4 POOL MAINTENANCE ESSENTIALS FOR THE SUMMER

Source: Realty Times

Pool ownership makes you popular all spring and summer. So when you join the ranks of the 8.5 million pool owners, as reported by the Association of Pool and Spa Professionals, you'll be ready to open up your pool as soon as possible after the long winter months. If you've never dealt with after-winter pool maintenance, you're in for a green and terrifying mess that takes some time to clean. Get ready to put your pool back in order once the weather heats up and the swimsuits come out.


 The first rule of thumb for keeping your pool safe and sound over the winter is resisting the urge to drain it completely, according to Popular Mechanics. The primary problem when you drain an in-ground pool is the risk of groundwater table changes. If the groundwater level is high, it's possible that your pool gets pushed entirely out of the ground due to the weight differential between an empty pool and a filled pool. You won't run into this problem with above ground pools, however, so make sure to drain those out before winter hits.
 Clear Out Big Debris: Even when you're careful about putting the cover on, you still end up with leaves and other large debris that the filter doesn't catch. Red Beacon recommends using a leaf rake to clean the cover or a pool brush to get the cover cleared off before working on the pool itself. Clean out the water filters before you top off the pool with water once the majority of the debris and algae is removed. You don't have to get the pool perfectly clean at this point, but you want the biggest mess gone.

Choose Your Chemicals Carefully:  Consult industry experts such as In The Swim when choosing chlorine, bromine and other pool chemicals. Chlorine comes in several forms, such as tablets and sticks, with special formulas for frequent-use pools and indoor pools. In addition to slow-dispensing chlorine, you also need chlorine shock at the beginning of the season. This kills off the algae that accumulated over the winter, along with any other nasty bugs in the pool. Chlorine shock sanitizes the pool, although you want to give it some time to dissipate as it's much stronger chlorine than the slow-release tablets.

 Use a Pool App to Stay on Top of Maintenance:  Use a high-technology solution to keep your pool happy throughout the summer. Pool Care, a free Android app, helps you run pH tests, keeps track of when you added chemicals to the pool, suggests chemicals to balance your pool and reminds you to do other routine tasks such as cleaning out the filters. If you have a hard time remembering to add chlorine and bromine to your pool, this app is for you.

Be Ready To Buy Your First Home

 First-time homebuyers have it tough. The supply of homes for sale is tight, and lenders are tightfisted. 

SOURCES: Trulia.com; Realtor.org; HSH.com; Svenja Gudell, Zillow.com; David Stevens, president and CEO, Mortgage Bankers Association; Linda Descano, president and CEO, Women & Co.; Walter Molony, National Association of Realtors

Student debt, at an all-time high of nearly $30,000 per grad, is getting in the way of saving for a down payment, says David Stevens, president and CEO of the Mortgage Bankers Association. But it's a great time to get your foot in the door. "Interest rates remain the envy of even your grandparents," says Keith Gumbinger, vice president of mortgage publisher HSH.com. First, make your finances sparkle.

THE TURNING-POINT CHECKLIST:

12 months in advance:

Make sure the time is right. Use Trulia.com's rent or buy calculator to see if you'd really come out ahead, based on loan rates, taxes, and where rents and prices are headed in your area. Nationwide it's 38% cheaper buying vs. renting.

Clean up your act. Devote this year to saving money and paying down debt. You'll need at least 3.5% down for an FHA loan, or 10% to 20% for a conventional mortgage. Lenders also like to see job stability, so settle in for now.

Learn what you like. When a home catches your eye -- a listing, say, or a photo -- pin it to a board on Pinterest. Or try Swipe, a new app from the site Doorsteps, which lets you browse listing photos and mark them pass or save.

Six months out:

Look better to lenders. To boost your credit score, order your free credit reports at annualcreditreport.com and fix any mistakes. Pay bills on time, chip away at credit card balances, avoid new debt, and don't close any accounts or apply for new credit. The average credit score for approved mortgage applicants is 755.

Figure out what you can buy. Use an online calculator like the one at Zillow.com to estimate how much house you can afford based on your income, savings, and debts. That'll help you research homes and drill down on costs.

Forecast future bills. With an idea of how big a house you can buy, you can do a more detailed budget. Scan listings for property taxes on homes you like. Get a homeowners insurance quote at Insweb.com. Call local utility companies for the typical bills. And tack on 1% of the home's value for yearly maintenance.

Three months out:

Pick your loan. Fixed mortgage rates, now 4.4%, may edge up to 5% this year, forecasts HSH.com. If you are confident this is a starter home, you can save with a 7/1 adjustable-rate loan, now 3.5%. The risk: You end up staying longer than seven years and rates rise sharply. Most -- 92% of mortgage borrowers -- opt for fixed-rate loans.

Prove you're a serious shopper. Based on your income and credit, a bank will give you a mortgage pre-approval. "It's the No. 1 thing you want in your back pocket when you go shopping," says Svenja Gudell, an economist with Zillow. Even better in a hot market: Pay a few hundred to go through underwriting upfront.

Find a guide. Look for a realtor who has worked in the neighborhood where you hope to live. And in a tight market like today's, ask candidates what their strategies are for unearthing listings and handling potential bidding wars.