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How To Stay Cool On A Budget

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Tampanians everywhere are trying to figure out how to stay cool without paying really high electric bills. Summer is already here, with the heat index in the high nineties and the humidity over 50% on most days. Tampa is hot. That means your house might be feeling hot too. Here a few things you can do to beat the heat without sending your electric bill over the hill.

1. Take advantage of a free energy-saving assessment

Did you know that both TECO and Duke Energy offer free in-home assessments? This means one of their representatives will come into your home and make recommendations on how you can increase energy efficiency. They check everything in your home that they can see. This can make a huge impact and they offer this service at no charge. You just have to call and make the appointment.

2. How much heat can you take?

According to Duke Energy, every degree increase saves about 5% in cooling costs. Obviously, the higher you can set your A/C, the more you will decrease your bill.

3. Change your air filters often

I recommend at least monthly during the summer. If you have pets then even more often. Changing the filter can have a big impact on your A/C’s efficiency.

4. Find the air leaks

Air leaks are a huge air sucker and will definitely increase your electric bill. Find and seal any and all air leaks in your home.

5. Use your ceiling fans

Ceiling fans are great to keep rooms in your home cool. Fans work to spread the cool air around your home, keep the temperature down, and give you some direct cool air.

These are just a few of the many things you can do to stay cool this summer. Now that you know how to stay cool on a budget, make sure to give us a call if you also need a home inspection!

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Summer Projects To Make Your Home Feel Like New

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If your home feeling a little old or dated? Here are a few summer projects that you can do in a short amount of time to make your home feel like new again!

Paint

A fresh coat of paint can brighten up any room or home. Painting the exterior of a home can give it a whole new look. Depending on how much you want to paint, this can also be a very affordable upgrade.

Landscaping

The rainy season is here but it is a good time to plant flowers or start a garden. Increasing your curb appeal can give your home a very refreshing summer look.

Build A Tree House

This is a summer project the whole family can get involved in! Build your kids a tree house, playhouse, or fun house they can enjoy for the rest of the year.

Clean Your Gutters

This summer project won’t just give your home a face lift, but this is really good home maintenance. You can avoid major repairs by keeping your gutters clean.

Now that you have summer projects to work on, you better get to it! Don’t forget to schedule your home inspection with Divinity Inspection Service.

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Commercial Property Inspection Checklist

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Are you ready to have your commercial building inspected? We offer commercial property inspections that will cover any and every area of your property and building. In this article, we will review what you can expect at your commercial property inspection.

Checklist Items

A comprehensive inspection can help you identify current or future concerns about your property and building. Since we are licensed and certified in all areas, you will not need to hire multiple inspectors. Instead, we will cover everything. You can find a full checklist of what we will inspect right here.

A Baseline Property Inspection

At the very least you should have a baseline inspection of your commercial property. A baseline inspection consists of a walk-through survey, document review, and interviews to determine the property’s condition. This information will help owners and buyers better understand operation and maintenance required for the commercial property. This is especially important to provide confidence to prospective investors.

Consultations

Unfortunately, we could run into a multi-faceted or complex problem. For these situations, we offer consultations to guide you in the best route to fix the problem. We have built strong relationships with various specialists so we can make sure your specific concern is fixed by a trusted specialist.

Now that you know what to expect at a commercial property inspection you can rest easy. You can schedule your inspection anytime directly on our website here, or give us a call.

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Home Inspection Checklist: What To Expect

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Are you feeling anxious about your home inspection because you are unsure of what to expect? Many new homeowners, and even veteran homeowners, find the home inspection process stressful. We believe we can alleviate this stress by telling you what you can expect through a home inspection checklist. This way, you can feel confident as you walk through your home with your inspector.

Plan to be there

One of the most important steps you need to take is to attend your home inspection. Plan to be there for at least 3 hours. A good home inspector will walk you through all of their findings and detail the report.

Interior of the Home

Your home inspector will start with the interior of the home. Any and all spaces, including attic and crawl spaces, will be inspected. You won’t be expected to go into those small spaces yourself unless you want to.

Exterior of the Home

After inspecting the interior of the home, the home inspector will inspect all areas outside the home. This will include gutters, the roof, the driveway, and the backyard. Again, you are not expected to go into all areas, such as the roof, unless you really want to.

The inspection report

Finally, at the end of the process, you will receive your inspection report. This report will detail everything the home inspector already detailed as you walked through the house with them. This report is great to refer back to, will be required by your bank or home insurance, and is good to keep on file.

If you hire Divinity Inspection Service we will keep your property inspection report on file in our online system for up to one year. Now that you know what to expect in your home inspection checklist, go ahead and schedule your appointment now.

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2017 First Quarter : Tampa Housing Market

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The Tampa real estate market is in a good place. There were a lot of predictions for 2017, particularly about home prices and what to expect. So has Tampa lived up to the hype? Check out what the most recent reports have said about the first quarter on the Tampa housing market.

Good, but not thatgood

According to the National Association of Realtors, home prices spiked 6.9% in the first quarter of 2017. Rising prices are an excellent sign of an abundant economy. In a new report by ATTOM Data Solutions, Tampa Bay homeowners who sold in the first three months of this year realized an average gain of $30,100 over what they originally paid. I think it’s safe to say that’s pretty good!

However, that average is still $35,000 less than what it was at the peak of the real estate boom in 2006. This same report has also showed that homeowners are keeping their homes longer. A result of the bubble burst back in 2008. Will we reach that peak once again? Possibly.

The Results: inventory in demand

As a demand of the housing market, in combination with homeowners keeping their homes longer and the increased prices, homes are in demand. Prospective buyers poured into the market to start the year as the job market also shows increases.

Another player that we might see soon are automated homes, which are now part of the mainstream. These new builds come equipped with built in automation – from the shutters to the security system. Ten years ago this technology was very high end but now average home owners can enjoy this type of automation.

So for now, the Tampa market is looking great! As long as the available housing can keep up with the demand you can expect prices to continue to rise and profits continue to increase. Don’t forget to give us a call to schedule your home inspection before you complete your home purchase.