I watched part of Holmes Inspection on TV the other day and it was about this young woman’s experience in buying her first home. She bought a 20 year-old townhouse and had a home inspector give her the go-ahead to make the purchase. Within a week of taking possession of her new home, she noticed that something in her bathroom was causing water to leak through her kitchen ceiling. She hired a plumber to resolve the issue, but all the plumber did was make a large hole in her kitchen ceiling and then he told her he couldn’t find the leak so he wouldn’t be able to do anything. Nice!
So, when Holmes and his crew came to take a look at the situation, they were able to discover where the leak began. Unfortunately, the more work they did on the house, the more problems they discovered. The home had been recently renovated, so even a home inspector could not have possibly caught every problem since some of the issues were covered up. Nevertheless, the home inspector wasn’t thorough enough and should have seen some red flags that would have indicated possible issues with the home.
When purchasing a home, in order to save money and frustration in the long run, it’s good to make sure you find a credible home inspector. Also, be wary when purchasing an older home with recent renovations as the new laminate flooring or a fresh coat of paint could be covering up some nasty household problems.
Make sure to ask lots of questions about the house and find out as much as you can from the previous owners. Also, don’t be afraid to ask questions of the home inspector. Make sure they check the electrical and plumbing. The key is not to become emotionally attached to the house because if you do, you may end up buying a home against your better judgment.
Buying your first home can be really exciting. Do your due diligence and get a home inspection before committing to a home purchase. Make sure your home inspector is reputable and highly experienced. Buying a home is a huge investment; Make sure it’s a wise investment that you won’t regret.
Lock your doors, hide your money in the safe, hire security guards to protect your prized possessions, but what can you do if someone stole your identity? If something valuable is stolen, you can call the police and hope to get your stolen property back. Rightly termed as the crime of the 21st century, victimizing millions of Americans, you can do very little if you find your identity stolen. Identity theft is on the rise, and nearly everyone is vulnerable to this new-age form of fraud.
David Bach’s book 
is a must read for anyone looking for smarter ways to use their money for traveling, car rentals, banking, car repairs, health insurance, and many other aspects of daily life. It’s easy to read and is organized by subject so you can easily find the information that interests you.
Last year our garden was full of cat poop. There’s really not a nice way to describe it. We don’t have a cat of our own, but many of our neighbors do and their cats seemed to think that our garden was a giant kitty litter. We decided this had to stop so we did our best to find solutions by talking to other people about it and by searching online for ideas.
If you want to be able to estimate approximately how long it will take for your money to double in an investment with a set interest rate or a fixed rate of return, you can get a fairly good idea by dividing the number 70 by your fixed interest rate.