Maximize comfort and lower your electric bill. Better Homes & Gardens / Kristin Kempa When you want to keep your home at the ideal temperature without throwing away money on your monthly energy bill, a smart thermostat is worth it. These devices conserve energy by allowing remote access, tracking energy usage, and allowing you to schedule set times for heating and cooling.According to Bill...

When space is tight, placing your bed over a vent might be your only option. Here's what to consider before arranging your room. Rett Peek Vents carry air into a room, but when a vent is blocked, airflow becomes restricted, which reduces the efficiency of the HVAC system. Beds take up a lot of space, especially in small bedrooms, making it difficult to avoid objects like wall outlets, return air...

We turned to thrifting experts for their secrets to a successful thrift-shopping trip. 9 Thrifting Tips to Ensure You Find the Best Secondhand Items Thrifting experts Kat Steck and Bronwyn Tarboton share their secrets to a successful thrift shopping trip. For some, the appeal of thrift shopping lies in the thrill of the hunt and the joy of finding items that are totally unique. Others shop...

You’ll be set for next summer. Better Homes & Gardens Summer is coming to an end, and if you’re bummed about saying goodbye to these long, mostly sun-filled days, we have some news to cheer you up: Labor Day sales are here, and you can score big on patio furniture for next season at Amazon. The retail giant is offering excellent deals on conversation sets, loveseats, and more for your...

Our experts unpack their deadly reputation. Getty Images / Thanasis An apple a day may keep the doctor away, but what about those pesky apple seeds?While snacking on an apple or slicing some up for a classic apple pie, you may have wondered why apple cores, including the seeds, are typically thrown away. Apple seeds have earned a deadly reputation for containing cyanide, which is highly lethal to...

Based on AAA booking data, Seattle is the top destination for Labor Day weekend, showing an increase of nearly 30% from last year when it also ranked first. Anchorage and Juneau have also made it into the top ten Labor Day destinations, driven by strong consumer demand for Alaska cruises in late summer. "This is the time of year to go on an Alaska cruise," said Paula Twidale, Senior Vice President of AAA...

By every metric, the nation’s affordable housing crisis has reached unprecedented heights. A record-high 22.4 million renter households are cost burdened, meaning they spend at least 30% of household income on housing and utilities, and we are short 7.3 million rental homes that are affordable and available to renters with extremely low incomes. Meanwhile, the number of households who qualify for...

As the U.S. workforce continues to age commensurately with the population at large, a new report by U.S. Money Reserve illustrates that the highest concentration of older workers — those at or over the age of 65 — are concentrated in the New England region of the country. Based on data from the U.S. Census Bureau’s 2022 American Community Survey released last year, Vermont was found to have the...

The employee at the center of the Move v. CoStar lawsuit granted his personal email access to roughly 40 documents prior to his departure for Move subsidiary Realtor.com, according to the latest filing in the legal battle between the two listing platform giants. On Tuesday, Move filed an amended motion for preliminary injunction against CoStar and James Kaminsky, the former Realtor.com employee who now...

Richelle Hopkins of Mutual of Omaha Mortgage has been a reverse mortgage professional for 20 years, moving to Arizona in 2006. In 2020, a colleague approached her about establishing a Phoenix-based chapter of Women in Insurance and Financial Services (WIFS), an association of financial services professionals who aim to “attract, develop and advance women in an underrepresented profession,” according to...