Guam Real Estate Resource

Thursday, March 27, 2014

A House That's For the Dogs

Pooch palaces that make four-legged friends right at home

By Paul Hagey, Friday, January 6, 2012.

Inman News®

"Basset hound house," a project by Japanese design firm Fauna Plus Design. ImageFauna Plus Design

Ever thought of designing a living room for your Gucci-pampered puppy? How about a second-level perch or shin-level views for the plus-one member of the family?

"What I don't understand is why all homes are not built with the 'whole' family in mind," said David Beart, who runs the online magazine Professor's House and is planning to build a $1 million pet-friendly house from the ground up in Calgary, Canada.

Still in the preplanning stages, David Beart's pet-friendly home in Canada will feature pet-accessible entrances and doorways and low-volatile-organic-compound-containing paints, among other interior and exterior features, he said.

Kobe, Japan-based Fauna Plus Design (http://www.fauna.jp/) makes dogs an explicit part of their home design. The firm's dog-friendly design approach is about aesthetics as much as it is practicalities, said an assistant to Keiji Hirose, lead architect at Fauna Plus Design. "One day (Keiji Hirose) realized that it's a challenge for many pet owners to keep their homes beautiful, so he started to design houses based on animal behavior," said the assistant.

The award-winning "Papillon dogs home," in Kakogawa, Japan, by Fauna Plus Design. Image/Fauna Plus Design

Horizon Properties Inc. is Guam’s leading real estate services provider and property managementcompany. We work diligently to fulfill the requirements of buyers and renters, while working towards a smooth, hassle-free transaction for sellers. Our innovative and “customer first” approach towardsproperty management results in outstanding property care and profitability.

WHY ARE MY CERAMIC TILES POPPING FOR NO REASON???

This is what I have been able to Google and find out.

One situation that can develop is if tiles are laid onto concrete before it has had time to completely cure. The general rule of thumb is to allow one month to cure per 25mm of thickness of the concrete slab. Even then, the average house slab can take up to two years to completely cure (and shrink). If this movement is not allowed for by using the correct adhesives and including expansion joints, something has to give. This is sometimes called TENTING. There have even been reports of tiles exploding unexpectedly. This is due to extreme lateral pressures as the walls and floors move in different directions. Nobody is expecting their tiles to explode!

Generally speaking, "tenting" does not happen overnight. Usually, it rears its ugly head about six months after the slab is poured or sometime after seven years. There's always some evidence that there has been movement in the slab.

Regardless, it's always a good idea to put soft joints in the installation OR EXPANSION JOINTS. You don't want to have a soft joint everywhere, just every so often. A good frequency is to separate the floor into 3 x 3 meters (10' x 10') areas and do the perimeter of them. You still keep the open space between the walls – do NOT fill those voids.

In six months, the slab has achieved most of its cure. After 7 or so years of being dry, the slab acts a little differently as far as expansion rates go.

I'll try to add a little humor into all of this. If you took a 4" thick Christmas fruit cake and left it in the pan for a few months, the top would likely get very hard by June. But if you were to cut into it, you might find that there was moist cake down below...or even in the middle.*

It would only make sense that the tiles coming up are in the center, since we usually have a perimeter space. That's where the most stress is without a release.

So, for Guam - - we probably have the following ingredients that make us even more susceptible to tenting:

1. Lack of initial building codes and regulations, inspections and overall lack of excellence in building since a lot of this work was done probably by migrant workers.

2. More than our share of earthquakes and tremors – at lease 2-3 dozen a year.

3. The change in temperatures within any 24 hour period. Most people do not leave their A/C’s on all day while they are at work. Therefore, units get hot and moist during the day and start cooling off when people start coming home and throughout the night.

4. Our massive amounts of rain and high humidity doesn’t help either.

For more information:

http://www.doityourself.com/forum/wall-flooring-tile/143806-what-causes-ceramic-tiles-buckle.html#ixzz2rZfw1VHQ

Avoiding Tax Scams & Identity Theft

(reprint from: CBN Legacy- so interesting!! )

Frank T. Nico - ChFC^® CASL^®
CBN Director of Planned Giving
Legacy & Retirement Coach
Chartered Financial Consultant

Proverbs 18:15 "The heart of the discerning acquires knowledge; the ears of the wise seek it out."

Saturday, March 22, 2014

Source: Crescendo Interactive, Inc. www.CBNLegacy.org

Please forward your comments, questions or requests by replying to this e-newsletter or sending your e-mail to Frank.Nico@CBN.org.

Tax Refund Theft
A common strategy for an identity thief is to obtain the target's name, date of birth, Social Security Number and other personal identification from public internet sites. The identity thief then attempts to file a tax return during January or February before the victim files. The identity thief often requests a tax refund that is loaded on a pre-paid debit card.

An IRS Special Agent in charge of IRS criminal investigation stated, "Identity thieves have figured out that if they can obtain your Social Security Number they can file false tax returns with the IRS. It does not matter your political position, economic status, or social standing, you are susceptible to identity theft.”

The IRS Identity Protection Specialized Unit is available for phone contact by identity theft victims at 800-908-4490, ext. 245. The IRS Unit is available Monday through Friday from 7:00am to 7:00pm EST.

Avoiding Tax Scams
Each year the IRS publishes the "Dirty Dozen" potential scams that could victimize American taxpayers.

Taxpayers should be on the lookout for tax scams using the IRS name. These schemes jump every year at tax time. Scams can be sophisticated and take many different forms. Use caution when viewing emails, receiving telephone calls or getting advice on tax issues.

The top five tax scams this year are identity theft, phone fraud, fake websites, "free money" refunds and unscrupulous tax preparers.

1. Identity Theft – The identity thief typically acquires your name and Social Security number and is an early filer. He or she attempts to file a tax return with your identity and obtain a large refund. The IRS reported a 70% increase in identity theft tax fraud investigations in 2013. It has substantially increased its efforts to address potential identity theft and tax fraud. If you believe you have been a victim of identity theft, call the IRS Identity Protection Specialized Unit at 800-908-4490. There also is information on identity theft on www.irs.gov.

2. Phone Fraud – There are scam phone callers who claim to be from the IRS or state government. Typically, they will use common names and claim that you owe taxes. If you do not immediately pay taxes to them, they threaten to revoke your driver's license or take other action. Frequently, the first person hangs up and within five minutes a second caller claims to be a police officer or from the Department of Motor Vehicles. He or she confirms the first message and demands payment. The IRS has a protection line at 1-800-829-1040. If you think you have been called by a fraudulent person claiming to be from the government, you also can use the FTC Complaint Assistant at FTC.gov.

3. Fake Email or Website – Phishing is the computer term for sending a fake email with a link to what claims to be a government website. The goal of the sender is to persuade the person to click on the link and then enter personal information. Using a Social Security Number or banking information, the sender then can commit identity theft or financial theft. Taxpayers need to understand that the IRS will not contact them by email. Unsolicited email is not from the IRS. Anyone who receives a "phishing" email should forward it to phishing@irs.gov.

4. "Free Money" Refunds – Some scammers will use fliers, ads, store fronts and word of mouth to claim that everyone can receive large refunds. Many scammers have used informal networks such as community groups or church groups to promote their service. They claim that everyone should receive a substantial "free money" tax refund.

The scammers prepare tax returns with inflated deductions and improper credits. The victims pay a substantial fee and file the return to claim their large refund. Unfortunately, IRS income levels affect distribution of various Social Security, veterans, low-income housing and other government benefits. As a result, some individuals have experienced an interruption in their other government payments because they improperly reported their income. Taxpayers should be on guard for preparers who charge a large fee and do not provide a copy of the tax return.

5. Unscrupulous Tax Preparer – Most tax preparers are honest persons. However, some regularly commit refund fraud. They either do not report the correct income or claim improper deductions or credits. The tax preparer is required to include the IRS Preparer Tax Identification Number (PTIN) on the return. If the tax preparer is improper or abusive, the taxpayer should file IRS Form 14157, Complaint: Tax Return Preparer. This may be downloaded on irs.gov.

For more information check these IRS sites: