Category Archives: Family Home

How to Resuscitate Your Bank Account After Buying a Home

A piggy bank symbolizing the need to boost your bank account after buying a home.

Buying property is a huge investment, and it often comes with additional, unplanned expenses. If you’re not careful, you can find yourself in a less than desirable financial position. Before you realize it, your budget is forgotten, you’ve spent money on all sorts of things you’d never imagined needing, and you’re feeling somewhat out of pocket. For this reason, it’s important to know how to balance homeownership and breathe new life into your bank balance. To help you out, we’ve compiled eight handy tips to boost your bank account.

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Air Conditioning 101: Tips, Tricks, and Hacks You Should Know

Woman enjoying the AC in her living room.
Keeping your AC running efficiently will help you stay cool all summer.

During the scorching summer months, it’s hard to imagine life without your trusted air conditioning unit. However, as the degrees drop inside your home, your electric bill can also head in the opposite direction. When faced with skyrocketing bills, it is tempting to give up your AC or live much more warmly from day-to-day.

Fortunately, there are ways you can stay cool during summer without spending a fortune. Beat the summer heat, save money, and keep your air conditioning unit in peak shape by keeping the following AC tricks, tips, and hacks in mind:

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6 Roof Types to Consider for Your Home Upgrade

The top of a terracotta colored home
There are several roof styles to consider when upgrading the exterior of your home.

The roof of our house protects us from the harshest elements, but it does so much more than that.

For instance, the shape of our roof contributes significantly to our home’s overall look and style.

In some cases, the roof type you choose dictates whether you can have an attic, loft, or any additional living space.

Your roof can also play a role in making your home more energy-efficient and more resilient to specific weather conditions.

When the time to upgrade your home comes and your roof is a priority, you will need the services of a skilled, experienced, and licensed roofer with the right roofing insurance coverage. With a roofing contractor’s help, you can pick a new roof type that will be perfect for your home. There is no shortage of roof types to consider for your home upgrade. Read on for some of them.

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Checking the Air Quality in Your Home

Couple with masks on because they are concerned about the air quality in the home
Have you checked your home’s air quality lately?

Your home is a place of comfort and security. However, is this possible with defective indoor air quality levels? During wildfire and allergy seasons, you may notice air quality alerts. These put you at risk for harmful effects from your outdoor air quality. Regardless, throughout the rest of the year, your home’s indoor toxins, pollutants, and chemicals could be worse than the outdoor air.

If you’re unfamiliar with how your home’s indoor air quality affects you, it’s critical to learn more. There are adverse health effects resulting from exposure to poor air quality, and you should monitor for various symptoms and conditions that can occur. This information will help you to avoid, prevent, and stop pollution in your home. Read on to understand some of the major indoor air pollutants and what you can do to keep your home clean and healthy.

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Best & Worst Home Improvement Projects to DIY

By: Lee Campbell

A couple working on a home improvement project together.

Which home improvement projects should you DIY, and which ones require professional help? We have all heard the old saying, “you get what you pay for.” But sometimes it’s what you should have paid for that ends up costing the most money, time, and energy. Here, we break down the dos and don’ts of do-it-yourself home improvement projects.

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The Ultimate Guide to Keeping Fish in Kids’ Rooms or Small Spaces

Girl looking at the fish in her small bedroom.
Fish can be the perfect companion in small spaces.

Fish are often held up as the perfect pet for those trapped in tiny apartments or for those desperate for a pet of their own in a crowded household. Small tanks can be an excellent way to keep an animal companion while also not taking up more than a few square feet of space on a desk or a dresser. However, fish are still living creatures, and there are a few steps, tips, and tricks to keep in mind before diving headfirst into setting up an aquarium in your apartment or child’s bedroom.

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Home Warranty Plans: Reasons You Should Have One

A red pen ready to sign a home warranty plan.

When buying an old home, it is common to check that all appliances and systems still work as intended. Having one or a few of them broken simply will not do. But what if there is concern that these aging appliances and systems will break down in the near future? You can maintain, repair, and replace, but the costs are not cheap. You should have a home warranty plan.

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Common Major Repairs Every Homeowner Should Prepare For

Multiple tools shaped as a home to symbolize home repairs
As a homeowner, preparing for home repairs is a must.

It is a part of homeownership: unexpected home repairs. Some of them are simple and inexpensive fixes, like repairing a broken drawer handle or replacing a doorknob. However, some of them, such as replacing the roof or removing mold, are laborious tasks that require the services of a professional and can cause financial strain if you are unprepared.

For this reason, it is important to plan for major home repairs. Even though you do not know when to expect such repairs, you can be prepared for when they happen! Read on for some insight into common home fixes that homeowners may encounter.

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Hosting a Backyard Wedding

Backyard wedding with long dinner table set up near the pool.

Have you ever thought about tying the knot in your own backyard, or offering it up to someone in need of a wedding venue? Saying “I do” in a place close to your heart certainly has its advantages. Still, pulling it off without a hitch requires some special planning. Here are a few things to keep in mind when planning or hosting a backyard wedding.

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Quietest Garage Door Openers

By: Good Guys Garage Door Solutions

man with green shirt installing a quiet garage door opener

Manufacturers create garage door openers to operate with the highest quality of safety, security, and convenience. Beyond even these advancements, garage door openers can now function almost silently. This can be an especially important advantage if you have a room located above or beside the garage door. That is why we collected a list of the five quietest garage door openers from three top brands: LiftMaster, Genie, and Sommer.

Before we jump into the specific openers, you should know what makes an opener operate more quietly. When shopping for a new opener, look for side-mount or belt drive options. Because both have fewer moving parts or metal hardware, they produce fewer vibrations and thus less noise. Also, look for descriptions that mention soft start and close. This also assists in reducing vibration, cutting back on noise levels.

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