Looking to sell your home? There’s no better way to get the house looking good to buyers than employing a little home staging.
Home staging? Sounds like putting on a play. Well it kind of is—the idea is to make your space into a stage on which potential buyers can imagine their lives playing out. Continue reading
A central pillar of the American Dream is to own your own home. But as we all know the nation-wide housing crisis has made a lasting, sometimes devastating, impact on the concept of home ownership. In response to the housing catastrophe, some have wondered if renting a home will become more acceptable over time and possibly even become the new American Dream.
No doubt that house ownership has dropped in the last few years. But this trend doesn’t mean that a shift in the American psyche is taking place, or that we’re completely moving away from homeownership. Continue reading
I know a family, which I’ll call Todd and Jill Merrill. During the economic downturn of 2008-2009, Todd lost his job, and the family decided they needed to move. When they prepared to sell their home, they discovered, like many others, that the value of their house was less than the money they owed on it.
The Merrill’s have done their best to move on and rebuild their lives. Although they lost money on their last home, their goal is to buy another in about a year. If you’re coming out of a similar situation, and looking to buy another home, realtor Richard Martinez addresses common questions you may find helpful.
Talking with my friends and calling on my own observations, here are a few strategies that can help anyone like the Merrill’s reach their goals much faster. Continue reading
We all know moving can be stressful. But one thing I didn’t anticipate last time I moved was the stress I felt about how much stuff I have. When it was all crammed into a mountain of boxes in the middle of the room, it suddenly seemed simply overwhelming.
Was that really all mine? And did I really need it all?
The experience left me thinking. Moving really is the best time to weed out what you can put on the trash heap or the donation pile. What if you were to limit yourself to a certain number of boxes and force yourself to discard all but what could fit inside?
I mentioned the idea to a friend, who actually took me up on it. She was about to move to a smaller place and decided this was the perfect time to try a “25-box move.” Everything that didn’t fit into those 25 boxes would get the old heave-ho. Continue reading
Advantages of Apartment Living
The American Dream is a house with a yard and a white picket fence. But is that really the only option for a good life? Aren’t there some disadvantages to going with the whole detached single-family scenario? Wouldn’t it be good to think a little more flexibly about what an ideal home might be?
For example, there are a whole lot of attractive aspects to apartment living. The reduced maintenance is an obvious one, but there are a lot of other reasons those nesting in smaller spaces find themselves relaxed and happy. Continue reading
