Making Your Home Office Work

In recent months, with the rise of the corona virus here in America working from home has become an immediate reality for a lot of people; many more are considering it as an option the longer things go on. It can be hard to find the headspace to work at home without an actual physical space to do so, but it can be done! We’ve put together some ideas for carving out a workspace in your home office to help.

Backyard Boutique
Most people forget about outside of their home when they’re thinking about available space. With bluetooth and wifi readily available these days there’s no reason you can’t set up outside on your patio for the perfect outside office. Some say working outdoors in the sunshine can even improve creativity. There are even ready-built modular room systems so you can plug and play your own She Shed with ease!

Double Duty
The ole reliable guest bedroom! If you have a spare bedroom it is the ideal, go-to option for a home office solution. Plenty of available room with good privacy, the trick is to make sure it stays able to be used when company does drop in.

Closet Hideaway
An extra hallway closet or linen cubby can often easily be converted into a great space to get work done. Depending on your tasks you may not need a ton of room, so a simple fold down table or corner may be perfect.

The important thing is to look at the space you have and re-imagine its potential. The corner of a room can become a platform for your corporate success, it just takes a little work. Maybe it’s time to look for a bigger home? We can help with that too!

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Home Buyers! Location Isn’t All There Is!

If you’ve even thought about real estate at some point you’ve likely heard the old tried and true: “Location! Location! Location!”…well, it’s a great saying and location is definitely a big factor, but it’s no longer the be all end all factor that it once was.

What is? These days it should go more like Location, Condition, and PRICE. Confused? What changed? Don’t worry, we’ll lay it all out for you here below…

Location of course is still the first and foremost thing people consider, no one wants to have the perfect place that’s 2 hours from town, uphill both ways, on bad roads with no street lights. But fact is, you can’t change the location of listings any more than the real estate agent can – so it might be one of the items to have a little wiggle room on.

Condition! This is the keystone thing. The home can be in the perfect spot, corner lot and close to everything…but if it’s a total dump do you want it? Sure, there’s “good bones” but do you want – and are you really prepared – to move and then have months of updates and construction to deal with? Likely not. Just the same, there’s wiggle room here too as you can always work with a basic home and really get a lot of return.

Price. Yes! This is the one everyone is concerned about. If it’s in the perfect spot, and in good condition, but is way out of your budget it’s no good after all. While there’s no getting blood from a stone you can find ways to negotiate, especially if you’re working with an experience REALTOR®.

Location may have been all it was about in the old days, but there are so many more available properties being built, with more every day, and that means more options for buyers. As you can imagine, it’s really best when these three factors all come together in equal amounts – the right home in the right place in good condition at a fair price. If you’re struggling to find home, or just don’t know where to start get in touch today to see what can do done to get you on the right road home!

You Might Want To Consider A Fixer-Upper

Location location location is the old tried and true mantra for real estate and it does have a lot to do with where you buy, but a lot more goes into the number of reasons with what you buy. While everyone wants that perfect place, that ideal dream home, the real world often has other plans. Buying brand new is always nice and allows for you to build in many of the features you want, but sometimes it’s just not feasible – especially depending on that location location location!

Here are some things you might want to consider regarding fixer-uppers when looking to buy a home:

It Costs Less Upfront
No denying it, an older home will likely costs less – sometimes even if it is larger or has more amenities. This is good and bad of course, and you’ve got to consider a lower upfront cost may mean more expenses down the road.

You Can Build Value
The thing about something old? You can make it better! Buying a home that needs a little love and then making improvements is a great way to add value to the home should you decide to resell.

You Can Make It Your Own
It’s yours. The new is already wore off and you don’t have to worry about adding your own dings and touches.  When you buy a home that you are going to work on improving it gives you that chance to add your own style and even make more modern improvements to just the areas that need them.

So don’t get discouraged if you’re not finding what you want in the design showroom or out there on the market under new construction! Fixer Upper homes have great potential!

Time to Move? Or Just Improve?

It’s a fairly common thing, you’ve lived in your home for some years and either your lifestyle has changed, the kids have moved out or grown up, or maybe you’re just tired of the same old thing. You look around and simply need more space, or realize there’s just no way to reconfigure the floor plan without major changes. Whatever the case your long term plan didn’t include any of these things when you first set out; now it’s time to decide what to do in order to get it the way you want.

If you’re not sold on moving yet, consider revamping some of your living spaces. While not all home improvements are equal there are some that will add value to your home over others. A good place you can almost always regain value is by upping your curb appeal.

Start Small
Small remodel projects can make your home like a new place. Especially if you are getting that new big tub in the master bath or some other luxury you’ve always wanted as part of the deal. Small remodels are a great way to sate the need for change without the cost of a new home.

Demolition Man
It’s not a sin to up the ante and do a serious full remodel of your home. If you love the area, don’t want to move, and have the budget a remodel may provide you with the best of both worlds.

Color Your World
Repainting can really change the entire mood of your home. Consider a fresh coat in rooms that need a re-do; think about moving the furniture – or even getting new furniture – to turn those rooms around.

Maybe there is nothing to be done. Maybe it simply won’t work – you need more room, or less room – and have to make the move.

If that time has come we’re here to help! The real estate market is really moving; we’re seeing homes moving quickly – and even multiple offers! Given the limited number of homes for sale that might suit your needs it’s always a good idea to work with a qualified REALTOR® when the time comes.

5 Ways to Bring More Spring Into Your Home!

Warmer temperatures and longer days are soon to be here! With having just set our clocks to spring forward the change of seasons is almost palpable in the air. The best way to get a jump on things so that you’re not having to play catch-up is to get an early start; so we’ve put together some quick tips to help you bounce into Spring and get your house ready!

Sell Sell Sell!
That’s right! It’s time to declutter and make room for this years fun! The best way to do that is to have a garage sale. Not only will this help you get rid of things you might not necessarily need but you can even pad your pockets at the same time. Don’t just re-stash stuff! Whatever you don’t sell will definitely be appreciated at your local goodwill or thrift store also.

Clean Slate
If the weather is co-operating there’s no law that says you can’t start taking care of the outside of your house too. This might mean pulling weeds early, or cleaning out the gutters and rain spouts. Cleaning is a good idea for the inside of your home too; the beginning of the season is a great time to do those “every once in a while” tasks like moving all the furniture out from the walls and giving everything a good once over.

Pound the Paperwork
Tax season should already have this process started for you, but the first of the year is always a good time to file old papers that you’ve had just laying around, put receipts in their proper place and generally just give the old paper trail a good turn to make sure everything is where it needs to be – toss anything that’s of no use.

Add Some Pop!
Think colors! Think fresh! Think NOT beige! That’s right, adding just a little new paint can work wonders for your home. Whether it be a new color palette for that bookshelf or re-painting the entire room a little bit of color can go a long way!

Shine a Light!
Open the windows, open the shades! On days when the sun is playing nice it’s great to open up some of the windows and just let things air out. It’s been proven too that sunlight has some antibacterial properties – so it can actually help make the air healthier in the process!

Any one of these tips will help you get your home in tip-top shape for Spring and the coming busy Summer season! What are some tips YOU count on to keep things running smoothly?

Is a Tiny House Right for You?

You’ve likely seen the TV show or heard someone talking about the latest home trend: Tiny Houses. There’s even a local home builder in Nampa Idaho who specializes in these new micro-homes! While down-sizing is one of the latest things to sweep the world of real estate, and some of the designs are quite cute, you’ve got to really consider a few things before jumping into a mini-house.

What is a Tiny House anyway?
Tiny Houses feature living spaces as small as 90 square feet, with overall home sizes generally being under 900 square feet in total. Some are permanent structures, while others sport wheels or trailers for easy relocation. The emphasis is on activities and a lot of your actual living outside the home and using less space for “stuff”.

Will it all fit?
The biggest adjustment is just the difference in available room. Storage can become a large part of the creative process in these reduced space homes and new homeowners for this style of living must consider the difference between what things are necessary and what things might just be clutter.

You don’t have to skimp.
Despite what you may think these tiny homes offer anything but spartan amenities. Many high end small homes include exotic woods and materials throughout; the real difference is just in how much room you have.

While generally these small houses aren’t ideal for large families the appeal for younger home buyers, and older couples who are finding their empty nests a little too empty, is easy to see. So much of the things we need in our lives for happiness all happen outside where we live anyway; there are many seeing this as a way to live a more free lifestyle.

Big or small it’s not hard to find great homes in our state! We invite you to search to find exactly the right place for you!