2 Things To Consider Before Home Buying

Not all home sellers are completely truthful about the condition of their property. It is unfortunate that if you were to hire a professional inspector for each viewing, it would get incredibly expensive. Thus, here are a few things that you can spot yourself, telling you to avoid the purchase.

The first thing is that you must get to know the neighborhood. This is of absolute vital importance. Is it a growing community, or is it in decline? If there are many foreclosed homes and businesses, the community is going through tough times. Make sure you visit the area on two different occasions. In doing so, you will also become aware of traffic. Do also come at least once at night, so you can see whether the streets are safe and quiet at night or not. Speak to the police and ask for statistics on local crimes.

You should now look at the property itself and how it was treated. Signs of regular maintenance are hugely important. If it looks run down from the outside, it is likely that the inside isn’t in a much better condition either. Always look at the wiring too. Although you probably won’t be able to identify all of the problems yourself, some red flags are easy to spot. If you spot that outlets are warm or that lights flicker, there is likely to be a wiring problem. Similarly, if you notice that there is a single wall, or just a few walls that have been painted very recently, where others haven’t, the owners may be hiding something. Also inspect the windows. Look at whether the windows have mold or condensation or are hard to open; this could be a sign of expensive problems.It goes without saying that if there are any rooms that the sellers don’t want you to see, you should avoid the property completely. If there have been any structural changes to the original property, you need to check whether these were done in accordance with various building regulations.

At the end of the day, only you can decide whether or not you should purchase a property. Additionally, if you find that there are certain problems, you could use this as a negotiating point to drive the price down. You do have to ask yourself whether that bargain is worth the potential financial hassle you are putting yourself through. Whether you purchase a property as an investment or as a home, it is always going to be a building that somebody will live in, and you need to make sure that the quality of life in that property can be pleasant and enjoyable. It goes without saying that checking the condition of the property itself is very important, but the area it is in must be focused on as well. To check on the actual property, all you really need to do is hire the services of a property inspector. When it comes to the neighborhood, however, you need to have a personal feel, something that cannot be achieved by a check box list.

Don’t Have an Empty Kitchen! Read Here to Find The All-Inclusive Pantry Essentials Checklist So You Never Miss a Beat in the Kitchen

After buying your new home, you’ll want to have a well-stocked pantry. There are basic cooking supplies known as the “staples” that you’ll want to always have on hand. You’ll at some point need to quickly put together a last minute dinner for friends, or a family meal. Of course, you’ll have to choose what you can and can’t live without. For example, if you’re trying to eliminate meat from your diet, you’ll want to forego the chicken breast in the freezer. If you don’t like almond butter, you’ll need to buy peanut butter.

The point is to make sure you have enough protein and vegetables that will be able to pull together any meal, and a variety of condiments and seasonings. The point in having a well-stocked cabinet, is that you don’t want to make spaghetti one night only to discover you’re missing tomato sauce. This article provides a great checklist to stock your first pantry, when you’re starting from scratch.

The basics

You’ll want to have kosher salt, fine salt, black peppercorns, extra virgin olive oil, vegetable oil, apple cider vinegar, red wine vinegar, balsamic or sherry vinegar, and rice vinegar (unseasoned)

Baking necessities 

For baking, you’ll need flour: all purpose, whole wheat or pastry, baking soda, baking powder, cream of tartar, cocoa powder (unsweetened), chocolate: chips or bar, evaporated milk, pure vanilla extract, sweeteners, granulated sugar, confectioners’ sugar, brown sugar, maple syrup, honey, and agave syrup

Rice and grains

These include long-grain white rice, brown rice, grains: bulgur, quinoa, couscous or farro, pasta: standard, whole grain, rice noodles or egg noodles, polenta, and breadcrumbs: either plain or panko

Snacks and cereals

Crackers, tortillas, cookies or biscuits, pretzels, marshmallows, popcorn kernels, dried fruit: raisins, apricots or cherries, seeds: sunflower, flax, chia or hemp, peanut butter or almond butter, applesauce, breakfast cereal, old-fashioned rolled oats

Canned goods

Chicken broth, beans: cannellini, navy, chickpeas or black, vegetables: hominy, corn or green beans, olives or capers, chiles: chipotles in adobo or pickled jalapenos, salsa, tomatoes, tomato paste, roasted red peppers, tuna, anchovy fillets or paste

Refrigerator necessities 

Dairy and eggs, milk, plain yogurt: regular or Greek, unsalted butter, cheddar or mozzarella, goat cheese, parmesan (wedge), and eggs

Freezer necessities 

Ground beef, ground turkey or Italian sausage, boneless, skinless chicken breasts, bacon

Fresh produce

Avocados, carrots, celery, tomatoes: grape, cherry or seasonal beefsteak, broccoli or cauliflower, bell peppers

Leafy greens

Spinach, kale or chard, lettuce: romaine, Boston or mixed greens, flat-leaf parsley or cilantro, thyme, scallions, gingerroot, potatoes: sweet, white or new, onions, garlic, lemons, limes, apples, bananas

Condiments

Jelly, jam or preserves, ketchup, mayonnaise, mustard: dijon or whole grain, pickles, hot sauce: tabasco, sriracha or sambal, Worcestershire sauce, soy sauce or tamari, Asian fish sauce, toasted sesame oil

Dried herbs and spices

Bay leaves
Cajun seasoning
Cayenne pepper
Chili powder
Crushed red pepper
Curry powder
Fennel or dill seed
Granulated garlic
Ground cinnamon
Ground cloves
Ground cumin
Ground ginger
Oregano
Paprika: sweet and smoked
Rosemary
Sesame seeds
Thyme
Whole nutmeg

Miscellaneous

Bread: baguette or sandwich bread
Vegetables: peas, chopped spinach or corn
Fruit: berries, peaches or mangos
Nuts: almonds, walnuts or pecans
Dough: pizza, pie or puff pastry
Ice cream: sorbet

Don’t Be That Homeowner That Has Regret in Hindsight: Here Are The Top Reasons to Install a Professional Alarm System In Your Home

It comes as no surprise that installing a home security system can be very costly. However, you should know that not installing one could cost you even more in the long run; both emotionally and financially. Below are some of the top reasons that you should consider either installing a home security system, or upgrading your existing home alarm system.

Protecting your house and family from break-ins

The most prevalent reason a home owner should consider installing a home security system is that it offers protection to family members from intruders. Homes without security systems are 2.8x more likely to be targeted by a burglar. This indicates that the mere presence of an alarm system is enough in most cases to protect the home and its occupants from the possibility of a potentialbreak-in.

In some cases, burglars may still target a home either knowingly or unknowingly when members of the family are inside. For the burglar who enters the home expecting it to be empty, finding members of the family inside can cause enough shock and panic to facilitate aggressive behavior.

Having a security system in place often provides family members with enough warning to get to a safe location in our outside the home while the alarm system dispatches local authorities. For burglars that enter a home knowing that family members are inside, their intentions are often much more malicious and the home alarm system again serves as an early warning system and calls the authorities.

Protecting your house and family from fire

The mention of home security systems tends to bring to mind home intrusion scenarios; however, these alarm systems also provide additional protection barriers for homeowners. While many home owners rely upon smoke alarms to warn them of a fire outbreak, home security systems offer an early warning system.

Monitored home alarm systems will not only warn home occupants of the presence of smoke in the home, but they will also warn of sources of heat and contact authorities. While heat detectors can be purchased without the installation of a home security system, using a heat detector alone will not signal authorities, so remember to find a way to take precaution in that regard as well. 

This may surprise you, but in just 30 seconds, a small flame can turn in to a full-blown fire. In just minutes of a fire breaking out, the home will be filled with thick black smoke that makes it impossible for family members to breathe.

These two facts alone are enough to reinforce the importance of having a home security system that will signal authorities to respond to a house fire. Time is the biggest factor in any emergency, but in the case of fire, time is of the essence. A few seconds of a fire safety concern could mean death or the complete destruction of a house, and all the belongings in it.

Home Trends: Surround Sound. Know The Basics to Any Media Room or Home Theater

Just about everyone enjoys watching a movie in the home with surround sound. For starters, you should know that the basic building blocks of any entertainment system are sound, sources and displays. For most media rooms, the sound or audio system is a combination of an audio/video (AV) receiver plus 5 or more loudspeakers and a subwoofer. The heart of the AV system is the receiver. Today’s receivers perform many functions.

They power the loudspeakers; the speaker wires are connected to the back of the receiver. All of the sources (cable box or satellite, DVD, game system, etc.) are connected to the receiver, which lets you select which source you want to hear. The AV receiver lets you control the volume and adjust the balance between the loudspeakers. The receiver also sends the video signal to the television or monitor.

The receiver processes the audio, including the information for surround-sound effects. On some newer receivers, it also performs video conversion. Many better televisions also have audio amplifiers, connections for multiple sources and surround processing, but for most applications it is better to use a separate audio video receiver. The receiver will almost always have more power and flexibility.

The receiver contains 5 or more audio amplifiers, which power the main loudspeakers. Most subwoofers have their own amplifiers. It’s easy get wrapped up with the wattage rating for a receiver, but keep in mind that all watts are not created equally. There are many different ways of measuring the wattage output of an audio amplifier; lower-quality amplifiers are often rated at a smaller frequency range.

The loudspeakers in a typical media-room system include:

A center channel loudspeaker, which is the most important loudspeaker. Virtually all of the dialogue is sent to the center channel. Bear in mind that a low-quality speaker will make it difficult to understand the actors in your favorite movie. The center channel speaker should be placed as close as possible to the television. It is usually mounted directly above or below the screen.

At least two rear surround sound speakers to give the sound a 3D effect. They should be placed above and slightly behind the main seating area. How much sound comes from these speakers depends on what the sound engineer producing the program wants. In many movies that are mostly dialogue, the rear speakers might never be used, while in an action adventure movie, they could be utilized during the majority of the film. Sound coming from the back can be as dramatic as an airplane flying overhead, or a car approaching from the rear in a chase scene, or as subtle as background noise in a restaurant.

A subwoofer can be placed almost anywhere in the room. Humans can’t identify the direction from which a bass sound comes; a phenomenon that makes it very convenient for placing the subwoofer in home theaters and media rooms.

Usually the largest of all of the loudspeakers in a surround-sound system, the subwoofer can be placed where it is partially or totally concealed. In some loudspeaker systems, the woofers for the bass are in the main left and right loudspeakers.

Don’t Start Building Your Guest House Without Reading This First! Find Out Here The Mistakes To Be Sure You Avoid When Building It

If you are looking to build up the functionality of your property while possibly increasing its value, building a guest house is a great option! Guest housing expands the usefulness of your property and also makes it appear larger than it really is. It can also be one of the best returns on investment that you can build without too many government contingencies. However, there are some things that you need to know before you start. Here are some of the most common mistakes to avoid when building a guest house.

Are you properly extending the HVAC system?

One of the primary ways to make a guest house a home is making sure the inside environment is perfect. Make sure that you extend your HVAC capabilities into the new structure. This will also help you to avoid mold and mildew buildup.

Are you leaving space for storage?

Your guest house will likely be smaller than your actual house, and this means your guests will need even better storage space in order to make use of the floor plan. Modern architecture is great at using nooks and crannies that could not serve any other purpose as a storage space. Hire someone efficient in contemporary style in order to maximize on the style.

Are you planning the house with no style?

Your guest house should not be the equivalent of the rubber chicken dinner. Give it a style so that your guests will have an experience that is special. Give every room a purpose, and make them fit together with a definite esthetic.

Is the house well-lit?

Because the house may be on another part of your property without natural light, you may need to increase the window size. Skylights are another feature that can add style and maintain the light that you need to make a great guest house experience.

Have you made accommodations for children and elderly people?

You may have guests with children and some without. However, you should have a room that is made to accommodate kids so that you will be prepared for all contingencies. Elderly guests may also need certain accommodations such as lower rails, non-slippery floors, and lower shelves. The way to accommodate the elderly in your guest home is to build the features of the house for elderly people first, and people with more hand eye coordination will naturally be able to use them as well.

Are the rooms organized in a natural way that just “flows”?

You’ll want to build the house with a layout that makes sense. For example, you don’t want to build a home in which one cannot find the laundry room. Remember that your guests will only be there for a short time, and they will not have time to get acclimated and use the house fully.