Carbon monoxide alarms must be installed in most new residential construction as of October 1, 2008 and in most existing residential buildings by April 1, 2010
As of October 1, 2008, carbon monoxide alarms must be installed in most new "residential" buildings which have fuel burning appliances. The residential types include tourist rooming houses (cabins), bed and breakfast establishments, and any public building used for sleeping or lodging, such as hotels, motels, condominiums, apartment buildings, dormitories, fraternities, sororities, convents, seminaries, community-based residential facilities, and home shelters. Hospitals and nursing homes are not included.
The owners of existing buildings will have until April 1, 2010 to install the carbon monoxide alarms.
The new regulations were issued by the Department of Commerce as required by the legislation. Emergency Rule Relating to Carbon Monoxide Detectors
A. New tourist rooming houses (also cabins under the scope of Wisconsin's Uniform Dwelling Code, Wis. Admin. Code § Comm 21.095) as of October 1, 2008:1. Installation of carbon monoxide alarms where any type of fuel burning appliances are installed.2. The carbon monoxide alarms must be continuously powered by the building's electrical service with battery backups.
B. New commercial buildings (Wis. Admin. Code § Comm 62.1200) as of October 1, 2008:1. Installation of carbon monoxide alarms where any type of fuel burning appliances are installed.2. The carbon monoxide alarms must be continuously powered by the building's electrical service with battery backups.
C. Commercial buildings existing on October 1, 2008, or receiving plan approval prior to October 1, 2008:1. Installation of carbon monoxide alarms by April 1, 2010.2. No mandatory type of power sources for the carbon monoxide alarms is specified, thereby allowing batteries, electrical outlet plug-ins or wiring to the building's electrical service.3. Omission of carbon monoxide alarms is allowed provided there are no attached garages and all of the fuel burning appliances are of sealed combustion type either under warranty or annually inspected for carbon monoxide emissions.
Thursday, September 11, 2008
RE/MAX International CEO, Margaret Kelly, appeared during the 9:00 hour of “The Today Show” on Tuesday, August 26th. Kelly talked about “Selling a House in Today’s Market” and the latest “Existing Home Sales Data” from the National Association of Realtors.
If you missed it click here and gain some valuable perspective and information!
If you missed it click here and gain some valuable perspective and information!
Wednesday, July 2, 2008
Cabinets Unhinged
Cabinets Unhinged By Marni Jameson
If I had to do it over (that line could open half my columns), I'd rethink my cabinet hardware. Until this past week, I hadn't given this hardware much thought. I liked my kitchen cabinets, which are only four years old. The drawers glide smoothly like Michelle Kwan, and the door hinges feel sturdy as firemen. But recently two events conspired to change my affections.
One, I visited my friend's new home, which she and her husband spent three years designing and building. A kitchen diva, Laurie cooks and entertains like an Oscar-party caterer, so I knew her kitchen would be, err, top drawer (sorry). Two, I received a preview of The New Yankee Workshop's nine-week kitchen makeover special, where the plaid-shirted Norm Abram, that carpenter who can build a log cabin out of an abandoned beaver dam, outfits a tired old kitchen with smart new cabinetry. Suddenly, my hardware seemed out of date, second rate and wholly inadequate, the way parents of college graduates feel.
When I get to Laurie's house, she's cooking dinner for her 16-year-old son and 24 of his friends. I pitch in to assemble five pans of vegetarian lasagna, two vats of Caesar salad, and three trays of garlic bread. As she dredges eggplant and stirs a gallon pot of bichamel (a word that in my recipe book means turn the page or order pizza), I snoop.
Her kitchen is enormous, but my obsession isn't with size, but with drawers. I pull one open, swoosh. It's fastidiously organized with compartments like a tackle box. I look it over.
"Where is it?" I ask.
"Where's what?" She must wonder why my head is under her drawer.
"The hardware." There's no drawer orthodontia cluttering the sides, waiting to catch crumbs and grease.
She shrugs. "Does the lasagna need more cheese?"
Then I meet the invisible hand. With a tap, the drawer slides to an inch of closing, then stops as if it hit a cotton ball. Just as I'm ready to push it again, a vacuum-like force sucks the drawer silently, firmly shut. I scream and jump back.
I holler to Laurie as if I'm the one who's discovered it: "Watch this!" I open a drawer and shut it, harder. It slows to a controlled stop, then swoosh, sucks closed. I need to tie a strap under my jaw to keep it from falling in the lasagna. "How does it know?"
"Uhh, when you're done, could you toss salad?"
When dinner's ready, the teenagers come through like locusts. Once they've gone, and we've cleaned up, Laurie offers coffee. "What kind do you want?" she asks.
"Whatever you're having."
"No, seriously, you can have whatever you want." She shows me her built-in Miele espresso machine. The appliance has cartridge slots for five kinds of coffee, ranging in octane levels from hair-on-your-chest strong to why-bother decaf. Pick your strength, and it brews espresso, latte or drip by the cup.
I shake my head. "Is this Jane Jetson's kitchen or yours?"
Laurie slides open a drawer built under the coffee maker. In it are not just mugs, warm mugs, because this isn't just a drawer; it's a mug warming drawer.
The longer I stay, the more unfaithful I feel toward my own comparatively modest kitchen. I was falling in love. That's the inevitable risk of home improvement. However up to date you make your kitchen, advancing technology sits on the verge making it as outdated as the wood-burning stove. Still, knowing that, if I had to do it over, I'd rethink the hardware, and I'd add that warming drawer.
I became even more smitten with high-tech kitchen gadgetry when I returned home and previewed The New Yankee Workshop kitchen series, airing this month and next on PBS. After watching it, I called Abram to uncover a few more secrets and trends:
Design with your stuff in mind. Kitchen designers use several methods to customize kitchens. Using a string test, they tie a string to someone and trace her steps as she cooks. Then they design a cabinet plan that saves footsteps. The heap method involves putting all your kitchen stuff in a pile, and then designing cabinets to accommodate it, which beats making what you have fit given cabinets. Laurie took pictures of her kitchen supplies while they were in the cabinets of her former home, then made sure her new kitchen had a place for everything and more. The owner of the kitchen Abram was remodeling had 14-inch plates; standard upper cabinets are 12-inches deep. "Simple," Abram said. "We made the cabinet deeper."
Don't skimp on the hardware. Typically, hardware comes rated for two kinds of loads: carrying ability and shock capacity. (Can your kid jump on it?) The higher the load the better. Both Laurie and Norm used hardware from Blum.
Trade doors for drawers. Thanks to better hardware, cabinets with fixed shelves are giving way to cabinets with pullout shelves or drawers. Laurie's kitchen has upper cabinets, but for lower storage she has primarily drawers. She will never again rummage in the back of a cabinet for a pot.
Bring dead corners to life. Corner cabinets often become black holes; things go in but never return. New cabinet designs fix that. Drawers have fronts built at a 90-degree angle that pull open to reveal full drawers. Doors open on elbow hinges, revealing shelves that turn like Lazy Susans.
Replace don't retrofit. Putting new hardware on old cabinets is expensive, difficult and usually not worth it. "If you're ready to replace the hardware, you're getting close to the idea of new cabinets," said Abram.
Marni Jameson is a nationally syndicated columnist and author of "The House Always Wins" (Da Capo). You can learn more about her and her book - which can be a nice housewarming gift or a tool to show buyers some great ideas on turning a house that isn't quite right into perfect, at www.marnijameson.com.
If I had to do it over (that line could open half my columns), I'd rethink my cabinet hardware. Until this past week, I hadn't given this hardware much thought. I liked my kitchen cabinets, which are only four years old. The drawers glide smoothly like Michelle Kwan, and the door hinges feel sturdy as firemen. But recently two events conspired to change my affections.
One, I visited my friend's new home, which she and her husband spent three years designing and building. A kitchen diva, Laurie cooks and entertains like an Oscar-party caterer, so I knew her kitchen would be, err, top drawer (sorry). Two, I received a preview of The New Yankee Workshop's nine-week kitchen makeover special, where the plaid-shirted Norm Abram, that carpenter who can build a log cabin out of an abandoned beaver dam, outfits a tired old kitchen with smart new cabinetry. Suddenly, my hardware seemed out of date, second rate and wholly inadequate, the way parents of college graduates feel.
When I get to Laurie's house, she's cooking dinner for her 16-year-old son and 24 of his friends. I pitch in to assemble five pans of vegetarian lasagna, two vats of Caesar salad, and three trays of garlic bread. As she dredges eggplant and stirs a gallon pot of bichamel (a word that in my recipe book means turn the page or order pizza), I snoop.
Her kitchen is enormous, but my obsession isn't with size, but with drawers. I pull one open, swoosh. It's fastidiously organized with compartments like a tackle box. I look it over.
"Where is it?" I ask.
"Where's what?" She must wonder why my head is under her drawer.
"The hardware." There's no drawer orthodontia cluttering the sides, waiting to catch crumbs and grease.
She shrugs. "Does the lasagna need more cheese?"
Then I meet the invisible hand. With a tap, the drawer slides to an inch of closing, then stops as if it hit a cotton ball. Just as I'm ready to push it again, a vacuum-like force sucks the drawer silently, firmly shut. I scream and jump back.
I holler to Laurie as if I'm the one who's discovered it: "Watch this!" I open a drawer and shut it, harder. It slows to a controlled stop, then swoosh, sucks closed. I need to tie a strap under my jaw to keep it from falling in the lasagna. "How does it know?"
"Uhh, when you're done, could you toss salad?"
When dinner's ready, the teenagers come through like locusts. Once they've gone, and we've cleaned up, Laurie offers coffee. "What kind do you want?" she asks.
"Whatever you're having."
"No, seriously, you can have whatever you want." She shows me her built-in Miele espresso machine. The appliance has cartridge slots for five kinds of coffee, ranging in octane levels from hair-on-your-chest strong to why-bother decaf. Pick your strength, and it brews espresso, latte or drip by the cup.
I shake my head. "Is this Jane Jetson's kitchen or yours?"
Laurie slides open a drawer built under the coffee maker. In it are not just mugs, warm mugs, because this isn't just a drawer; it's a mug warming drawer.
The longer I stay, the more unfaithful I feel toward my own comparatively modest kitchen. I was falling in love. That's the inevitable risk of home improvement. However up to date you make your kitchen, advancing technology sits on the verge making it as outdated as the wood-burning stove. Still, knowing that, if I had to do it over, I'd rethink the hardware, and I'd add that warming drawer.
I became even more smitten with high-tech kitchen gadgetry when I returned home and previewed The New Yankee Workshop kitchen series, airing this month and next on PBS. After watching it, I called Abram to uncover a few more secrets and trends:
Design with your stuff in mind. Kitchen designers use several methods to customize kitchens. Using a string test, they tie a string to someone and trace her steps as she cooks. Then they design a cabinet plan that saves footsteps. The heap method involves putting all your kitchen stuff in a pile, and then designing cabinets to accommodate it, which beats making what you have fit given cabinets. Laurie took pictures of her kitchen supplies while they were in the cabinets of her former home, then made sure her new kitchen had a place for everything and more. The owner of the kitchen Abram was remodeling had 14-inch plates; standard upper cabinets are 12-inches deep. "Simple," Abram said. "We made the cabinet deeper."
Don't skimp on the hardware. Typically, hardware comes rated for two kinds of loads: carrying ability and shock capacity. (Can your kid jump on it?) The higher the load the better. Both Laurie and Norm used hardware from Blum.
Trade doors for drawers. Thanks to better hardware, cabinets with fixed shelves are giving way to cabinets with pullout shelves or drawers. Laurie's kitchen has upper cabinets, but for lower storage she has primarily drawers. She will never again rummage in the back of a cabinet for a pot.
Bring dead corners to life. Corner cabinets often become black holes; things go in but never return. New cabinet designs fix that. Drawers have fronts built at a 90-degree angle that pull open to reveal full drawers. Doors open on elbow hinges, revealing shelves that turn like Lazy Susans.
Replace don't retrofit. Putting new hardware on old cabinets is expensive, difficult and usually not worth it. "If you're ready to replace the hardware, you're getting close to the idea of new cabinets," said Abram.
Marni Jameson is a nationally syndicated columnist and author of "The House Always Wins" (Da Capo). You can learn more about her and her book - which can be a nice housewarming gift or a tool to show buyers some great ideas on turning a house that isn't quite right into perfect, at www.marnijameson.com.
Thursday, June 12, 2008
Pier Protection Act Signed into Law
Finally ... Pier Protection Act Signed into Law
By: Tom Larson
After more than four years of confusion and uncertainty about the legal status of existing piers, waterfront property owners can now breathe a sigh of relief. On April 1, 2008, Governor Doyle signed into law the Pier Protection Act (2007 Wisconsin Act 204), legislation that grandfathers 99 percent of existing piers from future regulations.
read more
By: Tom Larson
After more than four years of confusion and uncertainty about the legal status of existing piers, waterfront property owners can now breathe a sigh of relief. On April 1, 2008, Governor Doyle signed into law the Pier Protection Act (2007 Wisconsin Act 204), legislation that grandfathers 99 percent of existing piers from future regulations.
read more
Saturday, June 7, 2008
State of the Market
According to the News, the real estate market is in dire straights.
The fact of the matter is, its a great time to be buying a home, with many great deals being offered, excellent interest rates and a good ion to choose from.
Dont get me wrong, is the market off a bit for sellers? Yes, but having come off a long aggressive appreciation run, the market had to correct some to balance out property values vs. income increase. Bottom line, housing affordability was getting out of reach and something had to give.
With that said, many sellers have owned their homes for a number of years and are sitting on a decent equity position, and although they wont profit as much as theyd hoped, they are still in a good position for selling.
Its ironic how sellers were excited to sell during the "boom" at a good price and then pay top dollar for a replacement property, which had a 50/50 chance of appreciating or going down in value. Conversely, now they struggle with the concept of having to accept a bit less for their property to get a great deal on a replacement property that assuredly is in a much better position to appreciate???
In summary, if youre a potential buyer, get out there and BUY! If youre a seller, consult with a real estate professional to determine a REALISTIC value for your property, do what you have to do andtake advantage of positioning yourself for better equity gains in the future as the market recovers. Yes, it will recover, the sky has not fallen.
The fact of the matter is, its a great time to be buying a home, with many great deals being offered, excellent interest rates and a good ion to choose from.
Dont get me wrong, is the market off a bit for sellers? Yes, but having come off a long aggressive appreciation run, the market had to correct some to balance out property values vs. income increase. Bottom line, housing affordability was getting out of reach and something had to give.
With that said, many sellers have owned their homes for a number of years and are sitting on a decent equity position, and although they wont profit as much as theyd hoped, they are still in a good position for selling.
Its ironic how sellers were excited to sell during the "boom" at a good price and then pay top dollar for a replacement property, which had a 50/50 chance of appreciating or going down in value. Conversely, now they struggle with the concept of having to accept a bit less for their property to get a great deal on a replacement property that assuredly is in a much better position to appreciate???
In summary, if youre a potential buyer, get out there and BUY! If youre a seller, consult with a real estate professional to determine a REALISTIC value for your property, do what you have to do andtake advantage of positioning yourself for better equity gains in the future as the market recovers. Yes, it will recover, the sky has not fallen.
Are we at the Bottom Yet?
Are we near or at the bottom? This is a question Im often asked and I want to share some insight on the subject.
In our area, we are seeing a steady level of buyer activity. Not as much as a couple years ago, but buyers are out looking and making offers. Couple that with a lessening inventory, due to a slower rate of new listings entering the market and some sellers taking their properties off the market to wait things out (because they havent been there long enough and have enough equity to adjust to the market) and it appears that the market has reached or is very near the bottom.
So where do we go from here? Well, dont expect a race back up to 2004 sales levels, but we should see a steady market improvement, as sellers continue to accept the current market conditions and buyers begin to worry about prices going up and having missed the bottom.
A few factors that will greatly infuence the recovery the News Medias overblown negative coverage of the markets condition (negatively infuences consumer confidence) and the level of forclosures.
I beleive once the presidential election is over and the media can move on from trying to influence change in the oval office, theyll move on to other things and slack off on trying to convince us that the sky is falling in on our economy.
Foreclosures are less predictable. The Feds interest rate cuts will help some home owners with adjustable rate mortages, but many are delinquent on their payments already, so keeping their interst rate the same wont help them. Therfore the number of new forclosures is somewhat unpredictable.
The challenges the foreclosures have facilitated are banks have on average settled on 15% less than their originall asking price, making regular price cuts until buyers take action on it and when foclosure properties sell, they dont free up a homeowner to become a buy up buyer, it simply gets the bank off the hook.
Currently, were seeing a leveling off of the new forclosure listings rate and buyer numbers are steady to slightly increasing, which has them moving on to considering more privately held properties, therfore freeing up the buy ups. If this continues, well see the return of multiple offers on properties and sellers will begin to hold out for a little more, and the recovery will have begun.
In our area, we are seeing a steady level of buyer activity. Not as much as a couple years ago, but buyers are out looking and making offers. Couple that with a lessening inventory, due to a slower rate of new listings entering the market and some sellers taking their properties off the market to wait things out (because they havent been there long enough and have enough equity to adjust to the market) and it appears that the market has reached or is very near the bottom.
So where do we go from here? Well, dont expect a race back up to 2004 sales levels, but we should see a steady market improvement, as sellers continue to accept the current market conditions and buyers begin to worry about prices going up and having missed the bottom.
A few factors that will greatly infuence the recovery the News Medias overblown negative coverage of the markets condition (negatively infuences consumer confidence) and the level of forclosures.
I beleive once the presidential election is over and the media can move on from trying to influence change in the oval office, theyll move on to other things and slack off on trying to convince us that the sky is falling in on our economy.
Foreclosures are less predictable. The Feds interest rate cuts will help some home owners with adjustable rate mortages, but many are delinquent on their payments already, so keeping their interst rate the same wont help them. Therfore the number of new forclosures is somewhat unpredictable.
The challenges the foreclosures have facilitated are banks have on average settled on 15% less than their originall asking price, making regular price cuts until buyers take action on it and when foclosure properties sell, they dont free up a homeowner to become a buy up buyer, it simply gets the bank off the hook.
Currently, were seeing a leveling off of the new forclosure listings rate and buyer numbers are steady to slightly increasing, which has them moving on to considering more privately held properties, therfore freeing up the buy ups. If this continues, well see the return of multiple offers on properties and sellers will begin to hold out for a little more, and the recovery will have begun.
Thursday, May 1, 2008
Interesting Mosquito Repellant
Got this from a friend , might give it a try.
The best way of getting rid of mosquitoes is Listerine, the original medicinal type. The Dollar Store-type works, too. I was at a deck party awhile back, and the bugs were having a ball biting everyone. A man at the party sprayed the lawn and deck floor with Listerine, and the little demons disappeared. The next year I filled a 4-ounce spray bottle and used it around my seat whenever I saw mosquitoes. And voila! That worked as well. It worked at a picnic where we sprayed the area around the food table, the children's swing area, and the standing water nearby. During the summer, I don't leave home without it.....Pass it on.
OUR FRIEND'S COMMENTS: I tried this on my deck and around all of my doors. It works - in fact, it killed them instantly. I bought my bottle from Target and it cost me $1.89. It really doesn't take much, and it is a big bottle, too; so it is not as expensive to use as the can of spray you buy that doesn't last 30 minutes. So, try this, please. It will last a couple of days. Don't spray directly on a wood door (like your front door), but spray around the frame. Spray around the window frames and even inside the dog house if you have one. Also can be used to dab any bites you receive. It will stop the itching quicker and go away faster.
The best way of getting rid of mosquitoes is Listerine, the original medicinal type. The Dollar Store-type works, too. I was at a deck party awhile back, and the bugs were having a ball biting everyone. A man at the party sprayed the lawn and deck floor with Listerine, and the little demons disappeared. The next year I filled a 4-ounce spray bottle and used it around my seat whenever I saw mosquitoes. And voila! That worked as well. It worked at a picnic where we sprayed the area around the food table, the children's swing area, and the standing water nearby. During the summer, I don't leave home without it.....Pass it on.
OUR FRIEND'S COMMENTS: I tried this on my deck and around all of my doors. It works - in fact, it killed them instantly. I bought my bottle from Target and it cost me $1.89. It really doesn't take much, and it is a big bottle, too; so it is not as expensive to use as the can of spray you buy that doesn't last 30 minutes. So, try this, please. It will last a couple of days. Don't spray directly on a wood door (like your front door), but spray around the frame. Spray around the window frames and even inside the dog house if you have one. Also can be used to dab any bites you receive. It will stop the itching quicker and go away faster.
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