New Resource: Homebot.

Homebot

Move over Zillow, Homebot is the newest resource in town. Homebot is a comprehensive website for both buyers and sellers, alike. It provides very relevant information, such as, the value of your home, neighborhood market analysis and opportunities with the equity created.In the past few weeks, you may have received an email from Homebot providing you with detailed information for your current home and/or market information regarding the neighborhood you are purchasing your new home in.

For Homeowners: Homebot originally started by only providing information to homeowners. The comprehensive tool is able to give you an estimated value of your home and what you have paid so far and your equity in the home. Taking this information, Homebot will give you different sanerios of what you can do with the equity. Such as, what value of a home you could afford if you sold or what you could afford if you chose to use the equity to buy a investment home. Of course, these are all estimates but through the site you can easily request a Comparative Market Analysis from your real estate agent and/or financing options through your lender.

For Buyers: This is a recent upgrade to the website and provides additional and valuable information to those purchasing a home. As you start your search, you and your real estate agent can input certain zip codes you are interested in. A market report is then generated detailing how long it takes for buyers to buy a home in this neighborhood, similar neighborhoods that you may want to look at, how much you could afford with current interest rates and the ability to communicate with your relator and lender.

There are not many online resources that impress me but Homebt with its broad-based information for homeowners and homebuyers certainly has. As we start to see a shift in the market and interest rates, Homeboy presents a superb opportunity to learn more about your biggest asset, your home. Want to research your own home on Hombot? Feel free to go here.

Liz is  broker and owner of Liz Daigle Realty.

How to Win at Selling Furniture Online.

selling furniture.

Okay, full confession, I have become a bit addicted to selling furniture online. There is a thrill involved in selling a piece. Let’s be honest, furniture is expensive and a depreciating asset. When you find you don’t need the piece anymore, selling it online is a great way to recoup some of the money. In the last few weeks, I have sold dressers, couches, mirrors, dining room tables, chairs, console tables and more online and here are a few of my tips.

Big Items are a hard sell. It makes sense since they are difficult to move. Things like couches, wardrobes and dining room tables are a hard sell. There are a number of services that can help – both Lugg and Dolly are on demand movers. You can input the pickup address and the drop-off address and how many movers you will need and you receive an estimate and can book right there. As a seller of furniture, this is a service you can add if you wanted to include delivery.

Post to all the of sites. Craigslist, Nextdoor, Facebook Marketplace, etc. You want everyone to see the item(s) and you never know which platform will reach the buyer.

Take decent pictures. Clean off the piece of furniture and put it in decent light for the picture. Just like real estate, you want it to look it’s best.

Provide Dimensions. Be sure to measure the length, width and height. This will help you and the buyer save time and energy.

Pickup. We had really great luck while selling furniture and only had one person not show up to pick up a piece of furniture. People can be fickle and flaky when it comes to picking up furniture and I find it easiest to set up pickup times through the week. Typically at least one evening night and a weekend morning or afternoon is best.

Cash only. Protect yourself and accept only cash. No credit card or PayPal or Venmo.

No Holds. A lot of people will ask for you to hold the item. I, personally, don’t. My goal was to sell the furniture for the highest amount and in the quickest amount of time. Holds could waste my time and delay getting paid (if they don’t show up or decide they don’t like the piece).

Some items have a high demand. Usually smaller items under $100 have a lot of demand and it can be overwhelming. My advice would be to post these items while you are home and can have someone buy it that day, otherwise your Facebook Messenger and email will be going off with inquiries until it is sold.

While it has been sad to see some things go, it has been fun selling items online. I have found this experience to be similar to real estate in a lot of ways – marketing, pricing and negotiation skills are needed for both. Also, it is always. a blast meeting new people!

Liz is  broker and owner of Liz Daigle Realty.

Downtown Littleton Project: Smaller Space.

smaller spaces

Excuse us while we cram all our personal items into this smaller space in Downtown Littleton which is why, for the time being, projects have stopped monetarily. Read here and here if you missed the projects thus far. When you are limited on space, you need to utilize every inch of your space. So, how do you proceed when you are moving into a smaller space?

  1. Go through your personal belongings before the movsmaller spacee. Sometimes this one is tough as during a move you may be limited on time. If you are able to organize and consolidate before the move, it will be easiest to unpack and find a new home for items that you need in your smaller space.
  2. Choose multi-functioning furniture (the other function being: storage).
    Buy a couch with room to store blankets, a chest instead of a coffee table, a dresser instead of a console table. When you live in a smaller space, the key is to have LOTS of storage.
  3. Go UP. If you were blessed with heigh ceilings, use them! High shelving, large pieces of art, etc. High ceilings will help draw the eye up and make the room feel bigger.
  4. Stick to a neutral palette. Neutral colors let the space feel open and airy. smaller space
  5. Open shelving. Have a small kitchen? We do! Consider open shelving as a place to store and showcase your dishes.
  6. Natural light. Sunlight makes the smaller space feel bigger. If you are able to, get creative and add in windows to your space. If that is not an option, improvise with mirrors. Mirrors give the illusion of natural light and more space!
  7. Use every space in your home. This is your chance to get creative, is there dead space in your home? Underneath the stairs? An entry way? A mud room? A random room (we have that in Littleton!). Use it. Give the space function with a piece of furniture with storage or built-ins.

Sure, it is easy when you have a lot of space and all your personal belongings fit into your home. But when you start to look for a home, often some of your criteria has to be amended. As we know, space is limited in ANY city. If you enjoy the walkability, sometimes you have to compromise on space. That being said, it can be done and it’s fun to get your creative juices flowing with this challenge!

We bought a home in Historic Downtown Littleton! Are you considering buying a home in Littleton? Here are a few homes currently on the market:

Liz is  broker and owner of Liz Daigle Realty.

 

 

Downtown Littleton Project: Interior Doors.

Looking for an update on the Downtown Littleton Project? Here it is! The past few weeks were full of…. painting. The living/dinning room and two bedrooms are now painted, leaving just the kitchen and bathroom left to complete. For both the walls and trim, we chose Benjamin Moore’s White Dove. This is one of my favorite whites because it isn’t as stark as some of the whites available and is a little “warmer”.

If you remember it was a more of a peach color when we moved in. Check out the video here. By just paining the interior, you can change the whole feel of the home. Now the home looks bigger and feels more crisp and modern. The interior doors have not been painted yet and that is because as I was painting the second bedroom, I got the idea of painting the doors black. I just love the contrast of white walls and trim with a black door.

Photos found via Pinterest. Sources can be found here.

I have browsed countless shades of black and have decided on Tricorn Black by Sherwin Williams. Does anyone else love looking at different shades of the same color? At some point your eyes just glaze over but there is something so thrilling about finding the perfect shade (after analyzing the differences for what seems like forever). I love Tricorn black because it is simple and stark, the perfect contrast to white walls and antique doorknobs, as we have in the Downtown Littleton project.

We are at a crossroads in this Downtown Littleton project currently and we need your help! We can continue painting the doors Benjamin Moore’s White Dove or we can paint the doors Tricorn Black. What are your thoughts? Do you love the contrast of black doors with white walls and the simplicity of white doors and white walls?

As always, follow the project on Instagram, Pinterest and Facebook.

Considering buying a home in Littleton, as well? Start your search today!

 

Liz is  broker and owner of Liz Daigle Realty.

Downtown Littleton Project.

Downtown Littleton

We bought a house in Downtown Littleton and plan to remodel it! Click here for the video tour of the “before” with appearance from Hank, the Aussiedoodle.. Don’t worry, we will keep you in the loop of our work.

The Details:
2 bedrooms.
1 bathroom.
1018 sq. ft.
unfinished basement.
8,000 sq. ft. yard.
1 car detached garage.
7 minute walk to Downtown Littleton and Lightrail Station.
Open living/dinning room.
Built in 1917.
Gorgeous hardwood floors throughout main level.

 

The Projects:

 

  • Paint, everything.
  • Finish the basement, adding another bathroom, living room and bedroom. (roughly 600 sq. ft.)
  • Refinish the front porch floor.
  • Make the kitchen more user friendly – not sure what yet but right now the fridge is in a separate room.
  • Replace air registers.Downtown Littleton
  • Add central A/C.
  • Remove cat smell (three cats resided here before us).

The Goal:

 

The updates will work to preserve the character of the home and the year in which it was built. Once finished, we will evaluate the highest and best use of the home: short term rental, long term rental or selling it. Follow along as we make these changes!

 

Why Downtown Littleton?

Historic Downtown Littleton has a number of shops, restaurants, coffeeshops and bars and with a walk score of 40, they are easy to get to on foot. Close by are parks and trails for walking/running and biking, including the High Line Canal. Home values have increased steadily over the past five years and as Downtown Littleton continues to grow, we saw the potential for more appreciation. As Downtown Denver continues to get more expensive, many people are finding Downtown Littleton as an affordable option. In recent years, the Viewhouse and the Tavern have moved into Downtown Littleton, attracting millennials, one of the largest groups of consumers right now. Additionally, a few of my favorite places in the city have announced they are opening a location in Downtown Littleton – Bacon Social House and Fierce45.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Information provided by Recolorado. Average Sales Price in Downtown Littleton over the past five years.

Considering buying a home in Littleton? Search your search here!

Liz is  broker and owner of Liz Daigle Realty.

 

Five Wineries in Denver to visit.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Of course, we all associate beer with Colorado but what about wine and Colorado? You may be surprised to find out that Colorado is home to some excellent wineries. Have no fear, Denver has a good number of wine distilleries to get your wine fix locally.

Bigsby’s Folly

3563 Wazee Street Denver, CO 80216

This gorgeous distillery in located in the popular RiNo neighborhood. You will love the modern ascetic and the historical elements from when the building was built (and the wine, of course!) Enjoy tastings of the wine collection from Oregon, California and Colorado. Lounge and enjoy the wine and small bites either in the restaurant or on the porch.

Balistreri Vineyards

1946 E 66th Ave, Denver CO 80229

Located just ten minutes from Downtown, this winery features handcrafted wine without sulfates and chemicals. Enjoy a tasting and tour the wine cellar and winemaking facilities. Catch additional events here, such as, the Garden Party in June and a Wine and Movie Night in July. Open for lunch, Balistreri offers a superb location to catch up with friends over a glass of wine.

Bonacquisti

4640 Pecos St, Unit I, Denver CO 80211

Enjoy the finest wine on tap at Bonacquisti! This winery has a number of events through the month. Grab a friend and take a wine class or enjoy live music every Friday on the deck with Food Trucks at Friday’s Uncorked. Want even more of an excuse to drink wine? Purchase a growler and refill at your leisure.

Spero Wines

3316 W 64th Ave. Denver, CO 80221

With roots in Italy, this family run business makes some of the best wine. The tasting room is only open from 1-5 on Saturdays so you will have to put this wine tasting on the calendar. Their award winning wines range from reds, whites and dessert wines.

Silver Vines Winery

7509 Grandview Ave Arvada, CO 80002

Located in the heart of Ole Town Arvada is this quaint winery. Exposed brick walls, seating for multiple parties and a private event room make this a perfect place to enjoy a glass of wine and relax. No food is served here but you are more then welcome to bring your own food to munch on. The production of the wine is conducted in a nearby warehouse, which you are able to tour by appointment.

Whether you are looking for a tasting with friends, live music and wine or just to relax, be sure to give these Denver wineries a try! Local and award-winning, there is sure to be nothing but enjoyment.

 

Liz is  broker and owner of Liz Daigle Realty.