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April 2015 Newsletter

 

  

 

 

Our staging success story this month is a one bedroom apartment on the Upper East Side that had natural light challenges.  The real estate agent, Cynthia Crowley of Olshan Realty, knew that updating the light fixtures and the kitchen, as well as staging would increase its value beyond a similar apartment in the building that took over a year to sell. 

 

After staging the apartment with rental furniture and our decorative accessories, the apartment sold in just 2 weeks at the asking price! Check out our before and after photos here.

 

Warm regards,

 

Donna M. Dazzo, President

Designed to Appeal 

 

 

 
In This Issue
Testimonial of the Month:
Our Staging Success Story:
Market Overview: New York, NY
Tips and Tricks of the Trade: Tips For A More Peaceful Home!!
Did You Know...? The Fresh Flowers Test - Which One Keeps Flowers Fresh The Longest?
Market Overview: The East End
FREE Closet Organization, Open House & Moving Checklists
 
  Testimonial of the MonthTestimonial

"Donna does it again!  


My owner had an absolutely charming one bedroom on a great East Side block, but the unusual layout and dark first floor location made it a challenge. A similar listing in the building had just taken over a year to sell.

Donna came in with her team, freshened the apartment, added modern lighting, then creatively designed the furnishings to fully express the lovely cozy cottage feel of the home.

We had multiple bids within a week, and ended up selling over 50% higher than the last identical sale in the building.  The seller now calls me her "rock star" agent, but I could never have done it without  Designed to Appeal."

                               Olshan Realty, New York, NY
 
 
Living Room After
 
Dining Room Before 
 
Dining Room After
 

Master Bedroom Before 
 

Master Bedroom After


Kitchen Entry Before


Kitchen Entry After


Kitchen Before


Kitchen After


Bathroom Before


Bathroom After


Powder Room Before


Powder Room After
 
city-lights-sm.jpg
   Corcoran
  Market Overview:
       New York, NY



  

"In April 2015 the condo and co-op markets showed separation in supply/demand dynamics. In terms of pricing, the co-op market responded to the still falling supply and continuously strong demand with significant price gains. The condo market did not see the same annual price gains, due to a decrease in three+ bedroom sales, increasing supply, and high current asking prices. Days on market decreased for co-ops while the figure increased for condos."
    

The following is a comparison of April 2015 vs. April 2014:

  

Market Wide: 

  • Listings on Market: 6,004 units which is a 3% increase.

Condos:

  • The median sale price of $1.7 million is a 4% decrease.
  • The average price per square foot of $1,891 is a 4% increase.
  • The listed inventory was 2,926 units which is a 9% increase. 
Co-ops:
  • The median sale price of $897,500 is a 12% increase.  
  • The average price per square foot of $1,222 is a 13% increase.
  • The listed inventory was 2,657 units which is a 3% decrease.
 
 Tips
Tips and Tricks of the Trade:  
Tips For A More Peaceful Home

         

"Maintaining a zen-like space is about much more than style," says Houzz contributor Laura Gaskill. She advises that, "it's about cultivating a peaceful place where each object has a reason for being present, whether for its beauty, utility or both."

 

The following are some of the ways she mentioned a feeling a peace can be brought into any home.   

Clear surfaces daily.

Clutter is a visual distraction. If you want a calmer experience at home, a good way to begin is by making it routine to clear all the surfaces in your house daily.
 
 

Incorporate the five elements. 

Don't stop with potted plants - to really embrace nature in your home, make sure all five elements are represented. They are: water (images of water, a fountain, flowers in a bowl of water), earth (stone, plants), fire (candles, incense, fireplace), metal (furniture, tools) and wood (furniture, beams).  


Soften the lighting.
Learn to appreciate natural light and use it more. Even when the light starts to fade in the evening, consider sometimes lighting candles instead of flicking on the overheads. 

Pay attention to texture. 
Do the objects in your home thrill your senses? Natural materials have some of the best textures - bring more rough jute, nubby linen, cracked old leather, pure silk and raw wood into your home.

Use natural scents. 
Have you ever noticed that some of the most beautiful, inspiring shops usually also smell amazing? What you smell can have a surprisingly strong effect on how you feel. Create a purifying, calming atmosphere in your home by eschewing artificial fragrances and choosing natural scents like those from beeswax candles, essential oils, natural cleaning products and fresh garden flowers instead. 

To read more tips within the entire article, click here!  
 

Didyouknow   Did You Know.....? 

 

   The Fresh Flowers Test - Which One 

   Keeps Flowers Fresh The Longest?

  

         

 

Flowers can brighten up any home in a pinch, but with the real thing comes the downside of wishing and hoping they would last just a little bit longer. What is the best way to achieve the longest shelf life of your favorite lovelies? Well, Melissa DiRenzo, a contributor to Apartmenttherapy.com put some common options to the test, and the results were as follows: 

 

She kept the test fair with five different tulip bouquets prepped in identical ways before exposing to each option within their respective vases. Here are the details to know:

  • All the bouquets were purchased at the same grocery store at one time, so likely from the same source.
  • Each vase was washed in hot soapy water to remove any lingering dirt or bacteria.
  • All flower ends were cut at an angle before placing in vases.
  • Each vase has 1/2 liter of cool tap water.
  • Water was topped up, if necessary, each day and everything was completely freshened on day 3.

Now for the different methods - there are lots of options out there to try, but these were 5 of the most common they decided to test over the course of 7 days:

 

PENNY: 1 clean copper penny

THEORY: copper acts as antibacterial agent

 

ASPIRIN: 1 crushed tablet per liter

THEORY: mimics effects of traditional flower food


BLEACH: 2 caps full per liter

THEORY: kills mold & bacteria


FRIDGE: placed in fridge overnight each day

THEORY: like fruits & veg, keeps them fresh


CIDER VINEGAR (AND SUGAR): 2 tsp cider vinegar + 2 tsp sugar per liter

THEORY: encourages buds to open and last longer 

 

And the winner was.......

 

 

To read the entire article, click here. 
 
 
 

 
     EastEnd
   Market Overview: 
          The East End




The following is a comparison of April 2015 vs. April 2014, annualized, by town according to  Suffolk Research Service, Inc.


   

East Hampton Town:

  • The median sales price of $995,000 is a 7.9% decrease.
  • The number of sales of 750 is a 3% decrease.    
  • The dollar volume of sales of $1,174M is a 17% decrease.

 Southampton Town:

  • The median sales price of $890,000 is a 4.7% increase.
  • The number of sales of 1,410 is a 14% decrease.
  • The dollar volume of sales of $2,625M is a 10% decrease.
Southold Town: 
  • The median sales price of $505,000 is a 3% increase.
  • The number of sales of 87 is an 11.5% increase. 
  • The dollar volume of sales of $336M is a 23% decrease. 
 
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