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People are REALLY LOVING Their Homes After Spending So Much Time in Them This Year
It’s safe to say that 2020 has provided Americans with the opportunity to spend more time at home than ever before—and two-thirds of homeowners have been making the most of the year by investing in their homes.
A poll of 2,000 Americans discovered that for 62% of people, investing in the home is the result of wanting to make their living spaces more comfortable and suitable for their new lifestyles.
The study, conducted by OnePoll on behalf of Thermador, aimed to discover how people are rethinking their home environment and the steps consumers have taken to create more purposeful living spaces.
Results showed that one in four respondents upgraded a kitchen appliance, with another 50% elevating their home décor.
Additionally, 19% of respondents have transformed their entire living space since March 2020. Meanwhile, 17% have purchased new office furniture to make themselves more comfortable as they work from home.
People are also taking more time to reimagine and reconfigure their homes, as more members of the household are now enjoying the same spaces together.
As a result of these upgrades, nearly two-thirds of those surveyed are the happiest they’ve been with their homes—ever.
And people will continue to improve their spaces going into the holiday season. In fact, three in five say they are more likely to change up their interior design during this time.
“Many people are making various enhancements to their homes, such as adding built-in coffee machines in master suites and reworking garages to create in-home exercise rooms. It’s more important than ever that living spaces reflect peoples’ lifestyles, so investing in home improvements and remodels enables them to create a truly customized and functional environment,” stated a spokesperson for Thermador.
People are also turning to smart appliances to make their homes function better. For example, 46% of respondents invested in a smart appliance since March 2020.
TOP HOME UPDATES OF 2020
Upgraded a kitchen appliance 26%
Rearranged furniture 26%
Re-decorated 25%
Upgrade home decor 25%
Upgraded furniture 24%
Whether it’s using voice control to lend a helpful hand in cooking meals or remotely starting the dishwasher, it looks like homes across the country are being turned into the newest “hotspot” this year.
Holiday Happenings across the Treasure Coast have changed amid the coronavirus pandemic.
Many of the annual Christmas celebrations in Indian River, St. Lucie and Martin counties have been canceled, while others made drastic changes, including some going virtual, to follow safety recommendations from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Plus, new events were added this year. All events are free unless otherwise indicated.
Here’s What To Do in 772 this holiday season.
St. Lucie County
Golden Ponds Christmas Drive-Thru: 5:30 p.m. Dec. 12 at Golden Ponds Community, 1800 Golden Ponds Drive, Fort Pierce. Residents decorate their homes each year for public drive-thru.
Santa or Banana Pub Crawl: 4:45 p.m. Dec. 12 at Pierced Ciderworks, 411 N. Second St., Fort Pierce. Includes drinks specials at five bars or restaurants, costume contests and raffles. For more information, go to facebook.com/piercedcider.
Delights of December Plant & Gift Sale plus Fun with Virtual Santa: 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Dec. 12 at the Port St. Lucie Botanical Gardens, 2410 SE Westmoreland Blvd., Port St. Lucie. Garden Center Plant and Gardens Gate Gift Shop Sale. Take some virtual Pictures with Santa in the Secret Garden Kelly Pavilion. pslbg.org
St. Lucie Sheriff’s Police Athletic League Toy Run Festival: 1 p.m. Dec. 13 at St. Lucie County Fairgrounds, 15601 W. Midway Road, Fort Pierce.
Sounds of the Season Virtual Holiday Concert: 7 p.m. Dec. 18. Children’s Services Council of St. Lucie County will stream online. For more information, go to facebook.com/stluciecsc.
Selfies with Santa: 1:30-4 p.m. Dec. 19 at Tradition Square, 10489 S.W. Meeting St., Port St. Lucie. Visit Santa and Mrs. Claus at for selfies, swag bags an DJ. Face masks required. Stations separated for social distancing. For more information, go to facebook.com/lifeattradition.
12 Pubs of Christmas Holiday Crawl & Toy Drive: 2 p.m. Dec. 19 at 12 bars or restaurants in Fort Pierce and Port St. Lucie. Face masks required when walking between venues and inside venues but may be removed when seated and eating or drinking. Sanitized bus pickup every 45 minutes at different locations along route to help with social distancing. Tickets are $30 each. For more information, go to facebook.com/santalovesthekids.
Holiday Lights Spectacular: 6-9 p.m. nightly until first week of January at Marina Square on Melody Lane near City Marina at 1 Avenue A. Show consists of more than 100,000 lights wrapped around palm trees and synchronized to holiday music. For more information, call 772-467-3031.
Garden of Lights: 5:30-9 p.m. Fridays-Saturdays through Jan. 2 at Heathcote Botanical Gardens, 210 Savannah Road, Fort Pierce. Closed Christmas Day but open on Sunday, Dec. 27. Light displays throughout 5-acre gardens. Face masks required. Admission is $10 for non-members, $5 for members, $3 for ages 6-12 and free for kids younger than 6. For more information, call 772-464-4672 or go to heathcotebotanicalgardens.org.
Martin County
Taste of Jensen: 5:30-8 p.m. Dec. 8 outdoors along Jensen Beach Boulevard. Features lighting of community’s 26-foot Christmas tree and Town of Ocean Breeze decorated golf cart parade throughout downtown Jensen Beach. Face masks recommended when not eating or drinking. Temperature checks and other safety measures will be followed. For more information, go to jensenbeachflorida.info/events/2020-taste-of-jensen.
Snow at the Plaza: 9-11 a.m. Dec. 12 at Stracuzzi Plaza, 2895 S.E. Ocean Blvd., Stuart. Features playing in 6 tons of snow, bike raffle, treats, face painting, hair glitter and goodie bags for kids. Admission is unwrapped toys. Face masks required. For more information, go to facebook.com/thestracuzziteam.
Santa’s City Lights: 5-9 p.m. nightly Dec. 12-28 at Memorial Park, 300 S.E. Ocean Blvd., Stuart. Features forest of Christmas trees decorated by Martin County Realtors of the Treasure Coast and City of Stuart, plus holiday songs playing on speakers via Florida Power & Light Co. Local celebrity judges choose three winners. For more information, go to martincountyrealtors.org.
A woman near Adelaide had the best tree-topper of all time—at least for a day.
Amanda McCormick found that her Christmas tree had a new ornament after a live koala wandered into her home and snuggled up the branches of the white pine.
Lucky for the internet, she took pictures before calling a wildlife rescue group, 1300KOALAZ.
“Our hotline operator took a call,” the charity wrote on FB. “At first she thought she was the victim of a prank call.”
They merrily reported that the koala was “desperate to get in the Christmas spirit.”
Amanda, who lives in Coromandel Valley in southern Australia, is not alone. Dee Hearne-Hellon, the co-founder of 1300Koalaz, says koalas are occasionally known to sneak into houses.
Perhaps, especially, when there’s a pretty tree to climb.
The juvenile female was released into the neighborhood, which is in a region of habitat perfect for koalas, and scurried up a nearby tree.
“Tis the season to be jolly…Koalalalala Lalalala.”
SHARE The Christmas Spirit With Friends on Social Media…
Conforming loan limits are increasing for 2021! Buyers who are looking at larger homes now have an opportunity to receive better pricing when they close on or after January 1st, 2021.
Anyone looking for higher loan amounts may be able to benefit from a conventional loan instead of a jumbo loan. Contact Mortgage Master at 772-340-4003 today for more information.
An analysis of 3Q buyer / home searches on Redfin’s website found 22K more people from other states looked for a Florida home than the number of Floridians who looked elsewhere.
An analysis of online state-to-state home searches provides some insight on U.S. migration patterns, and Florida appears to be attracting a lot more new residents than it could lose to out-migration.
Redfin economists looked at the viewing habits of 53,000 visitors to its website in the third quarter of 2020 and found a lot of California and New York residents ready to transition to other states. And at least for New York, a lot of residents have their eye on a new Florida home.
“New York’s loss is Florida’s gain,” says Redfin economist Taylor Marr. “When the pandemic hit the U.S. in March, remote workers started leaving New York City and its ultra-expensive housing in search of wide-open spaces, sunshine and affordable homes – all of which you can find in Florida, with the bonus of no state income tax.”
Marr says the “trend has only intensified as the pandemic continues and people feel more certain of their remote work and school plans.”
According to the analysis, nearly 53,000 more website users wanted to move out of California rather than into it in the third quarter, a 62% increase since the third quarter of 2019 and the highest rate since Redfin started tracking migration in the beginning of 2017.
The story is similar in New York, where almost 47,000 more people searched for homes outside the state than the number who wanted to move in during the third quarter – about 35% more than the 35,000 home searchers looking to leave during the same time period last year.
California and New York had the biggest upticks in people looking to move out of state – minus people looking to move in – since last year, followed by Massachusetts, Washington, D.C. and Illinois.
Nearly 22,000 more website users looked to move into Florida than the number of Floridians who searched for a home outside the state in the third quarter, which is almost double the number in 3Q 2019 and the highest net inflow migration potential for the state since economists started tracking migration.
According to economists, movement into Florida has accelerated since the beginning of the year.
Introduction:A one-of-a-kind light and sound experience!
Winter Wonderland Light Show is a one-of-a-kind light and sound experience! Enjoy the light show daily throughout December, beginning December 1 through December 31, 2020, from 7 to 9 p.m. This program is free and is for all ages.
Introduction:Annual parade of lights and lighting of holiday tree!
Celebrate the holiday season featuring the annual parade of lights and the lighting of the holiday tree. This year’s theme “A Rockin’ Good Time” CDC guidelines will be followed. Facial covering will be required when social distancing is difficult to maintain.
In the mood for a different kind of date night? Bring a comfortable chair (chairs will not be provided), head over to the Event Lawn at The Port and listen to live music while looking out over the St. Lucie River and gazing into the night sky. Food and drink are available for purchase. River Nights is free and takes place on the second Thursday of every month.
Introduction:Listen to Salsa, Bachata, Merengue, Balada, Cumbia and mucho mas!
Celebrate Hispanic culture with four time Grammy award winning musician Tomasito Cruz. Listen to Salsa, Bachata, Merengue, Balada, Cumbia and mucho mas!
Join us for live Music, dancing, & food! Tickets are $5 in advance and $10 at the door.
Press the green plus sign to add to cart (you will be prompted to login. At this point you can sign in to an existing webTrac account or create a new one.)
Once you are logged in, you will be prompted to select the number of tickets you wish to purchase (don’t worry about changing the “Ticket Block” or “Ticket Selection Option”. Press Continue once you have made your selection.
You will be taken to a new page with your shopping cart. You may then make payment or continue shopping.
Starting today, applications for PSL’s Home for Heroes Program are being accepted.
The City of Port St. Lucie, Synergy Homes, in collaboration with St. Lucie County Veteran’s Services Office, have partnered to build and donate a single-family home to a local, Gold Star family or Veteran. The City will donate the lot, Synergy Homes will build the home and St. Lucie Veterans’ Service Office will help advertise and co-select the recipient.
The Application period is from December 1 through December 15
Applicants are considered case-by-case and those considered to receive a home should meet the following criteria:
Gold Star Families and Veterans must reside within the Treasure Coast (St. Lucie, Martin, Indian River and Okeechobee)
Veterans may not be active duty members of the military
Must have a DD214 with Honorable Discharge or General (under honorable discharge)
Applicants must not currently own a home
Must have a 620-credit score
Must have sufficient employment/income verification documentation.
Eligible families must meet low to moderate income guidelines
Primary & owner-occupied, deed restriction with a forgiveness rate (TBD)
Veterans will only be eligible if there are no eligible Gold Star Families
City to invite finalists to a lottery drawing held at the home post construction.
Demonstrated ability to accept responsibilities of home ownership; suitability determined through application process.
Demonstrated ability to take on financial responsibilities of home ownership which include, but are not limited to, property taxes, homeowner’s insurance, utility bills, maintenance, homeowner’s association dues where applicable and moving expenses.
