Poll results: Is the market bouncing back?

There's been a lot of positive real estate news lately, with the return of multiple offers and cautious predictions that the worst may now be behind us. The spring weather, boosted by low interest rates and strong first-time buyer activity, seems to be restoring at least some strength to Toronto's home and condo market.

But the results of last week's poll aren't quite so optimistic. The majority of Yourhomers, 55 per cent, said they don't think we're on our way back to a seller's market.

About 22 per cent said they thought the market was starting to bounce back, while 18 per cent said the market may be getting stronger. The remaining four per cent said they didn't know.

In this week's poll, we're looking to our gardens. The long weekend is traditionally a time to plant, but with the recent spotty weather, do you think it's too soon to start puttering in the yard? Vote on the front page.

And, if you're looking for some DIY long weekend inspiration, we've got it in spades. Steve Maxwell shares his tricks for repairing your cottage plumbing, Colin and Justin create a living room that's a vision in grey, and Vicky Sanderson rounds up the latest and greatest grills for your next backyard BBQ.

As an extra treat, we've also got a stunning slideshow of McLean House, where 47 designers donated their skills, times and materials to create a gorgeous space.

Rona's 2009 trends - 'Era of the beiges is gone'

I had the pleasure of hitting up the launch of the 2009 Rona by Design collection yesterday morning, and came back with a ton of inspiration!

Rona's trend consultant, Josette Buisson, gave a great presentation on the program, which, she says offers "a ready to wear design menu" for people who have a lot of interest in redoing their decor, but a "high level of confusion when they get started."

Buisson said the economic downturn has changed consumer habits, causing them to search for a good deal on products that are convenient, long lasting and eco-friendly.

And those products are safe, comfortable and timeless, with a touch of whimsy and industrial looks. She said people are also looking for products that have a human touch, something that "even if it has been mass produced ... looks handmade."

Rona's 2009 colour palette draws on nature-inspired hues and patterns, particularly soft hues with rich grey-based tones. "The era of the beiges is gone," Buisson said.

Other trends highlighted include products with a retro-modern vibe, splashy prints and wallpaper, visible wood grain (i.e. wood that actually looks like wood!) and the recycled look, mini tiles and mosaics, metallics, drum shades, and juxtaposing black and white with a lot of texture.

Rona has broken these trends into three main styles - Oasis, for a calm, soothing look, Spirit for a vibrant, whimsical space, and Global Village for a more ethnic-inspired room.

Buisson described Spirit as very attractive to the video game generation - and it seems like she was dead on, as I adore the bedroom and backyard, shown, from that line!

For more on Rona by Design, check out their website.

A shoe bath?

There was a young lady who bathed in a shoe?

While many women can attest to being avid shoe collectors, I'm guessing very few have incorporated the form into their home decor!

This shoe bathtub from SICIS, made with mosaic tiles, is a luxe (and rather surprising) salute to high heels.

This takes the slipper tub to a whole new level — though perhaps not one I'd want to incorporate in my own house!

(Found via Furniture Store Blog.)

Cleaners worth showing off

I get the chance to try a lot of green cleaners. Really, with the amount of products I try, my house should be far cleaner!

I was recently sent a sample of J.R. Watkin's new natural line of homecare products.

I've since become a fan of their aloe and green tea all purpose cleanser ($8, shown). Not only does it smell great and help tackle kitchen messes, but the label is just so pretty!

I've been keeping this bottle handily within reach on a shelf in the bathroom or on the kitchen counter —  it's so attractive that I don't feel the need to hide it!

The company has a full line of natural products, including bathroom cleansers, all-purpose wipes, dish soap, laundry soap, furniture polish, window cleaner.

Do you have any pretty homecare products to recommend?

A space to recharge

A new design by industrial designer Karim Rashid (he's the guy behind the Umbra garbage can) for Hollandia International (sorry, no Canadian locations) I can't look at this bed without thinking iPod dock.

But, that's not necessarily a bad thing - I mean, your iPod slides into the dock to power up, why can't you?

While I'm not totally sold on the lime green colour, it certainly is a quirky attention grabber!

I do admire the sleek shape, the high gloss and the fact that it actually is functional - not only is it a bed, but it's got storage to boot!

There are drawers under the bed and in the headboard, as well as cabinet doors in the headboard that swing out to create side tables. And, of course, there's also an iPod docking station.

What do you think? Do you want to recharge just like your iPod?

Poll results: Bringing baby to the condo?

While more condo developments are offering larger units and other child-friendly perks to try to attract families, only about a third (29 per cent) of Yourhome voters in last week's poll say they'd raise their kids in a condo.

More than half, at 54 per cent, said they wouldn't move baby into a highrise unit, while 13 per cent were on the fence. The remaining four per cent said they didn't know.

There are many perks to a highrise lifestyle, including the ability to be closer to green space, parks and other kid-friendly amenities (sometimes even in the same building) than you may otherwise be able to afford and a low-maintenance lifestyle that means less time doing yardwork and more time playing with the kids. But, it's also quite different from the homes with fences and yards where many of us grew up!

For this week's poll, we're looking at the recent positive news in the market. Multiple offers, competition and sales over asking seem to be coming back (check out What they Got for some recent transactions) after a slow winter, begging the question: Are we returning to a seller's market? Weigh in on the front page, and check back next week for the results.

For some weekend inspiration, check out Colin and Justin's retro-inspired living room transformation, Debbie Travis' blue boy's bedroom and Vicky's tips for choosing drapes!

Packing, packing and more packing

Despite a cluttered room full of still-unpacked boxes in my apartment, I've still got a lot of packing to do before we take possession of our new home at the end of the month!

Mr. Speedy and I have moved many times in the last few years, but I'm feeling more pressure with this one, as it will hopefully be the last for a while. So, I want to make sure we do it right, and stay organized!

Here are some of the tips I've learned over our last 10 moves:

- Take this opportunity to purge. Anything that you haven't used in the past year is likely a good candidate to be donated or tossed.

- Pack slowly. Focus on specific areas and pack things room by room over a few weeks to help you stay organized and prevent breakage.

- Use blankets, tea towels, tablecloths and even plastic shopping bags to help cushion your delicate items. It's cheaper and more eco-friendly than using tissue paper, and doesn't leave black marks on your items like newspaper.

- Make sure your boxes are sturdy enough for the items you're packing. It won't take long for pots packed in a flimsy box to go crashing to the curb. I like to use plastic bins with lids for heavy or delicate items, as they're sturdier than boxes and you can re-use them for storage in your new home.

- Keep it light. Heavy things should go in small boxes. You don't want anyone getting injured on moving day.

- Label everything. Meticulously. When you desperately need that bottle opener for post-moving beer, or a certain pair of shoes for work the next day, you want to be able to pinpoint the exact box it's in.

- Have a plan for your boxes. Group similar items together and pack by room, making unpacking simpler. Label the boxes with their intended destination so you won't be stuck making snap decisions when asked by your moving help as to where it belongs. Plus, it will make unpacking easier as everything will already be in the right spot!

UPDATE:

Received a great tip from the Twitterverse that I'll be trying for our move: Set up and make your bed first, then you can work til exhaustion and just collapse rather than try to do it when tired.

Catch up on the home hunt:

Moving in a month

So we bought the house, now what?

More negotiations

Getting a home inspection

Making an offer

Home hunting makes me nauseous

How to know when the house is right?

Resources for first-time buyers

Our first showings

Crunching the numbers

Finding Mr. or Mrs. Right ... Realtor, that is

Home hunting: Exciting, terrifying, all-consuming

What do we want in a home?

Am I house crazy?

How walkable is your hood?

I recently came across the very cool website Walkscore.com (via the HGTV.ca blog), which calculates how 'walkable' your home and neighbourhood is (so long as you're in Canada, the U.S. or the U.K.), by considering factors like public space, shopping, local businesses and accessibility to roads, sidewalks and trails.

The website uses an algorithm that considers the nearby amenities, awarding points based on proximity up to one mile, and measure how easy it is to live a car-lite lifestyle, ranking it on a scale of 0-100. The 90-100 range is a "Walkers' Paradise" while 0-24 is "Car Dependent."

My new home has a middling rating on the walkable scale, a "Somewhat Walkable" 60 out of 100, which means some amenities are within walking distance, but many everyday trips may still require bikes, public transit or a car.

I was surprised by this, seeing as I'll be a mere 10 minute walk to the Danforth, but the service is still super handy, as it lets you see all the nearby services mapped out.

Before I even move in, I'm able to find the nearby cafes, restaurants, grocery stores, etc., along with the distance from my house, (except, apparently for LCBO and Beer Stores, which were a major factor in my friends' approval of our new neighbourhood!)

So, my walkscore is 60. What's yours?

I've been cleaning since the Green Living Show

This year was my first trip to the Green Living Show, and I was very excited to see all the certifiably green products on offer – from home improvement and décor to food, clothes and beauty.

There was so much to see, in fact, that I’ve spent the past week sifting through my notes, and the generous cleaner samples!

I was actually really surprised by the number of major retailers displaying at the show – PC Home had an enormous block, as did the Home Depot (who were also sharing some incredible eco-friendly wallpaper designs from Graham and Brown). Clorox’s GreenWorks cleaners, Aveda, Brita and Roots also had their own spots on the floor.

Speaking of Brita, I’ve been thinking it may be time to replace my too-small pitcher with a larger one, and was thrilled to see a model in green at the show. I’d never seen one in that shade before – which also happens to suit my new décor – and was so sad to find out that it was a special show model, not for retail.

But, there were tons of great goodies that I could take home with me!

My first stop (well, after snagging a few eco-friendly samples of yogurt, cheese and tea in the food section) was at the Attitude cleaner booth. This Montreal-based company has started to pop up on grocery store shelves in the GTA, with a great new packaging design featuring stark whites and animals – for example, bright orange fish on the dish soap and penguins on the cold water laundry detergent. I really liked their product samples, and also appreciate the fact that they’re eco-logo certified. In other cool news from Attitude, they’re working on a refill station concept that would allow buyers to refill their existing bottles at select stores.

Next stop was the Nature Clean booth, one of the classic eco friendly cleaners, and, as an added bonus, it’s an Ontario-based, made in Canada company. It’s also eco-logo certified, and available at grocery stores as well as green stores such as Grassroots. Nature Clean already has a refill program in place with Grassroots, allowing consumers to bring in their own containers for the wide variety of products. At the show, I learned that they’ve just introduced take-home refill kits, in recyclable boxes, of course. It is so handy to be able to refill at home rather than schlepping yourself to the store when you suddenly run out of hand soap!

I quickly passed by the Clorox GreenWorks booth, as it was too busy for me to have a chat with the reps, then on to the Bio-Vert station. I wasn’t familiar with this company, but grabbed one of the samples of their biodegradable, biotechnological cleaner to test out. The ‘green chemistry’ in the cleaners is intended to lift away the dirt. I tried the bathroom cleaner and it seemed to work fine, though a little bit of elbow grease was, as always, needed.

I also chatted with the folks at Eco-Max, a brand that has gone from commercial cleaning to household non-toxic options. Their pretty floral packaging and scents was a draw, as is the fact that they’re based in Ontario. I hadn’t seen their products on store shelves before, but I will be keeping an eye out for them from now on.

The green cleaning options seemed never ending, as next up was Seventh Generation. I got the chance to try a load of laundry with their free and clear double concentrated laundry detergent, and it seemed quite nice, but, it is hard to make a concrete opinion based on one or two tries with a wide variety of prroducts. At this point, I can't say which worked best, though Attitude gets points for cute packaging and Nature Clean for their long lasting eco cred. 

Getting out of the cleaning section, I found myself getting a warm blast while taking a peek at some artwork. Turns out this was no ordinary framed print, but rather an example of Redwell Infrared Heating, which produces radiant heat – which warms the objects in the room, instead of the air, so it actually requires a lower temperature. With the ability to turn it on only when you need an extra heat boost, this is a greener, and far more attractive, alternative to an energy sucking space heater.

The other booth that really caught my eye was Greenwood Studio. With gorgeous handcrafted, and custom, furniture crafted from sustainable wood sources, including a stunning arching light over a rustic yet delicate chair, it was hard not to stop for a look.

I also checked out Wildflower Farm's booth, as the promise of a lush, low maintenance lawn seems almost too good to pass up! You can read more about them here.

So, while my trip was mostly focused on cleaning (as have the days since as Mr. Speedy and I get ready to move) it was definitely enjoyable and informative, and I'll certainly be heading to the show again next year!

Poll results: Luxury or space?

Last week, I asked whether you'd rather put your dollars towards luxury or square footage when looking for a new home or condo. (Catch up by reading the story about the trend towards luxury.) And, turns out, Yourhomers are a pretty luxe lot!

The majority, at 49 per cent, said they'd prefer extras such as luxe decor, granite countertops, spa finishes and concierge service over space.

Space was a pretty close second, however, with 44 per cent opting to spend their house money on soaring ceilings, grand rooms and spacious living spaces. The remaining seven per cent said they didn't know what they'd prefer.

Personally, with my current lifestyle I'm all about space. While I adore posh looking spaces and luxe finishes, I really require a space to spread out, relax and work without tripping over Mr. Speedy.

This week, we're looking at another condo trend: family-friendly highrises. With more condo developers offering kid-ready finishes, green spaces and larger units, would you raise your kids in a highrise unit? (Or are you already doing so?) Vote on the front page.

And, for some more Saturday morning reading, check out Colin and Justin's gorgeous green basement transformation, Vicky's picks for stylish solar lighting and a look at whether the housing industry is currently punching above its weight class.