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"Star Relators"

Last week Gary and I were selected as Star Realtors at our office for having the highest sales volume!

10 Tips for Reinventing Your Home

By Jay MacDonald of Bankrate.com




Now that homeowners no longer obsess about how much their homes have increased in value in the past week, they're reacquainting themselves with the joys of homeownership from a new, healthier perspective.

Recognizing that larger is not necessarily better and that less can actually be more, many homeowners are looking for ways to make the homes they're in more useful, comfortable and enjoyable.

Here are 10 tips that may help you make the house you're in your dream home:

1. Show your true colors - "Paint is the cheapest and most powerful thing you can do to put your personal stamp on a home," says Barbara Corcoran , a New York City real-estate agent and NBC's "Today" show real-estate expert. "Paint your home the colors you enjoy living with, the colors you feel happiest within."

2. Ditch some stuff - "You probably have more stuff than you need. Get rid of some of it," says James Gauer, author of "The New American Dream : Living Well in Small Homes."

3. Start simple - Find the simplest remodeling solution within your home's existing footprint before considering expanding its size, says Marc Vassallo, co-author of "Not So Big Remodeling: Tailoring Your Home for the Way You Really Live."

4. Dine in a booth - "I've yet to see a small living/dining room where a free-floating dining table and chairs really works," Gauer says. "A dining banquette against the wall looks and feels luxurious and comfortable while taking up considerably less space."

5. Check out books - "Put a wall of books in any room and it's cozy and inviting," Corcoran says.

6. Consolidate doorways - "Attempt to locate all the doorways to the kitchen on one side of the room and eliminate any that are not absolutely necessary," Vassallo says. "This leaves the rest of the kitchen for continuous countertop and appliance arrangement while limiting the flow of foot traffic through the work area."

7. Plan your furniture first - "Never buy furniture without first laying out a furniture plan," Gauer says. "Chances are, that sofa you're eyeing is too big and will just make your living room feel crowded."

8. Let there be light - "The right lighting can make a heck of an improvement," Corcoran says. "Throw in task lighting to make tasks easier, mood light to make a room sexier. And don't forget dimmers! I can't imagine lighting without them."

9. Add a column - "Create a more open floor plan by removing a wall and replacing it with a new support beam and columns," Vassallo says. "Columns allow for differentiation of places with minimal view obstruction."

10. Dare to be modest - "Modesty requires us to arrange our homes first and foremost to suit the real needs of our private lives with no thought to public display, to eschew the showy and unnecessary and embrace the appropriate and suitable," Gauer says.

Nana and Granddad Visit to Orlando

While North Texas was having a spring snow, we went to Orlando to watch our granddaughters while our daughter and her husband were away celebrating their 10th wedding anniversary.

We took the girls to Disney’s Animal Kingdom theme park and had a blast. We watched the “Festival of the Lion King” show, went on Kilimanjaro Safaris, and rode Expedition Everest roller coaster. After the ride, Isabella looked seriously at Granddad and said “I will NEVER ride that ride again!”













Also while we were there, we got to watch Olivia play in a soccer game and we took them out for ice cream at Scoops.

Even though we were there for pleasure, we didn’t forget our clients. We helped one of our buyers put a contract on a home that was perfect for her family, and negotiated a contract that came in for a seller's home.

6 Landscaping Tricks That Wow Buyers

By Barbara Ballinger | April 2009, www.realtormag.com




Landscape designer Michael Glassman has cooked up a recipe for guaranteed curb appeal.

1. Add splashes of color. With every changing season, a landscape should provide a new display of colors, textures, and fragrances. "It’s best to use one or two and repeat them," Glassman says. Example: white iceberg roses that bloom in spring, summer, and fall as a backdrop; in front, a contrasting punch of purple salvia or lavender that will flower at the same time; and as an accent, a crape myrtle tree that provides changing leaf colors in fall and interesting branches come winter.

2. Size trees and shrubs to scale. These should be planted in the right scale for the house so that they don’t block windows, doors, and other architectural features on the home’s facade. A large two-story house can handle a redwood, Chinese pistache, sycamore, or scarlet oak, but a one-story cottage is better paired with a flowering cherry, crabapple, or eastern redbud. Too many trees cast too much shadow and cause potential buyers to worry about maintenance and costs.

3. Maintain a perfect lawn. A velvety green lawn demonstrates tender loving care, so be sure sellers’ homes don’t have brown spots. Some rocks, pebbles, boulders, drought-tolerant plants, and ornamental grasses will generate more kudos, especially in drought areas.

4. Light up the outside. Good illumination allows buyers to see a home at night and adds drama. Sellers should use low-voltage lamps to highlight branches of specimen trees, a front door, walk, and corners of the house. But less is better. The yard shouldn’t resemble an airport runway.

5. Let them hear the water. The sound of water appeals to buyers, and you shouldn’t just reserve this for your backyard. A small fountain accented with rocks provides a pleasant gurgling sound, blocks street noise, and is affordable.

6. Use decorative architectural elements. A new mailbox, planted window boxes, and a low fence wrapped in potato vines add cachet, particularly during winter months when fewer plants blossom. Colors should complement the landscape and home. Just don’t overdo it: Too much can seem like kitschy lawn ornaments.