July Newsletter Hot of the Presses

We have a monthly newsletter that we are no longer printing and snail mailing. It’s all electronic, all the time. Here’s our July issue that we hope you enjoy.

http://teampatereau.files.wordpress.com/2013/07/over-the-fence-july-2013.pdf

Easy & Affordable Moving is Now Possible with Moveline

Here’s a cool app to help you with moving. Hope you find it useful.



By John Thompson, Executive Vice President, Intero Real Estate Services, Inc.
Moving can be such a headache!  When in the middle of a move, one can’t help but wonder if there is anything more stressful, tiring, and frustrating.  Unfortunately, we all have to move sooner or later, and moving is never cheap.  Lucky are we living in the age of apps because there is a company that has made moving more efficient and surprisingly enjoyable.  If you are moving, let me introduce you to your new best friend: Moveline.  If you aren’t moving, but know someone who is, tell them about Moveline and you’ll become their best friend!

Moveline is a service that allows you to take video of your belongings.  You can do this live on FaceTime with a Moveline consultant or you can send in prerecorded footage room by room.  Either way, a friendly Moveline consultant will take inventory of all your stuff (quicker than you could yourself… it’s their job!), forward that information to moving companies, and help you choose the cheapest service based on what you want.

Just like traveling websites we have become familiar with for purchasing cheap flight tickets, Moveline lets you compare prices and customer reviews of moving services all in one place.  Better yet, the first quote they give you is the price you will pay; no surprise price increases further down the road!  And did I mention the app and Moveline service itself is free?
Essentially, Moveline makes moving easy by quickly gathering all the information you need to save money and helping you make smarter moving decisions.  Some tips they might give are:

• Don’t fill a box with all books
• Cushion fragile items with your clothing instead of buying bubble wrap
• Use your luggage as a box

And some questions Moveline can answer are:

• How much will it cost to hire a moving company?
• How many boxes do I need for all my stuff?
• What truck size do I need if I want to do the move myself?

Moveline will fill you in on all your options for moving.  They will even offer you advice on what should be moved with you, what you should transfer to a storage unit, and what should be thrown away if you have those kinds of questions.  If you change your mind further down the road, your consultant will tell you how you can rearrange your options (bring one thing, leave another behind) to keep your original moving quote the same.   After Moveline has booked the move in its entirety for you, you just have to box your smaller stuff up and be ready for the moving service to arrive!  This app is unique, and making a rather big splash in the app market.  An article from Forbes states, “Moveline brings the ease of an app to the headache of moving.”  Writer Jordan Crook for TechCrunch tested Moveline when he moved within New York City and said, “The quotes I sourced on my own from moving companies and storage companies couldn’t beat the prices I got through Moveline.”   Moveline serves long distance moves from any city to another city in the US as well as local moves in the SF, Boston, Austin, LA, Seattle, Washington D.C., Atlanta, Chicago, Portland, Phoenix, Denver, and NY metropolitan areas.  So download it, and have the most smooth moving experience yet.   You can contact Moveline 8am-10pm EST every day through the app.  Or, if you don’t have a smartphone capable of video chatting, just use their website to get the same service (although you’ll have to be able to send them videos of your home and belonging, say, through your laptops’ video camera).

Market Gets Tense for Home Buyers

By Gino Blefari, President and CEO, Intero Real Estate Services, Inc.

Have consumers in the market to buy a home already missed the boat? That's the question on a lot of peoples' minds as we dive into monthly sales statistics that keep painting an intensifying picture: more sales, more price increases, rising interest rates and fewer available homes for sale.

Existing-home sales increased 4.2% in May from April to an adjusted annual rate of 5.18 million homes, according to the most recent report from the National Association of Realtors. The number of sales was up 12.9% from the same month a year ago, when the annual rate stood at 4.59 million homes.

Energy Tips for Summer Cooling to Save Money and Reduce Pollution

There's lots of talk around here about the heat lately. Here's another post with helpful tips on how to stay cool. Enjoy, and stay cool!

The average home spends almost 20 percent of its utility bill on cooling. Increased energy production to run cooling systems not only raises costs, it also can contribute to pollution that adversely affects the quality of the air we breathe.

Which Way Should Your Ceiling Fan Turn in Summer?

The Cool Way!

Make sure your ceiling fans rotate in the correct direction to cool you in summer.

We’re having a heat wave; so make sure your ceiling fans are spinning in the right direction to move air around the room.

Most fans are reversible: One direction pushes air down, creating a nice summer breeze; the other direction sucks air up, helping you distribute heat in winter. There's normally a switch on the motor to change the fan's direction.

Is your fan turning in the right direction for summer?

Stand beneath the running fan, and if you feel a cooling breeze, it’s turning correctly. If not, change directions, usually by flicking a switch on the fan’s base. Typically, it's counterclockwise or left for summer and clockwise for winter, but the best method is to follow the steps above.

Funny note: We read on Yahoo! that one clever person used bubbles to see which direction his fan was blowing.

By: Lisa Kaplan Gordon for HouseLogic

It's hot this week-end. Want Summer comfort but hate the AC? Maybe, like many homes in this area, you don't have AC in your house. Follow these tips, and you’ll keep your house cool without frosty air conditioning.

Block that Sun!
When sunlight enters your house, it turns into heat. You’ll keep your house cooler if you reduce solar heat gain by keeping sunlight out.

Close the drapes: Line them with light-colored fabric that reflects the sun, and close them during the hottest part of the day. Let them pillow onto the floor to block air movement.

Add awnings: Install them on south- and west-facing windows to reduce solar heat gain by up to 77%, says the U.S. Department of Energy. Make your own by tacking up sheets outside your windows and draping the ends over a railing or lawn chair.

Mortgage Loan Terms

With interest rates on the rise it may be time for some of us to think about something other than that ever popular 30-year fixed loan. Here’s a comparison that may make your decision easier.

How to buy a home with a pool

While the decision of whether or not to buy a home with a pool is a personal choice for homebuyers, there are several factors to consider which will have a serious financial impact over the short and long term.

Beyond deciding whether or not you want to own a pool, there are additional issues to consider, such as the insurance, maintenance and safety costs associated with pool ownership.

"Owning a pool can be a wonderful experience and can add to the beauty and desirability of your home," says Doug Hill, a real estate agent at Coldwell Banker in Phoenix, Ariz. "But, we recommend that buyers consider the pros and cons of pool ownership before they dive in."

7 Design Secrets for a House You Can Live in Forever

The words dream house may conjure up fantasy amenities and custom trims. But smart homeowners also imagine a home they can live in forever — with a young family, through busy midlife, and with many of the common physical limitations that getting older can bring, from arthritis to needing a wheelchair.

Universal design (UD) is the design of products and environments that are usable by most people, regardless of their level of ability or disability, and at little or no extra cost. From entryways to kitchens and bathrooms to bedrooms, they often increase the value of a home. UD brings together the principles of accessible design (meeting standards for handicapped access, using “adaptable” design, meaning “normal”-looking design that can be revised later for disabled use), ergonomic design (allowing people and things to interact most effectively and safely), and green design (environmentally friendly spaces). UD is sometimes also called “lifespan design.”

Strong Price Gains Fuel Market Confidence

By Gino Blefari, President & CEO, Intero Real Estate Services, Inc.

Intero value #14 is confidence.  Confidence /con·fi·dence/ •noun.  Freedom from doubt; belief in yourself and your abilities.

Confidence is also the word in housing this week. At least that's what we're hearing from some of the top companies in housing finance.

JPMorgan Chase revised its forecasts for the industry, prompted by large gains in home prices. And Fannie Mae released its monthly national housing survey, showing a sharp increase in consumer confidence in the housing market.

Home prices could grow as high as 7.2% this year, according to JPMorgan's new report. Analysts at the bank studied prices and demand conditions as the market moves into summer. They revised 2013 predictions higher as well as projections for 2014 and 2015, with an expected 3.9% and 3.2% growth, respectively.