Rose O'Reilly

Home means different things to different people, but I think that, at the end of the day, home is more of a feeling than it is a collection of rooms. What little touches make your home the place you yearn to get back to at the end of a long day?

True or False: half of buyers will pay more for a home with a kitchen island. Not surprisingly, this is true! On average, in fact, they'll pay around $1400 more. What about you? Would you pay a premium for this extra counter and dining space?

With the market moving so quickly, it's tempting to make an offer on a home without doing all of the necessary homework, like a thorough viewing and checking out the neighborhood. One thing I encourage you to keep in mind is that you can change a lot of things about a home -- wall colors, fixtures, even layout. What you can't change it the location. If you want to be prepared to move quickly while house hunting, I recommend starting at the neighborhood level. Where do you want to live? Make a list of neighborhoods in town that would work for you and your family. If you know that, you can move forward on an offer with a lot more confidence.

More and more house hunting happens online, which is why great listing photos matter. Stellar photos not only help your house sell, but they can help it sell for more. In fact, professional photos can boost your home's sale price by an average of over $10,000 over market value and help your home sell 50% faster. Many buyers won't even bother viewing a home that has bad listing photos.

Open houses are a staple in real estate, but that doesn't mean they're a requirement, especially now. Sure, an open house is a good chance for a lot of potential buyers to view your home in a short time, but now that online listings are so robust, you don't necessarily have to have one. In today's market, most buyers look at homes online first, which helps weed out a lot of people who are "just looking." If you've been wanting to list but were stressed out at the idea of a parade of people coming through your home, let's talk about how we can create a listing that minimizes the need for in-person showings and open houses.

611 Maze Glen, 3 Bedroom, 2.5 Baths. Lake Views. Close to North County Mall.$570,000

Hi Friends, Please like my business page and let me know when you hear of someone thinking of selling. #roseoreilly4sranch #sandiego #homes

Easy Autumn Home Maintenance Tasks It's a week into October and fall is officially here. The change of seasons is always a good time for your clients to do a little maintenance and spruce up the interior and exterior of their homes before winter hits. 5 Yard Maintenance Tips for Fall... 1.Interior *Check the windows and doors for energy efficiency. It will help keep the home warm and save cost. Swap summer screens for storm shutters on windows and check weather stripping around doors. *Think ahead to the holidays and see if there are changes to make living spaces that might host gatherings, especially the dinning room. 2.Exterior *Keep up with raking leaves as they fall, to avoid an exhausting job once they are all on the ground. *Clean out the gutters and inspect the roof to help prevent winter weather damage. *Remove hoses and shut off water in exterior pipes to protect against freezing. *Replace exterior bulbs and consider installing additional lighting if it's necessary for the evenings that get darker earlier. 3.Fun *Decorate the home with gourds and pumpkins. Not only are they fun expensive, they add a nice burst of seasonal color to the interior and exterior of the home. *Avoid the holiday crowds and start planning a gift list now. This is especially true if making homemade presents is on the agenda. Planning now will save a lot stress and running around as the holidays approach. For an in-depth list of tasks, be to check out all 15 steps on Houzz' s Fall Maintenance Checklist here. Source:"Your October Home Checklist", Forbes(Oct. 2, 2015)