Carmichael CA Realtor| Davis CA Realtor| Craig Diez

Craig Diez - Diez & Sigg Properties

Save Money on Spring Cleaning This Year

by Leave a Comment

Jaymi Naciri writing for Realty Times passes on some tips to help reduce the cost of spring cleaning.

It’s spring cleaning time, but this year you don’t have to stock up on all those expensive potions and cleaners. The stuff you already have in your house might be even better at getting—and keeping—it clean.

Here are a few of our double-duty (or triple or more!) products:

Mr. Clean Magic Erasers

Dirty baseboards. Scuff marks on sneakers. Crayon or pen on painted walls. Shower scum. What do they all have in common? They can be cleaned with a Mr. Clean Magic Eraser. They’re good in a pinch and also as a regular addition to your cleaning regime, so do like we do and buy them in bulk!

Dryer Sheets

The sheet that keeps static cling away from your clothes while they’re drying can also be useful in a few other areas of your home. Have company coming over and just realized you’re out of Swiffer Dusters? Run that Bounce over your surfaces, instead. The bonus: If you have scented dryer sheets, they’ll leave a fresh smell behind. You can also use them to wipe window casings, baseboards, and doors that tend to collect dust and dirt in the grooves.

Sponges and Dishwashing Gloves

Forget those pots and pans. Sponges and dishwashing gloves can also help clean dog hair off of upholstered surfaces. This tip could come in very handy for a last-minute cleanup when you don’t have time to vacuum. For regular cleaning of dog hair on a stubborn surface like a low-pile rug, try a dog brush. The short, stuff bristles make it easy to gather the hair.

White Vinegar

It’s not just for salad dressing! Vinegar is a multi-purpose cleaning agent, and one you can feel good about if you’re looking to stay away from harsh chemicals and commercial cleaners.

“If you could invent a green-cleaning ‘wonder’ product, it would probably end up being a lot like white vinegar,” said The Spruce. “Safe, readily available, and really cheap, there are perhaps hundreds of uses for vinegar. There are at least two great uses for vinegar in your automatic dishwasher. First, it can be used as a cheap, effective rinsing agent to get your glasses, plates, and other dishes sparkling clean. Second, it can help to clean the dishwasher itself: Once a year or so (more if you have hard water), pour a cup of white vinegar into an empty dishwasher, then run it for a short cycle to get rid of the lime and soap build-up that can prevent your dishwasher from working at peak efficiency.”

White vinegar is also great for cleaning tile and caulk, “windows, hardwood floors, carpet stains, fireplace bricks and irons, CDs and DVDs, shower curtains, upholstery, mattresses, wood furniture (when combined with olive oil), and glassware. If it’s in your house, you can probably clean it with vinegar.”

Lemon

Pick up a few extra lemons at the market because you’ll get more use out of them than just as a squeeze in your water. “High in citric acid, lemon juice is one of the best natural cleaners due to its low pH and antibacterial properties,” said Networx.

Click here for full article

Is It Time for a Laundry Room Makeover?

by Leave a Comment

Adam Beasley of Lazy Guy DIY poses the answers to improving your laundry room look.

Basements are out of sight and out of mind a lot of times. It’s easy to let the space get away from you.  There’s not enough light, little organization and a whole lot of monsters hiding in the deep, dark corners.  We let our basement get the best of us. So, we decided to partner with The Home Depot to take back our neglected space and turn it into a place that we enjoyed spending time in with a laundry room renovation.

We had water damage from old gutters and an overall bad habit of piling stuff in corners that had to be addressed.  (Check out how we fixed the water damage and prepped the space prior to the update) When our decades old washing machine started to smell like it was burning, we knew it was time for a change. We wanted to go with something with high efficiency and high capacity since we just increased to a family of four.

Our old laundry set up did not have a single surface to fold laundry on.  We addressed it a few ways.  First, we added a butcher block workbench top by Edsal over the top of our new washer and dryer.  It’s a perfect fit,  durable and gives us a designated folding space that would combat the all too common “lost a sock between the washer & dryer” epidemic.  Plus we added these great teal Macklin metal baskets to capture the rest.

Next we brought in two Gladiator workbenches and the Gladiator free standing garage cabinet (with wheel kit) in white. The hardwood top and the white metal legs flowed perfectly with our lighter colored theme. Most importantly, it would hold up to the water we’d inevitably get in the basement.

Lastly, to make our lives a little easier, we picked up two of these bottomless Seville canvas laundry hampers. Now we can shuttle our laundry from washer to dryer without losing a sock or two along the way!

Click here for full article

First Time Homebuyers are Doing Alright!

by Leave a Comment

Andrea Riquier from Real Estate News gives us a fresh update on first-time homebuyers.

How many first-time homebuyers are there in the housing market?

That’s an important question. A smaller share of first-timers suggests that the market may be too competitive or too expensive – and ultimately not very inclusive. A bigger share suggests market conditions may be a bit easier, and that more Americans are getting a shot at attaining upward mobility.

But it is surprisingly difficult to pin down exactly how many home purchases go to first-timers, and a new set of research reports from the New York Fed attempts to correct that.

The National Association of Realtors, the trade group that’s responsible for what may be the best-known measurements of the issue, publishes an annual survey of characteristics of home buyers and sellers. NAR conducts that survey on a monthly basis and those results are tracked in their existing-home sales release.

Another measure comes from the mortgage industry. Within the mounds of paperwork any borrower must fill out, there’s one form known as the Uniform Residential Loan Application. It asks whether the borrower has had “an ownership interest in a property in the last three years.”

The inclusion of that question in the application process dates back to 1992 when Congress passed legislation known as the Federal Housing Enterprises Financial Safety and Soundness Act. The legislation established a new regulator for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, and also set out targets for the two mortgage giants to ensure they were serving all would-be home buyers equally and fairly.

Many analysts who focus on the role of Fannie and Freddie in contributing to the housing bubble of the last decade point to the affordable housing goals of the 1992 legislation as the beginning of that slippery slope. Other analysts, of course, focus more on the role of lenders or believe that there’s blame to go around.

Putting that thorny question to the side for a moment, the historic accident of the URLA’s treatment of a “first-time buyer” as someone who hasn’t owned property within the past three years is still with us.

Click here for the full article

How to Build a Reclaimed Wood Sliding Barn Door

by Leave a Comment

Brittany Bailey, AKA pretty handy girl, shows us another do-it-yourself project in building wood sliding barn door.

How to Build a Reclaimed Wood Sliding Barn Door

Earlier this week when I showed everyone the master bedroom in the Saving Etta house, you probably noticed the sliding barn door. I am in love with that door and especially excited that I was able to salvage the old beadboard and repurpose it as cladding on the barn door. Now it’s time to show you how to make your own barn door out of reclaimed wood. Let’s get building!

Notes about Materials:

To build your custom barn door you’re going to need to purchase a 4×8 sheet of plywood. The plywood will offer strength and rigidity and will add some thickness to the barn door. You don’t need to buy the finish grade plywood, instead purchase the cheapest plywood you can find because it will be covered up. One side will get a sheet of masonite bead board, and the other will be clad with the reclaimed lumber. And the sides will get trimmed out to hide the layers. So, as long as your plywood isn’t warped, it won’t matter how it looks. For my door, I used 3/4″ plywood, but it was heavy. You may want to use 1/2″ plywood instead, but be sure to check the thickness requirements for your barn door track and hardware. This will ultimately dictate your width and weight!

Stripping Paint and Lead Paint Warning:

When you are using reclaimed wood, always test any paint with an instant lead check swab. Or treat it like it is lead paint. Because of the age of the bead board, I’m pretty sure my wood had lead paint. Before stripping lead paint, you definitely need to wear a dust mask or respirator and gloves. Eye protection is a good idea. And since my HEPA vacuum is loud, I wear hearing protection too.

Click here for full article

 

Do you Paint your own Kitchen Cabinets or Pay the Professional?

by Leave a Comment

Jaymi Naciri of Realty Times poses the answer to the question of painting your own kitchen cabinets?

Thinking of painting your own kitchen cabinets? You can find dozens—hundreds even—of tutorials and tip lists to show you how. They’ll list out the supplies needed and show you the proper techniques for the best outcome. And many of them even get real about just how intensive and interminable the process can be.

Preparation is key when painting your cabinets, and the number of steps you’ll need to follow to achieve a quality finish can seem impossible. You’ll want to remove the doors, drawer fronts, and hardware. Fill in any holes and smooth out any gouges. Degrease, sand, vacuum, wipe, sand some more, vacuum some more, wipe some more. And maybe then you’ll finally be ready for priming—but not painting on the actual color, because that comes after priming.

Frankly, every step is important, and if you miss one, you could end up with a result you’re unhappy with, or a finish that doesn’t hold up. If you’re the type who isn’t likely to finish what you’ve started, perhaps you shouldn’t embark on this paint-your-own adventure. Your old, dated cabinets are still better than half-old-and-dated, half-done cabinets. But if you still want to go for it, at least be prepared for a few realities:

You’re never going to get a look as good as the professionals

You may come close, and you may fool your friends, but there’s a reason you pay professionals a couple to several thousand dollars for something verging on perfection.

Your arms will hate you

Which is not such a bad thing, really. You can skip a few “arm days” at the gym if you really put your effort into it.

Click here for rest of article

You’re Invited To the 26th Annual Sacramento SPCA Doggy Dash!

by Leave a Comment

Join Diez & Sigg Properties for a “tail wagging good time” to raise much-needed funds and awareness for local animals at the Sacramento SPCA.

Your registration and participation in the 2K/5K Doggy Dash helps the Sacramento SPCA care for more than 5,500 animals annually. Following the walk, stay and play at the Bark in the Park festival and join us and 100+ other vendors and sponsors to enjoy K-9 demonstrations, contests, food and drinks, pet-friendly products to purchase or sample, and more.

Use this link to register under our team: http://bit.ly/2HwkVZX

We hope to see you and your “pack” there for a fun-filled day! Contact Diez & Sigg Properties with any questions by phone at 916.952.4194 or via email annmarie@diezandsiggproperties.com.

Craig Diez

916-425-5884|Contact Craig