Home Sweet Home: 5 Tips for Buying a Home This Summer From the ‘Selling Sunset’ Cast

The housing market is a little overwhelming right now but buying a house doesn’t have to be a headache. To help keep the stress to a minimum, we caught up with Selling Sunset’s Mary Fitzgerald, who offers her best tips for snagging your dream home this summer, from zeroing in on the right neighborhood to picking an agent who will help you find what you really want.

Hire the right agent: This is by far the most important! It’s essential to make sure your real estate agent has experience in the area and knows your wants and needs.

Do your research: They always say in real estate that location is everything! If you are new to the area, make sure to reach out to people to know what you’re getting into.

Act fast: It’s crazy out there, especially in today’s market! If you find something that hits everything on your checklist, put in an offer ASAP. And don’t be afraid to go over the asking price!

Walk the neighborhood: If you are thinking about purchasing a house, try and spend half of the day in the neighborhood. Maybe go on a few walks, get a bite to eat, etc. This can help you really envision moving and seeing if it’s the right place for you.

Think long term: Investment, investment, investment! It’s always smart to look in up-and-coming areas, that way you will be sure your home will appreciate in value, which means more money for you when you sell!

5 Easy Design Tips to Spruce Up Your Dream Home

Once you’ve closed, it’s all about making your new house your dream home. Amanza Smith of Selling Sunset offers her helpful tips and recommendations for designing and decorating your new space to make it your own.

Apply a fresh coat of paint.

Add a new hanging light or chandelier.

Go neutral on the main furniture such as a sofa and go wild instead with pillows, rugs, and accessories that are less expensive to swap out if you decide to change the vibe.

Framed art rather than unframed prints always look richer! You can even frame things you print off the computer.

Always test paint colors on the wall in the room before committing to painting the whole wall because the light in the room and even floor color will make it look different than the swatch.

Selling Sunset is now streaming on Netflix.