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If you are a homeowner, you may want to refinance, apply for a home equity loan or sell your home, you will want the highest home appraisal possible. Low appraisals are becoming a bigger problem for many would be sellers and refinancers as home values have started to stabilize and rise in most markets.  Appraisals are based on recent sales prices of comparable properties and in rising price markets, those sales prices may not be high enough to support the newest deals. Here are some suggestions on how you can improve your appraisal. Ask questions about the appraiser. Make sure that the appraiser knows your neighborhood, but how long he known the area? Is your Appraiser from 10 miles radius of your property? Ask nicely. The old "you catch more flies with honey than a vinegar" is true. Ask him/her if you can provide him/her with your own comparable and in return give him/her at least three comparable properties from homes that really are similar to yours in one mile radius. Never pressure your appraiser. It is illegal and unethical. Do your homework. Make sure that the appraiser knows all important renovations, replacements or improvements that you did to the property as well as all the exciting developments and local information like schools, library, day care, shopping center, banks, etc. First Impression counts. Great curb appeal really means welcoming. Make sure to replace some plants, flowers and the grass should be short and green. Try to water the landscape and grass at least three hours before the appt. time. You need to have your house to be presented at it best. That advice holds true indoors, too. Get rid of the clutter in your home, it will make your home look bigger and spacious. Start by cleaning your counters and drawers from your kitchen and bathrooms. Clean out the garbage cans, wash your windows inside and out, remove or replace faded draperies or leave windows and floors bare to avoid showing lack of attention.  Run citric fruit or lemon through your garbage disposal to get rid of any unfortunate smells. MARIA CIPOLLONE www.Flahomespecialist.com www.linkeding.com/pub/maria-cipollone/32/735/81b/ ...read more

    Fed minutes: Decision not to taper was a 'close call'By Annalyn Kurtz  @AnnalynKurtz October 9, 2013: 4:10 PM NEW YORK (CNNMoney)Federal Reserve officials were torn on whether to begin slowing their stimulus program at their last meeting in September, according to minutes released Wednesday.At that meeting, the Fed surprised investors and economists, who were largely expecting the central bank to start reducing its $85 billion in monthly bond purchases -- a gradual wind-down process that has come to be known as "tapering". The decisionnot to taper, was a 'relatively close call' for several members of the Fed's policymaking committee, the minutes said.Related: Federal Reserve says no taperWhat tipped the scale?While members seemed to agree that the job market has improved since they started the bond-buying policy known as QE3 last year, they "were not adequately confident" that the progress would continue.In fact, several officials revised their economic forecasts lower for 2013, given these key risks: The economic data remained mixed, inflation still looks well below the Fed's comfort zone, and rising mortgage rates could sap some momentum out of the housing recovery.Perhaps most importantly though, the Fed also worried about a potential government shutdown and debt ceiling battle.Members pointed to "heightened uncertainty about the course of federal fiscal policy over coming months, including the potential for a government shutdown or strains related to the debt ceiling debate," the minutes said.About two weeks after the meeting, the federal government shut down. Thefull economic impactis still unknown, but the shutdown has alreadydelayed economic reportsfrom the Labor Department and the Commerce Department, upon which the Fed usually bases its decisions. ...read more