Here comes the snow!

It's snowing this morning, and we are seeing some accumulation. I'm sick with a sinus infection and I am not leaving the house today! I'm resting all weekend and hope to be better by Monday. I'm lighting a fire and relaxing in my new recliner.

The importance of staging

The other night I met a friend for coffee and he told me about buying his current home. He and his wife had been looking for a long time. They had very specific requirements as to area and size, and were not looking in a price range with a lot of homes available.

They went to see one home with their realtor that had sounded promising. It had the right location, size and price. However, when they got there they felt like walking out right away.
Everything in the house was pink - walls, carpets, furniture, curtains. Every available surface was crowded with doilies, wreaths, fake flowers and dolls. There was so much furniture in the rooms it was hard to walk around in. No way could they live in this cramped unpleasant space!

Six months later, they still had not found anything, and they were getting anxious for their son to start high school in the new school district. The pink house had a drastic price reduction, and since they did remember it had a nice back yard they went back for a second look, mostly just to rule it out.

This time, some of the stuff was gone, as the owner had to move for her new job. It didn’t look so bad to them now and they made a low offer which was accepted! They got their house at a great price. They painted the walls their colors and got new flooring and they love the house! So the story has a happy ending for them.

But what about the owner? She had her house on the market for six months longer than she needed to, and sold it for a much lower price. If she had only painted the walls neutral colors, packed up her nick nacks and decor in boxes and cleared out some of the furniture, it would have appealed to buyers and she would have sold quicker and for more money.

If you want to sell your home, stage it!

Vinomania, My Favorite Wine Store

Vinomania is awesome and well worth seeking out.

When I first moved here and didn't know the area well, I kept seeing signs for this place and then forgetting where it was when I wanted to go back. I finally did see the signs when I was ready to buy some wine and I stopped in. I'm glad I did.

I'd had this wine at Alto Cinco, a 2007 Callera Chardonnay. I tried to find it in a couple of wine stores, and I finally found one that would order it for me, if I ordered one case at 19.00 per bottle and paid an ordering fee. But when I went in and asked Gary, the owner of Vinomania about it, he told me if I liked that one, he had one that I would probably like just as much and it was only 9.99 a bottle. He was right!

He explained to me that the vineyards were in the same part of California and produced similar grapes because of the weather conditions. So now I know that if I like a type of wine from a certain area, try that type of wine from nearby areas and I'll probably like it too.

That seems very elementary but how long have I been shopping in wine stores and no one ever told me that?

Gary is good at recommending wines that go with certain foods too. It's not just expensive wines either - I've been in stores where they seem to steer their recommendations to pricy bottles. One of the wines he pointed out to me was a 6.99 Savignon Blanc from Australia, and my guests raved about it.

Vinomania is officially the coolest store in Syracuse. Would you look at this place? I just love it. The first time I walked through here I felt like I was home. Gary has a collection of cool stuff to rival mine, and he's got a better place to display it.

This is my current favorite - it's a nice buttery chardonnay from the central coast of California. It's very similar to the wine I first came in for and it's only $8.99 per bottle!

The store is located in Nettleton Commons, which is an old shoe factory that was converted into shops and offices. It's close to the Columbus Bakery and Thanos Greek imports.

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Great RENT TO OWN Opportunity on ACADEMY HILL, Manlius Village

This is a great house! My favorite thing about it is the huge finished walkout basement. There's a big sliding glass door out to the back yard. It doesn't feel like a basement! I can totally imagine putting my home gym there - perfect! There is also a separate room for an office or hobby room.

The house has a sunroom off of the kitchen so you can enjoy the beautiful back yard in all seasons. There's a small deck too, just the right size for a kitchen table and chairs.

The house is close to shopping in the Village of Manlius and very near Fayetteville Manlius High School.

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Call Melissa at 315-395-7523 for more information on the house or to schedule a viewing!

2000 NYSAR Grants for first time homeowners now available!

The New York State Association of Realtors is providing 2000 first time homebuyer grant for low to moderate income households in the state of New York.

For this program, a first time home buyer is someone who has not owned a home for 3 years and does not own any income or investment property anywhere in the world.

In Onondaga County, buyers must have an income of no more than $49,049. You are also required to qualify for a mortgage before applying for the grant.

If you are in this income level and have been thinking about buying a home, you owe it to yourself to call me. I'll help you find a lender and get you pre approved and then you can apply for the grant.

The grant application is not that long or hard, just one page of filling it out, you need to submit your 2009 taxes, fill out a one page form, and answer 3 questions:

1. How has your volunteerism affected your community and what to do you plan to
contribute to your new community?
2. How would receiving this grant affect your ability to purchase this residence?
3. How would purchasing this home affect your quality of life?

Even if you are not sure if you can qualify for a loan, call me at 315-395-7523. I will set you up with a lender who will be able to tell you what to do in order to buy a home. Even if you don't qualify right now there are steps you can take to repair your credit in order to become a homeowner. It might even be sooner than you think!

Just Rented! Great Onondaga Hill house.

This is on Fay Road, a great 5 bedroom house! The people were just thrilled to find it and it rented very fast. In fact I didn't even have time to put it on my blog before it rented.

Call me at 315-395-7523 if you are looking for a house to rent in the Syracuse Area, including Onondaga Hill, Manlius, Fayetteville, Dewitt, East Syracuse, Liverpool, North Syracuse, Clay, Cicero and more.

Click here to see some of my rentals. I do have more than are on this page though. Because I'm a licensed Realtor I have access to a lot of other ones.

If you have a house to rent, please call me. Don't pay to heat your vacant house this winter. Call me and I will find you great tenants. 315-395-7523

House for sale - a great price for TIPP HILL!

This is my listing on Tipperary hill. It's in a great location, right across the street from the zoo and Burnet park with skating rink, swimming pool, golf course, baseball diamonds and more.

Great location by Tipp Hill's Irish Taverns. Close to Coleman's (about 3 blocks) Nibsy's pub, George O'Dea's. But you are still far enough away that the noise of patrons returning to their cars at night will not bother you.

Close to downtown, about a mile and a half. 5 minutes in car. It's about a ten dollar taxi ride home if you decide to go to the clubs and bars in Armory Square in Downtown Syracuse.

It's an easy drive down the hill to get to shopping in Western Lights for Wegman's Market, Price Chopper Market, a liquor store, dry cleaning and a bunch of other small stores and restaurants.

This is at a great price and would make a perfect rental property. A lot of grad students live on Tipp Hill and will pay good prices for a single family home. I do a lot of rentals and I get asked all the time for houses on Tipp Hill!

Please call me at 315-395-7523 for more information or to view the house.