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Jason Jabara
Jason Jabara is the current manager at Jabara’s Carpet Galerie. After graduating from WSU, the family business became a large part of Jason’s adult life. His father Tom, mother Susan, brother Josh and his uncle George assisted in that endeavor to a large degree. Perhaps one of Jason’s greatest strengths is his hands-on approach. Jason can be reached by calling (316) 267-2585 or you may visit their website @ www.jabaras.com.
Carpet, Tile & Floor Covering
1969-12-31 18:00:00
Getting the most out of your home
Question: With the housing market the way it is, and with your general knowledge of homes could you please help with some ideas to help get the most out of your house if you were planning to sell?
Answer: Sure this is a very good question, and I do have some ideas with improvements that won’t necessarily “break the bank”. In my opinion the single most cost-effective investment you can make to increase the value of your home is to buy a roll or two of plastic trash bags. Stuff them with junk outside the house from beer cans to raked leaves. Nothing could make more common-sense than cleaning up the yard and exterior, right? You’d be surprised at how many people don’t recognize the importance of doing these things. When renovating a house or preparing it for sale, spend money on things a buyer can see. It’s been defined as “yikes appeal” as the state of a house in which a normal person would drive up, say, “Yikes!” and keep on driving. Let me give you an example; a house with high “Yikes!” appeal; it has weeds, a boat parked in the front yard and an old car transmission on the side of the house, nested amongst beer cans. A rain gutter hangs down. Overgrown shrubs obscure the front windows, creating a dreary interior. People actually try to sell their homes in such condition, creating opportunities for bargain-hunters. The Basics 3 simple ways to increase your home’s value • Spend money on what can be seen vs. what can’t be seen. • Clean up the exterior first, and then focus on the interior. • Focus first on appeal -- clutter, trash and bad smells those are things that drive down a home’s value. If you’re getting ready to sell a house, you want to be among the homeowners who recover 80% or more of their investments in the form of a higher price. In my opinion the key is to think like a buyer. And what do buyers do? They drive up to a house and look at it. If they’re not repelled by what they see, they step inside and look around. The improvements that are most visible are the things you need to focus on. For example if you have only $10,000 to spend, and you can either spend it all on a new roof or all on repairing a cracked foundation (but you can’t do both), you should replace the roof because it can be seen. Whatever your budget, put a higher priority on improvements that can be easily seen, because those give you the best bang for the buck. People expect the foundation, plumbing and wiring to work. If they don’t, they detract from value. But fixing them to bring them up to code doesn’t necessarily add value.” Because an unkempt yard and ugly exterior can cause prospective buyers to drive away without going inside the house, you should work on those first. Clear up clutter. If you want to, hire day laborers to remove that old engine block in the driveway and reattach that rain gutter that fell two years ago and has been lying by the side of the house ever since. Then concentrate on landscaping. Prune hedges, trees and shrubs, especially if they obscure the front of the house. Paint. If the roof is dirty, hire someone to power wash it. From the curb, the roof takes up 30% of what you see, and if you have a nice-looking roof, that goes a long way in curb appeal for the house. When it comes to cutting out the clutter and cleaning, you should do the same to the inside, reduce clutter and clean everything. If you own a pet, invite a non-pet owner inside the house to sniff around. You might be inured to the smell of your St. Bernard’s urine, but the stench could make a buyer retch. Having an associate that buys homes to fix up quickly and sell, he almost always has the interior repainted wall-to-wall and has the carpets and vinyl flooring replaced. Once, when he and his wife sold their own home, they didn’t replace the carpets and they regretted it. They thought that by offering a flooring allowance, a family could move in and select their own flooring; he discovered that buyers don’t necessarily want to select their own flooring. He already had bought a house and didn’t want to be stuck with two mortgage payments, so he unloaded the old house quickly, for $10,000 less than he thought it was worth. But remember when you’re trying to decide how to spend remodeling money, I would recommend seeking the advice of an experienced real estate agent who is familiar with your neighborhood, and a licensed appraiser. Both could be valuable assets as well.
 
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