VA Loans

Apache is functioning normally

A few weeks ago, I wrote about how my husband and I are moving to be closer to his new job. Well, it’s been a whirlwind of chaos and uncertainty ever since. Since I wrote that post, we put our house on the market and began the search for a new home. And despite the fact that we’re excited for the opportunity to move on with our lives, it hasn’t been pleasant.

First of all, something happened that we never expected. Our house sold for almost full asking price in 13 days.Yes, you read that right. Thirteen days. This was great, of course, because we were able to put that part of the move behind us. And anyone who has sold their home knows how big of a pain it is to keep their house in prime condition, especially with small kids. Regardless, the fact that our home sold so quickly meant that we needed to find a new home….and fast. Plus, the fact that the buyers of our home wanted possession in 45 days meant that we had 45 days to make an offer on a home, negotiate a price, and close the deal.Gulp.

Searching for Our Dream Home

So we started our home search by making a list of the features we wanted in our new house. Fortunately, we were mostly on the same page. My main concern for our new home was price. Since selling our current home meant that we would have almost 100K for a down payment, I wanted to find a home that was as inexpensive as possible. One of our dreams is to be debt free (including our mortgage) as soon as humanly possible; so the more we burden ourselves with debt, the further we’ll be from reaching that goal.

Greg’s wish list included features that we have in our current home — a home office, a play room for the kids, and a guest bedroom — and I agreed, adding that I’ve always wanted a Jacuzzi tub in the master bathroom. We also agreed that we wanted a nice back yard and a two-car garage with some added space for storage. We thought it would be nice to have an open kitchen, plenty of storage, and a fireplace, preferably wood-burning. So, with our list in hand, we started browsing real estate listings in the new area where we are moving. And, thankfully, we found a huge selection of homes that fit our criteria.

Champagne Taste, Beer Budget

Since the house we’re selling sold for $160,000, we were hoping to keep our budget somewhere near that amount, (hopefully) not to exceed 200K. But, we also started looking in the low 200s and were even willing to go as high as 230K or 240K to get exactly what we wanted. So with our budget in mind, we started looking for a home that would work.

Over the next few weeks, we looked at least 40 homes.I fell in love at least 10 times. I saw beautiful stone-stacked fireplaces, granite counter tops, and great rooms with vaulted ceilings and custom-built bookcases to boot. I saw Jacuzzi tubs where my problems would surely melt into oblivion as well as back yards that were beautiful, peaceful, and tranquil, like I’ve always dreamed of.

As I crunched the numbers, I also saw that I would be paying on these homes for way longer than I wanted. And, even though we had found what we were looking for, we were extremely hesitant to pull the trigger. Something was holding us back. Something was telling us to stop and really think about what we were doing.And one thing I’ve learned is that when that voice talks, I need to listen. What we wanted and what we needed were, as always, two entirely different things. So we started the entire process over. Except this time, we focused on what we need, not what we want.

What Did We Really Need?

The house we’re selling is 2,370 square feet, with nearly half of that unused most of the time. Our guest room is only used twice a year, when Greg’s parents come from out of state to visit. Our home office houses a beautiful desk set that I purchased off of Craigslist, but I rarely use it and prefer to work in the living room. And the kids’ play room? Sure, they love it, but most people I know don’t have a room in their home dedicated only to toys. I didn’t have a play room growing up, after all — nor did my husband, my best friend, or either of my parents.We all survived.

And, since most of the homes we were looking at were the size of our old home, or bigger, we began to wonder if we were even looking in the right place. We started asking ourselves what we really needed. Did we really need a home office or would a small desk in our bedroom work? When Greg’s parents visited from out of state, could they stay in one of our girls’ rooms for the weekend? My 4-year-old does have a queen-sized bed. And was a playroom really necessary or could the girls each keep part of their toys in their rooms?

The more we talked, the more we discovered that we could likely live without much of the space that we enjoyed in our old house. And, in a weird twist of fate, we would soon find out whether we liked it or not.

The Benefits of a Small Home

We wasted so much time looking at larger homes that we completely ran of time to find a home altogether. And as an experiment, as well as out of necessity, we’ve decided to rent a small home temporarily to see if we can make it work. Starting November 1, we’ll be living in a three-bedroom home with less than 1,200 square feet. Since we’re renting the home from a friend, we’re able to rent month to month without a long-term commitment. Not signing a lease will allow us to continue our search for a permanent place of our own. And, although we’re slightly nervous about the transition, we’re excited to see how it pans out.

It seems like most people who live in a small space become avid small-house enthusiasts, mainly due to the many benefits a small house can offer. First of all, many small homes are less expensive which can free up cash each month for other savings goals. Since small homes usually cost less, property taxes tend to be lower as well, which can add up to even greater savings over the months and years. And, as if that wasn’t enough, smaller homes generally have lower utility bills since they often require less energy to heat and cool.Maintenance and upkeep can also cost less as well. Think about it. The smaller the home, the fewer windows to replace.Less carpet. Less to paint. Almost any big-scale home improvement project will cost less in a smaller home, simply because there’s less space, less to tear down, and less to replace. Small homes are also easier to clean and keep organized, which can make them especially attractive to those who don’t have the time, or patience, to do much housework.

Could We Make a Small Home Work?

Of course, I had all this in mind as we moved into our temporary, smaller home. And, as we unpacked boxes and configured all of our stuff, I was surprised to find that it…ummm…works.For the most part, at least. The majority of our furniture does fit in the house, after all, and there’s still plenty of room for the kids to run around. And, even though my kids lost their play room when we moved, they haven’t seemed to notice or care.

One of my biggest worries was that we would feel cramped with only one main living area, and I was surprised to find out that wasn’t the case. I’m growing to like it, actually. And more than that, I love having all of the bedrooms on one floor.

Our old office is now in the corner of our bedroom, which has been quite a change, yet doable. Our kitchen table fits snug as a bug in the eat-in kitchen as well. And if we angle the table just right, the four of us can manage to eat a meal at the same time.

But, Is it Too Small?

Even though our stuff technically fits, something still doesn’t feel quite right. There’s no pantry in the kitchen, for instance, which means that all of our food is stuffed in the few kitchen cabinets that we have. There’s also nowhere to keep the vacuum, broom, or dust pan. The house does have a small linen closet but it only holds a handful of towels and supplies, nothing more. Since we’re pretty organized folks, we’re struggling with our inability to do what comes natural to us. Shoving things wherever they fit is against our nature and I’m longing for a few more closets, or perhaps some additional cabinets or drawers.

So, after thinking long and hard about why I’m not enjoying this space as much as I could be, I’ve come to realize that the size of the house itself isn’t the problem. What this house lacks is general storage space. Not places for loads of junk that I don’t need…space for necessities.Like pots and pans, for instance, and my extra sheet sets, toiletries, and beach towels. Storage space is something that I took for granted in our old house, and it’s apparently not something that I’m willing to give up.

What We’ve Learned so Far

I’ve got to be honest. We don’t have much of a future in a 1,200-square-foot home. It’s a little small when you’ve got two hyper little ones who whip through the house daily leaving total chaos in their wake. And it’s never quiet enough for anyone either, especially after the kids go to bed, mostly because you can hear everything that’s going on, even with all of the doors shut.

And, even though I thought I could live without an office, I’m finding it rather uncomfortable working in the corner of my tiny bedroom. And, I miss having plenty of cabinets, closets, and drawers in the house. Not so that I can fill them with Stuff, but so that I can organize the things we do use on a daily basis.

Finding Our Own Normal

Fortunately, we don’t have to choose between two extremes. And, as we continue to search for a permanent home, we’ve decided to look for a medium-sized home somewhere in the range of 1,500 to 2,000 square feet. We’re opting for something big enough to accommodate our growing family, yet small enough to make prudent financial sense. And while we can’t fully commit to the small-house craze, we’re staying far away from many monstrosities and starter castles that come off and on the market on a daily basis.

According to the National Association of Home Builders, most buyers are looking for a home with a median size of 2,266 square feet. Nearly half of buyers want three bedrooms, and another 32 percent want at least four. Sixty-six percent of buyers also want a full or partial basement. And more than half (53 percent) want at least a two-car garage.

Know what I want? A home that can be paid off quickly and easily. Low utility bills. To sleep at night. Peace. Security.

Although I’m annoyed that we’ll now have to move again once we buy, I’m glad that we got to experiment with smaller living, mostly because it’s something I wouldn’t have been able to do any other way. This opportunity gave us a chance to try something new without making a huge commitment or buying a smaller home without knowing, definitively, that we could make it work. In my opinion, the small house experiment was a success. Within a short amount of time, we proved that we can live comfortably, and be happy, with less. And now that we know that for a fact, that’s exactly what we’re planning to do.

Do you prefer a small house or a big house? What do you think are the benefits of each? And, do you have any small house living tips for me?

Source: getrichslowly.org

Apache is functioning normally

This article is by managing editor Ellen Cannon.

Four years ago, my beloved kitty Zito developed kidney problems. She was only five years old, and her littermate, Mikey, was fine and healthy. But Zito had stopped eating and wasn’t drinking much water. I took her to the vet.

An x-ray by the veterinarian showed that one of her kidneys was tiny and the other was not the normal size it should have been. The vet said most likely the little kidney wasn’t functioning at all and the other was working overtime.

I took Zito to a veterinary specialty hospital to get her checked out, and they said they might be able to repair her kidney with surgery. I could afford it — even though it was a LOT of money, about $3k) — and I didn’t want to lose my kitty. I chose to have the surgery. And no, I didn’t have pet insurance.

The surgery went well and I visited her at the hospital for the next week as she was recuperating. Then she was ready to come home. She had a feeding tube in, and I learned how to feed her through that with the special liquid food she needed.

When I brought her home, Mikey began hissing and growling at her. I wound up having to lock Zito in my bedroom to take care of her and keep Mikey away. It was very stressful, but I managed to take care of Zito for four days. And then she refused to let me feed her. She bit me. She wouldn’t use the litter box. She pulled out her feeding tube.

As I drove her back to the specialty vets, I knew I couldn’t take care of her any longer and that the whole situation was making her more miserable than helping her. The vet surgeon sat with me for a long while as I cried and tried to get up my courage to put her down.

(Aside: The surgeons and the vet techs at Palm Beach Veterinary Specialists were phenomenal. The surgeon called me every morning before I left for work to tell me how Zito had done through the night. After Zito died, I got personal cards and letters from all of the vets and vet techs, even my regular vet. I’ve said often since then, if I ever need surgery, I’m going to PBVS for my care!)

Looking back, I shouldn’t have put Zito through this. I should have accepted that her kidneys were failing, and let her be home, play with Mikey, eat whatever food she wanted until she passed away on her own.

This was a situation where having the money to do something proved to be the wrong thing to do, and probably clouded my judgment. If I hadn’t been able to afford the surgery, I wouldn’t have done it. I do have enough sense not to go into debt for something I can’t afford. And Mikey is still with me.

So, readers, what lengths and expense would you go to in order to save a pet?

Source: getrichslowly.org

Apache is functioning normally

Over a year ago, I bought my first home. And while I’d been warned about the extra expenses that come with homeownership, there were still some surprises.

I don’t mean the “unexpected” costs of property taxes and repairs — expenses that are often covered in articles about new homeownership. “Surprise! There’s no landlord to come fix your garbage disposal.” Is that really a surprise to anyone, though?

No, what I’m talking about are the less obvious expenses — the ones that new homeowners probably aren’t thinking about when they sign the closing documents and get the keys to their new home. Here are some of those less obvious expenses that took me by surprise in the last year.

1. Changing the locks. When I first moved in, my dad “reminded” me to call a locksmith and have the locks changed. Only, silly me, I had no idea that I should do that. Dad pointed out that my house had had several owners and was even a rental at one point. That means that any number of people could possibly have a key to my house.

Okay, so that’s three locks that needed to be changed. No big deal. Only the three estimates that I got came in at around $200 — much higher than I was expecting. Finally I found a special for $79 and got the locks rekeyed.

2. Lawn maintenance. One of the big selling points for our house was the half-acre yard. It feels like a bit of country in the city.

Well, the week we moved in, a neighbor asked us, “Do you guys have a riding lawnmower? ‘Cause you’re gonna need one!” The truth is that we hadn’t really thought about lawn care yet. We’d just bought the house, and we were 100 percent focused on some repairs and getting moved in. But our neighbor had a point — we’d either need a riding mower or a lawn service. And being the DIY-type, we wanted the mower.

Eventually the growing grass forced us to take the plunge.

3. Multiple appliance repairs and replacement. Okay, we knew we’d be responsible for our own appliances. But what I didn’t count on was so many of these repairs and replacements in the first year!

We had to replace a garage door opener, an AC motor (and it was an expensive one), and a water heater. Thankfully, our real estate agent negotiated a one-year home warranty, paid for by the seller. So these costs, which would have been well over $1,000, ended up costing only $180.

Each time I had to use the warranty, I emailed my agent to thank her for her foresight.

4. Cosmetic upgrades. I thought that cosmetic upgrades, like painting the bedrooms, would be quick and cheap. Well, they were neither quick nor cheap!

Just one bucket of paint ran $32, and with four rooms, I needed a lot of buckets of paint. Plus, there are all of the little things you don’t always think about — rollers, trays, gloves, paintbrushes, drop cloths, and rolls upon rolls of painter tape. Cosmetic upgrades turned out to be a lot more expensive than I originally thought.

5. Furnishing the house. Obviously, you don’t have to go crazy furnishing every inch of your house. And we haven’t. We’re going slowly.

But sometimes, things come up. For instance, when my in-laws were planning to visit, we decided to buy a daybed for the guest bedroom. We also needed guest towels for the bath. And a bath mat. If we hadn’t had guests, we might have held off on those expenses. But part of the reason we bought the house was to entertain family and friends more often (and more comfortably).

6. Window treatments and replacements. Not long after moving in, I realized just how old our windows are. As in, I’m pretty sure they’re original to our 1971 house. Plus, a couple of sets of blinds had shredded strings and didn’t work properly.

As I discovered in the window treatment section of Lowe’s, blinds are expensive! So we just replaced the two sets that weren’t working. As for replacing every window in the house, it’s something we’re starting to look into now.

7. Rising property taxes. Property taxes aren’t a surprise, but the fact that the county increased my taxes by 31 percent from one year to the next was a huge shock!

I’m currently protesting my taxes, and there are a couple of reasons why that assessment shouldn’t stick. For one, I paid less than the assessed value for the home just over a year ago. And two, my homestead paperwork is currently being processed and, according to their site, taxes shouldn’t increase on a homestead by more than 10 percent in a given year, plus the value of any improvements.

So, fingers crossed…

8. Tree trimming. This is the next to-do item on my list. Another thing about that great yard that we loved is that it came with a bunch of gorgeous, established oak trees.

Only it’s time we had those trees trimmed. There are some branches that need to go, and the trees are entirely too tall for us to do the work ourselves. Plus, we’re not arborists, and we’d like our trees to stay healthy and beautiful. After all, they’re part of the reason we fell in love with this property in the first place.

Covering Those Unexpected Expenses

Luckily, my husband and I had the extra money in the bank to cover these expenses, but I can see how people can get into serious trouble if they aren’t prepared for some of them.

And while I wish I had a magic formula to share with you, it’s impossible for me to tell you how much to shore up your emergency fund. It just depends on too many factors, like the size of your house, the size of your lawn, how much work you can do yourself, and even just plain luck (or lack of it).

So if you’re contemplating purchasing your first home, just be aware of these hidden costs. Save more than you think you need to, and don’t buy as much house as you can. We bought a fairly small house and, while I love the house and love working on it, I’m glad we didn’t get anything bigger!

Readers, if you own a home, what other hidden costs surprised you?

Source: getrichslowly.org

Apache is functioning normally

Earlier this week, I wrote about the problem with trying to buy the perfect gift. Sticking with that gift theme, there’s a question that’s been on my mind: If you’re invited to an engagement party, a bridal shower, and a wedding ceremony all for the same couple, and you attend all three, do you give a gift at each event?

See, I’ve been invited to a few weddings this year. And it seems like the etiquette “experts” all agree that each event requires a separate gift, according to tradition. Here are some examples from around the web:

“If I bring a gift to the bridal shower, should I still bring a gift to the wedding?” a question Peggy Post, co-author of the 18th edition of Emily Post’s Etiquette is accustomed to answering. Her advice is, basically, that a shower gift is not a wedding gift. “I know some of these shower gifts are expensive, but be smart so you don’t have to break the bank.”

“I’m going to both the wedding shower and the wedding. Must I buy gifts for both?” “Unfortunately, yes. ‘That’s part of the obligation you agreed to when you RSVPed for both,’ says [Mark] Kingsdorf,” bridal consultant at The Queen of Hearts Wedding Consultants — Real Simple’s The Essential Guide to Buying Wedding Gifts.

“According to custom, the answer to whether to give gifts for engagements, showers and weddings is: maybe, yes and yes.” — How Stuff Works.

Hmm, exactly how is one supposed to “be smart” about expensive gifts? And calling gifts an obligation? It kinda puts a bad taste in my mouth, like it’s sucking the joy out of giving a gift in the first place.

Guests Say, “Forget the Experts!”

A lot of wedding guests disagree with the expert advice. For a few examples, I did a very scientific poll (of Yahoo! Answers responses). Here are a few that say that multiple gifts are not an obligation:

“Do not feel obligated [to give a wedding gift after giving a shower gift]. You did give them a gift already, so if you do want to gift them something, you can, but you don’t absolutely have to.”

“There’s no definitive ‘proper’ way to do this, other than the etiquette stipulation that the shower is a gift-giving event, and the wedding is not. (Obviously, most people do want to give wedding gifts, but that’s tradition, not a requirement).”

“Etiquette says NOTHING about purchasing multiple gifts for one wedding. You gave a gift, that’s all that you need to concern yourself with. No more gift giving is necessary.”

I always thought that you give a separate gift for the shower and the wedding. As for engagement parties and bachelorette parties, I have no idea. None of my friends and family members have had either of those.

But when I got married, all of our friends and family members gave one gift, even if they attended the shower and the wedding. (This was definitely fine by me — I’m rather shy and I actually would’ve been embarrassed if people bought me multiple gifts. My aunt basically had to force me to register for gifts in the first place.)

And then, to confuse things even more, Miss Manners has a take that’s somewhere in between one-gift-only and gifts galore:

“Engagement presents were a rarity until a decade or two ago. Perhaps a favorite aunt might be so moved, or a prospective mother-in-law might give the bride a family bauble to wear at the wedding. But no one showed up with a present at an engagement party, because the purpose of the party was for the parents to announce the engagement as a surprise. Multiple showers are warranted only when the bride or the couple has more than one distinct set of intimate friends. They should not be catch-all occasions, and nobody should be expected to attend more than one. Anyway, shower presents should be charming but trivial, and not comparable to wedding presents.”

No one agrees! And basically, I just want to do what everyone else is doing. I’m not looking to take some kind of gift-giving stance at my husband’s coworker’s wedding. I also don’t want to be the lone weirdo giving multiple gifts.

So I’m simply wondering, what does everyone else do? If you’re invited to multiple events and you want to attend and celebrate with the bride and/or couple, when do you bring a gift?

Source: getrichslowly.org

Apache is functioning normally

As far as I know, only one reader of Get Rich Slowly knows me personally. And last week, I was having lunch with my one-person fan club. (Actually, I am not sure she’s even a fan, but she did buy my lunch. Thanks, Lisa!)

“You really stirred up some controversy with one of your recent posts,” Lisa said, a forkful of salad in hand.

“You must mean the one about not paying for our kids’ college, right?” I said.

“Yes, that’s the one. You know, it really made me think.” Without telling me her opinion on the subject, she said, “What do parents really owe their kids? Financially speaking, of course.”

“I actually wanted to write a blog post on that.”

Though Lisa and I went on to talk about all the financial gifts parents can give their children (we decided that parents taking care of their own futures is a great gift to give their children), this post is about cars. Should parents pay for their children’s transportation costs … or not?

A Car With Strings Attached

When I turned 16, I immediately got my driver’s license. I arrived home with a plastic ticket to freedom burning a hole in my wallet. As I understood it, I would be allowed to drive the family car, so I was totally surprised when my mom said my birthday present was parked out behind the garage. Even though my heart rate increased, I tried not to show my excitement as I nonchalantly walked outside … to find a small matchbox car “parked” in the snow. Ha ha. Very funny, Mom.

So, back to Plan A. Yes, I would be allowed to drive the family car. Yes, my parents would pay for the insurance and repairs, as long as said repairs were not from my own irresponsibility. I would pay for the gas, and I would have to forfeit the family car to my sister as soon as she turned 16. That gave me 22 months to save up for my own car.

“The hard part of this deal,” my dad said, “is that the car is the bargaining chip. When you get grounded, you’ll get grounded from the car. We will pick you up from work, and you’ll have to find your own ride to school or ride the school bus.”

Not that I ever experienced that part of the deal or anything. Ahem.

My husband had a different experience. He had to buy his own car right away and pay for everything. Like most things, we each think the way we were raised worked out best for us. And that always makes for interesting discussions.

Transportation Valuation

The way I see it, we have three options:

1. Buy and give a car to our kids. Pay for everything.

  • Pros — This gives you an opportunity to pick out the car. It should be something that is reliable, getting up in years, and something low on the cool-meter. I think a four-door sedan that their grandparents would drive is a good choice. Buying the car also allows your child to save money for something else.
  • Cons — Is it necessary and the best use of the family budget? Would the child take care of it as well as if the child had had to pay for it him/herself? Does this help the child to manage money better or not?

2. Allow our children to use our car like my parents did, but pay for all (or some?) expenses, other than gas.

  • Pros — The child has a longer time to save up money for other expenses. It’s a good “bridge” between learning to care for a car, pay for gas, and buying his or her own car. It also is a privilege that can easily be removed. (My husband argues that driving privileges can be removed, no matter who owns the car. He is right, of course.)
  • Cons — The child may not fully grasp the whole cost of car ownership if they only pay for the gas.

3. If the kid wants a car, the kid can buy a car. And pay for everything.

  • Pros — The child would fully grasp the whole cost of car ownership. I believe this scenario is the one in which the child would take the best care of the car.
  • Cons — This would require having a cushion in case of unexpected repairs, and careful budgeting to make sure the child can afford all the expenses associated with car ownership. (WOW! This sounds suspiciously like real life!) It does not allow them as much time to save for other expenses.

(As I have mentioned before, we live in a rural area. If you can live without your teenager using a car, that’s great! It would be doable in our case, but not convenient.)

As I look over this list of pros and cons, I am leaning toward something that’s between the second and third options. I would be fine with allowing the child to use our car, but it probably would be more helpful if they had to pay for the gas and a percentage of repairs and insurance. I know I was surprised at how much oil changes, new tires, and wear and tear repairs added up to once I bought my own car.

While we have at least six years to make this decision — and I don’t want to speed this up at all — I would like to start prepping our kids with our expectations so they aren’t surprised when I tell them their birthday present is parked by the garage.

Would you buy your child a car? If so, would you expect the child to pay for any expenses?

Source: getrichslowly.org

Apache is functioning normally

As I write this, the back side of my house is mostly exposed to the studs with loose fiberglass hanging out in the area where landscaping will be someday. That’s right: Some crazy people choose to do remodeling projects in the middle of the coldest part of winter. Which doesn’t make a lot of sense, considering this article is about winterizing your home. Having one wall with very little insulation during sub-zero temperatures is not winterizing.

The (expensive) changes we’re making this year are supposed to pay off in lower heating costs in the years to come. And they are expensive. All-new windows, spray-foam insulation in the basement and outer walls, and some new siding all add up to one pricey, pricey project. But it wasn’t always this way. We have lived in our drafty house for almost seven years. The windows are old and allow for plenty of ventilation (which isn’t what you want when, baby, it’s cold outside). However, windows are expensive, so we’ve spent the last seven years limping along while still winterizing our home as cheaply as possible.

Cool Down Your Heating Bill

Most of our changes have been small. But enough small changes added together did make a difference on our heating bill.

1. Run fans clockwise. I had no idea you could change the blade direction on ceiling fans, let alone that it made a difference to your heating bill. But my husband taught me this. In the winter, just turn the blades clockwise to bring the warmer air (hot air rises, of course) down.

2. Use storm windows. Our windows are so old, we use storm windows in the winter…usually. I say “usually” because it’s a huge pain to lug the windows down from the upstairs of the garage, but it’s worth it. That was never more evident than when we experienced the early January cold snap that hit most of the U.S. We hadn’t actually put all the storm windows on our 11-window sunroom. Every window without a storm window was iced over until we put those storm windows on. Within an hour or so, all the ice was melted. (Note to self: It’s much easier to put the storm windows in when it’s 40 degrees than -10 degrees.)

3. Put plastic over the windows. If your windows are drafty like ours, putting plastic over the windows can make a big difference. You can purchase this at a hardware store.

4. Caulk openings, if possible. Our basement windows were just like the rest — drafty. Since we didn’t have storm windows for these and didn’t open them often, we just caulked them. Unfortunately, this meant we could no longer open the windows. Even more unfortunately, our sewer system backed up into our basement after these windows were caulked closed. (“Backed up” is really a laid-back term. “Spewed” is more accurate.) But hey, we saved on our heating bill!

5. Drop your thermostat setting. Obviously, it costs less to heat a home to 72 degrees than it does to 76. Before we had kids, I left the oven door open after it was turned off to allow its leftover heat to warm up a room, and I also left hot bath water in the bathtub to exude a little warmth. Frequently, I will drink hot water and layer my clothing to stay comfortable. We also drop the setting even more at night and pile more blankets and comforters on the beds. I have heard stories from elderly relatives that they woke up in mornings to see their breath in the brisk air — in their bedrooms. We don’t come close to that at all, but it amazes me.

6. Fix under-the-door drafts. Depending on the room, we roll up towels or rugs to block drafts coming under the doors. It looks crazy, but it works. Our doors are just as pretty and drafty as the old windows.

7. Don’t use all your rooms. Our house has electric heat, which happens to be one of the more inefficient methods of heating a house. But one advantage is that each room has its own thermostat and register. This makes it easy to cut the heat to parts of the house we don’t use as much in the winter.

8. Use alternate heat sources. A few years ago, we purchased a wood-burning stove to supplement our electric heat. We find people who need trees cut down. We provide the labor, and we are “paid” with the wood. So far, using this arrangement, we haven’t paid for wood. But almost constant wood stove use has cut $200 or $300 off our heating bill each month during the winter months.

9. The not-so-insulated curtains. While we don’t have insulated curtains, we have put heavy blankets over windows to try to repel the cold air.

10. Move to a warmer climate. So that’s probably not a cheap, or feasible, option, but it’s definitely tempting!

Heating our house is expensive, but it’s not a convenience I want to live without. Several years ago, we lost power for four days during an ice storm. We lugged our mattress in front of the fireplace and slept there. A generator kept us (and our pipes!) from freezing, but none of the other methods listed here made a comfortable difference when it was close to freezing in our house. So I am grateful for heat in the winter — I just don’t want to pay too much for it!

If you don’t want your heating costs to go through the roof, there are certainly options. Do you try to cut your heating costs? If so, which methods do you use?

Source: getrichslowly.org

Apache is functioning normally

It’s almost spring, you guys. I don’t know about the weather in your neck of the woods, but that’s a welcome thought where I’m at, and I live in Texas!

(Northerners, feel free to make fun of my idea of a cold winter. I don’t care. I did not sign up for anything colder than highs of 50 degrees.)

At any rate, I’ve been on a cleaning and organizing kick, a bit of early spring cleaning, if you will. I don’t know what’s gotten into me. Maybe it’s that the days are getting a little longer and that we’ve finally had some consistent sunshine around here. And those might be the reasons we spring clean in the first place, according to TLC’s How Stuff Works:

“Ultimately, spring cleaning may have more to do with simple biology. During winter, we’re exposed to less sunlight due to shorter, often dreary days. With a lack of exposure to light, the pineal gland produces melatonin — a hormone that produces sleepiness in humans. Conversely, when we’re exposed to sunlight, our bodies produce much less melatonin. It’s possible that we spring clean simply because we wake up from a winter long melatonin-induced stupor and find more energy as the days grow longer when spring arrives. After all, it’s easy to allow a house to get a little gross around the edges when you’re sleepy.”

OK, I don’t know about gross. I am, after all, my mother’s daughter. Case in point: Last Christmas, my mother bought me a Roomba. And she did it because we had a lengthy conversation about how great it would be to have a robot vacuum for daily cleaning. In between real house cleaning, of course.

At any rate, when I awoke from my melatonin-induced stupor, I realized that my files, both physical and digital, were a bit of a mess.

Files, files everywhere

My husband and I are selling our vacant land, and we finally have buyers — yea! (Buyers who need things like our septic system design and copies of permits and title documents — boo!)

The good news was that I kept all of these things in a file folder. The bad news was that every scrap of paper related to the land was also shoved into that folder. So, I started organizing the file. That led to organizing our tax return files. Then I just did the whole stupid file cabinet.

Then I realized that some of my files live on the computer, like last year’s tax returns. But my digital file cabinet was a mess too, so I spent a few hours organizing those files.

Not so fresh and so clean

I was quite proud of my gangsta organizing skills. I labeled stuff. I purged. I digitized the heck outta some documents. My files were pristine.

But then I read a report from Experian’s ProtectMyID, and my bubble burst.

Now, as a financial writer, I get a lot of reports and studies in my inbox. I trash most of them (you’re welcome). But this one caught my attention. It was about tidying up files to safeguard your finances and your identity. And the reason that it caught my attention was that I wasn’t doing a lot the stuff they said I should be doing. Gasp! My financial house was gross around the edges!

So, I demanded some answers. Or rather, I kindly requested an interview. Here’s what I learned from Becky Frost, senior manager of Experian’s ProtectMyID.

1. Shred like Steve Vai. Spring cleaning is a good time to get rid of things you no longer need, including old documents. “You probably have documents that you no longer need to keep, like old financial statements from 1992,” says Frost.

But don’t just throw them away; shred sensitive personal documents you don’t need to keep. “If a document has your current address or an account number on it, for instance, you should shred it,” says Frost. “I highly advocate having a personal shredder at home, and today they’re pretty affordable.”

What to look for in a shredder? One that crosscuts, says Frost. “You don’t want a shredder that shreds in strips, which are easy for a thief to tape back together.”

Also, for tax documents, check with IRS.gov to find out how long you need to hold on to records before shredding.

2. As seasons change, so should passwords. Want to hear something sad? I’m so bad at remembering my own passwords that I tried using one of those services like LastPass that remembers your passwords for you. Then I somehow got locked out of that too. This was what that looked like.

So point is, I’m good at setting unique, strong passwords. I just don’t remember them. And to throw another wrench in this operation, I just learned that I need to change my passwords regularly. Double d’oh.

“We recommend changing passwords with the change of every season,” says Frost, “but that’s not something that everyone likes to do.” No, everyone does not.

But Frost had an old-school suggestion for me that she says is perfectly safe in a digital world: Write your passwords down on a piece of paper. It sounded dangerous, but she says it’s “completely fine as long as you store that piece of paper in a secure location, like a locked safe box.”

Other password tips?

  • Passwords should have at least eight characters, including numerals, upper and lowercase letters, and special characters.

  • They should never be obvious, like part of your name or your mother’s maiden name. “Unfortunately, one of the top five passwords people use is still ‘password,’” says Frost.

  • You should have a different password for every account.

“Also, if you’re using something like a bank app, remember to log out of the app each time and to password protect your mobile device’s lock screen,” says Frost. “Don’t give a thief easy access.”

3. Clean out your wallet. Most of us know that you shouldn’t carry your Social Security card in your wallet. If you didn’t know that, get that thing out of your wallet! Ditto for passports, birth certificates, and anything with your Social Security number printed on it.

But Frost goes a bit further, saying that we should only carry what we need on a daily basis. “If you have multiple credit cards, only carry the ones you use most often,” says Frost. “Keep the others in a safe place, which means a box or a drawer with a lock on it.”

And the lock is important. Many times fraudsters and thieves turn out to be family members, friends, or employees, and not masked bandits. “Put a lock on the drawer so you won’t give people the opportunity to commit a crime in the first place,” says Frost.

Another reason to carry the bare minimum? You might lose your wallet. That happened to my dad last week, and he had to remember what was in it to figure out whom to call and what to cancel.

So, after talking to Frost, it seems that I still have some cobwebs to clean. But what about you? Do your files and accounts need a good spring cleaning? Also, I’d like to ask for your paper shredder recommendations, if you have any!

Source: getrichslowly.org