Curb Appeal When Selling a Home

Is the interior or the exterior more important when selling a house? Before buyers decide to go in, they will look at how appealing your home is by driving by. While the inside of a home is important, sellers make a big mistake when they neglect the exterior. Curb appeal is often a potential buyer’s first impression of a home. If you’re selling your home or about to, how can you quickly and effectively tackle the outdoor appeal? Here are some tips:

1. Start with the Front Door. A new entry door consistently ranks as one of the best projects in home repairs, yielding an increase in home value that’s greater than the costs to install one. To make the door especially captivating, consider painting it a bold, pleasing color that will grab attention and add charm.

2. Make Any Necessary Repairs. Is the window cracked or the front doorbell busted? Fix that! Buyers want turnkey, move-in-properties, and that means they want properties with repairs already done.

3. Landscaping. From mowing the lawn to pulling weeds, make sure you’re keeping up with your outdoor landscaping so that your home looks presentable and well cared for at all times. Landscape lighting can make all the difference in terms of how a home looks, so make an investment in attractive lighting options that illuminate and add interest to your property.

4. Touch Up Paint. Repaint the exterior or at least touch up problem areas. Another idea is to paint the trim a new color that creates either a nice complement or contrast to your home’s overall look.

5. Make Over the Mailbox. You might not think a mailbox matters much, but it’s yet another one of those little details that can add up together to make a strong impression on a buyer.

6. Add Outdoor Furniture. From rocking chairs on the front porch to an outdoor patio set on the back deck, outdoor furniture creates outdoor living spaces that expand your home’s appeal. Whether or not you include these pieces with the home sale, setting them up is a great way to stage your home for greater resale value.

The bottom line when it comes to curb appeal is that a little investment today can add up to big rewards tomorrow. 

For more tips visit http://findneworleansproperties.com/

Ways to Create a Welcoming Front Entrance for Under $100

First impressions count — not just for your friends, relatives, and the UPS guy, but for yourself. Whether it’s on an urban stoop or a Victorian front porch, your front door and the area leading up to it should extend a warm welcome to all comers — and needn’t cost a bundle.

Here’s what you can do to make welcoming happen on the cheap.

1.    Clear the way for curb appeal. The path to your front door should be at least 3 feet wide so people can walk shoulder-to-shoulder, with an unobstructed view and no stumbling hazards. So get out those loppers and cut back any overhanging branches or encroaching shrubs. 

2. Light the route. Landscape lighting makes it easy to get around at night. Solar-powered LED lights you can just stick in the ground, requiring no wiring, are suprisingly inexpensive. 

3. Go glossy. Borrow inspiration from London’s lovely row houses, whose owners assert their individuality by painting their doors in high-gloss colors. The reflective sheen of a royal blue, deep green, crimson, or whatever color you like will ensure your house stands out from the pack.

4. Pretty up the view. A door with lots of glass is a plus for letting light into the front hall -- but if you also want privacy and a bit of decor, check out decorative window film. It’s removable and re-positionable, and comes in innumerable styles and motifs.

A way to get the look of stained glass without doing custom work or buying a whole new door: Mount a decorative panel on the inside of the door behind an existing glass insert, $92 for an Arts and Crafts-style panel 20-inches-high by 11-inches-wide.

5. Replace door hardware. While you’re at it, polish up the handle on the big front door. Or better yet, replace it with a shiny new brass lockset with a secure deadbolt.

6. Please knock. Doorbells may be the norm, but a hefty knocker is a classic that will never run out of battery life, and another opportunity to express yourself (whatever your favorite animal or insect is, there’s a door-knocker in its image). 

7. Ever-greenery. Boxwoods are always tidy-looking, the definition of easy upkeep. A pair on either side of the door is traditional, but a singleton is good, too. About $25 at garden centers.

8. Numbers game. Is your house number clearly visible? That’s of prime importance if you want your guests to arrive and your pizza to be hot. 

9. Foot traffic. A hardworking mat for wiping muddy feet is a must.

10. Go for the glow. Fumbling for keys in the dark isn’t fun. Consider doubling up on porch lights with a pair of lanterns, one on each side of the door, for symmetry and twice the illumination. Many mounted lights are available well under $100.

11. Snail mail. Mailboxes run the gamut from kitschy roadside novelties masquerading as dogs, fish, or what-have-you to sober black lockboxes mounted alongside the front door.

For more ideas visit http://findneworleansproperties.com/

Maximalism as it pertains to interior design.

A new philosophy is taking hold in interior design, and it puts the onus on style without clutter. The recession has finally dwindled and people are yearning for all of the sumptuousness, texture, and good looks that they can get. This exciting new movement is being called “maximalism.” So many of us were attracted toward the bare, simplistic movement often referred to as “minimalism” in the last several years. But this new idea of maximalism looks to break that mold and go after the bright, bold, detailed accents that are connected to this new ideal.

During the recession everyone took it down a notch and gravitated toward repurposing. Many people were downsizing and reusing and recycling. The new maximalism means that the recession is almost over, and people are spending again. It’s the place where “more is more” and less is most definitely a bore.

It’s not about  accumulating things. In fact, it’s quite the opposite! Maximalism as it pertains to interior design is about having elegance and sophistication in materials but striking a delicate balance between style and keeping disorder at bay.

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