Renting Can Cost 7 Times More Than OwningOwning a home makes financial sense for a lot of current renters, but many are reluctant to take those first steps. Here's how to help them move forward.Read more >

6 Simple Ideas for Beautifying a House(July 3, 2006) -- When potential buyers look at a half-dozen similar homes, chances are the one they will buy is the one they consider the “prettiest one,” says Mark Nash, real estate professional and author of "1001 Tips for Buying & Selling a Home."Here are a half-dozen tips for making sure that your customer’s home is the prettiest.

• Strip away the window coverings – especially heavy drapes – and replace them with simple shades, then have the windows cleaned by a pro.
  
• Update lighting fixtures. Replace stodgy chandeliers and ceiling fixtures with something contemporary.
  
• Remove all the old wallpaper. Some home buyers won’t consider a property if there is wallpaper on the walls.
• Get rid of ratty furniture and rent new pieces if necessary.
  
• Neutralize kids’ rooms – remove the evidence that the child is a boy or a girl.
  
• Get rid of all of the family pictures.

Here is some interesting data from the North Florida MLS service regarding the 1st 1/2 of 2006 vs first 1/2 of 2005.

1-1 thru 6-30 2005/2006 – Areas 1, 2, 3, 4, 13 Columbia County

Single family residential

2005 – 296 units, 125 dom. 146,402 avg. sale, 135,000 median sale – 43,334,865 volume

2006 – 274 units, 115 dom. 191,602 avg. sale, 176,000 median sale – 52,498,831 volume

Mobile homes

2005 – 111 units, 121 dom. 75,783 avg. sale, 65,000 median sale – 8,411,901 volume

2006 – 95 units, 123 dom. 91,103 avg. sale, 85,000 median sale – 8,654,787 volume

Residential lots

2005 – 193 units, 377 dom. 60,585 avg. sale, 31,500 median sale – 11,692,932 volume

2006 – 76 units, 180 dom. 78,574 avg. sale, 60,000 median sale – 5,971,650 volume

Acreage

2005 – 160 units, 133 dom. 81,664 avg. sale – 13,066,262 volume

2006 – 110 units, 109 dom. 143,213 avg. sale – 15,753,474 volume