Vancouver Portland Real Estate Blog

Central Park Homes: Basement Water Problems

Sometimes finding water or moisture in the basement can be traced to small cracks and splits in your driveway.  This is particularly true in older neighborhoods such as Vancouver’s  Central Park.

A seal-coat protects the driveway from the sun’s ultraviolet rays and helps prevent water from seeping through cracks, where it can contribute to freezing/thawing damage or undermining of the driveway, and keep the water and moisture from traveling down into your basement. The appearance of fine cracks in the driveway is a clue that it is time to apply a seal coat. The graying of a driveway’s surface is another indication the asphalt is drying out. Adding a protective coating to the driveway usually is only required about every 3 years or so. It is good insurance for helping to keep your basement dryer.

Pricing your Property To Sell

TC-house-for-saleIt is vital in our slow Vancouver real estate market to hire an experienced Realtor who has deep roots in a community. In doing this, you can rely on their expertise in pricing your Vancouver home for sale. The price might be disappointing, but it is very important for you to be realistic on what your home is worth. Forget what you were told its worth even one year ago. Trust your Realtor and your property’s price will be competitive in this tough market and will sell in a timely fashion.

Secure your Home when on Vacation

Bash a burgler

Most of us do not realize that June, July and August, when homeowners are away on vacation somewhere, burglaries go up nationwide, anywhere from 10%-18% according to the FBIs latest figures. Most of the increases are seen in the month of August each year. 28% of burglaries are made WITHOUT ANY FORCE, meaning that the burglar(s) got in through an open door, or window.  Leaving your lights on timers, a radio playing and a neighbor picking up your newspapers and mail significantly helps.  There are 1.2 million burglaries each year.  Nine out of 10 home break-ins could have been prevented if homeowners knew how to burglarproof their homes, according to the Insurance Information Institute. Most insurance company’s will provide money saving tips on how to lock and secure your home while you are on a 5 minute run to the store, or a three week vacation in the mountains.

Home Prices Holding Up for Now

terryAccording to experts, one of the remarkable aspects of today’s real estate market nationwide, is the strength of the median price, up slightly over a year ago. The median price in July, 2010 was $182,600, and when you factor in the slowdown in sales volume, since the home buyer tax credit ended, the resiliency in pricing is a positive one. Homes are priced at a level that seems to match closely with the household’s ability to pay, and according to experts, that’s a reasonable place for home prices to be at the present time.

Choosing An Experienced Vancouver Realtor

Here are five mistakes first time home buyer often make:

  • Choosing an inexperienced Realtor. Be sure you choose an experienced Vancouver Realtor
  • Lack of funds
  • Not asking enough or the right questions
  • Procrastination on the offer
  • Taking resale value into consideration

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