SHOULD YOU LEAVE YOUR APPLIANCES WHEN SELLING?

 

In the latest episode of

Your Real Estate Solutions

with Brenda Fontaine...

 

 

Join Brenda Fontaine as she discusses whether it is a good idea

 to include appliances when selling your Maine home.

 

 Julie Poulin from Mortgage Network discusses no money down loan options.

 

DeeDee Whittemore from Phenix Title talks about the dangers of

discounted title searches and title insurance.

 

Do you have a question about real estate that you would like

to have Brenda or one of our experts answer? 

 Just e-mail us at brenda@fontaineteam.com 

or call

(207)784-3800

 to schedule a private meeting with one of our skilled agents.

8 EASY WAYS TO PROTECT YOUR IDENTITY

 

 

Identity theft is in the news more and more often. 

Nothing is worse that finding out the hard way

that someone has stolen your identity. 

 

For example - a week before you are scheduled to

 close on your new home, you get a call from your lender

to tell you they can no longer grant your loan

 because of the furniture you charged on your credit card...

except you did not buy any furniture.  

Yikes!

 

Once someone has started using your identity

you are fighting an uphill battle to fix the problem,

 but there are some easy things you can do to protect yourself

so you don't end up in that situation.

  

8 Easy Ways to Protect Your Identity:

 

One

Don't share your personal information on social media

or by e-mail.  This includes your Social Security number,

address, and date of birth, etc...

 

Two

Make sure you have anti-virus software, anti-spyware software

and a firewall installed on your computer. 

 

Three

Use strong passwords on any accounts you access on  your computer. 

Don't use the same password for every site.

 

Four

If you keep a file of bills or personal information at home,

make sure it is locked...and don't leave the key in the lock.

 

Five

Shred anything with personal information (such as bills)

that you don't need before you throw it away.

 

Six

When you go away, request a hold from the post office

so mail with personal information is not left in the mailbox. 

 

Seven

Check accounts for unauthorized activity and

your credit report on a regular basis.

 

Eight

Ask the company who insures your home if they offer

identity theft insurance and purchase it.
 

 

Are you interested in more tips to help with 

buying or selling a home in Maine? 

 

Let us help! 

 

Call us at

(207)784-3800

or e-mail us at brenda@fontaineteam.com. 

 

 

DO YOU NEED A VACATION? WIN IT HERE!

 

The sun is shining and the weather is finally getting warm...

If you are like me, the beautiful weather makes you think of

 

How would you like to spend a week in Florida

at a beautiful resort for FREE and

help grant a child's wish at the same time? 

 

&

 

 

are holding a Grant-A-Wish Raffle

in the hopes of raising $6000

to grant the wish of a child. 

 

We need your help to make it happen.

If you purchase a raffle ticket for only $25,

you have a 1 in 275 chance of winning a 1 week stay

at Wyndham Bonnet Creek Resort in Lake Buena Vista, Florida

 in a 2 bedroom, 2 bath suite...a $2100 value! 

 

Call (207)784-3800 to reserve your ticket today,

or stop by the office at 336 Center Street in Auburn

and pick up your tickets.

 

1 ticket - $25

5 tickets - $100

 

 

FREE EVENT - TOUCH A TRUCK

Do you want something fun and FREE

to do with the family this weekend? 

 

Come Touch-A-Truck!

This Saturday, May 4th, the United Way of Androscoggin County

is holding the 3rd Annual Touch-a-Truck Event!

 

Come out and see fire trucks, police cars,

construction vehicles and the Fontaine moving van

 

 

as well as participate in a children's book swap

 and children's activities....

all for FREE! 

 

When:  Saturday, May 4th from 10am-1pm

Where: Central Maine Community College

 1250 Turner Street in Auburn

 

We hope to see you there!

 

Did you know that when you buy or sell with the Fontaine Team,

 you can use our moving van for free? 

Call us today to get your home sold or to find your dream home!

 

(207)784-3800

Update: 

Photos from Touch-A-Truck 2013

 

FUN THINGS TO DO IN MAINE THIS SPRING!

I don't know about you, but I have spring fever! 

 

Bring on the warm weather, let's get out of the house

and go do something! 

 

Are you looking for things to do this spring? 

Check out these events in April and May...

 

Sugarloaf Reggae Festival

May 11th - 14th 

The 25th Annual Reggae Festival at Sugarloaf Mountain Resort

kicks off with Reggae Rhythm and Booms fireworks display,

continues Friday a outdoor Reggae Rave and continues on Saturday

with the headline show...John Brown's Body with Mighty Mystic.

 

Kora Shrine Circus

April 12th -13th Androscoggin Bank Colissee

April 15th - 17th  Cumberland County Civic Center

April 19th - 20th  Augusta Civic Center

The 60th Annual Kora Shrine Circus is a 2 ring circus

with elephants, a double trapeze act and a motorcycle thrill show.  

 

 

Maine Home Show

April 27th - 28th

The Maine Home Show at the Androscoggin Bank Colissee

is the place to be if you own a home or are buying a home.  

 Fontaine Team will be there, so stop by and say "hi"!

 

Touch a Truck

May 4th

 

The United Way is putting on Touch-A-Truck at

Central Maine Community College.  This FREE event features trucks

 in all shapes and sizes including fire trucks, cement mixers

 and the Fontaine moving van!

 

 

Bath Mayfair

May 4th

The Mayfair in the town of Bath offers a citywide yard sale,

 downtown scavenger hunt, Maypole dancing, sidewalk chalk art,

a farmer's market and FREE yoga!

 

 

 Northern New England Home Garden and Flower Show

May 17th - 20th

  

Held at the Fryeberg Fair Grounds, the New England Home, Garden and Flower show

 offers garden marketplaces, home and garden seminars,

fair food and celebrity guests. 

 

Maine Comic Arts Festival

May 19th

The Maine Comic Arts Festival is held at the Ocean Gateway

in Portland and features artists, writers and publishers with no dealers.

 

 

Bug Light Kite Festival

May 18th

A day of kite flying at Bug Light park with activities for the kids,

displays, a barbecue and kites for sale.  Bug Light will also be

open to the public during the event! 

 

If you are interested in moving in Southern or Central Maine,

I would love to help!   Call me at (207)784-3800

or e-mail brenda@fontaineteam.com.

TIPS FOR SPRING CLEANING

 

Time to air out the house and start spring cleaning. 

Something about the weather getting warmer makes you want to

 have things clean and fresh...you may just not want to actually do the cleaning. 

Here are a links to some of my favorite spring cleaning tips

that I found on Pinterest to help make your spring cleaning a little easier. 

 Just click on any photo to see the instructions...

 

In the Kitchen

 

Clean the greasy gunk off of your small appliances

using Cream of Tartar and water 

  

Clean your dishwasher with white vinegar 

 

 

In the Living Room

 

Clean a microfiber couch with rubbing alcohol 

  

Clean your TV screen with a coffee filter 

 

 

In the Bedroom

 

Freshen your mattress & remove stains with baking soda,

 dish soap & hydrogen peroxide 

 

Dust your lampshades with a vacuum & dryer sheets 

 

 

In the Bathroom

 

Clean a clogged drain with baking soda & vinegar 

 

Clean a shower head with baking soda & vinegar 

 

 

In the Laundry

 

Clean your washer and dryer with vinegar 

 

Everyone knows that having a clean, clutter free house

can help it sell faster so spring cleaning could be just want is needed

to convince a buyer to make an offer on your home. 

If you are not selling...living in a fresh, clean house is always nice. 

 Check out more cleaning tips on my Pinterest Board by clicking here!

 

If you are interested in finding out more about

how to get your home sold for top dollar faster,

call (207)784-3800 or e-mail brenda@fontaineteam.com. 

TAX BREAKS FOR HOMEOWNERS

It is that time of year again....Tax Time

 

Photo by danielmoyle

 

Time to start gathering up your W2s, 1099s, bank statements and receipts...

and looking for any deductions you can find. 

One of the benefits of being a homeowner is that you may be

able to take advantage of a number of tax breaks. 

In order to take advantage of most of these deductions,

you will have to itemize your taxes.  It does make preparing your taxes

 more complicated, but the payoff can make it worth it. 

Here are list of a few tax breaks you may want to check out as a homeowner:

Mortgage Interest

If you paid interest at closing when purchasing your house,

you may be able to deduct all or part of that interest.

Points

If you paid points to obtain a mortgage when you purchased your home,

 you may be able to deduct that amount.

Property Taxes

State and local real estate taxes may be able to be deducted. 

It gets a little more tricky if your taxes are escrowed,

but worth checking into.

Selling Costs

The cost of things to promote the sale of your house

 such as broker's fees, advertising expenses

and repairs might be able to be deducted. 

 

Mortgage Insurance Premiums

If you qualify, you may be able to deduct

the premiums paid for private mortgage insurance.

 

Home Improvement Loan Interest 

Interest on loan to make capital improvements on your home,

you may be able to deduct the interest you pay on that loan.

 

Interest on Construction Loans -

If you build a home using a construction loan,

you may be able to deduct the interest paid

on a qualified home for the first 24 months of the loan. 

It is important to seek the advice of a tax professional

to determine if you qualify to take advantage of some or all of these tax breaks.  

Preparing your taxes is complicated...especially when itemizing,

 but why not take advantage of all the benefits of being a homeowner? 

We would love to hear if these deductions helped you out? 

Did it reduce the amount you owed or maybe even get you a refund?

Do you want to know about all the advantages of homeownership? 

Call (207)784-3800 or e-mail brenda@fontaineteam.com