Laurie Manny » The Home Staging Corner

Long Beach Home Kitchen Remodels

lauriemanny — Mon, 13 Jul 2009 01:00:44 +0000

Long Beach Homes – Kitchen Remodels

Nothing increases the appeal or saleability of Long Beach Homes and condos more than a great kitchen and bath remodel. With all of the information and choices out there it can get pretty confusing for a consumer.

Where do you start?

The key is in the design. If your kitchen is the center of activity in your home then the design needs to accommodate that. Consumers are seeking more integration, more space and more high-end features in today’s kitchen remodels. They want a kitchen they can be proud of and show off.

In most older Long Beach Homes kitchens are very closed off, seperate rooms, removed from the activities of the family, Formal Dining rooms sit largely unused. Many Long Beach Homeowners are opting to tear out the doors and walls between the kitchen and dining room and are incorporating the square footage into a more useful, functional and attractive space, integrating the kitchen with the rest of the home.

Allowing more natural light to stream in can create the illusion of more space. Many are adding additional windows, skylights or are just increasing the size of existing windows.

While some homeowners are still opting for white cabinetry, the current trend is towards the darker woods, cherry and maple are the most popular with some interest in hickory as well. Oak is so out!

Consumers are concentrating on the design and style, choosing more streamlined cabinets with less detail, instead placing more emphasis on pulls and hinges.

Granite countertops have long been a favorite and still are. Other popular countertop materials such as glass, wood and concrete are providing options for one of a kind looks. Many homeowners are combining and incorporating different materials together for a unique look. Use of decorative concrete is very popular in the Downtown Long Beach Lofts, greatly enhancing the appeal of the Manhattan style loft lifestyle.

Hewn and Hammered, a subsidiary of Rejuvenation.com recently did a wonderful article on unique remodeling materials which I thought was outstanding. While you may or may not be interested in their suggestions, the read really gets the mind working on the endless possibilities that are available in todays market. Rejuvenation.com is a great resource if you are considering a home remodel of an older or historic home.

Consumers are purchasing Energy Star rated appliances with their kitchen remodel. The majority are leaning toward the higher-end stainless models which work best with the more streamlined designs.

Green building materials are becoming more available, for instance Richlite countertops, which are made from paper believe it or not. These countertops blend well with the sleeker look consumers seem to crave.

Green building choices have not made the impact that many have hoped that they will. I wonder if it is because we are just not as familiar with what is available or because we just have our minds set on granite or another equally as popular surface? They certainly are a viable option.

This Downtown Long Beach Condo Kitchen Remodel reflects some of the above mentioned design styles and materials:

Some of the design elements of this beautiful kitchen include:

Slate Flooring
Cherrywood Cabinetry
Sleek long pulls.
Top of the line stainless appliances.
Openness

A well thought out and nicely designed kitchen and bath remodel can make the difference in whether a buyer decides to write an offer on your Long Beach Home or another. These are upgrades worth considering.

If you are considering a future sale and are remodeling in anticipation of that sale, it is wise to consult with your Realtor. We work with and know what Long Beach Homebuyers are looking for in their new homes. A consultation could make the difference in the amount you net at the closing table.

Thinking about a remodel of your Long Beach Home? You may also find this article helpful:

Long Beach Home Bathroom Remodels

Space Saving Ideas for your Long Beach Homes

lauriemanny — Tue, 15 Jul 2008 06:48:03 +0000

Small Living Space Soutions for Long Beach Homes

Space Savers or Hidden Secrets?

Down here at the beach we trade square footage for beach living and ocean breezes. But what do we do with all of our stuff? Lifetime collections of photos, books and other treasured belongings, that we are just not prepared to part with, need a place in our new homes as well.

Small spaces are a challenge when we downsize our lives. Creative use of our space without feeling cluttered and oppressive becomes a mission. Creative Home Engineering, a Tempe Arizona company specializing in hidden passageways may have solved some of these issues.

What a great way to expand space, furnish our homes and create hidden storage spaces! When your square footage is limited every found space becomes critical. Living in small spaces certainly has its challenges and rewards. A small mess in a large home is a huge mess in small space. One needs to be a neat freak in small spaces. Creative Home Engineering is providing several wonderful solutions.

Have you been wondering where to hide a safe in your home? Take an unsightly hall closet and convert it to a hidden safe and a wonderfully elegent storage cabinet.

Looking for a safe and discrete hiding place for those things that should never be found by others? Lovely and elegant built in’s hide your most private possessions very nicely.

While we have many larger homes in Long Beach, many of the homes here are of the smaller cottage genre. Small living space ideas are in demand, we are pleased to be able to provide some solutions.

Feng Shui Influences How Bay Area Houses Are Priced

lauriemanny — Sun, 13 Jul 2008 04:45:00 +0000

Feng Shui Influences How Bay Area Houses Are Priced

The Long Beach Real Estate Home Blog is pleased to welcome guest author, San Mateo California Realtor, Leonore Wilkas of The Wilkas Group.

Living on the San Francisco Peninsula as I do, with our large Asian population, we find all kinds of Asian influences creeping into our daily lives. One of the biggest is Feng Shui, a Chinese mysticism of sorts, where it is believed that your life can improve by doing little things within your living environment through the placement of furniture, artwork, or even the front door of a house. It’s a serious business around here with many experts helping Realtors and non-Asians prepare their houses for sale so that the house will sell quickly.

Having harmony in life promotes wealth, prosperity, good health, and chi – the movement of the air around you. The Chinese are superstitious people. If they believe the Feng Shui is bad at a property, they will not look at it, or seriously consider buying it unless they think the bad Feng Shui can be over come.

Numbers play a big influence in Feng Shui

Certain numbers can prevent someone from even considering a property unless they can have a Feng Shui master come and correct the chi of the house. In our area, the number 8, believed to mean wealth, is often seen within the listing price of a home. Asians believe that numbers can create harmony within the house. If the price of the home reflects certain numbers such as 1, 6, or 8, it is considered to be positive so it’s very common to price homes with the number 8 somewhere in the price, for example you might see a house listed at $618,988, $888,888 or $1,886,688. The worst numbers to use are 2 and 5 and if I, as an agent, want to attract a buyer who follows Feng Shui, I will avoid them, if I can.

But, that’s only part of the issue with numbers. What do you do if the house number is considered bad Feng Shui? What if the numbers are really bad like 4, 13, 24, or 104? You can’t exactly change them, can you? No, not if you’re trying to sell the house, so you must use little Feng Shui tricks to provide protection to the property.

Have you ever noticed houses with two large lion-type animals sitting at the front entrance to a house in your neighborhood or city? These are called Foo dogs and they’re placed there to protect the house from bad chi.

If you’re unlucky enough to have house numbers that are considered bad chi you place a circle around your house numbers and protect the chi.

When you see wind chimes anywhere near the entrance of a house, it is considered good luck. Is there a birdbath or water feature somewhere in the front or back yard? They may be trying to improve the chi, or energy, of the house.

The power of Feng Shui is believed in by a whole lot of people on this planet. Many other cultures have similar beliefs. The Japanese and Indians also look at numerology in their daily lives. Japanese like odd numbers like 3, 5 and 7. The Indians believe in a Destiny number that is the total number for your birthday. If you were born on March 1^st, 1968, the numbers would be written out like this: 03.01.68 = 18, 1+8 = 9, and 9 would be your Destiny number. Numerology has been around for thousands of years and is believed by millions of people.

What are the lucky numbers for Feng Shui?

8, 18, 28, 38, 48, 54, 68, 80, 84, 88, 99, 168, and 108.

The number 8 is considered lucky because of how the word sounds in Cantonese. It sounds a little like the word faat (more like you saying phat) and it means prosperity and abundance. Something we all wish for, right?

What are the unlucky numbers?

4 – is considered the worst number because when it’s spoken in Cantonese it sounds like the word for death.

13 – if you add 1+3 it equals 4.

24 and 104 are also considered unlucky.

7 is considered unlucky, too!

Next month, on August 8^th, or 08.08.08, the Chinese people will be trying to either get married on that date or hope to deliver their babies on that date, because of these auspicious numbers. This might be the reason that the Olympics will start on this date.

I have had clients bring in a Feng Shui master to make simple corrections to houses with bad numbers. I have also seen people request a number change from the city and post office. Sometimes this is the easiest thing to do.

Does the number 8 help sell a house faster? Who knows? I try to put at least one 8 in every listing price I have. I do notice that we see a lot of Asian’s coming through our open houses, so maybe it is helpful. Realtors are superstitious, too, so anything that we can do to help our clients sell their homes we’re probably going to try. As long as it’s legal, that is!

Contributed by: San Mateo Realtor, Lenore Wilkas; author of the San Mateo Real Estate News Blog

Staging Your Long Beach California Lofts

lauriemanny — Tue, 08 Jul 2008 10:45:49 +0000

STAGING YOUR LONG BEACH CALIFORNIA LOFTS

Living “loft style” is a total change of lifestyle. Loft living in Long Beach is for those who love to entertain more and enjoy life, rather than spend time taking care of their Long Beach homes and gardens. Lofts are located within walking distance of Downtown Long Beach restaurants, nightlife and public transportation. I tend to think that original, creative, entrepreneurial types are drawn to the lifestyle of loft living.

My visualization of a loft is having a brick wall interior, a view of the city lights, concrete or wood flooring and an open floor plan with high ceilings, large windows and lots of square footage. The home stager’s job is to define the space and style by separating areas with dual-functionality furniture, “portable walls” and accessories taking into consideration the views and special features of your loft by the placement of accessories and furniture.

Staging or setting up your loft is a bit different than a home staging for a traditional 3-bedroom 2-bath home. The loft’s one large room image needs created room definition. There’s a lot of versatility in designing a loft. Repositioning the “walls” creates a new place, almost as if you’ve moved.

The challenge is changing the virtual kitchen, dining room, living room and office into reality, well worth the time spent! Just as we know creating the illusion of openness with paint color in a traditional home works, the illusion of separation in a loft can be accomplished in a different way using floor rugs, two-sided bookcases, hanging panels, floor screens and portable walls. The high ceilings create and keep the openness of the floor plan – the reason why so many love lofts. The use of mirrors positioned to reflect the sunlight will brighten up entire space. For pet owners, it’s also possible to incorporate an awesome area for your pet in an end table or nightstand.

Furniture, such as benches for storage, beds with hidden floor drawers, tables with wheels to move from place to place and stackable chairs for entertaining are ways to incorporate dual usage. In addition, placing throw pillows around a coffee table or ottoman cubes that slide under the table can add extra seating. Metal racks and open shelving for kitchens will allow storage and clear counters.

Everyone has a vision on how a loft should look and be designed. Whether it’s modern, futuristic, retro, European or eclectic, when it comes to design, it’s always a matter of your own taste.

Diane Concialdi
DC Redesign
(714) 815-3506

Read the rest of the series:

Preparing Your Long Beach Homes for Sale – Home Staging Tips

Staging and Home Improvement related articles:

The Effects of Home Staging Your Long Beach Homes

lauriemanny — Mon, 24 Mar 2008 02:59:59 +0000

Home staging projects can be very exciting, fun and are a lot of work. In these before and after images you will see that after photos set an emotional air and convey a more desirable feeling than the before photos, suggesting a higher level of appeal to all Long Beach buyers.

Dining Room – Before and After

Location is important to buyers in Long Beach; it’s essential that your home stager spotlight any available extraordinary view such as the ocean, a greenbelt, city or mountain views as well as the backyard or patio. Many Long Beach homes have small backyards or only have a small patio to work with, which makes it essential to set up the patio and be sure the gardens are weeded and tended too.

Patio – Before and After

Home staging accentuates the specific architecture of your Long Beach home and defines the interior spaces. A bad home staging job can actually take away from the sale of your home. You want the buyer to focus on the positive.

How furniture is layed out is extremely important in defining any area, especially if the purpose of the room is for living and dining. An empty house is cold. Defining furniture placement pulls the room together and creates a flow throughout your home to help a buyer visualize the home’s potential.

There is definitely a power to staging. Home staging creates an inviting atmosphere your buyer can see themselves living in and a place to call “Home!”

Diane Concialdi

Home Stager

DC Redesign

(714) 815-3506

Read the rest of the series:

Staging and Home Improvement related articles:

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