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As a homeowner of some 13 years, I know all too well the excitement — and anxiety — around buying and maintaining your first home.Back in 2005, my husband and I bought our place in Chicago with no money down and used that down payment money to renovate the kitchen and master bathroom — two areas that can increase a home's resale value. That was a smart move for us rookie homeowners. But there would be plenty of mistakes and lessons learned the hard way in the years to come.Now, with friends and family coming to me for homeownership tips, I decided to brush up. Here's what I learned — both from the experts and from experience — that every new homeowner should keep top of mind.<img src="https://www.lifeandmoney.citi.com/rcs/lifeandmoney/storage/public/GettyImages-995962792_web.jpg" alt="Asian woman and Asian man walk into the door of a house holding hands" class="right_image" /><h2>Get a home warranty </h2>Appliances are big expenses. If yours are older, you may request the seller to buy a home warranty before you close or get one yourself. A home warranty will cost approximately $500 and have a deductible, usually $100 per claim, but when you're talking about replacing a $4,000 furnace, an $1,800 refrigerator or a $2,000 oven, a home warranty makes sense."Let's say you just move in and your furnace goes down, you don't want to put out $3,500 for a new one," says Chris Krogmeier, broker and owner of Lake Country Home Realty in Wisconsin. "If you have a home warranty, you just pay a deductible and you get a new furnace."I learned from experience why home warranties are worth it when, on one of the coldest days one winter, we discovered that our furnace wasn't turning on. This of course happened on a Friday, so we couldn't get a new one installed until after the weekend. But, with a claim made on the home warranty, by Monday afternoon we had a new furnace and the heat was pumping.<img src="https://www.lifeandmoney.citi.com/rcs/lifeandmoney/storage/public/GettyImages-950633928_web.jpg" alt="Overhead shot of trendy couple walking through a set of french doors" class="right_image" /><h2>Carefully vet all contractors</h2>"There are a lot of online curated platforms like HomeAdvisor.com and Angie's List," Bodrozic says. "Or turn to a source like NextDoor.com or a real estate agent or insurance agent."Before you hire a contractor, make sure they're licensed and insured — get a detailed budget with progress payment deadlines. "It sounds elementary, but that's to ensure the job stays on budget and deadline and that work is getting completed to your satisfaction," Boone adds.We had a payment plan in place, but I wish we had resources like the ones listed above. Otherwise, we may not have hired someone who, after taking our third payment, quickly deposited it and was never heard from again.

I Spent a Week Learning About Homeownership

Whether you're looking to sell your home or just spruce it up, there are lots of ways to update your space. But which ones are worth the time and money?
Boosting curb appeal is generally a smart move because a beautiful exterior makes a good first impression on potential buyers; it's also the first thing you see when you leave and return home each day. Simple interior switch-ups (new fixtures, hardware or tile, for example) can refresh your rooms too.
To pin down some of the best projects to tackle, we tapped five pros &mdash; including a realtor, a stager and a landscape artist &mdash; to share their value-adding favorites.
<h2>Level-up the entrance</h2>
A well-cared-for path to the front door instantly elevates the look of a home, so consider putting in a new brick or stone walkway, suggests David Migdal, president of Highland Park, IL-based Garden Consultants. If that&rsquo;s not an option, you can also make this spot more welcoming by setting up a seating area with a few chairs and a small table.
And don&rsquo;t overlook the front door, says Migdal. &ldquo;You could paint it so it stands out or replace it with a glass door if the house is modern.&rdquo; To dress it up even more, add some stylish accessories; think earthy planters, an elegant new mailbox or sleek address numbers.
<h2>Focus on the foyer too</h2>
This often-underrated area sets a tone for the whole home, so if yours feels spare or uninviting, it may be worth a refresh. &ldquo;Look at ways to simply activate that space,&rdquo; says Brian Wickersham, founder of AUX Architecture in Los Angeles, CA. &ldquo;Hang fixtures, put art on the walls, have fun with paint color. It can give punch and life to that space immediately when you walk in.&rdquo;
<blockquote>
Hang fixtures, put art on the walls, have fun with paint color.
</blockquote>
<h2>Give high-traffic spots a little love&nbsp;</h2>
When it comes to improving your rooms, you can maximize your efforts and budget by putting yourself in the mindset of a potential buyer. &ldquo;Most buyers are unwilling to do the work and want to walk into a home that&rsquo;s move-in ready,&rdquo; says Brad Lippitz, president of Chicago-based Brad Lippitz Group, Compass. &ldquo;The whole idea is balancing your return with what you put out.&rdquo;
To help your home feel move-in ready, suggests Lippitz, your best bet is to concentrate on key areas like these two:
<ul type="disc">
<li>Bathrooms.&nbsp;These spaces get a lot of use, so any spruce-ups will make a noticeable difference in your daily life. Plus, run-down bathrooms can be a big turnoff. &ldquo;The worst thing for a buyer is to walk into a bathroom and feel like you&rsquo;ve walked into someone else&rsquo;s used bathroom,&rdquo; says Lippitz. Giving walls a fresh coat of paint and buffing floors so they are scratch-free can go a long way, he says. And it's a good idea to re-caulk bathtubs and showers so they look &rdquo;crisp and fresh.&rdquo;</li>
</ul>
&nbsp;
<ul type="disc">
<li>The kitchen.&nbsp;A kitchen is the hub of the home, and because the backsplash is a focal point, it warrants special attention. If yours is outdated, consider changing it out for one that's more current, Lippitz suggests. When in doubt, white subway tile is a timeless and universally appealing choice.</li>
</ul>
<blockquote>
Most buyers are unwilling to do the work and want to walk into a home that&rsquo;s move-in ready.
</blockquote>
<img class="right_image" src="https://www.lifeandmoney.citi.com/rcs/lifeandmoney/storage/public/easy-upgrades_body-1_1361359903.jpg" alt="white and light wood kitchen with a honeycomb pattern white tile backsplash">
<h2>Make some fast fixes</h2>
A few simple solves can help a room feel notably more polished, which is why it's important to look around your home every once in a while as though you're a visitor; otherwise, it's easy to miss details that are feeling dated or shabby. "Like any other relationship, over time you get used to it and take it for granted," says Amy Bloomer, owner of Baltimore, MD-based home organizing company Let Your Space Bloom.
It's quick and easy to change your hardware, Bloomer says, and replacing your brassy kitchen cabinet handles or old-school wooden knobs on a dresser can modernize the whole room. Look for clean-lined hardware in muted metals or an edgy matte black.
Lighting is another update that can make a dramatic difference. Consider swapping out an ornate chandelier or floor lamp with sleeker versions or plug-in sconces.
<img class="right_image" src="https://www.lifeandmoney.citi.com/rcs/lifeandmoney/storage/public/GettyImages-601128064_web.jpg" alt="white walled living room with a gray couch, a low wooden table and a gray wooden cardboard deer head mount on the wall">
<h2>Streamline your spaces</h2>
When professional home stager Justin Riordan, founder of Space and Archer Design Agency in Portland, OR, and Seattle, WA, preps clients' homes for sale, he'll often take a "less is more" approach to furnishing a vacant space or reconfiguring the home and existing household items.
That can mean stripping out some decor in a family room. "We tell everyone to take down their window coverings and bring in as much light as possible," Riordan says.
Or it can be as simple as removing shelving from the walls of a basement. "Making the basement clean and empty so people can see exactly what they're getting will make for a faster sale," he notes. Another top tip: Play up the plants in your yard, Riordan suggests. "Put down mulch that's almost black to make sure your flower beds look rich."
&nbsp;
&mdash; With additional reporting from Life and Money by Citi editors

Easy Upgrades That Can Add Value to Your Home

Buying or selling a home can take months &mdash; time spent seeking out and touring properties can seriously clog your schedule. And, if relocating to a new city, your search just became a bit trickier.
However, there is a more convenient way to find your next home: Enter virtual tours.
These 3-D tours are changing up the real estate world, allowing buyers to initially evaluate homes &mdash; and help weed out candidates &mdash; without physically visiting them, while giving sellers a leg up in marketing their property.
Yes, a virtual tour can give a peek inside a property without having to visit but, of course, it can't show you everything. Rarely does a virtual tour step inside a closet, look behind a shower curtain or walk down into a basement. And sometimes the proportions you view aren't exact.
Regardless, virtual tours can help home buyers make an initial assessment and reject properties that just don't make the cut. Following is a breakdown of the benefits and potential drawbacks of virtual tours and the tools being used to help in your home search &mdash; without ever having to leave your couch.
<h2>What&rsquo;s it like to virtually tour and purchase a home?&nbsp;</h2>
In early March, Bianca and Ryan Sasscer put their home in San Diego, CA, up for sale in anticipation of relocating to Denver, CO, for Ryan&rsquo;s job. The couple sold their California home faster than planned and needed to find something quickly in their new city.
Their Compass real estate agent in San Diego, Chris Martin, introduced the Sasscers&nbsp;to Jon Mottern, a broker associate with Compass' Basecamp Homes Team in Denver. To make the virtual search easier, Mottern set up the couple with the Compass Search Tool, which aggregates multiple listing service data as well as private listing site data into one pool of inventory.
Mottern says that this tool makes it possible for clients to view listings via email and the Compass app. &ldquo;The benefits are speed and agility," Mottern says of helping the Sasscers find their new Denver home via virtual tours. &ldquo;The ability to respond quickly and maneuver a really competitive market is the main advantage."
The Sasscers reviewed images and virtual tours, narrowing the search to homes in downtown Denver. While this technology can show a space, one thing a virtual tour can&rsquo;t offer is an emotional connection often gained when seeing a property for yourself. &ldquo;Something Ryan and I talked about is how important it is to go in person,&rdquo; Bianca says. &ldquo;The virtual tour &hellip; it&rsquo;ll never be the same as being there in person.&rdquo;
A work-around is to have someone local go into the home &mdash; whether that's your agent, a friend or relative&nbsp;&mdash; with a video-capable smart phone and show you more of the nuances a virtual tour doesn't dive into. To give a better sense of the space, Mottern did a walk-through of the home and roof deck with the couple over video chat.
&ldquo;I really like to be able to explore the neighborhood to see what&rsquo;s close by,&rdquo; Bianca says. So her brother also recorded a video tour over his cell phone of the area. &ldquo;After that virtual tour, that&rsquo;s when we decided to put in the offer.&rdquo; That final step sealed the deal in helping them settle on a historic loft building in the hot LoDo neighborhood that checked many of their boxes.
<blockquote>
The ability to respond quickly and maneuver a really competitive market is the main advantage.
</blockquote>
<img class="right_image" src="https://www.lifeandmoney.citi.com/rcs/lifeandmoney/storage/public/GettyImages-614229072_web.jpg" alt="Woman surfing a 360 degree view in her smartphone" />
<h2>Technology advancements boost virtual tours</h2>
3-D and 360&deg;-view tours have been around for many years, but they have been heating up the real estate world of late.
According to a report by Zillow, the number of 3-D home tours added to its website in March 2020 versus the previous month showed a 188% increase. Rosemont, IL-based VHT Studios, which creates virtual tours and virtual staging for real estate agents, saw a 30-fold jump in 3-D tour creation in April 2020.
"All searches start online and it makes your home searches so much easier," says Emily Santos, a senior broker with @Properties in Chicago, IL. "For the seller, it's a better way to market your home." A virtual tour provides buyers the ability to browse online, sure, but it also helps sellers get the most eyeballs to create buzz.
Real estate agents can work with professional photographers and videographers to create high-quality galleries that include 360-views. In many cases, the realistic quality of a video walk-through looks as if you're being led through a home in-person.
Compass, for example, has introduced a suite of tools for its agents called Virtual Agent Services, which includes 3-D staging, virtual open houses, interactive home tours and virtual neighborhood walks. This all helps give a more robust view to buyers, whether looking from afar or seeking to pare down their search.
Virtual tours can also help eliminate the need to schedule additional on-site tours. "A lot of buyers are looking for a specific type of property and they'll know it when they see it," Santos adds. "They've done most of their search online and have eliminated many properties. They'll see a property in person after a virtual tour and then write an offer right away."
New technologies are constantly evolving and, while 3-D walk-throughs can show more of a space, the user experience can sometimes be cumbersome. To address that challenge, Chicago-based Doola Creative Shop launched indoor drone tours in early 2020, offering the "ability to show someone a home in one click," says Zach Dulla, Doola's director of digital strategy.
They use FPV (first-person-view) drones, mini drones that allow the trained drone pilot to capture the entire home without even entering the space. That said, this pre-recorded technology is currently limited to the drone's view and doesn't allow someone to look around a room in more detail like 3-D tours.
<h2>Virtual staging can create panache for less</h2>
Santos notes that that for buyers and sellers it&rsquo;s important to properly stage a home and make it look free of clutter. This can help turn a virtual tour into an offer. Which is why Santos hires professional companies like VHT Studios and Realvision, which operates throughout the U.S. and Canada, to help showcase her clients&rsquo; properties.&nbsp;
Santos says that clients will often stage a space with physical furniture, but that can cost a few thousand dollars. Virtual staging companies can help make a room look professionally furnished through interior design software at a fraction of the cost. This is helpful if you&rsquo;re working with pre-construction properties people may be looking at virtually, but virtual staging can also transform a property into something much more marketable.
&ldquo;It [shows] the buyer the potential of the home,&rdquo; says Dennis Miller, Virtual Staging Solutions co-founder, who is based in northern New Jersey; his partner is in Austin, TX. &ldquo;We can remodel a room so people can get an idea of what it will look like.&rdquo;
Vince Collura, VHT Studios&rsquo; chief operating officer, adds that it can be challenging when a property is decorated with the current owner&rsquo;s tastes. Virtual staging, if done properly, will usually watermark photos to differentiate it from actual staging, which lends an agent more creative freedom to showcase a home.
<blockquote>
Virtual staging companies can help make a room look professionally furnished through interior design software at a fraction of the cost.
</blockquote>
<h2>Work with a trusted agent</h2>
Virtual tours are informative, but working with an experienced real estate agent familiar with a particular market will help present the full picture.
For example, Santos, a Chicago native who has worked in real estate for 15 years, has become the go-to agent for Kevin Jackson and his husband David Purpura. Santos helped them purchase two homes in Chicago and they are now looking to purchase an investment property.
Santos generally uses virtual tours, balanced with her knowledge of the market, to help the couple eliminate options. With the Santos as their guide, the couple&nbsp;have come at the process with a critical eye, knowing a virtual tour can only show so much.
&ldquo;It&rsquo;s not reality; it&rsquo;s virtual reality,&rdquo; Jackson says. &ldquo;They can be deceiving. You know the wide-angle lenses they're using to manipulate the space ... the room isn't as large [sometimes]. But the virtual staging helps to see past people's stuff, but it's photoshopping and glamour shots. As long as you know what you&rsquo;re dealing with, you can look at it from a relative perspective.&rdquo;
That&rsquo;s where having a trusted broker who can visit a property for you becomes helpful, especially if you live out of town &mdash; or in another country. Andre Teixeira, a Miami, FL-based real estate agent with London Foster Realty, works with many South American clients.
Teixeira, a skilled videographer, will often shoot his own virtual tours for his clients, where he can also capture specific things the client desires to show areas an otherwise professional 3-D tour leaves out.
He admits, however, that virtual tours generally work better than if it&rsquo;s your first home purchase. &ldquo;In the end, people want to see what they&rsquo;re buying,&rdquo; Teixeira says. &ldquo;A young couple buying their first home, they want to see the property and walk around before they make their decision.&rdquo;
&ldquo;Virtual tours and staging bring the home to life for someone who may not have otherwise had the opportunity to tour the home in person,&rdquo; says Sabrina Evans, Compass&rsquo; Houston, TX, regional marketing director. &ldquo;Virtual tours allow buyers to experience the home on their own time.&rdquo;
This is important, because when you've exhausted your search and it ends in your new home, you know you saw all the right places with the right tools.
&nbsp;

What Virtual Tours Can — and Can't — Tell You About a Home 

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