CheckItOut@WrightLibrary from Wright Memorial Public Library

Fashion Frugalista

Reference Staff — Mon, 24 Sep 2012 12:40:40 GMT

Wright Library
presents

Fashion Frugalista:
Harnessing the Hidden Gems in Your Closet

with

Linda Lee Rahn

Sunday, October 7, at 2:00 p.m.

Ms. Rahn will be teaching how to evict the monsters living in your closet, identify & utilize your hidden gems and how to look fabulous for less, NOT less fabulous! Check out Linda Lee's Fall Fashion Updates on Living Dayton.

Advanced registration is required and limited to the first 65 people. Contact Wright Library’s Reference Department at 294-7171 or by email to register..

Property Value Reappraisal

Reference Staff — Mon, 22 Sep 2008 17:03:10 GMT

The Montgomery County Auditor has conducted a reappraisal of property values during 2008. Tentative valuations have begun to be mailed. If you are interested in attempting to determine the value of your property yourself, the following information will assist you to do so. The Auditor's Montgomery County Real Estate Tax Information site has a wealth of information. Begin with the 2008 Reappraisal Information page and Frequently Asked Questions. If you wish to challenge the reappraised value of your home, you will need the Complaint Against the Valuation of Real Property form which you can download from the site.

Property value assessments are most often based on the value of similar, nearby properties, i.e. what other homes in your neighborhood have sold for recently. To see what the auditor's office thinks of your neighborhood, go to the Neighborhood Delineation page. Once there, type in your address, then click the Data link in the resulting page to see a description of the neighborhood, including the average value of recent sales.

Another way to do this and to see more specific values is to go to Realtor.com. On this Web site look for What's Your Home Worth? Select Single Family Home or Condo/Townhouse, then enter your street address and zip code. A list will be returned of recent sales values for properties nearby the address you entered. You can sort the list by Closest Homes or Most Recent Sales.

These values are taken from public records, but if you wish to verify them, you can go back to the Montgomery County Real Estate Tax Information site and Search by Property Address. Enter an address, verify it in the results list, then click on the entry to view details. The Sales are listed in the fourth section on the screen.

Any questions concerning your reappraisal and the valuation of your home should be addressed to the County Auditor's Office.

Home Improvement

Reference Staff — Mon, 25 Feb 2008 15:54:57 GMT

Any home improvement project, whether it is something you do yourself or a major, contracted addition, benefits from advice on how to do it right the first time. Numerous sites exist on the Web offering this type of advice and instruction.

Ask the Builder
Better Homes and Gardens Home
Improvement How-To
BobVila.com
Home Tips
MyHomeImprovement
Old House Web
Popular Mechanics Home Clinic
This Old House

Here are some associations that offer tips on how to go about planning and executing a remodeling project.

National Association of Home Builders - This link takes you to their Remodel Your Home page.

National Association of the Remodeling Industry - Look for information under the Homeowners tab. There is a Dayton Chapter.

National Kitchen & Bath Association - Look for the NKBA for Consumers menu on the left.

If you are not doing the work yourself, finding the right person to do it for you can be the most important task in the entire process. The above sites offer advice in selecting a contractor, recommending those they certify. There are other contractors out there; however, and sites such as ImproveNet or ServiceMagic (which are actually partners) help you find prescreened contractors to fit your requirements.

Additional advice and cautions can be found in the Home Improvement Facts for Consumers from the Federal Trade Commission. And it is always a good idea is to research potential contractors through the Better Business Bureau.