Nine easy ways to save energy in your house

Maybe you’re a full-fledged tree hugger who’s already drooling over the new Ford Fusion Energi electric hybrid sedan. Or maybe you’re just hoping to save a few bucks on your next electric bill or make your living room a little less frigid during the cold months of winter. Either way, taking steps to reduce your electricity and energy use at home is a smart choice — and the good news is you won’t have to replace all your windows or move to a yurt do it. Here are a few quick and easy projects to get you started.
1. Insulate electrical outlets. Insulate the electrical outlets in your house that are located on exterior walls. Your local hardware store probably sells foam socket sealers that will help block cold or hot outside air from entering your home. You’ll need a screwdriver to remove the outlet plates or switch plates, but the whole process shouldn’t take more than a few minutes per outlet.
2. Get an energy audit. Pay attention to your utility bill. Some utility companies occasionally offer a free energy audit, which typically entails a home inspection from a utility employee. If your electric bill seems high and you can’t figure out the reason, getting an audit is a great starting point for investigation; the results will help you understand the factors that may be affecting your energy use, such as drafty windows or a poorly insulated roof. If you’re lucky, the utility company may even throw in a few energy-saving freebies such as low-flow faucet heads or compact fluorescent light bulbs.
3. Switch to fluorescent light bulbs. Replace your incandescent light bulbs with compact fluorescent bulbs or LEDs. Compact fluorescent bulbs are brighter and more efficient than incandescent bulbs; they may be more expensive up front, but they’ll last much longer. LED lights are another option that’s even more energy efficient; the downside is that they’re pretty pricey (expect to spend $20 or so per bulb). If the light generated by fluorescent bulbs is too harsh or industrial for your taste, try replacing existing incandescent bulbs with incandescent bulbs with lower wattage.
4. Give your fridge a hand. Vacuum the coils on your refrigerator. Pet hair and dust bunnies accumulate on the coils over time, causing the fridge to have to work harder to get rid of the heat. If you clean off the coils now and then, the fridge will have less work to do and will use less energy.
5. Block off unused heat registers. Be smart about heating and cooling. Is there a room in your home you rarely use? Is there a register in your laundry room two feet away from the furnace, resulting in a double dose of hot air? In rooms you don’t really need to heat and cool, insert something in the register to block it off and redirect the air flow toward other areas of the house.
6. Close the chimney flue. If you have a fireplace, make sure the chimney vent is closed, unless you are about to make a fire. This helps insulate your home from warm or cold air, so your heating and air conditioning won’t require as much energy. Closing the chimney flue also prevents wildlife from taking up residence there. Trust us on this one: Having a live raccoon fall down your chimney in the middle of the night is an experience you’d rather omit from your bucket list.
7. Winterize windows and doors.
If you live in a place with long, cold winters and your home is drafty, it’s definitely worth investing in winterizing supplies. Double-sided foam tape can help plug gaps along the edges and bottom of exterior doors and window frames so the wind doesn’t whistle through your kitchen.
If you notice lots of cold air coming through the windows, consider getting a window insulator kit. Most kits contain what looks like a large roll of ordinary double-sided tape and several giant sheets of plastic wrap. Installation is simple. Outline the window frame with double-sided tape, stretch an appropriate-sized piece of plastic wrap over the window, and blow dry the plastic until it tightens up like a drum. Yes, your windows will look a little odd for a day or two until you get used to it, but the difference in warmth is noticeable.
8. Turn down appliances.
Besides your HVAC system itself, the fridge, freezer, and hot water heater are probably the biggest energy users in your home. Check the thermostat in your refrigerator and freezer; your fridge should be set between 37 and 40 degrees and your freezer at about 5 degrees. Hot water heaters are typically set at 140 degrees, but you can probably get away with setting yours at 120 degrees unless you have health concerns that require extra-hot water. For more tips on optimizing home energy use, check out the U.S. Department of Energy website.
9. Insulate hot water pipes. If you have easy access to your hot water heater, hot water pipes, and heating ducts, insulate them with foam or insulator foil. It’s a little bit of trouble, but the energy-saving results are impressive, especially considering that the materials are relatively inexpensive.

Read more: Nine Ways To Reduce Energy Costs In Your Home: Tecca Tuesday Tech Update | REALTOR.com® Blogs

Want to sell? Bye bye, wallpaper...

Wallpaper, huh … What is it good for?… Absolutely nothing!
Well not exactly, but you’re not going to like the answer. If the wallpaper on your walls was applied within the past decade—maybe you’re ok. If it was installed any time before that – uh oh.  If it was applied before you moved in – you’re in need of an intervention.
To buyers wallpapered walls, unlike painted walls, represent a lot of time, work and money. When they view a house that has wallpaper they are immediately turned off.  I have taken buyers through homes that had every feature they truly loved, only to reject it because of wallpaper.  In their minds they envision a huge job ahead of them before they can feel settled in a home. Very often wallpaper will have a print or style that will clash with their furnishings. It is disconcerting to them and causes them to start deducting big bucks from the sale price of the home; if they are at all willing to consider it.
A room painted in a color that clashes with a buyer’s furnishings is easy and inexpensive to remedy. They know that. But in their minds wallpaper is much trickier and thoughts turn to:
Will it come off without damaging the walls? How many layers are there? How much time is this going to take? How much would it cost to have a professional do it?
To them they are all reasonable, unanswerable questions. To you, the seller, that is another scenario.
Since I recently worked on this project myself, I can give you a bit of insight as to what is involved and how to go about it. To transform an average sized room from bad to rad will take two people a weekend (including Friday after work as prep time). The key is to rent a wallpaper steamer. Many of the big home improvement stores or local rental facilities have them. A steamer will make the job go much quicker and will cause less damage to the walls. Two cautionary notes:
1. Be careful not to allow the steamer to drip on your skin. It is boiling hot water in there. 2. Protect your furniture, floors or carpets by covering them.
You can search the internet for videos and how to information about the process.  Here is one to get you started.  http://www.diynetwork.com/how-to/how-to-remove-wallpaper-with-steam/index.html
Once you have removed the wallpaper a critical step is to scrub off all of the glue from the walls with a scrubby sponge and water. If you don’t the paint will not go on smoothly, or worse yet it won’t stick. A little spackling and sanding will patch up those oops areas and any other holes left in the walls.
Now you’re ready to paint. Well, almost. You need to apply primer to the walls before you can apply your preferred paint color. Believe it or not paint over non-primed walls that were formerly wallpapered can slide right off the wall. The person in the paint store would be a trusted adviser as to whether those paint/primer combos would be appropriate for this purpose. Don’t forget to give the ceiling a fresh coat of paint while you’re at it. Ceilings are very often overlooked, and yet a newly painted ceiling brightens everything.
See my blog post for help selecting paint colors.
By now your eyes are probably glazing over and your motivation waning.  That is exactly how buyers feel. Find out from your local painter how much it would be to have it professionally done. If you can afford it, by all means go for it. A job that might cost you $500 to have it professionally handled is far less than the price reduction a buyer will take for those unanswered questions they have in their minds.
I can honestly tell you from recent experience. Once the job is done it is truly rewarding.  The house looks better and you feel better. That burdensome project that has been looming over your head for years will have finally been lifted and you feel inspired.  Isn’t that how you want a buyer to feel? –Inspired.

Read more: Got Wallpaper? | REALTOR.com® Blogs

The Federal Reserve reaffirmed its pledge to keep interest rates low....

Fed Leaves Rate Alone, More Upbeat About Recovery

Daily Real Estate News | Wednesday, December 14, 2011

At its Tuesday meeting, the Federal Reserve reaffirmed its pledge to keep interest rates low and opted to not take any new measures to bolster the economy, saying the economy has already been showing signs of “expanding moderately.” The economy has shown some improvement in employment and consumer spending in recent weeks. However, the Fed cautioned at Tuesday’s meeting that the "housing sector remains depressed."
In reaffirming a pledge it first issued in August, the Fed said the federal funds rate -- which serves as a benchmark rate for many types of loans, including mortgages -- will remain near zero until mid-2013. The Fed said it will continue with plans to move $400 billion of its bond portfolio into longer-term securities, which ultimately could send long-term interest rates even lower.
Overall, the Fed said the economy has steadily been showing signs of improvement and is on track to post its strongest gains of the year in the final months of 2011. But the Fed said that the European debt crisis will continue to pose a major threat to recovery with “strains in global financial markets continue to pose significant downside risks."
Source: “U.S. Fed Leaves Rate Unchanged, Says Economy Expanding Moderately,” Bloomberg News (Dec. 13, 2011)

Fighting that chilly feeling in your home? Ten ways to make your home feel cozy....

Ten Ways to Make Your Home Feel Cozy

Let your home embrace you with warmth    By Susan Carmody

Warm colors and candles make you feel cozy inside when the weather turns fierce.

Winter's fierce growl along with short, hectic days beg you to find comfort inside your own home. When you walk through your front door, you just want to feel hugged, don't you?

Here are 10 easy things you can do to make your home feel more cozy and the season's chill seem less mean:

1. Add warm colors
Whether you paint your walls a sun-kissed gold, cover a sofa with a warm-toned slipcover or simply add pillows or a throw blanket in a "hot" shade, you can quickly make a room look brighter and feel cozier with the right color. "Any shade that complements flesh tones is a comforting thing," says interior design expert Jim Rascoe who co-owns Ireko, an upscale design shop located in the San Francisco area's North Bay. "And most of us look and feel better in those shades."

2. Play with texture
Plush upholstery and flannel bedding can provide your home with a soft, relaxing touch. To make texture interesting, Rascoe recommends introducing a variety: Choose a throw blanket with an open weave, such as chenille, for a twill sofa with a tight, smooth weave. "The contrast provides richness and warmth."

3. Illuminate "feel good" objects
Lighting shoos away winter's shadows, but it can also cast our focus on fair-weather days. By placing artful groupings of mementos and photographs beneath a lamp on an end table, you can draw attention to objects you love and memories that warm your heart.

Bird bath – Make it feel green inside with a unique arrangement in a birdbath. (Photo Courtesy of Trillium Flowers and Garden.)

4. Bring the outdoors in Plants and fresh flowers can breathe life into your home – actually imparting oxygen into the air – and remind you of gentler days. For a unique twist on floral arranging, Tom Bastianon, owner of Trillium Flowers and Gardens in Sonoma County, north of San Francisco, suggests using a small birdbath as your "vase." "People are always looking for pedestals for their large vases," he explains. A birdbath is both. For an elegant wintertime arrangement, set a large candle in the bath's water-filled center, place quince around the candle's base (they provide a mild citrusy scent) and incorporate late-season hydrangeas (they're green) and berry-laden branches. Place in a quiet corner or in a foyer or bathroom.

5. Work on spatial relationships
The sizes and shapes of your furnishings are important – variety adds interest. And this time of year more than any other, how you arrange these pieces is important, too. As a holiday hostess or host, you need to be able to see, talk to and reach your guests. For optimal coziness, says Rascoe, create conversation groupings by moving furnishings closer together – a guest needing to rise to place a mug on a coffee table is a no-no.

6. Get yourself a comfy chair
A large, comfy chair to land in at the end of the day is the ultimate refuge from the cold world. "Choose one with a high back and an inherent sense of softness about the upholstery for visual warmth and comfortable seating," Rascoe recommends. Create the full "chair ensemble" with a standing lamp and end table and set the grouping in an intimate corner.

7. Cover your "ground"
Nothing warms up a bare floor quicker than an area rug. Don't underestimate the visual warmth it provides as well, especially in sunburst tones. Also, the pile in some Indian and Pakistani rugs made using vegetable dyes gives you the option of making them look even "warmer." From one angle, Rascoe explains, the colors look muted and soft, from another, they appear deeper and brighter. Choose the brighter angle for added winter warmth.

Add warmth with a few candles. Photo courtesy of Illuminations.

8. Light a candle
This literal spark of warmth works in any dcor and in any room. Added visual warmth and design cachet can be achieved by placing candles in hurricane lamps made of amber-toned glass or in a grouping of holders that look like woven vines.

9. Embrace the season, gently
Holiday-theme floral accents are obvious brighteners but needn't scream Christmas. A Christmassy effect can be achieved by simply adding gold balls to an arrangement of non-holiday blooms and branches, suggests Bastianon. You can also lightly spray small branches and seedpods with a dusting of gold - a nice look even after the tree's down.

10. Alter your senses – with scents
Colorful, multi-textured potpourri – a mixture of scented preserved leaves, nuts, fruit slices, seedpods and pinecones – artfully arranged in a favorite bowl provides a vibrant focal point on a coffee or end table and enlivens a room with a pleasant aroma to lighten spirits and freshen the air. Bastianon prefers the natural aromas of fresh flowers, even the less heady varieties, for their soft, understated scents with the promise of warmer days to come.

Copyright © by Move, Inc.

Government's HARP - making home refinance easier for some

As a result of the 2007/08 real estate "bottom-out" many people are still dealing with properties where they owe more than the property is worth.  Or, it's pretty close to that scenario.... they have very little equity in the home, with a big mortgage payment that's hard to manage. 

The Goverment has released more details regarding the HARP (Home Affordable Refinance Program) this week.... check out this recent article found in the Real Estate Daily News....

Gov't Announces More Refinancing Program Details

Daily Real Estate News | Thursday, November 17, 2011

This week, the federal government released more details about its revamped Home Affordable Refinance Program, which sets out to allow more home owners to refinance their mortgage and take advantage of ultra-low rates. The program is geared to those who are current on their mortgage but may be underwater, owing more on their homes than they are currently worth.
Here are some more details about the changes coming to HARP:

• Borrowers must be current on their loan and have no delinquencies in the last six months. A borrower can be 30 days late, however, on one payment in months seven to 12 of the past year. Borrowers much have 20 percent or less of equity in their homes to participate. 
• Loans must be owned or guaranteed by Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac before May 31, 2009. Borrowers can see if Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac backs their mortgage by visiting www.freddiemac.com/mymortgage or wwww.fanniemae.com/loanlookup. 
• The revamped HARP program will begin Dec. 1, 2011, and run until Dec. 31, 2013. Participating in the program is voluntary for lenders. 

Source: “Mortgage-Refinancing Program Undergoes Changes,” Chicago Tribune (Nov. 16, 2011)

Wow - Homeowners' mortgage payments are a lot less these days.....

After 4 years of living in this economic housing downturn, there continues to be benefits for those who are in the market for new mortgages.  In the first part of 2006, mortgages represented 23% of a family's income - now the mortgage payment accounts for only 13% of monthly median family income.  Check out this article from the Daily Real Estate News...

Home Owners’ Monthly Mortgage Down About 40%

Daily Real Estate News | Thursday, November 10, 2011

Improving housing affordability mixed with low mortgage rates means that home owners are paying a lot less for their monthly mortgage payment than they did just a few years ago. In fact, they’re paying nearly 40 percent less on their monthly mortgage payment than home owners paid in 2006.
According to Fiserv, the monthly mortgage payment for a median-priced single-family home today is $700 — a drop of close 40 percent from 2006, when it was $1,140 .
“Housing affordability has improved dramatically because of declines in both prices and mortgage interest rates," David Stiff, chief economist at Fiserv, said in a statement. “Nationally, purchase mortgage payments now account for only 13 percent of monthly median family income, the lowest percentage on record (since 1971), and compared to 23 percent in the first quarter of 2006."
Source: “Monthly Mortgage Payment Almost 40% Cheaper Than 2006,” HousingWire (Nov. 9, 2011) and Fiserv

Another look at the benefits of real estate investment in a down market....

There are many affordable real estate opportunities right now in the Waterville Valley area, and considering its unique vacation destination market, utilizing your investment as a rental is easier than in other markets.  If you would like more information about how a real estate investment might make sense in your financial portfolio, please feel free to contact an agent at Roper Real Estate - www.roperre.com.   Read on.....

Investment Property the Best Return on Investment in Today’s Market

Below is a reprint of an Q and A submitted by Barbara Cunningham of St. Mary’s Bank. It addresses an issue that many people who own or are considering purchasing real estate as an investment:

"Question:  How does a declining (value) real estate market benefit a real estate investor?
Answer:  There are lots of different ways to look at the opportunities that a market with historically low propery prices, such as we currently have, can offer to an investor.

COMPARE TO THE ALTERNATIVES:

One of the more simplistic models is to compare the return on a similar outlay of cash invested in an alternative.
For example, if you have $100,000 to invest in stocks, bonds, certificates of deposit or a piece of real property, start by calculating the return that these various options generate. Certificates of deposit are paying very small returns these days, somewhere around an average annual percentage yield of 2.25 percent, and that’s for a 60-month term. Shorter term CDs are paying even less.
We have all been watching the stock market lately, and something I heard just the other day on a financial program was that, based on all the ups and downs (mostly down) in recent months, the average return on most of the major indices such as the Dow Industrial Average was about zero over the past five years. Not something that would delight most small investors!
The treasury market is more of safe haven these days to protect principal as opposed to being able to earn an actual return on the money invested there.

REAL ESTATE MARKET SHOWS BETTER RETURNS:

In the real estate market, rents have been on the rise in recent years and all indications are that trend will continue given the high amount of foreclosures, among other factors.
People have to live someplace and they aren’t all going to be able to double-up and live with relatives.  So, the demand for apartments and single-unit rentals should help sustain the rental market at least at current levels.
If a real estate investment of $100,000 can generate rental income of $1,000 per month; $465 after expenses such as taxes, insurance and operating expenses; then that’s equal to a 5.6 percent annual return without even factoring in the tax advantages!"