How to Get a Fair Roofing Estimate

Whether your roof is suffering from an animal infestation or the aftermath of a severe storm, roofing contractors know that homeowners are often on edge when fielding those frustrated phone calls that come in right as the office opens. Some unscrupulous types may try to take advantage of potential customers’ sense of panic and emergency. So how do you know if you’re getting the best bang for your buck?

Well, if you’re in need of roof repairs or perhaps even an entirely new roof, here are a few tips to guide you when it comes to getting proper roofing estimates and choosing reliable, trustworthy contractors to get the job done at a reasonable price.

Shop around

When a company wants to hire an employee, they don’t just pick the first person that walks through the door. They interview multiple candidates, sometimes more than once, and then come to a final decision after some consideration. The moral of the story here is don’t be tempted by the first estimate you hear.

You never want to be pressured into signing a contract with a roofer before insurers have given you an official damage estimate. In fact, a good contractor will even double check the insurers’ work to make sure that they didn’t miss anything!

Call at least three different contractors to get their estimates and actually speak to somebody at the other end of the line. Friends and family members are a great source of recommendations, so why not start there? You can also check websites like the Better Business Bureau to ensure that your contractors are legitimate and properly accredited.

Get references

Good contractors will have a solid history of work behind them, and should be more than happy – and capable – of providing you with at least three references. Given that this is the twenty-first century, you should be able to snoop around pretty quickly and find out if all three references came from your contractor’s mother. Fake reviews are not uncommon, so make sure to do your due diligence by carefully assessing anything you read online.

Similarly, double check to see that your roofing contractors are licensed and insured. They need to have General Liability insurance, as well as Workers’ Compensation insurance. Don’t cut costs by trying to get somebody under the table without official documentation. If something goes wrong or if somebody gets injured, roofing problems will be the least of your worries.

Go to the source

Roofers have to get their material somewhere, and those people are the suppliers. Knowledge is your best friend, so don’t forget to ask your potential roofing contractors about the material costs when getting an estimate. After that, go to the source by calling up the suppliers so that you can get an idea of the markup. While you can’t get away from a contractor markup, there’s a difference between reasonable and highway robbery.

On another note, don’t forget to ensure that the suppliers have a good relationship with the contractors, and that they are paid in a timely, regular manner. Angry suppliers may hit you up if their bills aren’t paid!

While you’re at it, you might as well also ask about material warranties and check into the suppliers’ history as well. You don’t want to pay for a roof that look great now, but that may not be so nice five years from now. (Bonus points if the material warranty is transferrable from one homeowner to the next.)

Learn the lingo

Experts in any subject matter tend to get lost in things like acronyms or special vocabulary. They may assume their interlocutor knows what they’re talking about. Contractors may not expect homeowners to be fully familiar with roofing lingo, and this can work to a clueless person’s disadvantage. By knowing what a contractor is actually talking about – and more importantly, what they’re looking for in a roofing estimate – you can make sure that they are as thorough as they claim. Furthermore, you’ll be able to better judge if the work they say needs to be done and the given estimates add up.

Ask about additional fees

When shopping around for a good contractor, you’ll want to be sure that an estimate not only includes material costs, but labour and incidental costs as well. Nobody wants to be stuck paying for unforeseen fees. This may include anything related to supply transportation, cleanup, permit costs and waste disposal.

While all this poking around may seem like an awful lot of work, roof-repairs and installations are a huge investment for any homeowner. Even if you can literally see the stars through your roof because the damage is so severe, take a deep breath and step away from the situation for a second. By being thorough in your line of questioning, you can get reasonable quotes and have a good understanding of the situation and the work you are paying for.

Smart Security Right from Your Palm: Is Automation the Key to App Security?

With everything from window blinds to grocery stores undergoing automation in this new age of technology, the question of security has grown to be of utmost importance. This is because smart home application providers now hold endless datasets regarding every aspect of our most personal lives. As such, smart device purchasers should be knowledgeable about the security features of the products that they interact with if they wish to keep their privacy intact.

Typical smart products

In an everyday setting, most people now interact with at least one smart product throughout their day - a smartphone. Smartphone usage has skyrocketed around the world. Indeed, when it comes to accessing the internet, mobile usage has actually surpassed desktop usage worldwide.

Smart devices have also broken out of factory floors and into family homes in recent years, with smart home technology becoming ever more powerful with each year. While self-checkout systems have been in place in many urban grocery stores for years, homeowners are now purchasing everyday household items that leverage IOT (Internet of Things) technology. Automated window coverings, smart air purifiers, lighting and security devices have all become very popular with average consumers.

Consumers who have completed decked out their homes with the latest smart technology therefore produce a wealth of data throughout their day. Without the appropriate app security measures in place, their private information can be exposed to just about anybody.

App security measures

App developers and product managers are deeply conscious of their role in protecting private consumer information, with 88% of development and operations teams citing that app security is a top concern of theirs. Several security best-practices have been created throughout the years to ensure that consumer-ready products and services do an appropriate job of safeguarding incoming data.

One important change in recent years has been to integrate security into an app from the get-go, rather than retro-fitting security measures to a developed product. Here are a few typical steps that highlight this security integration process.

The initial review

During the initial review stage, members of a development team and a security team will work together to address various quality assurance procedures and processes. They will also consider business policies, needs and the app’s market use context in order to properly assess potential product/service risks.

Threat modeling

Threat modeling might sound like something ominous out of an 80s sci-fi movie, but it’s really all about discovering those important parts of a given app that deal with sensitive information. This process is often done more than once, as an application grows from its initial conception into something bigger and more complex. Development and security teams work hard to identify critical points, so that they can come up with strategies to mitigate potential security threats, as product growth does not mean that consumer privacy should be sacrificed.

Application design reviews

Modern tech products and services are often developed in cycles, which is one reason why consumers receive notification updates for different apps they might interact with on their phone, desktop, tablet, etc. At the end or at the beginning of a given development cycle, many development teams hand off their project to an independent reviewer to go over their work in order to identify and deal with security flaws they may have missed. Two eyes are always better than one, afterall!

Testing and code reviews

Developers are humans, and humans make mistakes. This is why many developers ensure that they always have their code tested and reviewed before an app goes into production mode. This can involve having another coder check over one’s work, or more often than not, automated testing; over half of mature development and operations teams implement automated testing. By having another computer program check over bits and pieces of code, it is often possible to identify complicated security flaws and deal with them before a product hits the market.

Risk assessment and mitigation

While there are evidently many security processes involved throughout the development process, most app developers also go the extra mile of assessing risks and coming up with controls to deal with potential risks prior to the final deployment of a given product. This means going over potential security vulnerabilities and figuring out ways to circumvent them, whether by changing or removing bits of code, or undertaking some other form of compensating measure.

Benchmarking

Another common step taken by app developers is to benchmark their products against industry standards. These may be legal standards set by a given government, or industry groups such as the Open Web Application Security Project (OWASP). If a consumers is hesitant about making a product purchase, it may be advisable to do some research or ask a company representative to find out how a given product measures up against common standards.

The future of automation security

With a 50% increase in open source technology security breaches in the last year, security will undoubtedly continue to be a main focus of app developers around the world. This is especially true given that smart home devices are becoming more and more prevalent with each year. Automated technology is bringing about the rise of Big Data in a significant way, and with consumers’ private lives on the line, businesses will certainly be taking app security more seriously than they have in the past if they wish to survive under customer scrutiny in a highly visible, competitive market.

Recycled Glass Countertops and Your Eco-Friendly Home

There are a number of different materials which can be utilized to make counters that most people would expect. Granite, marble, and stainless steel have all had their day in the sun, as more eco-friendly materials come to the foreground. Among these options are recycled countertops. While this might sound like old counters being used elsewhere, recycled countertops reuse content rather than the whole counter.

How They are Made

These counters are made of used materials like glass, mirrors, ceramics, and porcelains. They come from bathtubs, toilets, dishes, and mirrors, amongst others. There are a number of different manufacturing techniques but the principle is more or less the same. Compaction, strong vibration, or even vacuum technology is used to harden the crushed materials together. They are then baked in a oven at an extremely high temperature so that what is produced is a slab that can then be polished and even sanded for an ideal finish.

Benefits of these Countertops

What makes these countertops so eco-friendly is the fact that in comparison to other countertop materials, there is essentially no damage done to the earth in their making because no mining is done. There is also no left over waste, as it is made from the “waste” of others. They are also incredibly durable and long lasting. Some other benefits are:

● Mold Resistant: It is not a porous material, meaning that they are easy to clean and sanitize. There will not be any sneaky places that allow germs to breed.
● Durable: The hardness of the slab makes it difficult to blemish the countertop, so you wind have to deal with scratches and dents. Since the slab was also cooked at a high temperature, it can also handle high heats without damage.
● No Maintenance Required: All you have to do is keep the counters clean with water and soap. No sealing is required because it is not porous.
● Many Design Options: The benefit of having so many recycled materials to choose from means that you have a large colour palette to work with. This is especially the case if you're using recycled glass, which will also reflect light in fun and exciting ways on otherwise dull kitchen cabinets.

Which One is Right for You

Recycled glass countertops are a great inexpensive and eco-friendly option, but before making any big purchases always ask yourself if this is the right decision for you and your family. If you have a lot of little kids you might spend more time cleaning fingerprints off of the glass than you would for another material. If you are an avid meat-eater who does a lot of chopping while cooking, you might want to consider something like a butcher block. If you decide that recycled glass is for you and kitchen cabinet redesign project, there are some more options to decide between.

Tempered versus Non-Tempered - As is the case with other materials such as metal, glass can be heated up in order to achieve certain beneficial properties. Often this has to do with strength, durability, and hardness, all of which are ideal qualities to have in a countertop which will undergo some abuse. Tempered counters will offer you all of these benefits. Untempered glass is often less expensive, while still offering good durability. In the end you have to decide what is best for your family. Talk to the supplier in order to better understand the options available to you.

Kinds of Glass - It is always a good idea to have an understanding of the terminology that you will come across while looking for recycled glass countertops. You will often encounter terms that refer to the kinds of glass available. For instance, “float glass” is molten glass that has been “floated” of molten tin in order to create slabs of glass uniform in thickness. Smoothness and flatness are characteristics of this kind. Slump glass on the other hand is glass that was placed in a mold and heated until it conforms to the shape of the mold. It is a good option for giving glass unique shape or texture. Finally, kiln fired glass are glass remnants which have been melted down in a kiln to produce a new sheet. It is strong but the size is limited to that of the kiln.

3 reasons why you need to renovate your home

To renovate, or not to renovate? Property’s a hot topic in Melbourne and many home owners avoid upgrading to a new premises due to the rising cost of housing, or are looking to increase equity in their existing abodes. If that’s not justification enough, here are a few more reasons why you may need to renovate asap.

1. It smells

Sadly, it’s not that uncommon. Older houses are more likely to suffer from structural issues such foundation degradation or the presence of damp. However, modern home builders in Melbourne and across the country of newer properties may also experience similar issues, due to build quality or severe weather events that damage a property and lead to unsavoury smells.

Mould, mildew, humidity, and even dry rot may not cause highly offensive odours, but over time their pungency becomes more noticeable and ranges from a musty or oddly sweet smell, to a more noticeable, decomposing pong. The presence of critters who live, or have even died in the walls and roof will also make themselves known via smell as well as issues with sewerage disposal. Even the lingering smell of cooking can be overpowering if kitchen ventilation is inadequate.

Here, renovations should address poor air circulation as well as seal any open areas like cracks, holes or shifting of the house that has allowed these issues to occur. While you’re there, take a peek at your insulation and check the wiring.

2. It’s dated

Melbourne home designs vary across suburbs from the inner city workers’ cottages and California bungalows to the iconic weatherboards and rendered art deco beauties, yet over time façades and interiors age and become in need of TLC.

Tastes in décor change and technology evolves, so even restoration renovations will incorporate improved electricity supply, contemporary heating and cooling options, internet and other cabling, as well as building materials that are manufactured via modern methods.

Classic house styles will typically have a longer life in the design world, but they will also benefit from updates to colour palettes, upgrades to new appliances and the rejuvenation of skirting boards, carpets, floorboards and awnings.

3. It’s no longer suitable

Although it may still be perfectly habitable, if your lifestyle has changed you may find your once appropriate home is now not quite the haven it once was.

Having children can alter the suitability of previously adequate space, and prompt you to undertake purpose built renovations. In kitchens, older style ovens with hot glass at crouching height are often first to go, as well as easy-to-slam cupboards that trap small fingers.

Similarly, as people age or face injury or illness, renovations may also become imperative to ensure the safety of a home’s occupants. As a priority, the bathroom is often reconfigured by removing bath tubs and installing non-slip surfaces and safety rails where necessary. Likewise, it’s common for stairs and labour intensive landscaping to be modified in order to reduce the need to hire outside help to provide personal care or garden maintenance.

Six Interior Design Trends You Need Consider During Your Next Home Renovation

When it comes to redecorating your home, you probably don’t want to do it too often: it’s expensive, time-consuming, and causes a lot of stress to your daily routines and habits. So, when you do redecorate, you need to choose styles, trends and designs that are going to keep you happy for a long time. Making rushed decisions and random buys might be easy and fun in the short term, but you can guarantee that you’ll be bored of it and annoyed with yourself within a few months – or even weeks. Likewise, this means you won’t want to follow trends to the letter: while you can update your wardrobe, and replace any off-trend items regularly, it’s not easy with interior design.

Luckily, décor trends don’t change that often. When they do, it’s always for a good reason – and it’ll always be a change worth making. So, here’s the top five trends to keep an eye out for, the next time you choose to renovate.

Elegant, elaborate lighting

Lights aren’t just a functional aspect of a room anymore. They’re here to be used and admired now, so push the boat out the next time you replace yours. You could go for the ultra-traditional look, with ornate chandeliers – or buy LED chandeliers to save on costs but not style. Or, try feature pieces in the form of free-standing floor lights.

Mixing up styles

If you don’t want to fully redecorate your home, but you do fancy freshening up the style a bit, then this trend is for you. Pairing up pieces from the same era is out – and mixing styles is in in a big way. So, pair up that antique rocking chair with your ultra-modern, minimalist desk. Unique is in – so enjoy it.

Matte and marble

When it comes to finishes, faux is the way to go. This doesn’t just mean faux fur anymore, either. From marble to ceramic, the look is more important than the actual material. If you can afford the real thing, then go for it: marble counter tops will be flooding into kitchens over the next few years. When it comes to metal finishes, brushed is out. Choose matte metal wherever possible, to give your home a sleek, demure look.

Bright colors

The days of endless beige and magnolia walls and furniture are over. Or they’re partly over, at least. Bright jewel-like colors are on back in, so get accessorizing with bold colored cushions and blankets.

Smart home features

You’ll definitely want to invest in smart home features if you use a smartphone. Amazon Echo is a good place to start, but if you want to use more advanced technology, check out the appliances and apps in this post.

Space-saving furniture and appliances

Those of you with small homes, rejoice! The days of bulky, oversized furniture are on their way out. Minimalism is growing in popularity, and making the lives of many city-dwellers much easier. Use your space in the most appealing way possible – don’t crowd it with large couches. Likewise, appliances that fold up and hide away are all the rage for using in kitchens. So, you can save yourself some space and stay on-trend at the same time.

Flipping Houses vs Real Estate Investing: Why Investment Firms Consider Them as Different

When looking for investment opportunities the stock market offers potential but a tremendous amount of risk. An alternative to buying stocks is real estate investing which is different than flipping houses, although you can make money with both.

Making Sense of Real Estate Investing vs Flipping Homes

To shed some light on this we need to first understand what each term means in both the street vernacular and investing vernacular.

· Real Estate Investing Model

With this model you either purchase a property yourself or in a partnership where the property is owned for the sole purpose of generating an income. This income is derived from renting out the property to tenants. If the investment property requires renovation then those renovations would be performed prior to the units being rented out. The owner can earn money in two ways with this type of investment they generate income from the rent minus any expenses. These properties are usually discussed based on their cap rate which is the percentage earned per year for example a 5% cap rate would mean it take 20 years to recover your original investment.

Along with the rental income, if the property increases in value over time this “appreciation” can be used to either borrow money against the equity or when the property is sold. The difference between the price you paid and current price it was sold for would be taxed as capital gains which is more favorable when compared to individual income tax rates. There is no compulsion to sell the property so you can earn income from the rental in perpetuity.

· Flipping Houses Model

In this model an investor would purchase a property to renovate it for a quick sale and profit. The investor would identify distressed properties or those being foreclosed on by local banks. These properties are usually sold “as is where is” at a discounted price. You could try to resell those properties but would not make anything on the sale.

Where the money-making opportunity comes is when the property is renovated. Playing on your renovating expertise you will be able to allocate capital to the renovations so the value of the property would increase dramatically, you can get more details here. After having completed these renovations you would then try to quickly sell the property for a profit and move on to the next opportunity.

Contrasts Between Both Investing Approaches

With the real estate investing approach you are using a “buy and hold” approach which provides a steady stream of income over a prolonged period of time. Along with the stream of rental income you may be able to benefit from appreciation of the property.

With house flipping you are looking to sell the property for a lump-sum then move on to the next opportunity. Flipping houses is more labor intensive and hands on but the upside is you can make quick cash. With real estate investing you don’t have to be as hands on but the income potential is spread out over years instead of weeks.

5 Green Home Design Ideas You Can Never Go Wrong With

Going green is not simply just a trend in home design, but really has quite a positive impact on the environment. Focusing on energy-efficiency as well as eco-friendly design is all part of sustainable architecture and should be a goal of every homeowner. Not only does it reduce the impact of your home on the environment, but it also reduces your own energy expenses which saves money. Overall there really is no reason to not consider green home design ideas.

If you aren't sure where to start, here are five of the best ideas for making your home green.

● Add Green Roof Features into a Rooftop Terrace

One trend in home design that is growing in popularity recently is the rooftop terrace, essentially a small terrace or raised deck on top of your roof that functions as a place to relax and entertain guests. These have numerous benefits but aren't exactly green on their own. You can improve the idea of a rooftop terrace by incorporating a green roof.

Traditional green roofs typically cover the entire roof and very much look like a planted roof. These are quite popular in European countries but the US is quickly seeing the benefits. To perform double-duty many buildings are built with a green roof that also functions as a place to relax. From a residential standpoint it is a great idea to incorporate a green roof design within your rooftop terrace. This is an environmentally-friendly way of getting more flora into urban areas, but also helps provides natural insulation for the house. 

● Invest in Energy Star Windows

One of the first things many professionals recommend homeowners do to increase value and reduce energy costs is to replace old windows with Energy Star certified windows. While any type of new window is an improvement over old single-pane types, Energy Star remains the cream of the crop. At first replacing windows doesn't exactly seem to be green but in the long run it is as it works towards the home's insulation, which reduces your energy expenditure.

If you have an older home or feel like your home is drafty or difficult to heat/cool, you'll be surprised at how effective switching to Energy Star windows can be. Especially when combined with window coverings to block direct heat or cold.

● Consider a Smart Thermostat System for Your Home

If your home relies on a central HVAC system for temperature control it is strongly recommended you ditch your old manual thermostat for a digital smart thermostat system. Many homeowners, especially those that may not be so tech savvy, balk at the complicated first impression of a smart thermostat, but in reality it is quite easy to use and incredibly energy efficient.

A smart thermostat system not only allows you to control temperature via an app on your phone wherever you are, but can also be setup to reduce HVAC needs while nobody's home. For example, if your family is gone during the day it doesn't make sense to have your home heated or cooled. Instead the thermostat can easily be programmed to turn to a lower level during these times and turn back on in time to achieve the ideal temperature before your family returns that afternoon or night. 

● Use Solar and/or LED Whenever Possible

The use of solar power is always improving and becoming not only more accessible but also more affordable for homeowners. Solar panels can easily be placed on roofs or on ground level in special frames and fairly easily set up to power lights within the home. Lights tend to consume quite a bit of electricity, especially old bulbs, so simply going green with lighting first is a big step.

Another effective step to take is to slowly replace all lighting in your home with LED lighting. Though these bulbs cost more they are far less expensive to run and have a much greater life. They also come in a variety of color tones, which means you can easily have a soft warm lighting in the living room or sitting room but a clear bright white in your home office or kitchen for better visibility.

● Choose Light Paint Colors to Reflect Heat

It's fairly common knowledge that light colors reflect heat, yet many fail to carry this idea over to aspects of home design. The paint, home siding, and roofing colors you choose absolutely have an effect on how much energy your house will consume to maintain comfortable indoor temperatures.

Light colors reflect heat which works equally well indoors and on the exterior. A light exterior will keep hot summer sun at bay compared to dark colors. The same goes for a light colored roof, and even moreso for a reflective roof material like steel. When it comes to interior design light paint is still a good idea for a number of reasons. Light colors don't absorb heat readily so you will actually keep your home warmer more easily in the winter. These colors also reflect light which means if you practice daylighting you will have a much better result.

Making your home green doesn't have to be one giant, expensive venture, but can actually easily be done in steps. As you go about slowly renovating your house, whether it's in preparation for an eventual sale or you're simply building your dream home, try to incorporate these and other effective green design ideas.

4 ways to invest in your love of homes

If loving your home comes naturally to you, it makes sense for you to turn this into a clever investment. Don’t just consider the here and now. Think about your future and how your love of property can help you to save, or even make, money in the long-term. Property is a fantastic investment and a continuously growing market. Therefore, you can be reasonably certain that investing in property now will have a number of benefits in the future. This doesn’t always have to mean purchasing a new house, or place to rent out; instead, there are a number of ways to invest in your love of homes.

Invest in the environment

Thinking about the environment and your carbon footprint is a clever way to save money. You can lower the cost of your bills and generally make your house more energy efficient. However, you can also take this a step further by making money out of being eco-friendly. This is possible because in America, electric utilities on the traditional power grid are legally required to purchase excess energy generated by renewable energy systems.

Start a blog

With the rise of the internet, nowadays everything seems to be online; so, why not your love of homes? Consider writing a blog that details your love of property. You can write whatever you want. Whether it’s property prices or DIY advice, blogs can be a great way to unleash your creativity. They can also make you money. If you focus on growing your blog’s readership, you may be able to secure advertisers for your site. A YouTube channel or an Instagram account are also clever ideas for using the digital world to invest in your love of homes.

Join a franchise

Why not consider a career in home inspection? If this sounds like something you are interested in, then joining a franchise is a clever way to operate independently while still receiving the training and reputation from being in a larger company. Pillar to Post is featured in Entrepreneur Magazine top franchises. It is an excellent investment for your future as it was ranked the top fastest growing franchise.

Become a property developer

Becoming a property developer is a further way to turn your love of homes into a savvy investment. It is important, before you get started, to understand just how high the stakes are. Although it is possible to make a great deal of money in property development, it can also be a risky business. Read up on all the best techniques for getting the most for your money, and securing a profit. Organize your personal finances so that you know exactly how much money you are able to spend. If you don’t have enough money yourself, take the time to make sure you secure the best loan available. It may take a while, and you may be impatient to get started, but ensuring that you follow the process correctly is an essential part of protecting your assets.