By: Karin Beuerlein

If you live in the Midwest, here are maintenance jobs you should complete in spring and summer to prevent costly repairs and keep your home in top condition.

Certain home maintenance tasks should be completed each season to prevent structural damage, save energy, and keep all your home’s systems running properly. What maintenance tasks are most important for the Midwest in spring and summer? Here are the major issues you should be aware of and critical tasks you should complete. For a comprehensive list of tasks by season, refer to the to-do lists at the end of this article.

When spring arrives in the Midwest, it’s time to clean up your home and yard from the ravages of winter. As the weather warms, you can also accomplish some routine maintenance tasks that are much more agreeable when the sun is shining.

Key maintenance tasks to perform

• Check your gutters and downspouts. “Stuff accumulates even after your fall gutter cleaning,” says Frank Lesh, president of Home Sweet Home Inspection Co. in Indian Head Park, Ill. “Pine needles especially, which fall all year long and are difficult to remove.” Children’s toys, he says, also find their way into gutters between cleanings, as well as nails and other debris from the roof. Look for any signs of wind or ice damage—has the gutter pulled away from the house, or bent so that there are depressions where water can stand? You can usually repair damage yourself for under $50 by adjusting or reattaching brackets and gently hammering out bent areas.
Lesh also recommends examining your downspouts for blockages. “You can’t see inside them,” he says, “so tap them with a screwdriver handle to see if they sound hollow.” If the ends run underground, where animals can build nests or winter debris can become trapped, your best bet is to put a garden hose in the gutter and see where the water discharges. If you have a blockage, you’ll have to disassemble or dig up part of the downspout until you locate it.
• Inspect your roof for winter damage. This is best done from a ladder, but if you’re allergic to ladders, use a pair of binoculars to check your roof from your yard. Look for loose and missing shingles. If anything looks unusual, investigate further yourself or call a roofing contractor.
• Take a close look at your chimney. “Do this even if the winter was mild,” Lesh says. “High winds, rain, and snow can damage a chimney. Look for cracks, missing mortar, loose bricks or boards, and signs of rot.” If any of those things are present, call a chimney sweep certified by the Chimney Safety Institute of America for a repair estimate. If the metal flashing and the cap on a chimney are galvanized, Lesh says, check to see if they look brownish, which means they’re rusting and should be replaced. Also, make sure the cap is still present but hasn’t collapsed and covered the flue opening, which could cause a dangerous carbon monoxide buildup inside the house. Expect chimney repairs to start around $200.
• Examine your drainage. Make sure soil slopes away from your foundation at least 6 vertical inches in the first 10 feet on all sides of the house and that there are no areas of standing water. If you have properly sloped foundation drainage but still have areas of standing water, consider a landscaping solution, such as a swales (contoured drainage depressions), berms (raised banks of earth), terraces, or French drains (a shallow, gravel-filled trench that diverts water away from the house).
• Take a look at your siding. Has any of it come loose or begun to rot? Repair any damaged sections before moisture has a chance to set in. No matter what your siding is made of (wood, vinyl, brick), it may need a spring cleaning. The best DIY method for any kind of siding is a bucket of soapy water and a long-handled brush. A power washer is not recommended and should only be handled by a professional cleaning contractor. If you choose to have your siding professionally cleaned, expect to pay $300–$500 depending on the size of your home.
• Schedule your biannual HVAC appointment. Get ready for the air conditioning season with your spring tune-up. If your system wasn’t running well last season, be sure to tell your contractor, and make sure he performs actual repairs if necessary rather than simply adding refrigerant. “He shouldn’t just charge it up,” Lesh says. “That will work for a while, but it won’t last. Freon lasts forever—if your system is low, there’s a leak somewhere, and he should tell you specifically what he’s going to check to fix it.” Expect to pay $50–$100.
Your contractor’s maintenance checklist should include checking thermostats and controls, checking the refrigerant level, tightening connections, lubricating any moving parts, checking the condensate drain, and cleaning the coils and blower. Duct cleaning, while it probably won’t hurt anything, is not necessary; be wary of contractors who want to coat the inside of the ducts with antimicrobial agents, as research has not proven the effectiveness of this method and any chemicals used in your ducts will likely become airborne.
On your own, make sure your filters are changed and vacuum out all your floor registers.
• Check your GFCIs. The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission recommends that you do this once a month, and it’s a good idea to incorporate it into your spring maintenance routine. GFCIs (ground fault circuit interrupters) are electrical outlets that protect you from deadly electrical shocks by shutting off the power anytime even a minimal disturbance in current is detected. They feature two buttons (“test” and “reset”), and should be present anywhere water and electricity can mix:  kitchens, bathrooms, basements, garages, and the exterior of the house.
To test your GFCIs, plug a small appliance (a nightlight, for example) into each GFCI. Press the test button, which should click and shut off the nightlight. The reset button should also pop out when you press the test button; when you press reset, the nightlight should come back on.
If the nightlight doesn’t go off when you press the test button, either the GFCI has failed and should be replaced, or the wiring is faulty should be inspected. If the reset button doesn’t pop out, or if pressing it doesn’t restore power to the nightlight, the GFCI has failed and should be replaced. These distinctions can help you tell an electrician what the problem is—neither job is one you should attempt yourself if you don’t have ample experience with electrical repair.
Spending a weekend or two on maintenance can prevent expensive repairs and alert you to developing problems before they become serious. Be sure to check out the comprehensive seasonal to-do list following this article, and visit the links below for more detailed information on completing tasks or repairs yourself.

Karin Beuerlein has covered home improvement and green living topics extensively for HGTV.com, FineLiving.com, and FrontDoor.com. In more than a decade of freelancing, she’s also written for dozens of national and regional publications, including Better Homes & Gardens, The History Channel Magazine, Eating Well, and Chicago Tribune. She and her husband started married life by remodeling the house they were living in. They still have both the marriage and the house, no small feat

Six tips that tell you it’s time

By Michele Dawson

Figuring out whether you’re ready to buy a house — whether you’re a renter or are aiming to move up or size down — can be a daunting task. But there are signs that will indicate whether you’re ready to take the buying plunge.

If you are thinking about buying, you’re not alone. So are you ready to make the move?

You might be if you:

1. Are familiar with the market. If you’ve been paying attention to how much houses are listed for in the neighborhoods you’re eyeing and have a realistic view of how much a house will cost you, you’re in good shape. But if you’re dreaming about that big corner house with no clue about it’s asking price, you may want to spend some more time becoming familiar with the market and how much houses are going for.

2. Have the money for a down payment and closing costs. The down payment is a percentage of the value of the property. Freddie Mac says the percentage will be determined by the type of mortgage you select. Down payments usually range from 3 to 20 percent of the property value. Also, you may be required to have Private Mortgage Insurance (PMI or MI) if your down payment is less than 20 percent. Closing costs include points, taxes, title insurance, financing costs and items that must be prepaid or escrowed and other settlement costs. You can expect to pay between from 2 to 7 percent of the property value. Generally, buyers will receive an estimate of these costs from your lender after you apply for a mortgage.

3. Know how much you can afford. Freddie Mac says that as a general guide, your monthly mortgage payment should be less than or equal to a percentage of your income, usually about a quarter of your gross monthly income. Also, your income, debt and credit history go into determining how much you can borrow. As a general rule, your debt -credit card bills, car loans, housing expenses, alimony and child support — should not be more than about 30 to 40 percent of your gross income.

4. Know what additional expenses will come with owning a home. This includes homeowners insurance, utility bills, maintenance costs — roofing, plumbing, heating and cooling.

5. Have your credit in good shape and make sure your credit report is accurate. Potential lenders will view your credit history — how much debt you’ve accrued, how many accounts you have open, whether your payments are made on time, etc. — to determine whether they’ll give you a loan. You should get a report from each of the three credit reporting companies: Equifax, Experian, and Trans Union.

6. You haven’t made any recent major purchases, particularly a vehicle. If you do, you may have a harder time getting a loan — or it could potentially lower the amount you’ll be approved for.

This selling season is predicted to be the most vibrant in years. Make sure you get the best price for your home without burying yourself in expenses.

By Luke Mullins of U.S. News & World Report

As the temperature drops and the snow piles up, it’s easy to forget that spring is quickly approaching. After more than three years of a painful housing swoon, real-estate experts predict that lower prices, attractive mortgage rates and a tax perk from Uncle Sam will create the most vibrant spring home-selling season in some time. "This is going to be probably the most pleasant experience for a home seller in the last four or five years," says Mike Larson of Weiss Research. "If you have been beating your head against a wall, this is going to feel a lot better." But even if the market does perk up, buyers are likely to retain the upper hand throughout 2010. So to help property owners get the best selling price they can — without burying themselves in expenses — U.S. News has created a list of 10 cheap ways to boost a home’s sales price by spring:

1. Retouch the front shell: If your property’s exterior isn’t appealing, no one will want to see your newly remodeled kitchen. Property sellers must first ensure that their home projects a cozy, inviting feeling. "The shell — the outside front — is probably the most important area for improvement, the area where you can make the biggest improvement with the smallest amount of cash," says Pat Lashinsky, president and CEO of ZipRealty. Touching up the paint on the front-entry portion of the house can be an inexpensive but effective way to make the entire property more inviting. "Really focus on that outside, external shell," Lashinsky says. "You would be amazed by the amount of people that drive by a house and say, ‘Ah, that’s not for me.’ And they can tell just by the way the upkeep and the outside looks."

2. Trim the greenery: Ensuring that the lawn, hedges and flowers are well-maintained helps make your home more alluring to prospective buyers. Property owners can hire professional landscapers or break out the lawn mower and get busy themselves. "Many people have landscaping that is overgrown and too heavy, and it is concealing a lot of the house," says Paul Zuch, the president of Capital Improvements. "Trim the trees, trim the hedges … (and) add a little color to the flower beds."

3. Paint the interior: Putting a fresh coat of paint on the home’s interior is a cost-effective way to make a home more appealing to buyers, says Ron Phipps, a broker with Phipps Realty in Warwick, R.I. When choosing the color, homeowners should be conservative. "The caution is that your favorite color may not be the favorite color of the buyer." Instead, homeowners are best off using neutral colors, Phipps says. "Go with something that is a very light yellow or a light cream with a contrasting white, so it just looks very fresh and crisp. … Having the paint in good condition is almost more important than the color."

4. Don’t forget the floors: Improving the condition of a home’s flooring is also a smart move for sellers — and you don’t need to refinish wood floors or install new carpets to make them more attractive. "If it’s a hardwood (floor), has the floor been buffed?" says David Lupberger, a home improvement expert with ServiceMagic.com. "If you have carpets, have the carpets been cleaned?"

5. Make all major repairs: Because tighter lending standards demand higher down payments, today’s homebuyers won’t have much cash left for improvements once they’ve made their purchase. So it’s imperative for sellers to make all major home repairs — fixing the leaky roof, rebuilding the front stoop — before they put the property on the market. "Repairs can’t be ignored, because nobody has any extra money," Phipps says. To determine what needs to be done, property owners can scrutinize their homes themselves or bring in a home inspector to examine the property professionally. "The home inspection piece, I think, is something that is a huge value, particularly if there is something that is a question," Phipps says.

6. Put appliances under warranty: To give buyers more confidence in a home’s appliances, Phipps recommends that sellers put them under warranty. Sellers can buy home warranties, which cover repair and replacement costs for many home appliances, from several different companies. "If I have got a 40- or 50-year-old house, it is going to be harder for me to persuade a first-time homebuyer with a limited amount of cash to buy it because they will say, ‘Well, what happens if something breaks down?’" Phipps says. "If I have a home warranty … that solves that problem."

7. Make energy-efficient home improvements: Increasing your home’s energy efficiency is another good way to make your property more attractive to buyers. Many such improvements, such as new windows or better insulation, come with federal tax benefits. In addition, a growing awareness of human impact on the environment means that homes that have these upgrades will stand out from other listings. "If you have some cruddy old windows that are leaky and just not energy efficient, you can put in new replacement windows and take advantage of the tax credit," Zuch says. "It’s not greenwashing. Those are really practical things that make your house more sellable." Many contractors will conduct a so-called energy audit free of charge to determine where efficiencies can be created, Zuch says. "If your house is more energy efficient — you use less energy, it’s better insulated — it is going to be more desirable for a potential buyer," he says.

8. New light fixtures: Replacing old or broken light fixtures with new ones can also be a low-cost way to add value, Lupberger says. Installing a new light fixture in the foyer can be a particular benefit, he says, because it can make a strong first impression on would-be buyers. Creating an inviting feeling in the interior entryway helps get home shoppers more interested in checking out the rest of the property. "I am not going to redo the house," Lupberger says. "But I can update those features so that somebody can walk in and say, ‘You know what? (The homeowners) took care of this.’"

9. New stove: While some homeowners might think the only way to jazz up a dated kitchen is a full-on remodeling job, Lashinsky recommends a much less costly alternative: buying a new stove. "If there is an updated stove in the kitchen, it is amazing how that draws people in, and people say, ‘Wow, this kitchen is going to be great,’" Lashinsky says. While upscale homeowners may have to shell out for top-of-the-line appliances to maintain their kitchen’s décor, others can budget well under $1,000 for the upgrade. "You can get a really nice stove for $700 or $800," Lashinsky says. "You can basically have the look of a new kitchen that is going to be really enticing to someone — and what you are really trying to do is differentiate your house from somebody else’s."

Property owners in neighborhoods where most homes have granite countertops can consider making this upgrade as well. But Lupberger says the project makes sense only for homeowners with extremely dated kitchens that are going to serve as a serious impediment to finding a buyer. A real-estate agent with experience in the local market can help you determine whether the upgrade is essential, he says.

10. Freshen up the bathrooms: Getting rid of mildew stains on the bathroom caulking can boost a home’s appeal as well. Such stains "scream, ‘These people haven’t taken care of this house. It’s going to be a money pit,’" Zuch says. Use a razor blade to remove the old caulk, and replace it with new, mildew-resistant caulk, Zuch says. And rather than remodeling the entire space, homeowners can reinvigorate a worn-down bathroom by replacing cracked sinks, Lupberger says.