Stay-at-home-Vacations

What’s the best thing about owning your Santa Cruz home?  Many people say it’s their yard.  No matter your lifestyle, there are things you can do to improve your outdoor space and your quality of life. Here are a few ideas to help you get more enjoyment from your yard:

• Relax:   Buy a lounger for sun bathing or a hammock for shade bathing

• Enjoy meals outdoors:  Add a picnic table to make eating outdoors easier.

• Grow a garden:  Whether it’s a vegetable, herb or flower garden there is nothing more rewarding than eating food or smelling flowers that you grew yourself. Start small if you’ve never gardened before. Like anything else, it’s easy to get burned out if you bite off more than you can chew. A few of your favorite vegetables and herbs will…

If you have a Santa Cruz home for sale and it’s sitting vacant, it's a perfect target for vandals. The signs are obvious, such as uncut grass and lights that never come on. In fact, a vacant house doesn’t just look vacant; it feels vacant.

Vandals aren’t the only problem for a vacant home for sale, however. The other problem is that a vacant home usually sells for less and sits longer than a well maintained, occupied home. So what’s the solution?

Well, if you live close by, you can visit the home, cut the grass, turn the lights on and keep it maintained. However, if this is more trouble than you’d rather go through, there’s another option – a live-in home stager.

You’ve probably heard or read a slew of information about home staging. If you haven’t,…

These days, the thought of taking a vacation can lead to more stress than relaxation. So instead of worrying about booking hotels, buying plane tickets and taking time off work, enjoy a wonderful vacation without leaving your Santa Cruz condo.

1. Turn off the news. Rent a video instead.

This is a great way to escape for a while without all the hassle. Think of places you've always wanted to go, but couldn't. Rent travel videos of a few of the places you'd like to visit and sit back, relax and let your mind wander.

2. Get lost in your favorite novel.

Do you enjoy the world of mystery, romance or even science fiction? Well, now's your time to relax in your Santa Cruz condo and get lost in another world. Just visit your favorite bookstore or library…