Clever Dude and the insulation blower machine Our home was built in 1941, long before insulation was commonly used, much less a standard in new home construction. We bought the home in 2004, but didn't know this fact until we really started … [Read more...] about Save Mucho Money by Reinsulating Your Home’s Exterior Walls
Last week, I explained how we're going to save big money on our mortgage when our rate resets. In the article, I thought the rate would reset on the anniversary of our closing, which would be this November. However, I just logged into our lender … [Read more...] about Oops, our mortgage rate resets 2 months later than expected
Almost five years ago, we financed our first home purchase with a 5/1 ARM interest-only mortgage. If you're not familiar with mortgage lingo, it breaks down into the following, at least in our case: 5/1 ARM (Adjustable Rate Mortgage) means that … [Read more...] about Will our adjustable rate mortgage save us big money?
Some of you have been wondering why my posting frequency is down. Well, there's a few reasons, including graduate school (last 2 classes!), work (some major deployments and activities lately), and church (I'm the "deputy grand poobah" in a church … [Read more...] about Where’s Clever Dude?
A while ago, I posted about the sale of Toronto's skinniest house for a hefty $173,000, which we all thought was an outrageous price for such a small house. Turns out it was a steal compared to the $2.7 million price for New York City's skinniest … [Read more...] about NYC “skinniest house” for sale for a fat price
If you're a Vonage customer, or thinking about becoming one, I have a bit of news for you. Did you know they have lower-priced plans than what they advertise? I've been a Vonage customer for almost 5 years now, but I simply don't use anywhere near … [Read more...] about Switch to a cheaper Vonage plan
The Washington Post published an article today about a new (to us) security system that some local daycares are using to supposedly protect the children from kidnapping or harm. The technology isn't what caught my attention, but rather some of the … [Read more...] about $22,000 per year and a 2 hour commute for a bit of security
Just a quick tip. One that's so common sense that I really shouldn't need to even mention it, but I feel that I must. If you're switching from incandescent bulbs to CFLs (compact flourescent lights), you still need to turn the lights off when you … [Read more...] about How NOT to use a CFL bulb
