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trends watch
Text Jo Alcorn
Real Estate
Advice with
Joe Mancuso
Home Trends’ Style Editor shares her favorite trends
LIFE IS BETTER
ROSE GOLD
Add hints of copper
or blush pink in
your décor for a
trendy look.
CB2, www.cb2.com
IN THE SPOTLIGHT
Arm wall sconces
above a kitchen
window adds a unique
touch to your design.
Union Lighting and Furnishings
www.unionlf.com
BOLD STATEMENT
Mural wallpaper is
growing in popularity for
accent walls.
Prime Walls, www.primewalls.com
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BASKET CASE
Interesting woven baskets
arranged in a cluster can be
used as storage or stand-alone
décor pieces in a space.
West Elm, www.westelm.com
As those gloriously long, lazy, hazy days of
summer are upon us, thoughts naturally veer
toward soaking up the heat at a vacation
retreat. But of course, like everything in real
estate, recreational properties come with a
whole picnic of decisions to consider.
Let's start by narrowing the focus in finding
that dream haven!
LOCATION If your job is demanding and
encroaches on your weekends, ask yourself
if a 3 to 4 hour drive is really feasible. Isolate
a vacation area that you can comfortably get
to and from to begin your search.
SEASONALITY Many recreational or
vacation areas are hard to reach in winter.
Some are water access only and many have
self maintained roads. Figuring out if you
would like to use the property year round
or potentially retire there is important.
WINTERIZED OR NOT Along with year
round access, it is also key to establish if the
structure has been winterized and is useable
year round. While non-winterized units are
usually much cheaper in comparison, some
are very difficult and expensive to convert
later on if circumstances change, such as
retirement, and of course there is always the
annual opening and closing ritual which is
a bit more involved with a non-winterized
cottage.
WATERFRONT TYPE The type of
waterfront you choose deserves very careful
consideration as it is probably one of the
most impactful features to your enjoyment.
Things such as depth at the shore or dock
and whether it is a sand, pebble or stone
beach are important especially with a
young family and the elderly. Whether it is a
motorized or non-motorized body of water
for boat traffic is crucial for noise tolerance
in summer but also for snowmobile traffic in
winter. - Text by Joe Mancuso