As the temperatures slowly begin to drop, there are a few easy things every homeowner can do to keep their home warm and cozy during the colder months of the year. Plus, these easy-to-implement tips will help you consume less energy and save money on your power bills.

Protect Against Drafts

A home that’s drafty is not only a home that’s uncomfortable, it’s a home that’s losing energy. Research conducted by the U.S. Department of Energy shows that stopping drafts around doors and windows can reduce energy costs for a home by as much as 30%. To make your home draft-free, grab some weather stripping and caulk and seal any open areas around window frames and doors. You can also add layered drapes to your windows to block out the cold. If you feel drafts creeping in under doors, try using a door sweep. Rubber weather stripping is also a great choice that helps block drafts around doors. Don’t forget to come up with a solution for the exit door to your garage or the hatch for your attic.

Seal Air Ducts

Any wire, pipe, or duct that goes into your wall, floor, or ceiling could be wasting energy. Plumbing vents are often guilty as well, because they typically run below the floor and through the roof. You can seal them yourself with weather stripping or caulking, or call Day & Night Air and let us take care of it for you.

Reverse Ceiling Fan Direction

Do you have ceiling fans in your home? If so, take a few minutes to flip the switches on the fans to make them run in reverse. In summer, you want to blow air downward to cool the room. Warm air rises, so in winter you want to recirculate that warmer air to the lower parts of the room and ceiling fans blowing in reverse will do just that. Keep your fans running on a low speed setting to help lift the chill from the room. Please note that this Scottsdale Real Estate Blog is for informational purposes and not intended to take the place of a licensed Scottsdale Real Estate Agent. The Szabo Group offers first class real estate services to clients in the Scottsdale Greater Phoenix Metropolitan Area in the buying and selling of Luxury homes in Arizona. Award winning Realtors and Re/MAX top producers and best real estate agent for Luxury Homes in Scottsdale, The Szabo group delivers experience, knowledge, dedication and proven results. Contact Joe Szabo at 480.688.2020, info@ScottsdaleRealEstateTeam.com or visit www.scottsdalerealestateteam.com to find out more about Scottsdale Homes for Sale and Estates for Sale in Scottsdale and to search the Scottsdale MLS for Scottsdale Home Listings.

    These outdoor fireplaces are full of inspiration to help you create a charming, relaxing getaway in your own backyard.  This natural stone outdoor fireplace and forest-like color scheme bring the outdoors into the porch and creates an inviting space for lounging on cool fall evenings. Building a freestanding outdoor fireplace creates an instant cozy gathering place for fall. Decorate the mantle with a row of tea lights for extra sparkle when the sun goes down.For year-round lounging, there’s an enclosed sitting area that boasts candle chandeliers and a fireplace. Filling the fireplace with candles instead of firewood gives this small seating area a very romantic feel. A wood-burning outdoor fireplace is the center of attention in this porch, and dozing, reading, and chatting are the orders of the day. An indoor-outdoor rug softens and defines the gathering space. The brick in a courtyard and outdoor fireplace can come from old buildings that were torn down. The biggest issue with antique brick is there are several different sizes and it tends to get mixed up. You can set the brick in sand, rather than concrete, to give a relaxed and aged look. Plus, the sand helped level odd-size bricks. Here are more beautiful outdoor fireplace areas to get your creative juices flowing!  Please note that this Scottsdale Real Estate Blog is for informational purposes and not intended to take the place of a licensed Scottsdale Real Estate Agent. The Szabo Group offers first class real estate services to clients in the Scottsdale Greater Phoen ix Metropolitan Area in the buying and selling of Luxury homes in Arizona. Award winning Realtors and Re/MAX top producers and best real estate agent for Luxury Homes in Scottsdale, The Szabo group delivers experience, knowledge, dedication and proven results. Contact Joe Szabo at 480.688.2020, info@ScottsdaleRealEstateTeam.com or visit www.scottsdalerealestateteam.com to find out more about Scottsdale Homes for Sale and Estates for Sale in Scottsdale and to search the Scottsdale MLS for Scottsdale Home Listings.  

Who doesn’t love a nice, warm fire in the fireplace during the cold weather months? There can be many advantages to a wood burning fireplace, including saving money on heating costs and supplementing your main source of heat. At the same time, maintenance and service of your fireplace is of utmost importance. Some homeowners may not be aware of the exposures associated with fireplaces and chimneys until it’s too late and becomes a very costly repair. To help you avoid the risk of a chimney fire, here are ten tips for wood-burning fireplace maintenance courtesy of DIY Network2:

1. Have your wood burning fireplace inspected and cleaned by a professional chimney sweep at least once a year and more often if creosote builds up on the chimney walls rapidly.  Depending on where you live, this can cost anywhere from $100 to $200.
2. Between professional inspections and cleanings, monitor your wood burning fireplace for signs of buildup or other problems.
3. Your chimney has a cap with open sides usually covered with mesh to keep rain, birds, squirrels, other animals, and debris from entering the chimney. The cap should be inspected regularly and replaced when necessary.
4. Check the interior of your wood burning fireplace’s chimney for creosote buildup.
5. Also watch for soot buildup in the chimney of your wood burning fireplace. Soot is softer than creosote, flammable, and should be cleaned out of the chimney regularly.
6. If possible, burn hardwoods like maple, oak, ash, and birch. The advantages of hardwoods are that they burn hot and long, have less pitch and sap, and tend to cause less creosote buildup. On the other hand, they generally are more expensive than softwoods.
7. Anytime there is smoke indoors from your wood burning fireplace, troubleshoot and immediately correct any problems that you find. Possible causes of smoke are a dirty chimney with creosote or soot buildup, other debris in the chimney, a damper that isn’t open or is only partly open, or wood that is not burning completely.
8. To ensure wood burning fireplace safety, consider installing a stainless steel liner that will withstand even the highest temperatures and will keep the fire and its embers contained.
9. To improve your wood burning fireplace’s efficiency, consider installing heat-proof glass doors to protect against heat loss and a fan or blower to direct the heat into the room. Doors are also a safety feature, since they can keep live embers from escaping the fireplace into the interior of the home. Glass doors should be cleaned regularly with a paper towel and glass fireplace door cleaner.
10. Clean your wood burning fireplace’s interior, including its floor, regularly. Sweep out or vacuum up cold ashes. Wear a dust mask and gloves when cleaning the fireplace.  Please note that this Scottsdale Real Estate Blog is for informational purposes and not intended to take the place of a licensed Scottsdale Real Estate Agent. The Szabo Group offers first class real estate services to clients in the Scottsdale Greater Phoenix Metropolitan Area in the buying and selling of Luxury homes in Arizona. Award winning Realtors and Re/MAX top producers and best real estate agent for Luxury Homes in Scottsdale, The Szabo group delivers experience, knowledge, dedication and proven results. Contact Joe Szabo at 480.688.2020, info@ScottsdaleRealEstateTeam.com or visit www.scottsdalerealestateteam.com to find out more about Scottsdale Homes for Sale and Estates for Sale in Scottsdale and to search the Scottsdale MLS for Scottsdale Home Listings.

There’s nothing like the crackle and pop of a nice warm fire on a cold evening. If you’re lucky enough to have a fireplace in your home, you know how wonderful they can be. You also know how much maintenance they can take to operate properly and stay clean. Most people feel the benefits outweigh the disadvantages. If you don’t already have a wood burning fireplace, you may be interested in learning where you can find fireplaces for sale or how to go about installing wood fireplace inserts. Either way, we’re here to talk about everything related to wood fireplaces so you can make the best decision possible. First, what it is? Essentially, a standard, wood-burning fireplace comprises a hearth (which is basically the floor in front of the fireplace), the firebox (where the wood burns), the damper (the lever that opens and closes the flue) and the smoke chamber and flue (where the smoke is drawn up and out). It’s important to only use seasoned wood in your fireplace, as it gives the most effective fire with the least amount of smoke and creosote buildup.

PROS OF WOOD FIREPLACES

From operation costs to ambiance, there are several advantages to using a wood burning fireplace. Let’s take a look at a few of them: Please note that this Scottsdale Real Estate Blog is for informational purposes and not intended to take the place of a licensed Scottsdale Real Estate Agent. The Szabo Group offers first class real estate services to clients in the Scottsdale Greater Phoenix Metropolitan Area in the buying and selling of Luxury homes in Arizona. Award winning Realtors and Re/MAX top producers and best real estate agent for Luxury Homes in Scottsdale, The Szabo group delivers experience, knowledge, dedication and proven results. Contact Joe Szabo at 480.688.2020, info@ScottsdaleRealEstateTeam.com or visit www.scottsdalerealestateteam.com to find out more about Scottsdale Homes for Sale and Estates for Sale in Scottsdale and to search the Scottsdale MLS for Scottsdale Home Listings.

What a Loudspeaker Needs to Create Sound

Wireless Home Theater Speaker Requirements

When Wireless Is Not Really Wireless

The Sonos Option For Wireless Surround Speakers

The DTS Play-Fi, Denon HEOS, and Yamaha MusicCast Wireless Surround Speaker Solutions

Wireless Subwoofers

The WiSA Factor

The Damson Option

The Bottom Line

Proper storage is the holy grail of the home library. If you’re an avid reader, you’ve likely spent a lot of time storing your books in less-than-ideal conditions. Now that you’ve committed to designing your very own library, it’s time to proudly put your books on display. The first step is picking the best location in your home for this project. Few are lucky enough to be able to dedicate an entire room to the task. Rather, it’s much more common to find creative ways to share space with a home office or formal living space. If need be, a smaller reading nook can also be carved out from previously unused space in a master bedroom or loft area. Once you can picture where your library will take shape, it’s time to get serious about storage. Floor-to-ceiling shelving units or built-ins are the traditional choices. However, these days, homeowners are getting more creative. Search out some design inspiration for alternatives that will work in your unique space.

Create the right seating arrangement

After storage, proper seating is the next most important part of a home library. There are very few hard-and-fast rules here, but whether your space will accommodate a single chair or you have square footage for a whole grouping, it should be comfortable. This is one of the few times we’ll advise you to forgo ultra-modern minimalism in favor of the larger, more plush pieces common in traditional design. Once you have your furniture in place, designing a proper layout is the next step. Of all the seating arrangements in your home, this one in particular should feel welcoming. Try arranging each piece at a slight angle to bring a casual and comforting air to the space. When there is more than one seating element involved, you’ll want to position them so they’re angled toward each other rather than turning away.

Layer your lighting

While proper lighting is a key element in every room in your home, it’s especially crucial in a library. No one likes the struggle of squinting to make out words. Providing a proper lighting scheme, as well as the right type of light, is essential to the room’s ability to function the way you want. Start by reviewing your existing lighting scheme. Ideally, it will feature at least one of each of the following:

• Ambient: Also known as general lighting, ambient light fills the majority of the room and allows you to move around safely. It usually comes from recessed lighting, track lighting or wall-mounted fixtures.
• Accent: Accent lighting is used to highlight a particular focal point, such as a piece of wall art. Picture lights, wall-mounted-fixtures or track lighting are common, and dimmers are often used on these features to provide mood lighting.
• Task: As the name suggests, task lights are used to assist you in completing a particular function. This could be anything from desk lamps to pendant lights that hang over a kitchen island.

Here, your ambient and task lighting is most important. Make sure to have one of each directly above or beside each spot in your seating area. Then, provide the right light temperature. Day bulbs, ranging from 5,000K-6,500K, are the best choice for reading, so you may want to invest in a few of those.

Make it cozy

The last component to any home library is coziness. While this isn’t an official principle of interior design, in our minds, it’s absolutely essential here. After all, this space is an indulgence at heart. Your final product needs to feel like somewhere you’d gladly curl up with a good book for hours on end. In this case, utilizing textiles is an especially great option for bringing a level of comfort to the room. For example, you can ground the space with a nice, plush throw rug. Then, add a few throw pillows to each chair or sofa in your seating arrangement. Finally, consider adding a soft blanket to the mix to keep warm in cooler temperatures. The last component is adding an element of personalization. Since your home library will likely function as an escape from the stresses of everyday life, that’s incentive to make it feel like an oasis. Whether it’s a piece of wall art or a particular décor item that will make this room feel like your own, here is official permission to invest. Please note that this Scottsdale Real Estate Blog is for informational purposes and not intended to take the place of a licensed Scottsdale Real Estate Agent. The Szabo Group offers first class real estate services to clients in the Scottsdale Greater Phoenix Metropolitan Area in the buying and selling of Luxury homes in Arizona. Award winning Realtors and Re/MAX top producers and best real estate agent for Luxury Homes in Scottsdale, The Szabo group delivers experience, knowledge, dedication and proven results. Contact Joe Szabo at 480.688.2020, info@ScottsdaleRealEstateTeam.com or visit www.scottsdalerealestateteam.com to find out more about Scottsdale Homes for Sale and Estates for Sale in Scottsdale and to search the Scottsdale MLS for Scottsdale Home Listings.

Most would-be buyers and sellers believe the real estate “deal” is negotiated at the signing of the contract. By that point, the counteroffers have been made and the back and forth has happened, so it’s easy to assume that the deal will go on auto-pilot until closing. The reality, though, is that in many cases, the deal-making and negotiations only start at the contract signing. Even in more competitive real estate markets, negotiations still happen once in escrow. For example, if you’re a buyer, the property inspection or sellers’ disclosures — maybe the HVAC system has some issues — may prompt you to seek a credit. But where do you go from there? Here are three tips for negotiating repairs after a home inspection.

1. Ask for a credit for the work to be done

The sellers are on their way out. If the property is moving toward closing, they’re likely packing and dreaming of their new home. The last thing they want to do is repair work on their old home. As a result, they may not approach the work with the same conscientiousness that you, as the new owner, would. They may not even treat the work as a high priority. If you take a cash-back credit at close of escrow, you can use that money to complete the project yourself. Chances are you may do a better job than the seller, too. Finally, if you get the credit, there will be less back and forth to confirm the work has been done.

2. Think ‘big picture’

If you know you want to renovate a bathroom within a few years, then you likely won’t care that a little bit of its floor is damaged, that there’s a leaky faucet or that the caulking needs to be redone. These things will get fixed during your future renovation. However, the repairs are still up for negotiation. Asking the seller for a credit to fix these issues will help offset some of your closing costs.

3. Keep your cards close to your chest

A good listing agent will walk the property inspection with you, your agent and the inspector. Revealing your comfort level with the home or your intentions, in the presence of the listing agent, could come back to haunt you in further discussions or negotiations. For example, if you mention you’re planning a gut renovation of the kitchen, the sellers will certainly hear about it. And they’re going to be less likely to offer you a credit back to repair some of the kitchen cabinets. Also, if the listing agent hears you tell the inspector that you love the home so much you don’t mind replacing the HVAC system, the agent will surely let the sellers know about that.

Eyes wide open

A word of caution: You should never complete the original contract assuming that you can negotiate more as a result of the property inspections. If it’s a competitive market and the property inspection comes back flawless, there’s nothing to negotiate. If you attempt to negotiate anyway — to recoup what you lost in the initial contract negotiations — you risk alienating the sellers and possibly giving them an incentive to move on to the next buyer. You need to go into escrow with your eyes wide open. A real estate transaction is never a done deal until all the money has been wired in and the deed transferred. Prior to signing the real estate contract, your main concern is that you may be competing with other buyers. Once you’re in escrow and doing inspections, however, it’s just you and the sellers. Stay on your toes. Otherwise, you may risk losing out on further viable negotiation opportunities, which could lead to buyer’s remorse. Please note that this Scottsdale Real Estate Blog is for informational purposes and not intended to take the place of a licensed Scottsdale Real Estate Agent. The Szabo Group offers first class real estate services to clients in the Scottsdale Greater Phoenix Metropolitan Area in the buying and selling of Luxury homes in Arizona. Award winning Realtors and Re/MAX top producers and best real estate agent for Luxury Homes in Scottsdale, The Szabo group delivers experience, knowledge, dedication and proven results. Contact Joe Szabo at 480.688.2020, info@ScottsdaleRealEstateTeam.com or visit www.scottsdalerealestateteam.com to find out more about Scottsdale Homes for Sale and Estates for Sale in Scottsdale and to search the Scottsdale MLS for Scottsdale Home Listings.