Ike's Minnetonka Now Open

Minneapolis dining institution, Ike’s, is now open in Minnetonka.  Located near the corner of Hwy 101 and Hwy 7, Ike’s is trying on the suburbs for size…and we like it!

Ike’s has classic, tasty American fare served in a cozy atmosphere.  The lunch and dinner menu offers all sorts of delicious meals like Chicken Pot Pie (frequently sold out…order it when you can), a Hot Turkey Sandwich and Stuffing with Gravy, Carolina Style Chopped Pork Sandwich, various flatbreads, salads (Seafood Cobb is amazing), seafood, and of course, steaks.

Ike’s has a full bar as well.  If you are a fan of Bloody Marys you need to give theirs a try!  You may want to consider it an appetizer as it is loaded with all sorts of goodies like a celery stalk, jalabeano, lime, and skewers of pepperoncini, black olive, green olive, cocktail onion, dill pickle, American cheese, chilled shrimp and a spicy smoked beef stick.  Yum!!

Ike’s Minnetonka is located at 17805 Highway 7
Minnetonka, MN 55345  and their phone number is (952) 681-7099  Reservations are recommended, especially on the evenings and weekends.  Enjoy!!

Moving Contact List

As we all know, moving to a new home takes a lot of planning.  Not only is there the physical move and all that goes with it but there is also a lot of behind the scenes stuff.  I thought it may be helpful to compile a list of names and businesses that you would want to consider contacting with your forwarding address.  Each category can have several sub categories.  Also, consider that many of these people and companies can be contacted via internet.

·         Post Office

·         Subscriptions to magazines

·         Doctors/ Dentists

·         Credit Cards

·         Bank

·         Tax Preparer

·         Charities you like to contribute to

·         Place of worship

·         Place of Employment

·         Insurance

·         Mobile Phone Provider

·         Friends and Family

·         Schools

You will also want to remember to discontinue service from places like:

·         Utility companies (gas, electric)

·         Phone/ Internet company

·         Television service

·         Garbage Service

Commute Times

Are you moving to a different city or state for a new job?  Moving can be stressful under the best circumstances but when you are moving to an unfamiliar place that stress can be compounded. 

Internet searches can be so helpful in determining where to look for your new home.  One thing you may want to consider before looking in a specific area is your future commute.  Consider that sometimes even if you live fairly close to where you work the commute can take long.  As you plan your move take the time to research traffic patterns.  Visiting local news websites are an easy way to do this.  Pay attention to traffic levels at the time that you would plan to travel.  Also, ask your Realtor about traffic.  They will know the in’s and out’s of the city as well.  

A little due diligence before the move can help you in the long run by helping you make informed decisions about your location.  If you are not fond of long, slow commutes you will thank yourself every time you get in the car to go to work.

Simple Ways to Manage Moving Expenses

So you are going to move!  Exciting times are ahead in your new home but you have to get there first and it can be expensive!  Here are some tips that can save you money on moving costs.

1.        If you are going to move yourself in a rented truck, time it so that your rental is in the middle of the month.  Most people move at the beginning or end of the month which puts high demand on trucks and can drive up rental costs.  Mid month rentals are generally less expensive.

2.       One of my favorites….edit your belongings!  Slowly go through your house before the move and donate things you don’t need, want, or simply won’t fit in your new home

3.       If you are going to use a service to move you, consider packing up small items yourself.  Packers will spend less time packing which equals less money for you to pay.

4.       Did you know that if you are moving for a job you can deduct your moving expenses on your taxes?  Save those receipts!  It could make a big difference on tax day!

5.       Look for moving boxes on sites like Craigslist.  They are much less expensive and you can list and sell them when you are finished with them, too.  There are even a few stores that sell used boxes and will buy them back after your move.

A Tidy Kitchen

You know the drill...bathrooms and kitchens sell a home.  Give yourself a leg up on the competition and make sure your kitchen is tidy, clean, and organized.  The kitchen truly is the heart of the home and it may simply not be enough to to have it clean or tidy.

As you know, when potential buyers are going through your home they are peeking in on the very spaces that we commonly like to hide behind a closed door.  Take your pantry for instance.  Upon inspection, are items crammed into place stacked one on top of the other all willy-nilly?  At first glance this could suggest that there is not very much room in the panrty.  On a deeper level, if it is really cluttered, people may extrapolate that since it is so messy the rest of the home may not be well cared for.  As a seller, you obviously do not want to communicate this to a would be buyer.

Here are some ways to clean up the mess and make it look good.  First, pull everything out of your pantry.  If you find items that are past expiration go ahead and toss them...you need the space and you don't want to get sick.  If there are some items that you know you will not eat but have not expired, set them aside to donate to a nearby food shelf.  Next, group items together in a way that makes sense to you.  For instance, canned foods can be put together and even subdivided into things like prepared foods such as soups,  to canned veggies and beans, to sauces etc.  When placing these back on the shelves make sure they are turned so the  lable points outwards.  It is a small detail that makes a big impact.  Perhaps you would like to keep boxed foods together?  Keep pastas together? A cereal spot?  Have a cookie/ cracker shelf?  Get a nice basket for items like  potatoes and onions?

Do this for your fridge, too.  Consider keeping it fresh by keeping a box of baking soda on in there to absorb any odors.  Not everyone looks in your fridge but if they do it is nice to be prepared.

There is no right way or wrong way to organize,  In the end, it should make sense to you and how you live.  Ultimately, it just needs to look organized and clean.  Your pantry will look bigger, you will be able to find what you need more easily, and people will be impressed and assume that if your pantry looks this great you must take great care of your home.

Decorating Your Home for the Holidays While it is Listed

As the holiday season falls upon us many of my clients ask me if it is appropriate to have holiday decorations displayed in their homes while they are trying to sell them. The answer is yes and no.
Helping potential buyers envision themselves living in your home is your main goal. We discuss things like removing clutter, taking down most family photographs, and staging the home so it shows buyers how their personal items can fit into the space. Similarly, having a few holiday items on display can also aide in buyers imagining how they may spend the holidays in the home.
The key here is editing. Do not go overboard with excessive amounts of decorations. Even if they are done really well they can be overly distracting. Remember, you want people looking at the home, not your decorations. Some festive pillows on the couch, a seasonal doormat, a display of gourds or greens, holiday scented candles, and a wreath on the door is appropriate and enough for Halloween and Thanksgiving. During the Christmas season keep your decorations contained primarily to one space if possible. If you have a glorious place for a Christmas tree by all means play that up. If you have a great mantle for stockings, show that. Again, pillows and candles go a long way to set the scene without being excessive.
Timing as to when you should display seasonal items is important. If at all possible, wait 7-10 days before the holiday to decorate. Similarly, remove items within a week or so of the holiday passing.
I know it can be a challenge to have your home on the market during the holidays. Keep in mind, you are looking to impress potential buyers and asking them to spend their money to purchase your home. You want to make sure they are seeing the important aspects of your home and not becoming distracted with your decorations. Perhaps it would be a good time to daydream on how you will decorate your new home!

Viewing your Property Through a Camera's Eye

The final installment of this series: 

And photographs have other uses, too. While photographs themselves are placed front and center in advertising to sell your home, any photos, even amateur ones, have a deeper purpose – they can help you see what others are seeing. With the ease of digital photography, you can use your camera to help you hone your eye for the great and not-so-great aspects of the home and property you are seeking to sell.

This second use of photography is designed to help you see your property in multiple ways: as someone who loves it, and as someone who is seeing it for the first time, and as someone who is critical of it. For you, seeing it “new” might be a hard thing to do, but this is exactly the view that the prospective buyer has, and so it is in your best interest to walk into and through your home with this experience in mind. Using photographs in the early stages of readying your home to sell can be as way to prioritize your “to do” list.

The viewfinder or small screen of your camera is a tool that can help you gain that necessary fresh perspective. Looking through a viewfinder, or framing a photograph in the small screen of a camera is key – what details to keep, what to focus on, what to throw away? Photographers constantly ask themselves these questions as they look through the lens, and all three elements are helpful in re-seeing the home and property that you are selling.

Try going through the list of must-have photographs. Take your camera and walk through your home and around your property. Then go and take every photo you can imagine. Take every room in the house, take a photo looking out every window, and take a photo of the walkway up to the front door, another of the garage doors, and look at details through the eyes of the camera.

Try taking photos at different times of day, in different seasons, if possible, and in different weather conditions. Note the light at different times of days and seasons, how the landscaping flatters or detracts from the house, and if there are elements of the home or property that might be out of proportion or place – especially if they might be easily fixed.

Get very close up: Outside the home get details of walkways and steps, foundation, decks and windows. Take photographs that show the condition, the materials, improvements, flaws, potential hazards or issues with lighting, style or architectural or landscaping details. Inside the home look at banisters, window details, fireplaces, hearths, cabinets, molding and door details, light fixtures, heating vents, walls, paint or wallpaper condition, flooring, stairs and landings, and other details.

Get mid-range photos: Back up a bit and get the bigger picture. Outside the home you are seeking to get photos from the driveway and from the curb, as well as standing at the edges of the property from all sides. Inside the home, try standing in the far corners of the room and down the hall, to feel the approach to a room and the feeling of leaving one room to go to the next. Note if you are challenged with long hallways or other architectural issues and consider ways to improve how they show or even use them to your advantage. Pay attention to the paint, windows, screens, shutters, roof and look for any improvements or issues that a potential buyer might raise.

Get the first glimpse photo: That’s the photo where you can first see the house from a distance. This will be your least useful photo, but it is the first thing that might be seen, so you should know what that feels like. If you have a lot of foliage blocking that view, ask yourself is this in keeping with the neighborhood or the image you are crafting for your home.

Consider printing these photographs out and making an album or putting them on a large board. Additionally, online tools such as Pinterest, Facebook, Flickr or others can enable you to organize, share, track them and to get feedback. Note how they make you and others feel, and immediately create a list of items that are positive, negative, and possible to change easily.

This simple exercise of using your own camera, if done in the early stages of readying your home and property to sell, can give you an edge as a seller. An ability to gain a distance and dispassionate view of the home will enable you to be more aware of and in control regarding the property that you are selling. And with that aim, using photography to your advantage is definitely an art to learn.