I hope you enjoy this Spring time recipe. I hope to add more recipes in the future and would appreciate your comments on this recipe.
I would also be very glad to help you with any home buying or home selling needs in White House, Springfield, Hendersonville, Goodlettsville and other areas of northern Middle Tennessee
Don't rely on your memory to keep track of your possessions. Create an inventory so you can know what's missing if you ever need to file a claim. Experiencing a theft, flood, fire, or other casualty loss is devastating enough. Now imagine trying to list from memory for your insurance claim every single item that was damaged or destroyed. The task becomes less daunting if you create a home inventory in advance and keep it in a safe place.
Creating a home inventory can be done with pencil and paper alone, but a digital camera and camcorder make the job easier. Set aside enough time to review your insurance policies, dig up receipts, document your possessions, and figure out where you’ll store your records. One day should be sufficient.
A home inventory is essential
From appliances, plates, and glasses to collectibles, rugs, and furniture, the average home is packed with an array of items collected over the years. And while you may be able to list many of them in a pinch, chances are you’d miss some important possessions if you ever needed to reconstruct your home’s contents from memory, says Mark Goldwich, founder of GoldStar Adjusters, a Jacksonville, Fla., claims adjusting firm.
“Home inventories are a must no matter what the value of the home’s items are,” says Goldwich. “If you’re going to insure your property and pay for that insurance, you really should be able to document the ownership and the value of the items that you’re insuring. If you don’t have proof of the items you owned, it makes filing your claim much more difficult.”
Your job doesn’t end once you’ve compiled a home inventory, a detailed list of everything in your household. Be sure to compare estimated values to your policy’s coverage to ensure that you’ll be able to replace your belongings in case of damage or theft, says Goldwich, who is the author of “Uncovered: What Really Happens After the Storm, Flood, Earthquake or Fire.” In some cases, he says, you can purchase additional coverage if the value of your possessions exceeds the limits on your homeowners, flood, or other disaster policy.
Take photos and video of possessions
Jack Hungelmann, author of “Insurance for Dummies,” says a picture can be worth more than just a thousand words—it can add up to thousands in cash if you ever need to file an insurance claim. Hungelmann recommends using a digital camcorder or camera to take pictures of each room to document your belongings. “I recommend that people open up their cupboards and drawers. Be sure you have a record of all the things you own,” he says.
Goldwich says that creating such a home inventory might seem daunting, but digital video—you can pick up a decent camcorder for about $150—can make the task much easier.
Homeowners can literally walk from room to room and record narrative descriptions of items. You should note whether something is an antique, for example, or if it has other qualities that make it especially valuable such as the size of a television screen or the type of stones in a piece of jewelry. Get close-up shots of serial numbers on electronics, power tools, and the like.
Filling in a printed checklist with serial numbers, brands, quantities, and estimated values will prove indispensible if an insurance claim ever needs to be filed. The adjuster will likely ask for such a list, and you can use the video or photos as proof of ownership.
Keep your home inventory safe
Of course, such documentation is useless if it’s destroyed in a natural disaster, consumed by fire, or stolen along with your personal computer. Hungelmann says that using digital media allows you to store the files on online backup services like Carbonite.com or iBackup.com in case your home is destroyed.
If you’d like to save the $10 or more per month these services typically cost, you could also save the files on a USB drive that’s kept in a safe-deposit box, at a relative’s home, or in your emergency bag. The bag should include essentials your family needs in case you’re forced to flee on short notice.
It’s also a good idea to keep a file with receipts and any appraisals of valuable items you own. Store these documents off-site as well. Goldwich says that the more documentation you have to prove what you owned and what it was worth, the easier the claims process will be.
In this day and age, it is very important to have an independent home inspection done as part of your due dilegence process of home buying. This can save you thousands of dollars in years to come.
What your Hendersonville TN Home Inspection Should Include:
Siding: Look for dents or buckling
Foundations: Look for cracks or water seepage
Exterior Brick: Look for cracked bricks or mortar pulling away from bricks
Insulation: Look for condition, adequate rating for climate (the higher the R value, the more effective the insulation is)
Doors and Windows: Look for loose or tight fits, condition of locks, condition of weatherstripping
Roof: Look for age, conditions of flashing, pooling water, buckled shingles, or loose gutters and downspouts
Ceilings, walls, and moldings: Look for loose pieces, dry wall that is pulling away.
Porch/Deck: Loose railings or step, rot
Electrical: Look for condition of fuse box/circuit breakers, number of outlets in each room
Plumbing: Look for poor water pressure, banging pipes, rust spots or corrosion that indicate leaks, sufficient insulation
Water Heater: Look for age, size adequate for house, speed of recovery, energy rating.
Furnace/Air Conditioning: Look for age, energy rating. Furnaces are rated by annual fuel utilization efficiency; the higher the rating, the lower your fuel costs. However, other factors such as payback period and other operating costs, such as electricity to operate motors.
Garage: Look for exterior in good repair; condition of floor'cracks, stains, etc.; condition of door mechanism.
Basement: Look for water leakage, musty smell.
Attic: Look for adequate ventilation, water leaks from roof.
Septic Tanks (if applicable): Adequate absorption field capacity for the percolation rate in your area and the size of your family.
Driveways/Sidewalks: Look for cracks, heaving pavement, crumbling near edges, stains.
No home is flawless, but certain physical problems can be expensive. Watch for:
Water leaks. Look for stains on ceilings and near the baseboards, especially in basements or attics.
Shifting foundations. Look for large cracks along the home's foundation>
Drainage. Look for standing water, either around the foundation of the home, in the crawl space or in the yard. .
Termites. Look for weakened or grooved wood, especially near ground level. .
Worn roofs. Look for broken or missing copings and buckled shingles as well as water spots on ceilings.
Inadequate wiring. Look for antiquated fuse boxes, extension cords(indicating insufficient outlets), and outlets without a place to plug in the ground prong.
Choose a qualified Tennessee Home Inspector. Find a Tennessee Home Inspector at The National Association of Home Inspectors, Inc. http://www.nahi.org/
Ahome inspector is sometimes confused with a real estate appraiser. A Tennessee Home Inspector determines the condition of a structure, whereas an appraiser determines the value of a property.
If you need information on first time home buyer and buying a home in the Sumner, Robertson, Davdison or Cheatham County areas of Tennessee, including Goodlettsville, White House, Hendersonville, Springfield and Pleasant View, Tennessee, please visit my home page to get started on searching for homes and getting valuable information on buying or selling your home. You may also want to chose where to live in Middle Tennessee.
Buying a first home can be a daunting experience. Here are five common and sometimes costly mistakes that new home buyers make:
1. Ignoring the costs of having a low credit score. Lower-score borrowers pay thousands of dollars in increased interest rates over the life of the loan. Don't think that not paying that cell phone bill is not going to make a difference, lenders will want to check everything.
2. Muddying the waters by shopping for other things before closing. Lenders continue to check credit scores right up until the time of closing. Too much shopping could cause the lender to take back the loan. Wait to buy new appliances and furniture and don't buy a new car during the middle of your loan process.
3. Scrimping on an inspection. Being surprised by the need for expensive repairs can be financially devastating. Get a professional home inspector to give you an idea of any repairs that might be needed.
4. Buying without contingencies. Buyers should give themselves an out if the inspection turns up problems or the bank raises the interest rates.
5. Not using a Buyer's Agent. Buyers should always use aRealtor or Buyer's Agent to help in the transaction of thier largest asset. Stay away from For Sale By Owners or Builders that do not want you to have representation. Your agent will insure you have the proper contingencies mentioned above.
excerpts from: CNNMoney.com, Les Christie (04/19/2010)
When purchasing a home in the Hendersonville, Goodlettsville, White House and Springfield TN areas, remember that bigger is not always better when determining usable square footage.
Many buyers feel that the total square footage of a home determines their usable space. Not so.
Smaller houses can actually be bigger. How? By having more useable linear footage, than square footage.
•Linear footage is length of each usable wall in a room.
•Square footage is determined by outside dimensions of heated living space(excluding 2 story foyers, garages, etc. which is not living space) (Over garage bonus rooms are measured differently)
Buyers are encouraged to measure wall space rather than concentrate on the total square footage of a home.
•Is it a floor plan with little or no wasted space or does the home appear “choppy” with visible waste?
•Pay attention to how doors and closets open onto a wall.
•Are air vents located under windows to provide maximum wall space?
•Where are electrical outlets located on a wall? Are they offset to one end or the other or are they in the middle of the wall?
Know your furniture measurements, especially bedroom furniture and sofas. Have this information available when looking at homes.
Don’t exclude a potential home because of square footage. It never hurts to look. And, bring a tape measure… Remember, bigger is not always better.
When Buying a Home in or Around Hendersonville, Tennessee- Learn the Pitfalls of an Internet Lender. There is no subsitute for looking at a mortgage professional, face-to-face and discussing the entire process. If you are planning on buying a home in or around Goodlettsville, TN, be sure to learn the pitfalls of an internet lender.
Internet Lending often allows for a greater chance of misunderstanding or lost communication when a loan is handled over the internet.
Internet lenders shop for rates with many insitutions. Be wary of too many inquires on your credit. It is possible to lower your credit score.
Financial markets are very fluid and changing every moment of the day. Local mortgage lenders are also able to give you the best rates.
National internet lenders are not always familiar with the actual closing costs required by the state or local municipality you ar applying in.
Internet lenders may ultimately not be able to complete the loan process in time for closing. This could increase your interest rate if your rate will expire on the original date of closing.
The importance of having a lender that knows the new regualtions is critical.
Trading up in today's real estate market can be a smart investment. Many sellers are hesitant to sell as they fear they will have to sell for a low sales price. If you are in a position to sell your home, please study the chart below, it may surprise you. You are actually swaping equity.
By swapping equity, you can sell your current house and move up to a larger home which you have been wanting anyway, and have the ability to gain equity. As in the example above, if you sell for 5 percent less, and purchase for 5 percent less, you actually gain equity.
Many real estate investors use this same strategy. Going one step farther, lets say that in a few years, the real estate market rebounds and your home appreciates by 10 percent. Your first home would appreciate by $19,000 and your move up home would appreciate by $38,000. By buying the move-up home and swapping equity, you can improve your net worth. According to recent statistics, an average indiviual's net worth has over 60 percent of that net worth invested in their homes. Don't miss this great opportunity to move up and trade equity!
If you need information on buying a home or selling a home in the Sumner, Robertson, Davdison or Cheatham County areas, including Goodlettsville, White House, Hendersonville, Springfield and Pleasant View, Tennessee, please visit my home page to get started on searching for homes and getting valuable information on buying or selling your home.
When making a decision to sell your home in the Sumner, Davidson, Cheatham and Robertson County areas, you may want to interview several agents to determine who would be best qualified to handle the sale of your most important asset. This should be a business decision and should not be based on friendship or family concerns. You want the most qualified agent to work on your behalf. To help you decide, you may want to ask these questions.
1. Do you personally answer all phone calls on the property?
2. Can we cancel the listing if we’re not happy?
3. Are you a Realtor® and what designations do you have?
4. Do you have a personal internet web site and what percentage of business comes from that site?
5. What systems do you have in place that will keep you in constant contact with me during the listing and the transaction?
6. What type of internet marketing do you have and where will my home be seen?
8. What is your average days on market?
9. Can you give me a list of your happy clients who have closed and can I call them?
10. Why should I list with you rather than any other agent?
For more information selling your home in the northern Middle Tennessee area including Goodlettsville Hendersonville WHite House and Springfield Tennessee , contact Kim Blanton
Selling lifestyles to homeowners, home buyers and equestrian enthusiasts in Nashville, Goodlettsville, Hendersonville, White House, Springfield and Pleasant View areas of northern Middle Tennessee. Serving Davidson, Sumner, Robertson and Cheatham Counties
