Late October in Denver is an unpredictable time of the year for the weather.  Recently we had temperatures in the  80′s , then snow and freeze!  Always interesting.

So are you prepared for this winter like change in the weather?  Have you taken care of some of the fall maintenance projects around your house yet? I wrote about some of those fall maintenance tips earlier, so you can review them again if you would like.  But now we have to assume it will begin to freeze again at any time and there are even more things to check on.

Let’s start with the furnace.  It may have been awhile since you ran yours, but it won’t be long until it is running a lot.  First, check the filter and make sure it is clean or just change it for a new one.  If you have the disposable type like most do, go to the local home improvement store and get several for the winter.  They usually run less than a dollar each and try to change them monthly.  Also, if you have a humidifier attached to your furnace, make sure to properly set it up for the season, including checking or changing filters, turn on the water line and make sure the damper is set for winter.

Since you will be running the furnace more with the house closed up for the cold, make sure to have working carbon dioxide detectors in your home within 15 feet from all bedrooms.  It is very important for you and your family’s safety. It is also a great time to check smoke detectors and change batteries.

Outside your home, if you haven’t blown out the sprinkler system yet, it is a good time to do that.  Repairs can get costly next spring if your system gets damaged due to freeze.  Not to mention having a yard all dug up.  Do you have snow shovels, ice melt, and gas for a snow blower if you have one?  While your at the home improvement store picking up those furnace filters you may want to get a bottle of the oil mix for the snow blower gas.  Once the snow starts to fly the supply often sells out.

I hope these few reminders of winter preparation were helpful.  Remember, this time of year is still good to get out and look for a home if you are in the market.  Interest rates are awesome and closing before the end of the year may be helpful for your taxes.  If you would like help finding your next home or selling your current home, please get in touch I would love to help.

It’s getting to be that time of year again, Fall!  I know that I really love the change of season and appreciate the colors but with the change of season comes the change of weather.  Soon enough it will get cold and snow.

So now is a real good time to look into some home winterizing projects around the house.  I know that many of us don’t get around to these things, myself included.  But they are important nevertheless.  So let’s start outside in the yard.  Do you have some bushes or trees that need pruning or maybe removal?  I do.  In fact, I need to borrow my neighbor’s chain saw and take down my favorite tree.  Unfortunately it just didn’t make it this year and with the potential snow coming in the near future, this needs to get done now before it can cause problems with broken limbs.  Do you have any trees or bushes that should come out? If you live in Highlands Ranch as I do, the Metro District is making it easier to get rid of those limbs and providing free mulch to residents at the same time.  The Highlands Ranch tree recycling event at Shea Stadium is a great way to dispose of the old tree and maybe get some mulch for your landscape.

This is also a great time of year to aerate and fertilize your lawn to prepare it for winter.  It seems those that take this step have a big head start in the Spring with a greener, thicker lawn.  It is also important to remember that the lawn probably still needs watering.  Maybe not as much, but with 80 degree days like we’re having still, the lawn still needs the moisture.

So make the time now to get out and check the caulking around the windows, clean the gutters and make sure the outside is ready for the winter chill. Don’t forget, this is also a great time of year to get out and find your new home if you’re in the market.  Interest rates are incredible still and before the snow really hits, it’s a great time to check out the home’s landscaping before the leaves fall.  If I can help with the search, please let me know.  In the meanwhile, you can use the button below to search homes and see pictures, videos and other details.

Day 44 | Colorado Parade of Ponds | Metro Denver & The Denver Suburbs

Day 44 we are going to plan ahead to make sure garden, landscaping  and pond enthusiasts get this on their calendar – this weekend is the Colorado Parade of Ponds.

The Colorado Parade of Ponds will take place August 28th and 29th from 9 am – 5pm on Saturday and 11 am – 5:oo pm on Sunday.   Tickets are $25 for a guided luxury bus tour (Saturday only) or $15 for a self guided tour (children under 15 are free).

The Colorado Parade of Ponds highlights many beautiful ponds (about 50) throughout the metro Denver area, some here in the south Denver suburbs – others will be  in other parts of the Denver area.  When you purchase your tickets you will receive a map of the entire route.

Parade participants are all trying to win the infamous “Froggy Awards” in different categories and there will b ballots for the tour-goers to participate in the voting.  Some of the categories include Best Fish, Best Water Quality, Best Overall Landscape, and more.  The Colorado Parade of Ponds is such a great way to get ideas for your own home.  Or perhaps it will get you dreaming of the new features you want in your own yard of your next home in the Denver area.  You certainly won’t be limited by ideas.

Proceeds from this year’s Colorado Parade of Ponds go to a variety of charities, including The Children’s Hospital, Praying Hands Ranch, North America Water garden Society and more.  Tickets for the Coloraod Parade of Ponds can be purchase at a variety of landscaping and outdoor stores & attractions throughout metro Denver such as: Arapahoe Acres, Hudson Gardens, Tagawa Garden Supply, Timberline Gardens,  Enery Water Gardens, and Nick’s Garden Center.

About 365 Things in South Denver Suburbs: Whether you have lived in the south Denver suburbs for a long time or are considering Denver relocation, this series will help you discover new events and new places to visit every day!

Want To Find this page on Facebook to share with your friends & family? Click on over to the Face book page 365 Things to Do In South Denver Suburbs “Like” it and share!

Other Things to Do in the South Denver Suburbs you may like:

Day 33 – Denver Parade of Homes

Day 42 – Grand Golf – Highlands Ranch, CO

Day 43 – War Memorial Rose Garden

Steve Scheer – Denver Realtor®

Denver Real Estate

Littleton Real Estate

Highlands Ranch Real Estate

Are you considering selling your Highlands Ranch home after summer has come to an end?

Or in any area of town?

Whether you live in Denver, Highlands Ranch, Lone Tree or Littleton Colorado- wherever – one thing is certain.  Most of your yards look gorgeous right now.  The grass is green, flowers are blooming.

If you think there is even a chance that you are going to be selling your Highlands Ranch home once the flowers have gone to rest and the grass becomes a different shade, say of brown – take some photos – now!

This is especially true if your landscaping is is a big selling point of your home. If you have a yard that is going to wow folks, then be able to show it and have those photos available.  Your Highlands Ranch real estate agent will be able to use them – sure they won’t want to use them in your primary Denver MLS photos, it would make your listing look dated if used in the middle of winter  – but they could use them in a number of other ways.

These pictures of your gorgeous yard can be used in online fliers, videos, websites and any number of creative marketing strategies. The key is to show buyers the potential beauty of your yard when the season returns.  Sometimes it is hard to visualize in the fall and winter when everything is brown and dead and maybe even covered in a foot of snow.  It opens up the imagination to the possibilities.  Home buying is so much an emotional decision, and letting the mind visualize what is under that foot of snow or brown grass gets the creative juices flowing and you have entered a whole other ball game.

If there is even a hint that your home will need to be on the Highlands Ranch real estate market before next May or June – get that camera out now before it is too late. Even though today could be a record breaker in the heat department, the last 7 to 10 mornings you can feel the change in the air, it is only a short matter of time before this task will be too late for you.

Related Denver & Highlands Ranch Real Estate articles you may also want to read:

5 Reasons Your Denver Home Has Not Sold

5 Quick Tips to Help You Sell Your Denver Home

What is the Best Highlands Ranch Neighborhood

Curb Appeal is Important to Sell Your Denver Home

Click Here to Search All Denver and Highlands Ranch Real Estate

Steve Scheer, Denver REALTOR®

For More Info on Denver & The Suburbs:

Highlands Ranch Real Estate
Greenwood Village Real Estate
Denver Real Estate
Lone Tree Real Estate

If you would like more information on the Denver area or more information on Highlands Ranch real estate, contact Steve at 720-849-6101.

This is the time of year that the Denver real estate market always seems to heat up. Sellers begin to put their homes on the market and buyers begin to actively look to purchase.  It seems that nearly every year the trend is mostly the same.  We have had a few tough years lately in the Denver real estate market and the activity has been down but the trend is relatively the same. This year can potentially be a more vibrant real estate market due to several factors, including the current buyer tax credit which is set to end April 30th. 

So, what are just a few things sellers can do to improve the odds of selling their home in this prime time of the season? Well there really are no secrets that we all haven’t heard or read before.  The basics remain the key to success.  In working with buyers in the Denver market and listening to their input, I can offer a few suggestions that may be useful.

1.  Curb Appeal – Take a little time to spruce up the yard and outside of the house.  We had some early snow here in Denver, perhaps you never even had a chance to do that last of the year clean up before the snow started. Add mulch, mow, trim, maybe power wash or at least hose down the cobwebs off the siding, especially at the front porch and door.  This is the first impression and if your otherwise beautiful home has no curb appeal, sometimes the buyers won’t even bother to come in. 

2.  Clean and Declutter -  Don’t take this lightly!  Also, don’t take it too personally either.  If your home is cluttered and maybe in need of some elbow grease then take care of it.  If your agent or someone else has told you this, then don’t take it personally, just take it as good advice and act on it.  You probably wouldn’t try to sell your car or any other valuable asset without first cleaning it up a bit, would you?

3. Stage it -  The feeling a buyer gets when touring your home is so important.  You want to make sure your home is staged to offer a warm, comfortable feel to the buyer.  Sometimes this is just a matter of using what you already have and strategically placing it.  Sometimes it may require the services of a professional stager.  If it is within your budget, then a professional stager can work wonders for your home’s appeal.  In any case, another set of eyes can usually make a difference.

4.  Exposure – Where is your home being marketed?  You aren’t just relying on a sign in the yard and maybe an ad in the paper are you?  Today’s buyers are first looking to the internet by an overwhelming majority.  You need to make sure your home is exposed to the millions of potential buyers out there with a solid internet strategy.  This should include not only traditional websites, but a strong social media exposure as well.  This is vitally important and crucial to your success.

5. Price – Yes, its true.  No matter what you’ve done to prepare and market your home to the buyers out there, if it is too overpriced it still won’t sell.  You’ll need a good pricing strategy.  Pay attention to market reports and absorption rates for the local real estate market.  Be realistic and flexible.  Your price needs to be in line with the fair market values in your area.  You won’t fool the buyers and certainly not the appraisers.  I regularly post market reports and trends for different areas of the Denver real estate market so you can always check back here, or contact me and let me know what area you are looking at & need info for.

I hope these few tips can help you in preparing your home to sell.  Many sellers beat the odds and get top value for their homes in minimal time, even in this market.  Usually, it is because they have taken the time to set themselves apart from the competition.  If you’re considering a move in the Denver area, give me a call or email, I would love to help.

Looking for more info about Selling Your Denver Home? Try these…
What is an Absorption Rate?
Selling Your Vacant Home?
Your House Won’t Sell if Buyers Can’t See It

Steve Scheer, Denver Realty Partners

Search all Denver & Denver Suburb Homes Here

If you would like more information on the Denver area or more information on Denver real estate, contact Steve at 720-849-6101.