Local

Jan 03 2017

New Listing in Fate- Woodbridge- 4 Bed-2.5 Bath- Energy Efficient!

Introducing this Beautiful New Listing at 376 Bayberry in Fate, TX

Incredible Opportunity to Own this Spacious and Energy Efficient Home in Desirable Woodcreek- A Masterplan Community in Fate-Complete with Pool-Club House, Walking Trails, Multiple Parks and Playgrounds.

376-bayberry-dr-rockwall-tx-high-res-4 Immaculately Maintained and Super Clean- This Home is 100% Move-In Ready. Kitchen Features Ceramic Tile Floors, Stainless Steel Appliances, Ample Cabinet and Countertop space. Master has Garden Tub, Separate Shower and Dual Sink Vanities.

376-bayberry-dr-rockwall-tx-high-res-8 Split Bedroom arrangement with Master Downstairs and 3 Additional Bedrooms + Gameroom Upstairs. Seller currently uses one of the Bedrooms as his Office. Completely Flexible Space- Lots of Options depending on your family needs.

376-bayberry-dr-rockwall-tx-high-res-15 This Home Features Tons of Storage Space and All Bedrooms except 1 have Walk-In Closets. Backyard has Wood fence & Covered Patio.

376-bayberry-dr-rockwall-tx-high-res-7 Want to go Green? This is your Place!- $30K Solar Panel Unit on rear side of Roof mean Next to Nothing in Electricity Costs–Seller even has Electric Car – No Gas & No Electricity –What a Deal! This Fabulous Property is being offered at $239,900. Call or Text Jennifer at 972.814.3612 for a Private Tour.

Check out Virtual Tour on the following link:

https://apps2.shoot2sell.net/gallery/376-bayberry-dr-rockwall-tx/

Jul 11 2014

Getting Ready to Sell….Don’t make these costly mistakes!

When you’re getting ready to sell your home, you don’t want to make any mistakes that can decrease the value of your home. However, sometimes sellers unintentionally do.

I always tell my clients the way you live in your home is very different than the way you sell your home…with that in mind, if your thinking about doing any “improvements” AND/OR could possibly sale in the near future, keep these tips in mind:

Following trends.This is a tricky one because we all can get caught up in liking designs that are trendy, but if you follow a trend that quickly dies, you’ll find that you won’t be impressing buyers. If this trend is difficult to change, it could decrease the value when you put your home on the market. That’s because buyers will think about how much money they have to put into the home to fix the trendy mistake. So, certainly make your home your style, but if you have plans to sell it in the future, think about how renovations may impact the sale of your home.

Not maintaining appliances. Yes, you most certainly can sell a home “as is” meaning in the condition that the buyers initially see it. But having lots of issues and repairs needed will decrease the home’s value. Cleaning up appliances that will convey with the home is important. If they’re completely messed up, it’s worth replacing them. It should go without saying that not maintaining the entire home is a huge way to decrease its value.

Not keeping it cool. If you want buyers to hurry in and out of your home, overheat them and you’re sure to have them running for the door. Make sure on hot days that the home is aired out so that stale air can escape. Stifling, hot, muggy homes are not fun to tour. Turn the AC on to a comfortable temperature to ensure your potential buyers take their time to really see your home. If you don’t have AC and it’s blazing hot, using ceiling fans and open windows. Also, having some nice cold water or lemonade available will likely encourage buyers to stay a little longer at an open house.

Not sweating the small stuff. Okay, you don’t have to “sweat it”, but you do have to care enough to tend to even the smallest of issues such as fixing a faulty light switch or replacing burned-out bulbs. Buyers go through homes and turn on lights, flick switches, open closets, cabinets, drawers, and even look in medicine cabinets. Keep small things like these in good working order. It’s easy to do and it can help lead to an overall better opinion of your home.

Going wild with color. You may like lively colors but, generally speaking, buyers like paint that is neutral. That’s because it’s like a blank canvas which, upon moving in, they can paint it the way they like it. Extra bright or non-traditional colors can scare them off. So opt for something other than funky purple walls and shag green carpet.

Remember, that avoiding some of these mistakes can help prevent buyers from thinking your home should be worth less than you do.

Apr 04 2012

Forney, Rockwall, Royse City Storm related damage

The Dallas, Rockwall, and Forney areas we significantly impacted by yesterday’s storms. We live in Heath, and there were some scary
moments! Even if your home wasn’t directly hit by a tornado, you could still have minor or even major damage.

I pulled up some information about things to look for if you are concerned your home might have experienced hail damage. This is from the Allstate website and it gives these tips if your home was in a tornado and/or hail storm:

Tornado Damage

• In the days or weeks after a tornado, check walls and ceilings for water stains or yellowing that did not exist before. It could indicate damage on the roof.

• Carefully inspect the outside gutters. Damaged gutters could cause water damage inside the home long after the actual gutter damage occurs.

Hail Damage

For residents who received hail, there are a few places you can look for signs of damage:

• Check patio covers, screens, windows and soft aluminum roofs for hail damage.

• Be safe when checking for roof damage, and consider using binoculars to check your roof for hail damage.

• Check vehicles for dents and broken or cracked glass caused by hail.

• If you find hail damage, consider doing the following:

• Cover any broken windows and holes in your roof, as well as any broken glass on the car, to prevent further damage.

• Report your insurance claim as soon as possible; no matter what the level of damage.

• If possible, have your auto insurance, homeowner insurance and/or renter’s insurance policy numbers available when you report your claim.

• Take pictures before you make any temporary repairs.

• Keep receipts for necessary temporary repairs due to a covered loss to present to your adjuster. These costs may be reimbursable under your homeowner policy.

If you just aren’t sure whether there was damage or not, but are still concerned, there are many roofing companies with experience evaluating hail damage and also can negotiate directly with your insurance company.

I hope this helps! As always, don’t hesitate to call or email me if you need anything at all! I hope all is well and hope to hear from you soon.

Talk to you soon,

Jennifer

972.814.3612

Mar 27 2012

Top Ten Things You Need To Know About Rockwall ISD

With more than 14,000 students and 1,500 employees, there are great things happening every day in Rockwall ISD that our parents, staff and community may not hear about. As you can imagine, there are also challenges. In an effort to keep you informed, we’d like to share the “Top Ten Things You Need to Know About Rockwall ISD”. The safety and security of our students sits at the top of our priority list. It also lends us our first Top Ten topic…

Rockwall ISD Makes Student Safety a Top Priority

The safety of each student is of the utmost importance. The objective to provide a safe and secure educational environment necessitates a three-prong approach involving the efforts of Rockwall ISD employees, external government agencies and the involvement of parents and families. Rockwall ISD’s internal safety processes involve campuses and district departments working together to follow established policy and procedures. External entities include municipal, county and state agencies that collaborate with Rockwall ISD on a regular basis. Every one of these shareholders plays an important role in promoting safety at all Rockwall ISD schools, facilities and events.

Some Current Safety Measures

All elementary and middle school campuses have intercom/camera systems so campus doors can remain locked throughout the school day.
The district’s Emergency Operations Plan provides procedure, direction and planning to respond to emergencies.
In the event of an emergency, the district’s Skylert messaging system informs parents via e-mail, phone and text.
Video cameras on campuses record activities so that they may be reviewed when incidents occur.

You Might Not Know That…

Campuses receive an average of 407 visitors per day.
Over 73,500 visitors entered Rockwall ISD campuses last school year.
Raptor Visitor Management software is installed at all campuses requiring visitors to show proper identification.
School Resource Officers are assigned to each middle and high school campus.
There are 33 crossing guards posted across the district.

Future Safety Needs within Rockwall ISD

District-wide wireless crisis communication system
Update card access system and mechanisms for door security
Update current camera systems and add additional cameras in critical locations
Update specific fire alarm systems
HVAC manual shut down controls

Questions & Answers

Are all areas of my child’s campus under video surveillance?
The district has cameras on the interior of all campuses. The cameras are located in hallways and other common areas within the campus. Some campuses have exterior cameras that capture entrances and portions of the parking areas. Future planning includes installing cameras that provide additional coverage of parking areas and cover gymnasiums, cafeterias and other strategic locations.

What is the district doing to prevent school violence?
Rockwall ISD strives to create partnerships between students, staff, school resource officers, and parents to avoid violence in school-related settings. These relationships are geared towards incorporating prevention, detection, and communication efforts to create an atmosphere free of violence. In addition to this critical human element, Rockwall ISD also utilizes various mechanical systems in working to deter school violence.

Top Ten Things You Need To Know About Rockwall ISD.

Why am I asked to swipe my ID when I visit a campus?
The district uses Raptor Visitor Management software that requires you to present your ID at the front office of every campus. The system uses government issued photo ID’s to determine the identity of the person requesting access to a campus. Raptor checks a national registered sex offender database to determine if the person that is requesting access is a registered offender. It does not check a visitor’s criminal history.The Rockwall ISD Top Ten Things You Need to Know campaign focuses on areas that impact a student’s education and environment. Topics include safety, financial difficulties, the academic environment, district growth, college readiness, special programs, facility information, environmental efforts and kindness and compassion. Visit www.rockwallisd.com for updates on the Top Ten.

Feb 17 2012

The Real Estate Journey of Jack and Joan…

Congratulations to Jack and Joan! They just closed on their new Dree’s home in the Stone Creek subdivision in North Rockwall. For Joan and Jack it has been a journey that many buyers and sellers face. They wanted to build a new home, but had to sell their existing home first. The selling and buying process ends today, but it is just the beginning of their new life in their new home!

Jack and Joan first called me in September 2011. They wanted to build a new home, but needed to sell their home first. I walked them through the process and gave them an idea of what they could expect from the sell of their existing home.

Like most buyers, Jack and Joan were sceptical about entering into a contract for a new home when their existing home had not yet sold. That is one of the many reasons I referred them to Drees. Drees has an excellent contingency program that allows buyers to contract a new home with the understanding that their existing home must sell first. While they did have to put up a down-payment, if for some reason their home did not sell, they would have gotten 100% of that down payment back; no questions asked!

In Jack and Joan’s case, things could not have gone smoother. After only 35 days on the market, we received an acceptable offer on Jack and Joan’s home and they closed very soon after. In fact, one of the biggest obstacles they had to face was where to live until their new home was finished being built. While it was a bit of a headache to have to move twice, Jack and Joan agreed that their home selling so quickly was actually a good problem to have!

They decided to move their furniture into a POD and keep out only the essentials they would need until their new home was built. PODS are a great option when you need an interim storage unit. It was delivered at their existing home, filled up with their furniture and then stored until tomorrow, when it will be delivered to their new home.

Jack and Joan enjoyed going to the design center and picking out the brick, interior paint colors, tile, and wood stain for their new home. They did such a wonderful job on selections; the house turned out just beautiful!

If you are thinking about selling your home and want to buy or build a new one, but don’t know where to start; please give me a call! I will walk you through the process and be there for you as your advocate the entire time. There are a lot of issues to consider and timing can be complicated, but it can be done. Jack and Joan are perfect examples!

Thank you again to Jack and Joan! I feel truly blessed to have worked with you and wish you both Health and Happiness as you start this new chapter in your life. God Bless You Both!

To find out more about building a new home, selling your existing home and how it all can come together, give me a call at 972-814-3612 or email at jenniferherriage@ebby.com.