Category: How to

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4 DIY Tips For Home Sellers in 2022

Modern Architecture Concept

Thinking of selling your home next year? Here are some tips to sell your home fast!

Photos By: Pexels

With the new year, comes new resolutions for homeowners. If you’re thinking of taking advantage of the advantageous seller’s market by putting your home up for sale, you’ll be glad to know the current housing conditions almost guarantee a favorable closing price — so long as you have a top-notch real estate agent on your side.

Though home prices are extremely high right now, there’s still plenty of tasks you can tackle yourself in order to truly impress your buyers. As any real estate agent will attest, staging a home is key in order to sell quickly and profitably. Here are some helpful tips to get started.

Declutter, deep clean and depersonalize 

When a buyer views your home, they’ll want to picture themselves living in the property. That’s why top real estate agents always recommend decluttering, deep cleaning, and depersonalizing your home prior to the sale.  Limit the number of family photos and mementos, remove the layers of dust and grime from the shelves and windows, and organize the storage spaces in your home.  If it is a big cleanout, you could hire a residential dumpster to make the job easier.

If you’re looking for some housekeeping tips, remember to stay organized and motivated. Come up with a cleaning and decluttering method that works for you. Some people like setting timers for 15 minutes every day to work, while some create a goal to donate or throw away a certain number of items everyday. No matter your method, this is an easy way to impress buyers that won’t cost you a dime!

Stage your home

Staging your home is perhaps the most important step before allowing potential buyers to view your home. In order to pull this off, maximize your space, plant flowers outside, and paint the walls neutral colors.

Decorating your home is another important step. As noted, personal mementoes, family photos, and sentimental keepsakes, while extremely important to you, will actually hurt your selling prospects. Buyers want to picture themselves in your property, so try limiting the personal tokens within your decorating in favor of neutral items like plants and landscape photos. You don’t have to remove all the family photos and having no decor at all will decrease the hominess of the property — just make sure anyone entering your home for a tour will be able to picture themselves living there.

Take your home virtual

Thanks to the COVID-19 pandemic, it’s now more important to ever to make sure your home stands out both physically and virtually. Videos and photos are going to be more important than ever, so you’ll want to make sure you create a top-notch online marketing presence for your property.

While your real estate agent can help with this process, it’s easy to create great home videos and photos with just your Smartphone. Lighting is important, so choose a time of day with plenty of natural light and turn on all overhead lighting. Remember, you’ll want your angles to showcase your home’s spaciousness, so avoid taking close-up photos. If you don’t know where to start, always remember to ask your real estate agent for guidance.

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Tips for Controlling Pests in Your House

Michelle from Modern Architecture Concept

Most houses, especially the houses on the ground floor, have issues with pest control. Pest control can be really difficult if you are living in an area where there is moisture, and the cleaning is not done properly!

During the summers, the pest can easily take control of your house. If you are looking for effective solutions that can help you get rid of the pests and to control the pests in your house, you can follow the tips mentioned below. It is not very difficult to control pests in your house.

Sealing gaps

The first thing that you can do is to seal the gaps that are on the floor and in the walls. It can help with controlling the pest at a great level. The troubled areas are usually the gaps in the attic or the unsealed areas in the electric lines. There are a lot of sealing products that you can use for sealing the gaps to ensure the pests, including bugs and mice, so they do not enter your house. When you are blocking their entrance, it will control the bugs to a good level.

Do not store firewood in the house

Another reason why you find bugs in your house is because of the firewood that you store in the attic or in your house. With the firewood, there are a lot of insects and bugs that comes into your house and start an infestation. The wise decision is to store the firewood outside the house and bring in the firewood only as required. It will keep the bugs away from your house.

Work on the broken screens

If the window screens are broken, you must start mending them. When the screens are doing their job at best, the mosquitoes and other bugs will not enter your house. It will be a barrier for the bugs to enter, and your house will be saved from the bugs and the pest.

Use home remedies

Some of the remedies, including putting onions and using vinegar, can also help you to deal with the bugs and mosquitoes. You can use the vinegar to distract the ants; therefore, it is a good remedy to start with. The spiders do not like onions, and it can also work for controlling pests in your house. There are other remedies also available that you can use for controlling pests. Apple cider vinegar is also a great solution to control pests.

Use dehumidifier

When you are using the dehumidifier and maintaining the level of humidity up to 40%, it will also help with controlling the pest, especially spiders. The population will minimize immensely when you are keeping the humidity at 40 percent. They are a lot of pest control solutions that you can use. These pest control solutions are also great for home and fit the hotels. It is also important to pest control in hotels to ensure the customers are getting the best treatment. There are many services for pest control also available which people can use not only for their houses but also for the hotels.

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Why Living in a Rainy City Can Change Your Dream House

Michelle from Modern Architecture Concept

Every person dreams of their own house and the style it will have once they are able to have it. However, there are a few things you have to take into consideration when you move into a rainy city because your style may change dramatically in order to adapt to the weather!

Photos By: Unsplash

Some of these things may seem obvious, but it is important to understand the different aspects of the design of your house in order to avoid problems with extreme weather. The distribution of rooms as well as systems in order to funnel the water from the roof are some of the essentials for your new house.

Exterior Paint

You should be able to choose a high-quality paint in the market, since it will have to stand up to climate variations during the day. In order to choose between the different options in the market, you may have to search for reviews and get in touch with specialists in the field in order to receive a detailed explanation of which type of paint is best for you depending on the city in which you will live.There are different websites with recommendations which are useful for anybody who is looking for advice and they are not an expensive type of paint.

Garages

You may also want to have enough space for your car or even the different things you have in your backyard. Having a spacious garage is important for those who live in a city with heavy rainfall or even hail. It will be important to consider building a garage with enough space for two cars and some extra room for other things, because everything has to be protected from the damage that can be caused by extreme weather conditions.

Gutters

The installation of gutters will assure you that all the water coming from the roof will funnel through the system and this will lead it away from your house. It is important to take into consideration the importance of a gutter system since it will avoid having problems with the roof of the house and it will also drain the water. In order to know a bit more about this system, you can check the Amigo Gutters  that were highly recommended and there are different reviews online.

Laundry Room

You will need to have a laundry room well equipped with everything you need in order to wash and dry your clothes inside. It is common nowadays to hear that people are trying to adopt more eco-friendly practices such as drying their clothes in the sun, but that is not an option in a city with rainy weather. Having a laundry room will make it possible for you to take care of your clothes without having to worry about the weather and it does not need to occupy so much space in your house.

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What’s the New Normal Look Like for Real Estate Post-Coronavirus?

Michelle from Modern Architecture Concept

There’s no doubt that the post-coronavirus world is going to be a lot different, but what does that mean for real estate? Are we ready for the ‘new normal?’


Photo By: Anthony Wilder Design/Build, Inc.

In just a few months, the coronavirus pandemic has altered the lives of Americans, our businesses, economy, and morale. As we go forward, it’s going to be challenging trying to get back to some semblance of normal. But, what does that look like? What will the ‘new normal’ look for the real estate market and how agents conduct business? Let’s take a look at some of the ways we could see how real estate might change in a post-coronavirus world.

Unemployment is putting the real estate market in distress

There are plenty of reasons why people move to big cities, be it for an opportunity, employment, or a fast-paced lifestyle. However in light of the pandemic, these large cities, with their dense population, are experiencing higher unemployment rates as local businesses shut down. Las Vegas’ unemployment increased by 2.6% between March 2019 (4.2%) and March 2020 (6.8%), for example. Since people are losing their jobs without real relief from the federal government, real estate sales are down, homes are being foreclosed on, and rents aren’t being paid. As a result of this, people are likely to jump ship and relocate to recession-resistant cities like Bay City, Michigan, Pueblo, Colorado, and Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

Photo By: Justin Doyle Homes

Agents may use virtual tours and open houses more often

Typically when we think about real estate online, we think of property listing sites like Zillow or Trulia. When we see a house we like, we ask our real estate agent to make an appointment so we can have a walk-through. However, social distancing and stay-at-home orders have made that nearly impossible. That’s why many realtors are using 3D virtual tours and host live walk-throughs via FaceTime or Zoom. By doing virtual tours, person-to-person contact is reduced significantly. Buyers can look around the property without actually being there. Sellers don’t have to worry about potential buyers coming into their space and possibly spreading the virus.

Photo By: Vero Beach Magazine

Interest rates for mortgages may continue to drop

At the moment, Freddie Mac reports the average mortgage interest rate is 3.28% but that doesn’t mean they could go even lower! Unfortunately, while this would be a great time to take advantage of the incredibly low rates, many mortgage companies have changed their requirements for approval. For example, JPMorgan Chase has increased the minimum requirements, which means borrowers will need to have a 700 and above FICO credit score and 20% down payment. When you combine this with the fact that people have lost their jobs, there’s little economic relief, and bills will get further behind… People’s credit is going to suffer, therefore making it a lot harder to be approved for any type of mortgage.

Home certifications, inspections, and appraisals are modified

To continue along the home sale process, homeowners will need to get a variety of certifications, inspections, and so forth. Although the country is slowly starting to open back up, some municipalities are still keeping their doors closed. This means that some of these things are being held up. Some places can have these certificates waivered, but that could come back to bite you in the rear. The coronavirus is taking everything we thought was normal and is changing it in some pretty big ways. Many businesses, especially real estate, rely on front-facing interactions — the person-to-person engagement to get the deal completed. And, while we want to hope that our lives will get back to the normal we’re used to, we don’t truly know what’s in store for us. All we know is that technology is going to be playing a big role, for better or worse.

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Here’s How to Make Your Appliances More Eco-Friendly

Michelle from Modern Architecture Concept

The effects of our impact on the environment have never been as clear as now — plastics churning in the ocean, extreme weather changes, and toxic air quality meaning more yearly air pollution. Now more than ever, the public and businesses are acutely aware of their responsibility to protect the planet for now and future generations.

Photo By: Christine Kimberlee Designs

For homeowners and businesses, it can seem like a lot of extra work to be energy efficient and eco-aware. But as well as keeping you compliant, maintaining a level of environmental awareness can help you save money on utility bills in the long run. You don’t need to spend a lot of money straight away to start being eco-friendlier either. This article will take you through some of the ways you can make your existing appliances and practices greener!

1. No overnight standby 

If, like many homes in this day and age, you have a fair number of computers, monitors, television screens or the like, make sure you shut down these devices before leaving your home. Equipment left on standby can use around 50% of the electricity they would use when in operation. If it’s not going to be used for a while, the equipment should be switched off entirely. Neon signs that are popular now as decorative wall art, should be switched off before you go home for the day. This simple tip will save you money on bills, as well as taking a step towards being more environmentally friendly.

2. A matter of degrees

Generally speaking, boilers have a lifespan of around 15 years. If your boiler isn’t quite that old yet, however, there are still steps you can take to making it more energy efficient. If you’re not already in the habit of having the heating turned off when leaving your home, do so. You can always set a timer for the heating to come on an hour or so before you return, so you aren’t walking into a freezing home. Also, try knocking the thermostat down just a degree or two. It’s unlikely to make a huge difference to the comfort of your home, but even just one degree lower can save you money and energy.

3. The office canteen

It’s easy to forget the appliances we have at home need care and maintenance. Just as your car need’s yearly check-ups and oil changes, so does your fridge! A fridge should last for around 10 to 20 years before it needs replacing, but if you reckon your fridge is past its best, be sure to opt for an eco-friendly model; there’s loads of energy-efficient models on the market right now. For now, we’ll focus on your current fridge. When was the last time the coils were cleaned? It’s likely been a while, but according to Architectural Digest, cleaning a fridge’s coils can make for a more energy-efficient machine.

The cleaning process is fairly simple:

  • Turn off the fridge
  • Put on gloves to protect your hands
  • Locate the appliance’s coils (usually, they are at the back, top, or bottom of the fridge)
  • Remove the base grill if the coils are on the top or bottom or pull the fridge out carefully to access the coils if they are located at the back
  • Take a refrigerator coil brush and clean out the dirt and debris that has accumulated on the coils
  • Clean the floor around the appliance before putting it back in place

Also, you have a dishwasher at home? It’s good practice to wait for a full load before setting the dishwasher off, so encourage your family members to stack it to a full load rather than washing in bursts. For the last load of the day, you could leave the door of the dishwasher open to let the dishes air dry overnight instead of using the energy-hungry drying cycling.

4. Office air-con

The air conditioning unit is no doubt a much-loved addition to your home, as it keeps your family living and working at a comfortable temperature. After all, living in a too-warm or too-cold environment can have an effect on your overall mood and progress if you work from home. So, don’t neglect the hard-working appliance — give it a check over every so often to make sure it is running to the best of its ability. Your best bet is to get a professional to inspect your home’s air conditioning units to be sure that everything is running efficiently, as well as confirming that it is still effective. One of the most obvious key signs that it’s time for a check over is if the unit is making strange noises.

Of course, newer models tend to be more energy efficient, but as you can see, your home’s current appliances can still work greener with the proper care and attention. When replacement becomes unavoidable though, take some time to look at the energy-efficiency of models and view it as an investment to saving money and energy in the long run!