Intown Atlanta Real Estate Archives

Do You Have Bats in Your Belfry?

November 7, 2011 by Thom Abbott

Or maybe squirrels in your storage? If you live in Atlanta, you know we have our fair share of varmints ranging from those oh to cute looking squirrels to possums, snakes and bees! Oh yeah!

While 99% of these animals may not be a nusiance to condo dwellers (depending on whether you live in a mid-rise or high-rise building, they certainly can present problems for the rest of us!

If you think you’ve got some of these pests, you are wise to seek the help of a professional company to help in capturing them. This post was inspired by a Twitter follower I picked up this morning, Southern Wildlife Management. Now, I’ve never worked with these people, so I’m not endorsing them specifically, but they would certainly be one place to start to look for help with helping your varmints pack up and move on!

Tips For Finding Your Intown Atlanta Home

October 28, 2011 by Thom Abbott

Looking for a new home in a new town or city is always a daunting one for sure. For some, it is even their first experience in their destination state. Relocation clients move for various reasons, either coming to work or go to school, a second home location, retirement, to be located near friends or family or just for a change.

As Realtors®, we do everything that we can do to help our clients settle into their great new communities.

Here are a few tips to help if you are relocating to Intown Atlanta:

Looking for an Intown Atlanta Real Estate Agent 1. Find a Realtor® who is willing to spend time working with you prior to your trip. I know that I spend a great deal of time as the eyes and ears of my clients to help them make the most of their very precious time here to select a home. To do that, we need to get to know you and what you are needing and wanting in a home. We start by letting the Internet do the work for you. We send you all listings that meet your criteria. And as we research together, we can refine that search.

2. Get on an auto-email alert system. This one is the greatest time savers! This will automatically send you NEW LISTINGS and PRICE REDUCTIONS for you to research and learn more about the Intown Atlanta real estate market.

3. Set aside ample time to look at homes. Ideally, you want to set enough time in your trip to not only see the homes you have on your short list, but also to explore your new community and get some of those job or school details tended to as well. This is where your relationship with your Realtor® really is a time saver. Let them pick out the very best candidates for you to see first. If we don’t find something in the first few homes, we can keep looking. Promise! Don’t make the mistake of thinking you need to see it all, or you are missing something. This is where the auto-email system really helps you!

4. Bring your pre-approval letter. Often we have out-of-town clients who forget this all important step. Your loan officer will appreciate you having that in hand. It can be challenging when we are on time constraints to track down your loan officer to send this.

5 Take notes and bring your camera. Unfortunately because we are on a time restraint, we will be looking at more homes than is ideal. They will blend together. Use the sheets to help you remember. Discard those homes you don’t like. Write notes on the ones that you do. And use your phone or camera to snap a picture of a few things that attract you to the new home.

6. Relax! Don’t worry, it is our job to find the home. Spend some time exploring and having fun! We are full of suggestions about things to do in your destination city and nearby places. Just ask! We are all passionate about our cities and would love to share our passion and knowledge with you!

This post first appeared at Lifestyles Across America

Plumbing Systems — Something To Think About

October 21, 2011 by Thom Abbott

Water is a very important part of our every day lives. Without it, we simply could not, would not exist. Period. And as much as we need water to survive, water can also cause some pretty extensive damage. Be it outside from a flood or rain storm or inside in the form of a leaking or even worse, broken pipe.

I find that many residents who live in a condominium kinda don’t think about the systems in their home. They seem to think because they pay this monthly HOA fee, that all is well. Sadly, nothing could be further from the truth. As a condominium owner (and really as a tenant as well) you are responsible from the exterior walls in. So, if your tub leaks, or your toilet leaks or your sink leaks, you are not only going to have to fix YOUR home, but you might be fixing your neighbors’ home as well. Next to a fire, water is the worst enemy for damage in a condominium building.

Drain piles can clog and valves and fittings develop leaks. Small leaks usually grow and can cause major water damage in your home. Fixing leaks right away and keeping an eye and ear out for them is critical.

Clean Your Drains
You can clean your drains in your sinks and tub by simply running hot water and then pouring a handful or so of baking soda down each of them. Let the hot water run for a few minutes and then repeat the procedure. This helps remove grease and sediments that buildup over time in your pipes. You may want to do this a couple of times a year.

Visual Inspections
Visually inspecting for leaks regularly is important. You can do this by checking under sinks and around toilets. Look for signs of moisture and leaks, rust or lime deposits (white) which are early signs of trouble coming.

Inspect around your toilet carefully looking for cracks in the toilet where it is bolted to the floor. Even a hairline crack can mean a leak is happening or developing. Look around the inlet pipes and on the tank bottom as well.

Drippy faucets and shower heads and toilet flush valves that operate poorly should be changed or fixed.

You’ve heard the old saying, “An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.” Spend a few moments in your Midtown Atlanta condominium or home and look for these signs before you have a bigger problem.

Selling Your Intown Atlanta Condo

October 9, 2011 by Thom Abbott

Intown Atlanta Condo For Sale So you’ve decided it’s time to move on or upward and sell your Intown Atlanta condo? Well, just as buying it was a major decision, so too is the marketing of your home. You want to make sure you highlight all the features and benefits of BOTH your individual home, as well as the building or community where it is located.

Remember, probably some 80% or more of home buyers are going to start their search process using the Internet. So, how your Intown Atlanta condo is marketed on-line should be a top priority for you. You want to be sure you choose a real estate agent that not only knows your community, but know how to effectively market your home on-line.

Next, we need to get your home to shine! Let’s look at some other things we need to consider.

Building or Community

Why did YOU buy in this particular building? Was it for a view? Amenities? Security? Price? As is often said in real estate, “there is a Buyer for every home.” We just need to know which ones we are looking for! If you live in a high rise building or a smaller, historic building, we will want to highlight the unique benefits and features of each.

Size Does Matter, Right?

Well, you may have experienced the same thing when you purchased your Intown Atlanta condo. But now that you have lived there for some time, you’ve learned some tricks, shall we say, of how to make the most of the space you have. While a new Buyer will need to learn about the amount of space you get in various buildings and with different floor plans, you may have already added some unique features in your home that we can highlight. Perhaps built-in book cases, or closet systems would be a couple examples. Now we need to focus on selling your Intown Atlanta Condo.

The Condition of YOUR Home

Ah yes, this is where we really have to focus to make your home stand out amongst the competition. Remember, your competition can be other buildings, not just homes in your building. So, let’s look at some important things you can do.

Paint. One of the least expensive things you can do that can dramatically increase the appearance and interest in your condo. Maybe you never painted from the original colors the developer used. Or, you added some “unique” colors to your taste that may not appeal to others. Over time, you may have bumped walls, or a piece of furniture may have rubbed against a wall. Fresh paint will not only take care of these imperfections, it will make your home feel like new.
Storage. Face it. It was probably a challenge for you when you first moved in and tried to figure out where to put your comic book collection or the 20 pairs of tennis shoes and 30 pairs of jeans you have! You know what I’m sayin’! Well, you don’t want a prospective Buyer to look in kitchen cabinets or closets and not be able to see past what all you’ve got. So, it’s time to start packing BEFORE you move! If you have not used it or worn it in 6 months, it might be time for a donation. But if you simply can’t part with all those shoes, jeans or comic books, then we need to sort and store. Determine which you can work with over the next 30-90 days, and pack the rest. Make arrangements for a storage space in one of the local storage rental locations, or if you have family or friends that have a home with storage space, work a deal with them.
Cleaning. Well, it seems obvious, but then again. And I’m not just referring to dusting the furniture and wiping the kitchen counters. First, there is a deep clean. Move that couch and capture those dust bunnies! Clean the oven and refrigerator. I’m telling you…Buyers will open the oven, the fridge, your closets and drawers! They want to see the space and what’s available. And we want to show them the best.
Wash The Windows! Now, in some buildings, this may not be an option for you. But if you have a balcony with a sliding door, you have access to (and it’s actually your responsibility) to wash the windows. (Glass that is not accessible to you has to be cleaned by your home owners association) But when that potential Buyer walks in and looks out those windows…let the Sun Shine In! It truly can make a huge difference!

Ok, so we’ve talked about the things YOU need to do to get prepared to Sell your Intown Atlanta Condo. Next time, we’ll talk about what WE do to Sell your Intown Atlanta Condo!

Checklist For Cash Buyers

December 4, 2010 by Thom Abbott

Checklist For Cash Buyers

Here in Atlanta,Georgia when you are purchasing a home using a lender, much of the “investigation” is done on your behalf by your lender. Of course, if they are loaning you money on a home, the want to make sure they know as much about it as possible.

But, suppose you are a cash buyer. Who’s looking out for you? Well, your real estate broker can assist you to a certain extent based on law, but much of the due diligence now falls directly on YOU.

So, what should you be looking for? Here’s a list of items to keep in mind. Keep in mind that some of these may or may not apply, depending on whether you are purchasing a Single Family home or a condominium.

Owner’s Title Insurance — This is MUST have, especially if you are buying a foreclosed or short sale property. This insurance does just what it says…protects you from any title issues that could come up in the future.
Termite Inspection — May or may not be needed in a condo, but certainly in a house. This would be an issue in a condominium if it is a community that has ground floor units, is older or has significant wood in its construction. The homeowners association should have coverage for this, another thing you want to verify.
Water Bills — Again, more for the single family home. A significant monthly bill could mean you have a leak, and it may be underground where you can’t see it. A costly repair later on if not found now.
Flood Zone Determination — Again, for a condominium, this would be important if you are on a first or second floor, and there is any type of stream even remotely close to the community or your building. A flood in the Atlanta area this past year damaged homes that were NOT in a flood plain, and without insurance, the homeowners were not able to get insurance to pay for the damage.
Hazard Insurance — In most real estate contracts, there is a clause that covers what happens to the property AND the contract should the home be damaged. But you want your own insurance coverage the moment you close on the property. If you were using a lender, this would of been covered as part of your loan payment, but not when you purchase with cash!
Home Inspection– A must for ANY property, condo or single family home. Simply do not purchase a home without first having this done. Even new construction can have issues you may not see and an inspector will. Better to resolve before you buy than after.
Appraisal– Just because you are paying cash does not mean you should not know exactly what the property is worth!! Another wise investment prior to your purchase to make sure you are not paying more than you should.
Survey– Not necessary in a condominium, but a MUST in single family or multi-family homes. You want to know where the property lines are, and if there may be any easements that you are not aware of. (Just try to put in the new pool if there is a sewer line running through your back yard and you never knew it!)
Homeowner’s Association– First, you want to know if one exists (single family) and then you want to know the rules and any membership fees there may be. Also, are those fees mandatory (for sure in a condominium, possible in a single family home) and how much are they and what do they cover. Are there any pending assessments from the Association that you could be responsible for? How stable is the association and do they have monies in reserve for bad debts, repairs, etc.

These are the major items you want to keep in mind if you are paying cash. If you have questions about your Atlanta Real Estate purchase, give me a call!

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