Archive for December, 2009
Bungalow House Styles
Central Austin is filled with pre-war homes commonly referred to as bungalows, and are sought after by many for their charm, coziness and attention to detail.
The word “bungalow” comes from the Indian word “bangla”, which used to refer to homes built in a Bengal style. “Bangla” were cottages with low roofs and large porches built around them. The British took the idea from the Indians, and began building their summer homes in a similar fashion, and the bungalow, as we know it, was born- all rooms on one floor, built around a central parlor. Once the first American bungalow was built in Cape Cod in 1879, the home style took off across the country.
During the early 1900s, there was a massive migration to the west, with many people settling in California. The architecture firm of Greene and Greene created the one and a half story bungalow, which became wildly popular, and soon could be purchased through mail order catalogs, such as Sears & Roebuck, and Montgomery Ward. The bungalows that now cover California are referred to as “California Bungalows”, though the style is popular across the country, including here in Austin.
Though there are different styles of the bungalow, such as the Arts and Crafts, Prairie Style, and Queen Anne, they all share similar qualities and features. Bungalows were built to battle the elaborate Victorian movement, and to return to warmer, family oriented housing where the craft of the homebuilder was showcased. Since bungalows were created for warm summer housing, they reduce heat with large, overhanging eaves, many windows, and rooms interconnected, without hallways, to create good airflow through the house. If the home has a second level, it’s much smaller in surface area than the first floor. Most bungalows also have large porches and stone chimneys leading to grand fireplaces inside.
Many Arts and Crafts bungalows can be found around Austin, with a vast number in the Hyde Park area. The Arts and Crafts movement was launched in the 1880s by a group of English designers, and it celebrated the use of handicrafts, simple forms, and natural materials. Arts and Crafts homes, or Craftsman homes, have low-pitched roofs, wide eaves with triangular brackets, large porches with thick round or square columns. Inside, most Craftsman bungalows have many windows, exposed beam ceilings, and built-in cabinetry and seating.
Other bungalows, such as the 1922 Norwood House on Lady Bird Lake (currently under disrepair) are built in the Prairie style. Prairie Style bungalows got their start in America in the early 1900s, and were developed by a group of architects in Chicago that became known as the Prairie School. Frank Lloyd Wright was the master of the Prairie Style home, characterized by broad, flat chimneys, the center of the home standing taller than the adjacent wings, and often with a Japanese flair.
The Queen Anne bungalow, also found within Hyde Park and elsewhere, is highly decorative and has an asymmetrical layout. These are often found with wraparound porches, and art glass windows, and sometimes one or two dormers popping out of a medium-pitched roof.
Though the architecture varies, the feeling of the bungalow remains the same- family friendly, and packed with hand-crafted style, and Austin is chocked full of them.
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Tags: First Time Home Buyers Loans
From mortgages, interest rates and rising foreclosure numbers, a first time home buyer has a lot more to think about than simply choosing a house he or she loves. Two of the biggest challenges where to buy and how to get help for your mortgage are covered in this article. Getting tips and strategies to jump over these initial hurdles can help to ensure that the first-time home buyer not only gets what he or she wants, but also ensures that they can hold onto it for years to come.
The first hurdle to tackle will be the mortgage. Before looking for a new home, the savvy first time home buyer knows to get preapproved for a mortgage and fully assess their financial situation. After all, you can fall in love with the most wonderful house on the block, but if you cant afford it, you will either be financially vulnerable or facing a foreclosure in the near future a fate no first-time home buyer wants to consider.
For the first time in quite a few years, government assistance is becoming popular with first time home buyers. Many first time home buyers snubbed or ignored government assistance during the real estate boom, preferring to look at a subprime mortgage for their financial needs. A and piggyback mortgages were also considered from private mortgage lenders who didnt require a great deal of money for a down payment, nor did these lenders pay much attention to a credit score.
Just as the saying goes, however, if the deal seems to be too good to be true, it probably is. In the case of these subprime mortgage, when the real estate boom deflated, first-time home buyers who had been so appreciative of the subprime rates and loose regulations were now facing serious financial troubles. All the easy money dried up and in many cases, the homes went along with it.
Nowadays, first-time home buyers with little cash for a down payment or a short or poor credit history have nowhere to turn for mortgage assistance. The traditional routes of home lending have been reestablished to put the market back on solid ground. What are first-time home buyers to do for financial assistance? Look towards government agencies like the FHA or Federal Housing Administration. The FHA is known to help find loans for individuals who have average credit and a down payment that is less than the required 20 percent of the purchase price.
Meanwhile, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development can help first-time buyers with closing costs and with down payment assistance. In addition, the FHAs assisted mortgages are set to potentially become even more affordable for first time home buyers in the future as a response to the chaotic real estate boom.
Combine this help with mortgage next to the latest recommendations from realtors about which houses to avoid and why. Studies have shown that three main factors can make selling your home difficult in the future and for first-time home buyers who will most likely upgrade in the future, these are important tips.
Avoiding environmental elements like landfills, noting the rate of foreclosures in the neighborhood and looking into the crime rate within the location of the new house can all have significant impact on the future of a first-time home buyers investment.
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Styling Your Home for Sale and Presentation
Hi there! Lorraine here from HOUSEDRESSINGS Ltd AUCKLAND.
www.housedressings.co.nz
Here are some vital tips for presenting your home for sale.
1. De-clutter your living spaces. Start first on the kitchen area. Clear all clutter on bench tops,window sills and clean all surfaces. All papers,bills,debris, file neatly away.
MOTTO: When in doubt – chuck it out! Or at least store it away!
2. Re-arrange living room for a good spacial flow & layout. Any pictures on walls should be placed at eye level and curb all the personal pics and effects scattered throughout.
Minimalism is best as most potential buyers can’t imagine themselves living in that space with your accumulated clutter.
3. Add some bright funky cushions to your existing sofas to modernize and enhance the setting and place a nice rug under the coffee table (maybe shagpile or something contemporary ) to complete and define the living area.
Lighting is paramount for ambiance, so include a modern standard lamp or side table and lamp.
Accessories and modern art play a huge role in creating the ‘wow’ factor and clever use of colour is most important.
These are the important factors which brings it all together.
4. Beds should be dressed up with modern duvets/plump pillows/valances/ cushions/bedside cabinets and stylish lamps. These don’t have to be expensive-go for style.
5.Bathroom: Add soap pumps/quality towels and choose colours to co-ordinate the existing.theme.
6. Don’t forget the entrance area. This is the first introduction to your home. Add a hall table with a floral arrangement or maybe a candleabra with canvas artwork above. (Abstracts work well in most settings.)
When having an open home – make sure you have some music playing in the background. Light jazz works well or easy listening classics. This helps curb the awkward silences and helps people to linger longer to create a ‘connection’ with prospective buyers.
If you feel you are out of your comfort zone in acheiving this, then call a Home Staging Professional.
HOUSEDRESSINGS Ltd are experienced in putting it all together, taking into account the style of home, existing colour scheme, best spacial layout. and your budget .
Staging can be : Partial – just a living area and a bedroom to full staging of your home, complete with outdoor furniture.
We can also pack and store your existing furniture while your home is on sale.
If you have any questions feel free to ask.
Visit our website and leave a message on our contact page.
www.housdressings.co.nz
Email: lorraine@housedressings.co.nz
Kindest regards,
Lorraine Wilson (director)
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Top 10 Home Appliances
Home appliances are considered to be very important with a lot of people. Nowadays nobody has the time to do hand washing of bed sheets and jeans, and toasting a bread in an open fire is certainly not a good idea!
Appliances are very handy tools inside our homes, but what do we need the most? In stores today, there are lots of useful appliances that we need more but which one do we really need the most?
In this short article, we list the ten most needed home appliances and explains how these appliances helps each other in the lists.
Number One – the Stove
You really need a fireplace to cook your food. Without a stove, you might as well eat out everyday. For those of you who eat out frequently, imagine how much money you have spent eating out instead buying a stove using that money. A stove can basically bake or cook fish, beef and chicken, bake chicken and boil water. Most food you want to cook and complete the recipe needs a stove.
Number Two – the Refrigerator
If you still have not buy a fridge for yourself, you have to move somewhere cold and freezing especially during summer for the food to keep cold and to preseve it. But if you want to preserve food and you don’t want to buy your own fridge, a stupid idea is to cut giant ice blocks and put it in your box..
Number Three – the Washer
Washing machine is a very helpful appliance. Within thirty minutes, all of your dirty laundry could be cleaned. About a hundred years ago, doing laundry takes so much time even for just a small group of family.
Number Four – the Dryer
It’s like having a washing machine which helps you to do your laundry in about thirty minutes. The dryer dries clothes just like washer in about thirty minutes. and useful especially in the winter when there’s no sunlight!
Number Five – the Dishwasher
We all know that dishwashing is one of the most hated chores in home. Having one dishwasher simply saves much time and power. This appliance doesn’t just wash dishes, it also disinfects them.
Number Six – Toaster
People are used in having a breakfast with a toast bread along. Toasters are effective and efficient in doing the job.
Number Seven – Coffee Maker
Maybe you are not into coffee but you can’t face the fact that coffee is very addictive and someone in your home could be one. And coffee is often the preferred beverage for your guests.
Number Eight – Blender
Since everyone likes healthy food, a blender can help you make it. There is nothing like whipping a homemade soup in just a minute and grinding frozen fruit for just seconds.
Number Nine – Food Processor
These helpful appliances has a variety of sizes. Within minutes you could chop up your food for dinner with a food processor and not spending an hour for chopping. And if you would leave your family for a long period of time, you could already chop all the veggies needed and tell someone in the house the remaining instructions that could be easily followed.
Number Ten – Microwave:
A microwave can help you defrost or heat up something within an amount of time. And also, people loves popcorn, microwave is a helpful appliance to have.
Timonty has his own personal site at http://www.washingmachineadvisor.com – The site is created specially for washing machine buyers. Find more washing machine reviews and various washing machine brands update there.
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Gold Coast Hotels: Choose the Best Hotels to Stay in
Gold Coast Hotels: Choose the Best Hotels to Stay In
One of the best ways to enrich your experience in Gold Coast is finding the right accommodation. If you want to narrow down your choices, you may want to pay attention to any of the following tips:
Choosing according to budget. You can find a lot of bargain hotels you can stay in when you are planning a vacation to the Gold Coast of Australia. You can have your favorite travel agent look for some of the best bargains in Gold Coast hotels for you, or you can do your own research and inquiries. There are a lot of hotel reviews online, and you can base your decisions from the recounts of actual hotel patrons who share their hotel experiences in Queensland. You may find reasonably priced hotels near the water or in the middle of the action of the city. Prices may range from $130 to $200 for some of the more affordable yet well-maintained hotels in the area. There are even hotels that cost no higher than $59 a night for those who do not see themselves really spending much time in these rooms and only need the Gold Coast accommodations for naps and breaks in between adventures in the area.
Choosing according to perks. If you are looking for Gold Coast accommodations that offer you all the best there is to be had when it comes to hotels, there are also a lot to be found in Queensland. You can find 5-star hotels are quite numerous here as well. There is the Sheraton, Marriott, and the Oceana here, to name a few. The rooms in these hotels give guests the many perks they want from a top-dollar Gold Coast accommodation. Most of the rooms in these hotels may go for a minimum of $250 to as high as $500, depending on the type of room one takes. Recommendations for these hotels are often given due to the high level of service and the high level of comfort one gets from such pricey rooms. If you are not on a tight budget, it would be a good idea to splurge and get yourself a good hotel room to rest in after your adventures on the beaches of the Gold Coast and in the city.
Consider other alternative Gold Coast accommodation choices. Not necessarily cheap accommodations but can’t be easily considered expensive ones either, the Gold Coast apartments or Gold Coast condos can be your choices of accommodation on your vacation here. There are a number of apartments you can rent in Queensland if you want more of a homelike atmosphere for your vacation. There are lot of buildings with units being rented out to transients on a daily, weekly, or monthly basis. You can choose apartments that are found near the water, which is ideal for beach bums and surfers, or near the city center, which is the best choice for those who love the nightlife and hustle and bustle of city living. These apartments may cost you somewhere between $60 and around $200 per night, depending on the number of rooms there are in these accommodations and the conditions they are in.
