garden

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Renovating, modernizing, and sprucing up your home can be driven by many factors. Some do it from a desire to make the home look more attractive, to increase functionality, or to update outdated appliances or areas of the house.

And while we all like to live in new, beautiful homes, it has been established that adding value is the main reason people renovate their homes. By doing this, individuals will be able to sell their property (if need be) at a higher price that they would have if no work is done on it.

And since buying a home is the biggest investment most people make in their lifetime, it only makes sense to grow that investment over time.

While there are quite a few ways to do this, let’s go through the top 10 areas of improvement that can help you add value to your home quickly.

#1 Include a Garage

Not every house has a garage, but everyone wants to have one in their homes, whether they have a car or not. This only makes a house with a garage much more valuable than one without it. So including parking (even a tiny sheltered space) can help increase the value of your home drastically.

 But aside from having a place to park your car, are you aware that garages are actually very functional as it can be used for other purposes?

Even without a car, homeowners can still enjoy their garages as they can turn this space into their storage space, home office, or even an entertainment room. If you have a hobby, say biking, you can store all of your gear inside your garage, allowing you to have peace of mind knowing that these won’t be damaged when placed inside the house. 

If you have the budget for it, you can also invest in automatic garage doors to make the area more accessible and appealing. Automatic garage doors are smart investments, especially if you’re planning to sell your home soon. 

Photo by adrian on Unsplash

#2 Revamp the Bathroom

The bathroom is one part of the home every single one of us pays attention to. A bathroom should be a personal sanctuary that allows homeowners to relax and relieve stress. However, no one would want to live in a home with a leaky, droopy shower. Instead of helping the homeowner feel refreshed, this kind of bathroom will only cause a lot of stress. So, revamping your bathroom can help increase the value of the house.

To do this, you do not need to spend a considerable amount of money; just by scrubbing clean the tiles and toilet seats, and by adding some items to enhance visual impact you will make your bathroom look shiny and new. And as you’re doing it, you might spot some other elements that can be easily changed — like water fixtures — to add considerable appeal.

If you’re planning to buy a fixer-upper, consider applying for VA rehab loans. The money you can acquire from this loan will enable you to purchase a new home and fund any renovations for your bathroom, as well. 

#3 Add Some Extensions

Extensions are a way to increase the value of the home, and they could be added upward or have the house expanded sideways.

By adding an extension upward, you could include maybe an additional staircase. Sideways extensions could have you clear out a path and cultivate it well to have it serve as a playground.

#4 Renovate the Kitchen

At the end of the day, there’s nothing that adds more value to your home than a freshly renovated kitchen. Houses, especially those that want to appeal to families, have the kitchen as the centerpiece of the home. The kitchen is one of the most important areas of the house because this is where you’ll prepare meals for your family, and, oftentimes, entertain guests. How your kitchen looks and functions can significantly affect the ambiance of your entire home. 

Shaping up your kitchen doesn’t necessarily mean a complete overhaul. While this would ensure the best effect, it would take a lot of time and cost you a lot of money. Repainting, freeing up spaces and bringing in modern utensils can be a good and fast way to give your kitchen a fresh, renovated look.

One of the easiest ways to renovate your kitchen is to organize and make the space clutter-free. You’ll be doing a lot of things in your kitchen, which is why you should ensure that every item has its designated storage space. No one would love spending time in their kitchens if the area is a complete mess!

#5 Include a Well-Cultured Garden Room

Gardens are more and more often being incorporated in modern homes and play a role in determining how valuable said homes are.

Now, at this point, it is important to note that the value of a garden is not just in its size, but in how well it is designed and cultivated. So a well-cultured garden — even if tiny, but well-trimmed — can help add value to your home when you decide to put it on sale.

#6 Free Up Spaces in Strategic Areas of the Home

In the see-it-want-it-buy-it world that we live in today, we tend to end up hoarding a lot of unnecessary things. And those take up highly valuable space that can translate into extra figures on your home sale.

Take a good look at your space and try to clear the house of any unnecessary items, from big to small.

A good place to start is always by looking at older appliances around the house. Regardless of how expensive or sentimental these items are, if these are no longer used, it’s best if you disposed of them properly.

#7 Introduce Seasonal Features

The introduction of seasonal eco-friendly features can also help increase a home’s value.

This isn’t as complicated as it sounds, but rather includes planting trees in some parts to serve as a windbreaker and prevent water logging. Some parts can be cleared off to allow for cross ventilation.

#8 Improve the Aesthetic of the Exteriors   

The exterior part of the home is your house’s business card, the part that attracts everyone to the house. Improving the aesthetic of the house could mean either repainting the home or restructuring it, adding some nice-looking shutters, painting the door or windows, you name it.

New features could also be included that will help to enhance the aesthetics and make it attractive. But it’s worth it: remember that your home has just one chance to make a good first impression.

Photo by Erol Ahmed on Unsplash

#9 Include Smart Features in the Home

Smart features like CCTV systems or alarms among others can help to increase a home’s value. Since they aren’t the type of features you see around every house, homes with these features tend to be highly valuable and sought-after.

#10 Make the Home Accessible

The creation of drive-through ways and walking paths can significantly increase ease of access. It also makes the home more comfortable.

Already existing pathways can be re-modified to allow for better access. This will be a major plus in the eyes of select buyers and will broaden your pool of potential buyers to include seniors and people with disabilities, so it’s definitely worth considering — especially if your space and the number of floors allow for it.

Remember that all the value you add to your home will be in your benefit. That’s in the sense that it makes the home more comfortable for you and if you end up putting it out for sale, at least you know you will get top dollar for it.

Or who knows? If you make your home that irresistible, you might scoop up an offer from someone that crosses your doorstep before you even end up putting it on the market.

More helpful tips

5 Simple Yet Meaningful Bedroom Makeover Ideas for Your Next Decor Upgrade
Here’s Why You Shouldn’t Buy a House in a Neighborhood with an HOA

Source: fancypantshomes.com

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You can make money from your hobby.

Whether you knit, or write, or make photographs, or grow a vegetable garden, or tinker with cars, or build web sites, or collect ancient coins — you can make money from your hobby.

I’m not saying it’s possible to get rich by playing your violin at weddings, or by weaving baskets from pine needles, but earning money from a hobby is a nice way to get paid for doing something you would do anyhow.

This article is the first in a series that will explore how to turn a hobby into a source of side income. In the weeks and months ahead, I’ll describe general best practices, discuss potential pitfalls, and provide case studies culled from my friends, and from the stories of readers like you. (If you’d like to share your experience, please drop me a line.)

First, by way of introduction, here are some ground-rules for making money from hobbies.

Focus on Something You Love

Pursue something you’re passionate about. Choose a hobby that you enjoy, and find a way to make money from it. Don’t choose a hobby simply because it might make money and then dive into it with that aim in mind. You should be doing this hobby because you love it; any side-income should be secondary.

I love to write. I was struggling with debt. I began to read personal finance books, and then to summarize what I’d learned for my personal web site. From this, Get Rich Slowly was born. Now I make over a thousand dollars a month writing about personal finance. But I didn’t start this for the money — I started this because I was passionate about the subject.

Keep it fun. Don’t let it become a chore.

Be Creative

If you’re interested in making money from a hobby but don’t know where to start, think outside the box. What skills do you have that others don’t? Define the term “hobby” broadly. Find something that you can do that most others cannot, something for which other people might be willing to pay.

At my day job, I have a customer whose wife loves to cook. She turned this hobby into a part-time job as a personal chef. She prepares meals in advance for wealthy clients. She spends a few hours a day preparing a week-long menu for people who pay her handsomely for her time.

I have a friend who likes to travel. One day he discovered that he could subsidize his journeys by writing about the places he visited, and by taking photographs. Now every couple of years he takes an all expense paid vacation. He’s doing something he’d do anyhow, and it doesn’t cost him a dime.

Don’t Force It

Your hobby will not make you rich. In most cases, it won’t even net you enough to allow you to quit your day job. It’s quite possible, however, to earn enough money to make the hobby self-sustaining, to keep yourself in new tools and equipment.

My brother builds speakers and works with audio equipment as a hobby. He makes some money at it. (“Spending money,” he says.) Jeff notes, “It’s not hard to make money from a hobby. What’s difficult is trying to turn it into an actual business. Moving from a hobby to a business is a pain-in-the-ass.”

Often when you try to take your hobby to the next level, the joy goes out of it. Suddenly the extra income just isn’t worth it. When I tried to turn my computer-building hobby into a business, I hated it. There’s a balance to be achieved, and if you can find it, you can have a fun while earning extra income.

Don’t Underestimate Your Ability

It’s easy to discount your abilities. When you truly love something, your prolonged experience can give you skills and knowledge that you don’t appreciate.

For example, I have a love for early 20th-century American pop culture. My brain is filled with facts and anecdotes about once-famous recording artists. I sometimes find myself under the impression that everybody knows who Billy Murray was, or is familiar with the song “Ukulele Lady”. But this isn’t common knowledge — it’s specialized.

The same concept holds true for you and your hobby. Know a lot about Napoleonic warfare? Start a blog about Admiral Nelson. Spend time tinkering with bicycles? Open a small-scale bike repair service. Not everybody knows what you know. Don’t sell yourself short.

Market Yourself

This can be difficult. In order to actually earn income, you need customers. But just as most people have a tendency to underestimate their abilities, they also tend be uncomfortable with self-promotion.

There’s no shame in mentioning your money-making hobby to friends, family, and neighbors. You needn’t be pushy. Just mention it at natural points in the conversation. If you’ve decided to do some woodworking for cash, mention this when your uncle mentions he wants to buy a new bookshelf.

Marketing can be subtle, but it’s an absolute necessity if you hope to earn money from your hobby. People need to know you’re available before they can hire you.

Hone Your Skill

Practice, practice, practice. The more time and energy you’re willing to devote to your hobby, the better you will become. The better you become, the more likely that you’ll be able to earn money from it.

Photography is a terrific example. If you’re willing to make a hundred images a day, you can improve your skills quickly, especially if you teach yourself about composition. You may never become a professional photographer this way, but you can develop your skill to the point where you can sell images to stock photo agencies, or enter (and win) photography contests.

Some people are born with natural talent. Most of us have to work at it.

Conclusion

Why should you care about making money from hobbies? Remember: the wealth equation has two sides. You accumulate wealth by reducing expenses and by increasing income. Often we only focus only on our careers when it comes to “increasing income”. But there are other ways to make money. One of the best is to harness a hobby.

This is an especially good technique if you’re stuck in a low-wage job. And sometimes a person can turn a money-making hobby into a career. Who doesn’t want a job doing something he loves?

Future articles in this series will cover topics such as:

  • Making money from photography
  • Using the web to make money from a hobby
  • Making the leap to full-time
  • Creating web sites about your hobby
  • Teaching your hobby (thanks, Donna!)
  • And, of course, plenty of anecdotes from people who have turned their hobbies into money-making ventures

Most of all — whether or not you make money from your hobby, enjoy the time you spend with it! Hobbies help make life fun.

Source: getrichslowly.org

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A little-known lakefront home, designed by modernist architect, Philip Johnson, is on the market for only the third time since it was completed in 1949.

The 3,812-square-foot house in Willsboro, NY, sits on 20 acres, with 850 feet of water frontage on Lake Champlain.

Glass walls frame the spectacular surroundings.

“The interesting part about this house—and the whole point of modernism—is really bringing the outside in,” explains listing agent Jo Anna Giltner, with Covered Bridge Realty. “When you’re in these rooms, you just feel the outside. It’s really a beautiful sensation of looking in every direction.”

The home was built the same year as Johnson’s iconic Glass House in New Canaan, CT, and is listed for $3.5 million.

Exterior

(Covered Bridge Realty)

Exterior

(Covered Bridge Realty)

Little-known home

Johnson is also known for other glass-centric homes, several commercial towers, and the sculpture garden at the Museum of Modern Art in New York City.

As for the lake house, the esteemed architected designed it with his partner, Landis Gores, for the Paine family. The couple divorced before the house was finished in 1949, so they sold it to a family who kept it until 2006, when the current owners bought it. The original sale was private, so there was not much publicity about the home at the time.

“So it’s been the two families, and neither of them have done anything to alter the structure,” Giltner says. “The house is in very good shape and has been well maintained. The thing that really matters is the structure—the actual way that the walls were designed; no one has changed them. No one has altered the windows.”

Interior

(Covered Bridge Realty)

Kitchen

(Covered Bridge Realty)

Aerial view

(Covered Bridge Realty)

Modern marvel

Giltner explains that the home’s design was ahead of its time.

“The house has huge steel beams running through it to support these big open spaces, which was very novel back in the day,” she says.

A simple fireplace appears to be floating between two glass walls and near the updated kitchen.

Yard and patio

(Covered Bridge Realty)

There are two primary structures—a main house and a guest wing that the owners called the summer wing. A covered walkway connects the two.

“The family that commissioned this house was a young couple, and they expected to have family and friends visiting mostly during the summer months,” Giltner explains.

Two bedrooms and two bathrooms are in the main house, with six more bedrooms and four more bathrooms in the summer wing.

“They’re like little guest rooms, designed to give privacy and separation from the main house,” she says.

Both structures were built at the same time.

The next owner could take a gander at Johnson’s original plans for the property, available for viewing at the Avery Architectural Archives at Columbia University.

A third structure—a game and storage area—was added in 2006 and looks similar to the other parts of the house.

View

(Covered Bridge Realty)

Bedroom

(Covered Bridge Realty)

Both the setting and structure create a harmonious effect.

“The first thing when you walk in, you’re just blown away with the view,” Giltner says. “This view just stops you. It’s really stunning. Just the fact that [Johnson] actually designed this structure makes it very important, as well as [it] sitting on a very beautiful piece of waterfront.”

Source: realtor.com

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Note: This post is part of our Home Sellers’ Journey series, where we walk you through every step of selling a home during peak season. For the first post on how to get started once you’ve decided to sell, please go to Six Steps to Take Now to Get Your Home Ready to Sell.

It may be well-known that a picture is worth a thousand words, but consider that a handful of keywords may be what gets folks into a car and into your home as potential buyers.  Yes, buyers look at pictures before anything else, but to truly know what a home offers, buyers read the description of the home. Finding ways to describe your home – coming up with catchy headlines and intriguing details – is pretty challenging. Here are some tips to get you started.

  1. Focus on your customer. In advertising, you want to avoid dry descriptions of a product, in this case a home. Instead, you want to tell your buyer how the product will make his or her life better, easier, cooler, or generally more desirable. So when it comes to a house, start with what a buyer would want and work from there. What sells a home? Amenities, yes. But also short commute-times, a close-knit neighborhood, a good school, the space to have a vegetable garden, etc. Brainstorm what your property offers and get it on the list of what could be highlighted in the description. Include upgrades and special features of your home.
  2. See what your competitors are saying. Go ahead and do some online stalking; it’s okay. What kinds of things do home-sellers mention? If they brag about having a single parking spot in your downtown area, you might realize that your three-car driveway is pretty sweet even if the home doesn’t come with a garage.
  3. Describe your home in ways that are appealing to many different kinds of buyers. You never meant to say you wouldn’t sell to a downsizing elderly couple, but when you describe your home as “family friendly,” you may signal to buyers who don’t have large families that they’re not wanted. It’s best to say, “four bedrooms” and “plenty of backyard space.” In fact, avoid using any descriptors that define your ideal buyer. Rather, let buyers come as they are.
  4. Watch out for code words.  “Charming,” “cozy,” “delightful”—these are the words your grandmother uses when she hands you a yellowed needle-point made by her sister’s friend’s late cousin. Use these words and your house will advertise as being small, cramped and, well, old. Also be aware that a “motivated seller” might read as “a person whose life is a wreck and probably doesn’t vacuum.” You don’t need written details about how you’re willing to sell. To communicate you’re ready to go, you need a price that’s comparable to similar homes and you need to accept reasonable offers.
  5. Be specific about brand names and materials. Vocabulary is everything in writing! The more specific and image-provoking the words, the more the potential buyer will feel intrigued. Granted, you have to know what people want: don’t talk about your plywood closet. But in general, you can’t go wrong with phrases like “natural-wood countertops,” “ventless fireplace,” or “ceramic tile flooring.” These advertise better than their more vocabulary-plain partners: “wood counters,” “fireplace,” or “tile floors.”

On that note, we will end this post with a list of keywords from Zillow, which found that home descriptions featuring them sold for higher than the expected values. Use them if you can—but don’t forget the number one rule: be truthful about what your home has to offer!

  •         Barn door: 13.4% (the percent of homes that sell for above expected values)
  •         Shaker cabinet: 9.6%
  •         Farmhouse sink: 7.9%
  •         Subway tile: 6.9%
  •         Quartz: 6%
  •         Craftsman: 5.4%
  •         Exposed brick: 4.9%
  •         Pendant light: 4.6%
  •         Frameless shower: 4.6%
  •         Heated floors: 4.3%
  •         Stainless steel: 4.2%
  •         Granite: 4.1%
  •         Backsplash: 4.1%
  •         Tankless water heater: 4%
  •         Outdoor kitchen: 3.7%

Check back here on the Homie Blog for the next installment of the Home-Sellers Journey. Coming soon: Insider Secrets to Pricing Your Home for Sale.  To get started selling your home, contact Homie today. Homie has already saved users over $500,000 in agent commissions in just 6 months since launch, with each seller saving over $10,000 on average.

Source: homie.com

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When I picked up The 4-Hour Workweek, I was worried it was some sort of “get rich quick” book. The first few pages didn’t do much to change my mind. The author, Timothy Ferriss, makes a lot of bold claims, such as: “How do you create a hands-off business that generates $80,000 per month with no management? It’s all here.”

But something happened during the first few chapters. When I read a book, I use small sticky notes to mark interesting passages. After the first 100 pages of The 4-Hour Workweek, the book was thick with stickies. By the time I was finished, I had used an entire pad!

Ferriss does make a lot of bold promises, and some of the details along the way do read like the confessions of a get-rich-quick scammer. But I believe that an intelligent reader can easily extract a wealth of useful ideas from the book. For me, it’s a keeper. I’ve read it three times already, and will probably read it again before the end of the year.

Let’s Make a Deal

After college, Ferriss took a soul-sucking sales job at a tech firm. He left to start a soul-sucking business of his own. He went from working 40 hours a week for somebody else to working 80 hours a week for himself. He hated it. The pay was good, but the business left him drained.

After learning about the Pareto Principle (more commonly known as the 80-20 Principle), Ferriss had a revelation: he streamlined his business, eliminating distractions and automating systems until it was not only more profitable, but also took less of his time. Much less. He took a “mini-retirement,” and then decided to write a book about “lifestyle design,” about creating a life that balances work and play, maximizing the positives of both.

The 4-Hour Workweek is divided into four sections, each of which explores one of the components to lifestyle design:

  • Define your objectives. Decide what’s important. Set goals. Ask yourself, “What do I really want?”
  • Eliminate distractions to free up time. Learn to be effective, not efficient. Focus on the 20% of stuff that’s important and ignore the 80% that isn’t. Put yourself on a low-information diet. Learn to shunt aside interruptions, and learn to say “no.”
  • Automate your cash flow to increase income. Outsource your life — hire a virtual assistant to handle menial tasks. Develop a business that can run on auto-pilot. (This is the weakest section of the book.)
  • Liberate yourself from traditional expectations. Design your job to increase mobility. This could mean working from home, or it could mean using geographic arbitrage to take mini-retirements in countries with favorable exchange rates.

The 4-Hour Workweek describes the specific actions Ferriss took to implement these steps. Sometimes these specifics aren’t particularly useful. However, I think it’s a mistake to let the details get in the way of his broader message. If you’re able to look past the details, to look at their meaning, you may discover principles that can change your life. For example, I don’t like much of what Ferriss has to say about automation. I question the virtue of virtual assistants, and I think that his business model works for his business, but probably isn’t applicable to most others.

However, it was while re-reading this section the other night that I began to think about automating my personal finances, about making them paperless. By absorbing Ferriss’ ideas and not his specific details, I was able to apply this to my life.

A Kick in the Head

Most of the time, The 4-Hour Workweek is like a kick in the head. The flow of ideas is relentless. Here’s one of my favorites:

Emphasize strengths, don’t fix weaknesses. Most people are good at a handful of things and utterly miserable at most. […] It is far more lucrative and fun to leverage your strengths instead of attempting to fix all the chinks in your armor. The choice is between multiplication of results using strengths or incremental improvement fixing weaknesses that will, at best, become mediocre. Focus on better use of your best weapons instead of constant repair.

Maybe this is obvious to most of you, but it’s a revelation to me. I spend a lot of time worrying about my weaknesses. Yet when I look at my life, it’s clear that everything rewarding and profitable comes from enhancing my strengths. Here’s another example:

Relative income is more important than absolute income. Absolute income is measured using one holy and inalterable variable: the raw and almighty dollar. Jane Doe makes $100,000 per year and is thus twice as rich as John Doe, who makes $50,000 per year.

Relative income uses two variables: the dollar and time, usually hours. The whole “per year” concept is arbitrary and makes it easy to trick yourself. Let’s look at the real trade. Jane Doe makes $100,000 per year, $2,000 for each of 50 weeks per year, and works 80 hours per week. Jane Doe thus makes $25 per hour. John Doe makes $50,000 per year, $1,000 for each of 50 weeks per year, but works 10 hours per week and hence makes $100 per hour. In relative income, John is four times richer.

Of course, relative income has to add up to the minimum amount necessary to actualize your goals…

I want to believe that if I had to choose between $70,000 per year earned with 70 hard hours per week, or $42,000 per year earned with 37 easy hours per week, I’d choose the latter. I’m not there yet.

A Garden of Tips

I don’t buy into everything that Ferriss writes, but I love how he shatters conventional wisdom. I love that he makes me think. Even if you reject his central thesis, there are dozens of tips and tricks here that can be extracted and used to optimize your life. Here are a few:

  • Ask yourself, “If this is the only thing I accomplish today, will I be satisfied with my day?”
  • How to double your reading speed in ten minutes.
  • Why it’s more productive to carry around a written to-do list than to keep one on your computer.
  • Learn the art of non-finishing. This is all about the sunk cost fallacy: just because you paid $10 to see Pirates of the Caribbean 3 doesn’t mean it’s a good idea to watch the entire thing.
  • How to be more efficient with e-mail.
  • How to reduce clutter from your life.
  • If you can’t define it or act upon it, forget it.
  • Life exists to be enjoyed — the most important thing is to feel good about yourself.
  • Why geographic arbitrage is a great way to enhance your relative income.
  • The value of a virtual assistant.

Related >> Why Smart People Make Big Money Mistakes — And How to Correct Them

My Recommendation

Despite its flaws, The 4-Hour Workweek is a great book. I think that most people can draw something useful from it. Borrow it from your public library. If you like it and think you’ll re-read it, then wait for it to come out in paperback. I’ve already read my copy three times, but that’s because it’s perfect for when I am in life; I’m not convinced that others will extract the same value.

A final note: perhaps best of all, this book has a 10-page index. Why don’t more books do this?

Source: getrichslowly.org

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Learn About Tableau

Whether you’re after the warm sunshine, the dry climate or the delicious food, Tucson, Arizona, has something to offer tourists and residents alike. This Southwestern city is home to the University of Arizona, but it’s so much more than a college town – it’s a cultural haven for art lovers, a destination for outdoor thrill seekers and a scenic wonderland for anyone who loves blue skies and the prickly spires of a Saguaro cactus.

With a population of nearly a million, Tucson is the second most populous city in Arizona. There are plenty of reasons to look for an apartment here, but which neighborhood will be right for you? Apartment Guide ranks the most-searched neighborhoods on the site within Tucson from Jan. 1 through June 20, 2014. Which of these is your favorite place to enjoy a margarita and soak up the sun?

Right in the heart of Tucson, the Downtown area is the city’s most-searched neighborhood on Apartment Guide – and it’s not hard to see why. With colorful buildings, blue skies, scenic mountains in the distance and giant cacti dotting the landscape, Downtown Tucson is where Southwestern culture meets modern amenities.

Downtown Tucson is a perfect neighborhood for the culture vulture – music, museums, restaurants and shops are everywhere you look. The area is an amazing mix of old and new; modern attractions sit alongside remnants of Tucson’s history. Get a taste of what life in Tucson was like prior to the 20th century at the Presidio San Agustin del Tucson, a former Spanish fort that’s now a hands-on interpretive center. Take a walk down Congress and you can’t miss the historic Hotel Congress, where infamous bank robber John Dillinger was arrested.

History buffs can get a break from the sun at the Southern Pacific Railroad Station, built in 1907, while families can enjoy the Carnegie Library, which is now the home of the Tucson Children’s Museum. And if you don’t feel like walking, hitch a ride on the new streetcar! The four-mile route is a green way to get around the Downtown neighborhood.

Just to the north of Downtown is Central Tucson, one of the oldest and largest neighborhoods in the city. Encompassing the Broadway Village shopping center and the University of Arizona, Central Tucson is known for being especially bike-friendly. If you enjoy getting around on two wheels, the tremendously popular Third Street/University Bicycle Boulevard provides a safe way for cyclists of all ages to get to Tucson’s best restaurants, shops, and other attractions. It’s bike-only except for light local traffic.

You’ll also find plenty of museums and art galleries in the neighborhood, which is why it’s home to the Central Tucson Gallery Association. During the summer, on the first Saturday of each month, the galleries stay open late so people can stop in for some culture and refreshments.

Northwest Tucson is an ideal spot for families and anyone who enjoys a good mix of outdoor and indoor activities. It encompasses Mansfield Park, which includes plenty of water to cool off in during a hot summer day. This three-pool complex has a diving bay with 1- and 3-meter boards; a wading pool; a 25-meter lap pool and even a water slide.

Located just north of Tucson, Catalina Foothills is one of the most affluent areas in Arizona. Popular for tourists and residents alike, it’s near several popular outdoor recreation areas: Sabino Canyon, Bear Canyon, Pima Canyon, and Ventana Canyon. The neighborhood is also known for its resorts, as well as the DeGrazia Gallery in the Sun, which is on the National Register of Historic Places.

Choose from dozens of well-reviewed restaurants, ranging in cuisine from Mexican to Japanese and nearly everything in between. When it’s time for a stroll through town, stop at any of the upscale shops or galleries that dot the streets. Catalina Foothills is the perfect place for a renter who enjoys the finer things in life.

Eastside is a small neighborhood of Tucson that includes Case Park. Bordered by E Broadway Boulevard to the north, E 22nd Street to the south, S Houghton Road to the east and S Harrison Road to the west, Eastside is an ideal place for lovers of the outdoors. Case Park includes hiking trails, large grass fields, picnic tables, a playground, and even a butterfly/hummingbird garden.

Eastside is also known for its giving spirit. The Eastside Neighbors Volunteer Program is a popular local nonprofit to help senior citizens in the area.

Go Wildcats! Home to about 40,000 students, the University of Arizona is best known for its College of Medicine, College of Law and its top-ranked geology program, according to U.S. News & World Report. UA’s degree programs in pharmacy, analytical chemistry, photography, and philosophy are also very popular.

The neighborhood surrounding the University of Arizona is full of apartments for college students who don’t want the dorm life. E University Boulevard is one of the busiest streets in town, full of hotspots for students to meet up and have fun. When it’s time for some quieter entertainment, there are plenty of museums and galleries in the neighborhood to visit.

With a median age of 18, the University of Arizona Campus neighborhood is perfect for students who want easy access to the university and local amenities.

Just across the Rillito River from the Catalina Foothills is Winter Haven, an apt name for a place where so many people come to enjoy mild temperatures while the rest of the country is snowy and cold. But that doesn’t mean the holiday spirit isn’t present – just the opposite! Winter Haven is famous for its annual Festival of Lights during the holiday season, which always benefits a local food bank. People can drive through the neighborhood to take in the lights, or take a hayride or trolley ride instead.

Another hotspot for cyclists, Starr Pass is known for its road and mountain bike paths. Located just east of the Tucson Mountain Park, which adjoins Saguaro National Park, Starr Pass is home to several golf courses, the popular JW Marriott Resort & Spa, as well as stunning views of the Southwestern landscape.

Plenty of tourists come to Starr Pass to saddle up their two-wheeled steeds and bike among the cacti, and when they return after a long day on the trails – perhaps after visiting the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum or the International Wildlife Museum — they can relax at any number of bars and restaurants in the neighborhood.

Right near the center of town is the Broadway/Pantano East neighborhood, a residential area that touches the banks of the Pantano Wash. The neighborhood gets its name from its boundaries – E Broadway Boulevard is to the north and S Pantano Road is to the west.

Jesse Owens Park is a great place for a game of catch or to let the kids run around before they return to school at Harold Steele Elementary. You can also stock up on delicious local produce at the Jesse Owens Park Farmer’s Market, where neighbors meet every Friday to catch up and peruse the vendors’ booths.

Although it’s technically its own city, South Tucson is surrounded by the city of Tucson. It’s just one square mile but packed into that square mile are many Mexican restaurants, colorful buildings, and outdoor murals. Its population is mostly made up of Mexican-Americans and Native Americans.

Santa Rosa Park and Santa Rita Park are both great places to soak up some afternoon sun. The Children’s Museum of Tucson is near the northern border of the neighborhood. Hwy 10 – one of Tucson’s main arteries – is just to the west, making it easy to get just about anywhere else in the city.

That’s our take on Tucson! What’s your favorite thing about this vibrant Southwestern city?

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Enjoy the natural beauty of Colorado Springs going in your own backyard.

Not only is Colorado Springs a beautiful place to live, but it’s also a great place to find the perfect apartment. You can get anything you want as far as amenities go if you know where to look.

As you draft your must-have list of apartment amenities, don’t forget to take in the natural beauty of your top apartment contenders. Go beyond the scenic views, and really dig into the green spaces you have on site. To get a better picture of what the best apartment courtyards and gardens in Colorado Springs look like, check out this curated list of communities and find your favorite today.

Source: Rent. / Estate at Woodmen Ridge

For those who love golfing, the courtyard at Estate at Woodmen Ridge is for you. This expansive space includes a putting green with multiple pins so you can practice from every angle. You’ll also find an awesome playground for the kids with plenty to climb on. Adjacent to the pool, this is a great hangout area for all.

You’ll find this community on the eastern side of Colorado Springs, in the Powers neighborhood. This popular area offers convenience in its location as well as its array of shops, restaurants and entertainment. Living here puts you close to the airport, as well as Peterson Air Force Base.

Source: Rent. / Sienna Place

You get a two-for-one with the courtyard at Sienna Place. There’s a large lawn with a few tall trees that are great for a gathering of friends and there’s a playground to boot. Combined, this is the perfect family-friendly space that’s full of greenery. The adults can set up chairs in the grass, while the kids climb and slide in the oversized play area.

Only two miles from the city center, Stratton Meadows is a neighborhood that’s close to the action. The area still provides a suburban feel though, with tree-lined streets and excellent mountain views sending out calming vibes at all times.

Source: Rent. / Montecito

Within Montecito’s courtyard space, you’ll find a cool dog park, playground and grilling area. Large wood logs to climb around on populate the fenced-in dog park, while the grilling space comes complete with three charcoal grills and picnic benches. The playground features a slide, a seesaw, plenty of swings and climbing structures. It’s the ideal space to spend an entire afternoon with the whole family, including the family members on four legs.

This Powers area community provides stunning views of Pikes Peak in addition to its bevy of amenities. There’s a large sundeck, pool and many in-unit upgrades. The community is also only minutes from shopping, dining and entertainment venues. It’s the complete package.

Source: Rent. / The Emory

Marked by a white picket fence and large pergola, The Emory packs a lot into its courtyard space. The area starts with a lush lawn and a landscaped border, but you get two great hangout spots in one. There are also two charcoal grills available for cookouts, along with picnic tables and benches. A bit on the narrow side, this is still a great spot to have at the ready when you want to chill outside at home.

Living within Rustic Hills provides ample opportunity to take advantage of outdoor recreation. Within this neighborhood’s borders, you’ll find three parks — Heather Crest Park, Wilson Park and Henry Park. Combined, they give locals plenty of open space for hiking and soaking up the Colorado Springs sun.

Source: Rent. / Oakridge on the Green

In lieu of an official courtyard, you get something just a little more high-end at Oakridge on the Green. The ample green space you’ll find here is actually part of the Valley Hi Golf Course. Living here not only gives you wonderful views, but if you’re a golfer, your favorite pastime will literally be next door.

Full of tall, mature trees and plenty of charm, Park Hill is a great neighborhood for families. Older and more established than some other Colorado Springs neighborhoods on the list, there’s still plenty of shopping and easy access to the nearby military bases. Within it, you’ll find Wagner Park. It offers up an amazing playground in addition to baseball fields and all that open space.

Source: Rent. / University Village

Set off to the side, the cute garden at University Village is a great place to pause for a moment and just take in your surroundings. Tall trees sit among carefully landscaped bushes and flowers. There’s even a little hardscape action along the border of the plant beds. When in bloom, this lush and beautiful area reflects the natural beauty you can find all throughout Colorado.

For those outdoor enthusiasts, a major attraction of communities like this one, in Northeast Colorado Springs, is its proximity to the Santa Fe Trail. Altogether, this trail has 40 miles of jogging and cycling trails, though only 17 miles are technically in Colorado Springs: This stretch starts at Palmer Lake and winds its way to the Pikes Peak Greenway Trail. It’s the perfect way to stay immersed in nature.

Source: Rent. / Western Terrace

Rustic is the name of the game when it comes to the courtyard at Western Terrace. Covered in smooth rocks, with only a few trees interspersed, this is a low-maintenance space for sure. At its center, you’ll find a nice pavilion with grills and a picnic table. This allows you to get some shade, or avoid any sudden weather, without having to run inside.

With excellent mountain views, this Park Hill community always keeps its natural surroundings in mind. Beyond the courtyard, you’ll find a pool with a hot tub, fitness center and playground. Each unit has its own private balcony as well, perfect to absorb the scenery even when you’re staying in.

Source: Rent. / Epernay Apartments

Using a portion of the courtyard for the playground, Epernary Apartments expertly mixes green space and function. Set off by a sandy border, the massive playground will keep kids busy as they run up the ramp, through the tunnel and down the slide. Beyond, a large lawn that ends with a row of bushy trees can provide a space for a little relaxation and sunshine.

Set beside a creek, and full of trees, this Powers community provides a peaceful retreat from day to day. The park-like setting extends throughout, yet you’re close enough to major highways to get wherever you need to go easily within Colorado Springs.

Grab an apartment with one of the best gardens in Colorado Springs

Finding all the right amenities in an apartment isn’t always so easy, but if you know what you’re looking for, Colorado Springs delivers. Be sure to prioritize your wants, but don’t forget to include outdoor space on your list. Whether it’s a garden, courtyard or something in between, you’ll appreciate having this at-home green space to go to when you really need it.

Featured Image Source: Rent. / The Emory

Source: rent.com

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Here at Apartment Guide, we wanted to get a local sense of life in the Valley of the Sun, Phoenix, Arizona.

We reached out to three Phoenix area bloggers to get their varied takes on the city. These notable, local Phoenix experts share from their own points of view the details you need to know to understand the city a bit better. How Phoenix is changing, where to visit, how to get around, great spots to eat… it’s all here!

David Bickford is the author and creator of the top-rated blog PHX Rail Food, “devoted to good eating along the light rail line that connects Phoenix, Tempe, and Mesa.” David’s is the number one Phoenix food blog as ranked on Urbanspoon.com.

Scott Dunn of VisitPhoenix.com and The Hot Sheet Blog is a former journalist and now Senior Director of Marketing and Communications for the Greater Phoenix Convention and Visitors Bureau.

Gwen Ashley Walters of Pen&Fork.com is a food journalist, professional chef, and award-winning cookbook author. She lives in Scottsdale, a nearby suburb of Phoenix.

[find-an-apartment]

Describe Phoenix in three words.

David: Reinventing, surprising, maturing.

Scott: Dreamy outdoor living. (Eight months out of the year, anyway.)

Gwen: Diverse, fun, home.

How long have you lived in Phoenix?

David: I’ve lived in Phoenix for 25 years. I came here right after graduate school for a job opportunity, ended up marrying a native, and now feel fully embedded here.

Scott: 8 years.

Gwen: 19 years. Moved to Phoenix to go to culinary school and never left.

Urban Graffiti in Phoenix, Arizona (Chris Curtis)

What’s exciting or changing about the city? 

David: Phoenix is becoming more dense, more walkable, and more multimodal in terms of transport. Using a car for every trip is no longer as essential as it once was. It’s also becoming more aware of its own history and the need to preserve its past.

Scott: The renaissance of downtown and preponderance of new businesses in adaptively reused buildings.

Gwen: Our culinary scene is growing, both at the high-end and in the affordable, mom-and-pop ethnic joints.

Do you live in an apartment? 

David: No, my family lives in a house that we’ve owned for the past decade; however, I rented apartments during my first decade in Phoenix. I started with a modest one-bedroom within walking distance of work. Then, when I wanted to upgrade, the only real option at the time was to move several miles north. I didn’t mind because the new place was closer to my favorite hiking trails, but I’m pleased that there are now a lot of better apartment options available Downtown for those who want a more urban lifestyle.

Scott: No.

Gwen: I live in a condo.

If you could move tomorrow (and money is no object), which Phoenix neighborhood would you choose to live in, and why?

David: I would live in one of Phoenix’s historic districts. Those neighborhoods combine shaded, walkable streets with independent businesses and easy access to public transit. The housing there is a mix of well-maintained vintage homes and newer infill apartment buildings.

Scott: I’m perfectly happy where I am — the Coronado District — because of its diversity, walkability, neighborhood eateries/bars and proximity to my downtown workplace.

Gwen: I already live in Old Town Scottsdale, and I don’t ever want to move. I’m within walking distance to great restaurants, shopping, galleries and museums.

When out-of-town friends come to visit, where are three locations you take them in the city?

David: 1) The Heard Museum, because its emphasis on Native American art makes it a unique cultural attraction.

2) The Roosevelt Row and Lower Grand arts districts, because they show what small-scale, fine-grain reuse of old buildings can do to create authentic urban revitalization.

3) Taliesin West, Frank Lloyd Wright’s winter home, now turned into an architecture school.

Scott: 1) Phoenix Mountains Park

2) Camelback Mountain

3) Desert Botanical Garden

Gwen: 1) The Heard Museum

2) Desert Botanical Garden

3) Old Town Scottsdale Main Street Galleries

Corn Grinder sculpture, Desert Botanical Garden (Bill Florence)

How do you get around in Phoenix? Light rail? By car? 

David: Light rail, my bicycle, walking, the bus, UberX, and our family car — like people, transportation should be diverse. A healthy city supports many ways of getting around.

Scott: Both. And on foot and bicycle.

Gwen: I walk whenever I can but otherwise by car. Light rail is a long way from where I live.

Do you have a favorite green chile dish?

David: The pork chile verde at St. Francis restaurant with a side of corn bread is excellent. It’s also offered at the Downtown Phoenix Public Market Cafe, the more casual cousin of St. Francis.

Scott: No. (Green chile is more of a New Mexico thing.) My favorite local food is carne asada street tacos.

Gwen: Green chile pot pie at the Phoenix Public Market Cafe in downtown Phoenix.

Both Scott and Gwen also commented on Phoenix’s weather.

Scott: “Dry heat” is a well-worn cliche for a reason: the low humidity really does make a 105-degree summer day here feel more comfortable than an 85-degree day back home in Tennessee.

Gwen: From November through May, Phoenix has near perfect weather. Summers are hot but so are the deals for both travelers and locals who want to take advantage of stay-cations.

Gwen Ashley Walter’s picks for four great Phoenix restaurants:

FnB for Chef Charleen Badman’s veggie-centric menu

Pizzeria Bianco for Chris Bianco’s hand tossed pizzas and his mother’s homey desserts

Binkley’s for a special night of molecular gastronomy influenced cuisine

Andreoli’s for the best handmade pastas

David Bickford’s picks for four great Phoenix restaurants:

La Piazza Locale — The latest arrival in Downtown Phoenix’s vibrant wood-fired pizza scene. The pizza is great, especially the Montanara, a pie made with fried dough, but don’t skip the excellent pasta dishes.

Umami — Downtown Tempe’s ramen restaurant has recently reopened after a fire. It’s back better than ever with its own broths, off-menu specials, and shareable bentos.

Republica Empanada — This restaurant in Downtown Mesa goes south of the border, farther south than Mexico to Central America, offering not only empanadas with all sorts of fillings, but also arroz con pollo and daily specials.

Clever Koi — A new pan-Asian restaurant in Midtown Phoenix. A summer ramen special with corn and asparagus goes great with one of the refreshing cocktails offered at the bar.

Domus, Phoenix, Arizona

Special thanks to our contributors for sharing their Phoenix knowledge, opinions and experiences!

More Phoenix links on the Apartment Guide Blog:

Check Out These Entertainment Venues in Phoenix

Moving in Phoenix

Where to Find Nice, Cheap Furniture in Phoenix

Welcome to Phoenix

Photo credits: Shutterstock / Andrew Zarivny, Chris Curtis / Shutterstock.com, spirit of america, J. Norman Reid, Bill Florence / Shutterstock.com, Karen Grigoryan, ApartmentGuide.com

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Today we’ll check out East Coast mortgage lender “Garden State Home Loans,” which says it has some of the lowest mortgage rates and most competitive fees in the industry.

They’re able to offer more attractively priced mortgages to their customers because they operate mostly online, meaning low overhead and a streamlined operation.

And their thousands of customer reviews appear to back that up, with excellent marks across all the major ratings websites.

Let’s learn more about them.

Garden State Home Loans Fast Facts

  • Mortgage broker that offers home purchase loans and refinances
  • Founded in 2011, headquartered in Cherry Hill, New Jersey
  • Licensed to do business in six states on the East Coast
  • Has funded more than $4 billion in home loans since inception
  • Aims to close most loans in 30 days or less (21.3-day average turn time currently)

Garden State Home Loans is a mortgage broker located in Cherry Hill, NJ that offers home purchase financing and mortgage refinances.

As a broker, they can shop your loan on your behalf with their wholesale lender partners to find the best pricing and most flexible programs available.

At the moment, the company is licensed in just six states, including Connecticut, Florida, Maryland, Michigan, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania.

Since inception, the company has originated more than $4 billion in home loans and says it’s able to fund loans very quickly, with an average turn time of just 21.3 days from submission to closing.

How to Apply with Garden State Home Loans

  • You can call, chat online, or visit their main office in Cherry Hill, NJ
  • They offer a digital mortgage experience powered by Blink
  • Allows you to run credit, eSign documents, and verify your income and assets
  • Online portal allows you to see exactly where you are in the loan process

To get started, you can call, chat online, visit their physical office if in New Jersey, or fill out a short lead form on their website.

They also have an online loan officer directory where you can see who works at the company and get in touch if you want to work with someone specific.

Once you do any of those things, you’ll be connected with a knowledgeable loan originator who will go over pricing and eligibility.

Assuming you like what you hear, you can apply for a home loan entirely online using their digital mortgage application powered by Blink.

It allows you to run credit, eSign documents, scan/upload paperwork, verify your income and assets by sharing your credentials, and track the status of your loan from start to finish via the online portal.

They’re also big on being available, with hours of 9am to 9pm EST, seven days a week. So even if you need help after hours, or on the weekend, they should be there to assist.

Loan Programs Offered by Garden State Home Loans

  • Home purchase loans
  • Refinance loans: Rate and term, cash out, and streamline
  • Home renovation loans: FHA 203k and Fannie Mae HomeStyle
  • Delayed Financing
  • Mortgages for self-employed borrowers
  • Reverse mortgages
  • Conforming loans
  • Jumbo loans
  • FHA loans
  • VA loans
  • USDA loans
  • Fixed-rate and adjustable-rate mortgages in a variety of loan terms

One advantage to using Garden State Home Loans is their massive lending menu. They offer just about any home loan program you could possibly ask for.

Whether you need a home purchase loan, renovation loan, a refinance of any kind, or even a reverse mortgage.

They lend on all property types, including single-family homes, condos/townhomes, multi-unit investment properties, second homes, and more.

In terms of minimum credit scores, they have limited products for FICO scores down to 580, and that you’ll need at least a score of 640 FICO score for the majority of their loan programs.

But they also cater to self-employed borrowers and those who have experienced a recent credit event such as a foreclosure or bankruptcy.

Additionally, you can take advantage of the Delayed Financing program if you buy a home with cash and want to pull out some of your equity quickly thereafter.

You can get anything from a conforming loan backed by Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac to a jumbo loan or a government-backed loan, including FHA/VA/USDA options.

Both fixed-rate and adjustable-rate options are available in a variety of different loan terms.

Simply put, you shouldn’t be limited when it comes to loan choice with Garden State as they seem to offer just about everything.

The only thing they might not have would be second mortgages.

Garden State Home Loans Mortgage Rates

While they say they’re big on transparency, you’ll need to get in touch with a loan originator first to see their mortgage rates.

You won’t find them displayed on their website, though they might appear on third-party mortgage comparison websites like Bankrate.

To request a rate from Garden State Home Loans, you can either fill out a short form on their website with your contact details, or simply call them up.

While they don’t publicize their rates, they do seem to have good feedback regarding pricing from their many reviews, so it could be quite favorable.

With regard to lender fees, they aren’t listed on their website either, so be sure to ask about them as well when getting pricing.

From what I saw, they might charge a $295 loan origination fee and a $1,055 underwriting fee.

It’s important to consider both the interest rate and fees to get the complete picture, then you can shop their mortgage APR with other lenders to see where they stand.

They’ll likely be able to structure your mortgage as a no cost loan either way if you want to limit or completely eliminate your out-of-pocket expenses.

Garden State Home Loans Reviews

On Zillow, Garden State Home Loans has a near-perfect 4.97-star rating out of 5 from about 1,000 customer reviews.

Aside from being almost flawless, lots of their reviews indicate that both the interest rate and closing costs were lower than anticipated, which is a good sign on the pricing front.

Be sure to check out individual loan officer reviews on Zillow if you want to work with someone super top notch (then find them via the loan officer directory on the Garden State Home Loans website).

They also have a 5-star rating on Bankrate from more than 300 customer reviews, with 99% of reviewers saying they’d recommend the company to others.

Over at Google, they have a very impressive 4.9-star rating from more than 1,000 customer reviews, which is even more meaningful given the large sample size.

Lastly, they are an accredited business with the Better Business Bureau (since 2012) and have an ‘A+’ rating based on customer complaint history.

In summary, they are scoring very high marks in customer satisfaction and have a ton of loan programs to choose from. They also claim to close loans fast using the latest tech.

This means they could be a good choice for both a new home buyer and an existing homeowner looking to refinance to a lower rate or tap into their home equity.

Garden State Home Loans Pros and Cons

The Good Stuff

  • Can apply for a mortgage directly online without assistance
  • Offer a digital home loan experience powered by Blink
  • Tons of loan programs to choose from
  • Lots of excellent reviews from past customers
  • Appear to offer low mortgage rates
  • A+ BBB rating, accredited company
  • Free mortgage calculators and tutorials on their website

The Maybe Not

  • Only licensed in six states on the East Coast
  • Do not publicize mortgage rates
  • Limited physical locations

(photo: Thomas Seymour)

Source: thetruthaboutmortgage.com

Apache is functioning normally

I barely brushed the surface of combating food waste in a recent article, but the comments added so much to the article that I thought I could stop at just one. And then I found some more statistics.

In the U.S.:

  • We waste 40 percent of edible food
  • It costs $750 million just to dispose of the food we waste
  • And when you consider the extra costs of packaging, transporting, and storing wasted food, the overall cost of wasting food goes up to $165 billion.

But there’s more — 33 percent of purchased meat is wasted, followed by 25 percent of seafood. Even 15 percent of purchased fruit is wasted. That’s not good, especially when you consider that meat is so expensive, not to mention all food.

But what matters most is what happens in your household. And according to the same statistics, each U.S. household wastes between $28-43 per month on food. I’ve seen other statistics that put that number closer to $600 annually per household. That’s not a huge amount of money, but wasting money on food doesn’t make sense any way you slice (or dice or julienne or…) it.

Smart storage

Food storage has changed a lot since my grandparents were growing up in the 30s. They preserved their meat by smoking it. They killed a chicken after lunch and dressed it for dinner. They say that they ate bad apples all winter. They started out eating the not-so-good apples first, but by the time they got to the good apples, they weren’t very good, either. (But I don’t know. This comes from the same grandfather who walked up hill to school both ways. And I think he was barefoot in the winter, too.)

Without question, freezers and refrigerators have extended the life of produce and other foods, but I still waste food. I am getting better as using up the produce, but I am also trying to learn the best ways to store produce so it lasts as long as possible.

This winter, I noticed that my onions were getting moldy more quickly than they ever had before. After throwing out a handful of onions three times, I looked at how and where I was storing the onions. In a plastic bag, in a warm cabinet, next to a heat register. Well, according to the National Onion Association (doesn’t that make you want to cry?), there was nothing right about that. Onions should be not be stored in plastic bags; they need to breathe and prefer a cool, dry, well-ventilated environment.

Potatoes also prefer a cool and dark, ventilated environment. A refrigerator, kept slightly warmer than normal, was recommended as a good place to store pounds of potatoes through the winter.

Refrigerator management

If you have produce drawers in your refrigerator that have different humidity settings, in general, vegetables should be at a high humidity setting. This keeps the water vapor inside the drawer which prevents vegetables from wilting.

On the other hand, fruits usually emit more ethylene gas and need low humidity settings. Some vegetables, like peppers and mushrooms, prefer low humidity. In general, foods that emit more gas usually have a shorter shelf life.

If you don’t store your greens in the high humidity drawer, you can wash the greens and wrap them in damp paper towels. That makes them last much longer.

Tomatoes get mealy when placed in the refridgerator. So when we have a garden, I leave the tomatoes on the plant as long as possible. When we don’t have a garden, I let the supermarket be my storage unit for tomatoes. But if I must store them at my house, I do my best to eat them quickly. If not, I may store them in the refrigerator.

Consider the temperatures of different parts of the refrigerator. The door is warmest, so foods with lots of sugar, salt, or vinegar are fine on the door. Milk can be kept on one of the middle shelves. Since the bottom of the fridge is coldest, keep meat there.

My leftovers get stored in a selection of containers, but my favorite ones are clear glass. Why? I waste much less food when I can see what’s in each container when I open the refrigerator door.

Along with all these other tips, one more method of food storage extension is to not wash your produce until you’re ready to use it (with the possible exception of greens).

Products to extend produce life

Other than storing items properly, using up produce quickly, and selecting quality produce in the first place, there are also other ways to extend the life of produce.

The BluApple absorbs ethylene gas which hastens ripening. When used in fruit bowls, dark areas where you store potatoes and onions, and produce drawers in the fridge, it triples the life of the produce — at least, that’s the claim. I haven’t used this product, so I can’t say for sure. It costs $19.90 for two BluApples and a 12-month refill kit.

Tupperware sells another option. The FridgeSmart containers regulate airflow and have ridges on the bottom to prevent the fruits and veggies from sitting in condensation. I have used these. Not only do they keep my fridge organized, but things like celery seem to last much longer. A four piece set is $84, though you can purchase different sizes individually for less than $20.

Some people choose to fight food waste by allowing the supermarkets to store the produce for them. I think that’s a great idea, but I live 15-20 minutes from a decent-sized grocery store. Also, we’re going to be growing more of our own food this year which means I will probably (hopefully!) have lots of produce life to extend.

Many factors increase food waste which means there are many factors to improve to decrease food waste. Which methods do you use? Do you think you waste as much food as these statistics say you do?

Source: getrichslowly.org