After a marathon of a winter, I can't begin to tell you how ecstatic I am to finally hear birds chirping outside my window and not to see snow barricading my sidewalk. With the first balmy weekend, I noticed my neighbor out in his yard replanting the grass that had wilted away during the winter months. Sprucing up the yard may be a basic cosmetic upgrade to a home, but its value stretches beyond the lawn.

Show me the green
The Turf Resource Center reports that a study conducted by Michigan State University and funded by the Horticultural Research Institute found that depending on where a property is located, high-quality landscaping adds 5 to 11 percent to the home's value. The study reported that landscaping adds more value than any other home renovation project.

And a recent survey of 2,000 realtors by HomeGain.com reported that an investment of $500 in lawn improvements would likely yield 400 percent of that total when selling the home.

Smells good, sells well
Making over your lawn doesn't have to empty your pockets, either. A great landscaping tip I recently got from fellow HomeFinder.com blogger Frank Schulte-Ladbeck is to add some aromatic herbs such as mint and lemon thyme patches to the yard to create a fragrant smell. A rolling breeze will carry the enticing aromas throughout the surrounding area. This is great for a seller having an open house.

Schulte-Ladbeck says many professional gardeners of large estates are gussying up their traditional lawns with more than just grass. 'The use of various herbs and weeds are a great addition, because it doesn't require as many herbicides or fertilizers, making it an eco-friendly option. These botanic alternatives will also fill in sparse patches faster than grass, so the lawns look fuller.'

First impressions are everything when you're selling a home. So it only makes sense to spend a little quality time to improve your landscaping. It's the first thing buyers see — and probably one of the last things they'll remember.

Got hot local housing tips or a story you want to share? Contact Amy Le at openingdoorsblog@HomeFinder.com.

I've been visiting too many homes lately where simple maintenance has not been done. If you consider that your home may be your greatest investment, then it should be maintained to prevent value depreciation. My clients often ask me about the tools that I use for my inspection business. I guess people believe if you have the right tool kit, you can take on any home repair.

But home inspecting is different from repairing, and not all my tools are necessary for the average homeowner. Since I was busy this week with repairs to my own home and with my parent's house, I paid close attention to the items that were most handy in my kit. To help you in your home repairs, I've decided to create a list of handy tools that will make your job easier.

1. Multi-tool

A multi-tool is a portable, versatile hand tool that combines several individual tool functions like pliers, screw driver head and knife into a single grip. Many models also come with a pouch to wear them on the belt. I'd suggest shelling out some dough for a higher-quality one, such as a Leatherman. The less quality multi-tools are some times poorly constructed and can be hazardous on the job. This tool will fit in the palm of your hand when folded, and has much of what you need for common tasks.

2. Drill
A cordless drill/driver with a drill bit/screw driver head set is a must when you begin any repair project. I find that the quick-change-chuck type is most dependable. This drill is not limited by the cord and will help you drive screws or even nuts. I like the Bosch model, but many makers have good units out there.

3. Hammer and rubber mallet
I find people will use a hammer for jobs that call for a mallet, so it is good to have one on hand. When setting paving stones in place, a rubber mallet will not break the stones. And when you're fitting a piece of wood trim into position, a rubber mallet is less likely to damage the surface of the trim. Hammers are good when you're not concerned with damaging the surface.

4. Long flathead screwdriver
This nifty tool can be used as a small crowbar or probe. Tapping the handle on tiles will tell you if there is enough mortar underneath the flooring.

5. Torpedo level
A small level will help with hanging pictures, shelving and more.

6. LED flashlight
Make sure this flashlight is the equivalent of a 3D flashlight. They're small and give off great light.

7. A 25-foot tape measure
I see people working with 10- or 5-foot tape measures, when they really need something longer. It's always better to have more rather than less when you're in the middle of taking measurements.

8. Saws
Your trifecta of saws should always include a handsaw, hacksaw and jigsaw. I bought a new circular saw two years ago, and I still haven't taken it out of the box. The jigsaw is great for those geometrically challenging cuts.

9. Collapsible/foldable ladder
While I have a variety of saws at my disposal, I'm a fan of the twelve-foot ladder from Little Giant for most of my chores. I can set it up like an A-frame ladder, or as a flat ladder to reach the roof and other hard-to-reach areas. The collapsible ladder will meet most homeowner needs.

10. Channel-type pliers
Various pliers can help with different jobs, but I've found these to be good for a variety of tasks from plumbing to other jobs.

While some of my suggested tools may not be in your basic home kit, these are items that I rely on for my own repairs and are practical and useful for most home projects. But the most important tool all home owners should have in their arsenal is knowledge. I'd recommend going to a secondhand book store and find a do-it-yourself manual. Readers Digest and Home Depot have an excellent selection. The guidebooks with the diagrams and photographs are your best bet. I think they give readers a better idea of what to expect when they begin their projects.

Frank Schulte-Ladbeck, Professional Real Estate Inspector

Are you having a hard time determining where to start your own home staging? Well, I feel your pain. When I Google the phrase 'home staging tips,' I came up with 29,300 results. Going through that result list is a daunting task and would be overwhelming for any home seller.

To help home sellers narrow down their options, I did my own research on the Web and found a great list of basic tips on HGTV.com. The recommendations I found can be applied to both dwelling and selling. While there's plenty being written when it comes to home staging, this list of tips is a great starting place for advice that will help any home seller begin their own project. Here are my top 10 favorite tips:

WORK ON YOUR ENTRANCE

Whether you are on a job interview, going on a first date or selling your home, first impressions matter. What buyers see on the outside starts to inform them on what to expect on the inside. So clean it up, touch up the paint, add plants and flowers, and in general, make the buyer feel welcomed.

CLEAR OUT CLUTTER
We think countertops, cabinets, closets, garages, basements and attics as storage spaces, but often they become clutter keepers. Purging out the old is not only therapeutic but allows a path for the new. Remember, too much clutter distracts and obstructs buyers from seeing what you are selling. So clear it out.

LESS FURNITURE, MORE HOUSE
A room full of furniture can feel as cluttered as an accountant's desktop during tax season. Removing all but what is necessary in a room will make it look and feel bigger. Extra furniture can always be used in another room.

FLOAT YOUR FURNITURE

When you float furniture, remember to bring it off the walls into the center of the room. The rooms will begin to feel more open, interesting and visually appealing. Experiment with angles and corners when moving furniture.

CROSS-POLLINATE
After living in a home for a long time, sellers have a tendency of seeing their furnishings, art and accessories used only one way. But moving pieces that have always been used in one room into another can give new meaning to any old space. And don't stop with furniture. Color, texture and style elements that dominate one room can be moved into another to help create flow and continuity from one area to the next.

GIVE OLD ROOMS NEW PURPOSE
As time moves on, the way people live and use their homes often change. Extra bedrooms become television dens, which then become home offices. Basements go from being storage areas to recreation or media rooms. Setting up an old room with a new purpose will help buyers see the potential and possibilities of how the room can be utilized.

LAMP AND LIGHT DONE RIGHT
Lighting in a home that is too dim, too harsh or too cold can work against the sale of it. Warm and balanced lighting is what it's all about. Using a combination of different lighting types — such as overhead, accent or task lamps — in each room will give a home the overall appealing glow buyers like. Oh, and don't forget to light up the exterior, especially near the entrance. Utilizing natural sunlight by opening up drapes will also help buyers see the home's distinct features.

COLOR WITHIN THE LINES
Wallpaper is out and color paints are a must, especially when selling a home. Wallpaper is typically a very personal design expression that looks dated overtime. While the popularity of color does trend, updating with paint is an easy and inexpensive way to freshen up a home that is for sale. Don't limit yourself to white as the only neutral color. Some shades of white can be the worst color for neutralizing a room. There is a wide variety of beiges, tans, taupes, soft gold and greens that are not only trendy in a buyer's eyes, but will also work well with your furnishings while you are selling.

HANG ART ARTFULLY
Considering the average person in this country is between 5-foot-6- and 5-foot-8-inches tall, you should always try to hang art at the eye level. As a rule of thumb, the viewer should always be looking slightly above center of the piece. Placement is also important. Sellers should envision how a homebuyer will walk through the home and which walls they will actually look at. That will help determine where the art should be hung and where it's not needed.

OUTDOORS COMES IN
Bringing in flowers and plants can help breath life back into a home. Adding foliage will help to soften a room, especially if it's in an area that's darker and more rustic. While bringing the outdoors inside is a great tip, sometimes live plants are not available or practical. Don't be afraid to invest in QUALITY silk plants and dried flowers, but remember a dusty silk or old faded dried arrangement can look as dead as any living plant that died. Finally, avoid seasonal plants and flowers and go for the green basics.

Market It Forward…

Craig Schiller, founder of Real Estaging

Are you planning on remodeling your kitchen this year, but still scratching your head for ideas? This year's top design winners of the National Kitchen & Bath Association competition created imaginative designs and aesthetically pleasing solutions that will inspire the decorator in you.

Small kitchen

Designer Areti Tanya Rentzos of Andros Kitchen & Bath Designs in Mississauga, Ontario, Canada, took first place in the small kitchens category for her 'Modern Efficiency' design.

The home was built in the 1920s and was in need of a complete remodel. The homeowners were graphic artists, who were looking for a contemporary edge on design. A wall between the kitchen and living space needed to be removed in order to extend the kitchen cabinets by approximately 3 feet. By doing so, Rentzos created enough room to incorporate the additional appliances. She also increased counter space by moving the sink to the corner.

Rentzos preserved the home's 1920s coziness by choosing a dark cherry wood that exudes a feeling of warmth, but opted for contemporary styling with a flat slab door of brushed and polished stainless steel. A second counter level was installed to incorporate seating for two and create a division between the two rooms. She also added suspended shelves to open up the space in the upper cabinets and provide easier accessibility.

Rentzos's other upgrades were:

Cabinets: Maple wood with me
rlot stain and wood dovetail drawer systems
Microwave: KitchenAid
Range: KitchenAid
Dishwasher: KitchenAid
Refrigerator: KitchenAid
Ventilation: KitchenAid
Countertops: Silestone
Fixtures and fittings: Richelieu shelf support and Hansgrohe faucet
Sinks: Blanco

Large kitchen

Anchorage, Alaska-based designer Terri Hosken of Beyond The Box: Kitchen Design won the large kitchen category with her 'Modern & Marvelous' design.

The homeowners, both independent restaurant owners, appreciated the fundamental components of a working kitchen. But they wanted the creative functionality of a multipurpose space designed to accommodate a soccer-team meal or an art project with their children.

Hosken's design focused on a layout that provides versatility and innovative storage behind a tranquil facade. A variety of components — including microwave, steam and conventional ovens, and a coffee/espresso maker — are integrated in the cabinet and drawer enclosures and are concealed by a stainless steel door. This frees up the kitchen's layout for more customizable space.

The island counter (featuring stylish bar stools) allows freedom of movement around the kitchen. It has a mobile service cart that rotates freely to reveal small appliances below the counter. The cart can be removed to free up more knee space and be used elsewhere. A hidden pantry is seamlessly integrated with the cabinetry.

Hosken's other upgrades were:

Cabinets: Custom Cabinetry by Howka Cabinet Co.
Cooktop: Thermador
Oven: Thermador
Dishwasher: Fisher & Paykel
Refrigerator: Thermador
Ventilation: Zephyr
Countertops: Absolute black granite slab and maple top
Flooring: Absolute black granite tiles, Kahrs maple flooring
Fixtures: Hafele
Sink: Elkay
Walls and soffits: Gyp Board, primed and painted
Lighting: Techline cable rail and monorail, recessed incandescent

Got hot local housing tips or a story you want to share? Contact Amy Le at openingdoorsblog@HomeFinder.com.

Over the weekend I stopped by the Kitchen and Bath Industry Show & Conference held here in Chicago. While I saw my fair share of sleek new bathroom faucets and granite kitchen countertops, nothing topped the list of cool new gizmos like Kohler's VibrAcoustic bathtub.

I could hear the oohs and ahhs as I approached the crowd of spectators converged around this state-of-the-art tub. Like something straight out of 'The Jetsons,' the long, white multisensory bath integrates light, choreographed music and soothing vibrations to create the ultimate relaxation experience.

The science of bathing

Barry Glasford, a project analyst with Kohler and one of the brains behind the creation of the tub, told me the VibrAcoustic bath successfully marries the science of water and sound with the art of ergonomic design. Vibroacoustics is a technology-based sound therapy defined as hearing and feeling sound vibrations through the body. Glasford says it's proven to promote relaxation and is an ideal feature to add to a bathtub that is designed and engineered to instinctively ease tension and stress.

Who needs whirlpool jets when you have a selection of four uniquely composed music numbers creating a soothing synchronized vibration. Transducers producing the vibrations are strategically placed on the backside of the bath allowing the bather to not only hear but also feel the music streaming in from one of the four preset fountainheads. The sound waves travel through the water and gently resound in the body.

'During our test runs, I would see people fall into a deep, relaxed breathing, as they lay there in the bathtub,' Glasford says. 'The vibration and lighting encourages the bather's breathing rate to align with the beats or chord structures. The experience is truly three-dimensional.'

Creating euphoria
The four VibrAcoustic original compositions were created in collaboration with a renowned sound therapist and are choreographed uniquely for this bath to optimize the vibroacoustic effect. Two massaging beat experiences add even more physical vibration that can be adjusted to the desired level of intensity for a personalized bath experience.

But if you're more of a Guns N' Roses fan like myself, the DTV bath interface allows you to download your own songs from a MP3 player or radio station from a home computer. Glasford, however, says he wouldn't recommend up-tempo tunes if you're looking for a euphoric experience.

The synchronized lighting is truly the psychedelic eye-catcher on this suped-up tub. The four lights in the bath can create eight different colors and a myriad of color combinations and patterns. A color dial even allows bathers to choose a particular hue of each color. The lights are synchronized with the four preset fountainhead experiences and will also align themselves with the rhythm of outside music.

Bath design
The bathtub is made of acrylic and available in two sizes: 88-by-48-by-24 inches and 72-by-42-by- 26 inches, which allow bathers of different heights to be submerged completely. The 88-inch tub will cost you around $13,000 while the 72-inch bath retails for $10,500. For some people, the price will be worth the experience.

Got hot local housing tips or a story you want to share? Contact Amy Le at openingdoorsblog@HomeFinder.com.