Thanksgiving is right around the corner, and for so many of us it marks the beginning of the most wonderful time of year: the holiday season! But if you鈥檙e hosting a Thanksgiving meal at your home, it can get easy to get caught up in wanting your table to be decorated as tastefully and beautifully as possible. 

Whether this is your first time hosting Thanksgiving dinner or your twentieth, you鈥檒l love to see some examples of beautiful table setting ideas. Here鈥檚 our guide to creating a great table setting this Thanksgiving holiday.

Classic American

Since Thanksgiving is a holiday as old as America itself, it鈥檚 only fitting to create a table setting with classic American themes. Create a tablescape themed after colonial America, with dishware that your grandparents and great-grandparents would have had handed down to them. Think of rich colors, Toile, gorgeous metals and china, and of course turkeys to really make this table setting pop.

Modern farmhouse style

If you鈥檙e going for a more contemporary style, why not try a modern farmhouse look? This is very trendy right now in home decor, but the simple colors and wood accents give it a modern twist. Think of how Joanna Gaines would decorate her table using her own Magnolia style and replicate that. 

Mix and match thrifted pieces

If this is your first time hosting a large Thanksgiving dinner in your home, don鈥檛 feel overwhelmed if you don鈥檛 think you have enough dishware and decor to satisfy a table full of guests. Instead, go for a more thrifted look. Hit up your local second hand shop and find mis-matched china and dishware. This will give your tablescape a very vintage feel, and you won鈥檛 have to worry about spending too much money on expensive table settings for your first Thanksgiving.

Play with color

Fall is such a colorful time of year, so why not add some bright colors to your tables? Play with accents of red, orange, yellow, brown, and even gold throughout the table. You can even mix and match the colors used in your decor by picking up various fall-colored dishware and decor pieces. Place them together to create a collage of fall colors to make your table look like a forest of fall foliage.

When in doubt, go for pumpkins

What screams fall more than pumpkins? Go for a neutral base for your color scheme by using your typical dishes, silverware, and napkins that you use everyday, and add some fall accents to your tablescape by picking up some pumpkins of varying sizes at your local market or pumpkin patch. Use miniature pumpkins as place cards by writing each guest鈥檚 name on the pumpkins in permanent marker, and scatter larger pumpkins and gourds throughout the table as decorations.

This post is intended for informational purposes only and should not be taken as professional advice. The point of view and opinions expressed in this post are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the position of 皇冠体育app International. This post was written by Bailee Abell. Bailee Abell is a writer born and raised in California. A graduate of University of California, Santa Barbara, she loves reading classic literature, sipping warm beverages, and visiting theme parks every chance she gets. Find her at 

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If you want good neighbors, you鈥檒l first have to become one yourself. Master these seven techniques, and even you (yes, you!) can win the approval of your entire neighborhood.

1. Good neighbors bring cookies

Whether you鈥檙e new in town or haven鈥檛 kept in touch, a delivery of freshly baked goods is a perfect way to break the ice and let neighbors know that you鈥檙e thinking of them.

If cookies can keep Santa returning year after year with a bag full of loot, then surely they can train your neighbors to do your bidding. Consider the following scenario.

鈥淗oney, somebody鈥檚 robbing the neighbor鈥檚 house again.鈥�
鈥淲ait, Janet. The ones who brought cookies yesterday?鈥�
鈥淓xactly. This time I鈥檒l call the cops.鈥�

2. Good neighbors rarely gossip

If your neighbor seems to know the dirt on everyone within a two-block radius, you can count on them to keep tabs on your personal life as well.

The next time Nosy Nellie gleefully describes the contents of the Rickenbacker鈥檚 trash again, move the conversation along by refocusing the conversation on her. 鈥淪o, what are you growing in聽聽this year?鈥�

You aren鈥檛 in high school anymore, so preserve relationships with your neighbors and avoid the gratuitous gab fests.

3. Good neighbors share phone numbers

For such a connected age, you should really question why you don鈥檛 have your neighbors鈥� phone numbers. After all, what if they receive your package by mistake? What if the house floods while you鈥檙e on vacation? Worse yet, what if you need a babysitter?

If you feel uncomfortable bringing it up, ask during one of your cookie deliveries (you are following rule number one, right?) or right before a trip. Jot down your name, number and email address on a piece of paper and ask if your neighbor is comfortable sharing theirs.

4. Good neighbors help before they鈥檙e asked

The neighbor who says, 鈥淟et me know if you need anything,鈥� probably isn鈥檛 going to help whenever you actually need something. You, on the other hand, are a good neighbor and genuinely want to help out.

To get ahead of the meaningless small talk, anticipate their needs. If they have kids and you鈥檙e comfortable babysitting, tell them up front. If they鈥檙e clearly struggling to mow聽聽during a heat wave, ask for the best time to stop by with your lawnmower.

5. Good neighbors are tidy

Even if you lack self-respect, respect the sensitive tastes of others and clean up your act.

Keep the ironic lawn ornaments to a minimum. Keep trash receptacles hidden in the side yard, or better yet, the garage.

Whenever you鈥檝e finished gardening or landscaping for the day, put away your tools and bags of unused mulch. Rake the leaves and clean up grass clippings and all the other stuff your dad used to bug you about.

And if it鈥檚 not too much trouble, pressure wash and聽听辫别谤颈辞诲颈肠补濒濒测.

6. Good neighbors mow the lawn

An unkempt and weedy lawn is embarrassing for your neighbors, so it should be embarrassing for you as well. Keeping it mowed every week or two is a good start, but it will take more than that to win the approval of the locals.

Trim the edge of your lawn regularly, fertilize on schedule and keep weeds to a minimum. Keep your foundation plantings simple, neatly trimmed and topped off with mulch.

If your neighborhood allows it, go the no-lawn method by planting swaths of low-maintenance, drought-tolerant ground covers. Crucially, don鈥檛 overdo it on the sprinklers 鈥� especially when it鈥檚 raining.

7. Good neighbors communicate

That old 鈥済ood fences make good neighbors鈥� quote had to come up at some point, right? A good neighbor must respect boundaries. That said, they should also be crossed when the fences themselves start losing pickets and falling over in a storm.

Even if it鈥檚 technically their fence, you might not be happy with the shoddy workmanship and resentment that you鈥檒l have to live with when they get around to fixing it themselves.

Address shared interests like fences, drainage ditches and troublesome trees ahead of time so that you can work out a plan that both parties can agree to.

Oh, and don鈥檛 forget to bring cookies.

Originally published on

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New year, new look for your home! We’re looking at the most innovative home design trends for 2019 in order to show how simple it can be to incorporate them into your own space. Here are some of our favorite interior design trends and how you can breathe new life into your current spaces.

Bold and patterned back-splashes

While 2018 was a minimalist year for interior design, 2019 will signify a move toward more vibrant kitchen looks. Bold and patterned back-splashes can add some life back into your kitchen with bright colors and graphic tiles. Try using a cool blue, gray or even geometric-patterned tile in your kitchen.

Sustainable and natural elements

Furniture and decor pieces made from materials like jute, rice paper, reclaimed wood, and recycled granite, and clay are wonderful items to include in your space, as they are made responsibly, with nature in mind. Incorporating plants into your home design will also add a fresh and serene ambiance to your space.

Velvet furnishings

Velvet is soft, cozy, and luxurious with a fresh and funky twist. Velvet sofas in particular have become trendy among furniture designers and will continue to be a hit in 2019. Adding velvet furniture in jewel-toned designs is a great way to incorporate the trend into your space without giving your home an overly retro feel.

Richer color palettes

Jewel tones and dark, warm color palettes are trendy for 2019. Incorporate rich textures and colors into your home to bring your minimalist furnishings into the new year with a twist on simple tradition.

Mixing and matching furniture, metals

Another way to take give your current home design a fresh look for 2019 is by mixing and matching furniture and metals. Rather than keeping uniform furniture sets in the same room, mix it up a bit. Try styling your spaces in different ways, incorporating various furniture styles together to give your home a fresh and cozy look. Additionally, mixing metals is another way to modernize your space for the new year. Try incorporating silver, gold, and copper together, and feel free to mix up your home design without the pressure for everything to match.

Geometric and tribal patterns

Over-sized, bold geometric patterns and tribal styles are big trends for this new year in home design. Be expressive in your home design by incorporating patterns that you love that breathe life into your space. If you don鈥檛 want to purchase trendy new furniture items to achieve this look, you can offset the minimalist look of your home by adding patterned textiles and decor elements to your home.

Convertible dwellings

If you live in a small home or an urban area, convertible dwellings will be a big trend to incorporate in your home design in the new year. Murphy beds, expandable tables, and multi-functional furnishings are practical and intriguing elements to include in your home design, as they are equally useful and interesting to guests.

Designed ceilings

Gone are the days of a plain ceiling. Now, your home design can go beyond tired accent walls and throw pillows and move toward an innovative ceiling design. Add an inspirational tone to your home with a fresh take on the accent wall by creating a statement ceiling, either with a patterned wallpaper or a splash of color, paying homage to the ornately designed ceilings of the 1920’s.

You don’t have to move to create a fresh look for the new year! Find a trend that works for you and make it work in a space you’re already comfortable in.

This post is intended for informational purposes only and should not be taken as professional advice. The point of view and opinions expressed in this post are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the position of 皇冠体育app International. This post was written by Bailee Abell.听Bailee Abell is a writer born and raised in California. A graduate of University of California, Santa Barbara, she loves reading classic literature, sipping warm beverages, and visiting theme parks every chance she gets. Find her at聽

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With the holidays approaching, it鈥檚 important to ensure that your decorations don鈥檛 end up in a complete mess after the holiday season ends. Maybe you鈥檙e dreading decorating because you remember the stress of storing all of your decorations last year. Or maybe you just don鈥檛 know where to start. Whatever stage you鈥檙e at in the decorating process, here are some of our best tips for organizing your holiday decor this season and beyond.

Start going through your decorations early

If you know you want to decorate on a particular date, start gradually going through your decorations ahead of time. When you go through the decorations, donate everything that is not associated with a happy memory. Decluttering will help with further organization and it will keep only positive memories associated with decorating. Sometimes, decorating and organizing can be stressful, so starting early and in small doses can help alleviate the stress so that you feel more joyful and prepared when it comes time to actually begin decorating.

Protect your decorations

You should prioritize protecting all of your holiday decorations so they last year after year. No matter the value of each item, each piece of holiday decor should be stored and organized so that it is protected for years to come. Some ways you can consider keeping your decorations safe include:

• Protect your glassware by ensuring each glass item is wrapped carefully.
• Reuse egg cartons as storage for smaller ornaments and trinkets.
• Store all of your decorations in a dry environment to protect against mold and mildew damage.
• Use small bins for heavy items so that they are easier to life and you are less likely to drop them.
• Don鈥檛 pack too many decorations in one box: packing too much in one area will cause some items to become crushed or damaged under the weight of others.

Keep track of what you own

It is important to keep up to date and organized with the decorations that you already own so you do not lose track and repurchase items that you may not need to. This will save you money and time when you do your annual holiday decorating. To keep your decorations organized, you should store everything in one area of your home, such as a storage closet, an attic or basement, or even in an organized manner under your bed. Don鈥檛 mix your holiday decorations together: keep Christmas, Thanksgiving, Halloween, and all other holidays separated in different boxes. Additionally, you should be able to tell what is inside each storage box without having to open it. Use clear plastic storage bins so you can see inside, label each box clearly, and even take pictures of your decorations while they are up and use those photos as labels for each storage box. If all of your decorations are intentionally organized and stored in specific places, you are more likely to keep them that way when it comes time to pack them away at the end of the season.

These are our best tips for keeping your holiday decorations organized year after year. How do you like to organize your decor?

This post is intended for informational purposes only and should not be taken as professional advice. The point of view and opinions expressed in this post are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the position of 皇冠体育app International. This post was written by Bailee Abell.听Bailee Abell is a writer born and raised in California. A graduate of University of California, Santa Barbara, she loves reading classic literature, sipping warm beverages, and visiting theme parks every chance she gets. Find her at聽.听

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With the holiday season approaching, it is highly important to not skimp on security. And if you鈥檙e planning on traveling during the holidays, you should feel some peace of mind knowing your home is safe while you鈥檙e away. Here are our top tips for keeping your home safe as you travel for the holiday season.

Don鈥檛 broadcast your location on social media.

When you鈥檙e planning a vacation, it may be fun to post your plans on your social media accounts like Facebook and Instagram. But social media posts including travel information are green lights for home thieves, as they signal that your home will be unoccupied for a set period of time. Before you leave and while you are away, try to refrain from posting on social media that you are on vacation and your home is unoccupied. If you want to update your social channels, make sure to set your posts to private so your updates can only be seen by people you trust.

Ensure your home is inaccessible from the outside and garage.

Lock the indoor entrance to your house from your garage. If you have a garage break in, make sure the burglar cannot access your house from the garage. Additionally, you should remove all spare keys that you may be hiding outside of your home, especially those in common places such as under the doormat or in a nearby planter.

Secure your valuable possessions.

Even if you have ensured that your home is inaccessible, you can never be too careful with your valuables. You should always secure your most valuable and important possessions in a safe or store them in a locked drawer or room. Additionally, you should make sure your valuable items (such as electronics) cannot be seen through your windows or from anywhere outside your home. Close all blinds and curtains so that nothing can be seen by any intruder attempting to look inside.

Set an alarm.

If you will be leaving your home during the holidays, consider setting an alarm that will notify you, your alarm company and the local police of a break-in. If you already have an alarm system set up at your home, alert your alarm company that you will be out of town so they know that a trip of the alarm is most likely an intruder. If you don鈥檛 have an alarm system, consider installing one before traveling on an extended or long-distance trip.

Don鈥檛 allow deliveries to sit on your doorstep.

Unopened packages sitting on your doorstep are surefire signs that signal to others that nobody is home. If possible, refrain from receiving package deliveries for the duration of your trip, or ask a neighbor to attend to your mail delivery while you are away. If you need deliveries and a neighbor cannot help you, ask your post office to hold your mail for the duration of your trip and consider getting deliveries sent to your office address.

Keep your home safe from adverse weather conditions or fire hazards.

If you live in a colder climate, you should protect your home鈥檚 pipes from freezing by setting your thermostat to 65 degrees for the duration of your trip. Clean your gutters before traveling, as leaves and debris can build up in rain gutters and cause the gutters to be weighed down and break if too much ice collects after a storm. Prevent fire hazards by unplugging all unnecessary electronics and making sure necessary cords are plugged into a surge protector.

This post is intended for informational purposes only and should not be taken as professional advice. The point of view and opinions expressed in this post are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the position of 皇冠体育app International. This post was written by Bailee Abell.听Bailee Abell is a writer born and raised in California. A graduate of University of California, Santa Barbara, she loves reading classic literature, sipping warm beverages, and visiting theme parks every chance she gets. Find her at聽.听

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Autumn is in full swing and there are so many incredible changes happening. The kids are back to school, football is on TV, the leaves are changing color and you get to enjoy the crisp, cool air of the season. With everyone鈥檚 schedule jam-packed, the weekends become more meaningful when the entire family can get together. With the great weather outside, you don鈥檛 want to get caught sitting on the couch. Why not spend a night with the family sitting by the fire? Don鈥檛 have a fire pit? Good thing they鈥檙e cheap and easy to build! Here鈥檚 how you can build one by yourself:

Get your supplies together

Building your fire pit doesn鈥檛 require too much equipment. All you鈥檒l need is:

• 听听听听听听听听叠谤颈肠办蝉
• 聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽Gravel or firebrick
• 聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽Stake and twine
• 聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽Tape measure
• 聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽Large shovel
• 听听听听听听听听罢补尘辫
• 听听听听听听听听尝别惫别濒
• 聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽Spray paint
• 聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽Fire-resistant mortar for extra stability

You can buy any of these items at your local hardware or home improvement store. Make sure you purchase a heavy, sturdy type of brick to give your pit some extra support. You can get concrete retaining wall block or pavers at most orstores.

Step One: Mark the Area Where Your Fire Pit Will Be

It鈥檚 very important to be considerate of your fire pit鈥檚 location. The pit should not be right next to your home and should not be placed under or near any landscaping that may have branches or hanging components. Once you have found a safe place in your yard, secure the stake in the ground with a long piece of twine tied to it. Use the twine as a guide to paint a circle around the stake; this circle will be the circumference of your fire pit. You can make the pit as large or small as you want! Don鈥檛 forget, you will want to check with your HOA or study your local city code to make sure the project is approvable. You don鈥檛 want to start digging to find out you鈥檝e cut an electrical line!

Step Two: Shovel and Tamp

After removing the stake from the ground, shovel the area inside the painted circle. Once you have a clear sight of the dirt beneath, use your tamp to stomp down the dirt. Periodically check to see if the ground is even with a level. Tamp the ground until it is level throughout the circle.

Step Three: Add Base

Once the ground is leveled out, select what kind of base you want to use. Gravel would be the simplest to lay out; all you would need to do is dump it out of the bag and even it out. However, firebrick is more heat resistant and may last longer. One downside to firebrick is it may need to be cut to fit the dimensions of your fire pit. But, if you do use firebrick as a base, consider pouring a bag of sand over top and sweeping it to fill in any cracks or gaps. If you decide to use gravel, make sure there are a couple inches of the base to protect the ground below. Regardless of what base you use, make sure it is spread evenly within the circle in the ground.

Step Four: Build the Wall of the Pit

Now that you have a base for your fire pit, begin to lay your bricks in layers with each layer staggering on top of the one below it. You want the walls to be at least a foot tall, if not more. If the bricks are heavy enough, you will have a sturdy foundation for the fire pit. For extra stability, use a fire-resistant mortar between the bricks. For added safety, include a metal ring on the inside once the mortar is set. If you add a metal ring fill the inside with a layer of lava rock.

Step Five: Enjoy

Once the walls are up and the adhesive is dried, toss in some wood and cozy up to the fire. Bring out some chairs, jam to some music and roast some marshmallows with the family for a great autumn evening!

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When you and your family first moved into your new home, everything seemed so spacious. Your kids ran through the halls and played in the living spaces without any hitch. You were able to throw parties and have enough space for all your guests.

As the years went by, however, your kids have grown, and suddenly, everything feels cramped. When you and someone else in your household pass each other in the kitchen, one has to slide sideways or back up just so someone can walk through. One of your kids now wants a room of his or her own. The queue to the house鈥檚 sole bathroom is becoming more unbearable with each passing day

When faced with the above situation, you will then be left with the decision to buy a new home or build a home addition. However, before you start breaking down walls, there are several things that you need to consider.

Your budget

It goes without saying that a home addition is going to cost you some money. Of course, the total cost would vary depending on the work you want done. You can expect to spend somewhere between $20,000 to $65,000 for a typical home addition according to . If you want to add a large common room to your house, prepare to spend even more. Always check your finances and make sure you can afford the home addition before initiating one.

Your available space

You can dream up any home addition you want, but you will always be limited by your available space. So when planning your home addition, make sure you have enough room for your project. You can build your home out, or you can build on top of your home. 聽You also have to research existing HOA rules and the zoning requirements in your area so you鈥檒l know which type of addition you can do, or if you鈥檙e even allowed to do the construction you have in mind. Study your options and make sure you have the budget to implement your choice effectively.

Prepare contingencies

When there is construction going on in a house you and your family are living in, everyone is going to be bothered by the noise, the workers coming in and out of the house, and all the dust and debris the work kicks up. If the work is being done in a remote part of the house, then it would be more tolerable. However, if the construction work is concentrated in a part of the house that everybody uses on a daily basis, perhaps you should think about temporary housing for everyone until the home addition is done.

Work with professionals

A home addition involves significant building work. Good for you if you know a thing or two about construction, but if you want everything to be done in the most professional manner possible, then the best thing you can do is to get the services of a competent and reputable contractor. Only a licensed contractor has the expertise, skills, and equipment to turn your plans into reality exactly the way you want it.

This post is intended for informational purposes only and should not be taken as professional advice. The point of view and opinions expressed in this post are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the position of 皇冠体育app International. This article was written by Victoria Grace. Victoria Grace works as a content specialist for. Victoria has written scores of articles about the construction industry. She loves doing other types of writing though, having written several fan fiction short stories that she has submitted to various publications and websites.

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Twelve days before Thanksgiving, Mark Meaney and his wife, Sue, decided to put their 109-year-old house on the market. They looked at comps of similar-sized homes near their St. Paul neighborhood, agreed on a price with their agent and waited anxiously for their first offer to roll in.

Mark and Sue knew their timing wasn鈥檛 ideal. The holidays loomed, and the market was slowing; worse, St. Paul was entering its notorious subzero season.

The couple felt torn. After one year of searching for a new home, they had found the perfect place a few miles from where they lived. It was spacious enough to raise their three kids and had a first-floor bedroom and bathroom to accommodate Sue鈥檚 aging parents who could no longer live on their own.

As first-time sellers, Mark and Sue had lived in the house for 20 years; the couple took a leap of faith. They bought the new home, moved in Sue鈥檚 parents and dropped nearly $20,000 to spruce up their old house to help it sell quickly.

Several weeks later their vacant home remains for sale, its exterior weathering the forces of yet another Minnesota winter.

Selling a home: Truth in data

Skim any number of news articles on the U.S. housing market and chances are you鈥檒l run across the phrases 鈥渓ow inventory,鈥� 鈥渟ellers鈥� market鈥� and 鈥渟trong demand.鈥�

This rings especially true in larger metropolitan areas where stories of bidding wars abound, leaving the impression that sellers in these markets simply list their homes, sit back and thumb through stacks of 鈥淒ear Seller鈥� letters from desperate buyers submitting offers above the asking price.

For much of the U.S., however, the data reveals a starker reality.

According to new findings from Zillow Group 鈥� which compiled a deep dive on the seller experience using data from the 鈥� selling a home in the U.S. is not only fraught with anxiety, but often culminates in unmet expectations.

In fact, close to one third of sellers said they felt unsatisfied with the selling process. Of first-time sellers, nearly 30 percent were unprepared for how long it took to sell their homes and said they wished they would have started the process sooner, according to the analysis.

Furthermore, 76 percent of sellers across the U.S. ended up making at least one concession, with lowering the price the most-cited compromise. And 36 percent said they either struggled to sell their homes within their desired price range or time frame.

鈥淒espite low inventory in many parts of the country, sellers still encounter massive pain points when trying to sell their homes,鈥� said Jeremy Wacksman, chief marketing officer at Zillow Group. 鈥淭his data shows there is a huge opportunity to create a better end-to-end experience for sellers and help them turn over their homes faster.鈥�

More information, more stress

Much of the stress sellers feel stems from that nail-biting wait to get the right offer. Fueling this collective anxiety is, of course, more access to information.

While the internet has greatly democratized the buying and selling process, it has also created a state of seller vigilance. Sellers are more involved than ever in the sale of their homes 鈥� and more stressed out.

Take Mark, for instance. He鈥檚 constantly monitoring how many views his house gets on Zillow and how it ranks compared to other homes coming on the market.

He regularly gets text alerts when anyone wants a tour. He also reads 鈥渨ith too much interest,鈥� he says, the feedback that buyers leave on what they liked and didn鈥檛 like about the house.

Despite working with an agent, Mark is immersed 鈥� and stressed.

While Zillow鈥檚 findings show that 82 percent of sellers valued having an agent guide them through the process, America has entered a new era of how deeply involved homeowners are in selling their most expensive investment, Wacksman said.

鈥淪ellers today are all-in, monitoring every piece of data about their home. They are no longer content to sit back and wait,鈥� he said. 鈥淚n many cases, they cannot afford to.鈥�

In fact, timing is a big driver of anxiety, according to the data. More than one third of sellers had difficulty timing the sale of their home with buying a new home.

Even in a hot market, selling comes with risks. How long will it take? Is our house priced right? Are we paying too much for a new home?

And the most pressing worry: What if something goes wrong?

Hot market? Still stressful

Fall, 2017. Mention that period to Diana Leath and you will likely hear her exhale, then laugh. Diana remembers fall 2017 as a happy time. She also remembers it as a crazy, stressful time. Which makes sense when she explains.

In October, Diana gave birth to a baby girl, Noelle. She also had a two-year-old daughter to care for. Her husband, Adam, happened to be in the throes of building a new hotel for his family business. And that same month, after spending 200 days searching for a bigger home in Raleigh for their growing family, the couple finally stumbled upon The One.

Four bedrooms. Three baths. A yard. With a mixture of hope and anxiety, they submitted an offer. Soon after, their agent called. They had beat out the competition.

They had won The One.

Which was great. But it meant packing up. And selling their house. And doing all the things sellers do to ensure their house will sell quickly. They cleaned and painted and power washed and landscaped. They stewed over minor details 鈥� should they decorate the house for Christmas? Or would a big tree make the house look small? (They nixed the tree in favor of a wreath.)

They went back and forth on a list price with their agent, listened to her advice on comps, and put it on the market December 7. Then the family of four moved into a hotel and waited for their agent to call.

They didn鈥檛 wait long. Their 1,500 square foot ranch in Raleigh received two offers above the asking price one day after being on the market.

鈥楽weating it鈥� in a hot market

Herein lies the rub of living in a hot market. If you want to stay in that market, be prepared to downsize 鈥� or shell out a lot more cash.

In Diana鈥檚 case, she and her husband are paying 67 percent more than what they sold their house for in order to buy their new house. As a couple in their 30s still working toward their peak earning years, that increase hit the outer limits of how far they could stretch.

鈥淭rust me, we are sweating it right now,鈥� Diana says. But she remains hopeful that, once the new hotel opens and she goes back to work, the financial strain will ease.

Looking back, she says, she was grateful for her agent who handled various complications that arose and helped beautify their home before it went on the market.

But she has no intention of going through the turmoil of the selling and moving process anytime soon, she says.

鈥淲e鈥檙e probably going to be here forever.鈥�

This post is intended for informational purposes only and should not be taken as professional advice. The point of view and opinions expressed in this post are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the position of 皇冠体育app International. This article was written by Sonia Krishnan and originally published on the Premier Agent Resource Center on February 16, 2018.听.听

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