Archive for the 'Home Owners' Category
What? My Front Load Washing Machine is Growing Mold
August 11th, 2010 categories: Home Owners
Lately, I’ve noticed a rather funky smell coming from my laundry.
My initial reaction? Blame my husband, of course. I stopped washing my clothes with his clothes, thinking that this eau d’gym sock was because my fresh smelling clothes were intermixing with his odiferous work clothes.
But after a few weeks of laundry apartheid, my laundry was actually smelling worse. My next step was to be more diligent about using fabric softener sheets and drying my clothes until they were crispy.
I finally realized I was facing a larger problem when I began to notice that everyone in my house smelled bad, except the dogs. The dogs actually smelled better than we did.
I headed over to my laundry room and discovered the culprit.
My front loading washer. Read the rest of this entry »
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Clear Out Your Clutter for Cash or Contribution
March 17th, 2010 categories: Home Owners
Some people enjoy collecting stuff. I enjoy getting rid of it. Maybe it’s because I grew up in a cluttered home and followed my parents from tag sale to tag sale buying more stuff they didn’t need (only to host their own tag sale to sell other stuff to make room for the new stuff.) And maybe I write this blog as therapy…but that’s another story.
Earlier this month, Get Rich Slowly had a great article called The High Cost of Clutter. In it, the author points out that maintaining all of your stuff costs money - you have to store it (bigger house or storage unit), you can’t find stuff you know you have so you buy replacements, and stuff can get damaged or can invite health hazards like rodents, bugs or allergens.
There is no better time of year than Spring to go through the things you have and decide - does it stay or does it go?
My rule of thumb is: if I haven’t used or needed it in one year, it must either go or be worthy of memento status. I have a few exceptions to the rule but they do not include: I may fit into again or I am going to fix/paint it sometime in the future. Also, if I don’t have room for something, then it must go or I have to get rid of something else to make room.
Where to Begin?
In How to Turn Your Clutter to Cash, (Get Rich Slowly) Robert Brokamp suggests you take inventory. This is helpful for decluttering but also for maintaining records in the event you have a fire, flood or theft.
Peter Walsh (formerly of TLC’s Clean Sweep show) used to have a crew pull everything out of a home and set up three areas - one to keep, one to give, one to discard. Homeowners would go through every object they owned and had to place them on one of the areas. Nothing went back in the house until everything was sorted. You can do the same thing on a smaller scale just by setting up those areas in your garage and tackling one room at a time.
Cash or Contribute?
There are many places you can sell your stuff: eBay, Craigslist, Rare Reminder, Yankee Flyer, local consignment shop (good for clothes and home goods) or tag sale. I found that eBay is a great place to sell kids clothes (and find them) where Craigslist is good for bulkier items. A tag sale is perfect if you have a lot of stuff.
What about donating? The Hartford Courant had just about the most useful article ever earlier this month called Reduce, Reuse, Recycle. The article listed resources for donating all kinds of things - Furs, Plastic Food Containers, Tools and Building Materials, Mattresses, Medical Equipment.
Another idea for unwanted pet supplies - donate to your local dog pound/municipal animal shelter.
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The Simple Solution to All That Darn Kid Artwork - A Wall of Art
February 17th, 2010 categories: Decorating, Home Owners
If you have a kid in your house, chances are you have kid artwork. A lot of it.
Most likely you have it posted on the refrigerator, stacked in a pile or stuffed into a bin. Not an attractive or useful way to display your kid’s creativity - at least that’s how I was feeling after jamming my daughter’s drawings into a storage bin every week.
While at Ikea (where so many good ideas are born), I came across the RIBBA frames in white. I thought, “I have wall space. I have kid art. And I have a hammer.” Here’s the end result - my kid art wall.
I could have fit another row of frames but I plan to put a low dresser on that wall.
It’s not the most economical way of handling my daughter’s artwork ($14.99/frame) but it accomplished a few things for me:
- I decorated my daughter’s room with original works of art that are very personal.
- I am now able to throw out my less favorite (or odd-shaped) items without guilt.
- The wall can grow with my daughter - as she ages and draws new things, we can easily change out the artwork.
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Making Home Affordable Program - Refinance and Loan Modification Options for Homeowners
August 28th, 2009 categories: Central Connecticut News & Information, Home Owners
If you have a Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac or now, FHA-insured mortgage (HUD recently announced that FHA-insured mortgages will also qualify, effective August 15, 2009), you may have the option of refinancing or modifying your loan through the Making Home Affordable program.
Do I have a Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac or FHA mortgage?
I couldn’t find a loan lookup for FHA so I suggest you contact your loan servicer (the company you pay your mortgage to) or review your loan documents.
Note: If your loan is not backed by Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac or FHA, you still may be able to take part in the program. Participation in the Making Home Affordable is mandatory for these types of loans but optional for others.
What’s the Difference Between Refinance and Loan Modification?
The Home Affordable Refinance Program is designed to help home owners who are current on their mortgage (no late payments in last 12 months) and upside down in their mortgage - the amount owed on the first mortgage is up to 125% of the home’s current market value. There are other qualifications but essentially, the home owner must be able to afford the new payments and it must be a better overall deal for the home owner. It’s important to note that this program will NOT reduce the principal owed on the mortgage - it only reduces the interest rate.
The Home Affordable Modification Program is designed to help home owners who have fallen behind in their payments. The program is available only for primary residences and for the first mortgage originated before January 1, 2009. Home owners must show that they:
Have a monthly mortgage payment (including taxes, insurance, and home owners association dues) greater than 31 percent of their monthly gross (pre-tax) income; and
Have a mortgage payment that is not affordable due to a financial hardship that can be documented.
Participation in HAMP will reduce the interest rate to as low as 2% and may even extend the term of the mortgage. However, home owners may be required to agree to a principal forbearance, which defers (not eliminates) repayment of the principal owned to a later date.
Applying Immediately Stops a Short Sale and Foreclosure
Please note that if you are in the process of asking your lender to approve a short sale, contacting your lender to also qualify for a refinance or loan modification automatically stops the short sale approval. It will also stop a foreclosure until you complete the application process.
Who do you contact?
That’s the question of the hour. The web site offers several phone numbers - one to speak to a HUD counselor, one to call the HOPE NOW hotline and another to find your loan servicer’s contact information to contact them directly.
My advice is to determine which you are most likely to qualify for - the refinance or the modification based on the criteria above and the FAQ’s on the site. Then, gather all the information recommended on the HUD counselor page and call your loan servicer directly. Ask them to either apply for a refinance or modification under the Making Home Affordable program.
You may not qualify for either program so your option may still be to do a short sale.
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Do you dig real estate news, tips and advice? Sniffing around for pet-related information in Connecticut? Get Unleashed - the blog that’s helping to find homes for people and pets.
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When is it a good time to upgrade electrical panel to circuit breakers?
May 19th, 2009 categories: Home Buyers, Home Owners, Home Sellers
When is it a good time to upgrade your electrical panel to circuit breakers?
When your insurance company threatens to drop your policy.
I can be easily persuaded and luckily, it’s not going to cost too much.
Homes with fuses aren’t all that common any more but you may come across them during your home search. If at all possible, avoid buying a house with fuses because it will be hard to find home owner’s insurance. Ask the home seller to upgrade prior to closing and this is a perfect reason for requesting it be done.
Electrical Storm by U2
Do you dig real estate news, tips and advice? Sniffing around for pet-related information in Connecticut?
Get Unleashed - the blog that’s helping to find homes for people and pets.
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