A Family Meal Plan

I don't know about you, but planning, preparing and cooking dinners have become too much like a chore. I, like most working mothers, am very busy, so it is difficult to come up with creative, easy meals. I also started becoming resentful that I was the only one that cooked dinner when there were three other people in the house that could help. That is when I came up with the idea of my family helping me. Here is the plan: On night a week, each family member is responsible for cooking dinner, I will cook two nights, one night is left overs and one night is take out. When I say they are responsible, it means selecting the recipe, preparing and cooking the meal. We started it last week and I can't explain how happy it has made me! It is like Christmas has come to my house! This is the greatest gift! This week I decided to write about it in my blog in case other mothers (or fathers) felt the same way that I did.

Tonight, my 11 year old daughter made Pita Pizza. Her recipe came from her Family and Consumer Science Class at DeMasi Middle School and it was delicious.

All week, I will provide the wonderful recipes that we make, along with pictures. Try this, you might LOVE it!

Pita Pizza

Ingredients:
1 pita bread round
2 oz Mozzarella cheese
1/4 cup spaghetti sauce
spices (to taste)
veggies (your choice) onions, green pepper, mushrooms, broccoli

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees
2. Cover baking sheet with aluminum foil (to catch spills)
3. Crate cheese over waxed paper
4. Place flat side up of whole pita round on baking sheet
5. Top with sauce, spices, grated cheese and vegetables
6. Bake 8 to 10o minutes or until cheese is melted.

1 pita serves one person.

The great thing is also, each person can design their own pizza to fit their preferences.

www.TriKatieforHomes.com

10 Must-Have Features in New Homes

So what home features are buyers asking for the most in their search for a new home?

AVID Ratings Co., a firm that provides surveys and employee training to home builders across the United States and Canada, conducts an annual survey of home buyer preferences.

The company found the following hot home features reign supreme in today’s market:

1. Large kitchens with an island.

2. Energy-efficient appliances and high-efficiency insulation and windows. (These were the most sought-after “green” features from buyers.)

3. Home office or study

4. Main-floor master suite

5. Outdoor living room

6. Ceiling fans

7. Master suite soaker tubs and oversize showers with seating areas

8. Stone and brick exteriors

9. Community landscaping with walking paths and playgrounds.

10. Two-car garages
Visit www.TriKatieforHomes.com for real estate help and information,

Source: Realtor Magazine

New App for your iphone or ipod touch

Did you know that you can visit the apple app store and purchase the realtor.com app? This app has MANY great features, but one of the great ones is that if you are a buyer looking for a home, and you find a home you like, you can click a button that will alert your realtor that this is a home you like and want to see.

Go buy the app and select me as your agent- Kathryn "Katie" Horch and I will be alerted when you find a home you like. I would love to help!

My daughter tried this out yesterday afternoon. It is really a great app. She clicked on a button that gave her the option of seeing homes for sale close to where she was. It brought up all homes for sale in Kings Grant.


Visit www.TriKatieforHomes for other great real estate tips or to search for homes.

Great New Website for Homeowners

HouseLogic Offers Smart Advice to Owners
The NATIONAL ASSOCIATION of REALTORS® this week launched HouseLogic, a new, comprehensive consumer Web site designed to help home owners make smart decisions to maintain, protect, and increase the value of their homes. HouseLogic will help consumers take responsible actions pertaining to what is likely the largest investment of their lives.

“Backed by the resources and industry insights of NAR and its REALTOR® members, HouseLogic will engage and involve consumers throughout the lifecycle of homeownership,” said NAR President Vicki Cox Golder. “It makes sense that, as the first, best source for real estate information, NAR should collaborate with today’s consumers to help them make the most out of owning a home. HouseLogic will help us do that.”

The free Web site helps home owners plan and organize their home projects and provides timely articles and news; home improvement advice and how-to’s; and information about taxes, home finances and insurance.

“Unlike other homeownership Web sites, HouseLogic helps consumers view their home through a financial lens and make smart, informed home improvement investment decisions,” said Golder. “Families can set goals for saving money on their home or increasing its value, and easily track the progress they are making on those goals.”

Registered users can save relevant information, create to-do lists, and set project reminders. The Web site can also be customized for individual owners depending on how handy or ambitious they are regarding home projects; how much money they want to spend or save; where they live; and their priorities, such as increasing the value of their home or improving their neighborhood.

HouseLogic also empowers home owners who want to get more actively engaged in shaping community life, advocating on neighborhood and homeownership issues that matter most to them. The site provides users with the tools and know-how to effect change, such as establishing a neighborhood watch program, building a community playground, or participating in city or county planning efforts.

“For more than 100 years REALTORS® have been bringing America home,” said Golder. “HouseLogic takes owning a home to the next level, partnering with consumers to truly help people build their futures through homeownership.”

To check it out visit www.houselogic.com

Visit www.TriKatieforHomes.com for great real estate information or search for homes.

Police and Fire Mortgage Program

I just got notification today, February 16, 2010 that the Police and Fire Mortgage Program has issued a new interest rate of 4.66% with 0 points. If you are a policeman or fireman and are thinking of buying a home, this is the time to do it!

Buyer Sues Real Estate agent over second hand smoke

I just read an article this morning, sent to me by e-mail from the National Association of Realtors that blew me away! A lawsuit is being tried this week in Boston. The suit will decide whether the real estate practitioner who represented the now-unhappy buyer is liable for damages over smoke that is wafting from a neighboring apartment. This is a first for Massachusetts and possibly any state.

When I represent a buyer, I give them as much information as I have about the property that they are considering. I obtain the seller's disclosure, suggest that they drive the neighborhood at different times of the day, we obtain a home inspection. These are all normal and important items to do before you buy a home. Never, have I heard any of my collegues suggest to the buyer that there could be the chance that a neighbor's second-hand smoke could cause damage to the buyer.

It will be interesting to find out how this lawsuit turns out. The outcome of this lawsuit could have broad repercussions.

Winter 2010 on Taunton Lake

This is my friend's house on Taunton Lake. Gorgeous custom home... not for sale, though. Taunton is a wonderful lake community in Medford, NJ. In the summer my family and I swim, boat and jump on our water trampoline. Great fun and family time! In the winter we ice skate and sit by the fire on our dock.

Adorable Townhome Just Listed

I just listed this adorable townhome in Eastampton, NJ. First Time Homebuyers, look no further! This adorable 3 bedroom, 2.5 bathroom home has plenty of room for you. Sit on the front porch this spring and enjoy the warm weather. Inside, the wood burning fireplace provides plenty of warmth and comfort in the large family room Entertain guests on the multi-level deck or watch the kids play in the backyard. The master bedroom has a spacious bathroom. the washer and dryer are on the upper level, for convenience. The finished basement is divided into three separate rooms. The main section is large enough for entertaining, a smaller room could be an office or playroom and an unfinished area, perfect for storage. This home has a new furnace in 2007 and a new hot water heater in December 2009.

Are Homes going under Contract in the Northeast?

In real estate there is something call the Pending Home Sales Index.

The National Association of Realtor's Pending Home Sales Index (PHSI) is released during the first week of each month. It is designed to be a leading indicator of housing activity.

The index measures housing contract activity. It is based on signed real estate contracts for existing single-family homes, condos and co-ops. A signed contract is not counted as a sale until the transaction closes. Modeling for the PHSI looks at the monthly relationship between existing-home sale contracts and transaction closings over the last four years.

Great News sellers... in the Northeast the Pending Home Sales Index (PHSI) rose 2.3 percent to 76.1 in December and is 14.9 percent higher than December 2008

This shows that people are buying homes!

More Happy Sellers at 128 Kent Rd, Haddonfield

I just settled an adorable home in Haddonfield, NJ. This home has 3 bedrooms, 1.5 bathrooms, a basement, gorgeous deck, cathedral ceilings in the family room. The home sold for $243,000 on Monday, February, 1, 2010. It always gives me so much gratification to help families sell their homes. So many times there is a conflict for the homeowner. They are happy to be moving on to a new and different life, however, they are also sad to be leaving the memories and friends they have made. I wish my sellers the best of luck and MANY happy memories in their new life.