Want to Be Comfortable this Winter?


Winter is on it’s way so we’ll all be spending more time indoors. That means you’ll want to be sure your indoor air quality and indoor temperatures are the best they can be. So let’s start with a few key concepts:

Your HVAC system(s) heat and cool your home. Each system will perform better with an annual tune-up. You should have an HVAC company perform this task because of the sophisticated equipment used to measure and adjust settings. It’s worth the money and should reduce your utility bills and extend the life of the system(s). Ventilation (the V in HVAC) exchanges indoor air with fresh air... 

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Are You Ready for an Emergency?


With so many storms and other natural disasters in the headlines, it’s hard to ignore today’s changing climate. Fortunately each of us doesn’t have to worry about every type of emergency but chances are you’ll have to deal with one during your homeowner journey. So this month we decided to review what you can do to make sure you, your family and your home are ready for a disaster.

Family Communications & Safety

Your family must always come first so you’ll want a plan that everyone is familiar with. Write it down, review it each year and keep copies in your cars,... 

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What is a Smart Home?


Do you remember when your cell phone took on a new identity that we now recognize as a smart phone? There’s no real definition but we all recognize that todays’ phones do a lot more than phone calls. We can send and receive e-mail, search the Internet, watch videos, edit documents, download apps and more.

You get to pick which apps you enable on your phone and similarly, you get to decide which smart products you want in your smart home.

So what is a smart home? It’s a house where many home features can:

Communicate with each other to enhance your lifestyle. Can be controlled by... 

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Minimizing Kid Clutter at Home


As the kids head back to school, parents are breathing a sigh of relief that life will settle down into a more predictable routine. With new schedules, it’s the perfect time to review and change where things are stored to keep the kids and house more organized. Given a choice, who wouldn’t like less clutter?

Let’s start by thinking about where the kid clutter comes from (you can use the same exercise for yourself):

Paperwork from school and extracurricular activities that comes home and often has to be returned. Backpacks, books and everything needed for homework stored in a convenient location so leaving the house in the morning goes smoothly. Sports... 

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Goodbye Boring Walls & Ceilings


Decorating styles are changing, although it’s not clear what’s driving these changes. Maybe it’s because we’re not moving as often, so there’s more disposable income to make the updates you’ve always wanted to your home. Maybe it’s new, open floor plans and higher ceilings that give us more choices when it comes to decorating.

The reality is we’re breaking decorating barriers everywhere – in the hallways, stairs, living rooms, bedrooms and even bathrooms. So we thought it was time to explore all the new and affordable ways homeowners have found to dress up their walls and ceilings.

Ideas for Creative Ceiling Designs

Traditionally, crown molding... 

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Outdoor Kitchens Appear Here to Stay


We’re spending more time at home which means eating in versus eating out. It seems natural that if we enjoy eating out, we might love “eating out at home”, so maybe it’s time for an outdoor kitchen? Just the idea of moving outdoors can help us relax and be less formal about the meals we eat and what we wear. Well if you happen to be a foodie, it might also be fun to explore new recipes for meals cooked on a grill.

So for those who are ready to upgrade their trusty old grill, we thought we’d offer some tips to plan the... 

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Creating Your Backyard Landscape Plan


Are you spending lots of time in your backyard? Or maybe you’re dreaming about what you want in this special space, once you have more time and money?

New homes have lots of expenses. We spend more time indoors so we focus on the kitchen, bathrooms, window coverings and some new furniture. With older houses, you might want new appliances, flooring and maybe some new light fixtures. It’s common to delay making improvements to the backyard for years … and years (are you smiling?).

What’s On Your Backyard Wishlist?

We thought you might want some tips on how to turn your backyard dreams into reality, in... 

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Time to Inspect Your Home’s Exterior


It’s spring and most of us are ready to spend more time outdoors. So you’ve got to decide how to spend that time. You probably want to do some gardening, hiking or other outdoor sports. But one critical thing you shouldn’t ignore is assessing your home’s exterior. The sooner you find and repair problems like missing roof shingles, the more money and time you’ll save because problems you ignore only get bigger.

By understanding home maintenance priorities, you can decide what has to be taken care of now. And some projects can wait, especially larger projects where you’ve got to save money and/or research different solutions... 

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Home Maintenance or Low Maintenance?


there are lots of low maintenance building materials you can use in your kitchen to save time spent cleaning & maintaining your house

Spring is that time of year when you start to think about home maintenance. You know your house weathered severe weather over the winter, so it’s time to check for damage and make needed repairs. At the same time many homeowners wonder how they can reduce or even better, eliminate many of these maintenance tasks .

So we thought it made sense to look at low maintenance materials and products on the market. We picked ones that can lower the time needed to clean, seal and/or complete other home maintenance chores we’ve come to expect. Until then, here’s a spring home maintenance checklist for... 

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Tips to Making Your Closets Work Harder


Closets look so big when you see them in model homes. Once you move in though, they seem to shrink and somehow there’s never enough room for all the stuff you’ve collected over the years. That’s true whether you live in a home under 2,000 square feet, or a newer house that’s more than 2,500 sq. ft.

You’re not alone as the average size of a new house in the US increased to 2,687 sq ft in 2015. As our houses have gotten bigger, closets are also getting larger. At the same time though, we’re buying more which means we need more... 

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