10 Tips for Hiring a Contractor
There are many tasks in and around your home that you can and should do for yourself, but there are some that should really be left to professionals. If you haven’t learned by now which tasks these are, you are in for a lot of trouble and expense. (Most of us know, we just don’t want to admit it.) When you have figured it out, or if you are not handy and just want to go straight to a professional, Popular Mechanics’ Brett Martin says, “Sometimes it makes sense to hire a pro rather than take on a job yourself. But choosing the wrong contractor can lead to delays, subpar work, and even legal problems,” See his guidelines to help you choose a professional contractor and ensure a good working relationship.
April Home Maintenance Hints
Well now that spring is springing in most places, your house will need another dose of the seemingly ceaseless attention necessary to keep it in good condition. Several mechanical systems, such as heating, cooling and plumbing, demand constant care to keep them functioning properly. It’s probably dawned on you by now that things like foundations, roofs, vents and gutters are not just things, but are also systems that demand attention if they are to keep your house stable, comfortable and dry. Our April Home Maintenance Hints will help you to identify little problems before they become big (and costly) ones.
Please Don’t Eat the Daisies (or Cut the Daffodils-Yet)
Most places have had a wet, mild spring and the bulb plants are doing well. By all means enjoy the daffodils and other spring bulbs that have been blooming, and cut some flowers for spring arrangements. However, leave the foliage alone until it starts to yellow, usually in late spring or early summer (May or June in most locales). After the foliage has yellowed it can be cut to ground level. If the foliage is removed too early (for example, when the grass is mowed for the first few times), there will be fewer blooms next year. If cut back too early year after year the bulbs will gradually lose vigor and decline. This is because the foliage is making sugar through photosynthesis, and sending this sugar down to the bulb for next year’s show. This applies to daffodils and other spring-flowering bulbs such as hyacinth, tulip and crocus.
It’s Spring – Time to Check All the Filters
Most of us remember to check and change the filters in our heating and air conditioning systems regularly (and we help by reminding you to do so), but as they say on infomercials, “Wait, there’s more!” Most range vents and vent hoods have changeable filters as do many bathroom exhaust and heating fans. Home water filters (drinking water, pitcher, countertop/faucet, under counter drinking water or refrigerator water/icemaker filters) also need to be changed on a regular basis; so do shower and whole house water filtration filters. In general, a larger unit will have a special compartment, which contains a cartridge-style filter. Saving the packaging from the filter will give you detailed instructions about removal, replacement and proper intervals for future filter changes. While you are at it don’t forget to check and clean or replace the little filters in your aerated faucets.
NEWS
In March the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) prohibited private transfer fees on mortgages handled by Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, and the Federal Home Loan Banks. FHA already bans the fees. The fees are encumbrances placed on mortgages by the property developer to generate fees every time the property is sold. Traditionally, the fees are used to cover expenses related to property improvements such as a community center, which is available as a benefit to all the property owners in a development. Recently , however, there have been efforts to impose the fees for the sole purpose of generating income to the developers – and in some cases, investors – through the creation of securities collateralized by the fee income, without reinvestment of the proceeds into the property. The ban kicks in for covenants created on or after Feb. 8, 2011. Covenants created before that date are grandfathered in.
Fast Facts
