When you live in the new Town Center at Virginia Beach, it allows you to test the pulse of the thriving night life. They have both upscale dining and quite a large variety of entertainment for you to choose from.

For those of us who live and work in the Hampton Roads area are well aware that Virginia Beach and Norfolk downtown sections are in close proximity.  So with only a few short miles between the two cities allows anyone looking for a night of fun to be able to choose one or both cities as the tranist time is very short.

As a proud owner of a downtown Virginia Beach Condo, you will enjoy access to thriving dining districts and a growing number of shopping areas that are just wonderful.

There is a huge movie theater in the Pembroke Mall area and tons of stores and other boutiques to cater to your every need.
Additionally you will find a huge and well stocked Barnes and Noble book store with a large quantity of other smaller shops and services too numerous to name.

It makes no difference that you might be celebrating a wedding, anniversary, or even a birthday, the large number of dinner theaters, restaurants and other eateries in the Town Center of Virginia Beach will absolutely amaze you.

One of the finer restaurants in the Town Center is Ruth's Chris.. they have some of the finest steaks you will find in the entire United States hands down. I can vouch for that myself, as I have dined there on more than one occassion.

Not far away you will find the Sandler Center for the Performing arts and there you will find a selection of plays, concerts, and other performing dance favorites… and many daily performances are some of the finest acts in the area.

Just a short hop and skip from the Virginia Beach Town center is I-264 which is a major artery running from the oceanfront to the center of downtown Norfolk.  If you desire a shopping experience that you will remember, plan on spending the day at the Town Center. You will be glad you did.

Once you live in a condo in the Town Center area, and you realize how convenient and centralized everything is you will never want to move away to any other area.

It matters not whether you rent or buy a Virginia Beach Condo, you will get the deal of your life, as homes are being sold in the area for a song.  There is little doubt that you will enjoy life to the fullest here in the wonderful Virginia Beach.

Tom Chambers specializes in Virginia Beach real estate and Virginia Beach condos. Don't hesitate to contact Tom for all your real estate needs here in the big and wonderful city of Virginia Beach Real Estate

One of the most crucial decisions you will ever make in your life is whether to buy a new construction home or a previously owned home. There are several advantages to buying new construction. With new construction, you can be reasonably sure that the roof won't leak, and if for some unlikley reason it does, the builder will quickly fix it.  Not so with the pre-owned homes.  If it wasn't raining on closing day and you had no reason to think the roof was bad, then Katie bar the door.  Normally you have no recourse but to make the roof repairs yourself. Or sue the home inspector who failed to identify the faulty roof. What? you say you did not use a home inspector. Shame on you..

Also remember, that buying an existing home does not banish you from a leaking drafty house that will tie you up every minute working on repairs. 

No doubt about it, following the construction of a new home step by step, can be an exciting experienxe.  The process can be a long and many times difficult undertaking.  Most folks depend on the builder to guide them thru the process of the entire project from start to finish. However in my opinion, the builder is not the best person to be taking you by the hand, as it is not to his benefit to point out the short comings of his work. Makes a lot of sense huh?

And for god sakes, do not depend on the city building inspectors to keep you out of trouble. The function of the city building inspector is to make sure the builder is in compliance with the code for the city. This does not necessarily equate to quality, just simply compying with the city rules (code) does not mean high quality. Besides the inspector is only on the site  for a tiny amount of the total time of the building project.

My strong recommendation is that you use an independent, licensed, professional home inspector or new home agent that has lots of experience to hold your hand.  That person can objectively and completely oversee the entire building project from stem to stern and provide you with knowledgable, unbiased information that can be worth its weight in gold.

Too often a home inspector is not called until you are already experiencing problems with the construction of your new home.  This could be many months after the home was built. Rarely do new home buyers consider hiring a home inspector while the house is under construction.

Too often, the home owner is unaware that an outside inspector could be hired. However its important that it is written into the contract that you will have your own home inspector, as many builders restrict anyone on the property except on special occasions when they give you an occasional guided tour.

You always have the right to choose who will oversee the construction of the most valuable asset you will ever own and make sure you do not let the builder bull doze you on this. Its your right. If the builder resists your bringing in your own inspector, its is a sure red flag that something may be wrong.

Make sure everything of any importance between you and the builder is put in writing. You should discuss your warranty thoroughly with the builder and make sure your home inspector has a copy of this.

Make sure you have a detailed paper trail. Send all correspondence to the builder by certified mail, return receipt requested.

Another super person to walk you thru the construction process is Tom Chambers with Resh Realty Group. He has carefully monitored the day to day construction of many new homes and has been able to divert many potential problems before they becam e monsters. Also you can view thousands of color photos and homes for sale click here. Thousands of color photos just waiting for you to view in the comfort of your home.

In the last few months, the number of foreclosures have climbed at an astounding rate. Never before have we seen such a large

number of foreclosures in such a short period of time.

And of course as the foreclosures increase, court proceedings are becoming common place.  Stay with me, and I will provide

you with some tips that may help you stay clear of the sheriff and the foreclosure process.

First Tip - I doubt that you will be interested in the first option, and that is to sell your home before it goes into

foreclosure.  If you plan to sell, be sure to get a valid market analysis to determine if the sale will bring sufficient

funds to get you out of your difuaglty.

The first thing most folks do, is the employ the services of a discount realtor.  Sometimes this is ok, but in a distressed

market you may be better off with an aggressive agent that is hungry. Many of the discount brokers do very minimum for their

pay and in many cases the longer time to sell might end up with more loss in sale price.

Having a strong and aggressive proven realtor, will ensure that maximum effort is expended to get your home sold in the

shortest possible time with the least aggravation.

So bottom line, is check references and be sure that your agent can help you in the short time that you may have left to

bypass the foreclosure man.

Second Tip - You might consider something that is relatively unknown by most realtors and that is a short sale.

To qualify for a short sale, the home must be worth more than the balance on the loan that you owe. This makes them

especially good candidates for this type of program.

Now keep in mind, that the short sale will affect your credit in a negative manner, but not as severly as will a full blown

foreclosure.

The most important factor in pulling off an effective sale, is getting the lender to go along with this proposition. Some

will and some won't, all you can do is ask.

Third Tip - You can give the property back to the lender, which is called "Deed in Lieu of Foreclosure". you simply sign the

property back over to the lender and take off.

To protect yourself as much as possible, be sure to get a good lawyer to draw up the documents as you do not want to be left

out in the coal.  A good lawyer can make sure they cannot come after you at some later date when the property is sold at some

very low value and they try to get you to pay the loss.

If you can successfully pull this off, it means that the lender has forgiven the debt and the foreclosure proceeding will be

cancelled. Be understand, that your credit will be affected similar to actually going thru the foreclosure.

In some cases when you have equity in your property, you may be able to get the loan extended. Which will lower the payments

to the point that you might be able to afford it. Also if the equity allows for it, the over due payments could be added to

the loan and that means that they would be due in 30 years toward the end of the loan.

I hope I have shed some light on a few methods that may be used to prevent your home going into foreclosure.
If you have questions, or want to look at thousands of color photos of all properties on the market, please visit our website

at http://camperstentmaker.com and we will be able to send you emails with color photos of all new properties coming on the

market as they appear.

Virginia Beach and Chesapeake Foreclosed homes can make you a fortune if you time the purchase correctly and investigate the total property repairs that will be needed before a resale can be made.

On more than one occasion, I have been approached by someone who tells me that they cannot purchase a home since they have recently gone through a foreclosure.  That just simply is not the truth, please bear with me for the next few pages and I will relate to you just how easy it is to purchase a home within a short period following a foreclosure.

One of the first things those Nay sayers relate to me  is that a foreclosure will be on their credit record for at least 7 years and they believe it is fruitless to attempt to purchase a home during that lengthy seven year period.  In some cases they fail to make any credit purchases of any sort for the seven year period. That is just simply the wrong thing to do.

Bear with me, and I will take you step by step thru the procedure to buy a home even if you have had a recent foreclosure.

Step 1 – VERY IMPORTANT! - Re-establish Credit

It is perfectly legal to begin to reestablish credit immediately following a foreclosure discharge unless the judge has specifically ordered you not to do so. Even if you have been ordered not to establish credit right away, there are several legal ways to get around this also.

We all find that the most difficult time following a foreclosure is the first twelve months, and I will show you what you need to be doing during those very important months.  During this period it is very difficult to find any lender who is willing to extend you credit for a home purchase.

Now let’s be clear, the foreclosure will drive up the cost of money for you, especially when your credit score drops below 550.  It is not unusual to find that when the going interest rate is 7 percent your low scores may  require you to pay  12 to 13 percent interest rate when using a conventional mortgage.

If you carefully follow the instructions that I will provide you, then your credit score will slowly begin to climb.  Once  it exceeds the 600’s you may find that the interest rate available to you has now dropped one or two points.

IF you would like to view 50,000 color photos of all Hampton Roads properties, visit our site at Virginia Beach Real Estate  Here you can sign up for color photos in your email daily of all new properties that come on the market each day.  This will allow you to be the very first one to see new properties as they become available.

House selling in today's maket is a real challenge so the very first step is to get a  fair market value for your real estate.

In today's Determining your Fair Market Value generally known as Market Analysis is becoming more and more difficult as the housing market continues to nose dive.  The sooner you get the property sold the better, as we have no way of knowing what the market will do tomorrow.  At this point, my opinion is that the housing market will not stabilize for at least two years or more.

As always, the best way to determine what your home is worth is to look at recent sales in your neighborhood and compare any differences in your home with the ones that have sold.  You can also get a full appraisal if you desire, but that will cost you a couple of hundred dollars and will not be much more valuable than a good market analysisby a knowledgable real estate agent.

As a home seller, it is imperative that you have a full understanding of the competition in the area. Unless you price your home at a deep discount, it will be slow to sell and of course only you know if the equity in your property will allow you to discount the price for a quick sale.

For best results, we normally try to price a property slightly above the price of recent sales in the area and slightly below the price of other nearby properties on the market currently. That way you will receive more interest and have a higher possiblilty that you might even sell for more than the asking price.

If you decide you would like some professional services,

please don't hesitate to call on Tom Chambers at the Resh Realty Group here in the Virginia Beach area. http://best-real-estate-agents.net

There are many ways to determine the amount of home you can afford.

One of the most important things you can do before you go house hunting is to get pre-qualifed for a mortgage. This is free and easy and I will explain in detail in my article "Getting A Mortgage". By knowing the maximum value of home you can afford to buy, saves time for both you, your realtor and the seller. It means you will not be wasting everyone's time looking at homes you cannot afford to buy. Always use a realtor since it does not cost you a penny and sometimes can save you thousands of dollars.

Buyers are rarely able to estimate the cost of the home they can afford. A realtor is invaluable in helping you make this very important decision. While you are calculating you maximum home purchase, be sure to also estimate the amount  you will need for closing costs and down payment.

Better yet, have your realtor send you to a reputable lender who can pre-qualify you for a loan and at the same time give you a letter that can be used to provide the seller proof that you are a great candidate to purchase his home. Sometimes this pre-qualificaton lettter is the difference in whether or not the seller will accept your offer. A strong endorsement from the lender is like gold in the eyes of the seller.

Our next article will delve further into the loan process.

Meanwhile, if you are interested in looking at full color photos of all homes available in Hampton Roads, be sure to visit our website at http://tchambers.reshrealtygroup.com here you can set up a wizard that will allow you to receive full color photos of all homes that match your interests in you email each day. This feature allows you to be notified immediatley when a new home that matches your needs comes on the market.

There is no obligation as it is completely free as is the service of all the Resh Realty Group Agents. These agents are specifically trained to work with both buyers and sellers and they have been able to get better prices for their buyers and sellers here in Hampton Roads compared to that of other realtors.

The Florida Heat Pump or Geothermal system works more efficiently as it removes heat and cool from water from beneath the earth. This water is normally protected from the extreme cold air or hot air that the normal heat pump must use for its operation.

The two basic types of geothermal systems are Closed system and open system.

Open Loop Systems

Of course the open loop will be the simplest of the two systems and will be more economical, but will be less efficient.  In this operation, water is drawn from a single well and then is passed thru the heat exchanger in the Florida Heat Pump system.  It is then discharged back into the very same well or in some cases a different well. To produce effective heat and cool, approximately two to three gallons of well water must be passed thru the heat exchanger per minute for each ton of heating or cooling capacity that is required.  This is the minimum amount of water required to maintain the system functions. One of the major advantages as mentioned above is the relatively constant water temperature of the well water throughout the year. As we all know there is huge swing in outside air temperature from the extreme heat of the summer to the extreme cold of the winter.

Closed Loop Systems

The closed loop system is more popular as it is more efficient, reliable and more economical to operate. This system has a buried pipe in the ground and water with a mixture of antifreeze is circulated through the underground pipe.  Various lengths of pipe will be required for each installation, as the actual soil moisture, ground temperature, and soil conductivity will affect the end results.  The major advantage of this system, is that it does not require the drilling of a well and earth water is not required for its operation.

More to come later on the advantages and disadvantages of the Florida Heat Pump Systems will follow. Meantime why not give our sponsor "Smiley Heating and Cooling" a call.

Don't be concerned about all those details, as I will give you a step by step procedure to follow.

The main funtion of the furnace thermostat is to maintain the temperature of the house by turning on the funace when heat is required and turning off the furnace when the temperature in the room matches that of the thermostat setting.

Some of the more common thermostats in use today is the low voltage thermostats manufactured by Honeywell,  White-Rodgers, Lux, Robertshaw and others.

By low voltage, we normally mean voltage such as 24 volts ac, not the more dangerous 115 volt ac.   This voltage is much safer to run around the house.

If you run into any special problems during your troubleshooting progress, please call Smiley Heating and Cooling service to lend a professional hand, or you may visit their website at Heating and Cooling in a Jiffy.

Your heat pump consists of many different components, but the following three very important factors are essential to longevity of your heating and cooling system. They are in no specific order   Quality, Efficiency and Comfort.

 Seasonal Energy Efficiency Ratio (SEER) is a term used to describe the cooling efficiency of a heat pump or an air conditioner.  The more efficiently the unit uses electricity, the higher the SEER number will be.

The SEER rating of most air conditions and heat pumps before 1992 was 7.0 or below.

Today's heat pumps and air conditioners have a SEER rating in the range of 10 to 17. A far cry better than those in the 1990's.

Now for the downside.. the higher the efficiency of the unit, the more expensive the unit becomes.  If you are in a very warm or very humid area, you will get the higher cost of the unit back in no time thru savings in electricity.  You can easily use the weather temperature expected in your area to calculate how long it will take you to get back your original investment in a heating and cooling unit in regard to savings in energy costs.

One important point that cannot be overempahsized, is that since the heat pump is usually a split unit meaning an outdoor unit(condensor) and an inside unit(coil) it is always best to replace them both at the same time to make sure the new unit will give the optimum results in regards to actual perfromance, total efficiency and overall comfort.

Last but not least, I will discuss the Comfort Features.

 Many of the newer heat pumps and air conditioners off special features that provide significantly more comfort and in some cases additional savings in energy and therefore money.  Some units run more quietly than others and can be set to run on low speed which can save up to 50% on energy.

When the system has longer operating periods it may translate into less on/off cycles. This provides better comfort and energy savings.

Some of the multi-speed or variable-capacity furnaces with adjustable speed fan coil may enhance both the efficiency and comfort of your heat pump and air conditioning system even further.

Be sure and visit Smiley Heating and Cooling for all you heating and cooling needs.

Question

I have a question about tapping into one of my furnace ducts located in my attic.  I want to add heat to a room that has been added by enclosing a porch.  It is about 35 feet from the tie in point to the center of the room that I want to heat.  Will it be necessary to add some sort of fan at the connection point to move the air along the new 35 foot duct to get it to the new location?  Or will it be just fine to tie in and forget it?

Answer

IF you are referring to connecting to a 6 inch round to a 4 inch round, it would be more effective to connect to a main duct. By main duct, I refer to the large rectangular ducting. If you steal air from the room that has the 6 inch duct, may create a comfort problem in that particular room.  I duct booster (fan) should not be necessary.  You may want to include a volume damper to ensure that you can adjust the volume of air as required.  The volume boosters can be purchased at either Lowe's or Home Depot.   Don't forget for all your need in regard to Heating and Cooling Services, please remember Smiley Heating and Cooling.