Selling your home? How to keep it clean for showings - Guest Post

Happy Sunday, Y’all!

We have a hot real estate market for a change, which is welcome news for all of us. However, that can lead to additional stress with last minute showings and narrow time windows. How is a busy family supposed to keep pace? The last thing you want is your potential buyer scared away by greasy dishes, dirty bathrooms, and that lingering “what smell is that?” feeling!

The challenge of keeping your home clean is hard enough, but when you add kids into the mix, it adds another layer of complexity. Not only are you trying to minimize the stress of moving and the impact it has on them, but also they have stuff…like lots of stuff…and it seems to reproduce on its own. I am pretty sure every room of our home has at least 3 nerf gun darts, 3 crayons, and who knows how many legos stashed around. What’s a busy parent to do?

Fortunately, Kris Louis, from Parentingwithkris.com, has a wonderful game plan for busy parents who are trying to sell their home. Following her tips (even just some of them!), can really help ease the work and the stress of selling your home. Read on for her ideas and strategies that are sure to decrease the stress and hopefully increase your offers! If you want more tips from Kris, please be sure to visit her website!

-Casey

How Busy Parents Can Keep Their Homes Looking Clean and Clutter-Free for Real Estate Showings

Image via Unsplash

You may be wondering how you’re supposed to keep your home looking clean and organized for realtor showings while you’re still living there—especially when a typical day consists of food messes, sticky doorknobs and walls, and dirty paw prints on your hardwood floors and carpeting. But with a few smart strategies, even busy families can be ready when house hunters call. Here’s what you need to know. 

Upgrade Your Household Products

Cleaning is obviously going to take a starring role in your daily life for a while, and when you’re busy parenting, working, and attempting to sell your home, there are a few household products that will help keep things simple when you’re short on time or preparing for a last-minute showing. For instance, a robot vacuum can keep your floors clean and free of crumbs, pet hair, dirt, and dust—even on days where you don’t have time to run a traditional vacuum cleaner.

If your realtor contacts you about a last-minute showing, however, you’ll need a tool that’s on deck for quick tidy-ups. As such, a stick vacuum may be an excellent investment—especially if you’re looking for something lightweight, cordless, and easy to operate. Some will even convert to hand vacs, which is a serious boon in any busy family household.

Lastly, purchase an apron with large pockets in the front and store your essential cleaning supplies in them. This way, you can grab the apron in a hurry and get to cleaning your home in no time. 

Focus on the Areas That Matter Most

After working with Haymount Homes to stage your home beautifully, your next step is keeping it that way. But with kids and pets in the mix, you’ll need to take a few minutes out of each day to clean, organize, and keep up on household tasks—such as cleaning the kitchen, bathrooms, and entryway to your home. 

By moving much of your personal belongings into storage, however, you’ll make life a whole lot easier before showings—especially if you only keep the items that you and your family use on a daily basis. SmartBox Moving and Storage recommends pulling extra furniture, personal things like mementos and photos, and taste-specific decor. With these things out of the way, buyers can focus on your house, and you’ll have more elbow room for breezing through those speed cleaning sessions. 

If you receive a call about a last-minute showing and don’t have time to clean the entire home, Redefy Real Estate recommends taking a few minutes to focus on the kitchen, bathrooms, and main living areas. Deodorize the home, wipe down the counters, fixtures, and mirrors, move dirty dishes into the dishwasher, and re-arrange throw pillows and blankets in all living areas. Then, turn on the lights, open the blinds or drapes, take out the trash, and head out the door before your potential buyers arrive.  

Set a Few New Household Rules

As you show your home to potential buyers, you’ll keep your living areas clean, organized, and clutter-free if you establish a few ground rules for your family to follow. On showing days, for instance, avoid cooking odorous foods like broccoli, cabbage, eggs, or fish, and skip messy breakfasts like pancakes with syrup. You might even want to prepare make-ahead breakfasts that aren’t messy and are easy to grab and heat. 

Moreover, you’ll keep your home cleaner if you banish food from all areas except for the kitchen table. Then, have everyone load their dishes into the dishwasher immediately after they finish with a meal or snack. To minimize kitchen messes, however, you may even opt for disposable plates, cups, and silverware when showings are scheduled. 

Lastly, you’ll reduce clutter throughout the home if you set a new rule that requires your kids to put their personal belongings away after each use. For storing these stray items, purchase empty baskets and bins that can easily be hidden away during showings. 

As you can see, living in a home that you’re trying to sell can get complicated—but there are a few things you can do to make it more endurable. Select a few smart tools, enact strategies with simplicity in mind, and get everyone involved. With these tips in mind, your home will stay clean and show-ready—and you’ll manage to keep your sanity while you sell your home. 

HILLSIDE AVE - 2 WEEKS OF RENOVATIONS

Happy Weekend! It has been a whirlwind of activity over the last two weeks at Hillside and we are excited to show you the progress. The home was lovely, but just not really our style, so we are knee deep in making it our own. Forgive the rough unedited cell phone photos - we are moving quick!

The first step was to uncover the 120 year old pine flooring throughout the home. This is always one of our favorite parts because floors have so much character and clean up so well. However, the deep ebony stair treads had likely never been sanded down and hats off to Dustin Brewington who had to sand them several times and then hand scrape them four times to get down to the natural wood. AH...MAZ...ING!

We have a mix of red pine and yellow pine in the home. We love the look of the yellow pine, but the red pine was very red. In order to draw that down, we chose a deep (actually black) stain to neutralize the red in the wood for the lower level of the home. As for the upper level, we are in love with the yellow pine. We wanted a natural stain, but even an oil-based natural stain has a yellowish/orangish undertone that will deepen over time. Additionally, oil based stains are very high in VOC chemicals, which we are trying to avoid in our renovation.

You can see how the natural oil based stain on the left really made the wood a orange tone…..not what we were going for.

Same here with the upper floors - the oil based tone really yellowed up the wood - and it deepens over time, which is likely what was already on the floors to start with. Any stain will darken the floors a little, but we wanted to preserve the yellow pine color as much as possible.

As a result, we ended up choosing a natural water based stain for the first floor to really allow the floors to be at their best. We are thrilled with the results, which will be posted once all the mess is cleaned up! For downstairs, we chose a black water based stain. The wood really soaked it up and created a lovely walnut shade. Plus, the water based stain is faster and less toxic. It is a great alternative to oil based, but it does cost more so be prepared for this if you choose that path!

We are adding shiplap detail to sections of the home. It is a great way to hide some of the rough plaster and it adds character and charm to the rooms. Texture is a huge element in rooms and it really provides warmth and comfort to the spaces. Although some people like the character of rippled plaster, we opted for more clean lines and less of this look.

Painting has begun and it is a task! There are a lot of areas to try to address in the walls and to optimize their look once the paint hits them. Choosing paint is never one our favorite tasks because there are thousands of amazing colors and they all look different in each space! Total fear of better options. We are somewhat married to cool undertones in this home due to flooring choices and cabinetry that will be staying, so we had to stray from our typical warmer undertone palate. That has been an adventure, but you can see the dizziness of the ride below. We’ll be chatting more on paint later.

We have a lot more photos to come as wall repair and painting continue this week. However, this should give you an idea of the controlled chaos at our new home!

Until next time!

Casey and Carl (and crew)

HILLSIDE AVE - OUR NEWEST DESIGN PROJECT

We are so excited to introduce our newest Haymount Homes design project, Hillside Ave!

There is so much to love about Hillside. From over 600 square feet of porch living to exposed brickwork and architectural detail throughout the lower level, there is eye candy to be seen everywhere. The grand foyer welcomes you in and the beautiful 120 year old pine floors honor Southern tradition.

This home has been lovingly updated for the last six years, and we are the proud new owners. We have included a present state home tour for you and are hoping you’ll follow along as we place our Haymount Homes stamp on the design.

Stay tuned for updates and you’ll be able to follow us on Facebook and Instagram, using the hashtag, #hhhillside.

For now, enjoy the present state home tour….we are thrilled you stopped by!

- Casey and Carl

NOW AVAILABLE - JORDAN STREET

Executive home in downtown Haymount - only a few blocks from the park and offering amazing custom details. Beautiful open concept living with 10 foot ceilings, oversized 2 car garage, and huge walk-in closets throughout. Experience all the joy of living in Historic Haymount without any of the compromises of space. Custom kitchen and master suite on the first floor - amazing quality and won’t last long! Available Immediately! Rental rate is $2000/month and pets are by approval.

COMING SOON!! 4 bedroom, 2.5 bath, 2 car garage Haymount Home!

Happy Summer! We are delighted to offer you a wonderful opportunity for your next home in downtown historic Haymount!! A rare opportunity to in Haymount! Charming home with an oversized 2 car garage! Home features living and dining room with fireplace, 10 foot ceilings, custom kitchen with breakfast area and keeping room with a 2nd fireplace. Master suite downstairs. Hardwood floors in the living areas. Upstairs features 3 additional bedrooms all with huge walk in closets. Media room and walk in storage. Walk to the famous General Lee park and downtown, or visit Leclairs General Store and Cape Fear Regional theater. Live in Haymount with NONE of the compromises of older homes. Gracious living can be yours and ready for move in toward the end of July! Contact us right away for your showing as this won’t last long. Haymount Homes is proud to offer this home in consulting partnership with the owners.

Enjoy the gallery!

WE WANT YOU TO LOVE YOUR HOME

Good morning!

We hope this Sunday morning has found you relaxed at home and surrounded by the good memories, things, and people you love and that make your home special.

Our goal at Haymount Homes is that you love the home you have chosen. We want you to feel like it is your safe place, your happy place, and your refuge. When things are tough outside, our homes can offer that escape inside. During this time of limited travel, our homes are more important than ever.

We had to share an instagram post from one of our clients. It touched our hearts and made us smile. It is simple, but exactly what we strive for: joy in the simplicity of home and haymount.

Simple, but so perfect. Getting to know our neighbors, sharing what we have, and being thankful. Rachel contacted me later to say she was inspired to plant her new oregano in the garden she had started. Later that same day, another client came over to share a hardship that she was going through. It was wonderful to lend support to her and offer reassurance that we would be able to support her. She cried and stated, “I just cannot tell you how much I love my home. I never want to leave it. Thank you.”

These moments drive us. We want to consistently offer homes that have stories- your story. We want you to build your life on a foundation of love and inside a home that wraps you up when you walk through the door. Our homes are old and historic, they have stories too, but they are full of years of experience and are ready to protect you as well.

Thanks to our amazing clients. We appreciate you and the stories you are creating inside your Haymount Home!

- Casey and Carl

HOME STAGING SELLS - BEFORE AND AFTER PHOTOS

We hear plenty about staging a home for sale these days - experts recommend it, realtors beg their clients to do it, and homeowners stew about whether or not it is worth the investment. We get it completely. Staging a home takes important resources: time, energy and money. However, these efforts certainly pay off in the long run.

Staging a home often brings more interest in your home, a higher selling price, more viewings, faster offers (sometimes multiple offers), and quicker sales. In our experience, you will receive every penny you spend in staging your home back in selling your home for more money in less time. Additionally, sometimes staging will just get your home sold when it otherwise has been sitting. Avoiding more time on the market also saves money.

Below you will find before and after photos of a project we recently completed. We also did some light renovations with the staging, but they were mostly cosmetic- painting, flooring refinishing, and recoloring grout. There are a few types of tile that were added and swapped out. Overall, there are big changes with the staging and light renovations, and these changes at a big impact.

Prior to the staging, this home had been in the market for a year. Once staging and light renovation were complete, 12 days later it had a full price offer for over $30,000 more than the asking price when it was removed from the market for renovations.

Enjoy the photo tour before - we all love a good before and after don’t we? We did not have before pictures of the upstairs, so we just included the first floor of this beautiful home. Staging and updating allow a home to shine in its full glory, and give the best impression to prospective buyers. If you need assistance staging your home, don’t hesitate to ask for our help! If you don’t know where to start, we can help you figure that out too!

Enjoy!

The Benander Crew

BONE BROTH RECIPE - SLOW COOKER RECIPE - IMMUNITY BUILDING SUPER DRINK

Bone broth is one of those things that we have been meaning to write about for quite some time. Ever since we started purchasing grass-fed cow shares, we have been more committed to using all parts of the animal. Our favorite way to use the bones from the cow is to make slow-cooker bone broth. The benefits of bone broth are extensive - a quick google search can outline them for you with greater clarity than I can provide you, but trust me, it is great for strengthening immune system function, which is more important than ever.

Additionally, making bone broth serves as a way to create a base for homemade soups and stews, as well as provides a use for “scrap” pieces of meat, organic veggies and other things that you feel bad about wasting or composting. It reduces waste and improves our personal and planet health - double win!

Making bone broth is simple, easy, and inexpensive. We find the easiest thing to do is make in in a crock pot. You’ll need:

SLOW COOKER BONE BROTH:

Soup Bones or any type of bones, preferably from a grass fed animal

Water

Onion

Celery

Carrot

Apple Cider Vinegar

Sea Salt (optional)

Pepper (optional)

Garlic (optional)

Grass Fed Beef Neck Bones

Quarter your onion

Use the odds/ends of celery

Chop a carrot

Add a splash of Apple Cider Vinegar - you want the one “with the mother” (aka, unfiltered with all the good stuff).

Once everything is chopped and assembled, simply place the ingredients in the crock pot, fill with water, and cook on low for 24 hours. You can choose to add salt, pepper and garlic - sometimes I wait to do this until I use the broth so I can adjust the seasonings as I see fit for the purpose I am using the broth for - up to you!The vinegar will help extract the nutrient value from the bones and helps to ensure the maximal health benefit from the broth.

After your time is up, simply drain, discard solids, and pour into glass jars. The fat will rise to the top and create a seal. The broth can be kept with this seal for up to 6 months as long as the seal is not punctured. Too easy!

Super easy and super smart way to use pieces of leftover quality ingredients - plus, a huge bonus for your health. It’s awesome! A tip: We will save odds and ends of veggies in a freezer bag until we are ready to use them - that way we always have the items ready when we have bones to use.

Hope it works for you - enjoy!!

-The Benander Crew

GLUTEN-FREE SOUTHERN BUTTERMILK BISCUITS - THE REAL DEAL!

Ok. We are mostly gluten free around here and that is mostly awesome….mostly. There are just some things that don’t really cut it being gluten free and most homemade bread products land in that category. We hate to even THINK about the amount of time, money, and energy we put into trying to master a great bread product that is also gluten free. We can nail most every other baked good, but true bread products have kicked our tails!

However, we FINALLY cracked the code on gluten free biscuits! Success! It makes sense in that it is not a yeast based dough and gluten free yeast doughs struggle to rise due to the lack of gluten protein. That stated, a lot of trials for biscuits have still been too crumbly, dense or dry.

We think the magic to these is making sure you follow the technique and also ensure that you use buttermilk - if you are dairy free, you could sub the butter for oil and the buttermilk for almond milk base, but I make no promises on the outcome! Adding the dairy to the buttermilk smooths the grittiness that is often found with gluten free products, so it really makes these work!

Also, like with any gluten free product, your flour blend can change the texture. We used VITACOST baking flour which already has xantham gum in it. If your blend includes xantham gum already, you should be good to go. If not, make sure to add about 1 tsp to the recipe.

Additionally, it is a great base - you can add a twist and use them for strawberry shortcakes too! Are you ready for that? Ummmm…yum.

Alright, let’s cut to the chase! Happy baking!

GLUTEN-FREE SOUTHERN BUTTERMILK BISCUITS

2 c. gluten-free flour blend

1/2 t. salt

1 T. baking powder (prefer aluminum free)

2 T. sugar

1 c. chilled buttermilk (can use 1 T. lemon juice and 1 c. milk - sit for 10 min first)

1 egg, whisked

6 T. cold butter (if you only have unsalted butter, then increase salt to 3/4 tsp)

Preheat convection oven to 425 degrees or regular oven to 450 degrees. Mix dry ingredients. Slowly cut in cold butter (can use a food processor with dough blade) until the butter is pea like texture. Separate the buttermilk into two parts. To the first part, add the egg and then slowly pulse in the egg/buttermilk mixture. As the dough starts coming together, slowly start pulsing in more of the buttermilk until you have a sticky dough. You may or may not use all the rest of the buttermilk. Gluten-free flour is a thirsty flour and sometimes it will soak up more or less, depending on your blend. You don’t want a soupy dough.

Put some parchment paper on the counter and dust with flour. Dump your dough on the counter, and fold on itself twice (if a little more flour is needed, that is fine). Press into a 7-8 inch round - Do NOT roll out the dough with a roller - you will lose the rise and air pockets we’ve created. Cut 2 inch circles, pressing straight down and lifting them up. Place into a greased cast iron skillet and bake for about 15-20 min. Remove when the tops are golden brown and then brush tops with butter.

TRY to resist eating them…but good luck!

Need ideas? We love:

Making Spicy chicken Sandwiches with them

Adding sausage patties or bacon and eggs

Adding Kerrygold Irish butter and smiling!

Making strawberry jam spreading in on thick! We just went strawberry picking, so we are making strawberry everything!

Making them into strawberry shortcakes - you can sweeten them up with doubling the sugar in the recipe, and then brushing the tops with a little milk and raw cane sugar on the top before baking. They might not rise quite as high, but they are a little sweeter and OH MAN!!

Hope it works for you - enjoy!!

-The Benander Crew

CAPE FEAR AVE - BEFORE AND AFTER PHOTOS

We all love a great before and after, don’t we? We are excited to show you the fun before and after photos from our last rental home, Cape Fear Ave.

We fell in love with this sweet cottage- it just needed love and attention when we arrived. The dated and broken wrought iron railing, dated scroll detail, and old worn metal awnings. The door was coated in so much old paint (including the window panes). The windows were sad and difficult to use, and the gutters had seen much better days.

Enter a brand new vinyl wrapped porch, beautiful new paint (Sherwin Williams Dutch Door), and a new screen door with all new gutters. We added a cute set of metal window boxes to help dress it up a little bit.

Next we have the entryway/living room. The fireplace was no longer functional or safe and the front door was faced immediately to the back wall of the living room. The room was fairly large, but it was closed off. The classic wood floor was so pretty, but needed a face lift for sure! The light fixture was not a great choice either.

While we were in the design phase, my dad was able to visit to help use check things out!

The kitchen and the living room shared a wall. The kitchen layout was nearly impossible. It was an L shape with the refrigerator in front of the window and cabinets immediately opposite. The other half of the kitchen had an isolated range without much countertop or cabinet working area. Like most of the homes built in the late 1940’s and early 1950’s, the water heater was next to the kitchen sink. Like usual, that had to change!

This kitchen was a very difficult L shape without great placement for much of anything. It was not large enough for an eat-in space, and awkward for any additional countertop placement. The layout was awkward at best and not a space that invited a desire to cook! Also, let’s talk about sheet vinyl - no thanks to this outdated worn piece!

The Kitchen and living room HAD to unite! We knew when we saw this that the wall had to go and we could obtain an awesome living room/kitchen combo, complete with eat in island. We were so excited to see it come to life!

Our fabulous flooring genius, Dustin, was able to tooth in and match the existing 70+ year old flooring with brand new red oak hardwood. Once he refinished it all, you cannot even tell where the old flooring stopped and the new flooring began! AMAZING! Plus, luxury vinyl tile was placed in the laundry room to finish the job!

Special thanks to GEO LIVINGSTON of G&C Contracting who made this vision come to reality - including the custom cabinets! Also special thanks to ARANA STONE for the beautiful arctic snow granite countertops! Also, Darin Halford, you can always be counted on for our open shelving needs and shiplap dreams - where would we be without you? Can we renovate a house without shiplap anymore?

The living room came to life, but the fireplace had to remain boarded up - we had to make that fun and so it became a chalkboard! Also, the beautiful wood paned front door shown in it’s new DUTCH DOOR blue paint from Sherwin Williams. The kitchen and living room shown in Sherwin Williams PURE WHITE eggshell paint complete with Semi-gloss trim in PURE WHITE as well.

There was a little porch that had been converted for laundry (yay!) but it was narrow and unfinished.

The bathroom had some definite wear and the tile was mis-matched. The tub needed some refinishing and some beautification as well.

Thank goodness for Darin Halford again! His eye for detail was amazing as he redid all the tile in the bathroom and made everything come to life! Frank Layton deserves a shout out too for his amazing tub reglaze! He has saved us every single vintage tub that we have ever inherited!

We love the look of the patterned porcelain tile but hate the price tag! We had used a ceramic patterned version in black and white available at Lowes at our bathroom in our Glenville Ave home, but opted for a softer gray version of the same tile here at Cape Fear Ave. Additionally, we paired with Warm Gray Grout from Mapei.

GIMMIE SOMMORE SHIPLAP!!! Up the walls it went!

Also, we love subway tile. classic. clean. awesome. Darin gets annoyed with us because it is time consuming, but he tolerates us anyway!

The middle room here was not too bad, but lacked definition. Technically a bedroom with its own closet, it was the pathway to the back bedroom so for us this lent itself more to a dining or office space. However, it easily could function as a bedroom!

Cape Fear bedrooms were easy - finally!! They just had their floors refinished, walls and ceilings painted and repaired, new windows and light fixtures. So cute so quick!

We are so obsessed with the floors in Cape Fear Ave - we had long wanted to opt for natural wood refinishing, but most of the floors we had encountered were not in good enough shape to support that vision. We were finally able to do it with Cape Fear Ave.

The bedrooms and dining room in Cape Fear Ave are painted with Sherwin Williams Agreeable Gray, but the color is lightened by 30%. We usually choose to lighten it up to create light and crispness in the rooms. We love this color and it is a staple for us in our projects because it is a warm gray and can read gray or beige depending on the light and the decor within. A perfect marriage of color.

There are so many details the we worked on for Cape Fear Avenue, but the one that we get asked the most about is definitely the statement wall in the kitchen. We had to add some interest to the wall to really make it shine. We debated wrapping the shiplap throughout the wall, but it felt like something more impactful needed to be done…enter this beautiful statement wall! It is simply a stencil and was “fairly easy” to put in! By that , it was imperfect, but fun, a little tricky, but super worth it!

TA DA! We might post a tutorial on how to do this stencil at some point, but for now - enjoy! There are so many styles and types out there and they add such impact for little cost.

We hope you enjoyed the before and after photos - they are always so fun to look back on and see how something was transformed. It was a labor of love for sure!

Thanks for stopping in and have a wonderful weekend. We have another before and after design project coming your way, so keep your eyes open!!

- Casey

HOW TO STYLE A BED - Design Tutorial

Hey Everyone!!

I don’t know about you, but I am in FULL ON NESTING MODE. We are mostly staying home and doing our best to self quarantine. I have already washed everything down inside and out, and that, of course, has me examining every square inch of our home. This is like a kid in a candy shop to me - making a list of all possibilities of what COULD be rather than what currently IS. The problem? We are all watching our spending and cannot really hit Home Goods for our spring change up! Yes, retail withdrawal is probably a think - got it, a first world issue, but nonetheless a thing running through my head.

Thus, I thought it might be fun to do a few posts on techniques for decorating inside your home - hopefully using things you already have, but trying to give you that freshening up that you are wanting. It’s a nice way to expend that nervous energy and also a fun way to make some changes without leaving your home.

On that note, let’s talk about styling (not making, but styling it for prettiness!) your bed. There are lots of ways to make it beautiful, but I figured I’d share a simple step by step method that I use in our home. Hope this is fun for you - remember, swap pillows throughout your home to update looks and experiment with something new! You probably have more options than you think (note on pillows at the end…)

STEP ONE: Build your Basics - start with a crisp fitted and flat sheet, pillowcases, and pillows for sleeping.

STEP TWO: Add a duvet and duvet cover. Don’t be afraid to mix patterns - stripes against the boho print rug - adds interest!

STEP THREE: Optional - Add another duvet and cover for added warmth or texture/layering and fullness.

STEP FOUR: Add EURO Pillows- square shaped - can layer them behind or infront of the sleeping pillows.

STEP FIVE: Layer additional pillows. Mix patterns, sizes, and styles. Think of making a reverse pyramid - wider base at the back (near euro pillows) and start to build them into smaller layers as they move forward to the front.

STYLE NOTE: Don’t be afraid to mix whites and creams- seems scary, but it works - I have white walls and bedding, but an ivory rug and beige/ivory pillow shams and blankets. It creates imperfect cozy!

STEP SIX: Add a blanket or throw - for added layering, texture, and interest! Feel free to mix up colors, patterns, and textures!

STEP SEVEN: Balance the top with wall decor - I love a circular wreath to balance the rectangle of the bed. You want to help ground the art by placing the bottom of it about 4ish inches from the top of the bed. That will give it all balance. Another option is a large rectangular piece hung lengthwise, or a group of three smaller square pieces. See what you have in your home and swap it in!

STEP EIGHT: Enjoy! Have fun mixing and matching until you get the right combination!! Challenge yourself to use things already in your house.

One final note on pillows, Carl and I are at odds with pillows. In my head, the more the better, and he is not quite on board, feeling that he spends too much time arranging pillows each morning. Do you remember the moving, Along Came Polly? Here is a clip that pretty much defines it:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OJcOHqyk5dY

Well, pillows might be decorative, but they are inviting, cozy, and appealing - they are visually pleasing and make me want to jump into my bed and stay awhile :) Thus, he knows they make me happy and deep down, he also knows that I am right :) So, to that, my quote:

“Throw pillows are the stuffed animals of grown women.”

Happy Nesting - Be well!

-Casey

WON'T YOU BE OUR NEIGHBOR? 5 BED, 3 BATH, 2 CAR Garage Home in Haymount!

We are SO thrilled to announce the sale of our dear friend’s home. This amazing 5 bedroom, 3 FULL bath, 2 car garage home has all the charm of living in Haymount without any of the compromises! It features a HUGE master suite, complete with a large walk in closet that is the size of a typical Haymount bedroom, two jetted tubs, a farmhouse kitchen, amazing NEW lifetime tyvek deck with aluminum rails that walks out from the master suite and more. The home has a two car garage (Haymount - we drool over that, don’t we?), closets galore, fresh heating and air conditioning systems, a recent roof, all vinyl replacement windows, granite counters, subway tile backsplash….gosh, I could keep going on and on. Also, it features awesome neighbors (well, we are being biased…) but I am not lying - it’s a great spot in Haymount~! A large and private backyard, a creek to play in and plenty of space to entertain and shoot hoops. We promise you won’t be disappointed!

We were so delighted to have the chance to renovate this home and we are even more excited to offer it to you! Please come see it- it is ready for showings and you can move in tomorrow if it works for you!! :) Enjoy this home tour and please do come visit 709 Glenwood Drive!!

There is even more backyard than the pictures show! Built-ins galore and several closets in each bedroom - what’s not to love? Please contact us ASAP if you are interested in this amazing property. At this price point, it won’t last long and you will be so fortunate to have a beautiful slice of Haymount to call home!

-Casey

Staying Strong During Chaos - A Letter to Military Families

Well, it has certainly been a week. So much to think about and adjust to. I sat to reflect and as the FRG leader for Carl’s Battalion, I felt that I needed to reach out to our military families, but I wanted to include all families that might benefit from the letter, so I decided to share it with you all. Please know that we are all in this together and I want everyone to know that we are ready to help should anyone need it. Don’t hesitate to reach out.

• Casey

Hello Families,

I hope my email finds you well and staying home with your families.  I apologize for any delay in getting my email out to you, but like many of you, there has been much to figure out over the last two weeks. 

The impacts of COVID-19 have been strong.  We fight fear, boredom, isolation, and anxiety on a daily basis. We are faced with new routines and different challenges than we have ever experienced before.  We are scared as a people, and concerned as a nation.  Even more, we struggle to predict the future as we try to decipher the truth.  

We are parents to children that don't understand.  We are children of parents that we fear will fall ill.  We struggle to make sacrifices that we don't readily see the outcome of value.  We try to persevere, we cut back, we cope, but we fatigue.

I want to remind you that you are NOT alone.  Though we cannot be physically together, our military community is strong.  In fact, our military families have more training to face these battles than most of our civilian counterparts.  When I paused to reflect, several pieces of hope came to mind and I wanted to share these same things with you.

As military families, we have been through so much and we are used to sacrifice.  We are used to the government restricting our abilities to choose things.  While at times this is limiting, it is essential for us to make these sacrifices for our freedom.  We are used to adjusting to change, new schedules, moving pieces, and handling the unknown.  We face these anxieties with courage and faith that tomorrow will come and we will be strong and ready to face the next challenge, having already met the challenge from the day before.  

Additionally, as military families, we are thankful.  We have the comfort of a paycheck coming every month and it is evident how meaningful that has suddenly become.  We are confident that we have resources to help us if we struggle.  We are so used to missing our loved ones, that we can even more appreciate the fact that most of us are getting more time together than ever before. 

During this difficult time, please remember you are prepared and you have possibly been through worse.  Our great-grandparents made sacrifices for our country during the world wars.  As military families, we have made sacrifices for our country during the wars that followed.  This war is a world war of a different type and magnitude, and our country can pull together to make the sacrifice it needs to win.   We are used to these sacrifices, and we can lead the way.

If you or your family are in need during this time, please don't hesitate to reach out. Remember that fresh food, good sleep, exercise, hydration, self care, prayer and meditation and even time alone can help bolster you and your families' immunity to stay well.  Do what you can to be healthy and extend yourself grace during the challenges of each day; you will get through this and we can help one another.  We are stronger together, even if from a social distancing length.

Keep running the race and keep the faith.  You are stronger than you know. We can do this!

All the best - from our family to yours,

Casey Benander

GRATITUDE - FREE Gratitude Art Prints

It has certainly been a troubling week for our nation and our world. The concern of the spreading global epidemic is scary and unsettling. During these times, I find myself pulling back and trying to ground myself in what blessings we are surrounded by. We don’t know what the future holds, but we know our attitude toward whatever comes our way will guide our perspectives.

While recently on our family vacation, I visited a local boutique that I fell in love with. The boutique was filled with inspiration and wonderful words of wisdom. While shopping, I picked up two tea towels that featured quotes that inspired me. I had intentions of framing the towels, but decided instead to include them as part of a wedding gift for a young friend of mine.

Because I loved the quotes, I created art prints to keep for our home, and I wanted to share them with you. Please feel free to download the PDF Files or the JPeg Files to create designs or art prints for your home.

We need to continue to do good in the world, even during times that cause us to fear tomorrow. We need to be thankful for what we have, and share with those who need us the most. The more we can reach out to one another, the stronger the world becomes. While we have to be careful and smart, we need to remember that we need one another to make this world work.

I hope you find as much inspiration in these quotes as I did. Please enjoy them, share them, and live by them.

- Casey

PEARL STREET - NOW AVAILABLE!

Welcome home!

Don’t pass up an opportunity to rent our highly sought after Haymount Homes Pearl Street Home! You can see full details on our Pearl Page. Lots to see and pictures galore!!

Easy living with lawn care included in the rent! This beautiful, fully remodeled and lovingly cared for home is located in the fabulous neighborhood of Haymount, in the highly sought after Terry Sanford School district. Fully remodeled with newly installed hardwood floors, fresh carpet upstairs, lovely paint, fully renovated kitchen from cabinets to appliances, this fresh and updated Haymount Charmer is neat as a pin. The kitchen boasts new appliances, stainless hardware, farmhouse custom subway tile backsplash, and dual windows. Enjoy a sunny breakfast in the adjoined dining room, or travel to the back patio through the lovely French doors. This darling home features three large bedrooms with an extra bonus room as well, a full bath with ceramic tile and stainless finishes. The home includes original vintage door handles, decorative fireplace to grace the front room, perfect for relaxing and entertaining. Fully remodeled bathroom, complete with ceramic tile, tub, and hand held spa fixture. Beautiful hardwood floors are featured throughout the first level of this home. There is an enclosed indoor washer and dryer area with storage as well. The fully fenced and landscaped back yard is ready for entertaining, complete with a back patio, walkway, and fire pit area. Mature Japanese Maples offer serenity and beauty to the area, and a place for your little ones or pets to play, while you relax from your rocking chair. Enjoy easy living with lawn care service included in your rent. You'll love the energy efficient new vinyl windows, skylights, brand new dual zone heating and air conditioning system ,and recent roof to keep your cool air in during the warm summer ahead. The attic space offers ample storage as well. Located in the heart of Haymount and voted the best neighborhood in Fayetteville. Only a few blocks from the wonderful General Lee Park, ice cream shops, schools, restaurants, theater and more, the convenient living and location of your new home cannot be beat. Just a 10 minute drive to Fort Bragg. With its classic charm, modern conveniences, top rated schools, and centrally located wonderful neighborhood, this charmer will be a wonderful place to call home. Won't last long so be sure to contact us as soon as possible for a showing. Lawncare service is included in the rent. Pet deposit required for approved pets; pets are by discretion. Application fee for credit check and background check.

AVAILABLE THIS FEBRUARY - Haymount Homes Consulting Home - 4 BR, 3BA

Happy New Year!!

We are thrilled to announce the availability of an upcoming Haymount Gem - available mid February of 2020!

Welcome Home! Enjoy modern living but historic charm in downtown Fayetteville and the heart of Haymount! Presenting a Haymount Homes exclusive consulting property on Jordan street.

Available this February, you will enjoy the modern convenience of a 2 car garage, spacious bedrooms with ample storage, and southern craftsman style porch. Everything you want about being in Haymount without making the space compromise! Get ready to sip your sweet tea and chat with your great neighbors on your ample front porch!!

The property is within walking distance to Terry Sanford, one of the most desired school districts in town, just moments away from parks, downtown attractions, coffee shops, & Fayetteville's Baseball Stadium.

You'll love the GOURMET KITCHEN, OPEN FLOOR-PLAN, FORMAL DINING & LIVING ROOM w/ beautiful hardwood floors... MASTER SUITE DOWNSTAIRS w/ TILED SHOWER AND JETTED TUB, and enjoy three additional bedrooms - plus a loft and media room upstairs. Plus, each bedroom has extra-large walk-in closets!!

The Owners of this fabulous are top notch and you will love your new home! We are proud to consult with them and bring you this amazing rental opportunity. Please don’t hesitate to reach out and contact us right away about scheduling a viewing - they will start after the new year!

Rental Price: $1800/month including lawn care; pets upon approval.

Welcome Home!

Casey

NOW AVAILABLE - OUR NEWEST HOME CAPE FEAR AVENUE

Hey y’all!

We are so excited to preview our next rental property! Cape Fear Avenue has finished up renovations as we speak and is ready for someone to love! We are starting to accept applications for Cape Fear Avenue now, so don’t hesitate if you are looking to snatch up our latest home!

Cape Fear Avenue features 2-3 bedrooms, and 1 bath. It has an optional dining room with a closet, that could be used as a third bedroom if desire. We have updated each and every surface of this darling home. It has a brand new front porch, all new and refinished hardwood floors throughout the home (except the bathroom which is tile and laundry room featuring luxury vinyl plank flooring). We have opened this home up to include a beautiful eat-in kitchen with island seating, downdraft range, granite counters, open shelving and stainless appliances.

The bathroom includes the freshly restored iron tub, beautiful patterned tile flooring, and awesome subway tile shower. Our Cape Fear Home offers updated roof and all new windows and exterior doors (minus the vintage front door) to provide great efficiency.

Cape Fear Avenue offers ample storage in the fully floored attic space and the garden shed outside. Like all our Haymount Homes, it is located in Haymount and the Terry Sanford School district, near 10 five star daycares and preschools, near over a dozen churches, and just down the street from the new Segra stadium and home of the Woodpeckers.

We are excited to offer you Cape Fear Avenue and hope someone special will call it home! Let us know if you might like to be that person and contact us today!!

-Casey

Want more photos!??? Scroll down to enjoy a photo tour!

PEARL STREET - NOW AVAILABLE!

Welcome home!

Don’t pass up an opportunity to rent our highly sought after Haymount Homes Pearl Street Home! You can see full details on our Pearl Page

Easy living with lawn care included in the rent! This beautiful, fully remodeled and lovingly cared for home is located in the fabulous neighborhood of Haymount, in the highly sought after Terry Sanford School district. Fully remodeled with newly installed hardwood floors, fresh carpet upstairs, lovely paint, fully renovated kitchen from cabinets to appliances, this fresh and updated Haymount Charmer is neat as a pin. The kitchen boasts new appliances, stainless hardware, farmhouse custom subway tile backsplash, and dual windows. Enjoy a sunny breakfast in the adjoined dining room, or travel to the back patio through the lovely French doors. This darling home features three large bedrooms with an extra bonus room as well, a full bath with ceramic tile and stainless finishes. The home includes original vintage door handles, decorative fireplace to grace the front room, perfect for relaxing and entertaining. Fully remodeled bathroom, complete with ceramic tile, tub, and hand held spa fixture. Beautiful hardwood floors are featured throughout the first level of this home. There is an enclosed indoor washer and dryer area with storage as well. The fully fenced and landscaped back yard is ready for entertaining, complete with a back patio, walkway, and fire pit area. Mature Japanese Maples offer serenity and beauty to the area, and a place for your little ones or pets to play, while you relax from your rocking chair. Enjoy easy living with lawn care service included in your rent. You'll love the energy efficient new vinyl windows, skylights, brand new dual zone heating and air conditioning system ,and recent roof to keep your cool air in during the warm summer ahead. The attic space offers ample storage as well. Located in the heart of Haymount and voted the best neighborhood in Fayetteville. Only a few blocks from the wonderful General Lee Park, ice cream shops, schools, restaurants, theater and more, the convenient living and location of your new home cannot be beat. Just a 10 minute drive to Fort Bragg. With its classic charm, modern conveniences, top rated schools, and centrally located wonderful neighborhood, this charmer will be a wonderful place to call home. Won't last long so be sure to contact us as soon as possible for a showing. Lawncare service is included in the rent. Pet deposit required for approved pets; pets are by discretion. Application fee for credit check and background check.

There is a potential for home to be rented furnished. Please contact us if you need this service and we can discuss this.

HOME STAGING DECOR SALE

We are excited to announce our first ever ONLINE home decor staging sale!

If you were eyeing some of the items from our newest rental, you are in luck! We have decided to formally have an “online” sale of some of the home furnishings that we used in completing the Greenland Home!

We will be listing our items on the facebook marketplace and also on craigslist. If you are interested in them, please reach out via messaging or email to let me know you’d like something. We only have ONE of everything for the most part, so when it’s gone, it’s gone! Several of the items are vintage and do have some signs of wear, but that does add charm to them!

If you see something you like, you must be able to transport it yourself. Many of the items are currently being stored at our next rental home project and I will meet you there during pick up!

In the past, our items have not lasted long, so be sure to let me know if you see something you’d like right away. We have never one this “virtually” online, so it will be a bit of an adventure for us - we’ll all work together to get you great deals and us some space to complete our newest project.

Hope you enjoy browsing the sale and thank you for stopping by! Keep checking back as I might have more to add as I continue to go through our stash!

RESTORATION HARDWARE CAST IRON GLASS TOPPED COFFEE TABLE - $150

SOLD - GRAY TUFTED SIDE CHAIR - $150

YELLOW, TEAL, WHITE THROW PILLOW - SET OF 7 - $50

HYDRANGEA FLOWER ARRANGEMENT - $15

SOLD - IRON BED AND MATTRESS AND BOXSPRING SET - USED FOR STAGING AND THREE NIGHTS OF SLEEP ONLY - $400

BLACK PEDESTAL SIDE TABLE - $25

GRAY BLUE 5X7 RUG - $70

SOLD - VINTAGE UPCYCLED FRENCH INSPIRED WOODEN BENCH - $175

ANTIQUE FLEA MARKET SIGN - $15

IRON WALL SCONCES - $30

FARMHOUSE THROW PILLOWS - $10 EACH - BLACK,WHITE CHECKED, BURLAP STYLES

SOLD - ROSE GOLD HAIRPIN SIDE TABLE - $20

POTTERY BARN METAL CANDLE WALL LANTERN - $12

ALEIA NAY FRAMED FARM SHEEP ART BOARD - $75

TIERED HOME SERVING TOWER - $25

PIG CHALKBOARD - $20

EXTRA LARGE, MEDIUM AND SMALL STORAGE JARS - $70 FOR SET OF 6 - ALL CLEAR GLASS (ONE IS BEHIND THE SECOND LARGE ONE)

RATTAN MARKET BASKET - $15

PIER ONE HAMMERED METAL PEDESTAL - $15

SOLD - FRAMED WOODEN SIGN - $8

SOLD - METAL DISPLAY LARGE CENTERPIECE BIRDCAGE - $20

WALL DISPLAY THERMOMETER - $10

DESK LAMP - $10

BROWN LEAF CURTAINS - 84” - SET OF 2 - $20

SOLD - WOOD AND METAL STOOL OR SIDE TABLE - ADJUSTABLE - $40

SOLD - SHIPLAP BIRDCAGE 3D WALL SIGN - $15

PARIS FRENCH WALL SCONCE - $12

GREENLAND DRIVE - BEFORE AND AFTER

We hope you enjoyed the Greenland drive home tour. As mentioned, it was a labor of love for many people involved in the project. If you are anything like us, you love the see the before pictures to help give perspective on what has been achieved.

We are not the best at remembering to take a lot of before pictures, so we need to improve on this. However, we will give you what we have so you can see how far our Greenland home came. It had been neglected for quite some time and we are so happy it has been restored to a home you can love!

Without more chat, here are some before and after photos for you!!

As you can see, Greenland has come a loooooong way! From rotted flooring to unlevel fireplaces, from wild and uncontrolled yards and trees to long past their prime roof and windows, it has been nothing short of a job. With each part of its renovation, a little more of the home’s personality came through. It was almost as if it wanted to be loved.

“Everything has its beauty, but not everyone sees it.”

— Confucius

It is so much fun to restore beauty to our neighborhood and haymount continues to give back to all of us. Thanks for looking at this before and after photos. We hope you they inspire you to create beauty around you!

-Casey