Monthly Archives: October 2019

There’s nothing like the holidays to inspire good cheer and be an excuse to spruce up your home. With a bit of imagination and some expert pointers, any house can be transformed into a cozy holiday home, even on a budget.

Pine Cone Decor

An easy way to infuse your home with some holiday accents is to simply take a hike and collect a few fallen pine cones. Nothing says cozy winter like some pine cones adorning your window sills and shelves. Plus, it’s free decoration!

Light it Up

Candles create the perfect holiday atmosphere and are cheap. Red, green, and brown candles add to the colors of the season, bringing warmth into the home and providing a subtle accent.

Throw it Down

Many clothing outlet stores carry seasonal throws and blankets. A plush autumn, Thanksgiving, or Christmas throw is an easy way to splash some holiday style onto a sofa or chair. When the weather starts turning cold, you’ll be glad to have them anyway!

Knobs and Handles

A clever way to temporarily remodel the look of your home for the holidays without spending a fortune is to purchase some new door knobs and drawer handles. During the holiday season, you can probably find reindeer knobs or drawer handles in the style of autumn leaves. Replacing your current knobs with these will instantly give your home a seasonal look and they can easily be removed after the holidays are over.

Creativity is Key

Look around you, both in stores and when you take an afternoon walk. There are so many little things that you can add to your home during the holiday season to match the mood and style you want for this time of year. Let your creativity run wild!

Location

We’ve all heard the real estate mantra: location, location, location. However, this repetition is completely warranted, as it can’t be stressed enough how important location is to the value of a home.

Neighborhood obviously plays a role in a house’s value, but so does the location within that neighborhood. It’s generally best to find a house that is on the low price end in a good neighborhood. The reason for this is the already high-value homes in the area will help bring up the value of the others homes as well.

Research a neighborhood before casting any judgments on it, whether good or bad. While it may seem best to simply invest in an already “good” neighborhood, what does the future of that area look like? Have any large businesses moved in nearby that could affect the immediate vicinity and desirability? When looking for the right neighborhood, see if you can find any projections on where that area is headed. In some cases, the best bet could be to buy into an average neighborhood that shows promise.

Rub Off that Genie Lamp

The best place to start your house hunt is actually in your own mind. Before you pore over hundreds of listings online, first think about what you really want in a home. This is the fun part! Pull out a sheet (or sheets if needed!) of paper and jot down the things that make a house truly your dream home.

While it might seem simple to write down the things you want, it can be overwhelming to organize the what and why of your list. The best way to cut through the confusion is to break up the list into categories. Not everything you want in a house is about the physical appearance and location. Many elements are intangible, such as the feel of walking through the front door. Do you feel at home when you step through? If the house you are looking at is not staged, imagine what it would be like filled with furniture? Does it start getting a little cramped?

Is having a big yard critical to you? How important is the square footage of the house? Does a million-dollar-view matter?

One of the most important, and most amorphous, elements of a house is convenience. How this is defined will depend on the individual buyer. This is a good time to make another list, one that keeps track of your deal-breakers. Sometimes it’s easier to realize what you have to have in a home by thinking of the things you can’t do without.

Stay on Track

As listings catch your eye, ask yourself what it is that makes them jump out to you. Make note of these important things and add them to the wish list you made above. Now is the time to start browsing listings online and attending open-houses. Your wish list will keep you on track and free from distractions. Any time you get that good feeling looking at a house, notice what causes your excitement.

It’s a good idea to keep a list of the houses you like too. By doing this you can compare and contrast to discover the pros and cons you may have overlooked when viewing them individually.