Teach Your Children Well

Take on "The Great Utility Challenge" with your children.

Pull out your utility bills and make your older kids an offer: If they're able to reduce monthly costs by 15%, you'll split the savings with them. You'll be amazed by how quickly the lights are turned off in rooms they're leaving, and how everyone is happy to put on a sweater and turn the thermostat down.  This challenge teaches your child that it takes money to live.

Talking Trash!

Freeport's Annual Bulky Waste Pickup Starts on November 14th.

This annual service is totally separate from your regular weekly garbage pickup.  You must make arrangements with your regular trash hauler (Gill's Freeport Disposal (815-233-5644) or Moring Disposal (815-233-9216) ) to sign up.  There will be a $51 charge per residence to help the city offset the cost of the program.  When you call to sign up you will need to provide your water and sewer account number, address and phone number (the charge will show up on your water bill).  There are limits to the amount of trash that can be disposed of in this program.  Each participating home may place four (4) bulky furniture items along with one (1) cubic yard of miscellaneous bulky waste at the curb (one cubic yard is the equivalent of six 30-gallon containers). 

The deadline for making arrangements with the appropriate hauler is November 12th.

 

Here is a list of what is considered acceptable items for the Bulky Waste Pickup:

Couches, sleeper sofas, major appliances, coffee/end tables, kitchen tables, sectionals (limit one), rocker/recliners, mattress/box springs, baby cribs, dressers, pillows, picture frames, foot stools, baby swings, grills, lamps, small area rugs, child car seats, push mowers (you must drain the fuel first), bicycles/tricycles, boxes and small items, swing sets (disassembled into 4' sections).

Here is a list of unacceptable items that you should NOT put out:

Dehumidifiers, tires, air conditioners, plate glass windows, water heaters/softeners, mirrors, cement, rock, brick, riding lawn mowers, auto batteries, open dry paint cans, car parts, or liquid waste.

This is a great time to take advantage of cleaning out your larger waste for a very reasonable cost.

BOO to you!

So the funniest costume I've heard of this year so far is: a guy wearing a t-shirt that reads: "GO CEILINGS!"  Can you guess what he is?

Have a safe and spooky Halloween!

October is Fire Prevention Month

     There are always more residential fires in the winter months because more residents are using supplemental heat sources (some safe, ...some not so safe) during the colder months.  Be sure all your smoke detectors and CO detectors have fresh batteries and test them to make sure they work.  A properly functioning smoke or CO detector could very well save your life! 

     Our local fire department says if you know someone who doesn't have smoke detectors, let them know.  They will come out and install them free of charge! 

     There should be at least one smoke detector on every level of your home. Replace batteries at least yearly and test them at least monthly.  Ensure that everyone in your household knows 2 ways to get out of every room and pick a designated spot to meet outside your home in case of fire. Practice your plan at leaat twice a year. 

     Simply put, you should always maintain your smoke detectors as if your life or the life of someone you love depends on them, some day it just might.

At Real Estate Options - we are VERY pet-friendly!

New Website Helps Tenants Investigate Landlords

Like Carfax for Renters

LDM Solutions LLC announced the launch of its tenant-friendly website, http://www.checkyourlandlord.com/, a service providing “due diligence for residential renters to easily and discreetly investigate their prospective landlord and property.”

The company says this information arms the renter with the ability to protect themselves from the recent rise in rental scams and rental foreclosures in a way that has not previously been available.

This service allows renters to assess the potential risks of a home rental transaction before signing a lease. According to a company statement, there has been an increase in recent years of rental scams and landlord fraud, as well as a rise in the number of renters who have faced foreclosure of their rental home. However, robust tools to help tenants avoid these situations have not existed in the market.

“Renters often don’t consider the risks involved in signing a lease agreement,” stated Michael Schaffer, General Manager of LDM Solutions LLC. “Through the introduction of http://www.checkyourlandlord.com/, we are making information about a rental property and its owner easy to obtain and understand. When a consumer buys a used car, it has become standard practice to review a Carfax report for potential problems. By educating renters, we look forward to the day when reviewing a CheckYourLandlord.com report is standard practice before renting a home.”

http://www.checkyourlandlord.com/ sources property and personal background information from real-time data aggregators covering thousands of public records sources at the federal, state, county and city levels. Each report is individually prepared by a trained analyst, and is unbiased, reporting only factual information.

Don't Pour Your $$$ Down The Drain!

Did you know that taking a bath requires up to 70 gallons of water (times that by how many people bathe in your household). A five-minute shower uses only 10 to 25 gallons!  Calculate the savings of showering - it will amaze you!   And, at 1 drip per second, a faucet can leak 3,000 gallons per year.  Talk about pouring your money down the drain!  If you are a current tenant of ours, please notify us immediately when you notice drips or leaks. We want to make sure you never have to spend more than necessary on your water bills.

Get Your Money Back!

How long have you lived in your home?  Do you know that after one year of "on-time" payments on your water bill in Freeport, that you are allowed to get your securty deposit back?  They won't just give it to you, you will need to tell them you want it back.  Why let them hold onto money that's yours... look at your calendar, figure it out, and after one year of timely payments, go reclaim your money!

Advertising Yourself to be Robbed!

Does anyone really READ our the REO newsletters?  In December we wrote a warning about being very discreet when throwing out packaging for valuable items you may have just been gifted or just purchased yourself (like computers, TV's, epensive electronic gaming equipment or other electronics) so as not to advertise to any would-be theives as to what may be inside your home.  Cut up boxes and put the smaller pieces inside covered garbage cans or plastic garbage bags.  Today, as we were out cruising the neighborhoods we found this scenario (see photo!).  SCARY!  This person is advertising themselves to be robbed.  Don't make the same mistake! We all need to be street-wise today!

Your Opinion is NEEDED and VALUED!

     We are working with other property owners and managers from around the state of Illinois on laws intended to control crime in rental property.  Laws that deal with crime should be effective so that you can feel safe in your home and they should also be fair to both the resident and the property owner.

     In order to create good laws related to rental property, the people in government need to consider how people that rent feel about issues.  We want your opinion on how crime affects your life.

To fill out a (very!) short tenant survey, please go to:

http://www.irpoa.org/

     Your answers will be anonymous.  The survey is only 16 questions and will just take a couple minues to fill out.  You will have the option of signing up to get a report on the survey if you want to find out what other renters think about the issue.  This is being sent to renters across the state of Illinois, so PLEASE FORWARD this survey to your friends and family who also rent.

Thank you for your help

and for sharing your opinion on this issue.

Follow us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/RentFreeport

for any updates we hear regarding to laws that will affect you.

CHANGES To Be Aware Of If You Receive Unemployment Benefits

For those of you currently on unemployment and receiving benefit payments on a debit card, and have changed your address in the last year, call 800-244-5631 immediately to update your address to avoid payment interruptions because your card is going to change in June from a blue VISA card to a red debit MASTERCARD by Chase.

You should have received an IDES red and white mailing that describes the change, but if you didn't, click here to find out all the answers: http://www.ides.state.il.us/pdf/debit_card/new/faq.pdf

The new red Chase debit MASTERCARD will usable starting July.

So, remember - if the IDES does not have your current address on file, you could experience a delay in receiving your card.  Be sure to update them by calling 800-244-5631.

Assistance with Gas Bills

From the Freeport Journal-Standard today: With the weather heating up in Northwest Illinois, this may seem like the least important time to talk about paying your gas bill.

Salvation Army Director Nickee Bender, however, is quick to point out that now is not the time to ignore outstanding payments to the gas company.

“For people who have gotten behind on their gas bills over the winter, this is the time where their gas gets turned off,” Bender said.

Utility laws forbid companies from shutting off gas during the winter, Bender explained. So when the temperatures rise, customers who are behind on their payments could see their service shut off.

Local residents struggling to make ends meet can benefit from the Nicor Gas Sharing Program.

The Nicor Sharing Program provides one-time annual grants to qualified residential customers, according to the official Nicor website. The program is funded by direct contributions from Nicor Gas’ customers and employees.

The Salvation Army in Freeport is the local administrator for the Nicor sharing program.

Catching Up On Payments

The Nicor Gas Sharing Program has been around for years, Bender said. Still, many residents are unaware that the assistance is available.

“We just want people to know this option is out there,” she said.

Local residents can apply for the sharing program by stopping in at the Salvation Army between 9 a.m. and 3 p.m. on weekdays, Bender said. Applicants must provide proof of income, proof of residence and their current Nicor bill.

The entire process, Bender said, takes only 15 minutes.

Bender believes that the minimal effort is well worth it.

“I think it is very important to try and get caught up before next winter,” she said.

The sharing program, Bender noted, is only available for residents that do not qualify for the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program.

Illinios RX Card - Illinois' FREE Prescription Assistance Program!

NEED HELP WITH PRESCRIPTION COSTS?

If you are un-insured or under-insured, as a resident of Illinois, you and your family now have access to a statewide Prescription Assistance Program (PAP).

Create and print your FREE discount prescription drug card from the link here. This card will provide you with Rx medication savings of up to 75% at more than 56,000 pharmacies across the country including CVS/pharmacy, Dominick's, Hy-Vee, Kmart, Meijer, Jewel-Osco, Pamida, Schnucks, Shopko, Walgreens, Target, Walmart, and many more. You can create as many cards as you need. We encourage you to give cards to friends and family members. This card is pre-activated and can be used immediately!


NOTE: All prescriptions processed through this program are confidential.

Low Price Guarantee

This program has lowest price logic to guarantee that you get the best deal on your prescriptions (you pay the lower of a discount off Average Wholesale Price-AWP, discount off MAC Pricing, or Pharmacy Promotional/Retail price).

Go check out this link and get your card instantly!  Illinois RX Card -- FREE Prescription Assistance Program

Battling the Bugs...and WINNING!

They say after last year's flood, we may have more bugs than normal this summer!
If you don't want to do combat with commercial pesticdes, there are many easy, safe and effective alternatives.
Here's some tried and true methods against common pests. Ants: Spread cinnamon, bay leaves, cayenne pepper, salted cucumber peels or leaves from mint tea bags near their point of entry or along baseboards. Mice: Place cotton dipped in peppermint oil near problem areas. Mosquitoes: When you barbeque, throw some sage or rosemary onto the coals. Carpenter Ants: Mix 3 cups hot water, 1 cup sugar and 4 teaspoons boric acid. Soak cotton in the mixture and leave it near places where ants are found.

We're Now on Facebook

Come find us on Facebook! We are at: www.Facebook.com/RentFreeport. Become a "fan" by clicking the "Like" button!  See you there!

Have You Seen Our NEW Billboard ??

Tell your friends!
If we rent to them due to your word-of-mouth advertising, YOU get a $50 Referral Fee!
And KUDOS from your friends for helping them find a GREAT place to rent!

The FRUSTRATION of Estmated Utility Bills

We've all been frustrated lately with extra-high utukity bills - only to discover our last few months of billings have been ESTIMATED and now we finally get an ACTUAL bill that seems outrageous by comparison.

Look carefully at your electric and gas bills each month.  If they are estimated, you can call the utility company with your own reading and have them rebill you.  If you are hit with an absurdly high bill and find out it is an actual reading - but your last few months have been estimated -- call the utility to work out an amicable payment plan.  They are required to do this - with no additional fees, interest or penalties accruing.

And you should read this GREAT informative article that was in the Freeport Journal-Standard on January 15, 2011.   http://www.journalstandard.com/news/x512659095/5-things-you-should-know-about-estimated-billing-and-balloon-bills   (Copy and paste into your browser if the link doesn't work for you.)

Remember to pay attention to this "estimated reading" practice all year long!