C21 Life Hacks - tips

5 Tips On Keeping A Cleaner Home

With a new school year in full swing and summer vacations at an end, we fall back into our routines (seasonal pun intended!). Everyone's life demands different things at different times, and this can leave our homes in a mess. It doesn't take long, either! Cleaning ends up feeling like a monumental task by the end of the week. The last thing you want to do is sacrifice your weekend, your time to relax, to washing, drying and tidying. The secret to keeping a cleaner home is to complete simple tasks on a daily basis, so that clutter never gets out of control. Here are five tips on how to do it: 

1) Empty Your Dishwasher Every Morning

If you've got one, use it! Put away the dirty dishes before bed, so that they don't have to sit on the…

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Sell Your Space by Serving the Senses

Getting advice on how to show your home to buyers can be endless: "Do this, do that, make sure you do this, and make sure you don't make these mistakes..." It can make you want to pull your hair out in frustration! There's too much to remember! Well, we're here to help you out. The easiest way to show your home to potential buyers is to remember the five basic senses - sight, smell, hearing, taste and touch. 

How does remembering this help you sell your home? The senses are what we use to perceive the world around us. In a new place, we can't rely on our memories or the words of others to describe what we're being exposed to. For buyers, they'll be using each one of their senses to interpret your home, and analyze how it can work for them.…

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8 Ways To Organize Your Moving Process

Moving is exhausting! It's especially exhausting if you're a procrastinator. However, we've got the tips that'll turn this task from daunting to launching! That is, to say, our tips will make your move much more efficient:

1) Create a Schedule for Packing

As soon as you have a general date of when you'll move, start developing a packing schedule - trying to stick to it as much as possible. There is no perfect schedule, you just have to find what works best for you. This could be packing 3-4 boxes each day, or you blocking a certain number of full days for packing. Another good schedule to create is one of moving-related tasks, like transferring utilities and changing your address with the post office and other services. If you have…

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How To: Purchase Land

Peace..

Quiet..

Fresh air..

Close to nature..

All of these things come to mind when one thinks of rural living, and at least one of them is a main reason for people that choose to own rural property and/or land. If you're thinking of owning your own piece of land, here are some tips to guide you in the right direction:

1) Avoid Unsuitable Land By Choosing A Realtor

Some Realtors only specialize in residential properties, others are strictly commercial. If you find a Realtor who dedicates their time to selling a majority of rural properties and land, you'll want this Realtor with you for the whole process! Not only do they probably possess years of experience, but they also keep their finger on the pulse of the land -…

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Creating Your Backyard Oasis

Spending summer at home? Or, looking to revamp the backyard for a better home sale? In both cases, you've come to the right place! Creating the perfect outdoor space doesn't have to cost you tons of money, nor does it have to be a large space. Here are some tips for you on creating your perfect backyard oasis:

Start With A Focal Point

Every yard, no matter its size, needs a focal point. A focal point directs attention and interest to one area or one spot. This is used in our indoor spaces all the time. For example, in our kitchens, the focal point is where we prepare our food - the stove, the fridge and the countertops. In our living rooms, the focal point is usually the T.V. All of the design will point, lead or be otherwise neutral to…

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Quit Overspending! Save Up For Your Down Payment

We all have good intentions when we start out budgeting. Once a few weeks go by, it's difficult to fight the urge to spend! Sticking to a budget is harder than it looks for most of us. We want to save the money for, in this case, that down payment on a house, but the draw of retail therapy is strong. We get it. That's why we've put together a list of everyday tips that will stop your little purchases from turning into a big problem.

Understand Your Spending Triggers

The key to tackling any problem is doing some introspection first. Take a look at yourself before beginning any external changes. Overspending is almost always a coping mechanism we use to stave off uncomfortable emotions and physical sensations. It can be something simple,…

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Real Estate Agent VS. Realtor

What's the difference between a Real Estate Agent and a Realtor?

You've probably heard these terms used interchangeably. While these titles are quite similar, there are two distinct differences that set Realtors apart from real estate agents.

First off, let's define what a real agent is/does. Real estate agents are licensed by the province they work in to assist with the buying or selling of a home. They work for a real estate company, and are usually paid through commission. Now, a Realtor does all of the same things as a regular agent, but they are a member of The National Association of Realtors (NAR). Only members are permitted to refer to themselves as Realtors, and pay for that privilege through their membership. This is not the case…

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Buyers: Home Inspection Tips

Last summer, we wrote about general home inspection tips. We've decided to take it further this Summer by providing more tips for buyers regarding home inspections, since more home sales are subject to home inspections before closing. So here we go!

Hire a Proper Inspector

Getting a friend or family member who knows a lot about houses to come in and check the house you're looking at can be tempting. They're close (usually), you trust them and the whole thing is informal. Even if they do possess a great working knowledge about homes, they don't know everything. That's not an insult to Uncle Greg, it's just a fact of life. Please do the right thing and hire a certified home inspector. These are people that have made an entire career of…

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When Your Home Buying Checklist Turns Into “Too Picky”

This is a tough subject to approach, for both Realtors and home buyers. Even though we all approach home buying with an objective-as-possible attitude, at the end of the day we’re all human. We all have emotions. Emotions are what make this subject so tough to approach. However, this is what makes this topic so important to talk about!

On one hand we have you, the home buyer. You do your homework, and you make a list of must-have home features to find a home that meets your needs. It's understandable how you can feel that the proper approach would be to include as many details as possible, in terms of applying intense criteria to your home shopping. On the other hand, we have the Realtor. They know the market like the back of their hand – what’s…

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Early Spring Maintenance

It's always an experiment to start your outside maintenance in March or April. Will it snow again 3 times, or 4? Will we flood, or will our sump pumps work alright? Once you're confident that second and third Winter have passed, you can get yourself on these 7 easy outdoor tasks:

Eavestrough Cleaning

Clean out all of the pesky pine needles, leaves, dirt and other debris in your gutters! Overflowing gutters and blocked downspouts can damage the siding and foundation of your home. If you want to be pro-active, you can install a gutter guard once it's clean, which allows only the smallest of particles through. All you have to do every now and again is wipe off the large debris.

A/C Condenser Cleaning

Find your big air conditioner…

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