December 2019

How many homeowners have the faintest idea about what shape their sewer lateral pipes are in?

December 24, 2019Time for a quick show of hands... how manyhomeowners have the faintest idea about whatshape their sewer lateral pipes are in? If youdidn’t raise your hand, pay attention and read on...this is info that could have an impact onyour largest asset. I know. Sewer laterals aren’t exactly the kind of warm and fuzzy topic you look forward to reading about over a cup of coffee on a Saturday morning. It’s a dirty job but someone’s got to do it. Might as well be me since...

Sewer Lateral Inspections and Mandated Repairs

December 16, 2019Last week we covered the basics of the new “stealth” sewer lateral regs calling for video inspections on each home sale. Email me at getreal@ serenogroup.com for a copy of the new rules. Did I mention that everyone hooked up to the County sewer is required to have their laterals flushed every18 months? It isn’t clear what the punishment is for not cleaning those lines but from the vantage point of someone who interacts with lots of homes and homeowners, what’s clear to me is...

Here’s a recent example from the real estate trenches: a widowed woman in her 70s decid- ed to sell her house in Mid County

December 11, 2019After some recent lofty columns on the exis- tential nature of downsizing, it probably feels like I took a U turn a few weeks back when I descended into the bowels of the County’s new sewer lateral regulations...but this is my last column on that subject, I promise. If you’re coming into the sewer conversation late, email getreal@serenogroup.com to get the backstory and an outline of the new rules SC County is playing by. For now, let’s look at some ways the new regs could...

How did we ever manage to sell homes back in the days before staging was a big thing

December 2, 2019Today’s Question: How did we ever manage to sell homes back in the days before staging was a big “thing?” When sellers and agents weren’t inclined to put much effort into painting and primping new listings before they went on the market? Did all those places I sold back in the ‘90s and 2000s just sell themselves? By today’s standards, they were a motley assortment of fixer-uppers and former rentals that had been rode hard and put on the market even harder. Ranch homes that...