• Check and lock windows. Even if you think your windows are shut, go around and check each one to make sure it’s snug – and lock it.
• Use ceiling fans. Consider adding ceiling fans to every room; they truly make a difference. Set them spinning in the correct direction to pull air up this winter so they displace warm air at the ceiling and send it down the walls. Set on the lowest speed, a ceiling fan evens out indoor temperature without creating drafts.
• Invest in insulated window treatments. Stop the costly escape of household heat and absorb solar heat during the day.  Thermal window shades can stop up to 80% of heat loss.
• Close drapes/shades at night. This keeps the cold out and the warmth in.
• Bake! Remember when it was too hot last summer to even think about cooking? Now is the time to indulge in home-baked goodies.
• Drink warm tea.  There is a tea for every constitution. If you haven’t discovered the soothing comforts of tea drinking, start exploring!
• Dress for winter. Don’t be in denial and run around in a T-shirt. It’s winter! Wear layers, wear wool, wear corduroy, wear flannel—then you can turn down the thermostat.
• Humidify. If you heat with wood, don’t forget to place a decorative ceramic container of water on the stove to increase indoor humidity. You can place a few drops of your favorite essential oil in the water for nice ambience.
• Sleep in flannel sheets. There is nothing cozier or more inviting. Flannel bedclothes mean instant warmth.
• Get a programmable thermostat. You can set it to drop the temperature a few degrees while you sleep, and bring it back up before you rise.
• Get off the couch! If you hibernate too much, you may get the blues. Be sure to dress warm and get outside—walk, ice-skate, sled, ski—whatever you enjoy, just get some fresh air and exercise. Then you can scurry back into your comfy condo in Arlington VA, feeling refreshed and grateful to have shelter from the cold winds.

If you’re looking for a snug home or condo in Arlington VA to purchase, I can help. Contact me at 703-909-3939 or Steve@HomeSearchWebsite.com.

Steve Hawkins
Long and Foster REALTORS®
Springfield, Virginia
www.HomeSearchWebsite.com
Steve@HomeSearchWebsite.com
703-909-3939

Start 2012 off right by setting new life and financial goals for yourself. If you’ve been renting and are planning to remain in Arlington VA, then it’s definitely time for you to consider buying a house or condo. Here are some benefits you should take into account:

• You’ll build equity. If you take out a loan, you’ll be using someone else’s money to turn your property into a piggy bank and eventually make money as your home or condo in Arlington VA appreciates. Plus, when you sell down the road, you don’t have to share the proceeds — what’s not to like about making money with your bank’s money!
• You’ll receive tax breaks. The government supports purchasing houses (and condos) by giving you significant tax breaks on your federal taxes. And when it comes time to sell, you don’t have to pay capital gains taxes either, until you hit a certain ceiling.
• You’ll be able to count on consistent payments year to year. If you can get a fixed-rate mortgage, you won’t need to worry about an annual increase in your payments. When you’re renting, you never know what your payments could be from lease to lease, which makes it hard to determine if your current residence will always be within your budget.

While the appreciation on a property you purchase might not shoot up as fast as it did a decade ago, buying a home is still a wise long-term investment. Paying rent is no investment at all.

If you’re on the fence about the benefits of purchasing one of the homes or condos in Arlington VA in the New Year or would like to see what’s available, please call 703-909-3939 today or email me at Steve@HomeSearchWebsite.com for more information.

Steve Hawkins
Long and Foster REALTORS®
Springfield, Virginia
www.HomeSearchWebsite.com
Steve@HomeSearchWebsite.com
703-909-3939

• Ban the use of pesticides in your home. Insecticides are toxic to all life forms, not just insects. Many are carcinogenic. If you have a serious pest problem like roaches, try using boric acid against them. Otherwise, the occasional spider or beetle is not a real threat to you.
• Simplify cleaning. Most commercially available cleaners are a stew of chemicals. You don’t need to be breathing their fumes. Instead, you can use baking soda and/or white vinegar for most jobs.
• Ventilate the bathroom. In order to prevent mold and mildew in the steamy bathroom, it pays to use the exhaust fan when showering.
• Use the range hood. If you cook with gas, those fumes are adding carbon monoxide and other pollutants to the air in your home or condo in Arlington VA. Make sure your hood exhausts the fumes to the outdoors.
• Get some houseplants. They not only add beauty and a bit of nature to your home, they also clean the air! Some of those known to be best include spider plants and philodendrons, both very easy to grow.
• Don’t burn scented candles. Sorry, but the fact is, scented candles are a serious source of indoor air pollution. See the next tip for an alternative.
• Use essential oils. You can use a diffuser to disperse essential oils that smell good and also kill germs and mold. Some of these include clove oil, cinnamon and lemon. If it’s the flame that you love, invest in pure beeswax candles, but never leave a lit candle unattended.

If you’d like to find one of the homes or condos in Arlington VA with great indoor air quality (as well as other great qualities), I can help. Give me a call today at 703-909-3939 or email me at Steve@HomeSearchWebsite.com.

Steve Hawkins
Long and Foster REALTORS®
Springfield, Virginia
www.HomeSearchWebsite.com   
Steve@HomeSearchWebsite.com   
703-909-3939

• Deck the Halls – While you want to remind some buyers of their yearly traditions, you don’t want to offend others. If you usually go overboard with decorations, tone it down a little this year and go for a winter nature theme — think pinecones, snowflakes and the smell of cinnamon.
• Spruce Up the Winter Curb Appeal – In the dead of winter, yards and condo entrances can look barren and bleak. Don’t add to the seasonal depression. Ensure you shovel snow, rake fallen leaves and clear dead flowers from their pots. If your condo doesn’t have a direct outside entrance, spruce up your front door with a welcoming holiday wreath.  Also, with dark settling so early, turn on both indoor and outdoor lights to give your condo in Arlington VA a cozy glow.
• Host a Holiday Open House – With your home in the season’s spirit, it’s the perfect time to have interested buyers walking through. Offer fresh baked cookies and apple cider to seal the deal.
• Be Flexible – Put in the extra effort to keep your home clean so that buyers can drop in anytime. Property purchasers looking at this busy time of year will be seriously interested — and you might be one of the only properties open to them.

By adding a little holiday cheer to your condo in Arlington VA, you could remind potential buyers of happy memories and put them in the giving — or hopefully, buying — spirit.

If you would like more tips to get your home or condo sold during the holiday season, please phone me at 703-909-3939 or email me at Steve@HomeSearchWebsite.com.

Steve Hawkins
Long and Foster REALTORS®
Springfield, Virginia
www.HomeSearchWebsite.com   
Steve@HomeSearchWebsite.com   
703-909-3939

Remodelers trained as Certified Aging-in-Place Specialists (CAPS) can help homeowners adapt their homes and condos in Arlington VA for easier accessibility and improved functionality. CAPS remodelers learn about aging-in-place home design and how to help customers create a more comfortable home.

Don’t have the money to hire a CAPS remodeler? There are also accessibility and functionality improvements your handy-person or loved one can inexpensively do for you, such as:

• Installing grab bars to minimize falling
• Adding comfort-height toilets
• Constructing raised-bed planters for easier gardening
• Improving lighting in order to see better
• Removing loose carpeting or electrical cords stretched across the floor to prevent falls
• Replacing traditional faucet handles and doorknobs with levers that can be opened or turned with a wrist or elbow. Seniors with mobility limitations or arthritis can open doors more easily this way.
• Moving your washer and dryer to the main floor. The cost for this will vary greatly depending on the need for plumbing changes.

There are other universal design features for which you’ll have to save because they can get quite expensive. These include:

• Upgrading to a no-step shower that a wheelchair can roll into
• Widening doorways to allow for scooters or wheelchairs
• Creating no-step access from a patio to a home’s interior
• Installing a chair lift to allow access to multiple levels of your home

If you’d like to purchase a home or condo in Arlington VA that is equipped for you or your loved ones to age in place, I can help. Give me a call today at 703-909-3939 or email me at Steve@HomeSearchWebsite.com.

Steve Hawkins
Long and Foster REALTORS®
Springfield, Virginia
www.HomeSearchWebsite.com   
Steve@HomeSearchWebsite.com   
703-909-3939

With Christmas right around the corner, I know it’s hard to justify spending a lot of money on your home or condo in Arlington VA. Below are a few easy and affordable green projects for you to do this Thanksgiving holiday — and they’ll start paying off immediately!

• Buy compact florescent light bulbs. You don’t have to do this all at once. As your light bulbs burn out, purchase these energy savers for around $3 a piece. They last about ten times longer than incandescent light bulbs and can save you close to $40 over their lifetime.
• Use faucet aerators. These only cost about $10 and are incredibly easy to install. Just unscrew your faucet nozzle or showerhead and slip the aerator in. It can cut your water bill in half by making the water squeeze through tiny holes, which makes it feel like there is more pressure. You’ll also reduce heating bills because the less hot water you use, the less you’ll have to heat.
• Put in ceiling fans. If you don’t have these in your house, then you’re missing out on a huge energy-saver. Starting around $50, ceiling fans push hot air down and help regulate each room’s temperature — just switch the blade rotation for summer.
• Replace your old toilet. Older toilets can dispense almost 3.5 gallons per flush, while modern low-flow toilets dispense as little as 1 gallon. If you’re in for more of a handyman challenge, you can purchase these for as low as $150. The more people you have in your house, the more savings you’ll see.

Not only will your home or condo in Arlington VA and finances thank you for the green upgrades, but the environment will too.

If you’d like more green ideas you can implement this Thanksgiving break, please call me at 703-909-3939 or email me at Steve@HomeSearchWebsite.com.

Steve Hawkins
Long and Foster REALTORS®
Springfield, Virginia
www.HomeSearchWebsite.com
Steve@HomeSearchWebsite.com
703-909-3939

Today’s windows are improving all the time, with added features making them tighter than ever.  For added comfort, lower energy costs and a soon-to-expire tax credit, it might be time to upgrade. Before you go window shopping, it will help to know something about the following terms:

• NFRC: This is the National Fenestration Rating Council, which brings you the labels found on all new windows. They test and rate the window’s performance in several important categories.
• U-Factor: This indicates the window’s resistance to heat loss. It is the inverse of the R-Factor used in insulation, so the lower the number, the better.
• SHGC: This is the Solar Heat Gain Coefficient. Most important in hot climates, it tells you how much of the sun’s radiant heat can pass through the window into your home or condo in Arlington VA. It is a number between 0 and 1. In a hot climate, you would want a low SHGC, such as .4, but in a cold climate, you might want a high SHGC (e.g. above .5) in south-facing windows, for solar heat gain in winter.
• AL: This stands for air leakage. Also a number between 0 and 1, it measures how tightly the window is constructed. Specifically, it represents the amount of air, in cubic feet per minute, that can pass through 1 square foot of the window. It’s best to get windows with an AL score below .3.

If you are replacing several windows in an area, make some of them fixed windows that don’t open; they are inherently tighter than those that do, and cost a bit less too. Upgrading the windows in your home or condo in Arlington VA will increase its value, both to you and to future owners.

If you’re looking for one of the homes or condos in Arlington VA with updated windows and more, contact me today at 703-909-3939 or Steve@HomeSearchWebsite.com.

Steve Hawkins
Long and Foster REALTORS®
Springfield, Virginia
www.HomeSearchWebsite.com   
Steve@HomeSearchWebsite.com   
703-909-3939

1. Eliminate trip hazards. Remove bikes, toys and garden hoses from your home or condo in Arlington VA front yard and porch. Sweep and rake leaves.
2. Replace burned out lights. Trick-or-treaters have a hard enough time seeing through their masks; don’t increase the danger by keeping them in the dark.
3. Restrain pets. You don’t want your pet to jump on a trick-or-treater, or even worse, bite someone.
4. Use a flashlight or glow stick to illuminate your carved pumpkin. Lit candles are dangerous, especially around small children or crowds of people.
5. Practice candle safety in your condo in Arlington VA. Keep indoor jack-o-lanterns with lit candles, and any decorations with open flames, away from curtains and other furnishings that can easily ignite.
6. Apply makeup as a mask. A loose-fitting mask might restrict breathing or make it difficult to see. Instead, draw on a mask using makeup. If a mask is used, make sure it fits securely and has large eyeholes so the child can see.
7. Choose flame-resistant costumes. Many homes and condos in Arlington VA use lit candles as part of their exterior Halloween decorations. A child’s costume could accidentally brush against the flame. Purchase costumes with flame-resistant labels. If a costume is homemade, spray it with a non-toxic fire retardant.
8. Add a few strips of reflective tape to costumes and treat bags. This helps drivers see the children. It’s also helps to have trick-or-treaters carry flashlights – both to see and be seen.
9. Limit where children go. They should only knock on the doors of homes with a porch light on. Instruct them to never enter a home or a car for a treat. Teach them to stick to well-lit streets, stay on sidewalks and never cut across yards, use alleys or dash between parked cars.

Wishing you and your loved ones a fun and safe Halloween!

Steve Hawkins
Long and Foster REALTORS®
Springfield, Virginia
www.HomeSearchWebsite.com
Steve@HomeSearchWebsite.com
703-909-3939

• Your budget will thank you – While a Compact Fluorescent light bulb (CFL) costs more to purchase than an incandescent (about $1 more per bulb), the CFL will last up to 10 times longer than the traditional light bulb.  According to Energy Star, a CFL saves you between $30 and $60 per bulb depending on the cost of electricity at your home or condo in Arlington VA.
• It’s good for the environment – A CFL uses 75% less energy than a traditional light bulb.
• Your quality of light won’t suffer – A federal law passed in 2007 requires manufacturers to make light bulbs that emit the same brightness using less energy.  These new regulations don’t ban or promote any lighting technology.
• You won’t be able to find the old light bulbs – Since traditional incandescent light bulbs can’t meet the new standard, they’re being dropped from production over the next few years.  You can continue to use the old light bulbs, but eventually, you won’t be able to find anything but specialty incandescent bulbs such as decorative and appliance bulbs.

Although CFLs are the most popular type of energy-efficient light bulbs, you do have a few alternatives.  Here’s a brief explanation of the pros and cons of each type:

• Compact Fluorescent Light bulbs (CFLs) – These are the most popular and affordable and come in sizes that fit most standard light fixtures.  If you tried CFLs years ago but didn’t like them, give them a try again.  Today’s CFLs provide a much higher-quality light.  They cost about $1.50 per bulb.  The negatives to CFLs are that they contain mercury, don’t work as well outside in the cold and it takes a few seconds for them to come to full brightness.
• Light Emitting Diodes (LEDs) – These are even more energy efficient than CFLs and can last for up to 25 years.  In addition, they are fully dimmable, contain no mercury and great for using outdoors.  The downside to LEDs is that one bulb might cost $40.
• Halogen incandescent – Although these are more expensive and less energy efficient than CFLs, they do have some advantages.  Unlike CFLs, halogen lights are fully dimmable, come to full brightness instantly and contain no mercury.  They’re more expensive than CFLs but less expensive than LEDs at $4 to $5 per bulb.

If you simply are not ready to move to CFLs, you may want to stock up on incandescent 100-watt bulbs right away.  Those are the first to move to the new rules starting in January, 2012.  The 75-watt bulbs go to the new rules in 2013 and the 60- and 40-watt bulbs in 2014.

If you’d like to buy an energy-efficient home, I can help.  Call me today at 703-909-3939 or email me at Steve@HomeSearchWebsite.com.

Steve Hawkins
Long and Foster REALTORS®
Springfield, Virginia
www.HomeSearchWebsite.com
Steve@HomeSearchWebsite.com
703-909-3939

1. Does keeping your home or condo in Arlington VA make financial sense? Often, once a couple splits, neither party can afford the mortgage payment and maintenance of the house by themselves. If this is the case, selling is most likely your best option.
2. Could you manage to keep living together while separated? When going through a divorce, you may not be able to stand each other’s sight. It won’t work in every situation, but you might want to tough it out and continue sharing the house (just with different bedrooms) until the market rebounds and you can make a profit.
3. Are your emotions getting the better of you? Many people can’t help but develop a strong emotional attachment to a house. That’s certainly understandable, but it doesn’t always make the most monetary sense. It might help if you try viewing the house like any other asset. You’re unlikely to let emotion come into play regarding the yard tools and bedspreads; try to treat the house the same way.
4. How will you split the proceeds? You’ll want to make sure you have a plan in place to split the proceeds when the house does sell. If not, you could be thrown back into a huge argument instead of finally moving on with your life.
5. What if one of you won’t agree to a price? The negotiation process won’t go smoothly if it comes down to an argument between the two sellers. Therefore, you should have some sort of agreement as to your bottom-line price. Also, you’ll need to decide how you’ll handle counter offers.

If you need help determining if now is the best time to sell your home or condo in Arlington VA, call me at 703-909-3939 or email me at Steve@HomeSearchWebsite.com.

Steve Hawkins
Long and Foster REALTORS®
Springfield, Virginia
www.HomeSearchWebsite.com
Steve@HomeSearchWebsite.com
703-909-3939