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Homebuyers wishlist this holiday season. Don’t miss out!

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Cooler winter temperatures and shorter daylight hours naturally limit the time we spend outside. Current interior design trends use nature punctuated with colour as a theme to rescue us from cabin fever. Here are some of this season’s ‘outdoor-in’ design essentials:

– Wreaths and Garlands: Made from traditional pine or more contemporary bay leaves, eucalyptus or holly. Live or faux, they are interwoven with brightly contrasting citrus fruits, pomegranates or berries for the most natural look. Glass-like beads and solid spherical ornaments in a shock of intense colour are also featured this season. Look for wreath stands to showcase your wreath at adjustable heights. Garlands look best along mantles, doorframes, windowsills and banisters, snaked among candles on tabletop centrepieces, and as trimming atop tall furniture like bookcases, wardrobes and entertainment credenzas.

– Trees and Topiaries: Like wreaths and garlands, trees and topiaries combine the same natural elements interwoven with vivid colours whether live or faux. This season, you can also find them made entirely of a single material, such as glass-like beads, holly berries, tinsel, or round ornaments, in either a uniform tone or a bouquet of colours. Available in a variety of sizes, they can be brilliantly illuminated with lights and garland, or they can sparkle alone with a pre-treatment designed to imitate frost, ice or dew.

– Faux Fire: Indoors or out, there’s nothing quite like sitting around a fire to add ambiance to quality time spent enjoying family and friends. It’s no surprise then, that sales of electric fireplaces are red-hot this season. They provide the romance and warmth of a traditional gas or wood burning fire without the requisite venting or gas lines, and at a fraction of the cost. Plug them into a standard 120-volt outlet to heat the room, or turn the heat off and appreciate the flame effect alone, complete with glowing embers! Electric fireplaces can be purchased as an insert for existing fireplaces or as a stand-alone piece with a mantle surround. Mantles are available in a variety of styles, colours and wood materials to suit a variety of personal tastes.

– Finishing Touches: Just as the snow sparkles outside, so too do those finishing touches. From decorative ornaments, to picture frames, to napkin rings, to cardholders, to candles and candleholders…think jeweled. If those finishing touches aren’t bejeweled with faux gemstones, then they glitter with the imitation effect of frost or ice.

Don’t Wait To List!

Once your home is updated with the winter season’s latest design essentials, it is most visually appealing to prospective buyers. Serious homebuyers are indeed active through the holidays and into the early months of the New Year. This means minimal disruption for you and your family and viewings from truly qualified prospects. Please contact me for more information about listing during the winter season.

Here are some great tips from Waterloo Regional Police for keeping your home, and your family, safe for Halloween.

The night is here when the streets will be filled with ghosts and goblins, not to mention princesses and fairies. As always, there are a few important Halloween safety guidelines that should be observed to ensure the night runs smoothly.

Around the house…

-Many people enjoy transforming their homes into eerie scenes. Be sure to keep the path leading up to your door free of obstacles for the little ones, especially those with masks who might have trouble seeing in dim light.

-Keep pets indoors on Halloween to protect them from hazards and preventing them from being aggressive to visitors.

-Before you light those candles in your pumpkin, consider using inexpensive safety glow sticks. Nothing says spooky like a glowing green jack-o-lantern!

Costumes…

It is important that when helping a child pick out a costume, safety should be the main concern.

-Wear a light-coloured or bright costume, reflective tape or arm bands to heighten visibility.

-Wear a costume that is properly fitted to reduce the chance of tripping on it.

-Select a costume that is constructed from flame-retardant materials.

-Make sure your vision is not restricted. Consider completing your costume with make-up rather than masks. Masks may require that the eye-holes be cut larger for the sake of good peripheral vision.

-Shoes should fit properly even if they do not go well with a costume.

-If a child’s costume requires the use of props, such as a flexible-plastic sword, make sure the sharp tip is cut or filed round.

-Glow sticks are also an excellent method to increase a child’s visibility. You might want to consider creating a fun necklace with string to ensure they will want to wear as part of their costumes.

-Accessorize with a flashlight!

Before the kids hit the streets, it is important that parents be aware of the route that their children plan to follow. If you are unable to take them out yourself, consider asking another parent, an older sibling or babysitter to do the honours for you. Ensuring your child is wearing a watch also allows you to establish an agreed upon curfew.

Teach your children to recognize the places along his/her route where they can obtain help: Police Station, Fire Station or any other well indicated public place.

Although tampering of loot is rare, remind children that they must have their candy inspected by their parents or guardian prior to eating them.

Some Rules for Trick or Treaters…

-Bring a flashlight;

-Walk instead of running;

-Stay on the sidewalks (If there is no sidewalk, walk on the left-hand side of the street facing traffic);

-Avoid jaywalking

-Do not cut across lawns or take short-cuts;

-Take masks off when walking from one house to the next;

-Do not go inside houses and do not get into vehicles;

-Only visit houses that are lit;

-Stay away from animals you are not familiar with; and

-Vandalism is not just a ‘trick’ – it is against the law and has consequences.

Above all, have a safe and ghoulishly good Halloween!

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We all know the “location, location, location” adage.  Its part of what buying real estate is all about.  But, what actually makes a location great?

According to Jay Walljasper, author of The Great Neighborhood Book, a great neighbourhood is about community.  It’s about knowing your neighbours, feeling safe, and having pleasant spaces to be together.

Walljasper’s book offers lots of ideas for making your neighbourhood a better place to live and for building a stronger community:

Know thy neighbours.  Sit on your front steps and say hello as people walk by.  Have a chat with the person who pumps your gas or the retired lady down the street.  You’d be amazed at how people open up to a little friendliness.

Create a great gathering spot.  A nice playground with benches and shaded areas is a natural place for residents to gather.  Communities across Canada have worked together to raise money via personal and corporate donations to build spaces kids and adults love.

Make it an event.  Whether it’s a neighbourhood barbecue, a Saturday street sale, or an organized trick-or-treating event for the kids, getting your neighbours together to do something fun builds friendship and community.

Walk more, drive less.  Get out and enjoy the neighbourhood instead of sealing yourself off in a car.  Encourage walking by lobbying the city to widen sidewalks, add crosswalks, and traffic calming zones.

Be neighbourly.  Shovel your neighbour’s walk when they are out of town, offer an afternoon of babysitting to the single parent down the street, or welcome a new neighbour with an invitation to coffee.

Take back the streets.  If you live in an area where crime is a problem, organize a neighbourhood watch and walk around.  If you see anything suspicious, notify the police.  Criminals are deterred when there are too many people around.

Shop local.  Supporting your local merchants will ensure they succeed along with the distinctive flavour they add to your neighbourhood.  If you don’t have shops in your area, it may be due to zoning restrictions.  Lobby your city council to change zoning so that retailers can set up shop.

Take pride.  Take care of your neighbourhood the way you take care of your own property.  When you go for a walk, bring a bag to pick up litter.  Plant flowers in public places.  Spruce up the park swings with some fresh paint.

Take advantage.  Enjoy what your neighbourhood has to offer.  Hang out at the coffee shop, go for a walk or bike ride, relax in the park.  A great neighbourhood is only great if you take time to enjoy it.

It takes work to make things better, but everything you do will pay off through your enjoyment of your community – and increased property values.  For more ideas, consult The Great Neighborhood Book.  It’s an excellent resource that could spark some greatness is your neighbourhood.

Fall is a feast for the eyes with red, gold and bronze hues. While enjoying the trees in their tawny splendour, consider these simple tips to prepare your garden for the upcoming winter.

Grass
Although a carpet of leaves is part of autumn’s glory, don’t let them sit too long. Rake them frequently as grass needs oxygen and sunlight for proper growth.  This is also the time to seed your grass for a thick lush lawn in the spring, and to keep pesky weeds out.

Leaves
Put leaves to work! Small leaves from birch, beech and silver maple trees (or shredded larger leaves) spread under shrubs and over soil will degrade into mineral nutrients and worms will turn them into fertilizer.

Pruning/Re-arranging Plants
Pruning in the fall is important. With leaves cleared you have a better view of your plants. Cut off dead and diseased branches. Remove diseased leaves from under roses (blackspot) and dispose of in the garbage (not your compost heap) or they’ll re-infect plants the following spring. If you decide to re-arrange plants or shrubs, move them while the earth is still warm so that the roots can take hold.  Protect delicate shrubs with burlap.

Bulbs
If you want to see crocus, tulips and daffodils peeping through the soil in spring, now is the time to start planting.  Buy the very best quality bulbs and you will be rewarded with showy blooms in the spring. Check with a local horticulturalist for native bulb options and ideal planting conditions.

Container Gardening
Fill your balcony or patio containers with fall flowers.  Picture a pot filled with Vanilla Butterfly (marguerite daisy), with a background of Orange Sedge – this olive green grass turns orange in cool weather, finally fading to bronze.  Want an instant conversation piece?  Plant ornamental Kale (winter cabbage) in your container:  its quirky look is an attention-getter.

Every season has its beauty, but a Canadian fall is spectacular – enjoy!

“I will make your house stand out,” your Realtor says as he/she sits with you at  your kitchen table going over the paperwork to put your house up for sale.

Your Realtor lets you know that she will use every possible means, both  modern and traditional, to put your home in front of as many potential buyers as  possible. The more potential buyers who see your home, the quicker it will  sell.

That is the good news. All these steps will help sell your home as quickly as  possible.

The bad news is that this aggressive marketing and advertising of your home  might bring your home and family to the attention of individuals who may wish to  do you harm. Now, don’t panic. We all know there are bad and just plain evil  people in our world who commit crimes against other members of our society.  While we all continue about our daily lives as usual, we take common sense steps  every day to keep our families and homes safe and secure.

Your Realtor will give you some common sense tips and instructions to help  ensure you and your family stay safe while your home is on the market. These  include:

Be sure you know who you let into your home: Your Realtor or her office will  contact you in advance to set up appointments for Realtors to show your home to  their clients. The Realtor showing your home will give you his business card  when you greet him at the door. This allows you to confirm that he is the  Realtor who scheduled the appointment.

If you have not received advance notice, or if a Realtor does not provide you  with identification, do not let him into your home. If anyone shows up at your  door wanting to see your home without a Realtor, do not let him enter. Simply  refer him to the phone number on your yard sign to get information and to set up  an appointment to see your house.

Your Realtor usually will suggest that you try not to be at home when your  house is shown. Generally, a potential buyer will be more comfortable and spend  more time looking at your home if you are not there. If anything seems wrong  when you return to your home, such as the door being unlocked, do not go into  your home. Contact your Realtor to see when the last showing occurred, or if he  has any answers. If you are still concerned, you will want to contact local  police and have them inspect your home for you.

In today’s world, many older children and teenagers are home alone during the  day, particularly this time of year. It is very important that you tell them to  take the same precautions if someone comes to look at your house while they are  home alone. All of us, and particularly young people, can be swayed by a good  story. Remember, con artists and others seeking to do harm or steal are often  very convincing. Be sure you and your children do not fall for their  deceptions.

Take care of your valuables and your identity: I have walked into homes I was  showing and found jewelry boxes open in the bedroom with expensive items in  plain sight. This is just asking for trouble. When your home is on the market,  be sure to, at the very least, put all your valuables away. If possible, it is a  good idea to put expensive jewelry that you don’t wear frequently, or other  valuables like coin collections, in a locked cabinet or even a safety deposit  box.

If you are like me, yesterday’s mail probably is sitting on the kitchen table  or the counter. You may have even left your bank statement or credit card bill  open on the kitchen counter after you opened it. With just a mobile phone,  someone could take a picture of your statement or bill that you left on the  counter and have your account numbers.

De-personalize your home: All of us have photos of family and loved ones in  our home. These pictures can provide too much information to someone viewing  your home, such as your child’s name, school, etc. Also, lots of photos of your  family make it harder for potential buyers to picture their family in your home.  While I am not suggesting you leave empty nails on your walls where pictures  used to be, it is a good idea to remove pictures from end tables, dressers,  etc.

If you are home when your home is shown, it is best to stay out of the way of  the Realtor and her client. If you are asked questions, keep your information to  facts about your home and the neighborhood. Information about your family and  your children is none of their business. A professional, business conversation  is always the best and safest course.

Your Realtor is your guide to a safe, trouble-free home-selling experience.  By following a few simple, common sense precautions, you can make sure your  family is safe and secure as you get ready to move to your next home.

Date: Sunday, June 10, 2012

Location: Waterloo Public Square

(75 King Street South, Waterloo, Ontario)

Every year thousands of Canadians across the country take part in a Walk. Get involved by creating or joining a team, registering as a participant, sponsoring a participant, or by joining us as a volunteer.

Walk with us in Kitchener-Waterloo and take a significant and positive step towards ending global poverty in the developing world.

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