Category Archives: recycle

commitment, Inspiration, recycle, selling, tips

Why do you have a garage when you cannot park your vehicles in it?

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Why do you have a garage when you cannot park your vehicles in it? That is the question I am asking myself every time I am looking at some of the garages when I drive through neighborhoods. Some of them are so packed full that the garage door only can be opened very, very, very slowly. Otherwise the boxes still fall out into the driveway. I have a neighbor like that.

We all like to keep mementos and precious things, but then you have so much stuff that fills your garage from front to back and top to bottom that you have too much. It is time clean house.

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buying, commitment, Communication, education, green, Inspiration, organizing, planning, recycle, selling, Team work, tips

Is a Condo for me, or not?

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House4_403_604Urban renewal is becoming more and more popular. Most of the people moving back in to the urban areas are baby boomers and executives with some free time on their hands. For this reason most of them are choosing to live in a condo. The trend of turning former apartments or an old factory in to condos has helped to turn around some of the urban areas. You can find great homes for reasonable pricing or a top notch location for a higher end price.

Before you buy a condo you should do some research into the condo rules and regulations? Each community will have their own fees and rules. You should familiarize yourself with each of these to understand what rights and responsibilities you as the condo owner will have.

Find out who is enforcing the Condo rules and regulations? Is it a homeowner association? A management company?

Most of the time condo owners are responsible for everything on the interior and the association is taking care of everything on the outside of the building. In some cases you may have an assigned parking space in an underground parking garage. When the condo is on a lake you may have a boat dock you can lease.

Some of the condominium associations might charge you an additional fee that helps them to offset any exterior repairs they might encounter and that fee is most of the time part of the condominium fee you have to pay, in addition to your mortgage and insurance payment.

Some other things to consider is that when your condo is on the 38th floor, are you willing to run down 38 flight of stairs in emergency? You may also have other restrictions due to the building or condo associations rulings.

The nice part with a condo is that you are only responsible for the interior of your condo and the condo association is responsible for the exterior of the condo. You don’t have to worry about cutting the grass, fixing a roof leak or making any other exterior repair. The downfall is that the exterior maintenance upkeep is only as good as the condo community management company.

Either way, like with everything, there are positive and negative things you need to consider when choosing a condo to purchase. When you have any additional questions about condos feel free to contact the Settles Team.

buying, commitment, Communication, education, green, Inspiration, organizing, planning, recycle, Team work, tips

Remodelers and Lead base Paint

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paintOn April 22nd 2010 a EPA ruling went into effect that has not only affected the homeowner but also the contractor who is remodeling or entering into remolding contract with a homeowner for a home that is build before 1978.

http://www.epa.gov/lead/pubs/renovation.htm

 

Each Remodeler has to hand the new EPA pamphlet called “Renovate Right” to their clients.

http://www.epa.gov/lead/pubs/renovaterightbrochure.pdf

When the rule took affect each firm that planned on working on homes built prior to 1978 must be certified and need to follow the EPA outlined work practices to prevent the lead contamination. All work completed on a home build before 1978 needs to be recorded and the contractor needs to test the area after clean up. The test has to match 100% to the EPA test card. When the test appears darker or dirtier than the card, the clean up must be repeated. In the new ruling, a contractor must use only equipment with a HEPA filter (example: grinder/sander). Also, a remodeler should not use a high-heat gun that exceeds 1100F.

Last but not the least a contractor needs to post warning signs for occupants and visitors and establish a containment area using disposable plastic drop cloths and clean the work area with HEPA vacuuming and wet washing.

Just keep this in mind when you buy your investment properties and you perform any restorations.

commitment, Communication, education, Inspiration, organizing, planning, recycle, tips

Clean up after the Storms

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blueprintWith the recent and future storms a lot of us will face the daunting task of clean up and major repairs. Facing the loss of everything that had value does not even cover the later possible loss when facing a scrupulous contractor that who’s only intention is to make some quick money. You cannot do anything about what Mother Nature has done or is in store for us but I can give you some small tips and tit bits on keeping from facing more damage due to bad contractors.

Make certain you call your insurance company first and have an appraiser come out to your home. The insurance company will also know some good reliable contractors. There is a good possibility that not everything is covered but at least a good contractor may lessen the loss, unless you have a total loss like one of my friends had. Your insurance agent will let you know what you can or should not do to lessen the loss before the adjuster comes to your home. It would be wise to follow their advice.

The contractor should know what permits you may need or you can call your local municipality and find out what possible permits you need to for any major renovation or reconstruction. Yes these permits they will cost you money but this will require inspections and help insure that the work will get done right and to current code. While talking to your municipalities ask for the cost of each permit. I have seen contractors inflating the price trying to get you to forego a permit. The permit can be a major pain but it is only there to insure that you the homeowner will get what you paid for and that you are safe and up to current code when you are moving back into your home.

When you need to find a contractor yourself you can refer to these and other possibilities:

  1. friends and family referrals
  2. Local Real Estate Agents and Brokers
  3. Chamber of Commerce
  4. Angie’s list
  5. Better Business Bureau

While picking a contractor ask for the following items from them.

  1. Their contractors’ licenses. In most states contractor or general contractors have to be licensed. Did you know you can verify a license online and can check if there is any pending litigation?
  2. Copy of their insurance certificate. A reputable contractor is insured and bonded. Call the insurance agent named on the policy to find out if it is still active.
  3. Get references to call. When you call them ask if you can visit to see the work performed by the contractor.
  4. Call the BBB and log on to Angie’s list to inquire about this contractor.

When getting your estimates of repairs DO NOT let the same contractor provide you with two separate estimates in two different names just to give you a “great Deal”. That is a good indication that the contractor is dishonest. Just last night I overheard one of the contractors I know, but never did business with, talk about this to one of his friends and he was proud of it. He will NOT be on my referral list!!!

Get at least three estimates from separate contractors. This will give you a good idea on how much in average the repairs will cost. One Caution! There are might be hidden damages that will cost you extra and most contractors have an open ended statement in their contracts to that effect. So be prepared for that.

The one thing you will need to pack on this trip is a lot of patience….and be ready for a longer trip!!!

commitment, Communication, education, green, Inspiration, planning, recycle, tips

When it rains it pour’s and where does all the water go?

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drainNow that we have several inches of snow on the ground and faced head on the freezing cold temperatures and now we are looking at chances of rain this weekend in Indy. With temperatures this week that are above freezing during the day the snow is bound to melt.

While you unburied the fire hydrant have you thought of clearing off the street drain that is located right in front of your property so that the water can run off? When you have not done so, take a minute to clear out an area right around your downspout and made sure the water has a way to move away from your house and when you safely can check your gutters you might take a look at them too.

Also don’t forget to check on your sump-pump to make sure it is working properly and when you have a back-up pump make sure it operates as well. Nothing worse than finding out that your sump pump is not working while you step into an inch of water in your basement.

education, green, Inspiration, recycle, tips

Keeping you from slipping in your drive in this cold weather

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Ice Hanging from LeavesWith the super cold weather we have been having in the below average temperatures some of the products to help us make our drive and walkways safe might not working properly and many of the drive and walkways are still icy and potential hazardous to our and others health.

Even when the deicing products work they in some cases could be doing harm to your walk and driveway. In some cases you might not be able to see the damage for several years.

An alternative to a deicer could be as simple as a bag of fine sand, like play sand or during harsher weather very small rocks. Sure you would have to sweep the drive after the thaw but it beats to have a cracked driveway fixed.

commitment, Communication, education, green, Inspiration, planning, recycle, Team work, tips

Reducing your construction trash when remodeling

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blueprintWhen buying a new custom build home or an existing home sooner or later we all contemplating making changes or renovating the home.

Due to this many of us are watching the remodel shows that are playing on TV or online for inspiration and we are fascinated by the transformation a room makes during a 30 minute show. Most of us do enjoy the sledge hammer wielding contractor or homeowner who destroy the old kitchen cabinets, bust a sink or bathtub in halve or sling the hammer thought a wall or glass door or window.

When we remodel we create in many cases building waste that ends up in a local landfill.

Per the EPA information found on their website, nationwide we created an estimate of about 170 million tons of building construction, renovation, and demolition-derived waste.

At this time not many of us building a new home form the ground up, most of us remodeling their current home or the older home we just bought. During the planning storage of the remodel we have many options we can use to reduce the remodel trash we could create by identifying the material that can be recycled, salvaged or donated. During the demolition you just need to make sure that you separate the items and carefully remove any structurally piece that can be reused by local non for profits or other outlets.

Some good examples could be a sink, faucets, tubs, cabinets, refrigerators, or stoves but don’t forget doors, windows, extra paint, wood trim or flooring, bricks, piping, copper lines…..and many more I could list.

The WBDG has a user friendly and interactive Construction Waste Management Database

http://www.wbdg.org/tools/cwm.php that contains information on companies that haul, collect and process recyclable debris from construction projects.