Have you ever been in a rush and forgotten something? Don't feel bad, it happens to all of us. You leave your phone on the nightstand or your wallet on the counter. Whenever this happens, you never seem to notice until you've already driven 20 minutes away. But have you ever forgotten something major? Like a house?
It looks like this littlest member of the Fixer Upper crew is settling in just fine at home. One week after he was born, mom Joanna Gaines has shared a first look at her son Crew's nursery. And he's got some great digs!
If you have a few million laying around and you really want to have famous neighbors, look no further. Rob Lowe has put his 10-000-square-foot Montecito estate on sale for a cool $47 million.
It's no secret we love IKEA. Maybe not quite as much as this clever bride, but we're well-versed in IKEA hacks. A little spray paint, yarn, contact paper, or new knobs can turn a standard piece of decor into an eye-catching statement that looks way more expensive than it is. And, lucky for us, tons of Etsy sellers are jumping on the IKEA bandwagon, selling small products that turn IKEA finds into beautiful home decor. Here, some of our favorites.
There's no denying that leafy green foliage plants add a calming and homey touch to your decor. Sometimes, though, we want to mix it up with a splash of cheery flowers. Unfortunately, coaxing plants to bloom indoors, where the light is dimmer and the air drier, often requires a more advanced level of green thumbery than many of us possess.
Do you try your best to be eco-friendly? You recycle everything you can and you even sort your recyclables. You try to avoid plastic straws. You prefer to use regular plates and wash them, rather than use paper plates. But you can't help but overuse paper towels, right?
If you think packing is stressful, it's probably because you don't have the tools to make it easy. Take it from me, a converted messy person. I was a slob to the nth degree; where chaos reigned in any room I stepped in. But I quickly learned the only reason that most of my messes happened was because I refused to invest in actual organizing tools, which are literally designed to keep your life tidy. When every item has a home, it's hard to be messy. And the same holds true for your suitcase.
Name: Ashley Pennington
Location: Roosevelt Historic Neighborhood — Phoenix, Arizona
Size: 1,100 square feet
Years lived in: 1 year, renting
I moved into this rental to reignite my passion for interior design. This duplex is in the Historic Roosevelt District of Downtown Phoenix. I was so excited to come in and show myself what I was capable of designing. The home was built in the 1920s, has original floors, windows, cabinets and bathroom fixtures. There's a sunroom in the back of the home and the most beautiful porch and landscaping! I immediately fell in love. I asked the landlord, "Where do I sign?" at the showing! I signed my lease, and started working for a well-known interior merchandising company all in the same month. It was as if the stars were all aligned. Every single room in this home was designed with love.
If you live in a major city and don't make six-figures, you probably live with one or more roommates. And, of course, you probably wish every day that you could move to the middle of nowhere—where rents are cheap—and live alone. Well, surprise! Those dreams will probably never come true, because apartments throughout the country just aren't as affordable as you think they are. According to a new report by the National Low Income Housing Coalition (NLIHC), one would have to earn an hourly wage of $22.10 to afford a two-bedroom rental (at the national fair market price of $1,149) and $17.90 an hour to afford a one-bedroom rental at $931 (if we're adhering to the budget advice of keeping your rent 30% of your take-home pay or less).
Name: Chad Palmatier and Anthony Sobotik
Location: North Austin, Texas
Size: 1,850 square feet
Years Lived In: 1.5 years, owned
In their business—Lick Honest Ice Creams—as well as their home, Chad and Anthony focus on bringing an appreciation of simple things into the world. When it comes to decorating their North Austin house, they only brought in items they really love. The kind of items that bring them joy every day. For the couple, that means color, pattern and family heirlooms. Each room contains bold and unique textures that together create a comfortable and inviting home.
Summer's all fun and games until you're practically eaten alive by a swarm of hungry mosquitoes. Bug bites are a total nuisance—nobody wants to be covered in big, itchy bumps—and potentially hazardous to your health. Not to freak you out or anything, but the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported illnesses from mosquito, tick, and flea bites have tripled in the United States since 2004.
You could slather yourself in sticky, smelly repellent, or you could use your killer design instincts to bug-proof your home. Below, seven smart and stylish ways to help keep mosquitoes at bay.
In the world of real estate, there's a lot of ambiguous terminology that's used to describe a home and what's inside of it. When searching for a home to buy, it's important to know exactly what these terms mean. This way, you can be 100% sure that you're clearly communicating to your agent what features you absolutely need. One of these terms is "en suite," and depending on where you live or what type of home you're looking for, you may have heard several different definitions. Or, you might have just been wondering where the term comes from and what it really means. Whatever the case may be, I'm here to clear that up.
Gifted renters understand how to make wonderful homes in temporary dwellings, and squeeze seriously stylish and functional spaces out of nothing special. They make it look easy, but exactly how do they do it, you ask? Here are the habits of some seriously creative renters.
I grew up in inland L.A., where every house had a perfectly manicured lawn. Back then we didn't think of water as a precious resource. Now I live in drizzly Seattle, but my lawn is choked by dandelions and moss. Grass has become more of an accent than a dominant feature in recent years, a landscaping trend that shows no signs of reversing. I can't wait to cut back on mine. But how?
It's no secret that we love a smart storage solution. A storage solution that looks smart too? Well, we just lose our minds over that kind of stuff.
And so explains our current obsession with YAMAZAKI home. Do you know the brand?
Tired of staring at your beige or blank walls? Paint would be an improvement, but wallpaper could be just the thing your room needs to take it to the next level. Still on the fence about wallpaper though? I "erased" the wallpaper from these three rooms so you could see the dramatic difference that happens in a space when you add patterned wallpaper (even on just one accent wall!).
Posted To: MBS Commentary
On 2 occasions this week, bonds set closing yield lows for the month. Moreover, if we strike the craziest day from late May from the record (since Italy was a temporary market mover), we saw the best closing levels since mid April. It would be nice if we could say that there were any specific, scandalous reasons for such strong levels. Instead, we merely inched our way lower in rates, perhaps catching just a whiff of benefit from the big selling in stocks. In the bigger picture, both stocks and bonds are consolidating--and have been for most of 2018. Stocks are waiting to see if the party is over and bonds are waiting to see if they might be allowed back into the party. Translation: trade war headlines are a footnote on the essay of the broader economic cycle. The econ data is good now, but...(read more)
Posted To: MBS Commentary
On 2 occasions this week, bonds set closing yield lows for the month. Moreover, if we strike the craziest day from late May from the record (since Italy was a temporary market mover), we saw the best closing levels since mid April. It would be nice if we could say that there were any specific, scandalous reasons for such strong levels. Instead, we merely inched our way lower in rates, perhaps catching just a whiff of benefit from the big selling in stocks. In the bigger picture, both stocks and bonds are consolidating--and have been for most of 2018. Stocks are waiting to see if the party is over and bonds are waiting to see if they might be allowed back into the party. Translation: trade war headlines are a footnote on the essay of the broader economic cycle. The econ data is good now, but...(read more)Posted To: Mortgage Rate Watch
Mortgage rates haven't moved for 3 straight days now. In fact, if you're not too concerned with minutia, there hasn't been any major movement in weeks. Unless something big happens in financial markets soon, we shouldn't expect that to change next week Rates are driven by bonds, and bonds are traded by humans (or algorithms written by humans). Many of those humans are on vacation at the moment, having taken advantage of the lull in the market calendar between now and next week's 4th of July holiday. Markets will be closed on Wednesday and will close early on Tuesday. Point being: there's not an exceptionally vibrant marketplace underlying mortgage rate movement at the moment. After the holiday, however, volatility potential increases. Traders will be getting back to the office in greater numbers...(read more)
Posted To: Mortgage Rate Watch
Mortgage rates haven't moved for 3 straight days now. In fact, if you're not too concerned with minutia, there hasn't been any major movement in weeks. Unless something big happens in financial markets soon, we shouldn't expect that to change next week Rates are driven by bonds, and bonds are traded by humans (or algorithms written by humans). Many of those humans are on vacation at the moment, having taken advantage of the lull in the market calendar between now and next week's 4th of July holiday. Markets will be closed on Wednesday and will close early on Tuesday. Point being: there's not an exceptionally vibrant marketplace underlying mortgage rate movement at the moment. After the holiday, however, volatility potential increases. Traders will be getting back to the office in greater numbers...(read more)
Joanna Gaines might be busy taking care of her newborn, Crew, but that won't stop her from sharing advice for all the current and would-be plant parents out there. The summer issue of Magnolia Journal is out, and Jo has tips galore for her latest plant obsession.
You live and die by Amazon. You've been a Prime member for years, you know all about that secret $2 section, you head to Amazon Handmade whenever you need a unique gift, and you even give preference to hotels with rooms equipped with Alexa. But did you know Amazon has a whole host of private labels?
Amazon launched its first private label in 2009; five years later they slowly launched 11 more; today Amazon has approximately 76 private labels. The majority of these brands cover clothing, shoes, and jewelry, while others fall under the umbrella of grocery or household goods (think cleaning supplies, vitamins, and snacks), and a select few cover home decor and kitchen.
What's special about these private labels is that they offer surprisingly chic options at very competitive prices. Take the tufted leather ottoman from Stone & Beam, a furniture line geared towards families, for example: It's just $350, and buyers get free shipping, 30-day free returns, and a one-year warranty with their Prime membership. And with options abound, that perfect addition to your living room may just show up on your doorstep with your latest supply of toilet paper a mere two days later.
Here's everything you need to know about these Amazon private labels, plus three of the bestselling items from each one:
Interior Designer and CEO Leura Fine has made her living creating beautiful homes for those who deserve it—AKA everyone. Founding the online interior design service Laurel & Wolf in 2014 to help bring a client's design dreams to life, Fine has redefined who interior designer services are for. But while Fine is bringing design to the masses, she's no stranger to designing celebrity homes either. Her clients include everyone from Christina Applegate to Rebecca Minkoff to Kelsea Ballerini.
Armed with her years of knowledge, she brings the same passion and know-how to all her projects, big and small. Here, she shares her best tips for bringing that celebrity home appeal to your home—for a lot, lot less.
Antoni might be best known for slinging guac and upping folks' culinary games on the hit Netflix reboot of Queer Eye, but he's also an expert at working within a small space. The food guru recently chatted with Architectural Digest on how he makes due with his tiny studio kitchen.
Name: Sarah Lyon and her roommate Carrie
Location: Dupont Circle — Washington, DC
Size: 800 square feet
Years lived in: Almost a year
My roommate, Carrie, and I found our place on Craigslist after doing an extensive search of rowhouse apartments in DC. We were about ready to give up when we found what was truly a hidden gem—a place that was affordable, had equal-sized bedrooms and two bathrooms, and even came with a roof deck. We snagged it right away! Carrie loves gardening and has made the roof deck into an absolutely beautiful space filled with festive outdoor furniture and plants. I absolutely love interior design and have really enjoyed working around the home's unique features and challenges to create a space that I love. It's nice to live right downtown but to be in a space that has a more old-fashioned, homey feel than you'll often find in a big city.
Posted To: MND NewsWire
A current post in Freddie Mac's Insight blog looks again at the decline in homeownership among young adults and tries to determine the role played by rising housing costs. The post is based on recent research by the company's Economic and Housing Research Group headed by Chief Economist Sam Khater. Adults in the age group usually categorized as Millennials (25 to 34) have deferred homebuying as higher prices push it further into the future. The weakening affordability is particularly hard on first-time homebuyers because prices increase the fastest among the lower-priced homes they would typically buy. At the same time, these young adults, who comprise a large share of first-time buyers, are excluded from the benefits of rapidly rising home values. "Unable to buy, many young adults have continued...(read more)
Healthy houseplants are generally described as full and bushy. They'll have lots of dense, sturdy growth and the leaves will be crisp and green rather than limp and yellowing. If your houseplant is "leggy," it simply means it has gotten a bit unkempt and scraggly, like a formerly stylish haircut that's grown out unevenly and is riddled with split ends. Leggy houseplants are marked by flopping stems, uneven and sparse growth, and a general look of untidiness.
Posted To: MND NewsWire
A current post in Freddie Mac's Insight blog looks again at the decline in homeownership among young adults and tries to determine the role played by rising housing costs. The post is based on recent research by the company's Economic and Housing Research Group headed by Chief Economist Sam Khater. Adults in the age group usually categorized as Millennials (25 to 34) have deferred homebuying as higher prices push it further into the future. The weakening affordability is particularly hard on first-time homebuyers because prices increase the fastest among the lower-priced homes they would typically buy. At the same time, these young adults, who comprise a large share of first-time buyers, are excluded from the benefits of rapidly rising home values. "Unable to buy, many young adults have continued...(read more)
It only took 14 years, but we finally have the superhero film we deserve. The hero being mid-century modern design. Picking up right where the first installment left off, the Parr family is on the forefront of the fight to make superheroes legal again. During that process, they are set up in a mid-century design lover's dream house. And lucky for you, Zillow created a listing so you can really get a sense of the home's super features.
