A few weeks ago, my friend was helping renovate the inside of an old house. Tearing up the flooring, they came across old newspapers from 1965. It reminded me of author Daniel Handler, better known as Lemony Snicket, who discovered during a basement flood that his San Francisco home was built entirely on newspapers. Less harmlessly (relatively speaking) was the Toronto contractor that found himself involved in a Nancy Drew-style investigation after finding a mummified baby from 1925 when renovating a home.

These cases aside, most of us delight in finding old, antiquated “stuff” when renovating, especially if it was left behind by a long-gone homeowner. Mental Floss magazine ran a story on this very subject in their blog, asking readers to send in stories of things they found while renovating their homes. One person found a bag of empty beer cans sealed into a wall, perhaps leftovers from the bygone era of contracting.

Time capsules offer us a glimpse of yesteryear but, if you’ve got the luck of the Irish, you might dig up something worth more than sentimental value.

Sometimes retro finds can alter your project’s design, leading you down a new path based on what you found. Which leads me to wonder: if a renovator left a magazine or newspaper from today inside a wall, what would the future homeowner 70 years from now read about?

Put down the paint brush, sit on the couch and talk to me…

In the 1989 movie When Harry Met Sally, Carrie Fisher and Bruno Kirby play Mary and Jess (the side story to the title characters’ drama), your typical young couple struggling with cohabitation. At issue: a wagon wheel coffee table that Jess can’t live without and Carrie can’t live with. She even goes so far as to call it “this stupid, Roy Rogers, garage-sale coffee table!” Ouch … sounds like somebody needs some design therapy.

Wait a minute, design therapy? I can live with TV reno shows weaning me off wallpaper, and glossy magazines zoning in on what’s trendy. I can even handle the idea of color therapy (how certain colors resonate with our bodies and affect mood, health, emotions, etc.—it’s actually kind of cool). Hey, I like psychedelic music. But design therapy?

I’m sorry to be the one to tell you this, but it exists. But before anyone (me) writes it off as New Agey renovation excess, perhaps there’s some merit to it. After all, if feng shui has earned a place in home renovations, then maybe design therapy can, too.

We all know how stressful a home renovation can be, especially when there are two head chefs: the couple, the Mary and Jess. Disagreements and blowups can happen over light fixtures, let alone overall design. Design therapists, or “coaches” as they’re known in the biz, help clients work through the decision-making process, negotiate with contractors and architects, set a budget and timeline and mediate conflicts, between the clients themselves and the people they hire.

Former This Old House TV show executive producer-turned-therapist Bruce Irving helped a Boston couple negotiate changes with their architect, something they were struggling with. After all, who were they to argue with years of architectural education? Dealing with experts can be terrifying, and if help is available these days for everything from walking your dog to personal shopping, why not hire a professional to mediate your home’s future?

But design therapists don’t just help with conflicts; they also guide overall design so that it’s in line with your personality, which is especially critical when it comes to wagon wheel tables, beer can collections and (ladies, you’re not exempt here) a drift toward floral and (gasp!) mauve.

Design therapy: it’s only a matter of time before Woody discovers it.

Ah, springtime. The melting of snow, the sprouting of tulips, the return to life for many of us … and when I say “us,” I’m not just talking human beings. Spring cleaning can unearth unwanted house guests such as termites and carpenter ants that have been sleeping—that is, burrowing, building nests—in your walls and floors.

According to the Termite Institute, termites are a $5 billion problem for homeowners. Perhaps an even bigger problem, ants—not just carpenter but 10 different species that can threaten homes—are capable of infesting and multiplying at rapid rates. You know what I mean if you’ve ever left a can of pop open outside in summertime, or dropped fruit scraps in the kitchen; in mere hours, ants are at the scene like paparazzi on Britney (another unwanted, gross house guest).

Besides entomologists and Gary Larson fans, nobody wants to talk about pests unless you’re already facing an infestation; however, because termites and ants can strike without warning, even the best-kept homes are at risk.

The Termite Institute and the Ant Institute are trying to change all this by speaking out to homeowners about these pesky pests, providing homeowners with identification, prevention and eradication information. Especially interesting, both websites offer live web cameras that vividly simulate what it would be like if either bug moved in.

If you’ve read this far, you’re either worried about infestation or already dealing with one. Horror stories certainly abound across the Web, from those dealing with ongoing struggles that want to share their knowledge, to notification of goings on Down Under, where admittedly, the bugs look a whole lot scarier. For elimination of termites, the University of Kentucky’s Department of Entomology has a straightforward guide for homeowners, including how to deal with the problem and how to prevent it from happening in the first place.

The University has a similar site for ants, again directed right at homeowners. Why so generous, Kentucky? Maybe it’s all that tasty blue grass.

By now, you can tell how much we at HRG love watching home renovation shows, be it on TV or online. So when a casting call notice for a couple of home-focused TV shows crossed my in-box today, it was hard to resist putting it up here. And so I didn’t. For all those interested in televising their renovation in all of its glory, for the amusement of family, friends and the general public, look no further than the posting below. Good luck!

Casting for Save Us From Our House on the W Network & The Reno Show on HGTV

For Save Us From Our House:

We’re looking for couples & families of all sorts living in the Greater Toronto Area who are struggling to get along with each other and their space. Families with conflicts arising from, or made worse by aspects of the physical space they share will be considered.

Selected recipients will receive family sessions with our Relationship Counselor, and a full renovation of a problem area in their home by our Contractor and Designer.

Please Note:
-Homeowners need to have a solid reno/design budget of at least $5000
-Your situation must have a strong story involving family relationships strains caused or intensified by the state of your living space
-Renovations are approximately 15 days, 10 days for the renovation and 5 for the design
- We are currently NOT doing Kitchens and bathrooms

For The Reno Show:

Do you cringe every time you walk into a certain space in your home? Do you feel as though you just don’t know what to do with it? Bedrooms, living rooms,
dens. HGTV is interested in transforming your space! AT NO COST
Let our contracting and design team help you. Applicants must be outgoing, exuberant and have a great sense of humour. Must live in the TORONTO area. RIGHT NOW WE ARE DOING MINOR RENOVATIONS ONLY!
Applicants must own their home. We are currently not doing kitchens, bathrooms, yards or any unfinished space like a basement, or any children’s rooms.

Tell us about you and your housemates, whether they be family, spouse, roommate, companion, and why you all want to be a part of the show.

How to Apply

For Save Us From Our House or The Reno Show

Please provide us with:
1)Your contact information (phone, cell and e-mail)
2)Your story, including the names and ages of all your family members, and a description of your home
3)A family photograph, and a few of your home (especially the problem areas)

DEADLINE: FRIDAY APRIL 4th 2008
Rate: For SAVE US FROM OUR HOUSE There is a minimum requirement of $5000.
Total renovations provided by design team are valued between $20,000 and $25,000 depending on project size. FOR THE RENO SHOW, THERE IS NO PAYMENT BUT YOU WILL RECEIVE A ROOM MAKEOVER FROM 2 WELL SOUGHT-AFTER DESIGNERS.
Those that we are interested in we will arrange to come to your home for a 30-minute interview. We will also view the room that you want to be renovated.

Please send applications to: Larissa Mair and Lisa Campbell
SAVE US FROM OUR HOUSE: saveusfromourhouse@gmail.com
THE RENO SHOW: designpeople07@gmail.com

Last week I talked about portable tool organizers, a topic that’s dear to my heart now that I’ve begun my springtime cleanup. Having a mess of screws, glues, tape and tools tangled together inside my front-hall closet was causing me to curse. Now that I’ve got that under control, it’s time to tackle the rest of the house.If you’ve ever worked in a professional kitchen, or even watched shows on The Food Network, you know the French term “mise en place,” which means, loosely, “put in place” or “prepared and ready to use.” The term is equally applicable to every room in the house, but especially shared areas. Is there anything more annoying than looking for something—scissors, bike tire pump, the remote—and discovering it’s nowhere to be found?

Luckily, the web is full of home organizing tips, although like exercise and dieting sites, most offer “the easy way” rather than giving effective, realistic tips. There are some gems though:

Organized Home is like an online magazine dedicated exclusively to getting your home in order. While it may drift into women’s magazine clichés (“Many hands make light work! Reward the team with dinner at a pizza parlor!”), it does contain some great ideas for cutting clutter and getting kids motivated to help clean.

Organization can become a personal religion for some—that’s why some of us dust and vacuum when we’re feeling anxious—and it follows that those who are passionate about keeping clean become tidying evangelists. Blogger Tracy runs a site dedicated to her passion: tips and techniques for an efficient, well-organized house. Tips to Organize Life includes room-by-room plans for keeping clutter at bay, and runs the gamut from a step-by-step checklist for the bathroom to creating a schedule for your home office.

OnlineOrganizing.com has a very cool tool in its clickable house; click on a room and up pops a list of organization tips and ideas. The site also features a clickable office, 15-minute quick fixes and checklists used by professional organizers.

Most often, the obstacle to getting organized is knowing when to let go of useless clutter and collections and how to keep regular, everyday items in their mise en place. General rule: if it’s something you use regularly, keep it in an easily accessible spot; if it’s something you use infrequently, put it away and take note of where it’s hidden so the next time you need that tire pump ASAP, you won’t need to tear apart the garage to find it. Now where did I put that note …

What is it about springtime that makes us want to clear out the clutter? Walk down any residential street in the spring and you’ll encounter garage sales—or better yet, a pile of free stuff—offering you more junk to replace the items you just got rid of. Still, the trick to spring organizing isn’t just what you remove from your home, but how you organize what you keep.

A few weeks ago, I faced this problem after cleaning out my front hallway shelving, where I keep a small assortment of everyday tools and fasteners, items I want at-the-ready for quick fixes, like small screws and nails, a multi-head screwdriver, duct tape, and so on. Rather than jimmy an awkward storage system, I’ve been considering getting a small storage container for these items.

Virtually every hardware store offers its version of “the ultimate” portable tool storage solution. Of course, “ultimate” depends on your needs and space, but the three storage solutions below should work for most lifestyles for everyday tools and fasteners.

Order a Bucket

Milwaukee’s Bucket Organizer: finally, a sensible solution to lugging tools around the house in one easy-to-carry tote. Milwaukee gets it right with its heavy-duty, 55-pocket bucket organizer made from water-resistant polyester. The various-sized pockets can house everything from a flashlight to screws and fasteners; inside the bucket is a holster for a cordless drill; and there’s a dedicated square sleeve. At $15, it’s cheaper than the Colonel’s bucket.

Fast Fasteners

Keeping screws, nails and other fasteners in jars or large, wall-mounted storage containers is fine for the home workshop, but not in spots where space is limited, like the garage. Enter Stanley Hardware’s portable, 684-piece kit (pictured below, not yet online) filled with everyday fasteners—nails, thumbtacks, pushpins, anchors, screws, picture hooks—all neatly sorted into 14 separate compartments. Made of plastic, this lightweight tray can hang on the wall or sit on a shelf. Retailing for $13 and available at Wal-Mart, other versions are sold North American-wide at other retailers.

Box it up

Toolboxes are a dime a dozen; unfortunately, most of them aren’t worth the 10 cents. For basic storage of everyday items, keep it simple and don’t overload yourself with a hefty, hard-to-carry tool box filled to the brim with tools you don’t need. Stack-On has the right idea with their 26-inch box with two removable storage boxes. Rugged, built-to-last, and inexpensive—what more could you ask for? Retail: $20.

It seems every time I flip on the boob tube, there’s another happy couple—well, generally happy, but momentarily disgruntled couple—undergoing a home reno while TV cameras roll. Welcome to prime time, where homeowners and professional renovators flip the ugly, the outdated, the unlivable into a contemporary nest in less time than it takes most of us to re-tile a small bathroom.

If home reno shows have done one thing well, it is to expose the bad guys in the business. But while they have raised the status of a few good men, and women, these shows have also given off the impression that renovation is a card game where you need to call bluffs and gamble your savings.

Money Blue Book, a blog about “smart investing, frugal living and credit card offers” offers up what it considers the best house-flipping and house-hunting TV shows. But it should be noted that “best” here refers to “most entertaining.” For example, here’s Blogger Ray (no last name) on A&E’s Flip This House: “I love the show and found it irresistibly entertaining due to the endless stream of scam and fakery controversies [including] Atlanta “real estate developer” Sam Leccima and his Season 2 housing-flip scam debacle. His on-the-air house flipping prowesses were later exposed and discredited as shams by news investigators when it was revealed that he had duped many investors in an elaborate flipping cover up.” “Ray’s” passionate analysis continues on the site.

But I don’t mean to just focus on the negative. Instructional TV has come a long way since the days of Bob Ross reminiscing about wartime while painting his latest water-colour masterpiece. While we’re inundated with a few too many shows these days, there are at least a few worth your half hour.

Canada’s HGTV carries a wide selection of less glamorous, more realistic reno shows, even if they are slightly sped up—hey, come on, it’s television. Most notable is Holmes on Homes, starring contractor Mike Holmes as the tough-talking, bicep-wielding here-I-come-to-save-the-day pro.

The original reno shows belong to This Old House, the New England program starring everyman Norm Abram. Beginning in 1982, this is probably television’s longest-running reno show.

Of course, we can’t really talk TV without mentioning the Kenny Rogers of DIY, Bob Vila. This guy can sell, and unlike us regular folk, his hair never seems to grey and his golf shirts never seem to fade.

—Jay Somerset

Homeowners should have insurance, it’s as simple as that. Protecting your largest asset can prevent it from becoming a liability in unpredictable situations. How much coverage, which company, and the other small details will impact the price of your home insurance, so here are some things to take into consideration when looking.

1. Know the value of your home, in today’s market. Every year, the value of your home will vary a bit. If it’s a significant increase, be sure to get added coverage for the air market value. Just because you purchased your home 10 years ago does not mean that it has the same value today. Ask yourself whether if you had to rebuild, or purchase a new home, would you be able to do so with the money that your current insurance policy offers?

2. Shop around. You do this for car insurance and should also for home insurance. Different companies offer better rates based on their criteria, so you may save big from just one phone call.

3. Ask for discounts. There are some brokers and agents that offer substantial discounts for having more than one insurance policy with them. For example, car, life and home equates to large savings in your premiums. Don’t waste your money by not asking, it could save you hundreds of dollars.

4. If you have a company that you have been with for a long time, let them know that you are shopping. As a great client, they don’t want to see you go, and may compete for your business.

5. Know how much risk you pose in the insurance company’s eyes. For example if you are in an area known for weather damage, you are higher risk. Other risks are: gender, age, marital status, area of town you live in, etc. - all of these factors equate to risk.

Being an informed consumer can make a big difference in your policy premiums.

posted by Nikki Rollins
nrollins@homerenovationguide.com

There is a new service available to help the Canadian homeowners and real estate investors make better and more informed real estate decisions.

HomeValuationsCanada.com is Canada’s first consumer-based portal for online, residential property valuations.

Their unique service provides Canadian homeowners a place to find comparable sales, estimates on their home’s value, sales history, and market trends on their local neighbourhood.

This information has never before been available to the general public without employing a real estate agent.

HomeValuationsCanada is a Canadian-based technology and data reporting company with a focus on the valuation of residential properties.

HomeValuationsCanada combines the power of predictive technologies with industry leading techniques, available data and industry knowledge to create the most advanced form of automated valuation available today.

Our property reports are based on one of Canada’s single largest property databases, which includes monthly registered sales data and assessment information on millions of properties Canada, explains Jim Cole, Owner/ CEO of HomeValuationsCanada. Powered by the industry leader in automated property valuation in Canada - reavs Information Technologies - HomeValuationsCanada provides access to the same technology that banks and insurers rely on for home valuation purposes.

HomeValuationsCanada is the only cross Canada provider of such a service. They have been in the industry over 10 years and have established themselves as the national leader for residential AVM technologies. After building a service that is now in use by many major financial institutions across Canada , HVC has now developed a service tailored to the average home owner and real estate investor.

This new service is quick, easy and affordable enough so that everyone who owns a home can track the equity they have accumulated. This service is also quite handy for people looking to buy or sell a home and can help with negotiating or listing purposes.

You can check out their corporate website for more information and to search for your property.

Article provided by Home Valuations Canada
http://www.HomeValuationsCanada.com

posted by Nikki Rollins
nrollins@homerenovationguide.com

Renovating your home can be an exciting and rewarding process. Whether you are making modest changes in one or two rooms, or you are transforming the entire house into a dream of a lifetime, the process can be pleasant and smooth, if you take the time to plan your project carefully.

The Renovation Council of the Greater Vancouver Home Builders’ Association (GVHBA), suggests that homeowners can ensure a successful renovation if they follow these 10 steps:

1. Do your homework. Advance research is the key to getting what you want. Study magazines and books to get an idea of the look you want. Visit friends, family members and colleagues who have renovated recently. Consider your lifestyle and the needs of your family, both in the short and long term.

2. Find out how much you can afford. Once your have a firm idea of the kind of renovation you would like to undertake, it is time to decide how you are going to pay for it. If you are thinking about using outside funds, discuss your borrowing needs and options with your lender. You will probably find that there are many financing possibilities to consider, from personal loans and lines of credit to home equity loans and homeowner’s mortgages.

3. Look for a professional renovator. Ask family and friends for recommendations. Drive around your neighbourhood to see who is renovating, then talk to the homeowners about their project. Most people are delighted to share their renovation experiences.

4. Get estimates. Obtain two or three different bids; more are usually not required. Make sure that you provide all the renovators with the same detailed information. It is important that they bid on the same job, or you will not be able to compare estimates. This information could be a description of the job including sketches, drawings, photographs and measures.For estimates involving major structural changes such as additions or moving interior walls, renovators may also need a set of plans. An architect could be a great help here. The set of plans includes site and floor plans, elevations and detailed drawings. The plan forms the basis for the estimating process and will also be used to obtain building permits. Be honest and open about your budget. The renovator will be able to make suggestions that will help you stay within your budget or provide alternative ideas to stretch your dollars.

5. Check references. Don’t omit this step just because you are too busy or “they seem like the right person for the job.”

6. Work out a contract. Don’t automatically take the lowest bid, unless you are certain that the renovator has properly understood what you want. Sometimes low bids turn out to be the most expensive in the end. When you accept the renovator’s offer, it’s time to write up a contract. Even the simplest of jobs should be outlined in writing because the contract is the basis of understanding between you and your renovator. Before signing a contract, read it carefully. Are you satisfied with the description of the work to be done? Does the payment schedule include holdbacks? Are the responsibilities of the renovator clearly spelled out? Remember that if something is not in the contract, then it’s your responsibility. Have a lawyer examine the contract before you sign it.

7. Plan how you will live during the renovation. Careful planning can greatly minimize inconvenience of living in the midst of a renovation. Talk to your renovator about the schedule of work to be done and how your daily routine might be affected. For instance, will the water be turned off for any length of time? Do you need to set up a temporary kitchen elsewhere in the home? Can major work be done in stages so as you always have a livable space? Discuss your expectations of the work crew and determine the work environment. The crew needs access to washroom facilities, telephones, water and electricity. Decide which areas of your home are off limits. It is a good idea to let your neighbours know that you are going to be renovating. Show them your plans and explain how long the work will be going on.

8. Establish a good working relationship and mutual trust with your renovator. Renovators and homeowners agree that a good working relationship is a vital ingredient in successful renovation projects. Keep lines of communication open at all times. Expect a brief report on the progress of your job at regular intervals, perhaps every evening. Be available to make decisions when they are needed so work is not held up, perhaps costing you more money. Don’t hesitate to bring your concerns to the attention of the renovator.

9. Try to stick with your first choices. Once work is underway, changes should be kept to a minimum. The details of your project are described in the contract, down to the finishing touches, from the basis of both the price and the schedule of your job. Changes could affect both significantly. Your GVHBA member renovator, however, wants you to be satisfied with the final result, and will likely attempt to accommodate any alteration in plans, as long as you accept a possible delay in completion and/or a change in price.

10. Be prepared to enjoy the results. Research, good planning, a professional work crew and open communication and trust, a recipe for a home renovation that you will enjoy for years to come!

Article complements of the Greater Vancouver Home Builders Association http://www.gvhba.org/

for more information please visit their web site.

posted by Nikki Rollins nrollins@homerenovationguide.com