Staging Your Home: What Hurts and What Helps?
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What To Avoid When Designing Your Home
Have you been stressed out with design choices in your home? In theory, interior design is one of the most exciting endeavors of renovations, but oftentimes, it becomes the most nerve-racking. We asked our highly-rated interior designer Melanie Murphy, who is sharing her top secrets about making your dream home a reality (stress-free…phew)!
THE DO’S AND DON’TS OF INTERIOR DESIGN
Melanie shared her ideas of what to avoid and consider when redesigning a home while leaving creativity aspects up to the homeowner. Here’s what she has to say about the focal points of your home-
The Living Room
- Avoid: Sterile looking decor comes off as uninviting. For example, although wood blinds are desirable in theory, they add a sense of institutionalism that takes away from the cozy feel of a living space.
- Consider: Incorporate custom fabrics instead of filling your living space with trinkets or unnecessary decor. Custom fabrics give your home a sense of individuality without the clutter, and these fabrics could include rugs, pillows, or window treatments.
The Bedroom
- Avoid: Stray away from placing accent walls on busy surfaces. Your accent wall should be on a solid surface, with minimal obstructions.
- Consider: Create balance among your space by mirroring your decor elements. For example, lamps, night stands, and accent chairs should all be purchased in pairs. This suggests a sense of cohesiveness, and makes your room feel more complete. This same idea of balance can be used in other spaces in your home.
The Bathroom
- Avoid: Don’t follow trends, as most can change within a few years. Instead, attempt to create a timeless design for the most longevity.
- Consider: All white, tranquil bathrooms will give you a sense of longevity and peacefulness. Try to create a space that resembles a spa. If you would like to include color, try to incorporate colorful fabrics or decor. This could mean window treatments, shower curtains, or plants. Black framed photos with white backdrops are the most favorable decor for white bathrooms.
The Kitchen
- Avoid: For functionality, avoid placing your dishwasher arbitrarily. Place your dishwasher next to your sink to avoid frustration in the future.
- Consider: Be creative with your backsplash! Include some sense of individuality or personality into your design. For example, moroccan tiles or colorful and detailed designs create a captivating atmosphere without breaking the bank.
A Cohesive Space = Happy Homeowner
To create a cohesive space, buy furniture that is all within 5 inches of one another. For example, your couch shouldn’t be 15 inches taller than your accent chairs. Avoid gray walls as well! Once a popular color, greige has become another trend that adds a sterile feel to your home. If you’d like to incorporate gray, try neutral walls with small doses of gray in your decor items. In the kitchen, for example, white walls with gray countertops is a timeless look that is popular by demand.
According to Melanie, the most requested design is minimalism. To achieve this, keep your decor to a minimum, and embrace adding your creativity in artwork or fabrics. Artwork is one of the best ways to add individualism and color to a space, while keeping clutter to a minimum. For smaller rooms, add mirrors to give the illusion of bigger spaces. To create a statement, opt for black fixtures around your home. Items like door handles, faucets, and shower heads make for bold features that coordinate well with their surroundings.
Conclusion
If you’re still stressed about designing your home, consider hiring an interior designer. Prices can be very affordable, depending on what you ask of your designer. By choosing a professional for help, you may save yourself time and energy when designing your home. Professionals also have access to furniture and design stores not normally available to others, which allows you to further customize your space. To choose your interior designer, do your research! Check out portfolios and social media online, and consult with different designers to find how they can best help you.
Designing your home doesn’t have to be stressful or expensive. Find inspiration through websites like Pinterest, and make your home your own!
Contact Melanie through the domii app or take a look at https://www.melaniemurphyinteriors.com/
Blog Authors Emily McGovern, Jenna Gagnon, and Allyson Melo.
New Home Deep Cleaning Tips and Tricks
You finally purchased your new home with a real estate professional that you found on Domii. Here at Domii we are excited for you and can’t wait to see the before and after photos you post – be sure to tag @domii. One of the best parts of finding, buying, and moving into your dream home is the fun of starting with something fresh and new.
Pro-Tip 1: If you have the budget hire a professional cleaning company to do a complete deep-clean before you move in – Consider it!
Hiring a professional cleaning company can be a great investment in your new home. Letting a professional cleaning service shoulder some of the burden of cleaning your new home can expedite the move-in process and let you focus on the logistics of your move-in. Many companies can complete a home in one day. That can be important in deals with tight timelines.
Pro-Tip 2: If you don’t have the budget for a professional deep-clean don’t fret!
With some elbow-grease and great tunes you can accomplish the same goal (a clean house!) and spend some time learning about your new dream home. Follow these simple steps to a beautiful clean home!
Pro-Tip 3: Start with the biggest gathering spot in any home – the kitchen.
Focus on the kitchen as a whole and work top to bottom. Take the time to wipe down the ceiling and clean up any yucky spots now. Next go cabinet by cabinet. Wipe down the interior and exterior paying attention to those handles and nooks in the back. Then comes your countertops. Lastly, the floors. Work from one side to the other and when you finish stand back and admire your hard work!
Pro-Tip 4: Be sure to buy the correct cleaning products for each surface type in your home. Some products may cause damage to certain surfaces and that is no way to start off life in your new home!
Many home improvement stores can offer recommendations as to what to buy and how to clean your new home. Be sure to ask questions and don’t be afraid to follow-up. Sometimes new products will hit the market and it doesn’t hurt to check in from time to time.
Pro-Tip 5: Clean by room type not by location. Meaning clean all the bathrooms at once, vacuum all the floors at once, or sweep all the floors at the same time, etc.
By using the same supplies, you will find shortcuts and become more efficient as you work through the process. By organizing your room types, rather than working from one end of your home to another you will accomplish the job faster.
Pro-Tip 6: Start with the largest bathroom and finish with the smallest.
Clean the bathrooms methodically from back to front. Don’t forget to finish any glass surfaces with a glass cleaner to remove any leftover film that will instantly make your bathroom look dirty. End with the floors, again making sure to use the recommended cleaning products for each surface type. Starting with the largest bathroom and finishing with the smallest will make the job feel less overwhelming and easier to finish.
Pro-Tip 7: Follow that same principal with the bedrooms and work from the largest to the smallest.
Pro-Tip 8: Don’t forget about the windows!
Clean windows will make any home feel bright, light, and airy. A clean home is a happy home. Domii is thrilled to have been a part of your new home buying experience and we look forward to the photos. Congratulations on finding your way home with Domii.
Find your home’s WOW factor today!
Discover your homes wow factor and you can sell for more! Many home buyers are looking for and respond best to kitchens that have thought and design incorporated into a livable space that wows. Finding out how to maximize your kitchens wow factor can be the difference from a low-ball offer to one that’s above-ask. With Domii buyers are looking for instant access and the convenience of real-time appointment requests with qualified agents – don’t miss out on the perfect buyer from Domii!
Many kitchens can benefit from some updating before you decide to list and make sure to focus on a few key areas so you maximize your dollars. If your appliances are in good shape don’t spend any money there. Use your elbow grease and scrub them till they sparkle and shine! A clean kitchen is a sellable kitchen.
Next, take a critical look at your countertops. Are they on trend? In today’s market buyers are looking for durability and practicality. Buyers will have preferences but kitchens that are pulled together and finished well are kitchens that sell. Think quartz, granite, or marble. A well-done Corian countertop can offer a great look that buyers will respond too.
Sometimes it is easier to refinish your cabinets and swap out your counters for an instant refresh that highlights your homes wow factor. Find a qualified contractor and have them give you an estimate for a kitchen facelift and you might discover that the kitchen buyers are dreaming of is the kitchen your home can have.
Simple color combinations are always a winner. A classic black and white kitchen is always well-received by todays buyers. Keep it simple by painting your island cabinets, or a section of your cabinets, in a fresh black paint while keeping your other cabinets white. A classic white subway tile and a white quartz countertop will finish the space with drama that buyers love. You can also swap out your fixtures for a final touch that has high impact and low cost.
The other spot you can add color and instantly revive a space is with great area rugs. Great area rugs immediately help warm up your space and can pull together the entire room and make sure buyers immediately say wow. Sellers who might shy away from color can add drama with patterned rugs in shades of black, white, and gray.
Lastly, make sure that your kitchen is as bright as possible. Replace any lightbulbs that might be out and if you have some money to spend update your lighting fixtures. A bright kitchen is a sellable kitchen. Remember, today’s buyers are savvy and have high expectations. One of those expectations is a home with a wow factor…take the opportunity to make the heart of your home, your kitchen – your home’s wow factor! Find a real-estate professional with Domii today!
Today’s Millennial Buyers Expectations
Today’s buyer is largely made up of Millennial’s. What does that mean for you, the seller? Well, if you want to make the most you can when you decide to sell your home that there are some things you are definitely going to want to do.
First, choose Domii. Domii is an app that simplifies the home buying and selling process and encourages instant appointments. In study after study Millennials have demonstrated that they won’t wait. If they can’t have it right away then they don’t want it from that seller and they will move on. Don’t let the perfect buyer move on because you aren’t using a Domii real-estate professional.
Second, Millennials are online savvy and do their research. That means that your digital listing matters, and you need a real-estate professional who understand how important great photos help sell houses. Finding a real-estate professional who understands this fact will give you a leg-up in today’s competitive market.
Third, Millennials are concerned about a lot of different things but two things that matter – How close the home is to the schools and how their commuting costs will be impacted. While you can’t control those things – make sure that your real-estate professional understands that perks matter. Maybe you are right down the street from the best coffee shop in town, or the grocery store is easy to get to. Those perks matter to today’s Millennial buyer.
Fourth, those same perks matter inside your home. Finished laundry room? Perk! Hardwood Floors? Perk! Walk-in Pantry? Perk! Garage Storage? Perk! Find the perks that your home offers and make sure that your real-estate professional knows how to capitalize that in your digital listing. Great photos can reinforce these items and highlight them to today’s visual buyers.
Fifth, expect today’s buyers to write letters. This is not a new phenomenon, but it has increased ten-fold in today’s competitive real-estate market. Those letters are meant to help introduce you to them. Expect them to tug at your heartstrings and give lots of reasons why they are the best buyer for your home. Some sellers use them to influence their selection and others don’t even read them. It’s up to you!
Lastly, your real-estate professional will help offer suggestions and offer advice on how to access today’s resourceful and savvy buyer. Great photos can help sell a property, buyers expect your digital listing really reflect what your home looks like, and listing perks can make a huge impact on buyers.
