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Ease your little one through the process of looking for a new home and facing the changes of a new neighborhood and circle of friends with a book that will spur healthy parent-child conversations about an impending move. Introduce the topic of change through a colorful book as a way to provide stories and themes that will help ignite your child's excitement for a new phase.
From the moment you find out you are expecting a child until the day you depart this earth, it’s likely that your primary goal is to be a good mother. At times this will be very easy and other times, such as the toddler years – and probably the teenage years – this could feel a bit difficult. The truth is there is no right way to be a good mom to your toddler. As long as he is happy, healthy, safe and loved you are a good mom. However, you can do a lot more to make yourself an…
Pulling the trigger on a home purchase once was as straightforward as shopping for an affordable house, scrabbling together money for the down payment, securing financing at a reasonable interest rate and then closing. However, in the years following the 2008 U.S. financial collapse, which stemmed in part from a housing bubble caused by irresponsible mortgage lending, the housing market endured huge turbulence. That economic maelstrom spawned unprecedented real estate market conditions that dictated housing inventories, affordability and financing terms, all of which affect the optimal timing of a purchase. Despite the market’s unpredictability, potential buyers can avoid ill-timed acquisitions…
Don't know your Fannie Mae from your FHA? Your pre-approval from your pre-qualification? If you're planning to shop for a home loan, it's vital that you school yourself on the pertinent terminology. With hundreds of thousands of dollars on the line, confusion about topics like equity or escrow will be of little help. The experts say there are some concepts and terms you should learn before you start the home loan search.
If you're a short man, there are a few key suit styles that you're definitely going to want to check out. Find out about types of suits a short man should buy with help from a stylist and fashion professional in this free video clip.
Pruning an arboricola is a lot like pruning other, similar types of house plants. Find out how to prune an arboricola with help from an experienced professional gardener in this free video clip.
The wings of a fireplace are the wider parts of the structure, on either side of where the fire is set, that step out from the sides of the chimney breast. The tops of these wings are typically built horizontally, for the display of ornaments or lighting, but a retrofit can slope them upward at any angle. Most fireplaces have facades; an outer veneer made from attractive faux brick, tile or fieldstone, covering a more utilitarian brick or block inner structure. Matching an existing facade or applying a new one makes creating slanted wing tops a relatively uncomplicated project.
Buying a leasehold house requires you to follow a series of very specific steps for the best possible results. Buy a leasehold house with help from a real estate broker in this free video clip.
Buying home insurance requires you to follow a few particular steps. Find out how to buy home insurance with help from a longtime insurance salesman in this free video clip.
When the sole owner of a house dies, what happens next varies from state to state. Learn what do you do when the sole owner of a house dies with help from a practiced attorney in this free video clip.
In a real estate market where buyers have many choices, you may sell your house for more than the average property in your neighborhood if you make renovations that add equity. While you may not recoup 100 percent of your investment right away, some remodeling projects offer a larger increase than others. However, borrowing from the equity in your home to complete a project may not be cost-effective because, when you sell your house, you might not recoup the money you spent on renovations.
Having a thermostat that mounts close to a front doorway or in an odd place downstairs sometimes results in the upstairs of a home remaining too hot while the downstairs doesn't seem to heat up comfortably. This is also a problem in single level homes because rooms farther away from the thermostat seem warmer than the rest of the house. Balancing out heat with a thermostat in a bad spot in the house is possible without spending money on a separate system or relocating the thermostat.
When it comes to houses, buyers tend to want and look for a few key things. Learn about the top things buyers want and look for in houses with help from a real estate professional in this free video clip.
Just because a house has a judgment against it doesn't mean you can't buy it. Buy a house with a judgment with help from a real estate professional in this free video clip.
When it comes to acreage buying you're going to want to keep a few specific things in mind. Get a few acreage buying tips with help from a real estate professional in this free video clip.
Insulation is rated by its R-value, or its resistance to heat flow. Each region of the country has a recommended rating for the R-value in the walls, floor and attic areas of your home. Completing a do-it-yourself inspection of your insulation will let you know if you have enough insulation.
When buying a house you should be what is referred to as "financially solvent." Get financially solvent to buy a house with help from a business consultant and motivational speaker in this free video clip.
If you're attempting to buy a house that has been abandoned you're going to want to keep a few specific things in mind. Learn how to buy a house that has been abandoned with help from a real estate professional in this free video clip.
When putting a down payment on a house there are always a few things you want to keep in mind. Learn whether money market funds can be used for a down payment on a house with help from a real estate professional in this free video clip.
When a person dies and leaves property behind, a personal representative will step forward to administer his estate. An estate contains all the real and personal property a decedent owned at his death. Whether the decedent left a will, a trust or died intestate -- with no will -- the personal representative of the estate will have the responsibility of distributing the property.
Borrowers who can't qualify for conventional loans often apply for loans sponsored by the Federal Housing Administration (FHA), which have less restrictive credit, income and down payment requirements. However, because these loans pose a greater risk to the lender, FHA borrowers must typically pay mortgage insurance to protect the lender from loss.
Mosquitoes hate them -- and homeowners love them. A screened porch in the back of the house allows you to enjoy three-season comfort without having to swat bugs every few seconds or worry much about the rain. Screens range from simple to complex, and the costs to install one changes accordingly.
A siding shed is usually built in a dead space against the side or rear of a house. This type of shed is often made to blend in with the color schemes of a home. Most are small in size and made of wood with vinyl siding. The roofs of these structures can either be flat like a lean-to, gabled like a house roof or gambrel-shaped, which looks more like a barn roof.
When you secure a mortgage with a co-borrower, both you and the co-borrower share responsibility for the mortgage debt and ownership of the property that secures it, regardless of whether you both live in the home. To remove any co-borrower from your mortgage, including a non-occupying co-borrower, you must typically refinance the home.
The end of World War II saw millions of veterans returning to the United States eager to find jobs, begin families and establish homes of their own. Waiting to greet them was a housing industry still mothballed because of the war effort. Traditional builders worked overtime but fell far short of keeping up with the new housing demand. In 1946, the Chicago Vitreous Enamel Products Company, with help from the federal government, began producing America's first prefabricated steel panel housing.
Homes in an American neighborhood can cover Victorian, Mission Revival or Modern styles, and range from multi-family town homes and single-family residences. Among all their differences, they share a common trait. They are constructed primarily of wood. Concrete homes are fairly rare because of their costs, even though they offer certain advantages.
Minimalist homes are known for their clean lines, lack of clutter and open spaces. A minimalist lifestyle encourages you to own only the essentials in order to rid your home and life of unnecessary objects. Living in a minimalist home is sure to bring a sense of calm to your life. Minimalist homes are also easier to maintain and clean and are generally more attractive because of their simplicity. When building your own minimalist home, continually look for ways to simplify your design and to emphasize an open and clean aesthetic.
On IMVU, the method you use to get named depends on your account setup and your budget. Every new account holder receives a free “Guest_” user avatar name approved during registration. You can get rid of the “Guest_” designation by purchasing a VIP Club membership or purchasing the non-Guest portion of the name. Once you’re a VIP Club member or own your name, you can get named again by buying a token to change the name. All of these options are accessed on the IMVU website.
The center of the room in feng shui, or the bagua, as it is traditionally known, represents the heart of the household around which the rest of the home should be designed. Ideally, a room should be perfectly symmetrical, according to feng shui; if your room is not symmetrical then -- according to the tradition of feng shui -- it will produce less positive energy, but you can still locate the center and decorate around it.
As long as your loan is in good standing, lenders must typically accept the payments you make toward your loan. However, the law doesn't require lenders to accept partial payments from debtors in default. If your loan is delinquent and the loan department refuses your offer of partial payment, you are still liable for the full amount of the debt.
Vinyl siding is an inexpensive and effective way to protect your home from the elements. Vinyl siding is easy to install and lasts for years. It is available in a range of colors to suit every taste. Because vinyl siding is known to experience a loss of color, homeowners might be concerned about how badly their red vinyl siding will fade over time.
The EC36 is a wood-burning fireplace made by Heatilator, a fireplace manufacturer based out of Iowa. EC36 fireplaces offer a heat circulating feature, which makes heat spread throughout a room via two grill panels on the front side of the fireplace. You must consider the measurements of the EC36 when finding the right place to install the fireplace in your room.
Messenger, a chat application available only for the BlackBerry operating system, allows users to instantly message one another or participate in group conversations using their devices’ personal identification numbers. In addition to conversing, BlackBerry owners can “ping” one another, which is a way of getting someone’s attention, either to check if available to chat or to alert that you’ve sent a message and haven’t received a reply.
There are a variety of tub types that you can choose from when it is time to install a bathtub in your home, ranging from cast iron to steel, acrylic and composite tubs. Acrylic is one of the most common because it is easy to create and uses plastic-based materials that are cheaper in comparison to the others. They are also much easier to install, but still have the strength needed to support the weight of a body plus water.
Many homes have liquefied petroleum (LP) tanks because the homeowners use this type of gas for heating. It's also commonly used for cooking, hot water heaters and other appliances. This type of gas is derived from natural gas and petroleum. Although it's costly to get a tank filled up, liquefied petroleum is usually cheaper than other heating sources in the long run. A 500-gallon tank can fuel a typical family's home for a year.
An evaporator coil is a part of your central heating and air conditioning system. It absorbs heat from your house and helps trigger the delivery of cool air in conjunction with your thermostat. Evaporator coils can leak water or develop rust, robbing them of their effectiveness. Evaporator coils less than five years old may be covered under warranty. One company specializing in heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) systems reported on its website that the evaporator coil is usually the first major part to fail in a system. Damage can start with refrigerant leaks that harm the evaporator coil as…
The time required to frame a house depends on several factors. Framing time can last from a couple of days to several weeks. But because costs tend to increase and profits decrease for the builder the longer a framing job takes, contractors look for experienced crews with adequate manpower and equipment to complete a framing job. Those crews that frame in a timely manner usually end up with more work than they can handle. Those that don't, don't.
A heating, ventilation and air conditioning system is activated by a centrally located thermostat. The thermostat measures the internal air temperature and sends a signal to the air conditioner or furnace to turn it on when needed. If the HVAC system begins to malfunction, the problem may be in the thermostat. Homeowners can perform some troubleshooting steps to determine if the thermostat is bad or whether the problem lies elsewhere in the system.
With energy costs rising, many homeowners are looking for a way to reduce their energy consumption, lower their carbon footprint and save money. Power factor correction kits are sold as an easy way for homeowners to save money, but these devices don’t live up to their promises and won’t save as much as they say they will.
As a potential home buyer it is always important to understand the different types of home loans. Learn about the difference between fixed versus adjustable-rate mortgages with help from a financial adviser with this free video on real estate.
The go-to source for building your own home is typically a bank. Learn how to pre-qualify for building your own home with help from a real estate and mortgage professional in this free video clip.
Finding a leak on the flat roof of a brick house is often more difficult than locating one in a sloped roof. The topography of a flat roof allows the water to travel in any direction away from its starting point, versus in a angled path as with other roofs. This often results in the actual visual damage inside your home being located far away from the source of the leak. Even still, there are a few ways to pinpoint a leak in a flat roof.
Military compensation is a term used to describe payments paid to members of the armed forces for regular or reserve service and also for retirement benefits. Mortgage lenders use military payments to active or former soldiers as income to qualify for loans to purchase a home or condominium. Other forms of military compensation, including disability payments, present a few problems when used as income for qualifying for a mortgage loan.
Houses in foreclosure often go through a winterization process to protect the pipes from freezing. Especially in unoccupied foreclosed houses, this process sometimes extends to year-round. When you buy a house that has been in foreclosure, turning the water back on properly, or dewinterizing the house, protects the pipes from damage. You can hire a plumber for this job, or you can do it yourself. Although some banks pay for the dewinterization of a foreclosed home, most do not, according to Sarah Stelmok of Champion Homes Realty.
A landfill is a place where refuse and waste materials are buried or dumped underground. The decomposing trash in landfills releases gases such as methane and carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. These gases affect the environment and contribute to global warming. The waste materials dumped into the landfills are mostly paper, plastic, aluminum, and construction and demolition debris. Reducing the use of these materials, reusing them or recycling them is the best option to help landfills.
Purchasing a home through a short sale may allow you to build your investment portfolio while spending less for the home than its market value. A short sale involves purchasing a real estate property for less than the owner owes -- the owner may be interested in this type of sale if he is facing foreclosure. Buying a home through a short sale may save you 20 to 40 percent off the home's peak value, according to Realtor Lynn Byrne of Daytona Beach Real Estate. However, you should consider several factors before pursuing this type of purchase.
Trucks used by off-road enthusiasts can benefit from a heavy-duty transmission such as the 4R100 due to its upgrade options and maintenance requirements. Before you install a 4R100 transmission in an off-road vehicle it may require a rebuild. Rebuilding the transmission requires the replacing or refurbishing of any worn out parts inside the unit.You can undertake the task of rebuilding a 4R100 transmission if you are willing.
You should always keep a few things in mind when selling your home. Get house sales tips on the kitchen with help from a licensed Realtor in this free video clip.
You should always keep a few things in mind when selling your home. Get house sales tips on the bedrooms with help from a licensed Realtor in this free video clip.
A guarantor on a loan is a co-signer. Co-signers accept full responsibility for a loan if the primary borrower fails to make payments as agreed. Co-signers are possible on virtually any type of loan, ranging from credit cards to home mortgages. Once they agree, co-signers are locked in as guarantors on loans until all payments are made or the primary borrower refinances the loan to take full responsibility. The guarantor technically becomes liable for the loan the day the primary borrower accepts it.
