No room in the house inspires more ooohs and aaaaahs than a beautiful kitchen. Shoppers are more excited to view the kitchen area than even a grand master suite with luxurious master bath. You know why? Nobody has time to enjoy the garden tub and heated floor tiles. We are a busy society of multi taskers and there is only so much you can do from the bathroom.

In terms of the modern family's needs, the kitchen is the queen of multitasking. No more is it simply a room to prepare, serve, and eat food. We gather there, do homework there, dress wounds there, hold meetings there, check email there, pay bills there, organize supplies there, have game night there, do arts and crafts there, and relax and enjoy a cup of coffee there when everyone else is gone.

I would love my kitchen if I didn't hate it so much. It is too tiny and lacks 75% of the features necessary to accomplish the above. Here are some things to look for if you're buying or remodeling so you don't have to suffer like me.

Cupboards and counter space. They all look big when they are empty so try and have a whole section of counter apart from the sink and stove sections that provides ample work space. Either the L shaped counter and/or island with overhang for bar stools is a must for my next house. The expanded area is super for quick meals and easy clean up as well as a good spot for homework and small projects. You need tons of cupboards too. I keep the majority of my pans and my wok in my Son's closet because there is barely enough room in the kitchen for cereal bowls and macaroni and cheese in this 1996 built house that dazzled us with cathedral ceilings, upgraded elevation & arches and round top windows. Woo hoo. Maybe with all that ceiling space I can build a pantry above my head.

A nice big pantry is essential for dried goods, some cleaning supplies, maybe even your Dyson! (the multi tasking king of cleaning!)

I like the computer desk in the kitchen area, too, if the whole thing can be shut up by cabinets so that the bills and clutter do not overpower the kitchen. The beauty of a great kitchen is that it manages all these tasks while still looking beautiful, organized, and inviting.

Accommodating family gatherings is a major prerequisite with most home buyers. Although a separate formal dining area may not be used often for "formal dining", it does control the flow of guests for any type of gathering and especially when paired with a kitchen equipped with smaller eating area and L counter and barstools, it provides maximum comfort and function when entertaining. When not being used for a get together it is a wonderful workspace for a school projects that spans days. Just don't put a delicate fancy pants dining room table in there unless you plan to host many elegant dinners.

Function aside, a kitchen inspires ooooohs and aaaaaaahs with its beauty. The granite counters, the decorative back splash tiles, magnificent appliances, double ovens, deep drawers for all the gadgets and small appliances (woks! blenders! food processors! george forman!)... maybe it is all beauty that only a woman can see, but fellas, if the queen ain't happy, nobody's happy!

I just called a very prominent repo guy's office for information on a particular house. I want to know if the plumbing is present, and if the house is a garden of mold with a swimming pool for a basement. That's it. No tiny details, just those very obvious observations that would make or break my buyer's interest in the home.

The response I got was, "we don't know". I realize that SHE probably does not know. I say someone must know. She says, "the property is AS IS because it is bank owned so we don't know." I ask if someone from their office accesses the properties before they are listed. She says, "yes we send people out." okay...... so....... I ask if those folks make notes regarding the major issues. She says "no". Are they around to talk to? "no".

To add to it, this poor girl is new and got stuck with my call. For everything I say and ask, she is repeating to the people around her at her office. The collaborative effort of service and information I received is zero from this office.

WHO DECIDED THAT THIS IS OKAY?! It is ridiculous and we are stupid to continually accept this level of non service as acceptable. I don't care how many hundreds of phone calls per day your office gets on these properties. If you can't handle it effectively, you need more staff and a new system.

I edited the name of the office out of this post out of respect for existing relationships, not to protect the identity of the broker.

In case there was anyone else disappointed like me that they didn't find out about the Bret Michaels Rock of Love show at the Machine Shop until it was too late, I thought I'd announce that he's coming back! Yep! May 27th. Me and Red already have our tickets! (Thanks Mac!)
Sorry Buddy, it's a cougar's night out. :-)

Note to Buyers... Reba and Red will be off work Thursday May 28th. :-)

Anybody else going?

I really thought I posted this already. I must have dreamed it.

I noticed on the sales board that the crazy "I'll buy your house if you'll buy mine" deal finally closed. I can't really say "without a hitch" because I heard they pretty much hitched their way through the whole thing. The success of this deal, I think, is due to the cooperation of everyone involved. The realtors and lender worked great together and the buyer and seller were both so terrific that whenever one of them hit a wall the other said, "what can I do?"

Two weeks after closing, the folks are still grinning ear to ear and offering thanks all around. At a tough time in the business when many are wondering, "why am I doing this?" these people remind me why.

The details of the deal were, are, amazing to me and I do still hope it inspires creativity to help other buyers and sellers. But now that it's done and appreciating the attitude of all, I'd also like to hold it up as example for everyone that an open mind, some kindness, and a little trust can accomplish more than greed and shrewd negotiation.

Okay this one is easy and non controversial.

I know we're all frustrated with the lack of good and up to date information about the repos we're showing every day and it is obvious that folks are working on it and that is awesome. Like the new "offer in negotiation" field on KX. Thank you for that!!!! I have another suggestion.

The comment section is just a waste of words and space anymore. We all know by now that the house is "as is" and that a pre approval is needed. We even expect that there might be some bank addendums involved. What we want is INFORMATION!

I have mentioned this before but I now I am asking you to please give us more details on the condition of the property. Is the plumbing and major mechanical available. How much mold are we talking about? You know, the things that make a difference as to what grade of handy man would be able to handle the job. It would save us and our buyers so much time (and gas) if we could weed out some of the wrong properties ahead of time.

Can we do this?

Lahoud...?

Raymond...?

Bueller...?

SUAVE...?