Published by

Christine Demos

Christine is the Content Marketing Coordinator for Homes.com. She's a small town girl at heart, who currently lives in Norfolk, VA with her husband and their fur baby. When she's not working, she enjoys cooking, decorating, traveling, and binge watching Netflix. As a proud Virginia Tech alum, she also loves cheering on the Hokies!

296 Articles

Home Decor, Making a House a Home

DIY: Crackle Paint

As any homeowner, I already have a long ‘to-do’ list of ideas I want to do around my home. After…

Home Decor

A Renters Guide to Temporary Improvements

If you’ve made the decision to rent versus buying, then you know that there are limitations when it comes to decorating your rental space. But don’t let those limitations, such as painting; stop you from turning your residence into a home. We’ve assembled fantastic ways to improve your space that are temporary and perfect for a rental or anyplace you’d like to change up without a commitment.

Selling

10 Tips to Help Increase Your Home’s Value

Home values are important regardless of when you plan to sell your home. When you make changes to the home, you need to be aware of what will get you the most “bang for your buck” so to speak. With that in mind, here are ten tips to help increase your home’s value… [read more]

Buying, Finance

Estimated Costs of the First Year of Homeownership

Although the current market conditions have led to increased levels of affordability, there are additional costs beyond the monthly mortgage payment when you purchase a home. And whether you’re coming from renting an apartment or owning, it’s hard to anticipate exactly how much money these extra expenses will cost. The key is to prioritize what’s most important and know when to ask for assistance. Let’s take a look at some of those costs now… [read more]

Selling

10 Things Staging Companies Do to Help Sell Your Home

Enticing buyers is about more than simple curb appeal. Many people choose to go a step further, and turn the inside of the home into a sales floor. Companies that specialize in this kind of interior design are known as “staging” companies, and they’ve been proven to increase the sale price of a home. Here are a few things staging companies do to help your home get the best possible offer… [read more]

Home Values, Selling

Tips for Increasing Your Home’s Value

Whether or not you’re thinking of selling your home in the near future, you should be thinking of your home’s value. A house is one of the biggest investments you can make; increasing that investments’ value just makes sense… [read more]

Lifestyle

The Dishwasher Code of Conduct

If you happen to be like me, or perhaps are looking for ways to be a little more environmentally conscious, then here are a few ways to help make your dishwasher more energy efficient…

Finance

Ways to Improve Your Credit Score

Since I recently purchased my first home, I felt compelled to share some tips and advice on how to improve credit scores that I received from professionals… [read more]

Buying, Finance

10 Things to Ensure Financing for Your Home

You’ve started looking at homes with a different eye and begin thinking “can I afford that?” or “what can I afford?” While looking is fun, here are ten tips to help you attain the financing you need for the home of your dreams… [read more]

Selling

10 Creative Ideas for Promoting Your Open House

Selling a home can be a stressful time, but it doesn’t have to be! Homes.com has provided you with ten creative ideas to promote your open house…

Selling

Prepare Your Home to Sell

The housing market is slowly stabilizing, and you’ve decided to list your home. But what, if any, improvements should you tackle before selling? Should you just leave it all to the new homeowner?… [read more]

Lifestyle

How to Send a Military Care Package

With Veteran’s Day approaching, Homes.com wanted to find ways to honor our nation’s military. One simple and fun way to…

Lifestyle

10 Things Homeowners Do in Their Home During Fall

We know that it’s not officially fall for several more days, but many people consider all of September fair game. Pumpkin spice lattes are already littering our Instagram feeds, but we observe the arrival of autumn in many other ways too. Here are a few telltale things that homeowners do to welcome the season.

Dream Homes, Million Dollar Listings

Million Dollar Listings: Lakeside Nevada Beauty

Living in Luxury: Crystal Bay, NV Style There’s no shortage of swanky real estate in Crystal Bay, Nevada. After all,…

Home Decor

Perfect Pairings: How to Match Your Interior Design & Exterior Home Style

Remaking the Interior of Your Home Decorating your home can be a fun and rewarding experience, but if you’re not…

Buying

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac Make Summer 2015 Guideline Changes

Mortgage market giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac have responded to a strong housing market by adjusting several key underwriting…

Buying

Closing Timeline – Accepted Offer to Closing Table

You are fired up and ready to finally get your slice of the American dream. You have fully completed the pre-approval process. Your documents have been in the hands of underwriting for a week, and they have given you the green light.

After dutifully searching for the perfect home, you have finally found just the one for you. Your real estate agent has presented the offer, negotiations have concluded and you are the winner. You are nervous. Now what? …[read more]