I would like to buy a home. I am currently single, in my early 30s, and would like to meet someone special and have a family. Right now, I could buy something that would suit one person, a couple, and maybe a couple with a kid - but not really a "family" home. Should I buy or wait?
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posted by anonymous
on Nov 8, 2010 -
13 answers
Mission: decorate our condo as an internet meme for a Halloween party. Hive mind, help me come up with awesome meme's and their physical manifestation!
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posted by olya
on Oct 24, 2010 -
28 answers
I live in the Maryland suburbs of DC, and I recently bought a old house here (Mt Rainier). The house is heated with radiators and heating oil, and I need to refill the oil (there was only about 5 gallons left from the seller). Any suggestions on where and who to have refill the oil? It's my first time doing this.
posted by waylaid
on Oct 18, 2010 -
9 answers
Mid-twenties couple living in a big city trying to save up for the future. How the heck to people do it? Help us figure out what we're doing wrong and how to fix it.
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posted by your mom's a sock puppet
on Oct 14, 2010 -
71 answers
Should I avoid signing a year-long lease for a room in a group house or shared apartment? Is it reasonable to hold out for month-to-month rent, or will I end up with slim pickings? (I am looking in the DC area)
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posted by catquas
on Oct 10, 2010 -
10 answers
A location scout slipped a letter through our mailslot - call him if we'd be willing to let them "rent" our house for the filming of a television show episode. I haven't called him so I don't know how much they might pay, or any other details. Have you ever done this? Is it an awful headache? I'm interested in hearing how it worked out for you.
posted by CheeseLouise
on Oct 7, 2010 -
24 answers
Currently renting a room in a couple's house-- they are my housemates and landlords. I am not liking the situation-- it's extremely dirty. How can I make the situation better, or broach the subject of leaving after I just moved in?
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posted by anonymous
on Oct 5, 2010 -
21 answers
It's getting cold, and the heat in our newly-purchased but old house won't turn on. Can you help troubleshoot, or should we just call in a professional?
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posted by misskaz
on Oct 2, 2010 -
22 answers
What is it called when a techno/similar artist mixes a song with chunks or samples of rock songs? What are some artists or songs that do this?
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posted by Diplodocus
on Sep 27, 2010 -
20 answers
Help me tease out too many uncertainties and variables in selling a house.
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posted by wilful
on Sep 21, 2010 -
9 answers
Claw foot tub and water based paint stuck to it. Help a girl out. I want to take a bubble bath in a non-paint marked tub!
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posted by timpanogos
on Sep 17, 2010 -
8 answers
Related back to
this question, we are finally pulling the trigger on a new furnace, hoping to get the work done before a state rebate program for such purchases expires. We have gotten several good bids, and are taking more, but the best one came from a guy who would also fix our insulation problem- for $7000. We're a little daunted.
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posted by pickypicky
on Sep 17, 2010 -
5 answers
My painter is recommending
Rodda paint for our house exterior. I like that Rodda is a regional company here in Seattle. But I can't find any reviews on their quality. Nothing in Consumer Reports.
Painter uses Rodda AC 911 flat and AC 909 satin.
Anyone have an opinion? Is it good lasting paint?
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posted by valannc
on Sep 13, 2010 -
3 answers
I bought a house and used the recovery plan tax credit, but now I might have to relocate for my relationship. How do I make this work without losing my shirt?
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posted by anonymous
on Sep 10, 2010 -
4 answers
What's the best way to get this 100-year-old house marketed and sold without it becoming the money pit first? Oh, and I'm 1,500 miles away.
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posted by cyniczny
on Sep 6, 2010 -
9 answers
Is it smart to refinance my house now? Very Special Snowflake details on the other side.
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posted by anonymous
on Aug 27, 2010 -
6 answers
I'm thinking of buying a one bed flat for around 130k in Brighton or Bristol, UK. I have a 50k deposit. I am not committed to any area (or country for that matter) and I have no emotional need to own a house. But if it makes financial sense, I am in a position to do it.
But does it make financial sense to buy? Everyone apparently says yes, but I don't understand the maths. If prices stay flat, for instance, would it not make more sense to rent and invest the money elsewhere?
I'm really thinking short term, would I be up in, say, 10 years, if everything stays fairly steady. I can't really make the mental leap to factor in the benefit of owning the house in 25 years....
posted by choppyes
on Aug 26, 2010 -
29 answers
TrackIdFilter: I've been trying in vain to ID this deep house track that features the following lyrics: "There ain't no pill that can fill this need" and "Somebody call the doctor" (there's more to it, but this is what I can remember). It was played at Panorama Bar, Berghain, by Kiki at around 11am or so last Sunday morning.
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posted by LMGM
on Aug 23, 2010 -
4 answers
Does anyone have any experience with painting aluminum siding? In our case, the siding is blistered and peeling very badly and the bare aluminum is showing.
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posted by wg
on Aug 18, 2010 -
3 answers
What are the potential problems, if any, of venting a portable A/C unit into a closet or attic?
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posted by wordsmith
on Aug 13, 2010 -
14 answers
I'm suddenly fascinated with the history of the house I bought. Except I have no idea how to go about looking up the history of a house this old (1925, San Francisco, not one of the big, fancy neighborhoods, nothing notable ever happened on the street). Where do I start?
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posted by Gucky
on Aug 8, 2010 -
14 answers
Yet another rent-versus-buy housing question, but I'd appreciate the hive mind taking the time to read the tl;dr details inside, as I'm faced with this imminent choice and am seriously confused and conflicted.
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posted by Oriole Adams
on Aug 7, 2010 -
22 answers
"
Proceedings of the House of Representatives, including any recording of such proceedings, may not be used for any political purpose or in any commercial advertisement, and may not be broadcast with commercial sponsorship except as part of a bona fide news program or public affairs documentary program," according to
houselive.gov. Why and
how would or could this possibly be?!
posted by finite
on Jul 27, 2010 -
7 answers
I'm looking for a home owner's manual. By that I mean a book, website, etc. (the type of media doesn't matter) that is structured like a car manual's scheduled service interval section.
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posted by schleppo
on Jul 23, 2010 -
9 answers
Are there good resources to determine what's happening to the value of my house as the market adjusts?
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posted by SpacemanStix
on Jul 22, 2010 -
14 answers
Should i sell my books or keep them? We're moving to a smaller house. I own way too many books. Most are expensive and i won't be able to afford to replace them in any near future. I have loads of slipped discs and lifting loads of small boxes of books will be agony. I own hundreds of v.specialist books i might need IF i get a job needing a particular language, or onto a masters in that area of psychology. They're big, they're expensive (normally - i picked up cheap ones along the way for possible future use). I live in a remote rural area with no nearby shop, so they have to sell on Amazon in the next 4 weeks or go to charity shops, probably get pulped. I would use most of them eventually. There are also my massive language dictionaries: there are online dictionaries, but often i can't afford the internet, but i don't know if i will need ever them or not, depends what job i get (have had jobs abroad).
Really, it's a philosophy of life question: gather no moss, be a free spirit? Or plan ahead, be cautious? Which works best and why? Anyone with experience who can say you won't need those books/you'll really regret it?
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posted by maiamaia
on Jul 21, 2010 -
36 answers
Help me find this newly-published (within the last month) graph! This article/ webpage had a graph of house prices in different countries relative to income (?). The graph was interactive and had sliding bars where you could adjust for different time periods and different countries (US, UK, Switzerland, Japan, China, etc). I think I probably saw it on either BBC or NYTimes website, maybe Slate or FT.
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posted by moiraine
on Jul 15, 2010 -
3 answers
My house siding was damaged in a recent hail storm. Currently I have aluminum siding, but I understand to replace aluminum siding cost more money than vinyl siding. Would anyone know approximately how much more a sheet of aluminum siding would cost verses a sheet of vinyl siding? Thanks in advance!
posted by Mckoan1
on Jul 14, 2010 -
6 answers
We're close to finding a house to buy, but our current landlord wants us to sign another six month lease. We're in MA--is there anything we can do?
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posted by A Terrible Llama
on Jul 12, 2010 -
17 answers
We just purchased a new home. The new home owners were gracious enough to give me a walk through their home to explain how to maintain the pool, and any tips on the garden.
Is there anything else I should try to find out outside of the normal, 'how do you guys maintain your home' type questions?
posted by blahblah
on Jul 10, 2010 -
21 answers
Please recommend an electrician in the Chapel Hill/Triangle area that you know is good and can perform a house inspection.
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posted by corn_bread
on Jun 30, 2010 -
0 answers
In older techno tunes, it was common have a single high-pitched note held for a really long time in songs (sometimes through the entire song). Electronica has a ton of terms, from "amen breaks" to "acid", but is there a word (or are there multiple commonly used words) for that note?
posted by Bugbread
on Jun 24, 2010 -
18 answers
What is this recurring deep,
loud buzzing sound (and vibrations) in my house? It only happens in one spot, and many members of the family have heard/felt it. (No, getting it checked out is not an option currently on the table, I'll explain below).
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posted by flibbertigibbet
on Jun 24, 2010 -
28 answers
I am the temporary care-keeper of a Medinilla Magnifica (
here's a decent description). And it's trying to die on me - even though it has bright (but not direct sunlight), enought watering (but not to moist) and a quite humid placement. Please assist me to resuscitate it again.
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posted by Rabarberofficer
on Jun 24, 2010 -
2 answers
My rental house's paint is peeling and generally looks incredibly shabby. My landlord said (verbally) when we moved in last July that he planned to paint it in a few months. A year later, it still hasn't been done. I've asked for updates several times and he says it's on the top of his list but temperature/weather have gotten in the way. Other than that I don't have anything in writing. Complication: his wife is hospitalized with stage IV cancer. He's notified tenants of this as a reason why he's less than responsive lately. Other than the painting issue, he's a great person/landlord. Should I press the issue? If so, what can I do? I'm really torn because his reasons are valid, but my house looks so bad at this point that I'm embarrassed to have guests over.
posted by emilyd22222
on Jun 22, 2010 -
40 answers
Building a house, we're meeting with the electrician tomorrow to talk about where to put outlets/wire runs. I'm looking for interesting places that we may want to put wiring.
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posted by cmm
on Jun 21, 2010 -
43 answers