At Home With Valerie

When you’re putting your property on the market, you want to make it seem as big and comfortable as possible. Let’s face it. Buyers are attracted to space. However, you probably have at least one room in your home — and perhaps even more — that feels small and a little cramped. Of course you don’t want the buyer’s first impression of the room to be its size. But it isn’t practical to be knocking down walls and renovating. So what do you do? Here are some ideas for making small spaces seem larger and more comfortable: Remove any items and extra furniture that make the room feel smaller than it really is. Remove any obstructions near the entranceway. You should be able to open the door fully and walk in without banging into a desk or bookshelf. Don’t use heavy curtains on the windows. Let the light in. Use soft light bulbs with enough wattage to fill the room with full and pleasant (but not blinding) light. Less is more. Kee...

Halloween is a great time of year to let the creativity go wild, and when decorating for this fun and family-oriented holiday, it really wouldn't be complete without a jack-o'-lantern or two!   While carving pumpkins is the traditional way to create a jack-o'-lantern, if you have young children or kids who want to create jack-o'-lanterns without adult supervision, then it can be a dangerous and risky craft idea.   You would be surprised at the number of kids, and even parents, who end up in emergency rooms each year from pumpkin carving related accidents.  So to prevent this from happening to your family, here are some safe carving tips and alternatives to keep little fingers safe! Alternatives To Carving While carving a jack-o'-lantern is the traditional way, more and more people are choosing to paint their pumpkins as a safe and kid-friendly alternative to pumpkin carving.  The easiest method is to use stencils similar to ones that you ...

If you are buying a new home on a tight budget, one of the options that will come to your attention is purchasing a condominium or townhome instead of a standard single family home.  Because most of them share walls, condos and townhomes are more affordable.  But before you consider moving into a multi-family complex, consider both the down and the up sides to such a purchase. The Difference Between A Condo And A Townhome   New buyers may be confused as to the difference between a condo and a townhome.  Both are attached homes, where at least one wall is shared between two units.  One difference between them is that a townhome does not have any units above or below, only on the sides.  Townhomes are usually at least two stories, sometimes three stories.  Condos on the other hand are often single story-although not always-and may have units both above and below as in an apartment building. But the truly important distinction be...

Many people looking forward to their retirement years are perfectly happy to keep their current home.  The real question to keep in mind is this: Is it safe?  Check out this blog post on what you’ll want to check out if you’re looking forward to “aging in place.” If you love your home and plan to live it in through your retirement years, you’ll want to be sure it’s safe for you as you face some of those little challenges aging presents. Assess your home and see if there are any changes you may need to make. Doing so will not only reduce the risk of injury, but it will also give your loved ones peace-of-mind, especially if you live alone. Here’s what you’ll want to inspect as you consider aging in place: Bathroom handrails. Next to the toilet and tub are top choices. Not only are they there for moments of instability, but they can help you raise and lower yourself more easily. You might also consider converting to a walk-in shower with a seat. Non-sli...

While there is a lot of focus on how to childproof a home, it's important to be aware that there are also pet safety issues in any home.  Not only should you be concerned for the well being of your pet, but look also for problems that could result in your pet getting out or accidentally hurting someone. Watch For Poisons If you have a cat or dog, it's important to familiarize yourself with the plants and foods that could be detrimental to their health.  Certain plants can be poisonous to cats, who often chew on the leaves of houseplants.  Both azaleas and Easter lilies are toxic to cats.  Around the Christmas season, be aware that mistletoe and poinsettias are both poisonous as well. There are also many foods that are bad for both cats and dogs.  Avocados, raisins, grapes, and chocolate are among the most common and can make an animal very sick.  Keep such foods well out of reach of animals, as well as of kids who might feed them to your pe...

I am always on the lookout for information that allows me to be more efficient at my job, and I recently came across a great set of tips that I thought would also be useful to you. If you are like me, high gas prices are certainly making a dent in your budget, and trying to juggle saving money and being more environmentally-friendly can be difficult.   I hope that you find these tips useful, and I would also like to take this opportunity to thank you for continuing to read my blog. With gas prices still high and the economy slow to recover, tips on how to reduce the amount of gas we need for our vehicles is always helpful.  These tips can also help you do your part to make our planet a greener place! Walk and bike whenever possible.   Most of us use the car to make trips that are within a mile or two of home.  By walking or riding a bike you'll use less gas, and get more active at the same time. Combine trips that require the car.   W...

Have you ever noticed new owners moving into a home you didn’t even realize was for sale?  Have you ever wondered why some homes only appear on the market for “one day” in MLS databases?  It’s time you understood what a “pocket listing” is in real estate. Not every home sold gets a shiny new for sale sign out front. Some change hands quickly and quietly without any public advertising whatsoever. In the industry, these are known as “pocket listings.” Pocket listings are sometimes referred to as “coming soon” listings or “whisper” listings. Pocket listings used to be the domain of the very famous or the very wealthy. People who liked to protect their privacy would typically work with an agent who could find a buyer among word-of-mouth networks of agents representing high-end buyers. Often this happened only in urban areas or in the luxury segment, but now in markets where inventory is tight and bidding wars are not uncommon, pocket listings are becoming somewh...

Staging a home can be a great way to help buyers visualize the potential of every room and help sell your home faster. But if you’ve ever had concerns over staging costs, you may be interested to learn about a new trend in staging: Virtual staging. When it comes to marketing and selling a home, staging can be a powerful tool. Some may argue that home staging isn't worth the cost, but there are many good arguments for making the investment in a professional home stager.  Staging not only helps a home sell faster in many cases, but it can also boost buyer desire for a home, resulting in a potentially higher closing price. What’s more, a commitment to staging can prevent you from procrastinating when it comes to decluttering. (After all, you need to have a nice clean canvas for a staging expert to work with.) Now, though, some agents are turning towards virtual staging. Virtual staging, broadly defined, is the use of computer imaging technology to create realistic listing p...