As one of the few homes with hydrogen powered energy, this home in Bay Heights, Miami, entered into the future of new and clean energy. The system was setup up in the home by two companies, Hydra Fuel Cell and American Hydrogen Corporation. These two companies have claimed to have perfected the system needed for homes across the nation to switch to hydrogen powered systems, and demonstrated this through this home in Miami.

Hydrogen contains three times more energy than natural gas, and the family in this home has already witnessed the reduced energy costs, which is now less than half of what they had been previously been paying out for electricity from the grid.

When will we see more hydrogen powered homes?  As the designs are perfected, the companies claim within a few years it is likely that many more homes across the nation will enter into the future of energy production.

1. Patch all cracks and holes in the walls. Really, buyers don’t want to show off their new home to friends that looks like they’ve been living in for years.

2. Fix all broken appliances. Ever here the sang “If it’s not broken, don’t fix it?” Well, if it is broken, fix it!

3. Repair leaky faucets. If you don’t then water will leak onto the carpet in your home and create a funky odor from the mold that developed. Ew. Get what I’m saying?

4. Replace worn carpet. Although carpet is supposed to be not as important as say, re-doing your entire kitchen, nobody likes to step on dirty run down carpet. Fix it.

5. Repaint walls with neutral colors. Do not use white and nothing that screams too loudly. Let the brightness show off of your personality.

6. Replace broken windows. Get modern windows that show off how lovely the home is. Nobody wants a home that looks like it’s straight out of a mob movie.

7. Repair the roof. South Florida experiences a lot of hurricanes and tornados. I heard that certain roof tile colors are still hard to find, but do your best to replace the roof.  I know it can be pricey.

8. Change out dated light fixtures and ceiling fans. Think 2008+ when you go into making these changes for your home.

9. Fix code violations. Enough said.

10. Re-do the kitchen.  After bedroom space, the kitchen is the most essential room in the entire house. It’s where the magic happens. It should be updated with new light fixtures, counter tops, cabinets and appliances.

In today’s Buyer Market, it’s important to create the illusion of a new home with updated appliances. Not only will you get a bid faster from buyers, but you will learn a lot about what to do in the event of another slow down in the real estate market.

1. Add an extension to your home. Experts say -if done properly-this could add 10-50 percent to the value of your home. For example, if you have a small kitchen, add on a cooking island, or something to make it appear more spacious. It’ll cost a few thousand but be worth more in the end.

2. Updating a kitchen is the number one absolute must when improving your home. It could potentially add about 10 percent to the value of your home. It’s where families spend the most time in and the first place potential buyers look. Choose a look that adds on to the character of the house (contemporary kitchen for a modern home).

3. Replace old tiles or flooring! Nobody wants to walk on dirty old carpet or cracked tiles…

4. Revamping your bathroom will appeal to buyers.  Fit on a new sink, new lighting, new floor tiles and re-tile the walls to give it a fresh look. Give it that day at the spa feel.

5. Updating the exterior of your home can add on 15 percent more value to your home.  Clean the windows, re-paint the front door , repair the gutters and do some gardening.  Think about it. Nobody will go inside if they don’t like the outside.

6. They say wallpaper is coming back in style. It’s classier than paint. You could even combine the two. Find a style that goes with the rest of the house. Create a mood/theme. If you don’t have the money for wallpaper, wall stickers are “in” this year.  It’s a cute feature to add to the value of your home.

7. Deal with basic issues before you rush out of your house. Some buyers wants a fixer-upper, but most people expect to get a problem-free house. That means fix the plumbing, woodchip wallpaper and restore wood. Rip out old carpet and replace it as well.

8. If you want to “Think Green” at a low price, then you can buy recycled or antique furniture or anything that has been made. Adding recycled building materials can create a stylish fresh look in any room of your house.

9. Turn a neglected plot of land into a beautifully landscaped garden. You can buy plants and flowers at a low price and watch them instantly brighten up your home. If you had the money, you could even build a greenhouse.

10. Maybe your home just needs a good cleaning. Cleaning can turn a war zone into a cozy living environment.

With these tips, you will be well on your way to improving the value of your home and getting more bang for your buck. ..or should I say buck for your bang?

Today we took a look at University of Florida’s “Hurricane House” in Davie.

Please check out our on-site report on Hurricane House below.

This is one of four facilities, soon to be six, that showcases and demonstrates products that help hurricane-proof your home. The house itself can withstand 140 mph winds and contains a steel “safe room” to protect you against tornadoes in Central Florida.

Each and every product inside this hurricane house has the Miami-Dade County seal of approval or NOA (Notice of Acceptance) which means it has been tested to withstand up to a “CAT 5″ hurricane.

You can tour the Hurricane House for free, like we did and learn more about Storm Shield, Armor Screen and new construction methods to hurricane-proof your home.

It’ll make you think twice about home improvement.

The Miami Herald’s 9th Annual Business Plan Contest drew 135 entries from throughout the southeast U.S., among them XTarp, a revolutionary, post-storm, roof-saving product.

But the People’s Pick was some do-it-yourself invitation CD ROM.

Why?

Hurricane season doesn’t even start for another two weeks and we’ve just had our first tropical storm Andrea with 40-mph winds.

Forget custom invites, and listen up folks.

Antonio Diaz, airplane engine tester, entrepreneur and inventor has a product that will blow you away, but prevent your roof from doing the same.

XTarp: A 4-layer, 23 milimeter-thick, 10″ by 12″, poly-woven laminate SELF-ADHESIVE ROOF TARP!!!

It’s so simple, says Diaz, a 9-year-old can use it. You can shinny up your roof and repair your hard-to-cover S-tile, (or barrel-tile), roof after a storm. Then, when the roofers can’t get to your house even after a whole year, and the next hurricane season begins, the dang thing will still be adhering to your roof, withstanding up to 110-mph winds!!! (Maybe more once testing for 200 mph winds is complete).

XTarp molds to tile, shingles, concrete, rubber, metal, and PVC. It eliminates the use of those horrible blue tarps, which require sandbags (impossible to lift up a ladder on your shoulders), bricks, hammer, or nails.

XTarp actually comes in two sizes, 6” by 6” and 10” by 12”. XTarp can also adhere to itself, so you can layer them to cover a greater area, but Diaz said most roof damage is isolated so you won’t need to buy an enormous amount.

Best of all, Diaz said the adhesive is non-toxic and Ozone-safe, and will not attract mold, algae or bacteria!

The product is classified as a “temporary” product so it doesn’t require state approval, but it’s been tested and has a Miami-Dade County product number. Visit them at the Florida Governor’s Hurricane Conference at the Ft. Lauderdale Convention Center May 16 & 17, 2007 in booth 202. Or at the Palm Beach Post Storm Show June 9 and 10. Or call and order from Diaz direct, 305-781-6443.

Unless you’re too busy designing invitations on your computer. sigh.

And so the poem goes. The children will be free as quick as thought. Have you fenced your pool yet?

The Consumer Product Safety Commission suggests installing fences and gates completely around pools. Here are some guidelines for pool barriers, provided by FenceOnline.com .

1. The fence or other barrier should be at least 4 feet high. It should have no foot or handholds that could help a child climb it.

2. Vertical fence slats should be less than 4 inches apart to prevent a child from squeezing through.

3. The maximum clearance at the bottom of the barrier should not exceed 4 inches above the ground, when the measurement is done on the outside of the barrier, the part that is facing away from the pool.

4. Gates should open away from the pool, not into the pool, and should be self- closing and self-latching. The gate should have no opening greater than ½ inch within 18 inches of the latch release mechanism.

Swimming pool barrier guidelines are not a CPSC standard nor are they mandatory requirements. The CPSC hopes that we’ll know enough to use these as a minimum starting point.

Lifesaver Pool Fence is a removable safety mesh pool fence designed specifically to provide a safety barrier around residential swimming pools for kids. These fantastic fences, (and I can vouch for them because I own one!) have tough safety mesh (even if kids try to throw themselves against it), support poles, self-closing gate options, and ground caps.

Swimming pools should always be a treat for kids. Ensure they add to your life, as they add value to your home.

Now that temperatures are starting to drop, you might be thinking about heating your South Florida home’s pool so you can enjoy it throughout the winter months.

Don’t be discouraged if you think it’s too expensive.
There are many ways to heat your pool without breaking the bank.

Here are a couple of useful tips to help maximize the potential of your South Florida home this winter.

One of the best investments you can make is on a pool solar cover or blanket. This floating cover insulates the surface of the pool water conserving heat. In consequence your heater runs for a shorter period of time and drastically reduces your energy costs.

Solar heating panels are also a great way to heat you pool. Florida’s winter months tend to be the sunniest, and using the free energy from the sun will only cost you purchase and installment of the panels, not to mention that solar heating does not pollute the increasingly fragile ecosystem.

It’s going to get a lot easier to furnish that new South Florida home. Ikea is coming to Sunrise.

The new Ikea store—the first one in Florida—broke ground yesterday in Sunrise, on the corner of State Road 84 and Northwest 136th Street. Currently the closest Ikea store to South Florida shoppers is Atlanta.

The Sunrise Ikea store will have about 293,000 square feet of retail space, including three model homes, 50 room settings, a Swedish cafeteria and a play area for children. Ikea is known its 10,000 item product line of sleek, well-designed, reasonably priced home furnishings and accessories.

The Sunrise Ikea will be located right near Sawgrass Mills, the shopping, dining and entertainment complex that is the largest outlet mall in the country and has become one of the top tourist destination in Florida.

But even as ground was breaking on the Sunrise Ikea, there were talks about adding another in a few years to northern Palm Beach County. Studies have shown that residents there are less likely to make the hour-plus drive to Sunrise to shop at Sawgrass Mills.

Ikea in Sunrise is scheduled to open late next summer and will create 400 new jobs. It should also prove to be a boon to real estate in South Florida especially in the areas surrounding the store and Sawgrass Mills, communities like Sawgrass Preserve and Sawgrass Estates.

A professional stager sets the scene and enhances the overall natural flow of the house. Furniture may need to be rearranged, removed or added. Clutter definitely needs to be taken care of. Are the windows clean? Stagers use props when needed. These include antique furniture, silk plants, oriental rugs and artwork. Actors may even be hired for an open house.

In a competitive market, staging your home may be the best way to set it above the rest.

Dealing with hurricanes is not an easy thing to do, but it’s the price we pay for living in one of the sunniest places in the world.

This week put a new hurricane in the spotlight. Hurricane Paul is out in the Pacific headed for the Baja peninsula in Mexico. As grateful as we are that we didn’t experience much storm activity in our area, South Florida real estate is extremely vulnerable when it comes to hurricanes. However, there are many things you can do to keep your family safe and make your South Florida home less likely to suffer damages.

Thankfully the season is almost over which gives us approximately eight months to get our homes ready for next year. If you suffered damages from Wilma, hopefully you’ve repaired them by now.

The most important steps to take in order to protect the structure of your home are to make sure your roof is in top shape, and to put up shutters on all windows at least 48 hours before landfall. Shutters provide a great amount of protection from flying debris that may break windows and create a dangerous situation. If you don’t have them yet, now is one of the best times to start planning for them. They’re not cheap but it’s certainly less than the amount you’ll spend in repairs if your home suffers damages.

Impact glass and laminated glass are another good option especially if you live near the Ocean where winds may be particularly strong. Make sure you have a hurricane kit with a few flashlights, batteries, and a battery powered radio. Most of us do, however you’ll need to replace some items such as batteries after a certain time and make sure everything is working properly. A “take box” is another essential. This is where you’ll store documents such as insurance policy info, passports and id’s, mortgage information, car titles, and large purchase receipts.

If you haven’t purchased a home in South Florida but your thinking about doing so in the near future, many new homes and condo towers have been built with the latest state-of-the-art engineering and are designed to endure high category storms. Some examples of condos in Fort Lauderdale that have incorporated the latest building codes and standards are Las Olas Riverhouse and Las Olas Grand. Miami’s Blue Diamond Condos also fit into this category.