How Much Should I Insure My House For?

Homeowners insurance, otherwise known as fire insurance or hazard insurance is insurance for your house. It protects your house from many dangers, such as fire or wind damage, as well as protecting your contents or belongings from fire, theft, or other damage. Homeowners insurance also provides you and your family with personal liability coverage. So when your son bangs his bike into your neighbor's brand new car, you are protected. But how much should you insure your home for? And who determines that? Your home will generally have three different values: (1) how much you are taxed on, (2) how much you can sell it for, and (3) how much it will cost to rebuild it. These values are never the same. A driving factor in the value of your house is its location. My good friend built a waterfront vacation home on Lake Winnipesaukee in New Hampshire for around $300,000. The home is currently valued at over $1.5 million! Location, location, location....

Another factor in determine the value of your home is how much land is included in the property. Obviously 10 acres is probably going to worth more than acre, but what kind of land is it? Are 5 acres undevelopable wetlands? And again, you guessed it, where is it located?

When you first purchase a home, the bank is going to want you to insure the house for the amount of your loan. Many times, they won't even take into account the value of the land, which will still be there even if the house completely burns down. The insurance company wants to insure your house for the replacement cost. They do not want to underinsure you, nor do they want to overinsure you.

To determine the value of your house, many insurance companies have developed cost estimate tools. They generally need to know how old the building is, how many finished square feet it contains, how many stories, what type of roof (gable, gambrel, etc), what type of construction (frame, masonry), what type of siding (vinyl, aluminum, clapboards), etc. The more detailed the questions, the more accurate the estimate will be. Is your kitchen a basic kitchen, or does it have custom cabinets, granite countertops and a ceramic tile floor?

The insurance company will also accept a replacement cost estimate from a licensed contractor in the area. Many times the bottom line on how much you need to insure your home for depends upon what the bank will accept. It is very important that you talk with both your bank and your insurance agent. It would be foolish to overinsure your house and pay for coverage you will never receive, but it would be just as bad to underinsure and save a little money and risk a large shortfall in the event of a catastrophe.

Douglas T. Zinkevicz has had over a decade of experience servicing the auto,home and life insurance needs of his clients.Let him help you with your insurance questions by visiting http://www.insuranceplus.blogspot.com.

The Perfect Interior Designing

It takes lot of time, hard work and patience to EB0make your home in to you perfect dream house that you've always wished for. Decorating your living room in a way that it gives a royal and elite look, the bedroom which should reflect your personality and the place where you could relax. The children's rooms where they can let go off their inhibitions and be expressive.

Everything finished and looks perfect, well almost perfect! Usually by the time you reach the bathrooms, the finances become very minimal or not at all. This means the bathroom cannot be left shabby looking, or letting it go just for that reason. If so there is no reason to feel down, even though, it is one of the most difficult tasks to decorate a bathroom in accordance with the theme of the room.

In order to get your bathroom in accordance with the theme of the room and how you want it to be decorated, it is quite natural to think about the usefulness of the bathroom and a reason for it to be decorated and what significance it would have on the guests using it. It would be incorrect to think that people would not actually care how it looks, all the effort that you put in decorating your house would go to waste. Infact, most of the time it is the bathrooms that reflect the sort of individual you are and how you are as a private person.

People might not feel comfortable using a bathroom where there is a lot of personal stuff left. For example Feminine hygiene products or a plunger, though these things are quite common but people don't want to see these things around. There are certain things that obviously have to be in the bathroom but it does not necessarily mean that they have to be displayed for every investigating eye! So it becomes important to have some space for storage in the washroom. A closet would most certainly be a very acceptable and apt piece of furniture, but not an essential one. If the bathrooms are small and there is no space for closets then small and beautiful baskets that will make the bathroom less cluttered and also hold those items that you don't want to leave around. Though bathrooms are considered to be private places still the need to be used by guests and prying eyes do arise. It should then be given equal importance while decorating the house so that whoever enters the place forgets completely what his actual reason for entering the bathroom was.

Nowadays there is easy access to various bathroom decorating ideas and schemes. Different sites and also magazines, as well as innumerable articles all give very good and economical guidelines. So jump in and choose a theme and idea to suit your needs and your pockets. Some also deign a demo and show you if you like the concept then you could order and they could come and make a custom made bathroom for you.

Interested in interior design,uh? Adam Peters contributes adding content to http://www.home-decorating-reviews.com . Read additional info on contemporary decoration or modern contemporary decorating ideas

How To Get Rid Of Fruit Flies With A Homemade Fruit Fly Trap

Anyone who has ever left a few bananas sitting out or forgotten to change their garbage knows all too well the problem with fruit flies. It seems that once they've invaded your kitchen, you can't get rid of them. You can scrub, clean, remove tempting fruit and spray the garbage can with disinfectants, but they always come back. You can't help but cringe just looking at them.

We have always had problems with fruit flies, with one of the main reasons being that we live in an apartment and by law - must recycle. Because of where we live, we have to keep our recycling containers inside until they can be disposed of once a week. If the recyclables aren't cleaned well enough after being used, they make a perfect breeding ground for fruit flies. They love bits of rotting food remnants and seem to thrive in even the smallest amount. When fruit flies move in, they just don't want to leave and will lay eggs in and on anything they can find - fruits & vegetables left on the counter, sink drains, garbage disposals, empty bottles & cans, garbage bags, and even mops and rags.

A Few Fun Facts About Fruit Flies:

- Can lay up to 500 eggs at a time
- Their entire lifecycle is complete in about a week
- While considered mainly a pest, they have the potential to contaminate food with dangerous bacteria

We all know that removing the food, getting rid of the garbage & cleaning up plays a big role, but we also know what it's like to move a piece of fruit and have a swarm of fruit flies fill the air only to escape your attempts at killing them. Where are they gonna go? Obviously the ones flying around can't be easily captured or killed, so they'll linger about until they find some other place to lay eggs and the whole cycle starts again.

In all my attempts, I found the best way to capture and remove the ones that escape is to create a simple trap using a jar, plastic wrap and a piece of food. Here's how it works:

1. Get a small jar you don't plan on using again ( like a baby food jar or something similar ) and wash it out well. Make sure it is not a jar with a funky smell such as a used pickle jar or anything that use to have strong spices. You want a clean, odorless jar.

2. Take a chunk of banana and place inside the jar. This is why you want a clean, odorless jar - so that the banana smell won't be overpowered by other not-so-tempting smells. Banana seems to work the best, but you can experiment.

3. Fit a piece of plastic wrap over the top of the jar, making sure that it fits tight and well sealed around the edges. Then take a pen or pencil and poke 4 to 5 holes in the plastic, just big enough for a fruit fly to fit into. Once a fruit fly crawls in, it can't get out. You would think they would just fly back out through the holes, but they won't!

4. Place the jar in an area where you have seen the most fruit flies. Depending on the amount of fruit flies you have, you can expect to start seeing the jar fill up within just a few hours. After 24 hours, you will discover just how bad your fruit fly problem is!

This simple, inexpensive & safe method works perfectly and if you don't want the jar on public display, you can always slip it behind the garbage can, in the cupboard or even under the sink (Just don't forget about it!). You will want to empty the jar every 3-4 days before any eggs have a chance to hatch. While adult fruit flies can't easily escape through the holes, their maggots can very easily, and besides that - they are disgusting to see crawling around in the jar. You don't want to see these things crawling on your counter!

Cleaning out the jar shouldn't be a problem. If you have a kind heart, you can choose to let them go outside. Personally, I spray the little buggers with bug spray, wash out the jar and start the whole process over again if I think there are still some fruit flies left to capture.

For bad fruit fly problems, you will want to use this method for a good two weeks to make sure you've captured the majority of fruit flies. You might even want to use a few jars in different places. Before long, your kitchen will be back to normal.

Carole Nickerson has been a web developer and internet marketer since 1998. Visit http://www.thenetter.com for more free articles, tips and software.

What Marble Types Are Best For Your Bathroom Floor?

Marble is a famous stone that has been unmatched by others, because of its unique texture and veins. Marble generally has properties that are similar to limestone.

However, sometimes it easily stains, scratches or etches. Using these tiles for bathrooms make for a unique and magnificent appearance with shade variations and whirling patterns. However, these flooring materials require more maintenance as compared to others, and these need to be cleaned, sealed and polished regularly.

Marble Tiles Have A Wide Range Of Uses

These tile types have been famous for lots of uses, ranging from from statues to bathrooms, and they have been utilized for centuries, in virtually every probable application. For homeowners who want to go for an elegant look by installing marble tiles in the bathroom, the last thing you must do is to purchase them right away.

Homeowners must first find out the type and colors of marble that 16D0will suit the design or theme you have in mind, and take into consideration your personal preferences as well. However, no matter what designs you choose, marble tiles will perfectly complement a wonderfully-designed bathroom.

What Type To Pick For Bathroom Use

For bathroom applications, homeowners can pick honed and tumbled marble tiles. These tile varieties possess an old-world appeal that absolutely blends with the cozy charm of earth tones. Tumbled tiles are manufactured by tumbling the tiles, along with sand contained in the big drum. These come in irregular shapes and have a generally drab look.

After a few years, the corners and sides of the tiles look rounded and their edges become slightly chipped, which result to an antique and classic look. Tumbled marble tiles have become popular these days, especially for bathroom backsplashes and kitchens. If your aim is to create a chic shower room, then it is advisable to utilize marble tiles for your bathroom floors and other surfaces. This tiles come polished, honed or tumbled.

For more traction, you should choose honed tiles but if you want a classic look and old-age feel, tumbled marble is a good choice. Polished tiles for bathrooms are a classy option, however they can be slippery when wet. Once you prefer this type of marble tile, you need to place bath mats at crucial points to avoid sliding and other accidents.

In general, utilizing marble tile in your bathroom is a great way to accent this important place in the home. Marble has been among the homeowner's choice particularly for bathrooms and hallways.

Since these tiles are formed from a natural material, you can expect variations in colors from tile to tile. Bathroom marble tiles are elegantly polished to eliminate small fissures and faults. Professional home decorators know the key to an elegant bathroom is to use marble around the walls and the tub.

Jacuzzi tubs and Roman tubs look far more elegant wrapped in stone. Marble is also popular on shower walls and in steam showers, but again, traction is something which must be taken into consideration. These tiles are often used on shower floors, and the grout lines provide the necessary traction to prevent slipping.

http://tilenet.net - Tilenet

Vanessa A. Doctor from Jump2Top - SEO Company

Replacing Aluminum Frame Single Pane Windows

In our past articles I talked about all the steps required to properly replace your old wood sash windows with energy efficient vinyl windows. I told you how to measure for the new windows. Then we discussed the removal of the wood sashes and parting bead. Finally, I told you how to install, seal, and trim the vinyl replacement windows. But, what if those old windows in your home are made of aluminum instead of wood? Is the process the same? No, it's not the same at all. So, the next few articles are going to explain the differences between replacing wood windows versus aluminum windows.

When discussing the proper frame style for replacing the wood sash windows, I explained the difference between new construction frames versus replacement frames. When replacing aluminum windows, there is another option we have to consider regarding frame style. It's called a "retrofit" frame. Let's go over each frame type. First, we have the new construction frame with the nailing fin. If you choose to go this route, you have to remove the exterior around each window opening, pull out the nails holding the aluminum window to the studs, nail in the new vinyl window, apply flashing, caulk, and re-install the exterior around each window.(I get tired just talking about it!)In addition to being a whole lot of labor, you can run into major problems trying to install the exterior product around each window opening. If your home has stucco, you have to try and match the rest of the stucco. It can be done, but not by you. Even most professional stucco guys can't get a perfect match. What if you have wood siding? Well, you can cut away 2" of the siding around each window to get to the nail fin, then you can apply 1 X 2 or 1 X 3 trim around each window. Certainly not as much work as the stucco home, but probably more work than the average homeowner cares to tackle. What if each window is surrounded by brick? Let's not even go there! You would have to remove the bricks, then re-install them all when finished.

Trust me, you don't want to replace your old aluminum windows with new construction vinyl windows. You want to use either the replacement frame like the one used to replace the wood sash windows, or something called a retrofit frame, that is popular in the west where stucco is a common exterior. Since the procedure for measuring is the same regardless of the frame style chosen, this article will discuss the proper measuring procedure, and future articles will explain the difference in the installation process for replacement versus retrofit.

If you look at the portion of the aluminum frame that goes around the window opening into your surrounding walls, you will see three separate "legs" that form two pockets. The outside leg and the center leg form the first pocket. Your screen and stationary panel will be in this pocket. The center leg and inside leg form the second pocket, and your sliding panel is in that pocket. Find the "leg" that is the widest on all four sides. When measuring the width, run your tape measure from the widest leg on the left to the widest leg on the right. This should be the narrowest measurement. Then, subtract 3/8" from that measurement. This is the width of the replacement window. Measure the height the same way. When measuring the height, measure as close to the center of the window as possible. This is especially important on windows wider than six feet, because the top wood header has a tendency to sag over time, making the center of the opening the narrowest. You don't need to deduct 3/8" from the height like you did on the width. 1/4" is fine. These are the dimensions you use when ordering your vinyl window. If you have any picture windows(windows without a vent panel), there will only be two legs and one pocket. You still measure the same way.

Next week I will discuss whether your home is a candidate for retrofit frames or replacement frames...

John Rocco has been installing replacement windows since 1978. To learn more, visit How To Install Windows

How To Completely Rehab Your Home In 10 Days!

This report is about taking a house and restoring it to an aesthetically pleasing dwelling that has reclaimed its functional utility. In effect, it is the anti-aging medication for bricks and mortar.

This report assumes that you have already or will soon acquire the proper house. The one that is in essence, ripe for rehab. Be selective and sure of the houses potential to allow for a profit after all the hard work is done. I will help you find your house or houses.

In the proverbial n16D0utshell, it helps if you choose a house from the start that has a sound plumbing, heating and electrical system.

Plumbing
Heating
Electrical

These are things that are expensive to correct in relation to the value they return to you upon resale. Most often, people cannot see the inner workings of these systems and they take them for granted.

Very few buyers are going to give you an extra $15,000-$20,000 in your asking price because you have replaced things that they cant see and already take for granted as just a basic component that is buried in the structure. Also, they assume these components to be warranted against defects by you.

After all, it is mandatory in most, if not all states that you fill out a disclosure form that tells the buyer of every defect that exists or ever has to your knowledge. So inspect the systems of your investment alternatives carefully, as they can be expensive to repair and replace, with minimum dollar return value being realized at the sale.

Along these same lines, you should also pay close attention to the following cash vacuums:

Roof
Foundation
Structural Integrity

Here are a few ways to quickly gage a home from its appearance:

Stand across the street from it. Now look at the bones of the structure. Does it look like a sway-backed horse, with the roof sagging in the middle? Does it have flat areas in its design that dont allow water to be drained away quickly?

Water, dampness and rot are the equivalent of cancer to the human body when it concerns a structure. Shingles can be replaced. That wont necessarily stop me from buying. Usually I will use that old roof as a bargaining chip in negotiating the seller down to a lower price. However, if I crawl into the attic and see that the plywood has become rotted and truss members are also affected, its time to move on to my next potential deal. Life is too short and I will never rehab it in 10 days if I have to rip the roof off and rebuild it too.

Some other conditions, such as sagging eves, wavy roof surface, rotten fascia and trim pieces, and insect infestations can be deal killers too, if severe.

Solution: Get into the structural members with a long, sharp, sturdy, standard flat-tip screwdriver and attempt to penetrate structural components that are made of wood. You wont hurt anything if there are no underlying deficiencies. However, if someone has freshly painted over or patched it, that screwdriver is one heck of a lie detector! Use it.

Now, Im not saying people would do that. It may just be the termites have eaten everything but the exterior coating of the wood to conceal their activity whatever the case probe.

There are also tile roofs, metal roofs, cedar shake roofs, hot-rolled roofing, tar and gravel roofs and always a few new high-tech roof coatings. I feel my main concern is whether the decking or the roof support structure has been undermined by water, insects, rodents, poor materials, poor design or craftsmanship, a lack of fasteners, strapping, etc.

Shingles and coatings can be replaced. Just know what is underneath. Thats my criteria. Negotiate lower for needed replacement of roof coverings if you can. I dwell on roofs because it protects everything else!

Next on the list of deal killers is the foundation. The same thing applies to the foundation. I will start by standing back from it and looking at it from a distance. Does this place look like the Leaning Tower of Pisa? Or are the seams coming apart? Do the windows and doors look square? Are porches, stairs and additions on firm ground as well?

Block homes can tell you very quickly if they are stressed out just by the appearance of the mortar joints. Those giant unsettling cracks can and do tell a story. This does happen and mortar cracks maybe 10-years old. You need to investigate further.

Once again, water is a sign of trouble with foundations because it leads to erosion, rot, mold and mildew. It washes out foundation materials and slabs will crack. It rots sill plates and your walls are no longer firmly attached to a base.

If you have a crawl space, its time to get your coveralls on and get in there. Now, lets use our heads here and I mean this! Before you enter a dark, supposedly uninhabited, infrequently entered, dark and restrictive to movement area, assess the situation. Ask someone who has knowledge of the dwelling if there has been any animal activity that they know of. You may also encounter bees, wasps, ants, spiders, snakes, slugs, mosquitoes, rats, mice and a host of other inhabitants. Beware and be prepared. Its truly another world in some cases.

If you dont want to do it, hire a professional and I do mean a pro, not some Joe who says he is one. For goodness sake, use a licensed professional home inspector to protect yourself in all areas if youre just not sure!

OK, youre a trooper and youre going in. Good for you, Rambo! Youll make it in this business because it takes faith, guts and determination. By getting into this type of situation, youll learn a lot more about every part of the homes you inspect.

You should have a strong flashlight, your trusty screwdriver, maybe some insect repellent and a safety observer standing at the access entry to give you piece of mind. Now you can go to the perimeter walls and inspect where the walls meet the foundation. Look for rot, misalignment, cracks, separations, water damage or any other condition that doesnt appear normal.

While youre down there, look at the other foundational supports, you will see pier blocks and posts, other concrete support pillars and walls, bea5B4ms, joists and cross bracing, and the underside of sub-flooring. Check this stuffs condition. Does it look original? Is it structurally sound? Or are there some discrepancies that need further investigation? Take a good look and smell!

Dont leave yet. You also will want to look at all that plumbing and electrical that is there as well. Scan the perimeter. Do you see any sunlight coming in from where it shouldnt be? That might be a hole that needs repair. This is common sense land, not computer a chip lab. You can inspect for general condition. Simply follow everything to its logical end, looking mainly at the condition of the different components.

OK, youve made mental and physical notes. Now dust yourself off and go inside the house if everything has checked out so far. So the roof and foundation have passed your keen eye. Lets look at the rest of the house with respect to its structural integrity. More than half of your structural integrity check at this point is already complete as the roof and foundation are two of the most important components and those have been done. Now you are left with the interior spaces of the structure.

Heres what I do once inside. I stand at the front door with a checklist in hand (www.inspectamerica.com) and I begin to scan the walls, ceiling and floors. Im looking for water stains on all three surfaces, as well as patches that were used to repair 5B4or conceal damage. I go through every room and look for signs of damage or concealment.

Any flat floor is a good candidate for my scientific marble test. Ill drop my marble; if it rolls to a corner, that floor aint level, Buckwheat. Thats a simple test but I do want to know that the under-layer or sub-flooring is sound and firmly attached to all those joists, and beams and trimmers and blah, blah, blah.

Soft spongy floors are of concern, creaky floors are annoying and rotten floors are another story. So once again, Im looking at the structural support of the floors. I dont care that the cheap, yellowed vinyl is coming up at the seams. I dont care that the carpet is matted down or thread bare, and I dont mind if the finish is worn off of hardwood floors or tiles are loose.

Floor coverings fall under the label of cosmetics. Thats such a pretty word and thats what you want to concentrate on: cosmetics...more on that in a moment.

So the floors pass my test for sub-flooring and structural integrity is great. Now I can check that the walls are square because they are attached to that floor, and then I can check that the doors all operate properly and are square too.

How much more can there be than that, Dan? Well, let me tell you a few things that can bite you here. Lets say the structure overall is good. By that, I mean you have a solid roof, a solid foundation and sturdy5B4 floors and walls.

What is behind those walls? The things that bite you arent usually seen until you get bit. One particular painful bite is finding out your wiring is not grounded or that the circuits are not properly protected. Youre looking for three-pronged outlets and modern plastic-encased wiring made of copper, not aluminum. You want circuit breakers, not fuses. What you really need here is a licensed electrician to do this more in-depth and professionally licensed review of the system.

I have seen more than one Joe Homeowner rehab go up in flames because of a lack of respect for electricity. Licensed electricians bring you up to code and protect your investment. Find a good one and make it a point to shower him or her with praise, attention and money well spent.

They will give you free estimates, so use them as a preliminary inspector with you. If you decide to buy it, use them to do the work that needs to be done.

Plumbers are a breed apart. You would think they use gold for soldering your pipes with the prices they charge. My grandfather was a plumber and I was on the truck with him at nine years old. A plumber may or may not give you a free estimate. With a little digging, it can be done. Just give them the work if indeed you do buy the house.

With plumbers, the only time youre going to need one is if you are doing major system work or the once every ten year hot water heate5B4r job. Also the occasional clogged main sewer line to the street.

In todays P.V.C. plastic plumbing kits world, you can hire just about any good all-around handyman to get the job done. If you have to tear through a wall to get at plumbing, building code inspector-man will say, Get a licensed plumber.

Heating and cooling: the air conditioning system, if the house youre inspecting doesnt have adequate heating and cooling, that can become expensive. Lets say you have a flat roof home in a hot climate with window unit air-conditioners, and you intend on bringing this house up to what a modern day home dweller expects.

You may have a problem. Where would you put new ductwork if you dont have attic space to house and route central heat and air? Once again, call in a pro if you need some advice. They do give free estimates!

Heres a point for you to follow up on: the plumbing, heating and air-conditioning guys all drive service trucks. Be on the lookout for those trucks if they are your neighbors; go say Hello and introduce yourself.

Regardless, I have always done this and what I am saying is this: these guys most always work on the side and that means half price. You may have to pull a permit as a homeowner but the savings is substantial. Develop a network of these blue-collar geniuses. They are the guys who will transform your investment fast!

So now you have a solid5B4 house. By that I mean, plumbing, electrical, heating and air-conditioning, roof, foundation and overall good structural integrity.

So whats left to do? Call in your army of carpenter ants, from painters to carpenters and flooring installers, yard maintenance and tree trimmers, and handymen of all sorts.

This is the whirlwind tour. Let the demolition guy in first. Order a dumpster for the next ten days. Order demolition man to throw out everything including the kitchen sink. What I am out to do at this point is to clear the decks.

A blank canvass is created for the painters to perform the transformation. They come in at this point and patch and paint. Let them blast the place with their airless paint-spraying arsenal inside and out. Give them 3 days and you have just added a huge improvement to your investment. This is the biggest dollar-for-dollar return you can make.

One cautionary note here: Make absolutely sure that quality paint is used. When it comes to painting, its the labor that kills you, not the material. I insist on Sherwin Williams Super Paint. It is a miracle formula that I am convinced could cover up bullet holes without any patching compound and it lasts forever. Its worth every penny; insist on it!

So my idea of finding the ideal fixer upper is to find those where the structure and systems are fine but it still needs demolition man and the paint brigade. Everything 5B4up to this point has been inspection and appraisal of the situation. Once Im satisfied that it is a cosmetic rehab and not the expensive money pit, I send in my cosmetologists.

I wouldnt call these guys that to their face but these are normally men adding residential make-up to the bricks and mortar. Once the painters leave, the flooring guys are right behind them, laying tile and carpet. These guys are out in 2-3 days and my cabinet and handyman plumber are attacking.

Light fixtures, vanities, toilets, sinks, doors, switch plates and outlet coverswham, ten days are up and this house is either held out for rent, lease-optioned or sold for a whole heck of a lot more than the ten grand I put into it, if that much.

You must be somewhat of an appraiser and deal finder. It takes time to recruit your cosmetologists, but you will run across them in your travels. Friends and family usually can provide you with some serious leads. Start networking and talking to tradesmen. Get their numbers and schedule them to descend upon your ugly duckling at certain times and watch the transformation begin.

It took me years to learn these tricks. I did it all myself for years and it always took three months when I did it myself. The sad part is that I thought I was saving money that way.

Can you see how much I actually lost? Here is a quick example. I bought a house for $55,000. Its deficiencies were purely 5B4cosmetic. I used other people to do all the work and I pitched in to keep them organized. Ten days later, it was done. I spent a total of $5,000 on materials and labor and it appraised at $90,000 in 10 days!

Thats $30,000 in 10 days, not 3 months. Now marketing time would take 45 days but I know how to do that too, and I will also show you how you can do it too.

There is no doubt about it. This can be done and you can do it. In all honesty, it may take you 30 days to achieve a completed house. Thats may be 3 times what it took me but I am experienced.

Heres a pretty neat way I figured out how to find good cosmetologists (tradesmen). If I know relatively no one in the area, I will ask a local appraiser to suggest who he would use if he were me.

This is an intelligent way to ask that question. I ask it in this form: If you were me, who would you use? Now that triggers a self-preservation mechanism in their brain and they give me excellent people, who are very good at what they do! Try it; it works.

I went to appraisal school and learned a lot. Believe me, appraisers are underrated and treated poorly. They truly are experts at discerning quality and value. They know whom does quality work. Make friends with a competent appraiser and the lenders that accept their appraisals. Hint: Youll get very fair evaluations and their lender approves them.

Marketing, hunting, findin5B0g and capturing the ripe for rehab houses is another book entirely. However, dont lose faith because I have written that book for you as well. Here is an excerpt from my other book. It is called Magic Bullets In Real Estate.

There are 4 phases, or lifecycles, to real estate and here is how it often goes.

Phase 1 You will see new construction, bright shiny homes popping up,

landscaping contests, baby strollers and tricycles in the neighborhood.

This is probably going on in the suburbs of the city, as new growth tends

to radiate out at a pace of one mile per year from growing and

prosperous cities.

Phase 2 The same neighborhood now 10-15 years later has aged a bit and

now you see basketball hoops and 2-wheel bikes, as the kids are older

and want more mobility.

Phase 3 The kids are grown and gone with families of their own and now the

parents are riding their own 3-wheel bicycles, trikes to the hip grannies.

Here in Phase 3, youre looking at 25-35 year old homes, where some

people are passing away. Others are just hanging in and some are

moving in with the kids or going to an A.L.F. (Assisted Living Facility).

No doubt, you have outdated homes, deferred maintenance and some

repairs to be made. Here is the beauty of this whole thing. These are my

cosmetology candidates. Heres why! The formally elder owners livedA46

there and they needed everything to work. They didnt update it. They

just fixed things that needed repair in order to maintain a level of

comfort. They had pest control and the Sears man come annually and

piddled around. So things were kind of looked after in that manner. Buy

here!

Phase 4 Revitalization Thats what happens as a result of you buying your ripe-

for-rehab fixer-upper in Phase 3 neighborhoods. Odds are, you will rent

it out, lease-option it or sell it to a young family when it does sell, and

guess what? Yep, out come the tricycles and baby strollers and it starts

all over again.

Tricycles

Bicycles

3-wheel bikes (buy here!)

Revitalization

Determine what cycle different neighborhoods are in! Follow cycle #3.

Isnt that a beautiful story; isnt that the truth? Think about your own parents and your own childhood. Now I also want you to think about that brand new young family that is counting on you to treat them fairly and give them a trouble-free home when they buy or rent from you.

The harder and smarter you work, the better quality and value you can provide to others. Dont rip them off. Dont take advantage, dont scrimp and for Petes sake, do your best to do your level best. You need education and help from others to achieve these heights of excellence.

Dan Auito is a dual-licensed real estate agent and appraisal assistant. In addition to being a 20-year veteran of the United States Coast Guard, Dan has also founded a non-profit drug prevention corporation, a real estate consulting group and is the author of Magic Bullets in Real Estate. This 300-page power-packed book (due out in Sept 2004) comes with a website (on line in Sept 2004) that further supports its readers. Please visit with the family at http://www.magicbullets.com we look forward to seeing you!

Fallbrook Roofers

A User Guide On Owens Corning Siding

This article deals with the nittie gritties of Owen Corning Siding. It doesn't need to be painted even if it is scratched. There are many other intriguing features. Read On! Owens Corning offers many different vinyl siding lines. Design options include horizontal and vertical siding; traditional clapboard and authentically detailed "shaped" sidings; wide and narrow panel exposures; and smooth, subtle and deep wood grain textures. Plus you can choose from a wide assortment of traditional and contemporary colors

All You Wanted to Know on Owens Corning Siding

Owens Corning vinyl siding doesn't need painting, so you save time and money in development costs. There's never a need to scrape paint, patch stucco or replace rotting boards. The color you see on the surface goes completely through Owens Corning vinyl siding - so you will not see a different color if the siding is scratched. This is very important as it drastically reduces your maintenance expenses. You don't need to worry about changing your sidings the next time your kid scratches the wall or you chip off a part of the wall while redecorating your house.

To keep your Owens Corning vinyl siding looking like new, simply spray it occasionally with a garden hose. For tougher dirt, it is recommended to clean it with a mild soap solution. Durable construction means Owens Corning vinyl siding will stand up to the elements, no matter what type of climate.

Owens Corning Siding: It Doesn't need Painting!

Over the years, you won't have to worry about additional upkeep costs because Owens Corning vinyl siding won't rot, peel, warp or harbor insects like wood or dent like aluminum.

Your building material dealer or contractor will be able to help you compute how much vinyl siding you'll need with a few simple measurements.

Owens Corning siding has a vast number of brands that range from sidings which emphasize on performance and durability to a range which brings out the beauty in the most simplest of things, to the range which is as beautiful as cedar but requires very little maintenance, to ranges which e4F3mphasize on the beauty of old heritage homes. Owens Corning Siding's diversity extends to three more choices: The Essential Vinyl Siding Collection, the Norandex/ Reynolds Siding & Accessories, and the VYTEC Collection.

You can also find more info on siding products and Exterior Wood Siding. Homesidingreview.com is a comprehensive resource to know more about home siding review.

Roof Dutch Stuccoed

How To Completely Rehab Your Home In 10 Days!

This report is about taking a house and restoring it to an aesthetically pleasing dwelling that has reclaimed its functional utility. In effect, it is the anti-aging medication for bricks and mortar.

This report assumes that you have already or will soon acquire the proper house. The one that is in essence, ripe for rehab. Be selective and sure of the houses potential to allow for a profit after all the hard work is done. I will help you find your house or houses.

In the proverbial n16D0utshell, it helps if you choose a house from the start that has a sound plumbing, heating and electrical system.

Plumbing
Heating
Electrical

These are things that are expensive to correct in relation to the value they return to you upon resale. Most often, people cannot see the inner workings of these systems and they take them for granted.

Very few buyers are going to give you an extra $15,000-$20,000 in your asking price because you have replaced things that they cant see and already take for granted as just a basic component that is buried in the structure. Also, they assume these components to be warranted against defects by you.

After all, it is mandatory in most, if not all states that you fill out a disclosure form that tells the buyer of every defect that exists or ever has to your knowledge. So inspect the systems of your investment alternatives carefully, as they can be expensive to repair and replace, with minimum dollar return value being realized at the sale.

Along these same lines, you should also pay close attention to the following cash vacuums:

Roof
Foundation
Structural Integrity

Here are a few ways to quickly gage a home from its appearance:

Stand across the street from it. Now look at the bones of the structure. Does it look like a sway-backed horse, with the roof sagging in the middle? Does it have flat areas in its design that dont allow water to be drained away quickly?

Water, dampness and rot are the equivalent of cancer to the human body when it concerns a structure. Shingles can be replaced. That wont necessarily stop me from buying. Usually I will use that old roof as a bargaining chip in negotiating the seller down to a lower price. However, if I crawl into the attic and see that the plywood has become rotted and truss members are also affected, its time to move on to my next potential deal. Life is too short and I will never rehab it in 10 days if I have to rip the roof off and rebuild it too.

Some other conditions, such as sagging eves, wavy roof surface, rotten fascia and trim pieces, and insect infestations can be deal killers too, if severe.

Solution: Get into the structural members with a long, sharp, sturdy, standard flat-tip screwdriver and attempt to penetrate structural components that are made of wood. You wont hurt anything if there are no underlying deficiencies. However, if someone has freshly painted over or patched it, that screwdriver is one heck of a lie detector! Use it.

Now, Im not saying people would do that. It may just be the termites have eaten everything but the exterior coating of the wood to conceal their activity whatever the case probe.

There are also tile roofs, metal roofs, cedar shake roofs, hot-rolled roofing, tar and gravel roofs and always a few new high-tech roof coatings. I feel my main concern is whether the decking or the roof support structure has been undermined by water, insects, rodents, poor materials, poor design or craftsmanship, a lack of fasteners, strapping, etc.

Shingles and coatings can be replaced. Just know what is underneath. Thats my criteria. Negotiate lower for needed replacement of roof coverings if you can. I dwell on roofs because it protects everything else!

Next on the list of deal killers is the foundation. The same thing applies to the foundation. I will start by standing back from it and looking at it from a distance. Does this place look like the Leaning Tower of Pisa? Or are the seams coming apart? Do the windows and doors look square? Are porches, stairs and additions on firm ground as well?

Block homes can tell you very quickly if they are stressed out just by the appearance of the mortar joints. Those giant unsettling cracks can and do tell a story. This does happen and mortar cracks maybe 10-years old. You need to investigate further.

Once again, water is a sign of trouble with foundations because it leads to erosion, rot, mold and mildew. It washes out foundation materials and slabs will crack. It rots sill plates and your walls are no longer firmly attached to a base.

If you have a crawl space, its time to get your coveralls on and get in there. Now, lets use our heads here and I mean this! Before you enter a dark, supposedly uninhabited, infrequently entered, dark and restrictive to movement area, assess the situation. Ask someone who has knowledge of the dwelling if there has been any animal activity that they know of. You may also encounter bees, wasps, ants, spiders, snakes, slugs, mosquitoes, rats, mice and a host of other inhabitants. Beware and be prepared. Its truly another world in some cases.

If you dont want to do it, hire a professional and I do mean a pro, not some Joe who says he is one. For goodness sake, use a licensed professional home inspector to protect yourself in all areas if youre just not sure!

OK, youre a trooper and youre going in. Good for you, Rambo! Youll make it in this business because it takes faith, guts and determination. By getting into this type of situation, youll learn a lot more about every part of the homes you inspect.

You should have a strong flashlight, your trusty screwdriver, maybe some insect repellent and a safety observer standing at the access entry to give you piece of mind. Now you can go to the perimeter walls and inspect where the walls meet the foundation. Look for rot, misalignment, cracks, separations, water damage or any other condition that doesnt appear normal.

While youre down there, look at the other foundational supports, you will see pier blocks and posts, other concrete support pillars and walls, bea5B4ms, joists and cross bracing, and the underside of sub-flooring. Check this stuffs condition. Does it look original? Is it structurally sound? Or are there some discrepancies that need further investigation? Take a good look and smell!

Dont leave yet. You also will want to look at all that plumbing and electrical that is there as well. Scan the perimeter. Do you see any sunlight coming in from where it shouldnt be? That might be a hole that needs repair. This is common sense land, not computer a chip lab. You can inspect for general condition. Simply follow everything to its logical end, looking mainly at the condition of the different components.

OK, youve made mental and physical notes. Now dust yourself off and go inside the house if everything has checked out so far. So the roof and foundation have passed your keen eye. Lets look at the rest of the house with respect to its structural integrity. More than half of your structural integrity check at this point is already complete as the roof and foundation are two of the most important components and those have been done. Now you are left with the interior spaces of the structure.

Heres what I do once inside. I stand at the front door with a checklist in hand (www.inspectamerica.com) and I begin to scan the walls, ceiling and floors. Im looking for water stains on all three surfaces, as well as patches that were used to repair 5B4or conceal damage. I go through every room and look for signs of damage or concealment.

Any flat floor is a good candidate for my scientific marble test. Ill drop my marble; if it rolls to a corner, that floor aint level, Buckwheat. Thats a simple test but I do want to know that the under-layer or sub-flooring is sound and firmly attached to all those joists, and beams and trimmers and blah, blah, blah.

Soft spongy floors are of concern, creaky floors are annoying and rotten floors are another story. So once again, Im looking at the structural support of the floors. I dont care that the cheap, yellowed vinyl is coming up at the seams. I dont care that the carpet is matted down or thread bare, and I dont mind if the finish is worn off of hardwood floors or tiles are loose.

Floor coverings fall under the label of cosmetics. Thats such a pretty word and thats what you want to concentrate on: cosmetics...more on that in a moment.

So the floors pass my test for sub-flooring and structural integrity is great. Now I can check that the walls are square because they are attached to that floor, and then I can check that the doors all operate properly and are square too.

How much more can there be than that, Dan? Well, let me tell you a few things that can bite you here. Lets say the structure overall is good. By that, I mean you have a solid roof, a solid foundation and sturdy5B4 floors and walls.

What is behind those walls? The things that bite you arent usually seen until you get bit. One particular painful bite is finding out your wiring is not grounded or that the circuits are not properly protected. Youre looking for three-pronged outlets and modern plastic-encased wiring made of copper, not aluminum. You want circuit breakers, not fuses. What you really need here is a licensed electrician to do this more in-depth and professionally licensed review of the system.

I have seen more than one Joe Homeowner rehab go up in flames because of a lack of respect for electricity. Licensed electricians bring you up to code and protect your investment. Find a good one and make it a point to shower him or her with praise, attention and money well spent.

They will give you free estimates, so use them as a preliminary inspector with you. If you decide to buy it, use them to do the work that needs to be done.

Plumbers are a breed apart. You would think they use gold for soldering your pipes with the prices they charge. My grandfather was a plumber and I was on the truck with him at nine years old. A plumber may or may not give you a free estimate. With a little digging, it can be done. Just give them the work if indeed you do buy the house.

With plumbers, the only time youre going to need one is if you are doing major system work or the once every ten year hot water heate5B4r job. Also the occasional clogged main sewer line to the street.

In todays P.V.C. plastic plumbing kits world, you can hire just about any good all-around handyman to get the job done. If you have to tear through a wall to get at plumbing, building code inspector-man will say, Get a licensed plumber.

Heating and cooling: the air conditioning system, if the house youre inspecting doesnt have adequate heating and cooling, that can become expensive. Lets say you have a flat roof home in a hot climate with window unit air-conditioners, and you intend on bringing this house up to what a modern day home dweller expects.

You may have a problem. Where would you put new ductwork if you dont have attic space to house and route central heat and air? Once again, call in a pro if you need some advice. They do give free estimates!

Heres a point for you to follow up on: the plumbing, heating and air-conditioning guys all drive service trucks. Be on the lookout for those trucks if they are your neighbors; go say Hello and introduce yourself.

Regardless, I have always done this and what I am saying is this: these guys most always work on the side and that means half price. You may have to pull a permit as a homeowner but the savings is substantial. Develop a network of these blue-collar geniuses. They are the guys who will transform your investment fast!

So now you have a solid5B4 house. By that I mean, plumbing, electrical, heating and air-conditioning, roof, foundation and overall good structural integrity.

So whats left to do? Call in your army of carpenter ants, from painters to carpenters and flooring installers, yard maintenance and tree trimmers, and handymen of all sorts.

This is the whirlwind tour. Let the demolition guy in first. Order a dumpster for the next ten days. Order demolition man to throw out everything including the kitchen sink. What I am out to do at this point is to clear the decks.

A blank canvass is created for the painters to perform the transformation. They come in at this point and patch and paint. Let them blast the place with their airless paint-spraying arsenal inside and out. Give them 3 days and you have just added a huge improvement to your investment. This is the biggest dollar-for-dollar return you can make.

One cautionary note here: Make absolutely sure that quality paint is used. When it comes to painting, its the labor that kills you, not the material. I insist on Sherwin Williams Super Paint. It is a miracle formula that I am convinced could cover up bullet holes without any patching compound and it lasts forever. Its worth every penny; insist on it!

So my idea of finding the ideal fixer upper is to find those where the structure and systems are fine but it still needs demolition man and the paint brigade. Everything 5B4up to this point has been inspection and appraisal of the situation. Once Im satisfied that it is a cosmetic rehab and not the expensive money pit, I send in my cosmetologists.

I wouldnt call these guys that to their face but these are normally men adding residential make-up to the bricks and mortar. Once the painters leave, the flooring guys are right behind them, laying tile and carpet. These guys are out in 2-3 days and my cabinet and handyman plumber are attacking.

Light fixtures, vanities, toilets, sinks, doors, switch plates and outlet coverswham, ten days are up and this house is either held out for rent, lease-optioned or sold for a whole heck of a lot more than the ten grand I put into it, if that much.

You must be somewhat of an appraiser and deal finder. It takes time to recruit your cosmetologists, but you will run across them in your travels. Friends and family usually can provide you with some serious leads. Start networking and talking to tradesmen. Get their numbers and schedule them to descend upon your ugly duckling at certain times and watch the transformation begin.

It took me years to learn these tricks. I did it all myself for years and it always took three months when I did it myself. The sad part is that I thought I was saving money that way.

Can you see how much I actually lost? Here is a quick example. I bought a house for $55,000. Its deficiencies were purely 5B4cosmetic. I used other people to do all the work and I pitched in to keep them organized. Ten days later, it was done. I spent a total of $5,000 on materials and labor and it appraised at $90,000 in 10 days!

Thats $30,000 in 10 days, not 3 months. Now marketing time would take 45 days but I know how to do that too, and I will also show you how you can do it too.

There is no doubt about it. This can be done and you can do it. In all honesty, it may take you 30 days to achieve a completed house. Thats may be 3 times what it took me but I am experienced.

Heres a pretty neat way I figured out how to find good cosmetologists (tradesmen). If I know relatively no one in the area, I will ask a local appraiser to suggest who he would use if he were me.

This is an intelligent way to ask that question. I ask it in this form: If you were me, who would you use? Now that triggers a self-preservation mechanism in their brain and they give me excellent people, who are very good at what they do! Try it; it works.

I went to appraisal school and learned a lot. Believe me, appraisers are underrated and treated poorly. They truly are experts at discerning quality and value. They know whom does quality work. Make friends with a competent appraiser and the lenders that accept their appraisals. Hint: Youll get very fair evaluations and their lender approves them.

Marketing, hunting, findin5B0g and capturing the ripe for rehab houses is another book entirely. However, dont lose faith because I have written that book for you as well. Here is an excerpt from my other book. It is called Magic Bullets In Real Estate.

There are 4 phases, or lifecycles, to real estate and here is how it often goes.

Phase 1 You will see new construction, bright shiny homes popping up,

landscaping contests, baby strollers and tricycles in the neighborhood.

This is probably going on in the suburbs of the city, as new growth tends

to radiate out at a pace of one mile per year from growing and

prosperous cities.

Phase 2 The same neighborhood now 10-15 years later has aged a bit and

now you see basketball hoops and 2-wheel bikes, as the kids are older

and want more mobility.

Phase 3 The kids are grown and gone with families of their own and now the

parents are riding their own 3-wheel bicycles, trikes to the hip grannies.

Here in Phase 3, youre looking at 25-35 year old homes, where some

people are passing away. Others are just hanging in and some are

moving in with the kids or going to an A.L.F. (Assisted Living Facility).

No doubt, you have outdated homes, deferred maintenance and some

repairs to be made. Here is the beauty of this whole thing. These are my

cosmetology candidates. Heres why! The formally elder owners livedA46

there and they needed everything to work. They didnt update it. They

just fixed things that needed repair in order to maintain a level of

comfort. They had pest control and the Sears man come annually and

piddled around. So things were kind of looked after in that manner. Buy

here!

Phase 4 Revitalization Thats what happens as a result of you buying your ripe-

for-rehab fixer-upper in Phase 3 neighborhoods. Odds are, you will rent

it out, lease-option it or sell it to a young family when it does sell, and

guess what? Yep, out come the tricycles and baby strollers and it starts

all over again.

Tricycles

Bicycles

3-wheel bikes (buy here!)

Revitalization

Determine what cycle different neighborhoods are in! Follow cycle #3.

Isnt that a beautiful story; isnt that the truth? Think about your own parents and your own childhood. Now I also want you to think about that brand new young family that is counting on you to treat them fairly and give them a trouble-free home when they buy or rent from you.

The harder and smarter you work, the better quality and value you can provide to others. Dont rip them off. Dont take advantage, dont scrimp and for Petes sake, do your best to do your level best. You need education and help from others to achieve these heights of excellence.

Dan Auito is a dual-licensed real estate agent and appraisal assistant. In addition to being a 20-year veteran of the United States Coast Guard, Dan has also founded a non-profit drug prevention corporation, a real estate consulting group and is the author of Magic Bullets in Real Estate. This 300-page power-packed book (due out in Sept 2004) comes with a website (on line in Sept 2004) that further supports its readers. Please visit with the family at http://www.magicbullets.com we look forward to seeing you!

Fallbrook Roofers

7 Tips For a Bathroom Facelift

Every few years a bathroom just needs a facelift. If your bathroom is in good condition for the most part, but just needs some sprucing up, here are some tips.

1. Paint your bathroom. Painting the walls with a new shade can give the whole room a major lift, but do it right. Start with a primer. It adds just a few dollars to the cost, but not only will your paint hold up better, but it will make for a much more even coat.

Use a good enamel paint. There are many top brands that are water based for easy clean-up, and hold up very well. Use satin or eggshell if you like a low gloss.

2. Consider sanding your cabinetry and giving it a good stain. You can select a wood tone, or one of many color stains that are now available.

You may be tempted to just paint the cabinetry, but paint will tend to chip where stain is embedded in the wood and will hold up over time, if you do the job right. This takes a little elbow grease, but will make a dramatic change to your bathroom.

Buy some new knobs and your bathroom cabinets will have a new and different look.

3. Updating your lighting can also produce great results. Well thought out lighting just where you need it can definitely brighten up a bathroom.

Choosing attractive fixtures can make a stunning improvement in the decor of your bathroom. Lighting fixtures are not only functional, they lend much to the overall decor of your bath.

4. Replace your vanity top if it is showing signs of wear. A new vanity top and sink are a great way to update your bathroom. This is the most seen area of most bathrooms, and often gets the most use.

Consider adding a new countertop sink instead of the standard bathroom basin. There are hundreds to choose from and they will give your bath a new and trendy appearance.

5. If a new vanity top and a countertop sink is one of your choices, go the extra mile and invest in a new faucet. Here again, there are many to choose from in many styles and finishes.

Chrome was the old standby for decades, but these days you can have oil rubbed finishes, bronzed finishes, a variety of brushed finishes, or very shiny finishes. Handles and spouts offer many options in style as well. Longer necked spouts have become very popular for the bathroom and provide an interesting look.

6. while you're giving your bath a refresher course, this is a good time to re-grout around the tub. If your shower door is looking well past it's time, this may be the time to replace it.

7. And, it goes without saying, that new linens will always perk up your bath. If you have painted your bath a new color, this may be the time to replace at least the linens that get seen on a daily basis.

This is not to suggest that you undertake all of these suggestions. Choose one or two that will do the most to perk up and give your bathroom a fresh look.

If your bathroom needs more than a facelift, you'll find many bathroom remodeling tips and advice on planning a bathroom remodel.

Remodeled House Exterior With Siding

The Small Bathroom Dilemma

You get up every morning and head straight for the bathroom. It's the first and last place that you visit every day. If it is cluttered and small, it can seem cumbersome and depressing. If things are hard to find or get to it can be frustrating and make you late for work or other appointments and obligations. If you are stuck with a small space, follow these tips for getting organized and making the space seem larger than it really is.

First, the more floor space that is visible, the bigger the room will feel. Utilize your linen closet. Clear out the clutter and get rid of expired medicines and make-up. Most of us have a drawer stuffed full of old make-up, medicines and hair accessories. Use plastic containers that you can see through and separate your stuff. Put the make-up that you really use in one container. All manicure/pedicure products should go in their own container. Medicines can go in their own box, and if you have children, you may want to separate child and adult medicines. Shaving cream, razors and blades, toothbrushes and toothpaste can go in a box together. Hair-dryer, curling irons and hair accessories can go into their own container as well. Dedicate an eye-level shelf in your linen closet for all of these items. Add a shelf if you need to, making extra space. This should get everything off of your counter.

The next step is to get as much as possible off of your floor. Unnecessary rugs, laundry baskets and garbage cans can make the space seem smaller than it is. If you have the budget, opt for a wall-mounted toilet and pedestal sink. These two things free up floor space and help keep things open. Take down thick or dark colored shower curtains and draperies. Installing clear doors on the shower extends the eye past the bathtub all the way to the wall, adding about three feet of space. Having sheer curtains or a pull-down window shade that lets in light can make a big difference.

Install extra lighting where ever you can. Bad lighting makes spaces seem small and dreary. Bright fluorescent bulbs, recessed lighting, sky lights and open windows can make all the difference. Use light colored paint and bathroom accessories to brighten up the room. Light blues and greens are the most pleasing to the eye and signal your brain to consider the room an open space.

Mirrored surfaces also add to the illusion of space. If you have a small mirror, replace it with one that is as big as possible. Add mirrors to other walls if possible, not just above the sink. A mirrored medicine cabinet adds space and is also a practical solution for storage. Replace old brass doorknobs, cabinet pulls, toilet paper holders and faucets with bright reflective chrome. Towel rods, shower curtain rods and hooks reflect light around the room adding to the illusion of space. If you have a small table in your bathroom, cover it with a mirrored surface, or replace it with a pedestal and glass top.

Keep things simple and open, colors light and patterns subtle. Use wooden hangers to organize your linen closet or hang your robe and keep things looking uniform. Opening up space in your bathroom can rejuvenate you for the day and relax you for the night.

About the Author: Ron Maier is the owner of The Hanger Depot, a leading provider of high quality hangers, including wooden hangers.

Home Mold Test Kits

1337

50066

Pressure Treated Lumber

If you are building a deck, retaining wall or a swing set for the kids it is highly likely that your material of choice is pressure treated lumber.

Pressure treated lumber, if installed properly, should provide a 40 year useable life. However, there are some things about pressure treated lumber that you have to know, in order to obtain that life and not have your project fall apart in a few years.

To create pressure treated lumber, raw lumber is impregnated with two waterborne compounds that are copper based chemicals. The amount of copper basically determines the usage and all pressure treated lumber, sold in the US, is supposed to have a tag stapled to the end of the board signifying its pounds of preservative per cubic foot of wood product:

0.25 Above Ground

0.40 Ground Contact

0.60 Permanent Wood Foundation

2.50 Salt Water

Because the lumber is impregnatedAA8 with copper, the choice of fasteners becomes very important. When two dissimilar metals come in contact with one another a galvanic reaction is created, the outcome is that the materials corrode and disintegrate. The higher the levels of copper in the lumber the faster that the corrosion will occur.

Although most people realize that they must use corrosion resistant fasteners and connectors many do not consider items such as flashings and light poles that are also in contact with the pressure treated lumber. Of course the best metals to use for fasteners, flashings and anything else that comes in contact with the deck is stainless steel or copper whenever possible. Stainless steel is expensive and copper is not conveniently available at your local lumber supply so the next best material is steel that has been galvanized.

Galvanized fasteners come in different grades (the thickness of the coating), better manufactures mark the box with a G rating. The higher the G rating, the more zinc used. You shouldnt use less than a G-90 rating and engineers are now suggesting the use of G-185. If the box is not marked it is probably a G-60 or less and this will not provide enough zinc coating to prevent galvanization from occurring. Cadmium plated nuts, bolts and screws do not provide any protection from corrosion whatsoever.

Some manufactures have created composite coatings for use with pressure treated lumber. Read the label on the box and make sure that what you are buying is suitable for the job.

Do not use aluminum flashing, deck flashing must be stainless steel, galvanized or copper. Aluminum corrodes very quickly when in contact with copper. This also means that metals items that come in contact with the pressure treated lumber must also be protected, items such as outdoor furniture, and barbeques should have rubber or vinyl feet or wheels.

For additional information on pressure treated lumber for your home or other renovation projects, visit Renovation Headquarters.

Strong Tie Wall Top Connection

Creating the Perfect Home Remodeling Priority List

Home remodeling is one of those projects that can be fun or a pain in the -- you know what. It is best to start your home remodeling plan with one room at a time and decide on the value of each room to prioritize where to save and where to spend. This article will look at the value of each room to help you deiced the type of home remodeling project you may consider.

The big debate on what room is the most used room in the house could go on forever. Some say it is the kitchen others say it is the living room while others say the master bedroom. Everyone is entitled to their opinion, and you can use some basic rules to see what the highest priority is for you.

If you have kids then you probably spend more time than you like in the kitchen cooking. If you have a smaller family maybe the kitchen is just a place where you are in and out. If you cook allot then the kitchen should get some very high consideration for your home remodeling project.

Do you like to play games and watch TV? If you find yourself or your family watching television often and you perhaps enjoy family night games then you should place the family room at the top of your list. Maybe it is time to add family room to your home remodeling ideas. Perhaps you could remodel a spare bedroom or add a new room to the house.

Do you have guest spend the night often? You may want to think about making a nice guest bathroom with all the luxuries of a five star hotel for your guest. Do not do this unless you love to have people stay awhile and come often. They are likely to really enjoy visiting you.

When planning your home remodeling ideas you will find that they become much easier with a good priority system. Once you know which rooms are the most important to you and your lifestyle then that is where the money should be spent on nicer upgrades. On rooms that are not high on the list, but still need some fixing you could use less expensive things to fix them up.

Find more helpful remodeling tips by visiting http://best-home-improvement-projects.com where you will find helpful remodeling tips, advice and resources to include Home Remodeling.

Water Damage

Residential Construction Term Dictionary

When you start shopping for a new home, you may encounter some words and terms with which you are unfamiliar. The following glossary will help you to be a better informed shopper.

Adjustable Rate Mortgage (ARM) - A loan whose interest rate is adjusted according to movements in the financial market.

Amortization - A payment plan by which a borrower reduces a debt gradually through monthly payments of principal and interest.

Annual Percentage Rate (APR) - The annual cost off credit over the life of a loan, including interest, service charges, points, loan fees, mortgage insurance, and other items.

Appraisal - An evaluation to determine what a piece of property would sell for in the marketplace.

Appreciation - The increase in the value of a property.

Assessment - A tax levied on a property or a value placed on the worth of property by a taxing authority.

Assumption - A transaction allowing the buyer of a home to assume responsibility for an existing loan on the home instead of getting a new loan.

Balloon - A loan which has a series of monthly payments (often for 5 years or less) with the remaining balance due in a large lump sum payment at the end.

Binder - A receipt for a deposit paid to secure the right to purchase a home at terms agreed upon by the buyer and seller.

Buydown - A subsidy (usually paid by a builder or developer) to reduce the monthly payments on a mortgage loan.

Cap - A limit to the amount an interest rate or a monthly payment can increase for an adjustable rate loan either during an adjustment period or over the life of the loan.

Certificate of Occupancy - A document from an official agency stating that the property meets the requirements of local codes, ordinances, and regulations.

Closing - A meeting to sign documents which transfer property from a seller to a buyer. (Also called settlement)

Closing Costs - Charges paid at settlement for obtaining a mortgage loan and transferring real estate title.

Conditions, Covenants, and Restrictions (CC and Rs) - The standards that define how a property may be used and the protections the developer has made for the benefit of all owners in a subdivision.

Condominium - A home in a multi-unit complex; each purchaser owns an individual unit, and all the purchasers jointly own the common areas, such as the surrounding land, hallways, etc.

Conventional Loan - A mortgage loan not insured by a government agency (such as FHA or VA).

Convertibility - The ability to change a loan from an adjustable rate schedule to a fixed rate schedule.

Cooperative - A form of ownership in a multi-unit complex; the purchasers own shares of the entire complex rather than owning individual units.

Credit Rating - A report ordered by a lender from a credit bureau to determine if the borrower is a good credit risk.

Default - A breach of a mortgage contract (such as not making monthly payments).

Density - The number of homes built on a particular acre of land. Allowable densities are usually determined by local jurisdictions.

Downpayment - The difference between the sales price and the mortgage amount on a home. The downpayment is usually paid at closing.

Due-on-Sale - A clause in a mortgage contract requiring the borrower to pay the entire outstanding balance upon sale or transfer of the property. A mortgage with a due-on-sale clause is not assumable.

Earnest Money - A sum paid to the seller to show that a potential purchaser is serious about buying.

Easement - Right-of-way granted to a person or company authorizing access to the owner?s land; for example, a utility company may be grated an easement to install pipes or wires. An owner may voluntarily grant an easement, or in some cases, be compelled to grant one by a local jurisdiction.

Equity - The difference between the value of a home and what is owed on it.

Escrow - The handling of funds or documents by a third party on behalf of the buyer and/or seller.

Federal Housing Administration (FHA) - A federal agency which insures mortgages that have lower downpayment requirements than conventional loans.

Fixed Rate Mortgage - A mortgage whose interest rate remains constant over the life of the loan. The payments are not necessarily level. (See Graduated Payment Mortgage and Growing Equity Mortgage).

Fixed Schedule Mortgage - A mortgage whose payment schedule for the life of the loan is established at closing. The payments and interest rate are not necessarily level.

Graduated Payment Mortgage (GPM) - A fixed-rate, fixed-schedule loan which starts with lower payments than a level payment loan; the payments rise annually over the first 5 to 10 years and then remain constant for the remainder of the loan. GPMs involve negative amortization.

Growing Equity Mortgage (Rapid Payoff Mortgage) - A fixed-rate, fixed-schedule loan which starts with the same payments as a level payment loan; the payments rise annually, with the entire increase being used to reduce the outstanding balance. No negative amortization occurs, and the increase in payments may enable the borrower to pay off a 30-year loan in 15 to 20 years, or less.

Hazard Insurance - Protection against damage caused by fire, windstorm, or other common hazards. Many lenders require borrowers to carry it in an amount at least equal to the mortgage.

Housing Finance Agency - A state agency which offers a limited amount of below-market-rate home financing for low-and moderate-income5B4 households.

Index - The interest rate or adjustment standard which determines the changes in monthly payments for an adjustable rate loan.

Infrastructure - The public facilities and services needed to support residential development, including highways, bridges, schools, and sewer and water systems

Interest - The cost paid to a lender for the use of borrowed money.

Joint Tenancy - A form of ownership by which the tenants own a property equally. If one dies, the other would automatically inherit the entire property.

Level Payment Mortgage - A mortgage whose payments are identical for each month over the life of the loan.

Mortgage Broker - A broker who represents numerous lenders and helps consumers find affordable mortgages; the broker charges a fee only if the consumer finds a loan.

Mortgage Commitment - A formal written communication by a lender, agreeing to make a mortgage loan on a specific property, specifying the loan amount, length of time and conditions.

Mortgage Company (Mortgage Banker) - A company that borrows money from a bank, lends it to consumers who want to buy homes, then sells the loans to investors.

Mortgagee - The lender who makes a mortgage loan.

Mortgage Loan - A contract in which the borrower?s property is pledged a s collateral and which can be repaid in installments over a long period. The mortgagor (buyer) promises to repay principal and interest, to k5B4eep the home insured, to pay all taxes, and to keep the property in good condition.

Mortgage Origination Fee - A charge by a lender for the work involved in preparing and servicing a mortgage application (usually 1 percent of the loan amount).

Negative Amortization - An increase in the outstanding balance of a loan when a monthly payment is not large enough to cover all of the interest due.

Note - A formal document showing the existence of a debt and stating the terms of repayment.

PITI - Principal, interest, taxes, and insurance (the 4 major components of monthly housing payments).

Point - A charge of 1 percent of the mortgage amount. Points are a one-time charge assessed by the lender at closing to increase the interest yield on a mortgage loan.

Prepayment - Payment of all or part of a debt prior to its maturity.

Principal - The amount borrowed in a loan, excluding interest and other charges.

Property Survey - A survey to determine the boundaries of your property. The cost will depend on the complexity of the survey.

Rapid Payoff Mortgage - (See Growing Equity Mortgage).

Recording Fee - A charge for recording the transfer of a property, paid to a city, county, or other appropriate branch of government.

Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act (RESPA) - A federal law requiring lenders to provide home buyers with information about known or estimated settlement costs. The act5B2 also regulates other aspects of settlement procedures.

R-Value - The resistance of insulation material (including windows) to heat passing through it. The higher the number, the greater the insulating value.

Sales Contract - A contract between a buyer and seller which should explain, in detail, exactly what the purchase includes, what guarantees there are, when the buyer can move in, what the closing costs are, and what recourse the parties have if the contract is not fulfilled or if the buyer cannot get a mortgage commitment at the agreed-upon terms.

Settlement - (See Closing).

Shared Appreciation Mortgage - A loan in which partners agree to share specified portions of the downpayment, monthly payment, and appreciation.

Tenancy in Common - A form of ownership in which the tenants own separate but equal parts. To inherit the property, a surviving tenant would either have to be mentioned in the will or, in the absence of a will, be eligible through state inheritance laws.

Title - Evidence (usually in the form of a certificate or deed) of a person?s legal right to ownership of a property.

Transfer Taxes - Taxes levied on the transfer of property or on real estate loans by state and/or local jurisdictions.

Veterans Administration (VA) - A federal agency which insures mortgage loans with very liberal downpayment requirements for honorably discharged veterans and their surviving spouses.

5B6

Walk-Through - A final inspection of a home before settlement to search for problems that need to be corrected before ownership changes hands.

Warranty - A promise, either written or implied, that the material and workmanship of a product is defect-free or will meet a specified level of performance over a specified period of time. Written warranties on new homes are either backed by insurance companies or by the builders themselves.

Zoning - Regulations established by local governments regarding the location, height, and use for any given piece of property within a specific area.

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Stair Building

Kitchen Secrets

The biggest misconception of the building supply super store is that their prices are good. If compared to other local stores you will find that their prices might be better on a few items, but ultimately they are marking their profits on everything else being over priced. These stores will lead you in with a few low sale prices; but their relentless marketing makes you believe that all their prices are low and or unbeatable.

I found this out when I started shopping for kitchen cabinets. I was confused by a small amount of choices in Home Depot and the outrageous prices. When I asked a sales associate, he confided with me and said that Home Depot purposely will carry only a few choices of kitchen cabinets and the rest have to be special ordered. Of course these special order cabinets cost more money and make more money for the store. I then traveled to Lowes and found an even worse selection.

I decided to go online and look for cabinets. I was able to find a few good site16CCs and decided to go with a line of RTA kitchen cabinets. What are RTA kitchen cabinets? Well that is the first secret! It is a Ready To Assemble kitchen cabinet. They are easy to put together and cost 40% to 65% less than pre-assembled or custom ordered kitchen cabinets. Also when I say easy to assemble; I mean these cabinets are put together with a flat head screw driver. However at the same time, they are remarkably strong and sturdy.

The next secret I found was to avoid buying your kitchen counter tops at the big chain supply stores. I found that local kitchen stores carry the same thing but for far less in price. Look in your yellow pages and see what is out there. You're bound to find some local stores that will actually care about saving you money and are willing to work on tighter margins to get your business.

Look online for appliances. Yes, they are expensive to ship, but if you find someone local, you're going to save a large amount of money. If you find something farther away from your area, factor in the costs to get the item verse the costs at a store. Also you might be able to take that price you have found online and have a local store try to match that price.

The final item is the flooring for you kitchen. Again think local stores and avoid the super store. You will be tempted by prices at the big box retailers, but if your going with ceramic tile, prices are relatively the same and the small stores will more likely give you a discount because your giving them business. Lumber Liquidators are popping up everywhere for hardwood flooring, but you can actually get an even better deal if you know exactly how many square feet you will need and you shop the discount building supply stores for closeout deals.

Keep all of this in mind and you will successfully save a ton of money on your new kitchen.

I have been able to save thousands of dollars on discount kitchen cabinets by buying RTA cabinets. If you are interested in finding out my secrets, go to my Kitchen Cabinets article at Hubpages.

Top Of Bottom Stair Stringer

Great Teams - The Three Building Blocks

Google team building. On the day of writing this article I got the response, "302,000,000 for team building. (0.08 seconds)". Over 300 million web pages and articles devoted to team building.

My observation is that the more pages Google gives you, the more complex is a topic. Many more people have different ideas and hence they publish them.

Is it really that complex? I have no doubt that the execution of building a team is complex as it involves the gamut of human emotions. What I do not see as complex though are the building blocks.

My observation is that there are only three major building blocks.

Common Goal:

Teams develop around a common goal. They do not grow because we want them to. We cannot instruct a team to form and expect it to be so. Groups of people, who individually pursue their own agendas whilst paying lip service to the declared goal, do not form teams.

If the goal is prescribed for a group of people and they neither were part of its development, nor understand their part in delivering it, they will not form a team. The forcefulness of their leader may still deliver the goal but less efficiently and less effectively than if the group of people believed it was their goal.

Respect for Difference:

Teams develop as people get to know one another and develop respect for their differences. The best way to develop the respect for differences is to experience a journey together. The obvious journey to use is the one required to reach a challenging goal.

However, at times, it is necessary to short cut the journey to build a team early in the timeline to reach the goal. Team building activities such as outward-bound programmes, hiking the Kokoda trail, week-long mental and physical team challenges can and do work in helping to build a team. Properly constructed, they not only discover the differences between people but also the value that the different characteristics bring.

What also works in short circuiting the team building cycle are assessments that help us understand our differences. I do not mean assessments such as Myers Briggs which people tend to use to pigeon hole themselves and others. I mean assessments, such as thinking styles, which help understand how others think and why that may be valuable to us. Or some EQ profiles which help us understand how people interact with others without putting a label upon them.

What I find rarely works, even on the surface, are team building activities which last for a day or so. One type of these include low level introspection which discover issues but rarely give enough time for people to work through them and learn. Another type include "fun" activities which give a short term lift to morale which then disappears within two days of being back at work.

In either case, the team building effort has to eventually centre on the component parts of achieving the goal. Otherwise, the team building activity becomes a distraction from which myths and stories are told, reinforcing personal rather than team agendas.

Respecting difference is, in my experience, the strongest correlation with a strong team. People who cannot respect difference should be removed from groups of people that need to develop into a team. This is true even if they bring great technical expertise to the group.

Competence, Information and Authority

Groups of people with a common goal and respect for difference can become great teams. However, without the proper tools, they are still likely to fail due to unnecessary frustrations being put in their way of achieving the goal.

Any single person needs the right level of behaviour skills and knowledge (competence), the right information and the right authority to execute their job well. So do teams.

If a group does not have required collective competence they will fail to form a team. They will not respect the difference of a group member who is assigned tasks but not competent to do them, even when no-one in the team is competent to do the task and, therefore, could not do any better.

For example, putting a group together and affixing the title of project manager to one of them without providing them the appropriate training to manage a project will restrict the development of a team and is just downright dumb. In many cases, training is not enough. It is experience that is required, even from an external source.

Having insufficient information to make decisions holds back all but the best teams, as too many people are not comfortable working in ambiguity. Information may be insufficient in many ways. One that is often overlooked however is that whilst copious amounts of data is available, it is without context. In those situations whilst data is available, information is sadly lacking. Group members will add their own context and thereby create unnecessary difference of opinion.

Groups of people without authority to act to reach the goal, even if it is a common goal, will struggle to form a team. Not having the necessary authority to act to reach a goal is no different in its impact on people than not having a common goal in the first place. Goals must be real and achievable by the team. They must have the necessary authority.

Team building exercises which concentrate on fun and frivolity are just that, frivolous. They do not build teams. They may raise morale for a moment but they do not build teams. Spend your money on building competence, creating a common goal and building respect for people's differences.

Kevin Dwyer is the founder of Change Factory. Change Factory helps organisations who do not like their business outcomes to get better outcomes by changing people's behaviour. Businesses we help have greater clarity of purpose and ability to achieve their desired business outcomes. To learn more or see more articles visit http://www.changefactory.com.au or email kevin.dwyer@changefactory.com.au 2007 Change Factory

Kitchen Faucets And Maintenance

Intercultural Team Building

Internal business structures have been radically transformed over the past few decades. Changes in areas such as communication and transportation technology and shifts towards global interdependency have resulted in companies becoming increasingly international and therefore intercultural.

In addition, the need to go global and to cut outgoings is demanding that companies combine protecting international interests whilst keeping down staff numbers. The solution in most cases has been the forming of intercultural teams.

As with all businesses, success depends upon effective cooperation and communication within teams. The intercultural dimension of todays teams however brings with it new challenges. Successful team building not only involves the traditional needs to harmonise personalities but also languages, cultures, ways of thinking, behaviours and motivations.

Intercultural teams have an inherent disadvantage. Cultural differences can lead to communication problems, unpredictability, low team cohesion, mistrust, stress and eventually poor results. However, intercultural teams can in fact be very positive entities. The combination of different perspectives, views and opinions can lead to an enhanced quality of analysis and decision making while team members develop new skills in global awareness and intercultural communication.

In reality this best case scenario is seldom witnessed. More often than not, intercultural teams do not fulfil their potential. The root cause for this is that when intercultural teams are formed, people with different frameworks of understanding are brought together and expected to naturally gel. Without a common framework of understanding, for example in matters such as status, decision making, communication etiquette, this is very difficult and thus necessitates outside help to commix the team.

Intercultural or cross cultural training is one method of helping to blend a team together. Through analysis of the cultures involved in a team, their particular approaches to communication and business and how the team interacts, intercultural team builders are able to find, suggest and use common ground to assist team members in building harmonious relationships.

Intercultural training sessions look at helping a team to realise their differences and similarities in areas such as status, hierarchy, decision making, conflict resolution, showing emotion and relationship building. These are then used to create mutually agreed upon structures of communication and interaction. From this basis, teams are then tutored how to recognise future communication difficulties and their cultural roots, empowering the team to become more self reliant. The end result is a more cohesive and productive team.

In conclusion, for intercultural teams to succeed, managers and HR personnel need to be attuned to the need for intercultural training to help cultivate harmonious relationships. Companies must be supportive, proactive and innovative if they wish to reap the potential benefits intercultural teams can offer. This goes beyond financing and creating technological links to bring together intercultural teams at surface level and going back to basics by fostering better interpersonal communication. If international businesses are to grow and prosper in this ever contracting world, intercultural synergy must be a priority.

Neil Payne is Managing Director of Kwintessential Ltd. For more information please visit http://www.kwintessential.co.uk/cross-cultural/training.html

Decorating A Small Bathroom

Building Survivable Systems - The Core Of A Disaster Planning Strategy

He who defends everything defends nothing
Sun Tzu, The Art of War.

Given the recent and not so recent events (the I-35W Highway bridge collapse in Minneapolis, Hurricane Katrina, and the 9/11 attacks) the potential for catastrophic failures/disasters should no longer be foreign to the thought processes of anyone in the leadership or decision making position. Many organizations and institutions are actively developing disaster recovery or business continuity plans. It is well understood that no matter how hard we try, no system can be fully protected from all attacks or without any vulnerable component. The goal should be to build a survivable system. While it is impossible to prepare for all possible disaster scenarios (He who defends everything defends nothing), it is critical that leaders and decision makers consider system survivability as the foundation of any disaster planning strategy.

What is a survivable system?
A survivable system is a system that will continue to operate and meet its mission objectives (i.e., essential services), in a timely manner, even when the functions of its components have been compromised. The determination of what constitutes essential services is usually based on an organizations policies and the experience of the decision makers. For example, an automobile with sound structural integrity is drivable after a crash. A business organization with an established business continuity policy will continue to provide essential services even after the integrity of its information systems has been compromised due to a denial of service attack. A survivable financial system must be able to provide secure, confidential, reliable, and timely services in the event of any failures in its communication components. The primary structural elements of a bridge (e.g., the skeleton) should hold even when other components fail.

Policies and acceptable system performance tradeoffs usually drive a system survivability goal. A recent article titled Recovering from the Unthinkable (Heather B. Hayes, Washington Technology, June 25, 2007) reports on the success of some organizations including SI-International Inc., Northrop Grumman, and the National Institute of Science and Technology (NIST) who have developed and applied several robust models for dealing with disaster recovery. These successful models include system replication, storing backup systems offsite, and having backup employees.

Self-managing Properties of Survivable Systems
Survivability services are those services used to detect, predict, prevent failures, and support recovery from system failures. Design of physical structures such as bridges, buildings, and roadways demands the inclusion of the self-managing properties in the fabric of each structure to ensure survival. To survive, a system needs to possess four self-managing properties. These include (i) self-configuringthe ability to automatically adapt to changes in the environment; (ii) self-healingthe ability to detect, diagnose, and react to disruptions; (iii) self-optimizingthe ability to automatically optimize resource usage to meet user needs; and (iv) self-protectingthe ability to anticipate/predict, detect, identify, and protect the system from disruptions.

Conclusion
Every system must provide an optimum service level during normal operations. The same system must also be able to provide essential services when its components fail due to malicious attacks or major disasters. Therefore, decision makers need to integrate the four self-managing properties into the design and usage/operations of a product (e.g., a bridge, a building or an aircraft), a process, or a business model.

Jid Odubiyi, Ph.D., is the President of SEGMA LLC, a technology development and consulting firm in Silver Spring, MD, with a focus on developing business intelligence tools for corporate governance. Dr. Odubiyi has authored over 40 articles in Business, IT, and Engineering and is a frequent presenter and participant at national and international conferences. He is the author of Building Survivable Systems: Principles and Applications for Complex Product, Process, and Organizational Change Models (ILORI Press, Jan. 2007) and Blueprint for a Crooked House (ILORI Press, Jan. 2006), a case study on lessons learned from a global joint venture (www.iloripress.com ).

Walkway And Handrail Offset