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Greetings!
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March and almost spring! It was fun creating my first electronic postcard, to remind you to Spring Ahead last week. Hope you enjoyed the cheerful tulips as much as I did.
Spring seems to be when home owners start to think about their homes and the projects they want to accomplish during the year. Next month we'll have our new spring checklist ready for you (or visit our blog where it will reside as soon as it's done).
Whatever your home strategy for 2009, we hope we're able to assist. If stretching your dollars, we hope our newsletters and blog tips are useful. We're a great solution to help you get started (we can build the infrastructure for a new deck, leaving the floor and railings to you) or finish a project you don't have time to complete. One call gets you on our schedule, offering our services, On Time. Done Right!
Tina Gleisner, Everyone's Handywoman |
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Handyman or Home Consultant?
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Today's homes are incredibly complex structures combining the skills
of 20+ specialty contractors, managed by a builder or remodeler (also
called a general contractor). Once the home is sold, it becomes the
home owners responsibility to manage a home's ongoing maintenance and
repairs. Do you have a maintenance plan for your home? Most home owners
don't which is why most repairs are made in the 6 months leading up to
the sale of a home, or the 9 months immediately following the purchase
of a new home.
 Most of us know we should get an annual checkup, and we leave it to
our primary physician to recommend other tests that are
appropriate for our health and age. Similarly, car manufacturers recommend maintenance guidelines based on mileage, i.e.
change your oil every 3,000 miles. Wouldn't it be nice if you had
similar guidelines for your home (we're working hard to provide you with these guidelines)?
There are many books about home repair, and now even more
web sites to offer you advice on how to change a faucet or stain a
deck. The advice focuses primarily on fixing problems after you
identify them. Wouldn't it be nice to prevent problems before they
occur? That's where a consistent home maintenance strategy pays off, by
preventing problems or finding them early where repair costs are
minimal. A good example is wood rot:
- Annual maintenance is required by certain parts of your home
like window sills and kick plates below doors, because they are more
vulnerable to moisture (need to be scraped, caulked and painted).
 Minor repairs might include scraping out punky wood and filling in a
small amount of rot, or replacing just one piece of wood trim like a
window sill or kick plate (these are 2 of the top 10 handyman repairs).- Major repairs are needed when vulnerable areas are ignored
for years. For example, prior to painting your home's exterior, the painter will inspect the house. They often find extensive damage around windows, doors and
the sill plate, as noone has looked at these for 6 to 8 years, when the house was last painted. When moisture is left in place, it will travel, i.e.
from a window sill up the vertical trim boards and inside too which can
compromise a window's structure requiring a new window.
The value of working with a handyman business is the experience gained from solving hundreds of home owner problems.
The business owner, typically with a college degree and many years of
corporate experience, integrates this experience into a knowledge base
they use to run their business effectively. They become home consultants who can help you plan an effective home maintenance strategy, in addition to handling your typical home repair and remodeling projects in a cost effective way.
Each season we'll provide you with a seasonal checklist (next month's newsletter; also on my handyman blog), that covers all of your home's key maintenance areas in a
full year. For example: in the spring we'll recommend inspecting your
home's exterior for weather damage that occurred during the winter. In
the fall the same inspection will focus on sealing your home to control
heating and cooling costs. Every list will include tips on home health
and safety.
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| Planning Your 2009 Projects |
Your spring home maintenance checklist will come next month. To help you get started now, here are some planning tips for you to consider depending on your personal priorities in 2009.
Tips to Get Your Home Ready to Sell
 The best way to prepare your home for sale is to ask several realtors for recommendations. Getting a home inspection also lets you make repairs first, to avoid problems later.
- Start with curb appeal from painting your trim, to cleaning your yard or something as simple as adding mulch around your shrubs.For more tips on curb appeal.
- Kitchens and bathrooms are the most critical rooms in your home, so make sure they are clean, uncluttered and well maintained. Typical small repairs include re-caulking countertops, replacing a leaky faucet, changing light fixtures and a fresh coat of paint. Learn more about Kitchens and Bathrooms that Sell Homes.
- Very important is de-cluttering your home. You want prospective buyers to feel like there is plenty of space for all their belongings, which is best demonstrated when your cabinets and closets are organized and not overflowing.
Tips to Make Lifestyle Changes to Your Home
Many people have decided to stay in their current home until the market improves. Here are ideas for updating your home to create more usable space to support your lifestyle.
- If you're tired of working at the dining room table, maybe it's time to finish unused space. Finishing attic or basement space can net 70% on resale while home office improvements only recover 55% of their cost. Want to review 2008 trends?
- Summer is coming and some people will trade expensive vacations for "outdoor living space" like decks (recoup 75% on average), that they can enjoy for many years. An easier solution might be outdoor furniture that creates outdoor living space more appropriate for family dinners or neighborhood parties.
- Some home owners may ultimately decide to tackle larger remodeling projects. Here are some ideas to help you with that decision, Renovating to Stay in Place.
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| Links that Make Life Easier |
Some
related to home maintenance, repairs or remodeling ... and sometimes
they're just fun things we've seen that are worth sharing:
Home Offices from HGTV.com
Need ideas to plan your home office? You'll find a fantastic portfolio of great spaces, great styles from HGTV's top designers.
Learn All About Decks at Decks.com
For great ideas on deck design, deck materials (my favorite is Azek), and the growing list of choices from decorative railings, deck lighting and post caps at deck.com.
Google
If you're looking for more ideas, inspiration, etc, use google and search for "creating more space". You will find great information for small bedrooms, children's bedrooms, outdoor living spaces, etc.
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