Lately a lot of my clients have been asking me to set up appointments for homes they’ve seen online. Unfortunately, those viewings never happened because, in spite of their supposedly current listings, the properties had already been sold. One had been off the market for several months.

I know a lot of you are looking form information online about a prospective home: a record nine out of 10 house hunters searched online last year, according to the National Association of Realtors.

But there are plenty of problems with non-MLS listings, including errors, out-of-date information and properties that are listed on the Web but aren’t actually for sale.

The most common problems are simply errors—listings that advertise gas heating when in fact the house runs on electric heat, or a price cut that hasn’t been updated online. But in some cases, “mistakes” may be intentionally misleading.

These discrepancies often appear on the listings that are posted on the Multiple Listing Service, an online database that listing agents like myself are expected to keep current.

It’s estimated that around 21% of the data agents individually submit for posting on real-estate websites isn’t updated when changes are made to the price or when the property is sold, according to a report released last month by listings website Trulia.com.

For example, some real-estate agents keep listings on their personal websites long after they’ve sold; when home buyers contact the agent inquiring about the property, they’re instead pitched new properties that might not meet their criteria.

Such lagging information is more common with smaller firms’ websites and could be a function of real-estate agents simply forgetting to update those listings.

Either way, for buyers and me, it’s a waste of time.  Popular real-estate listing sites say they try to update information often, but many sites rely on a feed from the MLS, which means it’s largely the responsibility of individual real estate agents to update listings.

Bottom line, when you hire me to find you a new home, I’ll work diligently within the parameters you give me, so you can spend your time relaxing – leave the locating to me.

Tips on Winterizing

Winter is almost upon us and there are some things you should do to lower your winter energy bills and protect your home for the harsh winter. Even if your winter isn’t so harsh as in the north, there are some
things you should do about once a year to help you save money on your bills.

Go to the store and pick up all the things you will need for the winterizing, especially the furnace filter and any water softener stuff you might need. For large stuff like the softener salt, it’s easier to do this in the fall when it’s not slippery outside and still nice out, hauling things like this is sometimes better done in the fall than the dead of winter.  Some of the things you should be doing at this time and checking out are in the following list.

Window and door seals, sweeps
Caulk around windows, doors, and vents
Furnace filter, vacuum out furnace
Vacuum air ducts and around registers
Clean out Air Conditioner fan unit, turn off, cover
Check around foundation for holes, fill
Clean out window wells, between window panes
Check mortar around any brick work
Check siding, shingles, paint etc on house, touch up
Sidewalk, concrete, check and fill cracks
Gutters, clean and check
Drain field, septic tank treatment, if needed
Check any slow drains, get them fixed now
Fill oil or propane tanks, winter is a bad time to run out
Clean out fireplace chimney and flue
Check chimney screen to keep out animals, leaves
Check any heat tape on pipes, install any needed
Check decks, porches & stain, repair if needed
Check duct for clothes dryer, clean
Cover outside faucets, shut off inside
Cover outside outlets
Check outside lights, covers
Go around yard and put away summer stuff, furniture, pool toys, etc.

After you have been around and checked and fixed things, you can be sure that you will save at least something if you have done some fixing up on the caulk sealants and added some extra winterizing to your home. Some of things I have listed are not required in all homes but some things are good ideas to do before the bad weather hits.

There are some things that you need to do before it starts to get colder if your in a part of the country were it does get cold. You need to put in any sealant or caulk, mortar or paint in before it gets below about sixty degrees. You should be able to do things like check the foundation, mortar and any cement and fix this type of stuff before it gets cold also. If you own a fireplace you should do any maintenance on it before you use it the first time of the year. And if you own a pool you need to get it ready for the winter, drain, clean and winterize it.

When winter gets here is a bad time to find out you need to do things on your home or car, and it can be too late for some things. A few hours of time spent before the bad weather hits can make the difference and save you time and money later, and in some cases frustration and annoying repairs in the dead of winter.