10 Quick And Budget-Friendly Projects To Remake Your Space This Spring

Source: trulia.com ~ Author: Michael Corbett

Most of the country is digging out from underneath snow and ice brought on by the tail end of winter, but no matter what climate you live in, your thoughts are likely turning to Spring! The first tastes of warmer weather also brings thoughts of spring cleaning and freshening up your home.

If you don’t have the time or money to do a lot of significant upgrades, but you want to give your home a fast and inexpensive face lift, here are 10 things you can do in one day or one weekend for under $200 dollars!

Save it, Sell It, Chuck it! This is my first step to give a home fast face lift. Decluttering is free and will only cost you time. Taking a close, hard look at what needs to really be in a room and what can go will change the entire look of a space. Less “stuff” will open up your existing space and give a “lift” faster than you can say “yard sale!” Yes, you might even MAKE money if any items you discard have resale value!

Tackle The Closets Fling open the doors to those stuffed clothes closets – and get organized. Start by getting rid of your mis-matched hangers. Stop by a place like Bed, Bath & Beyond or Home Goods and buy 100 matching hangers for cheap. They’ll look nicer and save you space, and you will be able to toss old unwanted fashions as your rehang each item. An inexpensive way to breathe new life into your closet and wardrobe.

Paint It Over An accent color wall or an interior room repaint will liven up a home. With little money and just a day or a weekend, your house can have new a new look and a new life. Be adventurous – it is the easiest renovation to “do-over” if you don’t like it!

Deep Clean Those Carpets If you have wall-to-wall carpet or large area rugs spread throughout your home, rent a carpet cleaner and give those carpets a deep clean. You can rent these at most local grocery or hardware stores. I invested the money up front and bought a good carpet shampooer for about $200, and I use it once a month – it is shocking how much extra dirt that machine pulls up each time. And if you have pets …this is one spring facelift you can’t live without!

Throw In Some Color Throw pillows are no brainers when it comes to creating a fresh new look on the cheap. Bring your living with you into the new season by throwing in some bright colors, and put the old pillows away for later. Store your other pillows away, and then swap them out whenever there is a change of season.

A Hotel Right in Your Own Home I’ll let you in on a luxury hotel secret: they dress their beds with white sheets, white pillow cases and crisp white duvet covers. It’s a standard for a reason – it’s fresh and light, and looks very high-end. You might cringe at the thought of how dirty all white can get, but it’s actually much easier to clean – throw it all in the wash with your other whites and some bleach and your are ready for a mini ‘five-star’ vacation in your own home.

Turn Down the Heat During this past season of wild temperature swings, your thermostat has been one of the most utilized devices in you home. It is time to give it a lift and an upgrade at the same time. The new breed of “smart” thermostats are fantastic. Venstar and Nest are two I love. They are easily programmable from both the control panel and directly from your mobile device too. Bonus – they look stylish and they save you money, too!

A Brand New Faucet Something new, shiny and functional will reinvigorate a tired kitchen counter! And it will add in some functionality as well. Those great goose neck or sprayers look fantastic and will cost you under $200.

Front Entrance Makeover A new bright color for the front door in a high gloss paint, a shiny kick-plate, new house numbers, new doormat – it will all make a big impression on the outside!
Outdoor Pop What spring face lift would be complete without some new spring flowers? Freshen up your curb appeal by planting pops of color and seasonally appropriate flowers that will look great for months to come.

Outdoor Pop What spring face lift would be complete without some new spring flowers? Freshen up your curb appeal by planting pops of color and seasonally appropriate flowers that will look great for months to come.

Spring Flowers Ideas for 2014

6 Seller Secrets For This Spring's Real Estate Market

Source: Forbes.com

Each year, it seems the housing market takes on a different tone – and whether it’s going to be a sellers’ market with inflated prices and bidding wars, or a buyers’ market with tons of choices and low prices – there’s no denying that the 2014 spring housing season is upon us. So what does it have in store? Well, if you’re thinking of listing your home, that’s an important question.

Here are 6 market insights that will give you a head start!

Right Now = A Great Time To Sell
The winter home selling season was crippled by the polar vortex, especially in the east and northeast, so there’s pent-up demand from buyers who’ve been waiting for better weather to brave the house hunt. Mortgage rates are still at historic lows, so buyers ARE poised to buy and ready to hit the streets.

Know Your Numbers: 60%
Sixty percent of all homes in 2014 will be bought and sold from May to August. Putting your home on the market at the beginning of the selling season will help your chances of snagging a winning offer before buyers turn their attention back to school starting in September.

Price It Right
Many metros in the country have seen double-digit price increases in the past year. But this last quarter, prices started to slow nationally – and pricing is a critical component to getting your house sold. With this fluctuating market, you need to look at comps of similar homes in your area, and recentcy matters: make sure you’re looking back no more than 60 days. The sale price of homes that sold recently paints a much better picture of what to expect than the price of homes that sold six months ago (or of homes that have yet to sell).

Bidding Wars Aren’t Back (Phew!)
Bidding wars were common in the summer of 2013, but we’re hearing less about them right now. So don’t bank on fielding two or three offers at once. There is, however, a good chance that you’ll still get the one that will be a win/win for both you and the buyer.


It Pays To Be Ahead Of The Curve
Trying to get a jump on the competition? Right now we’re on the cusp of prime selling and buying season, and if you list soon, you’ll have less competition than you would if you put your house on the market in May or June, when more homes will flood the market. Since it’s still early, your home can have its ‘moment in the spotlight’ more than it will when inventory increases – and the buyers who are braving the cold to house shop are clearly motivated.

Make It Pop Off The Computer (Or Smartphone) Screen!
In this new mobile era, a huge percentage of buyers use smart phones (and Trulia’s top-rated apps) to start their home search online. And that percentage is expected to rise this year as more buyers take advantage of easy access to the wealth of information online. Get in on this trend by making sure your home pops on those computer screens. Great homes with mediocre quality photos will be quickly discarded and ultimately get less showings. Sellers should insist that their agent take the time to beef up their online listing so the quality of the home jumps off the screen and gets buyers’ attention.

 

9 Things To Ignore When House Hunting

Looking for a new home can be a challenge, especially when you walk into someone’s for-sale home and 20 years of their lives are on display. You have to really use your imagination to determine how you can that particular home ‘yours.’ Many people choose to remodel and stage their homes prior to putting it on the market, but then there are the vast majority of people who choose to sell their beloved home “as-is.”

While a turnkey home is ideal for people who want to move right in and make no changes, there are those “time warp” homes that are actually incredible gems that just need a little polishing.

 

As you step into each home on your house hunt, here are 9 things about a for-sale home that you should “try to ignore” as you search for your dream home.

An “Older” Home

Old isn’t always synonymous with bad. Some homes built decades ago have stood the test of time because they were built with solid, quality materials and have a classic style. Don’t always assume that new = nicer, either. Some newer homes are “affordable” because they were built cheaply. Remember that there are many simple fixes for dated homes, and the plus side of an older home is charm and character you can’t find in a brand new build.

Paint Colors

Ignore the existing paint choices and focus on the structure of the room, the placement of the windows, etc. Paint is an incredibly easy and a cheap fix in a home and something you can change in just a couple hours.

Wallpaper With Rosters And Chickens

While it may look like you are walking into a barnyard, remember that wallpaper is easily replaced or covered over. So no matter how designed challenged the walls seem to look – it’s an easy fix.

Kitchen Appliances And Accessories

The kitchen is the heart of the home and often, the appliances aren’t going to live up to your dreams. As long as you have room in your budget, or a timeline to replace the existing appliances, a seller’s yellow fridge shouldn’t be a deal breaker.

Ugly Carpet

Flooring options are getting more and more diverse and there are now so many low-cost options that look exactly like their higher-priced counterparts. Don’t walk away from a great house just because you’re not a fan of what you’d be walking on.

Funky Smells

 

Except for a serious mold problem, there’s nothing a deep cleaning can’t fix. Plug your nose and focus on the home’s bones and the potential it has when you give it your own touch.

Curb Appeal

If you’re not saying “wow” when you first drive up, that’s ok. Close your eyes and envision a different colored front door and some new landscaping, and presto – it might just be your dream home!

Popcorn Ceilings

It’s great at the movies, but not at home.  No worries! A ceiling specialist can come in and have it all that scrapped off.  Just make sure you have it done before you move in – it is a messy job.

No Privacy

If the house feels too exposed and lacks privacy from next door – you can fix that.  Remember “hedges make great neighbors.”

5 Stats Every House Hunter Should Know

Source: Forbes.com

Buying a new home can be quite the undertaking, and in many ways, it’s a numbers game.

Here are five stats, numbers and percentages you’ll need to be familiar with to give you that winning edge.

90% Of All Home Buyers Begin Their Home Shopping Online

Let your fingers do the walking. Did you know that today 90% of all buyers begin their house shopping online? It’s the best way to get familiar with the market, the houses, the prices, the neighborhoods and the current inventory, without leaving your home or office. With every click of that mouse, you become a more educated, smarter home shopper. And a smart buyer gets a better house – and pays less. You can search for properties, compare similar properties, research the neighborhood, calculate commute times, rate schools and even pull up crime stats for you area. It’s so easy for anyone to get instant access to a property’s current value and even get a good ballpark idea of prices in each neighborhood. But most important, you will get an invaluable education about how much or how little your money will buy.

5-7 Years

Statistically, based upon the national rates of home appreciation and prices, most homebuyers should consider buying only if they plan to live in their home for 5 years, minimum.  Otherwise, financially it may not make sense. If you have to sell again relatively soon, you could lose money. Generally, a home is not a good short-term investment because the transaction costs are too high. Yes, you will have been paying down some of your mortgage monthly, but when you factor in paying an agent between 4-6% of the sales price and monthly costs, this can amount to more than the average long-term annual national home price appreciation rate. So, depending upon your metro area, if you have to sell after only a few years, it might made more financial sense to keep renting.

Number of Days on Market

When house shopping, knowing how long a home has been on the market can help you gauge if it’s priced too high, has too many flaws or if something else is a factor. On Trulia, you’ll find this important stat right under the photos of the for sale home.

Great homes in the right neighborhoods that are priced correctly tend to spend the least amount of days on the market. Homes in fringe neighborhoods that may be overpriced compared to comps, or have major structural or cosmetic issues, tend to sit on the market much longer. These homes with long for-sale shelf lives aren’t all duds. Some of them may be slightly overpriced and just need a bit of TLC.  With a little imagination and the right guidance from an agent, this could be your dream home!

 Dollars Per Month

This is how much the home will cost you out of pocket every month: your mortgage and estimated taxes and insurance.  You can find this on Trulia  on every for-sale home’s listing page. Having this “stat” right up front lets you tailor your shopping choices to those homes you can actually afford.

43% of Your Income

This is a very important stat and a new development in the housing market. Under the brand new “Qualified Loan” mortgage rules, in general, the borrower’s debt, including mortgage payments, can’t total more than 43% of gross monthly income (although there are exceptions to that cap for the next several years). Also, points and fees are limited to 3 percent of the loan amount.

New Listing - Winery Estate at 29181 S. Lehman Rd. Tracy

 

This 9.36 acre Winery Estate has approx. 6 acres of bare land available for farming and  includes La Bonne Vie Cellars Winery (Tracy's oldest winery), a 3616 sq ft two story, 4 bedroom,3.5 bath custom home (with lots of storage) built in 1998 with solar power services for the entire property which has reduced  the once 1200 to 1500 monthly electrical bills to now approximately $1,000 annually..

 

If you love to entertain, you will be impressed with the size and potential of the available facilities, including; a 2800 square foot barn housing the tasting room, refrigerated barrel room, refrigerated cased goods room, and a work shop. The outside space includes a large grassy area facing a stage, a 2400 square foot open air patio, a excluded tree covered picnic area, a covered, a Bocce ball court,  a covered luau pit and lots of off-street parking is also available.

 

La Bonne Vie Cellars is a fully bonded and operational winery in the Tracy hills appellation. It is Tracy's oldest winery and has been upgraded from boutique winery status to small winery status this last year. The winery has a annual production of approx. 500 cases of wine (or about 1188 gallons).

 

This facility has recently been contacted by Amazon and a major line of grocery stores to sell their wines. Also it should be noted that they have a port label that was grandfathered in, this is important because this is the only winery in Tracy who will ever be able to call there Port a port. 

10 Kitchen Trends Here to Stay

Source: Centsationalgirl.com

The kitchen is where we cook and bake, and spend time with family and friends. It must stand up to daily wear and tear, moisture, heat, and the march of time when it comes to design trends. In the past few years, many trends are proving they have staying power, here’s a glance at ten looks that are defining modern kitchen design.

Open Shelving. This bistro style has surged in popularity over the past few years and while many have questioned whether it’s timeless (including me) it’s a look that so many of us embrace now and ranks high on many a homeowner’s list as an opportunity to showcase pretty dishes or glass containers within easy reach.

Two Color Cabinetry.  It used to be two separate colors between the island and surrounding cabinets, but now the two color cabinetry look is different. Now the two tone look is above and below. Choosing lighter cabinets above gives the illusion of less weight while the darker color on the base cabinets feels grounded. This is a modern and stylish way to mix tones, and one way to give an older single color kitchen a new look.

Tile to the Ceiling. This is my favorite look in kitchens, those feature walls of tile that go straight up to the ceiling and/or wrap around windows. Yep, it’s an added expense and unnecessary for function beyond the back of a range and the few inches needed above the counter but wow, what a statement it makes, right?

Brass Fixtures. The warmth of brass is surging again and looks equally as appealing next to warm grays and wood surfaces as it does against cooler white or black tones.

Wood Countertops. They’re a higher maintenance surface, but offer a warmth that granite or marble can’t provide. Have your wood countertops custom made by a local maker, or consider butcher block versions are readily available from vendors like IKEA and easy to install without professional help.

Recycled & Reclaimed Materials.  Compared to the generations of the past, we’re fortunate to have so many choices of eco-friendly materials including recycled glass tiles and countertops, cork and bamboo floors and reclaimed wood, all at the top of the list for many considering a remodel.

Neutral Painted Cabinets. Gray, greige, taupe, and gray greens offer a nice change to the stark white kitchens we’ve love but have seen over and over – the slightly warmer yet neutral hues feel elegant and refined.

Contemporary Wood Fronts. The warmth of wood is returning to the kitchen scene as many designers are including cherry, maple, and walnut woods. The door and drawer fronts are streamlined with no raised or beveled paneling and partnered with modern pulls for contemporary appeal.

Less or No Upper Cabinets. So many are now opting out of bulky upper cabinets and instead choosing the beauty of just windows or feature tile. What they sacrifice in storage they gain in an airy aesthetic, but often this look requires architectural consideration from the beginning of a kitchen’s design.

IKEA Cabinets.  IKEA is giving every kitchen cabinet manufacturer serious competition with their streamlined styles and lower prices. Anyone who has ever walked through the IKEA kitchens in stores knows that there are several styles and finishes to choose from, all of them making a kitchen remodel that much more affordable.

What are your thoughts on these kitchen trends? Do you agree they are here to stay or do you think they will fade away in a few years? What styles appeal to you most?