Moving Tips

More Bang for Your Buck

noreply@blogger.com (Kevin Shorter) — Mon, 27 Aug 2007 11:50:04 PDT

10 Remodeling Projects with the Biggest Payback
According to the Cost vs. Value Report*, replacing your vinyl siding is the least expensive way to add value and increase the selling price for your home. Replacing wood windows and performing a minor kitchen remodel ($17,000 or less) tie for second place on the list of high-impact home improvements to help you sell. The third most profitable home improvement to add value to your home is a bathroom makeover ($12,000 or less).

Know Your Neighborhood
Before you decide which home improvement project adds the most house value, do a little competitive research by finding out what features are popular with other homes in your neighborhood. If most houses in your neighborhood are about 15 to 20 years old but have upgraded kitchens with contemporary countertops, tile flooring, and stainless steel appliances, you’ll net a better return if you invest in a minor kitchen remodel. By knowing your neighborhood, you’ll get a better sense of what projects are the best home improvement values for your dollar.

Know Your Region of the Country
Not only should know your neighborhood but you should also know your region. Consider a remodeled basement which, nationally, offers 78.8% ROI; widely popular with buyers in some parts of the country (in the Pacific, it nets a 92.7% ROI), remodeled basements are not as popular in other parts of the country (in New England, its ROI is only 61.9%). To help you sell now, know what buyers in your area prefer. According to the Cost vs. Value Report, each part of the country has unique home improvement values. While a kitchen or bath remodel can net a hefty ROI in the Midwest, the best ROI on the East Coast comes from home improvements that save energy or maintenance, like siding and window replacements.

*The 2006 Cost vs. Value Report is a combined effort by Remodeling magazine and REALTOR® Magazine.

Tips for Selling Your Home

noreply@blogger.com (Kevin Shorter) — Fri, 17 Aug 2007 03:13:56 PDT

Ready to sell your home? Want to sell fast? For the best price? You need tips for selling your home. This article from RPSRelocation provides great interior painting ideas, unique home makeover tips, and great open house ideas.

Interior Painting Ideas

Painting your home in preparation to sell can make a big difference to potential home buyers. Here are some important interior painting ideas to remember for selling your home:

Take time to prep: It pays to take the time to prepare walls prior to painting. Patch nail holes, repair dings and dents, sand all surfaces lightly, and wash with tri-sodium phosphate (TSP), a cleaning agent, stain remover, and degreaser. Click here for a handy house painting diy paint calculator.
Be conservative: Keep your color selections neutral. Prospective buyers want a house that's move-in ready. They don't want to have to repaint rooms in order for furnishings, draperies, and artwork to coordinate.
Go with quality: When selecting your paint and painting supplies, choose mid- to high-grade paints and high-grade brushes and rollers. Cheap paint will look cheap and application is everything!
Don't forget the exterior: Making sure your home exterior is looking its best can be very important for selling your house. You will find exterior painting ideas and how to estimate exterior painting at Lowe's Moving today!

Home Makeover Tips

Why give your house a makeover even though you're going to move? In recent years, it's become more and popular to "stage" a home to appeal to the highest number of potential buyers to sell your house fast. When staging a home, here are some home makeover tips to keep in mind:

Home cleaning tips: get rid of clutter (magazines, newspapers, stacks of mail, knickknacks, etc.).
Home organization tips: put away personal belongings (family photographs, medications, toothbrushes, etc.).
Rearrange your furniture. Consider placing furniture at an angle to add visual interest and make rooms feel more spacious.
Neutralize your color palette.
Improve your home's "flow" by creating open walkways and exposing as much floor as possible.
Add sophisticated accents (bowls of fruit, fresh flowers, potted palms, etc.).

Visit Lowe's Moving for more Tips for Selling a House.

5 Tips for Selling a Home in a Buyer's Market

noreply@blogger.com (Kevin Shorter) — Thu, 16 Aug 2007 06:48:37 PDT

Bankrate.com has posted their tips for selling a home in a buyer's market.

Prepare, mentally, for what's to come.
Get ready for picky buyers.
Educate yourself about the market.
Hire an inspector.
Consider paying the buyer's discount points.

As the buyer gains more leverage, those selling a home need to plan to do the extra things to make their home stand out. Check out my posts on selling a home to find more information. Also check out LowesMoving.com for their articles on Top Ten Home Improvements to Sell and Benefits of a Home Inspection for Sellers.

Home Staging Tips

noreply@blogger.com (Kevin Shorter) — Mon, 06 Aug 2007 06:55:13 PDT

Lowe's has an article Home Staging Tips To Sale Your Home Fast. If you want to make the most money for your home, you want to have it looking fresh and clean. You might be a huge Tennessee fan, but a potential buyer will see your orange carpet as barrier to the purchase. I am a big NC State fan, and I applied many layers of white paint to hide my red office. Remember potential buyers don't care to see "you" in your house; you want them to see themselves in your house.

Packing Tips

noreply@blogger.com (Kevin Shorter) — Wed, 11 Jul 2007 05:40:16 PDT

Gentle Giant Moving Company, a residential mover in Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York, North Carolina, Rhode Island, and Virginia, recently announced the return of its "Pack Like the Pros" summer season packing seminar on July 21, 2007. The company also published an updated advisory on common packing pitfalls and offered tips for anyone planning to pack their own belongings for an upcoming residential move. Most of you will not be able to attend, but they provided some good packing tips.

According to Gentle Giant's Quality Control Director Ayanna McKinnon, "Customers are often surprised when we show them how to pack certain items or tell them which items are most susceptible to damage while moving." McKinnon offers the following advice on preparing for a move:

Wrap mattresses and box springs, and never drag them. "Many people end up with dirty or ripped mattresses because they leave them unprotected, or they drag them on the floor and they become snagged," said McKinnon. She urges everyone to carefully wrap mattresses and box springs in special plastic bags. "If you use a mover, make sure they use a new mattress bag because bed bugs are a potential problem you want to avoid."
Move flat panel televisions in their original packages or have a crate professionally made. "It's important to know what you're doing with plasmas and LCD TVs," McKinnon said. "Plasma TVs should never be laid flat, and LCDs have problems with changing altitude over long drives." She also advises against turning on any TV right away. "They should to return to room temperature or they will be more susceptible to internal damage."

Pack plates and dishes vertically, and wrap them individually. "A dish that is hit on its edge is much less likely to break than one that lands flat," explained McKinnon. "And if they're not separately wrapped they rattle during transit, and that could cause them to crack."

Pay special attention to keepsakes or special items related to personal hobbies. "Think about moving those things yourself, or simply point out those special boxes to your movers. Items like those are impossible to replace because their monetary value doesn't compare with their personal value."

Pack lamp shades separately from lamps. "Lamp shades can all go into one box, separated and cushioned with paper, but watch out for silk shades," she said. "Silk has a 'memory,' so any indentation caused by the pressure of wrapping material can cause a permanent mark."

For people currently planning a move but are unable to attend the free packing seminar, Gentle Giant provides detailed move preparation advice on its web site (http://www.gentlegiant.com/packinghints.htm) and also offers downloads of the "Pack Like the Pros" exclusive DVD at http://www.gentlegiant.com/packlikepros.htm.

Baby Travel Tips

noreply@blogger.com (Kevin Shorter) — Tue, 12 Jun 2007 13:44:09 PDT

If you have noticed a delay in the posts, it is because I have been on vacation. And although this is a blog regarding moving, I thought this travel post could fit since I moved my stuff cross country and back.

I had the privilege of flying to Seattle to go on a Alaskan cruise. The tidbits of information I gleaned from the trip surround my two year old daughter. I am so glad that we were able to bring her along. With all of the international staff on the ship, she was thoroughly pampered.

If you have a child who is not out-going or easy-going, do not bring them along. Also, if you do not have another caretaker in addition to your spouse, do not bring your baby. The cruise ship only had scheduled activities for children over the age of three.

Our daughter loved the elevators, she loved the staff, and she took naps in the middle of the day. If we did not bring help, we would have not been able to really enjoy the activities on the cruise.

The other tips I have are in regards to the flights. If your child is under the age of two, you can request that they sit in your lap so you do not have to purchase a ticket for them. This is a gamble because in doing so, you are hoping that there would be an empty seat near you so you do not have to have you child in your lap the whole time. Delta allowed us to choice the window and aisle seat leaving the middle seat up for grabs. Out of the four flights, we only had one where that middle seat was taken. Our new found friend graciously gave up her seat for another a couple rows up.

Bring books for your child.
Bring snacks.
Have a sippy cup nearby when their ears pop.
Pray that they sleep.

Overall, the flights were not terribly bad. The worst part was having our plane delay from 10:30 to 1:30am. The trip as a whole was a wonderful experience.

Home Buying Tips

noreply@blogger.com (Kevin Shorter) — Fri, 25 May 2007 07:23:57 PDT

There are many home buying tips and home buying pitfalls on the web. If this is your first time buying a home, you will be well advised to do some research. The main tip I have here is for you to get a Real Estate agent. If you get a good one, you will save yourself many headaches. Interview at least two or three to make sure you find one that understands what you are looking for and one that you would not mind spending time with.

The second tip I have is for you to remember that the Real Estate agent is getting paid by commission to help you buy a house. That is that they are incented to get you to buy a house more quickly and for more money than you might feel comfortable with. If you tell them your threshhold of what you are willing to pay, you will very likely be very close to that amount. Some might even feel pressure to buy a house they are not comfortable with.

Using a Real Estate agent to help you buy a home is much safer and creates less work for you than if you buy without one. Do not let a seller talk you into "saving money" by buying directly. Those sellers are just trying to make more money for themselves and get you to take on all the risks.

Mourning a Move

noreply@blogger.com (Kevin Shorter) — Thu, 24 May 2007 12:25:11 PDT

Grief is a normal and natural response to any loss or major change. Whenever you move you are losing a piece of your life that was normal while in the former home. Grief generally occurs when you miss something or someone you liked, but it also occurs when someone or something is no longer there that you were used to. This is more evident for any moving internationally, but it is also just as real moving to another town or leaving a cherished home.

To mourn what you miss is a natural human response. It is not something to be cured, but something to be traveled through. If it is taking you some time to adjust to your move, go to a close friend or spouse or call someone back home. Talk to them about how you are feeling. Going through this alone puts people at risk of depression.

Reduce Moving Stress?

noreply@blogger.com (Kevin Shorter) — Wed, 23 May 2007 14:11:02 PDT

I have often heard that using moving companies reduces stress in the moving process. I cannot speak from authority on that subject, my budget has always made that decision for me. If you want to go that route, there are moving estimates available online. My one suggestion would be to go with a reputable company. If you are trying to reduce the stress of moving, find a company that has put their brand on the line to provide a safe move. There have been numerous small moving companies that have robbed homeowners of their possessions. The American Moving and Storage Association has items to look for in a safe mover.

Home Inspections

noreply@blogger.com (Kevin Shorter) — Tue, 22 May 2007 14:06:11 PDT

One of the biggest surprises I had when I sold my home was the punch list that came my way. How dare someone say I had all these things wrong with my home! Actually, what really surprised me was that even though my home was just under two years, there were plenty of items on the punch list. One thing I have since found is Advantage Inspection will grant a one year warranty on their inspections. This can be a benefit to sellers as you know ahead of time what is wrong with your house, and it can be a leveraging tool to attract buyers. Other home inspectors might do similar things, but in the current buyers market, you can use all the help you can get.

Transfer Your Utilities

noreply@blogger.com (Kevin Shorter) — Mon, 21 May 2007 11:09:50 PDT

I mentioned last week one of the issues I have had in the past is getting my utilities correctly transferred. I have found two services that helps you get this done easily. These services should help reduce the time it takes to contact each utilities customer service.

Packing Tips

noreply@blogger.com (Kevin Shorter) — Fri, 18 May 2007 12:06:33 PDT

Packing tips are subjective. We all have ideas of what works, but when I think about moving, I think about all the time I have spent packing. The first bit of advice I will give, please do all your packing before the movers come. Nothing is more irritating than helping someone move, and they spend all their time finishing the packing.

Starting the Process:
Get the moving boxes. Unless you are buying Lowe's boxes or boxes from your moving company, do not get all the boxes at one time. I have found grocery stores to be the best place to get boxes. Call ahead of time and find when they do their stocking. Most stores will put some aside for you. Go ahead and ask if they will allow you to get some of their banana or apple boxes. These are great boxes because they are sturdy and have handles.

What to Pack First:
I always pack my library first. Those books take a lot of room, are heavy, and stack well. Next move to items that you will not use before the move, like out of season clothes, memorabilia, and storage closets. You can start this items a month ahead of time and them push them in hidden corner. This will reduce the stress of the last minute items like the pantry.

How to Pack:
You want to fill the box as much as possible. If the box is getting too heavy, use filler items as pillows or jackets to use in those extra spaces. Be sure to give as much cushions as possible around fragile items. Once the box gets to move day, labelling it as 'Fragile' only goes so far. Finally, make sure you clearly label each box. You can write down everything in the box, but I personally just write down some main items and in which room it is to be placed.

These are things I have found helpful. Packing is a long process. Be kind to yourself and your help and use that time to purge yourself of items you do not need. Also, be careful not to pack dangerous items.

How To Successfully Complain

noreply@blogger.com (Kevin Shorter) — Thu, 17 May 2007 11:53:02 PDT

As most of you can imagine, moving so many times has given me plenty of opportunities to complain. Since practice makes perfect, I have most be getting close. I think it would be fun to give tips from my experiences.

First and most dreaded was my issue with a Florida real estate company, Watson Realty. My company had moved me in the middle of my lease, and when I went to the office to ask of the effects this would have on my lease, a nice lady told me that I just need to give 30 days notice. I put in my notice and then on moving day I was told I could not get out of my lease. When I went up the chain to explain my case, I was called a liar and hypocrite (I worked for a Christian organization) by a senior vice president. My main advice here is to get everything in writing!

There have been plenty of examples of rental truck companies (I think all of them), who did not have a truck on moving day. I have tried many precautionary tricks leading to the move as calling to confirm, but nothing seems to be a surefire success. The only trick I have here is push the company to pay for the difference if you have to use another company. I have had Budget and Penske do this for me. I even had Budget pay an extra fee for not having the truck as promised, since they were going to charge me for a cancellation. I pushed for this because I had called for confirmation and the worker showed up an hour late.

I also have plenty of examples of utilities companies not giving back money after a move. I usually have all my bills drafted for simplicity sake. On one move Sprint did not cancel my service - fortunately I kept paperwork this time by getting the customer service representatives number. They charged me two extra months. I had to state my case high up on the chain before anything was finally done.

Finally and probably the best story, U-Haul gave me a truck whose brakes did not work. What I mean is when going 35mph if you try to stop 500 feet from an intersection, you will be completely through before you drift to a stop. The worker did not believe me and made me drive the truck 100 miles to their service station (it was on the way) in order to get it fixed. Luckily I got many service technicians to vehemently verify that that truck should not be on the road.

Here is what worked in getting me double my money back.

Go to the company website and find the VP in marketing or the regional VP in marketing.
Gather all their contact information.
If it is not on the site, you can usually do secondary research to find what you need (Google them).
Write a short one page letter describing the details of what happened, what you would like in return, and say you will follow up with a phone call.
You can call the company switchboard and ask for them.
People in the corporate office have the authority to help you and are generally more willing.

Nice persistence usually pays off well, unless you are dealing with Watson Realty. I would stay away from them.

Moving Authority

noreply@blogger.com (Kevin Shorter) — Wed, 16 May 2007 09:51:46 PDT

Where do I get my information from? In my first nine years of marriage, I had moved ten times. I have used every national rental company including portable storage. I have moved locally, interstate, and internationally. I have moved in and out of apartments, rental homes, storage units and my own homes. I have even moved with a pet and moved with a kid. Basically, I have learned a lot by experience.

Since I had all these knowledge that I hopefully will not use again for awhile, I thought it might be a benefit to others. Moving can be a very stressful time no matter how much you are looking forward to it. You put all of your belongings into one centralized place and pray to God nothing bad happens. One way to protect yourself with a home inventory. If you know what you have, you are better prepared if you need to make an insurance claim.

That is my background. Feel free to ask questions. Otherwise, I will write about what I feel is helpful.

What Your Improvement Is Worth

noreply@blogger.com (Kevin Shorter) — Wed, 16 May 2007 08:53:32 PDT

My mom wants to upgrade her kitchen and expand the master bathroom. She has been watching sell your home programs, and they all talk about how you would get so much more back when you sell your home. This is just not the case.

Remodeling magazine has done an annual report on the typical financial return on home improvements. Nothing get any real return on investment. It is only a matter of which improvement will get most of your money back.

I believe my mom just wanted to enjoy some new additions to her home and was using resale value as an excuse. The only benefits to selling a home do most improvements make is the speed of sale. Your house will catch someone's eye quicker, but they will not pay you back what you spent.

Save on Your Move

noreply@blogger.com (Kevin Shorter) — Wed, 16 May 2007 05:57:05 PDT

I do think it would be best to start a blog on moving by giving way to save money on the move. I think the best resource is a 10% coupon from Lowe's. They limit this coupon to one per household and it is barcoded to only allow one usage. I mention this because there are many for sale on eBay, but there is not guarentee that person had not previously used the coupon.

Home Depot also has a 10% off coupon, but there are more hopes to jump through in order to receive it. I am still receiving weekly emails from them even though I moved six months ago.

Both of these site have other savings on their sites for their stores, and Lowe's includes moving discounts to some of their partners. Everything on Home Depot's site is password protected, so I am not sure what they still have on it. If I end up posting for long, you will soon notice that I Like Lowe's a lot and usually avoid Home Depot.