Surveys have shown that more than half of all homes in the United States are need of repairs and updates, and thankfully making home repairs has never been easier.

When it comes to making home repairs, the sky is the limit. Want to put a new roof on your home? Pick the type of roof you want, hire the contractor, and get to put up your new roof. Want to build a new backyard fence? Pick the material you want, hire a fence builder, and off you go.

Yes, doing repairs on your home has never been easier. But the biggest question you probably have when it comes to making home repairs is about paying for home repairs. You might want to completely redo your kitchen, but you’re probably wondering how the heck you’re going to pay for it.

But don’t fret. Whether you want to go big and redo a bedroom or you want to go small and put up a backyard fence or just make some small repairs, there are many ways you can go about paying for home repairs. They don’t have to break the bank and some of them you can even do on a budget.

With that in mind, here are some ways you can finance future home repair projects:

Sell Your Jewelry

If you’re wondering how to pay for home repairs and you’re in need of some cash fast, one thing you can do is sell your gold. The price of gold is always fluctuating, but gold is something that is always in demand and if you’ve got some jewelry that you don’t wear, you can easily take it to a cash for gold shop or pawn shop and get a fair price for it.

If you’re going to sell gold, be sure to clean it before you take it anywhere. This makes it more attractive to buyers and helps restore its luster. You can clean it very easily with some warm water, some dish soap, and a toothbrush.

One thing to keep in mind about selling gold is that the price you’re going to get for it is based on the current market value and not what you might have paid for it. You might have paid a couple of thousand dollars for a really expensive necklace, bracelet, or pendant, but if your jewelry is very old, it’s obviously not going to draw as much as it would have if it was brand new.

If you’re not sure about whether or not you want to sell your jewelry, determine the purity of your gold, call a pawn shop, and ask what they might take for what you have to offer. If you like what you’re told, then you can take it in, sell it, and put the money toward paying for home repairs.

Have An Estate Sale

Another way of paying for home repairs is to have an estate sale. This is different than a yard sale because what usually happens is a professional real estate company oversees the sale of your items and then keeps a portion of the profits. If you think this is the way to go, a real estate attorney can help you set everything up so that it goes smoothly.

A real estate attorney knows all about residential real estate like yours and can give you some idea of how much you can expect to make from a sale, especially in the event that you inherit property.If you’re planning on moving, and planning on getting all new stuff, then an estate sale may be a good idea. Otherwise, if you just are trying to do some home repairs, it might be a better idea to have a yard sale.

Have A Yard Sale

You may think that no one wants what you have, but if you have a yard sale you just might surprise yourself. Given the right location, the right date, and the right items, you can make plenty of money which will go a long way toward paying for home repairs.

If you’re planning on having a yard sale, here are some tips for really making it worth your while:

• Location: if you live in the middle of the country, or you don’t have much room to park on your property, then you might want to look for a better spot. Ultimately you want to make sure people see what you have to offer.
• Timing: if you’re planning a yard sale, you might want to start early. There are plenty of people who love to go yard sale shopping and have no problem showing up at your property at 8 a.m., ready to look over what you have.
• Signage: Even if you’re trying to save money for paying for home repairs, good signage can go a long way toward a successful yard sale. You need to make your information as clear as possible, listing where you live and the date and time of the sale. You might even consider listing some big items that you have for sale.
• Set fair prices: Obviously you’re having a yard sale to make a lot of money, but you need to price everything so that it feels like a deal to the customer. If you’re having trouble with that a good idea is that new and unused items get priced at 50% of the original price, slightly used items are priced at 30% of the original price, and used items will go for 10% of the original price. If you’ve got some bulk items such as movies, CDs, or dishes, you can even make some of those items buy one, get one deals.

By staging a good yard sale, you’ll have plenty of money to work with after the fact and you’ll be able to make that long put off chimney repair to fix a pesky chimney leak in no time. Before you have yard sale though, make sure you have plenty of cash on hand so you can make change for customers and put all the good stuff that you have to offer in plain sight so that nobody overlooks it.

Consider Other Options

You might be thinking to yourself, “I want to do some much-needed home repairs, but I don’t want to sell all my stuff to do it.”

Fortunately, you don’t have to. It doesn’t matter what kind of home repairs you might be paying for, but there are plenty of other options that you can use that don’t involve getting rid of all your prized possessions.

Take Out A Home Equity Loan

Maybe you need to do an essential Maytag repair on your washer or dryer. Maybe you’re in need of some new patio furniture and you’ve been searching where to buy Amish furniture online for several months. Whatever kind of work you need to do, a home equity loan is a good tool for paying for home repairs.

Home equity loans work by paying you a lump sum of money that is readily available. Once everything is all set, then you can select an option of how many years you’d like to repay the loan with fixed monthly payments. The good news is you can go any number of places to get a home equity loan, but you may find some of the best rates at one of your local credit unions.

Refinancing Your Mortgage

By refinancing your mortgage, you get a totally new one and replace the one that you currently have on your home, but this also comes with a new interest rate.

On the plus side, by refinancing your mortgage you’ll get to cash in on the difference between the two loans. So, for example, if your new loan is greater than your current mortgage, then the extra money from the refinancing is yours to do what you want with. By refinancing, you’ll have plenty of extra money that will go toward paying for home repairs and essential ones at that.

Look Into Government Loans

If you’re looking to get your hands on some money and want to avoid the trouble of interest insurance payments, then government loans are the way to go.

When it comes to home renovations, there are two types of government loans you can use. The FHA Title 1 loan entitles you to borrow up to 25,000 without having to own any equity. The second option is a VA Cash out refinance loan. Essentially this works by guaranteeing that the loan amount you get is equal to the value of your home. The catch here is that you have to pay insurance and interest on this type of loan.

Use Social Media

If you don’t want to go through the physical process of having a yard sale, it’s never been easier to have a virtual one. How is this possible? Everyone sells things via social media these days, whether you’re selling on Craigslist, Facebook Marketplace, or some other way.

All you have to do is take some pictures of the item you’re selling, post it online with a little bit of information, and wait for people to respond. If you got a big-ticket item, you’ll be hearing from people faster than you can keep up with them.

What’s also great about selling your belongings via social media is that you can post information that includes the buyer coming and hauling the item away. Let’s say for example that you’re selling a washer and dryer. As long as you can get the washer and dryer to an easily accessible area in your house, then all you have to do is stand back and watch them carry it out before they give you the money.

If you’re moving across the country for a new job and you got brand new furniture, then you can hire a reputable moving and storage service to come and truck your belongings where you need to go. But if you’re in the market for new appliances and you’ve got some used ones that you’re trying to get rid of, then posting them for sale on Facebook Marketplace or on Craigslist is a way to get rid of them fast. Heck, you might even get rid of them within a few hours of posting them.

Do The Repairs Yourself

One way that’s guaranteed to help you avoid paying for home repairs is very simple: make the repairs yourself.

Even if you don’t consider yourself very handy, it’s never been easier to learn new skills, especially when it comes to renovation projects. These days you can go on YouTube and watch videos for hours on just about any type of home repair. You can also visit your local home improvement store where employees can give you all the information you need on specific repairs and might even offer classes for the type of repairs that you’re looking to make.

By making repairs yourself, you’ll not only save yourself a lot of money, but you’ll learn some valuable skills that you can use in the future. Let’s say for example that you want to renovate your guest bedroom. By taking the time to learn how to renovate, whether that’s putting up new wallpaper, or installing new flooring or working on wood flooring refinishing, you’ll be able to take those skills and apply them in the future if you should ever want to renovate another room like your master bedroom.

Wait

It’s been said that patience is a virtue and that’s especially true when it comes to home renovations and repairs. If you’re a little short on money and want to avoid paying for home repairs, another thing you can do is simply wait.

As badly as you might want to do some home repairs, waiting might be the best thing for you. Why? For one thing, this gives you time to figure out just how much your project might cost, what materials you’ll need, how everything is going to come together, and whether or not you might want to hire a contractor to do the job.

A good idea might be to wait until after tax season. A local tax CPA can go through your taxes, tell you what you’ll expect to pay, and what you might get in terms of a refund. If you know you’ve got a sizeable refund check on the way, you can plan your project knowing that you’ll already have some funds to work with.

Paying for home repairs doesn’t have to break the bank. With a little planning, you can pull off the perfect home improvement project at a price you can afford.

Do you know what the best healthcare tips are for every stage of life?

If you’re like most people, you probably find it easy to get confused when it comes to health and wellness. There’s just so much that goes on in a typical day, and every little thing you do can have either a negative or positive impact on your health. It can even feel like going to experts like your doctor isn’t really that helpful — after all, even experts disagree with each other. When that happens, who should you listen to?

While it’s true that experts conflict on many things, there are also things that they almost all universally agree on. Unlike following a fad diet or lifestyle change, these best healthcare tips are usually common sense, and fairly easy to integrate into your life.

The following are some of the very best healthcare tips for every stage of life, whether you’re caring for yourself, your children, or an elderly loved one.

Best Healthcare Tips: Children

Most of the best healthcare tips for adults will apply to children as well, such as drinking a healthy amount of water and sleeping well. But there are a few important tips which should be noted by parents in particular, which is what we’ll discuss here.

Prioritize Dental Health

Few things are as uncomfortable or traumatic for young children as going to the dentist to have a cavity filled. To avoid that unpleasant experience, it’s important to prioritize your child’s dental health. Not only does this help avoid tooth decay and painful cavities, but it also creates a good foundation of health for your child’s entire life, since oral health plays a big role in overall wellbeing. And good oral care involves daily habits which your child will thank you for helping them develop early.

Besides finding a good dentist for children to have your child’s teeth cleaned and checked, make sure you have high-quality toothbrushes, toothpaste, and dental floss for your children.

Encourage Healthy Activity

Physical activity is incredibly important, especially for children, whose muscles and bones are still developing. Like practicing good oral health, getting plenty of physical exercise lays a foundation for life-long strength and wellness. Obesity is a growing problem for children and teenagers, and it’s important that you as a parent counter that trend for your child.

Traditional exercise is understandably boring, even for adults, but the great thing about children is that they can easily get a full workout in without realizing it. Playing tag on a playground for 30 minutes could constitute a decent workout and half of the 60 minutes of daily activity recommended by experts. The key is to get your child to take an interest in physical activities, like sports or fitness, instead of only being invested in indoor activities like video games. If you can get your child to feel personally invested in something physically demanding, such as owning and training their own dog, all the better.

Protect Skin From the Sun

No matter your age, getting sunburnt is painful and bad for you. It contributes to accelerated aging and even skin cancer. When your child is all grown up it will be their own responsibility to care for their skin, but while they’re young, it’s up to you to ensure they’re protected from the sun’s harsh UV rays while they’re outside playing. Babies younger than 6 months should avoid direct sunlight altogether whenever possible. All other children should use a non-toxic sunscreen with a protection factor of at least 30, which should be reapplied every two hours (more often if water or excessive sweating is involved).

Find a Trustworthy, Health-Conscious Daycare

The majority of people work a typically nine-to-five job, and that includes most parents. For those hours that you’re not at home while your child isn’t at school, it’s important to rely on day care centers you can trust.

Find a daycare center with reliable staff who are present with the children; a clean and orderly atmosphere; and snacks and activities that are actually good for the children, rather than just being used as distractions for them. While referrals are great, especially from trusted friends, trust your instincts when choosing a daycare for your child.

Best Healthcare Tips: Adults

Healthy habits don’t cease to be important when you grow up, but by the way some adults treat their bodies, you’d almost think they believe they do. To continue getting the best out of your life, remember to follow these best healthcare tips for adults.

Prioritize Your Sleep

For many people, getting plenty of sleep feels like a disruption to an otherwise productive lifestyle. After all, you aren’t really doing anything while you sleep, so going to bed early can seem like a waste of time.

But in reality, getting plenty of quality sleep is one of the very best things you can do for your health. Poor sleep can disrupt your appetite hormones, drive insulin resistance, and severely reduce your mental and physical performance. A good surgeon can provide reconstructive surgery after a car crash, but an extra hour of sleep might give you the focus you needed to avoid the crash in the first place.

Besides contributing to poor performance and disease, a lack of healthy sleep is a risk factor for excess weight gain. It may not be a reason to sleep in instead of working out in the morning, but the facts are clear: getting sufficient sleep is absolutely necessary for your health and wellbeing.

Drink Plenty of Water

Many people are dehydrated from not drinking enough water, and they have no idea. They may drink soda, juice, or coffee instead, but those drinks can actually be dehydrating themselves.

Drinking enough water every day can have several health benefits. Among them, it can boost the number of calories you burn and help you lose weight, especially when you drink a little water before meals.

Try drinking about two cups of water 30 minutes before each meal — one study demonstrated that this could increase weight loss by 44%. If nothing else, make sure you drink at least eight cups of water per day, as this is the minimum recommended amount for most adults.

Avoid Sugary Drinks

Getting the best dental health care available will only go so far if you drink a lot of juice or soda. Anything high in sugar will promote tooth decay, but because drinks tend to get swished all around your mouth as you consume them, they leave more decay-causing residue behind, all over your teeth. This is why dentists are so quick to vilify drinks with high sugar content, including most kinds of fruit juice.

Sugary drinks aren’t just bad for your teeth — they’re also highly fattening, typically more so than sugary foods are. That’s because your brain doesn’t measure calories from liquid sugars in the same way it measures them from solid food. So when you consume enormous amounts of sugar calories in a small amount of soda, your brain doesn’t realize how much sugar is really there, and instead of burning it off it gets converted to fat.

With this in mind, it’s no surprise that sugary drinks are strongly associated with type 2 diabetes, heart disease, and more, in addition to obesity. If you’re only going to make one dietary sacrifice for your health, make it this one.

Drink Coffee

Although some people feel like coffee is unhealthy, unless you load yours up with fattening sugar, it’s actually very good for you. Coffee is high in antioxidants, and it may contribute to increased longevity and a reduced risk of diabetes, Parkinson’s disease, Alzheimer’s, and more. So instead of drinking soda for that energy-boosting caffeine, choose coffee instead.

Avoid Processed Junk Food

People are quick to hire a personal injury attorney when their health is compromised by an injury someone else caused. What they don’t know is that, by choosing heavily processed foods, the greatest threat to their health is often themselves.

Of course, not everyone mindlessly consumes empty calories, but enough do it to cause an obesity epidemic in the United States. And one of the biggest culprits is processed junk food.

Most junk food and snack foods have been engineered to trigger your pleasure centers, without actually providing any real nutrition. Instead, they’re often loaded with added sugars, refined grains, and enough preservatives to maintain an unnatural shelf life. They’re designed to “trick” your brain into overeating, but because they’re low in fiber, protein, or micronutrients, they’re nothing but toxins and empty calories. While there’s nothing wrong with splurging on a sugary snack cake once in a while, make sure this is the exception for you, and not the norm.

Eat Lots of Nuts

If you can’t eat processed snack foods because of the empty calories, what should you eat when you need a quick snack?

Nuts may be high in fat, but there’s a lot more to the picture: they’re also loaded with vitamin E, fiber, magnesium, and a host of other valuable nutrients. They may actually help you lose weight, since the body doesn’t absorb about 10-15% of nut-contained calories, and some evidence suggests they can boost metabolism.

Besides being helpful for weight loss, nuts may help you avoid type 2 diabetes and heart disease. When you need a quick snack to get through the day, choose assorted nuts for a boost in energy and nutrition.

Eat Eggs

Usually the best healthcare tips are fairly obvious: eat more vegetables and eat less junk food. But what’s one food you can start eating more of that makes a huge difference for your health?

While different experts may have differing answers to that question, whole eggs are so nutrient-packed that they’ve been dubbed “nature’s multivitamin.” That’s right, the whole egg: yolk and all. There’s a pervasive myth that eggs, yolks in particular, are bad for you because they contain cholesterol. In fact, eggs don’t have any effect on blood cholesterol for most people, and they’ve also been shown to have no association with risk of heart disease.

Quite the contrary, eggs are hailed as one of the world’s most nutrient-rich foods, with the yolk containing nearly all of the healthy compounds. For a nutritious breakfast to get you through the day, look no further than the humble egg.

Best Healthcare Tips: The Elderly

No amount of get well soon flowers can replace the joy of having good health in old age (though they can certainly spruce up your bedside table). Whether you’re advancing into your twilight years or you have a loved one who is, this last section will detail some of the best healthcare tips for older adults.

Eat Healthy

With the immune system weakening and the digestive system slowing down with age, eating nutritious, high-fiber foods becomes increasingly important as you get older. If you typically maintained a healthy diet while you were younger, you already have a good foundation of health, and eating right as a senior shouldn’t be too challenging for you. But even if you’ve never paid much attention to your health before, developing healthier habits now will still go a long way towards preventing disease.

When you go shopping, look for fruits, vegetables, and whole-grain products, as these are all high in fiber. Be sure and drink plenty of water every day, too, because seniors are especially prone to dehydration.

Take Care of Oral Health

Dental health becomes particularly important in old age. Besides maintaining healthy habits like twice-daily teeth brushing and flossing, oral surgery can help seniors enjoy restored dental health despite aging. If your oral health has gone largely ignored for a long time, tooth extraction or dental implants can help you recover from decayed or missing teeth. A good oral surgery practice can provide these options and more.

Prioritize Prevention

The old adage “an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure” is never more true than in old age, where cures become increasingly complicated and expensive. To make sure you stay in good health well into your golden years, preventive elder care measures are a must. You should get regular health screenings for things like cholesterol levels, heart problems, and colon cancer, as well as any other conditions your doctor recommends screening for. Screenings and preventive care visits should qualify for Medicare coverage. Vaccinations that prevent influenza and pneumonia may also be recommended by your doctor, depending on your level of health.

Get the Benefits You’re Eligible For

Depending on your age and circumstances, you may be eligible for certain benefits, often provided by the state. If you’re not sure what benefits you could apply for, someone like a social worker could help you get it figured out. Sometimes a good lawyer, like a disability attorney, can help you get the benefits you deserve, depending on your situation. With these extra benefits, you can do more to preserve and improve your health, so you can be there for your loved ones for longer.

Just a few easy steps can go a long way toward improving your health and wellness. The foods you eat, the activities you do, and even the relationships you keep all play a part in your overall health, for better or for worse. Hopefully learning about these best healthcare tips has inspired you to care for yourself and your loved ones, so you can feel amazing every day.