Sep 20, 2011
Moisture can be one of the most destructive forces, causing damage that could lead to expensive repairs. When warm air from the tropics encounters a cold front, the results are often thunderstorms. When warm moist air from indoors makes its way into cooler walls and attic spaces, the result is condensation which leads to mold, rot and rust. And there is no time when this is more prevalent than early spring. While everyone talks about the weather and can do nothing about it, moisture in homes can be controlled. The way to deal with it is to determine if there is a problem, understand where it comes from and then learn to control it.
Where Moisture in Homes Originates
Typically, moisture in the form of excess humidity is produced in homes just by the act of living in them. Taking a shower, cooking a meal, even breathing all add moisture to indoor air. You don’t necessarily need a leaky roof or seepage from masonry surfaces to create excess humidity, although they will certainly contribute to the problem.
When moist inside air contacts cold exterior surfaces the moisture in the air condenses to form water. Once this water is released from the air it can do its damage. For example, if a bathroom fan exhausts warm moist into the attic (instead of outside as it should) the air will mix with the cold air in the attic. When this happens the moisture in the air will either condense on attic surfaces or worse, create its own mini weather system complete with a small rain shower in your attic. To a lesser degree this same effect can happen in exterior walls, around single pane windows, on the side of a refrigerator or anywhere inside air meets the cold outside air.
Symptoms of Moisture Problems
If you suspect moisture problems look for the following signs:
–mold, fungus or mildew on interior surfaces
–efflorescence (salt deposits) on both interior and exterior surfaces
–flaking paint and peeling wallpaper
–corrosion on metal surfaces including metal surfaces in basements and attics
–condensation on windows and walls
–<warped, cracked, or rotted wood
–chipped or cracked masonry surfaces
–ice dams in gutters and on roofs
–dank and musty smells
Controlling Moisture
The best way to control excess humidity is to stop it at its source.
–Fix all leaks, roofs, pipes and radiators.
–Control seepage through masonry by applying waterproofing treatments.
–Keep moist air away from cold surfaces by plugging holes in walls and sealing fixtures and outlets.
–Seal leaks in ventilation systems.
–Make sure that exhaust fans, such as those in bathrooms and kitchens, vent outside.
–Consider upgrading poorly insulated windows and doors.
–Adjust your heating system to take in at least 10 percent of its air from outside. This will improve indoor air quality.
–Turn on fans and open windows when showering or cooking.
Treating Moisture Damage
Finally, once excess humidity is under control, it is important to treat and repair all moisture damage promptly. Moldy areas should be scraped clean and washed with bleach. In most cases, damaged wood should be removed because rot will often continue even after the source of water has been removed. Don’t delay repairs. Spores from mold and other fungi can be released into the air and can lead to various respiratory illnesses. To determine whether you have solved your moisture problems, you may want to test with a moisture meter or have a professional tester check for you. Inserting the moisture meter probes into plaster, wood or other building materials lets you test in areas you cannot see. If the levels are too high, then you have a problem. If not, then you can rest easy.
Realtor.com
Aug 17, 2011
Green homes are one of the hottest trends in real estate right now. Even a little bit of
eco-friendly renovation can make a big difference in your home’s appeal on the market.
Below are four ways to update your bathroom into an eco-minded retreat that sellers will love:
If you are remodeling or updating your bathroom to sell, you may want to think beyond the look of your bathroom. In short, you may want to also consider the advantages of turning your bathroom into a “green” bathroom. A green bathroom may mean using recycled or repurposed materials, or it may mean installing water-saving fixtures. Either way, a green bathroom is sure to be appreciated by your buyers. Buyers of today are interested in environmentally sensitive building materials and home supplies, so it will always impress your buyers if you not only update your bathroom, but update it in an environmentally friendly manner. Here’s how:
• Low-flow shower heads – The best thing about today’s shower heads is that you don’t need to sacrifice style for water-saving features. In fact, most of today’s best shower heads are the “low-flow” variety, thereby allowing you to install a great new shower head that uses much less water than shower heads of years’ past. Impress your buyers with a shower head that provides a waterfall effect, or multiple massage speeds
• Low-flow faucets – The same water-saving capabilities are afforded to faucets of today, as well. Replace your old faucets with an attractive new faucet that not only looks better, but saves a considerable amount of wasted water as well. Keep in mind, also, that faucets are quite economical, thereby allowing you to install a beautiful faucet that often provides a great facelift for your bathroom.
• Efficient toilets – Many of today’s toilets are of the low-flow variety, yet they also offer a number of flush options to suit your varying needs. For example, some of today’s toilets offer low-flush for liquids and more powerful flushes for solids.
• Recycled tile – If you want to add beauty to your bathroom floor or tub surround, consider some of the many recycled tiles available today. Not only are they environmentally friendly, but they are quite beautiful, as well. Consider recycled glass or recycled ceramic tile, just to name a few.
Realtor.com
Apr 14, 2011
For those of you, who are suffering this year, feel for the kind folks in Knoxville, Tennessee right now. They are the countries leader as the worst city for allergies.
Top 10 Worst Cities For Springtime Allergies
1. Knoxville, Tennessee
2. Louisville, Kentucky
3. Charlotte, North Carolina
4. Jackson, Mississippi
5. Chattanooga, Tennessee
6. Birmingham, Alabama
7. Dayton, Ohio
8. Richmond, Virginia
9. McAllen, Texas
10. Madison, Wisconsin
via ABC News
Apr 11, 2011
Vacancies, empty homes, zombie subdivisions, foreclosures, and REO. This is the real estate story of 2011 and as usual some cities are fairing better than others. The city of Orlando takes the crown as the emptiest American city with an amazing 23 percent of their apartments empty and 4.3 percent of their homes unoccupied.
The recession is just magnifying the problem in these cities, as their is not enough demand for housing and the relocation market is restricted. Add in an overabundance of inventory and you have these cities sitting empty.
America’s Top 10 Most Empty Cities in 2011
- Orlando – Home Vacancy – 4.3% Apartment Vacancy – 23.6%
- Las Vegas– Home Vacancy – 5.5% Apartment Vacancy – 13.5%
- Memphis – Home Vacancy – 4.7% Apartment Vacancy – 16.1%
- San Bernardino – Home Vacancy – 6.4% Apartment Vacancy – 10.4%
- Dayton – Home Vacancy – 3.3% Apartment Vacancy – 26.4%
- Phoenix – Home Vacancy – 3.4% Apartment Vacancy – 15.5%
- Houston – Home Vacancy – 2.6% Apartment Vacancy – 14.5%
- Jacksonville – Home Vacancy – 3.1% Apartment Vacancy – 10.4%
- Tampa St. Petersburg – Home Vacancy – 3.7% Apartment Vacancy – 9.4%\
- Detroit – Home Vacancy – 2.9% Apartment Vacancy – 15.6%
via Forbes
Apr 7, 2011
The dream of many would-be buyers is a new home, but it makes less and less financial sense in many places.
A wave of foreclosures has driven down the cost of previously occupied homes and made them even more of a comparative bargain. By contrast, new homes have become more expensive.
The median price of a new home in the United States is 48 percent higher than that of a home being resold, more than three times the gap in a healthy housing market. Such a disparity can be a drag on the economy.
New homes represent a small fraction of sales, but they cause economic ripples, bringing business to construction and other industries. Sluggish new-home sales deprive the economy of strength. The gap is widening because prices of previously occupied homes are falling fast, pulled down by waves of foreclosures and short sales.
The median price of a new home has risen almost 6 percent in the past year to $230,600, even though last year was the worst for sales in nearly a half-century. Slowed by those higher prices, new-home sales have plummeted over the past year to the lowest level since records began being kept in 1963. By contrast, sales of previously occupied homes have fallen almost 3 percent in the past year. Prices have dropped more than 5 percent. In February, the median price for a resale was $156,100, according to the National Association of Realtors. That adds up to a price difference of $74,500, or 48 percent, the highest markup in at least a decade. In healthier markets, a new home typically runs about 15 percent more, according to government data.
In some areas, older homes were more expensive before the housing market bust. That was especially true in urban neighborhoods with little or no room left to build on. But now, buyers get their pick even in some of the trendiest places.
Homebuilders have taken notice. Residential construction has all but come to a halt. Builders broke ground in February on the fewest homes in nearly two years. Building permits, a gauge of future construction, sank to their lowest in more than 50 years. Many builders are waiting for new home sales to pick up and for the glut of foreclosures and other distressed properties to be reduced, but with 3 million foreclosures forecast this year nationwide, some analysts do not expect a turnaround for at least three years.
Mar 23, 2011
Remember that housing recovery that was supposed to happen this spring? Well, according to the numbers released by the National Association of Realtors, it is not going to happen very soon.
The numbers reported for February, 2011 were rough to say the least. Experts were predicting a drop of 4 percent however we saw the number plummet 9.6 percent. This is the lowest number of homes sold in 9 years. The inventory of homes for sale jumped to 8.6 months.
Overall, the numbers are even rougher to the experts than they appear. The reason why, interest rates. The Federal government is doing everything it can to keep interest rates low including having the Federal Reserve buying up the debt they accumulate. This can only go on so long and then we will see a big bump of interest rates. When that bump hits housing costs will skyrocket removing even more people from the marketplace.
This was the window the economists and the government was expecting housing to improve and help pick up the economy. It looks that that is not going to happen in the near future.
The National Association of Realtors said Monday sales fell 9.6 percent month over month to an annual rate of 4.88 million units, snapping three straight months of gains.
The percentage decline was the largest since July.
The median home price dropped 5.2 percent in February from a year earlier to $156,100, the lowest since April 2002.
“If the price declines persist, even with the job market recovery, that could hamper recovery in the housing market,” said NAR chief economist Lawrence Yun.
Compared with February last year, sales were down 2.8 percent.
Oversupply of homes and a relentless wave of foreclosures are pressuring prices, holding back recovery in the sector, whose collapse helped to tip the U.S. economy into its worst recession since the 1930s. Foreclosures and short sales, which typically occur below market value, accounted for 39 percent of transactions in February, up from 37 percent the prior month. All-cash purchases made up a record 33 percent of transactions in February.
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