[Guest Post] 5 Things Your Pool Guy Won’t Tell You

CC Ultra Luxury Private Pool
Photo from Flikr user tropictraveler

Despite the luxuries of owning a pool and portable hot tub, caring for them can seem like a daunting and exhausting prospect for those who have never taken care of one. In fact, many pool and spa owners would love to delegate all of their maintenance to a professional pool company or technician. Aside from being prohibitively expensive, it can be impractical to have someone handle every aspect of keeping your pool sparkling and ready to use. If you are ready to be a little more self reliant, here are five tips your pool guy won’t tell you.

Read more

How to Refinish/Repaint a Desk

zoey-and-desk-350x200Whether you want to repair the finish on an old desk or give it a brand new look, refinishing or repainting a desk is both easy and fun. In just six easy steps, you’ll have a brand new desk that will add a unique touch to your office or work space. Before you begin, you’ll want to prepare the desk for its face lift. You’ll want to remove the drawers and any hardware before moving the desk to a well-ventilated area. Painting and refinishing can be messy, so you’ll also want to make sure to protect your work area with drop cloths.

Read more

How to Paint Your Living Room Red

how-to-paint-a-living-room-426x200Whether you’ve just moved in or you’ve decided to give you living room a brand new look and feel, red paint is a simple and easy way to bring a splash of vibrant color into your home.We wanted to paint our home’s living room and dining room the same exact shade of red that Joey’s mom had in her house growing up. In four easy steps, you can have the red living room that you’ve been dreaming about.

Read more

How to Find the Right Apartment for You

According to my organizational behavior management class I took the first semester of graduate school, there are five steps you should always consider when making decisions. They are: define the problem/issue, define criteria, weigh criteria, set alternatives and make a final decision. When you are searching for a new place to live a student or even later on in life, these steps can come in handy to make the right decision for you at the time, especially if you are trying to stay within a budget.

After living in the same place for the past 3 years, I decided it was time to move to a more affordable apartment since I started my MBA degree. Below you will find a few helpful tips/steps on how to find the right apartment for you on a budget!

Read more

Courtyard Collection Custom Steel Garage Doors

The quality and appearance of your garage door is extremely important. Courtyard Collection custom steel garage doors are a fantastic way of adding an elegant design element to your home.

Custom steel garage doors from the Courtyard Collection are made with insulated steel. This Thermacore insulation is made of CFC-free polyurethane insulation and is constructed by Thermacore. It offers an R-value of up to 12.76. The doors conjure nostalgic images of classic wood designs found on carriage house doors.

Read more

Why is My HVAC Unit Not Cooling?

Do Proper Maintenance on Your Furnace and Air Conditioning Unit (168/365)If your HVAC unit is not cooling, it could be due to any number of problems. An air conditioning unit – the “AC” in HVAC – is somewhat complicated, and there are a lot of things that can go wrong. If your home cooling system is not cooling as it should, it could be because…

Read more

First Time Home Buyer: 5 Major Mistakes to Avoid

Buying your first home can be overwhelming. It is no surprise that many people make mistakes on their first home purchase. These mistakes can be expensive learning experiences. Avoiding them is essential to preventing unnecessary stress and expenses.

1. The biggest mistake many first time home buyers make is bypassing the pre-approval process. A pre-approval can tell you how much you can afford to realistically pay for a house. When you know what your budget is, you can narrow your search to homes in your price range.

Read more

Best 3 Home Ownership Tips!

Home ownership can be one of the most rewarding achievements in life. However, rewards also come with responsibilities that enhance home values and quality of life.

Interior Items

While hopefully you purchased your home after a professional home inspection, pay attention to big-ticket items like heat pumps, air conditioners and hot water heaters. If they don’t work correctly, not only can they leave you hot or cold at the most inopportune times, but also drain money. These major appliances may have passed home inspection, but can lose proper function without warning. Be on the lookout for constantly running heat pumps/air conditioning units, unusual noises and water that does not seem as hot as usual.

Read more

Home Improvements that Help Increase Home Values

My greatest childhood memories revolve around gatherings we hosted at our house. We were a loud, rambunctious family that always had vigorous discussions in the kitchen. No wonder why kitchens hold such a special place in my heart!

As a busy buyer’s agent, I find that the kitchen seems to be the room that can make or break a house. Today’s buyers scrutinize the flow of the main living area to determine how they would entertain and create memories of their own. They want a smooth, circular and open flow between the kitchen, dining, and living areas. If you have walls dividing these rooms, you might consider opening up some of the wall area to create a more open feeling.

Read more