In response to the spread of the novel coronavirus, a significant number of people have been asked to work remotely resulting in a surge of people working from home for the first time. Many people work remotely every day and quite frankly it can definitely be a challenge. Here are a few tips to make it easier:

Create a dedicated work space and keep it organized

One of the most repeated pieces of advice in remote culture is to create a mini-office where you can focus on work, It doesn’t have to be large: kitchen counters, hallway desks, or the dining room table. But a dedicated work space helps create familiarity and discipline in your day. An once you create a spot for work, don’t let the mess of everyday life take over. Try to clear your desk of everything except a notepad and pen at the end of your work day.

Be flexible and take care of yourself

Even if you carve out a dedicated work space, give yourself permission to be flexible. You may get more work done from the comfort of a king size bed whenever you — or your children are — under the weather. But working from your bed should only happen during special circumstances; keep the goal to work outside your bedroom to prevent loss of sleep at night.

Sometimes you might just need to move around. You can move from spot to spot, walk around your house or apartment, or stand at the kitchen island for a while. Movement is something that comes up time and time again — maybe a 10 minute walk outside or a play date with a pet will do the trick.

Mind your Body

Normal offices are full of desks and chairs that often provide more structure and support than our home furniture. When we work from home, it’s important to pay attention to potential pain triggers. For example, sit in a chair with a back. Sitting on the sofa for a year may send your back into a tailspin. Other recommendations include using a laptop stand and separate keyboard and mouse to encourage better posture and even specific types of chairs that help you sit straight, i.e., balance ball chair.

Enbrace hot beverages

One of the perks of working from home is that you can indulge your favorite coffees and teas. Take the time to enjoy your morning experience and maybe think outside the box by trying different flavors or even an iced coffee.

Excerpts taken from: How to Work from Home, according to Curbed Editors. We’re experts at remote work. Here are our best tips. By Megan Barber@megcbarber  

Filed under: Uncategorized by Olga Gilmore

Americans are definitely moving and for a variety of different reasons. The current pandemic has re-shaped our lifestyles and our needs. Spending extra time where we currently live is enabling many families to re-evaluate what home ownership means and what they find most important in a home.

Here are some of the top reasons people are considering where they live and making moves this yearWORKING FROM HOME

Remote work is becoming the new norm in 2020, and its continuing on longer than most initially expected. Many in the workforce today are discovering they don’t need to live close to the office anymore, and they can get more for their money if they move a little further outside the city limits. If you’ve tried to convert your guest room or your dining room into a home office with not much success, it might be time to find a larger home. Truth is, your current house may not be designed for this kind of space, making remote work and continued productivity very challenging.

VIRTUAL SCHOOLING

With school starting, many districts are beginning the new academic year online. Education Week is tracking the reopening plans of schools across the country, and as of August 21st, 21 of the 25 largest school districts are choosing remote learning as their back-to-school instructional model.

With a need for a dedicated learning space, it may be time to find a larger home to provide your children with the same kind of quiet room to focus on their schoolwork, just like you likely need for your office work.

A HOME GYM

Staying healthy and active is a top priority for many Americans. With various levels of concern around the safety of returning to health clubs across the country, dreams of space for a home gym are growing stronger. Having room to maintain a healthy lifestyle at home – mentally and physically- may prompt you to consider a new place to live that includes space for at-home workouts.

OUTDOOR SPACE

Especially for those living in an apartment or a small townhouse, this is new priority for many as well. There are benefits to turning party of your backyard into a functional room – an outdoor space for play as well as entertaining or cooking. You may, however, not have the extra square footage today to have these designated areas – indoor or out.

MOVING MAY BE YOUR BEST OPTION

If you’re clamoring for extra space to accommodate your family’s changing needs, making a move may be your best bet, especially while you can take advantage of today’s low mortgage rates. Low rates are making homes more affordable than they have been in years. It’s great time to get more home for your money, just when you need the extra space.

Are your families’ needs changing? Have you been trying to decide if now is the time to buy a new home? If so, give us a call. We can help you find the “just right” house that meets all your needs.

Filed under: Uncategorized by Olga Gilmore

In today’s housing market, it can be a challenge for buyers to find homes to purchase, as the number of houses for sale is far below the current demand. Now, however, we’re seeing sellers slowly starting to come back into the market, a bright spark for potential buyers.Even with the number of homes coming into the market, the available inventory is well below where it needs to be to satisfy buyer interest. The National Association of Realtor reports: “Total housing inventory at the end of June totaled 1.57 million units, up 1.3% from May, but still down 18.2% from one year ago…” Houses today are selling faster than they’re coming to the market.

Why is this good for sellers? It’s a great time to enter the housing market when the competition in your area is low, meaning there are fewer sellers than interested buyers. You don’t want to wait for all of the other homeowners to list their homes before you do, providing more options for buyers to choose from. With sellers starting to get back into the market after five months of waiting, if you want to sell your house for the best possible price, now is a great time to do so.

Why is this good for buyers? It can be challenging to find a home in today’s low-inventory environment. If more sellers are starting to put their houses up for sale, there will be more homes for you to choose from, providing a better opportunity to find the home of your dreams while taking advantage of the affordability that comes with historically low mortgage rates.

Bottom Line. While we still have a long way to go to catch up with current demand, inventory is slowly starting to return to the market. If you’re thinking of moving this year, give us a call to better understand what’s happening in the local Austin area. You’ll want to be ready to make your move when the home of your dreams comes up for sale.

Filed under: Uncategorized by Olga Gilmore

So far, it’s been quite a ride this year, and our nation has truly seen its fair share of hurdles. From COVID-19 to record unemployment and then the resulting recession, just to name a few, the second quarter of 2020 has had more than a few challenges. Amidst the many roadblocks, however, the U.S. homeownership rate rose again, signaling great strength in the recovery of the housing market and an indication that even in a time of crisis, Americans still feel confident about buying a home.

Yesterday, the U.S. Census Bureau announced:

“The homeownership rate of 67.9 percent was 3.8 percentage points higher than the rate in the second quarter 2019 (64.1 percent) and 2.6 percentage points higher than the rate in the first quarter 2020 (65.3 percent).”

The increase is also represented by race and ethnicity of the householder:There are many reasons why the homeownership rate in this country is rising, and one of the key factors is historically-low mortgage rates. Rates hovering at all-time lows are helping to drive affordability and enabling more potential homeowners to enter the market today. According to Ralph McLaughlin, Chief Economist for Haus:

“Mortgage rates are the icing on the cake for households that were thinking about buying…They found an unexpected opportunity during the worst economic downturn America has seen since the Great Depression.”

In addition, many potential homebuyers have been using their time this year to search for homes that offer more space than their current rental apartments. Many of these homebuyers are younger and, as noted by Odeta Kushi, Deputy Chief Economist at First American, are the buyers driving the homeownership rate in an upward direction:

“Big jump in the homeownership rate today, mostly driven by younger households. We saw a spike in the number of owners, and a decline in the number of renters. This is the highest rate of homeownership since 2008.”

This growth is outstanding news for the housing market and for those who have recently found their new homes. If homeownership is on your shortlist this year, maybe now is a great time to meet with a real estate professional to evaluate your current situation. Perhaps historically low mortgage rates can help you to become a homeowner too.

Bottom Line

If you’re thinking of buying a home this year, contact a local real estate professional today to take your dream one step closer to reality.

Filed under: Uncategorized by Olga Gilmore