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Not just relegated to the workspace or entertainment, home technology products focus on every room in your house. Check out these smart-home products geared to make your life easier:

Apple Watch useful apps for home

The ios app developers have created innovative applications for Apple’s smartwatch, expanding its functionality beyond social media, maps, and schedules. Honeywell developed an app allowing users to control home temperature from the wrist, rivaling Android Wear’s integration with Nest thermostat. Lutron designed an app for effortless light control through the Apple watch. For BMW electric vehicle owners, iOS apps enable monitoring charge levels and locating parked vehicles. Public transportation users benefit from the City Mapper app, offering timely updates and accurate stop information. iOS app developers have transformed the Apple watch into a powerful tool, enhancing daily life experiences.

Next-generation cooling

Technology company Quirky joined forces with GE to make a smarter air conditioning system. Called Aros, the wall unit connects to a smartphone app allowing you to set the temperature in anticipation of your arrival home. Using information from your schedule, budget, location and current usage, it learns your preferred temperature and devises economical ways to keep your home there. It evens learns the temperature you appreciate most upon waking.

An innovative air-flow design pushes cool air up, increasing circulation and it’s three fan speeds, flatter design and sleek LED display add to its discreet designer appearance.

Home safety

Canary wireless home security packs a complete system into one small device designed to adapt to your home and activities over time and use. It sends notifications and HD video to your smartphone and monitors activity, noise levels, air quality and temperature and even humidity. When something is out of the ordinary, it lets you know. Best of all, it doesn’t require installation. Simply set the device in a central area of your home.

Easy entry

German company KISI Systems offers a keyless entry solution for homes or offices with revocable access. If you travel and have house-sitters or a neighbor that comes in to water your plants, or you use pet-walking or cleaning services when you’re at work or away from the house, or just want more control of who enters your home, this device is for you.

The KISI system allows you to limit entry during certain hours or certain days with the click of a smartphone app. You can track activity and know who comes and goes, and when they were there. The KISI key is linked to their specific phone and you can instantly delete or cancel it remotely it if they lose their phone or you want to restrict access.

Upgrade your home

We can help you upgrade your home just in time for the 2015 release of the Apple watch. We’ll search for the perfect home for you while developers are busy creating the apps that will run your new house more efficiently and other technology giants advance more products for home use.

Compliments of Virtual Results

One of the first decisions you make in your new house is where to place your furniture. In the living areas, furniture placement can make or break your home’s “flow” or ease of movement. A sofa placed just two feet one way or the other, a side table too far out of reach or a rug that catches in the doorway can make a magazine worthy design a frustrating living experience. It is advisable to consult a that specializes in home interior remodeling to help you design your living room.

Then I always find that the best addition to a living room is a quality rug as they just add so much character and style. I found some amazing living room rugs recently and bought one from there which is one of the best I’ve ever had, so if you need a new rug for the living room then definitely have a look there.

Know your limitations

Beautiful magazine designs inspire us to try to work the same magic in our own space. Sometimes, however, achieving that beautiful look results in awkward movement and less than ideal daily use. Remember that the camera angle hides parts of that lovely layout meaning that it might not work the way you want in your space.

Note your room’s dimensions, and the location and orientation of windows, doors and doorways, fireplaces and other immovable architectural details. Draw a rough sketch of your room’s layout. Using a scale of one inch to one foot, or for larger rooms a half-inch to one foot makes your layout simpler. If you use metric measures then use a scale in multiples of 10 for simplicity. You can unlock the full power of Procreate with these amazing brushes in making your sketches. You just need to have an iPad and an Apple Pencil.

Now, imagine the most efficient ways to enter and leave the room, reach switches, outlets and windows, or view the fireplace. Shade in a pathway to those places with at least 24 inches of walk space. If you end up with too much shaded area, you’ll have to decide which pathways are most important.

Take measurements of your furniture. Be sure to use the longest and widest parts. Create cutouts for them that you can move around on your sketch to find possible locations. Make note of all the options that might work. This simple activity saves on back pain and stressing out those friends that offered to help you move.

If sketching isn’t your forté, try this living room layout infographic for help. You may also seek the services of high end home interior renovations contractors.

Note these considerations

As you try various arrangements, ask yourself these questions:

• Can I see the television from the most comfortable seating?
• Does the height of this piece block the windows or switches?
• Can I reach a side table or coffee table from each seat?
• Do my lamps and other lights offer correct light to each space?
• Can I enter and leave the room without having to move more than 90 degrees around furniture?
• Is my seating too near/far from the fireplace/air conditioning/radiator?

Try it on for size

Choose the layout that appears to satisfy the most possibilities for keeping your room flowing in a natural way. Move your larger pieces of furniture into place and try sitting in them, walking around them and moving in and out of the room and surrounding areas. Adjust these pieces until you’re satisfied before moving in all of the smaller pieces. If you have to change or replace an item to make it fit your new space you’ll want it to be the smaller or lesser expensive pieces, and take these dimensions into account when considering your next remodeling project involving this room.

We can help

If you have specific furnishings that need to fit in your new home, let us know ahead of time. We’ll show you homes that will fit your furnishings.

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Prior to the new banking regulations, getting low rate commercial bridge loans if you owned a business, worked freelance, on contract or were otherwise self-employed was possible, if complicated, using stated income, bank statements and other alternatives to W2 income statements. New regulations on so-called stated income loans, however, make getting that mortgage a bit trickier for self-employed, Schedule C taxpayers. WECU identifies Business Banking and this may also help you when you have your own business.

For typical W2 employees, the requirement for proving income for both conventional home loans and FHA loans is a copy of two year’s tax returns. Lenders take the net adjusted gross income for the two years and average it, or if the most current year is lower than the preceding year, they use that number.

Since many self-employed folk take exemptions for home offices, vehicle use and other legitimate business expenses that reduce their tax load, their adjusted gross income typically is somewhat lower than their usable income. Different lenders in this new banking era require different documents and proof of income in order to verify usable income for mortgage purposes.

Here are some ways you can improve how lenders see you

• Find a mortgage professional experienced in self-employed mortgage qualifications. An experienced and knowledgeable loan officer can show you how to increase the amount of your income that qualifies by adding back depreciation on vehicles, properties or equipment, depletion, business use of home and salaries or owner draws that the business paid to you.
• Know how to qualify for an FHA loan (see below).
• Some alternative loan programs still accept bank statements and proof of deposited amounts to verify income instead of tax returns. These programs work well for buyers that have cash-based businesses, haven’t yet filed their last year’s tax returns or that have minimized their tax liabilities. Alternative loan programs are note available at market rates, however, so what you save in taxes may go to higher interest rates.
• Make sure your credit score is above 700 and your current credit usage is low. So, if you’re using credit in order to increase your credit score, make sure you are paying the cards on time and that the available credit remains high compared to usage.
• Prepare a comprehensive profit and loss statement year-to-date for your business. Providing a third-party validation — outside bookkeeper or accountant—of your income or that the use of business funds for your home down payment will not affect the business’s future viability minimizes the potential concerns a lender might have about your down payment sources. Learn more about this with informative bookkeeping tips.
• Be prepared to pay a higher down payment. If a lender knows you’ve been able to save up a higher down payment as noted based on your current expenses, they’ll look more favorably at your ability to make your mortgage payments.

You can qualify for an FHA loan

According to FHA.com, the self-employed can qualify for an FHA home loan. They advise self-employed applicants to plan ahead (about a year in advance) in order to make sure they can meet the qualifications. Showing reliable income over two years, keeping accurate records of income, expenses, taxes, issues requiring credit repair or dealing with disputes on credit reports takes time. If you do these things, however, you’re more likely to qualify for an FHA loan.

So, is it easy? No. Is it impossible? No. Can it be done? Yes! You just need to be able to prove that you’re a good risk.

When looking for a home, be sure to advise us if you are self-employed. We can help you get started on the pre-qualification and pre-approval process so that you are far down the road when we find the home of your dreams.

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Whatever your reason for wanting a smaller home—empty nest, tired of cleaning, wanting to spend less on ac repair and maintenance, less mobile, closer to grandkids, moving from the suburbs to be nearer to work, single again—downsizing does not mean downgrading. In fact, when moving into less space, make it an upgrade at the same time. No matter the size of the home you are purchasing, make sure that the essential parts of the property like the plumbing, flooring and residential roofing installation are in optimal condition.

Compact is the new supersized

If you’re moving from an older large home, you may have a big kitchen, but is it truly workable for you? Does the storage space work for that modern blender-mixer-food processer you’d love to own? Can you reach your workspace and the sink in one smooth motion? A smaller kitchen, designed around the way you use it, may feel enormous to you, so you may need to hire a kitchen remodeling professional from sites like https://riskfreekitchenremodelingboston.com/

Just browse the Ikea showroom or the latest design images at Houzz to see what designers have come up with to make the most of smaller spaces. Functionality is the key!

Enlarge usable space

Is your larger home divided up by hallways, staircases, closets, nooks and crannies? Your new space might utilize an open floor plan with rooms connecting off the main room. Houses with open layouts and combined spaces make your home seem more expansive.

Divide your kitchen area from your living area with a counter-height eating space. It opens up both rooms making them warm and inviting.

Create multi-tasking rooms

All of that formerly unusable square footage now adds extra spaciousness and versatility for entertaining when added to your main living areas. Adjoining living and kitchen areas makes interaction with your guests while cooking a snap. Turn into a superhero that can be in two places at once: bake cookies in the kitchen and watch the grandkids play games in the living room at the same time.

Other multi-use ideas:

• For those occasional overnight guests, consider making the living area double as the guest room.
• Create a cozy office in the corner of the kitchen or bedroom.
• Combine a convenient stacking laundry area with your walk-in closet or bath.
• Utilize outdoor patio space with French doors off the living room or kitchen

Go tall for illusion

High ceilings give the illusion of space. Vaulted ceilings in a smaller single-story home make it seem sweeping, light and airy. Taller walls allow room for your art collection all in one place, while upscale floor-to-ceiling glass tiles in the bath area evoke a spa-like atmosphere.

Make sure storage utilizes the full height in your space. Remove false soffits and install cabinets that reach the ceiling. Consider putting glass doors in the upper areas to display artwork and remove precious keepsakes from busy little fingers.

Shop for amenities

Community access to pools, clubhouses, golf courses and playgrounds expands the usefulness of smaller homes. If you’re downsizing to avoid yard work or exterior maintenance, consider a condominium community or patio home. When seeking easier access to shopping, socializing, public transportation and other services make sure your real estate professional knows what’s important to you.

Make less more

So, when looking for that new smaller space, let Florida Value Homes help you find an affordable home you can customize into the smaller space of your dreams.

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If you’re new to home ownership, you may not be familiar with all of the responsibilities that are now yours. All of those things you used to call the super or management office for now fall in your lap.

Here are some items to keep in mind, especially if you got a “great deal” on your home because it needed a little TLC.

Little Drips and Leaks

Plumbing maintenance can by far cause some of the most costly problems if you don’t hire plumbers Townsville to fix those little, niggling drips, clogs or strange sounds in the pipes. Leaks and drips under the sink are out of sight, so they often are out of mind. However, a buildup of moisture in a sink cabinet can set the stage for costly mold problems.

Water damage is one of the most destructive forces that can affect your home or business. Water can quickly damage floors, walls, ceilings, and personal property. Water damage can also lead to mold growth, which can cause serious health problems. The best way to protect your property from water damage is to contact a local water damage company as soon as possible.

If the leak is on an upper level and the moisture seeps into the walls and subfloor, it endangers the structural integrity of the ceiling below. Latex paint has the particular ability to “stretch” and hold moisture. When this happens, you may not notice the damage to the ceiling below until the paint forms a moisture-filled bubble. By this point, drywall, insulation and subfloor will need extensive and expensive repairs.

Better to get the leak looked at right away by a certified plumber.

Roofing

To an untrained eye, a roof may appear perfectly fine, but hail, heavy rain, ice, snow or wind can cause damage to your roof. When left unrepaired, a damaged roof exposes your home to the elements, inviting potential damage. Other may try having a metal roofing installation. There are also instances when roof pair isn’t cost-effective anymore due to severe damages, instead, you may need to consider a roof replacement. Call Roof Works Company in Toms River, New Jersey for more information about your roof replacement project!

Here are some signs you need an expert roofer to inspect your home:

• Missing shingles: During heavy downpours, strong windstorms or as snow and ice melts and slides off your room, tearing shingles away. While roofing tiles are designed to overlap, offering double protection, when one layer is missing, water can seep underneath and cause damage. Having a few shingles replaced is much less expensive than have to completely replace the deck (the layer of wood under your roof) of your home and completely re-roof it.
• Curling or lifting shingles: A curled shingle or a row of lifted or buckled shingles indicates that you may already have a leak, or the potential for one. Have these shingles replaced immediately and inspect the deck and sub-roof materials for damage.
• Decay and mold: When mold, moss or lichen grows on your roof it’s a sign that areas of the roof are holding water. Treat the growths with a killing agent immediately. Have damaged shingles repaired as soon as possible.
• Damaged flashing and drip edge: Flashing refers to the metal or vinyl pieces that surround chimneys, pipes, exhaust fans, while a drip edge is the metal piece along the outer edge of the roof. If any of the metal or vinyl pieces are bent, buckled, dented or have holes, your home may be exposed to water damage so you need to call roofing repair services as soon as possible. A certified roofer can repair flashing and drip edges.
• Gutters are the metal or vinyl troughs that collect water runoff and direct it to downspouts away from the home. Gutters require extra maintenance. In the fall, leaves and debris collect in gutters potentially damning them and causing water to back up under the roofing tiles. Make sure to clean gutters each year before winter weather begins.
  In the winter, your gutters may fill with ice and snow forming an ice dam. The best way to avoid ice dams is to have sufficient insulation in your attic to avoid overheating your roof, and sufficient ventilation that accumulated heat can escape. Yes, it is too much heat coming from the inside of the house that causes a rapid snowmelt and pushes snow and ice into your gutters.
• Extra precautions: If you live in an area with lots of snow and ice, consider having ice and water barriers or shields added to the “valleys” of your roof. A valley is where two differently angled roofing lines meet and where water, ice and snow can pile up.

Electrical Problems

If you have a breaker that continually trips or (in older homes) a fuse that blows, it could be a sign that you need to contact residential electrical services like the Residential Electrical Services | Poss Electric to have it checked. Of course, you may simply have too many items running on one breaker, but blown fuses and continually tripping breakers may indicate a fire hazard.

Have your home inspected by a professional that has electrician certification like this electrician Bentleigh. If you own an older home, with fuses, consider having them replaced with modern breakers. Replace outlets in bath areas with a GFI (ground fault interrupter) outlet that switches off when the outlet is overloaded or when the appliance comes in contact with water.

We want your home ownership to be the best possible experience. We suggest getting an inspection before purchasing your home, and a yearly or bi-annual maintenance inspection to keep your home in top shape. When the time comes to sell this home and move to another one, you won’t have costly repairs needed before you can put it on the market.

The use of a single color, or range of shades in a color gives your home a sophisticated designer appeal. Do you have to hire a designer to achieve the look? No, you can do it yourself if you keep these things in mind.

Respect the Hue

In other articles, we’ve talked about the difference between warm and cool undertones in the color palette. Warm undertones are in the yellow, red, orange and green family while cool undertones are in the blue and purple family. When designing in monochrome, your goal is to keep all the elements in the room (walls, flooring, furnishings) in the same color with the same undertone. Bogans Carpets can supply and install your chosen flooring.

Create Interest with Texture

To avoid creating a boring design, create visual interest with various textures. If the walls are smooth, consider having a textured carpet installation, nubby upholstery or three-dimensional artwork. Vary smooth glass tile with rougher natural stone, or smooth epoxy flooring with a wall-treatment or drapes that have folds, creases or other interesting surface characteristics. Look for  bricklayers near me you can find at bbw group me and find someone that can help you adding some texture to your walls.

Define with Light

Use various light sources to define areas of interest, artwork, architectural details and exceptional furnishing. Add lamps and hanging light fixtures, hidden up or down lights, colored film on windows and even colored lights to change the mood or feel of the room.

Add a Single Contrasting Element

If white is your color and you want to evoke cool sophistication, add a single blue or sea-green vase or jade carving. In a taupe design, a warm, earthy rust or bronze adds interest. When decorating in grays, make sure to keep the theme warm or cool, but try adding a single element from the opposite undertone to make it pop, so if you’re using warm grays, add a simple cobalt blue as a focal point.

For a more dramatic contrast, consider the always-elegant black and white.

In the kitchen, matching cabinets, flooring, walls and ceiling may make the room seem larger—more open and airy. Simple contrasts in elongated cabinet hardware will pull the eye upward while horizontal wood grains move the eye from side to side.

A monochrome bath adds a spa-like feel to a smaller room. Simplify the décor with striking greenery for an Asian-inspired vibe.

In a white-on-white theme, consider adding a contrasting paint color or bright wallpaper to a single wall. Use a monochrome theme to bring attention to a special architectural detail such as an original brick wall in your loft, or a natural-finished pine beadboard wall treatment for that Scandinavian feel.

Whatever your ultimate choice, to narrow down your monochrome choices, peruse the Internet and magazines for examples that express the feel you’re looking for, then pick up samples of carpet, paint and fabric to experiment with textures. Make sure some are smooth, and try different lighting options with your samples to give you the best idea of what might work.

Most of all … design your home to be comfortable to you, not some version of sophistication that doesn’t really work for your family.

Compliments of Virtual Results

It’s not just about wattage anymore. Light fixtures and light bulbs come in myriad types, sizes and colors. Do you want LED? Should you use “soft” bulbs? And what is the difference between watts and lumens? With the phase-out of the traditional incandescent bulb, the lighting choices you grew up with are not the same as what will be available in the future. The best thing you can do is learn what the different options are and decide which one might be best for you, so you’ll know what to ask for when calling in and scheduling residential electrical installs.

When making choices for your new home, consider the light’s expected usage, the use of the room and the availability of replacement bulbs. For your commercial lighting, industrial lighting, outdoor lighting needs go to CDM2Lightworks.com.

How Light Works

Artificial light affects how color appears on your walls and ceilings. That is why paint colors that seemed so perfect at the paint store can look all wrong on your walls. Some popular bulbs for home use will change how color appears, and how a room “feels” when the lights are on.

• Incandescent bulbs. The bulbs we grew up with typically have a warm cast and brighten up colors in the warmer spectrums (reds, oranges, yellows) and dampen colors in the cool spectrum. However, as of this year (2014) most incandescent bulbs will be phased out for general use. Although there are exceptions for specialty bulbs, including some sizes of the very popular designer Edison bulb, when your bulb goes, you’ll need to replace it with some form of fluorescent or halogen bulb. Or, you’ll need a new light fixture altogether.
• Standard fluorescent bulbs. The long tubes used in schools, retail stores and offices emit cooler colors that enhance greens, blues and purples while subduing reds, oranges and yellows. These bulbs often “hum” in the background. Better for work areas (kitchen, garage), standard fluorescents offer an economical lighting source.
• CFLs. Compact fluorescents are the obvious choice to replace incandescent bulbs. With bayonets that fit most light fixtures, CFLs are available in a variety of sizes, shapes and wattages. They also have a Kelvin rating which determines the color spectrum of the bulb. The lower the Kelvin number, the warmer the colors. A “full spectrum bulb” is designed to mimic daylight.
• LEDs. Light-emitting diodes emit a warmer light. Often the “bulb” has a reflective cone that augments the light. LED light enhances most paint colors and gives natural lighting that works well for bathrooms and dressing areas.
• Halogen. Because of their whiter, brighter light and longevity theater stages use halogen lights for high performance applications. In the home, halogens reduce eyestrain as reading lights, offer safety and security to your outdoors and highlight your artwork. They burn hotter than other lights, though, so don’t belong in areas where the bulb can’t be shielded. Some older halogen fixtures—especially torchiere lamps—posed a fire hazard from the hot-burning bulb, so check to make sure your halogen fixtures have protective shields. Learn about the differences between led vs halogen downlights on Simple Lighting’s blog post.

Replacing Fixtures

When replacing light fixtures, consult a lighting designer to solve lighting challenges and create the most economical arrangement of your lighting profile. You may also need a professional electrician for your Home Lighting Installation job. A licensed and experienced electrician can help you determine the best lighting upgrades for the sale of your home.

Compliments of Virtual Results

Light exposure in your room plays a large part in the visual drama of your paint colors. In rooms with multi-directional sun exposure—either opposing (east/west or north/south) or perpendicular (north/west, north/east, south/west, south/east)—the play of light over your walls, reflecting off your ceiling or bouncing off the floor can change the appearance of the paint colors your chosen, if you have selected a color but you are sure about what kind of paint to use, hire an expert at paintermissoula.com. In fact, the colors will look different at various times of the day and even change with the seasons throughout the year. And, when you add artificial light into the mix you may end up with a look you weren’t expecting.

The Basics

As you may remember from grade school, the concept of color is part of the light spectrum. You know that when you see a rainbow, its colors are different lengths of light rays from the sun bouncing off water molecules in the atmosphere. In fact, the very definition of color is the property of an object producing different sensations on the eye resulting from the way it reflects light. Just as beauty is in the eye of the beholder, so is color.

Humans have varying degrees of color-blindness, and in men, it is as high as seven to 10 percent in the red-green spectrum. A smaller number of colorblind people of either gender do not see the blue-yellow spectrum. That means that if you’ve chosen a neutral gray or taupe with a red or green undertone, your spouse may see it differently from you.

Add the play of light to the scenario and you can see why your color choices can make a huge difference to how you enjoy your home … and how it appears to potential buyers.

Light Direction

In the northern hemisphere, a southern exposure has light throughout most of the day and most of the year. Light from the sun intensifies colors, so consider the room’s use when choosing bright vs. cool colors. If this is the room you’ll be relaxing in at the end of the day you’ll want to cool it down with blue undertones.

East or west exposure is most intense in the morning or evening. A bedroom with a west exposure will be darker in the morning. If you have trouble waking up, you might want to add red or yellow undertones to your room colors. On the other hand, a room with an east exposure will be light and bright in the morning, so you might want to tone it down with blue or green undertones. Paisley Painting provides excellent painting services to Orlando locals.

In the afternoon, light rays are shorter, giving them a blue tone that washes out color. If you’ll use a room most often in the midday, consider a brighter color that is opposite the blue spectrum (yellow on the color wheel) or with yellow undertones.

Lighting makes a big difference too. The type of light bulb, wattage and placement of the light fixture change the appearance of color on walls, floors and ceilings.

Making the Right Choice

Before choosing a color, bring home swatches and hang them on the walls. Watch how light plays off them throughout the day. If you’re still not sure, buy sample sizes of a couple of colors and paint larger swaths on the walls (or on butcher paper) to get a better idea. Once you’ve settled on a color, hire a painting company for the perfect finish.

If you’re unsure about which neutral color to paint in preparation to sell your home, give us a call. We’re happy to advise you on what buyers look for in a home.

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No matter what our background, we all have an ideal dream home size in mind. When it comes down to the actual living in it, however, can smaller be better? If your dream is for an urban dwelling with access to cultural events, public transportation, or a great walk score you might have to look smaller to be able to afford your location. Or, if you want a mountain cabin or beach cottage, you may have to rethink that overstuffed sofa, king-sized bed, and your gigantic collection of taxidermy.

Does size matter?

Depending on how many people are living in the home and the home’s design, too small a home could make everyone be underfoot and living there miserable. But recent innovations in organization and layout, clever, multipurpose furnishings and lots of personal ingenuity can make a smaller home, condominium, or cottage the perfect place for you and your family.

Mindfulness

When designing and furnishing your small space, be thoughtful about each piece you add to your home. If a piece of furniture has only one purpose, you might want to rethink it. For instance, can your table double as your desk? Alternatively, can a work cart become a counter with stools? Do you mostly eat in the living room? Then your coffee table could double as a dining space.

Out of the box

Some retailers specialize in small spaces and can give you great ideas on how to maximize space. If your ceilings are tall enough, consider a loft option for your bed. Not just for children or college students, the space below a queen-size loft bed can be a closet, an office, a TV room … let your imagination run wild. In a child’s room, below the loft can become a playroom, or alternate levels of beds can provide privacy for multiple kids.

Another option is to create storage above, below, and around the bed. Standing or wall-hung cabinets offer designer details while adding a repository for you shoe collection. Raise your bed up just a few inches and you can fit a full dresser under it. Take advice from apartment-dwellers and maximize all of your vertical space.

Consider your lifestyle

If you regularly cook and eat at home, design your kitchen to accommodate your eating style and use living space accordingly. But, if you regularly order take-out, or dine out more often than in, consolidate your kitchen area in to a gallery and use more space for entertaining. A compact kitchen can still have all the amenities of a large one—stainless steel appliances, built-in specialty storage spaces, high-end surfaces like granite, and designer backsplashes—just in a more condensed layout. Moreover, your kitchen doesn’t even need to be a separate room. A “great room” concept with kitchen, dining and living all in the same area works great in small spaces as well as large ones.

Know what’s important

The most crucial thing about choosing to live small is knowing why it is your best choice. If access (to work, shopping, transportation, culture, the beach, solitude) is most important to your quality of life, paying more to live small may be the best decision you make. If living small for a season so that you can later enjoy a larger space is your purpose, then working at it to make your small space work for you is an important decision.

No matter what your purpose, small or large, or anywhere in-between, we can help you find the space that work best for your situation. Give us a call today.

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According to Market Watch, 43% of homebuyers in 2014 so far have purchased with all cash. While some analysts believe that the cash-buying frenzy will not last, there is always more room for negotiation when the buyer brings cash to the table. When it comes to buying a home in a hot real estate market, sometimes cash can net you a lower price than a mortgage. So, if you’ve just sold your home and are looking to buy a new one with cash or are otherwise planning your estate, here are some things to remember.

Reasons to buy with cash:

As an empty nester or retiree looking to downsize, you often have cash from the sale of your larger home to purchase a new home. This allows you to choose a smaller home, pay cash, and possibly have money left over. Or, you can buy into a better community for retiring. So while you may end up with a smaller home, the amenities more than make up the difference.

Sometimes, you want to gift a home to your children as a wedding gift, or as part of your estate planning. After all, homeownership is part of the American dream. However, gifting only a down payment may pressure your loved ones to purchase a home when they are not ready to be homeowners. A better option for them would be to purchase a home for them with all cash. The home is paid-for and their obligation would extend only to yearly taxes and insurance, but not the heavy burden of a mortgage. A paid-for starter house protects them from the ups and downs of the market as well, and gives them a basis for a mortgage when the time is right for them.

Investment property that is completely paid for can be a “cash cow” for your retirement. The ongoing income from a rental that does not have a mortgage can make your retirement a little more comfortable, and is less problematic in probate than properties with mortgages would be.

Reasons to have a mortgage:

If you have a financial instrument that might give you a higher rate of return than the mortgage will cost you, it might make more sense for you to invest your cash in the higher return and to take out a low cost mortgage on the property.

If you need to improve your credit report, it might be better for you to take a mortgage. This type of “good debt” can improve your credit score and make it easier to borrow money for other reasons.

Additionally, there are tax benefits from holding a mortgage that, depending on your financial situation, may be more beneficial than owning the home free and clear. Of course, before you make this decision you should check with your tax accountant or financial advisor.

Negotiating with cash:

When you find the perfect house and you’re ready to make an offer, don’t start with the “all cash” offer. If the sellers know that you are able to pay cash for their asking price, they will be less willing to negotiate with you. Let your professional real estate agent help you determine the best time to reveal your cards. We know the right time to offer cash to get the seller to agree to your offer.  Call us today and we can get started finding the perfect home for you and negotiating the best offer for your needs.

Compliments of Virtual Results