Without the energy saving measures taken after the 1973 energy crisis, the US would use nearly 50% more energy today. Now President Obama has pledged to cut 15% of all energy used by the Federal Government, the world’s largest consumer. What if we all committed to cutting our consumption by 15% over the next 2 years?

You can start small by taking advantage of the checklist in our Homeowner Energy Report. You can also take advantage of the new home improvement tax credits for consumers available through 2010, to make improvements to your home that will increase it’s resale value and save you energy costs month after month. READ MORE

Every home needs maintenance and repairs. Do you have the skills, tools and materials to do it all yourself? Even if you don’t do the work yourself, you should learn the basics about your home systems like how to turn the water off if there’s a leak, or how to reset the breaker (in older homes, replace a fuse) in the electrical box. Once you get comfortable with these systems, you’ll learn which repairs you can handle yourself and when it’s time to call a professional.

If you didn’t grow up learning how to do home repairs (most of us didn’t), then you need a good reference book to help you find the information necessary to handle these basic tasks yourself. READ MORE

Home inspection are an invaluable tool when buying a home. Few buyers have the technical expertise to thoroughly review each major component of a home, and experienced home inspectors follow a rigorous, step-by-step inspection to insure they check everything.

When reading an article on ActiveRain, What is the Realtors Job in a Home Inspection, I was impressed by one inspector’s comment. He said when inspecting the exterior of the home, after doing a thorough review walking in one direction, you need to visually inspect the home from the opposite direction to catch things only visible from one angle. That type of experience is why you hire a professional. READ MORE

Holidays brings many traditions and some are simple like saying thank you. When we’re busy it’s easy to overlook some of the special people in our lives. We separate our personal life from business and if there’s not enough time or money … we might forget to give a heartfelt thanks to those special people who make what you do possible.

As I finish migrating all of last year’s web content to our new site at the Association of Women Home Owners, it was fun to find this short thank you note … and help me remember how long we’ve come in a year that was long and too short at the same time. This was my 2009 team and now it will become a tradition to thank my team each year, here at www.HomeTips4Women.com. READ MORE

Are you busy taking care of others, fulfilling commitments and there’s never time for yourself? You’re not alone as women are natural caretakers BUT we need to take care of ourselves too! Here are ideas to help YOU make time to enjoy this holiday season. Happy Holidays to all of you!

What’s important during the holiday season? What memories do you have from your childhood? When your children were young? You’ll quickly remember things you did with people who were special in your life, like baking cookies with grandma. Very few memories are about gifts although that’s what the media is promoting as we’re a consumer (read “consume”) driven society. READ MORE

Building and decorating gingerbread houses is a popular Christmas tradition for many families. Sometimes it’s hard to know if more candy ends up on the house, or in the children’s stomachs. My children always added landscaping around their houses, to insure they had a plentiful supply of candy throughout the holidays.

Gingerbread houses have evolved over many years. Ginger, a spice from the far east was first used to make spiced honey cakes and the English created ginger candy. When bread crumbs were added, gingerbread similar to what we know today was born.Medieval ladies gave gingerbread cakes to their favorite knights. Different shapes had different meanings, i.e. the heart was used to ward off evil. Craft people created special baking molds in the shape of animals, fish, etc. Today gingerbread houses and cookies remain very popular. READ MORE

Holidays are great fun, but don’t forget safety. During the holidays we put up decorations, we do a lot more baking and cooking and of course, lots more visiting with friends and family. People aren’t following their normal routines and that’s why accidents are more likely.

It’s worth reviewing the safety checklist here for peace of mind. You want to keep your family and your guests safe, so everyone can enjoy each others company and the activities you’ve planned. Wishing you and your family a wonderful holiday. READ MORE

Gingerbread houses are special in my family and it was interesting to start my handyman business, where houses take on a whole new meaning. I personally enjoy working on gingerbread houses, from mixing the batter and backing the pieces to whipping up the frosting for the kids to use in construction. With a gingerbread house I can easily see all the pieces and have fun creating something that is uniquely mine.

Our family’s gingerbread house tradition started many years ago, when my younger son was six. When his older brother started trombone lessons, Ryan decided he too must take music lessons. My best friend taught piano so off Ryan went for his weekly piano lesson … but some days he just wasn’t ready to sit still. One week he brought home our first gingerbread house, and every year since then, we’ve made at least one gingerbread house as a family. READ MORE

Winter means colder weather and depending on where you live, there may be snow, ice, sleet and winds. When you think about winter, you probably think about coats, gloves and boots as that’s what you see & put on each day.

As the temperatures start to drop, you should also think about how to prepare your home for winter. Why? Just like a winter coat keeps you warm, adequate insulation keeps your home warm and by caulking windows, doors and other gaps that leak that warm air, you can reduce your home heating (or cooling) costs.  There are many tasks that can be done around the house to save money and let you keep your home warmer so read these tips on buttoning up your home for winter!

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Being “green” applies to many different things today. It’s no longer simply recycling. It also means buying the most energy efficient products from cars to washing machines. It means changing habits like going paperless and even making green choices when it come to decorating. We’ve got some great tips to help you find green decorating solutions.

Home owners have a lot of choices when decorating, whether for a special occasion or just to add some spice to a room in your home. Decorating is like getting dressed, it reflects your personality and the lifestyle you want to live. So why not decorate in the greenest way?

If you need a reason to consider decorating green? Did you know that one of every six trucks in the US, is a garbage truck? READ MORE