How To Retain Your Sanity While Working From Home

There are a lot of people who enjoy working from home; however, with the COVID-19 pandemic, many people who are not used to working from home are forced into this new arrangement. It can be hard for individuals o stay focused when they are stuck in the environment at home. Particularly if the kids are home from school, it is easy to get distracted. Fortunately, there are a few ways people can retain their sanity as they work from home. Get Into A Routine One of the first steps people need to follow is to find a routine. It can be tempting to sleep in every day, procrastinate while watching TV,…
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What’s Ahead For Mortgage Rates This Week – March 30th, 2020

Scheduled monthly readings were released for new home sales and consumer sentiment. Weekly readings on mortgage rates and new jobless claims were also released. New Home Sales Beat Expectations in February Sales of new homes dropped 4.40 percent in February after reaching a 13-year high in January. 765,000 new homes were sold on a seasonally-adjusted annual basis, which exceeded expectations of 750,000 sales in February. New home sales were 14.30 percent higher year-over-year. Analysts said that further declines monthly new home sales are expected as the coronavirus spreads. The national median price for a new home was $345,900 and there was a five-month inventory of new homes for sale in February;…
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When It Makes Sense To DIY

Many homeowners enjoy DIY, or Do-it-Yourself, home improvement projects. There's nothing quite like the pride of knowing you used your own hands to put together or improve something. With the explosion of social media sites such as YouTube, Pinterest,and TikTok, spending a weekend on DIY projects seems easier than ever before. After just a couple of minutes spent searching, you can find a step-by-step tutorial, before and after photos, or a time-lapse video of any project imaginable. Anyone can do this! Right? Not so fast. In some cases, it may not make sense to DIY. How do you decide whether it will be worth the elbow grease or if you should…
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Home Improvement Projects For The Quarantined

If you have paid attention to the news recently, you have probably heard about the coronavirus pandemic which also goes by the name COVID-19. Those who are exposed to the virus might be asked to place themselves in quarantine. Some states have even told their residents to shelter in place. While this infection has forced everyone to change the way they live their lives, there are still some home improvement projects you can tackle during quarantine to put your free time to use. Jump On Spring Cleaning One of the first home improvement projects people need to tackle is spring cleaning. Spring is right around the corner so it is time…
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Turn Your Yard Into An All-Seasons Living Space

Think of backyard space as "in-between" or transitional space that is a bit like being inside while being outside. Sunrooms, screened-in covered patios, outdoor kitchens, spas, fire pits and more, are all becoming very popular ways to make more use of the backyard. Making use of the outside area is not limited to only the times of the year that have nice, warm weather. Sitting around a fire pit, with a blazing fire in it, is a perfect way to spend a chilly winter evening under the stars. This is a bit like camping out, without having to leave the comfort of your home. Here are some tips about how to…
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Home Sales Are Spiking, Driven By Low Mortgage Rates

According to data from the National Association of Realtors, existing-home sales increased by 3.6% in December 2019. That pace is the strongest month-over-month in almost two years, since February 2018. The sales figures were also up 10.8% from what they were in December 2018. What's behind this uptick? The biggest factor driving the surge in home sales is historically low mortgage interest rates.  Plummeting Rates During the last week of February 2020, mortgage rates fell to their lowest in three years and were hovering - just barely - above all-time lows. The 30-year fixed-rate mortgage was sitting at 3.45%, almost exactly one percentage point below the same week in 2019. Its…
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