Sellers • April 20, 2023

How to Improve Your Curb Appeal

by Don Koonce

When it comes time to sell your home, first impressions are crucial. Improving your curb appeal helps to make the most of a buyer’s first glance and sets the stage for their interest in purchasing your home. Working with your agent to identify projects that boost your curb appeal will go a long way towards selling your home quickly and for the best price.

What’s your home worth?

Before you hit the market, it’s helpful to get a home value estimate. Nothing can replace the professional knowledge and local expertise of a real estate agent, but automated valuation models (AVMs) can be a helpful first step in determining home value. Windermere’s Home Worth Calculator evaluates your property and the surrounding market to give you an idea of how much it’s worth. Try it here:

How to Improve Your Curb Appeal

As you prepare to sell your home, you’ll likely have a list of remodeling projects on your to-do list. Accordingly, it’s easy to get focused on your home’s interior and forget about the exterior. Turn your attention to the great outdoors with simple projects like these.

Landscaping

Lawn: A healthy, well-tended lawn goes a long way towards improving your curb appeal. Clean up all weeds, leaves, and debris, and consistently water your lawn to give it that fresh green look. If you live in an arid climate, consider grass alternatives like artificial turf for the best lawn aesthetic. A well-tended yard will make your home look even more impressive when you start hosting open houses.
Plant Colorfully: Adding colorful variety to your front yard will grab buyers’ attention. Align smaller plants like ground cover and flowers neatly within your flower beds, aiming for symmetry when possible. Use larger plants and trees to frame in your entryway or walkup. If your front yard doesn’t have flower beds, try adding hanging planters or window boxes. Because you’ll be competing against nearby listings, it’s landscaping projects like these that can make all the difference in your listing photos.
Lighting: Landscape lighting boosts your curb appeal during nighttime, accentuates your shrubbery, and adds a welcoming touch for potential buyers, lighting the way to your door.

A wide shot from the street of a home with great curb appeal. It is a single-family home in a suburban neighborhood with brown siding, large windows, stone masonry, and thick green grass in the front yard.

Image Source: Getty Images – Image Credit: PC Photography

Porch Curb Appeal Tips

Your front porch sets the stage for all your home has to offer. Improvements here will play a significant role in how comfortable potential buyers feel about the property and how inspired they are to explore the inside of the house.

Door: Your front door is an opportunity to make a tasteful statement. Look at bold color choices that are within or slightly stretch your home’s exterior color palette. Take time to prepare the surface for a fresh coat of paint to make the color pop as much as possible and try stylish doorknob options that accentuate the aesthetic to give your door some added flair.
House Numbers: New and stylish house numbers are an easy, eye-catching addition to how your home is perceived by buyers. Look for styles that match with your exterior color palette and any exterior lighting fixtures.
Go for Comfort: Incorporating classic front porch elements like a porch swing, sitting bench, and other outdoor furniture gives a welcoming aura to your home’s entry and creates a sense of comfort for prospective buyers.
Shutters: Windows are the gateway to the inside of your home. Shutters of delicate fabric will bring elegance to your front porch, while wooden shutters deliver a grounded, cozy vibe.

Other Curb Appeal Projects

Miscellaneous projects like these should be on your home selling checklist, too. Though they may not offer the return potential of other home projects, they help to solidify how buyers will feel after visiting your home or seeing it online.

Quick Maintenance: Small chores and minor fixes like cleaning gutters, repairing chipped paint, and cleaning windows are important for buyers with a detailed eye.
Staining: Instead of completely replacing your fence or garage door, look into applying a fresh stain. This brings a refreshed look and is much cheaper than a full renovation or replacement. But if these features need to be replaced, doing so could help to boost home value. Replacing a garage door, for example, is consistently near the top of the highest ROI home remodeling projects for sellers.
Power Wash: Power washing your walkways and driveways makes a significant difference in curb appeal. If buying a power washer is outside your budget, explore rental options from hardware stores in your area.

Get a step-by-step breakdown of how to prepare your home for sale, including a checklist, selling resources and more here:

Featured Image Source: Getty Images – Image Credit: ucpage

Living • April 18, 2023

What Are Energy Star Appliances?

by Don Koonce

What would life be like without appliances? Our reliance on our dishwashers, laundry machines, etc. makes them an integral part of our homes. They keep the house clean and ensure that the well-oiled machine that is your home life continues to run smoothly. Fortunately, Energy Star appliances are more sustainable than others and can save you money on your utility bills.

What are Energy Star appliances?

Energy Star products use less energy than other home appliances. Because they are more energy efficient, they help to protect the environment by reducing harmful emissions. These products adhere to strict guidelines set forth by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and U.S. Department of Energy. Over the lifespan of these home appliances, you can save significantly on energy costs.

You’ll find the Energy Star badge on common home appliances such as refrigerators and dishwashers, but over the years, the program has expanded to other systems throughout the home including HVAC systems, water heaters, TV sets, and more.

A Caucasian man loads an Energy Star dishwasher in his kitchen. The kitchen has white tile floors, navy blue cabinets, and a light blue floral carpet.

Image Source: Getty Images – Image Credit: SolStock

These appliances accomplish improvements in sustainability through various product features. Here are just a few examples of their efficiency gains compared to non-certified appliances, courtesy of the Energy Star Appliances Brochure.

Certified refrigerators are about 15% more energy-efficient
Certified freezers use about 10% less energy
Certified dehumidifiers use 15% less energy (roughly $175 lifetime savings)
Certified air cleaners are 40% more energy-efficient (roughly $25 annual utility bills savings)
Certified dishwashers are 10% more energy-efficient and 20% more water-efficient (average 1,900 gallons of water savings over product lifetime)
On average, certified laundry machines can cut energy costs by one-third and water costs by more than half

To truly make improvements in your energy output, it’s helpful to establish a baseline. By sorting through your utility bills, you’ll gain an understanding of how your household’s energy output is distributed, allowing you to identify areas for improvement. Using these special appliances is just one way to accomplish more sustainable living at home. By combining these products with other eco-friendly practices, you’ll see your energy expenses decrease while feeling a sense of pride that you’re doing your part to protect the environment.

To maximize your appliances, it’s important to keep them clean. Read the following blog post on appliance cleaning tips to keep them highly efficient for their entire life cycle.

7 Tips for Cleaning Your Appliances

Featured Image Source: Getty Images – Image Credit: fcafotodigital

Sellers • April 13, 2023

How to Declutter Before Selling Your Home

by Don Koonce

To sell your home for the best price, it needs to be in pristine condition. You’ll work with your agent to identify high-ROI remodeling projects and various ways to improve the property, but all that is a moot point if you don’t declutter before selling your home. Here are some helpful tips to get started.

Preparing to Sell Your Home: A Complete Checklist

Declutter Before Selling Your Home

Getting your home cleaned up and organized is a precursor to capturing appealing listing photos and having successful open houses. You’ll be opening your doors to crowds of interested buyers, and it’s essential that your home feels like a place they want to live. Decluttering will also get you prepared for home staging, whether you’re hiring a professional or staging your home DIY. All these preparatory measures work together to make your home as appealing as possible to a wide pool of buyers.

Decluttering also helps to kickstart the transition of moving out. Homeowners are attached to their homes, and the selling process can bring a lot of those emotions to the surface. By going through your home room by room, sorting through your possessions and paring them down, you’re simultaneously beginning to process the life changes in your near future. Plus, by getting an early jump on organizing your home, it will make moving day a whole lot easier.

For buyers, space equals opportunity, so a tidy, uncluttered home allows them to fill it with their imagination. As such, it’s crucial that buyers see decluttered, spacious areas when they walk into your home or browse through listing photos online.

A young Caucasian woman starts to declutter before selling her home. She places books into a box labeled “donation books” in her home office.

Image Source: Getty Images – Image Credit: miodrag ignjatovic

How to Declutter Your Home

Take a deep breath; your decluttering doesn’t have to get done all in one sitting. Tackle your home room by room, taking stock of items as you go. The tried-and-true home organization method of keeping boxes labeled “donate,” “keep,” and “throw away” applies here. Separating items by their destinations will help you reduce piles of clutter in no time.

To properly declutter before selling, consider your moving timeline. Between your discussions with your agent and your preparations for your next home, moving day can go from a seemingly distant point in the future to tomorrow in a hurry. Planning a yard sale can help to give yourself a specific deadline by which you need to have finished giving the house a clean sweep.

Emphasize tidiness in small and narrow areas such as hallways, closets, and storage rooms and consider hanging mirrors to make these areas feel less cramped. These little tricks of the trade can help to give the impression that even the spatially limited areas of your home feel bigger. Scrub, wash, and dust the house top to bottom, even the commonly missed cleaning spots. A home that’s sparkling clean is more welcoming to buyers.

Talk to your agent about additional preparations that will put your home in the best position to sell. Your agent knows what buyers in the area are looking for, so lean on them for advice as you get ready to hit the market. For more information on how to get your home ready to sell, visit our selling guide:

Featured Image Source: Getty Images – Image Credit: Drazen Zigic

Buyers • April 11, 2023

Mansion vs Estate: Features of Luxury Properties

by Don Koonce

Mansion vs Estate

If there’s one thing that’s clear about a mansion or an estate, it’s that they’re not your average houses. But what differentiates the two? Are the two terms interchangeable? Mansions and estates actually each have separate characteristics that give them their special classification. Understanding a bit more about what makes them special can help inform your discussions with your real estate agent when looking for a luxury property of this class.

What defines a house as a mansion?

Mansions typically have a larger footprint than regular houses. Added square footage is a hallmark of mansions where the land allows, but a lesser-square-footage property may also qualify as a mansion in areas where space is limited based on its luxuriousness. Which properties qualify as mansions varies by location.

Mansions deal in excess by nature. Accordingly, these properties will have a greater number of bedrooms and bathrooms than what you’d see in a typical single-family home.

They’ll have rooms designed and built for a specific activity or function. For example, it’s common for mansions to have a game room, an indoor sauna or pool room, a home theater, or even a small bowling alley. These properties are the ideal living situation for homeowners who love to entertain. Elsewhere on the property, a mansion may boast any combination of sport courts, pools, gardens, and multiple-car garages.

In terms of their architectural style, many mansions borrow from older design styles to incorporate a sense of grandeur and prestige. The Victorian architectural style lends itself well to mansions while capturing that classic old-world charm. You may recognize Spanish Revival style homes sold by celebrities on the West Coast, and Colonial style mansions on the East Coast. Modern home designs will often incorporate cutting-edge smart home technology, smart home upgrades, and sustainable home design features such as solar power.

A mansion that incorporates elements of Greek Revival home design, with marble columns, terra cotta roofing, and large arched doorways. There is a large blue in the mansion’s front courtyard, with landscaping design woven throughout.

A mansion with an outdoor pool. Image Source: Getty Images – Image Credit: TerryJ

What is the difference between a mansion and an estate?

Estate properties share many of the aforementioned qualities with mansions. They are both luxury properties that feature several bedrooms and bathrooms with impressive amenities such as pools, saunas, sport courts, etc.

But estates differ from mansions in regard to the land they occupy and the historical context of the property. Estates sit on large, several-acre parcels of land. These extensive grounds are primarily where the mansion-vs-estate distinction can be made.

In England, the usage of “estate” usually means there was some form of income-producing activity present on property supporting the house. American estates typically do not have this same relationship between the property and the house. In the U.S. today, estates are differentiated by their size, grounds, and luxury amenities, but typically don’t yield enough agricultural goods to support the property.

An aerial photo of The Biltmont Estate in Asheville, North Carolina. It is a chateau-style mansion built in the late 1800s. It is massive, with dozens of rooms visible from its front façade. The front lawn extends hundreds of feet out from the house, lined by trees on either side.

The Biltmont Estate in Asheville, North Carolina – Image Source: Shutterstock – Image Credit: ZakZeinert

To learn more about the mansions and estates available in your area, contact a local Windermere agent:

Featured Image Source: Getty Images – Image Credit: hikesterson

Buyers • April 6, 2023

Buying a New Construction Home

by Don Koonce

You’ve got several options to choose from when buying your next home. With existing homes, it’s in sellers’ best interest to spruce up their properties, so they’ll usually complete some kind of upgrades, curb appeal projects, and remodeling before hitting the market. A new construction home, however, has no previous owner; it comes brand new. Learning about the new construction buying process will help you understand how it differs from other types of housing, such as existing single-family homes, townhouses, condominiums, etc.

What is a new construction home?

New construction homes are kick-started from two primary sources: the homeowners themselves and developers. When a homeowner is having a home custom built, they work with contractors to build it to their desired specifications on a lot they’ve purchased. This tailored approach comes at a price; building a custom home generally costs more than purchasing a new build from a developer.

When going the developer route, buyers have options to choose from, namely tract homes and spec homes.

Tract homes make up new neighborhoods on land bought by the builder. They bear a strong resemblance to each other but may offer customizable floor plan and design options to tailor the home to the buyer’s liking.

Spec homes are finished, move-in-ready new builds. Though they offer little to no customization, they may be the right option for you if you’re looking to move right away.

There are four component parts of building a new construction home: land, labor, materials, and regulation. Builders combine those costs to determine what price they need to sell the home to make a profit, accounting for local real estate market trends. However, if the market is driving up those costs, builders are less likely to continue building. As a buyer, keeping tabs on the housing market will help you understand the landscape of available new construction homes.

A row of tract new construction homes in a newly developed suburban neighborhood. The home in the foreground is finished, the rest in the row are framed but without siding.

Image Source: Getty Images – Image Credit: jhorrocks

Pros of a New Construction Home

New materials, appliances, and fixtures
Customization without having to remodel
Less maintenance than an older home

Cons of a New Construction Home

Custom home costs can be high
Move-in date dictated by builder’s timeline
Market conditions can drive up prices/halt production

Buying a New Construction Home

The financial preparations you’d take for purchasing an existing home apply to buying a new construction home. You’ll get pre-approved for a mortgage early on and form a saving strategy for how to make a down payment.

There’s less room for negotiation in new construction home transactions, so you and your agent should thoroughly discuss what kind of offer you’re able to make. Your agent is your greatest asset during this part of the process; lean on them to understand how to make an offer. You’ll also want to know whether a home warranty comes with the purchase of the new construction home and its cost structure.

Even though these homes are brand new, it’s still worth it to get a home inspection to discover any outstanding repairs that need to be made and begin a dialogue with the builder about fixing them before you move in.

Going into the buying process, it helps to know which new construction homes you’re able to afford. This allows you and your agent to work together to find the best candidate properties. To get an idea of what’s affordable, use our free Home Monthly Payment Calculator by clicking the button below. With current rates based on national averages and customizable mortgage terms, you can experiment with different down payment amounts to get estimates of your monthly payment for any listing price.

Featured Image Source: Getty Images – Image Credit: Kirk Fisher

Design • April 4, 2023

Eclectic Interior Design

by Don Koonce

When decorating your home, it can be hard to decide on just one aesthetic. Maybe you’re a fan of mid-century modern interior design but its minimalistic approach leaves you wanting more. Maybe you love the clean look of a farmhouse style interior but wish it had some of that classic Art Deco flair. Fortunately, there’s an approach you can take where you don’t have to limit yourself to the principles of just one line of design thinking. Eclectic interior design is a smorgasbord of home décor styles that allows your imagination to run wild.

What is eclectic interior design?

Eclectic interior design is a blend of different styles, patterns, eras, and all things home décor. By pulling from seemingly contrasting sources of inspiration, it allows homeowners to create an interior that’s uniquely personalized and lively. Eclectic interiors are inherently busy, so it’s important to focus on leveling the dynamic energy among the pieces and artworks you select to create balance, scale, and proportion.

A kitchen and hallway decorated with eclectic interior design. There is a patterned rug hanging on the wall, a small gallery in the kitchen, colorful patterned pillows on a bench in the hallway, and modern industrial lights hanging above a breakfast bar in the kitchen.

Image Source: Getty Images – Image Credit: xavierarnau

Decorating with Eclectic Interior Design

With so many shapes and colors at play, creating harmony is vital. Choose a color palette for your home and select pieces that reinforce that section of the color wheel. That way, when you decorate with accent pieces throughout your home, you’ll have a solid base to work from. This will also help you select which neutral colors will best help to balance out your interior spaces. For example, if you’ve settled on blues and browns as your foundational colors, beiges and creams will act as complimentary neutrals while creating a comfortable, welcoming atmosphere.

When it comes to textures and patterns, you’ve got far more leeway with eclectic interior design than many other styles. Have you been waiting to extract your patterned vintage furniture from your storage space? Still waiting to find a home for that ornate gold-framed mirror? Eclectic design may be just what the doctor ordered. With this style, vintage design can pair with modern furnishings and vice versa. Textures help to create contrast throughout your spaces, but even with eclectic design, repeating a texture in a few spots helps to create cohesion. Similarly, make sure your textural pieces fit somewhere within your color palette to create consistency throughout your home.

Create a Gallery Wall

A living room decorated with eclectic interior design. It has a gallery wall above the couch with a variety of framed photography and hand drawings. The living room carpet is made up of dozens of pastel cubes, there are colorful pillows and houseplants throughout, and the furniture is minimalist.

Image Source: Shutterstock – Image Credit: Ground Picture

A gallery wall is naturally eclectic, making it a perfect way to use up empty wall space while reinforcing this unique home décor style. Create a gallery wall at home by selecting the wall space you’d like to use and mapping out your desired gallery pattern. Once you’ve sketched out your plan, pay a visit to your local framing or hardware store so your artwork can hang professionally and evenly. Assemble your tools, hang your pieces, and admire how a gallery wall can really snap a room together visually. Experiment with different frame colors, designs, and textures that reinforce the rest of your interior. Here’s more on how to curate artwork in your home.

For more info on the various interior design styles, home décor tips and more, visit the Design page of our blog:

Windermere Blog – Design

Featured Image Source: Getty Images – Image Credit: IPGGutenbergUKLtd

SOLD • March 30, 2023

SOLD: Central District duplex + SE Seattle Craftsman

by Don Koonce

402 20th Avenue
Seattle, WA 98122

Sold: $1,000,000
Listed: $939,800
Sold for 6.4% over asking
Days on Market: 4
Offers: 3
MLS #2035559

Move-in ready duplex in prime location close to all the amenities in popular Central District. Two bedroom plus sunroom in each unit. Historically significant early 1900’s details supported by modern updates for comfort & efficiency. Soaring ceilings, picture rails, 5 panel fir doors, classic orig. millwork, all carefully preserved. Durable plank flooring, dbl paned windws, versatile-use sunrooms with eastern morning light, and full-size W/D in each unit. Updated electric/plumbing/6yr roof. Ideal owner-to-occupy with instant income stream! Nearly 6000sqft. corner lot, RSL zoning, Buyer to investigate/verify future development potential. Basement area w/ separate entry ready for finishing/building out more living space. Opportunity spelled with capital O!

More info

5311 46th Avenue S
Seattle, WA 98118

Sold: $710,000
Listed: $689,000
Sold for 3% over asking
Offers: 4
Days on Market: 7
Beds: 2
Baths: 2
1,460 sqft
MLS #2037254

Bright and cheerful craftsman in superb location! Curb appeal to spare and artful interior finishes just spell HAPPY here. Honey-colored oak hardwds, classic craftsman trim, mullioned windws, French drs, arched entry ways for style; modern systems for structure. Updated kitchen is centerstage, slate-gray tile, SS appliances, lots of storage and prep space, gas cooking. French doors open to fantastic backyard with pretty brick patios, winding paths, wisteria arbor and spring color ready to pop. Finished basement has bedrm, office, recroom, bath & W/D. Fully efficient w/ 2022 gas furnace, gas water heater, dbl-paned windows. Orca K-8 school same block, close to all the fun in Columbia/Hillman City, Lk WA & Seward Park. Just smile & move in!

More info

Real Estate Listings • March 24, 2023

NEW LISTINGS: Pin-tight Columbia City Bungalow + mild Seward Park fixer

by Don Koonce

4019 38th Avenue S
Seattle, WA 98118
$639,980

MLS #2044945
Beds: 3
Baths: 2
1,380 sqft

Pin-tight, move-right-in bungalow at affordable price point! Substantial upgrades have been completed by this careful owner, making this home an ideal launching pad for beginners or smooth landing for right-sizers. HardiPlank siding, hi-end vinyl double windows, gas heat and cooking, roof installed 2016, & many appliances new in last 5 yrs. Artistic period details, hardware, crystal doorknobs, etc. honor sophisticated ‘40’s architecture. Sweet yard professionally landscaped with patios & composite deck for relaxing and entertaining, securely fenced backyard. Great location: Columbia City Light Rail, restaurants, shops, parks & LK WA -everything needed for easy living is within 1mi. radius. Pre-inspected. All is ready-just bring your stuff.

Information provided as a courtesy only, buyer to verify. For more, go here.

4841 S Raymond Street
Seattle, WA 98118
$530,000

MLS #2044948
Beds: 3
Baths: 2
1,100 sqft

Golden opportunity to get a foothold in popular Seward Park neighborhood! Mild fixer in superb location needs someone to finish the polishing. Hardwood or fir flrs thru-out, big picture windows, tall ceilings, spacious country kitchen, clever floor plan w/ flex-use sunroom & den, and bedrms are thoughtfully distanced from primary living areas. Brand new designer bath has luxury vinyl plank flooring, new fixtures, tile tub surround, speaker system for calming music. Fun & fashionable lighting, some windows replaced, gas heat, dry storage in basmt. Extra LG lot has amazing evergreens, good spaces for outdoor entertaining. Less than 1mi to Café Vita, shops, restaurants & Lk WA. Move in w/ instant equity-make it your own kind of fancy!

Information provided as a courtesy only, buyer to verify. For more, go here.

Sellers • March 23, 2023

8 Tips for First-Time Home Sellers

by Don Koonce

You’ve seen “For Sale” signs around your neighborhood, but what does it take to actually put your home on the market? First-time home sellers often enter the selling process unaware of what’s to come, their heads full of questions. Understanding the selling process will inform your conversations with your real estate agent and will help you stay organized and on schedule as you sell your home for the first time.

Preparing to Sell Your Home: A Complete Checklist

8 Tips for First-Time Home Sellers

1. Know the Costs of Selling a Home

Though you’ll eventually walk away from the sale of your home with a lump sum in your pocket, the selling process isn’t without its costs. Real estate agent commission costs typically account for five to six percent of the sale price, but they’re not the only expense you’ll encounter on your selling journey. Between repairs, home upgrades, staging, escrow fees, Capital Gains Tax and more, it’s important to budget for these costs before listing your home.

10 Costs Associated with Selling Your Home

2. Find the Right Agent

A successful selling experience starts by working with a professional real estate agent. Real estate agents specialize in keeping up with local market conditions, they have the tools to competitively price your home, and they understand what is driving buyer interest in your area. But beyond these qualities, it’s important that first-time home sellers choose an agent who understands their goals and cares about their happiness. Selling a home can be an emotional roller coaster and having a trusted expert beside you will help you navigate its ups and downs.

Working with a Real Estate Agent to Sell Your Home

3. The Importance of Home Staging

Whether you hire a professional or decide to stage your home yourself, what’s important is that you make the commitment. Staging your home creates universal appeal, capturing the attention of the widest possible buyer pool. If your interior is too personalized, it makes it harder for buyers to see themselves in your home. Staging makes financial sense as well, as it often equates to higher sales prices. According to a 2020 survey performed by the Real Estate Staging Association (RESA®), of the 13,000 homes surveyed, 85% of staged homes sold for 5-23% over list price.¹

4. High ROI Remodeling Projects

Remodeling projects cost a significant amount of money; there’s no way around it. This is where your agent’s expertise can help you spend wisely: they can inform you of which home features and upgrades are driving buyer interest in your area. Target the high ROI remodeling projects that increase home value to get the most bang for your buck and know which remodeling projects to avoid when selling your home.

A young Caucasian man lays on his back in a bathroom with white hexagon tile flooring and white subway tile walls. A first-time home seller, he uses a wrench to turn the drainpipe under the bathroom sink as he prepares to sell his home.

Image Source: Getty Images – Image Credit: Hispanolistic

5. Pre-Listing Inspection

Anything that could potentially give your home a competitive advantage over other listings is worth discussing with your agent. One such strategy is conducting a pre-listing inspection before putting your home on the market. Not only do pre-listing inspections give sellers a better understanding of what repairs may be in order, but they also streamline the selling process by transparently disclosing the details of a property’s condition to the buyer. These reports are especially helpful in competitive markets, since buyers are more likely to waive inspections.

The Benefits of a Pre-Listing Inspection

6. How to Price Your Home

Of all the information coming at you during the selling process, you’ll likely have your mind set on getting the best price for your home. Determining home value is one area where real estate agents excel; their Comparative Market Analysis (CMA) will help them set an accurate and competitive figure. It’s important to separate your emotional attachment to your home from your agent’s calculations. In your mind, your home possesses a certain value, but that may not match what it can realistically fetch on the market. Sometimes it may be even more than you thought!

The Difference Between a Comparative Market Analysis and an Appraisal

7. Safety Tips for Open Houses

The more buyer interest you’re able to drum up, the better. Open houses play an important role in the selling process in that they allow buyers to experience the property firsthand. Making this connection requires opening your doors to strangers, which is cause for taking the appropriate safety measures. Remove all prescriptions from your medicine cabinets, lock up precious belongings and personal information, make sure all doors and windows are locked at the end of each day, and discuss your buyer screening process with your agent so you’re on the same page.

Staying Safe When Selling Your Home

8. Moving Timeline

The planning doesn’t stop once you’ve sold your home. Before the ink is dry on your real estate contract, your gears will be turning about how to efficiently move into your new home. We’ve created an interactive Moving Checklist with a step-by-step guide to the moving process, from twelve weeks before moving day all the way up until you make your move. The list is also available as an interactive web page and downloadable PDF here:

Moving Schedule and Checklist PDF

For more information on the selling process from list to closing, visit our comprehensive selling guide here:

1: Real Estate Staging Association (RESA®). “The Consumer’s Guide to Real Estate Staging.” Realestatestagingassociation.com. 2020.

Featured Image Source: Getty Images – Image Credit: Hispanolistic

Design • March 21, 2023

What Is a Tudor Style House?

by Don Koonce

One look at a Tudor style house and you’re instantly transported to the English countryside. This distinct architecture dates back hundreds of years, borrowing elements of Renaissance and Gothic design, and later experienced a revival in the United States that continued to grow in popularity through the mid-twentieth century. Similar to cottage homes, their medieval imagery evokes a storybook charm, and their unique combination of materials makes for a truly signature look.

Image Source: Getty Images – Image Credit: oversnap

Features of Tudor Style Houses

Known for their brown-and-white color scheme, Tudor style houses are typically built from stone or bricks, with a façade of stucco and exposed timbering framing. The framing creates straight lines that connect each level of the home, giving it a sense of geometry. Their steep-pitched, intersecting gabled roofs are tailor-made for climates that experience high levels of precipitation; snow slides off before accumulating, and rainwater has a natural path to the gutter system.

The interior of a brown and white English Tudor style house with exposed wood ceiling beams. The furniture is soft Victorian-style, and the accent pieces are dark mahogany wood.

Image Source: Getty Images – Image Credit: IPGGutenbergUKLtd

From the outside of a Tudor home, you can imagine sitting around the hearth under exposed wood ceiling beams, taking in the cozy atmosphere as the fireplace crackles. And your imagination would be spot on! A large fireplace is a central feature of these homes, given that they were the primary heating source for households early on in their history. Arched entryways with stonework accents, decorative chimneys, and narrow, closely grouped windows are also defining features of Tudor architecture.

The front façade of a brown and white Tudor style house with interlocking gabled roofs, brick accents, a tall chimney, several windows, and a decorative front entrance with stone masonry framing the doorway. There are several shrubs and a hedge in the front yard garden beds.

Image Source: Getty Images – Image Credit: peterspiro

Once World War II-era housing development began to shift toward addressing suburban sprawl affordably, the masonry-heavy Tudor style house became less popular. However, they are still found throughout the U.S. today.

To learn more about the various styles of home design, visit our Architectural Styles page:

Windermere – Architectural Styles

Featured Image Source: Getty Images – Image Credit: quackersnaps