Bogleheads.org

deanbrew

I wouldn't assume the percentage, as it varies from product to product. If it doesn't say, I wouldn't count on it being 5+%. If it doesn't say on the package, is there a number to call? I couldn't find the answer in a quick web search for that brand. Here are a couple of threads on troublefreepool t...

deanbrew

My last piece of advise - if your pool is clear and the chlorine or salt levels and pH levels are fine. DO NOTHING. If you bring a sample to pool store for testing, I found out about 75% of the time they tell you need to add something. I only bring a sample in after the initial opening to confirm w...

deanbrew

Had never thought about PA overall but we just did the numbers here and everything looks good except the crime. Areavibes gives it an F overall, it looks like there is a lot of simply random crime. Beautiful old 1800s homes there though, very interesting looking place. "F overall" for cri...

deanbrew

Had never thought about PA overall but we just did the numbers here and everything looks good except the crime. Areavibes gives it an F overall, it looks like there is a lot of simply random crime. Beautiful old 1800s homes there though, very interesting looking place. "F overall" for cri...

deanbrew

I have to admit I'm a little surprised at all of the posts about robotic cleaners, as this website is famously frugal on most matters. I've been taking care of my pool for 15 years, and have never had a robotic cleaner. I would like to have one, but have never been able to justify and rationalize th...

deanbrew

Just get a chrome chain link license plate frame and a confederate flag (or "redneck flag", as it's called around here) decorative license plate, and you can use the holes.

deanbrew

Well, mine holds a charge just fine now that I had the power port replaced. I'm not a heavy user, and the charge usually lasts me all day. If not, I have an extra battery that I keep charged that I can substitute.

What don't you like about the Nexus 5X? What is missing, or doesn't work properly?

deanbrew

Thanks, everyone. There is a lot of good information in this thread. For the time being, I think I'll just keep using my S4 until it dies. I stopped at Best Buy and AT&T and Verizon (I am on AT&T and can't use Verizon phones, but thought they might have some models to look at) stores yesterd...

deanbrew

Yes, I have unlimited calling. What I lack is decent cell reception in my home. Google Voice has been unreliable. Sometimes it's crystal clear, other times people say my voice sounds "robotic" or "metallic". Gotcha. I suspect this is a common problem. People even have the same i...

deanbrew

I had kids who went to two different Montessori schools. One was AMS certified, but the one that was more rigid in Montessori tools and methods was actually not certified. While the certifications probably have merits, I think you can find out more by visiting the schools and talking with the direct...

deanbrew

You could sign up for google project fi - pay $199 for the phone. (though if you did not want service from them you'd have to pay 1 month of service for $20 for that price - you can cancel after that - so $220 in total). Some sellers on ebay sell new ones for about $240. Hence the range $200-250. I...

deanbrew

I would consider the Apple iPhone. This is by far the best phone we have ever used. I have a good friend with Samsung and I believe he is really considering the move to Apple as well. A huge benefit is the sync with the laptop, iPad, etc. It actually took longer to get to this post than I expected....

deanbrew

No, this isn't about wanting a cool, new phone. The opposite, in fact; I would like to keep my three year old Galaxy S4. About two weeks ago, I found that my phone was not accepting a charge. I would plug the charger in, and... nada. OK, I thought, perhaps my charging cable went bad. I tried a diffe...

deanbrew

So this used car is about 17% used up. The best 17%. I would want maybe a 25% drop in price. Agree completely. You are not only giving up the best 17%, but you are giving up two years of full warranty coverage and two years of tire and battery life. The simple fact is it seldom makes sense to buy a...

deanbrew

It looks like I won't save money compared to my current plan. I have the 15GB plan with 5 smartphones and 1 tablet. They are lowering the price of the data by going up from 15 to 16 GB, but raising the per-phone charge from $15 to $20. So, if I'm analyzing it properly, my bill would go up by $15. It...

deanbrew

Real property does not generally have a "title". Ownership is transferred by deeds, usually recorded at the county land records office. So, unless I am mistaken, there is nowhere you can go to get a title to your property. A quit claim deed is used to transfer ownership, similar to any dee...

deanbrew

One other thing that might not apply to the OP, but could come into play with others: When you appeal your assessment, you open the door for the county, school district and other taxing authorities to increase your assessed value. I have heard of it happening, especially when the assessment office f...

deanbrew

Your Assessor's office should be able to tell you which properties were used as comps to make the adjustment to assessed value of your property. Not exactly. Mass assessment doesn't use "comps" in the same way a traditional appraisal does. The assessment office plugs all recent sales into...

deanbrew

I did have a recent appraisal done (within the last 6 months) for a HELOC. The appraised value was higher than my purchase price a couple years ago by 4.5%. So it seems that since both the appraised value and the assessed value of the property are higher, the tax increase is probably reasonable. Wo...

deanbrew

I checked the assessed values for 10 neighboring homes. All of them (including my house) went up exactly 6.5% from last year. So I guess I am out of luck, correct? No. The only important thing regarding assessments is current market value. The best evidence is a recent appraisal prepared by a quali...

deanbrew

Why lose $$ to a rental manager if you're the one screening applicants and showing the apt? That's most of our work. That's what I was thinking. I usually did the advertising and screening myself, but I did use an agent one time when I lived in another state. But I never used a manager. Once it's l...

deanbrew

This is one of my concerns; a "race to the bottom" to having Medicaid equivalent networks and service levels for any affordable ACA plan. There are two major insurance companies active in my area. Both offer a bewildering array of plans that severely limit one's choice of doctors and hosp...

deanbrew

Just say no. Why would you volunteer so much information for so little compensation? I once agreed to such an assessment (online) and had to answer lots of invasive questions. In addition, I had to deal with all the subsequent emails asking more invasive questions. This is pretty much my train of t...

deanbrew

At age 65 and with several health problems, I almost can't imagine not paying the premium. It would very likely be a gift to the insurance company to let the policy lapse. I am confused about the death benefit, however. At the start, you mention that it is a $100,000 policy, but later mention that i...

deanbrew

I don't think they will discontinue coverage, since pre-existing conditions and medical condition in general is not part of health insurance anymore - just age, gender, smoking and location. We signed up with Aetna this year and had the same invitation. I'm not exactly sure what it is, or what purpo...

deanbrew

Yep, that's one reason I really like Southwest - the two included bags is the other reason. My wife and I had tickets to San Francisco and back in February. She decided to go to a trade show in Las Vegas for a couple of days before our vacation in SF. I called Southwest and changed our reservation f...

deanbrew

If you can afford it, I would just move the once into your new house and then after fixing up the old one (i.e. painting, etc.) put it on the market. You will be paying two mortgages but it certainly is a lot less hassle. Agree. Moving twice and renting will likely cost more than owning the two pro...

deanbrew

You might also want to look into auctions. We have three auctioneers near us, and we had one come out and empty my BIL's house when he got divorced. The auctioneer came and hauled away all sorts of furniture and household goods, and then auctioned it off over the next few weeks at his weekly auction...

deanbrew

What exactly is the issue here? VW made diesel vehicles with special software to fool US emissions testing, so now they are potentially going to have to buy back the vehicles with this software installed on them? Why are the owners of these cars upset? Because their car is polluting more than they ...

deanbrew

You say your mother gifted the properties to you last year. Does that mean there is a deed showing change of ownership? If so, you can quite clearly show when your ownership started. You did not collect any income and are not liable for any taxes before that date. It is typical for any change of own...

deanbrew

Leasing a car is more expensive than owning except in exceptional circumstances. I found I could lease a BMW for $100/month more than owning my seven year old Honda Fit. That's it, I should lease up @ BMW, right? What a deal! If you read the small print $4400 is due at signing! Rinse/repeat every t...

deanbrew

Just to clarify, I am talking about a way of life. So, one would be renting and leasing indefinitely, paying more (most probably) in the process than someone buying. I am not asking whether it is less expensive, but about if it makes sense when one can afford it and would rather have fewer responsi...

deanbrew

I don't think it's very common to rent or lease a car for a total cost less than buying it, when you consider all factors. But house/apartment rents vary tremendously from area to area and from neighborhood to neighborhood. There are places where you can rent a home for similar or less than ownershi...

deanbrew

I have used Webroot for about three years, and am very satisfied with it. It gets very good reviews from antivirus testers.

deanbrew

As-is simply means they have made all the concessions they are willing to make, and that if there are inspected defects, they will not pay for them. This is my guess, too. Put yourself in the seller's position. As the seller, I have lowered the price already, and are entertaining an offer that is b...

deanbrew

I won't rehash most of the above complaints regarding style over substance, magazine redesign, etc. But I will add that the number of products actually reviewed must be down to 20 percent or less of what they used to review. Not only are there fewer actual reviews, but nearly every edition seems lik...

deanbrew

I don't like the boxer 2.5 engine it's older tech and it can leak oil... I'm not sure what you mean by "older tech". Do you mean boxer engines in general? Subaru redesigned the Boxer 2.5 engine in 2011, and the new engine has been used in the Legacy since the 2013 model. Subaru apparently...

deanbrew

I don't want to go over all of the calculations, but some posters need to remember that everyone doesn't drive their cars into the ground or keep them 10+ years. 30k miles and two or three model years is more important in the early years than 12 years down the road.

deanbrew

I was struck by the thought that AWD on a low clearance car is a little bit of a contradiction in purpose, but maybe it doesn't work that way. It totally depends on where you are driving. I've had my Subaru for 5 years, and have never really thought about the ground clearance. I've driven on lots o...

deanbrew

While Hyundai probably sells a quarter of what Honda does it seems I see quite a few on the road here. I guess I'm more in tune to spot them. Actually, in 2015, Hyundai sold a little more than half of what Honda did in the US: Honda: 1,409,386 vehicles; Hyundai: 761,710 vehicles. If you add Kia's 6...

deanbrew

If you are considering a used car, consider a Hyundai. I have rented several times while on trips and been impressed. they have a long warranty period and on the used car market they are less expensive than Honda because the buying public has not caught up to the fact that they are good cars. I agr...

deanbrew

I have owned several Hondas in the past, and own a 2011 Subaru Legacy now. I can't really steer you to one or the other, other than the AWD factor. Both have very similar reliability and quality, IMO. I would go so far as to say that those who say Honda has superior quality and reliability are not ...

deanbrew

A used 2014 accord is not $20,000. OP wants EX or EX-L. A used EX-L is at least 20k at the dealer versus 27k OTD brand new. Used car savings are exaggerated especially if you drive a car for at least 10 years especially when you're talking Japanese econoboxes (highest resale value, reliability). 38...

deanbrew

I have owned several Hondas in the past, and own a 2011 Subaru Legacy now. I can't really steer you to one or the other, other than the AWD factor. Both have very similar reliability and quality, IMO. I would go so far as to say that those who say Honda has superior quality and reliability are not f...

deanbrew

The most recent Appraisal Journal, published by the Appraisal Institute, has a study of homes with solar panels in six states. The study indicates that homes with solar panels - the study only looked at properties with owned, not leased, systems - sell for slightly more than otherwise similar homes....

deanbrew

I'd like to add that I don't see the situation nearly as grim as the OP and some of those who advise to desert a sinking ship. Having said that, I would absolutely think about leaving the high COL area after the SO gets 2-3 years of experience under his belt. With some Big City experience under his ...

deanbrew

The car will not lock if a door is ajar. SO if the door is not properly closed, the driver will be unable to lock the car as they are leaving and will realize something is not right. My cars let out a beep if I try to lock it with a door ajar. Is that the way the new generation works? In my 2011, I...

deanbrew

There are good dealers and bad dealers, just like there are good auto shops and bad ones. None of them are charities, and they are all making a profit for the work they do, or else they would be out of business. I agree. I've noticed a pretty remarkable improvement in new car dealers over the past ...

deanbrew

Hi, I'm reviving an old thread. I'm interested in purchasing a rental property. There is a billboard at the edge of the lot. The street is a relatively busy with 2 lanes each way. The street is lined mostly with houses and a few small businesses. Would having a billboard on the lot affect the mortg...

deanbrew

I've had several CREE LED floodlights fail within 18 months (I bought a bunch for a store we set up and installed them all at the same time), but Home Depot has been very good with the returns. Some started to flicker or flash before quitting, and others just "burned out". I've returned on...

Search found 957 matches