Plant Savings

So with my driveway finally done, it was time to figure out how to screen out my neighbors. I had looked into getting a fence, but it would have cost around $750 for only 45 feet. Not worth it, in my opinion. So I went searching for plants that would provide good coverage, and quickly. Of course, the easy thing to do would be to purchase mature trees, but that was not in my budget. I needed to buy young, cheap trees. I found them in a tree called a thuja. They grow 3-5 feet every year and are supposedly hearty. I got 21 trees for $60, including shipping. Sure, they'll take some time to grow before they actually screen out my neighbors, but I think it was worth the cost savings.

Driveway Finished!

Finally, after months of getting quotes and enduring delays, the driveway project has been completed. To recap, I had it moved to the other side of my house, because that was the logical place for it to be. I parked on it today for the first time. Nice feeling to pull up to your house on a smooth surface, instead of pulling onto dirt or parking on the street.

All told, the project cost me $3200. A lot of money for what looks just like asphalt. But the curb work added a lot of money to the job. I'm not sure how much it increased the home's value, but I'm sure I'd get a boost of at least 50% immediately.

My Clearance Shopping

I went to Lowe's to return some things, and I ended up with a couple of good deals. I wanted to complete my transition to CFL bulbs, so I located them and was pleasantly surprised to find the wattage I wanted on clearance for $1 each! I bought seven of them.

Then I went to the garden area because I have a spot in my garden that needs to be filled. Azaleas were priced at $3.99, so I got one. It rang up at half-price! If I wasn't pressed for time, I would have gone back and bought another.

Sadly, though, I think I know why the bulbs were on clearance: their reaction time is horrible. My other CFLs are much faster to turn on. So I think I will return them. But maybe on that trip I'll find other similar deals.

New Ceiling Fan Installed

The instructions say it should take a beginner about two hours to complete this project, so why did it take me about two weeks? Here's what happened.

I had an old, noisy ceiling fan/light in my living room that needed to be replaced. I bought one for $89. Looks nice. Then I removed my existing fan, and of course, realized it had not been hung properly. Here is a picture of what was coming from the ceiling. No junction box, no brace, nothing. Just two little screws put into the rafter held up this fan.

So I then spent a few days researching the best way to secure a proper mounting. I had no access from the attic, and from where the wires hung, it seemed to make any brace-type mounting unworkable. So I did some digging and settled on a shallow (or pancake) box that is meant to hold up to 70 pounds.

It turns out my existing drill was too weak to drive into the rafter. That led to another day of searching for new drills with more torque. With that unexpected expense out of the way, I then set back to work. The box went in OK, and then I began to hang the new fixture. No major problems at all, until it came the wiring. The instructions only made mention of three wires coming from the box, and I had four. After a few days of looking for answers and coming up with many different ones, I decided to just try out configurations. Eventually, after about 12 trips up and down the steps to turn off/on the breaker, I figured what I needed to do.

This past weekend I finally finished up the project. Tell me what you think! I think it looks much better and is much less noisy. Fan plus box cost around $90, drill cost $100 (though I don't consider that a project cost since I'll use it for years to come), and I figure I saved about $150 by not having an electrician do the job.

Don't Demolish or Purchase New- Recycle and Reuse

I just found out about a great new group called the Building Materials Reuse Association. It's made up of companies who take away building materials you no longer want (usually for free). They then take these materials to their own salvage yards or sell them to others. So the homeowner gets rid of unwanted materials in a responsible, free way, and others looking for materials with character at a cheap cost can find them in these salvage yards, and feel better that one less piece ends up in a landfill. Here are BMRA's goals:

• Reduce the consumption of new resources


• Avoid landfill waste and pollution


• Create value-added markets and increase cost-effectiveness


• Expand job opportunities and workforce development skills

On their site you can search a directory of companies who may offer pickup services or have salvage yards where you can shop. Next time you do some renovations, try to remember this resource.

Keep Your Heating Bill As Low As Possible

Soon we' have to start using our heat, so I came up with a few points as to how I plan to keep my gas bill as low as I can:

• As I wrote about before, I replaced my old furnace with a new, much more efficient one. Though I won't see the savings immediately (I'm on a budget plan with my gas company), I'm sure I will at the end of the season
• I replaced my traditional thermostat with a digital one. This was an easy change, and it allows me to exactly set the temperature I want, as well as program it
• I made sure to change my furnace return's filter. I happen to have an irregulalry-shaped return (like everything in this house), so I have to buy a large one and then cut it down to size. I clean the filters monthly and replace every few months. I've read this makes the furnace more effiecient, as well as extending its life.

Getting Ready for the Fall

Technically, it already is the fall, but the weather has remained springlike so far in this part of the country. Here's what I've been doing to get prepared for the coming cold weather, as well as some new plantings:

• ripped plants out of garden (most of it went into my compost stack)
• tore up a few large section of my backyard that was nothing but weeds, and then planted seeds. Nice grass has already come up
• Planted a new bush along my fence. Fall really is for planting!
• Prepared the side of my driveway for the coming thuja trees I have bought. These will provide a screen (they will be only 8" tall now, but they suppsedly grow 3-5' every year.

Protecting Your Home with Life Insurance

You might be wondering what life insurance has to do with being a thrifty homeowner. Here’s how I figure it matters: it would be a shame for me to put so much work and money into the house, and then have my family have to sell it should my income be lost. So is purchasing life insurance thrifty, per se? Maybe not. But just as you insure your home against damage and theft, this is an important aspect of home ownership that should also be looked at.

Right now, I’ve gotten various quotes and have selected an insurer. Today I will begin the formal application. The entire process has taken me about 3 weeks. When I first began looking, I didn’t know if I wanted a term plan or one that incorporated a savings component. I met with the rep who sold me my auto and home policies, and he went over the two types. I was thoroughly confused by the insurance with the savings component. I couldn’t figure out how it would really benefit me (or most anyone who doesn’t make a lot of money annually). So I then honed in on term plans.

Term plans insure you for a specific amount for a set number of years, with the annual premium never changing. For instance, I wanted $500,000 for 30 years. Those were the minimums I decided I’d be comfortable with. I then began to shop out those specs. I used national companies that deal only with term plans, and called some local brokers as well. After compiling my estimated costs into a spreadsheet, I made my selection.

I chose an additional rider with the plan. It’s called Return of Premium (ROP), and it’s only been widely available for a couple of years. If I outlive my term (30 years), I will be paid back every cent I have paid into the plan, tax-free. That sounds like a great deal initially, but you have to learn how much extra the ROP is actually costing you. In my situation, the difference between the lowest term plan without ROP and the lowest term plan with ROP was $267 annually. So I did the math:

• I’d be paying an extra $22 month for the ROP
• At the end of my term with ROP, I’d be paid back $31,000
• If I invested that $22 a month, I’d have to yield an overall return of 8% to equal the $31,000 (click on the image for the calculation)

Is an 8% return possible? Sure. History even says it’s likely. My return could even be higher, if invested well. So why did I go with the ROP? I feel I take on enough risk in my other investments, and unless I am able to get that 8% return, I’ll have lost money. This was a tough decision, and I feel I could have gone either way with it and felt fine. If you do a search, there are many people who will tell you ROP is a gimmick and a waste of money. In many cases, particularly in those when the insured is not as young as I am, the numbers don’t come close to making as much sense as they do in my scenario.

If anyone has any other insight on this, let me know before I sign those papers!

Window Replacement Terror

A few months ago I renovated the bathroom, and the last thing that needed to be done was to replace the archaic window. I read books and websites, but for the life of me I can't figure out what it is I'm looking at when I try to measure it. Since I can't even do that, I assume it's best I try not to replace the thing myself. So I called in the experts and got quotes.

The first vendor was from a national company that apparently specializes in high-pressure sales. He came to the house with a gigantic briefcase filled with samples. He sat me down for an hour just talking about windows before he even looked at the ONE I needed replaced. Of course he put together a fabulous package to redo most of the windows in my house, even though the others work fine. I told him I only wanted to replace the one and maybe a couple others, and he then gave me his "best" offer that would expire before he left my house that night. I told him I could not make a decision if I had nothing to compare him to. He balled up the paper he wrote the offer on and left. Unbelievable. I called his company and complained.

It did get better from there. I had about 3 more people give me quotes, and they ranged from $375 to $500. That sounds like a lot for one window. So, I still have the archaic window. I'm hoping I'll somehow be blessed with the know-how to do it myself, or a friend will appear who knows what he's doing.

Consumer Reports Home Blog

I used to subscribe to Consumer Reports (too expensive for my tastes now) and I always liked their work. I just stumbled upon their Home blog which, as you'd expect, gives advice about quality products and tips on how to save money around the home (kinda like what I try to do here). Give it a read. Only after you've read everything on this blog, of course.

How Recent Acts of Congress Can Help The Environment and Our Wallets

The Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008 has been signed. So what does it mean for most of us homeowners? I suppose there is the potential you won't be foreclosed on or your ARM won't skyrocket out of control. But for those of us who are not in a bad financial state, will it affect us? Its nuances are over my head, I admit.

That's why I defer to Consumer Reports Money Blog, which lists the following tax breaks for various energy-efficient activities:

•A new tax credit ranging from $2,500 to $7,500 for purchasers of plug-in electric-drive vehicles.
•A new tax credit of up to $4,000 for homeowners investing in wind power, and up to $2,000 for investments in geothermal heat pumps.
•A one-year extension of the tax credit for homeowners investing in energy-efficient improvements, including windows, doors, and heating systems.
•Expansion of the tax credit for homeowners investing in solar electricity, though 2016. Current law says you can only claim a credit for 30 percent of what you paid, up to a cap of $2,000. Starting next year, there's no cap. A $10,000 investment in
solar electricity would yield a credit of $3,000, versus $2,000 today, according
to Mark Luscombe, tax analyst for CCH, a tax information provider.

Wow, a ton of stuff in there to think about. I'm following the electric car developments closely, but since I don't plan on being in this house for more than five years, renewable energy options are still probably not in my picture. But for those of you who are settled, you might want to consider looking into some of these options.

Does Paying your Mortgage Biweekly Save You Money?

My mortgage-holder, Citibank, often mails me with this offer: the BiWeekly Advantage Plan. For a one-time fee of $375 and $1.50 each payment, they will basically split your usual monthly payment in half and make a payment every two weeks, coinciding when you get paid from your job. The savings are real- on a $250,000 mortgage at a 5.75% rate, you can reduce your 30 year mortgage by more than four years, thus saving you over $45,000 in interest. I’m sure most other large mortgage companies have similar plans.

So why shouldn’t every homeowner pay the fees and do something like this? Because you can do the same thing yourself without paying the fees. The savings occur because you’re paying every 2 weeks, which means the 26 half-payments are equal to 13 monthly payments. So you can realize nearly the exact same savings just by making one additional monthly mortgage payment per year. Or, on a monthly basis, divide your usual payment by twelve, and add that to your usual payment. And you just saved yourself the $375 initial fee and the $39 payment fee every year.

Of course, if you want to do this yourself you must be a dedicated practitioner. If you lack the willpower to actually make that extra annual payment but still do want the savings, maybe a program like this is worth the money. Personally, I’m not yet ready to put much extra into my mortgage payments, but as my salary rises I definitely plan on doing so (without using a program like this).