Here are some tips:

Paint walls. This is one of the easiest. Paint exterior walls in colors that resemble the overall house palette. It is easy and inexpensive, you might have to put a little work into, if you want to do it yourself. Start from cleaning the walls, remove any cob web, pressure-wash to get ride of the dust and dirt. Hey! clean is always attractive, so you can stop right there at having exterior walls clean.

Vines. They could be grown directly on the walls or using wood structures. Be creative with structures, you could go with any shape you like, from rectangular to circular, vines will growth around them.

Hanging Plants. Plant hungers are popular, they will add a warmth touch.

Planters. There is no limit with these, they come from a wide range of styles, colors, sizes, materials. Use them to add some seasonal color to your walls.

Wall Fountain. This might be a little costly but it is worth every penny. The sound of water cascading is very relaxing, it brings tranquility.

Add murals or trompe l’oeil. If you are an art lover like me, why not going with some trompe l’oeil scenes? They can be executed on stucco or wood panels. I have to post this beauty:

Ok, this trompe l’oeil -the author Richard Haas, might be a little to much for your house, but there are plenty of simple options..

Very plain and simple, an energy efficient home costs less to operate, the bank knows you could afford a larger mortgage if the cost of running your home is considerably lower. The borrower does not have to qualify for the additional money and does not make a down payment on it.

The EEM program not only applies to new homes, existing homes are also eligible for these mortgages. For an existing home, you will need a home energy rating system report (HERS), which will give the house an energy rating, then suggest improvements and costs. The report ranges from $100 to $300.

Remember that FHA insures loans, FHA does not provide loans.

Source:HUD

Here are some scary facts:

Depending on the species, an ant colony can include 500,000 individuals.

Two houseflies can produce tens of thousands of offspring per season.

Termites cause more than $5 billion in home damage every year.

In your walls, Cockroaches can produce several thousand offspring in a year.

To enter your home, mice can fit through holes as thin as a pencil.

Rats shed more than 500,000 body hairs yearly and 20-50 droppings per day.

Scary, isn’t it? Some good common sense could prevent welcoming all these creatures into your home.

Make sure your home insulation is not deteriorated, look for cracks or holes around your house and fix them.
Attics are perfect for hosting different types of pests, cleaning them at least once a month will help, also repairing any leaks that introduce water into these areas.
Never leave food and drinks out in the open, pests could smell them from the distance and will be attracted by them.
Isolate your trash until is ready to be moved out of the house.

Here are some of Doctor Rogers’ recommendations:

1. Fall is the very best time to seed your lawn
Regardless if you only have some bare patches to fill or try to establish a new lawn, now is the best time to do it! “The warm soil combined with cool nights is perfect for grass seed germination. Start with high quality seed that matches what is already growing in your lawn” Rogers says. Don’t forget to consult with your local garden center.

2. Get rid of those dandelions
Those pretty yellow flowers popping up every spring, yeah, I think they are pretty in their own special way…

Well, they look pretty at the park, not so much when they grow in my yard.

“The ideal time to control this type of broadleaf weed ranges from early October in the northern U.S. to late October in the South. You want to apply a broadleaf herbicide as the weeds germinate. A liquid herbicide that you spray on will help ensure contact with the new, small weeds as they germinate. Dandelions are a main target, but this will also control all winter annual weeds that flower in the spring”

3. Feed your lawn
Did you know that during the fall your lawn spreads horizontally? Rogers recommends feeding the lawn with a good nitrogen and potassium combination fertilizer. Your lawn will fill those thin spots instead of just growing tall.

4. Draw up your plan for spring
Plan some changes now and start implementing. Visualize how you want your yard to look next summer, draw/sketch your vision. Fall is a good season to remove and replant bulbs, is also a good time to add new trees to your landscape.

‘…fall is a time of energy and renewal. A morning or afternoon of yard care is invigorating, fulfilling and will net you great rewards next year.” I agree with the “Yard Doctor”, gardening gives me more energy, however if I don’t use mosquito repellant, it also gives me horrible enormous red bumps, those creatures can smell dinner from 50 meters away. That’s all for now, talk to you soon!
If you have any suggestions on how to take care of the yard this fall, and would like to share them with us, send me a note.

Source: yardsmarts

Just to mention a couple advantages out of the many, smart homes could give you:

Safe and Secure
Using an intercom camera at the entrance of you house, gives you the ability to see who’s at your door and to speak to them without having to open the door.
Another example is vehicle detection; sensors detect any vehicle that drives up to your driveway and turn cameras and lights on, to let you view who is on the premises.
Smart homes can also warn homeowners in case there is any emergency by connecting them with the warning systems. Let’s say a fire starts, the alarms wake up the household, the doors are immediately unlocked, the fire department is called and the bright lights shine for safety.

Energy Efficiency
A smart home makes heating and cooling systems go on and off as needed. Lights, computers and appliances are ON only when someone is actually using them.
Another way a smart home could save you energy is by utilizing smart meters, they can monitor energy use and consumption at the device level, helping you reduce costs and make energy efficiency more convenient.

I will be talking some more about smart homes, stay tuned…

Source: www.intellipowered.com