Prevent Home Remodeling Stress
January 31st, 2011 categories: Finances, Folsom Lake, Home Building, Home buying, Home Improvements, Home Selling, Real Estate
Keep the sanity in your sanctuary
If a man’s home is his castle then when your castle is being remodeled, it can feel like your kingdom is under siege. It’s frustrating when you come home with groceries and find your kitchen counters gone; the contractor calls and says he won’t show up for another week and this is the 3rd delay; the painter says the designer colors are no longer available but you could pay extra for custom matches. Pitching a fit or firing the entire crew is not the best solution.
Home remodeling taxes your emotions so here are some tips to help handle the psychological stress. When you remodel your home, you can feel you’ve lost your sanctuary, the one place you can totally relax, decompress, be yourself. I encourage you to take breaks by physically leaving the house during the remodel phase. Call some friends for a long coffee break, work out or take a yoga class, this is the time to explore those areas you’ve left undiscovered. Now would be the time for a mini-vacation or a weekend get away.
When you feel you’ve lost control of your domicile with workers coming and going, it’s hard to enjoy your daily routine. This is where you might question the wisdom of what you’ve done. When you realize the project will take three times as long and cost twice as much your best defense is taking positive, decisive actions. This is where some pre-planning will make all the difference.
Before you first sit down with your contractor be certain to do your due diligence and check out his credentials, call his references and above all confirm his license is valid and up to date. Tell your contractor you reserve the right to question or challenge any decision made. Add contingencies to your contract, such as: the contractor gets less pay if the job goes overtime, more if it takes less time. It’s standard in the industry to pay a portion after each phase is completed so be sure to understand his or her process and what the expectations are at each point.
You can also benefit by setting goals to accomplish one task at a time. Break every phase of the project into small, manageable “to do” lists. This will help you to psychologically gear up for the next stretch and give a sense of accomplishment which puts is little wind in the sails to get you through the next segment to be done. It also prevents you from jumping the gun and clearing out the dining room prematurely and then getting angry when it sits empty for two weeks until they get to that phase of construction.
It’s easy to fantasize about the picture-perfect home, the magazine ideal, but the reality is always more costly and sometimes impractical. A gourmet kitchen with top-of-the-line appliances looks fantastic but if your home is in an average neighborhood be sure you’re not over-improving because if you should need or want to move you’ll never recover those costs. Stay flexible and consider lots of options and have a “plan B” in place at every turn…it will keep you sane.
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California Tax Credit Almost Gone
June 19th, 2009 categories: Folsom CA, Folsom Lake Homes, Home Building, Home buying
New Home Sales in Folsom CA driven by Tax Credit
According to the National Mortgage News article of June 18, 2009 the tax credit granting new home buyers $10,000 will soon be gone. Apparently there is a cap of $100 million and the governor’s office said “there is a bill to extend it or increase the money allocated.” The expiration date is March 2010 but it might not last until the end of 2009 at this rate.
According to the sales rep at Elliott Homes this has accounted for the majority of sales in their Chelsea subdivision for March and April. Folsom doesn’t have much left in the way of new home builder’s since Elliott purchased the last of the remaining land in Empire Ranch. Originally Empire Ranch consisted of about a dozen different builders offering a variety of homes styles. What is left are a couple of condo developers and some custom lots in the Hillcrest subdivision.
For related articles: http://folsomlakehomes.com/2009/02/24/tax-credit-for-new-homebuyers/
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Tax Credit for New Homebuyers
February 24th, 2009 categories: Folsom Lake, Home Building, Real Estate, Tax Incentives
New construction offers up to $10,000 credit
Good news for first time home buyers in California. As part of the state budget you can now get up to $10,000 credit or 5% of the purchase price of an owner occupied newly constructed home. This applies only to “have never been occupied” properties. This is a tax credit that is good only from March 1, 2009 to March 1, 2010. There isn’t any information regarding down payments or loan caps but a tax credit works like cash in your account at tax time so those of you who were on the fence it’s time to go shopping.
Currently there is a tax credit up to $8000 for first time homeowners which will expire at the end of 2009 which is an expansion of last year’s tax credit of $7500 with some changes. I don’t know if the credit will be retroactive to last year’s purchases but since tax season is upon us I’m sure more information regarding exactly how this plays out will start to surface.
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New Builder has Open House in Folsom, CA Aug. 21,2008
September 11th, 2008 categories: Folsom Lake, Home Building
Custom building for the average home buyer
There’s a new kid in town when it comes to custom building and his name is G.J. Gardner. Matter of fact there will be an open house this Thursday, Aug. 21st where this company will present their new showroom to the public and introduce what I think is long overdue for the homeowner who wants to build a custom home but thinks it too expensive.
First introduced to the Fresno area about 6 years ago, this will be #9 for G.J. Gardner Homes with #10 opening in Auburn, CA on Sept, 4, 2008. This is the best thing that could happen to someone who wants to build a home. GJ Gardner Homes marries custom building capabilities with the buying power of a large production builder. The concept brings to the table all the elements of home building under one roof with over 200 in-stock floor-plans, nationally recognized vendors and subcontractors on a one year contract. GJ Gardner Homes can deliver a custom home in 16 weeks from the foundation up!
The showroom features all the accouterments of a well designed home. Samples of granite, quartz and corian sit on top of maple, cherry and distressed cabinets. Koehler sinks and plumbing fixtures line the walls and carpet and tile samples sit ready to be selected. I felt like a kid in a candy shop ready to pick and choose from among some of the top names in the building industry. The standard inclusion for counter top is corian and the flooring is tile. Pricing starts at $104.00 per sq.ft.
There’s also the possibility of using your existing floor-plans or buying from your favorite architect. GJ Gardner offers a quick quote on your plans once the site has been inspected at no cost to you. The next step is a full bid which costs $1000.00 and includes a breakdown of costs including permits and grading. For more information or to talk with a sales person at the Auburn, CA office call Beth at 916-947-3993.
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