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Designing Your Kitchen
Kitchen Design
The kitchen is one area of the home that sees the most wear and tear. All the water, heat, and food spills add up quickly so it’s important to focus on quality and lasting appeal when you’re choosing materials for a kitchen remodel. Here are a few things you should avoid:
Countertops
Cheap Laminate Countertops: The bottom rung of laminate is extremely susceptible to wear and tear. It can melt if you forget to place a hot pad under a pan that’s fresh out of the oven and the edges can chip off from repeated exposure to moisture and heat.
Paint
Flat Paint: A flat or matte finish is great in rooms with lower traffic, but it’s a bad idea in the kitchen where the walls are regularly exposed to splatters and spills. You need paint that can withstand an occasional heavy scrubbing, so opt for gloss or semi-gloss finishes.
Backsplash
Trendy Backsplash: If you watch any home remodeling show, you’ll certainly see kitchens with expensive, elaborate backsplash designs and materials. Those trends can be pricey to pursue and can look dated in a hurry. Subway tile is a cheaper, classic option that you’ll never regret, plus you’ll have more room in your budget to purchase quality materials to be used elsewhere.
Flooring
Cheap Flooring: Just like the countertops, your kitchen floor needs to be strong enough to take some abuse. Cheap flooring easily scuffs and peels (especially from moisture). Quality flooring is worth the investment.
From Cap and Gown to Community Service
From Cap and Gown to Community Service
Posted in Community, Perspectives, and Windermere by Jill Jacobi Wood, OB Jacobi & Geoff Wood
Like many of you, our family has a high school student graduating soon who is both eager and excited to embark upon life’s next phase. It wasn’t all that long ago that for graduates, like ours, community service was something they did to pad their college applications, but now this important exercise is a requirement at most high schools. That’s because a common belief is that community service links together the academic, social, and emotional elements of learning while giving kids the chance for personal growth through helping others. And hopefully those same kids will grow into adults who will continue to be engaged, positive citizens in their community.
This is a philosophy that we believe in wholeheartedly at Windermere. That’s why every year our offices close their doors for one day to help make a positive difference in their communities. It all started in 1984 with a handful of agents who came together to help out a local elementary school that needed some TLC. Thirty-three years and more than one million hours of community service later, we’ve continued this tradition through neighborhood-enhancing projects in the areas where our Windermere teams live, work, and play.
We agree that community service shouldn’t end with a cap and gown. Over the years, our team has proven this time and time again by embodying the notion that service to others is not something you do, it is who you are.
On Friday June 9, Windermere offices throughout the Western U.S. will close their doors for our company-wide Community Service Day. You can follow their projects on our Facebook page: www.Facebook.com/WindermereRealEstate.
The Windermere Foundation By The Numbers
For the past 28 years, the Windermere Foundation has been helping those in need in our communities through donations to local organizations that provide services to low-income and homeless families. In 2016, the Windermere Foundation raised over $2.2 million in donations, bringing the total to over $33 million raised since it started in 1989.
Last year, 35 percent of the donations to the Windermere Foundation came from agent commissions. That’s because every time you use a Windermere agent to buy or sell a home, they make a donation to the Windermere Foundation. The other 65 percent came from additional donations made by Windermere agents, employees and the community. Because of these donations, the Windermere Foundation was able to fulfill 664 grants and help 410 organizations that provide help to those in need.
And every dollar donated is put to good use! As you can see from the infographic below, even small donations make a big impact and help us fund things like food bank meals, school supplies for underprivileged students, and resources for children in crisis.
Gig Harbor and Fox Island Median Sales Price
5 Year Trend for Gig Harbor and Fox Island Median Sales Price. Click the link below to see more.
http://nwmls.stats.showingtime.com/infoserv/s-v1/Qrk1-sf8
Call us for more information!
Want some Seahawks football?
Seahawks Football and Windermere Real Estate
We’re proud to be the Official Real Estate Company of the Seattle Seahawks, and to promote this Saturday’s game, which we hope will end with a Seahawks win!
We are excited to announce that Windermere’s partnership with the Seattle Seahawks will be highlighted in a TV promotion for Saturday’s divisional playoff game between the Seattle Seahawks and the Atlanta Falcons. Starting Friday, watch for the promo on Q13 during their morning and evening news programs, and again leading up to the game.
#tacklehomelessness
The Seattle Seahawks weren’t the only ones to win yesterday! Because the Seahawks had 29 tackles, Windermere Real Estate is donating an additional $2,900 to YouthCare as part of our campaign to #tacklehomlessness. As the Official Real Estate Company of the Seattle Seahawks, we’re proud to partner with the home team to help make a difference in our community! Total raised to date is $15,400. Keep on tackling Seahawks!
Are you ready for some Monday Night Football?
Are you ready for some Monday Night Football? Cheer extra loud for our defense because each tackle they make will result in us donating $100 to YouthCare to help #tacklehomelessness. As the Official Real Estate Company of the Seattle Seahawks, we’re proud we can work together to make a difference in our community. #tacklehomelessness #SEAvsBUF #goHawks #MNF
What’s It Worth?
Maybe you’re thinking of selling, maybe you’re thinking of refinancing, or maybe you’re just curious about the market. But the question is, “What is that domicile of your’s worth?”
Such a simple question should be returned with a simple answer, right? Well unfortunately, determining the value of your home–or any home for that matter–can be a tricky process. You can go online and nowadays there are endless websites that will promise you a fast answer with fancy charts and graphs. As tempting as it may be to trust this information, be wary of letting a computer program tell you what your largest investment is worth.
The trouble with these websites is that they have little to no local market information. They are not aware that a new park is being built, or that a four-lane highway is being re-routed, or that you’ve lovingly cared for and maintained your home.
The bottom line is this: If you’re serious about getting an informative valuation for your home you should contact a local real estate professional. These professionals work with the actual people who will ultimately determine the value of your home–the home buyer themselves. This is their profession and they will be happy to sit with you and explain the current market conditions that affect your home value.
Windermere and the Seahawks partner to #TackleHomelessness
What do Windermere Real Estate and the Seattle Seahawks have in common? We both got our start in Seattle in the 1970s. And we’re both organizations who believe in giving back to our community. So when presented with the opportunity to become the Official Real Estate Company of the Seattle Seahawks, we didn’t have to think twice.
At the center of this partnership with the Seahawks is a new #tacklehomelessnesscampaign in which the Windermere Foundation will donate $100 for every Seahawks home-game tackle during the 2016 season. And on the receiving end of these donations is YouthCare, a Seattle-based non-profit organization that has been providing services and support to homeless youth for more than 40 years.
In addition to raising money, the #tacklehomelessness campaign will also bring awareness to the very issue of homeless youth struggling in our community. We know the Seahawks are equally committed to this important cause.
Our partnership with the Seahawks and YouthCare fits perfectly with the mission of the Windermere Foundation which is to support low-income and homeless families in the communities where we have offices. Through the #tacklehomelessnesscampaign, we hope to be able to do even more.
You can follow our progress throughout the Seahawks season on our Facebook page at Facebook.com/WindermereRealEstate.
Making Dreams Come True!
Sounds cliche right?! It is not. Becoming a real estate professional can lead to a lifetime of amazing experiences where you participate in helping people make the biggest "moves" in their lives and most likely their largest investments.
If you have ever bought or sold a home I'm guessing you can recall how emotional that experience was. Try to imagine your real estate professional during that experience. They were there for you to help navigate through the negotiations, the inspections, the appraisal the closing and more!
My personal experiences in real estate have led to life-long friends who have come to rely on me as a trusted advisor who has helped many of them make their dreams come true.
If you have been wondering what it would be like to help people make their dreams come true in real estate your timing is perfect. Current market conditions are ideal for starting a career in real estate.
We are actively hiring and training new and experienced agents at Windermere Gig Harbor.
Contact me to learn more about becoming a real estate professional with Windermere Real Estate. For more information click Getting Started Below.
I would love to meet you in person – so please feel free to contact me for a confidential meeting. You can also find me on Twitter or LinkedIn.
