Steps to Prep Your Home for the Best Summer Ever Summer will be here before you know it, and you know what that means: Heat, hornets and yard work. If you’re starting to miss spring already, fear not. Here are some quick projects to make your home and garden more comfortable and cost-effective this summer. Inside the house Service the air conditioning. Nothing can ruin your day like a broken A/C unit on a summer day, so keep it running smoothly by servicing it every spring. Every three months, change the filter, flush out drain lines with a cup of bleach, and ensure that the outdoor unit has room to breathe by keeping vegetation about an arm’s length away. Replace smoke detector batteries. You’d be surprised at how much peace of mind you’ll get after knocking out this one little chore. Change all the batteries on the same day and remind yourself to do it again in six months. If your smoke alarms were manufactured 10 or more yea...
SELLING Home-Selling Can Come With $18,000-Plus Price Tag A re you a homeowner listing your property for sale? Consider the expenses that are often overlooked by sellers: cleaning costs, moving costs, painting, staging… “Even in the hottest housing markets in the country, selling a home takes time and costs money,” says Jeremy Wacksman, CMO at Zillow, which assessed the costs that come with listing in the recently released “ 2018 Hidden Costs of Selling ” report. “From decluttering and staging to pre-inspections, agents and homeowners often spend months behind the scenes prepping a home—well before it’s listed on the market,” Wacksman says. “If you’re planning to sell this year, try to take some time to research what costs you may be responsible for and how they could affect your profit, or even budget for your next house.” According to the analysis by Zillow, the average homeowner is on the hook for $18,342 when selling, with $4,985 allocated to prep proj...