If you notice a musty or dusty smell when you turn on the furnace, you should look into having your air ducts cleaned. People with allergies or respiratory issues are especially vulnerable to the circulation of dirt and mold spores that accumulate in the HVAC system.

To help you determine if it’s time to clean the air ducts in your Santa Cruz home, here are answers to some frequently asked questions:

• Why should I have my ducts cleaned? Particulates in the air ducts become airborne throughout your Santa Cruz home whenever the blower goes on. In addition, contaminant buildup can reduce the efficiency of the heating system.

• How often should my ducts be cleaned? Even if your heating system has a good, effective filter, some experts believe your…

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According to AARP, seniors overwhelmingly want to stay in their Santa Cruz homes as long as possible.  With innovations in home design, it’s possible for more and more seniors to achieve this dream.

Remodelers trained as Certified Aging-in-Place Specialists (CAPS) can help homeowners adapt their Santa Cruz homes for easier accessibility and improved functionality. CAPS remodelers learn about aging-in-place home design and how to help customers create a more comfortable home.

Don’t have the money to hire a CAPS remodeler? There are accessibility and functionality improvements your handy-person or loved one can inexpensively do for you, such as:

• Installing grab bars to minimize falling
• Adding comfort-height toilets
• Constructing raised-bed…

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Few things are as unsettling as the suspicion that termites are attacking your Santa Cruz home. This is one thing you do not want to stay in denial about. Here are some steps to help you face the possibility and prevent problems:

• Don't let any wooden parts of your Santa Cruz home touch soil directly.  As always, the best solution is prevention. If wooden parts of your house are touching the soil directly, a professional can remedy it by installing metal shields and re-grading the soil along the foundation to improve drainage and create a gap between soil and wooden structures.

• Determine whether you do have termites. Subterranean termites build characteristic mud tubes for movement between nests. The appearance of these tubes is often the first…

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If you're sitting in your apartment right now thinking: I wish I could paint it, but my lease doesn't allow it, maybe it's time to talk to a Santa Cruz real estate agent about purchasing a new home.  Before you rush off to the store to look at paint samples or, more importantly, sign on the dotted line of any mortgages, consider the pros and cons of buying.

Pros

1. Financial Investment: Given the gloomy news on foreclosure rates across the country, it is easy to forget that buying Santa Cruz real estate is also a means of saving and investing.  The money you pay in rent to your landlord goes to your landlord; the money you put toward a mortgage goes toward building equity in your home.

2. Pride of Ownership: By buying a home, you will be able to…

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Adding a bathroom to your Santa Cruz home may not only improve the quality of your life, it may also increase the value of your home. Although in today’s market you’re not guaranteed to get back the cost of adding a bath, in the long term, it typically boosts your home’s value by about 20 percent, according to the National Association of Home Builders.

How many bathrooms does a Santa Cruz home need?

Most home buyers want an equal number of bedrooms and bathrooms. So, if you have fewer bathrooms than bedrooms, you’ll get a good return on your investment by adding a bath.

Buyers also prefer at least one bathroom on each floor of a house. To get a good return on your investment, add a bath to the second floor of a home without one. Have a finished…

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Home improvement shows tell you that you can add 20 to 40 thousand dollars to the value of your Santa Cruz home by doing a simple remodel on virtually any room or outdoor space.  While you can get a return on your investment for most remodeling projects, the increase to your home value is not always as high as the home improvement shows claim.

Myth #1:  If you put 20 thousand dollars into a kitchen remodel, your home’s value will increase by 40 thousand dollars.

Fact:  The average kitchen remodel costs 40 thousand dollars.  This is on a mid-range remodel, not a high-end remodel.  The average return you can expect is 80 to 95 percent or about 36 thousand dollars on a 40 thousand dollar remodel.

Myth #2: Updating a bathroom can add as much as 20…

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If your Santa Cruz home is starting to look like a landfill, you’re not alone. You’d like to get rid of all the old stuff you don’t use anymore, but you want to be responsible and don’t know where to take it, right?

Here are some of the most common obsolete items and ideas on what to do with them.

• Technotrash: This is computer-related waste, VHS tapes, cassette tapes, CDs, DVDs and other obsolete accessories.  A company called GreenDisk can handle all your technotrash disposal needs by safely and securely destroying your old data, recovering reusable components, and recycling all of the rest of your accumulated technotrash.

• Old electronics: Also known as e-waste, this includes old appliances, TVs and monitors that contain valuable metals that…

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According to a report by the U.S. Department of Energy, only one in five household sockets currently contain energy-efficient light bulbs.  If you haven’t embraced them, here are some reasons to make the switch sooner rather than later in your Santa Cruz home:

• Your budget will thank you – While a Compact Fluorescent light bulb (CFL) costs more to purchase than an incandescent (about $1 more per bulb), the CFL will last up to 10 times longer than the traditional light bulb.  According to Energy Star, a CFL saves you between $30 and $60 per bulb depending on the cost of electricity at your Santa Cruz home.

• It’s good for the environment – A CFL uses 75% less energy than a traditional light bulb. 

• Your quality of light won’t suffer – A federal…

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Before you put your home on the market, you want to make certain that it’s in tip-top condition to ensure a quick sale. The key to listing your home at a competitive price and guaranteeing you have what buyers are looking for is to think like a Santa Cruz real estate agent.

To get your home ready to sell, here are five easy and inexpensive home improvements this Santa Cruz real estate agent recommends:

1. Layout – Take an objective look at your home and stage accordingly. Remove clutter and rearrange furniture so that potential buyers can envision each room’s purpose. Also, store any obtrusive furniture that disrupts walking flow or makes rooms look smaller.

2. Hardware – Update all hardware. Changing out door handles, drawer pulls and light…

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In honor of Labor Day, you may have a few DIY renovation projects planned for your Santa Cruz home. Instead of plunging right into costly home renovations, you might want to take the long weekend to consider the following tips to gain insight before getting down to work.

• Talk to your parents. Give your elders a call to see what they think about your renovation plans. Those of the older generation have usually lived in many houses and did a lot more fixing up than most property owners do today.

• Consult a professional. Talk with a professional who specializes in the type of renovation that you’re planning, such as a carpenter, plumber or electrician. They might charge you for an hour of their time, but you’ll gain valuable insight and maybe even…

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