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Tip for
the Week…. June 20-24, 2011
BURN
BANS AND WATER RESTRICTIONS
Burn Bans and
Mandatory Water Restrictions
have been issued for several
counties! The dry, hot weather
has caused some areas to issue
mandatory or voluntary water
restrictions. Tips on conserving
water: Avoid cutting lawns too
short, repair leaks, run faucets
only when using them and install
water-efficient fixtures.
Tip for
the Week…. June 6-10, 2011
Apartment
availability is changing!
What does this mean to you?
Many people relocate in the
summer time. They have
either just graduated and
are starting new jobs, or
their children have just
finished school, and many
interns, residents, students
and professionals are here
during the summer starting
new careers.
Typically, this means the
apartments go quickly and it
is not uncommon to find
apartment communities with
waiting lists. Don't wait
too late to make your
decision. Call our locally
based apartment locating
company today to secure your
home for the future.
Tip for
the Week…. May 16-20, 2011
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Free Things to do With Your
Children This Summer |
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·
Start your kids on a summer
reading program and get a
FREE book from Borders! Kids
12 and under can get a free book
from Borders after they have
read 8 books sometime this
summer. This book offer is good
from May 24, 2011 through
September 6, 2011. Go to your
nearest Borders to get your book
journal form. |
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·
There will be
FREE
BOWLING FOR KIDS AT AMF
this summer May 30-September 5.
Just register your kids and
you’ll get weekly coupons via
email for 2 free games per child
per day all summer. |
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·
Children’s Museum of Houston is
FREE Thurs 5-8 PM
·
John Freeman Weather Museum is
FREE Thurs 12-4 PM
·
Houston Zoo has FREE
admission first Tuesday of
the month from 2 PM– closing
·
Discovery Green Park has FREE
movie screenings, yoga, live
music and many other things
everyday of the week
·
Lee & Joe Jamail Skatepark is
FREE and open to all ages
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Kids eat out FREE!
·
Cici’s Pizza offers Free meals
for kids 3 and under
·
Dickeys BBQ Pit Kids eat FREE
on Sundays
·
Ihop – Kids eat FREE
4-10pm everyday
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Souper! Salad!
Kids 3 and under eat
FREE |
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Tip for
the Week…. May 9-13, 2011
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Driving More
Efficiently and Keeping Your Car
in Shape |
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Keep your engine properly tuned!
Fixing a car that is noticeably
out of tune or has failed an
emissions test can improve its
gas mileage by an average of 4
percent though results can vary
based on the kind of repair and
how well it is done. Fixing a
serious maintenance problem,
such as a faulty oxygen sensor
can improve your mileage by as
much as 40 percent! |
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Keep tires properly inflated!
You can improve your gas mileage
by up to 3.3 percent by keeping
your tires inflated to the
proper pressure. Under-inflated
tires can lower gas mileage by
0.3 percent for every 1 psi drop
in pressure of all four tires.
Properly inflated tires are
safer and last longer. The
proper tire pressure for your
vehicle is usually found on a
sticker in the driver's side
door jamb or the glove box and
in your owner's manual. Do not
use the maximum pressure printed
on the tire's sidewall. |
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Use the recommended grade of
motor oil for your car! You can
improve your gas mileage by 1–2
percent by using the
manufacturer's recommended grade
of motor oil. For example, using
10W-30 motor oil in an engine
designed to use 5W-30 can lower
your gas mileage by 1–2 percent.
Using 5W-30 in an engine
designed for 5W-20 can lower
your gas mileage by 1–1.5
percent. Also, look for motor
oil that says "Energy
Conserving" on the API
performance symbol to be sure it
contains friction-reducing
additives. |
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Tip for
the Week…. April 25-29, 2011
Tip for
the Week…. April 18-22, 2011
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Houston Events
and Things to Do!! A Summer Full of
Excitement
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International
Festival April 30-May 1 & May
7-8 “The Silk Road-Journey
Across Asia”
Cinco de Mayo
Celebration - May 5 Downtown
Parade, Mariachi Music and
dancers at the Miller Outdoor
Theater in Hermann Park
Juneteenth
Celebration-June 19 Month long
Festival. Miller Outdoor
Theater includes parades and
musical performances
July 4th Miller
Outdoor Theatre–Fireworks and 16
Cannon salute
Art Houston
-early July an evening art walk
with more than 30 Galleries
participating
Ringling
Brothers and Barnum Bailey
Circus - late July/early August
entertainment for the entire
family
Houston
International Jazz Festival
- early August, a weekend of
jazz performances celebrating
the birth of jazz
Ballunar Lift
Off late August at Space Center
and Clear Lake with more than
100 balloons with sky diving and
hang gliding demos |
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Tip for
the Week…. April 11-15, 2011
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Spring is here!!! Be Alert!
What a wonderful time of year to
travel!
Along with travel plans, you should
always take safety measures |
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•Road
Trips
•Vacations
•Shopping
Sprees
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Use good judgment as to where you
stop to buy gas, shop, lodge or
park. Make sure you
park in a well lit area when
traveling at night!
If you ever have any doubt when
returning to your car seek out
security to escort you!
Ladies, secure your purse under your
arm with a strap over the shoulder
instead of carrying
it by hand where it is dangling and
easy to snatch. When fueling, do not
leave or turn your
back to your vehicle without
locking it first. Simple safety
measures that you discuss with
your traveling partners can help
that you have a pleasant journey!
Tip for
the Week…. April 4-8, 2011
As our apartment
locators will tell you only certain
properties take big dogs, and some
properties charge pet fees/deposits or
cleaning fees. If you have a pet,
come prepared. Bring a letter from
your last landlord with your pet’s
references. Is your cat neutered
or declawed? Does Fido bark a lot? Where
will he/she stay when you are gone?
These are just some of the questions you
will be asked. Be prepared to pay
pet deposits, provide references and
possibly bring your pet to an interview!
Tip for the Week….
March 28-April 1, 2011
Get outside and enjoy the weather
before summer is here!!
Check out the fun action you can do
now:
Tip for the Week….
March 21-25, 2011
It’s getting warmer each
week and as the
temperature goes up so
does your electric bill.
Try to practice
these habits to keep
your costs down:
Tip for the Week….
March 14-18, 2011
Crime happens everywhere
even in nice apartment
communities. When you
live in the 4th
largest city in the
country, you need to pay
particular attention to
a few extra details that
you may not have in a
smaller community.
Apartment Directions
Suggests
1. Always keep
your
apartment/car,
doors & windows
locked. (Usually
crime is
deterred to
places/vehicles
of least
resistance)
Apartment Directions
Suggests
2. Do not leave
money, GPS
system,
electronics,
phone or brief
cases in your
car. (Some leave
these locked in
a trunk, but
best advice is
to take it with
you).
Apartment Directions
Suggests
3. Exchange
telephone
numbers with you
neighbor. Have
an extra set of
eyes watching
out for your
belonging is
always
appreciated.
Apartment Directions
Suggests
4. Always be
aware of your
surroundings
upon
leaving/entering
your
apartment/car or
office Building
(the more alert
you are, the
less you are to
be a target of
crime).
Tip for the Week….
March 7-11, 2011
Apartment Renters
Insurance...do I need
it?
As a Houston
apartment locator we see
hundreds of people move
into the apartment area
each year.
When you find
the right apartment/home
and move in, you may
want to buy a reasonable
renter's insurance
policy.
They are not
expensive and well worth
it, should you find
yourself in a situation
resulting in loss to
your property.
If you have an
insurance agent already,
ask about the cost of a
renter's policy.
If you need
ideas on where to get a
quote, ask your
Apartment Directions
agent for some names and
numbers. Apartment
communities carry
insurance but that only
covers their building
and not your
possessions.
Tip for the Week….
Feb 28-March 4, 2011
Busy Time of Year Coming
Up! The busiest time of
year for people moving in
and around Houston is
summer. School is out,
people have graduated and
starting new jobs, as well
as many company resident and
intern programs start up in
the summer time. What does
this mean to you? It means
you need to plan ahead!
Take our 25 years of
knowledge and advice, do not
wait till the last
minute to start shopping for
your next apartment home if
you are looking to move over
the summer months.
Apartment communities will
hold apartments for you with
a deposit.
Tip for the Week….
Feb 21-25, 2011
The Term of
your Lease!
Congratulations!
You have finally
decided on what
apartment you want
to lease and you are
ready to sign the
paperwork. The
apartment community
will prepare and
type up your lease.
Always check
the starting and
ending date.
Most apartment
communities offer 6
month leases but
others require a 7
month lease or maybe
9 month lease. And
still others will
want you to sign a
12 month lease
especially if they
are offering some
special concession
for you such as some
about of rebate or
discounted rent.
And just so you
know, many times
apartment
communities offer
better rates for the
longer terms of
lease. So always
ask if there is a
difference. Last
but not least, a few
apartment
communities do offer
shorter term leases
(such as 3 or 4
month leases)
but you will usually
be asked to pay a
premium rate of rent
for these short term
leases.
Tip for the Week….
Feb 14-18, 2011
When you are looking
to move, you
obviously want to
live in a safe
environment. As you
look around for your
next residence, you
may be asking for
something that you
can’t find….
“security.” You
may have discovered
that when you
inquired about
“security gates” or
“security alarms”
you were told the
community has
neither. Be aware,
the term “security”
is not used
anymore. If you are
interested in a
property that has
gates, you may refer
to them as access
gates. Or if you
want an apartment
that has an alarm
system, you may ask
for that or an
intrusion alarm.
Apartment
communities, leasing
agents, as well as
apartment locators
do not use the word
“security” anymore
because of the
legalities implied.
Crime happens
everywhere. What
you want is to be in
a place that has as
many determents as
possible to future
vandalism or crime.
But as we all know,
there is no
guarantee that there
is a truly “secured”
place. So don’t be
alarmed if you can’t
find anyone to tell
you how secure you
will be. But do use
the correct
terminology to
inquire about extra
amenities that will
make you feel more
comfortable once you
live in the
prospective
community.
Tip for the Week….
Feb 7-11, 2011
Be careful when you
shop for an
apartment over the
internet through a
service that is
located in a city
outside the city you
are moving to!
That’s right. Some
internet apartment
locating services
are located
thousands of miles
away and say they
can help you with
your move. Yes,
they may be able to
provide some
information like
prices and square
footage and some
amenities. However,
they have no idea
what the
neighborhood is
like, what the real
driving time is with
traffic conditions,
what the schools are
like or the
reputation of the
management company.
So buyer/renter
beware. If you want
to move to Houston,
make sure your
apartment locator is
in Houston!
Tip for the Week…. Jan
31-Feb 4, 2011
Have you recently moved
or plan on moving soon
and expecting to get a
deposit back? If, after
your walk through with
the management company,
and provided you gave
the apartment community
your forwarding address,
they should either send
you the remainder of
your deposit or
explanation of the
deductions you are
charged with 30 days.
If you do not receive
either, you may want to
check into the options
you may have to recoup
up to 3 times the
deposit amount.
Tip for the Week…. Jan
24-29, 2011
Today’s tip has to do
with Protecting Yourself
when you are ready to
move out of your present
lease. Many people are
not aware that they must
give a formal notice in
writing to the apartment
manager. This notice is
required prior to the
end of your lease. And
somewhere in your lease,
there is a set number of
days notice that is
expected for you to
provide as your notice.
Some notices can only be
accepted on the first of
the month and others
anytime during the month
as long as the number of
days requested notice is
adhered to per lease.
Keeping this in mind is
important and can save
you headache and money
that you may be counting
on to use differently
when your lease is up.
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Apartment Directions, Inc. |
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3300 Chimney Rock #104 -
Houston, TX 77056 |
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Phone: 713-789-3777 -
Fax:
713-400-9910 - Toll Free:
1-800-798-3778 |
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Email:
info@apartmentdirectionsinc.com |
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