5 Tips for A Healthy Chimney Flue

For many people in North America, the weather outside is still pretty frightful, but a fire is so delightful. That is, as long as their flues are in good shape. Homeowners, especially in their first home, may not realize how much maintenance a flue requires if it’s part of a wood-burning fireplace.

But you can absolutely have the whole crackling fire experience in your own house with a little care and planning. After all, a dirty flue is a deadly flue.

The Good, the Bad and the Ugly of Flue Care

Owning a fireplace is a little like owning an exotic sports car. It’s nice to look at, you might use it now and again, but most owners don’t really know how to properly care for them. That’s ok, that’s what we’re here for. If you’re eyeballing that firebox right about now, make sure your flue is totally safe and ready to go with these five tips:

Check that the bricks are secured and not falling apart. Don’t even think about firing up the fireplace until you’ve thoroughly inspected the brick on the outside. As fireplaces age, the bricks experience a condition known as spalling, where the faces of the bricks literally fall off due to repeated exposure to the environment. Bricks that are spalling have got to be repaired or replaced, otherwise your brick flue may not be able to tolerate the heat from the fire. They can also randomly fall and injure people below.

Have a chimney Inspection. Did you have your chimney inspected? Ever? If not, now is the time. Many chimney fires go undetected because they’re slow burning and occur in the upper portion of the flue. Although these are often minor fires, over time, the wear to the chimney is for real and can cause much more serious problems like heat damage to your attic, damaged roofing or destruction of the chimney liner which can then lead to carbon monoxide leaking into the house You can inspect the lower part of your flue fairly easily, but you will need a pro for the upper portion, so you might as well let them take a look from top to bottom.

Clean that chimney. If your inspection determined that there was some sort of issue or significant creosote build-up, you want to have your chimney professionally cleaned before using it. Again, this is not something you can really do yourself and skipping it is putting you at serious risk of a flue fire, which is not something you want to wake up to at 2 am. Your chimney inspector is likely also a chimney sweep, just ask them to do the work while they’re there and you’ll save a seperate trip charge.

Legally remove any unwanted visitors. Even if that flue is totally clean, you’re still not necessarily in the clear. There are a number of animals that tend to take up residence inside unguarded flues. Do you ever hear strange noises or scratching coming from the inside of the flue? It could be all sorts of critters, from chimney swallows to bats and even raccoons. Adding a special chimney cap that allows the pest out after their young have been raised (check your local laws because some of these animals are considered protected species) will keep them from coming back again.

Install a new liner. Older brick chimneys are notorious for leaking dangerous gasses and smoke into homes because the aged clay liners crack and break down over time. It’s not that you can’t use them, but you’ll need to replace the interior lining first. Chimney pros can generally install a new clay, metal or cast-in-place cement-like liners in almost no time and with little stress to you. In fact, you’ll find that you can rest a lot easier knowing that your flue liner is all brand new and with proper care, can last a very long time.

It’s hard to stress enough that major flue care is not a do-it-yourself project. Even if your local building codes allow you to make changes to your flue without a permit, don’t do it. This is a recipe for a house fire. Instead, always call a chimney pro to ensure that all is well. A yearly chimney inspection is a good idea if you intend to use your fireplace a lot. Having a wood-burning fireplace insert installed is another way to help reduce the risk of unwanted fires.

Before You Buy Those Chestnuts to Roast…

.. check in with your HomeKeepr community for a chimney sweep you can count on. Your real estate agent has already recommended their favorite home pros, so you don’t even have to look far to find a great provider. Whether you need a chimney inspection, a sweep, some pests evicted or just a fancy new chimney cap installed, you’ll find the pro perfect for the job through HomeKeepr.

Pursuing An Historic Designation for Your Home

You knew the moment you walked through the perfectly preserved arch-topped doors that this was one very special house. As your real estate agent guided you from room to room, all you could think was that there had to be a catch to this house. Something had to be really wrong for such a gem to even be available in your price range. The history, the craftsmanship, the neighborhood! It was all too much.

So you bought that fabulous house. And now you’re thinking about applying for a historic designation, since it is such a lovely, special structure.

Types of Historic Designations

Before you jump in with both feet, it’s a good idea to get a feel for what type of designation would be most appropriate for your home. There are three main designation levels and multiple registers that you could pursue. The historic designation levels are:

Federal. Managed by the National Park Service, both the National Historic Landmarks Program (NHL) and the National Register for Historic Places (NR) accept the right homes. These properties are strongly associated with significant events and people from America’s history, as well as buildings that stand as excellent examples of construction or engineering methods. NHL properties must be important on a national level, but NR homes can be of strictly local significance.
State. Not every state has a register, but plenty do. The requirements vary widely, but you can expect that the home in question will need to meet much of the same criteria as for the NR. Contact your State Historic Preservation Office for detailed information on its application process.

Local. If you already live in a historic district, you may be familiar with the workings of local historic designations. Often, homes already within a district with special zoning that is worded such that their historic integrity is preserved by default are easy to get onto a local registry. Otherwise, you may be able to secure a stand-alone historic designation (or band together with the neighbors to create a historic district). Creating a new district means that a new preservation ordinance will have to be created, too. It will govern how properties are designated as historic properties within the district, as well as establishing a design review board.
Note: Your home can easily qualify for all three designation levels, so research your history carefully in order to build the best case possible for the historic designations you’re seeking.

Pros and Cons of Owning a Historic Home

Buying that potentially historic home may have been one of your best decisions ever, even if you don’t end up getting a historic designation. Older homes have so much about them to love, along with a lot of things you’ll quickly learn are (potentially unlovable) quirks unique to that property. Turning your older home into an officially historic property is an involved process, but for many homeowners it’s worth the effort. Let’s look at the pros and cons of it.

Pros:

Grants, low interest loans and tax credits. Depending on where your home is located, the shape it’s in and whether or not the area is already a designated historic district, you may be able to rack up the dollars to help fund your remodeling projects. Keep in mind that you’ll probably have a lot of rules to follow to keep the home as close to historically accurate as possible, but that will absolutely vary from district to district.

Potential bump in value. This is a tricky one. If you’re working with a real estate agent and an appraiser that understand the value of a historic designation, then you may see a bump in your home’s value once you’ve secured it. This is good if you’re looking to sell, possibly better if you’re just looking to refinance and shed some mortgage insurance. It could also increase your taxes, though, so keep that in mind.
Protection from federal government work that may threaten it. This is a little trickier, but any property listed on the federal registers is protected from threats from federal building projects. If the federal government wants to build a highway through your front yard, you can waggle your brass plaque at them and they’re generally not able to interfere.
Cons:

Can come with lots of rules and slow red tape. Getting a house designated as “historic” means doing some major paperwork, but you knew that was coming. You might have not expected the years-long wait for the designation to be approved or denied. Even if it is approved, you may have a lot of new rules from your municipality to deal with. So, basically, you’re going to be dealing with red tape and government bureaucracy as long as you own that historic property.

Insurance may be higher. You may pay more for insurance due to extra costs associated with rebuilding a historic structure, plus the likelihood that something in your house isn’t up to code. After 50 or 100 years, it’s to be expected, really. Things in the walls you just can’t get to pose risks and your insurance company knows this.

You may have to bring systems completely up to code. Generally, building codes allow for older homes to kind of get a pass if they’re not totally up to code. As long as the item in question was up to code when it was installed, then it’s ok for now, but if you put in a new one, it’ll have to meet the current building codes. For example, if you ever want to upgrade the ungrounded electrical panel that was put in during the 70s, it’s not a small thing. You’ll have to have your home’s electrical system evaluated by a professional, permits pulled to update your connection to the power grid to match the new panel and an inspection from the municipal inspectors to ensure the work was performed to code.
After all of the paperwork and red tape, finally receiving your historic designation can be a huge relief. Except there’s one thing no one apparently mentioned…. when you sell that property, the new owners don’t have to maintain the house or even keep up its historical appearance unless there are other rules in play, like being located in a tightly-regulated historic district.

Still, if you want a historic designation, you may find the benefits are well worth everything. You might as well go for it as not. Get that historic designation for yourself, not because you want to protect your home from future owners and for generations to come.

Ready to Buy That Historic House? You Need a Few Pros at Hand…

Buying an older house means understanding the many issues that they can have. Start off right by having a home inspector look it over during your inspection period, before your mortgage closes. Follow up with a friendly neighborhood electrician, HVAC pro and a plumber, bare minimum. The old systems aren’t just annoying, they can be dangerous if they’ve not aged well or been updated at all since they were installed.

But where can you find a collection of home pros you can trust? Check out the HomeKeepr community! Every pro in it was recommended by a real estate agent due to their excellent service and high quality workmanship. Cut out the guessing and get right to the pros that can help you maintain and even refresh your older home.

February Steve & Jack's Home News

Can it be February already? It seems like the holidays were just here. With kids back in school and things back to 'normal' (except for weather cancellations and delays), we hope you have gotten back into a routine.

We are predicted to have near record-low temperatures this coming week. If you haven't done so this year, please do yourself a favor and have your furnace/heat pump tuned up. Catching issues before these critical components go down is imperative in these frigid temps. Experts recommend having your HVAC serviced every spring and fall to ensure proper functioning and longevity, however there is never a guarantee on how long your heating system will last. Unfortunately, ours died on Friday and we had to get a new furnace-ugh!!! Fortunately, our HVAC company was able to get a new furnace installed the next day (yesterday) and it works better than ever! We chose to stay in our house without heat on Friday evening and, boy was it cold! Getting down to 50-degrees doesn't sound very cold, but it is an entirely different story staying in that temp for 36-hours. We certainly hope our cold experience doesn't happen to you!! If you need a couple names of good HVAC companies, please let us know. We are happy to share some!

Thank you to Butler University for inviting us back to talk about the real estate market for 2019 as well as have INHP join us as a guest speaker to discuss Butler's powerful anchor housing program. If you or someone you know works at Butler and you would like more information on this unique program, give us a call. You need to know about how this can benefit you or someone you care about. If you own or work for a company that would like for us to come in and cater lunch and talk about the real estate market, give a specific presentation, and/or just answer questions in this confusing and ever-changing real estate market, please give us a call. We would be happy to tailor a presentation to your unique wants/needs!

Thank you to everyone who voted for us and gave us great reviews as we earned another year as a 5-Star Real Estate Professional as well as Angie's List Super Service Award! Fewer than 5% of real estate agents earn this prestigious awards and we are so grateful to all of our friends and clients for voting for us!!! Thank you!!!

Don't forget about our February Happy Hour on Wednesday, February 20th from 5-6:30PM at Matt The Miller's. We would love to see you there and enjoy a couple of drinks and appetizers on us. Come join us!!

Our real estate market has been hotter than usual this winter, however we are seeing signs of growth slowing down a bit. While no one can predict what tomorrow brings, let along the rest of the year, we expect to see another robust housing market for 2019. Unemployment continues to shrink, which is great and wages continue to grow, but at a slower pace than housing market appreciation, which is causing continued concern for the real estate market. The Fed has indicated it will likely halve its rate hikes in 2019 compared to 2018, which is a good sign. Our inventory continues to shrink, but we expect that to improve in 2019 a bit. Check out the latest stats courtesy of MIBOR comparing December 2018 to December 2019:

New listings-DOWN 0.9% to 1,902 units
Pending sales-UP 2.3% to 2,059 units
Closed sales-DOWN 6.6% to 2,589 units
Median sales price-UP 6.7% to $176,000
Average sales price-UP 7.5% to $218,304
Percent of original list price received at sale- DOWN 0.5% to 94.4%
Total active listings available at month end-DOWN 4.0% to 7,016 units
Months supply of inventory-DOWN 4.2% to 2.3 months
Stay safe and warm and, as always please feel comfortable calling us when we can help you or someone you care about with real estate needs.

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Your Friends in Real Estate,

Steve, Jack, Kylie, & Julia

P.S. Please don't keep us a secret...

Robot Vacuums vs. Traditional

One of the best parts about living in the future is that we’ve got some of the coolest technology available to help with almost any household task. Forget if you needed milk at the market? Your smart fridge can tell you. Need to make sure that the house is nice and cool when you pull in the driveway? Just ask Alexa to kick on the air conditioner via your telephone app. Tired of chasing your pets with a Dustbuster in order to keep hair from scattering everywhere? There’s a Roomba for that!

There are several companies that make robotic vacuums, with various designs aimed at particular problems in typical homes. Cleaning up pet hair, chasing after children who drop things like cookies (that seems like a job for that pet whose hair needs to be tamed) or just making deeper cleanings easier by performing daily floor maintenance are just a few of the purposes for the major models you’ll see in stores and online.

But do you even need one? And how do they compare to a traditional canister vacuum?

Hoover, Roomba and You

Considering a robot vacuum for your home but want to make sure that you’re not trading in your canister vac for a robot that fails to do your floor cleaning bidding? A lot of people are finding themselves looking at robotic vacuum cleaners (that still top out around a thousand dollars or so) and wondering if they’re better than a good upright vacuum.

Plenty of websites, including Consumer Reports have been creating scenarios for robot vacuums and traditional uprights to battle it out, head to head. What they’re finding, overwhelmingly, is that these two seemingly similar devices are actually two entirely different beasts. It’s especially obvious in areas like:

Cleanable surfaces. While similarly equipped robot and traditional vacuums will clean the same surfaces, robot vacuums tend to choke on deeper pile carpet. They may get stuck on area rugs or end up confused and disoriented while moving across different textures. Newer robotic models actually get “frightened” when they encounter flooring with dark areas, because it can set off their cliff sensors (basically, the machine thinks it’s approaching a drop-off like a stair). Robot vacs do much better on evenly colored hardwood floors, though.

Deep cleaning. Consumer Reports also probed the ability of the robot vacuum to clean deep down into carpets. They’re not that great at it, as it turns out. Where the Miele Dynamic U1 Cat and Dog upright vacuum picked up more than half of test debris composed of talc and sand, Samsung’s Powerbot SR20H9051 didn’t manage 20 percent. Pretty disappointing for a machine that costs about a thousand dollars.

If they only had a brain… Despite about 15 years of market exposure and evolution, most of the robot vacuums out there still aren’t that bright. Sure, they can heatmap your floor and they can usually find their way back to their chargers before their batteries die, but if they happen to pick up a toddler’s dropped PB&J, you can pretty much count on that sticky sandwich being rubbed all over the house, at least until your Roomba accidentally locks itself in the bedroom. This has all the makings of a bad 80s movie, really. Obviously a traditional vacuum doesn’t have to worry about this at all since you’re always there to pull the jelly out of its works (or, you know, not run it over in the first place).

So, the Winner Is….

No one. Not even you. You can’t ditch the upright just yet and, frankly, if you have pets, kids, grandchildren or just harbor a habit of dropping crumbs on the carpet and walking away from the mess, you really need the robot vacuum, too.

See, although they seem at odds, these two tools are actually complementary. Robot vacs help reduce regular cleaning, especially in the situations above. They can keep the floors clean day to day, then you can run the big vacuum across your carpets on the weekend. It’s a harmonious relationship, really.

Some homeowners are worried about the small size of many robotic vacs’ collection bins, but Roomba has devised a clever solution to that little issue. The iRobot Roomba i7+ not only parks itself in its dock when it gets sleepy, it also empties itself so it can get back to cleaning without your supervision. It’s still not as good at deep cleaning as your upright, but it’s one more evolution on that path.

From Smart Homes to Deep Carpet Cleaning

When you decide to adopt your own Rosie the robot vacuum, you may find that you need more than a little help getting it up and running properly. But that’s ok, Rosie has lots of friends and neighbors ready to help you find the best Smart Home expert in the area to install her via your HomeKeepr community. Just log in to see the recommended smart home pros — and maybe check out the carpet cleaners while you’re in there to clean your carpets really well before you let her loose.

7 Things to Know about Whole-Home Generators

There’s little more frightening than losing your electricity in the middle of a big winter storm or even a spring tornado. Whatever natural disaster is common in your area, you have probably experienced at least one major disaster in your life. Because of that, you may tend to linger around the generators at your favorite home improvement store when bad weather season starts.

Is this the year you’ll finally install a whole-home generator? Before you swipe that card, take a look at these must-know things about choosing a whole home generator.

A Generator Can Be An Investment In Your Home

You probably know that in some areas you can get tax credits for installing efficient whole-home generators, but what you may not realize is that a permanently installed generator can also increase your home’s value. According to Consumer Reports, a three to five percent increase in appraised value after a generator is installed isn’t uncommon.

But, you can’t just stick any old generator in the yard and call it a home improvement. The generator you choose will be part of your home’s electrical system for the foreseeable future, so it has to be able to do the job you need it to do. Here are seven things to keep in mind while you’re shopping:

Generators are far from universal in size. You should make a list of the items you intend to keep turned on while you’re running on generator power before you start to shop. Appliances, HVAC systems, hot water heaters and even light bulbs add up when you’re talking about an entire home. Although your appliances may differ in their power consumption, in general, refrigerators use about 600 watts of electricity, your lights can soak up to 600 watts, even your computer may need 300 watts to stay running.

Portable generators can be an inexpensive alternative. If you’re only hoping to keep a few lights on and maybe a small refrigerator running during a power outage, you might be able to limp along with a portable generator. These smaller units can be loud and require lots of manual intervention, including refilling their fuel tanks multiple times during prolonged use, but can push out 3,000 to 8,500 watts reliably for under $1,000.

Generators run on different types of fuel. Those portable generators almost exclusively run on either gasoline or kerosine, though some can be converted to run on propane or natural gas with a special kit. A whole house generator connects to a gas line by default, be that propane or natural gas. Depending on where you live and what your utility supplies, you’ll want to choose one that matches your fuel supply. If you live in a rural area, you may have to rely on your propane tank to run your generator, keep it full through the toughest weather of the year.

Regular maintenance on generators includes running them frequently throughout the year to ensure that there isn’t an unplanned problem when an emergency does crop up. Some whole home generators have an automatic maintenance cycle, allowing you to ignore them most of the time. However, these auto-run cycles can be very noisy, so you’ll want to consider the decibel level of the generator you choose.

You’ll need a transfer switch, but there are several options. Transfer switches are electrical devices that allow you to change the power source that runs your home from the utility grid to your home generator. There are many different types, rated both by amps and switching type. Manual switches are less expensive, but require you to make the connection in all kinds of weather, automatic switches will flip on the generator when they detect a lack of power from the grid.

Older homes may need electrical panel upgrades. Even homes that aren’t considered antiques can have very limited electrical systems that aren’t compatible with a large transfer switch. If you want to use, say, a 200 amp transfer switch and your house will only support 100 amps, either your system needs to be upgraded or your generator transfer switch will need to be downgraded.

It needs to be installed by a professional. There are people who have installed their own whole home generators, but because of local building codes and the general difficulty of the project, this is not something that’s generally encouraged. You’ll be tapping into gas lines, electrical systems and you’ll need to place the unit a very specific distance from combustible materials and above areas that may flood.
Don’t Spend One More Season Without Power

Storms can blow in fast and ice will bring powerlines to the ground, but you don’t have to worry with a whole home generator that’s properly sized for your house and carefully installed.

Is it time for new windows?

Whether you just bought your home or you’ve owned it a while, it can be easy to overlook the windows that open it up to the world, as if they didn’t even exist. Even if you don’t, you probably know that a lot of glass and natural light is awesome, but it comes at a cost. As windows age and homes settle, windows can distort ever slow slightly. It’s not enough that you’d notice, at least until the first cold blasts of Arctic air are blowing into your home.

Short of waiting for a major blowing snowstorm, how can you if it’s time for new windows? And what do you do if it is? We’ll walk you through it. Read on, reader!

Signs Your Windows are Giving Up the Ghost

When it comes to the big things in your house, windows are pretty huge. On the hassle scale, replacing windows is up there with a new roof or trying to retile the busiest room in your home. Unfortunately, these are all jobs that you’ll eventually need to tackle, but sometimes you can make repairs rather than start a replacement project that will eat up your money, your time and turn your home into a construction zone.

Starting at a few hundred dollars each, a house full of windows can be a huge investment that you’re unlikely to get back. Before you go window hunting, check this list to see if buying new windows is the right move after all:

Are your energy bills climbing or already high? A significant rise in your utility bills over the last year, or even five years, that comes from an increased use of power or gas and not simply a rate hike means you’re leaking somewhere. Windows are often the culprit. If you can borrow an infrared camera, you can track exactly where the energy loss is coming from. If you don’t have a friend with such fun toys, many home pros offer this service. Check HomeKeepr for a referral.
Are they tricky to open or won’t stay open without a prop? Really old windows may have a problem staying open because their corded weights have broken after decades of use and fallen into the interior space between the window and the wall. Newer windows might refuse to close because they’ve shifted ever so slightly. Either way, these are windows that are a huge pain to operate. That alone can be a good reason to replace them.
Can you hear your neighbors when you’re indoors? Cars, kids and pets, they’re all part of living in most communities, but they also make a lot of noise. Good quality windows will help reduce the volume, though none can block noise entirely. If you can hear your neighbor’s car like it’s in your own driveway, you definitely need to consider a window replacement.
Do you wake up to condensation between the window glass panes? A small amount of condensation isn’t really anything to worry about, but when it’s widespread or happens every day and hangs around for most of it, your window pane seal has probably been compromised. Sometimes you can contact the manufacturer or the reseller where the window came from and order a replacement pane, but they can be difficult to install and costly, which is why many people choose new windows at this stage. A window with a busted seal is one that’s costing you serious cash. The air trapped between those two (or three) panes of glass act as insulation, reducing the rate at which the window cools.
Is there extensive damage? Sometimes the damage to your windows can’t really be seen until you open them up, examine moving parts closely and, when necessary, remove some trim to look for rot that’s hidden inside the wall. Small sections of damage can sometimes be repaired, but larger areas indicate that you need to fix whatever cause the damage in the first place and then replace that window with one that’s new and healthy.
What if My Windows aren’t Damaged?

If your windows are in great shape and the only problem you’re having is heat loss, you can do a few different things to maximize your efficiency when the cold wind blows. Those include:

Winterizing. Go around the house and seal up all the nooks, crannies and cracks you might find. A new bead of caulk around each window and door and along all the trim will help reduce drafts.

Sticking up window insulation film. For a temporary fix this winter, you can install window insulation film on the cold windows in question. When installed properly, you can barely tell there’s anything between the room and the window.

Installing heavy curtains. Like a warm blanket on a cold night, a thick insulating curtain can help reduce both heat loss and drafts. The only catch is that you have to keep them closed, which can make your cabin fever burn this winter.

Do You Know Who to Call for New Windows?

When it’s time to put new windows in your house, you don’t have to look any further than your HomeKeepr community for a window installer that you can trust. After all, your real estate agent recommended their favorite subcontractors, people they know will do a professional job each and every time.

Pets and carpet cleaning

It’s amazing how much a pet can give you just by simply existing. According to the Centers for Disease Control, owning a pet can help increase your fitness level, lower stress, help improve your health and generally make you happier. And, although not specifically mentioned by the CDC, any pet owner can add a few more contributions, like urine stains on the carpet, fur clinging to every surface and the occasional hairball (unless your pet is a fish, then all bets are off).

For owners of terrestrial animals, cleaning the carpet is going to be a necessity sooner rather than later. And doing it right means not having to do it over and over again (hopefully). Because animals tend to do their business where they’ve done it in the past, getting that particular smell out of the rug is an important art to learn if you intend to share your life with a cat or a dog.

First, About Carpets and Liquids

There’s a lot of very bad advice online about how to clean up your pet’s urine spots. You know the ones. You walk through the bedroom at night and — bam — there it is. Some random bloggers would have you put down a paper towel and then basically try to absorb the liquid by stomping it out. Unfortunately, that’s about the worst thing you can do.

Carpets are really absorbent, but much of that absorbency is down below, in the pad, which is covered up by the rug. So when you stomp on a liquid mess, what you’re really doing is spreading it further through the pad, creating an even wider puddle in a place where your flimsy paper towels can never go.

Unless you’re prepared to rip up the carpets and deal with the puddle, consider purchasing a tool that can extract fluid from rugs, like a handheld extractor, a floor cleaner with an extract-only mode or, in a pinch, a wet/dry vac (this one is harder to get smelling fresh and clean again). Any of these tools is far more effective than a paper towel — or even a whole roll.

When it comes to cleaning urine out of carpet, always follow the same procedure:

Use an extractor to pull as much fluid as possible out of the carpet and pad. Remember that the small spot on top of the carpet may be hiding a lake of urine that’s locked in the pad. Keep extracting in a wide arc until nothing else comes out.
Treat your carpet with a bio-enzymatic cleaner like Nature’s Miracle Urine Destroyer. Don’t use a carpet cleaner first or you may lock any stains in to the carpet permanently.
If a spot remains, use a stain remover to help break it up. You’ll want to be sure the enzymes have finished doing their thing, though.
Of course, liquids aren’t the only gifts your pets will leave behind. When it’s a bit more solid, you’ll want to follow similar guidelines, except when you clean the solids, use a putty knife to avoid pushing the solids deeper into the carpet. If it’s any serious kind of solid, you’ll want to swap the bio-enzymatic cleaner for one that’s also oxygenated.

So Much Hair, Everywhere

You love your pet. You do. But he has so much hair and he’s just carelessly leaving it wherever it happens to fall. This is why it comes to you to clean up behind what may be the worst roommate there has ever been. Pet hair in carpets can require a lot of effort to keep cleaned up, but if you can’t choose between the pet or the carpet, give these tips a try:

Wrap masking tape around an old paint roller attached to a broom handle. You’ve literally just built a giant lint roller, now go forth and roll all the hair off the surface of the carpet. You’ll still need to vacuum afterward, but you might not have to empty the bin as often.
There’s a device called a carpet rake that is basically what you might imagine. Choose one with rubber bristles, like this one, then run it over the carpet collecting hair until you regret having purchased a carpet rake.
Choosing a high powered, pet-focused vacuum with a HEPA filter is probably the best general purpose tool you can get for dealing with hair in carpet. You’ll need to vacuum frequently, as much as three times a week, to keep ahead of your favorite hairball.
Ultimately, many pet owners decide that they spend way too much time cleaning up after their pets instead of interacting with them and install hard flooring. Sure, the dog hair may start piling up in the corners and behind the doors, but those ten hours a week you could be spending with him rather than cleaning up after him are a pretty important part of his short life.

Keep the Carpets and the Pets…

Even if you become the master of carpet cleaning, you’ll want to have a professional come out at least once a year to give your rugs a good once-over. You can find the name of a random carpet cleaner online or in the Yellow Pages, but how do you know if you can trust them? Those coupons they sent don’t say a thing about their skill level.

Your HomeKeepr community, however, can tell you a lot. For example, if your real estate agent has recommended a carpet cleaning company, you can be sure that it’s one to be trusted. Your agent staked their reputation on their recommendation, and they use the place themselves. At HomeKeepr, we believe that recommendations mean a lot more than reviews — we stake our reputation on it every day!

8 reasons why you need a real estate agent when buying a home

If you’re shopping for a house, or even just considering buying one, there’s one person that you absolutely need on your side: a Realtor. Potential buyers often think they can go it alone, but there are a number of things they may not be considering.

What is a Buyer’s Agent and How are They Compensated?

A Buyer’s Agent is your representative throughout the transaction. When you choose a Buyer’s Agent to represent you, they’re going to keep your best outcome in mind. They’re not only legally bound to protect you throughout a real estate transaction, many Buyer’s Agents are also naturally protective of their clients.

Many people are nervous about choosing a Buyer’s Agent because they’re under the impression that they may have to pay an extra fee for their services. However, the fees that the real estate agent and their company earn are set long before you walk in the door. Buyers don’t typically pay their agent directly since the brokerage commission is figured into the price of the house. So cost is not typically an issue for a buyer.

Buyer’s Agents Make Everything Easier for You

Furthermore, your Buyer’s Agent is a lot more than a pencil pusher. They can help make your purchase so much easier in a million ways. Here are just eight of them:

Knowing the market inside and out. There’s only so much you can learn about your housing market from looking at houses online. A Buyer’s Agent can tell you what part of town is poppin’ and which areas are not as popular. Getting in on a little-known up and coming neighborhood can mean a very happy long term financial forecast. Remember, typically Realtors are long time members of the community(s) they service.
Wanting you in the right house, not just any house. Good Realtors will understand their clients wants and needs. Your Buyer’s Agent is going to pound the pavement looking at houses for you while you’re off working or having a life. Then they’ll make a shortlist, saving you time and effort by eliminating houses you’d never buy, and take you shopping! Most will keep at it until the right house appears, no matter how long it takes.

Being a shoulder during the stressful buying process. There’s no better way to say it, buying a house is emotionally draining. It becomes exponentially harder when you add a spouse or partner in the equation. Your Buyer’s Agent has walked lots of people from home shopping to the closing table and will be there for you when you start to panic or the stress is just too much.

Giving you advice on creating a reasonable offer. Your Buyer’s Agent has typically written lots of offers, some that were accepted, some that were not. You can take advantage of their professional experience and ask for help creating an offer that will stick. After all, if you offer too little, the seller may not even respond and if you offer too much, you might kick yourself later.

Protecting you and your rights throughout the buying process. Your Buyer’s Agent is basically a human shield that stands between you and all the worst things in the market. They’re the ones who will point out shoddy workmanship in homes you’re considering, as well as recommending home pros who can fix it. They also go to bat when it’s time to negotiate repairs after your home inspection. With every step, your best interest is their first priority.

Fighting for you if a contract goes south. Hiring a Buyer’s Agent (or a Seller’s Agent when you’re selling, for that matter) is a little like taking out an insurance policy. They help you write your contract and walk you through the buying process, but they also have another vital role to play. If things go sour, they’re going to help you fix it. Buyer’s Agents are the ones helping you weave your way through messy issues, like who should be getting the fridge or whether or not certain items remain with the home.

Spotting value you may not see. You’ve decided on a budget and certain specs you want in your home. Well, maybe you can achieve those goals by knocking down a wall or converting an attic into a bedroom. Oftentimes it is very hard for buyers, especially first time buyers, to see beyond the listed specs of a home. Good Realtors have seen and experienced all kinds of renovation projects, conversions, purchases and sales — and can add a perspective you may not be considering on a home that may not check every box you initially thought you needed.

Serving you even after closing. Buyer’s Agents don’t just drop you once they’ve cashed their checks. They’re around for you no matter what it is that you need help with, real estate-wise. Need the name of a good painter? A place to buy architectural salvage? Your Buyer’s Agent can set you up.

There’s a Lot to Know About Owning a Home…

But even after closing, you don’t have to worry. Not only is your Buyer’s Agent going to be there to help with questions, your HomeKeepr community is waiting with the doors wide open. Here, your real estate agent can recommend home pros from all kinds of specialties. You won’t ever have to worry about the quality of the workmanship they will provide. What a relief!

What is mortgage insurance?

If you currently have a mortgage or are looking at taking one out, you’ve probably come across a concept so notorious, so vile, that it can cause blood-curdling screams and fainting in the boldest of people.

You know the one.

“Mortgage insurance.”

Before you throw your phone across the room, take a minute to read to the bottom of this blog. Mortgage insurance doesn’t deserve the horrible reputation it has earned over the years — in fact, it can help you a whole lot.

What is Mortgage Insurance?

There’s a lot of confusion over mortgage insurance, what it is and what it isn’t.

Some people think that mortgage insurance is the same as homeowners insurance. Sadly, the two aren’t twinsies. Homeowners is yet another monthly expense you need to count on when buying a house.

Others think that mortgage insurance is some nebulous thing that bankers are billing you for just to get your money for no reason. This is also missing a few facts.

Let’s take a step back.

In the days before mortgage insurance, practically no one could get a mortgage with less than a 20 percent downpayment. That meant, at best, years of saving up or in many cases, simply never getting a chance at homeownership at all.

Over time, banks agreed that if there were some sort of insurance policy protecting their interest in the mortgages they wrote, they might be willing to take a smaller down payment, thus opening up homeownership to a lot more people.

And that’s exactly what it does today. It protects banks and enables more people to buy homes. If it weren’t for some form of mortgage insurance, there’d be no chance a bank would agree to a mortgage for someone with as little as 3.5 percent down.

This is the primary benefit for homeowners. Obviously the main benefit for banks is that they don’t get hit nearly as hard in case of a foreclosure, since the insurance will pay a percentage of the mortgage value directly to the lender.

Types of Mortgage Insurance

There are several entities that offer mortgage insurance (though you generally don’t get to choose), including MGIC, National MI, the Federal Housing Administration and the Department of Veterans Affairs. These private companies and government departments have procedures in place to help determine how risky you are as a borrower and then assign a price to your mortgage insurance costs. There are three main types of MI to be aware of:

Private Mortgage Insurance. When you get a conventional loan with less than a 20 percent downpayment, you’ll also be paying for a private mortgage insurance policy. Generally the price of these policies is based on a combination of your credit score and the terms of your mortgage. MGIC has a handy matrix here that can help you figure out what you’ll be paying. Some lenders may offer you an option to pay part of the policy upfront and the balance monthly, or they may offer to pay it for you in exchange for a higher interest rate.

Mortgage Insurance Premium. Mortgage Insurance Premium (yes, it’s really called that) is the insurance program that all homes purchased or refinanced using an FHA loan with less than 80 percent loan to value require to secure the note. While having MIP means you’ll be able to take advantage of FHA mortgage benefits like lower qualifying scores and those 3.5 percent downpayments, you do so with one big disadvantage.

Unless you bring a downpayment of at least 10 percent to the closing table, your mortgage insurance will stick around as long as the loan does. That means if you pay your mortgage off in 25 or 30 years, you’ll still be making MIP payments, too, even though you long ago built a pad of more than 20 percent equity in your home (more on this later). Oh, and MIP is a split premium, meaning you’ll pay an upfront fee plus a monthly fee.

VA Funding Fees. Although you don’t pay it monthly and it’s not called “mortgage insurance,” the VA funding fee functions in the same way as other mortgage insurance programs. It protects the lender, allowing them to make more loans to more military vets. The funding fee itself is highly variable based on a whole matrix of qualifiers, but at least it’s a one-time fee that you can wrap into your mortgage.

Saying Goodbye to Mortgage Insurance

When you get a conventional loan, you don’t have a lot to worry about when it comes to mortgage insurance. Just make all your payments on time and occasionally check your bills to see just how much equity you’ve managed to earn. Once your home has at least 22 percent of its value paid down (based on the appraisal made when the loan in question was acquired, or a fresh appraisal that you’ve paid for on speculation), making your loan to value 78 percent, mortgage insurance should drop right off. This is the most common situation homeowners with conventional loans find themselves in.

However, conventional mortgage insurance may also be cancelled once you’ve reached an 80 percent loan to value if you ask for it specifically and have a good payment history with no late pays in the last year. If you’re still paying mortgage insurance by the time you’ve reached the midway point of your loan, you can request the MI be dropped — this might happen if you’ve had a mortgage with a very high interest rate, for example.

When it comes to FHA loans, unless yours was made prior to June 3, 2013 or you had a 10 percent downpayment (as mentioned above), you can’t get rid of your MIP and keep your mortgage. This is a distressing thought for a lot of borrowers, but many end up selling before it really becomes an issue. Those that don’t still have the option of refinancing, with some notes eligible for the low-pain FHA streamline programs.

Ready to Find the Mortgage That’s Perfect for Your Purchase or Refinance?

Whether you’re trying to get rid of your mortgage insurance payment or you want to buy your first home, it’s time to check in with your HomeKeepr family. Through high quality professional referrals from people like your own real estate agent, you’ll meet the best mortgage lenders and brokers in your area. Why wait? Check in to the community to get started.

5 easy ways to keep water out of your basement

All homes have quirks that require special care and consideration, but when it comes to homes with basements, it’s a whole different ball game. Instead of fighting with the lightswitch on the north wall, you’re trying to keep the carpet dry and catch any water long before it becomes a problem.

Waterproofing the basement can be useful if water is seeping in, but there are also plenty of easy DIY friendly things you can do around the house to keep more water out of your basement.

Basements Aren’t Swimming Pools

Your basement is more than just a cement-lined hole in the ground, it’s a part of your home like your kitchen or your bedroom. Unlike those rooms, many basements can develop problems with water, either coming in from outside or coming down from the floor above. Water in a basement can result in higher humidity levels, musty odors and the rapid growth of mold colonies.

Your basement isn’t meant to be a swimming pool. It’s high time you found out where your water is coming from so you can cure it for good.

Keeping the Water Where It Belongs

Even a little bit of water seeping into your basement on the regular is cause for concern. Besides the mold and foul smells mentioned above, that water helps encourage pests that need moist environments, like, say, cockroaches.

Don’t encourage mold and bugs. Instead, try these easy ways to keep that water out of the basement:

Check the grading around your house. As water flows around a home’s foundation year after year, it’s reasonable to expect that some erosion will occur. A little bit is not a big deal, but that little bit usually turns into a lot as time goes by. Eventually, you may even end up with a negative grade, essentially a grade in your yard that diverts water to your house rather than away from it. It’s not difficult to regrade the land around your house, though it can mean a lot of labor. Check out Today’s Homeowner’s tutorial to get started!
Ensure that all gutters and downspouts are in working order. Water that spills over the sides of your gutters is water that can go anywhere it pleases. That’s why clean gutters are so important to keeping water out of your basement. Clean those gutters at least twice a year (and be extra thorough right after the last leaves have fallen) and check that all your joints are fitting well. Water from the garden hose can help you figure out where problems exist, if any. Other add-ons like splash blocks and downspout extensions further redirect water once it’s on the ground.
Maintain basement window wells. Not every basement house will have window wells. But if yours does and they’ve been neglected a good long while, they could be contributing to your water issue. Clean them out, lay down some fresh gravel and put new window well caps on to drive water away from your basement windows. You may end up needing an expert to help, depending on how much damage water and wet leaves sitting against the window frames has caused.
Check the plumbing. It may be unpleasant to consider, but if that water isn’t coming from outside, then it has to be coming from inside. Leaky toilets and shower drains are always suspect, but any part of the plumbing system could have a small persistent leak. If you can find it, you can fix it and stop any potential damage that could be happening overhead, too.
Examine your furnace air handler. When your run your air conditioner, room air is pulled into your furnace or air handler, run across something called an a-coil (due to its shape) and pushed back out much colder than when it started. In the brief moments that the room air is above the a-coil, it drops a significant amount of water into a pan below as it rapidly changes temperature. From there, the water goes away through a condensation line. This is what happens in a perfect world. In a world where people don’t’ always maintain their air handlers like they should, the condensation line can get plugged up, causing the pan in the furnace to overflow onto the floor. If this looks to be the case, it’s often a fairly easy fix. With the HVAC system turned off, remove as much water as you can from the condensation pan, then fill the condensation line with vinegar. Let it sit until it’s freely draining once again.
These tips should help solve your basement water problem, but if it continues to reoccur, waterproofing or installing a sump pump (or both!) may be warranted. Generally, if your water issue is more than a small puddle, it’s better to just to go ahead and call in a pro rather than to continue to beat your head against the problem.

Where Can You Find the Best Basement Pros Around?

They’re members of the HomeKeepr community! Just log in, ask your HomeKeepr family for some recommendations and you’re already well on your way to a dry basement you’ll love to spend time in. Since other pros are staking their reputations on the referrals they’re giving, you know the expert you hire will be the best!