As I'm writing this, I'm doing laundry and thinking about all the cleaning and unpacking I've still left to do. A week-long adventure in Moab, Utah left us with lots of red-dirt/dust covered..., well, everything! 4 days of camping and a full-ride of just over 80 miles. The time in the desert gave me lots of time to contemplate work, life, my bed and hot showers. Yes, after that much time in the heat and dust, a hot (or even cold!) shower becomes the thing of dreams. I also came to appreciate, even more, my ability to work from home.

The home office has obviously become a hot topic over the last 9 months. Today I want to offer some encouragement to those sellers who are currently thinking of ways to make their home stand out. With a "normal" budget like most of us have, there's only so much you can do to your home to accommodate buyers' specific needs. Let's take a closer look at how best to satisfy that work-from-home buyer.

First of all, the need is real. Realtor.com® did a survey this summer and found that listings with a home office were able to get a 3.4% price premium and sold 9 days faster than those without. It turns out, for most of us working from home, the kitchen table is simply not going to cut it. So if you are selling and already have a dedicated office space, let it shine! Be sure to promote it in your listing information and photos and find a way to highlight it with your agent. If you don't have a dedicated home-office, keep reading.

One thing to keep in mind as you start strategizing about how best to sell your home and highlight specific features is that bedrooms still outweigh a home office. Don't simply start chucking beds out the window and running to Ikea to (try and) build a new desk. If you pigeon-hole a room into ONLY being an office space, you run the risk of turning off a chunk of potential buyers. Instead, focus on making rooms dual-purpose. You can certainly incorporate a desk and work space, but replace the bed with a sleeper sofa. In much the same way that we talk about painting walls in plain, white tones to keep the home more generic, ensuring a room can be seen as both a guest room and office is a much better strategy.

Another concept is to make the most of your closet space. Guests will certainly want to have space for their clothes and luggage so don't jam all of your office supplies in that spot. Make sure closets and drawers are available for guests, but make use of the office/desk area for the rest of your work stuff. This is also a great area to incorporate those under-bed storage bins. They stow away perfectly. They hold lots of stuff because they are so long. And they can be used for both the office equipment and the guests belongings.

Another strategy that we are seeing gain more popularity is setting up an office under a stairway or having it inset into a wall. The idea here is to take advantage of any space you can without having to compromise the number of available bedrooms. The "Harry Potter" spot is one of my favorites. The space is typically a complete waste. All it has to fit is the desk since the chair can "extend" into the room. And a simple door allows you to close off the space (and the mess) when it is not in use. It is also often a "tall" space since it follows the stairs up so don't hesitate to build shelves or cubbies in that upper part of the wall.

When incorporating those more creative locations, don't skimp on lighting. If you are building this out yourself (or having it done) chances are you will have exposed studs and access to power. Make sure that spot has plenty of light built in so if the user is not on a computer, they are able to see what they are working on. This is especially important for younger "workers" as many of them are now "schooling" from home. My favorite part of this spot is the ability to close the door and hide the inevitable mess that will be in there.

Lastly, give the office space some flair. "Adding pops of color, plants, flowers and other warm or fun features gives the office some personality and allows that area of the home to shine," notes Badger Peabody & Smith Realty (formerly Badger Realty) agent, Edward O'Halloran. "If we're going to have to work from home and spend significant time in that space, it should at least be welcoming and enjoyable to be there," he continued. Edward is right. And showing off the whimsical side of that home office is sure to attract the attention of buyers.

Adding a home office or office "space" to your home has become an almost necessary part of living in these times. If you are going to be selling your home, you really need to highlight that feature to attract a larger audience of potential buyers. Don't cut your nose off to spite your face and sacrifice bedrooms entirely, but give the idea some serious consideration and see what creative solutions you can come up with. Happy remodeling!