As we begin a new year, it's not uncommon for many of us to set resolutions aimed at self-improvement. One common resolution that often finds its way to the top of the list is the commitment to becoming more organized. Whether it's creating a clutter-free living space or streamlining daily routines, the pursuit of organization can significantly impact our overall well-being. We can apply our organizational skills to numerous areas of life, but from the eyes of a home builder, we’ll focus on two essential corners of a home: the closet and the pantry.

The Closet

Your closet is more than just a place to store clothes; it's where you begin and end your day. Adopting a systematic approach to your closet can simplify your daily routine and save you time for the rest of your day.

1. Declutter with Purpose: Start by evaluating each item in your closet. Ask yourself whether you've worn it in the past year or, as Marie Kondo would say, if it still “sparks joy.” Discard or donate items that no longer serve a purpose in your life. Creating space for the things you truly love and use is the first step toward an organized closet.
2. Invest in Quality Storage Solutions: Consider investing in storage solutions that optimize your closet space. Shelves, hanging organizers, and drawer dividers can transform chaotic spaces into orderly compartments. These are also useful when organizing accessories such as shoes, bags, and jewelry. Displaying accessories through thrifted trays or jewelry hangers not only adds aesthetic value but also makes getting ready a breeze. If you are building a new home or upgrading your closet space, custom-designed closets tailored to your specific needs are a worthwhile investment, ensuring that every inch of space is utilized efficiently.
3. Seasonal Rotation: Implement a seasonal rotation strategy to keep your closet fresh and relevant. Store off-season items in labeled containers or vacuum-sealed bags to maximize space. This not only maintains an organized closet but also makes it easier to locate and access the clothes you need.
4. Color Coordination and Categorization: Organize your clothes by color and category for a visually appealing and functional closet. This makes it easier to find items and plan outfits. Consider grouping clothes by type (shirts, pants, dresses) and further organizing within those categories based on color.

The Pantry

Most would say the kitchen is the heart of any home, but we’ll take it a step further and say it’s a well-organized pantry. Here are tips to transform your pantry into a space that is both efficient and pleasing to the eye.

1. Clear Out and Assess: Begin by emptying your pantry and assessing its contents. Discard expired items and take note of what needs to be replenished. This initial purge sets the stage for a more organized and functional pantry.
2. Zone-Based Organization: Divide your pantry into zones based on categories such as grains, canned goods, snacks, and baking essentials. Assign specific shelves or sections for each category to create a logical flow. This not only enhances visibility but also simplifies the process of finding ingredients.
3. Storage Containers: Invest in transparent storage containers for staples like flour, sugar, and pasta. This not only keeps ingredients fresh but also allows you to easily identify when supplies are running low. (Pro Tip: Label each container to streamline the cooking and baking process while also adding a nice visual appeal). Baskets are another great way to contain and keep together items like chips or other loose food items.
4. Utilize Vertical Space: Make the most of vertical space by incorporating adjustable shelves, hooks, or hanging organizers. This prevents overcrowding and ensures that every item has its designated place. Consider installing pull-out shelves or baskets for easy access to items at the back of deep shelves.

In the pursuit of an organized life, the closet and pantry serve as foundational spaces that can transform daily living. By adopting intentional decluttering practices, investing in quality storage solutions, and implementing thoughtful organizational strategies, you can create beautiful and efficient spaces.

Whether you're revamping an existing space or embracing the blank canvas of a new build, we hope this new year marks the beginning of a more organized and harmonious chapter in your home.

It is that time of year- time for the Parade of Homes! This year Landmark Fine Homes has 8 Homes featured in the Parade.

Now is the perfect time to buy a new home. Overall, living in the right home can help your family feel comfortable, safe, and happy while providing opportunities for personal growth and connections with the community. It can be a place where your family can thrive and create lasting memories together.

Please stop by one of our Parade Homes this weekend, find the perfect completed home, or talk to us about custom home building. While you are there, be sure and ask about our Parade of Homes Incentives!

For a limited time, Homeowners have the choice of three different offers based on what works best for them.

Option #1:

Save up to $90,000 on a 30-year mortgage PLUS receive up to $2,000 in closing costs! Landmark Fine Homes will buy down your interest rate by two points for the full lifetime of your loan for a limited time only. This two-point buy-down varies in the total percent saved off your interest rate based on factors such as credit score, home price, down payment, and more.*

Option #2:

Save up to $13,000 in the first two years PLUS receive up to $2,000 in closing costs! Landmark Fine Homes will buy down your interest rate by 2% for the first year of the loan and 1% for the second year of the loan for a limited time only. Years three and beyond are locked in at the full interest rate. This is a fixed-rate mortgage with no penalty to refinance at any time.*

Option #3:

If you are a Homeowner with the funds available to purchase the home without getting financing from a lender, Landmark Fine Homes will provide 2% of the purchase price (up to $15,000) toward personalized enhancements to your home and/or closing costs.

Offer valid thru November 30, 2022

Are you ready to take advantage of these great deals? Contact us TODAY!

*Savings amount based on home price, credit score, down payment, loan amount, and other factors. The dollar figures provided are estimates only

Have your heard of AirBnB or VRBO?  It has become the newest way to lodge when you are away on vacation or on business trips.  Many people are buying properties for this specific reason.

Check out a few things to consider before you decide if this is a option for you.

As the march into winter gets underway, a lot of people are already starting to plan their spring and summer vacations. Oh, they’ll go somewhere sunny, or to a fantastic resort or maybe, if you’re lucky, your house.

They might as well, you’re going to be going on that fantastic cruise after all. Besides, you’ve heard such good things about being an AirBnB host. Your guests will end up paying for most of your trip, it’s totally win-win.

Isn’t it?

Short Term Rentals and You: The Tip of the Iceberg

Using your personal home, in whole or in part, as a short-term rental can certainly help pay the bills, but the truth is that short-term rentals also have huge issues you have to consider. It’s not as easy as listing on AirBnB and hoping for the best. You’ll need to do considerable legwork before getting started, otherwise you may find yourself in a lot of trouble and with expensive problems that eat all your profit.  Read More......

Every year between Thanksgiving and Christmas we host our annual "Thanksmas Party" to  give our employees, trade partners and families we have built for the opportunity to give back to The Salvation Army of Cleveland County.  This organization is very dear to our hearts.  Santa always comes to make sure everyone has been good and we get the opportunity to have our pictures taken with the Big Man!

Our team also takes a day and Rings the Bell!  This is such a staple of the holiday season as much as the BC Clark jingle!  If you have never volunteerd, you are missing out!  It is such a great way to spread some holiday cheer.  When they say, every penny counts, it truly does! We had fun this year and tried to put a really LARGE check into the kettle.  Needless to say, it didn't work!  Click on the picture and you can check out the video we did!

Our focus on giving back and The Salvation Army is not limited to Christmas Time.  We had the opportunity to build The Judy McKown Children's Activity center that opened last year.  This beautiful building gives families a safe warm place to go to and be mentored by those in our community.

If  you are looking for somewhere to give- check out The Salvation Army!

It has never been a secret that animals are a major part of our family.  When we posted on Facebook asking everyone to comment with a picture of their puppies the response was overwhelming!!  Not only were there a lot of really cute pictures, there were also some really cute names  Chloe, Gavin, Opie, Sasha, Mesha, Rizzo, Archer, Jax, Delilah, BellaRose, Boston, Lillian, Buttons, Poppy, Oliver are just to name a few.

We went back and looked at all the cool ideas people have incorporated into their homes.  We thought you would love to see some-

What are some of your ideas?  We would love to hear them!!

As a homeowner, how do you know whether your home is energy efficient or not? You could guess based on your own understanding of energy efficiency, but it’s much more effective to evaluate the energy efficiency of a home using the Home Energy Rating System (HERS®). To earn a HERS index score, a home must comply with many mandatory standards, including components like window sealing, wall sealants, and insulation. Let’s take a closer look at the HERS® Index, and why it’s so important.

What is the HERS® Index Score?

Based on a scale of 0 to 150, the HERS® Index measures a home’s energy efficiency, with 0 being a net-zero energy home that generates as much energy as it consumes. On the other end of the scale, 150 indicates a home built to the minimum standards specified by the 2006 International Energy Conservation Code (IECC). A professional energy auditor determines the HERS® Index Score of a house after physically inspecting the house and conducting a detailed analysis of its energy consumption. Newly constructed homes are expected to score 100 on the HERS® Index, so any score lower than that indicates higher energy efficiency than a standard new home. A home that scores 70 would be 30 % more energy efficient than a standard new home, while a home with a score of 130 would be 30% less energy efficient.

What Goes Into the Scoring?

A home’s HERS® Score is calculated by a certified inspector from the Residential Energy Services Network (RESNET). Conducting an energy audit on your home, the inspector compares the data against a ‘reference home’, a designed model home. This model home will be the same size and shape as your home, to keep the score relative to the size, shape, and type of house in which you live. The Energy Rating includes variables like the exterior walls, the floors over unconditioned spaces, ceilings and roofs, attics, foundations and crawlspaces, windows, doors, vents, and ductwork, and HVAC systems, water heating systems and the thermostat.

Why is Your Home’s HERS® Index Score Important?

Determining your home’s score can give you a lot of information about your house. You can learn how efficiently it’s operating, and how you can save money on energy costs by making minor modifications. If you’re planning to sell your home, working towards a better HERS® Index Score can increase its value, and if you’re buying a home, looking at the HERS® Score can help you determine where you might want to make some changes to increase its efficiency.

Energy Efficient Homes Built to Be Beautiful

Talk to Landmark customers and you’ll hear the same thing, over and over. Landmark Fine Homes are built to be both beautiful and energy efficient, and the proof is in the low energy costs for residents of Landmark communities. When you’re ready to build your dream home, Landmark Fine Homes has beautiful new and custom-built homes in a variety of sizes and floorplans, just waiting to become yours. Our homes are, not only energy efficient, but also built with the utmost attention to detail; some are located in active adult communities where you’ll find plenty to do. Make your next house the home of your dreams by contacting Landmark Fine Homes today!\

Are you ready?

Winter is right around the corner as temperatures continue to drop!  Now is the time to take care of a few maintenance issues around your home to make sure you are ready!

• Be sure and disconnect all outside hoses.  If you forget the outside water faucet can freeze and burst pipes inside the walls.
• If this is the first time to you have turned on your heater you may experience a burning smell.  This is completely normal.  There might also be some smoke that could set off your smoke detector.  The smoke will usually clear away quickly.  Opening a door or window will usually help.
• A good rule of thumb is to change out your batteries on your smoke alarm at the same time you change your clocks.  It is not too late!  Make sure those batteries are good.

What are other things you do around your house as the temperatures drop?

When the thermostat outside is over 90 degrees, most garden plants, lawns, flowers, and veggies can tend to shut down. What is a homeowner to do? Here are some tips we have found that help make our yards in Carrington Lakes, Valencia, The Ranches, and Belleau Wood look their best!

• Choose Plants Wisely:  Some plants are more heat tolerant than others!
• Water: Resist the urge to over water or soak your plants until they're soggy.  You should only give your lawn and garden a inch at a time.  If it is hot and dry water more often but do not increase the amount.
• Garden Pests- Spider mites are a problem in hot weather.  Make sure you keep the leaves of your plants wet to discourage them!
• Weeds- No matter how hot is gets, weeds are always a problem!  Sorry, you will need to keep weeding your flower beds and lawn.
• Containers- Remember to keep watering them!  You can always move them to shadier locations as the temperature rises.
• Mulch- Add more mulch if needed.  It is a great product to keep the soil cooler and helps to hold the moisture. Choose well composted mulches in hot weather rather than fresh manure or grass clippings.

After you have worked in the yard don't forget to take care of yourself!  Find a swimming pool and relax.  I can tell you our pools at Valencia and Carrington Lakes continue to be a popular place no matter how hot it gets!

Have you ever walked into someone’s home or business and wondered what were they thinking when they decorated their bookshelves?  A well-decorated shelf is like the perfect icing on the perfect cake.  These are some things we like to consider when decorating our bookshelves:

• Set your shelves at different heights so it doesn’t look too uniform.  Remove a shelf entirely if needed.
• Use several pieces of greenery, but be sure not to overuse the greenery (always try and place the greenery on different shelves.  If you have a bookshelf with corresponding sides then try not to use greenery on both shelves that are at the same level or on a shelf that is above or below the shelf that has greenery already.
• Use family pictures in frames.  5X7 and 8X10 work the best.
• Use books.  I love using old looking leather-bound books the best.  I have found these at garage sales and library sales.  It is a good idea to not put them all on one shelf.  Place them in groups of 3-5 in all different varieties.  Stand them on their ends, lay them down etc.
• Use fabric if you can.  Choose one with a complimenting color to your décor and scrunch it up under some books or a picture.  This adds a perfect pop of color.
• Don’t be afraid to lay things on their sides.  You can do this with metal and wooden candle holders, decorative boxes or chests and baskets. This is what we did at one of our model homes in Carrington Lakes.
•  If you want a warm and cozy feeling then use warm tones when choosing your décor.  If you want a clean look, then use the cool tones with straight edges.  Mixing the two can look nice too, but I would be careful when doing so.