Monthly Archives: March 2011
Hello from the team Professionals Armidale.
How do you know what price to put your home on the market for? The simple answer is to be guided by your real estate agent as to the value.
This is done by the agent providing you with comparable sales (which they must do by law unless the property is unique and can be valued on that basis alone). However you as the owner have the right to put whatever price you like on the property, many vendors think that “people are going to try and beat us down so let’s put $X on it…to give us room to negotiate”. This can be a very dangerous thing to do and you can end up pricing yourself out of the market. If your home is priced correctly it will sell…. plus you as the vendor shouldn’t be the one with the pressure to negotiate that’s what you pay the agent for isn’t it?
Be sure that your agent provides you with comparisons and does not try to “buy the listing” which is when the agent will tell you a price that is high only to get your business then 3 years later you’re wondering why you still haven’t sold your property. Also be careful of the opposite where the value is quoted very low so the agent may be able to get a “quick sale”. I have noticed this happens a lot with investment properties that are rented where the landlord isn’t really up to date with the Armidale market and in some cases have sold for more than $50,000 less than what comparisons suggest… but to them they think there agent has told them the correct value and considering what they bought the property for… fantastic! If only they knew they could have got more!
When selling your home you need to look all the evidence and if you appoint the correct agent they will exceed your expectations.
We all know that Armidale is one of NSW’s best regional cities to live in, but it’s nice to hear that people outside of Armidale are starting to catch on. One of the contributing factors aside from us locals talking about Armidale with friends and family in other parts of Australia, is the Evocity concept that was launched in September 2010.
Basically for those that haven’t heard of the Evocity concept before, it’s a combination of the city’s Energy (E) awareness, Vision (V) of the future of the city and the Opportunities (O) that the city offers to residents by way of employment and infrastructure. The Evocity website explains it better than I can, so you should have a look.
While you’re there, check out all of the great things that the Evocity website has to say about Armidale – it might inspire you to be more community minded, or even participate in local community projects.
What do you think about Armidale being an Evocity? Personally I think it’s great and I can see it being a great selling point for the city of Armidale and the New England area.
If you sit down and actually do the calculations, you could be surprised at how much you can save for a rainy day, simply by changing some small things in your life. Here are some of my saving tips…
Firstly, it’s nigh on impossible to save when you have debts, especially credit card or personal loan debts. So maybe use these tips to help you pay them off first.
Tip 1 – Extra coins can be lost easily, so when you get home every day, put your coins into a sealed tin. The rule is that you cannot open or extract coins from this tin for at least 12 months.
Tip 2 – If you’re going to buy lunch out, look for a cheaper option and put the money that you save into the tin. This is most effective for people that dine out a lot.
Tip 3 – If you’d rather save on a weekly basis rather than daily, budget $20 a week into your family household budget and put the cash aside or into a separate bank account that you can’t access it from. Keep a close eye on the number of weeks you’ve been going to ensure you’ve put in $20 every week, think of it like paying another bill and have a due date every week.
Tip 4 – It may be easier to put aside a percentage of your wage, say 5% or 10%. Put this into a separate savings account that earns interest. Although the cash rate isn’t fantastic at the moment, every little bit helps.
Tips 5 - What can you save on other accounts, like mobile phone or internet? Can you sign up for a lower cap? Do you really need to have unlimited download for your internet?
Tip 6 – Shop around for deals because you’ll be surprised at some of the savings you can make whether it’s lunch or bank fees. Put the money you save into that tin!
Tip 7 – Have a goal for what you’re saving for. If it’s just for a rainy day, then put something meaningful behind the term rainy day, like ‘trip to Europe in 2012’. This should deter your from dipping into your savings.
What are your money saving tips? There are a lot of us out there that need a lot of different ideas and encouraging words, so please don’t hesitate to comment below!!
It’s so hard to believe that it’s been three weeks already since I blogged about the ‘upcoming’ Autumn Festival in Armidale! And now that the Armidale Cup Race Day has concluded, that means the Autumn Festival has come to an end for another year.
Even without the picture perfect weather we’d all hoped for, the Autumn Festival seemed to have gone off with a bang. Thousands of people dressed up for the Armidale Cup Race Day, and took the opportunity of the public holiday to share some social time at the Racecourse.
Not everyone is a winner at the races, but not everyone’s a loser either. I’ve heard of a few people coming out ahead, so that’s great news for them!
If you had a great time celebrating at any of the events during the Armidale Autumn Festival, let us know about it! Don’t forget to check out the Armidale Express for all the photos from the Race Day too!
Hello from everyone at Professionals Armidale!
With the state election this Saturday and the chances of a new government coming in I am very excited about the possibilities this will have on the regional areas and the Armidale real estate market.
The state liberal leader Barry O’Farrell as stated last week that his party if elected will scrap home owners taxes and also introduce a $7,500.00 relocation grant to people moving from Sydney to regional areas. Whilst the details of both these plans are limited at this stage it is certainly encouraging to see a potential push to have more people relocate to places such as Armidale.
I believe Armidale will see great benefits with the NBN and this initiative. We are already seeing many people take advantage of the tree change and this will only benefit the Armidale market further.
In other news I am very confident that you will see Professionals be part of a major promotion in Sydney in the coming months and I am delighted that our office will be a major representative at this event, opening potential vendors properties to a greater market.
If you are thinking of selling I urge you to take advantage of the increased confidence you will see in the market over the coming months.
Home entertainment isn’t everyone’s cup of tea, but it is a pretty common Aussie pastime, so I thought I’d share some tips that a friend of mine gave me (probably in the hopes that Id throw a party one of these days).
The main things to think about are seating, catering and drinks, entertainment, background noise, and lighting. When the weather isn’t on your side, you need to think about shelter and heating or cooling too.
Seems like a lot of hard work to me, but if you do your planning well, then you should be able to enjoy your own home entertaining. So, start with seating, how many people are you inviting and where are you going to put them all? Catering and drinks can be easy if you ask everyone to provide their own drinks and bring a salad. If it’s a little more formal than that, prepare early and ensure you have enough for everyone.
Entertainment might be as little as chatting to your mates, but think of everyone because the last thing you want is someone’s other half to be bored and want to leave early! Create a welcoming atmosphere with some music and maybe some games for kids to play in the backyard if you’re inviting families over.
Day soon turns into night, so if you’re outside especially, make sure you have ample lighting for people to find their way around without banging into things. If it’s colder weather, try some of those patio heaters.
If you are a regular home entertainer, you might have some additional tips for me (and other readers), so please feel free to share them with us by commenting on this post.
I blogged some time ago about the facelift and makeover that was happening at the Armidale PCYC this weekend just gone, and I’m happy to report that it’s been a roaring success.
With upgrades to the basketball courts, full-time child care area, café, vegetable garden, graffiti and street art gallery, youth conference room, recording studio, in-house cinema, workshops, hip hop dances and a multimedia centre to name some of the projects that were incorporated into the weekend of makeovers, you could say that Armidale’s PCYC is looking better than ever.
Paul Harragon of the NRL footy show lead the Toohey’s New Crew in the makeover and from all accounts was very impressed with the community spirit that we have here in Armidale.
I’m very proud to say that Armidale is my home and that I know a lot of people who helped out over the weekend. Well done to everyone who chipped in, and I hope that by writing about the Armidale PCYC, the club gets a lot of interest and participation in local programs and classes.
If you have any photos that you’d like to share, please feel free to post them on my facebook page to share with everyone.
They say a dog is a man’s best friend, and in a lot of cases it’s true. But what I’d like to remind people of is that as part of any household, we should always ensure we’re our dog’s best friend as well.
Two things have made me want to talk about dogs to Armidale residents today. Both are important to our community, so please take a moment to consider these if you’re a dog owner yourself or if you know a dog owner here in Armidale.
Firstly, I’ve read reports that there’s a dramatic increase in Canine Parvovirus infections here in Armidale. Dog owners should have their puppies immunised against the disease at 6-8 weeks old and 10-12 weeks old and annually thereafter; however with the increase in diagnosis’ it’s clear that the message hasn’t reached everyone.
If you have a young puppy or an older dog, and aren’t sure if they’ve been immunised, check with your regular vet. If you’ve noticed your dog cowering, not drinking water and suffering diarrhea and vomiting, seek your vet’s advice, as it is a potentially deadly disease. Don’t let your dog come into contact with other dogs and don’t let other dogs into places that your infected dog has been because it’s a highly infectious disease.
Secondly, I’d like to bring to ask what you think about the protest last Friday that campaigned asking for laws to be changed in allowing dogs to be tethered no more than 10 hours per 24 hours rather than the 23 hours that it currently stands at. The rally also brought to attention amendments that are needed to legislation such as ensuring outdoor shelters be weatherproof and appropriate for local weather conditions and the size and breed of the dog, amongst other things.
For any changes to be considered, 500 signatures are required on a petition. The purpose of bringing this up is to provide community support for dog lovers of Armidale to stand up for the rights of their beloved animals.
If you would like to sign the petition, you can do so at 175 Rusden St, the Armidale Dumaresq Council office, the Armidale Pet Shop in the East Mall, Furballz Grooming and Care Centre, 120 Taylor St, the Farmers’ Market and the RSPCA stall at the Markets in the Mall between now and the 23rd of April.
Last week I spoke about how landscaping can be a precursor to what people think about you or your home. If you’ve done a bit of an assessment of your property’s landscaping and think that it’s in need of a bit of a spruce up, here are some tips that I’ve found that might help your landscaping look the part.
* What look do you want to achieve? It’s best to start with a bit of a plan as to what you’d like to achieve with your landscaping – low/high maintenance, bright/soft tones, spacious/private areas, sunny/shady outlook.
* If your home has a distinct style, such as modern or contemporary, you may like to think about matching the types of plants you use to the style of your home.
* You don’t always have to use plants to landscape your garden. Consider footpaths, different materials for edging garden beds etc.
* Fertilising and feeding your garden can take anything from a weekly water with a watering can, to drip irrigation, to nothing at all. Local nurseries should be able to give you a good indication of what types of lawn and plants require in order to stay in good health.
Landscaping your garden can be a large or small job depending on the outcome that you want to achieve. I hope you’ve picked up some useful tips here, and if you have any that you can offer to readers, please comment below, we’d love to share them!
The landscaping of your property can often determine people’s first impression of your home, whether they be friends, family, strangers or potential buyers. What does your landscaping say to people?
Manicured landscaping might give people the impression that you’re a neat and tidy person, and that your home is kept in the same orderly fashion. Not a bad impression if you’re a seller trying to get people in the front door!
And in the opposite sense, is your landscaping putting people off if it’s in disarray or overgrown? Are people judging you as someone who doesn’t really care how they live? Harsh, but people often are when they’re in a judging state of mind (which buyers tend to be).
Bright colourful flowers might look great, but they generally require a lot of maintenance… this type of landscaping might be saying that you’re someone who puts a lot of love and care into projects, but that you also have the time to do so.
A neat, but low maintenance yard might be saying that you work full time and enjoy a neat yard, but not all of the work that comes with it. It may make people think that you’re a little bit boring, but what do they know!
I often find it interesting to drive past homes and think about the people that live there, or hear what potential buyers think of a property overall, particularly when they use the landscaping of the yard as a pro or con to sway their decision.
Next time you’re out and about, take a moment to think like an outsider as you come to your yard. What could your landscaping be saying about you? Is ti time for a bit of a spruce up? I’ll write up some tips for next week, so don’t forget to check back or subscribe for regular updates.
SITE SPONSOR
Our site sponsors
YOUR COMPANY HERE
If you're interested in becoming a site Sponsor, please contact me today and we can make a deal to promote your business here!