Living Right In N.C.

In the latest attempt to address the ailing housing market, the government on Monday announced changes to a federal program that will make it easier for struggling homeowners to refinance to today's near-record low rates.   Under the new program, homeowners who owe more on their homes than they a...

Did you know that Founders Hall was at one time a medical school and while it was there in the late 1800's some unsavory folks apparently stole a young girl’s body from a grave in Salisbury and sold her body to the school?  People began to tell tales of seeing a young woman wearing a sheet wander...

Home owners spend more money on kitchen remodeling than on any other home improvement project.  Makes sense because kitchens tend to be the center of home life…even for those who don’t cook.      Done right a significant portion of the expense of a kitchen remodel can be recovered by the value i...

Stop worrying for a few hours about life and enjoy some of these MANY area attractions with your family.  Check out the smiles on your kid’s faces as you do silly things like bounce around on a hayride or a watch your kids try to pick up pumpkins bigger than they are.  Let your teenagers get rid ...

I was at an orientation-type meeting for my daughter’s school a few weeks ago.  As I sat there waiting for the director I was thinking only of my own “to do” list and wondering who long I would have to sit here.  As the director spoke I began to hear some stories that made me very ashamed of the ...

When I was looking for homes in my neighborhood I saw many of them.  Just like the rest of you, what makes one house perfect for some makes it a definite “no” for others. Many of them were very nice homes and there was one that I looked at that seemed perfect except for one thing…the smell. I dis...

  ·   Put your Computer to Sleep: Save $75 or more a year using the standby or hibernating feature on your computer. ·    Wash in Cold Water: You can save about $60 per year.  Tide 2X Ultra for Cold Water is a top performer in Consumer Reports testing for conventional top-loading washers. ·    Gi...

If you’re thinking about buying a home, now may be the best time to do it.  Starting Oct 1st buyers (and sellers) may have to deal with much more stringent rules regarding their maximum allowable loan amount.  The new limits on conforming loans, mortgages eligible for government guarantees, are s...

  What is CLUE?  CLUE stands for Comprehensive Loss Underwriting Exchange.  And there is a reason it’s important to understand.  There was a hail storm a few years back and our roof got pelted beyond recognition.  When the opportunity presented itself to get it fixed, we took it.  We filed our in...

Energy efficiency....everyone wants it.  We just recently were shopping for a refrigerator.  We knew the accessories we wanted, the color, and we knew we wanted energy efficiency.  So we packed into the car and headed out to store.  Our experience was far from seamless. The idea of efficiency see...