Home staging gives sellers a leg up - Chattanooga Bar Association

24 | Friday, March 16, 2012 Hamilton County Herald www.hamiltoncountyherald.com
Counseling clients on
home improvements
First and foremost, never counsel before you are hired. Counseling
happens after a client-relationship is established. Attorneys
don’t off er legal advice before their services have been offi cially
retained. Doctors don’t diagnose without assurance of compensation.
Realtors should follow suit. Wait until the listing agreement is
signed. � en begin to give counsel regarding how the owner can realize
a quicker sale or higher price by making recommended home
improvements and implementing staging advice.
Too frequently, agents give away their expert counsel during
listing presentations in hopes of proving their ability and expertise
to sellers. More often than not, though, the sellers simply take the
counsel with them when they link up with an agent who is less skillful
but who promises a cheaper fee.
• Second, tell the truth. If the sellers need to clean the home, tell
them. If they are smokers and the house reeks from cigarettes, tell
them.
I once had to convince some clients to hire professional cleaners
to rid their home of the smoke smell that permeated the carpets,
walls and furniture throughout the entire home. � en I made them
promise not to light up again for so long as they owned the house.
� ey agreed under protest, but we sold the home, so they were happy.
� e wrong odor in a home can really lower the odds of a sale.
Likewise, appearances can kill buyer interest. If the home is
crowded with too much stuff , say so. If the pink exterior color will
cause people to drive right on by, speak up. Holding your tongue
will only delay the day of reckoning. What’s more, it’s easier to be
totally frank when you fi rst notice the problem – though only after
the listing contract is signed. If you counsel before you gain commitment,
your advice could off end the sellers and cost you the listing.
� is is another reason to follow Rule No. 1 and get a signature
before giving counsel.
Improvements that contribute to the sales price
When it comes to preparing a home for sale, worthwhile and
necessary improvements fall into three categories:
• Improvements that bring a home back to standard.
• Improvements that correct defects.
• Improvements that enhance curb appeal or fi rst impressions.
� e following sections provide guidelines in each area.
Bringing a home back to standard
Coach’s
Corner
By Dirk Zeller
Before you present a home with horribly dated décor, counsel
the sellers to modernize the interior look in order to align it with
the expectations of current-market buyers. sellers don’t have to go
overboard; they just need to install a reasonable color scheme and
implement enough of an update so that new owners will feel they
can move in without having to undertake an immediate facelift.
Share the following advice with sellers:
• Keep improvements simple. A total redecoration isn’t necessary
or even advisable. � e objective is to arrive at a widely acceptable
and reasonably current color scheme in paint, counters, and
fl oor coverings.
• Don’t aim to create a design showpiece. Realize that following
the purchase buyers will often change a home signifi cantly to
make it their own. � e sellers’ objective is to allow them to feel that
their changes can happen in time over the next years; that they’re
not glaringly and immediately necessary
• Focus on the big stuff . If the interior of a home looks current
and the landscaping, yard, decks and patios are well kept and
serviceable, the onus on buyers to make signifi cant, immediate
changes lightens. As a result, they’ll be more likely to buy the home.
� ey’ll also be more apt to make a more competitive initial off er
than would be the case if the home presented obvious exterior or
interior color or repair issues. Any changes a buyer has to make
to a home comes out of money they must have, not money they
can borrow. Many buyers will use that fact as one of the factors of
which home they buy now.
• A little paint makes a huge diff erence. Repainting is one of
the most cost eff ective ways to freshen the look of a home and even
to disguise design shortcomings.
• Steer clear of the latest trends. Counsel clients away from
the current rage in deep wall colors. Advise them to create a warm,
blank canvas that any prospective buyer can work with.
��HEALTH CORNER
Crash course on diabetes
By Kay Bona
Recently, a close friend of mine
was diagnosed with Diabetes
Type II. Over 17 million Americans
have diabetes, and each day,
approximately 2,200 new individuals
are diagnosed. After my
friend was diagnosed, I realized
my knowledge of diabetes was
lacking. Below is a simple test on
the subject – how much do you
know?
1. Onset of Type II diabetes
most likely occurs:
a. in childhood or adolescence
b. at ages 20 to35
c. at ages 35 to 65
d. at 65+
2. Which of the following is
NOT a symptom of diabetes?
a. hair loss
b. frequent urination
c. fatigue
d. sores that don’t heal
3. Which is the most appropriate
test for diagnosing
diabetes?
a. fasting plasma glucose blood
test
b. urine test
c. fi nger-stick test
d. saliva test
4. � e role of insulin in our
system is:
a. to break down carbohydrates
b. to aid Alpa Cells, which are
responsible for the production of
glucagons
c. to store glucose in our cells
to use as fuel
d. to regulate our level of metabolism
5. “Borderline Diabetes”
refers to:
a. a person with Gestational
Diabetes
b. a person with mild diabetes
c. there is no such thing as
“Borderline” diabetes
d. a condition known as impaired
glucose tolerance (IGT)
Answers:
1. D. � e incidence of Type
II diabetes drastically increases
with age.
2. A. Hair loss is not a symptom
of diabetes.
3. A. � e fasting plasma glucose
blood test is the preferred
test. Finger-sticks and urine tests
are more suitable as a screening
tool and regular glucose monitoring.
4. C. When glucose enters our
blood, insulin moves it into our
cells to be used as fuel.
5.C. “Borderline” diabetes does
not exist, although the term is
used quite frequently.
Insulin and diabetes facts:
Type II Diabetes is the most
common type of diabetes. Type I
Diabetes usually strikes in young
persons (average age is 14), with
Type II Diabetes typically developing
during or after middle age,
often referred to as “adult onset
diabetes”.
Diabetes is a condition where
insulin, a hormone, is not doing
its job. Insulin is needed
to properly store foods we eat
for use as energy. Here’s how
it works: Most of the food we
consume is broken down into
glucose and other simple sugars.
As newly arrived glucose enters
our blood stream, insulin is
released from the pancreas, binds
to the glucose via Insulin Receptors,
and moves it into your cells
to use as fuel.
If insulin production is insuffi
cient or does not function properly,
the newly arrived glucose
cannot be stored and remains
in our blood stream - our blood
sugar levels then become elevated.
� ese high levels, left untreated,
can eventually cause damage
to other systems and organs.
With Type II Diabetes, the
pancreas produces some insulin,
but the amount is either
not enough or is not eff ective,
because the body’s cells are resistant
to it.
Type I Diabetes must be treated
with insulin, which involves
injections. Insulin cannot be
taken as a pill because the digestive
juices in the stomach destroy
the insulin before it can work.
The warning signs of diabetes
include:
• Frequent urination
• Blurred vision
• Unusual thirst
• Numbness or tingling in the
extremities
• Intense hunger
• Frequent infections/slowly
healing cuts
• Fatigue
• Irritability
Ten tips for diabetes control
1. Monitor your blood sugar
at least twice (preferably three
times) a day – before meals.
2. Take your medication
correctly, read and following
directions, and pay attention to
warning labels.
3. Read food labels – the fi rst
8/3/11
thing to look at is serving size.
� en look at the carbohydrate
per serving. Look also at the fat
and calories, if appropriate.
4. Eat at regular times - stay
within one hour each day of usual
meal times. Controlling your eating
schedule helps control your
blood sugar and lead to better
management.
5. Learn the carbohydrate
count of foods in the portions
you commonly use. Use measuring
cups to measure serving
sizes and count out servings of
crackers, pretzels, chips and nuts.
Carbohydrate control is essential
in diabetes management.
6. Make wise selections when
dining out. Eat smaller portions,
order salad dressing on the side
and dip with your fork, and avoid
“sugar free” desserts, having a
bite or two of regular dessert
instead.
7. Exercise daily with some
type of walking, biking, swimming,
dancing or aerobics. Exercise
improves your body’s use of
insulin.
8. Examine feet daily. Diabetics
are more prone to foot problems.
Always wear proper fi tting
shoes.
9. Take care of your heart!
Heart disease causes 65 percent
of deaths related to diabetic complications.
Maintain good body
weight, exercise and decrease the
saturated fats.
10. Know your A1c Hemoglobin
number – this is the
measurement of sugar over the
past three months which tells the
degree of diabetes control.
Diabetes is a serious condition.
However, with proper treatment
and a healthy lifestyle, your blood
glucose can go down to normal
levels.
So, the next time you hear
someone claim they have “a
touch of sugar” or just “borderline”
diabetes, do him or her a
favor: Tell them all diabetes is
important, and careful monitoring
and treatment is crucial. ��
©2011 The Mepham Group. Distributed by
Tribune Media Services. All rights reserved.
Level:
1 2
3 4
Complete the grid so
each row, column and
3-by-3 box (in bold
borders) contains
every digit, 1 to 9. For
strategies on how to
solve Sudoku, visit
www.sudoku.org.uk
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