The number one tip for giving your home great curb appeal in the fall is to keep your lawn free of leaves. Buyers may drive right past your home if they feel like raking leaves would be too much work for them if they bought your home. Keep up with this chore to give your home a tidy and maintenance free look.
Cooler temperatures also mean it’s time to replace your tired annuals with colorful mums or kale. Clear out your planting beds of summer foliage and drop some blooms into your window box or porch planter. Remember that you still need to water these plants to keep them looking fresh.
If you have already moved out or can’t maintain plant watering, you can brighten your porch with a grouping of three large pumpkins. Want them to last even longer? Don’t carve your pumpkins for Halloween. You can keep an uncarved pumpkin on your porch through Thanksgiving and get two holidays out of one purchase!
Even though it’s Halloween time, real spider webs on your porch need to be cleared away regularly. No need to scare away buyers with frightful spider webs.
Need ideas for keeping your home open house ready for the holidays? Click here for simple tips.
Mel Foster Co. recently named Shannon Mandsager as its Director of Business Development. Lynsey Engels, President of Real Estate Brokerage at Mel Foster Co. is pleased to welcome Ms. Mandsager to this key position on its growing team. Ms. Mandsager was previously with a local bank and has a long track record in retail sales and marketing.
Ms. Mandsager will take the lead working with the management team and agents to build and execute a partnership strategy and opportunities that will enhance Mel Foster Co.’s market footprint and accelerate the growth of the company.
Engels comments, “I am very pleased to welcome Shannon to Mel Foster Co. She is an excellent fit and will bring a new level of energy to our staff and agents. In an industry where new tools and technology are introduced on a daily basis, Shannon will be in charge of navigating these new ideas and keeping them in the forefront of agent’s minds to enhance their business in an effort to maintain a high level of service to our customers in the Quad City and surrounding areas.”
She was born and raised in Eldridge, graduated with honors in Business Administration with an emphasis in Marketing and Sales from University of Wisconsin-Platteville. Ms. Mandsager will be licensed in Iowa and Illinois and works out of the corporate office at 3211 E. 35th Street Court in Davenport.
Mel Foster Co. is pleased to announce that Don Marple of their Davenport Kimberly Road office was named REALTOR® of the Year during the Iowa Association of REALTORS® (IAR) annual convention held in Cedar Rapids last week.
Marple has been a licensed REALTOR® in Iowa for more than 37 years, and has worked at Mel Foster Co. in Davenport since 1995. He has been an active member of the IAR since 1980, serving on numerous committees, including past chair of the annual convention, and member of the education, consumers affairs, technology and member services committees. He served as IAR president in 2013, president-elect in 2011 and treasurer in 2010. He received the IAR President’s Special Recognition Award in 1995. He has also been a member of the REALTOR® Foundation of Iowa Board of Directors.
Marple is presently serving on the National Association of REALTORS® (NAR) – Public Housing and MLS Policy Committees. Marple also served as a commissioner on the State of Iowa Real Estate Commission from 2004-2007.
Marple has also served in various leadership roles on his local board, the Quad Cities Area REALTORS® Association, including 2002 president, secretary/treasurer, and as a member of several committees. He received REALTOR® of the Year Award in 1998 and the Bert Frahm Award for Outstanding Dedication and Service to the Real Estate Industry and to the Community in 1995. He has earned several of real estate’s highest designations, including Graduate, REALTOR® Institute (GRI), and Certified Residential Specialist (CRS).
Marple is very active in his community. He is currently a commissioner on the Scott County Condemnation Board. He has also served as past president for the Donahue Sportsman Club and was a founding member of the North Scott Soccer Club. He has been a Junior Achievement volunteer in the North Scott School District for the past 19 years, as well as a long-time volunteer with the Cub Scouts and Big Brothers/Big Sisters.
About Mel Foster Co. Real Estate
Founded in 1921, Mel Foster Co. is a real estate leader in Eastern Iowa and Western Illinois serving Davenport, Bettendorf, Moline, Rock Island and the surrounding Quad City area. It is one of Iowa’s largest independently owned real estate companies. Mel Foster Co. Real Estate specializes in residential and commercial sales and offers services for a broader spectrum of property transactions including farm and land, land development and management, relocation and new construction. Visit www.melfosterco.com for more information.
Have you ever wondered, “is hiring a Realtor really necessary?” The answer to this important question is absolutely YES! In today’s strictly regulated market, there are several ways an experienced Realtor can be invaluable to you during the home buying or selling process.
Market Conditions
There is so much information out there when it comes to housing and market conditions can change quickly. A Realtor can help you weed out what is truth and fiction, and help you understand current market conditions including data on inventory and comparable sales prices.
Negotiations
Negotiating the purchase of a property can be stressful. A licensed Realtor will act as your middleman, managing expectations of the parties on either side of the deal, ensuring a smoother transaction for you.
Pricing
A Realtor understands the value of real estate in different markets, conditions, and types. The improper pricing of your property can leave your listing dead in the water, costing you much more in the long run.
Paperwork
There is a mountain of paperwork for real estate transactions. Missing a disclosure or piece of necessary paperwork could spell disaster if you are navigating a buy or sale without a Realtor. A Realtor is experienced and aware of all of the various regulations you may face, and can ensure nothing is overlooked when it comes time to close the sale.
After the historic bursting of the proverbial real estate bubble brought the U.S. economy crumbling, the U.S. housing market has been on the rebound in recent years. Several factors come into play when forecasting the real estate market’s growth and change in the next five years
Home Values and Appreciation
In a survey done by Pulsenomics, the annual appreciation will be 3.94% over the next 5 years and the cumulative appreciation will be 19.7% by 2018. The survey also found that home values will appreciate by 4.5% in 2014.
Home Prices
Studies show that in some select markets, such as San Francisco, home prices may rise as much as 3% over the next 5 years. However, due to investors selling off their inventory, prices overall are forecasted to drop slightly over the same time period.
Mortgage Rates
According to CBS’s MoneyWatch, mortgage rates may be likely to rise, however a mortgage will be easier to secure for an average homebuyer. The rising rates will force lenders to loosen their lending standards. There was also a new federal rule that came into play in early January affecting mortgage standards.
What will real estate be like in five years?
The National Association of Realtors classified 2013 as a low inventory year, however it is projected that available home numbers have rebounded, allowing buyers a better selection and opportunity. This is only going to improve over the next five years according to current rising trends.
Fading Foreclosures
The increase in inventory will give way to a decrease in foreclosures. Between November 2011 and November 2012, when inventory was at a high point, mortgage delinquency rates fell from 7.83% to 7.12%. It is projected that in the next five years those rates will continue to decline.
