Get Your Florida Home Ready For Interior Painting

It is truly invigorating to seat around and look around your home after a fresh paint job.
If you are thinking about selling soon you can’t go wrong with an off white color it makes the home lighter and easier to show.

Preparing for Interior Painting

Even more important than the actual painting itself when it comes to interiors is preparation. Most people just dive right in and hope they have everything they need and know everything they need to know. But preparation can make the difference between a neat, attractive and lasting job versus a complete mess. These tasks can be completed over time – don’t try to get them all done in a weekend. Use the weeks before the actual painting weekend to prepare.

The home interior painter’s tools may take some time and investment to put together, but the result will be worth it. Tools and materials needed to prepare your walls include items that protect the painter as well as get the job done:

old clothes l head protection (cap or scarf) l rubber gloves l ear protection

surgical mask (available at hardware stores) l safety glasses l fine-grit sandpaper l paint scrapers l screwdrivers l putty knife l detergent and ammonia or tri-sodium phosphate (TSP)l sponges l primer or adhesive pad

orbital sander l wallpaper steamer l adhesive drywall tape l fan l hand sanding block l spackle.

First, remove everything from the walls – pictures, any sort of hangings, including their nails, and move furniture out from the walls several feet, or even out of the room if you can. Whatever’s left should be covered with a drop cloth. Turn off the electricity so you can remove light fixtures, switch plates and outlet plates, and wrap all disconnected light fixture wires. Once all wires are safely wrapped, you can turn the electricity back on.

Now it’s time to make any needed repairs to walls and ceilings. If you have large holes or cracks that need fixing, it’s a good idea to get more extensive instruction. There are many good wall repair manuals available at your hardware store, so it’s a good idea to invest in one of those to ensure the best job possible. Repairing little cracks is a little simpler. 

For small hairline cracks, spread spackle over them, let dry and sand smooth. If there’s any loose or bubbled paint, scrape it off. Don’t forget to vacuum up any dust that results.

Now comes the hard part – thoroughly cleaning the walls and ceilings. Paint will adhere much better to clean walls and there’s less chance of bubbling. And if there’s any wallpaper glue residue left on the walls, the result is an interesting pattern under your paint that you hadn’t planned on. 

Walls should all be washed with ammonia and detergent, or a cleanser like Spic and Span, or tri-sodium phosphate, which is available at your hardware store. Be sure to wear your rubber gloves when working with these solutions. After a meticulous scrubbing, walls and ceilings should be rinsed thoroughly with water. Do this twice if after drying you feel residue on your surfaces.

If your walls have stains from water damage, permanent markers or other sources, clean and scrub them as best you can, rinse and let dry completely. Then you’ll want to seal the stains with shellac or other commercial spot primer from your hardware store. Don’t ignore mildew either or it will come through your new paint job. To get rid of it, mix bleach in with your TSP (or if you’re using household cleanser, read the label to be sure that it’s safe to mix bleach with).

If you’re painting over a gloss or semi-gloss paint, you will need to “degloss” it before painting or the new paint will peel off. You can do this by lightly sanding the surface with fine-grit sandpaper or use a liquid deglosser, again available at your hardware or paint store. 

A word of caution, however – if you use the liquid deglosser, you must paint over it within an hour, although it’s faster and less messy than sanding. Finish this phase up with a painstaking vacuum job.

Next comes masking, using two- or three-inch masking tape. Mask off all woodwork trim and cover the windows with newspaper and your masking tape. Be sure that your tape edges are straight. You’ll need to mask the perimeter floor also. Don’t bother masking around the ceiling, however, as you’ll do a process called “cutting in” when you paint. Do not remove the tape for at least 24 hours after painting to avoid pulling up part of your paint job with it.

To prime or not to prime – that is the question. On never-before-painted surfaces, it’s a must, but it’s even a good idea on already painted walls too. It minimizes lap marks, helps with evenness of color and seals the surface, 

which adds up to a longer-lasting, better-looking paint job. Surfaces previously painted with enamel or gloss don’t need to be primed.

Now you’re ready to paint!

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Spring Cleaning Get Your Home Ready For The Summer

I developed a tremendous appreciation for Spring from living in Michigan for 12 years I always felt that I was being renewed and looked to the summer with anticipation, now many years later I feel the same although I now live in South Florida.

I remember how everyone cleaned their houses thoroughly before summer came!

Spring Cleaning Checklist

It's time for spring cleaning. This is the time of year for deep cleaning that you don't have time for on a regular basis. If the task seems too large, why not break it up into several weekends so you don't become overwhelmed? One of the reasons to perform intensive spring cleaning is to perform maintenance and upkeep checks--making sure that your appliances are working properly.

We'll start on the outside and move our way in. Be sure to get the whole family involved--many hands make light work. Turn it into a yearly tradition, a signal that summer fun is almost here.

First, a few rules: Never mix cleaning products. Bleach plus with ammonia can equal death. Start at the top and work your way down. Inventory your cleaning supplies and products and make sure you have enough--garbage bags, vacuum bags, paper towels, rags, rubber gloves, etc. Take them with you in a bucket or other container so you won't have to go searching for what you need. Have plenty of cold water and high-energy snacks on hand (nuts, dried fruit, cheese, vegetables) to fuel your endeavor.

Tackle the garage. Appraise your tool collection--get rid of tools you don't use or that are rusted or beyond repair. Make a pile of things to sell in the garage sale and things to haul to the dump. Install pegboard with hooks on the walls to hang tools and implements. Make a special place for outdoor toys, bikes, scooters, skates, etc. Finish by sweeping and spraying the floor.

Inspect the roof for loose shingles, for mushy places, for debris. Get the hose up there and spray it off. Remove debris from gutters. Ensure that gutters aren't loose or in disrepair.

Examine exterior paint, brick or siding. Touch it up if needed. Check window screens for needed repairs or replacement, then power wash the outside of the house, including windows.

Clean up woodpiles and other debris which serve as homes for pests.

Check your lawn sprinkler system for maintenance problems.

Drain all sediment from your hot water heater.

Perform maintenance on home cooling systems, air conditioning or swamp coolers before hot weather warrants their use.

Go through each bedroom closet. Box up any clothing that has not been worn for more than two years and donate it to a local charity. Perform repairs (sewing buttons, fixing hems, stain removal) before storing winter clothes.

Dry clean winter coats and donate those that haven't been worn.

Using a vacuum hose, dust out each closet thoroughly--walls, shelves, ceilings, floors.

Using a telescoping vacuum extension, sweep away all cobwebs and dust near the ceilings.

Throughout the house, remove all wall decorations and wash down the walls throughout the house using 1/2 cup ammonia, 1/4 cup white vinegar and 1/4 cup baking soda to 1 gallon of warm water.

Vacuum-dust all baseboards and wash them down using the above solution.

Wash all inside windows. Vacuum out the tracks. Vacuum/wash/dry clean all window coverings.

Dust and wash light fixtures and chandeliers. Vacuum lampshades. Replace light-bulbs.

Wash all knickknacks. Vacuum books and bookshelves.

Dust and wash down all interior doors.

Remove heat registers, dust and wash thoroughly.

Clean out and reorganize the linen closet. Repair fraying towels and washcloths or throw them out and replace.

with a vacuum brush, remove hair stuck to walls and ceiling by hair dryers and hair spray.

Deep clean shower, toilet, floor and sink.

Inventory the medicine cabinet and toss expired medicines.

Defrost freezer (if needed) and wash out refrigerator. Toss out expired foods.

Remove screen on stove fan and wash. Clean oven and soak stove rings and drip pans.

Go through your kitchen appliances, clean thoroughly and get rid of ones you no longer use regularly.

Use your vacuum on the front of the coils and motor to remove dust and dirt.

Launder all quilts, blankets, comforters and bedspreads. Turn mattresses.

Move furniture to the center of each room and vacuum thoroughly. Shampoo carpets.

Inventory the contents of each room. Force yourself to get rid of the things you don't need.

Have a garage sale.

Put the proceeds toward a family vacation, or visit a local amusement park, water park or favorite restaurant to celebrate the beginning of summer.

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Broward Homes For Sale – Find your Dream Home


                                  

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Visit our Website:  www.SouthBrowardHomesbyTony.com

Antonio Ortega LLC Licensed Real Estate Professional

Text or Call 954-648-6095

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Check Your Credit Report Before Buying

Getting an annual Free Credit Report is important in this age when credit is important not only when buying a house but even when seeking employment,

There are businesses that exist solely to scrutinize your credit history. Credit card companies and other lenders rely on this information, so your credit score determines your chances to borrow money — and how favorable the terms will be.

A Crash Course in Credit Scoring

There are three major credit-reporting agencies: Equifax (www.equifax.com), Experian (www.experian.com), and TransUnion (www.tuc.com). The website of each details how to get a copy of your report via mail or Internet. Be sure to order one from all three.

Until recently, credit scores’ calculations (and how to improve them) were literally a secret. Fair, Isaac & Co. is the company that blazed the credit scoring trail 40 years ago, and — under pressure from consumer groups, Congress, and lending institutions — they recently decided to provide credit scores and guidance on their website (www.myfico.com).

Credit scores can range from 200 to above 800. Scores below 620 are considered risky, but 720 and above should afford you excellent rates and terms for any kind of credit.

There are five categories used in determining a credit score:

1. Payment history (35% of total score): Late payments and amount owed are the two areas scrutinized most closely. What you may not realize is that recent late payments are more detrimental than those from years before. According to Fair, Isaac, “A 30-day late payment from last month will count more than a 90-day late payment five years ago.”

2. Amount owed (30% of total score): Large outstanding balances on your accounts do not necessarily damage your score. The significant factor is the percentage of total available credit you’re using on your credit cards. A common mistake is to consolidate many small credit card balances onto one card. This will actually cause your score to go down because your credit line on the one card will be closer to your credit limit.

3. Length of credit history (15% of total score): If you’re just starting out, you know that you need credit to get credit. There’s no way to improve this part of your score other than to wait. Logically, it makes sense for parents to establish a credit card in their child’s name just to get the ball rolling.

4. New credit (10% of total score): Applying for too much new credit in a short period of time is the most common and costly mistake most consumers make. While it counts for only 10% of your score, your score still drops when too many companies request your credit report in a short time. Note that if you request your own credit report (a “consumer-initiated inquiry”), it doesn’t count against you.

5. Types of credit (10% of total score): This category considers the overall mix of the credit you carry — installment loans, mortgages, revolving credit accounts, etc. Unfortunately, this category remains shrouded in mystery. Fair, Isaac won’t disclose how the various types of accounts are weighted.

 

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Credit bureaus give your score to lenders along with “reason codes” which explain why your score is what it is. Examine these reason codes; they’re the keys to improving your credit score.

Deciphering the Credit Report Code

With your credit report in hand, give it a thorough review. Check these items for timeliness and accuracy:

Check that all items included in the credit report are factually correct. If there are incorrect entries, notify the credit bureau in writing. Include copies (never originals) of documents that dispute the incorrect entries. Send the whole packet by certified mail to provide proof that the credit bureau received the information. They have 30 days from receipt to adjust or verify the incorrect data.

Check that all items are yours. If you have a name or Social Security number like someone else, it’s possible that his or her information will be attributed to you. Remember that even if that person’s credit is better than yours, you still have an obligation to correct the information.

Look for inactive accounts that remain open. Close any accounts you don’t use.

Check for late payments. Those from more than seven years ago can be removed from your record at your request.

Look over the list of your accounts and verify the numbers.

Verify correct address information and Social Security number.

How to Improve Your Score

First, pay your bills on time. Reduce outstanding debt, especially high-interest credit cards. Build up your savings.

Don’t fall for schemes that help you create a new credit identity. It’s illegal, and purveyors of these schemes incorrectly tell you that they’re invisible to creditors.

Wait to Buy Big Ticket Items Until you Buy Your Home

If you plan on purchasing a home wait until you buy it before buying big ticket items on credit because this can negatively affect your credit big time.

There is no quick fix to improving your credit; stay the course and you will see improvement.

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Stay Safe and Healthy

                   
        

Visit our Website:  www.SouthBrowardHomesbyTony.com

Antonio Ortega LLC Licensed Real Estate Professional

Text or Call 954-648-6095

Global Luxury Realty, LLC

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