A Local Literary Journal to Support!

For those literary-minded or those just wanting to find something a little different than the ordinary novel to read, this is for you. If you've never heard of a literary journal, they are collections usually made of short stories, essays, and poems by different authors allowing for a broad range in subject matter and style. Perhaps the production of these kinds of books is common knowledge, but I didn't learn about them until I entered college and was able to work with Zone 3 Press at Austin Peay State University.

If you've never gotten a journal from Zone 3, you're missing out. Established in 1986, this nationally distributed journal is printed twice a year. It is a non-profit press that encourages emerging authors which is one of the many reasons you should try to support and promote this locally produced journal that publishes submissions from all over! Zone 3 offers book competitions for poetry collection and nonfiction publishing-- and I can say, owning some of these books myself, that Zone 3 only puts out excellent work. In addition, Zone 3 contributes to the experience of Austin Peay with their visiting writer series. They allow writers to visit and read from their works, and in several cases, these writers have stopped by the creative writing classrooms to share their knowledge. I have sat through a few classes led by visiting writers, and those were some of the most profound class days I experienced. 

If you live in Clarksville and have never heard of Zone 3, it is something you need to learn about now! You can check out the press's full website here, and if you have interest in purchasing one of their journals or contest books, here! I highly recommend An Imperfect Rapture by Kelly Beard as well as A Woman, A Plan, An Outline of a Man by Sarah Kasbeer. I was able to read through both of these during two different semesters of working at Austin Peay, and they were simply amazing!

Why Do I Need a Real Estate Agent?: Networking

Do you have a plan on how to advertise your home when you sell? There are sites, sure-- things like Zillow and even Craigslist. That will surely get some showings, but is it really enough? Friends don't often spread the word that a house is for sale, and sites like Craigslist can get some questionable interest. Overall, this kind of coverage may not get your home sold as quickly and efficiently as you might like.

A perk of having a real estate agent is eliminating the element of advertising on account of the seller. From watching seasoned realtor, Pam Cash of Crye-Lieke Realtors, I can say that advertising homes is one of the big parts of the job. This stretches from taking pictures to posting on sites to let both potential buyers and other realtors know a new home is on the market. Perhaps you're thinking "I can take pictures and post on different sites," but one thing you may be discounting? Seasoned realtors have a network that the average person does not. They know other agents with clients that may be looking for exactly what you're selling that they connect with. They have their own clients who may be searching for the perfect house you have. And if they have neither of those? They have an entire pool of a real estate agency in which they can spread the word of a good house on the market, circulating information that will likely reach the ears of someone who needs to hear about it.

While you may get buyers by self-advertising a for sale by owner home, the pool will most likely be far smaller than the network of potential buyers you'll get with an agent That means, most likely, you won't get as much money for your home as you could. Realtors have a large range of communication and come with a built-in network of connections. They are, overall, invaluable to a good sale.

Prepping Your House for Showing and Selling: Be Mindful of Odors!

This is something that may seem obvious, but in one's own home, this kind of thing might not be so apparent. The idea of 'odors' is not always necessarily a negative thing-- though you should definitely clean the litterbox and take out the garbage! 

The main idea is to try to keep the home's scent neutral. While the smell of a home isn't exactly a selling point, and may not have any large effect, it can help set the mood for the showing. Scents actually have a very large tie to emotions and other psychological factors, and moreover, a showing of a home is the opportunity for potential buyers to put themselves as the owners of the home. Furthermore, there are issues to take into mind such as a potential allergy to an essential oil or else a potential buyer having sensitivity to strong smells. So, be sure to keep this in mind when you're readying for a showing! 

Be careful with what you make in the kitchen before a showing is happening! The smell of cooked fish or sizzling bacon might be a little distracting. Even something as tasty as the smell of fresh-baked cookies may not be fully welcomed-- even though some may encourage the methods to make your home smell just like that. This might come out a stronger scent than anticipated and really-- can you focus when a delicious smell makes you hungry?

You also should be careful with any choice of candle or scent diffuser. Steer away from anything strong-- foods or flowers should take a step back. Look into something neutral, like linen or something foresty. You may also look into a scent exterminating candle.

While scents aren't always bad ones, it's important to keep in mind what your home smells like when you're getting ready for a showing. Be careful with what you cook, and what kind of scent you use when it comes to candles! It's best to keep things neutral as you allow potential buyers to view your home.

Replay Toys Clarksville

Looking for figurines? Vintage toys? Blind boxes, Funko Pops, or maybe some dolls? The new shop on Madison Street, Replay Toys, may be the perfect spot for you to check out! It is a recent addition to our community and an excellent place to find everything I listed!

I went to the shop, Replay Toys, just this week for the first time. Walking in, I was greeted by very friendly employees and several aisles of what were-- in my eyes-- treasures. Two shelves of pops and the unique bags of Loungefly on two more were the first things to explore. While these are newer, Replay Games sells ones that can be very difficult to find as well as discontinued and limited addition items. There is also a case of more delicate figurines that range from superheroes to Disney. While my boyfriend studied a board of Disney pins, I picked out some Hello Kitty blindboxes and then searched through loose figures that were marked incredibly low-- I was not at all disappointed with that I found.

My favorite area was the large expanse of vintage toys, however. There was a large collection of Carebears, boxed Barbies, porcelain Disney princess dolls, and even original in-box Furbies. Of course, that is only a small portion of Replay Toys' stock! I also had fun looking through the incredible supply of anime figurines (which can be difficult to find in without going to Nashville) as well as the vast array of horror memorabilia that included several replicas of Saw's Jigsaw doll. 

Overall, this shop is a place I will definitely be visiting again, and I would suggest to anyone else with an collector's heart. With a frequently fluctuating stock, it's somewhere to peek in whenever in the area!

Spot the Tiny Friend!

 

A Bonus of the Clarksville-Montgomery County Library

The Clarksville-Montgomery County Library is, in my opinion, one of Clarksville's most stunning additions to the community. While I've yet to talk about it on here yet, if you've lived in our fair town, you've probably been there at least once and most likely you have a library card. However, what you may not know is that having a library card with the Clarksville-Montgomery County Library can give you access far beyond the books within the walls of the library.

The library in Clarksville provides two different electronic sources that are connected with your library card and the number on the back. Notably, if your card is more than a few years old, you may require a new one in order to check out these sites! Hoopla and Libby are two free online sources where you can get additional reading material and more, all with the power of your library card.

Hoopla is the application I've used longest, having just found out about Libby. The advantages of Hoopla are that it allows a quick check out without any wait time, and you can also check out things such as movies, television series, and music along with more literary media. I personally use Hoopla strictly for audiobooks, but they have a good range of ebooks and comic books as well. While their variation of titles doesn't reach as far as Libby or paid apps like Audible, I have always been able to find something to peak my attention on the app. The only downfall to this application is the fact you have a limit of seven titles you can check out per month-- but you do get to keep whatever you check out for the entirety of the month and there is never a wait time.

This is perhaps the biggest difference between Libby and Hoopla. Libby, unlike its counterpart, does not have a 'per month' limit. You can have fourteen titles checked out at a time, and once you return them, you can immediately fill those spaces. However, there can be wait times on books as Libby only has a certain number of copies per audiobook / ebook that can be up to several months-- though usually, it is only a couple of weeks. To make up for this, you can place books on hold to get on a virtual 'wait list' to get the title-- I'm currently waiting for the fifth Pretty Little Liars audiobook to become available myself. The final difference between Libby and Hoopla is that, while Libby does not have movies or music, it does have a far more expansive range of titles that can be checked out. 

Personally, I don't have a preference between these two apps-- I use them both and both are free to me thanks to the Clarksville-Montgomery County Library. If you have a library card? You need to take advantage of these amazing applications, and if you don't? What on earth are you waiting for? Get to the library today!

Why Do I Need an Agent?: Avoiding Emotional Sales

Your home is something personal, and selling it can feel just as personal. Saying goodbye to it can be an incredibly emotional process. It can be overwhelming, and it can feel very personal. Unfortunately, those kinds of emotions can make it harder to get to the end goal: selling your home for a fair price. 

Selling a home is overall a negotiation and it comes with criticisms-- what the potential buyers like and don't like, what they think of the property, and other such things. That can be hard to hear and sometimes may even cause an offense when emotions are already running high. Receiving a low offer can be upsetting, even if it's reasonable. It can be easy to overprice one's own home, having personally seen all of its worth. These are things no seller would see themself guilty of, but when it comes to the task of selling a home, the overwhelming emotions can make such decisions harder. A real estate agent does not have these hangups. They create a comfortable boundary between the buyer and seller; they ensure such emotions don't get in the way. Negative feedback can also be delivered in a way that's easier to swallow and help sellers work with the criticisms. 

All in all, selling a house can be much more personal than one really anticipates. It can be emotional, and many who sell their home themself can find such emotions affecting the sale itself. In the end, a realtor can provide a much-needed cushion when selling one's house as they do not have personal ties to a place that has fostered memories within it. 

Happy Sunday!

 

Prepping Your House for Showing and Selling: Check the Kitchen and Bathrooms!

Two of the biggest selling points in a house are the bathrooms and the kitchen. To top that, these are two of the most used areas meaning that when you are getting ready for a showing, these are areas that need extra attention when cleaning. When you are getting ready to have a buyer enter your home, it is extremely important to have the kitchen and bathrooms in tip-top shape! 

Obviously a deep clean is important for these two high traffic areas of the home. For the kitchen, the counters should not only be free of clutter but clean enough to eat off of. You don't want dirty counters in a showing! Wipe down appliances and cabinets, mop the floor, and make sure sure the trash is taken out. In addition, the surface of your refrigerator should be clear. That means it's time to take down vacation photos, children's drawings, and A+ tests. This is because, when showing the home to potential homeowners, you want to make sure it's depersonalized-- which you can read more about here!

For the bathroom, many of the points of tidying the kitchen can be the same. You need to clean the counters, of course, as well as the sink. Be sure to clean the toilet, the floor, and the trim! The bathtub or shower is also an important thing to take note of. Clean out any shower scum and check to make sure the curtain is clean. Finally, make sure any medicine cabinet or linen closet is clean and tidy. Put any dirty towels in the hamper, and hang new towels to help the aesthetic of the room.

The kitchen is often the biggest selling point, followed up by bathrooms. Because of that, and because those are two very high-traffic areas, they need some extra TLC! So if you have some potential buyers coming in, be sure to take an extra turn around the bathrooms and kitchen-- make sure they're in tip-top shape! 

Why Do I Need an Agent?: Weeding Out Unqualified Buyers

To buy a home, there is a criterion that needs to be met. When selling one's own home, they may not have the needed questions to determine whether or not a buyer is qualified-- or, with all the other work going into selling a home themself, it may simply slip their mind. Like I talked about last time, selling a house is a full-time job and part of that job for realtors is knowing how to weed out people who want to see the home, but won't qualify to buy it.

You may be wondering what the big deal about showing a home to an unqualified buyer is. That is a relatively simple answer. On this blog, we have repeatedly put an emphasis on how much needs to go into a showing. Things need to be clean and organized and having to ensure your home is in tiptop shape when an unqualified buyer wants to view it is, in short, a waste of your time and potentially stopping someone who has the means to buy your home from seeing it in the taken time frame.

Overall, this aspect has to do with training more than anything else. Realtors have been through classes in order to determine the seriousness and qualification of a buyer. The end result is that you don't have to take the time to clean and show your home to people who can't afford to make you an offer. At the end of the day? An agent may be the best choice for you! 

A Day for Flowers