By Dianna Hosta-Stickney
Now that you’ve made the decision to move, the next big decision is finding a Realtor. After all, most of us don’t have the time or the expertise to market our home or to navigate the complicated maze of buying another one. It’s likely your largest investment, not a time to make mistakes.
Finding a good Realtor, one who suits your personality and understands your needs, can be tricky. If selling or buying a house is on your to-do list this year, here are a few tips and factors to make a good Realtor match:
Regardless of the weather, our cover couple, Rosalie and Tom Franek of Hiram, find plenty to do outside throughout the year.
Well-known throughout the running community in Northeast Ohio and beyond, they’ve coached hundreds of athletes. Physical fitness is important to the Franeks. They live what they believe — and a big part of their time is spent outdoors during Northeast Ohio’s long winters.
Ages: Tom, 53, Rosalie, 54.
Married: 30 years.
What they do: Rosalie is a licensed massage therapist and owns Right Path Massage & Fitness, LLC (rightpathmassage.com) in Hiram. Tom teaches horticulture and arboriculture at Kent Roosevelt High School and is a certified arborist and owner of Butternut Hill Farm, a cut-your-own Christmas tree farm.
Favorite outdoor winter activities: For both, it’s cross-country skiing, ice skating, running, mountain biking and hiking.
Favorite places to explore outdoors in the winter: Backyard trails around their farm and in Hiram Township and village, Chapin Forest and Girdled Road Reservation (Lake Metroparks).
How do you stay fit the rest of the year?
We run, mountain and road bike, hike, cut and carry wood, dig trees, sheer trees, plant and maintain the garden, push a wheelbarrow, etc.
We do two days per week of functional arm, leg and core strength. We stretch and use a foam roller daily and get regular therapeutic massage. We truly believe that one of the keys of maintaining fitness, weight and energy levels throughout the years is not only to “exercise” regularly, but to pick leisure, recreational and social activities that keep you moving.
Tell us about your kids. Fitness runs in the family, right?
Bridget, 30, is a women’s distance coach at the University of Akron.
Josh, 27, is a Sherwin-Williams store manager in Baltimore, Maryland.
Both competed in track and cross country in high school and college, along with other sports.
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I’m suspicious of any activity that requires a signature on a liability waiver.
I’ve gone years, in fact, finding plenty of things to do that don’t require a waiver. I’m rethinking that. Northeast Ohio has had an indoor recreation boom recently, and the activities look like a lot of fun.
Trampolines, rope courses, climbing walls, indoor cycling. All are great winter-busting activities and don’t require layers of clothing and boots better than the ones I already own.
Here are a few places to try, either with some friends, alone (if you’re self-conscious) or with a grandkid or two.
Play: CLE is an indoor adventure park in Avon with the added bonus of serving both food and alcohol. It’s got a zip line, a rope course and a climbing wall. playcle.com
Sky Zone in Boston Heights offers an indoor trampoline park with ladders, climbing walls and other activities. skyzone.com
Zip City in Streetsboro has an indoor zip line, a trampoline park, a ropes course, a Ninja course and two Ninja laser mazes. zipcityusa.com
Ray’s Mountain Bike Park in Cleveland is open October through April. Don’t have a mountain bike? Rent one there. The course is user-friendly for folks of all skill levels. raysmtb.com
The Golf Dome in Chagrin Falls has an indoor driving range, mini golf and batting cages. thegolfdome.com
Get Air Cleveland in Middleburg Heights is just what it sounds like: a trampoline park with foam pits, trampoline walls and other indoor adventures. getaircleveland.com
Marie Elium fell off a mini-trampoline in middle school and hasn’t been on one since.
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Colorful lights, extravagant Christmas decorations, and the mess and mayhem that comes with the holiday season can be a lot of fun — unless you’ve got a For Sale sign in the front yard.
Few people choose to sell a house during the holidays, but sometimes they don’t have a choice. A job transfer, a sudden illness or death, or another unforeseen or unavoidable circumstance can land a house smack dab in the middle of the notoriously slow-selling holiday season.
Tight Market
The housing market is tight right now both here in Northeast Ohio and across the country. People are living longer, retiring later and generally staying put in their homes, creating a crowded market for potential homebuyers and young people trying to buy a home.
That can be good news for those who find themselves managing open houses and showings from mid-November through Groundhog Day in February. People are looking for houses year-round because there aren’t that many choices, particularly in desirable neighborhoods.
If you’re selling a house during the holidays, keep decorations simple. This isn’t the year for a Christmas tree in every room or inflatable Santas and Grinches in the front yard. Excessive décor can be distracting to potential buyers.
And although the holidays are a time for family visits and parties, it’s vital that sellers make their homes available for Realtor showings throughout the season. Be flexible. Keep your home show-ready; stash the holiday wrap, move the cookie tins, and clear out clutter to make rooms look open and appealing.
Keep a box of shoe booties near the entrance so people don’t track salt, mud and snow into your home. It will cut down on messy floors and make it easier to get ready for a last-minute showing if your Realtor calls.
Keep the walkways and driveways free of snow and ice.
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