Continuing our series on how to make the best of an unusual situation we bring back Amanda Bebrin for her thoughts.

Whether you’re still going to work, managing kiddos, working or taking classes from home, or just plain going stir crazy (or all of the above), everything can feel really overwhelming at the moment. So, if you could use some ideas to help fill these many, many hours in isolation, I’ve got your back.

Sweat it out:

The on-going difficulty of our lives generates a lot of stress, which is not good to carry around all day long. A handy way to stop thinking about how 2020 is a garbage fire is to do an activity so strenuous that you can’t think about anything else. Maybe you’ve heard about yoga? A cursory YouTube search will give you several year’s worth of content -- or, you can support a local studio like Power Yoga of Cape Cod, which is offering classes via Zoom throughout the week. The classes are rigorous and the wonderful instructors offer adaptations for a variety of skill levels. Plus, since you’re participating online, no one will notice when you lose your balance in downward-facing dog. 

Focusing on anything but memes and headlines:

Mental exertion is just as important as physical exercise, especially if it occupies your hands allowing you to put down your phone. Classics like chess, jigsaw puzzles, card games, and board games are being dug out of closets and basements all over the country (and immediately reminding you and your loved ones why you hid them away in the first place….sometimes it’s okay to let the children win at Connect 4, DAD!). Or, if you’re feeling particularly ambitious, this is the perfect moment to attempt whatever trendy craft you keep seeing on Pinterest! Hand-lettering, knitting, and embroidery are all the rage -- and also have a ton of resources to help get you going. The act of creation is always a nice endorphin boost when everything else is a hot mess. (Try Puzzles from Sativa -- in Harwich).

There are a ton of articles and lists going around the internet about how to be making the most of this time (this one included), that you should be coming out of quarantine with a new skill, or side hustle, or your house in perfect condition. For many people, that’s just not at all possible. And for all of us: this is a global pandemic. Everything is in flux, and there will be no going back to the way things were before, for better and for worse. Right now, there is no agenda other than surviving. So if at the end of all of this, if the “only” thing you’ve managed to do is keep yourself alive and relatively sane, that’s enough.

….But if you do happen to see a cool bird or make a craft that you’re super proud of and post in on Instagram (as you should), please tag me. I’ve done everything on this list and still have 22 hours of my day left to fill!

March Review:

Well, life looked a lot different in March than we are used to and we can only assume that any changes the Cape Cod real estate market felt in March are merely the beginning of a trend line that we do not yet have a full view of. Some good news is that Gov. Baker has deemed real estate an essential service so we are still able [...]

After making it through the longest March ever, we’re now staring down an equally long April spent in lockdown. For a society that’s usually lamenting never having enough time to do the things we want, we’re now facing a month’s worth of hours to fill. Whether you’re still going to work, managing kiddos, working or taking classes from home, or just plain going stir crazy (or all of the above), everything can feel really overwhelming at the moment. In my experience, it does help to find something small, and feasible, to accomplish, to have some semblance of control - at least over your own life and space. So, if you could use some ideas to help fill these many, many hours in isolation, I’ve got your back.

Bird *is* the word: The weather is finally getting nicer, and while we’re all cooped up inside, the birds are back in action! Cape Cod boasts a diverse population of feathered former-dinos, which you can observe out your own windows. Provided that you’re staying the recommended 6 feet away from any other burgeoning birders, the Cape Cod Rail Trail and local conservation trails are also great places to spot Grackles, Red-winged Blackbirds, Ospreys, and more. Mass Audubon has tons of materials to help you identify the birds you do see -- I would not recommend trying to Google them based on a loose series of descriptors. “Small bird black red patches” does not return the results you want and also Google will think you’re having a stroke. 

Actually tackling your honey-do/home improvement list: As any professional procrastinator knows, there comes a point when you’ve exhausted your entire list of activities and are still so bored that you’re willing to do things that you’ve been avoiding for years. This is the moment to rid your closet and bureau of all those clothes that don’t fit you; to finally organize that drawer/pile of miscellaneous mail, accessories, and free promotional stuff; to patch and repaint the hole in the bathroom wall where you *accidentally* ripped down the towel bar two years ago. Extra points will be awarded if you choose to do anything on the outside of your house, or that involves the words ‘lawn clean-up’ or ‘mulch.’ 

Check in again for more great things to do on Cape Cod next week!  And click here to contact us with any questions about buying and selling real estate - and enjoying all that Cape Cod has to offer.

We hope this finds you all hale and hearty in these trying times!  We are thankful to still be open for business and meeting the real estate needs of our clients, for a little more detail on how we are managing this please see our previous blog here.  Today we wanted to share the first of a few ideas for how to improve your home to add value (since you may have spare time these days), whether you are thinking of selling this year or in the future.

Quality of Life and Aesthetic Improvements

We always recommend that you undertake upgrades that will make you enjoy your home more!  If you can afford it, don't wait 20 years to replace a bathroom you hate, improve and enjoy it now while you are living in your home.  Some sellers stress about doing these improvements just before selling and often don't reap monetary benefits as a results (see our blog about recouping investment on upgrades here).  You can even undertake very inexpensive projects that improve the overall look and livability of your home that - while mostly intended for you - also make your home more appealing when selling.  See the after and before photos (before has the mess of wires on the right) of a quick organization of home electronics.  This makes your home more livable for you and, by being tidy and neat, can improve buyers' first impressions.  A visibly clean and orderly home with very few 'punch-list' items implies that the owners are taking care of larger, invisible maintenance items -- this can have significant positive impacts by attracting higher and earlier offers when selling

If you are considering listing your home, please give us a call to put two generations of tradition and three decades of experience in your pocket.  For some more tips for homeowners check out our blogs tagged here.

Here at Chatelain Real Estate we are taking the current social distancing guidelines very seriously. We've put the following services in place to make sure we are able to keep everyone safe while also providing essential services to our [...]

February Review:

As 2020 starts rolling into the Spring market, February brought some interesting happenings. February closings, inventory and supply of homes are all down nearly 20% compared to 2019.  We did see a 15% increase in pending sales last month which may portend more closings in March.  Inventory compared to January is on the [...]

Buyers are looking for homes that sparkle.  Some homes for sale on Cape Cod have been recently renovated and benefit from fresh paint, new floors or carpets, and updated appliances in the kitchen, bath or both.  A home with newer updates is definitely more appealing to buyers (but worth it? Please see our thoughts here) and with our simple trick you too can make your home look its best without spending thousands of dollars.

Ready? Vinegar, warm water, elbow grease.  No kidding.  Too often we see homes that are, quite simply, dirty.  Many sellers do a decent job cleaning their homes by sweeping, vacuuming, and mopping floors.  What so many people miss are the walls!  Spend a little time with some diluted white vinegar and wash every surface in your home.  You will be amazed at how much grime can appear on a rag from, what you thought was, a 'clean' flat wall.  Spend a little extra time by beds, furniture, paintings, and anywhere that people touch (light switches, around door knobs etc...).  Haven't you noticed that light discoloration on the wall when you move the bureau?  When your home is empty and that bureau is gone, every potential buyer walking through will notice it as well.  Another great tip: use a 'Magic Eraser' or similar product for larger marks, but be careful, these can change the texture of paint which is very visible in certain light.  

If you are trying to squeeze every ounce of potential value out of your homes consider this inexpensive way to make it more appealing to buyers.  When someone walks in and can see everything that is wonderful about your home without the distraction of dirty walls, you give yourself a great shot at a higher sale price!

If you are considering listing your home, please give us a call to put two generations of tradition and three decades of experience in your pocket.  And to see a few houses that don't need this treatment take a look at some of our listings here.  Or for some more tips for homeowners check out our blogs tagged here.

We get a lot of questions from folks interested in the issue of housing affordability here on the Cape, so we thought we’d give a quick overview of the issue and some of the potential solutions being discussed. [...]

Are you interested in the health of the Cape Cod real estate market?  How it compares to Massachusetts' real estate trends? We have had some time to review the market data from 2019 and have some interesting findings to report.  We'll take a few key points and break them [...]

January Review:

After the holidays the January market saw an increase in new listings which was up nearly 14% from January 2019.  We are hopeful this trend will continue and result in more months supply of inventory as we enter the Spring season.  We also note several trends in other metrics that indicate what the Spring may look like.  Days [...]