Saturday, October 25, 2014

WINTER PEST CONTROL When the cooler months roll around, pests look for reliable sources of warmth and food... that includes your house! Here are some practical tips for keeping them out. When the temperatures begin to dip, humans aren’t the only ones who appreciate the warmth and shelter of a cozy home. Insects, rodents, and other small mammals are also drawn to the comforts your house provides. Ever have a mouse die in a wall? It’s not the sort of smell that one appreciates during the holidays. No one wants an expensive electrical repair when a rat chews its way through wiring in the attic or basement, either. Do yourself a favor and protect yourself from pests this Fall and Winter. Here are some tips: 1. Inspect the outside of your home for ways animals may sneak in. Often utility vents and areas under eaves have gaps which should be sealed or screened. 2. Look for gaps around door and window frames, and caulk or repair those gaps. Tiny entry ways can lead to big problems. 3. Examine trees around your home. Are any branches close to or touching the roof? These branches can be pathways for rodents to access your roof and any access ways the roof may provide to your attic, walls, or crawlspaces. 4. Make sure your garbage and recycling bins have tight fitting or locking lids. Hungry animals will find those scraps, trimmings, and drips, and they can more or less provide an invitation to come close to the house. It’s not a bad idea to buy containers with latches or locks that won’t interfere with garbage pickup, but will deter most animals. (Raccoons are particularly clever, though!) 5. If you have a wood pile for a fireplace or other stove, keep it at a distance from your home. If you’ve been keeping it close to the house because of the cover a roof provides, consider relocating the wood and using a tarp to keep it dry. 6. Inside your home, try not to store food on countertops as it will attract flies and rodents. Airtight containers inside of cabinets an drawers is a better bet. 7. Never leave dirty dishes in the sink overnight if you can help it. Just like food on the counter, it’s an invitation for bugs. 8. Wash your floors with a water and a cleaner. Food residue from spills will attract ants. With a little prevention, you can keep your home pest free this season. Even with the best protection, pest control can become a necessity, though. If you need a referral for a trusted pest control company, feel free to get in touch with me: Sharon@SharonShephed.com

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Monday, October 20, 2014

Friday, October 17, 2014

Had more fun today. My 12 year grand daughter was invited to the Mt SAC invitational cross country run and Jess and I went to see her compete. WOW what a great cross country course they have there and she was so pleased with her performance and time. She won the most improved runner for the year trophy and was as proud as punch. Was so great watching all those kids strive so hard to compete and complete the course. Kudos to them all.

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Selling or Buying a Home in Riverside Corona Norco Chino Nuevo Perris or Riverside County |...

7 SIGNS YOUR BEDROOM HAS GONE BAD Why hasn’t anyone made an offer on your home? It could be the bedrooms. Here are some serious signs you’re in need of a bedroom makeover. Bedrooms don’t come with an expiration date, but some really should. When buyers are touring a home, a stale bedroom with outdated style can be a deal-breaker. Problematically, many sellers simply can’t see their own bedrooms honestly anymore. Give your bedroom the “has it gone bad?” sniff test by checking for these common signs of stale design: Your ceiling has more popcorn than the home theater: Is your ceiling a constellation of dusty, stained popcorn texture? Nothing says “state of the art 1950s design” like the popcorn ceiling. Removal can be a dirty job, and you’ll want to have it checked for asbestos before you do, but getting rid of it goes a long way to modernizing the look. Mirror, mirror, on the wall. And the closets. And the... ceiling? A little reflected light makes a bedroom look bigger, but if you’re rocking the fun house / journey-into-infinity effect, consider removing some of those reflective surfaces. Frills, frills everywhere. Check those bed skirts, window dressings, and curtains. Could a Civil War-era southern belle scratch together a formal dress from your assortment of puffy fabrics? Tone it down. Sorry, captain, the pattern is... retro. Check the paper in your drawers, the shelves of your armoire, and the paper on the walls. Does it feel like felt? Is it yellow like a pirate map? Does it remind you of an 80s prom? Any (or all!) of these are signs you need to update. Prison ward pillows. Wow, that bed looks... really, really flat. You sleep like that? Clean lines are one thing, an uncomfy bedroom is another. Puff it up and make it cozy. Formica anything. Does your dresser look like it would make a nice kitchen island in the 1970s? Spring for some staging furniture and replace that laminate wonderland. But I’ve had that alarm clock / television / stereo for 30 years! Yes, and it shows. Nix the flip-digit clocks, the wood grain television cabinets, and the neon-striped boom boxes. Modernize or put them in storage, stat. Yes, buyers can modernize a bedroom when they buy the house, but expecting them to see past your bedroom’s past is taking a gamble. Do a few simple things to freshen up that room! Need someone to evaluate your interior appeal? (Free staging by a design professional on my listings) I’m happy to share my candid thoughts and guide you towards maximizing your home’s appeal: http://ift.tt/1cJ58fS

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Hurricane Gonzalo Viewed From the International Space Station

Hurricane Gonzalo Viewed From the International Space Station

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Thursday, October 16, 2014

Wednesday, October 15, 2014

Tuesday, October 14, 2014

Monday, October 13, 2014

Selling or Buying a Home in Riverside Corona Norco Chino Nuevo Perris or Riverside County |...

ELIMINATE THE "PHANTOM MENACE" Does it seem like your power bill has gone up year after year? While elevated energy costs are certainly part of the problem, thereʼs a “phantom menace” thatʼs also been driving up your bill: New electronics. Long gone are the days when shouting at the kids to “turn off the light!” was a sure way to save on electricity (though installing reduced-energy bulbs is a good move, too). The U.S. Department of Energy reports that “75% of the electricity used to power home electronics is consumed while products are turned off.” Whyʼs that? Because newer electronics and appliances consume power even when the device is turned off. The term to describe this is known as “phantom load.” Home entertainment systems with remote controls, wireless routers, appliances with clocks, electronics that use a power adaptor (i.e. a wall cube) and computer printers are all good targets for reducing phantom loads. If you can feasibly eliminate these loads, you can save a lot of money over the course of the year. So how do you eliminate phantom load? Unplugging devices every day is a hassle, but one sound alternative is the use of power strips which allow you to kill the connection to the main outlet without having to unplug devices. If you Google “smart power strips” youʼll also find a variety of options for allowing certain devices to “pass through” while others are shut off. This can be useful when you have certain devices which do need to be “on standby” while others do not. While going green is a perfectly good reason to reduce your power consumption, the money you save on power can go to other household expenses, family vacations, and perhaps even the down payment on your next (or first!) home. Keep an eye out for those energy vampires! Usually you can tell who they are by their LED lights glowing in the night. I love to help my clients get the most out of their home. If youʼre thinking of selling or searching for a home soon, please get in touch today: Sharon@SharonShepherd.com http://ift.tt/1cJ58fS

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Saturday, October 11, 2014

Friday, October 10, 2014

An Open Letter To The General Public About Real Estate

This is a great letter that was posted on my Active Rain page and makes so much sense. Bacon anyone?

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Hubble Catches a Dusty Spiral in Virgo

Hubble Catches a Dusty Spiral in Virgo

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Thursday, October 9, 2014

Tuesday, October 7, 2014

Friday, October 3, 2014

The 10 best U.S. cities to live in



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CENTURY 21 Olde Tyme - Media

Here is a link to my newsletter on Household Budgets.. Hope it makes sense to you all. Budgets and I have only ever had a nodding acquaitance - much to my shame. But -- Old Dogs can be taught new tricks so I thought I would share. http://ift.tt/Z1jyaO

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Rosetta Comet Fires Its Jets

Rosetta Comet Fires Its Jets

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Thursday, October 2, 2014

Wednesday, October 1, 2014

5 questions to ask yourself before buying in an up-and-coming market



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Milky Way Viewed From the International Space Station

Milky Way Viewed From the International Space Station

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