Boost Your Curb Appeal By Painting Your Shutters

 A great way to update your curb appeal is to paint the exterior of your home. This can be a huge expense and might not be in your financial plan right now. If you have a smaller budget in mind, think about just painting your shutters to update your home's look and curb appeal.

If your shutters are dated, you might want to think about updating them to make sure the shutters fit your home. "Having an accurate ratio of shutter to window is pretty critical," says Greenville, South Carolina-based interior designer Taylor Hill. "You want to make sure your shutters are architecturally correct, meaning if they were to close, they would actually cover the window." Once this is achieved, follow these professional tips.

Play with Color…Correctly

Even if your favorite color is purple, you would not want to paint your shutters purple unless you live in a tropical area or an eclectic home. Remember to consider what type of home you live in. Many neighborhoods have HOA rules and regulations, so you have to be mindful of the HOA's color palette.

Consider a More Modern Monochromatic Look

Even a traditional home can have a nice clean modern look. One way to accomplish this is to paint your shutters the same hue as the exterior of your home. "It delivers a very chic look without being trendy," Hill says.

Take a Tone-on-Tone Approach

"If I'm starting with a neutral-colored house, I'll often look at the undertones present in the exterior paint color to help us determine a shutter color," Hills says. Hill confirms that this will add both contrast and balance to your curb appeal.

Embrace Classic Contracts

"I love a glossy black pop against a pretty red brick house," Chelsea Robinson, a Nashville interior designer, says. "Painted white brick might be really trendy right now, but you don't have to fall into a trend to make a big impact."

Keep it Natural

If you live near the coast, a natural-looking shutter is perfect for you. A natural wood shutter adds instant character with low maintenance. When you have a natural wood shutter, natural elements can improve their look by oxidating the wood and giving it a green or copper hue color.

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Bywater To Open in New Orleans in 2022

 Bywater is a 93-room poshtel that is opening this year in New Orleans. This project was originally to be built in 2018 but was delayed due to securing funding and the start of the pandemic.

"We had to put the capital together to make it all happen," Kelso said. "I said [to investors], 'We can build during the downturn and open at the finish, and New Orleans is resilient.'"

A poshtel is a new concept that has become popular in the hotel industry. Some call them a "posh" hostel. They are usually in unique buildings and offer many perks and freebies. They offer services and amenities that hostels do not especially privacy. These accommodations have both private rooms and shared rooms.

The $25 million poshtel will be located on the riverfront at the intersection of Chartres and Mazant. The project is being built by developer Ted Kelso and hotel brand ARRIVE by Palisociety. Originally the building would include 43 upscale hostel-style rooms targeting travelers in their 20s and 30s. New Orleans residents gave a lot of push back so the team came up with a solution.

"We transitioned from a hostel model to more of a traditional hotel. That made sense after talking to neighbors about what was right for the neighborhood," Kelso said. "ARRIVE is perfect. Their [properties] are all in neighborhoods similar to Bywater, demographically, so that's what sparked the transition to a hotel."

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Freddie Mac Wants To Help Renters Build Up Their Credit Through

 Renters now have a chance to use their rental payments to help build their credit scores. Freddie Mac has a new program that allows renters to use their on-time monthly rent payments to build up their credit. This is good news for the renters but also for the owners or managers of rental properties as an incentive. Property owners or rental managers can now report on-time rental payments to the credit bureaus.

This new program's purpose is to help those who do not have a credit score. It is reported that 45 million U.S. adults have no credit score. In fact, less than 10% of renters currently see their on-time rental payment history reflected in their credit scores. This is preventing many U.S. adults from getting some of the best mortgage rates in order to purchase a new home.

“Rent payments are often the single largest monthly line item in a family’s budget, but paying your rent on time does not show up in a credit report like a mortgage payment,” says Michael DeVito, CEO of Freddie Mac. “That puts the 44 million households who rent at a significant disadvantage when they seek financing for a home, a car, or even an education. While there remains more to do, this is a meaningful step in addressing this age-old problem.”

Esusu Financial Inc. technology is used by Freddi Mac to report rental payments and rental data to all three credit bureaus. When a renter misses a payment, it will automatically unenroll renters. As an incentive, Freddie Mac will allow closing cost credits on multi-family loans to those who chose to use the Esusu platform.

“At present, the most common way for rents to be reported to the credit bureaus is when there is a missed payment that has gone to a collections agency,” says Alexis Sofyanos, senior director of Equity in Multifamily Housing at Freddie Mac. “Freddie Mac wants to flip that script, so that renters who pay their rent on time and in full each month get credit for doing so, while also putting in safeguards for the most vulnerable.”

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The Homebuying Process Made Easy

 Buying a home is can be a stressful and complicated process. Homes.com reported that 40% of people say that purchasing a home is one of the most stressful events. This is a life-changing event and homeowners should be excited about it.

Now is an awesome time to purchase a home with low-interest rates. In fact, in the past 18 months, the low-interest rates have pushed homeownership up by 2.1 million in 2020. If you are in the market for a new home becoming familiar with the steps you must take can help smooth out the obstacles that might come your way.

Determine How Much Home You Can Afford

This is the first basic step. A homeowner needs to know how much house they can afford. It is important to become familiar with the debt-to-income ratio (DTI). The DTI is the percentage of your income required to pay down existing debt.

Professionals in the industry advise keeping your housing expenses around 30% or less of your annual income. So if you have an annual income of $50,000 your expenses should not be over $15,000 a year. These expenses include your mortgage payments, property taxes, and homeowners insurance.

Get A Pre-Approval Letter

Once you have established how much you can afford, then you need to get a pre-approval letter. Having a pre-approval letter lets agents and sellers know that you are a serious buyer. Just remember that each pre-approval letter you obtain will put a hard inquiry on your credit report.

Some leaders in the industry suggest getting more than one pre-approval letter. If you do decide to do this. Get them within a 30-day period so that it will count as just one hard inquiry.

Explore Your Mortgage Options

You will want to shop around to find the best rate and the best mortgage option for you. There are two mortgage types that leaders suggest. The fixed-rate mortgage loan has a rate that stays the same so the payment throughout the loan will be the same. The adjustable-rate mortgage (ARMs) begins with a fixed rate but does change every so often. If you are planning to stay in your home for a shorter period of time, then this loan might best suit you.

Another thing to consider is mortgage points. If you want to reduce your long-term costs you can purchase mortgage points to save. You can purchase these at closing and each point is worth 1% of your mortgage amount and each point will reduce your rate by .25%.

Take these steps into consideration before you start on your homebuying journey. Remember to choose a Realtor who can help you through the whole process.

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Single-Family and Multifamily Ends 2021 With Strong Demand for New Construction

 

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and the U.S. Census Bureau reported that both single-family and multifamily production increased 11.8% to an annual rate of 1.68 million units. The strong production stems from the high demand for new construction in the housing industry.

This means that 1.68 million homes will be started in the development stage if this pace kept up for the next year. Separated out, single-family increased to 11.3% to 1.17 million seasonally adjusted annual rate and multifamily increased 12.9% at a 506,000 seasonally adjusted annual rate.

Compared to the same time frame of 2020, on a regional and year-to-date basis (January through November of 2021 compared to that same time frame a year ago), combined single-family and multifamily starts are 24.4% higher in the Northeast, 9.6% higher in the Midwest, 15.4% higher in the South and 19.4% higher in the West.

As far as permits, they increased 3.6% to 1.17 million. Single-family permits rose 2.7% to 1.10 million and multifamily increased 5.2% to 609,000 annual paces.

“Mirroring gains in the HMI reading of builder sentiment, single-family housing starts accelerated near the end of 2021 and are up 15.2% year-to-date as demand for new construction remains strong due to a lean inventory of resale housing,” said NAHB Chairman Chuck Fowke. “Policymakers need to help alleviate ongoing building material supply chain bottlenecks that are preventing builders from keeping up with buyer demand.”

“Breaking an eight-year trend, in recent months there have been more single-family homes under construction than multifamily units,” said NAHB Chief Economist Robert Dietz. “Moreover, despite some cooling earlier this year, the continued strength of single-family construction in 2021 means there are now 28% more single-family homes under construction than a year ago. These gains mean single-family completions will increase in 2022, bringing more inventory to market despite a 19% year-over-year rise in construction material costs and longer construction times.”

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Plaquemines Parish New Oil Terminal Cancelled

 

Tallgrass Energy Partners is now going back to the drawing board to discuss different options for the property in Plaquemines Parish that was slated to become an oil export terminal and pipeline. The Midwest energy company called off the $2.5 billion project last month as they felt the world is going another way away from oil and gas.

The property which is located on 200-acres up the Mississippi River from Ironton is owned by the Plaquemines Port Harbor & Transit District. Tallgrass is leasing the property from the port and both companies are discussing "other ways to develop its Ironton property." Some of the discussions were using it for a distribution center or warehousing.

After a study conducted, the company sees that the market is changing. Many are swaying away from oil and gas and looking into other alternatives. If the project had been completed, the terminal would have been able to store around 20 million barrels of oil.

The site which was part of the St. Rosalie Plantation is part of the communities history. In fact, many residents of Ironton descended from slaves who lived at the plantation. Many residents were opposed to the project because it would be built over the plantation's cemetery.

“Integrity and respect are core Tallgrass values,” William Moler, CEO of the Leawood company said. “As part of our PLT permitting process, our cultural survey work identified a cemetery and potential artifacts consistent with what community members shared about the history of the site. Since then, we reduced our development footprint to protect those areas and engaged with the Ironton community and other local stakeholders on an appropriate path toward memorializing them.”

Ironton residences were excited by the news of Tallgrass' decision to stop the project. Residents are still struggling from Hurricane Ida's destruction to Ironton. Many residents moved away from the area after the storm surge flooded most of the community. Those who are still there feel like they have a victory.

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Five Things Not To Do When Venting Your Attic

 

A good environment for your attic is very important. Your attic ventilation system should work together and not against each other so it is important to make sure the system is balanced. Below are five mistakes not to do when it comes to your attic ventilation.

1. Placing Intake Vents Too High or Exhaust Vents Too Low

You want a balanced system that brings in fresh, cool air at the lowest part of the attic space and sends out the warm, moist air at the highest point of the attic space.

If the vents are placed in the wrong spots, the airflow will not work correctly. This will hinder the attic vent system's effectiveness. If they are too low on the roof, they can disrupt or short circuit the system. Remember the rule of thumb is to place the intake vent should sit at the lowest possible point on the roof which lines up with the lowest part of the attic space. Exhaust vents should be placed at the highest possible point. This point aligns with the highest part of the attic space.

2. Mixing Exhaust Products within the Same Attic Space

Doing this can short circuit the airflow. Also mixing exhaust products can allow for weather and leaves and debris to come into the home through the attic.

Always use the same type of exhaust vent in your attic space. Also, make sure that the vents meet the NFVA (net free ventilating area) requirements. This will allow continuous airflow through the attic space.

3. Cutting the Ridge Vent Opening Too Long

Sometimes homeowners want to put a ridge vent along the entire ridge for looks but this is doesn't mean you have to cut open the entire air slot on the ridge below the vent. Doing this can disrupt the airflow of the whole system.

An example of the correct installation can help with understanding the process. If a homeowner has an attic space that must have 288 square inches of exhaust and a 4ft plastic ridge vent is used with an 18 square inch per lineal foot of NFVA, then only 16 ft of the 40-foot ridge needs to be cut open.

4. Clogged or Blocked Intake Vents

Weather and debris such as paint, dirt, dust or even spiderwebs can clog your intake vents even if they are installed correctly. Check your intake vents and clean them by removing the debris. Remember to never install attic insulation from the inside over the vent, and make sure to check to see if the hole in the vent has been properly cut.

5. Having Missing or Inadequate Intake

This is the most important component of the attic ventilation system. If there is no air coming in through the intake or not enough, an exhaust vent will not function correctly. The powered exhaust vents will also overrun and burn the power vent's motor. Remember always check that you have a balanced attic ventilation system with the proper amount of intake and exhaust ventilation for the attic space being ventilated.

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