Home and Garden
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Well-maintained landscaping is vital for sellersMay 21, 2016 2:01 am - This is the time of year when many homeowners refurbish their landscaping, making their homes more salable and generally more attractive. "Good landscaping could potenti...
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Association boards must follow village ordinancesMay 21, 2016 2:00 am - Q. Garbage is picked up in our single-family homeowners association on Friday. Week after week, the same few homeowners leave their empty garbage cans at the curb all we...
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How to achieve savings discipline when it comes to retirementMay 21, 2016 1:00 am - Savings discipline is the willingness to forgo spending now in order to accumulate the funds needed to meet a valued objective in the future. The objective is critical b...
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Blooming Fest takes root in downtown West ChicagoMay 21, 2016 1:00 am - If you're going to hold a celebration called Blooming Fest, it's always nice to have Mother Nature on your side. Face it, it's hard to marvel at the wonder of plants - a...
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Board ignores its own harship provisionMay 21, 2016 1:00 am - Q. The declaration of my brother's association restricts leasing. The declaration does include a "hardship" provision that permits the board to grant exceptions to the l...
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How much to offer for a house is an inexact scienceMay 21, 2016 1:00 am - Q. We are looking for our first home, and we would like some guidelines on how much to offer when we find the house we want. How much bargaining do sellers expect? Any a...
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Advice for couples blending two homes into oneMay 20, 2016 6:00 am - For couples setting up a new home together, it's a challenge: how to merge two sets of stuff and two decorating styles into one space they both can love. “Emotions get r...
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Is FHA reviving its condo financing?May 20, 2016 4:00 am - WASHINGTON — Could the Federal Housing Administration finally be opening its doors again to financing more condominium units? If so, that could be excellent news for you...
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Bizarre real estate laws affect homeowners, renters in every stateMay 20, 2016 2:00 am - Q. We want to replace the old, 3-foot-tall wood fence that separates our property from our neighbor's with an 8-foot-tall cement wall that would provide more privacy. Bu...
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Often no permit exists for converted garageMay 20, 2016 2:00 am - Q. The studio apartment I'm renting is a converted garage. Is there any way to know if this conversion meets code and was approved by the city? A. If the garage conversi...