Archives for September 2020

Thanks to COVID-19, the first half of 2020 saw many people hunkering down and spending more time at home—which has led to a huge surge in home design projects. But which projects and trends have been the most popular?

The Wall Street Journal asked design experts for their insights into the hottest design trends for the first half of 2020. According to the experts (whose responses were outlined in a recent REALTOR Magazine article), the hottest interior design trends of 2020 so far include:

Going two-toned in the kitchen.

Mixing and matching different tones in the kitchen—like using a darker color for your bottom cabinets and a lighter wood or paint for the top—has emerged as an on-trend way to add new life to your kitchen in 2020.

Sprucing up the home office…

With so many people working remotely, redesigning home offices has been one of the most popular interior design projects of the year. Many people are investing in structural pieces to make their home offices more functional, like built-in desks.

…and the outdoor space.

All the at-home time has prompted many homeowners to renovate their outdoor space to make it more comfortable and functional with elements like fire pits, pools, and outdoor dining areas.

Urban areas have long been the hottest real estate markets in the country. But the pandemic and stay-at-home orders left many people longing for more space, both indoors and out—and now that restrictions are being lifted, many of them are leaving the cities and heading to rural destinations to find the space they’re looking for.

And as interest in properties in rural areas is increasing, so are prices.

According to data outlined in a recent article on REALTOR Magazine, rural homes experienced an 11.3 percent increase in sales price year-over-year during the four weeks ending August 2—which is higher growth than in the suburbs (9.2 percent) and significantly higher than growth in urban areas (6.7 percent).

So, what does this mean for you? If you live in a rural area and have been thinking about selling your home, now is a great time to take advantage of increased demand and fetch top dollar for your home.

When it comes to your home, you want to make sure you have everything on hand you need to create a safe environment for you and your family. But what exactly do you need to make your home safe? Here are six must-haves you need to ensure your home is safe for your family and yourself:

1. Smoke and carbon monoxide detector

A smoke and carbon monoxide detector is a must to keep you and your family safe. You can either buy each detector separately or purchase a model that detects both. Either way, you need to make sure that you have a detector monitoring the air in your home for both smoke and carbon monoxide at all time.

You should have at least one smoke and carbon monoxide detector on each level of your home (so, for example, one in the basement, one in the ground floor, one upstairs, and one in the attic). Test them regularly and replace the batteries at least twice a year to ensure they’re working properly.

2. Fire extinguisher

House fires are more common than you’d imagine. In 2015, there were over 365,000 house fires in the United States. And while you hope that a fire will never happen to you, you still need to have an extinguisher on hand just in case.

Keep your fire extinguisher in or easily accessible from the kitchen; most home fires start in the kitchen, so you want to have your extinguisher close should a fire occur. If you have a multi-level home, you should also keep a fire extinguisher in your bedroom should a fire break out while you’re asleep.

3. An exit plan

When all else fails and your home becomes unsafe, you want to make sure you and your family all know how to get out of the home quickly and safely.

Develop an exit plan that allows you and your family to safely exit the home from all areas of the house in case of an emergency; you should have an exit route from all levels of the home so that no matter where you are when an emergency occurs, your family knows where and how to get out.

Meet with your family at least once a year to review the exit plan and make sure everyone knows what to do in case of an emergency.

4. First aid kit

Minor accidents are inevitable in your home; your children might fall and scrape their knee, you may burn yourself while making dinner. These things happen. But to keep minor injuries from escalating, you want to make sure to have a first-aid kit on hand.

First aid kits should include:

• Bandages
• Gauze
• Antibiotic Ointment
• Pain reliever
• Alcohol Cleansing Pads
• First Aid Tape
• Ice Pack
• Gloves
• Finger Splint

Depending on your family’s needs, you might need additional items, like an Epi-Pen for allergic reactions. You can pick up a first-aid kit to suit your needs just about anywhere, including First Aid Store and Amazon.

5. Contact sheet

In case an emergency happens when you’re not home, you want to have a contact sheet full of important contacts and information so whoever is home with your family or children will know who to call and how to get in touch with them.

Include your own contact information, the contact information of friends and family that live close to your home, your family doctor, and all emergency numbers, like the police station and fire station. You’ll also want to leave insurance information in case it’s needed.

6. Disaster kit

In case of a major emergency, like an earthquake, that would cause you to hunker down in your home (or leave in a hurry), having a disaster kit on hand can be a lifesaver.

Your disaster kit should contain the following:

• At least 3 days worth of water and non-perishable food items
• Cash
• Flashlight
• Batteries
• A battery-powered or hand-cranked radio
• Copies of birth certificates, passports, insurance cards, and other important documents
• Can opener
• Disposable utensils
• Pet food (if you have an animal)
• A backup cell phone battery and/or a solar charger

In an ideal world, you won’t have to use any of these safety items. But these six must-haves are essential in keeping your family safe in case of an emergency.

When you list your home, you want to stage it in a way that appeals to as many buyers as possible. But unless you have an unlimited budget for staging, you’ll likely need to focus on staging a few spaces within your home to make the biggest impact on buyers.

So, the question is—which rooms should you focus on?

A recent article from REALTOR Magazine asked Americans to name their favorite room in a house. According to the survey, these are the top choices:

• Master bedroom (27 percent)
• Family room (14 percent)
• Kitchen (10 percent)
• Master bathroom (9 percent)

The Takeaway: So, what does this mean for you? If you’re getting ready to sell your home, you may want to invest a bit of extra time and money in staging your master bedroom, family room, kitchen, and master bath. Because these rooms are the most popular, potential buyers are likely to give them a little extra attention—and if they’re staged well, it could be what pushes them towards buying the home (and getting to enjoy those rooms for themselves).