Homeowners are expected to spend a near-record $317 billion!!

HIGH-TECH HOME IMPROVEMENT TRENDS FOR 2017

Homeowners are expected to spend a near-record $317 billion on home improvements and repairs in 2017.

The 6.7 percent increase in spending from 2016 is partially driven by consumers’ growing appetites for high-tech gadgets.

Indoor gardens and self-cleaning toilets are among the high-tech home improvement trends to look for this year, according to Consumer Reports.

Along with eco-friendly composite countertops and luxury vinyl floors, no kitchen is complete without a climate-controlled, irrigated indoor garden like the Urban Cultivator.  Such products include everything you need to grow a variety of fruits and vegetables in your own kitchen.  All you need to provide is water and electricity.

Installing self-cleaning toilets in your bathrooms will free up the additional time you will need to cultivate and harvest produce for that night’s salad. Companies like Toto and Kohler are using a combination of electrolyzed water and an integrated UV light to sanitize toilet bowls keeping them fresher and cleaner longer than the old-fashioned brush, cleanser and elbow grease.

Consumer Reports suggests other home improvement trends to look for including:

• Home security systems and security cameras connected to your smartphone. In 2015, Ring  introduced the Ring Video Doorbell that allows you to answer the door from anywhere using your smartphone. Now, the company is adding a motion-activated camera with built-in floodlights, a siren alarm and two-way, talk.feature.
• Voice-activated appliances. All GE WiFi-ready appliances feature a digital assistant called Geneva that communicates with Amazon’s Alexa. So if you’re within earshot of an Echo, you can issue commands such as, “Alexa, ask Geneva when the dishwasher will be finished,” or “Alexa, tell Geneva to preheat the oven to 350 degrees.”
• Appliance drawers.  Typically 24 or 30 inches wide, these drawers house everything from dishwashers to microwaves to mini-refrigerators. A 30-inch appliance drawer from Viking Range is the first of its kind that doubles as a slow cooker, including a built-in meat probe and heavy-duty glides that can handle up to 200 pounds of meat.  

While some of these products have been available in limited quantities in recent years, the good news is that access is increasing and the cost is decreasing.

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About  – Lori Alvarez is the CEO of Lori Alvarez & Team, kw Realty East Foothills who has been building her family legacy since February 2007. Where by the blessings and graces of God she has taken her team to be #1 TOP AGENT in Listing and / or Sales Agent for 2011/2012/2013/2014 /2015 in her Glendora office. She uses the MREA (Millionaire Real Estate Agent) models as an operations manual, many other amazing mentors, and her faith in God! Lori Alvarez can be reached by e-mail at Lori@Lorialvarez.net OR friend me on facebook OR Tweets available on Twitter! However my favorite is by phone at 909-227-4196! Rock with us on Youtube - click here!  To check out Lori's Listings click here! 

'For I know the plans I have for you,' declares the LORD, 'plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Jeremiah 29:11