Tag: Easton PA

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Ready, Set, Sell: 7 Expert Tips to Prepare Your Home for a Successful Sale

A well staged and clean home.

Selling your home can be a daunting and overwhelming task. However, with careful planning, attention to detail, and a bit of elbow grease, you can make your home stand out from the competition and appeal to potential buyers. In this blog post, we will provide you with some useful tips to get your home ready for sale.

  1. Declutter and Organize

The first step in preparing your home for sale is to declutter and organize it. Remove any unnecessary items from your home, including old furniture, toys, and other items that are taking up valuable space. Consider renting a storage unit to store any extra items that you want to keep but do not need in your home during the selling process. Or consider conducting an estate sale to help turn your treasures into cash.

Organize your remaining belongings and ensure that they are stored in an organized manner. A well-organized home creates a positive impression on potential buyers, and it helps them envision themselves living in the space.

  1. Clean and Repair

A clean and well-maintained home is crucial when preparing it for sale. A dirty or cluttered home can give the impression that the property is poorly maintained, which can deter potential buyers.

Ensure that your home is clean from top to bottom, including floors, carpets, walls, and windows. Clean the kitchen and bathrooms thoroughly, ensuring that all surfaces are spotless. If necessary, hire professional cleaners to help you achieve a thorough cleaning.

Repair any visible damage to your home, such as cracks in the walls, leaks, or broken fixtures. Repairing minor damages can significantly improve the overall appearance of your home, making it more attractive to potential buyers.

  1. Enhance Curb Appeal

The exterior of your home is the first thing that potential buyers will see, so it is essential to make a good impression. Enhancing your home’s curb appeal can increase its value and attract potential buyers.

Start by ensuring that the front yard is well-maintained, including mowing the lawn, trimming bushes, and removing any weeds or dead plants. Consider adding some colorful plants and flowers to brighten up the space.

Repair any visible damages to the exterior of your home, such as cracks in the driveway, peeling paint, or broken windows. A fresh coat of paint on your front door can also enhance your home’s curb appeal.

  1. Depersonalize Your Space

When selling your home, you want potential buyers to be able to envision themselves living in the space. One way to achieve this is by depersonalizing your home.

Remove any personal items, including family photos, artwork, and other personalized decor. This allows potential buyers to focus on the space and imagine themselves living in it, rather than being distracted by your personal belongings. I once was on a showing where the buyer knew the people in a photo. She said, “Oh that’s BettySue! I went to high school with her.” Needless to say, the buyer couldn’t see beyond her memories of BettySue after she recognized her in the photo.

  1. Stage Your Home

Staging your home is an excellent way to showcase your home’s best features and create a welcoming atmosphere. Staging involves arranging furniture, adding decor, and creating a specific ambiance that appeals to potential buyers.

Consider hiring a professional home stager to help you create a welcoming and inviting space that highlights your home’s best features. A well-staged home can make a significant difference in how quickly your home sells and the price that it sells for.

  1. Price Your Home Competitively

Pricing your home competitively is essential when selling your home. Overpricing your home can deter potential buyers, while underpricing it can result in a loss of profit.

Research the local real estate market to determine the average selling price of homes in your area. Consider working with a professional real estate agent to help you determine a fair and competitive price for your home.

  1. Create an Inviting Atmosphere

When potential buyers visit your home, you want to create an inviting atmosphere that makes them feel at home. Consider adding some finishing touches, such as fresh flowers, scented candles, and soft music.

And when you are ready to learn what you should do in your own home, Call Diana Hodgson 610-417-1174 for expert advice. I also have a group of excellent professionals who will be able to help you get the work done. Call Diana Hodson when you are ready to list your home for sale.

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Septic Inspection Day!

It’s septic inspection day! Do you ever wonder where your poop goes?

Yes, a septic inspection matters! For a homeowner, you want to be sure that your septic system is in good working order. As a seller you want to be sure that your septic system is in good working order. And as a homebuyer, you don’t want to purchase a property without knowing that your poop is going to be disposed of properly. And the only way to know this is to have a septic inspection.

In this video you’ll learn about how septic systems work and you see a man being lowered into a poop tank! Stay tuned. I hope that his video will be fascinating for many of you.

A septic system is made up of a septic tank where all of the solids and liquids from a house go. The system also includes a distribution box as well as a leach field, or drain field. Septic systems are buried in the ground. The earth with its microorganisms and bacteria and earthly goodies play a big part in cleaning the wastewater from your dishwasher, washing machines, sinks and toilets before it returns to ground water.

During a septic inspection the drain field is located. They do this by inserting a long skinny rod into the earth and feel for the stones and the pipes in the drain field.

Once the field is found then they lift the lid of the septic tank. The upper part of the septic tank is inspected with mirrors to locate where the incoming pipe, the outgoing pipe, the condition of the rim of the tank, and the condition of the baffles or filters for the pipes.

Once the upper part of the tank is inspected, then it is time to empty it. Once it is emptied using the tanker the rest of the tank inspection can be performed. This part of the inspection looks for cracks and leaks and any other abnormalities in the system.

When the guys opened this lid during our inspection, the first thing that they said was that the level of the sewage was low which indicated that there was a leak in the tank somewhere. And yes, if there was smell-a-vision you would smell the strong stench of raw sewage everywhere.

Now the interesting part happens. One of the men (and they all have done this, everyone gets their turn) puts on a hazmat suit, gloves, facemask, boots, safety harness and gets lowered into the septic tank to find out where the problem is. He is also handed a camera at the end of a snake which is inserted into the outgoing pipe to find the distribution box.

There was a leak found at the outgoing pipe. And to fix it the distribution box had to be dug up. When they dug up the distribution box they found that the box was in bad shape so that had to be replaced too.

Now with all of the parts in working order, water is introduced into the system. It’s called a hydraulic load test. And the hydraulic load test will introduce water into the system that will replicate that of a normal household usage. The inspector returns the next day to see if all of the water that was introduced into the system and disbursed into the earth below or it is pooling and overflowing on top of the ground which would indicate another problem.

Septic systems are systems that must be maintained. Generally it is recommended that the homeowner have the septic tank emptied at least every two years. When a house is sold in PA the seller pays to have the tank emptied for the inspection. Remember it’s the homeowner’s poop and he should pay to have his own sewage hauled away.

This inspection was complicated because of its location in the house. But it also included someone being lowered into the tank which is very unusual!

If you have any other questions about septic inspections, please ask them below and I will get answers for you.

To get Christman Septic Service to your property, call tel:610-285-2563 or contact them through their web sight https://christmanseptic.com/