FHD in the News
Functional Home Designs named part of Hajjar Homes real estate team
Functional Home Designs was recently named part of the Hajjar Homes team as dedicated home stager! The team consists of Cheryl Hajjar, of Keller Williams Realty, who is licensed in MA and NH and prides herself on her strong ties to the communities she serves. She is driven to help her clients maximize their return on investment and uses her extensive experience and knowledge to do that.
John and Christine Koutrobis have also joined the team, bringing 40 years of lending experience with them. They are part of the Omega Mortgage group and are eager to help homeowners and home buyers in MA and NH realize their dreams.
With a real estate agent, mortgage lenders, and a home stager on the same team, buying and selling is a snap with this one-stop shop! We are all dedicated to helping sellers and buyers move through the selling/buying process smoothly and successfully.
Follow us on Facebook and Twitter. Or visit the website to check out our blog, or find some great information, tips and home searches.
John and Christine Koutrobis have also joined the team, bringing 40 years of lending experience with them. They are part of the Omega Mortgage group and are eager to help homeowners and home buyers in MA and NH realize their dreams.
With a real estate agent, mortgage lenders, and a home stager on the same team, buying and selling is a snap with this one-stop shop! We are all dedicated to helping sellers and buyers move through the selling/buying process smoothly and successfully.
Follow us on Facebook and Twitter. Or visit the website to check out our blog, or find some great information, tips and home searches.
The Hippo, August 30, 2012
The 3 bedroom, 2 bathroom dream
Your guide to finding the perfect house
Functional Home Designs was consulted for this article featuring information about the real estate situation in NH. Click here to read the entire article.
The 3 bedroom, 2 bathroom dream
Your guide to finding the perfect house
Functional Home Designs was consulted for this article featuring information about the real estate situation in NH. Click here to read the entire article.
Eagle Tribune, May 18, 2011
Atkinson: Kerri Durkee of Atkinson, owner of Functional Home Designs, gave a talk and demonstration on recycled home decor at Kimball Library on Thursday evening. About 20 people attended her discussion, where she showed how she takes items from around the house and uses them in new, unexpected and functional ways. Here she is showing how she created a little display under glass with some nautical and ocean-themed accessories that she had around the house.
Click here
Atkinson: Kerri Durkee of Atkinson, owner of Functional Home Designs, gave a talk and demonstration on recycled home decor at Kimball Library on Thursday evening. About 20 people attended her discussion, where she showed how she takes items from around the house and uses them in new, unexpected and functional ways. Here she is showing how she created a little display under glass with some nautical and ocean-themed accessories that she had around the house.
Click here
Union Leader, April 22, 2011
Using what's already there to redecorate
By LEWELLYN HALLETT: Special to the Union Leader: Kerri Durkee of Atkinson found a niche for her home-decorating business, Functional Home Designs, by using what her clients already have. She considered the tough economic times and environmental concerns, then she developed her services as sustainable and affordable ways to beautify a home.
Durkee has an eye for potential and positioning. She uncovers overlooked pieces, rearranges furniture that's not working, updates accessories and can achieve a home makeover without buying a thing. Or, at least, she minimizes the need to shop with her commitment to use furnishings already in the home to best advantage. Durkee digs deep into closets and drawers and explores basements and attics. When she comes up with a table or lamp that the client forgot she had, and it works perfectly in the new arrangement, it can amount to a savings of hundreds of dollars.
For one mother of three who was stressed every time she went upstairs to a disaster of a playroom, Durkee came to the rescue. She turned the room into a multi-purpose area with storage for toys, an office nook and TV-viewing area. The client thought she would get advice on furniture she needed to buy, but Durkee brought up extra dressers from the guest room for storage, found forgotten accessories in a closet. No trip to the store was required. Finished, Durkee went downstairs, but her client didn't appear for a good 10 minutes. "I just can't stop looking at it," the client gushed when she joined Durkee. The room was now useful instead of stressful.
Functional Home Designs offers a range of services, from complete redesigns to hour-long consults on room layout. "There are a lot of do-it-yourselfers out there," she said. "All they need is a kick-start, a consultation with ideas and direction, and it gets them going on the rest of the project." She also stages homes that are going up for sale. In this tough market for the seller, when it's often crucial to get the best possible price quickly, professional presentation can make all the difference. Durkee understands what the buyer will see. "It's difficult for the buyer to imagine himself living in someone else's home," said Durkee. "I can help create a neutral backdrop where potential buyers can see their families living." A plan for cleaning, de-cluttering, editing and arranging the furnishings with an experienced eye enhances the home's positive assets. She also helps with move-in and furniture placement when a family buys a home.
Seeing all the neglected home décor in clients' basements and closets inspired Durkee to offer swap parties. Friends get together for a "girls night in," bring their unneeded furnishings, and "shop" for free from the offerings. This is also a way for Durkee to meet people and introduce them to her services. Leftover items go to Families in Transition in Manchester.
Durkee is a working mother of two, "trying to do it all," she says on her blog at www.functionalhomedesigns.com. Less than a year ago, she followed her dream to open her own home-design business. It was a family crisis that gave her the impetus to get started. "When my brother became ill, I realized that none of us is guaranteed tomorrow," Durkee said. "Why wait to do something you love and that makes you happy? Whether it's a hobby, a new venture, or just some silly little thing that makes you smile, just do it. It seems that the toughest times in your life teach you the best lessons. This is one I've learned over the last year."
Using over 20 years of marketing experience, Durkee began to develop a business plan and in the process discovered her sustainable approach to home decorating. She spent hours marketing her new business -- social networking, contacting Realtors, reaching out -- but it wasn't work. "It's been fun because it's my passion," she said.
Durkee is a Certified Decorating Professional. Functional Home Designs offers a variety of packages, prices and ways to use services. For example, redesign, staging and move-in services are $300 for a half-day, $550 for the full day. Consultation is $50 an hour, and there are a la carte services, like a quick home makeover do-it-yourself report or room-layout plan, each for a $100 fee.
Durkee serves Southern New Hampshire, the Seacoast Region, and Northern Massachusetts. Visit the website, www.functionalhomedesigns.com, for practical decorating tips on Durkee's blog, description of services, and price listing. Or call 479-3041 for more information.
Copyright, 2011, Union Leader Corp.
Record Number: mandc5-5zbp37e9ttw12sfvn1xc
Using what's already there to redecorate
By LEWELLYN HALLETT: Special to the Union Leader: Kerri Durkee of Atkinson found a niche for her home-decorating business, Functional Home Designs, by using what her clients already have. She considered the tough economic times and environmental concerns, then she developed her services as sustainable and affordable ways to beautify a home.
Durkee has an eye for potential and positioning. She uncovers overlooked pieces, rearranges furniture that's not working, updates accessories and can achieve a home makeover without buying a thing. Or, at least, she minimizes the need to shop with her commitment to use furnishings already in the home to best advantage. Durkee digs deep into closets and drawers and explores basements and attics. When she comes up with a table or lamp that the client forgot she had, and it works perfectly in the new arrangement, it can amount to a savings of hundreds of dollars.
For one mother of three who was stressed every time she went upstairs to a disaster of a playroom, Durkee came to the rescue. She turned the room into a multi-purpose area with storage for toys, an office nook and TV-viewing area. The client thought she would get advice on furniture she needed to buy, but Durkee brought up extra dressers from the guest room for storage, found forgotten accessories in a closet. No trip to the store was required. Finished, Durkee went downstairs, but her client didn't appear for a good 10 minutes. "I just can't stop looking at it," the client gushed when she joined Durkee. The room was now useful instead of stressful.
Functional Home Designs offers a range of services, from complete redesigns to hour-long consults on room layout. "There are a lot of do-it-yourselfers out there," she said. "All they need is a kick-start, a consultation with ideas and direction, and it gets them going on the rest of the project." She also stages homes that are going up for sale. In this tough market for the seller, when it's often crucial to get the best possible price quickly, professional presentation can make all the difference. Durkee understands what the buyer will see. "It's difficult for the buyer to imagine himself living in someone else's home," said Durkee. "I can help create a neutral backdrop where potential buyers can see their families living." A plan for cleaning, de-cluttering, editing and arranging the furnishings with an experienced eye enhances the home's positive assets. She also helps with move-in and furniture placement when a family buys a home.
Seeing all the neglected home décor in clients' basements and closets inspired Durkee to offer swap parties. Friends get together for a "girls night in," bring their unneeded furnishings, and "shop" for free from the offerings. This is also a way for Durkee to meet people and introduce them to her services. Leftover items go to Families in Transition in Manchester.
Durkee is a working mother of two, "trying to do it all," she says on her blog at www.functionalhomedesigns.com. Less than a year ago, she followed her dream to open her own home-design business. It was a family crisis that gave her the impetus to get started. "When my brother became ill, I realized that none of us is guaranteed tomorrow," Durkee said. "Why wait to do something you love and that makes you happy? Whether it's a hobby, a new venture, or just some silly little thing that makes you smile, just do it. It seems that the toughest times in your life teach you the best lessons. This is one I've learned over the last year."
Using over 20 years of marketing experience, Durkee began to develop a business plan and in the process discovered her sustainable approach to home decorating. She spent hours marketing her new business -- social networking, contacting Realtors, reaching out -- but it wasn't work. "It's been fun because it's my passion," she said.
Durkee is a Certified Decorating Professional. Functional Home Designs offers a variety of packages, prices and ways to use services. For example, redesign, staging and move-in services are $300 for a half-day, $550 for the full day. Consultation is $50 an hour, and there are a la carte services, like a quick home makeover do-it-yourself report or room-layout plan, each for a $100 fee.
Durkee serves Southern New Hampshire, the Seacoast Region, and Northern Massachusetts. Visit the website, www.functionalhomedesigns.com, for practical decorating tips on Durkee's blog, description of services, and price listing. Or call 479-3041 for more information.
Copyright, 2011, Union Leader Corp.
Record Number: mandc5-5zbp37e9ttw12sfvn1xc
The Hippo, March 24, 2011
New home-redesign company in town
Naturally, it’s more economical to use what you have when it comes to redecorating your home. That’s what Kerri Durkee, and her new company, Functional Home Redesigns, is trying to build off. Along with redecorating, for which Durkee likes to use as many items as possible that the homeowner already has, she does home staging before homes are put up for sale.
The Atkinson-based company officially opened last summer. It can be somewhat like a puzzle when she goes into a home for the first time, she said. “Sometimes a fresh set of eyes coming into a house, ‘This piece would probably fit better functionally here...,’” she said, adding she looks into cupboards, basements and attics trying to come up with ideas and items that will work. “Everybody has different styles and it’s fun to see the types of things that people buy.... It’s interesting to see how you can put things together in different ways. I just love it.”
Durkee, who also works in marketing for Comcast, is trying to build Functional Home Redesigns (www.functionalhomedesigns.com) on the side. The company is focusing on a client base of southern New Hampshire and northern Massachusetts. “It’s fun,” she said. “It’s not even work for me. It’s my passion and I’m really trying to make it work.”
While she does try to do as much as possible with what’s already there, she does have to go out and do some shopping for clients. “I have no problem with shopping,” she said.
Home staging is particularly of interest now as the home-buying season starts to gear up. Durkee said staging isn’t particularly expensive but can pay big dividends in both the time it takes to buy and the final dollar amount.
Durkee has been taking classes for years in redesign, as well as doing redesigns for friends and family. She said she kept telling herself once her kids get a little older, she’d try out a redesign business. But she kept putting it off. Then, her brother was diagnosed with cancer. “I thought about it...and we’re not guaranteed tomorrow, so why not do something you love now?” Durkee said. “I ended up jumping in with both feet.”
Growing up, Durkee said, she always liked to draw and she’s always been creative. Her parents wouldn’t let her go to art school; her dad wanted her to get a business degree. Durkee joked that her father was afraid she’d end up a starving artist living on the beach. She ended up with a degree in marketing and later obtained an M.B.A. “I’ve always had an interest in the creative side of things,” Durkee said.
—Jeff Mucciarone
New home-redesign company in town
Naturally, it’s more economical to use what you have when it comes to redecorating your home. That’s what Kerri Durkee, and her new company, Functional Home Redesigns, is trying to build off. Along with redecorating, for which Durkee likes to use as many items as possible that the homeowner already has, she does home staging before homes are put up for sale.
The Atkinson-based company officially opened last summer. It can be somewhat like a puzzle when she goes into a home for the first time, she said. “Sometimes a fresh set of eyes coming into a house, ‘This piece would probably fit better functionally here...,’” she said, adding she looks into cupboards, basements and attics trying to come up with ideas and items that will work. “Everybody has different styles and it’s fun to see the types of things that people buy.... It’s interesting to see how you can put things together in different ways. I just love it.”
Durkee, who also works in marketing for Comcast, is trying to build Functional Home Redesigns (www.functionalhomedesigns.com) on the side. The company is focusing on a client base of southern New Hampshire and northern Massachusetts. “It’s fun,” she said. “It’s not even work for me. It’s my passion and I’m really trying to make it work.”
While she does try to do as much as possible with what’s already there, she does have to go out and do some shopping for clients. “I have no problem with shopping,” she said.
Home staging is particularly of interest now as the home-buying season starts to gear up. Durkee said staging isn’t particularly expensive but can pay big dividends in both the time it takes to buy and the final dollar amount.
Durkee has been taking classes for years in redesign, as well as doing redesigns for friends and family. She said she kept telling herself once her kids get a little older, she’d try out a redesign business. But she kept putting it off. Then, her brother was diagnosed with cancer. “I thought about it...and we’re not guaranteed tomorrow, so why not do something you love now?” Durkee said. “I ended up jumping in with both feet.”
Growing up, Durkee said, she always liked to draw and she’s always been creative. Her parents wouldn’t let her go to art school; her dad wanted her to get a business degree. Durkee joked that her father was afraid she’d end up a starving artist living on the beach. She ended up with a degree in marketing and later obtained an M.B.A. “I’ve always had an interest in the creative side of things,” Durkee said.
—Jeff Mucciarone
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