Designers: The Neutral Bedroom Is Out

March 2, 2020

Home stagers and real estate professionals often aim to evoke a calm, restful retreat when prepping a bedroom for showings. After all, that’s the part of the home where owners typically spend seven to eight hours a day. However, designers say the bedroom shouldn’t be completely neutral and devoid of any colors or patterns. One trendy way designers say a bedroom is being made more memorable is through patterned fabric headboards.

“I think the moment for simplicity in a bedroom has been done, and people are now wanting to see a bit more interest and playfulness in the bedroom,” Joyce Downing Pickens of JDP Interiors told Forbes.com. “A great way to ease into this is an upholstered headboard in a fun pattern.” The pattern could be in solids, stripes, or other contemporary or traditional prints.

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Lighting is important in staging a space, too, designers say. But don’t focus only on a table lamp. “Choose a gorgeous chandelier, pendant, or flush mount that is beautiful from all angles, including the bed,” Mel Bean of Mel Bean Interiors told Forbes.com.

Also, add in a place for seating, whether with upholstered chairs or a bench at the foot of the bed. “If your space is big enough, then a must-have is a bench at the foot of the bed,” Karin Bohn of House of Bohn told Forbes.com. “Having the extra piece of furniture for storage is important. It is also nice to have a place to sit down when getting ready or a space for extra decor.”

LeeAnn Baker of LeeAnn Baker Interiors told Forbes.com that creating a separate sitting area in a bedroom—such as with two chairs and an ottoman—is a great way to stage a space. Also, don’t forget to layer in the design of the space. “Layers are so important: various textures in the bedding and fabrics, mixing antique wood with a sleek bone nightstand, and statement lamps with mixed metals,” Bean adds.Source: “Interior Designers Share Their Favorite Bedroom Design Trends for 2020,” Forbes.com (Feb. 29, 2020)

Some items in older homes should not be touched in a remodel, designers warn.
Homeowners should hold off on removing certain architectural details because they could be removing some selling points in the process.
“Architectural features that give homes distinct character should be left intact,” Patrick Garrett, a broker and owner at H&H Realty in Trussville, Ala., told realtor.com®. “There are home buyers looking for homes with unique features and older homes with character and charm.”
Realtor.com® highlighted several qualities in older homes that shouldn’t be touched, and molding was at the top of the list.
Continue…https://magazine.realtor/daily-news/2020/02/28/architectural-elements-best-left-untouched-in-a-remodel

Real estate pros are having a busy winter, and with buyer demand high, it could be even busier if it wasn’t for a lack of inventory continuing to plague many markets. Pending home sales rebounded in January, rising 5.2% month over month, the National Association of REALTORS® reported Thursday. Contract signings are up 5.7% over year-ago levels.
“This month’s solid activity—the second-highest monthly figure in over two years—is due to the good economic backdrop and exceptionally low mortgage rates,” says Lawrence Yun, NAR’s chief economist. “We are still lacking in inventory. Inventory availability will be the key to consistent future gains.”
Continue…https://magazine.realtor/daily-news/2020/02/27/contract-signings-surge-but-they-could-be-even-higher

Today, American households are more likely to include pets than children under the age of 18, according to the U.S. Census Bureau’s American Housing Survey. The share of households with kids stands at 27%, while the share of households with pets is at 68%. As a result, investors in residential real estate are targeting this large demographic of pet owners by making their rental properties more appealing and pet-friendly.
Pet-friendly rentals can also increase investors’ profits, suggests a study conducted by FIREPAW Inc., an animal welfare nonprofit research firm. Also, vacancy rates for rentals that allow pets tend to be lower than those that don’t allow pets. Furthermore, landlords spent less than half as much money on advertising their pet-friendly units, and were able to increase their profit by charging separate pet deposits.
Continue…https://magazine.realtor/daily-news/2020/02/25/investors-find-pet-friendly-properties-more-profitable

6 Design Trends Already Shaping 2020

February 24, 2020

From bold, bright colors to statement wall art, several design trends are heating up in 2020. “Look for daring color statements and unexpected uses of natural elements to accessorize and help transform home designs,” says Angela Nuessle, national vice president of interior design at PulteGroup. The PulteGroup design team is calling out these six home design trends for 2020.

• Curvilinear forms. Arched lines with smooth transitions can help soften the look of a home, designers say. “From couches and chairs to tables and ottomans, curves add a retro vibe that spans from midcentury to high glam,” design forecasters from PulteGroup note.
• Natural texture. More home elements are taking their raw form. “From household accessories to furnishings and textiles to home decor, natural texture will add visual significance, intensity, and depth to interiors,” the designers say.
• Unique adornments. For example, leather accents and belts are being added to chairs and beds. Gilded hardware is popping up on cabinets and furniture. Ornamentation is creating more unique spaces, designers say.
• Different wall art. “This year will move beyond traditional design to focus on wall applications that incorporate mixed-media and abstract elements with natural elements, including yarn, wood, woven fibers, and stone,” the designers say. “The key is to achieve texture, depth, and intensity with unique pieces that will make a lasting impression.”
• Bold patterns. Large graphic florals and botanicals continue to be popular in home design. “Embracing the wild side comes with color palettes reminiscent of camouflage and a pronounced focus on alluring moments in nature coming into play with design,” the PulteGroup designers note.
• Color statements. The trend goes beyond just one accent wall. “More distinct elements, such as upholstery, case pieces, and large statement art, will embrace this impressive trend,” PulteGroup designers say. “They key is to strike balance between incorporating bold color statement pieces with subtle, layered neutrals.”

For more information, check out this short video featuring 2020’s top design trends.Source: PulteGroup

Faced with rising home prices and student loan debt, some cash-strapped millennials who don’t have family support are teaming up with friends to carve out a path toward homeownership. About 4% of first-time buyers purchased homes with housemates from July 2018 through June 2019, according to data from the National Association of REALTORS®. That is double the percentage from a year ago.
“There’s a lot of people who are looking at homes today and saying, ‘I can’t afford this by myself. I’m [on a] single income. How can I get into a house?’” Jessica Lautz, NAR’s vice president of research, told realtor.com®. “Finding someone who’s renting currently and matches your ideal [co-buyer profile] sounds like a great idea. Why not have a stable home and gain equity at the same time?”
Continue… https://magazine.realtor/daily-news/2020/02/21/cobuying-gains-traction-among-young-adults

Moving to a smaller space is not just for empty nesters and retirees anymore, says Sheri Koones, author of Downsize: Living Large in a Small House (2019, The Taunton Press). Younger people are embracing a smaller footprint as well.
“Younger couples … who are both working, they’re having children later, they want to be active and they don’t want to be doing maintenance on the weekends,” Koones told the Associated Press. “They don’t want to be tied down to mowing lawns and doing all the other chores that come with living in a big house.”
Continue…https://magazine.realtor/daily-news/2020/02/19/buyers-drawn-to-right-sizing-but-also-leery-of-losing-space

A strong economy, low unemployment, low mortgage rates, and alluring mortgage rates are making it a great time to buy a home, according to a newly released report from LendingTree, an online financial services marketplace. The amount of income that buyers spent on their mortgage payments also dropped from 2010 through 2019, despite higher home prices.

“If you are in a point in your life where you’re considering buying a home today, it’s a better time to buy than 10 years ago,” Tendayi Kapfidze, LendingTree’s chief economist, told realtor.com®. “If you can get a mortgage, you’re getting much lower interest rates, and it enables you to afford more. But that also means that you’re competing with more buyers, who are bidding up the prices.”

Continue… https://magazine.realtor/daily-news/2020/02/20/it-s-a-better-time-to-buy-than-10-years-ago

Economic growth helped to accelerate single-family rental prices in 2019, and that momentum is expected to continue for the rental market well into 2020, according to CoreLogic’s Principal Economist Molly Boesel.
Demand remains strong as rental vacancies reached a record low in the fourth quarter of 2019, CoreLogic reports in its latest Single-Family Rent Index. U.S. single-family rent prices rose 2.9% year-over-year in December 2019.
Continue…https://magazine.realtor/daily-news/2020/02/18/single-family-rentals-continue-to-see-escalating-prices

February is a time of year to indulge in home comforts like cooking big-batch meals, reading in the afternoon and watching movies with the family. Here are a dozen ideas to add to your to-do list this month, from the necessary (clearing sidewalks of snow and ice, say) to the just-for-fun (treating yourself to weekly flowers).

Click the link below to read the full article.

https://www.houzz.com/magazine/to-dos-your-february-home-checklist-stsetivw-vs~77195883