[00:00:00] Eric Goranson: It's around the house coming up in today's episode of around the house hour. Number two, we have a huge show ahead for subjects for segments. We're going to be talking about a bunch of different stuff about your home, how to find the next project house that you thinking about buying. Here's a sneaky way to do it.

[00:00:22] Eric Goranson: It's completely legal and the right way to find that budget house, dealing with large scale mold issues, how to deal with property issues and your government and so much more. We have got some great stuff to talk about today that you don't want to miss. If you want to find out more about us, head to AroundTheHouseOnline.

[00:00:40] Eric Goranson: com and you can find more about the show there, including a way to contact us if you've got a subject you want us to cover. Now, let's get to the program. We got a lot to talk about today when it comes to remodeling and renovating your home. There is a lot to know, but we got you covered. [00:01:00] This is around the house.

[00:01:02] Eric Goranson: Welcome to The Round the House Show. This is where we hope you get the most outta your home through Information Education. Thanks for joining me today. Well, this subject today is gonna be four subjects, four segments. We're gonna talk about four different subjects today. All around different stuff around your home.

[00:01:19] Eric Goranson: So thanks for joining. If you want to find out more about around the house, head over to around the house, online. com. Make sure you follow us on social media and don't forget the around the house. Insider where you can get all the back episodes of around the house as well as see some of our member exclusive episodes that are just out there that are not part of the radio show or podcast.

[00:01:40] Eric Goranson: So you can catch that head over to around the house online. com and you can find that over there. Well, the first subject I wanted to talk about today in this first segment here. Is for people out there that are thinking about trying to buy their first house, trying to find their first project house, or even trying to find that house that they might want to fix [00:02:00] up and flip and with interest rates out there, you know, the landscape has changed so much in our economy out there.

[00:02:09] Eric Goranson: And here's 1 of the better ways to find something. And this is something that we just did. That we were looking online and found a house is my little brother found a project house in here in Oregon, you know, about an hour and a half for me out in cannon beach. And so I'm going to be helping him with that project.

[00:02:25] Eric Goranson: And he just signed on the dotted line on that. And I'm going to partner up with him to help renovate that place and get it up to speed. So one of the better ways to find these locations. is head out, find your next project house, but here's the way you do it. I would take a look and see what is on your city's code enforcement list.

[00:02:50] Eric Goranson: Now I'm talking about the homes that the city is chasing after that have been neglected for a long period of time. These [00:03:00] are the ones that have had the holes in the roof that are not landscaped correctly, that have bad additions and are in distress. These are also ones that I'm seeing that maybe. Are on the, um, derelict properties list and haven't paid taxes for a number of years.

[00:03:19] Eric Goranson: And so, uh, depending on the laws in your state, in your city, or wherever you're located, sometimes those lists are public knowledge. And if you can find somebody that has been in that house for a long time that hasn't been able to afford the taxes, you might be able to come in there with a cash offer and be able to do something with it.

[00:03:41] Eric Goranson: Now, this is something that, um, will be a lot easier Right now, because there's a lot of people out there that are hurting for money and if they're in this home and it's not a livable place or maybe the, the, um, it has been abandoned and no one's paying on it, you might be able to [00:04:00] get this for a song and you might be able to get it where you can afford to get in there and change it.

[00:04:05] Eric Goranson: Now, here's the biggest problem with any house flipper out there right now is that money is expensive and that is the loan that you're going to have to get. Pull this off. And so this is where this you've got to go find, you know More distressed properties than what you had before because being with that interest rate is is many times more than what it was Just two years ago this is where it gets to be expensive and so money is gonna be your big expense because if you're doing this renovation project Over, you know, let's say 18 months, you're paying a high interest rate on that over that time.

[00:04:44] Eric Goranson: And so you're carrying costs on that loan are going to be expensive. And what can happen is if you have a year or two as you go through and fix this property up, and you're paying 8, 9, percent on a loan, this is where that can get really [00:05:00] expensive. And all of a sudden, where you thought you could make a hundred thousand, Might mean you're only making 40, 000.

[00:05:08] Eric Goranson: And so this is where you really need to come up with ways of of having the right money or being able to come up with enough down where you can give half the money down and maybe get an owner to finance it for a year or two. Um, and be that loan officer on it. And I've seen that happen before where you can actually go in, give half down.

[00:05:31] Eric Goranson: And if these people have another house. Or if they are wanting to get out of it and the bank doesn't own it, and it's a paid for residence. You know, somebody's been there for 20, 30 years and it's paid for, but it's just neglected. These are things that are ripe opportunities for you to come in and be able to purchase that place.

[00:05:49] Eric Goranson: But like I said, these are things that you need to really be careful with with the loans out there because that's where the money is going to hurt your business plan. So a couple of things I want you to do is if you're out there [00:06:00] looking for that project houses, figure out how much you're going to have to spend in.

[00:06:05] Eric Goranson: What are you going to be able to put down and where you're going to get that money from? So right now is the time of year that you're starting to see people that have been in the house flipping business for a long time, starting to lose it. Just like you're starting to see builders get that as well. So you're seeing builders that are out there really working on stuff and You're gonna start seeing the collapse of certain larger scale builders out there because they're carrying that money They're having to get sales going and this can be super tough to do when you're doing that kind of stuff So be really careful out there.

[00:06:42] Eric Goranson: This is the time when you're seeing these kind of interest rates That if you're trying to get in and flip your first house, and maybe you've been watching on television, or you've been seeing some of these seminars by some of the celebrities, unless you've got money on hand and you have that part figured out, this is probably the time of year that I would [00:07:00] stay away from that stuff right now in the current economy, because the only people that you're really seeing out there that are moving are people that are getting out of an area going to another.

[00:07:12] Eric Goranson: Which, if you're in the right area, that could be great. If you're in, in Texas or Florida, like we were talking last hour of the show, or some of these states that have an influx coming in, you might be in a great market to do this. Where you've got people cashing out their houses at a more expensive market and coming to a lower priced market.

[00:07:31] Eric Goranson: And so you've got people that don't care about the interest rate being what it is. And that's kind of key right there. Now, if you are. Um, in an area out here in the West Coast, for instance, where there's people moving and there's not a lot of people moving in, this could be a much harder sell for you when it's, when it's time to go.

[00:07:51] Eric Goranson: So maybe that house might have to turn into a rental property for a number of years until the market comes back where it goes again. So have [00:08:00] a plan A. Have a plan B and a plan C. So if you get involved in this thing and if you have to carry that for a few years to sell it, that could be a really big issue.

[00:08:11] Eric Goranson: So I don't want to see anybody get financially hurt on these things. You can lose, you know, 100, 000 bucks on a house flip if you're not managing it correctly. Especially with these interest rates that can be eight, nine, 10 percent depending on where you're at, what your location is and what your credit score income is.

[00:08:28] Eric Goranson: So you just got to be really careful out there guys. And so be very careful of how you're doing these house flips. And, uh, you know, I'm generally not a house flipper. Friend of that. I'm not a friend of that industry because there's so many people out there that do it really horribly. And then somebody like a new homeowner buys their first house and they get into it and realize that, Oh my gosh, they said this was really nice stuff and it's horrible stuff.

[00:08:50] Eric Goranson: And now you're going through and replacing stuff. And really it's bad on our economy and it's bad on. What you're seeing for homeowners out there that just spent [00:09:00] their life savings to get into their first house. And then two years later, they're replacing the flooring because it was so cheap. It was the cheapest stuff you could find.

[00:09:08] Eric Goranson: And everything was made out of such low quality stuff that they're now stuck paying a premium for a house. And then having to go back and remodel it sooner than you should because of the low quality materials used. So don't be that guy. Don't be that person because those are the ones out there that are really taking advantage of homeowners.

[00:09:28] Eric Goranson: If you're going to do it, please do it right and do it for your community as a whole. And give a nice place for people to live around the house. We'll be right back with another topic just as soon as we return.[00:10:00]

[00:10:09] Eric Goranson: What's up? This is Dixie Dania and Satchel from Steel Panther. And you are listening to Around the House with Eric G. Yeah, we love Eric G and you should too.

[00:10:29] Eric Goranson: Welcome back to the Around the House show. This is where we help you get the most out of your home through. Information and education. Thanks for joining us today. We've been talking about four different topics today and four different segments of the show. And really trying to help you out with, uh, new things around your house.

[00:10:46] Eric Goranson: Now one of the big ones here that I wanted to talk about is how to deal with property issues with your government. And now this could be a city thing, it could be a county, it could be a township, it could be federal. And [00:11:00] these are things that I'm seeing more and more of people with more and more regulations out there.

[00:11:05] Eric Goranson: People getting in more and more trouble, especially with like HOAs. And things like that and so I wanted to talk a little bit about this on how to help you navigate these kind of things because this can be a really big battle and especially if you've got maybe a city inspector, maybe you've got.

[00:11:28] Eric Goranson: Somebody that is a neighbor that has been complaining and you're trying to get this stuff figured out and this can be a troublesome one and add so much stress to your life. And so this is where I kind of want you to just take a nice step back and take a look and see what the issues are. You know, it could be that you're not mowing your lawn enough and there's 10 inches high and it's got to be under 7 or whatever regulation is.

[00:11:59] Eric Goranson: Sometimes taking [00:12:00] a step back and taking the emotion out of that situation can really help you out. And sometimes bringing in somebody to help mediate can be a good answer. Now there's a house that I've been helping out on, um, that we were talking about earlier that, um, is in the middle of that process where.

[00:12:19] Eric Goranson: Basically, people have gone, I've seen this, another great example here on another story that, you know, someone hasn't been taking care of the property and they're now in a dust up with the city where the city is forcing them to put their house up for sale or they're going to basically demolish the house.

[00:12:38] Eric Goranson: Now you see this in a lot of areas, you know, you'll see derelict houses where it goes through the court system and all of a sudden that house. They have a choice to either get it up to code, it's going to get condemned, and then the city can come in there and knock it down. Now, they'll come in and call it a nuisance, whatever, [00:13:00] and there's a lot of cities that have that ability to do so.

[00:13:02] Eric Goranson: And a lot of people go, oh, it's my property, totally get it. But they also have got in their laws that they can do this. And so, these are things that I really want you to be able to think and consider about. You know, of course, get your taxes paid on time so they're not messing with you on that. But when you're looking at these kind of things, sometimes bringing in somebody to help negotiate this might help you out.

[00:13:29] Eric Goranson: Now that could be an attorney that comes in and says, Hey, okay, I want to, I want to take care of, I'll make up a name. Mr. Smith, let's take care of Mr. Smith's property over here. And they go have a meeting with the city or the city inspectors or the city attorney and sit down and say, okay, what do we do here?

[00:13:46] Eric Goranson: With all of that, what can we do to get things back on track? Because so many times, like I said, you see, you know, um, you've got somebody personally and a homeowner personally, and that can be really ugly. And [00:14:00] so how do you deal with that stuff? Dial it back off 11. You as the homeowner, you as the person involved.

[00:14:08] Eric Goranson: Um, you need to make it less personal and I know it's your house, but you know, something that's being less personal is going to be good. So, again, get that attorney brought in and let them handle it. Now, there is a group out there that if it is something that is, you know, unconstitutional or there's law supporting your case.

[00:14:32] Eric Goranson: That's when I reach out to my friends like over at the Institute for Justice, where when things, when people have been wronged by a city that's out of control, those guys are a great resource for you to reach out to and say, Hey, you know, um, this is going on. It's not right. It's against the law or it's against federal law, but they're doing it anyway.

[00:14:53] Eric Goranson: This is where really those people can really help out. So, yeah. Reach out to the Institute for Justice. They have done a lot of [00:15:00] good out there for homeowners and you can find out more information on them over at IJ. org. And, um, you know, they're really good, uh, and they are people that I've really been impressed with.

[00:15:13] Eric Goranson: Um, great example. They have filed over 50 cases to defend private property rights. And, uh, they were also included on the infamous us Supreme court decision of, uh, Kilo versus new London, which is a really interesting one. So that is where you start to get into. Eminent domain of a city, trying to take your property to do something with it.

[00:15:39] Eric Goranson: And that's where this stuff, where you really need to have the experts come help fight for you and your rights. You know, a little backstory on that in 1998 of the pharmaceutical giant Pfizer built a plant next to, uh, Fort Trumbull and the city determined that someone else could make better use of the land than the [00:16:00] Fort Trumbull residents.

[00:16:01] Eric Goranson: So the city handed over its power of eminent domain. Which is basically the ability to take private property for public use to the new London Development Corporation, who is a private body to take the entire neighborhood for private development. As the Fort Trumbull neighbors found out when private entities wield government awesome power of eminent domain and can justify taking property without the nebulous claim of economic development, homeowners get themselves in trouble.

[00:16:28] Eric Goranson: And so they went through and fought this, um, And one. And so this is one of the cool things. Um, it eventually reached the U. S. Supreme Court in 2005 in one of the most controversial case rulings in its history. The court held the economic development was a public use under the Fifth Amendment to the U. S.

[00:16:50] Eric Goranson: Constitution. So this got really interesting. Um, so the Supreme court's ruling in the kilo meant that the, that [00:17:00] Suzette kilo, her neighbors, and even property owning Americans face the threat of losing their homes and business to a private developer under the guise of raising tax revenue and creating jobs.

[00:17:12] Eric Goranson: So, um, basically the Supreme court's five, four decision, um, sparked a nationwide backlash against. That eminent domain. And so this is where really these guys have really come in, uh, to be able to, to be able to protect your own home. So since that ruling in 05, uh, citizen activists have defeated 44 projects that sought to abuse eminent domain for private development.

[00:17:40] Eric Goranson: So, um, this is something that's gotten really interesting to watch and these are the people that have gone out and fought this really well. So. Make sure that, um, you know, that if you get yourself into this situation, that you reach out to the right people because these guys here can really go in and do a [00:18:00] lot.

[00:18:00] Eric Goranson: With this. So that's, that's a really big court case. It gave people a lot of rights as homeowners. And, um, that's what I really like that. Um, in that, that they're really protecting property rights. So if you're having problems and it's a big legal case like this, reach out to the Institute for justice.

[00:18:18] Eric Goranson: This isn't just a commercial for them. They're a nonprofit that I think is a really helped out. And I've worked with them in the past on legislation that was trying to limit what the interior design community could do, and they really helped us. And, uh, stopping that licensing around the house. We'll be right back with a whole other subject.

[00:18:35] Eric Goranson: Just as soon as we return, don't go away.[00:19:00]

[00:19:00] Eric Goranson: Hey, this is Ron keel, the middle cowboy from keel, the Ron keel band and Steeler, we are rocking around the house with Eric G welcome back to around the house. So this is where we hope to get the most out of your home through information and education. And this hour, we've been talking about four subjects and four segments in this segment here, we are going to talk about.

[00:19:22] Eric Goranson: How to deal with larger scale mold issues in your home. Now, this could be, um, you know, you were moving some boxes and realized that, um, all of a sudden behind that wall, uh, behind those boxes in the basement that you've got black mold growing on there. And I don't mean mold that's. Black mold, but maybe mold that's black and color and you don't know what it is or it could be that you had, um, you know, in your attic space that you had, um, you know, you had vents that were venting up into the attic space, but not outside.

[00:19:53] Eric Goranson: So you're pumping all that space through, you know, filled up with humidity and. Things [00:20:00] like that. Or it could be that you've had water leaks that no one paid attention to in the back of a closet or something. And it got really bad or even worse. You had holes in your roof and you have a house that has been abandoned and you're trying to clean it up.

[00:20:13] Eric Goranson: And that's actually what we've got right now with my brother in his location that he's starting to work on here. We bought a house that, uh, or he bought a house that, uh, really has some things going on with it. And, uh, this is a great subject. So the first off the thing that I want you to do is, is Stop and find out if you have insurance coverage for this.

[00:20:33] Eric Goranson: And here is why if you have insurance coverage that can cover this for most people, I would say, let the professionals handle it because there are a lot of steps that it takes to really get stuff clean. For instance. I have seen it where you have mold in the attic so bad that the choices are getting up there with dry ice and sandblasting and killing the mold [00:21:00] and then putting a coating over it.

[00:21:02] Eric Goranson: Or I've seen people go in there and say, you know, it's actually cheaper to rip the entire roof and sheathing off and resheet it and treat the floor, uh, you know, the rafter system or the, uh, the framing up there. Whether they're trusses or whatever on the rafters and treating that and pulling out the insulation and re insulating.

[00:21:23] Eric Goranson: So really there's a lot to these and I really wanna make sure that you handle this correctly 'cause there is a lot to it. Great example. The house that my brother and I are gonna start working on, it is a fun project, but it has had water leaks and a roof system for what I would guess would be nearly a decade.

[00:21:44] Eric Goranson: And so what you see with that is you see a house that was neglected. And you know, um, big areas that are like eight foot by eight foot where the ceiling has gotten so wet that it fell in on the floor and collapsed and that you can see out through blue tarps in the ceiling and you've [00:22:00] had rainwater for years and years collecting, you've got buckled floors, those kind of things.

[00:22:06] Eric Goranson: These are projects to get healthy. You really have to go through and clean them up. And like that, when you get into that kind of a situation. You're really taking it down to the studs and starting over in those areas and that would be the same thing that I would tell you that, um, in an area where you had drywall, for instance, if it was in a basement where you had stuff stacked up and you had water intrusion and that 1st thing I want you to do is test the mold and see what you're doing.

[00:22:34] Eric Goranson: And see what you're working with and then test the air around it to see what kind of spores are out there. What kind of toxins is that mold giving off? So you know how to deal with it. If it's something simple on a mold that you're like, Hey, this isn't as toxic as what I thought it was. Then you know how to deal with it.

[00:22:52] Eric Goranson: But if it's something that's super toxic, maybe you want to have somebody come in that is a professional that is certified to do this, to be able to [00:23:00] clean this up. And that's the hard part, knowing what to do and knowing what, how big is too much and how big is you bring somebody in for this. And a lot of that just comes down to insurance.

[00:23:11] Eric Goranson: If it's something that you can't clean up readily, it might be better just to bring the pros in. Cause what can happen is, is that you can go in there and if you don't do this correctly, you know, the mold is going to be growing anywhere that there's air, it could be growing in between two by fours, it could be growing up in the inside of the sheathing, it could be up in the attic space, wherever this is at, you really have to be able to get in there and get all of it.

[00:23:33] Eric Goranson: And so many people go through and just go, Oh, I sprayed, I sprayed bleach on it. I hit it with bleach and guess what? It killed it. And then I just painted it. We're good to go. And that can be the farthest from the truth where bleach does not go through and kill that mold. So really, you need to go through and take a product, you know, get it, all the material that you can removed that is moldy.

[00:23:55] Eric Goranson: Once you know that it's not giving off too many toxins, and yes, you should be wearing a respirator for this. [00:24:00] And going through and getting that cleaned up, but really you got to take... Take that mold, get it out of the building, get it disposed of. And then you need to go in and figure out what's underneath.

[00:24:09] Eric Goranson: Where is the hidden mold? Where is that going? And this is where air testing really makes a big difference because I want you to take a test when you start out to see what's in the air. So down the road you can do a test and see where it's at because the problem is you don't know if you got all of it.

[00:24:26] Eric Goranson: And so if you take the test to go, wow, we're through the roof on this as to be expected, and then you go through and get it cleaned up and then you go, okay, I got that all cleaned up. I'm very confident. That's good. And you go, wow, it's not perfect yet. I still have it now. You need to figure out maybe it's in another wall.

[00:24:42] Eric Goranson: Maybe you have more spaces. Maybe that is grown to another place in the house because maybe your central heating and cooling system moved in around. There could be a lot of things that happen that way. So I want to make sure you get that dialed in. But then what I recommend doing is going through and, and, and going a few different ways.

[00:24:58] Eric Goranson: One, you can go through after you get it cleaned [00:25:00] up and clean up as best you can and, and soak it with some concrobium and get that cleaned up and then go through and give a good encapsulation type paint around it. Now that can be a bunch of different materials out there that do it. There's a lot of different ones that I like out there.

[00:25:19] Eric Goranson: Uh, I recommend a lot to people to use Caliwell. Uh, that's a good one. Uh, my friend Carolyn Blazowski, uh, she recommends a product called Sentinel 24 seven zero, and that is either a white or a clear finish. And that is a, um. High quality interior grade coating that contains no VOC's. It frees hazardous air pollutants and offers virtually no odor.

[00:25:47] Eric Goranson: It is really good for most interior building materials as far as going over and providing a self priming coating and a scrubbing surface that is an antimicrobial product. It's designed to inhibit the [00:26:00] growth of stain and odor causing mold, mildew and other microorganisms on cured coating surfaces. So that's the kind of stuff that you need to go in and something like that.

[00:26:08] Eric Goranson: I'd recommend you go in and spray that in and make sure that you got that after you've gone through and killed it. So really your thing is, is to dry it out first. And that might be a dehumidifier that could be a lot of different things, but you need to get that dried first and then go in and get everything killed to your air testing and then go through and make sure that you've got a coating on that, that it's going to keep that from happening again, because not only do you need to kill that mold, you need to find out why that moisture got back there and it could be that you just created a very high moisture environment by stacking stings in front of it, Well, like I said earlier, maybe you're venting up into the attic space or any of those other things.

[00:26:46] Eric Goranson: And so those are things that you can really create and fix those problems yourself if you do it correctly. But uh, like I was saying earlier, um, sometimes bringing in the pros and I mean, I want to see somebody that is [00:27:00] certified, that has a great reputation in your area dealing with these hazardous situations like mold, asbestos, any of those other things.

[00:27:12] Eric Goranson: So I want to see a good solid remediation company. That knows what they're doing coming in, um, you don't want to fly by night one that's going to come in and, you know, oh, I sprayed some stuff on it and called it good and left. You want to make sure that they can tackle that completely. So, 1 of the things too, is make sure you follow your local laws, find out if there is other stuff in your area, sometimes, um, in high moisture areas, especially if you've had a flood or something like that, that you're following all the guidelines for your area and what needs to be done for that.

[00:27:42] Eric Goranson: And, um, I, I can tell you that, uh, testing is going to be your friend. So make sure you spend the time, get the tests, get the air test done. So, you know, because you could have all of a sudden that mold spores could have spread into maybe some duct work someplace else. And that's where that basement model testing to [00:28:00] know what's going on will tell you and give you the complete story of what's going on right there.

[00:28:05] Eric Goranson: So, uh, there we go, guys. And that's one that, uh, if it's a small project. My recommendation, you might be able to tackle it with the right stuff and make sure that you're wearing a respirator anywhere around this, not just a dust mask, but a respirator with a mold cartridge in it. That purple one is good and make sure that you're using the right materials and the right safety stuff.

[00:28:25] Eric Goranson: And then don't bring that home with you, whatever you're working on. One more segment left. We'll be back after these important messages. Don't change that time.[00:29:00]

[00:29:01] Eric Goranson: It's the end of the show drinking down people. It's time to go.

[00:29:09] Eric Goranson: Welcome back to the around the house show. This is where we help you get the most out of your home through information education. Thanks for joining us today. Well, we've been talking about four different subjects today, four subjects, four segments. And today I wanted to talk in this last one. Uh, about some really important stuff.

[00:29:27] Eric Goranson: So in this segment here, I wanted to talk about ways to get your house fixed up if you are on a very limited budget and you're having a hard time trying to stay on top of that house maintenance and it's just getting out where you want to stay in your home. But maybe you can't afford it. Maybe it's your grandmother.

[00:29:47] Eric Goranson: Maybe it's you. Maybe it's whatever situation you're in. And you are, you have an ability issue to keep that house maintained. Maybe you've got, um, a disability or something [00:30:00] that is really keeping you back from being able to do it physically. Maybe it's something where, um, you are not in the financial position where you can fix it, or you don't have the knowledge to do so.

[00:30:10] Eric Goranson: And so here are some of my ideas. To be able to help you get that project started and finished and keep you in your home. Now, one of the things that I have seen out there is they're in a, in a larger area, even as is a place as big as like Portland, where I'm at here, there are multiple. Organizations that are out there that are there helping people stay in their homes.

[00:30:38] Eric Goranson: Now, great example. There is a, um, a center here. That is a reuse type of place where people donate materials, building materials specifically, and it's called the rebuilding center, but they also have. Community outreach programs, for instance, that, um, you know, if, uh, if your grandmother's porch has collapsed, they'll send out [00:31:00] people on a community service day and fix that up.

[00:31:03] Eric Goranson: That's a great one. Let's say, um, you are now in a wheelchair and you need a wheelchair ramp that goes up to your place or a roll in shower. For instance, you know, that is another group of people. There are a lot of different people out there. That's That have nonprofits in your areas now, smaller towns, rural areas, a little bit tough, but a lot of these, um, you know, medium sized areas, they have a group of builders that have working together to really help people out.

[00:31:37] Eric Goranson: And, you know, you've got other organizations like Habitat for Humanity and the 1 earlier that I was talking about, um, they're called refit. Uh, they are rebuilding it together group that they basically go through and get building community members and they go into somebody's house and we'll help build that accessible bathroom with donated materials and time.

[00:31:57] Eric Goranson: Maybe they've got, um, [00:32:00] you know, a wheelchair ramp they need, or they need something fixed up like that. They are really specialized. On helping people that, uh, really are not in a position to be able to help themselves. And so, take a look around and see what's going around there. Now, some of the other things that you're seeing out there in certain areas are their community grants, where you have people that are putting together programs for that.

[00:32:25] Eric Goranson: Um, and you'll even see sometimes that, um, like Home Depot and Lowe's and some of these chains will have community events like that. So, a little bit of Google searching in your area. And then asking some of the nonprofits in your area, if they have something that they can do to help, maybe it's your local church, maybe it's, you know, if you're a religious person and, uh, whatever, uh, that faith is check in.

[00:32:53] Eric Goranson: And see if they have stuff, you know, I mean, my mom lives five hour, four and a half hours away from me here [00:33:00] and she's had a hard time keeping up on her lawn stuff over there and, um, boy, it was so great that her local church came over and did a, uh, you know, she's in her eighties and isn't able in a wheelchair to go out.

[00:33:13] Eric Goranson: Or a Walker and do that yard work. And my, you know, my, my father has passed, so he's not able to do it. And so church came over and helped out on it. Now, I'll be coming up there this winter and, uh, helping out in the backyard to get that under control. But really, these are things that you see other people step up and help.

[00:33:34] Eric Goranson: And so check around with any of those community, you know, community resources. Um, again, people like Habitat are great for that. And, uh, just start asking around and see what you can do. And you know something, if you don't have something around, why don't you start one yourself? See if you can get a group of, uh, people together if you're in the design or building community out there.

[00:33:56] Eric Goranson: Or, uh, get a hold of some of your local [00:34:00] recycling places and maybe they've got some stuff. But, um, if you don't have one, maybe it's time to start one. And again, check those government grants out there. There are a lot of grants out there for people. Um, that are trying to do maybe energy efficient things.

[00:34:16] Eric Goranson: Um, and sometimes your city grants as well, where cities have come together and said, Hey, we want to make sure the people that are in homes are staying in homes. And so take a look at that as well. There's a lot of different places that you can get assistance that you can get help. And sometimes maybe it's just getting a group of friends together to go help.

[00:34:38] Eric Goranson: Maybe you can help somebody in your community. Maybe you can go on and maybe go on Craigslist or Facebook marketplace or get some materials donated by a local company that can come out and really help with that. But, uh, in these tough times right now, I think this is really when, when we can go out and help people get along and live better and stay in their [00:35:00] homes.

[00:35:00] Eric Goranson: We are not going to fix the homeless problem that we have. And it's really, you know, that's a whole other separate issue that I'm not going to get about in the show. I mean, we have a, a problem with people barely staying in their homes and we have a problem with people, um, that are trying to afford to stay in their homes.

[00:35:20] Eric Goranson: And there's another thing too, there are some states that have property taxes and they have grants as well that you can jump on there instead of paying 3, grand on property taxes. A year more or less, depending on where you're at those property taxes. There are programs for elderly or people that have limited abilities that are trying to stay in their home where they can't afford those property taxes.

[00:35:43] Eric Goranson: So do the research. If it's your grandmother, if it's your mother, if it's a family member, it's you jump on there and take a look and see if there's a way to get some assistance. Getting assistance is really key for many people that can't get there. And, um, [00:36:00] you know, there's even, you know, on, it's great, great example on the, on YouTube, you can see all these different lawn care companies that go out there that will go by and take care of somebody that's in a, in a house that they can't maintain.

[00:36:11] Eric Goranson: They'll go by and get it cleaned up. And taken care of and, uh, there's a lot of YouTubers out there in the lawn care business that are going around and doing that and a little bit of research, you might be able to find somebody that could come and help do that. And when in doubt, reach out to your local media, ask them and see if they have any ideas.

[00:36:29] Eric Goranson: They might have some people, you know, um, in Portland here. I was just out this morning, helping out, uh, helping out a couple that will air in a future episode, but we went in and helped a, uh, helped a couple that really. Are struggling with a health issue and, um, you know, I hope they make it, but it's one of those things that, uh, you know, things are getting a little sketchy and we did a bedroom makeover for them and it turned out really great, um, and got them something that's going to make their life better, something that's going to make [00:37:00] them comfortable and it really felt good, uh, spending a lot of time today out there and, uh, helping these guys get, uh, a life changing deal where.

[00:37:09] Eric Goranson: Yeah. You know, um, everybody can be in the same room again as far as husband and wife and be able to sleep in the same bed. So this is something that will air again. I'll share it up on a future episode here. I'll talk a little bit more about it after it's aired. But giving back like that, if we can help people out, especially coming into the holidays here, um, you know, there's a lot of people out there that need help.

[00:37:29] Eric Goranson: Ask around if you want to help somebody. Get a group of friends together, you know, it's funny how you can do this stuff with social media these days and, uh, create a couple of groups and, um, boy, it wouldn't take much to be able to put together a, uh, uh, a Facebook group of people that want to help others and, um, be able to get together and volunteer and spend time, you know, being of service to people that need help.

[00:37:53] Eric Goranson: So I can't tell you thanks enough for the people that are out there doing it. The people that are thinking about [00:38:00] doing it, um, boy, you know, you can change some lives out there and keep people in their homes. So, uh, everyone here is a community. We can really help each other out and spread our knowledge.

[00:38:09] Eric Goranson: There are so many people out there that are experts in my audience here. You, my friends out there that tune into the show every single week. And, uh, let's see if we can rally the troops a little bit and get some people helping others out. And if you can volunteer and help, Other people with your bit of knowledge and help somebody else.

[00:38:27] Eric Goranson: Uh, that is also a great thing. So Hey guys, let's spend the holiday season here as we go into November here coming into Thanksgiving and seeing if we can do some little things to help out our communities. Maybe it's the neighbor down the street that just needs their lawn mode. Maybe it's somebody that needs a, uh, a fence fixed or a, or a porch fixed up, or maybe they need a water heater swapped out, whatever that is.

[00:38:48] Eric Goranson: Let's see if we can help each other out. And, uh, help people stay in their homes so they have other options and better living. All right, everybody, that's the end of the show. Thanks for tuning in today. If [00:39:00] you're listening to us on the radio, thanks for tuning in. You can always catch the podcast. If you missed part of this on any, any podcast player, thanks for tuning into around the house.

[00:39:09] Eric Goranson: We'll see

[00:39:16] Eric Goranson: you

[00:39:22] Eric Goranson: next week.