Stittsville (Ottawa, ON)
By Valerie Zinger, Home Organizer
(House Proud Ottawa-Ontario-Canada)
  What comes first, the neighbourhood or the house?  There are the three top considerations when buying a house - price, location and condition.  The chicken and the egg are about first finding the house.  What is most important?  The old adage of "location, location, location" should tell you that you choose your neighbourhood first and then you look for the house.  Some people have told me that they will buy almost anything if they can live in XX neighbourhood, if they can live withing walking distance of the relatives (built in babysitters) or within walking distance of the synagogue.  Others are picking their homes based upon commute times to work.  Time is money, honey. When presented with a vast array of homes located throughout the city or countryside, pick the neighbourhood fir...
Comments 47
By Valerie Zinger, Home Organizer
(House Proud Ottawa-Ontario-Canada)
Work was underway at House Sellers Mark and Lou's house.  Mark had moved out and washed his hands of the selling process.  Wife Lou, her brother Lyle and the wonderful Home Stager Judy Klean were working together to get the house ready.  After a few days, Agent Valerie - the real estate representative - received a second email from Judy Klean giving a detailed progress report.  How impressive!  Agent Valerie got the email late on a Wednesday night and immediately sent Lou an "Atta girl" for the progress to date.  Valerie knew that getting a house ready to be in tiptop shape was hard slogging work so she wanted both Lou and Judy to be encouraged and for Mark to have some sense of how much effort was being put in to making the most of the marital home BEFORE it was listed.  The following...
Comments 21
By Valerie Zinger, Home Organizer
(House Proud Ottawa-Ontario-Canada)
This is a story of House Seller Mark. Real Estate Agent Valerie had agreed to meet with House Seller Mark's wife Lou.  When she got to the coffee shop Lou was sitting in a booth at the back of the room.  Well, something was going on, that was for sure.  Valerie sat down with her coffee.  Lou looked up and her eyes told a story.  They were red rimmed as though she had been crying for days.  Without any preamble, Lou launched into her story.  Apparently she and Mark were having marital problems.  They thought these could be solved with a new project - a move.  However, their house stayed on the market as a FSBO for months and every day they fought.  Things were so tense now that Lou just wanted out - out of the house and out of the marriage.  She needed her share of the sale proceeds to ...
Comments 33
By Valerie Zinger, Home Organizer
(House Proud Ottawa-Ontario-Canada)
Every buyer, looking at homes for sale, opens the closet doors.  Sometimes I wondered if home sellers understand that this will be done.  Not long ago, I was with my Buyer in a newer home.  When we opened the bedroom closet doors, there was the woman of the house's bras hanging on a hook.  Okay, maybe we are all getting used to seeing other people's underwear but....  I mean, if you are going to expose your bras,  leave those really expensive lacy ones out for the men and women buyers to see.  Just kidding.  Do sellers know how curious buyers are?  While we quickly shut the door and had a little laugh, I am not so sure that everyone else would have found it funny.  I know it felt like we were invading the owner's privacy.  While your house is for sale, you might want to put away your u...
Comments 39
By Valerie Zinger, Home Organizer
(House Proud Ottawa-Ontario-Canada)
We are getting toward spring when, historically, the real estate market picks up.  Buyers and Sellers shake of the winter doldrums and decide to make a move.  If the market in Ottawa is going to repeat what happened last year then there will be a rush on sales.  Many houses could be  on the market for as short a time period as a few hours to a few days.  Sellers and their agents will, when possible, set up the sale to include bidding wars.  Buyers, afraid to never find a house, will be entering this market with some anxiety.  In a bidding war there are a few ways in increase your chances of getting the house: Only include those conditions that are absolutely essential.  Try to get a home inspection done before putting in the offer.  You may have to spend $300 just to increase your chan...
Comments 18
By Valerie Zinger, Home Organizer
(House Proud Ottawa-Ontario-Canada)
Almost every house that I have taken Buyers to see has had some type of lighting fixture in the diningroom.  Every Buyer has inspected the light fixture to determine how much they love it.  Knowing this, if your client is putting her house on the market,  there are three reasons for upgrading and/or changing the dining room light fixture.  1.  The Seller tells you that she has a sentimental attachment to the current fixture and will be taking it with her to the new house.  Tell her to take it down before the house goes on the market and replace is with something suitable in both price and style for the house.  A really cheap fixture can be a deterent if the house will be listed at $300,000 or higher. 2.  The current fixture is old, dated and unsuitable for current design.  Old isn't ba...
Comments 78
By Valerie Zinger, Home Organizer
(House Proud Ottawa-Ontario-Canada)
Your front hall closet is going to be viewed when Buyers come to look at your house.  Most people have the front hall closet packed tight with coats and jackets, boots, shoes, gym bags, school back packs, dog paraphernalia and some other pretty odd assortment of things. Before you put your house on the market, de clutter the closet.  Buy a box of wooden hangers (they look solid and substantial while costing less than a dollar each).  Take out all the coats and jackets and choose one or two for each person in the house - one if there is little space, two if there is more room.  Take out anything that is not coat, boot, scarf and glove related.  Find a different place in the house for these items.  If it summer, take out the winter coats and vica versa.  You can pack your seasonal coats ...
Comments 29
Ottawa, ON Real Estate Professionals