KimberlyJacobi, Author at The Jacobi Team, Century 21 Select Real Estate, Inc.

Let’s talk laundry rooms

Are they essential?

A survey done in 2018 indicated that the first two features for a home that buyers consider essential are living rooms and laundry rooms. Interestingly the survey showed that for first-time home buyers, the living room ranked first and laundry room was second; but for 2nd+ time buyers that reversed with laundry rooms being first and living rooms ranking second.

A 2019 report showed that laundry rooms rated top spot for most wanted home feature for home buyers. The humble laundry room – a place for washing and drying clothes – has now the potential to be so much more. According to a September 2020 article in “Kitchen & Bath Design News” the laundry room can become a flexible space that includes being a hobby and craft area or even a home office.

Sellers, remember when getting your home ready for sale, that the laundry room – no matter where it is located in the home – deserves as much attention as everywhere else so that buyers will be attracted to the home. Whether the laundry room is in a little closet off the kitchen, in the basement or even in the garage:

1. Clean, clean, clean. Make sure the washer and dryer are clean both inside and outside the machines. Move them out from the walls and clean behind and don’t forget the floors! Go outdoors and check the dryer vent, making sure that area is as clean as everything indoors. It doesn’t matter if the appliances are remaining with the sale, what matters is that they are sparkling so that the buyer can appreciate how beautiful the laundry area can be.

2. Spruce up the laundry area. Paint, if possible. Organize, put up shelving. Add attractive lighting. If the laundry area is in the garage make the laundry area appear separate. Organizing the garage wouldn’t be a bad idea before potential buyers show up.

Forget the days of the dark, dank and dingy spot where the washer and dryer was located. Laundry rooms can be bright, functional and inclusive spots for all kinds of household uses. House Beautiful has an June 2021 article listing “50 Small Laundry Room Ideas.”

Looking for a home to buy? Have a home to sell? Let Emmett and Kim Jacobi, The Jacobi Team, help you with all the details, from location to loans. Contact them today.

What is a Front Door?

A home’s front door is a welcoming portal.

It is the curb appeal centerpiece.

When you think about it, the front door of a home is the entrance. It is the way in. Front doors lead to the treasures that lie within: a sparkling home that’s inviting and warm.

If you are a buyer and you approach a home with an eye to purchase, one of the first things you notice is the house’s front door. A front door says so much about the house and can set the tone for the rest of the home.

–Is the front door shabby in appearance? Is the paint peeling? Does it have a screen door that sags and has holes in it? If it is made of metal, is it rusting? Does the door hang well in the frame? Is the door handle old and chipped? Is the color of the door unappealing?

–Is the front door an attractive style and color? Does it have personality that says come on in and stay awhile? If not a new installment, has the door been newly painted and repaired? Is the hardware new and updated? Does the frame around the door match the rejuvenated condition of the door itself?

Buyers notice front doors, no doubt about it. What about sellers? If you are a seller, go outdoors and literally stand on the street in front of your home. What does the front door say about the home’s curb appeal? Installing a new front door, according to some estimates, can add as much as 90% ROI when it comes to selling your home. This article has some great options to consider for door replacements.

Ever walk around some neighborhoods and notice the color of front doors? What colors made you look twice? Popular now is everything from mulberry to blue to orange. Check out this article to see how color can make a front door pop.

There are many aspects to both buying and selling a home. Whether you are a first-time buyer, or you are someone looking to sell your current home, Emmett and Kim Jacobi, The Jacobi Team, are available to answer questions and start a conversation. Contact them today.

Getting Ready To Sell Part Two

Addressing the home’s interior

Last week we looked at the exterior, now for the interior

It’s exciting to think about selling your home but it can be a little overwhelming. Where to begin? In last week’s post we looked at 10 points to think about regarding the exterior of the home. Let’s turn that same thinking to the interior of your home. Again, your budget and the time you can spend will determine how much of these things you can do. Doing all of them will ensure that your home is a shining star once it hits the market. Doing most of them will ensure that your home is ready for buyers to come and look and fall in love with your home. Doing none of them means you have to adjust your price to include an “as is” or “fixer-upper” sale.

Here goes, 10 points to consider for the interior in getting ready to sell:

1. Get a storage unit or clear a space in your garage and start packing! It’s time to declutter and open up the space. Pack up all knick-knacks, personal photos, clutter, etc. Your goal is to have your bookshelves, closets and surfaces have barely anything on or in them. Kitchen and bathroom counters need to be completely bare except for hand soap. You want potential buyers to see the home and envision themselves living there.

2. Replace any burned out bulbs or faulty light switches. If a prospective buyer goes to turn on a light and it doesn’t turn on because of a burnt out bulb, they may think the worst and figure there’s something wrong with the electric system in your home. You might consider getting a whole house inspection done to find out all the little things that could be fixed. A buyer usually gets a whole house inspection but if you get to it first then they won’t have anything to request from you to fix during escrow.

3. Pet or smoke odors can lose you thousands of dollars off the sale of your home, so if you have a pet or you smoke, consider waiting to deep clean the home until a week before your home goes on the market and then the cleaning smells will be fresh for the rush of buyers when they come the first couple weeks.

4. Deep clean the entire house: windows, sills, blinds, curtains, carpet, cabinets, walls, baseboards, trim, ceiling fans, surfaces, tub and toilet stains, grout stains, etc. And remember the oven! Consider having your carpets professionally cleaned and have any sections that have stains or rips repaired. If your budget allows, hire professional cleaners to come in and do the deep cleaning.

5. No cobwebs anywhere. Especially just before open houses or showings, take a duster and go over everything.

6. Paint brightly colored walls a neutral color like beige, sand or off white. This will help prospective buyers to better imagine their own color schemes in the home.

7. Patch and paint any holes. This is a good task to do just prior to deep cleaning.

8. Repair leaky faucets, loose doorknobs, cabinets that don’t close all the way, etc.

9. Small updates that pack a big punch could include new, modern faucets in kitchen and bath; newer, modern ceiling fans and light fixtures; new throw pillows and area rugs and new towels for the bathroom.

10. If your home is in the City of Chico and was built prior to 1991 and you bought it more than 10 years ago then you will need to ensure that you have R30 ceiling insulation in order to sell your home. The buyer can take responsibility for that but that is something that the typical buyer will expect a seller to do. So if you do it ahead of time then you will be better off. This is something you can discuss with your real estate agent.

There are many ins and outs to getting a home ready to put on the market. Emmett and Kim Jacobi – The Jacobi Team – are experts in navigating the intricacies of selling a home and also of buying a home. Contact them today to start a conversation.

Getting Ready To Sell

First Let’s Look Outside

We’ll look at the interior in next week’s post.

Getting ready to sell your home? Here are 10 points to think about. Your budget and time will help you to prioritize the list and help you to make decisions on which items can actually be done. Doing all of them will ensure that your home is a shining star once it hits the market. Doing most of them will ensure that your home is ready for buyers to come and look and fall in love with your home. Doing none? Well that means you may need to adjust your price to make it an “as is” or “fixer-upper” sale.

Okay, here we go, a 10 point to-do list for the exterior:

1. Landscaping: pull weeds, trim bushes and trees and mow the lawn. For a finished look to the flower beds add fresh bark and a pop of color with some annuals planted near the front door.

2. Power wash the exterior and touch up areas of peeling paint. If you can afford it, paint the whole exterior if your home hasn’t been painted in over 10 years. Make sure all cobwebs are removed from the exterior at the very least. Shake out the welcome mat and dust down the front door.

3. Clean all the windows and replace any broken or missing screens. If you have windows that are cracked – or missing – have them replaced if you can. The windows are the eyes of the home and you want yours shining brightly.

4. Get a roof inspection if your roof is over 15 years old. Get any repairs done that will ensure that a buyer can get a loan on the home.

5. Get a pest inspection done and have all dry rot and wood destroying pest issues addressed. This will ensure that a buyer can get a loan on your home as well.

6. If you have a septic system and are not connected to city sewer, ensure that your septic tank is pumped and inspected. If the inspection shows major problems with the septic and you do not have the money to fix it, ask your real estate agent about a “buyers a credit” to go towards septic repair.

7. Replace any missing or broken bricks, pavers, shingles or stones anywhere on the exterior or walkways. Now is a good time to look at the driveway – is it cracked? Buckled? If you can afford to, give your driveway some loving attention as it will increase the curb appeal of the home.

8. If you have a chimney make sure there is a properly installed chimney cap. The roofer can do that when he goes up to do his inspection. There are many points to be considered about chimneys, here’s an interesting article.

9. If your heating and air system is older than 15 years consider having it serviced and inspected. You might consider have the home’s ducts checked, cleaned and repaired if needed.

10. Does your property have fencing? If so, take a walk around and check for possible wear or damage. Maybe all that is needed are a few new boards here or there. Or, if you can afford it, you may need a whole new fence. Broken down fences can be a negative to a buyer, whereas a newly painted, repaired fence can make the property look loved and cared for and increases its value.

There is much to consider when thinking about getting a home ready for sale. Emmett and Kim Jacobi, The Jacobi Team, are experts at helping people navigate the ins and outs of home selling. Contact them today.

Looking for a new home?

How do you know what you’re looking for?

Here’s a helpful checklist to give you some ideas.

Let’s run through a fun scenario. Let’s imagine you and your partner are relocating to this nice Northern California community and need to find a home. Or your family is growing and you need a larger home. This checklist also works if you are a couple whose chicks have left the nest and you now need to downsize. Regardless of your situation, you’ve decided a change is necessary. In all these cases, how do you know what to look for?

First set up three categories of priorities: what the home must have, what you would prefer and what you would be willing to be flexible on.

For the building itself are you looking for a single story home or one with two levels? What kind of square footage? Is the year it was built important? What about whether or not it has been recently updated? Is it important to you that it be move-in ready or are you good with a “fixer-upper?” Do you need the home to have a garage? One car or two?

Does the property need to have a yard? Front yard and back yard? Size of yards? Do you want the property to have fencing? What about patios and/or decking? Do you need to have a home that has a pool? Space to park an RV? Would a property that has outbuildings such as a shop or storage shed increase its interest for you?

How many bedrooms do you want? How many bathrooms? Is an indoor laundry room important? What about a den or office space? Do you want a dining area or is a breakfast nook sufficient? Does your lifestyle dictate that the home have a formal dining area? A formal living room? Do you need a great room?

What about flooring? Is carpeting important to you or are you looking for hardwood floors? Would dual pane windows be a must have?

Is a fireplace important? What are your requirements for heating and air? Septic or sewer? City water or well?

Once you’ve made a preliminary list of the must haves, the what you’d prefer and what you would be flexible on, take a look at the current market and see what is available. When you’re ready to do some serious house searching, find a realtor you can trust. With a real estate agent to guide you, look online and visit open houses. See what “must haves” may need to be moved to the “flexible” category. Your realtor can help to narrow down your favorite areas of town based upon what you want in a new home.

Home buying can seem a daunting task. However, if you hone in on what is most important to you it will make shopping for a new home more enjoyable.

Emmett and Kim Jacobi, The Jacobi Team, can help you develop a checklist that highlights and includes exactly what you want in a new home. Contact them today to begin a conversation.

The Invisible Door

What’s bigger than the front door?

Answer: the Garage Door!

Most homes have driveways – or in some cases roadways – that lead to the garage. Some houses, of course, may not have a garage, they could have carports or nothing at all to protect the vehicles. But the majority have garages – and nearly all garages have doors.

The typical neighborhood home faces the street, with a driveway that connects the street to the garage. Unless the homeowner uses the garage for storage or as an extra occupied room, garages are used to shelter the family vehicles. And no matter what the garage space is actually used for, it still has a door that faces the street.

What’s interesting is that some garage doors are totally forgotten about in the preparation for selling a home. Which is a shame because garage doors can visually be nearly a third of the curb appeal. Also a garage door upgrade can add to the overall value of the home.

Let’s imagine that everything has been done in preparation for selling your home. The interior is sparkling clean and has been staged, ready for its first showing. The outside landscaping has been spruced up, the windows are all clean and sparkling and even the front door has been painted and fitted with new hardware.

Now walk out to the sidewalk and look at the front of the house as if you are a prospective buyer. What do you see? Is your home’s curb appeal appealing? Has anything been forgotten? Now take a look at the garage door.

* Does it need painting? Does it complement the design of your home’s overall architecture?
* Does it sag in its frame? Will it open all the way?
* Does it have an automatic opener? Does it work? Is it noisy when it opens?

To make your garage door fit the personality of your home and improve its salability consider bringing that garage door up to the standards of the rest of the home. Paint, repair or even consider replacing it. Buyers will notice it as soon as they pull up at the curb. And, if the garage door is meant to be opened and closed, they will want to see it in action during the home tour.

As with all other aspects of the home, let your garage door be one of the shining selling points. Read here an article showing some before and after examples of renovated garage doors.

The Jacobi Team can help you with all aspects of selling your home, from questions about staging the interior to tips about upgrading the exterior to improve the curb appeal. Contact The Jacobi Team today.

Staging is not just for the theater

Preparing your home for potential buyers

Both kinds of staging involve an audience. On Broadway, the stage is viewed by an audience seeking entertainment. When selling your home, staging is a way to give prospective buyers the best possible first impression you can of your home. And, in these days of COVID awareness – even though everyone is slowly venturing out into the marketplace once again – staging plays a great importance. Read here for an April 2021 assessment of the importance of staging.

Here we offer 9 points about the value, and importance of, staging your home for selling:

1. Helps your home sell faster, decreasing the amount of time it sits on the market.

2. Often it sells at a higher price, offering a higher return on investment.

3. Gives potential buyers a better first impression of the home.

4. Helps buyers visualize themselves in the home.

5. Helps make the home look move-in ready.

6. Demonstrates the home’s potential.

7. Skilled staging highlights the home’s best features, often giving the perception of a bigger home.

8. Simple, tasteful staging makes the home look new, rather than cluttered or empty.

9. Online home photos will stand out more prominently, drawing more interest.

Staging is exactly that…setting the stage for your buyers to see your home in the very best light possible. At the Jacobi Team we offer professional staging to help you maximize the salability of your home. Contact us today.

A fun checklist for selling your home during the summer

Tasks for summer selling

How about flowers

Selling a home during the summer months actually isn’t all that much different than in any other season of the year. Here’s a quick list of things you can do when the weather is warm and the sun is shining:

Outside:

1. If painting the exterior is not feasible at least give the exterior of the house a power wash.
2. Make sure your front door says “Welcome!” Brighten it with a coat of paint and new hardware or replace it with a new door to add overall sales value.
3. Is there a flower bed next to your front entry? Spruce it up with fresh flowers, trim any bushes and make sure the lawn is mowed.
4. Spiders! Remember to take a broom and de-web. Sure they’ll be back but you want them not so noticeable on home showing day.

Inside:
1. Open the curtains! Let the sunshine in and keep the lights turned on. When you’re showing your home you want it to shine like it is on Broadway!
2. Make the interior comfy by turning on the AC and ceiling fans. Speaking of ceiling fans, make sure they are clean and sparkling (they often get forgotten on the cleaning to-do list).
3. Empty out closets (and cupboards) about halfway. You do still live there, but you want your potential buyers to see that there is plenty of closet space–they will sneak a peek!
4. During showings place crisp white sheets over the beds. You don’t need to get expensive ones, but white looks so summery.
5. Place a vase of fresh cut flowers on your kitchen counter. A way to bring the summer inside.

And, because it’s summer, consider filling the kitchen sink with some ice and mini bottles of cold water.

Have an awesome home showing! The Jacobi Team.

Taking on a fixer upper?

The real deal on TV home-remodeling shows

By Stephanie Brick, posted on the Washington Post website Click here to see original post
Oct. 22, 2018 at 5:00 a.m. PDT

It is no surprise that reality television is rarely a representation of reality. How genuinely can anyone act (no pun intended) with a crew of cameras and microphones within arm’s reach? From scripted dialogue to behind-the-scenes staging, reality TV has seeped into nearly every corner of the market, and home remodeling is no exception.

Through the evolution of television, facts and fiction have generally known their respective places and, even if commingled, remained distinct from each other. Historically, there has been a differentiating line between programming intended for entertainment and programming intended for information.

Blurred lines

The difficulty is that the television industry has increasingly blurred the line between shows designed for entertainment and shows designed for education. Channels such as TLC (which once stood for “The Learning Channel”), HGTV, and even the Weather Channel and various news syndicates used to be defined by either their informative or educational programs. Now, however, they are more entertainment than information channels: You are more likely to tune in to facts or reality — when it is even presented — encased by opinions, drama, heavy editing or outright inaccurate data.

How we process information changes when that entertainment/education line is blurred — specifically, when programs designed for entertainment start introducing elements of their show as factual (or vice versa). It is a sneaky way to tip the scales: The entire show is easy to register as entertainment. So when little “facts” or context-specific truths work their way in, we have our guard down and accept them, often without even thinking about it. At times, almost insidiously, these programs start to rebalance themselves in our minds as mildly educational. This is the danger zone of misinformation.

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As a design professional, I believe one of my responsibilities is to help educate my clients. Despite living in the information age, we are surrounded by misinformation — and it can be nearly impossible to differentiate between the two without proper guidance. I see the source of this problem regularly when I tune in to shows about remodeling. So how can you tell what is true to the screen and what may be — directly or indirectly — propagating misinformation?

When it comes to home-remodeling reality TV, context is everything.

First consider the context of the home: Where is it located?

In some renovation shows, the city, state or even country (a surprising number that air in the United States are produced in Canada) are omitted. This becomes a honey pot for misinformation when numbers are then, inevitably, discussed.

Pricing for materials, labor and overall project budgets are not consistent across the United States, and any dollar amount needs context to have value. A $50,000 budget will yield wildly different results for a project in the heart of an East Coast city than it will in a Midwestern suburb. Always think to question where a project is located if numbers are discussed on a remodeling show.

It should also be noted that budget and total project costs may be influenced by the channel paying its regular and/or guest cast members each episode. (Do you think the designers, contractors and homeowners are only receiving 15 minutes of fame as compensation?)

Next, consider the episode in the context of its series.

Does it follow a formula? Confident designer makes lofty promises on seemingly low budget; problems are discovered during demolition; lofty scope must be dramatically reduced “to resolve discovered problem” or an egregious budget increase is required . . . every time.

To their credit, many of these shows do an excellent job communicating this true reality: Once construction has started, sometimes hidden or unknown existing conditions are revealed that warrant (or require) an unexpected increase in scope — which results in an increase in cost.

For instance, disintegrating pipelines or tangled DIY electrical work behind drywall usually cannot be detected — or accounted for — ahead of time. (As I tell my clients, we are still working on X-ray vision technology.)

However, this does not happen with every single household or project. So if you notice it happening — on a dramatic scale — during every episode of a reality TV show, recognize this consistently injected drama for what it is: a real representation of renovation risks? Perhaps. An excuse to get out of building that third-story addition that was never even close to realistic for the proposed, yet accepted, budget? Definitely.

Third, what is the context of the final results you are seeing?

Extravagant scopes on extremely short timelines are simply unrealistic. In theory, you could hire a huge workforce — but have you ever tried to find more than one really good craftsman or contractor to work on your home? How about a hundred? Even with the best of laborers, tight timelines rarely set anyone up for quality success.

In recent years, the grand unveiling of these finished houses have been quietly revealed as — sometimes — just grand shams, showcasing a meticulously composed staging. What you see is a beautiful, furnished, finished space, but just beyond the camera’s precisely calculated pan is an unfinished room and incomplete home.

Not knowing a project’s geographic context can lead to a misperception of budget and costs. Having only the pinhole sightline of a camera’s view can lead to unrealistic timeline expectations — even if just as an indirect, trickle-down effect.

We all know building a custom home from scratch in a week is unrealistic under normal circumstances. But does it not still, despite this acknowledgment, make three weeks for a bathroom remodel seem a little longer than it should be?

Whether or not your project is filmed by a crew and broadcast to the world, all architecture projects are governed by three factors: time, money and quality. If you are lucky, pick any two — speedy schedule, low cost, genuine craftsmanship — at the sacrifice of the third.

Many home-remodeling TV shows seem to deliver all three. These may be excellent sources for entertainment but should be recognized as poor sources of information.

Stephanie Brick is the owner of Stephanie Brick Design in Baltimore.

A Note from the Jacobi Team’s Kim Jacobi: Hey! We hope you stick around on our website and check it out! You can search for homes, sign up for our newsletter, and more!

You Must Master This When House Hunting

Excerpt from: Take Note! This Is the One Thing You Must Master When House Hunting

By Jamie Wiebe | Sep 27, 2018 From the Realtor.com website

Average home buyers look at 10 houses before they find The One. And unless you’ve lucked out with a photographic memory, remembering the details of all those homes can prove challenging. Wait, which one had that weird bathroom? What was the address of that awesome house near the lakeshore?

If only you’d written it down.

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It might not be the most exciting skill to learn, but good note-taking can keep you organized and dramatically simplify your home search. Yes, you already know how to write things down. But are you writing down the right things?

Jot down your impressions of size

You might be wowed by the size of the place when you walk inside, but you’re omitting crucial information if you’re not comparing that impression with the actual dimensions. Most homes come with a spec sheet, and if you’re surprised to discover the cavernous living room is just 9 feet by 9 feet—smaller than your bedroom at home—then make a note. Clever staging might be tricking your eyes, and getting the space to feel that enormous with your own furniture might be a challenge.

“Looks can be deceiving, and many agents have the means to perfectly stage a property,” says Vincent Averaimo, who works in real estate law. “Sometimes that means it looks bigger than it really is.”

Record your gut feeling

When you step into the home, what do you feel? After a long day spent driving to a dozen different homes, you’re likely to forget that feeling.

So make sure to write it down. Did you feel relaxed and comfortable? Slightly ill at ease? Did an intangible thrill race along your spine?

“When you have found the home for you, there’s a special feeling that you get,” Roberson says.

While you’re at it, dig into the specifics of why you got that special “yes!” feeling. Was it the bay window in the master bedroom? The 500-bottle wine cellar you’re already dreaming of filling up?

“Note something you really love about the home or something that really bugs you,” says Maria Daou, a real estate broker in New York City. “If you don’t make these notes in the moment, when you are in the space, you forget what it is and all the houses start blending together.”

Give the home a numerical rating

Real estate agent Dale Schaechterle recommends establishing three “have to haves,” which must be included in your final home. Then, each time you visit a house, rate each of these must-haves from 1 to 10, with 10 being “exceptional” or even “better than desired.”

For instance, if you’re insistent on a three-bedroom home, then a home with more than three beds might get a 10, and a three-bedroom home gets an 8.

At the end, tally it all up to see which home has the highest score on the things that matter most to you.

“A perfect score is not the goal,” Schaechterle says. You’re looking for something with the best balance of everything you want that gives you “permission” to stop looking and write an offer.

Take pictures—of everything

Any good seller’s agent will stuff the listing chock-full of pictures—but that doesn’t mean you should put your camera away during the showing.

In fact, you should take photos of anything that jumps out at you—good or bad, recommends real estate broker Brenda Di Bari.

Did you absolutely adore the dual-faucet sink in the kitchen? Or were you uncertain about the strange laundry room setup? Flipping through your camera roll can help you recall the details that might not be pictured in the listing photos.

And there’s another darn good reason to take lots of pictures: Sometimes listing photos lie. A deck might look pristine on camera, but up close the boards are splitting and—oh, heavens—are those carpenter ants? Or perhaps a room that looked enormous feels more like a coffin in real life.

“Maybe there are areas of damage or concern that you want to consider before making an offer,” Di Bari says. A photo will help you remember.

Write down the renovations you’ll want (and look up their cost later)

Few houses are perfect. Jot down any obvious changes you’ll want to make—and anything that might impede a home improvement project. (Is that wall clearly structural?)

“Noting if [renovation] is even an option is really important,” Daou says.

Once you’ve figured out which renovations your potential home might need, suss out how much they’ll cost. Add that to any other must-change items, like a coat of paint, replacement gutters, or even furniture needed to outfit a bigger home.

“It almost always costs more than you think,” Di Bari says.

And what good is a dream home if you can’t afford to make it shine?

Note from the Jacobi Team

We hope you stick around and explore our website! On our site you can search for homes for sale in Chico and the surrounding area. You can also download our free Home Buyer’s Guide which is chock FULL of great info! Reach out to us if you have any questions! Thanks -Kim and Emmett