New Home Friday - December 1st, 2023

NHA WHAT IS GOING ON IN THE MARKET A REAL ESTATE NEWSLETTER

An update of the real estate market

DECEMBER 1, 2023

HOMEKEEPR Moving Made Simple

E-CREDIT ADVISOR Get Mortgage Ready

DESIGN TRENDS Bathroom Design Trends for 2024

HOMEOWNER TIPS Things Not to Keep on Your Kitchen Counters

PAINT DESIGN BOARD Virtual Color Consultation

HOUSING UPDATE

This time every year, homeowners who are planning to move have a decision to make: sell now or wait until after the holidays? Some sellers with homes already on the market may even remove their listing until the new year.

But the truth is, many buyers want to purchase a home for the holidays, and your house might be just what they’re looking for. As an article from Fortune Builders explains: “. . . while a majority of people take a step back from the real estate market during the holiday months, you may find when the temperature drops, your potential for a great real estate deal starts to rise.”

To help prove that point, here are four reasons you shouldn’t wait to sell your house.

1. The desire to own a home doesn’t stop during the holidays. While a few buyers might opt to delay their moving plans until January, others may need to move now because something in their life has changed. The buyers who look for homes at this time of year are usually motivated to make their move happen and are eager to buy. A recent article from Investopedia says: “Anyone shopping for a new home between Thanksgiving and New Year’s is likely going to be a serious buyer. Putting your home on the market at this time of year and attracting a serious buyer can often result in a quicker sale.”

There are plenty of good reasons to put your house on the market during the holiday season.

Many buyers want to purchase a home for the holidays, and your house might be just what they’re looking for.

2. While the supply of homes for sale has increased a little bit lately, overall inventory is still lower than it was before the pandemic.

What does that mean for you? If you work with an agent to price your house at market value, it could still sell quickly because today’s buyers are craving more options – and your home may be exactly what they’re searching for.

3. You can determine the days and times that are most convenient for you for home showings.

That can help you minimize disruptions to your own schedule, which can be especially important during this busy time of year. Plus, you may find buyers are more flexible on when they’ll tour a house this time of year because they have more time off from work around the holidays.

4. And finally, homes decorated for the holidays appeal to many buyers. For those buyers, it’s easy to picture gathering with their loved ones in the home and making memories of their own. An article on selling at this time of year offers this advice: “If you’re selling around a holiday and have decorations up, make sure they accent—not overpower—a room. Less is more.”

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Key Themes and Features Emerging in Bathroom Design for 2024 Bathrooms are dialing up the drama next year, reports the National Kitchen & Bath Association’s (NKBA) 2024 Bath Trends Report. Comprised of data generated from a survey completed by industry experts, the report reveals the once-utilitarian room is now being outfitted with large steam showers, smart features, and even beverage stations “Today’s architects, designers, and homeowners are rewriting the script for today’s baths—and the change has resulted in a revolution of the space,” says Pamela McNally, senior vice president, marketing and digital, at NKBA. “Baths are therapeutic sanctuaries, featuring everything from hydrotherapy and chromotherapy to heated floors and integrated audio. Never before has the residential bath been this elevated.”

Wellness Wins

One report key theme was creating spa atmospheres that support relaxation and wellness, with 78% reporting a focus on health and wellness as a driving design attitude. More than half of respondents said the bath will be popular as a place of healthy living and wellness with retreat-like showers and spa-like designs.

Bath Beverages A trend that was virtually unheard of a few years ago, a significant number of respondents (21%) to this year’s survey said there is interest in adding refrigerators to their primary baths for beverages, medications, creams, and makeup.

Spa Showers

Popular shower features include built-in seating (69%), hand-held showers (66%), rain showers (61%), steam showers (51%), and body sprays (39%). When asked about configurations, most respondents (70%) favored zero transition/no door/open between the shower and the rest of the space.

Sustainability Standard When asked about trends in the next three years, it was noted that water and sustainability features will be popular across alternative energy-efficient water heaters (51%), low-flow toilets (45%), low-flow sink faucets (31%), and low-flow showerheads (30%).

Turn to Tech

Among those surveyed, 32% identified integrated technology as the biggest change in bath trends over the next three years. For example, heated flooring with mobile apps and wall controls are desired, with nearly 50% seeking electric radiant flooring and 38% identifying a desire for connected smart mirrors.

Wallpaper Wave

Designers are leveraging wallpaper as a way to incorporate new statement colors to the bathroom, with 50% of respondents in agreement. This topped bringing in color through cabinets and vanities (49%), wall paint (36%), artwork (31%), and bathroom flooring (27%).

Going Green

When asked about top color trends for the bathroom, most of the respondents (35%) reported green as the preferred hue. This outranked white (31%), blue (26%), gray (25%), and several others.

Things You Shouldn’t Keep On Kitchen Counters Decluttering countertops has several benefits, from giving you more work space, to making cleaning a kitchen easier – these are the top candidates for removal.

1. KITCHEN UTENSILS ‘Fluids and crumbs will get trapped underneath,’ she Although it is common for people to organize kitchen explains. ‘This can leave marks, stains, and potential utensils or even some pots and pans in easy reach on scratches on your counters. Put cutting boards away on counters, Danielle Dorn, creative director at mDesign, their sides because it saves space, makes them easier to suggests they are best left in your kitchen drawers or grab and they can dry properly after washing.’ even your cabinets to stop them from becoming dirty 4. INFREQUENTLY USED APPLIANCES and greasy between uses: ‘It's better not to have spatulas, spoons, and cookware cluttering your Although organizing kitchen appliances is one of the countertops. I recommend installing cookware trickiest parts of organizing a kitchen, it is best to refrain organizers in your cabinets to utilize all the space in from storing infrequently used appliances on your these areas and maximize how many items can be counters, professional organizer Reem Elkady urges. stored within, instead of being left on counters or ‘Unless you bake daily, coffee machines and kettles take open shelves.’ priority on your kitchen counter over that gorgeous but bulky stand mixer. The kitchen counter should prioritize 2. LARGE STORAGE BLOCKS the essentials used regularly – more than twice a week.

'When organizing spices or finding a spot for knives to 5. DECORATIVE ITEMS remain sharp, large storage blocks are a common goto. ‘These space-hogging behemoths typically cater Kitchen decor is a must to make a kitchen feel cozy and to professional chefs who require rapid access to an lived in, but you should keep your counter decor to a array of spices and knives, and are generally minimum: unnecessary for everyday home cooks,’ says Reem ‘We spend a lot of time in the kitchen and tend to Elkady, professional organizer of Zen Organize Me. frequently place multiple decorative items to make it ‘Moreover, spices are sensitive to direct sunlight and look "pretty." But smaller curios and knick-knacks can lose potency. I recommend only keeping daily scattered across your counters can become spices, like salt and pepper, on the counter while problematic,’ professional organizer Reem Elkady organizing the rest in a drawer or wall cabinet near continues. the stove. Knives are best stored in a dedicated drawer with an in-drawer knife organizer for both 6. OILS Keeping cooking ingredients and seasonings to hand is safety and protection.’. common, but keeping items like cooking oils on the 3. CUTTING BOARDS counter could be degrading their quality, Jessica Cutting boards have become a popular option for Randhawa, owner and head chef of The Forked Spoon decorating kitchen counters with functional pieces, but warns, ‘Direct light and heat can degrade the quality of Sara Bereika professional organizer and founder of olive oil, altering its flavor. Store your olive oil in a cool, Sara Jane Organizing suggests doing this could be dark pantry or cupboard to maintain its taste and incredibly unhygienic: nutritional value.’

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