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Selling your home?
Make
the improvements that will help it sell.
Improvement to your home can be broken down into
three categories based on costs. The first
category is the least expensive but will
undoubtedly help it sell:
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Repair any damage to walls and paint. Use
neutral colors (not always white)
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Upgrade the light fixtures, light switches,
and receptacles
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Upgrade the faucets, toilets, and sinks
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Upgrade the flooring. New tile, wood, vinyl
and carpet
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Replace damaged doors, replace door knobs
and dead bolts
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Replace window coverings, update with new
and current
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Scrape the acoustic off of the ceiling
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Clean up and maintain the landscape. Curb
appeal will help sell your house
Next month I will suggest the
next step up for improvements. If you are
having trouble selling your home give us a call
for a free estimate and suggestions to upgrade
your home.
GFIC Protected
Circuits
Most new houses are
equipped with GFIC protected circuits, however,
there are a lot of older homes that do not have
these devices. GFIC protected outlets are
usually found at several locations around the
house; in the kitchen, bathroom, laundry room
and outside. Anywhere that an outlet is within
60” of a water source, they should be protected
by a GFIC. GFIC or Ground Fault Intercept
Circuit is designed to protect against
accidental shock. There are two ways to protect
outlets:
1) a GFIC protected
circuit breaker is installed in your circuit
breaker panel and protects circuits that may
have contact with water.
2) install a GFIC
outlet that will protect that outlet and all
others wired into it. Both the circuit breaker
and the outlet have a test and reset button in
the event the GFIC senses a possible short or
shock and trips.
I would strongly recommend installing a GFIC in
your home if you currently do not have one,
especially if there are children in the house.
Real Estate Renovations can provide free
estimates to install a GFIC in your home.
Summer Repairs
Now is the time of
year that we all begin to think about being
outside and starting to work on the long list of
repairs around the house. Real Estate
Renovations has a maintenance division to handle
all of those repairs. We can repair or replace
faucets and toilets, replace sinks, repair holes
in drywall, hang doors, repair electrical shorts
or replace outlets and switches and install
baseboards along with a long list of other items
that can be accomplished in an expert and timely
manner.
Call our office at
760.433.5419 or go to our
work request page.
Our office will call you for an appointment to
complete the work
Exterior Drains
With the rainy season we have had this year,
it has become obvious the importance of good
exterior drainage to protect your property.
The following are the most common types of
residential grading:
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Proper grading. Surface water should run
away from the house and toward the street.
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Roof gutters are good to divert water from
the roof to the street. Gutter downspouts
need to be installed to allow the water to
flow away from the house or into landscape
drains.
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Surface drains installed to allow water to
drain to the street. Grading should be
designed to flow toward the drains, or have
drains installed where water pools or gets
trapped.
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French drains are usually installed behind
retaining walls or adjacent to building
footings. French drains can be designed to
allow both surface and water in the soil to
be drained away.
If you any further questions or would like a
free estimate for drains, use our “work
request” form and our office will contact
you for an appointment to bid.
Safety Around the House.
To assure the
safety of you and your family, the following
should be present in your home today:
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Your water
heater should be earthquake-strapped. Two
straps should be installed on the unit, one
at the top third and one at the bottom
third. The straps should be lag-bolted into
a stud framing member inside the wall.
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Be sure
that your water heater has a pressure and
temperature overflow valve on the top or
side of the unit. This will allow water to
escape the tank in the event that the water
temperature or pressure becomes too high.
The valve will release water and prevent the
tank from being damaged or exploding. In
addition, the valve needs to have a pipe
that directs the water to the floor to
prevent scalding.
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Every
house should have smoke detectors in the
bedrooms, kitchen, and laundry rooms. These
detectors should be inspected and tested
every few months,
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I strong
recommend installing GFIC protected outlets
within five feet of a water source. This
would include bathroom and kitchen sinks,
any exterior outlets, and laundry room
outlets. GFIC outlets protect against
accident shocks.
Checking for Dryrot Damage
Now is the time to begin checking for dryrot
damage around your property. All exterior
surfaces should be well painted. Check the
outside perimeter of your home for ponding
water. Remove plants from roof, eves, and
patio covers. Check the water and drain lines
inside your home for leaks. Inspect walls to
be sure they are dry and free of mold. Dryrot
left alone can cause serious and expensive
damage to your property and can be avoided
with a little preventive maintenance.
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