The Freeman/Davis Team\’s Blog!

Selecting the right plants can significantly increase your indoor air quality.   They include Lady Palm, Rubber Plant, and English Ivy.   These plants also resist insects and disease, and are easy to grow.   To improve your indoor air quality, for a 150 sq. ft. room, you™ll need three full-sized plants in 10 to 12 inch containers.

For all your real estate needs, The FREEMAN/DAVIS Team is always at your service.   Please visit our web site at www.HomeSearchRALEIGH.com for free money-saving home tips.

Town Of Wake Forest Applicance Rebates

Install a new energy-efficient heat pump and  sign up for electric heat strip control and central air conditioner control  and the Town of Wake Forest will credit your utility bill for $300. Install an energy-efficient water heater and sign up for electric water heater control and  earn a $150 credit on your utility bill.      For more information,  call  (919) 554-6107.

Cary’s Rebate For High Efficiency Toilets

The Town of Cary  is offering $150 Rebates to water customers who replace their older toilets that use between 3.5 and 5 gallons of water per flush with new high efficiency toilets that use 75 to 80 percent less water.   For information on this program call (919) 469-4090

For all your real estate needs, The FREEMAN/DAVIS TEAM is always at your service.   Please visit our web site at www.HomeSearchRALEIGH.com for free money-saving home tips.

Falls Lake has dipped below full for the first time since recovering  on April 5. The Lake is currently  at 251.24 feet, which is 0.26 feet (approximately 3 inches) below full. The U.S. Drought Monitor reclassified all of Wake County in the moderate drought category last week and below normal rainfall is anticipated for the coming 10 days.

Raleigh water customers are continuing to do a great job conserving and this is just a little reminder to keep up the good work ! ! !

Whether you™re thinking of buying or selling real estate, The FREEMAN/DAVIS TEAM would love to help.   For more information, please visit www.HomeSearchRALEIGH.com.  
 

Every car owner should have an automatic center punch for breaking windows. If your auto were to be submerged in water, getting out could be nearly impossible. The center punch will allow you to break your windows to escape safely. Simply press the tool against window until glass breaks. Store the punch in a quick-access location, such as driver™s door side pocket or center console. They cost about $15 and are available at most hardware stores.

Whether you™re thinking of buying or selling real estate, The FREEMAN/DAVIS TEAM would love to help. For more information, please visit www.HomeSearchRALEIGH.com.

The Town of Wake Forest, Triangle Transit, and the City of Raleigh will offer two weekday bus routes serving Wake Forest beginning in July.   The first is an express route between Wake Forest, Triangle Town Center, and downtown Raleigh. The second is a local circulator bus within Wake Forest itself with accompanying ADA Paratransit. A timed transfer between the two routes will be provided throughout the day. Service is scheduled to begin July 7, 2008.

For more information, please visit http://triangletransit.org/bus/wakeforest/

For all your real estate needs, The FREEMAN/DAVIS TEAM is always at your service.   Please visit our web site at www.HomeSearchRALEIGH.com for free money-saving home tips.

When you go to the grocery store, do you automatically pick up those items that are labeled œorganic thinking they™re healthier for you?   In the past, there were no set rules for this type of labeling, but thanks to the USDA and consumer concern, new legislation was recently instituted.

Before legislation, it had become painfully evident that œorganic didn™t always mean the same thing to all manufacturers.   Contrary to popular belief, organic doesn™t always mean grown naturally with no chemicals.   Thankfully, the new standards give some guidelines.  

The requirements for products to be labeled œorganic include meat, poultry, eggs, and dairy products from animals not treated with antibiotics or growth hormones.   The new guidelines also state that organic produce must be free of most pesticides, certain fertilizers, and radiation.   This does leave room for the use of some non-conventional pesticides, but at least now you know what you are buying.   For a full copy of the organic food standards you can visit www.usda.gov.

Whether you™re thinking of buying or selling real estate, The FREEMAN/DAVIS TEAM would love to help.   For more information, please visit www.HomeSearchRALEIGH.com.  

Saturday nights just got a little better.     Here is the  summer concert series for Downtown Live In Moore Square Park . All shows are FREE and begin at 2 PM and end at 11 PM rain or shine.

Moore Square is located at the corner of Blount & Martin Street in downtown Raleigh

June 14, 2008  Cravin Melon

June 28, 2008  Blind Melon / Carbon Leaf

July 12, 2008  Alter Bridge / Tantric

July 26, 2008  Old 97s / The Connells

Aug 09, 2008  Bad Company Vocalist Brian Howe

Aug 23, 2008  Puddle of Mudd / Eve 6 / Saving Abel

Strollers, diaper bags and lawn chairs are welcome, but no coolers and outside food (for adults) are allowed in the park; so bring only what you need for your kids.

For all your real estate needs, The FREEMAN/DAVIS TEAM is always at your service.   Please visit our web site at www.HomeSearchRALEIGH.com for free money-saving home tips.

As the saying goes, œone man™s trash is another man™s treasure.   Here™s advice for picking through the œtrash and finding the true treasures at resales.   Whether you enjoy going to yard sales, thrift stores, auctions, or Internet trading sites, if you keep your eyes open you may find something of great value.   But you™ll need to do some homework first.  

There™s a lot of junk to sift through before a treasure can be found “ but that™s the fun part! Here™s how to recognize a valuable item when you find it.   First, examine the item for identifying marks, signatures, brand name, quality, condition, and possible age.   This will help you figure out the period of the piece.   Next, look at the construction materials of the item and any other characteristics that could tip you off to its worth.   You™ll need to check the value of the item using either the Internet or specialty books.   The site www.artfact.com provides a searchable database of art, antiques, and collectables.   It may provide you with some needed background information.   You can also look in books for information.   Visit www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/roadshow/ for a full listing of the books the experts use on the PBS program œAntique Roadshow.  

Many resale shoppers find great items, but you need a good eye for quality and the time to shop.

Whether you™re thinking of buying or selling real estate, The FREEMAN/DAVIS TEAM would love to help.   For more information, please visit www.HomeSearchRALEIGH.com.  

This just in¦Kiplinger’s Personal Finance magazine has listed Raleigh as the country’s second best place to live in 2008, right behind Houston, TX.   Raleigh is “a work in progress,” Kiplinger’s says in its July issue, now on newsstands. They go on to say that Raleigh is becoming a more exciting place to live with an increasing number of big-city cultural amenities.   In particular, the renaissance of downtown is cited as the reason why 2008 marks “the turning point” for the Capital City, giving examples like the new Raleigh Convention Center and the downtown RBC Plaza, which are both set to open this year.

For all your real estate needs, the FREEMAN/DAVIS TEAM is always at your service.   Please visit our web site at www.HomeSearchRALEIGH.com for free money-saving home tips.

You have two options.   You can either get a home equity loan or a home equity line of credit.   Both are secured by a lien against your home.   Each has their advantages and disadvantages.

A home equity loan gives you a set amount of money up front and then allows you to pay it back in a set monthly amount.   It™s frequently organized like a typical loan payment plan.   Usually, lenders will let you borrow up to 85 percent of the appraised value of your home minus the amount of the unpaid mortgage.   The interest rates on this type of loan are some of the lowest rates available and the interest you pay is tax-deductible.

On the other hand, a home equity line of credit allows you to draw upon a pre-approved loan only when you need the money.   Then, you only make payments when there is an outstanding balance.   You can often access this line of credit using either a check from that account or a special credit card.  

One of the downfalls of the line of credit is that it may have a set amount of time you are allowed to draw upon the available funds.   If your home improvements exceed the time limit, you will need to be sure you can either get an extension or another line of credit.   Some of these plans also have a deadline when all of the money must be repaid in full.   Both of these aspects limit the time flexibility for your home improvements to be completed.    

If you are in need of caring, competent representation, please contact THE FREEMAN/DAVIS TEAM at (919) 649-6638 or visit our web site at www.HomeSearchRALEIGH.com