Design Choices That Make Your Home Easier To Clean

Typically, we design and decorate our homes to fit our sense of style—and then those décor choices dictate our cleaning routines. We dust our open shelving weekly, and wipe down the marble countertop daily. But what if the process was reversed? What if we designed our homes to make them as easy to clean as possible? If your goal is a low-maintenance home that requires very little time spent cleaning, here are the décor choices to make. Go ahead, design your way to a quicker cleaning routine.

• Select Elevated Furniture - when shopping for sofas, credenzas, side tables, and really all types of furniture, look for those elevated on legs. Even better: cabinets that attach directly to the wall and levitate off the ground. This way, you'll be able to easily vacuum or sweep underneath them. For a hands-free cleaning routine, invest in a robotic vacuum that can do all the cleaning for you. 

• Choose the Right Paint Finish - if you have messy pets or young kids who are likely to get smudgy fingerprints and errant crayon marks on the walls, avoid matte paint finishes. Instead, pick the smoothest, shiniest paint finish that will look good—typically eggshell for walls and semi-gloss for trim. On these glossy surfaces, dirt and grime can be more easily wiped away.

• Select A Durable Sofa - when you're searching for an easy-clean sofa, the upholstery makes all the difference. Leather is easy to wipe clean—just be sure to sop up spills right away and condition it once per year. If you prefer fabric sofas, look for those with stain-repellant treatments or stain-resistant microfiber. Otherwise, choose a slipcovered sofa, so you can toss the cover in the washing machine whenever it needs a refresh. Consider that darker colors will hide stains better, but it might not be the best option if you have a pet with white fur.

• Skip The Open Shelving - elegantly styled shelves look enviable on Instagram, but in reality, they require a lot of extra dusting. For a speedier cleaning routine, stick with glass front cabinets so you can show off your favorite items while keeping them dust-free.

Home Upgrades And Improvements That Really Pays Off

These around-the-house upgrades and improvements make great investments. Take a look at this list, starting with the upgrades most likely to recoup your investment, and get ready to appreciate your space more than ever. One note: No home upgrade is going to completely pay for itself. (If it does, you’re one lucky home seller.) With that in mind, make sure you’re picking home improvement projects that will increase your enjoyment of your space; see the opportunity to increase the value of your home as just a bonus. 

Painting - provides dramatic results with little investment; the cost to paint a room is much less than that of other home upgrades, and it’s an easy home improvement. 

Building a deck - provides you with more than a place to soak up the sun and barbeque. Buyers see a deck as offering a seamless transition from inside to out. 

Updating the kitchen - It’s hard to go wrong with remodeling your kitchen, which can net up to 77 percent of the cost. If you’re upgrading with resale in mind, though, just avoid making overly personal decisions with the décor to make your kitchen more sellable; the features of your dream kitchen may populate someone else’s nightmares. 

Replacing the windows - If you’re experiencing cool and blustery weather in your living room, it’s time to buy new panes, pronto. Not only are you losing precious heat but your utility bill could also be skyrocketing. Energy-efficient windows eliminate drafts, so your home feels warmer.

Modifying a bathroom - Bathroom upgrades, like updated countertops and new fixtures, provide solid returns. Choose classic features, like off-white subway tiles, that will appeal to people with both traditional and contemporary tastes.

Landscaping - The front of your house is the first thing people see (hello, curb appeal), so it makes sense that any improvements―from planting petunias to surrounding your home with a hedge―will be worth your while. Don’t be afraid to spend money on perennials, which come back year after year. As for big-ticket investments, like trees, they aren’t just nice to look at; they also stave off erosion, block storm-water runoff, reduce carbon dioxide emissions, and filter groundwater pollutants. 

Fixing up the basement - There’s nothing worse than that unmistakable damp-basement smell.  A dry basement is far more important than worrying about the right lighting or furnishings. If your basement is prone to flooding, leaks, or excess moisture, call in a pro. If you do want to finish your basement by adding drywall, insulation, laminate flooring, or even a bathroom, be sure it’s proportional in quality to other areas of your home.

For Lease | 8 Dovercourt Road #507

**Spectacular Unit In A Spectacular Building** 

Bright & Spacious Fully Furnished 1+1 Bedroom With Massive Terrace Facing The CN Tower & City Lights, 12 Ft Ceilings, Scavolini Kitchen, 2 Full Baths, Ensuite Laundry, Everything Included With Parking! Outdoor Amenities On Same Floor For Easy Access!!! Steps To Queen West, Ossington, Trinity Bellwoods, Shops & Restaurants!!

4 Tips For Selling Before The End Of The Year

It may only be August, but if you're thinking about selling your property and you want to be happily ensconced in your new home by the end of this year-the next few months will go by faster than you might think. 

So, it's essential you start the process now. 

Here are four tips for getting things going and helping ensure you're able to sell and move before the New Year's Eve party horns blow: 

1. Start now. The earlier you begin the sales process, the sooner you'll sell. Getting started now also gives you more elbow room, so you don't feel rushed. 

2. Understand the process. If you're unsure how the process of selling your home works, find out. The more you know about the steps involved, the easier it will be to take those steps. 

3. Find out what your property needs. You want to make your home look as attractive as possible to potential buyers. So, get an analysis done on what repairs, improvements and staging your home needs to show well. 

4. Get the numbers. Learn what your home will likely sell for in today's local market. Most homes sell for at or near their current market value -and that can be calculated. 

It's important to remember that you don't have to do everything on your own. For example, when you're decluttering, you can hire someone for a day to help move out items for disposal, donation, or sale. 

It's getting the process started that is most important. If you do, you'll be in great shape to sell before the year is out. 

7 Easy Steps To Cleaning Up Your Garage

1. Plan

Create a floor plan and research storage systems for inspiration.

2. Clear out & divide

Remove everything from your garage and place in one of three areas: keep, donate/sell or throw out.

3. Clean

Sweep the floor, hose it down, get rid of cobwebs and remove oil stains.

4. Sort

Arrange your keep pile into sections, such as hardware and tools; sports and recreation; automotive; yard maintenance; winter property maintenance; and major equipment (lawn mower, snow blower).

5. Review & allocate

Take stock of your items to estimate the size of the workstation and the number of bins, shelves and hooks you'll need. Map out enough space to park your car and store large equipment.

6. Put the plan into action

Hang ladders, rakes, bicycles and other less used or awkwardly shaped items on the wall or ceiling to save more shelving space for your bins. Put smaller items in clear bins and store them in designated areas.

7. Maintain & enjoy

Label your bins, and check back on your layout periodically to keep the organization system up to date.

GTA REALTORS® Release July 2021 Stats

With almost 9,400 sales reported in July 2021, demand for ownership housing remained well-above average for the time of year despite being below the record July result set a year earlier. Market conditions actually tightened relative to July 2020, with sales accounting for a greater share of new listings compared to last year. The sellers’ market conditions sustained a double-digit annual rate of price growth.

“Demand for ownership housing has remained strong despite a pandemic-related lull in population growth. Of specific note is the condominium apartment market, which has seen a marked turn-around in 2021 with sales up compared to last year. First-time buyers, many of whom were slower to benefit from the initial recovery phase, remain very active in the market place,” said TRREB President Kevin Crigger.

Greater Toronto Area REALTORS® reported 9,390 sales through TRREB’s MLS® System in July 2021 – down by 14.9 per cent compared to July 2020 result of 11,033. On a seasonally adjusted basis, July sales were down by two per cent compared to June.

The MLS® Home Price Index Composite Benchmark was up by 18.1 per cent compared to July 2020. The average price for all home types combined was $1,062,256 – up 12.6 per cent compared to July 2020. The detached market segment led the way in terms of price growth, driven by sales in the suburban regions surrounding Toronto. On a seasonally adjusted basis, the average price was up by 0.9 per cent compared to June.

“The annual rate of price growth has moderated since the early spring, but has remained in the double digits. This means that many households are still competing very hard to reach a deal on a home. This strong upward pressure on home prices will be sustained in the absence of more supply, especially as we see a resurgence in population growth moving into 2022,” said TRREB Chief Market Analyst Jason Mercer.

TRREB MLS® New Listings July 2021

 

TRREB MLS® Sales-to-New Listings Ratio July 2021

 

TRREB MLS® Average Resale Home Price July 2021

TRREB MLS® Sales July 2021