Okay, so you've heard all the recent hype about social media and blogging. Someone you know and trust is an avid blogger and has challenged you to use blogging to promote/grow your business.And so here you are, skeptically navigating through the maze of blogsites, lurking around various conversations, and wondering:What is the Value/Benefit of blogging?A large majority of people in business are still relatively clueless as to the value proposition offered by implementing an effective Internet Social Media strategy as part of their overall marketing plan. The viable 'bottom-line' benefits of Blogging in particular remain shrouded in mystery to the masses who have never posted. And so you ask yourself:Why Should I begin Blogging?Time is Money, they say, and perhaps you're just one of those types that needs to see a demonstrable return on your investment. Using Social Media/Networking and blogging to grow your business are simply more weapons that can be added to your marketing arsenal. It should not replace, but augment those methods that traditionally have been successful for you thus far. With that said, allow me to share one of the primary advantages/benefits of conversational blogging that I have found exceptionally helpful to building my own business:Great Blogging Attracts Great ClientsPosting articles to your blog allows you to convey to your readers one or more of the 3 P's of Conversational Blogging — Your Passions, Your Personality, and Your Experienced & Knowledgeable Perspective.As potential clients access the Internet, and read through various blogs and articles, they are often quite naturally attracted to, and connect with, writers who reflect/resonate their own similar passions, personalities, and perspectives. As a result of digesting what you've written, a certain level of comfort and trust is cultivated with the reader. Your Blog serves to establish a virtual rapport with them. Then, at the point when they finally make contact with you, or meet face-to-face, it's as though they've known you for a long time. In addition, they're more likely to have a sense of commitment to you as well.In my experience, blogging generates more highly qualified client leads. I don't have to 'chase' them down, they come to me! And they're typically some of the most fun and enjoyable people that I have had the privilege of working with.How to Create an 'Attractive' BlogOkay, so now the obvious question is How do I publish content to my Blog that will effectively 'attract' potential clients? I could spend alot of time on just that topic, but permit me to offer a few basic and simple guidelines:1. Be Yourself: Don't try to the be the best blogger on thee internet, and don't copy someone elses style, just be yourself. Write the way you normally converse. Imagine yourself at your favorite coffee shop, enjoying a relaxing Cup '0' Joe, and having an informal conversation with one of your favorite clients. What you write and who your clients eventually end up meeting needs to be the same thing.2. Be Informative and Engaging: Don't use your blog to plaster blatant self-serving, self-promoting elevator noise. The majority of your content should be helpful, practical information that informs and empowers. Always write with the consumer in mind. What information would they find most interesting and meaningful? Don't. Within your writing, remember to reveal who you are and how you run your business.3. Be Consistent: Today's 'Internet-Savvy' consumers are demanding and know what they want. They want 'fresh' content regularly. If they access your blog and don't find something relatively current, they'll click right on thru until they find someone else who more actively publishes to their blog. Consistency in the frequency of your posting will also help improve your ranking/find-ability with the search engines, thereby increasing your chances of being found by potential clients.Dave Tipton is a licensed Real Estate Broker in the State of Florida who loves the real estate industry. He loves buying, selling, negotiating, looking at and teaching others about his favorite subject. He has been a Broker since 1986 and has valuable knowledge he likes to share with others. Dave's company, Florida's Beautiful Homes works throuhout the Tampa Bay Area. You can also find him at Brandon's Beautiful Homes and ActiveRain.
813-653-1241
In this day and age of bank owned properties, be very careful who you deal with.... or not.
Give the Rick Frissell Team a call today...... just don't hit us with a wrench.
813-340-6828
Florida's Beautiful Homes
We promised and now we deliver! The book that so many of you have requested is being emailed to you today.
As mentioned in my previous blog, foreclosures have been an abundant oportunity for many of our clients this year. And, with recent statistics released, foreclosure opportunities will be with us for another year.
The National Association of Realtors (NAR), reports that prices are beginning to stabilize and sales activity have steadily increased. With interest rates continuing to be historically low, now seems to be the time to buy.
Although NAR reports on a national basis, our own studies show the local market is strengthening. Not only are the local statistics strong, our personal sales have been excellent and we are not seeing any slow down.
So how do investors and home buyer get in on the savings others have already experienced: Start by looking at the market.
Before you go look at the first home ...
Order the free eBook right now. It does not cost you anything, but will save you either time or money or both.
We have set up a special web site for you to place your order for the free book and to see the other free programs we offer for shopping for that foreclosure.
Go to this link: www.TheFreeForeclosureBook.com
No sense waiting, deals are out there!
Rick Frissell~ Realtor
Brandons Beautiful Homes
Press Release for Immediate Release
By Rick Frissell, Realtor®
Author & Consultant
_______________________________
In the past, buying a foreclosed home was a very challenging process. This was because of the limited supply of foreclosures. In many cases, it took several weeks, if not months, to find a good foreclosure. Next, you had to win the bidding war to buy it. And finally, you had to have an armored car full of money to repair the home.
Well, this has all changed with the recent foreclosure crisis. Today, there is a large supply of great foreclosure opportunities. In fact, you can find these homes very quickly, banks are accepting lower offers because of the supply, you don’t have much competition which means no bidding war and believe it or not, the homes are in much better shape.
For a limited time, you can receive a free copy of a new book titled “Foreclosure Home Buying Secrets” which normally sells for $19.95. This book includes 100 pages of secrets to buying a foreclosed home. In this new book, you’ll learn:
To receive the “Foreclosure Home Buying Secrets” book for free, visit:
www.TheFreeForeclosureBook.com or call the real estate information center at: 813-653-1241.
For additional information contact: Dave Tipton davetipton@brandonsbeautifulhomes.com
Florida's Beautiful Homes Group
Interested in a Shameless Self Promotion of your Business?
We don’t have a million readers yet, but that's our goal. We are opening up our blog to local businesses to “Guest Blog” on Brandon's Beautiful Homes.Com
We are looking for local Tampa Bay Area businesses, especially those that specialize in products or services of interest to home owners, home sellers or home buyers. We are looking for a Synergy with our guest bloggers. There is no cost, but we are looking for informative posts that don’t just promote, but rather educate the audience.
Please don’t expect us to just run an ad, but rather write something informative about your industry or your company. Posts to Brandons Beautiful Homes Blog are also syndicated to ActiveRain Real Estate Blog, Riverhills Beautiful Homes and Tampa Bay Appraisal. There are no guarantees of new business, but if your interested in promoting your business, website or search engine optimization, this should be right up your alley.
If you are interested in learning more about this concept, contact Rick Frissell~ Florida's Beautiful Homes for more information, either by e-mail or give him a call.
Brandon's Beautiful Homes
Related Blogs
Positive Reasons to sell your home during the holidays:
Rick Frissell~ Florida's Beautiful Homes- Realtors
One of the hottest markets in Florida, particulary the Tampa Bay markets, is bank foreclosures. Foreclosures have steadily accounted for between 25% to 35% of the sales units in the four counties of Hillsborough, Pinellas, Hernando and Pasco. The purpose of this blog is to help understand what to expect regarding price when shopping for a foreclosed home.
In addition to the hot foreclosure market is the short sale homes which is another part of the distressed housing market. "Short Sale" is the term that identifies a home that is for sale by the owner for a list price that is less than the homeowner's current mortgage balance. Our blog today is focused on foreclosures and we will return with another blog on "How To Find A Good Short Sale."
Before we get into analyzing prices of foreclosed homes, we have have to understand a little about how a bank determines the price they will list the home.
Once a bank forecloses on a property, the bank now owns the property. The term the banks use is REO, short for Real Estate Owned. That term, in a way, is a misnomer since the bank really does not want to own real estate. Rather, they would like to sell the foreclosed home as quickly as possible and put the money they receive, from the sale, back to work in a new loan.
So, rather that sit on a foreclosed house and try to get top price or even market price, the bank will put a list price of 10% to !5% below the current market price. In order to determine that price, the bank will order a BPO or Broker Price Opinion and the house will then be discounted based on the condition of the house, sales activity in the neighborhood and a host of other variables.
Why is this important for you, the buyer to know? Because many buyers are quickly disappointed when they find a house for, say $150,000, and they expect to make an offer for $125,000 and think they are doing the bank a favor to take it off their hands.
Am I saying that REO's are not a good deal? Not at all! There are many good deals, some great deals and some notoriously terrible deals. So let's illustrate what we mean, taking the components of just two of the many variables. Let's look at price range and days on market as two significant variables that will effect the kind of good deal you can get.
Take a look at these two houses:
A B
Size: 1,225 Sq ft Size: 1,298 Sq Ft
3 Bedroom 2 Bath 3 Bedroom 2 Bath
List Price: $106,900. List Price: $105,000.
Sale Price:$109,000. Sale Price: $95,300.
Days on Market: 2 Days on Market: 38
Both of these houses are located in Riverview, FL. Both close in age, both had similar taxes. The only significant difference, without visiting the property and taking personal observation, is the days on the market. Once house "B" began to "sit" a while, the bank settled for less of a price. As a matter of fact, $13,700. less!
What significance does time on the market take? Apparently a lot. Each bank and house has a tipping point. But, generally a bank will drop the price between 30 and 40 days or will be more open to all offers.
We did a study for the month of September 2009 of foreclosures focusing on List Price versus Sale Price and here are some observation for you to digest:
Did you catch that last item? Banks are getting their asking price.
So why is everyone clamoring for foreclosures if the banks are pretty much dictating the price? Because they are already pricing the homes at a bargain to begin with. Review a post by Florida Certified Residential Appraiser Jon Tipton on our site showing the actual numbers by listing classification of owner (traditional), Short Sale (3rd party approval) and REO. Here is what Jon reported in his blog. So you can see from the pricing per square foot, even at the banks asking price, they are priced the lowest.
So why wouldn't everybody just buy a foreclosed home? And that gets to the root of the blog. Supply and demand is why. There are not enough foreclosed properties to go to every buyer and as a result, the banks pretty much get their asking price.
So now that we have established that REO's are a great deal, can we still get a great bargain? YES!!
Take this next comparison:
6 Bedroom 4 Bath 5 Bedroom 4 Bath
List Price: $309,700. List Price: $410,000.
Sale Price: $290,000. Sale Price: $395,000.
These two houses sold within a couple of months of each other. The house on the left, of course, is a foreclosure. The house on the right is an owner occupied home and these houses are on the same street. They both closed close to the same amount days on market.
So what does this tell us? Again, it is supply and demand. Where the previous examples were more influenced by first time home buyers, this last set of homes has a limited number of buyers. As a result, when the bank received and offer on an already depressed market price, the bank jumped on it. Likely there was some negotiation involved to arrive at the final price, but there is no question this buyer got a steal. Even if they would have paid full list price, they would have had a deal. But, their agent skillfully pulled another $20,000 off of the bank's list price.
So What Have We Learned?
Be sure to make a Realtor® a part of your team. Some buyers take this complicated and risky process on their own shoulders. Buyers NEVER pay for an agents services. The agent is paid by the bank. What it will cost you, is not getting an expert to help you find your property. Make sure you have an agent that knows the foreclosure market.
Would you like a copy of this study of the foreclosure market for the month of September? Click this link, Free Tampa FL Foreclosure Report, and we will email you the complete list of foreclosed homes sold in September with addresses, list price and sale price.
Rick Frissell~ Florida's Beautiful Homes
813.340.6828 Cell
If you have a pulse and can fog a mirror, I'm sure that you have heard about social media and it's effects on marketing not only real estate, but everything.
If you work for a Big Box franchise real estate company, and you know who you are, if they have no idea about what blogging is, if your corporate attorneys have to approve and give their "buy in" before you can publish a blog, we have a cure for that, if you haven't a clue about Facebook or Twitter, we also have a cure for that as well, please sign up for our free What Is Twitter? Report and get some questions answered. No obligation to you what so ever. We are looking for Realtors® who know or want to learn about social media. If you are happy where you are, take the free report with our compliments. Just e-mail me your name and e-mail address. Dave@
Dave Tipton, Broker- Florida's Beautiful Homes
When I was a teenager I had a job as a gas station attendant. Yes, definitely dating myself, but there was a time before self service gas stations existed.
I worked for a small business owner that taught me the value of "full service." Each customer that pulled into our (HIS) gas station would have their windshield cleaned, oil checked and tires properly inflated. That was without exception unless the customer yelled out the window "Everything is okay!" Mr. Williams taught me "Don't ask them if they want good service, give it to them."
Another thing I learned was that I never had one customer at a time, I had three customers at a time. It never failed. The pumps could be empty and all of a sudden three cars would pull in together. Mr. Williams did not want to hear that I could not give full service to all three and not get them out right away. So my job was to go full pace, setting each of the pump nozzles in the car's gas pipe set on auto fill , running between each car lifting hoods, cleaning the windows and checking the tires (Editors note: The tires were the only item I could ask permission to check, especially if I had multiple cars stacked up. Most times, mercifully, the customer would say "The tires are fine.")
This Station is almost exactly like Mr. Williams station
In between the flood of cars, Mr. Williams expectation was for me to clean, clean, clean. In those days service stations were not all that clean. Except for Mr. Williams gas station that is. So with my head looking down at the push broom, I never realized that the traffic in the station was all tied to the the traffic light on the corner. For you other old timers from Tampa, that was on the corner of MacDill and Azeele in south Tampa. The station is long gone, but the memories live on.
So what does this have to do with my new and first ebook about to be released?
The bank foreclosure market has been just as crazy as my service station days. The ebb and flow of "good deals," also called "bargains," are a lot like my days on the corner of MacDill and Azeele in south Tampa. The traffic signal of buyers and foreclosed homes are hectic right now. If the light is green for the buyer, then the buyer will get a good deal. But, there are red lights for the buyer as well, but that does not mean we can't make it a good deal.
The bottom line is you need an expert for a your real estate agent that operates with the same principals as Mr. Williams did with his "full service gas station."
And that is why we are excited about the release of our book "FORECLOSURE Home Buying SECRETS." Our consultant advised us that we could sell this book for $19.95. But, we will be sending it out very soon for free. What do you need to do to have it sent to you? Simply follow our blog for the next couple of weeks and we will give you a web site to order your free copy. No obligation.
In the next couple days we will follow behind this blog with an article that will give specific examples of foreclosures that were sold over the summer and dissect what constitues a good deal and what does not. This article will be extremely helpful to you in understanding the negotiation process with banks.
In the mean time, stay beautiful!
Rick Frissell- Florida's Beautiful Homes- Realtors®
Free Tampa Bay Area MLS Listing Search
Tampa Bay Area Home Sale Stats
Type of Sale
% of All sales
Avg List $/sq ft
Avg Sale $/sq ft
Conventional
57%
$114
$106
Bank Owned
23%
$59
$57
Short Sale
20%
$94
$86
*GTAR MLS Market Statistics August 2009
After reviewing the GTAR MLS statistics, here are some observations:
- For specific price points out the number of sales had a dramatic increase. These price points are where people must feel they are getting a bargain deal. Here is the range on the year to date (YTD) $100-180k and $200-250k. Investors to the rescue!
- These months, March (end Q1), June (end Q2), and September (end Q3)* showed the largest % Change Last Month. If this trend continues, September will show the highest volume we've seen since before the market correction started in 2006. I'll get these highlights out as soon as they become available.
- MLS reclassified sales type in September which has resulted in a clearer picture of the volume of distressed sale inventory. More details? This is good for everyone since this is such an evolving market we are living in.
In your corner,
Jon Tipton~ Florida Certified Residential Appraiser
813-391-6121
Free Tampa Bay Area MLS Home Search
Florida's Beautiful Homes Blog
In a word, look for Professionalism....
Make sure you choose an agent who will provide top-notch service and meet your unique needs.1. How long have you been in residential real estate sales? Is it your full-time job? While experience is no guarantee of skill, real estate marketing — like many other professions — is mostly learned on the job.2. What designations do you hold? Designations such as Graduate Realtors Institute (GRI) and E-Pro® — which require that agents take additional, specialized real estate training — are held by only about one-quarter of real estate practitioners.3. How many homes did you and your real estate brokerage sell last year? By asking this question, you’ll get a good idea of how much experience the practitioner has.4. How many days did it take you to sell the average home? How did that compare to the overall market? The agent you interview should have these facts on hand, and be able to present market statistics from the local MLS to provide a comparison.5. How close to the initial asking prices of the homes you sold were the final sale prices? This is one indication of how skilled the agent is at pricing homes and marketing to suitable buyers. Of course, other factors also may be at play, including an exceptionally hot or cool real estate market.6. What types of specific marketing systems and approaches will you use to sell my home? You don’t want someone who’s going to put a For Sale sign in the yard and hope for the best. Look for someone who has aggressive and innovative approaches, and knows how to market your property competitively on the Internet. Buyers today want information fast, so it’s important that your agent is responsive.7. Will you represent me exclusively, or will you represent both the buyer and the seller in the transaction? While it’s usually legal to represent both parties in a transaction, it’s important to understand where the practitioner’s obligations lie. Your real estate agent should be able to explain his or her agency relationship to you and describe the rights of each party.8. Can you recommend service providers who can help me obtain a mortgage, make home repairs, and help with other things I need done? Our agents are immersed in the industry, they’re wonderful resources as you seek lenders, home improvement companies, and other home service providers. Practitioners should generally recommend more than one provider and let you know if they have any special relationship with or receive compensation from any of the providers.9. What type of support and supervision does your brokerage office provide to you? Having resources such as a Broker who is always available, in-house support staff, access to a real estate attorney, and assistance with technology can help an agent sell your home.10. What’s your business philosophy? While there’s no right answer to this question, the response will help you assess what’s important to the agent and determine how closely the agent’s goals and business philosophy mesh with your plans.
Dave Tipton, Managing Broker~ Florida's Beautiful Homes
Free Tampa FL MLS Listing Search
The U.S. House of Representatives voted Thursday October 8, 2009 to extend the first-time home buyers tax credit for overseas military members through Nov. 30, 2010.
The measure, which passed by a vote of 416 to 0, comes as Democratic congressional leaders are weighing whether to extend the $8,000 tax credit for all first-time home buyers , which was enacted to combat the worst downturn since the Great Depression. I believe that the vote yesterday gives you a view what is to come, and that the first-time home buyers’ tax credit should be extended as well.
It seems like a no-brainer to pass this bill extension if you want the economy to continue to head in the right direction.
I have been staying on top of this very important issue and I will keep my readers advised as I learn of any new details. If you have any questions or comments, please give me a call or an e-mail.
Rick Frissell, Agent~ Brandon's Beautiful Homes
There are currently 402 homes for sale in the Riverview, Florida between $50,000. and $1,600,000. Some are short sales or bank owned foreclosures, and some are regular homes for sale. We have done the research for you to identify what Florida's Beautiful Homes believes are the five Riverview FL Best Home Buys.
The criteria used was cost per square foot of living area (heated/AC), condition, amenities and neighborhood. None of these homes are short sales, just bargains. If you don't see any that interest you, please give us a call. We will be happy to do a custom MLS search with your exact wants and needs or, you have access anytime you want to our Free Tampa Bay Area MLS Home Search.
MLS#238854, Riverview, FL, List Price: $119,900. $64.67 Per Sq Ft
Beautiful Bank Owned!! Not A Short Sale!! 4 Bedroom 2 Bath 2 Car Garage Block home, located on large lot! Great opportunity to buy a house that needs TLC and make it your own!! Located close to schools, shopping, and interstate! Call Rick Frissell, Agent- Brandon's Beautiful Homes 813-340-6828.
MLS# 237347, Riverview, FL List Price: $179,000. $95.52 Per Sq Ft
This is not a short sale or bank owned! Spotless home, neutral colors, open floor plan. Home features 1,874 sq. ft. of living 3 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, sunroom, 2 car garage, new huge covered screened lanai, fenced backyard and a wonderful conservation view. Great community with 2 heated pools, tennis courts, soccer field, volleyball, playground and clubhouse. Call Rich Frissell for additional information or to schedule your private tour 813-340-6828.
MLS# 238825, Riverview, FL List Price: $179,900. $91.97 Per Sq Ft
Thia is not a Short Sale or Bank Owned. Gorgeous home, upgrades galore, original owners! Great family home, spacious floor plan, 1956 sq. ft., 4 bedrooms, 2 baths, 2 car garage, formal living and dining room, family room, inside utility room, and to top it off a 18x22 enclosed sunroom with a/c unit all overlooking a huge private backyard with no rear neighbors. Community offers 2 large swimming pools, rec center, playground, covered picnic benches, basketball court and an on site day care facility. Make your appointment today!
MLS# T238622, Riverview, FL List Price: $214,900. $73.37 Per Sq Ft
This is not a short sale or bank owned property, 4 bedroom 4 bath plus bonus room, 2,929 sq. ft. pool home. new inter paint,new carpets,move in ready,upgrades throughout. Call Rick Frissell today.
MLS# T238622, Riverview, FL List Price: $249,900. $91.45 Per Sq Ft
Not a short sale or a foreclosure just priced to sell without any headache and can close quickly. This luxury 3/3/2 over 2800 sq foot home built with all the upgrades and no expense spared. New Carpet on second level, fresh paint throughout hardwood flooring in all living area, ceramic tile in all wet areas. All bedrooms upstairs with a large loft/bonus/or game room. Incredible large lanai with pavers, in ground swimming pool. Call Rick Frissell to see this one or any of the homes.
If any of these homes that we have identified as a Riverview, Fl Best Buy, peak your curiosity, please give us a call. If you are interested in any other area we can help there as well.
Rick Frissell, Agent- Florida's Beautiful Homes
P.S. This is great information, you may want to forward it to family or friends…..
Free Tampa Fl Area MLS Home Search
Greater Tampa Area Realtors
Multiple Listing Service (MLS) Search
I recently received a letter from a client who wanted to express his appreciation for the FREE Tampa Bay Area MLS Property Search Service that Florida's Beautiful Homes offers on our website. The client went on to say that he appreciated the fact that our website did not make him jump through hoops in order to have access to this invaluable tool for locating homes and properties in the Tampa Bay Area. In fact you can search all of the property currently listed in the MLS state wide on our website.
It is our belief at Florida's Beautiful Homes, that if we provide service prior to our representing people, the majority who benefit from this service will come back to us when it's time to sell or make a purchase. This theory has proven itself time and time again.
Please feel free to check out our website for FREE MLS searches and for tons of other helpful information concerning buying or selling real estate. We even have investor information and programs available.
Dave Tipton, Broker- Brandon's Beautiful Homes
Free Tampa FL Area MLS Search
By Josh Garskof, Lowes Home Improvement
If you can screw in a lightbulb, you can handle these tasks on your own—and save.
Some tasks you definitely shouldn't tackle yourself. Laser eye surgery is out of the question, and so is pulling your own wisdom tooth. Even around the house, you're wise to hire a pro for jobs requiring highly technical expertise, such as adding skylights or boosting electrical service. But plenty of home improvement projects look more intimidating than they really are. If you take them on yourself, you can cut the cost in half. The reason: "Materials generally account for 30% to 50% of a contractor's fee," explains Claude Minnich, owner of Clarke Hardware, a 102-year-old shop in Culpeper, Va. Unlike standard DIY fare—painting, tiling, planting—these four jobs aren't covered in classes at the home center. But if you're comfortable with the tools required and can follow a manufacturer's instructions, you'll be fine going solo.
Plumb Some BenefitsReplacing a sink, toilet or faucet is easy because you don't have to run new pipes or attach new fittings. Just remove the old item and put the new one in its place.
What's involved: Shut the water main and open the house's lowest-lying faucet to drain the pipes. Then remove the old fixture (reverse the installation instructions). If a connection won't loosen, spray it with WD-40; use two wrenches, one to undo the nut and the other to hold the pipe steady, to prevent breakage.
What might drive you crazy: One slip of a wrench and you'll mar that gleaming new porcelain fixture. Protect finishes near your wrench with an old towel.
Tools needed: A basin wrench ($10) for removing and installing faucets; pipe joint compound ($3) or Teflon tape ($1) for watertight seals that can be reopened later
Stonewall-Your YardWith a man-made faux-stone kit—it's really concrete—anyone with a strong back can lay a retaining wall.
Time required: One to five days, depending on the condition of the site and the size of the wall
What's involved: To create a base for the wall, you have to dig out a few inches of soil, lay down a bed of gravel, compact it, then lay down sand and compact that. Afterward, building the wall is a snap: You just set the "stones" in place one row at a time, applying a special glue between each row.
Tools needed: A masonry chisel ($15) and rubber mallet ($40) for cutting stones, plus a gas-powered plate compactor ($80 a day) to make quick work of laying the base
Lighten UpYour fear of electricity is well founded. Misguided DIYers can cause fires or even zap themselves. But you don't need an intimate knowledge of circuitry or voltage to replace a light fixture, change a wall switch for a dimmer or swap new outlets for old ones. If you can turn screws and twist a few wires together, you're good.
Potential savings: At least $100 (the minimum electricians charge for a visit)
What's involved: First, turn off the power at the circuit breaker. (Tip: Throw the main switch for the whole house to be perfectly safe.) Then back out the screws holding the switch, fixture or outlet in place and loosen the screws or wire nuts (colorful plastic caps), attaching the item to the house wiring. Then you'll have to reconnect that wiring to the corresponding contacts on the new unit you're installing and fasten it in place.
What might drive you crazy: Deciphering the instructions, like figuring out which way to wrap wires around screws (answer: clockwise)
Tools needed: A noncontact voltage tester ($11) to confirm that power is off and a circuit tester to show whether you've wired an outlet correctly ($6). Then let there be light.
Hustle and FloorYou already know about the kind of laminate flooring (such as Pergo) that snaps together without glue, but, says Gene Hamilton, author of Home Improvement for Dummies, "there are now carpet, cork and linoleum products that are just as easy."
Potential savings: $300 to $1,000 (based on a typical charge of $2 to $7 a square foot by flooring installers)
What's involved: For cork or linoleum tiles, place the first row against one wall of the room and gradually move across to the other side, snapping the tile edges together, working right over the existing floor. With carpet tiles, start by measuring out and marking two guidelines that divide the room into even quadrants. You then lay the tiles against those lines and work toward the walls.
What might drive you crazy: You'll need to pry off baseboards before beginning the job and replace them at the end. Proceed slowly. If you break them, you'll have to cut new pieces later.
Tools needed: For tiles, you'll need a chalk line ($10) to mark those guidelines and a framing square ($10) to make sure they're straight. For linoleum or cork, use a handsaw ($15) or, even better, spring for a power circular saw ($50 to $150).
Florida's Beautiful Homes- Realtors®
Free MLS Search Mid-Florida
With so many people working from a virtual office these days, they can be any where working on their computer. I ran across this very humorous and artistic poke at people who do work from virtual offices these days.
If you are looking for a home with a spare bedroom so that you can be virtual without having to put quarters in to the meter every half hour, call me.
Dave Tipton, Broker 813-653-1241
Brandon Florida Bank Foreclosures
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