By Barbara Pronin, RISMedia Columnist   RISMEDIA, July 3, 2009—Gone are the days of zipping through airport security to make that quickly departing flight. But if you are heading out on vacation or on a business trip this summer, the Transportation Security Agency offers some tips to ensure that you move through security as efficiently as possible [...] Story

By Barbara Pronin, RISMedia Columnist   RISMEDIA, July 3, 2009—“If you’re anything like I was,” said Helen Maldonado, a former stay-at-home mom from Long Beach, Calif., “you’ve got clothes in your closet you haven’t worn for years. If the closet is crammed and you’ve got ‘nothing to wear,’ it’s time to clear out the clutter.”   Maldonado should know. [...] Story

RISMEDIA, July 3, 2009—Everyone is trying to save money these days, so Christine Van Tuyl and Margaret La Grange, award-winning real estate agents from Coronado Island, California have released their “Top 15 No-Brainer Ways to Save Money Around the House.” Sure, you may have heard a few of these ideas before, but are you actually [...] Story

RISMEDIA, July 3, 2009—Now more than ever, it is vitally important that home buyers and sellers understand a home’s current market value as houses are staying on the market longer, and prices are falling in many areas.   “With all the publicity about foreclosures and scams surrounding the real estate finance industry, consumers are understandably nervous about [...] Story

Q: Besides the basics of home selling, what else should I know?   A: Once your home is available to be shown strive to keep it in tip-top shape.  This will require a lot of effort on your part, but you want buyers to feel welcomed and not turned off by unmade beds, cluttered floors, and grungy [...] Story

Commission.  Definition: Payment, or brokerage fees, given by the seller of a property to a real estate agent for services rendered.  Usually paid at the closing.     Copyright© 2009 RISMedia, The Leader in Real Estate Information Services, All Rights Reserved. This material may not be republished without permission from RISMedia.   Story

 By Barbara Pronin   RISMEDIA, July 2, 2009—If you are living in the middle of kitchen chaos, there are ways to organize that homey space so that mealtime—and clean-up time—are easier.   “One trick to streamlining meal preparation is to have foodstuffs and kitchen equipment close at hand and easy to reach,” said home economist Shirley Jacobsen in Columbus, [...] Story

RISMEDIA, July 2, 2009—As the real estate market begins to show signs of recovery amid increased sales and low mortgage rates, sellers are looking for every advantage. Now new research shows just such an edge comes from fiber-based telecommunications services like Verizon FiOS Internet and FiOS TV.   A national study of U.S. broadband consumers by [...] Story

By Barbara Pronin   RISMEDIA, July 2, 2009—It’s that time of year again – and being low on funds does little to stop the yearning for a good old family vacation. But there are ways to vacation with some semblance of style that will refill everyone’s fun-and-energy-tank without breaking the family bank.   Top suggestions from a consensus of [...] Story

 By Barbara Pronin, RISMedia Columnist   RISMEDIA, July 2, 2009—Investors looking for low-risk investments that can readily be converted to cash frequently decide on Certificates of Deposit (CDs), CDs are a special type of deposit account with a bank or thrift institution that generally offer a higher rate of interest than a regular savings account and still [...] Story