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Report: Family budget calculator measures US cost of living

Seth Sandronsky Recreation & Leisure

All U.S. residents have skin in this game. Just ask Elise Gould, Zane Mokhiber and Kathleen Bryant at the Economic Policy Institute (EPI), a think tank based in Washington, D.C. The EPI just updated its Family Budget Calculator to reveal what families require to meet their living costs in all 3,142 counties and 611 metro areas across the nation.

Confident consumers to increase spending on remodeling projects

Michael J. Berens Construction & Building Materials

Growing confidence in the strength of the U.S. economy and personal financial situations has consumers spending more. One of the areas where they are putting their money is into their homes. Whether for projects big or small, homeowners say they plan to spend more this year on repairs and improvements. Earlier forecasts had assumed expenditures on home improvement and remodeling would decrease somewhat in 2018 following several years of strong growth.

Managing employees’ salary expectations

Lloyd Princeton Interior Design, Furnishings & Fixtures

Interior design salaries have grown only minimally in recent years. Now, with the national unemployment rate hovering around 4 percent, rising inflation, the much-publicized lower taxes for corporations and the pool of available interior design talent getting smaller, employers should anticipate that they will need to increase compensation to retain and attract good designers and other staff. At the same time, in the face of greater competition and higher prices for products and materials, firms are under pressure to hold down costs and fees.

Designing spaces to account for subjective response to noise

Michael J. Berens Interior Design, Furnishings & Fixtures

Much attention has been paid to the negative impacts of noise on individuals' health and well-being. Research extending back two decades or more has demonstrated repeatedly that prolonged exposure to certain types of environmental or ambient noise can increase stress, disrupt sleep patterns, hamper cognition, decrease productivity and eventually lead to serious physical health problems, such as hypertension and cardiovascular disease.

Bed bug dust increases histamine levels in infested homes

Lynn Hetzler Medical & Allied Healthcare

There are plenty of reasons to hate bed bugs. These parasitic insects pop up unexpectedly in even the cleanest locations, are tough to get rid of and have a voracious appetite for human blood.

Is customization the way forward for hotel design?

Michael J. Berens Interior Design, Furnishings & Fixtures

As competition from shared accommodations and niche offerings increase, large hotel chains and even some boutique hotels are seeking new ways to attract guests to their properties.

No end in sight for remodeling industry’s upward trajectory

Michael J. Berens Construction & Building Materials

Earlier speculation that the red-hot remodeling industry might begin to cool down in 2018 appears to have been premature. Despite challenges of labor shortages and rising materials costs, market conditions are generally favorable for remodelers of all stripes. A number of factors are coalescing that likely will not only continue to drive positive growth this year, but may also outpace that of recent years.

Design collaboration is not design by committee

Susan Mulholland Interior Design, Furnishings & Fixtures

Have you ever heard that phrase "design by committee" when someone talks about a building or an object like a car or piece of furniture that doesn't quite make sense? It usually means there are some good parts and some bad parts, but overall it's just not good design.

Wayfinding’s engagement with hearts and minds

Michael J. Berens Interior Design, Furnishings & Fixtures

Sir Winston Churchill, calling for the reconstruction of the British House of Commons after it had been bombed during a blitz, observed, "We shape our buildings, and afterwards our buildings shape us." Churchill longed to have restored the chamber in which he had spent so many years of his life.

Protecting your firm against client disputes

Lloyd Princeton Interior Design, Furnishings & Fixtures

Interior design firms in many parts of the country experienced a surge in business during the second half of 2017. Given the new tax law that takes effect this year, along with strong demand for new and remodeled homes, that trend likely will continue in the months ahead.

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