Northern Poconos Real Estate News

Take a drive around your neighborhood and chances are those solar panels that once seemed so futuristic are becoming a pretty common site. But, even if you’re not ready to make the plunge to full-out solar power (and pay the price that panels cost), here are four ways you can incorporate solar energy into your home, according to the American Home Shield Home Matters blog:

Outdoor Solar Lights

If you’re a first-time homeowner, the odds are good you will soon be ready for the fun and responsibility of owning your first dog.

If you’re looking for a pet that suits you and your lifestyle, the pooch experts at Petbreeds.com suggest breeds that are low maintenance, shed minimally, are easily trainable, and get along well with kids and other dogs:

Keeping track of every single dollar you spend can be difficult, no matter how closely you track your spending and monitor your bank accounts. Automatic payments from your checking account to pay for a gym membership, for example, can be forgotten and leave a checkbook unbalanced.

But besides accounting for where your money goes, there are some invisible money leaks that you may not be paying attention to that can add up to wasted money. Here are four:

A problem with the electrical wiring, an outlet, or the circuit breaker or fuse box in your home needs to be taken seriously. An unaddressed electrical issue could spark a fire that could engulf your entire house and put your family’s lives in danger.

Credit cards can help you afford things you need if you don’t have the money right now, but they often lead to trouble. Some people overspend, while others are forced to rely on credit cards more than they’d like because of a job loss or an unexpected expense.

No matter how you got into debt, if you’re struggling to make your monthly payments, you’re probably feeling overwhelmed. It may feel like you’ll never be able to get out of debt, especially if you have high interest rates.

With the warm weather here, you might be outside more, and therefore, spending more time around the exterior of your home. Is the paint on your exterior chipping or peeling? If so, it might be time for a touch-up or full-blown paint job. Now, it can be tempting to do-it-yourself – after all, it’s so expensive to hire pros, and not that hard to do, right?

By Realtor.com Creative Studio

For nearly 16 years, Beverly Willett lived with her husband and two daughters in what was her dream home: a four-story, 4,000-square-foot brownstone in Brooklyn, N.Y. But sometimes when life changes, dreams do, too. By 2013, Beverly was a single woman whose eldest had moved out and whose youngest was about to head off to college—and she found herself toying with downsizing.