Homeownership Benefits

If you are in the real estate market to buy, here is an interesting survey.

Many first-time buyers were surprised by the immediate benefits they received once they purchased their first home. (According to a recent survey from "The Residential Specialist" Magazine May-June 2011.)

Benefits:
67 percent said the market conditions provided them the opportunity to buy a home sooner than they expected
50 percent said they found a home in a more desirable location than they expected
61 percent got a home for a better price than expected
40 percent got more space than expected
43 percent locked into a lower interest rate than they expected

Outdoor Living Room

If you want to create a special outdoor living space, let your artistic self go wild. This is a wonderful use of materials, textures, and color. Imagine yourself lounging around here on a summer afternoon sipping a cool drink!

Get A Little Crazy!

Get your tin foil atennea on your head and drive to the 12th Annual UFO Festival May 13 and 14 in McMinnville. If you miss it this year, start in now on your costume (I mean space cosmo uniform) for next year. And keep your eye out for extra terrestrial house and garden ideas. Here's tuning you!
 http://www.ufofest.com/

A Day In A National Park

Take a day off from working on your house and yard and spend it in a national park with your family. You deserve to have some fun!

Celebrate Northwest National Park Family Day Saturday, May 14 with free admission and fun at Ft. Vancouver http://www.npca.org/take_action/upcoming_events/northwest-national-park-1.html

Porch Roofing - Clear Plastic

Do you want to add a porch roof but don't want to block the light entering your home? A clear plastic roof may be just what you need. You can get clear corrugated roofing at your local building supply store or try something a little different. The material in this photo is 1/2 inch thick honey comb plastic from Tap Plastic. I think it looks a little more upscale and diffuses the light nicely.

Here are two more examples using clear plastic sheets. Contact me if you want more specifics and where to get it.



Bathroom Storage Cabinet

This bathroom was in need of more storage. The wall to the right of the sink had space to add a recessed cabinet. There was no wiring to move. They just had to cut open the wall and built the cabinet. You can also purchase ready made cabinets from places like Rejuvenation. (Visit their website at Rejuvenation.com). In this case they made the box out of plywood, and then trimmed it out to match the moldings in the rest of the house. The door was purchased at a salvage company for $3.00. Some butterfly hinges and a latch were purchased at the hardware store. Then the whole cabinet was painted white. To finish it off they had some glass shelves cut to fit. Using period looking hardware and matching the moldings makes a nice addition to this 1914 bungalow. The attention to details is what adds value.

Organic Fence

This is a great fence! It is made of rough-cut log strips, alternating with bamboo. It has a Japanese garden feel to it and I love the bamboo arbor and plantings as well. Such a great look! I think it adds a lot of value to the property.