Tag Archives: appraisal

Seniors Struggle to Maintain Homes

Posted on June 23, 2012 | Leave a comment

With all the rapture about interest rate cuts – now equalling 0.75 per cent over the last two months – spare a thought for older Australians.

Already a third of over 50s say they can’t afford their home repair bills, according to a national survey, and with every dent to their savings, things get worse.

Australia’s over 50s are facing a combined repair bill of $5.57 billion to fix more than 17 million defects in their homes.

The most common issues reported in research by insurance provider Apia were leaking taps (41%), trees that need to be trimmed for safety reasons (39%), cracks in walls (38%), insect or vermin infestations (33%), and blocked drains (27%). Nearly half (43%) of the survey’s respondents said they didn’t have the skills to fix the problems around their home.

For readers in the US and Canada there are non-profit groups that may be able help. Contact the appraisers at www.scappraisals.com for questions. Don’t forget Habitat for Humanity, local churches and senior centers!

Virtual Staging – Interactive Tour Lets Potential Buyers Design Interior on Current Listings

Posted on June 14, 2012 | Leave a comment

BEFORE Michael Kenduck’s listing for a 10-year-old three-bedroom stucco colonial in Franklin Square officially went on the market, more than 40 potential buyers had already “walked” through. Their previews were embellished by virtual staging of their choice — by means of an interactive tour in which each visitor “painted” and “decorated” some rooms in the house (which is actually empty).

Contact the appraisers at www.scappraisals.com for your listing questions.

The house cannot be listed until its corporate owner decides on an exact price, which Mr. Kenduck, the managing partner of Cruse Real Estate, estimates will be in the $500,000 range. But that did not keep him from sending an e-mail blast to the 3,500 names in his database with a link to the online tour.

It included a “style designer” tool that let recipients choose among traditional, transitional, contemporary, modern and something called “Classic Pierce” style to furnish the huge master bedroom suite, paint the walls and trim, and add carpeting. “They are salivating,” said Mr. Kenduck, whose firm, with offices in Seaford, Syosset and Queens, specializes in distressed and bank-owned properties.

Disclaimer: for information and entertainment purposes only

Architects Think Big With Small Houses

Posted on June 13, 2012 | Leave a comment

It could have been the GFC. It could be greater consciousness – if not conscience – about our residential environmental footprint.

It could just be that we’re sick of vacuuming hectares of house.

It could be the sobering cost of furnishing, heating and cooling great hulking domiciles.

Have questions about the price per square foot? Contact the appraisers at www.scappraisals.comfor your value questions.

Whatever; after becoming world champions of building the biggest homes on the planet by 2008 – and at an average of 250 square metres, Melbourne’s new housing had become the biggest in Australia – we’re starting to get over ”the wow factor” of scale in domestic space and starting to question if we need all those rooms when the average household is only 2.5 people.

”Do you really need all that room?” is a question architects are asking more forcefully and frequently these days. Tony Battersby, of SJB Architects and a council member of the Australian Institute of Architects Victorian chapter, says ”more-thoughtful architects are challenging client briefs with the proposition that rather than building volume for volume’s sake … wouldn’t it be better to have a house of beautiful proportion, of beautifully contained space?”