Category: Home & Lawn Care

Fall Home Maintenance: Gutter Cleaning

Debbie Roney Smith on

Fall is great time to clean your gutters! Over the year, sticks, leaves, dirt, and other debris have been falling into your gutters. Debris can build up, restricting the flow of water and potentially leading to home damage if not taken care of While you can find someone to take care of the job for you, cleaning the gutters yourself can save you a nice chunk of money. So, what do you need to keep in mind while tackling this task?

  1.  Follow proper safety protocol! This means wearing the appropriate safety gear, including long pants, a long-sleeve shirt, closed-toe shoes, gardening gloves, and safety glasses. This will help you avoid scratches, pest bites, and more. You never know when a wet clump of leaves contains an ant nest! Safety protocol also means being smart when getting up to your gutters; DO NOT climb on the roof to clean the gutters – use a ladder. 
  2. Follow the right procedure! Start by removing any material near the downspout and clearing any downspout strainers. Then clear out the upper gutters by the handful, removing any large debris collections. Then, using a water hose, flush the gutters and downspouts. At this point, any clogs should reveal themselves. Feed your water hose down the pipe and turn the water on full blast; be sure not to stand at the end of the gutter least you get a face full of gutter gunk! Make sure to give your gutters one last flush.
  3. Repair any leaks! During the last flush, keep an eye out for any leaks or drips. Repair the area if possible. If not, be sure to replace the gutter piece within a few weeks. Leaks can lead to system shut down, gutter collapse, and other issues. 

3 Easy-to-Grow Flowers for Florida Summers

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The humidity is more persistent than the mosquitos and the summer storms don’t happen often enough; we’re in the thick of summer here in the Florida Panhandle! The periods of intense heat can sap the life out of everything green; porch plants are wilting, ornamental shrubs are browning, and extra waterings just seem to cause sun spots and yellowing leaves.

If you’re looking for plants that can handle the heat and the blackest of thumbs, look no further than the list below! It’s curated entirely from native plants; this means they’ve all genetically evolved to better handle local Florida weather. While all plants need a period of establishment when added to a garden (i.e. supplemental waterings) or daily waterings (if kept in a pot), native plants require less supplemental watering each year, require no fertilization to produce blooms, and are typically much lower maintenance than typical ornamental flowering plants. 

Blanket Flower (Galliardia spp.)

This is an easy-to-grow, short-lived perennial with richly colored, daisy-like flowers. The plant forms a slowly spreading mound, and the common name may be a reference to how they can slowly spread and “blanket” an area. They self-seed readily; if you’d like to stop them from self-seeding or want to extend the bloom time, you can dead-head the flowers (more on dead-heading flowers). 

Scarlet Sage (Salvia coccinea)

A colorful perennial with fragrant flowers; thrives in sunny and well-drained soil. It also appreciates being deadheaded. Scarlet sage can be found with red, white, or pink flowers. It’s deer resistant and easy to grow. While it can grow to 2-3ft tall, it handles pruning quite well and can be kept to a desired height easily. Best of all, it attracts everything from butterflies to bees to hummingbirds!

Frogfruit (Phyla nodiflora)

This is the plant to accompany all other plants! Frogfruit is the perfect plant to add to hanging baskets, to keep down weeds in your well-kept beds, or function as a walkable, mowable groundcover to replace costly turf grass. Another benefit? It’s popular with pollinators including small bees, wasps, flies, and butterflies. Frog fruit is the host plant for three butterflies: the phaon crescent, buckey, and white peacock.

 

Property Deed Fraud Is Growing in Florida

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Across Florida, scammers are selling peoples’ land and even homes behind their backs. It’s called property deed fraud, and there’s been a big spike in cases here in Florida because the real estate market in the Sunshine State is hot right now. So hot in fact, that numbers suggest approximately 1,218 people move into Florida daily. Officials are urging property owners to protect themselves by signing up for property fraud alerts.

More than 54% of real estate professionals experienced it firsthand in just the second half of 2023. It happens when a scammer steals someone’s identity and title and then sells their property without them knowing. Mary Justino with the Clerk of Clay County Court says: “There are instances where a person filed a fraudulent deed, and simply changed the name by one letter, or to change some of the information in the address or the text of the document by just one letter or two.”

To protect yourself and your property, sign up for your local county’s property fraud alert program. It sends emails and texts if there’s activity on land you own. To be clear, this DOES NOT prevent fraud but it’s like an early warning system. 

Florida has 67 counties with property fraud alert programs; only Jackson and Okaloosa are still working to create a functioning program. For more info or the signup for your county’s alerts, visit the Florida Court Clerks & Comptrollers website.

The Borrower Myth

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Have you heard that mortgage borrowers need 2 years on the same job to qualify? It’s a popular myth that is completely untrue. Many borrowers have far less than a 2-year employment history; as long as there are no gaps, clients are likely to qualify. Even if there are job gaps, Paramount Residential Mortage Group – and some other mortgage companies – will simply go back before the job gap to get the required length of employment history. Thanks to Brian, their sales manager, for reaching out with this information!

Spring Listing Prep

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Organize that junk drawer!

Are you planning to list your home this spring? March 21 isn’t that far away! For homeowners getting ready to sell, now is the time to start prepping. Check out the quick tips below:

  • Straighten up your home! Put things away, organize the junk drawer, declutter the closets, and more.
  • Complete any home repairs. Include everything, big or small. Do a walkthrough and make notes of what needs to be fixed; some things can be DIY but others will require a professional hire.
  • Time to decide on a realtor! Research agents in your area, make a list of possible agents, and arrange meetings.
  • Boost curb appeal! Clean up outside clutter, repaint the fence, add some native plants to the yard, fix the roof, power wash the driveway, clean your outdoor AND indoor windows, repaint doors, or consider upgrading the mailbox. 

New Homeowners: Inspection Checklist

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Are you getting ready to move into your new home? Here are a few things you should be sure to inspect during your walkthrough before moving in. This is typically the step after having a home inspection done. Completing a walkthrough is an important part of the purchasing process; it allows you to make sure any issues that came up during the home inspection were appropriately dealt with.

  • Make sure any agreed-upon repairs were done.
  • Check that any appliances that were supposed to be left or removed have been dealt with. Check that any remaining appliances are in working order. 
  • Test ALL outlets to be sure they are in working order.
  • Additionally, test switches, light fixtures, smoke detectors, garage doors, and plumbing.
  • Note any damage to floors, cabinets, ceilings, or walls.
  • Check all caulking to make sure it’s sealed properly. 
  • Test any sliding doors or windows to be sure they open efficiently. 

Cutting Your Energy Costs

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Today is National Cut Your Energy Costs Day! First established by the Canadian Energy Efficiency Alliance, it’s an annual day of awareness designed to help homeowners conserve home energy and save money. Did you know that homes account for 22% of the energy usage in the United States (according to Energy.gov)? Yet there are a few simple changes that can be made to help you cut excess waste.

  • Take shorter showers
  • Unplug unused appliances & chargers
  • Do laundry in cold water
  • Switch to LED lights
  • Weatherize your house to optimize insulation

 

Fall-Winter Ceiling Fan Settings

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During the summer, the fan should be counterclockwise to help create a downdraft. This helps create a direct, cooling breeze. Now that the season is changing and the temperatures are cooling down, it’s time to consider changing the direction to clockwise. This helps create an updraft that will circulate warm air around the room. Recirculating the warm air and distributing it back into the living space helps keep the average room temperature up and your heater from overworking. Checking your ceiling fan settings is a good way to help cut down on unnecessary energy costs. 

Graceville Announcement

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Graceville Public Works will be picking up vegetative debris next Thursday, June 22 AND Friday, June 23. They ask that you place your vegetative debris right next to the street right of way for easy pick up. These dates are for vegetative debris ONLY. If you have construction debris, it can be taken to Public Works from June 15-17th for Amnesty servicing.