October Home Maintenance Tips

1. Clean Gutters

The leaves are falling, which means it will be time to clean out your gutters again. This is a maintenance task most home owners will add to their to-do list at the changing of the seasons. Typically it is done at the end of spring and at the end of fall.

2. Shut off exterior water supply

Summer’s over, make sure you’ve turned off your exterior faucets and hoses. This will hopefully help prevent any damage that could happen to water lines during the cold weather months.

3. Change direction of ceiling fans

Yes, you read that correctly. This was an interesting tip that I had to read further about to truly understand the benefit (side note, recommend reading this article too. It had a great list of amazing home maintenance tips). When you change the direction of your ceiling fan to turn clockwise in the fall or winter months, it will draw the cold air up toward the fan and help disburse the hot air out throughout your home.

During the spring and summer months, it’s best to have your ceiling fans moving counterclockwise to create the opposite effect – bringing the cold air down and the hot air upward. This way you stay nice and warm during the fall and winter months and cool during the warmer months!

4. Change furnace filters

As a home owner, you’ll want to change out your furnace filters a few times a year. It might be the first time you’ve used your heat in awhile, think about all of the dust that probably has collected on the old one (gross!).

5. Change damper direction

Depending on where you spend most of your time inside, you may want to change your damper direction. For example, perhaps your porch doesn’t get a ton of use in the winter, therefore it might not be a room that needs the most heat flowing into it.

As always, I hope these tips were helpful! For more specific or detailed information and/or recommendations on home maintenance, I recommend reaching out to your local service providers regarding their respective areas.

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The post 5 Simple Home Maintenance Tips that are No-brainers for October appeared first on Kristen Fitzpatrick Realtor.

When buyers are searching for a new home, they will more than likely come across your listing online. This is your opportunity to peak their interest with an amazing first impression of your home’s best features. Preparing your house for listing photos may feel daunting, but it doesn’t have to be! Here’s a list of simple tips to setting your house up for success before the photographer arrives.

3 Tips to Prepare Your Home for Outstanding Listing Photos

1. Turn on all lights, lamps and overheads

Ever come across a listing featuring dim or poorly lit rooms? I’ll bet they didn’t exactly have you jumping for joy to see that home. Before the photographer comes, make sure all lights are working properly and turned on in your house. If a bulb is out, be sure to swap it out for a new one before the day of your photos.

Natural light is one of your best friends when it comes to listing photos! Open those blinds and let the light pour in.

2. Declutter all counter spaces in kitchen and bathrooms

Clear counter tops in kitchen and bathrooms as well as other tables and surfaces throughout your home. Homes that are a bit more dated or older benefit tremendously from a good, deep clean. Less clutter will allow buyers to focus on a home and its potential versus all of the personal items inside it.

3. Depersonalize the entire house and remove furry friends from areas being photographed

Lastly, take the time to depersonalize every room in the house. This means replacing family photos with neutral pictures or artwork, putting away collectibles and cleaning up pet toys and beds. Speaking of furry friends, you’ll want to take them out of the house with you on the day of photos. While some people may find an image of a cat or dog on the bed endearing, others may see it as a turn off.

A big part of listing photos, open houses and showings is to create an opportunity for buyer’s to view a home and see if they can envision themselves living in it. Lighting, decluttering and depersonalizing your home will help create a beautiful neutral environment for buyers and hopefully get your home one step closer to sold!

Looking to list soon? Get in touch and find out what your home’s worth!

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