Icicles hanging from power lines, trees and other people’s homes can be absolutely gorgeous, but when those delicate frozen water daggers are hanging from yours, it may make your stomach do a barrel roll. Why? Well, it’s just one of many signs that your home is at risk for ice dams.
Standing under the giant gold umbrella of foliage that covered your majestic shade tree this fall was like wandering into a painting, but now that the leaves have all fallen and the stately guardian is beginning its winter rest, it’s time to consider the clean up. You’ve already mulched the leaves on the lawn, but that’s only the beginning. Your gutters were also gracious receptacle of those golden flags -- they’re going to need a good cleaning to keep working like they should.
There’s nothing quite as solemn as watching the garden and landscape start to wind down for a long winter’s rest. It’s part of the never-ending cycle of nature -- and landscaping chores -- that you’ll find yourself participating in as a homeowner. Shed a small tear for the beauty of the cycle, then head out to the garage because you’ve got a lot of work to do to get your garden and landscape ready for winter.
Jennifer just closed on her very first home, a cornflower blue and white bungalow with a big front porch on a tidy cul de sac. She’s ecstatic as she thanks her Realtor for all his help, he opens the lockbox from her home for the very last time and gives her the key. Her key to her own house. After work, Jennifer loads up her car with some small items to take over to her new place. Her mind is racing. Is she really ready to be a homeowner? Her parents always seemed to know how to fix things and who to call if there was a problem they couldn’t handle -- everything just seemed like it came to them naturally. How did they know all this stuff? How was she going to learn it all at once?
When Mike and June spotted the two-story Victorian home nestled on its quiet, tree-lined street, it was love at first sight. Walking up the front steps felt just like coming home to a place they’d lived in forever. They made an offer that night and after the endurance test that was their race to closing, the happy couple breathed a deep sigh of relief. This would be the perfect house for their future kids to grow up in, it even had an adorable breakfast nook with a built-in booth, what more could they want?
James could hardly contain himself when he spotted the stucco Spanish Revival house, its terra cotta roof striking a high contrast against the stark white structure. The brick walkway undulated inviting though a small courtyard garden surrounded by arches. He checked the price not once, but three times before calling his wife, Paula, breathless.
Mike and June, the new couple in the big Victorian house, decided they weren’t going to let their first night in their new home go by like it was nothing. Buying a house was a huge milestone for them, and the house they were able to purchase was literally their dream home -- fanfare was definitely called for.
When I bought my house a couple of years ago, the first thing my wife and I did was invest more money in it. So we fixed the things that were in the inspection report, and started some small projects that helped us settle in — and feel like our new house was our own.