By Melissa Dittmann Tracey, REALTOR® Magazine
On a hot summer day, who isn’t envious of the house with the inviting, backyard pool to jump in and cool off? But today’s cost conscious homebuyer may be leery of taking the plunge with buying a home with a pool, viewing the upkeep as putting them in the deep-end of mounds of extra expense.
In-ground pools can be attractive features when selling a home; Realtor.com allows buyers to narrow their home search to properties with only a pool. However, some buyers are looking more closely at the added expense, just as some home owners are even opting to remove that once-considered jewel of the backyard.
In a recent Wall Street Journal article (Taking a Bath on Your Pool by Brett Arends), experts estimated that pools can add $3,000-$5,000 in maintenance a year. And if something goes wrong, say the filters or pump need replaced, costs can quickly add up.
By Sonja Greenlee, kitchen gardener for The DS Team
Lush gardens and planters sprouting life can make a huge difference to the curb appeal of a home – even in the autumn season. So if your clients are looking for a hardy vegetable to add to outdoor pots, or to spruce up a fall garden, tell them to try planting radishes. They are easy to grow, sprout in three to five days, and are ready to eat in four to five weeks.
Plus, radishes are a great fall weather crop. These shade-tolerant plans also work well in the southern region of the U.S. in the winter when temperatures are in the 70s.
Sow the tiny radish seeds in half-inch deep, well-worked soil. Plant in rows or in a mass; just remember to thin so the plants are two to three inches apart once the root systems are established. Be sure to harvest the plants before the roots get too big, or they will crack and become woody. Continue reading »
By Elaine Williamson, Elaine Williamson Designs
With temperatures reaching record highs throughout the U.S., thoughts of autumn seem but a woeful wish. The fall season evokes thoughts of home and hearth, as families and friends eagerly anticipate re-connecting with one another amid busy lives.
Of course, most want a home design and décor that will impress, and help de-compress, impending company – one with that autumn sensibility that exudes comfort and warmth … and duly stimulates the senses.
With this in mind, here are 10 top home design and décor trends for fall:
Photo Credit: Elaine Williamson Designs
1. Vintage accents. What’s old is new again. French-burlap is no longer just for sack-racing. This Earth-friendly fiber is being used for chic pillows imprinted with a vintage stamped design or even a family initial.
Accent chairs can also be seen covered in gray linen imprinted with vintage “document” script writing. Vintage couture lamps (and their replicas) are utter perfection this year, especially those with milk glass and natural material bases, drum shades, and antique brass finials.
Aged, color-washed wood accessories such as candlesticks, urns, and bowls are popular as oversized accessories to accent and update a time-worn look.
2. Wallpaper! With a decreasing demand for faux finishes and walls painted in solid primary colors, wallpaper is making a comeback in a big and decidedly fashionable way.
By Melissa Dittmann Tracey, REALTOR® Magazine
Come wintertime, homes can suffer from the winter blues too. When it’s cold, gray, and snowing, how can you still make a home warm and inviting to potential buyers? I’m collecting favorite winter staging tips for an upcoming article in REALTOR® Magazine, and I want to hear from you!
Please e-mail your best winter staging tip to Melissa Dittmann Tracey at mtracey@realtors.org and include your name, company, and city/state. Be free to send any photos of your winter transformations too! Some of your submissions will appear in an upcoming issue of REALTOR® Magazine, as well as be featured at Styled, Staged & Sold.
By Melissa Dittmann Tracey, REALTOR® Magazine
Hong Kong architect Gary Chang doesn’t sacrifice any square inch of his tiny, 350-square-foot apartment. He’s found a way to turn it into a home office, master bedroom, kitchen, guest room, media center, and more…in just 350 square feet.
Chang designed what he’s nicknamed the “domestic transformer” and has shown how a smart design style can truly make the tiniest spaces contain all you ever need.
The rooms in Chang’s 350-square-foot space are created by sliding walls that reveal new spaces and functions. Up to 24 new spaces can be created.
For example, where you see a wall in the living room, you can pull it away to show a linen closet. Move it again and you’ll find a soaker bath tub.
Pull the mounted TV forward, and you’ll find the full kitchen behind it. That home office can quickly transform into the dining room.
It’s a case of now-you-see-it-now-you-don’t design in making small spaces seem bigger.
“The house transforms and I’m always there, I don’t move. The house moves for me,” Chang told Planet Green TV in a video segment about his space.
By G. M. Filisko, contributing writer, HouseLogic
You’ve preached to sellers that curb appeal goes beyond making a good first impression and that the way their house looks from the street can impact its value and shorten the time it takes to sell. But have you given them concrete curb appeal tips they can implement today?
Get “8 free tips for adding curb appeal to your home” now available in the August “Curb Appeal” article package at the REALTOR® Content Resource. Here are just two of the tips you’ll find there:
1. Paint the house. Hands down, the most commonly offered curb appeal advice from real estate pros and appraisers is to give the exterior of your home a good paint job. Buyers will instantly notice it and appraisers will note it on the valuation. Just make sure you stay within the range of accepted colors for your market. A house that’s painted a wildly different color from its competition will be marked down in value by appraisers. Continue reading »
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