23 Days and an Area Rug

Every seller wants their home to sell fast and bring top dollar. Does that sound good to you? Well, it's not luck that makes that happen. It's careful planning and knowing how to professionally spruce up your home that will send home buyers to the writing table.

According to stagedhomes.com, 94% of Staged Homes sell in one month or less and spend less time on the market than those who don’t stage. The average days on market for a home that has not been staged is 165, a home that has been staged can sell with an average of 33 days on market.

7920 Orchid Lane N. is one example of such an instance. Sharla was tapped to stage this two-story, single-family home in Maple Grove, Minn.

The home was listed on the Multiple Listing Service, or MLS, for 310 days before it was pended. What finally sold the home on Orchid Lane?

Staging.

Sharla Stafford of Twin Cities Interiors was tapped to outfit this home with furniture, accents, area rugs and throw pillows. It was amazing what a few lamps, a decorative table and a rug did for the entry way of this house, or what a kitchen table and a few plants did for the kitchen.

So how long did it take for this home to sell once Sharla worked her Staging Magic?

23 Days

That’s right, after a few days of situating furniture, placing throw pillows and a little artwork, this home was off the market.

So if you are putting your home on the market and are wondering what you can do to help sell your home, think about staging. If the example of Orchid Lane did not sell you on the idea, think about these numbers:

If you Replace or Shampoo your Carpeting, it can typically cost you $562 - 808. The benefit for you is that the cost of your home will go up by $1,532 – 1,950. That is a 154% increase!

If you Stage your home it can typically cost you $403 – 584. The benefit for you is that the cost of your home will go up by $1,938 – 2,431. That is a 343% increase!

But if you want to really see a difference, a simple project to undertake is cleaning and de-cluttering.

If you Clean and De-clutter your home it can typically cost you $190 – 318. The benefit for you is that the cost of your home will go up by $1,505 – 1,937. That is a 578% increase!

For more information on Twin Cities Interiors, a division of Stafford Family Realtors, visit our Website.

July 4th, 2008

James G. Blaine once said “The United States is the only country with a known birthday.”

Come out and help us celebrate our Nations birthday at Chanhassen’s 25th 4th of July Celebration. With our Friends and Family, we will be walking in the parade and handing out flags to all those who attend. The event, sponsored by the Rotary Club of Chanhassen, has been voted the best in the Twin Cities. We are excited to celebrate this momentous occasion with our clients, friends and neighbors.

The weekend will kick off on July 3rd with many activities and will continue on July 4th. Check out the website for more information on the events and activities.

The parade will begin at 2:30pm. It has been recommended that you come early to get the best curbside seating. There will be bands, clowns, floats, fire trucks, classic cars, horses, local celebrities and more. The parade route is through downtown Chanhassen on West 78th Street from Chapel Hill to Kerber Boulevard to Santa Vera Drive to Laredo Drive to Chan View.

For more information on the festivities, visit the City of Chanhassen’s Website.

The Land on 10,000 Lakes Welcomes You Home

With our business going strong and many of our clients relocating to the Twin Cities from all across the United States, we though that it might be a good idea to offer a few resources to better prepare you for you next big move.

Whether you are moving to Eden Prairie, Waconia or Chanhassen or heading to Texas, Florida or Ohio; these Websites are great resources for information on what to expect from your new Home.

Sperling’s Best Places is an extensive site featuring side-by-side comparisons of two cities of your choosing. You can get information on Cost of Living, Schools, Crime, Climate and Homes. Sperling’s claims to be responsible for “more "Best Places" studies and projects than any other single organization."

The other site we like is Moving.com. The report you will receive from this site provides an in-depth view of the people, places, and conditions of two cities. Some of the useful information you will receive will focus on demographics, finances, economics and real estate, all things that will impact your quality of life. It also features tons of links for services to help you move.

While these sites are great, they might not give you all the information you are looking for. The best way to get to know an area is to talk to the people who live there. If you have any questions or would like more detailed information on Lake Minnetonka or Minnesota, please feel free to contact Eric or Sharla Stafford or visit our Website.

As Relocation Specialist, we can help make your move as seamless as possible.

8 Tips for Low Cost Staging

8 Tips for Low Cost Staging

In a tough sales market, staging can help move a property. Barb Schwarz, who claims to have invented home staging in the early 1970s, estimates that about one in four homes nationwide are now staged.

Julie Dana and Marcia Layton Turn state in their book, The Complete Idiot's Guide to Staging Your Home to Sell, that a seller stands to gain as much as $9,000 on a $200,000 house if it's staged.

Shelly Wagner, a Detroit-based stager, estimates that the cost per room for staging is $100 – small potatoes if it really helps a home sell.

Here are some ideas from Wagner for effective, low-cost staging:

• Remove scatter rugs and knickknacks from every room.
• Get rid of everything on the kitchen counters, including appliances, except for the coffee maker.
• Remove as much as you can from closets.
• Hire a cleaning service if necessary to make the house spotless. Scrub floors, walls, and windows. Pay special attention to the microwave, oven, and refrigerator.
• Focus on the feature rooms, the living, dining, and master bedrooms. Additional bedrooms are best left empty or minimally furnished.
• Arrange the furniture to show off each room’s best features.
• Set the dining-room table with napkins, plates, and flatware.
• When showing the house, turn on soft instrumental “buying” music, preferably classical or jazz.

It is Mother’s Day again, are you ready?

Happy Mother's Day

from

Stafford Family Realtors

This Mother’s Day we have teamed up with Gatherings at Excelsior Florist this year to offer you a way to celebrate the special ladies in your life. If you mention this ad you can receive $5 off your purchase of $25 or more. Gatherings at Excelsior Florist’s beautiful flower arrangements will surprise and delight!

Keep checking back here for more great offers in the future.

We hope to offer a great new deal every month.

Low-Cost Kitchen Updates

Sellers whose kitchens are old and outdated, but who don’t want to spend money gutting and remodeling, should consider these tips from interior designers for updating inexpensively.

1. Buy new lighting. Replace fixed ceiling lights with modern movable track fixtures.

2. Replace the hardware. Handles on today’s cabinets are large and sleek instead of small and ornate. Also, brass is out. Replacing the outmoded ones can make the whole room look more modern.

3. Buy a new faucet. A stylish faucet can make a big difference.
Update the backsplash. Colorful mosaic tiles are better than plain boring tile.

4. Buy new seating. If sellers can’t afford that, then they can certainly reupholster or replace the cushions.

5. Clean up the clutter. Get rid of the canister set, the breadbox, and all the appliances on the counters. Leave only one bowl of fruit and a plant on the countertops.

Source: The New York Times, Stephen Milioti (03/06/08)

Ignore the Headlines!

Why you should ignore the headlines when it comes to the housing market.

http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1713483,00.html

Some characteristics of Minnesota home buyers:

• Median age of all home buyers was 36 years old. For first-time buyers, the median age was 28.
• Household income of home buyers was $69,300.
• 69 percent of home buyers said there were no children under 18 residing in the property.
• 56 percent of home buyers were married couples, 24 percent single females, 11 percent single males and 9 percent were unmarried couples.
• 6 percent of home buyers were born outside of the U.S., compared with 9 percent nationally.
• First-time home buyers accounted for 42 percent of homes purchased in 2007.
• 66 percent of first-time home buyers were between 25 and 34 years old.
• 30 percent of buyers use social networking websites (e.g., Myspace, Facebook, Linkedin).
• Among home buyers aged 18 to 24, 59 percent reported using social networking sites.
• 19 percent of homes purchased were new construction.
• 64 percent of homes purchased were detached single-family.
• The typical home buyer purchased a home 14 miles from their previous residence.
• The median price of homes purchased was $221,900 compared to $215,000 in the U.S.
• The typical buyer purchased a home that was 1,850 square feet in size.
• Recent homebuyers plan to live in their home a median of 10 years.
  
  Source: Minnesota Association of REALTORS®

5 Simple Ways to Increase a Home's Value

Good home maintenance is key to creating and preserving a home’s value. Not to mention, it also impresses potential buyers. Here are five basic steps that every home owner ought to take — before spending money on dream bathrooms or gourmet kitchens.

1. Safety. Make sure smoke detectors and carbon monoxide detectors are installed and in good working order. Check fuel-burning appliances to make sure they are properly vented and no gas connections leak. Make sure the electrical system is adequate. Flickering lights and popping breakers are the sign of a problem. Anchor handrails and grab bars adequately.

2. Preventive maintenance. Repair any leaks in the roof, seal gaps in the siding, paint bare wood, replace damaged decking, patch cracks in concrete, and caulk around tubs and showers.

3. Conserve energy. Install a programmable thermostat, weatherstrip doors and windows, fix leaking faucets, upgrade insulation, and replace leaky windows.

4. Go green. Consider environmentally friendly materials for windows, doors, siding, decking, fencing, roofing, flooring, and insulation.

5. Improve comfort. Get rid of clutter, open up spaces, update window treatments to allow in more light, and organize closets and storage.

HALLOWEEN SAFETY TIPS FOR KIDS

There are many ways to keep your child safe at Halloween, when they are more prone to accidents and injuries. The excitement of children and adults at this time of year sometimes makes them forget to be careful. Simple common sense can do a lot to stop any tragedies from happening.

• Help your child pick out or make a costume that will be safe. Make it fire proof, the eye holes should be large enough for good peripheral vision.
  
• If you set jack-o-lanterns on your porch with candles in them, make sure that they are far enough out of the way so that kids costumes won't accidentally be set on fire.
  
• Make sure that if your child is carrying a prop, such as a scythe, butcher knife or a pitchfork, that the tips are smooth and flexible enough to not cause injury if fallen on.
  
• Kids always want to help with the pumpkin carving. Small children shouldn't be allowed to use a sharp knife to cut the top or the face. There are many kits available that come with tiny saws that work better then knives and are safer, although you can be cut by them as well. It's best to let the kids clean out the pumpkin and draw a face on it, which you can carve for them.
  
• Treating your kids to a spooky Halloween dinner will make them less likely to eat the candy they collect before you have a chance to check it for them.
  
• Teaching your kids basic everyday safety such as not getting into cars or talking to strangers, watching both ways before crossing streets and crossing when the lights tell you to, will help make them safer when they are out Trick or Treating.
  
• Make Halloween a fun, safe and happy time for your kids and they'll carry on the tradition that you taught them to their own families some day!
  
  Sharla Stafford, Realtor
  Coldwell Banker Burnet, Minnetonka Office
  Distinctive Homes Division
  Cell: 612.282.6895
  Direct: 952.470.2578
  Fax: 952.474.9583
  www.StaffordFamilyRealtors.com
  skstafford@cbburnet.com

Open Houses - Sunday, October 14, 2007

Time: 1:00 PM to 3:00 PM - Sunday, October 14, 2007
Address: 3416 Robinwood Spur
Location: Minnetonka, MN 55305

Time: 2:00 PM to 4:00 PM - Sunday, October 14, 2007
Address: 5695 Star Lane
Location: Shorewood, MN 55331

Time: 2:00 PM to 4:00 PM - Sunday, October 14, 2007
Address: 2295 Clover Field Drive
Location: Chaska, MN 55318

Coming Soon - 5695 Star Lane, Minnetonka

Priced at $394,500. A Colonial with 4 Bedrooms up, totally updated on a wooded lot.

New Listing - 3416 Robinwood Spur

Priced at $415,000. A beautifully executed renovation turns this 50's walkout rambler into a stunning home that rivals new construction. Every surface has been renewed - from the exterior to the interior - with new siding, windows, roof, mechanicals, wiring, plumbing, wood floors, carpet, paint, millwork, doors, & light fixtures! With a gorgeous, top of the line Gourmet Kitchen decked out with Stainless Steel Appliances, Granite Countertops & Custom Cabinets! 3 Bedrooms on the main floor and a spacious Master Suite complete with a full Bath with Spa Finishes and Walk-in Closet with Custom Organizers. Situated on a quiet cul-de-sac with a park-like backyard, fully fenced with new drain tile & irrigation system. With easy access to the entire metro located in award winning Hopkins School District.

Weekly Market Activity Report

While sellers continue to list fewer homes, buyers remain firmly in control in the Twin Cities housing market. New listings on the market for the week ending September 16 were behind the same time last year by 11.4 percent, while newly signed purchase agreements (pending sales) fell by 26.3 percent for the same time period. With slow sales comes decreased inventory absorption; the number of homes for sale is 9.9 percent higher than at this time in 2006.

CURB APPEAL 101: Fall Tips to Make Your Landscape Shine

1. Convince yourself that raking leaves can be fun. Rather than wait for a single weekend, break this chore into stages. Matted leaves can lead to insect and disease problems and smother your turf, especially cool season grasses like Kentucky Bluegrass.
2. To fertilize – or not to fertilize? Cool season grasses like Kentucky Bluegrass, fescues and perennial ryegrass often need fertilizer this time of year. Grasses that go dormant in the winter, such as Bermuda, Zoysia and Centipede may not. Visit www.lowes.com for information on soil testing and choosing the right fertilizer.
3. Repair and re-seed. Fall is a great time to repair a damaged lawn and re-seed. Fill any holes or bare spots with topsoil and add grass seed. It’s important to choose the right kind of grass for your growing zone; go to www.lowes.com to learn what’s best for your area.
4. Don’t forget to water. New grass in particular needs frequent but shallow watering. Once the grass is established, water deeply to reach the roots. To minimize the threat of fungal disease, water in the morning or early afternoon so that the grass blades are not moist overnight.
5. Prune with care. Pruning promotes growth, so be careful not to encourage growth when plants are about to go dormant. By all means remove diseased, dead or broken branches.
6. Transplant trees and shrubs. Autumn is a great season for transplanting trees and shrubs, allowing roots to get established before the cold sets in. Also, heat stress is not a concern. Visit your neighborhood Lowe’s Garden Center for a broad selection of trees and shrubs that can bring new life to your landscape.
7. Spruce up flower beds. Replace warm-weather annuals with seasonal favorites like pansies and mums. Clean out summer perennials and add a fresh layer of mulch, which can help protect plants from hard freezes.
8. Divide established perennials. If your perennials are looking a bit lackluster or overgrown they may need to be divided. The best candidates have large, healthy clumps and have been in the ground for
   years. By dividing these in the fall, you’ll enjoy healthier plants in more places next spring.
9. Plant ahead for spring. Foolproof and fabulous, spring-flowering bulbs put gardening within everyone’s reach. When choosing bulbs, focus on your favorite color, or try shades that accent already established plantings throughout your garden. For more information on cutting gardens, see “Bulbs in Bloom” at www.LowesCreativeIdeas.com/OutdoorLiving.

Weekly Market Activity Report

Twin Cities consumers didn't do much laboring to purchase a home over Labor Day weekend, as sales activity for the week ending September 8 was down significantly. There were only 500 new purchase agreements signed in the metropolitan area during the week, the lowest number since the beginning of 2007. New listings increased slightly from the previous week, likely buoyed by post-holiday relistings.

Top 10 Cities with the Highest Cost Loans
The Chicagoland area ranked highest in the country in total high-cost loans in 2006, according to data released last week by the Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council. Chicago has led the nation in high-cost loans for the past three years.

"High-cost" loans are identified in federal mortgage lending data as first-lien loans with interest rates at least three percentage points above the U.S. Treasury standard. The U.S. Treasury standard stood at 5.19 percent in mid-July for a 30-year mortgage.

African-American home owners were nearly three times as likely to get high-cost loans as their white counterparts. Even when African-American applicants went through prime lenders, they got high-cost loans 37 percent of the time, according to the report. Latino home owners were twice as likely as white home owners to get high-cost loans. From prime lenders, Latinos got high-cost loans 19 percent of the time compared with just 9 percent of the time for whites.The top 10 areas for high-cost loans were:
1. Chicago-Naperville-Joliet
2. Los Angeles-Long Beach-Glendale
3. Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario
4. Phoenix
5. Washington, D.C.
6. Atlanta
7. Houston
8. New York
9. Miami
10. Tampa, Fla.

Creating a Beautiful Autumn Lawn

Nothing improves curb appeal more than a thick, green lawn. Though summer is drawing to a close, now is just the time to stimulate a strong network of roots and top growth on lawn grasses. Here’s a short, nine-step course in keeping grass healthy. Much of the information comes from "Better Lawns Step by Step," by Joe Provey and Kris Robinson.

Mow regularly. Set the mower for 3 to 3 ½ inches. Cut no more than one-third of the blade height. Cutting too much shocks the grass and taller blades of grass allow fewer weeds to break through.

Keep the lawn mower blades sharp. Dull blades tear grass.

Get rid of the leaves. Heavy accumulations of leaves can weaken and kill grass.

Aerate regularly. Rent a core aerator that removes plugs of soil or hire a lawn maintenance company that uses instead of the kind that just punches holes. Go over the lawn three or four times.

Spread compost. Sprinkle it into the aeration holes. Don’t cover the blades of grass.
Lay 40 to 50 percent organic fertilizer over the soil surface after aerating and sprinkling compost.

Get rid of weeds. Use pre-emergent weed killer spring and fall. Pull the surviving weeds by hand. Only use chemical spot treatment if pulling them out doesn’t work.

Overseed existing laws with three to four pounds of seed per 1,000 square feet of grass. Chose top quality seed appropriate for your region.

Water, water, water.

Weekly Market Activity Report

The Twin Cities housing market is seeing huge week-to-week declines in seller activity as we enter the fall and the school year begins again. Just four weeks ago, home sellers placed 2,324 new houses on the market for sale; for the week ending September 1, only 1,659 new units were listed. Compared to one year ago, this most recent figure is a drop of 16.7 percent. Not surprisingly, buyer activity remains stunted as uncertainties in the mortgage market and a fragile consumer psychology persist. The most recent tracked week shows a pending sales decline of 22.5 percent from this time last year.

This week's edition of the MAAR Weekly Market Activity Report features several new updated figures. The Percent of Original List Price Received at Sale for July 2007 fell to 94.7 percent and likely will keep falling through the end of the year as the winter buyer pause creates additional short-term downward pressures on home prices. Mortgage Rates for September rose slightly to 6.8 percent, which, coupled with a slight seasonal decrease in the median sales price, caused the Housing Affordability Index to hold steady at 127 for September.

Weekly Market Activity Report

Sellers and builders continue to curb activity in the Twin Cities housing market, with the week ending August 25 posting only 1,874 new listings—down 9.5 percent from the same week in 2006 and even further from their early summer peak. Despite the decline in new seller activity, the number of homes on the market remains at a record high for this time of year with 34,225 residential units for sale. This persistently high inventory is due to slowed absorption caused by sluggish home sales; newly signed purchase agreements were 18.7 percent behind this time last year.
This week's edition of the MAAR Weekly Market Activity report features an updated September 2007 figure for our Supply-Demand Ratio (SDR). The SDR grew to 10.39, which means there are 10.39 homes for sale per buyer. This is an increase of 24.8 percent from last September, and this figure should continue to grow through December before declining in 2008 with the end of the winter season slowdown.

Weekly Market Activity Report

Activity in the regional housing market continues its downward trend as buyers and sellers respond to a changing market landscape. For the week ending August 4, newly signed purchase agreements (pending sales) posted 802 residential unit sales, down 15.4 percent from the same week in 2006. Sellers and builders are slowing their activity as well, as new listings were 8.0 percent behind for the same time period comparison. In the last 19 weeks, this is the 17th week of year-over-year declines in listings.

This week's edition of the MAAR Weekly Market Activity Report features updated figures for Percent of Original List Price Received at Sale, our Housing Affordability Index (HAI) and our Housing Supply Outlook (HSO). The average percent received at sale for July was 95.3 percent, down slightly from last month. The HAI held steady at 127 due to flat interest rates and home prices. And our HSO grew to a 9.7 months supply of homes on the market.

To see how the Twin Cities housing market performed in July, see our July 2007 Monthly Indicators. This report features a new format designed to be consumer friendly and easy to understand.