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October 2018

    Home Life

    Looking Behind The Curtain When Home Viewing

    Being a home buyer should only be a temporary state. You’re moving home, and you’re currently in the process of searching for a new house. Viewing homes can be a nightmare, or it can be a great experience. Sometimes the seller will try to avoid answering certain questions and other times you’ll see that what they have said previously on the phone isn’t true. Very rarely will a home that looks too good to be true turn out to be that way. Viewing a home and getting an accurate picture of the home in just a few minutes takes skill. Most of all it takes a sharp eye to see behind the curtain and figure out what kind of home it really is. On the surface it could look strong and sturdy, but during the winter the floorboards might creak and crack underneath the pressure. So what do you need to do to get the most amount of information from a viewing in the quickest time?

    Never trust face value

    It might sound harsh, but the main thing you must not do is believe every word the seller or the real estate agent is telling you. When you enter the home, keep a sharp intellect about you and focus on what you see and what you don’t see. The agent will be giving you a tour but no doubt, they and the seller worked out a deal or a plan to only show the best bits of the home. For example, they will take their time showing you a great garden. However, they will rush through a room that has mould and mildew on the walls, signs of a leaking water pipe as the wallpaper has bubbled and risen off the surface. So, just for good practice, never trust what the person giving you the tour says at face value.

     

    Venture further in

    When viewing a home, it’s your right to inspect every available part that’s open to you. Go into each corner of the living room, look at the skirting boards, the floor colour in the corner compared to the rest of the room. You should be checking the corner of the ceiling too, and look for cracks and signs of structural fatigue. When you’re shown a window on the 1st floor or any floor for that matter and the focus of the agent is the view, go further in to have a look at the window sill. Sometimes an issue can be right in front of you but the job of the agent is to momentarily distract you away from it. Can you see signs of rainwater leaking in?

    Check the logistics

    If a home has passed your eye inspection, then call in a professional team that will give you the low down on the logistics of the home. Check out homebuyer surveys and costs to see what will happen when you do. They’ll check the quality of the roof, the strength of the walls, make sure the electric, gas and oil are costed accurately, and also check the quality of the drainage and insulation.

    Be on your guard to sweet talk when you’re home viewing. The agent is working for the seller, and they both want to get paid. By polite but be sceptical also. Call in the experts when you think you have a winner and venture further in to inspect every nook and cranny.

     

    This is a collaborative post.

    Home Life

    Turn Your Living Room Into A Giving Room

    For those of us who aren’t blessed with the largest property or the most expansive rooms in our humble abode, we need to think outside of the box when we are decorating. While we may not feel like we have enough room to swing a cat, we may be able to utilise some nifty space saving techniques that can also save a bob or two. Our living rooms are our sanctuaries. These are the spaces that you kick back, relax and spend most of your time in, whether it’s catching up with your favourite soap on the box, reading a book with a glass of wine, or having a good old catch up with pals. Take a look at how you can transform your living room into a giving room.

    More Uses

    Your living room may be a one trick pony at the moment, especially if you are struggling in terms of space. However, your lounge interior doesn’t have to just be that area where you sit on the sofa watching mind numbing TV every night. Consider creating a couple of zones within the room. Choose one corner to situate your TV rather than having it mounted onto a wall. This way, you are cordoning off your gogglebox capabilities. In another corner, invest in a comfortable chair. You might want to opt for a mid-century style vintage egg chair or a Scandinavian rocking chair. These are perfect for relaxing in with a cuppa or reading. A bankers lamp to the side or a floor lamp can make a pleasant change from being forced to read with the main light on.

    If you have kids and you don’t have enough square footage for a playroom, an extra large rug will fill the space within your living room and give them enough of a play area for their toys in the centre of your room. While not ideal, trying to make your living room fit your lifestyle is the perfect solution for those more cramped pads.

    Storage

    No matter what size your property is, you will inevitably struggle with storage, and the dreaded clutter can always begin to encroach on your environment. The type of furniture and storage solutions that you try to incorporate into your living space can transform your lounge from a simple one dimensional space into a multi-functional room that can make your life easier. Footstools can come Ottoman style with storage under the stool. You might want to look at period pieces that merge drawers storage with a coffee table. These Danish inspired sleek designs utilise every iota of functionality and can ensure that your knick-knacks don’t clutter up your space.

    If your kids are of an age where they have a ridiculous amount of lego and bricks and other toy paraphernalia, you will be keen to ensure that your living room doesn’t morph into a playpen. Get hold of a toy box that doubles up as a window seat or hide all of that kid clutter under the stairs. Storage solutions don’t have to look like filing cabinets or exposed shelves. Instead, you can find those nifty storage ideas within pieces that offer up both form and functionality.

    Your living room is the most heavily utilised and enjoyed room within your home. Give it a new lease of life and turn it from a living room to a giving room.

     

    This is a collaborative post.