House trends change all the time, and while it may have seemed like a great idea to use psychedelic colours in the ‘70s, it didn’t take long for a new design trend to take over.

So when you are trying to decide on the colours and features in your home it’s important to think about how “trendy” you want your home to be and whether it is better to choose a home design that is considered to be more “classic” and less likely to date quickly.

There will always be some elements of your home that will date somewhat, as new technologies and innovations change the designs and materials used for home products, but in general if you stick with classic colours like whites and classic materials like timber then your home’s style is more likely to remain timeless.

Timber in particular is a great product to use around the home, as timber can be sanded back and re-coloured even if the timber colour shades go in and out of fashion.

Using white or other neutral tones around the home will also help keep it modern. White is inoffensive, it makes rooms feel spacious and clean and is easy to choose fixtures, fitting and furniture that match with white and neutral colours.

So if you want your home to last throughout the years then it is best to avoid outrageous home trends. There are some current trends that will make your home stand out and they do look great while they are in style, but you have to ask yourself whether or not you want to pay the expense of repainting walls or fixtures if the trend you’re following goes out of fashion.

Obviously what is considered classic for one home may be different for another, especially if you have a period home, so you may like to do a little bit of research before deciding how to design and decorate your home.

If you would like any information about the house designs and styles that are popular in Armidale then please feel free to get in touch with me at Professionals Armidale Real Estate. 

This year’s Armidale Show will feature all of our old carnival favourites, such as rides, performances, animals, fireworks and of course good old sideshow alley, where we can all stock up on our favourite show bags!

There will also be a whole heap of other special attractions such as a demolition derby, pig racing, battle of the bands, roving entertainment and much, much more.

People travel from all over the Northern Tablelands to come and enjoy the attractions on offer at the Armidale Show, so make sure you don’t miss out!

The 2012 Armidale Show will be taking place on March 2 and 3 and you can find out all of the details about this year’s event by heading to www.armidaleshow.com.au.  

Will you be heading to this year’s Armidale Show? 

 Another organisation that is trying to get local communities involved in the NBCF cause is Ford, who are currently running a campaign called ‘Piece by Piece’ in support of the NBCF.

Piece by Piece is an online mosaic that has been built up with the faces of people who want to help the NBCF in their mission to help find a cure.

By donating as little as $1, those who want to help support the NBCF can post their own face or other chosen image onto the online mosaic, and show their own support to this very important cause.

Anybody can head to the Piece by Piece website at www.piecebypiece.net.au, where they can add messages of encouragement, or in memoriam, to each of the images that help make up the mosaic.

The website helps provide a great way for breast cancer sufferers, survivors and their friends and relatives, to share there stories and build up a supportive community.

So come on residents of Armidale, let’s help rid the world of this terrible disease that affects so many, by helping support campaigns such as this that help us get a step closer to a cure.

The application forms are available on the Armidale Dumaresq Council website and businesses and community groups are all invited to participate in this vibrant, community event.

Armidale’s Autumn Festival is always a lot of fun and it takes place at the start of autumn when we can celebrate our city’s vibrant autumn colours as well as our excellence in education, music, sport, retails and richness in cultures.

As part of this year’s Autumn Festival there will be a twilight festival, street markets and entertainment in the park on Friday, March 16.

There will also be a Fun Day on Saturday, March 17 where there will be a Pancake Breakfast with the Armidale City Band and the Campus to City canter. The famous Autumn Festival Parade will kick off from 12:30pm on the same day. There will also be more events taking place on Sunday March 18 and Monday March 19 as part of the Autumn Festival and for full details visit the Armidale Dumaresq Council website.

Hopefully we see heaps of people taking part in this year’s Autumn Festival because it really is a great event and it helps provide a rare opportunity to celebrate all of the wonderful things about the Armidale community.

In addition to that we were able to announce publicly that the “Professionals Legends of league match” will go ahead on the evening of March 17^th, at Armidale sportsground, this fundraiser is the first of it’s kind to be held in NSW and we are extremely proud to be a part of something that will benefit Armidale hospital and the wider community with school visits etc also included in the 4 day stay from the legends, Some of the players already confirmed are Matt Rogers, Dean Widders, Denis Moran, Scott Hill, Kerry Boustead only to name a few!! Tickets will be on sale soon so please keep an eye out.

The RBA’s decision not to drop interest rates last week was slightly disappointing however with interest rates as low as 5.35% I would suggest that the big 4 banks will need to be very careful about not looking after there clients as many home owners will shop around, overall however interest rates are comparably cheap to 2007, not to mention the 1980’s many home owners who payed mortgages in the 1980’s must just be thinking….”What are you worried about paying a little of 7%…Try paying 18%!”

Until next week

not always in potential buyers tastes, also keep colours neutral and renovations sympathetic to the style of the home for example a “flat pack kitchen” in a federation home may not go well.

The key to renovation for profit is to reduce the outlay for the renovations however buyers can see if the renovation has been done on the cheap and this will affect your sale price  sometimes spending that extra 5% on outlay will translate into an extra 20% profit upon sale.

I would recommend anyone thinking of renovating a home to attend some open homes in the area and get a real idea of what’s good and what’s not, what’s selling and what’s not, what price they are selling for etc.

Remember that renovating doesn’t have to be expensive and you can go too far and OVER CAPITALISE!!!!

If your renovation is for you to enjoy in your home do what you like after all it is your home, but for a profit/project be neutral with your approach even ask for an agent to come over first and tell them your ideas and they will give you an idea if it will result in the outcome you are looking for or not.

Until next week…………

Every little piece of garbage that is picked up helps keep harmful materials from blocking our drains and creeks and harming our precious wildlife.

Last year’s Clean Up Australia Day attracted 565,510 volunteers who helped pick up over 16,454 tonnes of rubbish from 7,479 sites across Australia.

So let’s help make these numbers even bigger this year, so that we can all live in a clean and healthy country to be proud of.

If you would like to be a part of Clean Up Australia Day in Armidale then you can register at a clean up site at the Clean Up Australia Day website or look for one that has already been registered in the area.

As part of the plan, the Council decided that our region should be optimising our attractions and existing facilities to help encourage local residents to get out and enjoy what Armidale has to offer.

To do this, the Council have provided an interim licence for the operation of a kayak/canoe hire business and a fishing school at the Dumaresq Dam. The licenses are currently effective until April 2012.

The canoe/kayak hire and fishing school will be operating mainly on weekends and during holidays and they should help create a fun activity for Armidale’s residents and visitors to take part in while out visiting the dam.

So why not plan a day trip out to the Dumaresq Dam and enjoy the new activities on offer? The fishing rods are available at reasonable hourly rates and canoe hire prices start from just $15, plus while you are the dam you can enjoy a picnic or a scenic walk.

If you would like to find out any more information about the new activities at Dumaresq Dam then you can contact Tony Schofield on 0416 427 661.

Stories in the media generally don’t help buyer’s opinions either, but the truth is, no matter what you hear or what end of the cycle a property is in, it can always be a good time to buy a house if you do your research and invest wisely.

 So why are you waiting to buy a home?

 “My deposit isn’t big enough” – This is the biggest issue for a lot of first time buyers and saving up thousands of dollars obviously isn’t that easy to do, but you have to start somewhere. Try putting away even a small amount each week if you can, and give yourself a financial goal you can stick to. A lot of people overestimate how much money is required for the kind of property they’re after, so you may not even have to save as much as you first thought.

Talk to mortgage brokers and financial institutions to get an idea of how much you would need to save to borrow your ideal amount.

“I’ll never be able to save for the house I want” – The truth about many of our first homes is that they aren’t the dream home we always imagined. Most people’s first homes end up being a downgrade from what they can afford to rent so you may feel a little put off. The reality is that most people can’t afford the perfect home first time around, but the sooner you get into the property market the sooner you will be able to trade up to a bigger or better property.

“I don’t think I can commit to a long-term mortgage” – When people read their mortgage terms and realise it will take them 20-30 years to pay off their home loan; they naturally get a little scared. But don’t let these numbers scare you because you might not end up owning the home for that long anyway.

Most people sell or upgrade their homes before they finish paying them off, and others try to pay extra money towards their mortgage to pay their loan off quicker.

If you think you are ready to get into the Armidale property market, then you can visit me at Professionals Armidale Real Estate and I’ll be happy to answer any of your questions.