You’ve got a lot of tasks to tend to when it comes to maintaining your home, and lawn maintenance is one of them.

But did you know that certain things you might be doing could actually be harming your lawn? If your grass is looking like it could use a little TLC, it might actually be because of something you’ve done.

Before you go out and tend to your lawn, make sure not to commit the following blunders.

1. Cutting the Grass Too Short

There’s a reason why homeowners cut their grass short: so they don’t have to mow the lawn as often. But while you might think you’re saving time, you’re actually doing your lawn a disservice.

Cutting the grass blades too short can increase the chances of lawn disease and bald spots. Blades that are too short are not able to take in the crucial energy from the sun and other sources as a result.

And if you cut off the blade entirely, the grass stem will be exposed. When cutting the grass, don’t hack off any more than a third of the length of the blade.

2. Using Dull Blades on the Lawn Mower

Instead of getting a nice clean cut, the blades of grass will basically just be ripped off when using a lawn mower with dull blades. This is a problem because the ends will end up being frayed, which can make your grass vulnerable to disease, pathogens, and dryness.

Your best bet is to make sure your lawn mower has sharp blades to avoid any of these potential issues.

3. Cutting the Grass When it’s Wet

Don’t cut the grass soon after a rainfall. Mowing the lawn when the grass is still wet can damage the blades. Not only that, but you’ll increase the odds of weeds and diseases spreading as a result of grass clippings clumping from all the moisture.

Further, cutting the grass while it’s wet is also a bit dangerous because your chances of slipping on it are much higher. Make sure the grass is dry before you cut it.

4. Not Plucking Your Weeds

If you allow weeds to grow, the chances of them spreading around are pretty high. At that point, your lawn will be inundated with weeds and your weed removal job will be even more tedious and time-consuming.

Every weed that grows can produce dozens of seeds, which can easily spread. Keep on top of the weeds to avoid any unnecessary additional work you’ll have to do in the future.

5. Watering at the Wrong Time of the Day

It’s important for your lawn to get some moisture, and the most obvious way to do that is to water your lawn on a regular basis (adhering to any water conservation regulations in your local area, of course). But when you water your grass matters.

For example, watering in the middle of the day is a bad idea. That’s because the moisture will be easily evaporated by the heat and sun. If you water at night, your lawn will be vulnerable to fungus.

Instead, your lawn should be watered in the early morning hours. That way the lawn will be better able to absorb the moisture and retain it without losing it to the elements and being susceptible to potentially harmful fungus.

6. Watering Too Frequently

Watering your lawn is important for obvious reasons, but sometimes you can water too often. In addition to wasting water – which is a huge no-no in particularly dry parts of California – you run the risk of getting in the way of deepening the root system, which can make your lawn more vulnerable to disease. Instead, water less frequently but more in-depth with each session.

7. Not Watering Enough

On the flip side to the above-mentioned issue, not watering enough also has its consequences, which really don’t need much explanation. If your lawn is not given enough moisture, it will dry out easily and the root system will be too shallow to absorb nutrients from the soil very well.

8. Not Tending to Your Soil

The blades of grass are obviously important to tend to, but the soil should also be cared for. If your soil isn’t healthy, odds are your grass won’t be either. Soil without enough organic matter can’t help the roots absorb adequate amounts of moisture or nutrients.

Ideally, your soil should be able to hold moisture well but also drain adequately when you water the lawn. Consider having your soil tested to make sure it’s healthy enough to sustain an equally healthy lawn.

9. Not Fertilizing Properly

Fertilizing is a great way to keep your lawn healthy. But if you don’t get it right, you can actually damage your lawn. If that happens, you’ll have to either reseed the lawn or completely redo it, depending on the extent of the damage.

Applying fertilizer can actually burn the grass blades, leaving you with grass that looks more like hay than anything else. Be sure to understand the right strength fertilizer that should be used, as well as the appropriate application to avoid causing damage.

10. Killing Off All Insects

There’s no doubt that certain types of insects can wreak havoc on your lawn. But there are plenty of other insects that can actually help to keep it healthy.

Certain spiders and ladybugs, for instance, can help get rid of sap-sucking insects, and bees pollinate the plants. Before you start arbitrarily spraying an insecticide on your lawn,  consider using specialized solutions that are designed to target specific critters.

The Bottom Line

Your lawn plays a key role in your home’s external appearance and curb appeal. Knowing how to properly care for it can keep your home looking in tip-top shape and can even help maintain your home’s value.

Every buyer wants to get a deal on things that they buy, and real estate is no exception. In fact, the bigger purchases are definitely the ones that buyers want to get the best price on given the enormous cost associated with them.

If you’re looking to buy a new home in the near future, you’ll likely have a budget that you have to work within. Not everyone has millions of dollars in their bank accounts that can give them the flexibility to buy anything they fall in love with. Most buyers only have a certain amount of money to spend when it comes to buying a house.

When you find a home that fits within your budget, you may want to negotiate with the seller in order to whittle down the price as low as possible. It’s all part and parcel of real estate deals: both buyers and sellers will want to wheel and deal in order to get the best outcome.

But even before you put in an offer on a home, there may be signs that the seller is open to negotiations. Spotting a seller who may be willing to bargain can help you attain a more successful outcome on the purchase of your new home and potentially save you a lot of money.

Here are some ways to tell if a seller may be willing to negotiate with you.

The Home is Vacant

If the home that you’re interested in is vacant, that obviously means the sellers have already moved out. Sometimes the home might not be completely vacant and will still have some furniture left behind, but there may be other signs that the sellers no longer live there, such as boxes packed up, no clothes in the closets, an empty fridge, and so forth.

If you notice that the sellers have already moved out, there may be a chance that they’re motivated to find a buyer and get the home off their hands. If they’ve already bought a new home, moved into it, and started paying a mortgage on it, odds are they’re carrying two mortgages until they’re able to find a buyer.

If that’s the case, they probably want to sell quickly so they won’t be under the burden of carrying two mortgages.

The Market is Slow

Depending on the market, the seller’s motivation could go either way. If homes are being bought really quickly, then it’s likely a seller’s market. In this case, sellers probably don’t have to work as hard to sell their homes.

Buyers could get a better deal in a slower market because there’s simply less competition. In this type of market, there’s more inventory than buyers in demand. In this case, you may be in a better position to negotiate with the seller.

The Listing Has Been Up For a While

If the market is rather cool, it could be taking a while for homes to sell. The number of days on the market (DOM) for listings simply refers to how long it’s taking for homes to sell in the area. Check out how long a listing has been up on the market. If you notice that the DOM on a listing is higher than the average, you might be able to negotiate.

The Seller is Offering Incentives

There are a few different tactics that sellers can use to draw in buyers, and offering incentives is one of them. Perhaps the seller of the home you have your eye on is including some perks to sweeten the deal. They might be offering to throw in the furniture or appliances, or they may be offering to partially cover closing costs.

Whatever the incentive may be, the fact that the seller is offering them may be a sign that they’re motivated to sell, which is the perfect position you want them to be in to negotiate.

The Listing Mentions “Motivated Seller”

Speaking of motivated, the listing description itself might actually directly tell buyers that the seller is motivated. If the seller is really anxious to get the home off their hands, they may want to directly advertise this fact.

No matter what the market may be like, a seller who is truly motivated is probably not interested in a lot of back and forth and instead just wants to get a deal done. If you discover that the seller is motivated, find out exactly what their motivations are so that your negotiating tactic can be even more effective.

The Seller Wants to Close ASAP

Sellers might mention that they’re looking for a quick closing. Obviously, that means they’re looking to sell quickly and get their home off their hands. Whether it’s because they’ve already moved out or need to get the money out of their home quickly, wanting a quick sale often means the seller is open to negotiation.

The Bottom Line

The motivation of a seller plays a key role in how willing they are to negotiate. While an unmotivated seller may have all the time in the world to find a buyer who’s willing to offer the price they want, sellers who are more eager to sell can provide a great opportunity for buyers to get a great deal.

This week transported me to Germany- right in the middle of Chicago! I found myself at Prost, a fantastic bar and restaurant in the heart of Lincoln Park. The space is gigantic, with long rows of beautiful wooden tables and benches. We came in after seeing a show, around 10 o’clock on a Friday evening, and had no problem being seated right away. As we walked past tables, my mouth began to water as we passed giant pretzels, steins of beer, and wursts. After seeing it, we knew we had to order a pretzel for the table. We decided to order the half, as the whole was gigantic. This was absolutely wonderful. The outside of the pretzel was perfectly crisp, lightly buttered and salted, and the inside was soft and squishy. It also came with a fantastic warm Bavarian beer cheese dip. I loved it so much I could have taken a bath in it. I knew I had to try a Wurst- after all, we were in Germany for the night! After much debate, I finally chose the Thuringer Wurst: beef, pork, and garlic- yum! Each wurst is served with your choice of side, Haus kraut, a warm semmel roll, and your choice of mustard. The available sides were Oma’s Secret Potato Slaw, Haus Red Cabbage, Hand Cut Fries, Herbed Spatzle, Radeburger Beer Cheese Soup, or a Pretzel Bun (for a charge of $1). I love potato salad, so I went with the Secret Potato Slaw. I also chose Hot Horseradish Mustard (my other choices were a Sweet Beer Mustard or Plain Yellow Mustard). My meal came out piping hot and the portion size was huge! The thuringer wurst did not disappoint; it was grilled perfectly and tasted delicious with both the spicy mustard and the sauerkraut. The potato salad was very tasty as well! I can’t wait to come back and try more food here; I’m drooling just thinking about it!

Prost is open Sundays from 11 am to close (brunch served till 2), Mondays through Wednesdays from 4 pm to close, Thursdays from 4 pm to 2 am, Fridays from 11 am to 2 am, and Saturdays from 11 am to 3 am (brunch served till 2). You can find more information on their website.

RACHEL HOOVLER & DEAN’S TEAM CHICAGO

Plenty of issues can slow down, delay, or even kill a real estate transaction, and liens are one of them.

Property liens are basically legal notices that are placed on the title because of some sort of unresolved issue or unpaid debt. If you owe a creditor, they can place a lien on your home until you agree to repay them what they’re owed.

Liens are often the result of either unpaid bills, unpaid taxes, or court judgments. Maybe you’re behind on your mortgage payments or you haven’t fully paid the contractor who renovated your home.

If you currently have a lien on your home and want to sell, you could be faced with some obstacles. Usually, liens will have to be dealt with before the title can be transferred to a buyer and a real estate deal can go through.

What Types of Liens Can Be Placed on Your Property?

There are all sorts of different liens that can be placed on a property, and the following are among the more common:

• Mechanics lien – Any contractor who does work on your home will obviously want to be paid on time. If this doesn’t happen, they can place a lien on your home in the form of a mechanics lien until they are paid.
• Judgment lien – If you’ve been taken to court and lost the case, you may owe the winning party some form of payment. Until this payment is made, a judgment lien can be placed against your home.
• Tax lien – If you are in arrears on your taxes, the government can file a tax lien on your property.

Any liens that are on your property will be listed on the title report, which can definitely turn prospective buyers off. Buyers might even wonder whether or not there are other potential issues with the home as well.

How Can a Lien Impact Your Ability to Sell?

A number of common things happen during escrow after a buyer puts in an offer and you accept it. Before closing, the buyer will need to solidify financing, a home inspection will likely be conducted, and a title search will be done to make sure title is free and clear of any issues.

If a lien is discovered during the title search, the transaction will have to be suspended until the issue has been dealt with. No buyer is going to want to take over a property that has a clouded title.

The buyer’s lender may not agree to approve financing for a property with a lien on it. The lender will likely take a back seat to others with a lien on the property, which places them at risk for not being repaid themselves.

If you have a lien on your home, your best course of action would be to deal with it as soon as possible. Whoever is owed payment and is holding a lien against your home should be repaid in full in order to clear title and be free to sell your home without a hitch. If not, any potential real estate transaction will be delayed or put on hold indefinitely until a resolution is met.

That said, it’s important to make sure that the lien that’s on your property is actually yours. There’s always the possibility that someone by the exact same name or someone else in the family is actually attached to the lien as opposed to you. Mistakes can happen, so you’ll certainly want to verify whether or not the lien belongs to you.

But if the lien is legitimately against your name and property, then you’ll definitely want to deal with the situation right away. Any delay in resolving your lien can make selling your home much more difficult. 

Can You Still Sell With a Lien on Your Home?

It’s not recommended to try and sell a home with a lien on it. However, you choose to do so, you’ll want to work with a real estate professional who has experience with this type of situation.

Any liens against your property will have to be carefully evaluated. You’ll then be tasked with finding a buyer who is actually willing to accept a home purchase knowing that there is a lien on the title, which is not an easy feat.

There is also the risk of the buyer not being able to secure financing, as mentioned earlier.

All in all, it’s much easier to deal with the lien and make the payments as necessary in order to ensure a much more streamlined real estate transaction.

But if you do decide to proceed with trying to sell your home with a lien on it, it will have to be settled at closing so that the buyer will be able to get clear title on the property.

As far as paying and settling the lien is concerned, the money can come from the proceeds of the sale of your home if there is enough equity built up. This will just be added to all the other closing costs that are typical of selling real estate.

But if you owe more on your mortgage than what your home is valued at and there isn’t enough money in the pot to settle your liens, you’ll need to come up with the cash some other way.

If you choose to go this route, it’s recommended that you obtain some advice from the title company on how to proceed. Sometimes it might even be necessary to speak with a real estate lawyer if things are more complicated.

Most buyers will expect no liens on a property, and if there are, they’ll expect them to be paid off to make sure they get clear title.

The Bottom Line

Selling a home can be a bit stressful and even overwhelming at times, and throwing in a lien can just exacerbate things. If it is discovered that there is a lien on your home when you try to sell, you’d be well-advised to deal with it as soon as possible. Most buyers will probably bail out on a deal if a lien is discovered.

If you’re in this situation, team up with a professional agent who is well-versed in handling liens on properties to help you deal with these often complex scenarios in the best way possible.

It’s the age-old question that buyers and sellers ask themselves when they’re ready to make a move: should I buy first or sell first?

The best answer depends on the situation. In many cases, homeowners decide to start looking around to see what’s out there before they put their homes on the market. That way, they’ll be able to make sure that they’ve got a place to retreat to if their current property closes quickly.

Buying a home can often take longer than selling depending on the market. Buyers want to make sure they’ve been able to find exactly what they want without being in a rush to settle for any home if their current home closes sooner than they expected.

But either way, there are certain inherent risks to buying first or selling first.

What’s the Risk of Buying First?

If you by a home before your current home sells, the obvious risk would be that you may be stuck with two homes, paying two mortgages. If you end up finding a new home rather quickly and your current home takes forever to find a willing buyer, this is precisely the conundrum you could find yourself in.

This risk is more prevalent when the market starts to cool. Many sellers who may have been seeing other sellers sell very quickly as a result of a hot seller’s market may want to capitalize themselves. But they may often get into the market just a little too late as the market starts to cool.

What could end up happening is having a listing that lingers for weeks, despite already committing to a new home. The deal on the new home closes, while the current home still has yet to receive a solid offer. You would then have two homes – and mortgages – to juggle at the same time, which can end up being quite stressful, both emotionally and financially.

That said, you don’t necessarily have to pay two full mortgage payments every month, as this could certainly prove to be a huge financial burden that many people wouldn’t be able to handle. Instead, you may be eligible to take out a “bridge loan” to help ease the financial burden of carrying two homes.

A bridge loan is a temporary loan that covers both the buying and selling transactions. It can help you secure your new mortgage until you’re finally able to be rid of your mortgage obligation on your current home. If you don’t have the funds to carry both mortgages and your current home still hasn’t sold, a bridge loan would allow you to fund the down payment for your new home. 

It should be noted, however, that you would still have to get approved for a bridge loan, much like any other type of loan. As such, there is always the risk that your lender may not approve you for a bridge loan, which means there’s always the chance that you could be stuck with more expensive financial obligations until your current home sells.

Should You Buy or Sell First?

As mentioned earlier, the answer to this question will vary depending on a number of factors.

For starters, what is your financial position like? Would you be comfortable paying two mortgages for a temporary amount of time in the event that your current home takes longer to sell, even though you’ve already committed to another property? While bridge loans exist, you’ll also have to make sure you qualify for one.

Also, consider the market. Are you in the middle of a buyer’s or seller’s market? A buyer’s market means there is plenty of inventory to go around. Demand isn’t very high, though supply is abundant. In these markets, it’s usually easier to find a home to purchase than it is to sell. Buyers may have their pick of the litter, while sellers may have to fight harder to make a sale.

A seller’s market, on the other hand, is quite the opposite. There is limited inventory available, and buyers are competing with one another for whatever is listed. In these markets, homes tend to sell rather quickly.

Keep in mind that you’re both a buyer and a seller. No matter what market you happen to be in, you could find one transaction very easy, while the other may be a lot more challenging.

If it’s a buyer’s market out there, consider listing your home first, as it could probably take longer to sell than to buy. But if you’re in the middle of a seller’s market, consider looking for a home first.

This is especially true if the market is on the rise. In this case, buying before selling can be a great way to get ahead when the market is on its way up, especially in expensive centers. Just be sure to time your move right, or else you could find yourself getting caught out of these rising markets. In this case, you may have sold your home already but can’t find a new house to purchase because of the rise in competition.

There is also the option of inserting a clause on the offer you submit on the new home that makes it conditional upon the sale of your current home. While most sellers don’t like these clauses, some may be open to them if they themselves are having a tough time selling.

The Bottom Line

Regardless of which avenue you take, be sure to make your decision upon the guidance and advice of a seasoned real estate agent. Have an in-depth conversation with your realtor so that you completely understand all of your options and potential risks to help you make a sound decision.