Thursday, November 29, 2007

Make Your Ludlow VT Vacation Home Pay For Itself!

According to this MSN.com article, it could indeed be possible for a vacation home to pay for itself in the long-run.

Investor Christine Hrib Karpinski offers these three basic rules for purchasing and managing a vacation home:

- Vacation homes need to be rented 15 to 17 weeks a year in most areas to break even.
- Internet advertising is essential. Karpinski recommends advertising your home on 3-5 web sites to ensure the maximum amount of exposure.
- Consider cutting out the middle-man and being your own rental agent.


Karpinski also suggests asking yourself these four questions before jumping into vacation home ownership:
· Are you ready to do the research to find the right home in the right area for you?
· Are you willing to give up the use of your property during peak season?
· Are you willing to put in the necessary work, including advertising and maintenance duties?
· Can you hold on if things get tough?

If you are ready to begin your search for a Ludlow VT vacation home, please call me at 802-353-1983 or visit
ISellVermontRealEstate.com. Or, click here to sign up to receive automated emails of new listings that match your criteria.

Wednesday, November 21, 2007

Happy Thanksgiving, Ludlow!

May your Thanksgiving be blessed with the bounty of the season and the love of family and friends!

We’ll be back next week with more of the latest Ludlow VT real estate news and information! In the meantime, please feel free to contact me at 802-353-1983 or visit ISellVermontRealEstate.com.

Thursday, November 15, 2007

Okemo Mountain Rated a Top Ski Destination

For those of us lucky enough to call the Okemo Mountain area home, we already know that this is a wonderful destination for all sorts of winter activities. But now Ski Magazine has made it official by naming the Okemo Mountain Resort one of the top 10 resorts in the East, and one of the best in North America for grooming and terrain parks!

The readers of SKI recognized the resort’s commitment to providing an excellent snow surface by rating Okemo second in the East for grooming, and number three in all of North America – surpassed only by Deer Valley and sister resort Mount Sunapee, in N.H. In the snow category, Okemo placed fourth in the East.

A complete “Top 50 Resort Guide” appears in the October issue of SKI Magazine or can be seen at
www.skinet.com Nearly 7,000 SKI Magazine subscribers responded to the “Top 50 Resort Guide” survey, which was conducted by an independent research firm.

If you would like to call Ludlow VT “home” or even “home away from home,” please visit
ISellVermontRealEstate.com, or call me at 802-353-1983. To begin searching Okemo Mountain real estate, please use my complimentary MLS search.

Thursday, November 08, 2007

How to Add Light to Your Ludlow VT Home

We’ve all rolled our clocks back an hour and are beginning to adjust to the earlier onset of evening. In the winter months our homes can seem darker than usual, but there are ways to use the natural light that is available in your home to brighten things up. Money Magazine has published a list of “Do’s” and “Don’ts” for adding light to any home – among the topics covered are:

- Skylights (pick ones that open and choose carefully where to put them)
- Big windows (install them to showcase your best views, but don’t forget to add small windows above or below them that open)
- Window height (put windows high on the wall, but not tight to the ceiling)
- Window grouping (group several windows together, but don’t separate them with fat supports)
- Window shades (install shades in windows that face east, west, and south; avoid using UV-inhibiting coating)

Following these tips for adding light to your home will help to increase your home’s value. To receive a complimentary comparative home value analysis,
click here. For more information about Ludlow VT real estate, please visit ISellVermontRealEstate.com or call me at 802-353-1983.

Thursday, November 01, 2007

The Lowdown on Ludlow VT Vacation Home Taxes

If you are considering purchasing an Okemo Mountain VT vacation home in time for ski season, you may be curious about how you will be taxed on the prospective property.

This article from Smart Money magazine explains how you can purchase a vacation home and afford to pay the taxes on it. In addition to covering timeshares and multiple residences, vacation homeownership is broken down into three main groups for tax-related purposes:

· Use a lot, rent a lot (home is considered a personal residence but income must be accounted for)
· Rent a lot, use a little (home is considered a rental property)
· Use a lot, rent a little (home is considered a personal residence and income does not have to be declared)

If you are thinking of purchasing a Ludlow VT vacation home, please call me at 802-353-1983 or visit
ISellVermontRealEstate.com. Or click here to see my current listings!