Design Choosing the Right Backsplash for Your Kitchen Every chef’s kitchen should have a style that matches the delicious food that comes out of it. But even if you’re doing little more than making mac and cheese out of a box, your kitchen still can be a place of color and creativity. Kitchen backsplashes are nothing new, but they’ve seen a recent surge in popularity. We’re fortunate to see homes every day with creative takes on this tiling trend...
Selling 5 Dangers of Overpricing a Home It is still a great time to be a seller, but in much of the Western U.S., the local real estate market has begun to soften. With significant increases in inventory, buyers now have more choices and less sense of urgency. If you are thinking about selling your home, pricing it correctly the first time is critical. Here’s...
Market News Are We Heading Towards A Bubble? The US housing market has been going gangbusters in recent years. Record-setting sales, record-setting home prices, & a market that has largely favored sellers, while forcing fierce competition among buyers. All of this has led some to worry that we are heading towards another housing bubble. So, are we? On Tuesday, September 25, at 11 AM PST, Windermere Real Estate is hosting a Facebook Live...
More Fall Perspectives 2018: Our Pledge To You Change is afoot. We suppose it always is, but doesn’t it all seem to come at us so much faster in today’s world? We see change all around us. Just consider, for a moment, how much technology has changed our lives thanks to innovators like Uber, Google, and Apple, to name a few. Technology has also changed the way we do real estate. The real estate world is a complex environment that most...
Selling How to Acquire the Right Appraisal for Your Home Appraisals are designed to protect buyers, sellers, and lending institutions. They provide a reliable, independent valuation of a tract of land and the structure on it, whether it’s a house or a skyscraper. Below, you will find information about the appraisal process, what goes into them, their benefits and some tips on how to help make an appraisal go smoothly and efficiently.
Design Transforming Your House from a Summer Home to a Winter Hideaway None of us want to admit it, but Winter is Coming. The new season of Game of Thrones might not be until 2019, but your home will need preparation before then. As the days shorten, you can mitigate many mid-winter headaches with some preemptive prep. Proper weatherizing can help protect your investment from preventable damage, save money on energy costs, and, most importantly, keep your home...
Market News Challenges Builders Face With New Construction Housing demand remains high across the Western United States, but home-building is still struggling to keep up. What can be done to help encourage construction of new homes? Windermere Real Estate's Chief Economist Matthew Gardner has insight.
Market News 5 Reasons Rising Interest Rates Won’t Wreck the Housing Market Interest rates have been trending higher since the fall of 2017, and I fully expect they will continue in that direction – albeit relatively slowly – as we move through the balance of the year and into 2019. So what does this mean for the US housing market? It might come as a surprise to learn that I really don’t think rising interest rates will have a major impact on the housing market...
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Living Making a Rental Feel Like Home Stylizing your own home can be a daunting but rewarding challenge. When you own your living space, it's easy to feel a sense of ownership over every piece of your design. But for renters, the challenge is a bit different. Despite limitations, it's no less important to one's well-being for a residence to convey a sense of ownership and self. To make a rental unit feel a bit more like home, we...
Market News What You Need to Know About the US Luxury Housing Market Luxury homes sales across the U.S. continue to perform strongly, but I’m noticing some headwinds starting to appear that are worthy of a closer look. It’s often thought that luxury real estate runs totally independent of the overall market, and while this is true in some respects, there are definitely correlations between high-end housing and the rest of the market.
Market News How Restrictive Growth Policies Affect Housing Affordability In Many Cities Windermere Real Estate Chief Economist Matthew Gardner explains how restrictive growth policies are affecting housing affordability in many cities.​
More Providing Scholarships and School Supplies to Students in Need It’s that time of year again! As families prepare to send their kids back to school, Windermere agents have been out in their communities raising money to support programs that provide school supplies and scholarships to students in need.
Buying Building Character – Balancing a Home’s Personality and Amenities It's sometimes said that the limitations of a house are what help make it a home. For many, however, it is a point of pride to accept only the finest in their new residence. How can you find the balance between cultivating a lived-in home with personality and quirks versus a house with cutting-edge amenities that improve quality of life? To get to the bottom of that, we gathered a list of six...
Living Outfitting Your Home to Survive the Threat of Wildfires Much of the Western United States is grappling with the same issue this summer – the specter of smoke and fire from some of the largest forest fires in recent memory. For individuals, even the decreased air quality can be a threat, while the destruction that the fires themselves can wreak is devastating. Homeowners living near impacted areas are often left with an impossible choice...
Design Avoiding the Pitfalls of Home Addition Construction When dissatisfaction with your current home strikes, it can be exciting to launch into a plan for a new addition. A new living room, bedroom, or more can add value to your home while improving your quality of life. On the other hand, even a modest addition can turn into a major construction project, with architects and contractors to manage, construction workers...
Market News How Zoning and Regulatory Costs Impact Housing Affordability Windermere Real Estate Chief Economist Matthew Gardner explains the ways zoning rules and regulatory costs can limit housing affordability.
Design The Most Ambitious Trends in Luxury Pool Design When it comes to luxury home design, if you can imagine it, it can be done. In-home spas, luxe bowling alleys, and glass wine rooms are just a few examples we’re seeing out there. The same idea extends outdoors to swimming pools, which are a must for most luxury homes. But we aren’t talking about just any old backyard pool; they’re usually more masterpiece than mainstream. We consulted...
Living Refreshing Your Home and Your Spirit With Seven Easy Steps The yearning to move lives in the spirit of many homeowners, but that desire for something new is often at odds with what feels feasible. That sense of newness needn't come from a dramatic uprooting, however. The great part about having a home of your own is you can make improvements and give your home a chance to evolve over time. You just need to help your home live up to its potential! We...
Market News Montana Real Estate Market Update According to the Labor Department, Montana added 2,900 non-agricultural jobs over the past 12 months, representing an annual growth rate of 0.6%. For perspective, the U.S growth rate is running at about 1.6%. Although the state has experienced significant increases in employment since the last recession, the pace of growth has slowed significantly, which is mainly due to a lack of workers...
Market News Oregon and Southwest Washington Real Estate Market Update The State of Oregon has added 30,400 new jobs over the past 12 months, representing a reasonable annual growth rate of 1.6%. It is clear, however, that job growth in Oregon has started to taper, with the annual rate dropping below 2% in the early spring of this year. This is no great cause for concern as the state has essentially reached full employment, which tends to slow employment growth...