Happy March!
Spring is nearly here, can you feel it? For me, that means all things spring cleaning, fresh spring energy, longer days, warmer weather, and spending more time outside. (Oh, and a busy real estate market! That’s already started!)
Today we’re talking about:
✔️ Home 🛠️ Maintenance Tips
✔️ “Beyond the House” Refresh
✔️ Spring Market Update
✔️ Old School Southern Peach Cobbler
🛠️ March Home Maintenance Tips
- Wash linens
- Wash windows and put on screens
- Spot clean furniture
- Swap out your front door mat for spring
🧹🏠 “Beyond the House” Refresh
As we head into spring, it’s a great time for not only spring cleaning but also for a bit of a deeper “home” refresh.
📈 Did you know that home insurance rates went up 21% from May 22- May 23, and they’re on track to be up another 12% this year. (Money Magazine) Even if your insurance rates are paid as part of your mortgage, you can still shop around. If you have an agent who deals with multiple providers, they can shop it for you, or you can do your own legwork. Just make sure you keep your mortgage lender in the loop!
📑 If you’re like me, you’re neck deep in pulling together tax info, receipts, etc. While you’re at it, pull together any receipts, instruction manuals, etc, that you’ve put into your home over the past year. Collect all of these things in a binder, with maintenance records. Here’s a great one but you can also use a regular old binder! It’s a great way to stay organized or transfer info when you sell. Future you will thank you, and so will buyers.
🌸📈 Spring Market Update
While the spring weather is still working its way to us, the spring market appears to be already here. In the Richmond Metro area MLS (Richmond, Henrico, Hanover, and Chesterfield), median home prices are up 5.3% year over year, and 8.3% over the last month. Things are definitely picking up, too, as the number of closings jumped from 655 in January to nearly 900 in February!
Basically, the market in the Richmond area continues to be busy, tilted to favor the seller (as inventory is still low), and is likely to grow as we get further into spring.
If you’re thinking about selling this spring or summer, give me a call now- making a plan to hit the market at the right time can make a HUGE difference! And if you’re thinking of buying but waiting for rates to drop, let’s talk- remember, you can always renegotiate your rate, but you can’t renegotiate the price! So, getting out there now (BEFORE rates drop and things become more competitive) is a great way to get a jump on that spring competition. Happy Spring!
🍴Old School Southern Peach Cobbler
March is my late father’s birthday month, and while he would eat cake, his favorite was always cobbler, and peach cobbler, more specifically. While March is just on the cusp of the start of peach season, this recipe is great with canned or frozen peaches as well, and incredibly easy. So, whatever you’re celebrating, there’s no excuse for not making this one! Click HERE for the recipe.
