I don't know about you, but I'm still not a big fan of the energy saving compact flourescent lightbulbs, as I like the old style, the incondescents. It's the warm cozy glow they give off that keeps me buying them, and I have to admit that I am hoarding bulbs from 15 -100 watts in fear that I won't be able to get them anymore. Everytime i'm in a store and walk by the lightbulb section I buy a few more to add to my collection, especially the lower wattage ones ,the 15-25 watts.
Yes the new compact flourescents do save on energy cost, and have a much longer life span than the incondescents, but I'm just not ready to be completely converted yet, even though I do have a few in my house now.
If you want to do your part to save on energy cost, whether you are a condescent or incondescent person, do read this article, as it will give you some good tips and what to do and not to do when it comes to lighting energy. Article by RISMedia
Do Your Part: 5 Ways to Lower your Lighting Cost
I LOVE REFERRALS, so if you know of anyone that is looking to either buy or sell real estate,(doesn't have to be in Alabama)please send me an email, and I will see what I can do to help.
Postings of this and that with a balance between work and play
Tuesday, September 27, 2011
Tuesday, September 20, 2011
7 Surefire Ways to Improve Your Credit Score
It's been awhile since I have blogged anything about credit scores, but it is still the biggest reason people are turned down when applying for loans to purchase a house or even rent an apartment.
This article is just some of the basic concepts that you can implement to get your score up, but you should really contact a Lender and work with them since everyone's situation is different.
At ERA-King Real Estate we have our own in house Lending department, ERA Mortgage, and they are great to work with and will help you to get your credit score where it needs to be to purchase a Home. Just give me a call or send an email and I will give you the contact information.
Here is an article I found from Frontdoor.com that hits the basics
7 Surefire Ways to Improve Your Credit Score
By Karin Beuerlein, FrontDoor.com
Published: 6/05/2008
To improve your credit score, start by paying your current bills on time.
You've already heard the bad news. The housing crisis has tightened up credit markets, and it's harder to qualify for a mortgage loan. Credit scoring has always been an important part of the loan approval process, but suddenly it bears more weight than ever.
If your credit is shabby, you'll need to shore up your score to convince a lender you're worthy. Here's how to boost your point total:
1.Be on time. Before you worry about cleaning up what happened yesterday, get right with today and focus on your current bill-paying performance. Pay on time, and pay more than the required minimum payment each month on outstanding credit balances.
2.Shrink your credit ratio. The credit-scoring process looks at the ratio of your debt to the total amount of available credit you have, so add up your credit limits to see where you stand. Your long-term goal is to get rid of all your debt, but a good, short-term target is to shrink your ratio to less than 50 percent. Then 40, then 30, and so on.
3.Pay off a card, but don't close it. Because of the aforementioned credit ratios, reducing your available credit hurts your score. If you have a $3,000 balance on one card with a $5,000 maximum and no balance on a card with a $10,000 maximum, closing the unused card suddenly makes your credit ratio skyrocket from a benign 20 percent to a troubling 60 percent. Resist the urge to close an account when you've paid it off; lock the card in a drawer instead.
4.Get current on any outstanding debts. Got collection agencies on your trail? Pay off your late accounts, but remember that paying off a delinquent account will not erase it from your history. You simply have to wait; the further the delinquency recedes into the past, the better off you'll be. If you have a good explanation for falling behind, a lender may be sympathetic if you've paid off the debt.
5.Take a magnifying glass to your credit report. Credit reports often contain score-dinging errors. Check yours via www.annualcreditreport.com, and look for obvious mistakes like erroneous balances or accounts you don't recognize (which can be a sign of identity theft). Make sure lenders have reported your credit limits accurately, because they affect your credit ratio.
6.Restrain yourself with new cards. Don't open up new accounts to increase your available credit. This strategy doesn't necessarily boost your score and can actually hurt it, according to MyFICO.com. If you'd like to have a new card, apply for one, but don't open multiple accounts at the same time. This looks like risky behavior to a lender.
7.Allow some time to pass. Following these tips will improve your credit score, but give them time to work their magic.
Here's a general timetable:
•Corrected errors on your credit report should boost your score immediately;
•Paying down balances takes a little longer to work (depending on how much you pay off and how often your lender reports to credit bureaus), so you may see results in a few weeks or a few months;
•Paying off delinquent accounts gives you some leverage with lenders, but improvement in your actual credit score will be slow, so be patient
This article is just some of the basic concepts that you can implement to get your score up, but you should really contact a Lender and work with them since everyone's situation is different.
At ERA-King Real Estate we have our own in house Lending department, ERA Mortgage, and they are great to work with and will help you to get your credit score where it needs to be to purchase a Home. Just give me a call or send an email and I will give you the contact information.
Here is an article I found from Frontdoor.com that hits the basics
7 Surefire Ways to Improve Your Credit Score
By Karin Beuerlein, FrontDoor.com
To improve your credit score, start by paying your current bills on time.
You've already heard the bad news. The housing crisis has tightened up credit markets, and it's harder to qualify for a mortgage loan. Credit scoring has always been an important part of the loan approval process, but suddenly it bears more weight than ever.
If your credit is shabby, you'll need to shore up your score to convince a lender you're worthy. Here's how to boost your point total:
1.Be on time. Before you worry about cleaning up what happened yesterday, get right with today and focus on your current bill-paying performance. Pay on time, and pay more than the required minimum payment each month on outstanding credit balances.
2.Shrink your credit ratio. The credit-scoring process looks at the ratio of your debt to the total amount of available credit you have, so add up your credit limits to see where you stand. Your long-term goal is to get rid of all your debt, but a good, short-term target is to shrink your ratio to less than 50 percent. Then 40, then 30, and so on.
3.Pay off a card, but don't close it. Because of the aforementioned credit ratios, reducing your available credit hurts your score. If you have a $3,000 balance on one card with a $5,000 maximum and no balance on a card with a $10,000 maximum, closing the unused card suddenly makes your credit ratio skyrocket from a benign 20 percent to a troubling 60 percent. Resist the urge to close an account when you've paid it off; lock the card in a drawer instead.
4.Get current on any outstanding debts. Got collection agencies on your trail? Pay off your late accounts, but remember that paying off a delinquent account will not erase it from your history. You simply have to wait; the further the delinquency recedes into the past, the better off you'll be. If you have a good explanation for falling behind, a lender may be sympathetic if you've paid off the debt.
5.Take a magnifying glass to your credit report. Credit reports often contain score-dinging errors. Check yours via www.annualcreditreport.com, and look for obvious mistakes like erroneous balances or accounts you don't recognize (which can be a sign of identity theft). Make sure lenders have reported your credit limits accurately, because they affect your credit ratio.
6.Restrain yourself with new cards. Don't open up new accounts to increase your available credit. This strategy doesn't necessarily boost your score and can actually hurt it, according to MyFICO.com. If you'd like to have a new card, apply for one, but don't open multiple accounts at the same time. This looks like risky behavior to a lender.
7.Allow some time to pass. Following these tips will improve your credit score, but give them time to work their magic.
Here's a general timetable:
•Corrected errors on your credit report should boost your score immediately;
•Paying down balances takes a little longer to work (depending on how much you pay off and how often your lender reports to credit bureaus), so you may see results in a few weeks or a few months;
•Paying off delinquent accounts gives you some leverage with lenders, but improvement in your actual credit score will be slow, so be patient
Tuesday, September 13, 2011
HOW TO LOWER YOUR ENERGY COST THIS WINTER
Now that Summer is coming to a close, and cooler weather is on it's way, we need to get our Homes ready for the cold weather of the winter months to come.
We hear every year about how to seal windows and doors etc..to keep out the drafts, and save on our energy bills, but we don't hear much about preparing the ATTIC and BASEMENT.
I ran across these 2 articles that go into detail about what to check for in these critical areas that can go along way towards saving you some precious money this winter.
According to the U.S. Department of Energy’s office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, by following up on problems, you can lower energy bills by 5% to 30% annually, and I don't know of anybody that wouldn't want to capitalize on these savings.
Hope these can help you towards saving some money this winter.......
We hear every year about how to seal windows and doors etc..to keep out the drafts, and save on our energy bills, but we don't hear much about preparing the ATTIC and BASEMENT.
I ran across these 2 articles that go into detail about what to check for in these critical areas that can go along way towards saving you some precious money this winter.
According to the U.S. Department of Energy’s office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, by following up on problems, you can lower energy bills by 5% to 30% annually, and I don't know of anybody that wouldn't want to capitalize on these savings.
Hope these can help you towards saving some money this winter.......
Attic Air Leaks: How to Find and Seal Them
Even if your attic floor is filled with adequate insulation, seal air leaks around pipes and other attic openings to prevent waste of heating and cooling energy—and money. Read
Air Leaks in Your Basement? How to Spot and Seal Them
Seal air leaks in your basement to stop the loss of your home heating energy. Read
Visit houselogic.com for more articles like this.
Copyright 2011 NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®
Sunday, September 4, 2011
Gain Value of your Home with Yearly Routine Maintanence
THE VALUE OF HOME MAINTENANCE
By doing routine maintenance on your home every year you can gain at least 1% on your appraisal value, while deferring the maintenance can cost you 10% or more. Sounds like a no brainer to me. You never know when that day is going to come when you either want to, or have to sell your home, or even want to do a refinance or get an equity line.
When we are in a Buyers Market like we are now, homes that have been well maintained are selling faster and closer to the asking price verses the ones that have not been.
By continually keeping up on the maintenance you actually save yourself money by not letting things get to the point of costly repair.
I have a great seasonal yearly maintenance checklist that I can email you if you are interested. I always do better myself with a checklist. Just email me and I will forward a copy to you.
I LOVE REFERRALS, so if you know of anyone that is looking to either buy or sell a home, (doesn't have to be in Alabama) please send me an email. I'd be happy to help them. Julie
By doing routine maintenance on your home every year you can gain at least 1% on your appraisal value, while deferring the maintenance can cost you 10% or more. Sounds like a no brainer to me. You never know when that day is going to come when you either want to, or have to sell your home, or even want to do a refinance or get an equity line.
When we are in a Buyers Market like we are now, homes that have been well maintained are selling faster and closer to the asking price verses the ones that have not been.
By continually keeping up on the maintenance you actually save yourself money by not letting things get to the point of costly repair.
I have a great seasonal yearly maintenance checklist that I can email you if you are interested. I always do better myself with a checklist. Just email me and I will forward a copy to you.
The Value of Home Maintenance
Regular home maintenance is key to preserving the value of your house and property. Read
Visit houselogic.com for more articles like this.
Copyright 2011 NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®
I LOVE REFERRALS, so if you know of anyone that is looking to either buy or sell a home, (doesn't have to be in Alabama) please send me an email. I'd be happy to help them. Julie
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