How the seller should prepare
There's no hiding the truth of a home inspector's findings, so the wisest way to head off potential problems is to evaluate your home before you even put it on the market. Just by deciding to sell your home, you're entering a competitive market where quality work, steady maintenance and general care for your home will shine through. So, if you can afford to do so, plan on hiring a home inspector yourself in order to secure a presale profile of your home. This gives you the opportunity to repair and improve the things you can, and the chance to determine larger issues that should be disclosed up front. Bottom line, you'll have a reference point by which to compare the results of the buyer's home inspection─a great advantage that could possibly prevent the loss of a sale.

"Nobody lives in a perfect house," says Tamny. "You may have been in your house all these years, and there are little things you probably don't even pay attention to. Be prepared to fix stuff up, because it's just part of the whole process─don't take it personally."

During the home inspection
The key advice here is not to be at home when the inspection happens. The home inspector needs to be able to do a thorough, detailed job without interference or interruption, and if the buyer is along for the ride, they must be free to ask critical questions and to point out areas of concern. If the shoe were on the other foot, you know you'd expect the same, but it can be unsettling to observe this process in your own home. So get your home ready and then get out of the way.

After the home inspection
Once the home inspection is complete, the inspector will be reporting results only to their client, the buyer (a circumstance bound by law in many states). The discovery of major material issues─the kind of stuff that's a big enough deal to be a sale roadblock─may bring you back to the negotiation table, and should be the only impact on completion of the sale.

"A kitchen faucet dripping is hardly a material defect, but if you have a foundation problem or the house needs a new roof, that's material because somebody could decide not to buy a house if they knew it needed a large repair like that," advises Tamny.

Working with the best
No matter which side of the transaction you're on, the help of a qualified home inspector can make all the difference in your comfort level during what can be an intimidating and sometimes invasive experience. To locate a pro in your area, use ASHI's "Find A Home Inspector" locator at www.ashi.org. All inspectors listed here have met rigorous testing and experience requirements, and are among the most qualified in the nation. And while you're visiting ASHI online, click over to their Virtual Home Inspection Tour for an interactive, step-by-step look at the ins and outs of professional home inspections─a great way to get acquainted with the process before you're actually part of it!

Tom Kraeutler is a home improvement expert for AOL Real Estate and host of "The Money Pit," a nationally syndicated home improvement radio program offering home improvement and remodeling tips and ideas, as well as help tips for buying or selling a home.

Want to know more about home inspections? These AOL Real Estate guides can help:

• Home Inspections: What to Expect
• Video: Home Inspections: It Pays to Know What You're Buying
• Video: Home Inspections for Sellers: Prepping for the Sale
• Home Inspection Red Flags for Buyers

More on AOL Real Estate:
Find out how to calculate mortgage payments.
Find homes for sale in your area.
Find foreclosures in your area.
Get property tax help from our experts.

Smarter surveillance
Motion sensors are standard in home security, and now, high-tech cameras can also be part of the plan. A new generation of camera-driven surveillance systems like Cernium's Archerfish removes concerns about cost and time-consuming screening by having the smarts to actually focus on what's important: your home's safety. You can program for expected events and types of motion, such as the kids coming home from school, and will be notified when there's an unexpected event, whether it be a package you forgot you'd ordered or an actual intruder.

"The key change is this degree of intelligence," says Craig Chambers, Cernium president and CEO. "Instead of having to think about when you want to check the video camera--and most of the time, find out nothing's happening--you can very easily configure Archerfish to look for certain kinds of activities in the field of view. Once they're detected, you'll get an e-mail notification with a video clip attached. You have the convenience of knowing what's going on without having to constantly look in on what's happening."

Wireless components
Thanks to the flexibility of wireless technology, you can station critical components in tight spaces or places where wiring would usually be a challenge (as with a partially finished attic or basement). Their comprehensive coverage can be put to work wherever you need them, making it easy to steer clear of interference from other appliances or in-home wireless networks.

More intuitive controls
Gone are keypads with tiny screens and hard-to-decipher displays. Today's home security controls offer touch-screen capabilities in living color, with intuitive system designs that look more like your favorite smartphone app than the complicated monitors they are. Smart security control panels don't even have to be mounted on a wall--many are meant to conveniently travel with you from room to room. Mission control can also extend to your laptop or smartphone, allowing you to check in and receive important alerts during daily routines or extended travel.

Portability
With the exception of professionally installed and hard-wired home security systems, just about every contemporary component is designed to travel to a new home or other site with security concerns. That portability also plays into changing needs within your current living space: compact surveillance cameras, motion sensors and control panels can easily move from one position to another.

Multitasking home management
Home security can also be integrated with other critical monitoring streams for a one-stop solution to home management. Fire and carbon monoxide alarms, temperature regulation, HVAC component status, home lighting, and even freeze and flood alerts can be accessed from the same set of controls. ADT's Pulse system is one example of full-service home automation, easy to monitor and manage remotely via interactive touchscreen, your laptop or smartphone.

High-tech hubs, otherwise known as security companies
Ever-advancing technology means your home security company has even more sophisticated means of supporting your needs. Cutting-edge computer systems, stellar backup measures and strict systems redundancies make it possible to respond immediately and provide customers with critical data records. The ability to customize systems has also increased by leaps and bounds through the integration of wireless components, mobile apps and surveillance technologies smart enough to distinguish between real threats and false alarms.

Even as home security continues to evolve and change, the points to consider while shopping remain the same. Check out the costs involved, including installation charges and any monthly fees and deposits associated with a long-term service contract. Compare component options and make sure you understand how various systems would--or wouldn't--work for your home and lifestyle. Also think about features and whole-system integrations that can make your life easier, offering one-touch control and the level of communication you need to keep your home secure, wherever you are.

Tom Kraeutler is a home improvement expert for AOL Real Estate and host of "The Money Pit," a nationally syndicated home improvement radio program offering home improvement tips and ideas, including tips on home security.

For more on home security and related topics, see these AOL Real Estate guides:

• Low-Cost Home Security Solutions
• Protect Your Home From Break-Ins During the Holidays
• Home Security: Systems With Cutting Edge Protection
• The Renter's Guide to Holiday Safety
• Apartment Fire Safety Tips

More on AOL Real Estate:
Find out how to calculate mortgage payments.
Find homes for sale in your area.
Find foreclosures in your area.
Get property tax help from our experts.

How did it get there? Turns out that fiberglass insulation, which by itself won't grow mold, is a pretty good filter material. Since this house had many recessed lights, dust escaped through those lights into the insulation, where it served as mold-food. Making maters worse, the attic space did not have enough ventilation, which kept the insulation damp. Bottom line: dust plus moisture equaled enough mold to completely infest the well-kept house and require a major cleanup, even though the problem was never obvious.

"If you looked at the home, you would never, ever in a million years guess that it had a mold problem," says Maria. "It didn't look moldy--you couldn't see the traditional mold because it was actually hidden inside the insulation fibers. It just goes to show that you don't necessarily see mold. It can be an invisible threat, just like carbon monoxide."


In addition to this attic example, there are several other hidden hideouts for mold in the typical home. All mold needs to grow is moisture, air and food--that is, biodegradable substances like paper, fibers and dust. Here are some unusual suspects in the investigation of mold issues:

• Basements: Whether they're finished or unfinished, basements should be subject to climate control that can prevent mold development. "Unfinished basements must be adequately dehumidified in the humid season (relative humidity kept under 50 percent) to prevent mold growth on biodegradable dust," advises Jeff. "That includes house dust and sawdust captured in exposed fiberglass insulation and stuck to the concrete walls and floor."

Also be careful about what you store in a basement and how you store it, as cardboard boxes and other fiber-based items provide the kind of food that's desirable to mold.

• Kitchens: Improper or inadequate ventilation can put mold in contact with your food supply and preparation, no how matter how clean you keep your kitchen. And don't leave those leftovers too long in the refrigerator, as the mold that may develop can sneak into nooks and crannies of the appliance and lead to ongoing food safety issues.
• In-room humidifiers: While humidifiers can be a help for some health issues, they can create completely new ones if not used and maintained properly. Elevating the relative humidity in a room can be an invitation for the sneakiest forms of mold, and a humidifier unit that goes a long time between cleanings can harbor and broadcast mold.
• Leaky chimneys: An out-of-repair chimney that leaks is a threat not only because of the carbon monoxide it can release into a home, but also for the mold it can hold. Moisture that collects in internal nooks and crannies of a leaky chimney can lead to mold colonies that spread into nearby walls and ventilation outlets.
• Lighting fixtures: Strange as it may sound, even lighting fixtures can hold onto mold. As the Sherow family found out, mold that develops in the insulation surrounding recessed lights, finding its way out to living areas through insufficiently sealed fixture housing.
• Air conditioning equipment: What you don't see can definitely hurt you when it comes to air conditioning equipment, with mold gathering on coils and in other areas that come in contact with moisture. Establish a careful maintenance routine during the AC season to ensure that cool air doesn't carry mold along with it.

If, like Maria, you sense the presence of mold in your home but can't track it down, work with a professional to find out where mold has taken hold. A home inspector who is trained in mold detection and a member of the American Society of Home Inspectors (ASHI) can help you find the problem and change the conditions so that the mold doesn't return. Otherwise, stay vigilant in guarding your home against mold development by minimizing its mold-friendliness.

"It doesn't matter how clean your home is," says Maria. "If you have a water leak of any kind, that's enough for mold to grow--enough for you to have toxic conditions and all kinds of health problems. So you just have to really look around and ask yourself, 'Do I have any of these conditions in my home?' and if so, you have to dry them out, taking the food away from the mold so the mold can't grow."

Tom Kraeutler is a home improvement expert for AOL Real Estate and host of "The Money Pit," a nationally syndicated home improvement radio program offering tips for preventing mold in houses.

Want to lean more about protecting yourself and your home from mold? These AOL Real Estate guides can help:

• How to Keep Toxic Mold Out of Your House
• Dealing With Mold in a Rental Apartment
• Mold and Mildew: Cleaning and Protection

More on AOL Real Estate:
Find out how to calculate mortgage payments.
Find homes for sale in your area.
Find foreclosures in your area.
Get property tax help from our experts.

"A lot of times, the home improvements that people make are ones they shouldn't be doing to begin with...Generally overdoing it on a project, or renovating a kitchen every few years," says Pete D'Arruda, a financial advisor and president of Capital Financial Advisory Group in Cary, NC, and author of the personal finance book, Fine Print Fiasco. "It's almost like a way to spend themselves into happiness, and that usually doesn't work."


With a truly value-adding project plan in mind and a realistic budget assembled, here are home improvement financing options to consider, in ascending order of project complexity and cost.

Store Cards

• How they work: As many homeowners choose to improve their current digs over jumping back into the housing market, home improvement retailers are responding with a range of great deals that highlight innovative products and make financing home improvements easy. A store credit card is a convenient means of financing smaller-ticket items like appliances and project materials, and usually involves a delayed payment schedule (typically from six to 12 months) and low or no interest on the balance for a predetermined period of time.

• What you need to know: Approval and credit limit for a store card will of course depend on your credit history. To get the most out of any low-to-no-interest purchase promotion offered, make sure you'll be able to pay off the balance within the deal's deadline--otherwise, you'll be socked with interest of as much as 20 to 30 percent, often applied to the original amount charged.

Store Finance Programs

• How they work: Also appealing to big-box customers are home improvement financing programs that cover project materials and retailer-contracted labor for bigger improvements like new flooring or kitchen updates. These unsecured loans usually require a minimum initial purchase of $1,000, and terms often specify no payments or interest on the loan for the first six months, after which the set payment schedule and interest accruals begin.

• What you need to know: Store finance programs can be a good choice for those who haven't been in their homes long enough to build up the equity needed for a bank-issued loan. Just don't be pressured into a big purchase with a "here today, gone tomorrow" sales pitch. The right deal for your project will still be waiting for you the next day if you take a night to sleep on the idea before signing.

Home Equity Line of Credit

• How it works: Offered by most consumer banking institutions, a home equity line of credit (HELOC) provides the homeowner with access to money in installments, on an as-needed basis. The total amount of financing available is based on the homeowner's home equity total (the difference between their home's fair market value and the mortgage balance yet to be paid). Repayment is flexible, with a variable interest rate and interest paid being up to 100 percent tax deductible.
• What you need to know: D'Arruda recommends establishing a HELOC when you're gainfully employed, even if you expect it'll be quite a while before you think you'll need it for home improvement projects; otherwise, it can be difficult to get one if you find yourself between jobs. He also stresses limiting use of a HELOC to home improvement expenses (rather than, say, paying off credit card debt), as it's basically a secured loan relying on your home for collateral. In addition, be prepared to pay back any HELOC draws in a timely manner so that maximum amount of available credit is available for future needs.

Home Equity Loan

• How it works:If you prefer a fixed interest rate and fixed monthly payments for home improvement financing, a home equity loan is the way to go. The loan amount you qualify for depends on the equity you have in your abode, and you'll receive the funds in a lump sum to be repayed over several years, starting with loan fees and closing costs.
• What you need to know:Because of its long-term format and substantial funding levels, this home improvement finance option is best suited to big-ticket projects that deliver longtime impact, like replacing a roof.

Home Improvement or Personal Loan:

• How they work: Home improvement and personal loans can be strong options for those with big projects to finance but not enough home equity to qualify for a HELOC or home equity loan. These loan products offer fixed interest rates and fixed monthly payments to be made over a number of years.
• What you need to know:As with home equity loans, reserve the use of home improvement and personal loans for large projects that are long-term necessities.

Before you jump into the home improvement financing fray, take time to weigh your options and be sure which is the best match for your project and overall financial picture. The trick is, of course, to make sure the the cost of the money doesn't exceed the value of the project. Free online financial calculators can help you get started with projections, and if you work with a financial planner, consult with them as well.

"There's nothing wrong with using any of these home improvement finance vehicles as long as people do it within reason," says D'Arruda, "and within reason to me means you think about it and you talk to people you trust."

Tom Kraeutler is a home improvement expert for AOL Real Estate and host of "The Money Pit," a nationally syndicated home improvement radio program offering home improvement tips and ideas.

Thinking about adding value with home improvements? Here are some AOL Real Estate guides to help you, whether you're selling or staying.

• Home Improvements: Do It Yourself or Hire a Contractor?
  
• 10 Home Improvements That Pay You Back
  
• Home Renovation: Tips for Thrifty Upgrades

More on AOL Real Estate:
Find out how to calculate mortgage payments.
Find homes for sale in your area.
Find foreclosures in your area.
Get property tax help from our experts.