A water meter key is like insurance; buy it before you need it.

Imagine a pipe has burst and there is water flowing like a river through your home.  There may a cut-off valve to each sink if it works and if that’s where the leak is coming from. Your home may have a master cut-off valve but if you haven’t used it before, you might not know where it is. The last resort is to cut off all the water to your house at the meter.

In most cases, you’ll need a key to get into the meter.  With water starting to rise in your home, concern over the damage being done may add to your anxieties.  You don’t have time to call a plumber or even go the store to buy a water meter key.

Emergencies are handled much better when you plan for them in advance and practice, even though you hope you’ll never need it.

1. Determine what kind of key you need to open your water meter.
2. Purchase it at the home improvement or hardware store.
3. Practice opening the meter to be able to do it quickly and easily.
4. If your meter key doesn’t have a wrench on one end, you need a wrench to turn the water valve.
5. Practice turning the water off just to see how it works and feels.
6. Put the key in an obvious and conspicuous place.
7. Have the phone number of an emergency plumber, just in case you need it.

While you’re planning for the unexpected, it might be a good idea to show some of the other family members how it works and where you keep the key.

 

Originally Posted at: Lafayette Real Estate News

What does the “Custom” privacy setting mean?

When you choose the Custom option in your audience selector, you can share something with specific people, or hide it from specific people. You can also choose to share or hide posts from friend lists if you’ve set them up. Custom also gives you the option to share with groups or networks you belong to.A quick step-by-step:

– Click the “Account” tab in the page’s top right corner, and select “Edit Friends.” 
– Click the “Create a List” button above the search bar. For example, you may make a list for “Co-workers,” people who you’re willing to be more open with than your bosses, but may not wish to be as open with as your friends back home. Other lists might be “Parents,” “Teachers,” “Employees,” “Business Partners,” “Ex-Girlfriends,” or “Aunts and Uncles.” If an individual is a unique case, you can make a list with only them. 
– Select all the people you’d like to add to the list. In the future, when you receive a friend request, you can add that person to a list upon accepting their request. 
– With your lists built, go to Account > Facebook Privacy Settings. Select the “Custom” setting and the click the “Customize settings” link. 
– Here you will see a list of profile elements you can control with your Facebook privacy settings. Each has a drop down box. Choose “Custom,” and then “edit.” In the field that says, “Hide from,” you can enter all the lists of people you don’t want to see that part of your profile. Perhaps you want to keep co-workers privvy to most of your information, but keep them from viewing links posted on your wall because some of your politically-minded friends post links to touchy topics. Or perhaps you want to mask your political and religious views. 
     + (As an aside, these settings also offer a way around the dreaded change of relationship status, which hits your friends’ newsfeeds and gets people asking if you’re okay. Before you change the status, change your Facebook privacy settings so that only you are allowed to view your relationship status. If you want to again display it some day, it will simply re-appear on your page with the Facebook world none the wiser.)
– Review your Facebook privacy settings periodically to make sure people are seeing what you think they’re seeing.
– Lastly, enjoy expressing yourself openly while maximizing Facebook’s networking potential.

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1031 Exchanges

Section 1031 exchange for rental and investment real estate is a tool that allows investors to move the gain from one property to another without immediate income tax consequences. 

An instant benefit is to postpone the tax due which gives the investor a larger amount of proceeds to invest.  In the example shown, the investor has 21% more proceeds to invest and grow over time than if he had paid the taxes due instead of exchanging.

A legitimate long-term goal might be to make qualified exchanges from one property to another until the investor dies.  The heirs would then receive a stepped-up basis on the property based on the market value at the time of the decedent’s death and possibly avoiding taxes altogether.

There are specific requirements to be met in order for the exchange to qualify. For more information on exchanges, see IRS publication 544.  In addition to enlisting the services of a real estate professional familiar with investment property, seek the help of Qualified Intermediary to facilitate the intricacies of the exchange.  Contact us for more information.

 

Originally Posted at: Lafayette Real Estate News

 

If you are looking for something fun to do this weekend, don’t forget the New Orleans’ Jazz Fest will be going on at the Fair Grounds Race Course. This festival features musicians, cooks, and craft artisans from around the region and world. Approximately 400,000 visitors go to the Jazz Fest each year to listen to the various musicians on multiple stages and sample the delicious cuisine that the festival has to offer. The musical varities that can be found at this fun filled fest include Jazz, Blues, R&B, Gospel, Cajun, Zydeco, Afro-Caribbean, Folk, Rock, Pop, Latin, Country, and everything in between. Some of this year’s artist include Elton John, Jimmy Buffet, The Who, Keith Urban, The Coral Reefer Band as well as a ton of other top notch artists! The entire lineup for Jazz Fest is available now!  Here is a list of items that are allowed and not allowed into Jazz Fest. Tickets for Jazz Fest can be purchased for $58.00 at www.nojazzfest.com, www.ticketmaster.com, or at all Ticketmaster outlets or calling (800) 745-3000. For more information contact us.

 

Originally Posted at: Lafayette Real Estate News

Homes for Sale in the Walker’s Village Neighborhood Lafayette, LA

Why Do People Live here?

Walker’s Village is a beautiful neighborhood of single family homes that is conveniently located minutes outside of River Ranch. It’s not uncommon to see neighbors chatting in the streets of this quaint little oasis. It’s far enough from the main hustle and bustle of the city that residents don’t feel like the urban center of Lafayette is knocking on their door.

Looking for a home in Walker’s Village?

Interested in finding homes for sale in the Kennydale Neighborhood of Renton WA? Click that link to find all the currently available homes in this area of Renton.

What’s the Neighborhood Like?

The homes you would expect to find for sale in the Kennydale Neighborhood are generally going to range between 1500 and 2000 square feet. Most of the homes were originally built by Quadrant homes back in the late 1980’s. The last set of homes in this subdivision were built in 1992. Since then, many of the homes have had updates and it’s not uncommon to find homes that have extensive finished basements adding to the square footage of some of these great homes. The smallest homes in the neighborhood start with 3 bedrooms while the larger floor plans have a four bedroom layout with some models putting the master bedroom on the main floor. Most of the lots range between 1/4 acre and a 1/2 acre so there is plenty of room for people to get out and enjoy the beautiful Pacific Northwest weather.

What’s Going on Nearby the Kennydale Neighborhood?

Kennydale is located right in revitalized Renton Highlands area of the city. There is a major hospital less than 5 miles from the neighborhood as well as just about every kind of conceivable shopping in walking distance. The Sunset shopping center is just down the street and has everything from a pharmacy to a wonderful local coffee shop. In the evenings you will want to take a stroll down to enjoy dinner at Mac’s, a great neighborhood Irish pub. The little Green Lake Cinema plays indie films throughout the year and it’s not uncommon to have it sold out on Thursday nights for their ‘Film Noire’ series. Find out about everything that is nearby to Kennydale including places of worship, banking, shopping, Attractions and recreation and much more on my website.

What Schools will the Kids Attend?

If you buy a home for sale in the Kennydale Neighborhood of Renton WA, the local schools serving this area are Lawton Elementary School, Meeker Junior High, and Blaine High School. To get local school scores and more information about these schools check out the Renton school reports on my website.

Now You Really Want to Find a Home Here, Right?

If you are interested in the current homes for sale in Kennydale Neighborhood of Renton WA click on the link. Our ‘for sale’ property information is a direct feed from the Northwest MLS and is updated multiple times per day.