May Newsletter
Could your home decor use a springtime refresh? In this month's newsletter, we've included 6 interior design Instagram accounts that are sure to give you some inspiration! You'll also find a list of questions to help you define your dream home, 4 tips for setting up a smart home, and a quick housing market update.
Thanks for reading! Happy May!
- Katie, Kaley, Olga and Teresa
6 Interior Design & Home Decor Accounts To Follow On Instagram
The 'gram can be a great place to find ideas and inspiration for decorating, designing, and renovating your home. If you want to fill your feed with beautiful interiors and handy video tutorials, follow these 6 home-focused Instagram accounts:
@Sgardnerstyle Shavonda Gardner’s small home is full of big style. Follow her to fill your feed with bold color, patterned wallpaper, oversized houseplants, and the most beautiful emerald green couch you’ve ever seen.
@arrowsandbow Ashley Petrone's feed is warm and neutral, with the occasional pop of fresh citrus hues and patterns. She shares ideas for decorating, DIY projects, and entertaining guests.
@francois_et_moi You'll find Erin Francois busy reimagining her 1930s Tudor home with modern, design-forward DIYs. Follow her account for ideas on styling beautiful vignettes, decorating with vintage finds, and more!
@thegritandpolish If farmhouse style is your jam, check out Cathy and Garrett’s feed. Their home is full of vintage pieces, exposed brick, fresh flowers, and gorgeous DIYed remodels.
@thespruceofficial The Spruce is a favorite website for all things home decor, home improvement, gardening, and more. Their Instagram account is chock full of inspiration and DIYs for all styles.
@thistle.harvest If you’re looking for elegant neutrals with a touch of character, you'll find it here. This account’s owner, Hannah, shares mood boards, design details, and inspiring renovation stories about her own home.
4 Tips for Setting Up Your Smart Home
Smart home technology allows you to do cool things like control your kitchen lights with your voice, schedule your robot vac to run at 9 a.m. every day, and unlock the front door with your phone.
But setting up your smart home can feel a little intimidating, so here are a few tips from WIRED and The Ambient to help you get started:
1. Start by setting up your command center.
While you can control most smart devices (light bulbs, robot vacs, etc.) with your phone, it's often easier and more convenient to have a smart speaker or smart display that can hear your voice commands. You might want to invest in several speakers, so they can hear you throughout your home.
When deciding on which speaker or display to buy, consider which assistant (or ecosystem) you prefer: are you primarily a Google user, or are you partial to Amazon's Alexa or Apple's Siri? Google, Amazon, and Apple all have their own speakers and displays you can buy. You can also opt for something like the Sonos One (Gen 2) speaker, which connects to Alexa and Google Assistant.
2. Make sure the smart devices you want are compatible with your ecosystem.
Most third-party smart home devices—like the Philips Hue smart bulbs—are designed to be compatible with multiple ecosystems. But if you have your eye on the Wyze Bulb, for instance, it won't work with Apple HomeKit—it's only compatible with Alexa and Google.
3. Check your Wi-Fi connection.
Your smart devices need a reliable Wi-Fi signal to work properly. WIRED offers several suggestions for improving your Internet connection, including moving your router to a better location or upgrading to a newer model of router.
4. Protect your privacy.
Always read the privacy policy for any device you install (especially those with microphones and cameras), and do a quick online search to see if the manufacturer has experienced any security issues recently.
If you have a smart display with a camera for video calls, consider using a webcam cover when it's not in use.
If your device offers two-step authentication (asking you to confirm your account with a text message or email), always opt in. This will keep your account more secure from hackers.
If your device offers two-step authentication (asking you to confirm your account with a text message or email), always opt in. This will keep your account more secure from hackers.
Don't use the same password for every device. Use a password generator to create complicated passcodes that are impossible to guess, and use a password manager like LastPass to keep track of them.
Finally, be aware that Google Assistant, Amazon's Alexa, and Apple's Siri store your voice and video recordings. The Ambient has guides on how to delete Google Assistant, Alexa, and Siri recordings.
Ready to start making your home smarter? Check out this Tom's Guide article to discover the best smart home devices for 2022!
15 Questions To Figure Out What Your Dream Home Looks Like
When you decide it’s time to buy a home, you probably already have some wants and needs in mind. Maybe your motivation for moving is a need for more bedrooms, or the desire for a larger backyard. But there are a lot of factors to consider when narrowing down what type of home you want next. Here are 15 questions to ask yourself, courtesy of Extra Space Storage and MYMOVE:
How long do I plan to stay in my next home?
Do I plan on growing my family (getting married, having children) while living in this home?
What are my must-have home features?
What are my would-like-to-have home features (that I’d be willing to compromise on)?
Which neighborhoods best fit my lifestyle? (Factor in proximity to your job, schools, restaurants, nightlife, or whatever is relevant to you.)
Do I want a fixer-upper or turnkey home?
Do I want to live in a neighborhood that has an HOA?
Do I want an older or newer home?
Does the lot size matter to me?
Does the location’s noise level matter to me?
Which style aesthetic do I like best (colonial, mid-century modern, craftsman, etc.)?
Which style of living do I want (single home, duplex, condo, townhome, etc.)?
How close in proximity do I want to be to neighbors?
How important is walkability (to parks, shops, restaurants, etc.) to me?
What kind of layout do I want? Do I want an open plan or more traditional floor plan?
This is a good starting point to figuring out what you want in your next home. But be sure to talk with your lender to determine your budget, then meet with one of our agents to see how we can help you find your dream home! Don't have a lender? Just let us know - we've got you covered!
National Housing Market Update
What The Home-Selling Experience Looks Like In 2022
Thinking of selling your home this year? Now you can get a sneak peek into the home-selling experience.
Realtor.com and HarrisX conducted a survey of 3,000 US adults who had sold in the past year or were planning to sell in the next 12 months. Here are some of the key findings from their Spring 2022 Home Sellers Report:
More than 50% of home sellers spent less than a month preparing their home for listing; 20% of sellers had the home ready in less than two weeks.
66% of sellers had a virtual or 3D tour created for their listing.
Nearly 60% of homeowners made repairs or updates to their homes prior to selling. The top home repairs completed were landscaping, minor cosmetic fixes (replacing faucets, light fixtures, etc.), touch-up painting, and replacing major house systems (such as HVAC)./span>
80% of homes sold at or above the original asking price.
More than two-thirds of homeowners planning to sell this year are likely to list by August. Be on the lookout for an uptick in the number of homes for sale this spring and summer!