says Lambert.


Install weather stripping.
A drafty house can be just as uncomfortable to live in as it is to effectively heat. Keep it warm by replacing or installing stripping for exterior doors to save money, says Lambert. Take it a step further by putting insulation or plastic around the windows as well.


Clear the chimney.
Chimneys can be problematic if they aren’t properly maintained, Matus says. “If you have a fireplace, call a chimney sweep to have it cleaned before you start using it,” she says. “Creosote build-up and debris such as a nest or leaves can be a fire hazard.” 



Source: https://www.apartmenttherapy.com/winter-home-maintenance-tips-real-estate-agents-36987441

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5 of the Most Expensive Fixes You’ll Spot on a Home Inspection Report

Prior to a home inspection, Boston real estate agent Sam Reifman-Packett makes sure he manages his clients’ expectations. “A home inspector isn’t there to hype up your dream home,” cautions Reifman-Packett, a vice president with Compass. “Their job is to find and make note of everything wrong with the property.”


Home inspectors are a bit like professional bearers of bad news. But their work can save you big bucks, because they often spot things you overlooked during an open house. Sometimes, the home inspection report includes several little fixes. Other times, they’re big, costly ones, like a roof that needs to be replaced or outdated electrical wiring. To further complicate the matter, there are parts of a home that will pass a home inspection but are still expensive to fix.


I asked real estate agents and home inspectors which finds in a home inspection can be the most serious or the most costly. Here’s what they had to say.


The Deck
A deck nearing the end of its life cycle can be a costly fix and also spell danger, explains Welmoed Sisson, a home inspector and author of “101 Things You Don’t Want in Your Home.” Typically, decks are built to last for 12 to 15 years in the outdoor elements, she explains. After that, the fasteners can corrode, which could lead to a collapse, Sisson says. While deck repairs can cost less than $3,000, a full replacement can run between $4,000 to $11,000, according to HomeAdvisor.


Foundation Repairs
Foundations can be very costly to repair, says Khari Washington, broker and owner of 1st United Realty & Mortgage. “The repair might even entail raising the house off of the foundation to repour footings on older homes,” Washington says. While minor cracks can cost a few hundred dollars, more major ones that require hydraulic jacking can cost tens of thousands of dollars.


Roof Replacement
A roof replacement has high material costs, Washington says, and can vary in cost depending on the roofing material and square footage of the home. While some roof replacements can soar over the $10,000 mark, the average homeowner pays $8,453 to install a new roof, according to HomeAdvisor.


New Septic Systems
A septic system is the non-urban way to deal with human waste, explains Glen Pizzolorusso, a broker with Compass in Fairfield County, Connecticut. These systems are designed to last 30 to 50 (or more) years, but mistreatment of a septic system can be very costly, with a new system costing between $20,000 and $50,000.


“It’s something that you cannot see when you fall in love with a home, and will only come up on inspection,” Pizzolorusso says. There are all types of systems, and they have changed over the years, he explains. Houses built in previous decades adhered to previous building codes, which are now obsolete, and new codes are adopted every few years.


“If a system fails and is outdated, you may be required to replace the system, but replacing a system must adhere to the new codes, so hopefully you have good soil and enough land, otherwise an engineered system with a hefty price tag is required,” he explains.


Water Damage
Oftentimes, water damage goes hand in hand with homes that need a roof replaced, explains Valentino Gecaj of Valentino Home Inspections in Westchester, New York. Although anything from leaky toilets to burst pipes to floods can also give way to this pesky problem. Water damage can lead to an abundance of mold, Gecaj explains, which can cause a slate of health problems. If the water damage is extensive, it can also cause major structural damage in the home.



Source: https://www.apartmenttherapy.com/most-expensive-fixes-home-inspection-36985263?amp=1

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There are events in our lives (e.g., the birth of a child) when we have to ask more from our homes. This can, on occasion, be solved with a short-term solution: a storage unit or a temporary wall. But the inevitable is, well, inevitable. You’ve outgrown your home. Here, we consulted with experts of architecture and interior design—Celerie Kemble, Campion Platt, and Madeline Weinrib—who share when it's time to contact the realtor.

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A New Desire to Entertain at Home
There’s a moment in our 20s or 30s when we start to socialize at home (and not at bars and restaurants). This creates a need for a “real” kitchen as well as an attractive area to entertain. Celerie Kemble says, “This room has to be beautiful for you and gracious for you. It has to be a space that affords you a sense of intimacy with the people of your choosing.”


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You Need a Home Office
There are more and more people who work from home—which means there are more and more people who need home offices (because, it’s hard to concentrate on the couch). Campion Platt says, “More and more people are using technology in their home life in a new and interesting way, which doesn’t necessarily mean that they need more space but they need a differently working space.”

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You Need a Second (or Third) Bedroom
The birth of a child is, perhaps, one of the greatest reasons to add rooms: bedrooms as well as bathrooms and a recreation area. There are, now, new humans (with new needs) at home. Campion Platt explains: “It is more about children, I’ve found, than any other experience. Some people might have kids, and as they grow, they need a bigger play area for them, whether that’s a downstairs playroom or a bona fide playroom in the house.”


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You Want to Celebrate Your Career and Its Success
So what about when you’ve “earned” a new home with new spaces? Perhaps the reward is an apartment with a dream closet—or even a summer house. Madeline Weinrib says: “In my new apartment with my husband that we moved into, I was very excited to have a large, walk-in closet. I think that’s something that a person aspires to have. My closets got bigger as my career went better. It went hand in hand.”


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You've Outgrown Your Surroundings
There are times when a move is about a new area (not a new house). For example, people can “outgrow” the excitement of a downtown scene. Celerie Kemble says, “It’s about a shift in lifestyle where you also need a shift in environment.”


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Your Art Collection Has Grown
Those who collect must have a home that accommodates their collections. Remember: These collections (whether art or, even, china or books) will continue to evolve. Madeline Weinrib says, “We just don’t have enough walls in our New York place for all that art that we have. So we just bought a summer house and the first thing on my list was a lot of wall space. I feel that people who are collectors need more space.”


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Your Closets Are Stuffed (with Old Stuff)
Closets can be a blessing—and, they can be a curse. These extra rooms can soon become an accumulation of old and unused items. A new home can mean a new start. Celerie Kemble says: “Closets can feel like a throbbing headache, an oppressive weight with the detritus of our lives. Sometimes people need a new space to constrain themselves.”



Source: https://www.architecturaldigest.com/gallery/life-events-that-call-for-a-new-home

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Technology is a wonderful thing and, as luck would have it, there’s a bunch of handy smartphone apps created specifically for homeowners! Here are five great ones…


iScape
If you’ve got outdoor spaces that you’d like to improve, iScape is the app for you! This app uses your phone’s camera to allow you to drag and drop elements like trees, plants, fences, water features, etc. and visualize how it all fits together in your specific yard!


Happy Plant

This app is a very simple solution to a very common problem. If you frequently forget to water your plants, use Happy Plant to serve as a smart reminder system! There’s also a cool feature which creates time-lapse videos of your plants surviving, thriving, and growing.


HomeZada
This app is like six apps rolled into one! HomeZada helps homeowners with everything from managing remodel projects to keeping track of home-related financials and much more. As they put it, HomeZada is, “A personal finance solution that is a digital hub of all the important information about your largest financial asset – your home.”


Letgo

We all have too much stuff, right? Whether it’s stuff we don’t need, stuff we haven’t used in years, or stuff we don’t even remember getting, the Letgo app is here to help. Simply snap a pic of something you no longer want/need, list it on Letgo, and you’re done!


AroundMe
This app is endlessly helpful whether you’re new to the area or visiting somewhere you’ve never been. AroundMe basically gives you all the information you need about various businesses near you. A straightforward concept, but a very handy resource when you need it!



Source: http://www.trendinghomenews.com/2019/02/5-great-apps-homeowners/?token=4D975B0E-7224-4ADB-BA95-8673111264CF&final=1

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